Imamura Tenshudo

Overview

Imamura Tenshudo is a Catholic church located in Ima, Ōtawashichō, Mitsui-gun, Fukuoka Prefecture. Completed in 1913 (Taisho 2), this red-brick church is designated as an Important Cultural Property of Japan. Imamura was home to a large number of Kakure Kirishitan (hidden Christians) who secretly practiced their faith during the Edo period. Christianity arrived in the region during the Sengoku period (Warring States period), and even Kurome Castle lord Kobayakawa Hidemasa, who became the lord of this area after Toyotomi Hideyoshi's conquest of Kyushu, was a devout Christian daimyo (feudal lord). Even after the Tokugawa shogunate's prohibition of Christianity, the Imamura believers continued their faith in secret. The current church's altar is located above the grave of Joan Magoemon, who was martyred in the early Edo period and later became an object of veneration among local believers. Towards the end of the Edo period, Father Bernard Petitjean of Nagasaki's Ōura Church worked to discover Kakure Kirishitan and help them return to the orthodox Catholic faith. In 1867 (Keio 3), Father Petitjean and his followers "discovered" the Imamura Christians. At that time, around 200 Christian households (approximately 100 in Imamura and 100 in surrounding areas) were living in hiding. The discovery of Christians in a flatland area was extremely rare, even in Kyushu, where many Kakure Kirishitan existed. Until the lifting of the ban on Christianity in 1873 (Meiji 6), the Imamura believers and Ōura Church maintained secret contact, preserving their faith. In October 1879 (Meiji 12), Father Jean-Marie Call came from Ōura to serve as pastor to the Imamura believers, baptizing 1,063 people within a year. Further construction and expansion of the church followed, leading to the planning of the church's reconstruction in 1908 (Meiji 41), which resulted in the construction of the present church. The church is a Romanesque-style red-brick building with hexagonal twin towers at the front. It's designed in a similar style to the former Nagasaki Urakami Church (destroyed by the atomic bomb) but on a smaller scale, making it the only brick church in Japan with twin towers. Tetsukawa Yosuke, who designed and constructed it, was responsible for many church buildings in Kyushu, primarily in Nagasaki Prefecture. This was his seventh church construction. Imamura Tenshudo is a tranquil space filled with history, culture, and faith. Why not spend some time here, taking in the beautiful architecture and stained glass?