INDIGENIZATION AND TRANSFORMATION OF CHRISTIANITY IN A JAPANESE RURAL COMMUNITY

8/19/2019 INDIGENIZATION AND TRANSFORMATION OF CHRISTIANITY IN A JAPANESE RURAL COMMUNITY.

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Japanese Journa l o f Re l i g i ous St ud i es 12 /1

INDIGENIZATION AND TRANSFORMATION OF CHRISTIANITY

IN A J A P A NE S E R U R A L C OMMUNI T Y

NISHIYAMA Shigeru

T HE P R OB L E M A ND T HE F R A ME O F A NA L Y S I S

The resul t s to dat e of s t udies on t he i ndi geni zat i on and

t r ansf ormat i on of Chr i st i ani t y in J apanese rural communi t i es canbe s ummar i zed in t wo t heses an indigenization thesis and a

transformation thesis. The indigenization thesis runs as follows

despite being a religion that as a matter of principle emphasizes

individual confession of faith and individual membership,

Chr i st i ani t y, in order t o establ ish it sel f in J apanese soci et y, has

had t o beco me a rel igi on t hat bases i t self on a gr oup unit , namel y ，

the ie or househol d. The tr ansf ormati on t hesis says: Chr i st ianit y

r eceives part icul ar l y s t rong i nf l uence f r om t he ancestr al cul t ,cent r al t o which is the Buddha al t ar .1

Both theses, however, leave something to be desired. For if , on

t he one hand, t heir f ormul ati on oft en l acks a cl ear anal yt i cal

framework, their method of substantiation, on the other, often

stops short at observation and interviews, failing to go on to

sy st emat i c dat a- gatheri ng by means of quest ionnair es.

This paper, therefore, proposes to reformulate these theses as

hypothetical propositions to be investigated in accordance with the

anal yt i cal f r amewor k pres ent ed bel ow, and t o consi der t hem more

precisely in l ight of the data (including questionnaire data)

gat her ed in t he course of t his monogr aphi c st udy of Fukuda

Tr ansl at ed by Dav i d Re i d f r om nNi hon sonr aku ni oker u kipisutokyo

no t ei chaku t o heny o—Chi ba k en Shi mosa Fukuda Sei kokai no j ir eiTf

日本村落における基督教の定着と変容千葉県下総福田聖公会の事例 in

Shakaiqaka hvoron 社会学評論 26 (1975)， p p . 53- 73.


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18 NI S HI Y A MA : Chr i s t i ani t y in J apan

Ang l i can Epi scopal Chur c h in Chi ba .

If t he t radit ional reli gions of J apan may be charac t er i zed as

forms of "institutionalized culture and the imported religion of

Chr is t i ani t y a form of non- insti t ut ionali zed cul t ure,”2 t he conceptof i ndige ni zat i on used in this paper may be def i ned as t he change

whe r e by a s peci f i c f or m of non- i nst i t ut i onal i zed cul t ur e as s umes a

new posit i on as a form of i nst i t ut i onal i zed cul t ur e wi t hi n a speci

f i c social gr oup. Corr espondi ngl y, t he concept of t r ansf ormati on

used in this paper may be defined as the change whereby, in the

repositioning process ， t he non- insti t ut ionali zed cul t ural f or m，

coming into contact with institutionalized culture, f inds its

patterns unraveled and rewoven in a definite way. Religious

Figure 1

Patterns in Traditional Religions and Christianity

Dei t y Conce i v ed as Uni que and Uni ver sal

Individual

I II

Christ ianity

Traditional

religions

III IV

Deit ies Concei ve d as Mul t i pr esent and Part icul aris t ic


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J A P A N E S E J OU R N A L O F R E L I GI OUS S T UDI E S 1 2 /1 19

patterns, moreover, will here be considered either central or

per i pheral , cent r al r eferr i ng to the char act er of i ts god- concept

(its religious symbol), peripheral referring to the unit of religious

membership.3 The patterns of traditional religions and Christianity

may be furt her cl ari f i ed as in Fig ur e 1 . The group indi cated in t he

t erm "gr oup uni t " (on t he ext r eme ri ght ) r ef er s in this si t uati on t o

t he househol d.

Fig ure 1 i ndi cates, t hen, our f r ame of anal ysi s . Our next st ep is

to reformulate the two hypotheses.

The indigenization hypothesis parallels the horizontal axis , the

transformation hypothesis the vertical. Both are capable of

r eformul at i on. That is to s a y ,( 1 ) Chri st ianit y , when adopt ed in t heJ apanes e rural communi t y，must t ake ei t her f orm II or f orm IV in

or der to bec ome fi rml y est abl i shed, and (2) of t hese t wo, it is

pecul iar l y l iabl e to t r ansf ormat ion in t he dir ect i on of t he f orm

IV- t y pe bel ief patt ern (t he ancestr al cul t ) . These t wo hy pot heses ,

deal i ng respect i vel y wi t h i ndi geni zat i on and t r ansf ormat i on，appear

to refer to completely different subjects, but if Figure 1 is taken

as a gui de to our t hi nki ng about t his mat t er , it becomes evi dent

that both hypotheses have to do solely with transformation in

q ua dr a nt 1 ( t he Chr i s t i a n pa t t e r n) . Th e o nl y di f f e r e nc e b e t we e n

t hem is whet her this t r ansf ormati on r efer s t o a cent ral or a

per ipheral pattern.

Because this difference is a serious one, the concept of trans

f or mat i on as used i n t his st udy wil l be di vi ded i nt o t wo subordi

nat e concept s, namel y, for m and subst ance. A n at t empt wil l be

made t o ver i f y t he t wo hypot heses in t erms of t hese t wo subordi

nate concepts. The f irst is transformation as change in form—the

hori zont al axi s in Figure 1 . The second is tr ansf ormati on as change

i n s ubs t a nc e — t he v er t i c a l a x i s i n F i g ur e 1 . Of t he s e t wo ， i t i s

l ikel y t hat t r ansf ormat i on havi ng to do wi t h change i n for m is

alm ost inevitable for Christ ianity as accepted in Japanese rural

society .

This bri ngs us t o t he quest i on of whet her t he rel igi ous fai t h of

our r espondent s， members of t he Fukuda Angl i can Epi scopal

Churc h, has r emai ned at t he l evel of change in f or m, or whet her it

has gone on to the level of change of substance. In accordance


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20 NISHIYAMA: Christ ianity in Japan

wi t h c onc r et e da t a t o be pr es ent ed, t his que s t i on wi l l be pur sued

in the sections that follow.

In order to substantiate these hypotheses, it is desirable that

t he obj e c t o f i nv es t i g at i o n s at i s f y t he f o l l owi n g r e q u i r e m e n t s : (1)

it should be a church located in a rural society where the tradi

t ional r eli gions have c omparat i vel y dee p roots, (2) it shoul d be a

church with a fair ly long history (at least two generations of f if ty

y ear s ) s i nce t he t i me of it s f oundi ng, (3) c hur ch member s and ot her

m em bers of this rural society are not to dif fer great ly with

r espect t o occupat i on or social s t at us, and (4) it is t o be a chur ch

t hat, in consequence of the foregoi ng, is to a cer t ain ext ent well -

rooted in this rural society. As wi l l be i ndi cat ed be l ow, Fuk ud a Ang l i c an Epi s copal Chur c h

sat i sf i es all t hese r equi r ement s,4 and hence may be t aken as an

appropriate object of investigation for the purpose of verifying the

foregoing hy potheses .5

THE ADOPTION AND INDIGENIZATION OF CHRISTIANITY IN

SHIMO FUKUDA

Fukuda Angl i can Epi scopal Chur ch was f ir st or ganized in Sep

t ember 1876, and it s chur ch bui l di ng r emains t o t he pr esent day in

t he Shimo Fukuda war d of Nari t a Ci t y. (At t he t ime t he church

wa s f ounded, t he full name of t he geogr aphi cal l oc at i on wa s Shi mo

Fukuda Vi l l age， Shi mo Habu Dis t ri ct, Shi mosa Count y, Chi ba

Pref ect ure.) Since a det ail ed paper has al r eady been pr esent ed on

the adoption and indigenization of Christianity in the community

of Shimo Fuk uda，6 t he pr esent paper , havi ng i ts own foc us, wil l

mer el y s ummar i ze t he mai n points ,

Locat ed 4 ki l omet ers sout h of t he Tone Ri ve r and 3 kil omet ers

east of t he nor t hern t ip of t he Inba Mar s h，Shimo Fukuda is an

agri cul t ur al communi t y said to have been or ganized in 16 82 .7 As

of t he y ears 1883- 1887， t here were 3 househol d associat i ons

(kumi)9 36 househol ds, and a t ot al popul at i on of appr oxi mat el y 200.

The communi t y held a t otal of 1,125 t an of l and，i ncl udi ng 570 t an

in ar abl e l and (380 in paddy l and and 190 i n f ar ml and), 350 t an in


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J A P A NE S E J OUR NA L OF RE L I GI OUS S TUDI ES 12/1 21

None1- 4

5- 9

10- 19

20- 29

30- 39

40- 49

50 or mor e

Tot al 36 (100.0) 36 (100.0) 36 (100,0)

Source: Shimo Fukuda mur a kot akuchi sanr i n t anbet su chika chis o

gdkeicho (1885).

Not e: The asteri sk (*) ident if i es a f igure that has been adj ust ed in

order to make t he t ot al per cent age equal 100.0. It has t he same

significance in the table to follow.

woodl and, and 30 t an i n r esi dent i al l and.8 (One t an equals 2.45

acres or .992 hectares .)

Tabl e 1 s hows i n t an units the distribution of these types of

land among the households. If attention focuses on the riceland, it

wi l l be not i ced t hat onl y 10 hous ehol ds ( 2 7 .9 %) hel d mor e t han 10

t an of such land, whereas 16 households (44.4%) held none. This

appear s t o ref l ect t he l andowner- t enant f armer rel ati onship of

that day.

