St. Francis Xavier in the court of Yamaguchi (Coimbra, Portugal)


On August 15, 1549, St. Francis Xavier arrived in Japan, accompanied by the first missionaries of the newly formed Society of Jesus.

One of the most remarkable episodes of the beginnings of evangelization in Japan was the audience granted by the daimyo of Yamaguchi, Ouchi Yoshitaka (1507-1551), to the saint and his entourage.  St. Francis Xavier, wearing his best clothes, introduced himself as an ambassador of the Viceroy of India and presented the daimyo with valuable objects.

One of the members of this delegation was Bernardo Kagoshima (?-1557), who would later be the first Japanese to become a Jesuit, as well as the first Japanese to set foot on European soil. In 1553, he came to Portugal and eventually died at the College of Jesus in Coimbra. He is buried in the Chapel of St. Ignatius.

The sacristy of the New Cathedral in Coimbra (Portugal) is home to a set of paintings scenes of St. Francis Xavier's life, namely Preaching at the court of the Japanese Prince of Yamaguchi by Manuel Henriques (1593-1653). St. Francis Xavier is dressed in rich vestments accompanied by a large entourage of Portuguese courtiers.

 

References

  • COSTA, João Paulo Oliveira e, O Japão e o Cristianismo no século XVI, Lisboa, Sociedade Histórica da Independência de Portugal, 1999.
  • SIMÕES, Catarina Anselmo Santana, Para uma análise do conceito de “exótico” O Interesse Japonês na Cultura Europeia (1549-1598), Dissertação de Mestrado em História Moderna e dos Descobrimentos, 2012.
  • CURVELO, Alexandra, Coimbra e a Missão do Japão no Século XVI numa perspectiva histórico-artística, Coimbra, Imprensa da Universidade Nova de Coimbra, 2020.

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