Japanese Bishops' Plea For Peace

In the recent Catholic Peace Weekly, a journalist gives the readers the words of the Archbishop of Tokyo, the president of the Japanese Bishops' Conference, and his fears about the direction of the world.

He appealed on the 6th to join the "Synod’s Journey to Find Peace" as the Japanese Church began the "10 Days of Prayer for Peace."  He expressed his reflection on World War II which broke out in 1939 and asked that the world not be allowed to be caught up in the whirlpool of war and violence again.

On July 16 the Archbishop released a message titled “Indifference Takes Lives (無関心) on the website of the Bishops’ Conference of Japan, expressing concern about the “violence” spreading around the world— Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, and Myanmar. He lamented, “After World War II, the world swore that ‘we will not repeat evil,’ but looking at the world today, I wonder if this pledge is being kept,” and added, “Once (violence) begins, there is no end.”

Archbishop Kikuchi especially noted the phenomenon of ‘human alienation’ that has spread behind technological development, saying, “Along with the spread of artificial intelligence (AI), a ‘globalization of indifference’ is in progress.” Archbishop Kikuchi emphasized; in today’s society, everyone seems to be treated as isolated ‘somethings’ on screens. However, in reality, our brothers and sisters are being deprived of life.” He added, “It is humans who create violence, and it is our indifference that fuels it.”

Archbishop Kikuchi prayed that the upcoming Jubilee of 2025 would be the starting point for the ‘Synod for Peace.’ Archbishop Kikuchi said, “Pope Francis is asking us to walk a synodal journey path, accompanying our most vulnerable brothers and sisters,” adding, “We must remember that only we can stop the violence against life that we have witnessed countless times, and in the depths of despair, the Church must be a pilgrim of hope.”

The Japanese Church has been praying the “10 Days of Prayer for Peace” every August since 1982. This is a time to remember the ‘original sin’ of the past and pledge to participate in actions to protect peace, following the teaching of Pope John Paul II in Hiroshima, Japan in 1981 that “to remember the past is to participate in the future.” During this period, Japanese churches held peace prayer masses, prayer meetings, lectures, and seminars to raise awareness of peace and justice.