Digital Commons Network^™

Non-Christian, Japanese College Students’ Perspectives Of Engaging With God Through The Participatory Components Of Christian Worship, Jacqueline Leigh Bencke

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study seeks to examine the extent to which non-Christian college students in Japan perceive their engagement with the biblical God while participating in daily chapel services at Kyūshū Lutheran College. The research employs a mixed-methods approach, analyzing survey and focus group data to explore whether a relationship exists between students’ participation in chapel committee activities and their perceived spiritual engagement. Responses to Lynn Underwood’s Daily Spiritual Experience Survey, the Centrality of Religiosity Scale, and the Centrality of Buddhist Religiosity Scale are combined to create a general spiritual profile of respondents. Worship leaders and missionaries who are in positions of …

The Japanese Church And Cultural Engagement, Sarah Jane Garon

Masters Theses

This thesis addresses the current cultural engagement done by the Japanese church, with particular attention given to music and the arts. Japan has hosted Christian missionaries for over five centuries and yet most of the population do not claim the religion as their own. Much research has been devoted to understanding the history of Christianity in Japan and the relationship between Japanese Christians and non-Christian Japanese culture. However, very little research has been done on the interactions between Japanese Christians and music and art specifically. This thesis, therefore, is dedicated to discovering how Japanese Christians are currently engaging with music …

The Fall Of The Ikko Ikki: The Demise Of The Honganji In The Late Sengoku Period, Alexander M. Remington

Student Publications

During the late Sengoku Period Japan witnessed the fall of the Honganji, a sect of Pure Land Buddhism. The Honganji was a significant military, political, and economic power and commanded armies of commoners known as Ikko Ikki. The Honganji fell because it challenged the traditional social order of Japan, lacked unity, and stood against warlord Oda Nobunaga during his bid for hegemony. The fall of the Honganji resulted in consequential policies and impacted Japanese society going into the Tokugawa period.

The Challenge Of Ecclesiastical Multicultural Integration In Homogeneous Japan, William Paul Petite

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In 2019, 26% of the attendees at Akita Bible Baptist Church (ABBC) were non-Japanese. However, only 4% of the official members of the church were non-Japanese. The purpose of this action research project was to find a strategy to reduce the gap between the relatively high percentage of non-Japanese attendees (26%) and the low percentage of non-Japanese official members (4%). In other words, the purpose was to identify a strategy to increase multicultural integration regarding organizational influence at ABBC. This strategy was discovered by first interviewing eleven non-Japanese attendees. The research facilitator was surprised to discover that 73% of the …

Contextualized Songwriting In The Japanese Church, Katie Ann Mcwilliams

Masters Theses

The Christian Church of Japan has very few songs written in their own language and style. Most songs are translated from English or another language. While Japan is a very westernized country, this is a problem because things can get lost in translation and these songs are not always representative of their musical style. Furthermore, they have a unique voice of worship that is currently missing from the global Church. My research project was intended to identify songwriters and encourage songwriting for the local church with the intention of expanding the Japanese voice in the global context and raising awareness …

The Japanese Way In America: A Comparison Of The Spiritual Beliefs, Habits, And Ideas Of The American Religious ‘Nones’ And Contemporary Japanese Nationals, Jarrett Stalinger

Honors Program Projects

There has been growing interest in the religiously unaffiliated within America. This growing interest has caused a new name to come about, the Nones. The present discussion attempts to give context to the rise of the Nones and to compare the religious beliefs and habits of these American Nones with the Japanese Nationals who inhabit Japan. There are many similarities between these two groups relating to ethics, interactions with people, and connection with nature. These comparisons show that there is a possible connection between people which explains spiritual experience, even outside that of normalized, institutional religions. This “intuition of the …

Mother Of God, Mother Of Christianity: The Development Of The Marian Tradition In Early Modern Japan, Alaina Keller

Student Publications

The Christian figure of the Virgin Mary, first introduced as Jesus’ mother in the Bible, has since been repeatedly reinterpreted in various roles and imagery through her incorporation into different cultures. This project analyses the historical adoption and adaptation of Mary among Christian converts in Japan, from the arrival of Jesuit missionaries in 1549 to the end of the Tokugawa era in the nineteenth century. An examination of doctrinal prayers, the rosary, and Marian iconography within Japan illustrates Mary’s role as the Mother of God and compassionate intercessor for early Japanese Christians. Moreover, their affinity for Mary enabled Christianity to …

Finding Aid For Richard F. Baggett Papers, (1952), Richard F. Baggett

Richard F. Baggett Papers

Richard F. Baggett graduated from Harding College in 1949. Richard and his wife, Mary, served as missionaries in Japan from 1950-1955, and 1956-1958. The focus of their work was training native preachers, establishing churches, teaching Bible at Ibaraki Christian College, and holding gospel meetings. The Baggetts were financially supported by the Coleman Avenue Church of Christ (Memphis, Tennessee), and the Union Avenue Church of Christ (Memphis, Tennessee).

