The Invention of Religion in Japan

Jason Ananda Josephson

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English

Chicago University Press
03 October 2012

History; Asian history; History of religion; Shintoism; Politics & government

Series: Emersion: Emergent Village resources for communities of faith

Throughout its long history, Japan had no concept of what we call “religion.” There was no corresponding Japanese word, nor anything close to its meaning. But when American warships appeared off the coast of Japan in 1853 and forced the Japanese government to sign treaties demanding, among other things, freedom of religion, the country had to contend with this Western idea. In this book, Jason Ananda Josephson reveals how Japanese officials invented religion in Japan and traces the sweeping intellectual, legal, and cultural changes that followed. More than a tale of oppression or hegemony, Josephson’s account demonstrates that the process of articulating religion offered the Japanese state a valuable opportunity. In addition to carving out space for belief in Christianity and certain forms of Buddhism, Japanese officials excluded Shinto from the category. Instead, they enshrined it as a national ideology while relegating the popular practices of indigenous shamans and female mediums to the category of “superstitions”—and thus beyond the sphere of tolerance. Josephson argues that the invention of religion in Japan was a politically charged, boundary-drawing exercise that not only extensively reclassified the inherited materials of Buddhism, Confucianism, and Shinto to lasting effect, but also reshaped, in subtle but significant ways, our own formulation of the concept of religion today. This ambitious and wide-ranging book contributes an important perspective to broader debates on the nature of religion, the secular, science, and superstition.

By: Jason Ananda Josephson
Imprint: Chicago University Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 23mm, Width: 15mm, Spine: 2mm
Weight: 595g
ISBN: 9780226412344
ISBN 10: 0226412342
Series: Emersion: Emergent Village resources for communities of faith
Pages: 408
Publication Date: 03 October 2012
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced , Further / Higher Education
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Jason Ananda Josephson is assistant professor of religion at Williams College.

Reviews for The Invention of Religion in Japan

"""The Invention of Religion in Japan is truly revolutionary. Original, well-researched, and engrossing, it overturns basic assumptions in the study of Japanese thought, religion, science, and history."" (Sarah Thal, University of Wisconsin - Madison)"""