- Home
- California State University, Sacramento
- Oral History Interview with Reverend Newton Ishiura
Oral History Interview with Reverend Newton Ishiura
- Metadata
Notes to User
To view additional or related parts of this recording, see "Related materials"
Title
Oral History Interview with Reverend Newton Ishiura
Created Date
September 9th, 1997
September 18th, 1997
May 12th, 1998
September 18th, 1997
May 12th, 1998
Description
Kibei male, born in 1918 in Hawaii. His father was a Buddhist priest serving a sugar plantation population. He was educated in the local schools and in his sophomore year of high school the family went to Japan and he graduated from a Lutheran related institution for children from foreign countries. He then graduated from a university in Kyoto, studying Buddhist traditions. In 1940 there was an all-Nisei conference in Japan. He heard others speak of the Japanese military. The Japanese police considered him to be an anti-Japanese thinker. He was ordered to report his activities to the police every three months. A friend at the American Consulate in Osaka warned him to return to America. In July 1941 he boarded a boat bound for San Francisco. That night going from Kobe to Yokohama, teams of Japanese police interrogated him, but his responses were acceptable and he was able to continue his journey. He was assigned to Buddhist churches in the Los Angeles area. When World War II began, all other priests in Los Angeles were arrested by the FBI. Newton was interned in the Santa Anita Race Track Assembly Center, where he became ill with tuberculosis. He was sent to Hillcrest Sanitarium where there were 168 Japanese persons and he conducted interfaith services for the patients. He was discharged to Gila River, Arizona Relocation Center and after a short stay, he left to work elsewhere. In 1943, he went to Yale University as an instructor in the Army Specialized Training Program, teaching the Japanese language. After the war, Newton was assigned to churches in Hawaii where he developed the Buddhist Wheel to be the symbol on gravestones of deceased soldiers. He also worked with the Boy Scouts to develop the Sangha Award merit badge and served on the National Board of Scouts. He developed the hospital chaplaincy program as well as serving as chaplain to the Hawaiian legislature. Newton was transferred to the Buddhist Church in Toronto, Canada in 1956. He increased the membership of his church, was involved in the Canadian Interfaith Committee supporting the rights of Indians, and became the first Bishop of the Buddhist Church of Canada in 1967. He related the treatment of Japanese Canadians by their government during the war. He was then assigned to the Buddhist Church in Berkeley, California where his wife died, and later to the Florin Buddhist Church.
Creators and Contributors
Creator:
North Central Valley Japanese American Citizens League
Interviewer: Tsuda, Hiroko
Speaker: Ishiura, Newton
Interviewer: Tsuda, Hiroko
Speaker: Ishiura, Newton
Subject Topic
Genre
Media Type
Format
Audio cassette
Extent
4
Tapes
Generation
Copy
Copyright Statement
Copyrighted. Rights are owned by the Consortium of of Japanese American Citizens League Chapters and California State University, Sacramento. Copyright Holder has given Organization permission to provide access to the digitized work online. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owner. In addition, the reproduction of some materials may be restricted by terms of gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy and publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Country of Creation
United States
Contributing Organization
Call Number
Unknown
Contributing Organization Contact Information
Email: lib-scua@saclink.csus.edu
Phone: (916) 278-5240
Phone: (916) 278-5240
Organization Websites
Link to Internet Archive
Related Objects within California Revealed
Is Related To
Oral history interview with Reverend Newton Ishiura