Tabl e 1

La nd Di st r i but i on among t he Househol ds

No. of Paddyl and Far ml and Woodl and

t an (including

Residential)

4 (38.9)3 (36.1)

3 ( 8.3)

2 ( 5.6)

3 ( 8.3)

0 ( 0.0)

0 ( 0.0)

1 ( 2.8)

9 (25.0)5 (41.6)

6 (16.7)

5 (13.9)

0 ( 0.0)

0 ( 0.0)

0 ( 0.0)

1 ( 2 . 8 )

■6(44.4)7 (19.4)

3 (8.3)

5 (13.9)

2 (5.6)

1 (2.8)

1 ( 2 . 8 )

1 (2.8)


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22 NIS HI Y AMA: Chri st ianit y in J apan

Tabl e 2 indi cat es how the paddyl and was dist r i but ed among t he

various d o z o k u op ancestrally aff i l iated households. As may be

seen，only 5 affiliated households (A, B, C, D, and E) held more

t han 10 t an of paddyl and. Of t hese 5，onl y 2 (A a nd B) hel d 30 t an

op mor e. In t he A and B dozoku, t he 3 househol ds wi t h 30 t an op

more are particularly important for pursuing the question of the

adopt i on and indi geni zat i on of Chr i st i ani t y in t he communi t y. In

order to facilitate subsequent references, I shall give them iden

t if yi ng l abel s. In what f oll ows, accordingl y, t he A dozoku house

hol d wi t h 50 op mor e t an of r iceland wil l be referred to as a へ the

one wi t h 40 some t an as a ^f and the B dozoku househol d wi t h 30

or more t an of r iceland as b. It shoul d al so be note d t hat is t hehonke or head house of A d o z o k u and t hat is a br anch house of

st art ed duri ng 1865- 1866; b is the head house of B dozoku.

Tabl e 2

Di st r i but i on of Paddyl and among Aff i l i at ed Househol ds

Paddy l and I ndependent

in t an A B C D E F G H I Househol ds a nd

Buddhis t Templ e

Tot al

None 1 1 3 1 1 1 1 2 1 4 16

1- 4 1 1 2 1 2 7

5- 9 1 1 1 3

10- 19 1 2 1 1 5

20- 29 1 1 2

30- 39 1 1

40- 49 1 1

50 or mor e 1 1

Total 5 4 5 3 2 2 2 4 2 7 36

Sour ce: Sa me as f or Tabl e 1.


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J A P A N E S E J OU R N A L OF R E L I GI OUS S T UDI E S 1 2 /1 23

158.0

62.0

24.0

35.5

10.7

5. 3

5.4

4.7

331.7

141.1

69.0

80.2

21.7

26.2

20.2

10.6

14.1

29.7

0.6 ( 0)

7.3 ( 2)

Tot 36 313.5(100) 205.8(100) 225.0(100) 744.5(100) 16,707(100)

Source: Sa me as for Tabl e 1.

Not e: The doubl e ast eri sks (**) r ef er to t he Buddhi st t emple and

i ndependent househol ds.

Tabl e 3 shows t he si ze and ye n val ue of dozoku land holdings

as of 1855. In all categories the extraordinary size and value of

t he l and hol di ngs of A dozoku will be readily apparent. It is also

wor t h not i ng t hat whe n t he y en v al ue of t he t wo l ar ges t l and

owners, A and B, are added together, the total yen value of their

holdings is well over half of the overall total.

Tabl e 3

Size and Value of Dozoku Landhol dings

as of 1885

D NHo oo Number of t an

z .u - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

o s Far ml and Tot al

k oe Paddy l and (i ncl udi ng Woodl and Tot al

u fs Resi dent i al )

Y e n Va l ue

of the

(5(

(]

( 2〕

( 2〕

( 2〕

(44) 8,442(50*:

(19) 3,50 8 (21 〕

( 9 ) 1 , 4 4 4 ( 9)

( 1 1 ) 9 4 9 ( 6)

( 3 ) 570 ( 3)

( 4 ) 504 ( 3)

( 3 ) 396 ( 2)

( 1 ) 2 6 3 ( 2)

( 2 ) 1 1 9 ( 1 )

( 4 ) 512 ( 3)

72.7 (35) 101. 0 (45)

31.5 (15) 47.6 (21)

22.6 (11) 22.4 (10)

21.7 (10) 23.0 (10)

10.0 ( 5 ) 1 . 0 ( 1 )

1 1. 6 ( 6) 9 . 1 ( 4 )

7.3 ( 4) 7. 5 ( 3)

5.7 ( 3) 0.2 ( 0)

8.7 ( 4) 4. 8 ( 2)

14. 0 ( 7) 8. 4 ( 4)


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24 NI SHIY AMA: Chri st ianit y in J apan

Wi t h r egar d t o t he r el i gi ous s i t uat i on i n Shi mo Fuk uda, a f e w

r emark s wil l suff i ce. As of t he peri od 1872- 1876, t he main reli

gious i nsi t ut ions in the communi t y wer e:

1 Shint o shri ne ~ a small , unr anked facil it y enshr i ni ng t he

t ut el ary kami of t he communi t y, namel y, Inari ，

the harvest god;

1 Buddhi st t emple—Shofukuji t emple, a br anch temple of Ei f ukuj i

temple aff i l iated with the Buzan stream of the

Shingi Shingon s e c t ;

1 Buddhi st chapel —Nankoi n whi ch, t hough r eal l y a unit of

Shofukuji temple, is generally known as Kannori

do , t he !lKannon cha pel ."9Ho us e ho l d a f f i l i a t i on wi t h Buddhi s t s e ct s as o f 1 87 3 wa s ： 17

Shingon (wi t h over l ap int o anot her s ect in 2 househol ds), 9 Tendai ,

8 J i (wi t h overl ap into anot her s ect in 2 househol ds), a nd 1

unspecif ied.10

The process whereby Christianity was adopted in the community

is represented in Figure 2 in terms of the growing scale of its

adopt i on. This pr ocess may be div i ded into four st ages: St age I

beginning in 1877 when the head of household b became the f irst

pers on in t he communi t y t o r ece i ve bapt i sm (he was bor n in 1851

as the second son of a hat amot o house, a house directly respon

si bl e t o t he shog un, mar r i ed i nt o househol d b in 1872, and later

became t he f i rst past or of Fukuda Angl i can Epi scopal Chur ch);

St ag e II begi nning in 1881 when his el dest son and el dest daught er

(t hen age s 5 and 3) wer e bapt i zed; St age III beginni ng i n 1882

whe n t wo y oung men (t he n ag es 26 and 2 1 ) f r om t wo househol ds in

B dozoku r e c e i v e d b a p t i s m； and St age IV begi nni ng i n 1887 when

at l east one per son fr om eac h househol d in the A, B ， H, and I

dozoku and f r om eac h i ndependent househol d r ec ei v ed bapt i sm en

masse on 8 Sept ember 1887.

The move fr om St age III t o St age IV shoul d pr obabl y be char

act er i zed as a "l ea p." The number of peopl e who had r ecei ved

bapti sm duri ng St ag e III was a mer e 5, t he number of househol ds

i nvol ved onl y 3—a nd all 3 fr om 1 dozoku. But St age IV opens wi t h

t he bapt i sm of 32 more peopl e, t he t otal of 37 r epr esent i ng 16

households belonging to 4 dozoku. The year 1887 also marks the


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J A P A N E S E J OU R N A L O F R E L I GI OUS S T UDI E S 1 2/1 25

formal organization of Fukuda Anglican Episcopal Church; the

church building was erected the fol lowing y ear .

Figure 2

Broadeni ng St ages in t he Adopt i on of Chr is t i ani t y

Tabl e 4 gi ves a br eak down by age and sex of t he peopl e bap

t i zed in 1887. Over al l , t he mal es sl ight l y out number t he f emal es,

and hal f of t he t otal is made up of mal es and f emal es under age

30—though 2 of the 32 people are in their 70s. The core of the

group is comprised of young men, but rather than being heads of

households, t hese young men t end t o be t he el dest sons of house

hol d heads. In other vi l l ages and rural t owns dur i ng the Mei j i

peri od (1868- 1911), t he g eneral rul e was t hat "t he househol d head,

or he and his wi f e， bec ame churc h member s , and onl y t hen di d

other famil y members accept t he f ait h" (Mor i oka, e d” 195 9 ， p. 61).

But in t he vil l age of Shimo Fukuda it was gener al l y t he househol d

hea dTs el dest son, or this s on and his wi f e, who fi rst j oi ned t he


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Chur ch, af t er whi ch t heir chi l dr en and his parents accept ed t he

faith.

Table 4

A g e and Se x of Pe opl e Ba pt i zed i n 1887

Sex

Tn丨t al Ag e -

Mal e Femal e Unknown

0- 9 2 0 0 2 ( 6 . 3 )

10- 19 4 0 0 4 (12.5)20- 29 5 5 0 10 (31.2* )

30- 39 3 2 0 5 (15.5* )

40- 49 2 2 0 4 (12.5)

50- 59 2 0 0 2 ( 6 . 3 )

60- 69 0 2 0 2 ( 6 . 3 )

70- 79 1 1 0 2 ( 6 . 3 )

Unknown 0 0 1 1 ( 3 . 1 )

Total 19 12 1 32 (100.0)

Sour ces: Each househol ds recor d of deceas ed Chr i st i an member s,

the church membership record (revised version), and the church’s

l ist of deat hs, mont h by mont h, among chur ch member s.

Tabl e 5 gi ves a br eak down by dozoku of househol ds wi t h

per sons who had r ecei ved bapt i sm as of 1887, and Tabl e 6 does t he

same by kumi. In combi nat i on t hey s how how gr eat l y t he bapt i sms

of this period took place in dozoku uni t s and how much t hese

househol ds t ended t o cl ust er i n t he same nei ghbor hoods.

But how, t hen, c an the ”l eapTT fr om St ag e III t o St age I V be

expl ai ned?

Begi nni ng wi t h Sept ember 18 81, t he head of househol d b

engaged in evangeli st i c acti vi t ies for nearl y t wo and a hal f y ears

in t his communi t y wher e he l i ved, but his wor k was i mpeded by

vi gorous opposi t i on t hat s t emmed pr i mari l y fr om househol ds and


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J A P A NE S E J OUR NA L OF R E L I GI OUS S TUDI ES 12/1 27

o f A dozoku. Duri ng t his peri od he opened a pr i vat e night-

school and sought to use it to facilitate his evangelistic work by

t eachi ng not onl y Chi nese and his t ory but also t he Bi bl e. When t he

fat her s and el der br others of t he night - school st udent s l earned

Tabl e 5: Dozoku Househol ds wi t h Per sons Recei v i ng Bapt i sm

No. of Househol ds No. of Househol ds

Dozoku in t he wi t h Bapt i zed Perc ent age

Dozoku Member s

A 5 5 100.0B 4 4 100 .0

H 4 4 100.0

I 2 2 10 0. 0

Indepe ndent 7 1 14.3

Tot al 22 16 72.7

Sources Sa me as for Tabl e 4.

Tabl e 6: Kami Households wi t h Per sons Rec ei v i ng Bapt i sm

Dozoku

No. of House hol ds

in t he

Dozoku

No. of Househol ds

wi t h Ba pt i zed

M em bers Per cent age

A 5 5 100.0

B 4 4 100.0

H 4 4 100.0

I 2 2 100.0

Independent 7 1 14.3

Tot al 22 16 72.7

Sources Same as for Tabl e 4.


