Debunking myths

The Japanese are one of the largest unreached people groups in the world. For that reason, there are still a lot of preconceived ideas about the Japanese culture and about how they deal with Christianity, many of which may shape our notion of how to be effective here as missionaries. It is important to study the culture of the nation we intend to reach out to; however, interaction with the local people is also necessary if we really want to understand a society.

I have been living in Tokyo for about six years. My husband has been living here for 15 years. We have been pastoring a church in Tokyo, focused on reaching out to Japanese people. We’ve already had the pleasure of seeing many locals accept Jesus, be baptized, and be discipled.

In this article, I would like to address three major myths I heard before coming here. Based on my experiences with the Japanese people, I have realized that the truth may not be exactly what I was told.

First myth

Culturally and ethnically, the Japanese are very homogeneous; for that reason, I was told that the Japanese people do not like to interact with foreigners. I thought foreign people would be relegated to their own groups.

But since I came here, I have acquired a deeper view on this matter. There are two things to consider. First, Japanese society is based on the relation between honor and shame; there is a deep sense of preservation of the harmony of the society. Anything different from the status quo can bring shame to an individual. Therefore, the Japanese people are very careful how they present themselves in order not to bring shame to themselves and to others. Sometimes, they refrain from interacting with foreigners because of the fear of not knowing how to proceed. There is also a certain caution in dealing with the unknown. For many Japanese, foreigners are unknown people; therefore, because of the uncertainty of how to interact, what to say, or how to behave, they have preferred not to interact at all.

Second, there is the language barrier. For some Japanese people, it is not that they do not want to talk to foreigners, but it is more of a matter of not knowing how to approach a person who does not speak Japanese. A lot can be lost in translation, and a lot can be misunderstood. Sometimes, it is better not to talk at all in order not to cause confusion.

One example is when I was about to give birth to my first daughter in Tokyo. The hospital staff knew I was not fluent in Japanese, and the nurses and doctors around me did not speak English. During the 36 hours I was in labor, they were very polite; however, they would only tell me essential things. Nurses would come to ask if I was doing all right and to examine the baby, but they did not try to inform me about more complex things, such as the procedures they were about to do. As I was in labor, I was frustrated that they refrained from explaining important details I wished I knew.

Sure, there are Japanese people who prefer to avoid foreigners, but the truth is deeper than that. During my time as a missionary in Japan, I have encountered many locals who are genuinely interested and curious to know more about Brazil; they are even excited to be speaking to a foreigner. In our church, for example, we have had many Japanese members, including some who did not speak English at all. But they have always been welcoming to foreign visitors and excited to exchange ideas and perspectives with people from other nationalities.

Second myth

Before coming to Japan, I would often hear that the Japanese people are emotionless or cold. When they greet, a nod is sufficient. Due to the lack of public demonstrations of affection, it can be inferred that there is not much interaction among family members or even among couples.

Along this line, there is a myth that Japanese people do not take care of their families. In many Japanese families, mostly after having children, the woman goes to sleep with the children, leaving the man to sleep alone. Since the man has to wake up early and has to work long hours, the justification is that it is better for him to sleep separately in order to not be disturbed by the children crying and waking up in the middle of the night. However, this does not mean that there is no warmth in the household.

I have learned that many women temporarily return to their parents’ homes to give birth; that way, they have their assistance during postpartum recovery and with newborn care. I have Japanese friends who did that during their first pregnancies. When I answered that I would not return to Brazil to give birth, some people (mostly women) were surprised.

I have been working as a private English tutor for children for some years. Weekly, I go to different houses and interact with different families. I have to say that I have been confronted with a different point of view from what I was expecting. In the majority of houses I go into, I have seen children’s drawings hung on the walls and family pictures all over the cupboards. Also, in many situations, while I am interacting and playing with the children, the mother interacts as well. There were some occasions in which the father sat down to play with the children right after arriving home from work. At my daughter’s Japanese kindergarten, at events and children’s presentations, it is not uncommon to see children with both parents attending. I understand that I am speaking mainly from my own perspective, but those experiences have shown me Japanese children being raised by loving Japanese parents.

Obviously, there are divorces and broken families in Japanese society. And, unfortunately, there are problems related to infidelity among couples; however, this is not exclusive to Japanese culture. People need to know Christ. Families all over the world need to be deeply rooted in Christ. Without Jesus, people are bound to their fleshly desires.

Third myth

I had also heard a myth that Japanese people do not want to hear about the gospel. The main religions in Japan are Shinto and Buddhism. Many Japanese also identify themselves as nonreligious. As a way of preserving the harmonious balance of the society and, consequently, to avoid heated discussions, there are people who prefer to avoid talking with others about sensitive topics such as religion and politics.

However, during our street evangelism, even though there are some people who ignore us, I have seen people not only receiving our pamphlets but also stopping to talk to us, open to ask and to answer questions. When we sing songs at a park or on the streets, some people stop to listen.

In our church, we have had an evangelistic program called English Conversation in which people would come to express themselves in English. It is a space open for Christians and non-Christians to express their ideas about recent news or anything related to daily life. We started English Conversation as a way to attract people and to build relationships. It is also a way of changing any preconceived ideas people may have about Christianity. Through this program, we have seen non-Christians attending our services after the conversations and accepting Jesus during an altar call.

Some Japanese people may still have the idea of churches as only those cathedrals in classic Europe, and they may think Christianity is mainly related to Western countries. But I have personally seen Japanese people being converted to Christianity and choosing to be followers of Christ. I have seen Japanese lives being totally transformed by the gospel. Also, I have seen a growing desire in the Japanese members of our church to evangelize and to talk about Jesus in the streets.

Surely, there may be opposition we face as missionaries in this country; however, God’s grace is much stronger and much more abundant. We have been learning to express the gospel in a way that resonates with the hearts and needs of the Japanese people around us. We have been streaming our services, and we have already received prayer requests and learned of people accepting Jesus in their homes.

I personally believe revival has already started in Japan. As missionaries, we should intentionally decide to let go of stories that say that it is hard to evangelize the Japanese people. God desires to reach out to these people, and he is the one leading missionaries to this nation. Therefore, he gives us strategies to be effective regardless of any myth we may hear about the Japanese people.