Santa Cruz Building Dedicated
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I Trails and Triumph: Uomoto Westminster Seminary News Editorials-Letters from MANDATE The Organizer: Coray Letter from Taiwan: Andrews Here and there in The Orthodox Presbyterian Church VOLUME 39, NUMBER 1 MAY 1970 Santa Cruz Building Dedicated anuary 18 saw the dedication of woven together in God's gracious J the fine new building of the Santa providence to bring the building to Cruz, California, Orthodox Presbyteri completion. Mr. William de Boer of an Church. This place of worship Stockton drew the plans for the with its educational-social wing brings "Monterey Bay" structure. Elder Clar the congregation to a new opportunity ence den Dulk acted as financial ad for serving the community under the visor and contracting agent for the leadership of Pastor Melvin B. Non Trustees, and successfully advised the hof, who came to the church five years addition of some 1,000 square feet ago. because of the saving foreseen Moderator Thomas Champness of through the use of competent volunteer Modesto presided for the Presbytery labor available. He commended the of Northern California. A sermon united and devoted effort of this small was preached by the Rev. Wilson congregation. Rinker of Covenant Church, Camp The building foreman was Mr. Don bell. Elders Barnbauer and Webb of Galbraith, an earnest Christian and the local church, and elders den Dulk, talented builder who, in his years of Sunnyvale, and Littlefield, San Fran semi-retirement, has constructed a cisco, also took part. number of churches, of which this is As is always the case, the sacrifice the fifth. and gifts and labor of many were (continued on page 12) J Some problems of mission work in Japan - 1 soldiers who died for their country are automatically elevated to the status of kami (god)-regardless of their moral character. It is obvious there TRIALS and TRIUMPH fore, that one of the constant needs is for repeated definition and explana GEORGE Y. UOMOTO tions of the term "God." I e wish to discuss some aspects Christ? This seems like arrogant dog 2. Faith J W of mission work in Japan, hop matism on the part of Christians. In The Japanese have a statement that ing that this will help our people to practical life, the Japanese have been "All roads lead to the top of Mt. visualize some of the problems facing trained for centuries in the art of Fuji." Whether you are a Christian, the missionaries there. On this basis compromise, and in the matter of a Buddhist, a Hindu, or a Shintoist, you may the more intelligently discuss "God" they will seek to elevate the makes no difference. What is impor and pray for the work in that land. gods of the various religions to an tant is your sincerity. As long as Japan is the industrial and economic equal status. The term "God" is trans your faith is sincere, you will be saved. leader in the Far East. She is also in lated by the word "kami' (god), but "Faith" in this type of thinking is many ways the educational and theo one can regard almost anything as concerned not so much with the ob logical leader as well, especially in the "god," so merely to translate the ject of one's faith, but rather with World Council areas of activities. The Christian idea of "God" by kami is the subjectivity of faith itself. The direction and quality of Christian not sufficient. The practice of com Rev. T. Tokiwa, one of the founders thought and life in Japan will eventu promise is seen clearly in the curious of the Reformed Church in Japan, ally affect in some way the religious Buddhist-Shinto amalgam known as early warned us about this typically situation in the Asian area. Our hope R)'obu Shinto (dual aspect Shinto). Japanese way of thinking. The greater is that Japan may embrace the best "He (Kukai) propounded a new the subjectivity of your faith, the and purest of biblical thought and incarnation theory which stipulated greater your merits-and God is obli teaching, that the other areas of Asian that the eternal Buddha appears in gated to save you. Faith has here been Christian movement may be influenced different forms at various places in transmuted into "good works." for good and not for evil. This will order to save mankind. By extension Thus it is important to stress that only be possible with the growth and of this theory, he argued that the strengthening of the Reformed faith national deities of Shinto were in Christianity places ultimate importance on the object of faith--on God as there. carnations of Buddhas and Bodhisat the Redeemer and Initiator of salva We shall treat the problems in the vas and thus, since there was no distinction between the worship of tion. Faith means simply trusting