Kyushu Nagasaki Area Churches
Saint Philip’s Church (Nishizaka Church)
Japanese Name: 聖フィリッポ西坂教会
The church, along with the adjacent museum, was built in 1962. The Japanese architect Kenji Imai designed both buildings. The church overlooks the spot where the 26 Martyrs of Japan were crucified. Its patron saint is Saint Philip of Jesus, one of the 26 Martyrs and the first ever Mexican Christian martyr. From April 2002, the Archdiocese of Nagasaki designated Nishizaka as a place of pilgrimage, and in 2012 the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Japan designated it as a national pilgrimage site.
Schedule of Mass
Every Monday to Friday at 6:00 a.m. (Japanese) and 6:00 p.m. (Japanese)
Every Saturday at 6:00 a.m. (Japanese)
Every Sunday at 6:00 a.m. (Japanese), 11:00 a.m. (Japanese), 12:30 p.m. (English), and 6:00 p.m. (Japanese)
Please note that confessions happen before the mass and upon request. Also, please be aware that on special occasions, mass schedules may change.
For inquiries regarding the use of St. Philip’s church, please contact the Jesuits in charge: +81-95-822-6000
Admission fee
Free, but there is a box inside the church for voluntary donations.
Special Notices
The church is generally open during the day as a place of prayer. Please be mindful of people praying if you wish to take photos within the church.
Access
Address: 7-8 Nishizaka Town, Nagasaki City, Nagasaki Prefecture
Website
Nakamachi Church
Japanese Name: カトリック中町教会
Nakamachi church is dedicated to Saint Thomas Nishi and his 15 companions (among whom was Saint Lorenzo Ruiz of the Philippines). It is a five-minute walk from Nishizaka. In 2015, as part of a set of events held to mark the 150th anniversary of the discovery of the Hidden Christians of Japan, statues of these 16 martyrs were built in the Japanese garden to the side of the church.
On August 9, 1945, fires caused by the atomic bombing reduced the majority of the church to ruins, leaving only the spire and the outer wall still standing. In October 1951 the church was rebuilt incorporating the original spire and outer wall, and since then it has retained this form.
Operating Hours
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Touring around the church grounds are not allowed when there are ceremonies and masses. Also, please take note that there will be occasions that the church will be closed.
Mass Application
For inquiries regarding the use of Nakamachi Church, please contact the Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region Information Centre:ch-info@kyoukaigun.jp.
Admission Fee
Free, but there is a box inside the church for voluntary donations.
Schedule of Mass
Every Monday to Friday at 6:00 a.m. (Japanese)
Every Saturday at 6:00 a.m. (Japanese) and 6:00 p.m. (Spanish)
Every Sunday at 11:00 a.m. (Japanese), 12:30 p.m. (English), and 6:00 p.m. (Japanese)
Please note that confessions happen before the mass and upon request. Also, please be aware that on special occasions, mass schedules may change.
Special Notices
■ As places of prayer, many of Nagasaki’s churches are, under normal circumstances, open. However, for management reasons, some may be closed.
■ The main door at the front of the church is principally for use when a Mass is being held. Before entering the church, please kindly remove one’s shoes and place them in the shoe rack provided. Please also remove one’s hat. Once inside, visitors are politely requested to remain quiet and respect the church’s spiritual atmosphere at all times.
■ Photography inside the church is usually prohibited.
■ There are no visitor toilets at the church. Please use restrooms elsewhere before arriving at the church.
Access
Address: 1-13 Nakamachi Town, Nagasaki City, Nagasaki Prefecture
Contact Details
Email address: martyrs@hotmail.com
Website
https://visit-nagasaki.com/spots/detail/550
Museum at the Site of Former Santo Domingo Church
Japanese Name: サント・ドミンゴ教会跡資料館
In 1602, Dominican friars began missionary work in Japan. They began their missionary activities in Kagoshima, but were there in 1609. They, therefore, disassembled the church they had constructed and rebuilt it in Nagasaki. However, it was destroyed only 5 years later following the ban on Christianity in Japan.
At that time, a statue of the Virgin Mary was taken to Manila so that it would not be destroyed. In the year 2002, the remains of the destroyed church were discovered beneath a local elementary school. A museum to house the ruins was subsequently built, and today it is open to the public.
Operating Hours
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Please note that the church is closed every Monday and on the 29th of December to the 3rd of January.
Admission Fee
Free
Access
Address: 30-1 Katsuyama Town, Nagasaki City, Nagasaki Prefecture (within the grounds of Sakura-machi Elementary School)
Website
https://visit-nagasaki.com/spots/detail/551
Urakami Cathedral
Japanese Name: 浦上教会
After 250 years of the ban on Christianity, the parishioners of Urakami (those who were part of the “miracle of the Orient”) overcame adversity yet again to build Urakami Cathedral, famed as the largest in the East at the time, with the help of a French priest. However, the church was located only 500 meters from the hypocenter of the atomic bomb and was destroyed on August 9, 1945, at the end of World War II.
A wooden figure of the Virgin Mary, miraculously found among the rubble, was dubbed the “Hibaku no Maria” (literally, the “A-bombed Mary”). This wooden statue watches over the rebuilt city. For inquiries regarding praying within the chapel which houses the original statue of the Hibaku no Maria, please consult the reception desk inside Urakami Cathedral.
Operating Hours
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Mass Application
For inquiries regarding the use of Urakami Cathedral, please contact the Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region Information Centre: ch-info@kyoukaigun.jp.
Admission Fee
Free, but there is a donation box for voluntary donations.
Special Notices
■ As places of prayer, many of Nagasaki’s churches are, under normal circumstances, open. However, for management reasons, some may be closed.
■ The main door at the front of the church is principally for use when a Mass is being held. Before entering the church, remove one’s shoes and place them in the shoe rack provided. Please also remove one’s hat. Once inside, visitors are politely requested to remain quiet and respect the church’s spiritual atmosphere at all times.
■ Photography inside the church is usually prohibited.
■ There are no visitor toilets at the church. Please use restrooms elsewhere before arriving at the church.
Click here
Access
Address: 1-79 Motoo Town, Nagasaki City, Nagasaki Prefecture
Web: http://www1.odn.ne.jp/uracathe/
Website
https://www.visit-nagasaki.com/spots/detail/211
Oura Cathedral
Japanese Name: 大浦天主堂
Oura Cathedral is the oldest church that exists in Japan. In 1865, shortly after the church’s construction, some Hidden Christians came to this church and confessed their faith to a French priest named Father Petitjean. They had been keeping their faith in secret for almost 250 years, throughout Japan’s long prohibition on Christianity. This was declared as the “miracle of the Orient” by the Pope Upon entering the church, it is still possible to see the same statue of the Virgin Mary that the Hidden Christians famously asked to see on that day.
An exhibition about Saint Maximilian Kolbe of Poland, who was killed at Auschwitz, is displayed in the Christian reference room of the former Latin Divinity School. These buildings are set to be listed as World Heritage sites in 2016.
Operating Hours
8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Reception is open until 5:45 p.m.
Fees
For adults, there is an admission fee of 1,000 yen. For students in high school and junior high, the fee is 400 yen, the fee for elementary school students is 300 yen.
Access
Address: 5-3 Minamiyamatemachi Town, Nagasaki City, Nagasaki Prefecture
Web: http://kyoukaigun.jp/en/visit/oura.php
Website
http://www.visit-nagasaki.com/spots/detail/207/
Saint Kolbe Memorial Museum / Hongouchi Church & Lourdes
Japanese Name: カトリック本河内教会
The Polish Conventual Franciscan friar, Saint Kolbe, arrived in Nagasaki in 1930. He established a monastery in 1931 and opened the Hongouchi Seminary, a previous incarnation of the Seibo no Kishi (Knights of the Immaculata) School, five years later inside the monastery. He made great efforts to propagate the faith through publications and to nurture Japanese priests, before returning to Poland in 1936. He was martyred, however, in the Auschwitz Concentration Camp after the invasion of the Nazis and was later canonized.
The Saint Kolbe Memorial Museum exhibits items with connections to Saint Kolbe and other relics, such as the articles of Friar Zenon, who came to Japan with Kolbe and devoted himself to saving war orphans. The second through fifth floors are currently being used as a living space for seminarians aspiring to join the OFM.
After Pope John Paul II arrived in Nagasaki in 1981, he visited the Seibo no Kishi Monastery and Saint Kolbe Memorial Museum. It is said that he had tears in his eyes, having been significantly moved after touching the relics left by Saint Kolbe.
