After our congregational chapter ended, I went directly to Hiroshima, Japan, to participate in peace events. Many of the parishioners at St. Francis Xavier Church in Los Angeles, where I ministered, have parents or grandparents who are from Hiroshima, or are themselves atomic bomb survivors. Because of my connection with these people, I prayed with them on that day, in that place, on the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing.
Not only from various parts of Japan, but also from the United States and South Korea, cardinals, archbishops, bishops and pilgrim groups participated—learning, discussing and praying together about nuclear weapons and peace. The speeches by Cardinal McElroy of Washington, D.C., and the archbishops of Santa Fe and Seattle were particularly powerful as they came from citizens of a country that possesses nuclear weapons.
What particularly moved me this year was the message that “the idea of possessing nuclear weapons for the purpose of deterring war is unacceptable. Possessing nuclear weapons means using them. Weapons are kept ‘to be used.’” Recently, even in Japan, the argument that “it is better to possess nuclear weapons as a deterrent” is beginning to gain acceptance, and I have a sense of crisis about this. As the only country to have suffered nuclear attacks in war, Japan should not entertain the notion of possessing nucelar weapons for security purposes!
On August 6, the day the atomic bomb was dropped, the Mass on the Feast of the Transfiguration was particularly powerful and moving. The Jesus in Hiroshima Cathedral—Memorial Cathedral for World Peace—is “The Second Coming of Christ.” Since Hiroshima experienced the end of the world on August 6, 1945, this cathedral does not symbolize Jesus on the cross or the resurrected Jesus, but rather “Jesus the Second Coming.”
No matter how much space I have, I cannot fully describe my experiences in Hiroshima this summer and my reflections on them. If you have the opportunity, please visit Hiroshima to learn about peace and pray. Every year on August 5 and 6, there are various peace events. Although it is an extremely hot and humid time of year, with temperatures reaching 100°F every day, people from around the world must gather on this day to pray together so that the terribleness of the atomic bomb is not forgotten.
August 6 is the day the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, and August 9 is the day it was dropped on Nagasaki. Let us keep these days especially in our hearts and pray. And let us move forward together to realize a peaceful world.
