JCL Annual Japan Conferences

The JCL annual Japan conference, held each summer, is a great chance to meet people involved in, or interested in, ministry to Japanese in the UK, Japan or elsewhere and to meet with Japanese Christians. Come along to hear what God is doing among Japanese people today, and learn more about sharing your faith with your own Japanese friends and contacts.This year's conference takes place from 7-9 September at Cliff College in Derbyshire.

Key Speakers

Each year we invite one or more key speakers from Japan. Our key speaker in 2011 was Noriko Kawamura. Noriko has served as a missionary to Japanese in the UK and Germany and now leads pioneering evangelistic work in Fujisawa, Kanagawa prefecture. She brings broad perspective and experience to Japanese ministry, having served both in Japan and overseas.  

Workshops & Resources

Focused workshops give the opportunity to look in-depth at subjects such as communicating the gospel in the Japanese cultural context, supporting returnees, Japanese beliefs about death and the spirit world, praying for Japan, and innovative ideas and resources for outreach. A wide range of Japanese Christian literature and English books on Christianity and Japan are available from our JCL Bookshop conference stand.

Worship & Testimony

In addition, others involved in a wide variety of Japanese ministries share their experiences and we hear from Japanese Christians about their faith and the difference Christ has made in their lives. We join together in worship, prayer and Bible teaching.

Fellowship & Networking

One of the main benefits of the conference is the chance to interact with many different people involved formally or informally in outreach to Japanese and to share ideas, encouragement and make new friends. If you are exploring how you can serve God among the Japanese, new contacts can lead to new opportunities. What participants have said: "It's been so refreshing and encouraging for me to hear about the variety of work going on in Japan/UK and about how God is working in people's lives in such a powerful way" "I was a little worried about attending by myself but it wasn't a problem and I met so many encouraging Christians both British and Japanese." "The conference has definitely made me think about going to Japan".

Conference Talks

To listen to some talks and workshops from the 2010 conference click on the links below:

Hiroyuki Miyake speaking on Judges 1: 1-16  (in Japanese with English interpretation)

Christianity in Japan, a "foreign" religion - a workshop led by John Cooke looking at the history of Christianity in Japan and how to overcome its image as a religion suitable for foreigners but not Japanese.

Japanese Buddhism - a workshop led by Yuki Williams and Peter Yonge exploring the place of Buddhism in Japan today. The workshop also touches on Shintoism since the two religions are intertwined in Japanese thought.

You can also listen to some of the talks from our 2009 conference when the key speakers were Hugh Brown - a JCL Mission Partner in Kobe and chaplain at Kobe's high security prison - and Koichi Kawamura, a former businessman who now pastors Nagao church in Shikoku. 

Interviews with Hugh Brown and Koichi and Yasuko Kawamura

Hugh Brown on work amongst prisoners in Kobe's high security prison

Koichi Kawamura on challenges facing Christians in modern Japan (in Japanese with interpretation) 

More Information

JCL conferences are for anyone with an interest in Japan and outreach to the Japanese. Around a quarter of those who attend are Japanese. Whilst the main conference language is English one of the workshops is always in Japanese and some of the speakers speak in Japanese with interpretation into English. If you have not been before we'd love to see you at the next one! For more information on JCL conferences please contact us.