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t hat t he l ect ures i ncl uded mat er i al on "J es usi sm，" t hey f or bade t he

chi l dr en to cont i nue (Iida 192 1，Yamagat a 1924, et c.). This was a

period when agricultural depression and the persecution of the

peopl e’s r ights move ment wer e becomi ng mor e and more i nt ense, a

per i od when Chr i st i ani t y, hit her t o conf i dent t hat nt he mor ni ng sun

was about t o r i se ov er eas t er n ski esff ( Rikugo zasshit J a n . 1 8 8 2)，

began t o suf fer t ell ing bl ows fr om t he camps of emer gent ul t ra

nat i onal i sm, Confuci anis m, Buddhis m, Taoi s m, et c. t hat r ode the

wa v e s of pol i t i cal and economi c cha ng e. Chr i s t i ani t y no w f ound

itself fall ing into a situation where it was surrounded by enemies

on eve r y hand (Sumi ya 1961, chaps. 3- 4).

In contrast, by about 1887 the starting point of Stage IV, the

Chr i st i an Chur ch has under t aken a r evival movement as a way of

meet i ng this chal l enge. It t hus r ebounded fr om t he bl ows it had

suffered, and in suceeding years this carried over without a break

into a per i od of Wes t er nizat i on (Sumi ya 1961, chaps. 3- 4).

In connect i on wi t h the change fr om t he "per i od of conser vat i ve

r eact i on" t hat char act er i zed t he 1881- 1882 y ear s to the pal my

per i od of Wes t er nizat i on t hat began about 18 87 ， publ i c opi ni on

reversed i tsel f with regard to Christ ianity . This eventuated theview that "from a religious perspective [people] are calling for

gr owt h on t he part of Chr is t i ani t y ” (Sawa 1938, v o l . 5, pp. 23- 24).

It is by no means i nconcei vabl e t hat t his change in publ i c opi ni on

concerning Christianity should have lent strength to the founding

of a c hur ch i n t he communi t y of Shi mo Fukuda,

If , however, we look in the community itself for factors that

assisted the founding of this church, it becomes necessary to

at t end t o the f act t hat t he gr oup bapt i sm admi ni st er ed in 1887

took place under the leadership of the eldest sons (then aged 20

and 16) of t he and househol ds of A dozoku, t he most

powerful d o z o k u in t he communi t y. At this peri od t he and

househol ds wer e t he l andowners in a l andowner - t enant far mer

r el at i onship l i nki ng t hem wi t h nearl y ev er y househol d t hat had

member s bapt i zed in this gr oup cer emony. It appear s, t her ef ore,

t hat t he act i ons of t he and households ser ved, on t he one

hand，t o bl ock t he adopt i on of Chr i st i ani t y up to 1882 and, on t he

ot her , t o mak e possi bl e t he TTl eap” t hat t ook pl ace in 1887.


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Fol l owi ng t he est abl i shment of t he chur ch, t he A and B dozoku,

whi c h Ta bl e 3 s ho ws as t he ones wi t h t he l ar gest hol di ngs , f or med

a com bination that perm itted Christ ianity a certain degree of

stability as it extended its influence within the community.

The factors that assisted Christianity’s indigenization in Shimo

Fukuda can be i dent i f i ed, t hen, as t he f ol l owi ng it ems ( 1 ) t he

l andowner - t enant f armer rel ati onshi p t hat obt ained bet ween t he

and and b househol ds, on t he one hand, and t he ot her

househol ds t hat ac cept ed Chr is t i ani t y, on t he other; (2) the dozoku

bonds among t he househol ds acc ept i ng Chri st i ani t y; and (3) t he

neighborhood- cl ust er r elat i onship.

In 1890 t he Fukuda Angl i can Epi sc opal Chur ch went on t oext end t he fait h to t he neighbori ng vil l age of Manza k i ，and t hree

y ear s l at er a chur ch was es t abl i s hed t her e. But be c aus e t hes e

assist i ng f act ors wer e l acking, t he chur ch was dissol ved in just

f o u r y e a r s .

Is it possible, then, to specify at what t ime the Christianity

adopt ed by Shimo Fukuda act ual l y bec ame i ndi genous?

If we take as criteria the establishment of Christianity within a

househol d (t hree generat i ons of f ami l y member s rece i vi ng bapt i sm)

and the acquisit ion of particularly important facilit ies by the

chur ch (a chur ch bui l di ng, l and, gr avey ar d, et c.), it t urns out t hat

t he t ime at whic h Chr i st i ani t y beca me i ndi genous in the communi t y

wa s t he per i od be t we e n 1907 and 1911. As Ta bl e 7 s ho ws , 8 7 . 4 %

of t he househol ds wi t h member s r ecei vi ng bapt i sm at t he mass

ceremony of 1887 had, by 1907, three generations of Christian

f ami l y member s .11 To this it shoul d be added t hat t he chur ch

acqui r ed it s gr avey ar d and paddyl and bet ween 1907 and 1911.

T H E C O N T E M P O R A R Y C H U R C H

This section will consider data essential to pursuing the ques

t ion of subst ant i ve c hange in Chr is t i ani t y t hat wil l be t aken up in

the next section.


14/45

30 NI S HI Y A MA : Chr i s t i ani t y in J apan

In the Taisho Period

1912- 16

1917- 21

1922- 25

S u b t o t a l 1 ( 6 . 3 )

In the Showa Period

1926- 29 1 ( 6 . 3 )

S u b t o t a l 1 ( 6 . 3 )

Tot al 16 (100.0)

Source : Same as f or Tabl e 4.

Geogr aphi cal Dis t ri but ion of Chur ch Member s

As of 10 Se pt embe r 1 9 7 1 , 12 Fuk uda Angl i c an Epi scopal Chur c h had

a t otal of 108 member s . Of t his number , 79 (7 3. 2%) r esi ded in t he

Shi mo Fuk uda communi t y and 29 (26- 8%) out si dfe t he oommuni t y.

Tabl e 7

Y e a r s i n whi c h Hous ehol ds Pr oduc ed Thi r d- Gener at i on Chr i s t i ans

Y e a r s dur i ng whi ch

Thi r d Gener at i on Number of Households

Christ ians Received Baptism

In t he Mei j i Peri od

1887- 91 6 (37.5)

1891- 96 1 ( 6 . 3 )

1897- 1901 5 (31.0* )

1902- 06 1 ( 6 . 3 )1907- 11 1 ( 6 . 3 )

Subt otal 14 (87.4*)

0 (

0 (

1 (


15/45

J A P A NE S E J OUR NA L OF RE L I GI OUS S TUDI ES 12/1 31

Mor eov er , of t hese 29 non- resi dent members 19 (65. 8%) wer e

peopl e who had been r ais ed in t he communi t y but mov ed awa y

l at er in connect i on wi t h mar r i age, adopt i on, f ormat i on of an i nde

pendent househol d, or t he emi gr at i on of an ent i r e f ami l y. From

this we may gai n some i dea of t he cl oseness of t he connect i on

bet ween Fukuda Angl i can Epi scopal Chur ch and this part icular

communi t y ,

The Pat t er n of Exi st ence of t he "Chr i st i an Househol d”

In Shimo Fukuda, househol ds t hat have acc ept ed Chr i st i ani t y are

spoken of as "Chr i st i an house hol ds."13 Apar t fr om t he past or and

his f ami l y who come f r om out si de the communi t y, al l t he res i dent smember s of t he chur ch are member s of "Chri st i an househol ds^ t hat

over t he gener at i ons have f ol l owed Chr i st i ani t y as t heir "househol d

r el i gi on." Ot her t han such member s , t her e is not one "i ndiv i dual

beli ever 11 in t he ent ir e communi t y.

Duri ng 1 97 1，Shi mo Fukuda had a t otal of 54 househol ds. Of

this total, the number of Christian homes (including the pastor and

his f amil y) came to 2 1 ( 3 8 . 9 %) , t he remaining 33 (61.1%) being

Buddhi st househol ds.14 For t he geographi cal l ocat i on of Chr i st ian

househol ds wi t hin t he communi t y s ee Fi gur e 3.

Qui t e apar t fr om t he quest i on of whet her t he member s of

Chr i st i an househol ds are t o be count ed as chur ch member s’ 15

Chri s t i an househol ds and Buddhis t househol ds may be di st i nguis hed

on the basis of criteria such as f inancial support for the

chur ch16 and var i ous ki nds of vol unt ar y l abor，17 part i ci pat i on in

t he maj or chur ch ev ent s,18 and part i ci pat i on in the non- rel igi ous

voluntary association Yus a nk o.19 These routine pract ices ,

t ranscendi ng g enerat i onal changes in famil y members , ar e carr i ed

on in what may be r egar ded as generat i on af t er gener at i on of

t!intep- househol d co nt ac t .11

Tabl e 8 shows t he curr ent percent age of Chr is t i an househol ds

in each dozoku. The one Christian household in C dozoku got a

l ate st art s i nce it did not acc ept Chr i st i ani t y unt il s ome t ime

after the mass baptism of 1887. J dozoku was an i ndependent

househol d at t he t ime of t he mass bapt i sm, but it l ater est abl i shed

a br anch househol d of i ts own and t hus f or med a ne w dozoku. As


16/45

32 NI SHIY AMA: Chr is t ianit y in J apan

pigore 3

Location of Christian Households within Shimo Fukuda

as of Septerfcer 1971

Note: Christian households are identified with a • sign.


17/45


18/45


Tabl es 10 and 11 i ndi cate t he degr ee of conve r gence i n cont act s

among Buddhi st and Chr i s t i an househol ds as r egar ds one r,non-

rel igi ousn househol d event in t he communi t y. Of t hese t wo Tabl es,

t he r esul t s shown in Tabl e 10 coul d have be en deduce d fr om Tabl e

8, but t hose of Tabl e 11 coul d not, f or t he peopl e wit h nando roles

ar e chosen not onl y f rom t he househol ds const i t ut i ng a dozoku, but

al so fr om nei ghbor i ng househol ds,20 In addi t i on, dozoku contacts

ar e r eciprocal , but nando- rol e rel ati onships ar e not.

Tabl e 10

Househol d Rel i gi on and Int ra- Dozofcu Cont act s

Christ ian Buddhist

Hous ehol ds Hous ehol ds

Chri st i an Househol ds 33 (76.7) 10 (24.4)

Buddhi st Househol ds 10 (23.3) 3 1 ( 7 5 . 6 )

Total 43 (100.0) 4 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 )

Not e: Thi s Tabl e i ncl udes 1 Chri st i an househol d t hat mov ed away

in 1961 but maintains its contacts.

