Minami Soma - Dark in the Tomb on Holy Saturday

One of the most common scenes in Fukushima nowadays is this - black turf bags full of radiation contaminated top soil removed from ground. Last year when Ken Warren, a professional horticulturalist, visited Fukushima, he said to us, "It takes 250 years to recover an inch of top soil." (read the full story here). 

This is a temporary solution for agricultural land which Fukushima was best known for until the day of disaster 5 years ago - for its quality rice, juicy stone fruits, and fresh vegetables. But all of these are now wrapped in the big question in the air: "How long? How long will it take to recover all of this?"

Yet, other questions continue to rise on top of these unanswered questions.  

What about the water contamination?

How long will it take to clean all the radiation contaminated mountains and forests?

Every time I come to Fukushima I see the scars and wounds on the face of the earth, and hear this deep groaning of creation. It seems like the darkness of the tomb where Jesus was laid continues forever without any hope of Easter, just like the very first Easter when the grieving disciples hopelessly sat in the upper room without knowing what to do with their lives.

However, I come to the joy of Easter time and again, whenever I see small signs of resilience and hard labour of the people of Fukushima. People started returning and started getting their hands dirty again in whatever ways they could.

Midori and I took a bus to come to Minami Soma, the city worst affected by the disaster. This city is located within 25KM radius from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Many people evacuated, both mandatory and voluntary, soon after the disaster. Five years after the disaster some returned but the overall population is reduced by more than 10%.

Green-house farming is the safest way of growing produce here in Minami Soma. 

Well maintained home gardens are a good sign of people returning. 

The streets are still empty due to a complex set of reasons. To name a few, the lack of functioning infrastructure, close proximity to Sendai, one of the major cities in northern part of Japan (people moved north to Sendai area instead of choosing temporary evacuation), and the higher levels of radiation found in the interior areas of Minami Soma compared to other cities in Fukushima. 

Night view of the town centre. 

Another way to tell whether people have returned or not is the lights at night. Dark streets and residential buildings show the people of this wounded city are wandering somewhere else, waiting for the signs of hope to return home.

Lord, we are waiting in the darkness.

A Prayer for Burnout Pastors and Leaders in Fukushima on Good Friday

For the last five years pastors and Christian leaders in Fukushima have worked selflessly for Fukushima. Many of them haven't had any chance for vacation.  I've been hearing their honest cries this time. Their quiet yearning to be healed and to be whole again. Burnout and overwork is now the silent tsunami swallowing God's people one by one.

On this Good Friday (back home in Vancouver) and Holy Saturday (here in Japan) I offer this prayer for those burnout pastors and workers to whose stories I have the privilege to listen.

“Prayer When You Have Nothing Left to Give”

By Diana Macalintal

Lord, I have nothing left to give.

I’m exhausted and worn out.

Yet so many still ask for more.

Grant me that last ounce of strength 

that sustained you on the cross 

and allowed you to give 

one last word of forgiveness, 

that I may be gentle 

with others and with myself.

And when that too is spent, 

help me stay present even in my emptiness, 

and let my presence be 

the first and last gift I have to give.

Amen.

The Work of Your Hands, page 39.

(Thanks to Father John Predmore, S.J. who sent me this poem through his blog, 

Ignatian Spirituality: Set the World Ablaze). 

From One Generation to Another: A quiet, slow way of God's transformation in community (1)

I first met Rev. Otao five years ago at the Fukushima Future Forum, July 2011, then second time when Jonathan came to spend an afternoon with a group of pastors in Koriyama in September, 2012. What stuck in my memory of meeting him among twenty some people in that afternoon was his strong emphasis on the unity and collaboration among local churches in Koriyama that began to form to respond to the triple disaster. "Please pray for us that Satan will not destroy this new unity in Christ." Four years passed and my memory faded already.

When he met us at the train station as Midori and I came to visit his church, the gentle smile on his face refreshed my memory. Koriyama Bible Baptist Church is located in Miharu town, outside Koriyama, on one of many hills of central Fukushima. Snowcapped mountains merged into the sky in the distant background of Miharu town, where Rev. Otao and his wife have been serving for the past fourteen years.