This collection includes two reports from Richard F. Baggett, an American who was serving as a Churches of Christ missionary in Japan. Baggett mentions preaching in Japanese for the first time without the …

"Lucky" Charms, Bailey Swanson

Christian Studies Class Publications

Within Shinto and Buddhist folklore, many amulets deemed worthy of reverence have been discovered and used frequently. There are many forms of worship in the Japanese community - including portable, home, or shrine veneration. The omamori, Maneki-Neko (Beckoning Cat), ema, Omikuji, and numerous sacred animals are treated as sacred talisman, or as we may call them "lucky charms".

Finding Aid For Edward Washington Mcmillan Papers, (1863-1986), Abilene Christian University Special Collections And Archives

Edward Washington McMillan Papers

Finding aid for the Edward Washington McMillan Papers, (1863-1986).

Il Rosario Di Hiroshima, Hubert F. Schiffer, Federica Favaretta Tr.

Library Special Collections

Account of the survival of Jesuit priests (among them Father Hubert Schiffer) near the center of the atom bomb attack on Hiroshima. Their survival was considered by many to be a miracle. The Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima was started by Rev. Harold V. Colgan when he was completely cured of a serious heart attack after praying to the Blessed Virgin Mary. If cured he promised to spend the rest of his life spreading devotion to her. Blue Army members promise to say the Rosary every day, consecrate themselves to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and offer sacrifices and …

Monstrous Maternity: Folkloric Expressions Of The Feminine In Images Of The Ubume, Michaela Leah Prostak

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The ubume is a ghost of Japanese folklore, once a living woman, who died during either pregnancy or childbirth. This thesis explores how the religious and secular developments of the ubume and related figures create a dichotomy of ideologies that both condemn and liberate women in their roles as mothers. Examples of literary and visual narratives of the ubume as well as the religious practices that were employed for maternity-related concerns are explored within their historical contexts in order to best understand what meaning they held for people at a given time and if that meaning has changed. These meanings …

Let Your Light Shine: A Holistic Reflection On The Individual In A Community, Nicole C. Argudin

All College Thesis Program, 2016-2019

"Sic luceat lux vestra," or “Let your light Shine” This phrase from the Gospel of Mattew stresses the importance that we all have a light or a talent and we should shine our light for all. The problem though is when we live in the same community for so long, we start to lose our uniqueness and eventually become close-minded to new experiences. By encountering and learning from other communities, we are made aware of this issue and other strengths and weakness of our own community that we take for granted. My disclaimer about this paper is that it is …

Religion And The State: The Influence Of The Tokugawa On Religious Life, Thought, And Institutions, Savannah A. Labbe

Student Publications

This paper describes the influence of the Tokugawa government on religious life in Japan. It focuses on the religious traditions of Buddhism, Shintoism, and Neo-Confucianism and how the state used these religions to their advantage. The Tokugawa had strict control over all aspects of Japanese life including religion and this paper explores that.

Tenrikyo: A Japanese Religious Tradition, Ransey Joiner

Scholars Day

Someone who visits Japan today, even for a short amount of time, will most likely feel caught in a tug-of-war between complacency and crisis. The list of crisis is most likely familiar to those who stay up to date with world news: Japan’s economy is eroding which is threatening the global marketplace. The old political system grew brittle, which, in turn, created a wide-spread feeling of cynicism. The continuation of globalization has created the expectation of material wealth, which has played a significant part in dissolving many Japanese traditions that people relied on to give them a sense of identity …

Zen And The Art Of Treason: Radical Buddhism In Meiji Era (1868–1912) Japan, James Shields