Operating Hours
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Saint Kolbe Museum)
Mass Application
For inquiries regarding the use of Hongouchi Church (Order of Friars Minor Conventual), please contact the Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region Information Centre: ch-info@kyoukaigun.jp.
Admission Fee
Free, but there is a box inside the church for voluntary donations.
Special Notices
■ As places of prayer, many of Nagasaki’s churches are, under normal circumstances, open. However, for management reasons, some may be closed.
■ The main door at the front of the church is principally for use when a Mass is being held. Before entering the church, please kindly remove one’s shoes and place them in the shoe rack provided. Please also remove one’s hat. Once inside, visitors are politely requested to remain quiet and respect the church’s spiritual atmosphere at all times.
■ Photography inside the church is usually prohibited.
■ There are no visitor toilets at the church. Please use restrooms elsewhere before arriving at the church
Access
Address: 2-2-1 Hongouchi, Nagasaki City, Nagasaki Prefecture
Website
https://visit-nagasaki.com/spots/detail/560
Shitsu Church / Former Shitsu Aid Centre Buildings / Fr. De Rotz Memorial Museum
Japanese Name: カトリック出津教会
In 1879, Fr. De Rotz (MEP) took up residence in Kurosaki District of Shitsu, Sotome, where many hidden Christians lived. He devoted his life to Sotome and built the Shitsu Church in 1882 on a windy plateau with an incline. He taught diverse technical skills to women and created a welfare facility for the poor. The Shitsu Church is a 2016 World Heritage site candidate.
Operating Hours
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Saint Kolbe Museum)
The Former Shitsu Aid Center Buildings is closed during Mondays (the following day if Monday is a holiday) and from December 29 to January 6.
Mass Application
For inquiries regarding the use of Shitsu Church, please contact Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region Information Centre: ch-info@kyoukaigun.jp.
Tour Application / Contact Information
It is necessary to apply for visits at the Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region Information Centre beforehand. Please submit your application from the website.
Contact: Click here
Please refrain from directly contacting or sending inquiries to the church.
Special Notices
■ It is necessary to apply for visits to the Nagasaki Church Information Center beforehand.
■ As places of prayer, many of Nagasaki’s churches are, under normal circumstances, open. However, for management reasons, some may be closed.
■ The main door at the front of the church is principally for use when a Mass is being held. Before entering the church, please kindly remove one’s shoes and place them in the shoe rack provided. Please also remove one’s hat. Once inside, visitors are politely requested to remain quiet and respect the church’s spiritual atmosphere at all times.
■ Photography inside the church is usually prohibited.
■ There are no visitor toilets at the church. Please use restrooms elsewhere before arriving at the church.
Access
Address: 2633 Nishishitsumachi Town, Nagasaki City, Nagasaki Prefecture
Web: http://kyoukaigun.jp/en/visit/shitsu.php
Website
http://www.nagasaki-tabinet.com/junrei/1094/
Ono Church
Japanese Name: 大野教会堂
The Ono Church was designed by Fr. De Rotz and constructed by Catholic followers. Fr. De Rotz added his touch to the local masonry techniques to build a wall that could withstand strong winds, and the building still retains its original structure today. The Church is a 2016 World Heritage site candidate.
Mass Application
For inquiries regarding the use of Ono Church, please contact Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region Information Centre: ch-info@kyoukaigun.jp.
Tour Application / Contact Information
It is necessary to apply for visits at the Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region Information Centre beforehand. Please submit your application from the website.
Contact: Click here
Please refrain from directly contacting or sending inquiries to the church.
Special Notices
■ It is necessary to apply for visits to the Nagasaki Church Information Center beforehand.
■ As places of prayer, many of Nagasaki’s churches are, under normal circumstances, open. However, for management reasons, some may be closed.
■ The main door at the front of the church is principally for use when a Mass is being held. Before entering the church, please kindly remove one’s shoes and place them in the shoe rack provided. Please also remove one’s hat. Once inside, visitors are politely requested to remain quiet and respect the church’s spiritual atmosphere at all times.
■ Photography inside the church is usually prohibited.
■ There are no visitor toilets at the church. Please use restrooms elsewhere before arriving at the church.
Access
Address: 2619 Shimo-onomachi Town, Nagasaki City, Nagasaki Prefecture
Web: http://kyoukaigun.jp/en/visit/ono.php
Website
https://www.nagasaki-tabinet.com/junrei/1092/
