Japanese ‘hidden Christian’ locations, Korean Buddhist temples in Unesco list
MANAMA: A dozen Christian locations in southern Japan, where members of the faith were once brutally persecuted, were selected for inclusion on the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation World Heritage list yesterday.
The 12 sites included 10 villages, Hara Castle and Oura Cathedral, a Catholic church in Nagasaki that was dedicated to 26 Christians executed for their beliefs four centuries ago.
The decision was announced in the Bahraini capital here. Unesco said the 12 sites “bear unique testimony to a cultural tradition nurtured by hidden Christians in the Nagasaki region who secretly transmitted their faith.”
Christianity in Japan dates back to 1549, when European Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier arrived with two companions.
As more missionaries arrived, Japanese leaders became suspicious of their influence and a crackdown began from 1589.
The Christians commemorated at Oura — 20 Japanese and six foreigners — were executed in Nagasaki in 1597 as the persecution intensified.
For local converts, hiding their religion became a matter of life and death for the next 250 years.
As they practised their faith but tried to blend in, the Christians created a religion that incorporated elements of Buddhism. It wasn’t until 1865 that these “hidden Christians”, or Kakure Kirishtan, became known outside of their communities.
A group of nervous peasants approached a French priest at Oura Cathedral and one woman whispered “our hearts are the same as yours”, prompting the discovery of what turned out to be tens of thousands of “secret” Japanese Christians.
Gothic-style Oura, which was built in 1864 by French priests and was known by locals as the “French temple”, is the oldest Christian building in Japan.
Meanwhile, seven ancient Korean mountain temples, which typify the way Buddhism in the country had merged with indigenous beliefs and styles, were also listed as world heritage sites.
The seven mountain temples — Seonamsa, Daeheungsa, Beopjusa, Magoksa, Tongdosa, Bongjeongsa, Buseoksa — were all established during the Three Kingdoms period that lasted until the 7th century AD.
During the religion’s heyday in the fifth and sixth centuries, many temples were built under state patronage, accelerating the importation of Buddhist culture, architecture and style.
But Buddhism’s influence began to wane after the Chosun dynasty, which took over in the 14th century, adopted Confucianism as its ideology and launched an extensive and enduring crackdown on the religion.
It forced many urban temples to close, leaving only those in remote hills to survive.