Tabl e 11

Household Religion and Nando Roles

Serving Households

Se r v ed Hous ehol ds - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Christian Buddhist

C h r i s t i a n 96 (76.8) 18 (22.2)

Buddhist 29 (23.2) 63 (77.8)

Total 125 (100.0) 8 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 )


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J A P A N E S E J O UR N A L OF R E L I GI OUS S T UDI E S 1 2 /1 35

From Tabl es 10 and 11 it may be seen t hat t her e is a

pronounced t endency, s o far as t hese "non- rel igi ous” event s are

concerned, for Christian households to associate with Christian

househol ds a nd for Buddhi st househol ds to associ at e wi t h

Buddhi st s. But apart fr om t hese part icul arl y i mport ant household

relationships, the households of Shimo Fukuda, far from remaining

wi t hi n t he conf i nes of t hei r o wn r el i gi ous gr oup, ar e r el at i vel y

free about associat ing with each other .21

In comparing Christian and Buddhist households, one notes that

the form er general ly t race their founding to an ear l ier date than

the latter. Thus whereas 65.8% (13) of the Christian households

we r e f ound ed no l at er t han t he f i nal de c ade s of t he Edo per i od(1603- 1867), 60 .6 % (20) of t he Buddhi st househol ds wer e not

f ounded unt il af t er t he begi nni ng of t he Meij i peri od (1868- 1911).

Today , however , t he househol ds belongi ng t o t hese t wo gr oups

do not exhi bi t any conspicuous dispari t ies ei t her i n occupat i on or

in social status.

Tabl e 12 compares Chri st i an and Buddhis t households wi t h

respect to the proportion of total household income deriving from

possible types ranging from completely argicultural to completely

non- agri cul t ural . Type A r epr esent s income t hat is ent ir ely

Tabl e 12

Househol d Rel i gi on and Ty pe of Househol d Income

Type of Househol d Chr i st i an Buddhi st

Inco me House hol d House hol d

A 0 ( 0.0) 0 ( 0. 0)

B 3 (15.0) 6 (18.2)

C 6 (30.0) 4 (12.1)

D 5 (25.0) 12 (36.4)

E 4 (20.0) 3 ( 9.1 )

F 2 (10.0) 8 (24.2)

Total 20 (100.0) 33 (100.0)


20/45


agri cul t ur al , t ype B i ncome t hat is pr edomi nant l y agri cul t ural , and

t ype C i ncome t hat is mor e agri cul t ural t han non- agri cul t ural ; t ype

D i ndicat es i ncome t hat is mor e non- agri cul t ural t han agri cul t ur al ,

t ype E i ncome t hat is pr edomi nant l y non- agri cul t ur al , and t ype F

i ncome that is ent i r el y non- agri cul t ural . As t his Tabl e shows, t he

Christian households, partly because they were established earlier,

rel y somehwat more heavi l y on agri cul t ur al i ncome t han the

Buddhi st . The di f f er ence bet ween t he the t wo gr oups, howev er , is

not pronounced.

Today’s community, moreover, having experienced the

Occ upat i on l and r ef orm, is one in whi ch t he di st ri but ion of ar abl e

l and is f ar mor e equal t han it was at t he t ime t he church wasf ounded. J ust as t here ar e no househol ds wi t h mor e t han 30 t an

(7.4 acres op 3 hectares) of land, so there are none with no land

wha t ev e r . In pos i t i ve t er ms , t he l ar gest number of hous ehol ds (13)

now have mor e t han 10 bu t l e s s th an 20 tan (2.45- 4.9 a c r e s op

.992- 1.98 hect ares ) of ar abl e l and. Her e agai n, t here is no

conspicuous di f f er ence in percent age of l and holdings as bet ween

the Christian and Buddhist households.

The Rel i gi ous Pract i ces of Chur ch Member s

Tabl e 13 i ndi cat es, for chur ch member s r esi dent in t he communi t y,

t he number of mal es and femal es const it ut i ng f i rst - generati on

Chr is t i ans, second- generat i on Chr i st ians, e t c .22 If t he t ot als for

peopl e in t he f our t h t hr ough t he sixt h generat i ons ar e added

t ogether, t he resul t is over 50% of t he overal l t ot al —a fact

suggestive of the degree to which the Christianity of Shimo

Fukuda, f r amed by t he Chri st i an househol d, is const i t ut ed by

success i ve gener at i ons fr om househol d unit s. The hi gh perc ent age

of women (40%) count ed as f ir st - generati on Chr i st i ans der i ves

part l y f rom t he f act t hat most t he br i des who marr y i nt o Chr i st i an

households f irs t accept Christ ianity af ter enter ing their new

famil y, part l y fr om t he f act t hat t he f emal es born into Chr i st i an

househol ds, af t er gr owi ng up, usuall y marr y into househol ds out si de

t he communi t y.


21/45


Fi r st 1 ( 2 . 9 )

Second 2 ( 5 . 9 )

Thi r d 7 (20.6)

Fourth 13 (38.2)

F i f t h 9 (26.5)

S i x t h 2 ( 5 . 9 )

Tot al 34 (100.0) 45 (100.0) 79 (100.0)

Not e: These fi gur es r epresent al l chur ch member s r esi dent in

Shimo Fuk uda, i ncl udi ng not onl y t he past or and his f ami l y but al so

family members who have left home.

In this connect i on it may be obser ved t hat t he major i t y of

Shimo Fukuda women who are raised in Christian households but

mar r y into non- Chr i st i an househol ds, whet her i nsi de or out si de t he

communi t y, cut t heir t ies wi t h t he church. Conver sel y, unl ess

there are strong reasons for doing otherwise, by far the greater

part of t hose who marr y int o a Shimo Fukuda Chri st i an household,

abiding by its customs, receive baptism and become members of

Fukuda Angl i can Epi scopal Chur ch. Agai n, the chi l dr en born to

Christian households ordinarily receive infant baptism soon after

bi rt h, and t hey r ecei ve conf i r mat i on when t hey bec ome middl e

school or high school students.

Tabl e 14 shows, f or t he t otal number of c hur ch members , t he

percentage of those who received baptism as infants and the

percentage of those who received baptism as adults. Attention is

invited to the fact that among church members resident in the

communi t y, t hose bapt i zed as i nf ant s account for more t han hal f

(60.8%) of the total.

Tabl e 13

Chur ch Member s Resi dent in t he Communi t y

Grouped as First and Succeeding Generations of Christians

Generat i on Mal e Femal e Tot al

3 (16.4)

1 ( 2 6 . 6 )

0 (25.3)

J

3

8

j S

(40

(4.

1317

d

8

2

6

8

1

0


22/45


Tabl e 14

Infant Bapt i sm and Adul t Bapt i sm among Al l Chur ch Member s

Ty pe of

Baptism

R e c e i v e d

Chur ch Member s

Residing within

t he Communit y

Chur ch member s

Residing outside

t he Communit y

Total

Infant

Adul t

48 (60.8)

3 1 ( 3 9 . 2 )

12 (41.4)

17 (58.6)

60 (55.6)

48 (44.4)

Tot al 79 (100.0) 29 (100.0) 108 (100.0)

Table 15 pr e se nt s t he r es ul t s of as k i ng peopl e who r e ce i v ed

adul t bapt i sm and peopl e who r ecei ved conf i r mat i on about t heir

mot i vat i on for accept i ng Chr is t i ani t y. The it em i ncl uded a number

of possible responses, such as ”Because of the attractiveness of

Chr is t i an t eachi ngs,n ''Because of t he at t r act iv eness of the

past or 's personali t y and l i f e- out l ook,11 "Becaus e of t he att ract iv e

ness of a l ay bel i ever 's pers onal it y and l if e- out l ooktn et c.—

responses that could be regarded as indicative of active motivat ion. As i t t ur ned out , howev er , t he answer t hat t he over whel mi ng

majori t y of r espondent s sel ect ed was "Bec aus e Chr i st i ani t y is t he

rel igi on of my househol d." This is t he mot i vat i on gi ven by 7 8. 6% of

Tabl e 15: Mot i vat i on of Chur ch Member s Resi dent i n t he

Communi t y for Accept i ng Adul t Bapt i sm op Confirmation

Member s who Member s who

Mo t i v a t i o n R e c e i v e d R e c e i v e d

Adul t Bapt i s m Conf i r mat i on

Because Christ ianity is the

rel i gi on of my househol d 22 (78.6) 29 (67.4)

Ot her answer s

(7 sel ect i ons) 6 (21.4) 14 (32.6)

Tot al 28 (100.0) 43 (100.0)


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J A P A N E S E J OU R N A L OF R E L I G I OUS S T UDI E S 1 2 /1 39

Not e: The t otal number of peopl e in Shimo Fi kuda who have

acc ept ed adul t bapt is m is 3 1 , none of whom have l eft home; t he

t otal number of people who have r ecei ved conf i r mat i on is 54» of

who m 4 ha v e l ef t .

Tabl e 16: Chur ch At t endance dur i ng t he Past Y ear

by Member s of Chri st i an Househol ds

Fr equency of Inquir ers ________ Ba p t i z e d _ Pe r s o ns _

At t e nd a nc e Unc onf i r med Co nf i r med Tot al

Near ly everySunday/2- 3 ti mes

per mont h 0 ( 0.0) 3 ( 17.7) 17 (39.6) 20 (33.4)

About onc e

a mont h 1 ( 4 . 5 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 3 ( 7.0) 3 ( 5.0)

5- 6 t i mes a y ear /

2- 3 t i mes a year 1 ( 4 . 5 ) 1 ( 5 . 9 ) 8 (18.6) 9 (15.0)

Al mos t nev er 20 (91.0) 13 (76.4) 15 (34.8) 28 (46.0)

Total 22 (1 00 .0 )1 7 (100.0) 43 (100.0) 60 (100.0)

Not e: "Inqui r er s" r ef er s to member s of Chri st i an househol ds who

have not yet bee n bapt i zed and t hus ar e not y et chur ch members .

The t otal number of bapt i zed persons who r emai n unconf i r med is

25 (of whom 1 has lef t home). The t otal number of bapt i zed

per sons who have r ecei ved conf i r mat i on is 70 (of whom 5 have l eft

home). "The past y ear " r ef er s t o t he 12- mont h per i od endi ng 10

Sept ember 1971. The same defi ni t i ons appl y in t he t abl es that

fol low.

those who received adult baptism and by 67.4% of those who

received confirmation—a passive response indicative of a

traditional orientation. This suggests that the life of faith is Shimo

Fukuda c ommuni t y t oday is per haps t o be char act er i zed as one of

s omewhat l ess t han consci ous, aut onomous commi t ment .

