Crucified Christians: Site of slaughtered martyrs nominated to be World Heritage Site

A church in Nagasaki, Japan has been nominated to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Thousands of Christians were executed in Japan during a time when Christianity was illegal - but 250 years later, hundreds of "secret believers" were discovered, still praying with the Rosaries of their slain ancestors.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - One of many churches in Nagasaki Japan is a site of extreme persecution.

The Oura church is the oldest built in honor of martyred Christians in Japan and has been nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The church has been nominated before but was disqualified when UNESCO told the government panel there was insufficient evidence to explain why the church was significant.

This time, the Japanese government is ready.

According to US History, the Edo period in Japan (1600-1868) strictly banned Christianity, as well as all other foreign powers.

Any Christians discovered in the country were immediately hunted down and persecuted.

Stutler explained the old Japanese word for Christians was Kirishitan, which was the closest word to "Christian" they could speak.

Kirishitans were slaughtered as soon as they were discovered and some died in mass executions.

In one instance, fifty Christians were imprisoned with three priests. It was decided the group would be marched to a location 4 miles from the jail, where fifty-three stakes awaited them along with a crowd of feudal lords and Japanese citizens.

The very public execution began with the faithful being tied to the stakes while the priests were forced to watch from horseback. The event was meant to serve as a warning but one witness recorded the incident and reported none of the martyrs expressed pain as they burned.

In fact, they offered praise to God while the priests loudly shared the Gospel to the crowd.

These acts inspired Christians to run from the crowd of onlookers to call for their executions as well. Their wishes came true after being arrested and imprisoned for a time.

The three leaders were burned at the stake after the rest of the faithful perished. As they burned, they continued to encourage each other to proclaim their faith in Jesus Christ. One prayed for the city and spoke to the crowds before he fell to his knees in death.

Another priest positioned himself as if he were holding the flames in an embrace until he passed away and his body fell forward. The final priest, Fr. Calvez, lasted the longest and leaned against his stake even after death took him.

Three weeks later, 37 prisoners including women and children were led to the same kill where they were slaughtered by the sword. Some were beheaded, others slashed from head to navel. The children were sawn or torn to pieces before their mothers and their heads were later placed in their dead mothers' hands.

The gory events led to the creation of an underground church whose parishioners practiced Christianity for over 250 years in secret, still using the Rosaries of their fallen ancestors.

Christianity returned to Japan in the late 1800s and was tightly regulated. Since then, Christianity has returned to the nation and many churches were built in honor of the martyred believers.

UNESCO will announce whether the Oura church will be admitted as a World Heritage Site soon.

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