Footprints of Jurian Nakaura@No.2
Nakaura in the Hizen Province (present Saikai-city in Nagasaki) where Jingo was born and
raised is a village located at northwest of Sonogi Peninsula in Nagasaki
prefecture. East
China Sea sweeps away within a few minutes' walk. It is a bright beautiful village
surrounded by sea. A port called Yokoseura which is close to Nakaura was
the one of the
trading bases with Portugal besides Hirato and Nagasaki.
Luis Frois, a Jesuit missionary, who wrote the book "Historia de lapan"
which is invaluable
and necessary to know medieval history of Japan, had landed on this Yokoseura,
and began
to preach the gospel in Japan.
Sumitada Omura, a feudal lord of west Sonogi peninsula, made his way over to Cosme de
Torres, Christian Father, (second Father Provincial of Japan after Xavier)
in order to alter
the trading with Portugal to his advantage, and donated this Yokoseura
as the church's
territory. Accordingly, Yokoseura became the center of the missionary work
of Christianity
in Hizen Province. Then Sumitada Omura himself believed in Jesus Christ,
and finally got
baptized with his 20 subordinates in 1563. It was 4 years before Jingo
was born.
Jingoro Ozasa, Jingo's father, had served under this Christian feudal lord,
Sumitada Omura,
and died in the battle against Ryuzoujishi - Omura's longtime foe. Thus,
Jingo lost his father
at a tender age, and lived in the land with his mother and two sisters.
In those days, Iruman (means 'missionary') Rorenso Ryosai came to the land of Saikai and
began to preach the gospel. He was a blind man and was once a biwa minstrel.
He met
Francis Xavier then had faith in Christ and got saved. He became a first Japanese to be a
Jesuit missionary and had worked especially in Kyoto. Many Japanese met Jesus Christ
through Iruman Rorenso who was described as "a great missionary" in "Historia
de lapan"
by Frois. Among those, there were Tadamasa Yuki, Shigekata Kiyohara (father of Maria
Kiyohara who told the gospel to Gracia Hosokawa), Tomoteru Takayama, and his son Ukon
Takayama, as well as Yoriteru Sanga, Norimasa Ikeda, Handayu Miki (father
of Paul Miki).
Little Jingo had heard the story of God named Jesus who died on the cross
for his own sin,
for the first time through Rorenso, the Christ's biwa minstrel.
(The Kyoto Glory Church Translation Committee is
responsible for the wording of this article.)