In point of f act , t he result s in t abl es 16- 19 conf i r m t his


24/45


Tabl e 17: Wor shi p Mat er i al s t hat Exi st in Chri st i an Househol ds

and ar e Gener al l y for t he use of t he Respondent

Ty pe of Wor s hi p

Posses-

Ma t e r i a l s i on

Inqui r er s Bapt i zed Per sons

Unconfirmed Confirmed Tot al

Bible Have

Not have

1 ( 4 . 5 )

2 1 ( 9 5 . 5 )

5 (29.4)

12 (70.6)

28 (65.1)

15 (34.9)

33 (55.0)

27 (45.0)

Pray er- Have

book Not have0 ( 0.0)

22 (100.0)5 (29.4)

12 (70.6)24 (55.8)19 (44.2)

29 (48.4)3 1 ( 5 1 . 6 )

Hymn- Hav e

book Not have

0 ( 0.0)

22 (100.0)

3 (17.7)

14 (82.3)

24 (55.8)

19 (44.2)

27 (45.0)

33 (55.0)

To t a l 22 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 1 7 ( 10 0. 0) 4 3 ( 1 00 .0 ) 60 ( 10 0. 0)

Tabl e 18: Bi bl e reading at Home dur i ng Past Y ear

by member s of Chri st i an Househol ds

Inquirers Baptized Persons

Unconf i r med Conf i r med Total

R

e Al most dai l y

a

d Onc e a wee k

B Onc e a mont h

i Al most neve r /

b Never

i . . ( .

0 ( 0.0) 0 ( 0.0) 1 ( 2 . 3 ) 1 ( 1 . 7 )

0 ( 0.0)

0 ( 0.0)

10 (45.5)

0 ( 0.0)

3 (17.7)

1 1 ( 6 4 . 6 )

3 ( 7.0)

10 (23.3)

28 (65.1)

3 ( 5.0)

13 (21.7)

39 (65.0)

e Subtotal 10 (45.5) 14 (82.3) 42 (97.7) 56 (93.4)

Never read it 12 (54.5) 3 (17.7) 1 ( 2 . 3 ) 4 ( 6.6)

Tot al 22 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 1 7 ( 10 0. 0) 4 3 ( 1 00 .0 ) 60 ( 10 0. 0)


25/45

J A P A N E S E J O UR N A L OF R E L I GI OUS S T UDI E S 1 2 /1 41

suggestion. These results are also of considerable importance for

taking up, in the next section, the question of substantive change

in Christ ianity .

Tabl e 19: Fami l y Wor shi p at Home dur i ng t he Past Ye ar

Frequency

Inquirers Bapt i zed Per sons

Unc onf i r me d Co nf i r me d Total

D Dai l y 0 ( 0.0) 0 ( 0.0) 1 1 ( 2 5 . 6 ) 1 1 ( 1 8 . 6 )

i Oc cas i onal l y 0 ( 0.0) 2 (11.8) 3 ( 7.0) 5 ( 8.)d Spec i al t i mes 0 ( 0.0) 0 ( 0.0) 4 ( 9 .3) 4 ( 6.5)

o Subt ot al 0 ( 0.0) 2 (11.8) 18 (41.9) 20 (33.4)

Never done so 22 (100.0) 15 (88.2) 24 (55.8) 39 (65.0)

No answer 0 ( 0.0) 0 ( 0.0) 1 ( 2 . 3 ) 1 ( 1 . 6 )

Tot al 22 (100.0) 17 (100.0) 43 (100.0) 60 (100.0)

C O N T A C T WI T H T R A D I T I ON A L R E L I G I ON

A ND T HE QUE S TI ON OF S UB S TA NT I V E C HA NGE

The probl em t o be consi dered her e is that of t he nat ure and

degree of substantive change that Christianity in the Shimo

Fukuda communi t y has exper i enced now t hat some ni net y year s

have passed since evangelism was begun. Particular attention will

be paid to the ancestral cult .

The Tr adi t i onal Rel i gious Facil i t i es of the Househol d

The r esul t s of t aking all t he households of Shimo Fukuda,

cl assi f yi ng them as ei t her Chr i st i an or Buddhist , and compar i ng the

t wo gr oups wi t h regar d t o their possessi on of r eli gious facil it ies

t radit i onal t o the househol d, ar e shown in Tabl e 20. The

"subst itute" referred to in the f irs t ty pe s ignif ies a place to


26/45

42 NIS HI Y AMA: Chri st ianit y in J apan

venerate the ancestors other than the tradit ional a ltar ； it is

pecul i ar to t he Chr is t i an househol ds. General l y it has a cross, a

phot ogr aph of t he decease d, a f l ower vase, and an incense bur ner,

but it may have, excepti onal l y, somet hi ng simil ar t o a mort uary

tablet but engraved with a cross .23

A bi r dTs ey e v i ew of Ta bl e 20 s ho ws t hat t he Chr i s t i an and

Buddhi st househol ds exhi bit di amet r i cal l y opposed t endenci es as

r egards possession of t wo ty pes of facil it ies: t he kami al t ar and

an alt ar f or t he kit chen kami op the well kami. Conversely, the

Chri st i an and Buddhi st househol ds (despi t e a sli ght l ag on t he part

of the Christians) tend to follow the same practice as regards

havi ng a pl ace t o vener at e t he ancest ors and a shri ne for t hehouse- kami . It s houl d be not ed, howev er , t hat what t hey hol d in

common is t he t endency to hav e a pl ace to vener at e t he ancest ors ,

but not t o have a house- kami shri ne.

The ci r cumst ances t hat r esul t in a l ow per cent age of house

kami shrines differ, however, for the Christian and Buddhist

househol ds. As menti oned abov e, t he Chr i st i an househol ds wer e

est abl i shed somewhat earl ier t han t he Buddhi st , 65 % of t he

Chri st i an househol ds havi ng been est abl i shed dur i ng t he cl osing

deca des of t he Edo peri od. At t he ti me they beg an, most of t hese

househol ds had a shr i ne for t he house- kami , but on acc ept i ng

Chr i st i ani t y dur i ng t he Meij i peri od, t hey r emoved o p discarded

this shrine along with other traditional religious facilit ies.24

Consequent l y, t he percent age of Chr is t i an househol ds possessing

such a shri ne r emai ns l ow to t he pres ent day. It s houl d al so be

i ndi cat ed that t he house- kami s hri nes of t his ar ea are const r uct ed

not of straw but of stone, so once thrown away, they are hard to

replace.

A s f or t he Buddhi st hous ehol ds , 6 0 .6 % of t hem we r e f ounded,

we ha v e s een, af t er t he ope ni ng of t he Mei j i per i od, but at t his

l at e dat e t hey gener al l y di d not est abl i sh new house- kami s hri nes.

Thi s is t he reason for t heir l ow per cent age.

The quest i on to be consi der ed her e is: what ar e the r easons

for the fact that both groups showed high scores with regard to

having a place to venerate the ancestors? For 78.8% of the

Buddhi st househol ds t o indi cat e t hat t hey have a buddha alt ar is


27/45

J A P A N E S E J O UR N A L O F R E L I GI OUS S T UDI E S 1 2/1 43

Tabl e 20

Household Possessi on of Tr adi t i onal Rel igi ous Facil it ies

Type of Facil i t y Posses si on Chr is t i an Buddhi st

House hol d Househol d

A pl ace t o v ene r at e

the ancestors

H A Buddha alt ar

a A subst it ut e

6 (28.6)

6 (38.1)

26 (78.8)

0 ( 0.0)

e Subt ot al 14 (66.7) 26 (78.8)

Do not have 7 (33.3) 7 (21.2)

Ka mi al t ar Hav e

Do not ha v e

7 (33.3)

14 (66.7)

26 (78.8)

7 (21.2)

A hous e- kami

shrine

Have

Do not ha v e

3 (14.3)

18 (85.7)

7 (21.2)

26 (78.8)

Kit chen kami a lt ar ,

wel l kami al t ar ,et c .

Have

Do not have

2 (9.5)

19 (90.5)

19 (57.6)

14 (42.4)

Totals 2 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 33 (100.0)

hardl y unusual , g i ven t heir r el ig ious af f i l iat ion.25 At t ent i on

focuses, therefore, on the Christian households. Their s ituation can

be described as follows.

Most of t he Chr i st i an househol ds re moved or di scar ded t heir

buddha al t ars dur i ng t he Mei j i per i od (1868- 1911), and their

"altar less s tate" continued unti l the ear ly y ears of the Showa

peri od (1926- )• But f rom about t he t ime of t he ”Fi f t een- Year

Wa r ,T t hat be g an wi t h t he Ma c hur i an i nci dent of 1 9 3 1 , a g r owi ng

number of t hese househol ds began t o set up buddha- al t ar

subst i t ut es in order t o have a pl ace to "r emember ” t heir war- dead.

A t t his t i me, ho we v e r , al mos t none of t he Chr i s t i an hous ehol ds


28/45

44 NI SHIY AMA: Chr is t ianit y in J apan

act ual l y set up buddha al t ars. Thi s devel opment di d not occur unt il

after the end of the war—in fact, not until quite recently. Since

1970 many new houses have been built in Shimo Fukuda. In the

case of the Christian households, building a new house came to

i ncl ude, al most as if t aken for g r ant ed, pr ovisi on in t he house

design for a special place in which to venerate the ancestors, and

in this pl ace eit her a buddha al t ar or a subst it ut e was i nst al l ed.26

Of t he 6 Chr i st i an households t hat now have buddha al t ars, 3

obt ai ned t hem si nce 1970. It is i mport ant t o i ndicat e, howev er ,

that this revived interest in having a place to venerate the

ancestors resulted not only in reviving the buddha altar, but also

in bringing to l ife the buddha altar substitute. If the percentage ofChr i st i an househol ds wit h subst it ut es wer e el i mi nat ed fr om Tabl e

20 ， t he i t em havi ng t o do wi t h a pl ace to vener at e ancest ors

woul d s ho w a maj or di s c r epa nc y be t we e n Chr i s t i an and Buddhi s t

househol ds.

Taki ng t he Chri st i an househol ds by t hemsel ves now, let us rank

t he it ems i n Tabl e 20 by per cent age sc ores , beginning wi t h the

lowest and ending with the highest. Facilit ies for the functional

kami of t he house (t he kit chen kami , t he wel l kami , and the l ike)

st and at t he bot t om. Next comes t he house k ami who pr ot ect s t he

area around the house and whose shrine stands outside. As for the

pr ot ect i ve spir it s i nsi de t he house, namel y, t he kami of t he kami

alt ar and t he ancestr al spir i ts , t he highest per cent age of special

f acil i t i es ar e found in connect i ons wi t h t he cul t (or r emembrance)

of the ancestors .

Chr is t i ani t y and Tr adi t ional Rel i gi ous Event s of t he Communi t y

Tabl e 21 shows, for Chr i st i an and Buddhist househol ds, the degr ee

of participation in the annual round of traditional religious events.

