A Vision Beyond Their Horizons

by Donald D. Owens

On March 11, 2007, the Church of the Nazarene in Japan celebrated 100 years of ministry in a magnificent display of appreciation for its heritage, and with great expectation for the future. During the past century, Japan has undergone drastic economic and social changes that have been accompanied by changes in religion. The nation experienced three wars. Yet, in the midst of intense suffering, the Church of the Nazarene in Japan never lost its identity as a major force in the Wesleyan-Holiness movement and its spiritual life.

The Church of the Nazarene in Japan has been led by devoted ministers and lay leaders who distinguished themselves by their courage and commitment. Among them were such leaders as pastors Nobumi Isayama and Hiroshi Kitagawa.

More than symbolic of this commitment to the mission and message of the church were the recent responses of two devoted Japanese Nazarenes-an ordained minister, and a dedicated layperson, whose Nazarene roots are deeply embedded in the history of the church in that land. Motoko Araki, born in 1923, is the daughter of Nobumi Isayama, who was a leading figure in the beginning of the Church of the Nazarene in Japan. Motoko was baptized by her father in 1941. Following graduation from Arwin College, she began a teaching career. By 1956 she was teacher and principal of the Oyamadai Nazarene Kindergarten, a school from which 5,000 students have graduated.

Upon learning that funds were needed to build the denomination's Global Ministry Center (GMC) in Lenexa, Kansas, she gave $10,000* toward the project. She likes the idea of calling the new administrative and ministries campus a "Global Ministry Center." As a life-long member of the Church of the Nazarene, and in memory of her father, she wants to be a part of this vision.

Shigeru Higuchi, a distinguished pastor and church leader, was born in 1924 in Hikone City of the Shiga Prefecture. He was converted and baptized in 1945 and shortly afterward completed theological studies in Chiba. After pioneering churches in the Chiba Prefecture, over a 10-year span he developed the work of the church. During those years, he organized the Naha church and four others. In 1959, he was ordained by General Superintendent Hugh C. Benner. In 1991 Shigeru was elected district superintendent of the Japan District, a role in which he served for four years. Following this assignment he became director of the district office in Tokyo, where he still serves.

An accomplished violinist, Shigeru owned a certified antique violin manufactured in Cremona, Italy, by Katharina Abb&uumlhl, a world-renowned violin maker. When Shigeru learned of the GMC, he was moved by the Holy Spirit, and as he said, "the Nazarene spirit"-to sell his precious violin and contribute $10,000 toward the creation of the center.

These two gifts from Japanese Nazarenes, and $10,000 from the Anjung Church of the Nazarene in South Korea, are some of the earliest cash gifts for the project. Such sacrificial and heart-felt gifts are representative of the unity found in the international church and are providing inspiration for the global denomination.

Donald D. Owens is general superintendent emeritus in the Church of the Nazarene. *All amounts expressed in U.S. dollars. Holiness Today, July/August 2007

 

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