The Japan and Korean Provinces of the Society of Jesus celebrated the ordination to the diaconate of Japanese Scholastic Obedientia Murayama Hyōe SJ and Korean Scholastic Oh Hyun-cheol Francis SJ. They were ordained on 7 March by Tokyo Archbishop Fr Tarcisius Kikuchi Isao SVD in the St Paul Miki Oratory of Wakamiya Scholasticate of St Paul Miki in Tokyo, Japan.
Originally planned for the St Mary Chapel of St Ignatius Church, the ceremony was relocated to Wakamiya due to the coronavirus outbreak. Although the gathering was kept small with only around 50 guests consisting mostly of Jesuits, religious sisters and family members, the celebration was big on joy and thanksgiving. Deacon Oh’s younger brother and a cousin, and Deacon Murayama’s mother and baptismal godfather were present.
“I’m feeling thankful to God and the whole Society of Jesus. By God’s grace, we were able to hold the ceremony of the ordination in spite of the coronavirus outbreak,” shared Deacon Oh, who was a seminarian of the Korean Missionary Society for three years before joining the Jesuits.
Deacon Oh is finishing his Licentiate in Sacred Theology at Sophia University in Tokyo, while Deacon Murayama will be missioned to Timor-Leste where he served his Regency at Colégio de Santo Inácio de Loiola.