Urakami Memory and the Two Popes: The Disrupting of an Abstracted Nuclear Discourse

This study reveals that the Catholic Church's stance on nuclear weapons has undergone significant evolution, influenced by the memories and experiences of survivors from the Urakami district in Nagasaki. The research highlights how two papal visits—one in 1981 and another in 2019—disrupted the abstracted discourse within the World Church, leading to a re-evaluation of its position on nuclear weapons. By analyzing interviews with the Catholic community in Nagasaki between 2014 and 2019, alongside the papal visits, the study demonstrates the bidirectional influence between religious discourse and international relations, particularly in the context of nuclear disarmament.

McClelland, G. (2021). Urakami Memory and the Two Popes: The Disrupting of an Abstracted Nuclear Discourse. Religions, 12(11), 950. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel12110950