In memoriam: Father Kasuya
Beloved Catholic priest Father John Koichi Kasuya passed away on Feb. 9 at a house for retired Catholic clergy in Japan, aged 87.
When I received the news from Mr. Hoa Do Trong, one of the first and foremost leaders of the Vietnamese Catholic refugee community in Japan, that evening, I felt as if I had lost my own dad.
I still remember the first time I met Father Kasuya at the Shinagawa International Refugee Assistance Center (Kokusai Kyuen Senta) more than 20 years ago. I addressed him with my limited Japanese as "Chichi," meaning "Dad" in Japanese. He smiled gently. Later I realized I should have called him "Shimpu-sama" ("Holy Father" — the way Japanese Catholic believers address Catholic priests).