Nicolai

At the age of twenty five Nicolai(real name :Ioan Dimitrovich Kasatkin) came to Hakodate in Hokkaido from Russia on a Russian ship the "Amour" for his missionary work .The fact is that they don't know enough about Nicolai himself now.

Recently a diary he had kept for about forty years was found at the Central History Archive in Leningrad

He was born in Smolensk on August 10 in 1836. His father was assistant priest of the village where he was born .His mother died at the age of five. After he graduated from a theological school he decided to come to Japan which was a heathen country as monk. In Hakodate he learned Japanese and Japanese history from lots of people including Jou Niijima, later founder of Doshisya University. He once said that if he had not studied Japanese, he could not have succeeded in spreading Christianity here in Japan.

Aleksandrovich, second son of Alexander who had emancipated serfs in Russia visited Japan for the first time in 1879. The Nicolai Cathedral was constructed by donation of Aleksandrovich. Nicolai also said that if E.V. Ptuyatin had not cooperated with him to raise money, Nicolai could not have built the Chapel.

When Golovinin visited Japan to make its door open to Russia, he was captured and he wrote his unusual experiences in "Narrative of My Captivity in Japan". Nicolai was encouraged to visit Japan sometime by reading the book.

While he was staying in Japan, he collected many kinds of books and went out to remote areas to educate missionaries. Nicolai's first disciple was Takuma Sawabe, Shinto priest, who tried to assassinate him but later he was persuaded to believe in God. He became Nicolai's first disciple against will of his mother and wife. Sawabe conquered many obstacles to be a faithful servant to the Creator.

After Japan began to have relationship with Russia, Russian literature, Christianity, and socialism were introduced into our country. Nicolai was a harbinger to spread Eastern Orthodox Church here in Japan. He always walked about forty kilometers a day in the local areas when he was young. He also gathered the data on local industry, the sects of Buddhism and the lives of local people in those days when he was in missionary work.

In 1872 Nicolai moved to Tokyo and got acquaintance with Uratarou Shiga, who a first -rate translator of Russian. Nicolai also made friends with Serge Elisseeff, Japanologist, who taught many students including former American ambassador E.O.Reischauer at Harvard University.

Nicolai opened a Russian class to teach students who later became scholars and literary men. One of them was Shomu Nobori, who translated Russian modern novels and poems into Japanese and influenced the reading public.

Nicolai believed that God always helps and saves every one.

On the other hand he feared their denial of faith.

It was during the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) that he had bitter experiences. He wrote the following passages in his diary.

"My sadness is complicated. However deeply I may love Japanese people, I love my mother country better. My county is more important for me. I think that the defeat of my country acts as warning to us by God"

American President Theodore Roosevelt acted as mediator between Japan and Russia and the peace treaty was signed at Ports-mouth in New Hampshire, America. However most Japanese people were unsatisfied with the conditions of the peace treaty and radicals held a rally at the Hibiya Park near the Imperial Palace and police stations (boxes), newspaper offices and government offices were burned down by mobs. Then The Nicolai's Cathedral was also attacked by them but the Cathedral was heavily defended by order of Emperor Meiji and Nicolai and his believers were not injured at all. After the war, Nicolai sent books and food to Russian prisoners of war to encourage them both materially and morally.

Nicolai concluded that Eastern Orthodox Church did not penetrate into the upper class in Japan and Shinto and Buddhism have believers only in the lower class.

One year after a party was held to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his stay in Japan Nicolai passed away at the age of 76 in 1912.

He remained single all through his life. He was a great missionary who energetically worked for the Creator. Nicolai and the Nicolai's Cathedral will be remembered forever.

E-mail matu-emk@mse.biglobe.ne.jp