Meet Cardinal-elect Tarcisius Isao Kikuchi of Tokyo

Deborah Castellano Lubov

The Church is one family across the world and we must support each other…

In a wide-ranging interview with Vatican media, Cardinal-elect Isao Kikuchi, archbishop of Tokyo, Japan, who is president of Caritas Internationalexpressed this.

On Sunday, Pope Francis, visiting Tokyo in 2019, announced that Bishop Kikuchi would be among those created cardinal at the next Consistory on December 8, 2024.

In this conversation, the Japanese cardinal talks about his reaction to his appointment, how he will advise the Holy Father as cardinal, and his own vocation and spirituality.

Additionally, Cardinal-elect Kikuchi shares what he sees as the most important issues for the Church today and how best to respond in a war-afflicted world. Below is a transcript of the conversation.

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Now that the news has broken that Pope Francis has appointed you Cardinal, how do you plan to advise the Holy Father? And what are you waiting for to give him advice in particular on the Church in Asia?

In fact, as president of Caritas International (the humanitarian branch of the Vatican), I report to the Holy Father what is happening in Caritas. I have already met the Holy Father several times. Of course, I don’t speak Italian. I don’t speak Spanish. This is why I always call on someone from Caritas to translate for me. But I’ve already given him information, so I’m going to continue what I’ve been doing.

The Pope declared a year of prayer. We have the Synod and so many other events, but he declared this to be a Year of Prayer before the next Jubilee. Could you tell us about your own spirituality and even how you discovered your own vocation?

My spirituality is complicated, but I was raised by Swiss missionaries. I was born the son of a catechist in northern Japan and lived in the parish. I lived with the parish priest, who was a Swiss missionary. He’s the one who raised me. He told me how to pray and how to be an altar boy. When I was little, I already wanted to become a missionary. Because of its ties to the German-speaking people, it was SVD, the Missionaries of the Divine Word working in the neighboring prefecture, I was brought to the minor seminary of the Missionaries of the Divine Word in Japan and raised as a missionary. So, my spirituality, my belief, is really based on this meeting with the foreign missionary. That’s why when I became a priest, I really wanted to be a missionary, so I went to Africa.

Speaking of your missionary experience in Africa, I believe you spent almost a decade in Ghana. How did this influence you? Is there anything you have been taught about the Church?

In 1986 I was ordained a priest and immediately went to Ghana. Then I was sent to a mission station where there was no electricity or water, but the people were very happy. There, I met so many happy people, even though there were so many difficulties. But I wondered why people are so happy there. Illness, poverty, all kinds of difficulties, but people are happy. Then I found out why. They said that happiness comes from knowing that when there is difficulty, someone will come and help you. You will never be abandoned. You will never be forgotten. This is the experience I had in Ghana. Since then, since I started working for Caritas for many years, this has been my main concept of supporting others: I do not forget you. I won’t forget you. I will always support you.

What do you think is the importance of the Church in Asia and, given your stay in Africa, in Africa as well, in the universal Church today?

I have spoken about the shift in the center of the Church from the Western Churches to the so-called Churches of the Global South. Asia is a Church of the Global South. Because the Church in Asia is now producing so many vocations, churches are growing and spirituality is deepening. It is therefore our duty from now on to contribute to the universal Church. Now is the time for Asia to contribute to the mission of the Church.

The fact that right now there are wars across the world, and the Holy Father has called for a day of prayer and fasting. In your opinion, what tools should be used to work for peace?

Nowadays it is very difficult to talk about peace. People, especially after this Covid pandemic, are becoming very self-centered, selfish and only talk about their own safety. And when people become selfish, it is very difficult to talk about peace or stability in other distant countries. From Japan, the Middle East or the Holy Land are far away. Therefore, it is very difficult for people to understand that this is actually our problem. It’s not their problem, but it’s our problem because we live as one family on the same planet. That’s the idea. I think the Church needs to continue to talk to people about the fact that we live as one family.

Cardinal-elect Kikuchi, is there a certain issue or are there certain issues that you think are most important to focus on in the Catholic Church today?

Migration is one of the biggest problems. In Japan or Korea, it’s the same too, society is aging and we don’t have many children. The birth rate is falling. Naturally, to support or maintain society, the influx of migrants is essential. But of course there is a tendency that they don’t want to integrate these migrants into society. There is always a kind of harsh opinion towards migrants. But without migrants we cannot survive. So it’s a contradiction. Therefore, the question arises of how to manage or how to integrate these migrants into society. This is a major issue for the Catholic Church, because many of them are Catholic and many of them are Christian. Today, as if you go to the parishes in Japan, you see so many migrants, so many migrant Catholics. In these conditions, the integration of these migrants into society is the main issue that we really need to address.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

No.

Thank you very much for your time.

THANKS.