by Kawai Nozomu, ministerial appointee  Pine United Methodist Church, San Francisco, CA

In 2016, I was appointed to serve Pine United Methodist Church in San Francisco as a Kyodan missionary. However my visa has yet to be issued. As of January 2017, I still remained in Japan. Given this situation, the Commission on Ecumenical Ministries decided to send me to visit Kyodan-related Japanese churches abroad to learn more about their circumstances and chose three churches in Europe. I visited the Cologne-Bonn Japanese Church in Germany; the Kobylisy Church in Prague, Czech Republic; and the Brussels Japanese Protestant Church in Belgium. In each of the churches, I had richly rewarding experiences. There are many things I would like to share, but here I will focus on two in particular.

First is the fact that people gathering together in Japanese churches abroad are yearning for relationships in the Japanese language. All of them are working and experiencing daily life in German, French, English, and other languages and generally have no serious difficulty communicating in a foreign language. However, there is still a strong desire for a church where they can hear a sermon in Japanese and enjoy fellowship in their native language. I think this is based on that deep influence and love of one’s mother tongue. A person who has been living in Germany for more than 45 years told me, “When speaking in German, there’s considerable mental and physical energy required. But when speaking in Japanese, it’s so easy.” These words are deeply embedded in my memory.

Secondly, I found that the missionary pastors serving in those churches are also experiencing loneliness. In Japan, there are neighborhood pastors to whom one can go and seek counsel and cooperation. However, when abroad, visiting a Japanese pastor might require hours by car or public transportation. Missionaries feel difficulty in talking about their worries and hardships with their congregants. As a result they keep these feelings inside and begin to experience added stress. If possible, I think the Kyodan should provide pastoral care for missionaries abroad by sending qualified personnel periodically to their areas of service.

Let me add a personal thought. When I was at the Brussels Japanese Protestant Church, I was the celebrant for the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. This congregation too has been waiting for a missionary to come from Japan, but also due to the delayed visa for that missionary, it had been a long time since the congregation had been able to celebrate communion. During the service, I served the cup and the bread to each member individually, and I could not help but feel the parishioners’ strong sense of joy and thanksgiving as they received the elements. Their deep desire for communion together was palatable. As a pastor, that moment filled me with exultation. I realized anew that I love this ministry to which I am called.

Even if distance separates us from each other on earth, our distance from God is always the same. All of us who share this earth together are held in the warm embrace of God. However, even believing this, Japanese Christians living abroad experience loneliness, alienation, and discrimination. Insuring that Japanese Christians abroad have more concrete means of experiencing God’s love is one of the tasks of the Kyodan. Through this trip to Europe, I thought to myself, “If there is anything I can do to accomplish this goal, I really want to do that."

(Tr. JS)

*Editorial note: In mid-March, after this article was written, the missionaries being sent to Brussels (Rev. Kawakami Yasushi and Rev. Kawakami Masaki) have received their visas. However, Rev. Kawai's visa has not yet been received.

「ヨーロッパの日本人教会を訪問して」

パ イン合同メソジスト教会（赴任予定）

川 合　望（かわい・のぞむ）

私は、日本基督教団の宣教師として、アメリカ・サンフ ランシスコにある「パイン合同メソジス ト教会」へと、2016年中に派遣される 予定でした。しかし、なかなかビザが 発給されずに、2017年1月 の今でも日本に留まっています。そこで、この時間を利用して、海外にある日本人教会を訪問し、その現状を知るために、ヨーロッパ研修 の旅へと出かけることとなりました。

　このヨーロッパ研修の旅で、私は3つ の教会を訪れました。ドイツ・ケルンのケルンボン日本語キリスト教会、チェコ・プラハのコビリシ教会、ベルギー・ブリュッセルのブ リュッセル日本語プロテスタント教会です。それぞれの教会で、とても貴重な経験をさせていただきました。話したいことはたくさんある のですが、ここでは、大きく2つの焦点に絞って書いていきます。

　ひとつは、海外の日本人教会に集う誰もが、日本語 での交流を求めているという点です。彼らは皆、ドイツ語やフランス語、または英語などで、仕事をしたり、日々の生活を送ったりしてい ます。外国語でのコミュニケーションに、特に大きな問題はありません。それでも、日本語での牧会、礼拝説教、そして交わりを望んでい ます。それが、やはり「母語」の重さなのでしょう。もう45年以上ドイツで暮 らしている人が、私にこう言いました。「ドイツ語を話すためには、かなりの気力と体力が必要です。日本語での会話は、とても楽で す」。この言葉が、私の記憶に深く刻まれています。

　もうひとつは、それぞれの教会に仕える宣教師（牧 師）も孤独を感じているという点です。日 本であれば、近所に仲間の牧師がいて、気軽に相談したり、助け合ったりできます。しかし、海外であれば、隣りの教会の日本人牧師に会 いに行くだけでも、電車や車で数時間かかることも珍しくありません。宣教師は、自分の悩みや苦しみなどを、教会員に打ち明けることも できず、ずっと胸の内に秘めています。それは、かなりのストレスです。もし可能であれば、教団が定期的に人を派遣して、海外の宣教師 への牧会的ケアがなされるように願います。

たとえ地上で遠く離れても、神からの距離は、どこでも同じです。地上に生きるすべての人が、神の温かな愛の眼差しに包まれています。 そうは信じていても、やはり、海外に生きる日本人クリスチャンは、孤独や疎外感、差別を感じずにはいられません。そのような方々のた めに、神の愛を目に見える具体的な形に表していくのも、日本基督教団の大切な職務のひとつです。そのために、「私にできることがある ならば、それを担っていきたい」と、このヨーロッパの旅を通じて、強く思いました。