Tertulian (d. 240 AD), in his Apologeticus, correctly noted that the blood of Martyrs is the seed of the Church. This prophetic statement saw no greater realization than in Japan where the cruel martyrdom of 26 Christians occurred in Nagasaki, Japan on February 5, 1597. Although the evangelization of Japan began with optimism, it finished nearly a century later with despair and death. Or so thought the powerful shogunate intent on exterminating what it saw as a detrimental foreign influence on the country. The “Shimbara revolt” in 1638 was a Christian revolt in the eyes of the government, but in reality, it was simply a ruse for the attempted extermination of Catholicism. Almost a century after Francis Xavier first brought the message of Christ to the Japanese people in 1542, it appeared as if the faith was extinguished. Perhaps one of the greatest stories, though not widely known, tells how Christianity survived in secret throughout the kingdom thanks to dedicated catechists who continued to teach the faith even though they were deprived of the sacraments. Today we celebrate the martyrs and the many other martyrs of Japan whose lives served as an inspiration for the entire Catholic Community. We also note the work of catechists who knew the faith and spread that same faith as best they could, an important inspiration and challenge for us as well.