A STUDY ABOUT THE POWER STRUCTURE AMONG THE WESTERN CHURCH, THE JAPANESE CULTURE AND THE NON-CHURCH CHRISTIANS IN JAPAN (original) (raw)
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Ph.D Dissertation, Fuller Theological Seminary, 2002
The contemporary church in Japan faces a formidable challenge. A steadily declining membership has thrown many churches into a crisis of survival. In a context of dynamic social change, churches are forced to reconsider their character, purpose, and mission. While many churches seem trapped in a mode of maintenance, others have seized the opportunity to boldly engage the social change around them repositioning their church to connect to the needs of a postmodern society. In so doing, they are cultivating a fresh understanding of what vitality ought to be for the contemporary church in Japan. Such churches are the core concern of this dissertation. While much of the church in Japan is in decline, these churches are growing numerically, spiritually, and relationally. This dissertation works at understanding what it behind this new growth. In the broadest sense, vitality in a church should mean giving hope to those who are suffering, challenging injustice, and proclaiming God’s redemptive plan for humanity. In this sense, vitality in a church arises from its being. As an investigative descriptive study, this dissertation offers a description of the present condition of the churches included in the field study, integrating these findingswith the background research. A survey of relevant issues in Japanese society and religion and the development of the Protestant church in Japan is also given, along with a discussion on contemporary perspectives of church vitality and the biblical notion of faith community. All of these areas are integrated with the intent of moving toward a deeper understanding of church vitality in the contemporary Japanese context.
Introduction: Formations of the Secular in Japan
Aike P. Rots and Mark teeuwen early modern power configurations, and their "universalization" was embedded in imperialist projects even if the categories were appropriated and transformed by non-Western actors. 4 Thus, Asad and like-minded postcolonial scholars have contributed significantly to the re-historicization of these concepts and, accordingly, to the overcoming of universalistic, sui generis understandings of religion. 5 The title of this special issue, Formations of the Secular in Japan, is a direct reference to the work of Asad, whose genealogical approach and conceptual criticism constitute an important source of inspiration for us. At the same time, however, some of the articles in this volume depart from Asad, notably in problematizing his assertion that "the secular" was a uniquely Western product, developed in a Christian context and forcibly imposed upon non-Western Others. They show that the religioussecular dichotomy played a central part in modern state formation in Japan, in spite of the fact that Japan was one of a handful of non-Western countries that escaped colonization. 6 The categories of religion and the secular were not simply imposed by "the West": they were also shaped by Japanese (state and religious) actors, who drew on preexisting notions and practices as much as on newly imported ones.
Imagining Religion in Japan: Transformations of the Category of ‘Religion’ in the Japanese Context
The paper deals with the notion of "religion" in the context of Japan. The social sciences need general terms and concepts and the term "religion" is a generic term applied in the study of culture and in the academic study of religion under severe theoretical and methodological precautions. Without a doubt, the emic perspective constitutes an important element in studying a foreign culture, but it would be incorrect to consider it the very basis of the scholarly approach to a foreign culture. It is obvious that the perspective of the academic study of religions, of sociology or anthropology comes from the "Western" environment, but it is adopted in and it interacts with the non-Western environment. From this point of view, the general concept of "religion" should be maintained for the purpose of studying Japanese culture. It helps us to delimitate the field of our interest in order to better understand the phenomena we are about to encounter.
ジャーナル オブ グローバル メディア スタディーズ, 2010
in this paper mainly derived from Shibasaki (1999a). 2 In Japan, the number of Christian has never been over the 1% of the population. Japan is the only G8 country whose religious majority is not Christian. Majority of the people believe both Buddhism and Shinto almost indiscriminately. This syncretism stems from mixture of traditional belief towards gods traditionally in Japan and towards Budda introduced from China. Today, the number of the Protestant and Catholic are almost the same. In the prewar period the Catholic were far fewer than Protestant (the ratio was about 1:2). 3 Nonchuch Movement maintained that they don't need to depend on church as an institution of Christianity. Instead they focus on the interpretation of the Bible. Uchimura Kanzo was influenced by W. S. Clark (a teacher in Sapporo Agriculture School and influenced many students through Christianity). His friend was Nitobe Inazo, who is also famous as an Undersecretary General of the League of Nations. 4 He published over 90 books and wrote over 700 articles. 5 On his life and career, see Suzuki (1977).
THE RISE AND STRUGGLE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JAPAN: "Analysing the History of Christianity in Japan"
ANALYSIS THE HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY IN JAPAN, 2022
The History of Christianity in Japan rose, underwent struggle and eventually a fall. This Paper sketches through a keen and intense consultation of different scholarship work in the history of Christianity in Japan that has been detail in a close and divergent manner. The Christian history is developed and built in Asia and Especially Japan.
New Religious Movements: New Panorama of Japanese Religion
New religions have been especially appealing to people in a rapidly changing society. Conservative and traditional moral values are often articulated in such a changing society. In a changing Japanese society, conservative and traditional moral values are often articulated; modes of hopes, understanding and meaning are provided; meaningful teaching and promises of salvation for people are offered. It should be mentioned that the various Japanese traditional ways of religious practices, such as magical healing, spirit possessions, and the gaining of worldly benefits, are the standard features of almost all of the New Religious Movements in Japan. This article contributes to the discussion on the background of New Religious Movements, the meaning of NMRs, their standard features, and persistent themes from a Japanese perspective. Thus, this paper proceeds by presenting some of the different socio-historical contexts based on which new religious movements emerged. It is an attempt of the current paper that can help us explain and evaluate the socio-historical facts of the rise of New Religious Movements in Japan. In addition, the current paper presents how New Religious Movements demonstrate their magnetic attraction for the ordinary people in Japan and create a new panorama providing the opportunity of being treated in a particular way. Finally, as for implication, this paper gives importance to some crucial issues that focus on further study of religion in Japan from different approaches in future that cannot be avoided the significant problems of democratisation, secularisation, and atheism in Japan. Keywords New Religious Movements. Persistent Themes. New Panorama. Democratisation. Secularisation. Organisational development. Multiplicity of religions .
The Brotherhoods (Confrarias) and Lay Support for the Early Christian Church in Japan
Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 2007
By the end of the sixteenth century, the Japanese mission had become the largest overseas Christian community that was not under the rule of a European power. Its uniqueness was emphasized by Alessandro Valignano since 1582, who promoted a deeper accommodation to Japanese culture. It was also understood by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who issued the first national anti-Christian laws while he was unifying the Japanese empire. The main reason for the religious success of the Catholic Church in Japan was, undoubtedly, the engagement of many converts and their descendents. This article deals with the role of Japanese lay people within the Church, analyzing how individuals gave support to daily activities and how the communities strengthened themselves through the formation of brotherhoods. Japan was then the sole overseas country where all members of those confraternities were locals, in spite of the presence of a colonial elite.