The first episode of our podcast is on the life and times of Hosokawa Gracia, daughter of the infamous Akechi Mitsuhide. If you'd like to listen to it, you can find a direct link here, or just search for "Misohitomoji Podcast" on whatever provider you use.
I wanted to devote an episode to Gracia after reading a short biography about her written by Johannes Laures. She was a Catholic woman who lived in a society where, at the time, it was difficult to be either a Catholic or a woman, yet the accounts of her spoke of her grace and the transformation finding God had on her. I was moved by reading about the struggles she had in life and wanted to do my part to bring any attention I could to her memory. There is already a lot of material in print or on the internet about the lives of more famous characters from Japan's past, but I felt like Gracia hasn't been given her proper due. I hope you'll find learning about her as touching as it was for me.