Mario Canducci

Mario Canducci
Priest
Church	Catholic
Personal details
Born	(1934-05-18)May 18, 1934 Italy Rimini
Died	February 16, 2020(2020-02-16) (aged 85) Japan Tokyo

Mario Canducci, 1934/5/18 - 2020/2/16) is a Catholic Priest, Missionary, educator, peace activist, historian and Franciscan member who was born in Rimini, Italy

Biography

Early Life

Mario Canducci was born on 18 May 1934 in Rimini in Northern Italy on the Adria coast as the oldest son of six children. At the time he was born, Italy was ruled by the Mussolini regime and suffering from continuing effects of the Great Depression, but due to ties with Nazi Germany despite being under tensions of war, it was a relatively peaceful time. However, to the end of the Second World War, Rimini became the scene of the front line of fights between the German and Allied troops and Mario had to spend a miserable childhood. His father was imprisoned by the German army and was forced to labor in Germany. On the other hand, Mario’s mother was struck when Rimini was hit by an air raid in 1944. Mario, who was only ten years old at that time, had to face this tragedy and took care of his mother until she died of loss of blood. During the same air raid his younger brother’s eyes were injured, so that his brother lost eyesight for four years. After the Second World War had ended, Mario, who had lost his mother and had to take care of his blind brother and family, worked hard, including as painter and waiter to keep alive. In this misery, at the age of thirteen, Mario learned about St. Francis of Assissi and aspired a life as a priest who would cherish the Lord and people. He used his limited time for studies and entered the Order of Friars Minor at the age of eighteen and was ordained as priest when he was twenty-six. From that point his sixty year-long missionary and peace activities commenced. 。

Entering the Order of Friars Minor

18 September 1952 – Father Mario enters the Order of Friars Minor at the age of 18 19 September 1953 - First vow at the age of 19 22 September 1957 - Solemn vow at the age of 23 25 July 1960 – Ordination at the age of 26 。

In Japan

On 12 October 1963 Father Mario arrived in Japan at the age of 29. In 1965 at the age of 31 he was dispatched to the cities of Nagaoka, Joetsu and Itoigawa and commenced his mission. From the age of 49 in 1981 to the age of 77 in 2012, he was parish priest of Takada Church. During his office at Takada Church, he learned about the Takada Church Oppression Incident and met with victims of such. Thereon and even after he left Takada Church, he made huge efforts in seeking disclosure of court records related to this incident. Starting with this incident, he devoted himself to historical activities to achieve disclosure of records related to the murder of priest Toda, the canonization of priest Dotti, and peace activities.

Time as priest of the Takada Church in Niigata

(As director of the Joetsu Tenshi Kindergarten)

Mario Canducci was the 6th director of the Joestu Catholic Tenshi Kindergarden for 27 years. His educational policy and motto was that to show “utmost respect” to children and to provide them the “best environment”. Following the way Jesus Christ blessed infants, he at all times watched over them warmly and established an environment that could support each child to develop itself. The Kindergarden moved to a neighboring site to the Catholic Takada church (where previously the school building and gymnasium of the Sekine Gakuen High School stood) and further in 2010 a new building to the Kindergarden was added on another neighboring site.

(As director of the Social Welfare Corporation Fransisco Daisankai Maria-en)

In 1992, the “Sakura Seibo no en”, a special nursing home for the elderly was established. In the same year a short-stay and day care services center were also established. In 1997, the “Seibo” nursery was placed under the same management. Further, the carehouse “Sakura no Sato” was established. In 2000, the care support center for the elderly “Sakura” was established. With the establishment of a municipal daycare facility “Dayhome Kanaya”, it was placed under designated administration. In 2006, a general regional support center was established. In 2009, regional childcare support businesses “Maria Kosodate Hiroba Bambino” and “Seibo Kosodate Hiroba” were established. In 2012 the Dayhome Kanaya was transferred and the “Gochi Seibo no ie”, a senior housing including services was established. 。

(As priest)

In 2005, Catholic Myoukou Church was built. (Address: 218-37 Nishihara Ooaza Tagiri Myoukou-shi, Niigata-ken Postal code 949-2102) with timber being imported from Italy as well as stained glasses from an old Italian church which were given and installed to the new church. In the same year a youth house was established next to the church as well as the Catholic Takada church common cemetery was reconstructed. In 1995, a memorial peace park and monument were erected at the site where once the Naoetsu prisoners’ concentration camp stood, a concentration camp in which soldiers of the Allied forces who became prisoners of the Japanese army during the Second World War were detained, in order to settle and reconcile between the local people and Australian prisoners who were detained and tortured in such concentration. Father Mario met and got close to former prisoners and the family of a deceased former civil security guard who was executed as a war criminal. He continuously researched and sought to achieve rehabilitation for the families who were convicted in relation to the Takada Incident of 1944, which was an oppression of Christians. In such incident, Japanese Christians of the Takada Church and the German priest Sauerborn (1904-89) were arrested by the Special Higher Police. 。

