Nagano Holy Savior Church

Nagano Holy Savior Church: A Meiji Brick Chapel

Nagano Holy Savior Church (長野聖救主教会, Nagano Seikyushu Kyokai) is a brick church of 1898 in Nishinagano, Nagano City, Nagano Prefecture, and in 2006 was entered on the national register as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs records Nagano Holy Savior Church as a single-storey brick building facing north, with a gabled roof of sheet metal and a building area of 138 square metres. It belongs to the Chubu Diocese of the Nippon Sei Ko Kai (Anglican Church in Japan).

Why It Was Registered

Nagano Holy Savior Church is registration number 20-0264, listed under the criterion of being a model of design. The Agency describes a single-aisle nave 14.5 metres deep with the sanctuary projecting at the far end.

The front has a pointed-arch doorway with a rose window above and pointed-arch windows on either side, and buttresses stand along the side walls and at the corners. The Agency calls it a fine example of a small church in the medieval European manner.

The Chubu Diocese says the building has long been known locally as "the brick church".

What to Look For

Facing the church, the pointed doorway, the rose window above it and the pointed windows either side sit symmetrically in the brick wall. Walk round the side to see the buttresses set at regular intervals.

The projecting sanctuary at the back is visible from outside. Small and single-storey, the building still gathers all the elements of a medieval-style church.

Visiting Nagano Holy Savior Church

Nagano Holy Savior Church is a working church, with a service every Sunday from 10:30 a.m. The Chubu Diocese asks anyone with business at the church to contact it first by its enquiry form or by phone on 026-232-6043. Be considerate of services and neighbours even when viewing the exterior.

Take the Gururin bus from JR Nagano Station to Shindai Kyoikugakubu-mae, about 10 minutes, then walk 1 minute west. The church is diagonally opposite the main gate of Shinshu University's Faculty of Education.