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Mormon Pioneers of Japanese Ancestry, Their Conversion Stories,
INTRODUCTION
Unlike the many books which have been written in Japanese and English pertaining to the history of the Church in Japan, this compilation is not intended to be a scholarly work. We, the compilers and editors of Mormon Pioneers of Japanese Ancestry, Their Conversion Stories, have received and prepared for publication in English some conversion stories and a few related stories. We hope these stories will be a source of inspiration to you.
Historically, the Japanese people have been known as a people who observe, then selectively adapt and adopt that which they see and determine to be of value, keeping and faithfully caring for that which they choose to use. Japanese people who determine that the Church is of great value to them make lifetime commitments and lead the way for their posterity and for others to follow their examples. Those who become fully committed members of the Church are truly worthy of being called "pioneers."
Events have delayed the completion and publication of this book. Many of the stories appear as they were received by us in the year 2000. Others have been received since then or have been updated.
The conversion stories and testimonies submitted to us were freely given with the intent that readers of English might receive inspiration, become acquainted with a representative few of the Japanese pioneers and develop an even closer relationship with our Heavenly Father. Freely these stories were given to us. Freely they have been prepared for you, the reader.
We want to encourage each person to write his or her own conversion story and testimony and pass it on as a treasure to posterity, friends and acquaintances.
Duplication of individual stories found in this book is permitted if proper recognition is given to the person whose story is used. Please show your respect by using each story in the spirit and context in which that person's story was given to us.
—Theodocia H. Atkin
CONTENTS
THE EARLIEST KNOWN MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS OF JAPANESE ANCESTRY
Tomizo Katsunuma----Baptized in Logan, Utah 8 August,
1895...............2
Tokujiro Sato---Baptized in Hawaii about 1892...................................... 5
MORMON PIONEERS OF JAPANESE ANCESTRY WHO JOINED THE CHURCH IN JAPAN BETWEEN 1901 AND 1924
Fujiya Nara---First Presiding Elder of the Church in Japan.....................8
Takeo Fujiwara---Second Presiding Elder of the Church in Japan ...........9
Tsuruichi Katsura---A Key Figure in the Church in Osaka ....................12
Tamano Kumagai---A Pioneer in Hokkaido .........................................13
Tsune Nachie-"Latter-day Saints Have the Truth as Taught Anciently.".15
Ei Nachie Nagao---"I Have Waited for Today." ....................................17
Tadashi Okuda---He Would Not Deny His Faith. .................................18
Nami Suzuki---The First Japanese Lady Member of the Church ............19
Tomigoro Takagi and Nikichi Takahashi--"They Were Two of the Very Early Baptisms." .................................................................................21
Munihara Teranishi---"My Father Enjoyed Serving Others."..................23
MORMON PIONEERS OF JAPANESE ANCESTRY WHO JOINED THE CHURCH IN JAPAN AFTER WORLD WAR II
Kyoko Shibuya Adair---Members Living the Gospel Influenced Others to a Better Way of Life............................................................................26
Yukimi Akimoto---"My Feelings for America Have Changed."..............28
Taichi Aoba--"The Importance of Home Teaching and Fellowshipping".30
Yoshiaki Fujiwara-"Overcoming Obstacles is like Climbing Mountains."34
Makoto Fukuda and Yasuko Kumano Fukuda---"As I Listened to Testimonies
my Heart Became Warm.".................................................37
Masakatsu Fukuda and Masako Kita Fukuda---"Fifty Years of Testimony" ........................................................................................................ 40
Yaeko Sasaki Fukuda---"A Seed Was Planted in Sendai." .....................43
Ken Hara---"This is the Time to Prepare to Meet God." ........................47
Katsuya Hirano and Janet Jensen Hirano---"Remember the Mormon Pioneer Spirit." ...................................................................................49
Kazuo Imai---"Something Very Wonderful Happened to Me." ..............51
Takayoshi Inagaki---"Happiness Depends on a Man's Heart." ..............54
Ryuichi Inoue---"I am so Grateful that the Missionaries Fasted and Prayed for Me." ..................................................................................56
Nobuaki Irie---"The Elders Told Me Everything Would Be Fine."..........59
Sueto Ishida---"I Was Amazed at the Missionaries' Love for Me." ........62
Kiyoshi Ito---"You Can Proselyte Through Music." ..............................66
Hiromasa Kajiuchi---"This Church is Directed by the Holy Ghost..........70
Hiroaki
Kannari---"The
Lord is Responsible for Us
When We Do Our Part for Him."
