Footprints of Jurian Nakaura@No.3
In 1578, Jingo went to serve Shinpachiro, the eldest son of the lord Sumitada
Omura
(his baptismal name: Don Bartholomew), at the age of 11 at the discretion
of Sumitada.
Jingo left Nakaura where he was born and raised, and moved to Omura
(present Omura-city, Nagasaki prefecture) with his mother and his two sisters.
In Omura where the Christian feudal lord Sumitada Omura governed, about
117,000 people
lived in those days. 60,000 people, which is more than half of its entire
population were
Christians. Churches were built all over the place, and Christian hospitals
were built.
People of high position and of low position worshiped the same one God
together.
In this surroundings, Jingo became more interested in Jesus Christ.
There was a boy named Maruchino Hara, among those who had served Shinpachiro.
He was
the son of Tsukasa Haranaka, one of the subordinates of Sumitada Omura.
He lost his
parents in his childhood and was guided to come to Sumitada's Sanjo Castle
by Iruman
Rorenso. He had faith in Jesus Christ since his childhood through Rorenso.
Maruchino
became a good friend of Jingo and hung out with him. Jingo went to church
with Maruchino
who had gone there every Sunday. There Jingo was taught Jesus Christ.
Thus, finally Jingo got baptized and subsequently his mother and his two
sisters were
baptized through the guidance of Rorenso.
His baptismal name was "Jurian". Since then, Jingo Ozasa was called "Jurian Nakaura" in
the same way that his father was called "Nakaura-dono" for he
was the lord of Nakaura.
(The Kyoto Glory Church Translation Committee is
responsible for the wording of this article.)
(the ruin of Sanjo Castle
of Sumitada Omura)