Footprints of Sourin Otomo (No.4)
Xavier spread the Gospel at Goa of India, where he met Yajiro who ran away
from Malacca for
a murder. He then decided to go to Japan. He spent about one year in Kagoshima,
then
moved to Hirato, Hakata, Yamaguchi and Kyoto, and went back to Yamaguchi
again.
Sourin had heard about Xavier because the Ouchi family in Yamaguchi was
the house of Sourin's mother's side. Sourin invited Xavier to increase
wealth and military power by innovating foreign cultures and goods. Xavier
gladly responded to his invitation because he had heard the news
that the Portuguese ship of Captain Gama whom Xavier met in Malacca entered
port in Bungo.
It was a hot season that Xavier went over mountains to Sourin's country
with two attendants
carrying heavy sacramental instruments. Spectators laughed and some kids threw stones at
them along the way because they looked shabbily. However Xavier came expecting
that Sourin
would have a faith.
When Xavier saw Sourin, he showed him the statue of Jesus. "Is this
god? Do you worship
the man who was crucified with such a miserable way with nothing on as
a god?" Sourin did
not take his story seriously and talked about trading with Captain Gama.
Therefor Captain Gama
insisted on the condition that Xavier freely preach the Gospel in Sourin's
country and Sourin
accepted it. Xavier was dissapointed to see Sourin's interest was only trading.
After talking about trading, Sourin questioned about why Padre went unmarried
and about
prayer. Then he asked about the god who died on the cross. Xavier answerd him saying, "Even though He was noble, He carried the sins of all human beings like us and died." Listening to
this, Sourin finally got interested in the Gospel. However when Xavier
tried to mention about
sins, and Sourin talked about "worldly desires and obsession from former incarnation".
When Xavier mentioned Resurrection, Sourin questioned, " how does
it differ from
transmigration?" just trying to show how much he had a knowledge of
Buddhism.
Even though Xavier advised Sourin to study the Bible gradually, Sourin
turned down his advice
for the reasons that his Buddhist retainers would rebel against him and
his wife Yano might
think badly of doing it for she had a Shinto background, and finished the
interview.
Xavier felt sorry for Sourin's attitude. Furthermore Xavier became aware
of the language
problem for preaching the gospel in Japan.
Though it was in Kagoshima, Yajiro preached the Gospel translating the
Lord the Creator of
all as"Dainichi", and heaven "Jodo". However, Xavier disliked to overlap Christianity
with Japanese religions.
Buddhist religion was introduced in Japan and well blended with original
Japanese religion,
Shintoism. Not only that, during the era when China was called Tang, there was a religion
called Keikyo which was influenced by Nestorian Christianity. Today, people visit a Shinto
shrine when a children is born, they get married at a Christian church, and they have a
funeral in Buddhist style without hesitation. It might look superficially peaceful but we will
never be able to receive salvation through them. After staying at Bungo
for two months,
Xavier decided to return to Malacca and Goa because he was concerned that he had not
heard from people there. Sourin heard about Xavier's return and he saw Xavier once again.
This time Sourin appealed the thirst of his soul.
Will he be able to drink the water so that he may never thirst?
(The Kyoto Glory Church Translation Committee is responsible for the wording
of this article.)