The mission for the evangelization of Japan by the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer began on 8th May 1948 with the arrival of three Redemptorist missionaries from the French-speaking Canadian Province of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré. In September 1948 three more confreres came from the English-speaking Canadian Province of Toronto and another three arrived from the Province of München, Germany on 10th September 1953.

​​

The Province of Sainte-Anne de Beaupré established the Vice-Province of Tokyo on 28th November 1955. The Province of Toronto established the Vice-Province of Maizuru on 4th January 1966. The Province of München established the Vice-Province of Kagoshima on 24th October 1966. In April 1974 the Vice-Province of Kagoshima took over the house and parish of Nagasaki that had originally been opened by the Vice-Province of Tokyo. When the Vice-Province of Maizuru was closed on 21st October 1981 the territory was incorporated into the Vice-Province of Tokyo.

​​

The Vice-Province of Tokyo and the Vice-Province of Kagoshima formed a new unit, the Vice-Province of Japan under the General Government on 5th January 2015.

​​​

----------

 

​REDEMPTORIST VICE-PROVINCE OF TOKYO (November 28, 1955 - January 5, 2015)

​

The Redemptorist Order first set foot on Japanese soil on May 8, 1948 in Yokohama. At that time in Japan, the war had ended, religious freedom had been established, and interest in Christianity was on the rise. However, there were not enough clergy in the country to meet these expectations, so many religious orders came to Japan from overseas to evangelize. In this situation, the Order accepted an invitation from the Bishop of Yokohama and sent three priests from the French-speaking Province of Sainte-Anne de Beaupré. All of the houses and churches of this vice-province, except for its house in Tokyo, will be located in the Diocese of Yokohama. The province's first two Japanese vocations, Fathers Nori and Yoshiyama, emerged from this initial connection in Yokohama. By the end of 1948, recruitment and training centers were being set up. Some seminarians of the province were enrolled at Sophia University in Tokyo, which became a factor in establishing a house in the capital city. 

​

Here are some important dates in the history of the vice-province:

​

1951 - The Redemptorists moved away from the Taito District (where they were using an unburnt warehouse as a church and monastery) and established its first real monastery in Hatsudai, a district of Shibuya in Tokyo. The house in Ofuna also gains its autonomy.

​

1955 - The Redemptorists founded houses and missions in Okaya, Nagasaki (which was ceded to the Vice-Province of Kagoshima in 1977), and a retirement home or a house for elderly was established in Kajigaya. On November 28, the mission was founded as the Vice-Province of Tokyo, which composed of 20 priests and 6 brothers. The Redemptorists of the Vice-Province of Hue (Vietnam) also sent to Tokyo additional personnel to help in running the different missions of the vice-province. 

​

1956 - A Catholic parish under the advocation of St Alphonsus Liguori was established in Hatsudai, where the monastery was greatly expanded and a church and a hall was built. 

​

1958 - A house was established in Kami-suwa.

​

1960 - A house was established in Fujimi (Saitama Prefecture).

​

1964 - A house was established in Chino (Nagano Prefecture).

​

1981 - The vice-province takes over all of the missions, houses and churches of the Vice-Province of Maizuru, which was established by the English-speaking Canadian province of Toronto.

​

2015 - The Vice-Province of Tokyo merged with the Vice-Province of Kagoshima to form the Vice-Province of Japan, which is under the General Government in Rome. 

​

REDEMPTORIST VICE-PROVINCE OF MAIZURU (December 25, 1965 - October 21, 1981)

​​

Upon a request from the Sacred Congregation of Propagation of the Faith, the Toronto Province decided to establish a mission in Japan. On April 25, 1948, a departure ceremony at St. Patrick’s church in Toronto was held for Fr. James Fuller as superior, Frs. Raymond Horn and William James.

​​

Established first in Maizuru of the Diocese of Osaka, the English-speaking Canadian Redemptorists were part of an international community of religious orders in Japan. By 1953, there were nine members of the Toronto Province serving in small parishes and as builders of chapels/churches and as chaplains in schools and hospitals. Brother George Pope taught English (1967-1984) at Nanzan University in Nagoya. Under Fr. Fuller, a former Toronto Province Novice Master, a Novitiate was opened in 1950 for Japanese vocations. By 1962, the mission consisted of 13 priests and Br. George Pope from the Toronto Province. In the 1960s, newly-ordained priests and seminarians of the Toronto Province were assigned to the mission. On Dec. 25, 1965, the Vice Province of Maizuru was established under the Toronto Province and continued until it was dissolved in 1981. Fr. David Weir returned in 1993-2000 as pastor of the parish in Higashi, Maizuru. Br. George Pope retired in Suita, a suburb of Osaka, and died in Nagoya with some students at his bedside. Three Toronto Province confreres – Br. George Pope, Frs. Charles Brocklehurst and Patrick Hennessey – were buried in the local cemetery in Nishi-Maizuru.

​

 ​​​​