Shigenori Murakami, 69, the seventh-generation head of a group of 'Hidden Christians' chants 'orasho' in front of an altar adorned with a statue of the Virgin Mary and photos of deceased relatives at his home in Nagasaki, southern Japan, November 3, 2019. Japan's "Kakure Kirishitan," or "Hidden Christians," preserved their faith in secret during centuries of persecution. "I have not picked a successor yet, but I have confidence I can keep going myself and I will surely pass this on," said Murakami. "I cannot let my generation be the ones who destroy what my ancestors protected with their lives." REUTERS/Issei Kato SEARCH "HIDDEN CHRISTIANS" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES.

Masaichi Kawasaki, 69, a descendent of 'Hidden Christians', chants 'orasho' in front of an altar adorned with a statue of the Virgin Mary at his home on Ikitsuki Island, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan, November 4, 2019. Japan's "Kakure Kirishitan," or "Hidden Christians," preserved their faith in secret during centuries of persecution. "I worry that what my ancestors worked hard to preserve will disappear, but that is the trend of the times," said Kawasaki. "I have a son but I don't expect him to carry on," he added. "To think this will disappear is sad, without a doubt." REUTERS/Issei Kato SEARCH "HIDDEN CHRISTIANS" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES.

Masaichi Kawasaki, 69, a descendent of 'Hidden Christians', crosses himself as he chants 'orasho' in front of an altar adorned with a statue of the Virgin Mary during a ceremony to mark the eve of the birth of the Virgin Mary at his home on Ikitsuki Island, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan, November 5, 2019. Japan's "Kakure Kirishitan," or "Hidden Christians," preserved their faith in secret during centuries of persecution. "I worry that what my ancestors worked hard to preserve will disappear, but that is the trend of the times," said Kawasaki. "I have a son but I don't expect him to carry on," he added. "To think this will disappear is sad, without a doubt." REUTERS/Issei Kato SEARCH "HIDDEN CHRISTIANS" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY.

Rice cakes featuring sun and moon are seen in front of an altar during a ceremony to mark the eve of the birth of the Virgin Mary at the house of Masaichi Kawasaki, a descendant of 'Hidden Christians', on Ikitsuki Island, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan, November 5, 2019. Japan's "Kakure Kirishitan," or "Hidden Christians," preserved their faith in secret during centuries of persecution. REUTERS/Issei Kato SEARCH "HIDDEN CHRISTIANS" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES.

An Iraqi Christian woman prays during Mass at St George Chaldean Catholic Church in Baghdad, Iraq December 23, 2018. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani

An Iraqi Christian prays during Mass at St George Chaldean Catholic Church in Baghdad, Iraq December 23, 2018. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani

An air mask hangs on an altar during a vigil for the lives and community lost to the Camp Fire at the First Christian Church of Chico in Chico, California, November 18, 2018. Picture taken November 18, 2018. Noah Berger/Pool via REUTERS

A cross on the gravesite is seen at the General Cemetery La Paz, Bolivia, October 26, 2018. Picture taken October 26, 2018. REUTERS/David Mercado

The altar and a painting of the Virgin Mary, known locally as Our Lady of China, are seen at Our Lady of China Catholic Church in Donglu village, Hebei province, China October 3, 2018. Picture taken October 3, 2018. To match Insight CHINA-VATICAN/CHURCHES REUTERS/Christian Shepherd

A man lights candles inside St. Mary's Catholic Church located in North Sydney, Australia, May 30, 2018. REUTERS/David Gray

A harp that is held by an image of Saint Cecilia, patron of musicians, is pictured inside a showcase at Garibaldi square in Mexico City, Mexico April 4, 2018. REUTERS/Edgard Garrido

A statue of Jesus Christ is seen inside Lima Cathedral in downtown Lima, Peru, January 23, 2018. REUTERS/Henry Romero

A Rewue (altar of the Mapuches) is pictured in Makehue village, close to where Pope Francis will hold a mass in Chile's Araucania region January 15, 2018. REUTERS/Edgard Garrido

An altar of a damaged church is seen in the town of Qaraqosh, south of Mosul, Iraq, April 11, 2017. Marko Djurica: "In April 2017 I was on an assignment in Iraq, covering the battle between Iraqi forces and Islamic State fighters. Every day the Reuters team would go to the frontline from Erbil to west Mosul where the fights were going on. Each day on the road we would pass the small town of Qaraqosh. Once home for about 50,000 mostly Iraqi Christians, now it was completely empty, a ghost town. Iraqi forces kicked out Islamic State fighters but citizens were still afraid to go back to their homes. The town once had 12 churches with one more than 1000 years old. Now all were destroyed or badly ruined. Burnt-out altar of a church was one of the images I took that made me very sad." REUTERS/Marko Djurica/File Photo SEARCH "POY IS" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "REUTERS POY" FOR ALL BEST OF 2017 PACKAGES. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

