St. Nicholas (Kasatkin), Archbishop of Japan, passed away on this day in 1912. February 16 is the namesday of the First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, to whom the editors of these reports wish many more blessed years of service to the Holy Church. The secret of the best Russian missionaries was in the fact that they were not “missionaries.” They were not those who spoke to “heathens” from a position of cultural superiority but rather genuine friends or even servants of these to whom they ministered. St. Nicholas was born in 1836 into a Deacon family in the Smolensk region. He was a “straight-A” student who graduated from Saint Petersburg Academy with a full scholarship from the state. There was a moment when God spoke to Ivan Kasatkin: when he read an advertisement recruiting a cantor for the Russian embassy church in Hokkaido. At this time, Japan was still under the anti-Christian law of 1612 (the consequences of which are depicted in the Scorsese movie Silence). There were almost no sources on Japanese history, not to mention language textbooks. In 1861, St. Nicholas arrived in Japan and could spend up to fourteen hours a day working on the language. Having realized that there were no adequate Japanese translations of the New Testament, he began to translate it himself, consulting Koine Greek, Chinese, and English texts. St. Nicholas’ meekness, respect and “upfrontness” helped him to dispel many prejudices against Russian Christianity. The church grew steadily, and in 1884–1891, Holy Resurrection Cathedral was built in Tokyo. Since then, it has become a renowned landmark in the city. In the same way as a Christian is expected to examine one’s life without double standards, in his Diaries, St. Nicholas looked at Russian history without rose-tinted glasses. In July 1904, during the Russo-Japanese War, he wrote in his Diary: “The Japanese are pounding us – all the peoples hate us. The Lord, God, clearly, is pouring out his wrath onto us. How could it be otherwise? What is there to love us and pity us for? Our nobility has been corrupted for centuries by feudalism and has been rendered depraved to the very marrow of its bones; the simple people have been oppressed for centuries by this same serfdom, and have been made ignorant and rude to the utmost degree; the civil service and authorities have lived through bribery and thievery, and now at all levels of service, there is criminal, unconscionable thievery wherever there is anything to steal; the ruling class is a collection of apes, imitators and admirers of France, England, Germany, and everything else foreign; the clergy, oppressed by poverty, can barely keep up with catechism: how are they to develop Christian ideals or sanctify themselves and others? Yet at the same time, we are of a mighty high opinion of ourselves: we are the only true Christians, we have the only true enlightenment, and over there is only dank and rot. And we are so strong that we will ‘pelt them with our caps’ [an allusion to a derisory saying about the Russo-Japanese War –ed.]. No, it is not for nothing that the present calamities are befalling Russia: she herself has brought them upon her. Only grant, O Lord, God, that this be a rod of instruction of Your Love! Lord, do not let my poor fatherland be perturbed to the end! Show clemency and preserve it!” Sources: Priest Dionisii Gordeev, A.Klimova, “Nikolai,” Pravoslavnaia Entsiklopedia. M.N.Bogoliubov, “Pravoslavie na Dal’nem Vostoke: Pamiati Sviatitelia Nikolaia, Apostola Iaponii,” [Orthodoxy in Far East: Remembering Holy Hierarch Nicholas: An Apostle of Japan]. Azbuka.ru. Relevant Resources: “The Foundation of Japanese Church,” Historical Studies of the Russian Church Abroad. “Church in North Korea,” Historical Studies of the Russian Church Abroad. |