Disclosure Activities

The Takada Church Oppression Incident and efforts to obtain disclosure of related records

Outline of the Takada Church Oppresion Incident

The Takada Church Oppression Incident was an incident of oppression of religion that took place at the end of the Second World War. In April 1944, Father Sauerborn, who was the parish priest of the Takada Church at that time, and 7 fellow Christians were arrested by the Special High Police when they were having a Bible Study, and later were indicted. They were charged of violation of the Public Security Preservation Law due to lèse-majesté because Father Sauerborn had lectured that no god should be worshipped other than Jesus Christ and that the emperor was not to be respected. The sentence of 1 year and 6 months in prison with a suspension period of three year was imposed on 1 September 1945, just before the Public Security Preservation Law was abolished in October the same year. This sentence was made in a last-minute rush and it may be seen to be of a similar character as the Yokohama incident. Even after their release the fellow Christians were criticized as parties to this incident and Father Sauerborn was had to face frictions within the monastery and had an unfortunate living. The reason why Father Sauerborn was found guilty despite him being from Germany, a Three-Power Pact partner country, is said to be that he was so loyal to his faith and not compromising, so that the Japanese government saw him as a threat. (The facts were not known in this detail before Father Mario’s research activities started.) 。

Takada Church Oppression Incident and Father Mario’s activities

When Father Mario took on his position in Takada in 1981 and learned about this incident from one of the victims, he felt that this incident had to be fully uncovered and started to seek disclosure of the court records. In the 1980, systems of information disclosure were not yet common in Japan, so that neither the date of trial or basic conditions were known. In spite of this, as a result of the efforts of the families of the ones who were found guilty and Father Mario as well as changes in the in time, though not all, some court records were disclosed by the District Public Prosecution of Niigata revealing a huge amount of information. The above outline of the Takada Church Incident is comprised of information obtained through such information disclosure and prior to that it was no known why they were arrested and the reason of why they had been found guilty was unclear. As a result of Father Mario’s activities the overall picture of this incident has become revealed.

The murder of father Toda and father Mario’s activities

Further, Father Maio also made efforts to achieve the disclosure of records related to the murder of father Toda. (Regarding details of this incident, refer to the page about Tatewaki Toda). Similarly, to the Takada Church Oppression Incident, it was veiled in mystery due to whom and why this incident occurred, until Father Mario got involved. His involvement began when a Hiroto Sasaki of the Mainichi Newspaper who was investigating this incident to unveil it, asked father Mario for his support. Father Mario negotiated with the Vatican and the Vatican Secret Archives and succeeded to obtain a report sent from the representative of the Vatican to Japan at that time to the Vatican. Details of this incident can be found at the following page written by Hiroto Sasaki. Father Mario used to say that “Without knowing the past, anxiety will remain in the future.”. This statement suggests that Father Mario did not understand keeping record of the war and passing on the word only as a historical matter, but also as efforts for peace. 。

　

Late Years

Peace activities

In 2012, 77 years-old Father Maio became priest of the Catholic Seta Church in Setagaya-ku in Tokyo. He supported the unveiling of the murder of father Toda just after the end of the Second World War by obtaining documents form the Vatican Secret Archives. He appointed to work on the beatification and canonization of the Italian missionary father Giovanni Battista Sidotti and passed away while he was investigating the Japanese history related to this. He passed away due to pneumonia at the age of 85 in a hospital in Tokyo. His last words were “I have had enough of the earth/life on earth” Father Mario’s own experience of the war lead to his sense of justice and a warm hear consoling sadness. Praying for love and peace until he died at the age of 85, he was dedicated to the Japanese people. His restless efforts beyond religion, for children’s welfare, welfare of the elderly, support of foreigners, peace activities, regional challenges, historical disclosure have impressed many Japanese. The news of Father Mario’s death was published in the Catholoc Newspaper on 15 March 2020 and in the “Yoin” column of the Mainichi Newspaper on 23 February 2020 together with an article about the 20th anniversary of the Information Disclosure Law “Koubun wo ikasu – Jouhoukoukaihou seiritsu 20 nen” tracing his efforts.

Related books(Japanese)

• Raniero Cantara Messa、片岡仁志/庄司篤共訳、マリオ・カンドゥッチ監修『ミサと聖体―私たちの成聖』聖母の騎士社、1997年9月。
• Raniero Cantara Messa、庄司篤訳、マリオ・カンドゥッチ監修『キリストにおける生活 : ローマの信徒への手紙の霊的メッセージ』サンパウロ、2004年8月。
• ヘラルド・ロッシ著、マリオ・カンドゥッチ訳『聖フランシスコとその時代』サンパウロ、2009年12月。

References

• カトリック新聞社編纂 (September 24, 2010). 神父燦燦―カトリック司祭58人に聴く [God's Father-Listen to 58 Catholic priests, Kyouyusha] (in 日本語). 教友社. ISBN 978-4902211658. Search this book on

External links

• フランシスコ会日本聖殉教者管区
• 日本語版WIKI
• さくら聖母の園　　

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