CAC Articles – A Japanese Understanding of Sin

For anyone who has been to Japan, an initial takeaway from that enriching culture is their humility and generosity. A slight bump in a crowded shop is met with an instant ‘sumimasen’. A gift is presented with a similar apology, ‘sumimasen’, and perhaps the simple explanation, “what I’m giving you is really very inconsequential” Alternatively, you may be invited around for a meal and encounter something no doubt difficult for Westerners to comprehend − the husband apologising for his wife’s terrible cooking. The attitude behind this is perhaps that the wife is considered an extension of the husband and the family unit, and in a roundabout way the husband is humbly apologizing for their combined inadequate culinary skills.

 

The Japanese use several words to express an apology: sumimasen; gomen nasai; moshiwake’ gozaimasen (and others) according to the offence committed. So, sumimasen would be a light apology as we typically would use ‘sorry’; gomen nasai for a slightly stronger apology to convey ‘please forgive me;’ while moshiwake’ gozaimasen with a bowing of the head is used to apologise for a more significant infraction.

 

This raises the question then, “what is the right word to use when you have offended an individual?” Or, “what word would you use if you have had an argument, perhaps saying unnecessary and unkind words, with the expectation of being able to move on in the relationship?” Well, here’s the rub: there is no effective word for that kind of situation. Colleagues or friends simply don’t permit a discussion to degenerate to the level that it will cause offence. At first glance this may seem very appealing as it results in never having bad arguments. However, as any of us who are in a long-term relationship, such as with our spouses, family or friends know, in order for there to be any depth to these relationships we need to be able to have discussions at a deeper level. Disagreements, while they can feel unpleasant, can help reveal wrong thinking or attitudes which can result in a greater level of understanding of the other person. For the Christian, asking forgiveness from the person we have offended also involves asking forgiveness from our Creator God who perseveres with us and reveals over time particular flaws within our own character and those sins that have caused us to deviate from His path and from the ‘likeness’ in which He has created us.

 

Gary Chapman is well known for his wonderful book The 5 Love Languages.  He is perhaps less well known for another book which he co-authored with Jennifer Thomas titled, The Five Languages of Apology. For those who have grown up in families where control and anger were key dynamics, learning how to apologize is quite often a life skill that was not learnt, and so books like this can prove very helpful. The main thesis of the book is that each of us have grown up in families where we expressed an apology differently – if it was expressed at all.   In one family, saying, “I’m sorry,” might be sufficient. For another it may require asking for forgiveness before the apology is truly accepted. A third family may require you to state what you have done wrong or to offer restitution before the apology is acknowledged.

 

It is also important to keep in mind that our understanding of how to apologise, and truly having the ability and will to forgive, is not only dependent on the family in which we were raised − but also the culture in which we have lived. How someone forgives in a Christian family or society, where an understanding of transgression is more closely seen in the light of the biblical concept of sin, will greatly differ in other societies.

 

This raises the question then as to whether Japanese culture has a biblical understanding of sin. Tsumi (which is the most common word used for sin) refers to impurity or uncleanness.[i] A related term is ‘kegare’ (uncleanness, pollution, defilement) which can be the result of death, childbirth, disease, menstruation or whenever blood is present.[ii] Whilst tsumi  may occur to the individual, it is also considered gravely by the community since tsumi “brought chaos to both the universe and the community.”[iii] Purification and expulsion of the tsumi in the individual or group is therefore necessary to bring normality back to the communal social order.

 

In a Japanese worldview, purification from tsumi occurs in a number of ways depending on the sin committed. In June and December each year, a Shintō priest will perform Ōharae to cleanse the whole nation, the company, or a group of people. It may even be performed after a natural disaster.[iv] In other situations, such as the ceremonial laying of a new building’s foundation or at the beginning of a sumo match, salt is thrown into the air, or sprinkled on the ground, by a Shintō priest to bring cleansing and to invoke, or invite the gods to the event.[v] To obtain a pure and cheerful heart, the basis of communication with the gods, a purification ceremony may be performed at a shrine by a Shinto priest whereby a person washes their hands and mouth then recites the words of an ancient purification liturgy.[vi]

 

Whilst Shinto purification ceremonies allow for the cleansing of a ‘dirty heart,’ it is important to note that such ceremonies are not able to bring about forgiveness for someone who has wronged another. Viewed in this light, presenting the gospel to Japanese people is fraught with the difficulty of first explaining a biblical understanding of sin and how the biblical concept of forgiveness differs from the commonly accepted cultural norm of purity derived from Shinto ceremonies.

 

From a biblical perspective, sin came into the world through Adam and Eve’s rejection of God’s Word in the Garden of Eden and that each person since then has been born into sin (Psa 51:5; Rom 5:12). But how might this understanding of sin be conveyed in such a way that makes sense to the Japanese mind? 1 John 3:4 says that sin is breaking God’s law and is reflected by practices of lawlessness. Many Japanese might respond to this by saying that based on this definition they are not sinful because they haven’t been caught speeding recently, nor stole or committed murder. Sin then, needs to be more fully fleshed out, for a Japanese person to fully comprehend that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23).

 

Sin is disobedience towards God, hostility towards God, and going our own way – resulting in a broken relationship with God (Isa 53:6; 59:2; Rom 8:7; Eph 2:1-2; Isaiah 59:2). Sinful behaviour is a result of the sinful nature of our hearts (Mark 7:21-23). Forgiveness for these things depends not on actions we perform (or participating in a Shinto purification ceremony), but rather by entering into a relationship of faith with God, who promises to forgive the sins of those who confess them to Him (1 John 1:9). The good news is that this forgiveness is available not only to those in Japan but to all people who come to God in repentance and faith. As we continue to express the Gospel contextually to societies like Japan, we need in ourselves to be assured of our own relationship with God, and be able, ‘to make a defence to anyone who asks us for a reason for the hope that is in us’ (1 Peter 3:15).

 

Nic Crook