The Christian events, Christmas and Easter, have been part of the

Shi mo Fukuda t radit ion for over 80 year s, so t hey ar e count ed

here as "t r adi t i onal .11

No at t empt wil l be made t o account for t he degr ee of

participation in each and every event, but it is remarkable that

t he one ev ent for whic h bot h gr oups of households show t he


29/45


Tabl e 21

Part i c ipat i on in t he Annual Cy cl e of Tradit i onal Rel ig i ous Event s

Ty pe of Event Part ic i pat i on C h r i s t i a n Buddhist

House hol ds Househol ds

Christ ian

Ea s t e r s e r v i c e at c hur c h ( Ma r /A p r ) Y e s 18 (85.7) 0 ( 0.0)

No 3 (14.3) 33 (100.0)

Chr i s t ma s s er v i c e at c hur c h (De c ) Y e s 2 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 6 (18.2)

No 0 ( 0.0) 27 (81.8)

Ot her

For New Y ea r hang fr esh st raw-

r o pe a nd pe nda nt paper - s t r i ps on Y e s 7 (33.3) 25 (75.8)

kami - al t ar No 14 (66.7* ) 8 (24.8)

Ot ok o obi sha ( Me n!s Yes 1 ( 4 . 8 ) 27 (81.8)

association) (Jan) No 20 (95.2) 6 (18.2)

Onna obisha (Wo me nTs Yes 0 ( 0.0) 25 (75.8)

as s oci at i on) (Fe b) No 2 1 ( 0 . 0 ) 8 (24.2)

Ser v e dur i ng meet i ng of Daishiko

(assn honori ng f ounder of Shingon) Yes 0 ( 0.0) 14 (42.4)

at Buddhist temple (July) No 2 1 ( 0 . 0 ) 19 (57.6)

Vi si t Shi nt o shr i ne dur i ng Y e s 1 ( 4 . 8 ) 17 (51.6)

t he Gi on Fes t i v al (J ul y ) No 20 (95.2) 16 (48.4)

We l c ome and s ee of f t he anc es t r al Y e s 15 (71.4) 26 (78.8)

spir its at the Bon Fest ival (Aug) No 6 (28.6) 7 (21.2)

House- kami r i t es dur i ng t he Y e s 1 ( 4 . 8 ) 17 (51.6)

Uj i gami Fes t i v al (Oc t ) No 20 (95.2) 16 (48.4)

Tot al 2 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 33 (100.0)

highest degree of participation, the welcoming and seeing off of

ancest r al spir it s at t he t ime of t he Bon Fest i val , corr esponds to

t he high per cent age of Chr is t i an and Buddhi st househol ds t hat

have special fac i l i t ies for venerat ing ancestors .


30/45


As f or par t i ci pat i on i n ot her ev ent s , t he hi ghs and l ows v ar y t o

some ext ent , but on t he whol e t he Buddhi st and Chr i st i an gr oups

demonst r at e a compar at i vel y high degr ee of part ici pati on in t he

events associated with their respect ive tradit ions. Conversely , for

events other than those associated with their own tradition, their

participation is low.

Tabl e 22

Par t i ci pat i on in Tr adi t i onal Bir t h and Gr owt h Cer emonies

Type of Cer emony Par t i ci pat i on Chr is t i an Buddhi st

House hol d Househol d

Shinto shrine visit with newborn Y e s 2 ( 9 . 5 ) 30 (91.0)

child No 19 (90.5) 3 ( 9.0)

Shi nt o shr i ne vi si t wi t h 7 and 3 Y es 2 ( 9 . 5 ) 30 (91.0)

y ear ol d gi r l s and 5 y ear ol d boy s No 19 (90.5) 3 ( 9.0)

Tot al 2 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 33 (100.0)

Tabl e 23

Part i c ipat i on in Ot her Cust omary Obser vances

Ty pe of Obs er v a nc e Par t i ci pat i on Chr i s t i an Buddhist

Ho us e ho l d Ho us e hol d

Me mor i al ser v i ce of pet dogs Y e s 0 ( 0.0) 25 (75.8)

(f or eas y chi l dbi r t h) No 2 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 8 (24.2)

Ri t es f or t he r oad- gui di ng kami Y es 2 ( 9.5) 14 (42.5)

No 19 (90.5) 19 (57.5)

Ta bo os on t he Da y of t he Rabbi t Y e s 2 ( 9.5) 10 (30.3)

(t o pl a nt o r s o w br i ng s ba d l uc k) No 19 (90.5) 23 (69.7)

Total 2 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 3 3 ( 1 00 .0 )


31/45

J A P A N E S E J O UR N A L OF R E L I G I OUS S T UDI E S 1 2 /1 47

We t ur n no w t o t he de g r ee of par t i ci pat i on in t r adi t i onal

ceremonies pertaining to the birth and growth of children, the

subj ect of Tabl e 22. Her e t he dif f er ence bet wee n Chr i st i an and

Buddhi st househol ds is pl ain and cl ear. Tabl e 23 deal s wi t h the

degree of participation in other customary observances, and here

again the dif ference is evident .

No mat t er what non- Chr i st i an ev ent is consi dered, t hen, the

degree of participation by Christian households is invariably lower

t han t hat of t he Buddhi st . Wi t hout much exagger at i on one coul d

say that the Christian households participate in almost none of the

non- Chr is t i an events . For t his v ery r eason, t heir high degr ee of

participation in the welcoming and seeing off of ancestral spiritsat the t ime of the Bon Festival becomes all the more noteworthy.

Christ ianity and the A ncestral Cul t

The st r ong and dis t i nct iv e sent i ment s t hat t he J apanese peopl e

hol d wi t h r egar d t o t heir ancest ors has l ong been known. Thes e

sentiments go well beyond merely loving, respecting, and cherish

ing the memory of the dead; they entail addressing the dead in

pr ayer , r egardi ng t hem wi t h worshipful r espect , and beseechingt heir unse en ai d. When this st age has bee n r eac hed, it is appro

priate to speak of the "ancestral cult” （C f . Y a n a g i t a 1 9 6 9 , A r u g a

1 9 69 , T a k e da 1 9 57 , Mo r i o k a 1 9 59 , p. 3 1 , e t c . ). T he pos i t i on

adopt ed in this st udy is t hat when Chr i st i ans come t o hold ideas

about their ancestors and deceased family members that corre

spond to this st age, t heir fai t h may be r egar ded as havi ng under

gone a substantive change.

The fi rst quest i on t o be r ais ed in consi der i ng whet her such a

substantive change has occurred is this to what ext ent has t he

Chri st i an concept of monot hei sm ent er ed i nt o t he consci ousness of

Shi mo Fukuda Chr is t i ans? This is t r eat ed in Tabl e 2 4， whi ch

presents the results of asking respondents whether they agree with

t he vi ew t hat peopl e bel ongi ng to his or her rel igi ous gr oup shoul d

not wor shi p a kami or buddha of a di f fe r ent rel igi on.

For the purpose of analysis, the responses to this question are

mat ched wi t h t he earl ier r esponses to t he quest ion of whet her t he

r espondent ’s househol d has a pl ace to venerat e t he ancest ors.


32/45

48 NIS HI Y AMA: Chr ist ianit y in J apan

T a b l e ? 4

Monot hei st i c vs. Syncr et i st i c Ideas about God

Quest i on: Do you agr ee t hat peopl e of your rel i gious group shoul d

not worship a kami or buddha of a different religion?

Response Ag r e e Disagree Do n ’t K no w To t a l

Chr i s t i a ns wh o ha v e a

buddha al t ar 1 (20.0) 4 (80.0) 0 (0.0) 5 (100.0)

Chr i s t i ans who hav e a

s ubs t i t ut e 4 (50.0) 4 (50.0) 0 (0.0) 8 (10.0)Christians who h av e no

special place 4 (66.6* ) 2 (33.4) 0 (0.0) 6 (100.0)

Tot al 9 (47.4) 10 (52.6) 0 (0.0) 19 (100.0)

Non- Chr i s t i a ns wh o ha v e

a buddha altar 3 (16.7) 15 (83.3) 0 (0.0) 18 (100.0)

No n- Chr i s t i a ns wh o ha v e

no special place 0 (0.0) 1 (100.0) 0 (0.0) 1 (100.0)

Tot al 3 ( 1 5 . 8 ) 1 6 (84.2) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 1 9 (100.0)

Not e: The res pondent s in Tabl es 24 and 25 wer e sel ect ed in t he

f ol l owi ng way. First , Chr i st i an househol ds wit h church member s

we r e c ho s en (20 hous ehol ds ). Sec ond, an equal number of Buddhi st

househol ds fo unded at appr oxi mat el y t he same t ime as t he

Chri st i an and simil ar i n other r espect s was sel ect ed as a cont rol

gr oup. Si nce, howeve r , it pr oved i mpossi bl e to quest i on 1 Chri st i an

ho us e ho l d,1 househol d was r emoved fr om t he Buddhis t g r oup, thus

maki ng 19 in each gr oup. The pr incipl e fol l owed in each cas e was

to interview either the head of the household or his wife. It should

be added that all of the Christians interviewed had received

confirmation.


33/45


Si nce onl y one per son in t he non- Chr is t i an gr oup sai d that his

househol d had no pl ace t o vener at e t he ancest ors , t he f i gures f or

t his r espondent have been del et ed fr om t he anal ysi s; t he

non- Chr i st i an "Tot al " col umn is used inst ead. (The s ame hol ds t rue

for Tabl e 25.)

One point t o not e about Tabl e 24 is that a majori t y of t he

Christians (52.6%), even though this rate is lower than that for the

non- Chr i st i ans, r esponded that t hey do not agr ee wi t h t he vi ew

stated in the question. To the extent that Christian people

selected this answer, their fa ith ref lects , we venture to say , a

substantive change.

Whe n t he ans wer s t o t his que s t i on ar e mat che d wi t h t heresponses to the question dealing with provision of a place for

vener at i ng t he ancest ors , an int erest ing pat t ern emerg es . Of t he

Christians who agreed that one should not worship a kami or

buddha of anot her r el igi on, the hi ghest per cent age (6 6.6 %) is f ound

among t hose who Mhave no special pl ace " t o venera t e t he

ancest ors , t he next to t he hi ghest (50 .0%) among t hose who "have

a subst it ut e" (for t he buddha al t ar), and t he l owest (20 .0%) among

t hose who "hav e a buddha al t ar.11 Conver sel y, t he perc entag e for

Chr i st i ans di sagr eei ng wi t h t his v i ew was highest if t hey had a

buddha al t ar and the l owest if t hey had no special pl ace to

venerate the ancestors . The fact that the high percentage of

Christians with buddha altars who disagreed with this view (80.0%)

dif fer s onl y s li ght l y f rom t hat of t he non- Chri st ians (82.2%)

suggests that even today the buddha altar represents a tangible

power- base for t he ancestr al cul t .

