06 — The Russo-Japanese War

The flagship section: when Russia and Japan went to war in 1904, the Russian bishop Nicholas stayed in Tokyo with his Japanese flock; he withdrew from public prayers for victory because he could pray for neither side against the other, while blessing his Japanese Christians to do their patriotic duty — and the Japanese Orthodox clergy ministered to the tens of thousands of Russian prisoners of war held in Japan.

This section treats the war as the proof of the whole mission: the test that showed the Japanese Orthodox Church was genuinely Japanese, and the striking reversal by which Japanese priests cared for Russian captives.

Files

File Description
staying-with-his-flock.md 1904–05: a Russian remaining in Tokyo while his homeland is the enemy; the refusal to pray publicly for victory; the blessing of Japanese patriotic duty; the Church proven Japanese.
ministry-to-prisoners.md The ~70,000 Russian POWs in Japan; the society Nicholas founded for their spiritual care; Japanese Orthodox clergy serving Russian prisoners.

See Also