.............................................................................................................72
Hitoshi Kashikura---"I Learned to Serve God with Humility." .....................77
Yasurou Kato---"I Am So Grateful for this Church." ....................................79
Kuniko Kato---"For Ten Years I Kept Praying and Fasting." ........................81
Haruko Kitayama---"I Was a Train Following a Rail." ...................................83
Tadashi Komatsu---"I Found the Answer That I Had Been Seeking for a Long Time." .........................................................................................................86
Makino Setsuko Kudo---"I Know God is Alive!" .............................................90
Shuhei Maruyama---"Savior on Mount Zion" ...................................................92
Hide Kishigami Matsubara---My Experiences in the Otaru Branch ...............94
Yasuhiro Matsushita---The Importance of a Smile ..........................................97
Shoko Matsushita---Living Under the Covenant............................................100
Hisao Morimura---"The Ancestors of My Parents Built a Foundation of Faith in God." ............................................................................................................102
Hiroshi Musashino---"God Needed Me in the World of the Blind." ..........106
Haruyoshi Nakamura---"I Know God Lives and Jesus is the Christ!" .......110
Tomoyoshi and Kyoko Nakamura---We Are Thankful."..................................113
Junko Nakanishi Kasai---The Kazuhiko Nakanishi Family Conversion Story ................................................................................................................116
Gotaro Nengaki---"My Life Has a Season and a Purpose.".........................118
Keiko Ouhashi Oka---"I Could Feel the True Love That Was There." .......121
Meiko Onishi---"My Miracle of Healing".............................................125
Makoto Ono---Our Inheritances and Our Legacies ..............................129
Yoshiko and Sachi Otani---"A Light in the World" ..............................131
Kennichi Sagara---"I Have Found Joy in the Service of the Lord." .......133
Haruko Sakamoto---"I Could Continuously Exercise my Faith." ..........135
Tatsui Sato and family---Lives of Service ...........................................137
Takayoshi Shio---"The Conversion of my Father, Choshichi Shio" .......143
Mitsushi Suehiro---"God Knows Each Person's Thought and Hope." ...145
Masako Kato Suzuki---"God Lives! God is Perfect! God Knows Everything!"......................................................................................147
Shozo Suzuki---"Our Family Has Been a Blessing to Us.".....................149
Paula Fumie Suzuki Swenson-"I Received Great Blessings from God.".152
Hiromichi Taguchi---The Book of Mormon is the Key to My Conversion." ..........................................................................................................155
Ryo Takahashi---My Testimony of the Savior .....................................158
Kiyoshi Tokuzawa---"I Am Encircled About Eternally in the Arms of His Love." ..............................................................................................162
Masanori Uchida-"I Found the Name of The Church of Jesus Christ."..165
Michio Ueno---"The Blossoms of Youth and the Joys of the Harvest."..170
Kimi Ueno---"The Christ-like Examples" ............................................172
Hiroyuki Utashima---"I Received Baptism on the Third Day." .............174
Hisami Harada Utashima---"The Lord Guided Me."............................175
Masao Watabe and Hisako Watanabe Watabe"Together for All Eternity" .........................................................................................................179
Kan Watanabe---"I Liked to Play Baseball with the Missionaries." ......184
Kazuhiko Yamashita---"I Knew of the Church Through Expo '70." ......186
Toshiko Yanagida---"Banzai!".............................................................188
Michiko Shimazaki Yasuda---My Family in the Gospel........................190
Yoshikazu Yokoyama and Haruko Okawa Yokoyama---"What is of Most Worth to Us is to Declare Repentance to the People of Japan." ...........191
MORMON PIONEERS IN OKINAWA
Tadashi Kina---"Please Teach my Children." ......................................194
Masayuki Kinjo---"In Okinawa We Have Strong Testimonies." ............196