Tabl e 25 pr esent s t he resul t s of measur i ng t hr ee di ff erent

att i tudes toward ancestral or m em orial r i tes and analy zing the

r esponses i n acc or dance wit h whet her t he r espondent 's househol d

has a buddha altar or substitute. The f irst question asks the

respondent's views as to the importance of such rites, the second

whe t he r t hey hol d t hat t he ances t or s wa t c h ov er t he l i vi ng

members of their l ineage, and the third about the attitudes

(feelings) they hold as they direct their attention toward the

ancestors in the special place provided for their venerat ion.

Th r e e s et s o f r e s po ns e s a r e p ar t i c ul a r l y wo r t hy o f a t t e n t i o n :( 1)


34/45

T a b l e 2 5

A t t i t u d e s T o w a r d A n c e s t r a l o r Me mo r i a l R i t e s

cno

C h r i s t i a n s J o n- C h r i s t i a n s

A t t i t u d eH a v e a

b u d d h a

a l t a r

H a v e a

s u bs t i -

t u t e

H a v e n o

s p e c i a l

p l a c e

T o t a l

H a v e a

b u d d h a

a l t a r

Ha v e n o

s p e c i a l

p l a c e

T o t a l

A r e a n c e s t r a l ( me mo r i a l ) r i t e s i mp o r t a n t o r n o t ?

I m p o r t a n t 5 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 7 ( 8 7 . 5 ) 5 ( 8 3 . 3 ) 1 7 ( 8 9 . 5 ) 1 8 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 1 9 ( 1 0 0 . 0 )

Un i mp o r t a n t 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 1 ( 1 2 . 5 ) 1 ( 1 6 . 7 ) 2 ( 1 0. 5 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 )

D o n ，t k n o w 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 )

Do t h e a n c e s t r a l s pi r i t s w a t c h o v e r t h e i r o w n ?

T he y do 5 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 8 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 4 ( 6 6 . 6 * ) 1 7 ( 8 9 . 4 )T h e y d o n » t 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 1 ( 1 6 . 7 ) 1 ( 5 . 3 )

D o n rt k n o w 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 1 ( 1 6 . 7 ) 1 ( 5 . 3 )

1 7 ( 9 4 . 5 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 )

0 (0.0) 0 (0 .0) 1 ( 5 . 5 ) 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 )

1 7 ( 8 9 . 5 )

0 (0 .0 ) 2 (1 0 . 0 )

W h a t f e e l i n g do y o u

R e m e m b e r wi t h

u s ua l l y h a v e w h e n us i n g t he ! p l a c e w h e r e t h e a n c e s t o r s a r e v e n e r a t e d ?

r e s p e c t

L i k e t a l k i n g

wi t h a l i v i ng

0 ( 0 . 0 ) 4 ( 5 0 . 0 ) 2 ( 3 3 . 2 ) 6 ( 3 1 . 5 ) 2 ( 1 1 . 1 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 2 ( 10 , 5 )

p e r s o n

P r a y e r t o

t h e k a m i or

b u d d h a s f o r

1 ( 2 0 . 0 ) 1 ( 1 2 . 5 ) 1 ( 1 6 . 7 ) 3 ( 1 5 . 8 ) 2 ( 1 1 . 1 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 2 ( 1 0 . 5 )

p r o t e c t i o n 2

P r a y e r t o G o df o r t h ei r

( 4 0 . 0 ) 2 ( 2 5 . 0 ) 1 ( 1 6 , 7 ) 5 ( 2 6 . 3 ) 2 ( 6 6 . 7 ) 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 1 3 ( 6 8 . 5 )

s a l v a t i o n

I d o n f t

t h i n k a b o u t

0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 1 ( 1 6 . 7 ) 1 ( 5 . 3 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( o . o )

a n y t h i n g

Ne v e r u s e d

2 ( 4 0 .0 ) 1 ( 1 2 . 5 ) 0 ( o . o ) 3 ( 1 5 . 8 ) 2 ( 1 1 . 1 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 2 ( 1 0 .5 )

s u c h a p l a c e 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 1 ( 1 6 . 7 ) 1 ( 5 . 3 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( o . o )D o n f t k n o w 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( o . o ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 . 0 ) 0 ( 0 , 0 )

T o t a l ( 10 0 , 0 ) 8 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 6 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 1 9 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 1 8 1 0 0 . 0 ) 1 ( 1 0 0 . 0 ) 1 9 ( 1 0 0 . 0 )

NI S HI Y A S A :

C h r i s t i ani t y

i n

J a p an


35/45


those aff irming the importance of such rites , ⑵ those

acknowl edgi ng bel i ef t hat t he ancest ors do wat ch over t he li ving,

and (3) t hose i ndi cati ng t hat use of t he ancest or- venerat ion pl ace

is acc ompani ed by t he f eel i ng of prayi ng to t he kami or t he

buddhas for pr otect i on. Of t he i t ems l eadi ng t o t hese r esponses,

t he f ir st deals onl y wi t h t he most general , superf i cial , and

peripheral kind of attitude, for the question speaks of ancestral

rites as embracing memorial r ites, though only the latter can

clear ly be said to involve no conf l ict with Christ ian faith. The

second item, however, dealing with whether the ancestors watch

over their l iving kin, introduces another attitude. In this case the

quest ion of confl i ct wit h Chr is t i an fai t h becomes harder t oanswer , for t his at t i t ude may i nvol ve t he i dea of nunse en ai d11

(di vi ne pr otect i on) or it may i nvolv e a compl et el y dif fer ent kind of

understanding. Be that as it may, aff irmation of the belief that

t he ancest ors wat ch over t heir own woul d seem t o invol ve great er

possibi l i ty for conf l ict with Christ ian faith than af f irm ation of the

importance of ancestral or memorial r ites. Finally, as over against

t hese f i rst t wo at t it udes, t he att i t ude t hat one is Mpr ayi ng t o the

kami or buddhas f or pr ot ect i on" when addres si ng onesel f t o t he

ancestors in the special place provided for their veneration is even

more definite，deeply seated, and central. For here the ancestors,

the deceased family members, are clearly placed on the same level

as t he kami and buddhas, and it is in t his capaci t y t hat t heir

"unse en ai dn is besought .

Wi t h r egar d t o t he i t em de al i ng wi t h t he i mpor t ance of t hes e

ri t es, al l t he non- Chri st ians aff i r m t heir i mpor t ance. As for t he

Christians, 100% of those with a buddha altar believe them

i mpor t ant , 8 7. 5% of t hose wi t h a buddha al t ar subst i t ut e, and

83.3% of those with no special place for venerating the

ancestors—a series of diminishing percentages; conversely, among

those who believe them unimportant, a series of increasing

percentages is found. The reason that as many as 89.5% of the

total num ber of Christ ians af f irm ed that these r i tes were

i mport ant is pr obabl y due t o t he f act t hat t he quest i on i ncl uded

t he t erm "memor i al ." Hence ev en t hough t he gr eat majori t y of

Christians said they believed the rites important, it would be a


36/45


hasty judgment to say without further ado that their faith has

taken on an ancestral cult coloration.

The s econd i t em, rais i ng the quest i on of whet her t he ancest ors

wa t c h ov er t hei r own, r esul t ed i n pe r c ent age s t hat we r e near l y

i dent ical for both Chr is t i an (89 .4%) and non- Chr is t ians (89. 5%). But

whe t he r t his mea ns , f or t he Chr i s t i ans , t hat t hei r f ai t h has t ak en

on an ancest r al cul t color ati on is sti l l open to quest i on. For it is

by no means cer t ai n that t he t erm ,!wat ch ove r " is to be ident i fi ed

wi t h t he mor e speci f i c di vi ne pr ot ect i on s ug ges t ed by t he t er m

"unseen aid.”

If the Christians alone are considered in relation to this second

i t em, it t urns out t hat bot h those wi t h a buddha al t ar and t hose wi t h a subs t i t ut e we r e 1 0 0 % in ag r eement wi t h t he i dea t hat t he

ancest ors wat ch over t heir l ivi ng kin, wher eas t hose wi t h no

special place for venerating the ancestors were only 66.6% in

agr eement wi t h this i dea. It appears , t her ef ore, t hat t he responses

to t his i t em ar e not unr el at ed to whet her t he househol d has a

special place to venerate the ancestors .

Finally, let us consider the third item, the one having to do

wi t h t he !,f eel i ng of pr ay i ng t o t he kami or t he buddha s f or di v i neprot ect ion.” The perc ent age of non- Chri st ians giv ing this repl y was

68.5%, the percentage of Christians 26.3%. As compared to the

f irs t t wo i t ems, t he di f fer ence bet ween t he Chr is t i an and

non- Chr is t ian perc ent ages is consi derabl y gr eater . Among t he

non- Chr i st i ans, t he per cent age of peopl e who chose t his response

(6 8.5 %) far out wei ghs al l t he other r esponses t o this i t em, but

among t he Chri st i ans, t he res ponse t hat t akes fi rst pl ace is fr a

f eel i ng of r emember i ng hi m/her wi t h r es pect " (31 .5%). From this it

appears that the Christians of Shimo Fukuda, when compared with

t he non- Chr ist ians, have s ucceeded t o a fair l y high degr ee in

ext r i cat i ng t hemsel ves f rom t he t radit ional ancestr al cul t . Agai n,

it may be possible t o i nt erpret what we see here as a subst ant i ve

change in t he ancest r al cul t result ing fr om t he adopt i on of

C h r i s t i a n i t y .

On the other hand, if this situation is viewed from the

standpoint of Christian faith, it becomes apparent that if as many

as 26.3% of the Christians, when using the special ancestor


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J A P A N E S E J OU R N A L O F R E L I G I OUS S T UDI E S 1 2 /1 53

venerat i on pl ace, have t he "f eel i ng of prayi ng t o t he kami or t he

buddhas for prot ect i on," t hen t o this ext ent t he Chr i st i ani t y of

t his c ommuni t y has under gone a subst ant i ve change in t he

di r ect i on of t he ancest r al cul t . Wi t h r egard to t he it ems deali ng

wi t h t he "i mpor t anc e " of anc es t r al or memor i al r i t es and wi t h t he

quest i on of whet her t he ancest ors ar e bel i eved to "wat ch over11

their own, it was not possible to state f latly that a substantive

change had occur r ed, but wi t h regar d t o t his it em, it can be st at e

wi t hout equi vocat i on.

