An Anti-Vision for Culture

“It’s not religious. It’s Japanese.” This was the building owner’s reply to a question about the shrine on the roof. Our teammate, Seth, had been looking for a new gathering location for a church plant in Kyoto, and he found a promising venue, but the owner delivered some bad news: “No religion allowed.” Upon hearing the policy, Seth inquired, “What about that?” pointing to the red-orange torii gate on the roof of the downtown building. He didn’t ask this question with any delusion of changing the policy. Culturally, when someone presents a possible hurdle to your plans, this is their way of saying, “No.” Seth knew that the church’s application to become a tenant had effectively been denied, but he hoped to challenge the glaring contradiction: why is Christianity classified as religious while Buddhistic Shintoism and/or Shintoistic Buddhism are not? Simple: Shintoistic Buddhism is part of Japanese culture and not a religion. It’s not a fish; it’s the water.  

Though this confusion of categories can be frustrating, it can also provide us with an anti-version of true culture as God intended. God’s rule over his people is a great theme throughout the Bible and part of the good news of the Kingdom that Jesus proclaims at the outset of his ministry (Mark 1:14-15). The prophets speak of the full restoration of God’s rule in many ways, but one of the most vivid pictures is in Isaiah 11 and Habakkuk 2:  

For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord  

as the waters cover the sea.  (Isaiah 11:9, ESV)  

Two weeks ago, Japan celebrated the New Year. A YouTube livestream covered a steady stream of people walking up to a temple to swing a large log suspended by ropes towards a gigantic bell. Apparently it’s best to kick off 2025 with an investment in good fortune. I watched about six of these—“worshippers?” (no—that’s too strong), “adherents?” (still implies too much devotion in the bell-ringers), “people!” (yeah, that will have to do). I watched six people ascend the five steps to ring the bell. I saw a businessman in street clothes give a bow to the bell before and after his ring. One woman in a puffy white coat and black platform shoes gave the log a swing. One man with glasses gave the log a swing so hard that it bounced on the ropes, striking the bell in the wrong place and providing a more tinny sound with less reverberation. He turned around, hurried down the steps, and disappeared off-camera.  

After I turned off the livestream around 12:15, the sound of bells continued on. The bell on YouTube was at least an hour away across Tokyo, but our local temples were busy with the same custom, albeit with fewer viewers. We opened the door to let out our dog before bed and could smell wafts of incense. I fell asleep for the first time in 2025 to the distant gonging of temple bells.  

The next day, on a walk to the store, I observed more signs of “religion”—sorry—“culture.” The majority of doors on the homes I passed were decorated with rope, ferns, oranges, rice stalks, and bamboo. These doors had been made into sacred spaces for the gods and marked for good fortune. A woman biked past me with the back half of an arrow in her bike basket, which she had received at the shrine that morning. The item was meant to ward off demons and protect her from misfortune. Stores were decorated with the proper food for a Buddhist New Year’s celebration with family and friends. Fortunes were drawn at temples and shrines. Good fortunes were carried home, and bad ones were left behind at the temple—little strips of paper tied there where they couldn’t hurt anyone with bad luck.  

While it is not certain how many people in Japan actually believe the Shinto stories of the gods creating the archipelago of Japan or how many are trying to walk according to the eightfold path of Buddha’s teaching, a staggering amount of the populace still practices the associated rituals and customs. These acts of worship do not require faith. They are simply done. 

The scope and pervasiveness of false religion show us an anti-vision of God’s intent for humanity.

The folly of idol worship covers the nation as the waters cover the sea.  

Satan’s inventions are often poor and shabby imitations of the holy. The bells, shrines, and acts of devotion are meant to bring good fortune for another year, but God’s Kingdom brings life everlasting. True protection from evil forces is won through the one who bound Satan and will eventually destroy the dragon. Good fortune is not left to the luck of the draw but was secured at the cross and guaranteed by an empty tomb. In the Kingdom of God, all the citizens are filled with the Spirit and know the Lord, having hearts of flesh that beat with the affection of true faith. In that glorious day, we will not ascend steps to have a holy encounter with a bell, but the Lord will descend to live among us, and we will see his face as we walk in the light of his presence.  

In the future, Christianity will not seem like one of the fish in the sea of worldviews but the very water in which all of us swim. Indeed, the religious categorical term “Christianity” will not be needed in the new heavens and the new earth. Following the Lamb will no longer be for the few. Worshiping the one on the throne and the Lamb will simply be natural. Love of the one true God will not be religious; it will be human.  

The knowledge of the Lord will fill the whole earth as the waters cover the sea.

Amen, come Lord Jesus.