Tokyo, Japan, 24 October 2024 -- On Sunday 20 October, our beloved Salesian Brother, Anthony of Padua Akabae Fumio ended his 75 years of religious life in Tokyo and was called to Don Bosco’s garden. He was 95 years old.
Br. Akabae was born in Ohura, Nagasaki City, Nagasaki Prefecture, on 18 August 1929, to a devout family descended from the “Kakure” (Hidden) Christians, survivors of the persecution that lasted for about 250 years.
The event that changed his life took place on 9 August 1945. As you know, an atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki on that day. He lost his parents, four sisters and a brother. Faced with such a desperate situation, he joined the Salesians at the invitation of his elder brother, Akabae Hiroshi, who had already joined the Salesians.
He took his first vows in 1949 and his final vows in 1955, and worked as a Salesian brother, mainly in orphanages. In particular, he spent almost 40 years at the Tokyo Salesian Boy’s Home. Then, from 2003 until his death, he spent 21 years at the Chofu Formation House, mainly as a gardener.
His tireless work and fidelity to religious life were a good example for the young confreres and aspirants.