Faculty Journal Articles

In the early decades of the twentieth century, as Japanese society became engulfed in war and increasing nationalism, the majority of Buddhist leaders and institutions capitulated to the status quo. At the same time, there was a stream of ‘resistance’ among a few Buddhist figures, both priests and laity. These instances of progressive and ‘radical Buddhism’ had roots in late Edo-period peasant revolts, the lingering discourse of early Meiji period liberalism, trends within Buddhist reform and modernisation and the emergence in the first decade of the twentieth century of radical political thought, including various forms of socialism and anarchism. This …

Awakening Between Science, Art & Ethics: Variations On Japanese Buddhist Modernism, 1890–1945, James Shields

Faculty Contributions to Books

The half-century between the publication of the Imperial Rescript on Education (kyōiku chokugo 教育勅語, 1890) and the bombing of Pearl Harbor (1941) was one of tremendous institutional and intellectual tumult in the world of Japanese Buddhism. Buddhist sects and scholars were not immune to the changing political and cultural winds. While it is true that by the late 1930s, the majority of Buddhist leaders and institutions had capitulated to the status quo, preaching, in the words of Joseph Kitagawa “the virtues of peace, harmony, and loyalty to the throne,” the previous decades show anything but a continuous progression towards …

Japanese Jesus: Presenting The Character Of Christ In An Eastern Context, Jessica Schewe

Honors Program Projects

This Capstone Project looks at the differences between Western and Eastern literature, focusing on the Asian genre of manga, a graphic novel. This project culminates in a Japanese graphic novel entitled Rosalee. It attempts to unite the Western concept of Christianity with the Eastern literary conventions, bridging a gap between un-churched Japan and the truth of the Gospel. The story is designed to inspire readers to read the bible and learn more about Christ.

Living Temple Buddhism In Contemporary Japan: The Tendai Sect Today, Stephen G. Covell

Comparative Religion Publications

This study aims to redress the lack of serious scholarly study on Contemporary
Japanese Buddhism. using the Tendai sect as an example. The sects of Temple
Buddhism today are caught between ideal images of "real" Buddhism. which they
themselves help perpetuate through their self-legitimizing rhetoric of renunciation. and
the reality of day-to-day temple functioning. which often fails to live up to the rhetoric.
Moreover. both scholarly and popular constructions of Temple Buddhism communicate a message that Temple Buddhism is "corrupt:' This unique space occupied by the sects of Temple Buddhism provides the thematic focal point for the dissertation. while each …

Buddhist Commons In Asia, Roger A. Lohmann

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Although nothing precisely like the modern nonprofit organization, voluntary association or foundation existed in Asia prior to the 20th century, there can be little doubt that some types of similar indigenous activities are found deep in the history of the many cultures of Asia. Buddhism, for example, has a long record of organized activity, beliefs about giving, and other evidences of what might be termed Buddhist philanthropy.

Letter From Edward Washington Mcmillan To Bill, Edward Washington Mcmillan

Edward Washington McMillan Papers

Letter dated 25 April 1963 from Edward Washington McMillan to Bill (last name unknown). The letter is typewritten on Ibaraki Christian College letterhead.

The Rosary Of Hiroshima, Hubert F. Schiffer

Library Special Collections

Account of the survival of Jesuit priests (among them Father Hubert Schiffer) near the center of the atom bomb attack on Hiroshima. Their survival was considered by many to be a miracle. The Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima was started by Rev. Harold V. Colgan when he was completely cured of a serious heart attack after praying to the Blessed Virgin Mary. If cured he promised to spend the rest of his life spreading devotion to her. Blue Army members promise to say the Rosary every day, consecrate themselves to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and offer sacrifices and …

Report - June 9-July 25, 1952, Richard F. Baggett

Richard F. Baggett Papers

Report from Richard F. Baggett dated July 25, 1952. Baggett was an American who served as a Churches of Christ missionary in Japan. This report documents events from June 9-July 25, 1952.

Report - April 1-June 8, 1952, Richard F. Baggett

Richard F. Baggett Papers

Report from Richard F. Baggett who was an American serving as a Churches of Christ missionary in Japan. This report was written on 9 June 1952 and provides information on mission work that took place between 1 April and 8 June 1952.

Letter From John Moody Mccaleb To V. M. Metcalfe, John Moody Mccaleb

James Walton Shepherd Papers

Letter from John Moody McCaleb to V. M. Metcalfe dated 31 January 1936. McCaleb addresses Metcalfe as "Uncle Minor." The correspondence is handwritten.