Ministry to the Hopelessly Hopeless

THIS BOOK was written by and for Japanese Canadian Christians to preserve the record of the churches and chronicle the people’s experiences. Others have the privilege of peeking in.

It is sensitively compiled, primarily by persons who have served in church work among Japanese Canadians but were not incarcerated in the “camps” during the Second World War. Some contributors lived through the experience and bring a passionate concern that this blot on Canadian history not be repeated in the future.

The editor, Dr. Roland Kawano, is an Anglican priest who was program officer for the United Church of Canada when research began on a report, The Role of the Churches During World War II and the Evacuation of All People of Japanese Ancestry. His ecumenical relationships have helped to produce a book spanning the religious spectrum of the Japanese Canadian community before, during, and immediately after the “camp ” experience, and the influence of national and local church leaders.

As Dr. May Romiyama says in her foreword, “this book should be in all libraries and in the hands of every Japanese Canadian, especially the generation that was too young to remember what actually happened, and those that have since come into the world.” Timothy Nakayama is an Anglican priest who remembers “camp” life and has reflected on its meaning after growing up in Canada, later serving parishes in the dioceses of Calgary, Olympia (U.S.) and Okinawa. He is now rector of St. Andrew’s Church in Aomori, Japan.