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<!-- c/o, since the OCJ page doesn't refer him; Saiama could be "Sayama", if so, it should refer Archbishop Sayama-sama (I don't know how to address properly in English, who was Archbishop of Podovorie, now retired and in St. Sophia Monastry in Chiba
* [[Nicholas (Saiama) of Kyoto|Nicholas (Saiama)]], Bishop of Kyoto and Western Japan -->
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hq=Tokyo, Japan|
territory=Japan|
possessions= ?—|
language=Japanese|
music=[[Russian Chant]]|
calendar=[[Julian Calendar|Julian]]|
population=3010,000[http://www.cnewainterfax-religion.orgcom/ecc-japan.htm?act=news&div=4939]|
website=[http://www.orthodoxjapan.jp/ Church of Japan]
}}
==History==
St. [[Nicholas of Japan]] ([[baptism|baptized]] as Ivan Dimitrievich Kasatkin) brought Orthodoxy to Japan in the 19th Century. In 1861 he was sent by the [[Church of Russia]] to Hakodate, Hokkaido, as a [[priest]] to a chapel of the Russian consulate. Though the contemporary Shogun's government prohibited the Japanese [[conversion]] to Christianity, soon some neighbors who frequently visited the chapel . In April 1868, among them three converted—-- Nicholas's first three converts in Japan. While they were his first converts in Japan, they were not the first Japanese to do so—some Japanese who had settled in Russia had converted to Orthodoxy.
{{orthodoxyinjapan}}
Apart from brief trips, Nicholas stayed in Japan, even during the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), and spread Orthodoxy nationwide, being appointed as the first [[bishop]] of Church of Japan. Nicholas founded the Cathedral of Tokyo in Kanda district and spent over fifty years of his life there; hence [[Holy Resurrection Cathedral (Tokyo, Japan)]] was nicknamed ''Nikolai-do'' by Kanda citizens.
The early mission to establish the Japanese Orthodox Church depended on the Russian Orthodox Church, especially in financial matters. The war between Russia and Japan created a politically difficult situation for the church. After the Bolshevik Revolution, the Japanese government had new suspicions about the Japanese Orthodox Church, in particular, that it was used as a cover for communist Russian espionage. The second bishop of Japan, [[Metropolitan]] [[Sergius (Tikhomirov) of Japan|Sergius (Tikhomirov)]], suffered severely from such governmental suspicion, and he was forced to resign his episcopacy and died under strange circumstances on [[August 10]], 1945, five days before the end of the war. The Russian Church similarly suffered from Stalinist policy and had no ability to help the young church in Japan.
During the Fifteen Years War (1930-1945), which from 1939 to 1945 was part of World War II, Christianity in Japan suffered under severe conditions, the Orthodox Church especially. After As early as the Japanese surrenderlast years of Abp. Nicholas' life, the Allied occupation had church administration considered consecration of a generous attitude Japanese to Christianitythe episcopacy. While over the following decades various candidates were considered, given its predominantly American compositionnone were formally nominated for various reasons. As The situation for the church changed in 1939 when the majority Diet of the Slavic- and Greek-Americans would attend local Orthodox parishes, Orthodoxy in Japan took a step forwardenacted legislation requiring government registration of churches. During The registration process meant foreigners could not serve in positions of authority within the warchurch, although the legislation itself did not prohibit non-Japanese Orthodox Church had almost no foreign contactfrom such positions. After Throughout 1940, the church leadership divided over how to satisfy the warlaw, instead of and Metr. Sergius was "retired". As the Russian Churchfactions endorsed various candidates, the precursors one group had approached representatives of the [[Russian Orthodox Church in AmericaOutside of Russia]] (OCAROCOR) helped re-establish , and quickly elected the Japanese Orthodox Church, [[Archpriest]] [[Nicholas (Ono) of Japan|John Ono]] for consecration as a bishop. Fr. John and his wife Vera traveled to Manchuria where both took [[monasticism|monastic]] vows and several youth who studied at Fr. John was consecrated bishop with the OCA's name Nicholas on [[StApril 6]], 1941. The disagreement between the two major factions continued throughout the war. Vladimir<ref>Masatoshi John Shoji, ''The Orthodox Church of Japan, 1912-1954: A Time of Troubles'', Master's Orthodox Theological Seminary (CrestwoodThesis, New York)|St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary]] in , Crestwood, New York are now the leaders of Japanese Orthodox Church., May 2007</ref>
