Rodrigues's Apostasy in Endo's Silence
From the beginning of man’s existence we have struggled to communicate with God. God’s voice, which seems to be non-attendent, has caused man to contemplate God’s very existence. Does God hear me? Does God care? Why does God let bad things happen? Man will never stop searching for the answers to these questions. That is why faith is the core piece of Christianity. We are not meant to know God’s divine plan, we are only to know that he will always be with us. Through his grace we receive our salvation. Throughout Endo’s, Silence, I struggled with the main character Rodrigues in his selfish and prideful idea of salvation and his conception of faith to God. Keeping to his priestly duties, through the traditional sacraments, performed rituals, and even the wish of his “glorious martyrdom”, in effect, were not allowing him to receive salvation as a gift of grace and mercy, but rather using them as fulfillment for his deep seeded desire to glorify himself and earn his place in Paradise. In my opinion, the moment Rodrigues apostatized, was the humbling symbol of his true acceptance of God’s grace and his realization that nothing he could do alone, even his “glorious martyrdom”, could redeem himself of being a sinful man. This transformation does not necessarily break “the silence,” but rather breaks down Rodrigues’ pride to finally hear the voice of God, and trust in Him.
Before Rodrigues apostatized, he was prideful to be a Priest and his religious works consumed him. He believed that works were faith, and that these things alone were going to earn his place in paradise and bring him glory. Several times along the rocky road, leading up to the apostasy, I found Rodrigues’ expectations for God falling short, and began to wonder where his faith really laid and whom he was truly living his life for- God or himself. The first instance I saw this is after the first martyrdom Rodrigues witnesses, of Mokichi and Ichizo:
“They were martyred. But what a martyrdom! I had long
Before Rodrigues apostatized, he was prideful to be a Priest and his religious works consumed him. He believed that works were faith, and that these things alone were going to earn his place in paradise and bring him glory. Several times along the rocky road, leading up to the apostasy, I found Rodrigues’ expectations for God falling short, and began to wonder where his faith really laid and whom he was truly living his life for- God or himself. The first instance I saw this is after the first martyrdom Rodrigues witnesses, of Mokichi and Ichizo:
“They were martyred. But what a martyrdom! I had long
Cited: Endō, Shūsaku. Silence. Tokyo: Kodansha International, 1982. Print. The Holy Bible: New International Version. Colorado Springs, CO: International Bible Society, 1984. Print. Pattison, John, and Philip Yancey. "Shusaku Endo’s “Silence”." Patheos.com. N.p., 27 Mar. 2013. Web. 3 Dec. 2013. Swain, David L. “The Anguish of an Alien: Confessions of a Japanese Christian,” in The Christian Century, Vol. 112 No. 34, November 22-29, 1995, pp. 1120-25