2013-11-06 18:25:27

Japan’s Sophia Catholic University celebrates centenary


06 November, 2013 - Japan’s Sophia University could be called “the heart of the Church in the country,” said Fr.Mario Bianchi, Regional Superior of the Pontifical Institute of Foreign Missions or PIME. Speaking about the Catholic University’s first centenary, he said the educational institution “embodies the efforts by Catholics, especially by the Society of Jesus, to proclaim the Gospel in the “Land of the Rising Sun” and to become inculturated. Some 4,000 people took part in the cenetenary celebrations, including Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko. Pope Francis was represented by Cardinal Renato Farina who read a papal message stressing St. Francis Xavier’s commitment to Japan’s evangelization and the courageous missionary saint’s closeness to the University’s founders, who “followed in his footsteps.” Sophia University began as a theological seminary run by Jesuits. After World War, II, it underwent a major expansion. The University truly embodies efforts by Catholics, especially by the Society of Jesus, which in Japan is a major force in education, to pass on the evangelical and Christian message.








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