Remembering 125 Years in Japan: Legacies of Faith for the Rising Generation

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The dedicatory prayer marking the commencement of the work of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Japan occurred on September 1, 1901.  The Asia North Area Presidency has designated 2026 as a year of celebration and remembrance.  Throughout the year, members across Japan will commemorate the Church’s 125-year history through local activities and events.  A special nationwide broadcast celebrating this milestone is being planned in the fall this year. This anniversary invites all to follow the scriptural admonition to “remember” - calling to mind the manifestations of the hand of the Lord over these 125 years.   Efforts to see and understand will be personally transformational and spiritually enriching – “revelatory”.     

In the spirit of commemoration, the Japan Newsroom team will work with Church leaders and members to produce a series of articles highlighting the many evidences of the Lord’s hand – large and small - over the last 125 years.  The series will feature people, places, events, and developments that share the “good news” of prophecy fulfilled - as the Lord’s work has expanded and prospered in many ways across this nation.

A Legacy of Faith Begins 

This first article appropriately begins at the “beginning,” - drawing attention to the iconic photograph above.  The young man who is second from the left is 19-year-old Alma O. Taylor.  He was called, along with Elder Heber J. Grant (then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles), Horace S. Ensign, and Louis A. Kelsch to open the Lord’s work in Japan.

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As a true disciple of Jesus Christ worthy of the name “Alma” from the Book of Mormon, Alma’s labors in Japan deserve to be “remembered.”   He began his missionary service without a language training center and with little or no knowledge of Japan’s language, culture, history, or customs.  After six months in Japan, Alma wrote in his journal:

 “It almost makes my heart sick when I think of the opportunity there is in this land to preach the gospel … if we could only speak the Japanese language. It is truly hell to want to and not be able to.”

Despite these challenges and the antagonism, persecution, and opposition that confronted his efforts, Alma was asked to translate the Book of Mormon into Japanese – a monumental task that occupied five years of his time in Japan.    In 1905, at only 22 years old, he was called as the third mission president in Japan and served until 1910.   He guided missionaries and their few converts through the earliest and most challenging years of the Church in Japan.   His unrelenting devotion to the people, culture, and language – and his deep love of the Savior - established a powerful foundation for the Lord’s work in this land. 

Seminary and Institute: Building Today’s Disciples

Brother Alma O. Taylor was called “in his youth” to serve in Japan – becoming an example of the power and potential of the rising generation.   That same power of youth is needed today.   It is nurtured in homes and families across Japan, strengthened by faithful Church leaders, teachers, and advisors, and supported and strengthened by seminary and institute programs throughout the country.   

Seminary and institute work in Japan is part of a worldwide endeavor.  A recent Church Newsroom article notes that the Church’s “Institutes of Religion Celebrates 100 Years of Building Disciples of Jesus Christ.”  It explains:

“For 100 years, institute has helped young adults deepen their conversion to Jesus Christ, discover their divine identity, and find a community of friends centered on the Savior. What began in 1926 with a single building near the University of Idaho in Moscow has grown into a worldwide program with more than 2,700 locations in over 170 countries.”

The report adds:

 “In recent years, young adults have been gathering at institute in unprecedented numbers.  Over the past two years, institute has added more than 100,000 students and now serves about 457,000 young adults worldwide….”

Combined seminary and institute participation worldwide is projected to reach 1,000,000 youth and young adults in this centennial year (2026).  Young people everywhere are invited to become “ONE in a million” by joining this growing body of students.

More than 50 years ago, with the appointment of Brother Shozo Suzuki as Japan’s national director of seminaries and institutes, the work of building strong, inspiring programs in Japan began in earnest.  Today, these programs are led by a professional staff of 16 -- eleven coordinators/instructors and five administrative assistants – supported and led by the Asia North Area Director Akihiro Node and his Administrative Assistant Hiromi Katayama.    Hundreds of volunteers also contribute to seminary and institute across Japan.  Over 430 volunteer seminary and institute instructors help deepen the knowledge and testimonies of almost 2,000 Japanese youth and young single adults.

These programs are making significant strides in reaching the rising generation of Church members and their friends.   Through the blessings of modern communication technology, remote learning now removes barriers of time and distance, allowing more youth and young adults to participate.  

Japan’s coordinators, instructors, and volunteers are dedicated disciples of Jesus Christ.  Many follow a legacy of dedication and faith passed from earlier generations.  Two currently serving coordinators, Brother Takashi Nishihara and Brother Kaoru Onda are continuing to build on the work begun by their fathers - deepening the knowledge and testimony of the rising generation. 

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A Rising Generation with No Fear

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Strengthening and empowering the rising generation is a central focus of the Prophet and the leading councils of the Church (see the January 18, 2026 “’Walk with Me’ – Worldwide Discussion for Youth” and the upcoming February 1, 2026 “Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults”).  As Elder Clark G. Gilbert (Church’s Commissioner of Education and former missionary in the Japan Kobe Mission) taught 70,000 seminary and institute teachers in a worldwide training broadcast on January 23^rd, “[I]f we can point our students to the Savior, Jesus Christ, He will change them. He will protect them. He will comfort them. He will heal them.”

The Asia North Area Presidency is also focused on this important objective:

“We earnestly desire that our youth deepen their conversion to Jesus Christ and His restored gospel, prepare to serve missions, and participate in temple ordinances….  As our youth choose to ‘seek first the Kingdom of God,’ the Lord will bless them with the enabling power of Jesus Christ, helping them to achieve their personal goals and overcome challenges they encounter in their lives.”

President Henry B. Eyring spoke prophetically about the youth in Japan in 1998 while addressing missionaries at the Tokyo Missionary Training Center:

“Your children will grow up not feeling embarrassed to testify of Jesus Christ in their schools….  They will tell their friends they go to school with and even their teachers that they are Latter-Day Saints.  They will have no fear.”  

Many of Japan’s rising generation are manifesting the fulfillment of that prophecy - they are faith-filled, courageous and friendly.  They have personally worked to access the resources that are available in the continued love of families and friends, the inspired attention of the Church (leaders, teachers, and advisors), and the added spiritual knowledge and fortitude found in active participation in seminaries and institutes.   These important resources and spiritual foundations are the product of inspired work and supporting blessings of the past 125 years. 

As more of the rising generation make the effort to access these resources, they will experience transformational growth and will become faith-filled, fearless, and effective in sharing the happiness, peace, and strength of being active followers of Jesus Christ.