Japan: Change After Catastrophe

I have read a tweet from EWTN news talking about a missionary priest who noticed a change in the spirituality of the people of Japan after the huge catastrophe that happened to their land. It’s sad to know that we have to experience one huge blow before we can feel God’s presence but nevertheless it’s a huge blessing for us too. Let’s just face it with love and humility.

Father Olmes Milani, a missionary priest living in Tokyo, says he has noticed new signs of faith in a largely non-religious society, one month after the deadly March 11 earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan.

“The catastrophe which struck the country has awoken consciences and spiritual needs and values,” said Fr. Milani, a priest of the Scalabrinian missionary congregation. He told Fides news that he had seen “an evident return to prayer and spiritual values, in a society which would normally be considered materialistic and focused on production and profit.”

Research indicates that only around 15 percent of Japanese citizens formally adhere to any faith. But in the wake of the natural disasters, now known to have killed at least 13,400 people, Fr. Milani has observed a change. Besides those “stopping to pray in Shinto and Buddhists temples,” he has also noticed that “in our Catholic churches, there is an influx of non-Catholics that stop to pray.”

Fr. Milani said the people's prayers were primarily for emergency workers and disaster victims in need of relief. However, beyond these immediate needs, he also sees the potential for a deeper change in Japanese society.

Read more: http://www.ewtnnews.com/catholic-news/World.php?id=3011#ixzz1JdgWYgYj