The Chr i st i ans1 r esponses t o this it em for m a di mi ni shing seri es

o f p e r c e n t a g e s t hose wi t h a buddha al t ar at 40 .0 %, t hose wit h a

substitute at 25.0%, and those with neither at 16.7%.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

The results of the foregoing study may be summarized as

f o l l o w s

1 . In t he Shimo Fukuda communit y, members hip in Chr i st i ani t y,

generation by generation, takes place in household units. The

Christianity of this community exhibits , in other words, peripheral

change.

2. Going beyond mere peripheral change, Shimo Fukuda

Christ ianity a lso g ives evidence, part icular ly in relat ion to the

buddha altar and its substitute, of substantive change in the

direct ion of the ancestral cult . Again, the percentages for

att i tudes relat ing to ancestral r i tes suggests not only that these

att i tudes are c losely l inked to the presence or absence of

ancestral cult facilit ies, especially the buddha altar, but also that

the buddha altar continues to the present day to be a tangible

power- base for t he ancestr al cul t .

3. Consequent l y, t he pr imary f act or l eadi ng to subst ant i ve

change in the Christianity of this community is the ancestral cult .

It may be concl uded t her ef ore t hat t he t wo hypot heses pres ent ed

at the outset have been verif ied.


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54 NI SHI Y AMA: Chri st ianit y in J apan

App endi x

This paper originated as an M.A. thesis presented to the Tokyo

Univ ers i t y of Educat i on in 1972. A summar y r eport was presented

t o the J apan Sociol ogical Societ y in 19 74 ， and that summary ,

revised and corrected, forms the content of this paper.

From the writing of the thesis through the writing of this

paper, Professor MORIOKA Kiyomi provided me with a wealth of

i nst ructi on. Al so，at t he act ual r esearc h st age，a number of peopl e

in Shi mo Fuk uda communi t y ass i st ed me in mor e way s t han I can

begin t o count . To both I shoul d l i ke t o expres s my deep

appreciation.

Not es

1 . T he r e a de r i s r e f e r r e d t o Mo r i o k a 1 9 59 , p. 2 3 2; 1 9 5 7 ， p . 4 ;

1 9 6 7 , p . 1 2 ; 1 9 70 b, pp. 1 42 - 1 43 , e t c .

2. This is not t o say t hat Chr is t i anit y as a whol e, i ncl uding

t hat of Eur ope and t he Amer i ca ，is a non- insti t ut ionali zed form of

culture; it is only to stipulate that the Christianity that came toJ apan, by reason of i ts rel at ively short hist ory her e， is a

non- i nst it ut i onal i zed for m. One shoul d al so bear in mi nd Dur khei m!s

character izat ion of "social facts" as consist ing of externality and

r est r aint (Durk heim 1895).

3. Th e t erm !Tuni t of r el i gi ous member s hi p” us ed in t hi s paper is

equi val ent to Mor i oka!s t erm, "soci al basis of rel igi on.” See

Mor i oka 1968.

4. Wi t h regard to requi rement 1 , see Sect i on IV; wit h regard to

requirements 2, 3, and 4, see Section III.5. It should be noted, however, that within the spectrum of

Prot es t ant denomi nat i ons, Fukuda Episc opal Chur ch bel ongs t o t he

strand that stands closest to the older traditions, namely，the

Roman Cat hol i c and Or t hodox. As c ompared t o other Prot est ant

denomi nat i ons, t he Angl i can or Episc opal Chur ch l ays onl y mil d

emphasi s on i ndi vi dual i sm; wi t h r egar d to mi ssi on wor k in

non- Chr i st i an count r ies, it endeavor s t o t ake as sympat het i c an

attitude as possible toward the cultures of these countries and the

feelings of their people, and it may be supposed that for this very

reason its faith, as compared to that of other Protestant


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denomi nat i ons, is pr one t o subst ant i ve c hange. In this r espect ,

therefore, it is not altogether suitable as an object of

i nvest i gat i on. But when Fukuda Angl i can Epi scopal Chur ch is t aken

as our object and concretely considered with respect to the

problem of substantive change, it becomes quite diff icult to

ascer t ain whet her and t o what ext ent this denomi nat i onal fact or

plays a role. In this paper, accordingly, an analysis of this factor

wi l l not be under t ake n. I s houl d l i ke, ho we v er , t o ex pr es s he r e my

appr eciat i on to Profess or NIS HI Y AMA Toshi hi ko of Eichi Univ ersi t y

who, i n r es ponse t o a pr es ent at i on I made at t he 47 t h As s embl y of

t he J apan Sociol ogical Associ at i on, kindl y and apt l y point ed out

t he i mport ance of this denomi nat i onal f act or . I shoul d als o l ike t o

r efer t he reader t o an art icl e on t he Chr is t i an Univ ersi t y by

Tsukada (1971).

6. Nishiyama 1972, 1973.

7. See the Chi ba ke n Shi mos a no kurti Shi mo Hab u gun Shimo

Fukuda son s h i 千葉県下総国下埴生郡下福田村誌（Chr oni cl e of Shimo

Fukuda Vi l l age in Shimo Habu Dis t r i ct , Shim5sa Count y , Chi ba

Prefecture; February 1884).

8. See the preceding reference; also the Shimo Fukuda mura

kotakuchi sanrin tanbetsu chika chiso gdkeicho 下福田村耕宅地山

林反別地価地租合計帳（Memor i al cov er i ng t he asses sed v al ue of and

l and t ax on the ar abl e, res i dent i al , and woode d l and, in t an units,held by Shimo Fukuda Village; 1885).

9. See the previously cited Chronicle.

10. See t he document ent it l ed Mei j i go (mi zunoe, sar u) nen Inba

ken kankat sa dai- nana dai ka dai- ni shoku koseki no ichi (Habu gunt

Shimo Fukuda mura) 明治五壬申年印旛県管轄第七大区第二小区戸籍

之一（埴生郡下福田村）（Househol d regis t r y n o . 1 for sub- dis t ri ct no.

2 in di st ri ct no. 7 of Inba Pre f ec t ur e (Habu gun, Shi mo Fukuda

Vi l l ag e). Febr ua r y 1873.

1 1 . Tne term nt hree generat i ons” means t hat t he f irs t famil ymember t o r ecei ve bapt i sm is count ed as t he fir st generat i on, and

that the next family members to become Christian are his or her

parent s, on t he one hand, and chil dr en, on t he ot her.

12. Most of t he dat a t o be c onsi der ed in this sect i on wer e

obt ai ned in a sur vey conduct ed for f our days begi nni ng on 10

Sept ember 1971. One part of t he dat a, howev er , comes fr om a

suppl ement ar y sur vey c onduct ed on 28 Nov ember 1 971.

13. The t erm "Chr i s t i an house hol d1' has a br oad and a nar r ow

meaning. The broad meaning includes the pastor and his family,


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ev en t hough t hey come f r om out si de t he communi t y; t he narr ow

meaning ex cl udes t he past or and his f ami l y, l i mit i ng t he t erm t o

t hose c ommuni t y househol ds t hat for sever al gener at ions have

i dent i f i ed Chr i st i ani t y as their "house hol d r el i gi on.11 In this paper ,

t he narr ow meaning wil l be empl oyed. When it bec omes necessar y

t o i ncl ude t he past or and his f ami l y, a di f f er ent t erm wil l be use d，

namel y, "Chri st i an home.”

14. Ev en t hough l umped t oget her as "Buddhis t househol ds," their

actual sect af f i l iat ion shows considerable var iety . These sects and

t he number of househol ds af f i l i ated wi t h each ar e as f ol l ows

Tendai 1 7，Shingon 6, Ji 3, Ni chi r en Shoshu (Soka Ga k k a i ) 1 、Zen

( f ur t he r det a i l s u n s p e c i f i e d ) 1 , J o do 1 ， Te nr i Honmi c hi 1 , Shi nt o

(Shi nt o f u n e r a l ) 1 ， no ne 1 . T he r eas on f or t r e at i ng t hem as a

single category here is that, with the exception of the two

households aff i l iated with the Nichiren Shoshu (Soka Gakkai), all

participate cooperatively in the traditional religious ceremonies. In

this r espect t hey ar e to be dis t ingui shed from t he "Chri st i an

househol ds.**

15. In Shimo Fukuda t oday t her e is one "Chr i st i an househol d”

t hat bel onged t o t he churc h up to t he pr evi ous gener at i on, but

curr ent l y has no churc h member in t he househol d. Despi t e this

anomal y ， it does not a l l ow its cont act wit h other Chr is t i an

households to lapse.

16. "Fi nanci al support ’1 means, of cour se, money gi ven t o t he

church through offerings, but the point to note is that most of this

support derives from a system in which a treasurer is assigned to

each kami and is responsible to visit each Christian household and

collect money for the church on a household basis. The money thus

collected is cal led j i kyu (sel f- support ), a ter m t hat began at an

earlier t ime when the church, seeking to eliminate reliance on

subsi dies fr om t he mi ss i on board and ot her churc hes, undert ook to

raise "of f er i ngs for t he sake of achi evi ng sel f- support .” Today ,however, the term simply identifies money given to the church by

the Christian households.

17. The vol unt ary l abor i ncl udes wor k in the Chur c hTs

paddyl and, of f er i ng hospit ali t y t o t he bi shop who comes eac h

aut umn t o admi ni st er conf i rmat i on rit es, etc .

18. Chr i st mas, East er ， Thanksgiving, etc .

19. A vol unt ary associ at i on hel d on compl et i on of t he major

agricultural tasks of the year (planting and harvesting) as a form


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J A P A N E S E J OU R N A L OF R E L I GI OUS S T UDI E S 1 2/1 57

of recr eat i on for t he women. I ts act i vit ies consist s pr i mari l y of

eating, drinking, and pleasant chatting.

20. vNando role" means t hat on the occasi on of a deat h, 5 or 6

pers ons from t he aff i l i ate d o z o k u and neighbor i ng househol ds t ake

compl et e r esponsibil it y^ on behal f of t he ber eav ed househol d

member s, for t he management of ever yt hing t hat must be done

from the wake through the funeral.

2 1 . One may ment ion, for exampl e, t he nei ghbor hood fel l owship

groups, the group known as kamasu nakama whose members pay

condol ence visit s on any member who suf fer s ber eav ement , t he

kyode keiyaku (f raternal covenant) group i n whi ch peopl e so

i ncl i ned for m bonds l i ke t hose bet ween br ot her and br ot her , and

the yoi and suketo groups that have as their purpose agricultural

cooper at i on and mut ual aid.

22. In this t abl e t he f irst pers on t o acce pt Chr i st i an fait h is

count ed as a f ir st - generati on Chr i st i an, his or her chil dr en as

second- generat ion,

Documents

INDIGENIZATION AND TRANSFORMATION OF CHRISTIANITY IN A JAPANESE RURAL COMMUNITY