Shusaku Endo Silence Analysis

Persecution is widely considered synonymous with Christianity. Paul says it himself in 2 Timothy 3:12 that Christians who seek a godly life will be persecuted. (ESV) This, however, could be a point of contention for many modern Christians, particularly Christians in the United States. Persecution simply is not experienced in the same way in the modern west as it has been throughout history in other areas of the world. Shusaku Endo writes of a man named Sebastian Rodrigues who experiences this very persecution in his novel Silence. As a missionary to Japan, Rodrigues sees first hand some of the most horrendous styles of Christian persecution in history. Ultimately, in the face of this persecution, Rodrigues is forced to choose between apostasy and the lives of Japanese Christians. In the face of this decision, Rodrigues shows genuine, committed faith through his fortitude and his selflessness. He was not always this way,

It is at this point that the selflessness of Endo’s protagonist becomes readily apparent. Rodrigues cares nothing for himself. In situation after situation, he is concerned only for the name of Christ and the lives of the Japanese Christians around him. He would sooner die than trample on the image of Jesus, but he would also sooner die than stand idly by while others are killed for his fortitude. It is this crossroads of values that leads Rodrigues to do the very thing that he had considered unthinkable. In defense of innocent lives, he presses his foot against the icon of Christ. Right before this moment, his former mentor, Ferreira counsels him, “You are now going to perform the most painful act of love that has ever been performed.” (Endo 182) So in those last moments of captivity, Rodrigues’s selflessness overcame