| Authority and Obedience: Romans 13:1-7 in Modern Japan / Translated by Gregory Vanderbilt Contributor(s): Vanderbilt, Gregory (Author) |
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ISBN: 1433106795 ISBN-13: 9781433106798 Publisher: Peter Lang Inc., International Academic Publi OUR PRICE: $104.74 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: October 2009 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Religion | Christianity - Denominations - Religion | Biblical Criticism & Interpretation - New Testament - Religion | Christianity - History |
| Dewey: 280.409 |
| LCCN: 2009034449 |
| Series: American University Studies: Series 7, Theology and Religion |
| Physical Information: 0.56" H x 6.14" W x 9.21" (1.08 lbs) 197 pages |
| Themes: - Religious Orientation - Christian |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Despite famously small numbers, Christians have had a distinctive presence in modern Japan, particularly for their witness on behalf of democracy and religious freedom. A translation of Ken'i to Fukujū Kindai Nihon ni okeru Rōma-sho Jūsan-sho (2003), Authority and Obedience is a personal pre-history of the postwar generation of Japanese Christian intellectuals deeply committed to democracy. Using Japanese Christians' commentary on Paul's injunction in Romans 13: 1-7, the counsel to let every person be subject to the governing authorities; for there is no authority except from God... , Miyata offers an intellectual history of how Japanese Christians understood the emperor-focused modern state from the time of the first Protestant missionaries in the mid-nineteenth century through the climax and demise of fascism during the Pacific War. Stressing verse 5's admonition to conscience as the reason for obedience, Miyata provides a clear and political perspective grounded in his lifelong engagement with German political thought and theology, particularly that of Karl Barth and Dietrich Bonhoeffer, as he calls for a conscientious citizenry in his modern society. Showing both Christians' complicity with the state and the empire - including the formation of a unified church, the Nihon Kirisuto Kyōdan - and their attitude toward Christians in Asia, and the complexity of the critical voices of Christians like Uchimura Kanzō, Kashiwagi Gien, Nanbara Shigeru, and many others less well known - Miyata's work aims not at exposing cultural particularity but at showing how the modern Japanese Christian experience can give meaning to a theology and a political theory of how to live within the freedom of religious belief . |