was a Japanese

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He served as Archbishop of Osaka from 1941 until his death in 1978, and was elevated to the

cardinalate The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are appoi ...

in 1973. Taguchi was born in

Sotome, Nagasaki was a town located in Nishisonogi District, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 5,412 and a density of 116.09 persons per km². The total area was . On January 4, 2005, Sotome, along with the town ...

(now part of the city of

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hidden Christian Sites in the ...

). After graduation from Sapientia University, now

St. Thomas University, Japan , formerly known as Sapientia University or , was a Christian private university in Amagasaki, Hyogo, Japan. The school was founded in 1962 as a junior college and became a four-year college in the following year. The name "St. Thomas Univer ...

, he studied at the Pontifical Urbaniana University and Pontifical Athenaeum ''S. Apollinare'' in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, where he was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

to the priesthood on December 22, 1928. After finishing his studies in 1931, he returned to the

Archdiocese of Tokyo The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Tokyo ( la, Archidioecesis Tokiensis, ja, カトリック東京大司教区) is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Japan. It was erected as the Apostolic Vicariate ...

, where he served as a

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

and director general of the Catholic Press Centre until 1936. From 1936 to 1940, he was

secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

of the

Apostolic Delegation An apostolic nuncio ( la, nuntius apostolicus; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international org ...

to Japan. On November 25, 1941, Taguchi was appointed

Bishop of Osaka The ''Nippon Sei Ko Kai'' ( ja, 日本聖公会, translit=Nippon Seikōkai, lit=Japanese Holy Catholic Church), abbreviated as NSKK, sometimes referred to in English as the Anglican Episcopal Church in Japan, is the national Christian church rep ...

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. Before his e ...

. He received his episcopal consecration on the following December 14 from Apostolic Delegate in Japan Archbishop

Paolo Marella Paolo Marella (25 January 1895 – 15 October 1984) was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served in the Roman Curia following a career as a delegate of the Holy See, and was elevated to the cardinalate by Pope John XXIII ...

, with Archbishop Peter Doi and Bishop Johannes Ross, S.J. serving as

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

, at the Cathedral of Tokyo. He attended the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...

from 1962 to 1965, and was promoted to the rank of metropolitan archbishop on July 24, 1969. He also served as

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

of the Japanese Episcopal Conference from 1970 to 1978.

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

created him Cardinal Priest of ''

S. Maria in Via Santa Maria in Via Lata is a church on the Via del Corso (the ancient Via Lata (Rome), Via Lata), in Rome, Italy. It stands diagonal from the church of San Marcello al Corso. It is the Stational church, Station days for Tuesday, the fifth week o ...

'' in the consistory of March 5, 1973. During the Second World War, he was mobilized by the Japanese authorities to establish contacts for the government with the Catholics of the Philippines.''Le cardinal Maglione au délégué apostolique à Washington Cicognani''. Vatican, 8 October 1942. Tel. nr 734 (A.S.S. Guerra, Varia 69). Acts and Documents of the Holy See Relative to the Second World War Vol. 8 pp
711-712
/ref> Apparently, this move alerted the American Archbishop of Manila,

Michael J. O'Doherty Michael James O'Doherty (30 July 1874 – 13 October 1949) was an Irish prelate and was the 27th Archbishop of Manila in the Philippines. O'Doherty was Archbishop of Manila for 33 years from 1916 until his death in 1949, making him the longest ...

, who claimed that this was an attempt to supplant his authority as the Primate of the Philippines. Then, correspondence between Washington, Vatican, and Manila cleared up the misunderstanding since Taguchi's visit to Manila served no political purpose. Taguchi died in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

, aged 75; he is buried in the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Osaka. His most accessible writing in English is "The study of Sacred Scripture".ACTS/1722 - The study of Sacred Scripture By Cardinal Paul Y. Taguchi. 1979

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taguchi, Paul Yashigoro 1902 births 1973 deaths 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Japan Cardinals created by Pope Paul VI Japanese cardinals Participants in the Second Vatican Council People from Nagasaki Pontifical Urban University alumni Japanese Roman Catholic archbishops