An interior view of Maria Auxiliadora Catholic church is seen in Cartago, Costa Rica August 24, 2017. REUTERS/Juan Carlos Ulate TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

A religious statue slumps to the side after an earthquake hit the island of Ischia, near Naples, Italy August 22, 2017. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

A damaged statue of Jesus Christ is seen inside a church in the town of Qaraqosh, south of Mosul, Iraq, April 11, 2017. REUTERS/Marko Djurica SEARCH "QARAQOSH DJURICA" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

Catholic Christian altar boys take part in a Palm Sunday ceremony in Nairobi, Kenya April 9, 2017. REUTERS/Baz Ratner.

A voodoo believer is purified by cleaning his head with wine at an altar during celebrations at the cemetery of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, November 1, 2016. REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

An altar boy carries a crucifix at the end of the funeral for Spanish missionary Isabel Sola, who was killed last friday in a street in Port-au-Prince, in Sacre Coeur Church in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, September 8, 2016. REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

A woman sits next to an altar during the Lantern Festival celebrating the eve of the nativity of the Virgin Mary in Ahuchapan, El Salvador September 7, 2016. REUTERS/Jose Cabezas

An altar in the honor of the Virgin Nary is seen during the Lantern Festival celebrating the eve of the nativity of the Virgin Mary in Ahuchapan, El Salvador September 7, 2016. REUTERS/Jose Cabezas

Japan's Emperor Akihito (R) and Empress Michiko leave after praying at the altar of late Prince Tomohito, a cousin of the Emperor, in Tokyo June 19, 2012. REUTERS/Itsuo Inouye/Pool/File photo

Altars are seen on the way to the Maria Lionza shrine at the Sorte Mountain on the outskirts of Chivacoa, in the state of Yaracuy, Venezuela October 11, 2015. REUTERS/Marco Bello SEARCH "SANTERIA" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "THE WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES.

Christian altar boys take part in a procession known as the "Holy Mary procession" whereby a statue depicting the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus are carried by participants, in the northern Israel city of Haifa April 10, 2016. REUTERS/Baz Ratner

A Christian clergyman stands next to altar boys during a procession known as the "Holy Mary procession" whereby a statue depicting the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus are carried by participants, in the northern Israel city of Haifa April 10, 2016. REUTERS/Baz Ratner TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

ATTENTION EDITORS: SPANISH LAW REQUIRES THAT THE FACES OF MINORS ARE MASKED IN PUBLICATIONS WITHIN SPAIN A boy dressed up as an altar boy and a woman dressed up as a widow perform a traditional dance as they re-enact the traditional burial of the sardine during "El Dia de los Polvos" (Powder Day) festival in Tolox, near Malaga, southern Spain, February 9, 2016. During the carnival, it is traditional, especially for young people, to hurl talcum powder at each other until they are completely covered with it. In the past, young men used this game to seduce girls. Although the method of courtship has changed in modern days, the tradition of throwing powder on one another without distinction of gender or origin continues. REUTERS/Jon Nazca

An altar boy touches the glass where the exhumed body of the mystic saint Padre Pio lies in the Catholic church of San Lorenzo fuori le Mura in Rome, February 3, 2016. The body of one of the most popular Roman Catholic saints, the mystic monk Padre Pio began an overland journey in a crystal coffin on Wednesday to go on display at the Vatican . REUTERS/Yara Nardi

Schoolchildren dance in front of the altar as Pope Francis leads a mass in Kenya's capital Nairobi, November 26, 2015. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini

Pope Francis blesses the altar at the start of a mass in Kenya's capital Nairobi, November 26, 2015. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini

Pope Francis (C) kisses the altar as he starts the Papal mass in Kenya's capital Nairobi, November 26, 2015. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A police officer holding an umbrella in the rain stands in front of the altar before the mass by Pope Francis in Kenya's capital Nairobi November 26, 2015. Pope Francis steps onto African soil for the first time on Wednesday to address the continent's fast-growing Catholic congregation during a trip that will test his ability to bridge faultlines between Christians and Muslims. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini

Father Robert "Bob" White and his altar assistants arrive to celebrate a special mass at St. Joseph the Worker Catholic Parish where Pope Francis is expected to visit within Kangemi, a slum that is home to 650,000 people in Kenya's capital Nairobi, November 22, 2015. Pope Francis will meet slum dwellers and refugees and call for dialogue between Christians and Muslims when he visits Kenya, Uganda and Central African Republic, the Vatican said. The trip, his first to Africa, is fraught with security concerns and the pope will spend about two days in each country and visit only the capitals. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A priest and altar boys arrive to celebrate Catholic mass on Sunday, with a cardboard cut-out of Pope Francis to the right, inside the Holy Family Minor Basilica parish, the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Nairobi, in Kenya's capital Nairobi, November 8, 2015. Pope Francis makes his first pontifical visit later this month to Africa, where Catholicism has grown rapidly over the last few decades but now faces serious competition from Evangelical and Pentecostal churches, as well as Islam. The pontiff's trip to Africa, where an estimated 1 in 5 people is Catholic, takes in Kenya, Uganda and Central African Republic. His visit to that country is fraught with security concerns after months of clashes between Christians and Muslim gangs in which dozens of people have been killed. REUTERS/Thomas MukoyaPICTURE 2 OF 13 FOR WIDER IMAGE STORY "CATHOLICISM IN AFRICA". SEARCH "PONTIFF EVANGELICAL" FOR ALL IMAGES

An altar boy swings the thurible alongside a French and Australian (L) flag during a Requiem Mass for the victims of the Paris attacks at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney, Australia, November 16, 2015. REUTERS/Jason Reed

Altar boys spread incense as they wait for the arrival of Pope Francis on the occasion of a Mass for cardinals and bishops who died in the past year, in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, November 3, 2015. REUTERS/Gregorio Borgia/Pool

A devotee of the Chinese Bang Neow shrine carries an altar during a procession celebrating the annual vegetarian festival in Phuket, Thailand October 18, 2015. The festival, featuring face-piercing, spirit mediums and strict vegetarianism celebrates the local Chinese community's belief that abstinence from meat and various stimulants during the ninth lunar month of the Chinese calendar will help them obtain good health and peace of mind. REUTERS/Jorge Silva

A visitor kneels in front of the Blessed Junipero Serra's grave at the altar inside the Carmel Mission Basilica in Carmel, California, September 15, 2015. Pope Francis will declare Friar Junipero Serra a saint at a Mass celebrated at the National Shrine in Washington on September 23 during the pontiff’s first visit to the United States. The Franciscan friar from Spain built a series of missions along the Pacific coast in the 18th century, in what is now California, to spread the faith among Native Americans. His advocates say he supported the Indians, introducing cattle and crops to their land. The Vatican has defended Serra against accusations that, as part of the Spanish colonial system, he suppressed Native Americans. Serra’s resting place is inside the Basilica at the Carmel Mission south of San Francisco. REUTERS/Michael Fiala TPX IMAGES OF THE DAYPICTURE 35 OF 35 FOR WIDER IMAGE STORY "POPE TO CANONISE FRIAR SERRA". SEARCH "SERRA NATIVE" FOR ALL IMAGES

Followers of the Afro-Cuban religion Santeria pray for the spirits in front of an altar and an image of Jesus Christ before a ceremony in a house known as Cabildo, or religious house by Santeria tradition, in downtown Havana, August 7, 2015. Santeria adherents can only hope the upcoming visit from Pope Francis will somehow nudge the Church toward recognising the millions of Cubans who identify with both religious traditions. Picture taken on August 7, 2015. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini

An altar produced for a ceremony of the Afro-Cuban religion Santeria to attract spirits of dead ancestors to ask for guidance is seen in a house in downtown Havana, August 18, 2015. Santeria adherents can only hope the upcoming visit from Pope Francis will somehow nudge the Church toward recognizing the millions of Cubans who identify with both religious traditions. August 18, 2015. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini

Pope Francis leaves after an audience for altar servers at St. Peter's Square in Vatican City August 4, 2015. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

Pope Francis waves as he leaves after an audience for altar servers at St. Peter's Square in Vatican City August 4, 2015. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

Pope Francis attends an audience for altar servers in St. Peter's square at Vatican City August 4, 2015. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

Pope Francis waves as he arrives to attend an audience for altar servers at St. Peter's Square in Vatican City August 4, 2015. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

Pope Francis attends an audience for altar servers at St. Peter's Square in Vatican City August 4, 2015. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

