Pope Francis assured his prayers for Christians “who in our days suffer persecution and even death for the name of Jesus.” The Holy Father said this during his audience with members of the Hidden Christian Research Association of Japan on 30 November.
In his message to the Japanese association dedicated to protecting the sites of hidden Christians in the Nagasaki region, which bear witness to evangelization in Japan and which were declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2018, the Holy Father thanked them “for their efforts to preserve these places as precious testimonies of a great but hidden chapter in the history of the universal Church and of its noble people.”
“I hope that the recognition of the importance of these sites, in addition to ensuring their proper conservation, will also serve as a living testimony to the fidelity of many Japanese Christians, who have passed on the precious treasure of faith as a legacy from generation to generation.”
He also recalled that “I will have the joy of creating another Japanese cardinal on 7 December,” referring to Archbishop Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi of Tokyo.
The Pope stressed that his meeting with the Japanese delegation took place a few days before “the celebration of the memory of St. Francis Xavier, the great missionary who dreamed that the preaching of the Gospel would produce a rich harvest of souls in your native land.”
“As heirs to that dream, may your educational and conservation work make this eminent chapter in the history of evangelization better known and appreciated,” he encouraged.
“Dear friends, when we think of the heroism of the first missionaries, the courage of the Japanese martyrs and the perseverance of the small but faithful Catholic community in your country, how can we fail to think of our Christian brothers and sisters who in our day suffer persecution and even death for the name of Jesus? I ask you to join me in praying for them and for those who suffer the bitter fruits of war, violence, hatred and oppression,” he said.
The Holy Father also encouraged us to trust “in the intercession of Our Lady, Mother of the Church, and to pray with even greater fervour for the coming of the Kingdom of Christ, the Kingdom of universal reconciliation, justice and peace.”