After the Japanese surrender, the Allied occupation had a generous attitude to Christianity, given its predominantly American composition. Control over the Church of Japan by the Soviet dominated Church of Russia was forestalled by the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers through the efforts of Colonel [[Boris T. Pash]], who was the son of Metr. [[Theophilus (Pashkovsky) of San Francisco|Theodosius (Pashkovsky)]] of the American Metropolia.<ref>Pash, Boris T., "Checkmate!," The American Legion Magazine, April, 1958, pp14-15, 42-43.</ref> As the majority of the Slavic- and Greek-Americans would attend local Orthodox parishes, Orthodoxy in Japan took a step forward. During the war, the Japanese Orthodox Church had almost no foreign contact. After the war, instead of the Russian Church, the American Metropolia, the precursors of the [[Orthodox Church in America]] (OCA) helped re-establish the Japanese Orthodox Church, and since 1946 Archbishops appointed by the American Metropolia ruled the Church of Japan. In that time, several youth who studied at the OCA's [[St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary (Crestwood, New York)|St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary]] in New York are now the leaders of Japanese Orthodox Church. While a minority, under the leadership of Bp. [[Nicholas (Saiama)|Nicholas]] aligned itself with the Moscow Patriarchate, and were known as the "Russian Podvorye Orthodox Church in Japan". Later, as the situation of the Russian Orthodox Church improved, the Japanese Orthodox Church came under the leadership of the [[Church of Russia]] again. In 1970 [[Nicholas of Japan|Nikolai Kasatkin]] was glorified by the Patriarch of Moscow and is recognized as St. Nikolai, [[Apostle]] to Japan. His commemoration day is [[February 16]]. In 2000 , the Russian Orthodox Church [[Glorification|glorified]] Bishop [[Andronik of Perm|Andronic (Nikolsky)]] as a [[saint]] and [[martyr]]. He was appointed the first bishop of Kyoto and later martyred as the [[archbishop]] of Perm during the Russian Revolution. Today the Russian Podvorye and the Church of Japan are reconciled and in so good terms that the former remembers both Patriach Alexey II and Metropolitan of All Japan in their liturgy, and that they commemorate a [[molieben]] in honor of St. Nikolai on his feast day.
==Hierarchy==
===Diocesan bishops===
* [[Daniel (Nushiro) of Japan|Daniel (Nushiro)]], Archbishop of Tokyo, Metropolitan of All Japan
* [[Seraphim (Tsujie) of Sendai|Seraphim (Tsujie)]], Bishop of Sendai and Eastern Japan
There is also a diocese in Kyoto, but vacant since 2000of which His Eminence Daniel is also in charge as ''[[locum tenens]]''.
===Retired and former bishops===
* [[Seraphim (Sigrist) of Sendai|Seraphim (Sigrist)]], Bishop of Sendai and Eastern Japan
==References==
<references/>
==See also==
[[List of Metropolitans of Japan]]
==Related articles==
* [http://www.orthodoxjapan.jp/ Japanese Orthodox Church] Official Site (Japanese/English)
* [http://www.pravoslavie.ru/cgi-bin/sykon/client/display.pl?sid=773&did=1319&do_action=viewdoc Parish address list]
* [http://www.cnewa.org/ecc-bodypg-us.aspx?eccpageID=31&IndexView=toc Eastern Christian Churches: Orthodox Church of Japan] by Ronald Roberson, a [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] priest and scholar
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaxtIQBz7uo&eurl= Videos of a Japanese Orthodox liturgy in Yokohama on YouTube]
*[http://www.geocities.jp/christianos_orthodoxos/ Orthodox Bibliography in Japanese] by Paul Yuichi Nakanishi, Eastern Orthodox deacon and scholar
*[http://www.sam.hi-ho.ne.jp/podvorie/ Podvorye in Japan] In Russian
[[Category:Jurisdictions|Japan]]
[[ro:Biserica Ortodoxă a Japoniei]]
