October 29, 2013
Dear Sponsoring Congregations:
We are only days away from All Saints Day and of course we just celebrated
Reformation Sunday. We give thanks to God for sending us Martin Luther and
inspiring him to work for the Gospel with all his heart and soul. His influence
is still very much with us today. Even in Japan Reformation Sunday presents us
with an opportunity to see our true condition as sinners and yet we have the
promise of eternal life through the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus.
Below please read the experience that Carol recently had. We have attached a
picture of Mr. Furuya ( in the wheel chair ) as well.
May each of you be able to rejoice in this season of both fall and reformation.
We always give thanks for your partnership.
In Christ, Jim and Carol Sack
A homeless man made his abode in a small truck equipped in the back with
charcoal-stone grill that roasts the savory Japanese sweet potatoes. One sees
such trucks at park entrances and other places, and the aroma of these potatoes
is like an invisible ribbon that draws passersby, inviting them to purchase a
steaming potato wrapped in paper bag. This is one of the rare foods that are
not considered impolite to eat while walking. At night you can hear the
identifiable sing-song speaker of the truck, announcing: “Potato~~
stone-roasted sweet potato!” This is one of the nostalgic sound imprints for
anyone who has lived in Japan for a while.
Just such a potato man happened to come in contact with a young man,
well-dressed but for some reason at that time penniless and famished. The
potato man, in a reversal of customary fortune, offered the hungry young man a
potato, free of charge. The young man gratefully received the potato but could
not part without giving something to the potato man in return; thus he offered
the potato man a book.
The potato man was a kind of wise soul, actually well read. He took this book
and began reading it. He realized it was “a strange book.” Perhaps his natural
curiosity led him to continue reading it by the roadside.
An older woman came by, strolling with a friend. The woman saw the potato man
reading this book and said, bluntly, “If you are reading this book, you should
be going to church.” The book was the Bible, and the potato man took up her
invitation and began attending the woman’s church.
From this point there is a gap in my knowledge of the story. I met the potato
man last January. His name is Furuya san. After his introduction to the church,
he eventually, not without struggle, received Baptism and became a church
member. I met him many years after this, six months before his death at the age
of 63.
The woman who invited him to church was the mother of one of my pastoral harp
students. The mother passed away four years ago, and now Furuya san was dying
with her identical form of cancer. My student called in a panic, as Furuya san,
angry at his pastor, depressed, feeling abandoned, and estranged many years
from his former wife and daughter, was now leaning upon her for all the support
he needed at this end of his very complicated life. My student was scared by
his level of need, and yet knew that to run away would be a betrayal of her
mother’s good will and of her own deepest Self, informed by God’s Holy Spirit.
Our entire class gradually came to know Furuya san, having several
opportunities to share pastoral harp with him and with others in his hospice
ward, at his request. It was expected that he would live one month or so, but
we had the privilege of knowing him for six. In that time, the ideas we were
reading about Spiritual Care for the dying came to us in a living form. We saw
a man transformed. We saw a complaining man become a man full of gratitude. We
saw a man angry at his pastor become a sheep returned. We saw a man afraid of
death become a man ready and waiting~~ except for one matter.
In the very last week of life, Furuya san became desperate to re-connect with
his daughter whom he had not seen in 40 years. Finally he accepted the
terrifying the risk of rejection and wrote a letter, delivered to her unknown
destination by a knowing relative~~ saying~~ I love you! I have always loved
you! May God’s love be with you!
By the time the daughter received the letter she rushed to her father’s bedside
, in time to see her father face-to-face, just a few hours after he made his
transition to the Lord’s Presence. The daughter washed her love upon her
father’s urn, embracing it in the funeral. My student commented, “At last
Furuya san was held in his daughter’s loving arms.” He bequeathed his Bible and
spiritual journal to this daughter.
We offered pastoral music to him, he offered us a “living textbook” in which
the theoretical words were made manifest in Furuya san’s life and death.
Again we can say, “The dying are our teachers.”
Praise be to God.
-----
April 18, 2013
Dear Partners in Christ:
In our recent Newsletter I mentioned that in the near future I would like to
share with you about some of our recent seminary graduates in more detail.
