“Silence” by Shusaku Endo Essays

â€Å"Silence† by Shusaku Endo Essays â€Å"Silence† by Shusaku Endo Essay â€Å"Silence† by Shusaku Endo Essay â€Å"Silence† by Shusaku Ebdo provides detailed overview of life and adventures of Portuguese missionary priest. The author shows that the priest was responsible for administering Christian community in Japan. However, the author raises the themes of religious intolerance and discrimination showing that main hero suffered from religious prosecution by Japanese authorities. Also the author explores eternal themes of despair, apostasy, faith, martyrdom, redemption and religious sin. The book, thus, can be considered profound exploration of Incarnation logic. Actually, the author tends to show that God’s journey from Heaven isn’t paid proper attention and God’s omnipotence is contradicted. One more theme is hero’s personal struggle as Christian in Japan meaning that the author explores the paradox of a crucified God. Speaking about interesting moment it is necessary to explain the meaning of the book’s title – Silence. Endo assumes that Silence symbolizes strangeness of Christ’s death and incarnation. The author shows that Rodriguez is rather concerned with God’s silence. He can’t understand why God prefers to keep silence when seeing human agony and suffering. Firstly the hero thinks the God is simply sitting and doing nothing: his arms are folded. Rodriguez claims that God remains indifferent when simple and innocent people in God’s name. Nevertheless, the author shows that Rodriguez in such a way is tempted to apostatize with the purpose to save peasant because he asserts that God won’t help and save them. Finally, God’s silence leads to the fact that the pres loses faith in God. Nonetheless, the author points out that sometime Rodriguez hears that God breaks the silence. It is suggested that it is merely Rodriguez imagination. He imagine s that Christ speaks to him from the fumie: â€Å"Trample! It was to be trampled on by men that I was born into this world. It was to share mens pain that I carried my cross†. In such a way God has responded to the misery and suffering of humans by giving the Word. Endo, Shusaku. (2006). Silence. UK, London: Peter Owen Publishers.