Uchimura Kanzo

The Diary of a Japanese Convert (Dodo Press) Uchimura Kanzo

Uchimura Kanzo (1861-1930) was a Japanese author, Christian evangelist, and the founder of the Nonchurch Movement (Mukyokai) of Christianity in the Meiji and Taisho period Japan. In 1877, he gained admission to the Sapporo Agricultural College (present-day Hokkaido University). Prior to his arrival, William S. Clark, a graduate of Amherst College, had spent the year assisting the Japanese government in establishing the college. Clark was a committed lay Christian missionary who introduced his students to the Christian faith through Bible classes. Dissatisfaction with the mission church, however, led Uchimura and his Japanese cohorts to establish an independent church in Sapporo. This experiment turned out to be a precursor to what is now called the Nonchurch Movement. Uchimura worked as a teacher, but was fired or forced to resign in several instances over his uncompromising position toward authorities or foreign missionary bodies that controlled the schools. He turned to writing, becoming senior columnist for the popular newspaper Yorozu Choho. His career as a journalist failed as well, largely due to his outspokenly pacifist views during the Russo-Japanese War. He started publishing and selling his own monthly magazine, Seisho no Kenkyu (Bible Studies). His works include: Japan and the Japanese (1894) and How I Became a Christian (1895).