St Andrew's Kiyosato

Sister Parish - St Andrew's, Kiyosato, Japan

St Andrew's Church was built in 1947. It is located in the town of Kiyosato, two hours drive west from Tokyo, about 1400m above sea level. It is surrounded by mountains and it is possible to see Mt Fuji in fine weather.

The church was established as part of a rural redevelopment project after World War 2 by a man of vision and energy called Paul Rusch. Paul had worked for the church in Japan before the war, returned to work with General McArthur and stayed on to help with rural reconstruction. He founded KEEP (the Kiyosato Education Experiment Project) which aimed to promote development around food, health, faith and hope for youth. This work still continues today.

St Andrews was part of Paul's plan to establish spiritual centres in this region. The building looks like a piece of New England on the outside but on the inside it has a few pews, a tatami floor where most people sit and kneel and paper screens covering the windows. The church building and rectory are located in a forest on the edge of the town. There is a path wandering through the forest with Stations of the Cross. Close by is St John's Kindergarten which is run by the church.

The regular congregation is about 50 or 60 people but at Christmas, Easter and on a few other occasions the church is packed. The priest says Matins at 6am and Evensong at 6pm every day. The congregation includes people from other Christian traditions because churches are so far apart in Japan that people adapt to the local usage. Some people come regularly from Tokyo to spend a weekend or in summer to stay at family holiday houses situated in the forest around Kiyosato. At the Passing of the Peace there are always visitors to be welcomed and short self introductions which are part of Japanese culture.

The liturgy has an identical structure to ours but the Greek words Kyrie Eleison may be the only words recognizable. Incense is only used at Christmas and Easter. There is usually no choir but on Christmas Eve a large local choir sings lessons and carols. Good Friday is a working day so this is only ever a small celebration.

The church has two organs and each year there is usually a big organ concert to raise money for a project the church is involved in. In October each year there is also a big American style fair held in the fields nearby, which attracts many local and international visitors. Supporters of KEEP from the USA come for this and Mass is celebrated in Japanese and English on this day.

Church members are on the board of KEEP and involved in the experimental farming, youth education, and other services run by KEEP. (More information on this can be seen on the American Committee of KEEP website ) After years of experience, expertise is now being shared with rural redevelopment programs run by the church in the Philippines.

Church anniversary 5 July 2009

The Bishop is in the center with the many people who attended the service. There was a Confirmation followed by a luncheon BBQ party in the garden. On the day before, Saturday July 4, there was the annual organ concert including music by composers such as Bach and Frescobaldi.

Links

Schedule of services (Diocesan web site - English)

Some good pictures of the the church and surroundings can be found here.