was a Japanese

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

, pastor, author, professor, and churchman. His most famous work in the West is ''The Theology of the Pain of God'', which was published in 1946 in Japan and in the United States in 1965. He was a longtime professor at Tokyo Union Theological Seminary. He was, along with Kōsuke Koyama, a leading contributor to

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

Christian

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

from twentieth century Japan.

Life

Kitamori was born in

Kumamoto is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 738,907 and a population density of 1,893 people per km2. The total area is 390.32 km2. had a populat ...

in 1916. In high school, he was so impressed by a paper he read about

Martin Luther Martin Luther ( ; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...

that he made the decision in 1935 to go to

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

to attend the Lutheran Theological Seminary there. He graduated in 1938. Having finished his studies at the seminary, he attended

Kyoto Imperial University , or , is a national research university in Kyoto, Japan. Founded in 1897, it is one of the former Imperial Universities and the second oldest university in Japan. The university has ten undergraduate faculties, eighteen graduate schools, and t ...

, studying in the literature department under

Hajime Tanabe was a Japanese philosopher of science, particularly of mathematics and physics. His work brought together elements of Buddhism, scientific thought, Western philosophy, Christianity, and Marxism. In the postwar years, Tanabe coined the concept o ...

, a disciple of Japanese philosopher

Kitarō Nishida was a Japanese moral philosopher, philosopher of mathematics and science, and religious scholar. He was the founder of what has been called the Kyoto School of philosophy. He graduated from the University of Tokyo during the Meiji period in 18 ...

. He graduated from the university in 1941, and continued there as an assistant until 1943. In 1943, he moved to the Eastern Japan Theological Seminary, which later became Tokyo Union Theological Seminary. He became a full professor in 1949, and continued to teach systematic (dogmatic) theology there until his retirement from teaching in 1984. He received a Ph.D. in Literature from

in 1962. Kitamori was a major post-war theologian in Japan and this status made him one of the most important players in the re-formation of the Kyodan Church (

United Church of Christ in Japan The United Church of Christ in Japan (UCCJ; ''Nihon Kirisuto Kyōdan'', or ''Kyōdan'' for short) is the largest Protestant denomination in Japan. It is a union of thirty-three diverse Protestant denominations forcibly merged by the Japanese wa ...

). He served both as a pastor, serving a congregation for forty-six years, and as a churchman, serving in various capacities and helping to draft of the confession of faith of the Kyodan Church. While he is best known for ''Theology of the Pain of God'', Kitamori was a prolific writer in many areas, not only in theology. He published forty-two books and many articles. His theme of the Pain of God remained a central idea in many of these. ''Theology of the Pain of God'' has reached a wide audience in Japan, even outside the Christian community.

''The Pain of God''

Kitamori's most famous work discusses idea of the pain of God. He bases this idea on Jeremiah 31:20:

"Is not Ephraim my dear son, the child in whom I delight? Though I often speak against him, I still remember him. Therefore my heart yearns for him; I have great compassion for him," declares the LORD. (NIV)

In the Japanese Literary Version (an older translation of the Bible into Japanese), the phrase, "My heart yearns..." can be translated "My heart is pained." Luther matches this idea most closely when he translates it "Darum bricht mir mein Herz" (Therefore, my heart is broken). While modern Japanese versions were moving away from this translation, Kitamori felt that translators like Luther and

Calvin Calvin may refer to: Names * Calvin (given name) ** Particularly Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States * Calvin (surname) ** Particularly John Calvin, theologian Places In the United States * Calvin, Arkansas, a hamlet * Calvin T ...

gave him scholarly justification for keeping this translation as the basis of his work. Kitamori linked the Japanese concepts of ''tsutsumu'' and ''tsuraso'', natural love and self-sacrificial death, with Christian principles.

Jürgen Moltmann Jürgen Moltmann (; 8 April 1926 – 3 June 2024) was a German Reformed theologian who was a professor of systematic theology at the University of Tübingen and was known for his books such as the ''Theology of Hope'', ''The Crucified God'', ''G ...

sees Kitamori's theology useful in explaining how the pain of God helps to heal our pain, because in "the suffering of Christ God himself suffers."

References

Other sources

* Hashimoto, Akio. "Legacy of Kitamori in Contemporary Japanese Christian Thought." Missio Apostolica, XII, 1, May 2004, pp. 11–16. * Meyer, Richard. "Toward a Japanese Theology: Kitamori's Theology of the Pain of God." Concordia Theological Monthly, XXXIII, 5, May 1962, pp. 261–272. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kitamori, Kazoh Kyoto University alumni Members of the United Church of Christ in Japan Japanese Christians Japanese Lutherans Japanese Lutheran theologians Japanese theologians 1916 births 1998 deaths 20th-century Lutherans