"What were the last five years like since the disaster? What is the most important thing you learned during this time?" I asked Rev. Otao, in his early seventies, serving a small congregation faced with many challenges.

"Unity." Again without hesitation he answered. Love Koriyama C-Net (church network) consists of local churches across denominations in the Koriyama area. Protestant pastors from across the spectrum of theological convictions meet once a month (still today) to pray and fellowship. Anglicans, the United Church of Christ in Japan, Pentecostals, Baptists and so on.

"And now my prayer has been answered. I can't ask for more."

After the disaster some families with young children in the church left Koriyama, and that means they left this particular local church. He and his wife have been working alone for the shrinking congregation, while in collaboration with other churches in the wider region until last June. Ken Nishiono joined as an Associate Pastor last year with a solid four years of working experience in various areas in Fukushima.

Ken graduated from Kansai Bible Institute in the western part of Japan on March 10, 2011, just one day before the disaster. He came back to his hometown, Saitama, and started working with CRASH JAPAN right away. At the Fukushima Youth Forum in 2012, he met his future wife and then moved to work in Iwaki with Global Mission Centre where they later married. I met Ken's wife first a couple years ago at GMC's cafe that she ran.

After working in Iwaki for two years, the young couple accepted this new invitation to serve a local congregation in Koriyama. While most young people move away from Fukushima, especially after having children, this young couple moved to Miharu with their new born baby and are now expecting their second child.

During his four years of working as a relief worker right after his seminary training, he struggled with his vocational calling. "Why all of my work is serving people by my hands' action only with little opportunity to preach the gospel?" After he experienced burnout a couple times along the way, God continued to provide him with mentors who would listen to his struggles and offer guidance.

"Then I began to see God's big perspective that [relief work] was a real ministry and very special time of serving people and working with many churches. Now I understand that it was a precious gift."

Rev. Otao and his wife couldn't stop praising their new co-worker, co-pastor and his dedication and passion for the ministry within this small church. Looking proudly at his  associate whose age is only the half of his, "I have a co-worker," said Otao with the greatest smile in his face I've seen.

Ken was intervieweed by a Christian media in Yokohama last year as a great example to many struggling Japanese youth today. Here's the story: http://the4points.jp/story/kennishiono/ 

5th year of En Route to Fukushima - the Way of Suffering and the Way of Hope

"I am not a blogger - let's start with that." 
This was the first sentence I wrote when I created this blog on April 15, 2011. Then, knowing my impatience and tendency to bring things to tight closure, I added something that sounded like a disclaimer for any future discontinuity.

I intend to stop this blog shortly after Easter when I leave Fukushima to return to my home in Vancouver, Canada. If my Japanese friends and I perceive the need to continue after Easter, I may. But at the moment, I envision that this blog will have a short web life expectancy.

Five years later, I proved myself wrong!

Today I am writing the 95th entry of this blog here in Koriyama on the first day of my eighth trip to Fukushima. The world has changed dramatically in these short five years.

South Sudan became an independent nation and North Korea's former leader, Kim Jung-Il died in December in the in the same year of the Tohoku disaster. Israel and Hamas war broke out in 2012 (and again in 2013) and Russia's military intervention began in Ukraine in 2013. ISIS became the most frequent user of cyber-media by any state-level organized group. The refugee crisis in the Mediterranean region now officially outnumbers the number of refugees during and after WWII.

Has the world become a worse place? Even just today, there were bombing attacks in Belgium. It for sure feels so by the sound of media covering the news concerning these big issues.

I am here in Fukushima on a ten-day journey, however, not to repeat big, loud, news at a micro level, nor even trying to deny any of the tragic facts of the Fukushima triple disaster and consequences. But I am here to find people and places where signs of hope appear in the midst of suffering -- to listen to stories of people on the road to hope via dolorosa.

During this Holy Week and Easter Week, my friend and translator, Midori and I will visit the cities and travel through towns that show in the map below. Here’s the brief itinerary shows where each place is located and (see the map and related story on CNN’s report). 

I realize this is the exact same route we took to visit the local churches just weeks after the disaster. I am curious to hear what these five years have taught these resilient people of Fukushima.

Koriyama (March 22-24)

We will be visiting Grace Garden Chapel & meeting with the leaders of Fukushima Christian Network. 