Takeshi Miyara---"We Learned to Live a Happy Life." .......................198
Kensei Nagamine---"I Began to Have Interest in M.I.A. Activities." ....201
Tsutomu Nishime---"I Chose the Kingdom of God First, Then my Earthly Education." ......................................................................................205
Yoko Nosato---"The Lord is Surely Alive!".........................................208
Chojiro Oshiro---"I Was Encouraged by the Holy Spirit."...................210
Tokunine
and Misao Toma and family "Morning Will Come." ............212
Akira Yafuso---"I Know Two Divine Personages Appeared to Joseph Smith."..............................................................................................216
Shoken Yoza---Our Family as a Unit...................................................218
MORMON PIONEERS OF JAPANESE ANCESTRY IN
HAWAII AND IN MAINLAND U.S.A.
Nelson Takeo Akagi---My Conversion to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ..................................................................................................................................224
Kichitaro (Kay) Ikegami---"We Had Good Examples Among the Members." ...........................................................................................................................228
Yukus Inouye---"I Made a Commitment.".....................................................................231
Bryon Matsuda---Progression for the Family ............................................................236
Gary Matsuda---"The Spiritual Witness Came."........................................................240
Brian Namba---"The Lord Knew. He Prepared a Way." ......................................242
Kooji Okauchi and Chieko Umetsu Okauchi---"This is the Church You Should Join." ...........................................................................................................................247
Dan Oniki---The Oniki Family in America...............................................................249
Ralph Noboru Shino---"The Importance of Prayer and Receiving the Holy Ghost"...............................................................................................254
Susan Tatsue Yamamoto Steele---"I Still Thought About the Spiritual Vibrations I Felt"...............................................................................257
Grace Suzuki---"Our Immigrant Parents Endowed UsWith a Legacy of Everlasting Values." .....................................................................................................259
Miyoko Terada---"One Night I Had A Special Dream" .......................................264
Chiye Terazawa---The Terazawa Family Story......................................................266
Roy Tsuya---"The Missionaries Changed my Life for the Better." ...............270
JAPANESE MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH THROUGHOUT THE WORLD
Masakazu Watabe---Japanese Saints I Knew in Brazil ........................................276
YOUNG
JAPANESE FAMILIES PIONEERING INTO THE TWENTY FIRST CENTURY
Mayumi Itsukaichi Nakagawa---"My Host Family Lifted Me To Greater Heights and to My Savior Jesus Christ."...............................................................287
Yugo Oba---"Our Family Loved the Missionaries." .........................................289
Michiko Okamoto Whipple---"My Husband and I Want to be Couple Missionaries in the Future." ......................................................................................................291
L.D.S. SERVICEMEN AND MISSIONARIES PIONEERING THE WORK OF THE LORD AMONG THE JAPANESE PEOPLE
Stanford Jarvis---"Footprints and Fulfillments" .............................................295
Kenneth Kenney---Brother Hayashi "and bring save it be one soul..".................299
Sister Numazawa "The Stick of Joseph" ................................301
Robert Swenson---See the story of Paula Fumie Suzuki Swenson .......................152
Ira Todd---............ 'Some Great Things Have Happened in Japan.".....................303
Elmo Carling Whetten---"I Am Thankful to Have Been a Part of the Lord's Work in Japan." ............................................................................................................306
Dennis H Atkin---"I Took My Mission Home with Me." ......................................311
INDEX.............................................................................................................314