Missionary Oblates who have died

Bro. Sueho Tsuda, OMI
Japan: 1953-1981

A Japanese proverb says: 'do not exclaim splendid until you have seen Nikko.' Such is the reputation of this famous Japanese resort, situated some 65 miles to the north of Tokyo. No trip to the land of the Mikado is said to be complete without a visit to Nikko. Cradled amid magnificent mountain scenery this favorite haunt is acclaimed not only for its picturesque beauty bu also for the remarkably fine craftsmanship that characterizes the panel carvings in its many shrines. Nikko is indeed a 'must' on the itinerary of every tourist in Japan.

Into these surroundings was born on the 23rd day of November 1899 Sue(h)o Tsuda, son of a local physician, Dr. and Mrs. Tsuda were well known in Nikko. Educated, cultured, prosperous, they represented the best in middle–class Japanese society. Six children in all were born to them, the subject of this sketch being the fifth child.

Secure in the protective care of the family, Sue(h)o grew up in the traditional atmosphere of his native land. Society at large, the family in particular had for centuries been strictly and minutely regulated in its every aspect. In accordance with well-defined laws and customs the family head, with or without the aid of his house council, exercises authority and takes decisions affecting the life of a son or daughter from the tenderest years even to the subsequent selection of a marriage partner.

At an early age Sue(h)o was sent to a private school in Tokyo. These were normal years; nothing of the extraordinary occurred. At the age of 17 however, he met with an accident which was to exert a definite influence upon his career.

In a moment of recklessness a member of the household, a medical assistant of the doctor's, having just returned from a hunting trip, pointed the gun at the boy and pulled the trigger. Unfortunately, as has sometimes happened, the gun was still loaded with the result that Sue(h)o received a blast of shotgun pellets in the right eye. Strange to relate Sue(h)o lived through the ordeal, suffering no worse a calamity than the loss of the shattered eye.

But it did make a difference in other respects. When he returned to school after a lengthy convalescence his sensitive nature was severely tested, as he freely admits, by the inclination of certain callous youths to make him the butt of their jokes. After a brief sojourn in these unsympathetic surroundings he quit school. Besides, there was another attraction. During the long months of convalescence after the mishap Sue(h)o had had recourse to painting as a pastime and a hobby. The attraction to the art fast grew upon him; so now he determined to devote himself entirely to its study, and applied for admission to the Nippon Academy of Art recently established for the pur-pose of promoting the study of western art among Japanese students. Meeting with opposition from the family — since at the time of which we speak the art of painting was considered socially taboo in Japan — he finally obtained their consent on condition that he pass successfully the entrance requirements of the Academy. This he proceeded to do without difficulty. Five years he spent there, becoming an accomplished artist, leaving only when the school disbanded on account of internal strife following the death of its founder. In this short period, however, the Academy had proved its worth producing several artists who have since left their mark upon the Japanese art of this period.

Subsequently Sue(h)o painted and read constantly. Able to afford at this time a life of leisure he thus had the opportunity of satisfying an ever–increasing desire to read, a desire together with a thirst for knowledge of higher things that was eventually to lead to his conversion to the true faith.

Chief among the readings which attracted him were the works of Koebel, a German Catholic professor at Tokyo Imperial University. Koebel's writings, strongly flavored with Catholic principles, held a great appeal to the young artist and were definitely the remote cause of his acceptance of Catholic teaching.

Specifically, however, it was the autobiography of St. Therese, the Little Flower, which brought him to the threshold of the Church.

At this juncture, moreover, an interesting as well as edifying episode took place which sheds a revealing light upon the character and virtue of our subject. Having begun to take the usual instructions from a French missionary priest, the ardent catechumen asked from God a special cross to bear in witness of his sincere desire to follow in the footsteps of the Master. Wonderful to relate, almost immediately he began to feel a serious pain in the right leg. The day came when he could no longer move the limb. An operation and a long rest produced no appreciable results except to delay baptism. Finally on July 1 8th 1943 in Tokyo, at the age of 44, Sue(h)o Tsuda was baptized a Catholic, a happy day and an auspicious one, for on this occasion he resolved to dedicate the remainder of his life to the apostolate of souls in the only manner still open to him, namely that of a catechist.

Mounting air raids on Tokyo and vicinity were making the city well–nigh uninhabitable now. Accordingly Tsuda San retired to Shikoku to stay with friends at Naruto. From there he moves at one time or other to Tokushima and Kochi only to return eventually to the former city, Naruto, whence began a series of conversions resulting in the establishment of an autonomous mission. As of this writing the Naruto parish numbers 42 Catholics.

When in November 1949 the Oblate Fathers came to Shikoku, the missionary at Tokushima soon found himself in dire need of a competent catechist. Whom to approach unless it be Tsuda San already doing such excellent work in an attached mission. The problem of lodging having been settled Tsuda San gladly consented to move to Tokushima to assume the larger task of being chief catechist on a full-time basis for the local pastor (Ed: then Father Robitaille himself). In this way the benefit of his careful instruction could be shared by all sectors of the Tokushima mission without neglecting Naruto itself. Handicapped by the loss of the right leg which had required amputation a couple of years before, he travels nevertheless in every direction teaching the true faith which he knows so well, thus providing every facility to those wishing to learn about Christ and salvation whether they live in the city or in the country.

A good catechist is a missionary's right arm. And when the catechist is at the same time a person of refinement, exceedingly humble, patient and prudent as well as zealous and devout, then the missionary has cause for rejoicing, indeed. The missionary at Tokushima does not fail to thank God for such a catechist and gladly ascribes to him, after Divine Providence, most of the credit for the goodly number of converts with which his work is being blessed.