With the Japanese expatriate population in the U.S. the highest number of any country in the world, this is an important group for us to be praying for. By 1924 so many Japanese had immigrated to this nation that Japanese were the largest Asian ethnic group. Here in Pasadena, Japanese began arriving as early as 1891. In the Los Angeles area, 164,000 are currently residing. There are currently over 1 million Japanese nationals working and living in other countries annually. Three million of Japanese heritage are living on a regular basis outside of Japan, scattered over 50 nations. These Japanese are largely unreached.
It is good news that there are several groups in Japan committed to reaching this Japanese diaspora around the world. Also, many Japanese nationals that came to Christ outside Japan, are committed to reaching Japanese within Japan. The countries of Canada, U.S., Peru and Brazil lead the way with Japanese returning to Japan and sharing their faith in Christ with other Japanese there. The return rate for Japanese nationals living overseas is very high—around 90%.
There are about 20,000 Japanese international students in the U.S. currently. This number is down from 1996, when Japanese were the largest group of international students on U.S. campuses. There are many reasons for this reduction, such as many more students now coming from the Middle East, the economic situation, the aging population in Japan, etc. However, Japanese are still the 7th largest group of internationals studying in the U.S., and many are more open to hearing the Good News of Christ while living in the U.S. than in Japan.
In terms of communicating the Gospel Message to Japanese living outside of Japan, some of the same challenges exist as with Japanese in Japan. One of these challenges is the tendency for some Japanese to view Christianity as a foreign entity, and something that goes against being Japanese. As Japanese living overseas have the opportunity to develop friendships with Christians, and sometimes even live in the homes of believers, this viewpoint can begin to change.
One thing unique to the U.S. is the number of Japanese still living who were interned in 1942 when President Roosevelt signed the executive order leading to 120,000 Japanese forcibly leaving their homes. For many this has been left to the past, but for some there is still pain related to it. Something that Japanese can experience outside of Japan, but not normally within Japan, is racism. A nisei Japanese woman, living in Los Angeles, recently told her sad story of a man approaching her on a walk around the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, striking up a conversation with her, and then making very racist comments against Japanese people that hurt and shocked her!
According to those who study world cultures, Japan is a "shame" culture, rather than a "guilt" culture. Even though there unfortunately are things which can lead to pain and shame for Japanese living in the U.S., there can also be opportunities to communicate the total acceptance and love of the Lord. Those approaches in evangelism that show how Christ came to free us from shame, as well as guilt, can be more effective than those that concentrate primarily on freedom from guilt. Also, emphasis on the Fatherhood of God, and being a part of His Family can communicate well to group oriented Japanese, whether abroad or in Japan.
Another challenge is the great spiritual warfare that can come against efforts in evangelism to Japanese. For hundreds of years the Japanese people have been one of the least reached groups on the planet. Satan does not want to let go of these group of people. A large majority of Japanese in Japan are dedicated to the "local deity" at a Shinto Shrine in Japan shortly after birth. This can be one of the factors that opens the way for demonic interference, sometimes even after Japanese have come to faith outside of Japan. There is often a need to encourage new believers to renounce this dedication and the opening for negative spiritual activity. A Japanese woman living in the U.S., who had married an American seaman many years ago, was given a 4-Spiritual Laws booklet. As she read it, she became convinced that Christ was the way to God and had made a decision to become a follower of Christ. She went to bed that evening, and was woken up in the middle of the night by a figure in her room that told her he was Buddha and that she could not follow the way of Christ because this would be going against her Japanese ancestors. This woman was greatly shaken by this demonic manifestation.
Prayer Points related to Japanese Diaspora
- Christians to befriend and offer hospitality to Japanese living abroad
- Effective evangelism for Japanese Christians living abroad attempting to reach Japanese in Japan and vice versa.
- Japanese international students to come to faith in Christ and be discipled on campuses around the world. Prayer for campus groups working with these students, such as Campus Crusade for Christ, International Students Incorporated, InterVarsity, Navigators, etc.
- Japanese living abroad to understand that Christ is the way to a forever "group"—the family of God.
Returnees
Japanese who come to faith in Christ while living outside Japan face some unique challenges. One challenge is the Japanese Church itself. Some churches in Japan, because of not knowing the spiritual history of the new convert from abroad, are a bit skeptical and sometimes and not as welcoming as they could be. This can lead to an "in the front door and out the back" situation. Also, the style of worship, etc., can be very different from the church which the new Japanese convert has been attending in the U.S. This can lead to discouragement, as well as the fact that there may be very few in the church who understand the experience of living abroad. The new convert can feel very much alone. Approximately 80% of those who come to faith in Christ abroad end up drifting away from the church after they return to Japan.
There can also be challenges with family and Japanese lifestyle. Some return to Japan and end up living with their non-Christian family members, many of which have no understanding of this new and very different faith in Christ. There can also be pressure for the oldest in the family to participate in Buddhist funeral rites for a deceased loved one. Generally the new Japanese convert will come back into an extremely busy Japanese life, whereas the lifestyle in the U.S. may have been less stressful in many ways. There is a great need for new Japanese believers to be discipled well while they are still living abroad, to develop close relationships with other believers which can be continued through various modes of communication when they return to Japan, and to learn to feed themselves from the Word.
Prayer Points related to Returnees
- Japanese who become followers of Christ to be well prepared spiritually before returning to Japan.
- More Japanese churches to really reach out to Japanese coming back from abroad.
- Prayer for organization, such as JCFN, that are working to match Japanese who come to faith while living abroad with Japanese churches that can help them continue to grow in their Christian lives.
