Missionaries Arrive in Japan

On the morning of August 12, 1901, the Empress of India entered the port of Yokohama carrying the first group of Latter-day Saint missionaries to visit Japan. Known as the “Japanese Quartet,” Heber J. Grant (then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles), Louis A. Kelsch, Horace S. Ensign, and Alma O. Taylor were unprepared for the barriers that they would face. None of the four spoke the language or knew much about the people of Japan. They quickly met with negative reports in local newspapers and were ostracized by other Christian missionaries from the West.

Cultural differences presented a significant barrier to the progress of missionary work in Japan. Christianity was viewed as a set of imported Western ideas. It was often perceived as a means to attain greater wealth and prosperity rather than as a fully developed religious system. The earliest people to be baptized created difficulties for the missionaries, who became hesitant to baptize those who investigated the Church. The work in Japan progressed slowly as the missionaries invited those who expressed interest in the Church to extended periods of investigation to test their sincerity.

In 1905, Alma O. Taylor, at 22 years old, became president of the Japan Mission. Young and unmarried, Taylor needed to hire a housekeeper to care for the mission home and to cook for the missionaries. After interviewing several candidates, Taylor hired Tsune Ishida Nachie, an experienced 49-year-old housekeeper, a Christian, and a person with a strong interest in Latter-day Saint doctrine, a fact she did not disclose to Taylor. Just over a month after she began working in the mission home, Nachie asked to be baptized. Wary of her motivations, the missionaries asked Nachie to wait until they had taught her more of the doctrines of the gospel. Nachie, however, was determined to be baptized. She took steps to prove her sincere desire to join the Church, even withdrawing from her previous church.

On September 26, 1905, Nachie was baptized and became one of the most earnest and knowledgeable members of the Church in Japan. She often taught Sunday School classes, assisted in the translation of the Book of Mormon, and acted as a second mother to the young missionaries serving in the country. After many years of service in the Church, Nachie expressed an eagerness to visit the temple and participate in the ordinances there.

In 1922, missionaries serving in the Japan Mission solicited donations from former missionaries who had known Nachie. With the funds gathered, Nachie retired to Hawaii, where on June 5, 1923, she became the first native Japanese convert to enter the temple in Laie and participate in temple ceremonies. During the final years of her life, Nachie was instrumental in preaching the gospel to Japanese expatriates in Hawaii.

Despite the barriers of language and culture, missionaries continued to teach the gospel in Japan. From 1901 to 1924, dozens of missionaries from North America, mostly from Utah and Idaho, were called to Japan. Notwithstanding the efforts of the missionaries, however, the work progressed slowly. By 1924, only 176 native Japanese people had joined the Church. Some, like Nachie, were devoted converts; many enjoyed only short periods of participation in the Church.