Fukushima City (March 25)

Fukushima City is the capitol of Fukushima Prefecture, but due to emigration of local population since the 311 disaster and influx of recovery workers into coastal areas, this city is no longer a major hub in Fukushima. We will be visiting a local church.

Minami Soma (March 26-27)

This city is located directly north of Daiichi Nuclear Plant within the 20-30 KM evacuation zone. We will be joining Haramachi Bible Church for Easter worship and fellowship. Midori and I will travel south via the recently recovered train and bus systems on Highway no. 6 along the Coastal line of Fukushima (except for the area surrounding the Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant). 

Iwaki (March 28-31)

As the hub of relocation, resettlement and radiation clean-up work, Iwaki has been going through major changes. We will visit Nakoso Christ Church, Global Mission Chapel and Fukushima Daiichi Baptist Church. 

Fukushima to Vancouver 2015: The Japanese artists are in Vancouver!

The six of the nine Japanese artists who created Fukushima art exhibit are coming to Vancouver this week.

• Wednesday, June 10 at noon: Meet the Artists, at Regent College.
• Thursday, June 11 - Saturday, June 13, all day: they will work with some Canadian artists in downtown east side and Strathcona neighborhoods of Vancouver on an art retreat, Soul Sustainability: Urban Renewal through Art.

The master mind behind the art retreat, is my new friend, Steve Frost, a poet, painter, author, teacher and friend. Here's his gift of welcome to these artists coming together from Fukushima and from various corners of our city, Vancouver: A poem by Wendell Berry!

How to be a Poet by Wendell Berry (with Japanese translation by Sora)

Even though we aren’t all together yet, through the power of poetry we can start aligning our hearts and minds. We’ll be using this Wendell Berry poem for morning meditation over the weekend. Sora and Steve translated it into Japanese. Please read and reflect as you prepare to gather with fellow artists. Our difference is our strength. 

HOW TO BE A POET

(to remind myself)

Make a place to sit down.

Sit down. Be quiet.

You must depend upon

affection, reading, knowledge,

skill ― more of each

than you have ― inspiration,

work, growing older, patience,

for patience joins time

to eternity. Any readers

who like your poems,

doubt their judgment.

Breathe with unconditional breath

the unconditioned air.

Shun electric wire.

Communicate slowly. Live

a three-dimensioned life;

stay away from screens.

Stay away from anything

that obscures the place it is in.

There are no unsacred places;

there are only sacred places

and desecrated places.

Accept what comes from silence.

Make the best you can of it.

Of the little words that come

out of the silence, like prayers

prayed back to the one who prays,

make a poem that does not disturb

the silence from which it came.

詩人のあり方（自分自身のために）

座る場所を作る

座る

静かに

永遠とつながる強さのために

愛情、読書、知識、技術

閃き、労働、経験、忍耐

持っている以上のものを、頼りにしなければならない

あなたの詩の読者へ、センスを疑うことを伝えよう。

自然の空気

自然な一息

送電線から離れて

ゆっくりと伝え合って

３次元の生活を送る

スクリーンから遠ざかる

曖昧なものから遠ざかる

不浄の地なんてない

ただ、きれいな場所と汚れた場所があるだけだ

静寂からのメッセージ

受け取ったイメージ

啓示を授かった祈祷者のように

静けさに響く言葉で

沈黙を破らぬ詩を

The Exhibit Opening: Fukushima to Vancouver 2015

It is finally here. All artworks are on display at Regent College Lookout Gallery. I am so grateful for all those who prayed and supported to bring this work of God's beauty for Fukushima, the message of Easter Hope to our city, Vancouver.

Lookout Gallery

Nensei Ozaki, the glass artist came all the way from Japan with greetings from the artists.  

Japanese community in Vancouver at the gallery

Children enjoying the arts

Glasswork by Ozaki with Regent's famous wind tower at the background.

The opening reception was filled with people from all nations - a true reflection of Vancouver. The good news of Fukushima through this art also brought a joy to Japanese Canadian community.  

Korean pastors celebrating with their japanese church partners

Rev. Shihoko Warren read Scripture: Colossians 1:15-20.

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or power or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 

He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 

For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.   

