A. Hamish Ion, a specialist in modern Japanese history, currently teaches in the History Department at the Royal Military College of Canada, Kingston.

"This work, volume 3, is especially welcome not only for the historical narrative but also for the light it sheds on two major problems of the period -- namely the Shinto shrine and Union Church controversies....Each chapter is well researched with extensive coverage of both primary and secondary sources. While the author bases his work on primary sources, consisting of missionary letters and writings, mission board documents, government documents, and Japanese leaders' writings, the reviewer was impressed by the author's ability to draw on secondary works by contemporary Japanese scholars, writing in Japanese, which immeasurably contribute to the critical analysis of the mission problem. Few Western scholars have achieved facility with the Japanese language allowing for such wide reading....This is a superb attempt to revisit the difficult years of the Depression and World War II. Focusing on Canadian missionaries allows the author to cover mission in Japan more widely. This work can not be too highly recommended for scholars and the general public interested in missions in Japan." -- Robert E. Fulop, Central Baptist Theological Seminary, Church History

• Table of Contents for The Cross in the Dark Valley: The Canadian Protestant Missionary Movement in the Japanese Empire, 1931-1945 by A. Hamish Ion Acknowledgments Abbreivations Illustrations Introduction Chapter One: Undertones of the Past The Early Development of the Japanese Protestant Movement Canadian Missions in Japan Progress in North Korea Foothold in North Taiwan Chapter Two: Toward the Kingdom of God: Evangelism and Social Concern in Japan The Depression, Christian Revival, and Kagawa The Evangelistic and Social Work of the United Church Mission Canadian Anglicans and the Revival Canadian Presbyterians and Koreans in Japan Chapter Three: On the Colonial Frontier On the Border The Manchurian Crisis With Goforth in Manchuria Financial Cuts in Korea Staying On in North Taiwan Chapter Four: The Shrine Question The Shrine Question in Japan Conflict in North Korea Tensions in North Taiwan Chapter Five: Educational Work in Japan Girls' Schools in Japan The Kwansei Gakuin Chapter Six: Specialized Educational and Medical Work The Canadian Academy The Canadian Anglican Kindergarten Training School The New Life Sanatorium at Obuse Educational Work among Koreans in Japan Chapter Seven: Contrast in the Colonies: Educational and Medical Work in Korea, Manchukuo, and Taiwan Budgetary Challenges and Educational Work in Korea Boys' and Girls' Schools in Korea and Manchukuo Dealing with the Colonial Authorities Training Evangelists in Manchukuo Medical Work in Korea Difficulties in Taiwan The Happy Mount Leprosy Colony Chapter Eight: Missionary Life in Japan and Its Empire Growing Up in Japan Young and Old Missionaries in Japan Living and Working in Rural Japan Contrast in the Japanese Empire Chapter Nine: Canadian Missionary Attitudes to Politics in Japan Darkening Clouds of Ultranationalism The 26 February 1936 Incident and Its Aftermath The Marco Polo Bridge Incident and War in North China The Nanking Atrocities and the Continuing War Changkufeng, Nomonhan, and Fear of the Soviet Union Chiang Kai-shek and the China Crisis Typhoon Weather Chapter Ten: Growing Pressure for Church Union in Japan The Twists and Turns on the Road to Church Union The Marco Polo Bridge Incident and Its Aftermath Nipponteki Kirisutokyo and Overseas Evangelism Growing Pressure for Union The Salvation Army Crisis United Church Missionaires and the Impending Union The Predicament of the NSKK Chapter Eleven: Union and Withdrawal Making Missionary Adjustments Withdrawal from Mid-Japan Canadian Presbyterian Evacuation from Taiwan, Manchuko, and Japan Chapter Twelve: Into the Fires of War The Japanese Christian Deputation Working on in Japan and Korea The Nippon Kirisutokyodan and the NSKK Internment Hoping for the Best Conclusion Notes Select Bibliography Index