God following areas, discussing first the and believing his offer of salvation in theological problems, then the cultural, Buddhist deities and those of Shinto, that there were no basically conflict Jesus Christ. Faith is man's response and finally the ecclesiastical. In this to the proffered salvation-his "Thank way, we can see the peculiar difficulties ing elements in the two religions. He identified Buddha with the Sun you, Lord" as he receives Christ as his facing the missionaries and the Chris. Redeemer. Faith without Christ will Goddess and lesser Buddhist deities tian church there, and be able to bring not save, however sincere and deep with lesser Shinto deities. This com the light of Scripture to bear upon that faith may be. them. bination of the two religions he called Ryobu (dual aspect) Shinto" 3. Sin I. THEOLOGICAL (W. K. Bunce, Religions in Japan, PROBLEMS p. 10). The Japanese have a defective con One could almost predict that the ception of sin. The Chinese character Any foreign culture has certain root Japanese would later attempt a com for sin, "Tsumi," means "crime." terms and ideas, which, though tran promise equating the Shinto kami, the Hence "sin" (tsumi) to many Japanese slated by seemingly equivalent English Buddhist Buddha and Bodhisatvas and means "murder," "burglary," "adult words, nevertheless have a different the Christian God. And sad to say in ery," etc. To be regarded as a sinner connotation and nuance. Some of these the nineteenth century such an attempt is abhorrent to them. In fact, often are as follows: did take place. we find them vehemently denying that they are sinners. One communicant The Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo has 1. God class member in Sendai was denied a special feature to it in that all To tell the people about the one baptism because she replied "no!" to true and living God, Creator and the question, "Do you acknowledge Redeemer, is difficult to convey. Theo Mr. Uomoto, a missionary in that you are a sinner before God?" retically, many Japanese may not have Japan since 1951, is home with She continued to receive instructions any objections to the proposition that his family on furlough this for several more months thereafter, there is only one God. But, they say, year. Part two of his article until she was able to understand the why the God of the Bible and Jesus will appear next month. biblical teaching on this point. The Presbyterian Guardian is published seven times this year May, June, July-August, September, October, November and Decemberl by the Presbyterian Guardian Publishing Corporation, 7401 Old York Rd., Phila., Pa. 19126, at the following rates, payable in advance, postage pre paid: $3.00 per year 1$2.50 in Clubs of ten or morel. Second class mail privileges authorized at the Post Office, Philadelphia, Pa. 2 The Presbyterian Guardian The Shinto gods are all good-bad could be some residual racial con There is nothing of the biblical em in character. There are many gods in science at work, reflecting a vague phasis of the heinousness of sin and the Japanese pantheon, and like the acknowledgment of the need for some the tremendous sacrifice of God's only Greek pantheon they are made in moral purification. Some scholars see Son as being necessary to atone for the "image of man." There are special some analogy to the Hebrew scapegoat sin and to reconcile men to God. protectors or patron saints of various idea in such practices as the Obarai, guilds and classes of people. There or Great Purification. 5. Moral Standard are even patron deities of thieves and Setsuo Uenoda, who has popularized Shinto or Buddhist theology does prostitutes. many Japanese customs in his articles not seem to recognize any final stan The Shinto mythology and beliefs and books, remarks as follows: dard of right and wrong. Relative also include the so-called divine origin "The Japanese people will observe values are of course recognized, and of the Japanese race, so that the on 30th June the ceremony known as it is felt that some things may be right Japanese are in principle divine, by Oharai or Great Purification, to clear in some circumstances but wrong in implication beyond the description of and purify their bodies and souls others. While there is a vocabulary of "sinners." Like our humanistic belief from sin and defilement. At the "good" and "evil" in the Japanese in the inherent goodness of the hu Imperial Palace the Emperor and Em language, and sentences and themes man soul, evil and sin become mere press will observe the ceremony at may seem to reflect a high moral stan imperfections or ignorance. the Shinto sanctuary in the compound dard as compared to Western think of the Palace.