Kobe Chuo (central) Catholic Church

Was sightseeing in Kobe recently and came across this church. I was too late for mass but stopped in anyway for a prayer and photos. At first it almost doesn’t look Catholic. Where is the tabernacle candle, the stations of the cross, and a cross of Christ crucified. I was in a church in Manhattan near wall street sightseeing and although it was Episcopal (I think) it at first glance looked more Catholic than this place.

Upon closer inspection though one can see the stations of the cross are in the stained glass windows, the tabernacle candle is there but hidden by the curve of one of the windows at the front, and Christ on the cross well um there is a statue and the bricks are raised out from the wall in a cross-like shape. Does that count? If anyone is interested here is their website in Japanese only as far as I can see http://www.kobe-chuo.catholic.ne.jp/ English mass is @ 11:15am on Sunday and in Japanese @9:15am.

Sorry if the photo quality isnt perfect, also notice in front of the altar there are sunflowers. After the Great Hanshin earthquake in 1995 these flowers became very popular because of the story of one little girl http://www.jamco.or.jp/english/library/documentary/dc280000/dc280435.html

Papal Letter to China– Japan who is JP2?

I read that websites in China that had put up the full text of the Pope’s letter to China were quickly asked to take it down. That kind of thing would not happen in Japan these days since the Japanese government is so out of touch they sent an ex foreign minister to Pope John Paul II’S funeral. Yes it ha been a couple of years but it still irks me that ever other country, except Bangladesh (they sent their Food and Disaster Management Minister) and Japan, sent presidents, prime ministers, princes and the like. Japan sends Yoriko Kawaguchi ex foreign minister and at that time advisor to the PM. For the whole list see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_dignitaries_at_the_funeral_of_Pope_John_Paul_II#J

Back in the early 80s JP2 visited Japan and spent 45 minutes meeting with the then Emperor Showa a man who if he had not passed away before the Pope would have probably insisted someone higher ranking attend the funeral. My point of all of this is that while China does not allow the entire letter to be on websites, appoints its own bishops and so on, Japan is the opposite where people have basically no real idea of what a Catholic or Protestant is, and not because the government stops them from knowing but they have just never heard.

Ive had dear friends who are well educated and well traveled not know that there is a difference between Catholic and Protestant Bibles. One of these friends, a very bright person, was completely unaware that St. Francis Xavier was Catholic. There is a painting of St Francis Xavier that most Japanese recognise when it is aired on quiz shows as a question, or recognise his name but surprisingly a bunch of people I know don’t know his religion.

‘Til I ramble again…