Episode 353 - The Rising Sun Will Come to Us From Heaven, Part 5

History of Japan

Isaac Meyer

Japan, History, Japanese

4.8 • 744 Ratings

🗓️ 28 August 2020

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This week, we wrap up our history of Christianity in Japan with a look at the Occupation and Postwar Eras -- and with some final thoughts on what it means to be a part of a faith viewed as "outside" the mainstream of the nation.

Show notes here.

Transcript

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0:00.0	This week's episode is brought to you by Audible.
0:04.0	Audible has over 425,000 titles to choose from, all compatible with iPhone, Android, Kindle, or your MP3 player of choice.
0:14.4	For listeners of the show, Audible is offering a free 30-day trial membership complete with credit for a free audiobook of your choice.
0:21.5	You can cancel any time and keep the free book or keep going with one of Audible subscription offers.
0:27.9	Go to audibletrial.com slash Japan to claim your offer. This week I'm going to recommend
0:34.2	Eichmann in Jerusalem, a report on the banality of evil, by Hannah Arendt.
0:39.8	I'm actually looking to teach this text for the first time in the coming academic year,
0:44.7	and so I've finally had a chance to review it.
0:47.9	Arendt's writing was deeply controversial when it came out,
0:51.0	and I still find it thought-provoking, interesting, and ultimately extremely
0:55.6	powerful. Go to audibletrial.com slash Japan to claim your copy.
1:22.8	Hello. Hello and welcome to the history of Japan podcast, episode 353. The Rising Sun will come to us from heaven, part five.
1:30.1	As you might imagine, the end of the Second World War dramatically changed the fortunes of Japan's Christians.
1:39.2	No longer mobilized for conflict, instead they found themselves under the most sympathetic government they'd seen since, well, basically, ever.
1:52.7	Even though the United States has no official religion and, hypothetically, maintains a strong separation of church and state, it is also a country in which Christianity has a really strong historical and cultural presence.
2:01.1	Trust me, as someone raised in a different religion on this one, guys, it really is something that is very noticeable in this country if you grow up with it.
2:06.6	This was good news for Christians who had just lived through years of war where they were in many cases treated with hostility or outright suspicion for embracing the faith of the enemy.
2:13.2	Now they lived under a regime that was not only not hostile, but actively friendly to their
2:18.7	faith. Indeed, Douglas MacArthur, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers, and thus
2:23.8	the de facto, if not legal, ruler of the country, would say during the occupation that, quote,
2:29.2	the more missionaries we can bring out here, and the more occupation troops we can send home, the better."
2:36.0	MacArthur said explicitly what many in his staff believed implicitly, that Christian culture
	...

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