We offered a prayer for Fukushima and for reconciling all things to God. With this prayer and opening of the exhibit, we launched a 8 week long prayer campaign among the local churches in Vancouver. Please find more about this weekly prayer on our prayer website: http://art4fukushima.com/pray.

Fukushima Integrated Social Welfare Project

Every time I come to Nakoso, I learn something new from Rev. Sumiyoshi about what he's been studying in the Bible or the things he heard from God. It always amazes me to see how wide his vision gets each time we discuss God's work of reconciliation in the world, and how consistently Rev. Sumiyoshi's actions of obedience lead him to places where he had not imagined going but where he encounters the Holy Spirit at work among people. He and I have shared many deep concerns from God each time I come to Nakoso and have deepened our friendship through these life-giving conversations. We have talked about how his commitment for community service came from the Korean martyrs during the Japanese colonization in Korea, and about God's big vision for restoring the land and so on. This is a friendship we both know God is building beyond language barriers and beyond geographic distance because of our common vision and common passion for holistic restoration of the land and people in Fukushima. And that vision comes from Jeremiah 29:7:

"Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper." 

A year ago when Jonathan, my husband, and I came to visit Nakoso, Rev. Sumiyoshi showed us the books he was studying and the new vision he was developing.  Rev. Sumoyoshi was about to start an innovative pastoral & mission training network for the post-disaster East Japan among the grassroots pastors working closely in communities of disaster recovery. Jonathan's visit, as a theologian, was a timely addition to our ever deepening friendship.   

Translation: Public Welfare and Christianity

Sumiyoshi's holistic vision for Fukushima (version: 2014)

As Rev. Sumiyoshi started sharing about his latest reflections on mission and evangelical theology he drew the above diagrams on the white board to talk about the gap between soul-saving focused, narrowly defined mission and the needs of Fukushima's restoration, from the land, to economy, society, family and workplace, etc. After Jonathan and I returned to Vancouver, little did we realize how much we have been shaped by that conversation in our own life, in our work and teaching.

So twelve months later I came to Nakoso with Ken and Shihoko, but without Jonathan. Midori told us that when she called him back in January to plan for our visit, Rev. Sumiyoshi was very excited to hear about my plan to visit him in Nakoso during this trip with my new friends from Vancouver, though he had no idea about the kind of ministry Ken and Shihoko were involved in Vancouver. This time Rev. Sumiyoshi, again, drew diagrams on the white board to share with us the new plans God has given him:  

Fukushima, Happy Island: Fukushima Integrated Social Welfare project. 

Sumiyoshi's ever deepening vision for restoration of Fukushima (version: 2015)

 He started with the same diagrams he shared with me and Jonathan a year ago but this time the diagrams became a bit more complex and had advanced meaning with them. From the books he had read and the ministries he has been leading, he is now developing a comprehensive project plan called, "Fukushima, Happy Island." In this project, he has built stronger theological foundations for local church-centered  mission in all spheres of society for Fukushima: agriculture (most important one in Fukushima), health, education, family, welfare, workplace, and so on. He now has potential ministry partners joining from Korea and also a landowner who is considering donating a plot of land for this experiment.

After Rev. Sumiyoshi finished sharing his new plan for land restoration and community building, he asked Ken for feedback because he heard Ken was a horticulturalist.

Ken is a fluent Japanese speaker with much experience in agriculture both in Japan and Canada. He shared his insights on what ordinary people can do to restore the land by changing everyday lifestyle to live a more ecologically conscious lifestyle and what people in Fukushima might be able to do. He spoke from his experience of working in community gardens and working with grassroots organizations, not as an ivory tower expert.

Ken explaining how to restore topsoil with green manure.

Shihoko, Ken and Sumiyoshi

After sharing these important reflections, Shihoko and Ken also shared about their ministry in Vancouver: New Eden Ministry, which was birthed in Vancouver among a Japanese multicultural congregation after seeing the devastation of the triple disaster in Fukushima in 2011. This is a ministry in Vancouver where Jonathan and I volunteered last summer (see the story of their harvest celebration last October, click here).

They were all awestruck to discover how similar their visions for holistic discipleship and missions in their local communities were, whether it is Fukushima or Vancouver.