The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1904-06-11

| who are so practical in many things, forgot to
make provision for the ornamentation OF their city;
there public places and no parks, except the
gardens of Teromochi, and the only monuments
are the telegraph poles. When it is too late the
citizens will want to repair the effects OF their
thoughtessness, but then no space will be left
within the limits of the city large enough to be
used for purposes of civic adornment One must
90 into the country if one wishes to find parks; to
the south of the city the gardens of the great
temple SumiyOski. while to the north lies the
picturesque valley of>Nfino.
The Church at Osaka-Progress of the Faith--A
Summary of the Civil and Religious History
of Japan.
Osaka has always been known a city of pleas
ure. The rich and popuous section named Dotom-
bori is almost excessively given to theaters. Here
plays and representations succeed each other with
out pause day after day, going on continually from
morning to evening and from evening to morning.
it is not to be wondered at that the gospel has
made little progress among a people given up
to a great extent to sensuality. he diocese Of
Osaka is made up of 1900 Catholics, while the to-
tai population within its limits is 13000.000 of
souls there arc in the city of Osaka three parishes
with only thousand of the faithful.
There are other obstacles to the progress of the
true faith. Japan is just passing through a
period of transition; the old order has disappeared
and the is fashioned entirely according to
western ideas Public attention is ccntered upon
political and social reorganization; no has time
to bother about his soul. 1t should be mentioned
also that for the past fifteen years reactionary
spirit against everything foreign has been visible
in different parts of the country. 1t has not been
powerful enough to check political and civil
luton, but it has very etfecually arrested amy gem
eral movement towards the church In addition.
the part which France took in the expulsion of
the japanese from Manchuria after the japanese
war has resulted i'll bringing Catholic missionaries
into disfavor. Nevertheless the progress of the
faith is constant and real; the grain of mustard
seed will become in time the great tree of which
the Gospel speaks; for the Japanese are still the
intelligent people that St Francis Xavier found in
the VI century III these islands, and the good dis
positions which shown then will be shown
anew at the time designed by divine Providence
Ihe castle of Osaka is the marvel of Japan.
To do justice to this structure it will be necessary
to have TO history. for what is today
IS only the shadow Of the former grandeur of this
building. And since going to consult his
tory let us begin at the beginning. Long, long ago,
before the golden age the bronze age the iron age
wen before the age of stone, in word, in the
ime of the gods, Amaterasu Amikam the great
goodness who illumines the world gave birth in |
he high vault of heaven to Amatsukiko hobo min
gi smikoto, that is to say, his majesty, of
he sun. high prince, golden abundance of ears of
ice She sent him to govern the vast expanse of
arth which stretches beneath the tirament.
Il make you ruler" said she, ''over the plains
lothed with luxuriant reed, over the country rich
II fresh ears of rice. You and the emperors, your
descendants, shall rule in the land and the pros
,erty of your throne shall be eternal as the dura-
ion of heaven and earth is eternal"
She spoke and the celestial emperor accompa-
lied by glittering court, descended from heaven
nd touched earth upon the summit of kirishmay
ma, a mountain TO the south of Kuishu, where the
eople to this day show to pious pilgrims the i'm
rint which was made in the rock when his maj
sty's foot first smote the land of Japan. His son
spoused Ioyotama him, princess of the sea, who
-as none other than a crocodile according to the
Iojiki, the Oldest japanese book, which was writ
en in the year 712 B. C. On the other hand Nj
onghi, written III 720, claims that she was
ragon Between two such respectable but con-
radictory authorities the critic dares not attempt
} decide
Jimmon Tenno Celestial sovereign of divine
alor), grandson of the princess mentioned above
nd founder of the japanese empire, became dis
atisfed with kuishunt, it too small for his
yelling ambitions-so he gathered his follow
rs about him, crossed the seas, disembarked at the
outh of the Yodogawa and raised temple upon
le summit Of the neighboring hill, where was to
, built later the castle of Hideyoski. Thus
saka Graded Soon the emperor set out upon the
)nquest of central Japan and the city was left
II long time in obscurity and neglect, During
le fourth century of the Christian era the en-
eror Nntokon established his residence there and
encefOrth for many generations 1t was the capital.
or centuries the city engaged in a struggle
supremacy with Sakai, a seaport with more
vorable situation. During the civil wars of the
teenth century the latter city fell into the power
bonze, who built citadel upon one of the
lis and terrorized the country for miles around.
he influence of Saka steadily waned afterward
During the fifteenth century the power of the
,nzes was at It's highest Their monasteres be-
me fortresses fortified by high stone ramparts
Id surrounded by deep moats. Their arsenals
ere filled with arms. Safe within then protect
9 walls they chanted hymns before sumptuously
affairs, drank sake, gorged themselves
th food, plotted treason and melted civil wars
hen it was to their own interest and escaped all
c consequences of their actions by the reverence
lich the people entertained for their sac:ed char
tiers. The chief stronghold of these priests was
tuated at Hiyezan, upon Lake Bwa As many
5000 temples were built here, with great num-
I Of other monuments
The BONES were finally conquered by Nobunaga,
e powerful chief of Dwarf (153415 by whom
pan was pacfed and unified. He made himself
aste- cf the central part of Hondo and extended
5 protection to Catholic missionaries. His pro-
cts were opposed by the BONES who did not wish
e restoration of good order. Nohunaga re-
lved to wipe them out and marched against Hi
izan. Then he laid siege to Osaka. The citadel
Is formed Of five enclosures, each fortified by I
octade For two months the struggle had con-
lued, the besegers advancing little by little un-