The Japanese Christian

Apparently the new Secretary General of the United Nations Ban-Ki Moon is a christian, of which he described he belonged to a group known as a non-church movement. Further exploration led me to an article in TIME magazine about the Myukokai which influenced Japan and the Far East.

Tadao Yanaihara the President of Tokyo University from 1951-1957, a leader of Myukokai said, "To ignore it would be to make an incomplete description of Christianity in Japan. Indeed, upon them the importance of Japanese Christianity in the history of the world depends."

What's so special about Mukyokai that brings this two great minds to attraction with the Christian message? The official website of the group introduces,

"The Mukyokai, or non-Church Christians, constitute one of the best known Christian movements in Japan. [1] Founded by Uchimura Kanzo * (1861-1930) in reaction to Western denominationalism, this small (about 35,000 adherents) movement is considered to be the most genuine form of Japanese Christianity.

The Mukyokai reject all formal Christian institutions, having no sacraments, liturgy, professional clergy, church buildings, national headquarters, or membership rolls. Instead, this non-churchism is based on independent Bible study groups centered on the traditional teacher-disciple (sensei-deshi) relationship. The teachers have no formal training in the Bible, setting up group when inspired to do so; the group thus disintegrates when its teacher dies or retires. Most of these teachers are regularly employed in outside occupations, often as high school teachers or university professors.

The Mukyokai movement has attracted members from all social strata in Japan, but it is particularly appealing to the Japanese intelligentsia --scholars, university professors, graduate students, and professionals. The spiritual content of the movement is an original synthesis of the spirit of Christianity with the most genuine ethical tradition of Japan. Thus the basic tenets are justification through the Cross, inner conflict, emphasis on hard work, detachment from mundane things, attitude of non compromise with the world, total loyalty to the Lord, and final victory in another world. These principles constitute the basic spiritual framework within which all problems are considered.

Non-Church Christians are known in Japan particularly for their uncompromising stand against social evils. Because they are not part of a religious institution, they are not concerned with institutional survival during times of turmoil and therefore feel free as individuals to speak out against moral and political corruption. They have maintained their spiritual and theistic perspective against the invading forces of materialism since the Meiji Era. Politically, they consistently opposed Shinto nationalism and Japanese imperialism, often to their great personal cost. During the postwar period the Mukyokai have worked actively for peace in Japan and abroad."

Uchimura, influenced by the Quakers in the United States had a strong reaction towards Westernised denominationalism and institutionalism in the church. He did not want to form any institutional structure, but rather having a loose network of like-minded people communicating through writings and forming loose bible study groups. He did not even want his publication or his group to continue after his death.

He said, "I dislike ecclesiastics more than anything else in this world." he wrote. "Believers believe in God; ecclesiastics try to control believers. Believers are men of faith; ecclesiastics are politicians . . . None surpass the prophets in serving God and disliking ecclesiastics."

The involvement of many prominent scholars and professionals in the Japanese society gave the movement a greater profile, possibly raising the need for some form of structure. As most of their meetings revolve around biblical studies, devotional, lectures and possibly critical intellectual discussion, some observers thought that Mukyokai had made Christianity intellectually acceptable to the Japanese.

Its avoidance of institutionalised religion and its ethos of fluidity seem to go well with post-war Far Eastern societies which may be disillusioned with narrow nationalism, oppresive social structure and divisions within the Western church. Even China's Watchman Nee was very critical about denominationalism, giving rise to the Local Church Movement, popular among overseas Chinese.