Road To Martyrdom
On 4th January the persons sentenced to death began their journey from Miako. They travelled six hundred miles from Miako to Nagasaki Via Osaka, Sckai(Sakai, Osaka), Okamaya, Hiroshima, Shimonoseki, karatsu (Karatsu, Saga) and Nagasaki. They reached Nagasaki on 4th February 1597. The next day they were taken to the Nagasaki hill known as Nishigaka. There Terezava Hazaburo, the brother of the governor of Nagasaki was busy in planning the crucifixion of all the culprits. As Gonsalo was prominent among the missionaries, he was given the middle place. The culprits were brought to this hill in the morning. There Gonsalo Garcia meet on of his friend from Bassein fort, Francis Rodrigues Pinto to whom he said: ”My good friend, God be with you. I am going to heaven. A hearty hug to Fr. Sabastian Gonsalves on my behalf”. The last ceremony started at 10 O’Clock in the morning. The culprits were so tired that they could not resist any longer and by 10.30am everything was over. The two soldiers who worked as an executioner completed their final task by poking the spear to their chest. The Portuguese and Japanese Christians attending the execution could not be kept in control any longer. Breaking through the guard, they pressed forward to the crosses and started soaking pieces of cloth in the martyr's blood, gathering lumps of the sanctified by them and tearing up their habits and kimonos for holy relics. The guards kept on beating them, pulling them away. The blood of the wounds mixed with that of the martyrs. Order was finally established and Terezava positioned guards all around the hill, with strict orders not to allow anyone near the crosses. After completing the task Terezava withdrew from the hill. Many could notice that even the tough soldiers were crying.
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