Today we are sending information about Rev. Kosuke Miyakawa. He graduated from
the seminary and was ordained in March of 2013. He is currently 32 years old.
Kosuke was raised in a “half-Christian home.” His father was a Christian and
his mother was not, but she always had a deep interest in spiritual and religious
matters. He grew up in a family of four that included a younger brother. As a
young child his parents entered him into a Christian kindergarten. As he got
older he enjoyed being in church so he continued to attend Sunday School. At
the age of 23 he wanted to declare his own faith in Christ and was baptized. At
that point in his life he considered himself to be a weak person and yet he
wanted to have a sense of security that he found in relating to Christ.
Once he graduated from high school, he found himself only taking time to enjoy
himself, playing and goofing off. However after about five years of this kind
of lifestyle he began to question what the meaning of life really was. He then
remembered the power of Christ he had earlier experienced as a young child.
Once he thought about his relationship to Jesus he experienced a great sense of
relief about himself and his future. Kosuke then entered college and was in the
theology department. While studying as an undergraduate he start to think about
becoming a pastor.
In his four year at college he made a decision to do just that and entered
seminary. Kosuke married his wife Makiko one day before his ordination. Talk
about a big weekend! He had known Mariko way back from kindergarten and they
had grown up together as children in the same church. Starting on April 1 of
2013 he was assigned by the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church to be pastor of a
three-point parish in Kyushu, the southern most island of Japan. It is easy to
see how God has had a hand on Kosuke's shoulder all through his life. We pray
that he and Mariko can bring the Gospel to many people in Kyushu.
Please see the pictures of Rev. Kosuke Miyakawa below.
Peace to you all,
Jim and Carol Sack
-----
March 6, 2013
Dear Sponsoring Congregations:
A newsletter from the Sacks is long overdue and we apologize for the delay. The
beginning of each year is extremely busy with numerous entrance exams and
thesis defenses for both undergraduates and graduate students, as well as
graduations and ordinations. On Sunday we had an ordination service for four
graduates from the Japan Lutheran Theological Seminary and we would like to
share a little about that event.
In America where you have so many seminary students graduating, you are having
numerous ordinations. However here in Japan the Lutheran Church is very small
and having 4 new pastors in the church is a very exciting event. Nationally we
have 120 churches with 95 pastors and a total membership of around 22,000
people. The graduates ranged from age 24 to 59. The national church is
comprised of 5 districts. The ordination of all 4 pastors took place at the
same time at Tokyo Lutheran Church, the biggest church in Tokyo that acts as
the location of all major meetings and events. It was a very festive event with
a few hundred people in attendance. It was so uplifting to have that many
voices singing with vigor the hymns for the service. An average sized
congregation is only about 20-30 members, so having such a large “choir” was
really inspiring to all who were in attendance.
After the ordination we had a communion service where the newly ordained
pastors were involved in distributing the elements. Family members as well as
members from the both the churches where the pastors are being sent and those churches
that helped in their training (internship) are able to receive communion from
“their new pastor.” After the service all gathered in the fellowship hall where
family members of the newly ordained were introduced and light snacks were
served.
Many years ago in the States pastors often got married right after graduation
and before starting their ministries. Two of the four pastors are getting
married right away, so it kind of feels similar to the situation back in the
States a number of decades ago. In fact Rev. Miyakawa got married the day
before his ordination. Of course his wife was introduced and received a roaring
reception by those in attendance. We think it would be interesting for you to
meet some of these pastors and learn how they became Christian and decided to
become pastors. In the near future we would like to interview some of these new
pastors and tell you their stories. We think you will find the stories
meaningful and inspiring. Please look forward to that.
Please pray for the new pastors: Rev. Ito, Rev. Okamura, Rev. Nagayoshi and
Rev. Miyakawa, and their families and the churches they are being sent to
serve.
On a personal note, our daughter Emily will transfer to International Christian
University as of September, which is just next door to us. It will be great to
have her in Tokyo for her last two years of college.
For those interested please go to : http://www.jelc.or.jp/e/index.htm This is the
English website for the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Grace and peace to you,
Jim and Carol Sack, Tokyo
