St. Joseph's Katase Catholic Church (カトリック片瀬教会)

St. Joseph's Katase Catholic Church (カトリック片瀬教会)

Close to Enoshima, one of Fujisawa's major tourist attractions in Kanagawa Prefecture, stands the St. Joseph's Katase Catholic Church (カトリック片瀬教会) (also referred to as St. Joseph Catholic Church, Katase Catholic Church, or Katase Church).  It is located along the Sakai River next to the Yamamoto Bridge.  Some may mistakenly believe this church building was originally a Buddhist temple or a Shinto shrine, but it was actually built as a church in 1939.

Statue of Virgin Mary in front of the church entrance

The church's origins trace back to the mid-Meiji period following the lifting of the ban on Catholicism.  Father Alphonse Henrik of the Society of Mary, the first male religious order sent to Japan after the ban was lifted, visited Katase Beach where he met Shotaro Yamamoto, a key figure in the area's development.  Yamamoto's second son, Shinjiro (1877–1942), later attended the Ecole de l'Etoile du Matin, founded by Henrik, where he was baptized.  After graduating, he served in the Imperial Japanese Navy and as a military attaché at the Japanese embassy in Italy.  After contributing to the resolution of issues between the Holy See and Japan, upon his return, the Holy See granted him special permission to establish a chapel in his home to house the Blessed Sacrament.  After serving as a provisional chapel for ten years, it was handed over to the chapel of the Sisters of Saint Paul of Chartres.

The altar and nave of St. Joseph's Katase Catholic Church

The altar of St. Joseph's Katase Catholic Church

The Diocese of Yokohama was established in 1937, and two years later, on St. Joseph's Day, St. Joseph's Katase Catholic Church was consecrated under Archbishop Jean Baptiste Alexis Chambon (1875–1948).

エジプト避行

聖家族

Inside the church, several works by the fresco artist Luke Hasegawa (長谷川路可) (1897–1967) are displayed, including "エジプト避行" (which can translate to "The Flight into Egypt"), "聖家族" ("The Holy Family"), and "聖ザビエル日本布教図" ("Saint Xavier's Missionary in Japan").  Hasegawa also created mosaic murals depicting Nomi no Sukune, a legendary sumo wrestler, titled "Victory," and a Greek goddess named "Glory," originally displayed at the former Japan National Stadium in Tokyo.  Photos of his works can be found on the Facebook page of the Japanese Embassy in Vatican City.

聖ザビエル日本布教図

暁の星なる聖母

Above the entrance, inside the nave, is a painting titled "暁の星なる聖母" ("The Bright Morning Star, Mother Mary") by the Italian artist Franchi Mussini, bearing the signature of Pope Benedict XV.

Situated on the church grounds is a building now called Shisai-kan (司祭館), originally constructed around 1926 at the current site of Shonan Shirayuri Gakuen as a residence for Yamamoto's third son, Saburo, for tuberculosis recuperation.  However, since the entire family contracted tuberculosis and either passed away or moved out for recuperation, it fell out of use.  In 1936, Shinjiro relocated the residence to be used as a priest's house.  It was relocated once more in 1981 to its current location to make space for a new hall building next to the church.  The first floor is currently used as the church office and the second floor has a sunroom.

Shisai-kan (司祭館)

Sunday Masses are held at 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM.