Tim Lee 1

Professor Nonaka

ENGL 202

27 April 2020

Reflection Essay

The book Silence, written by Shusaku Endo, speaks upon the Christian

persecution in 15th century Japan. Jesuit missionary Father Sebastien Rodrigues along with his

companions, goes to Japan in order to find out the truth about his former teacher Father

Christovao Ferreira. The reader is able to see the struggle of faith in God in the eyes of Father

Sebastien Rodrigues, as he faces the death of his friends, betrayal by allies, and torture from the

Japanese government. However, the reader sees until the very moment Rodrigues steps onto the

fumie, Rodrigues maintains his relationship with God, allowing him to hear the voice of Jesus

when he steps unto the fumie, even though he questioned God’s silence and actions. While some

Christians may feel that this book is anti-faith, I believe it shows the difference between cheap

faith and real faith. Real faith comes with complications, pain, and the unexpected turns of life.

The book helps show that God gives us the power of free will to all; however, that means we

ultimately decide if we are to trust his plan in our life and put our faith in him despite the

circumstances that we may face.

Endo explains in his book, “Christ did not die for the good and beautiful. It is easy

enough to die for the good and beautiful; the hard thing is to die for the miserable and corrupt”

(Endo 71). To be more like the image of Christ, we must understand that Christ’s mission for us

is to live out his love and kindness in a world full of evil and hate. Our identity is in Christ, and

Christ’s love is not just limited to Christians, but to those who may not know him, or even those

put shame on his name and scorn his words. With the way the Japanese government treated
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Professor Nonaka

ENGL 202

27 April 2020

missionaries, it would be understandable to some for Rodrigues not to understand this new

culture of persecution towards Christians. However, the Gospel teaches us that no matter what

the traditions or practices, all deserve an equal opportunity for God’s love and forgiveness. If

that means influencing that culture to a new direction, may it be done with peace and

compassion. In one of the core books, The Cape Town Commitment: A Confession of Faith and

a Call to Action, it says, “No nation, Jew or Gentile, is exempt from the scope of the great

commission. Evangelism is the outflow of hearts that are filled with the love of God for those

who do not yet know Him” (Cameron 21). To have our identity in Christ, we must be willing to

say yes to those who may oppose, mock, or even hurt us, because we believe that through our

steadfast love for them, that the image of Christ will be shown through us, that they may be

saved and be with Christ with all of us.

Shusaku Endo opens the reader to the realities of hate toward Christians, which is still too

prevalent in today’s time, particularly North Korea. Similarly to Japan, Christianity first reached

the traditionally Buddhist and Confucian combined Korean peninsula in the 1880s by European

missionaries. This led to the revival in 1907, where thousands of churches were being built all

around, especially on the north side of Korea. The current capital of North Korea, Pyongyang,

was even called the “Jerusalem of Asia'' by scholars and teachers during that time. However, in

1948, the Communist party called “Democratic People’s Republic of Korea'' was proclaimed in

North Korea, with notorious dictator Kim Il-Sung in control of the entire country. Like the

Tokugawa Shogunate in Japan, what this meant for Christianity was that there was zero tolerance
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Professor Nonaka

ENGL 202

27 April 2020

for any worship that did not elevate or please Kim Il-Sung. Also like the Tokugawa Shogunate,

the North Korean government kept their country isolated from foreign countries to promote

complete control and stability over the people. In the 1950s, Kim Il-Sung advocated and forced

the North Koreans to practice an ideology called Juche. Juche is a Korean word that roughly

translates to “self-reliance” because Kim Il-Sung preached that North Korean’s only need to rely

on their strength to survive in this world. According to Juche, there is no god other than Kim

Il-Sung, and they must worship him with all their might and strength. As of 2016, over 200,000

Christian has been reported missing by the organization, Aid to the Church in Need, in North

Korea. With no one willing to raise against this government is one of the many reasons why

North Korean has been considered the number one most persecuted country in the entire world

for seventeen years. Considered an Atheist state, North Korea has a religious composition of

1.2% Christian, and 72% of non-religious people(northkoreachristians.com).

Despite being ranked the number one country in Christian persecution, missionary

Kenneth Bae felt God was leading him to preach the Gospel in North Korea. According to the

interview, Kenneth Bae wanted to go because he met some North Koreans on a trip to China, and

the North Koreans told Kenneth Bae that God had given them hope in the world they live in,

despite the oppression and the regime they are underneath in North Korea. However, while

doing his mission work, he was taken prisoner by the North Korean government and was

sentenced to the concentration camps to do labor work for 15 years. Thankfully, he was released

earlier than the original sentence, and in an interview with Unification Media Group, Kenneth
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27 April 2020

Bae said, “I don’t think I view anything in a more negative light. Because I was there for two

years, during the 735 days that I was there, I spent time with people in the North and was able to

get a better idea of their reality” (DailyNK.com). For me, I believe that this is what God feels

real faith is. Both Kenneth Bae and Rodrigues could have just backed out, run away from this

problem, and who could have blamed them for it? However, Kenneth Bae and Rodrigues

understood that saying yes to God does not mean a life of leisure and tranquility. Instead, it

means that trusting God to be far greater than any opposition in which you may face, for Jesus

has died and said yes to humanity! It says in the Bible, “Blessed is the one who perseveres under

trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has

promised to those who love him” (New International Version, James 1:12). Because they both

accepted God’s love and remained in it, they had the clarity and knowledge that God will bless

and keep true to his word, being able to live out their lives in obedience to him. At the end of the

interview, when asked the question about going back to North Korea, Kenneth Bae says, “I’ve

come home from the North, but my thoughts are still there. When I was in the reeducation camp,

I told the North Korean cadre, ‘If you let me out soon, I’d like to come back soon.’ I told them

when I come back

I want to be not someone that threatens the regime but someone who opens the path to

benediction” (DailyNK.com). While many speak about their faith, being able to go through

extraneous trials like Kenneth Bae and having the strength to talk about it afterward, I believe he
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27 April 2020

shows real courage and a passion for the Gospel. I pray that God would give me that kind of

mindset when trusting that God will provide a path for me as well.

As a Christian who is continually growing in faith, I sometimes find myself looking for

answers and questioning the amount of confidence I have in God. I think that it is important to

note that having questions about God’s existence does not mean one has done something wrong,

we see throughout religious texts examples of believers such as David, Job, and many others

questioning God’s actions and presence. But, the evidence shows that we cannot deny the

existence of an active and living God, and we must understand that although we may not see it in

the first glance, God is always moving in our lives. I believe analyzing the way Rodrigues and

Kenneth Bae reacted in their circumstances helped me understand the difference between faith

and belief. Although these two terms are commonly used synonymously, I think it would be

incorrect in this case to use them in that way. The Bible tells us that, “Though you have not seen

him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled

with inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the

salvation of your souls” (New International Version, 1 Peter 1:8-9). Pertaining to this area of

Christianity, the term faith is a state of being, and it comes from your soul and spirit, not from

your mind. Your beliefs have the ability to change and be moved throughout life; however, your

core faith cannot. Faith is being absolutely certain that there is a God despite not being able to

see, and taking action to both please and worship that God in which one believes in. Moving
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forward, I want to be able to continue to build a strong foundation in my faith so that I do not

falter and stray away from God, but rather be able to say yes to his word and his goals in my life.

Work Cited

"Christian Persecution In North Korea." Northkoreanchristians.com. N. p., 2020. Web. 1 May

2020.

Endō, Shūsaku. Silence: A Novel. , 2016. Print.

"Kenneth Bae Shares Experience With The North Korean People In UMG Broadcast - Daily
NK." Daily NK. N. p., 2016. Web. 1 May 2020.

"The Cape Town Commitment." Google Books. N. p., 2020. Web. 1 May 2020.

"Tokugawa Period | Definition & Facts." Encyclopedia Britannica. N. p., 2020. Web. 29 April
2020.