The city of Karuizawa is a famous summer resort in Nagano Prefecture where people go to escape the heat. Nowadays, Karuizawa is invaded by shoppers looking for outlet shopping malls and by tourists from overseas. No one can deny that the center of the bustle is Karuizawa Ginza, a street lined with many famous stores. Karuizawa Church is located on that street. Many famous tourist attractions, such as Karuizawa Tennis Club and St. Paul’s Catholic Church, are concentrated in one small area. Karuizawa Church itself is set back away from the street, so perhaps that is why the building is wrapped in a quiet tranquility—quite the opposite of the hustle and bustle of the street in front of the building. In June 2016, the Reverend Matsumura Saori began serving as the interim pastor of the church.
Well over a century ago, the church was started by Daniel Norman, a missionary sent by the Methodist Church of Canada, later the United Church of Canada. The church building was finished in 1905, and the kindergarten was founded in 1916. Architect William M. Vories, who also founded The Omi Brotherhood, Ltd., designed the buildings.
Alexander Croft Shaw of the United Kingdom’s Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts is believed to have laid the foundation for Karuizawa’s development as a summer resort, but it was Daniel Norman together with William Vories who built on Shaw’s work to develop the church. The front of the sign at the entrance to the church says, “Kyodan Karuizawa Church.” However, the back of the sign says, “Karuizawa Union Church of Christ.” Just like the Union Church that is next door to Karuizawa Church, the name “Karuizawa Union Church of Christ” speaks of the fact that since the time the church was established, it has been an interdenominational church and has opened its doors to missionaries and Christians from several different denominational backgrounds.
This interdenominational tradition has continued until the present time. When summertime comes, there are people who cross denominational lines to attend worship, such as Hoshino Tomihiro, who sojourned for a long time in order to compile collections of art and poetry. Some members say things like, “Because our child is sick, we really like the abundance of natural beauty in Karuizawa, so we bought a villa and have started living here,” or “I was baptized when I was a student, but I have had to relocate so many times because of my husband’s work, so I have been away from church for such a long time. My husband likes the mountains of Nagano, so we chose Karuizawa as our retirement home.” There are also many people who say that they transferred from another church because they were drawn to the environment of Karuizawa.
Among the people here, there are some like Masaki Ryuji. He left his job in Tokyo and became the leader of Karuizawa Symphonic Chorus, which performs joint concerts with another chorus group from Ishinomaki, a city that was devastated by the East Japan Disaster. Of course, there are also those who have lived in Karuizawa all their lives. “A long time ago, many middle school and high school students were coming. I have been involved in Karuizawa Church since I was a student,” recalls Ichimura Naoko, who served as the director of Karuizawa Kindergarten until seven years ago.
The Reverend Furuya Hironori, who at the time of the interview was the pastor of Karuizawa Church, commented, “Many people visit our church, some for a short time and others for a long time. Our church is located in a summer resort, so I think it should be a place of spiritual rest for pastors and members of other churches.”
Karuizawa Kindergarten has cooperated for many years with nearby Kutsukake Gakuso in order to take on the important mission of child education. It has been almost 100 years since Karuizawa Kindergarten first opened. Kutsukake Gakuso is a group home for children from ages 2 to 18 who, for one reason or another, are not able to live with their families. The children can live with the staff members. The home was founded during World War II and has been cooperating with Karuizawa Church ever since the end of the war. The management of Kutsukake Gakuso is carried out by Kobokan, which has the official status of social welfare corporation. Kobokan was founded in 1919, and its purpose is to put into practice social welfare based on the teachings of Christianity. The headquarters are in Sumida Ward, located in Tokyo.
“These days there are more and more parents and children who have difficulty forming relationships because of psychological problems. There are more children who cannot live in their own homes due to a variety of circumstances. This is a home for such children. I hope that it can be a place of healing for family relationships,” says Nohara Kenji, director of Kutsukake Gakuso, about its mission. “There are more and more cases that cannot be handled at child consultation centers. We work together with the church like the wheels of a car work together,” says Uno Aogu, a staff member.
A childcare professional takes the children to church every Sunday. This activity is part of the Christian nurturing program that is in line with the ideals of Kobokan. The staff members also testify of having been supported by the church. Ando Miwako, who formerly worked at Kutsukake Gakuso, says, “A long time ago, the Reverend Takamori Shigemitsu used to come from the church to Kutsukake to lead a Bible study on Wednesday evenings. Listening to him was like rowing a boat while exhausted. But that experience led to my baptism.”
Because Karuizawa is a summer resort, there is a big difference between the number of worship service attendees in the summer and the number of attendees in the winter. At the same time, as mentioned earlier, the size of the church is also affected as people move into the area and transfer membership to Karuizawa Church from other churches. Such unique circumstances mean that this church faces unique challenges. Through education, Karuizawa church is involved in mission work that is targeted to match this unique local community. (Tr. KT)
—From Shinto no Tomo (Believers’ Friend), April 2016 issue
(Summarized by KNL Editor Kawakami Yoshiko)
p5
北陸新幹線が開通してから便が増え、
取材に訪れたのは紅葉の名残りがまだ美しい昨年の晩秋。
この日はたまたま幼児祝福礼拝の日。
説教に立った古屋博規牧師はその子どもたちに、「
ノーマン先生とはカナダ・メソジスト教会(
軽井沢発展の基礎を築いたのはイギリス海外福音伝道会のアレキサ
教会の玄関に掲げられた看板の表には「日本基督教団軽井沢教会」
実は、この伝統は今に引き継がれている。
中には真崎隆治さんのように東京に仕事を残しつつ、
こうした教会のあり方について古屋牧師は、「教会には短期・
沓掛学荘は満2歳から18歳までの、
施設長の野原健治さんは沓掛学荘の使命をこう語る。「
事実、
軽井沢は避暑地ゆえに夏と冬の礼拝出席者数の差が大きい。他方、