Paul Miki and Companions

Biography

Paul Miki and 25 companions were Christian missionaries and Japanese converts martyred in Nagasaki in 1597. Paul Miki, a Japanese Jesuit priest born in Kyoto, was among the most prominent. The group included Franciscan friars, Jesuits, and Japanese lay catechists who were arrested during Japan's persecution of Christians. They were crucified together on February 5, 1597, in a coordinated execution ordered by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. According to accounts, Paul Miki preached from the cross, converting onlookers even at the moment of death. These martyrs represent the earliest flowering of Japanese Christianity and the faith's resilience under oppression. They were canonized together in 1862, making them the first canonized saints of Japan. Their witness demonstrated that the Gospel took deep root in Japanese hearts, establishing a foundation for later Christian communities.