http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09744a.htm

You may not realize it but Japan once had a large Christian population which was later found to be a threat to the state and suffered persecution unlike that suffered anywhere else. This is the story of the martyrs who died for the Christian faith.

The history of the Kirishitans is pretty interesting, since it is interwined with the feudal struggles of Japanese clans of the era ...

The history of the Kirishitans is pretty interesting, since it is interwined with the feudal struggles of Japanese clans of the era ...
I find the story very sad. The missionaries brought a new religion and the common folk of Japan took to it. But the Samurai class were frightend of any cult that would say that the poor would inherit the earth so they did their best to erradicate it.

Well. As a Japanese from Japan, who now live in the UK, I have a bit different idea.

At the time, the Spanish people were colonising everywhere around the world. I don't think they were trying to colonise us, but the problem was the slave trade. Spanish and Portuguese people in Japan were exporting a lot of Japanese civilians, who refused to turn to Catholicism, to the other Spanish and Portugese colonies, notably Goa and Macau. Thus, Lord Hideyoshi Toyotomi asked the missionaries the following questions:

Why do you agitate people and cause riots?
Why don't you stop your fellow Spaniards from kidnapping and enslaving people?
Why do you kill cows which are extremely useful for agricultural works?
Why do you attack Buddhist temples?

He had no reply, but one remark from a priest telling him that Spain is a great country and can easily overtake Japan. As a result, Hideyoshi began to see Christianity as a means of colonisation and finally banned Christian missionaries to Japan.

Otherwise, we'd be speaking Spanish now.

persecution is bad.
but I have to say I have little respect for how the catholic church have tried to christianise the world, and the way they destroyed cultures. japan has allways been very carefull with maintaining its culture. the dutch werent even let into the country, they had to camp out on an artificial island away from any contact with japan. btw I did see a bunch of churches in japan, with nice plaquettes describing its history and all.