Ōura Church / Ōura Catholic Church

Ōura Church, officially known as the Basilica of the Twenty-Six Holy Martyrs of Japan, is located in Minamiyamate, Nagasaki. It is the oldest surviving Catholic church in Japan and is designated as a National Treasure. Built in the 1850s, shortly after the end of Japan’s isolation policy, the church was established by French missionaries to commemorate the twenty-six martyrs who were executed in Nagasaki in 1597. The church faces Nishizaka, the site of their martyrdom.

The exterior of Ōura Church features a Gothic style, with its white walls and spire set against the hills of Nagasaki. Because of its novel architectural style at the time, it quickly attracted local visitors after completion and became popularly known as the “French Temple.” In 1953, it was officially designated a National Treasure, the first Western-style building in Japan to receive this status. In 2016, it was elevated to the rank of Minor Basilica, the first in Japan.

The church is most famous for the event known as the “Discovery of the Faithful” in 1865, when several residents from Urakami revealed to Father Petitjean that they had secretly preserved their Catholic faith through generations. This astonished the missionaries, and when the news reached Pope Pius IX, the event was called the “Miracle of the Orient.” The Catholic Church later designated March 17 as an optional memorial day.

As tourism increased, a new building was constructed in 1975 next to the church entrance for daily Mass and parish activities, in order to preserve the National Treasure church itself.