Pope Francis attends an audience for altar servers in St. Peter's square at the Vatican City, August 4, 2015. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

A boy waves a Swiss national flag as Pope Francis arrives to attend an audience for altar servers at St. Peter's square in Vatican City, August 4, 2015. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

Pope Francis waves as he arrives to attend an audience for altar servers at St. Peter's square in Vatican City, August 4, 2015. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

Pope Francis waves as he arrives to attend an audience for altar servers at St. Peter's square in Vatican City, August 4, 2015. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

Pope Francis poses for a picture as he arrives to attend an audience for altar servers at St. Peter's square in Vatican City, August 4, 2015. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

A small altar is seen at Mount Bromo ahead of the annual Kasada festival in Indonesia's East Java province, July 30, 2015. The Kasada festival will be held on August 1, when the worshippers throw offerings such as livestock and other crops into the volcanic crater of Mount Bromo to give thanks to the Hindu gods for ensuring their safety and prosperity. REUTERS/Beawiharta

Students holding umbrellas visit the official memorial altar for the victims of the ferry disaster that killed more than 300 passengers on the occasion of the first anniversary, in Ansan April 16, 2015. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

A view of "The Altar of Corn", built by Paraguayan artist Koki Ruiz, is illuminated during "Via Crucis" (Way of the Cross) on Good Friday in Tanarandy, San Ignacio April 3, 2015. Holy Week is celebrated in many Christian traditions during the week before Easter. REUTERS/Jorge Adorno

A view of "The Altar of Corn", built by Paraguayan artist Koki Ruiz, is illuminated during "Via Crucis" (Way of the Cross) on Good Friday in Tanarandy, San Ignacio April 3, 2015. Holy Week is celebrated in many Christian traditions during the week before Easter. REUTERS/Jorge Adorno

An altar boy holds Pope Francis' mitre during penitential celebration in the St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, March 13, 2015. REUTERS/Alessandro Bianchi (VATICAN - Tags: RELIGION)

Orthodox priest Ioan Kukov of Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox church recites mass at the Church of St. George in Sofia, during a visit by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (unseen), January 15, 2015. The church was built by the Romans in the 4th century. REUTERS/Rick Wilking (BULGARIA - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION)

An altar boy speaks in sign language at St. Elizabeth of Hungary in New York's Manhattan before a Christmas service for its deaf congregation December 21, 2014. St. Elizabeth, the only Roman Catholic parish dedicated to serving a deaf congregation, is in danger of losing its identity. The Archdiocese of New York has plans to merge St. Elizabeth with a hearing church, part of a sweeping consolidation of congregations that reflects long-term changes in where New Yorkers worship. Members of St. Elizabeth's fear the move means the loss of the special significance of their deaf church. Picture taken December 21, 2014. To match Feature USA-NEWYORK/DEAFCHURCH REUTERS/Mike Segar (UNITED STATES - Tags: RELIGION SOCIETY)

Two women pray at an altar of La Santa Muerte (The Saint of Death), a cult figure often depicted as a skeletal grim reaper, and next to a graffiti of the saint at a highway in Tierras Prietas November 9, 2014. Followers gather at altars at the start of the month or new year to leave offerings of apples, flowers, cigarettes, coloured candles and tequila to thank the saint for favours that have been granted or to ask for new ones in the new year. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril (MEXICO - Tags: RELIGION SOCIETY)

Colourful bracelets are left on a spirit house for victims of the Khmer Rouge regime at Choeung Ek, a "Killing Fields" site located on the outskirts of Phnom Penh August 6, 2014. Cambodia's young population is very aware of its grim history, with almost every family suffering losses. Most Cambodians still want justice and to see the U.N.-backed court find the recalcitrant Nuon Chea, Pol Pot's right-hand man, and ex-President Khieu Samphan, guilty of crimes against humanity, but the court has been mired in disputes, resignations, funding shortages and accusations of political interference and has to date delivered just one verdict. The court will deliver verdicts for Noun Chea and Khieu Samphan on August 7, 2014. REUTERS/Damir Sagolj (CAMBODIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST)

A man donates money near a baby Jesus statue dressed in a version of the national soccer team jersey at a church in Mexico City June 12, 2014. Catholic soccer fans pray before the statue, which believers say has granted miracles in the past, demanding him a good 2014 World Cup football match against Cameroon on June 13. REUTERS/Tomas Bravo (MEXICO - Tags: SOCIETY RELIGION SPORT SOCCER WORLD CUP TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)