The Passage Of Death In The Japanese Context In Pursuit Of An lnculturated Lutheran Rite

Mark D. Luttio

THE RITUALS surrounding the event of death, passing, someone will take responsibility that is to say "funerary rites," are no doubt for carrying out the appropriate funerary as ancient as civilization itself.1 The distin­ rites. Thus, the event of death becomes an guished historian Arnold Toynbee states occasion where the greatest of care is taken that "The oldest, most numerous and most by all to adhere strictly to the rituals imposing relics of our ancestors are funerary" involved in the funeral process. Coming to (Toynbee et al. 1969, 59-60). Certainly all cul­ terms with this fact, and finding ways to tures throughout history have understood account for the concerns of Japanese cul­ death as an exigent moment in life's pas­ ture, vis-a-vis the celebration of the funeral sage, and as such have at least tacitly pre­ rite, has been a perennial issue with which scribed ways in which to ritualize the the church in Japan has had to grapple. transition. As the social anthropologist My own awareness of the centrality of Margaret Mead concludes, "I know of no the ritual surrounding the event of death people for whom the fact of death is not among the Japanese and the subsequent critical, and who have no ritual by which to ramifications which this has concerning the deal with it" (1973, 89-90). It can safely be question of celebrating Lutheran liturgy in the said, then, that the funeral rite is a univer­ context of Japanese culture comes as a sally observed "rite of passage," something result of an experience as a guest presider in which is enacted and experienced around the a Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church parish globe in virtually every culture. on the Feast of All Saints in 1985. Much to In the case of Japan, which might well be my surprise, at the completion ofthe morn­ described as one of the most traditional ing service, the wife of the Japanese pastor societies in the twentieth century, the felic­ (for whom I was substituting) informed me itous observance of the funeral rite is a mat­ that it was now time to proceed to the ter of profound importance. Shibata Chizuo nokotsudo (columbarium) located on the (Professor of Practical Theology at Japan roof of the church, and conduct the annual Lutheran Theological Seminary) is quick to memorial rite for the dead! I was not even point out that and the "care of the aware that such a rite existed in the dead" is one of the most important dimen­ Lutheran Church! sions of Japanese culture, having a long his­ Walking into the small dark columbarium tory and place of honor within that society I could see along the sides of the room the (Shibata 1993).2 It might be said that the rows of shelves which housed the urns con­ greatest and most visceral concern for taining the cremated ashes and bones of the Japanese is insuring that, at the time oftheir deceased. After proceeding through the

18 Lumo: The Passage of Death in the japanese Context order of service without any major faux pas, tion of Christian death, vis-a-vis Japanese I noticed at the end of the liturgy that some cultural expectations." of the church members came and stood before certain urns, pressed their hands MORTUARY RITES IN CONTEMPORARY together with fingers pointing at a forty-five JAPANESE CUL TURE7 degree angle and bowed profoundly. It was clear that these parishioners, as It is the contention of this essay that the they made their way from one urn to anoth­ meaning of the funeral rite in Japanese cul­ er, were paying their annual respect to the ture is to be understood not so much as a dead, not unlike what often takes place in rites de passage which carries the bereaved Japanese culture in front of the family grave through transition, though it most assured­ at the vernal and autumnal equinox. Here, ly serves this purpose as well, but rather as most assuredly, I was witnessing the relent­ a constitutive ritual concerning the very less march of a sacred ritual exceedingly foundation upon which Japanese society is dear to the Japanese, an observance that was built, namely, the identity of the "house­ bound to take place, for some, with or with­ hold" (ie).s To put it another way, mortuary out the assistance of the church's liturgy. rites in Japanese culture are not simply con­ When the service was over I left the church cerned with negotiating the fact of death columbarium with a new, if somewhat itself, but are integrally connected to the baffled, consciousness of Japanese spirituality continuation of the household and the lin­ and its impact upon the church. It was espe­ eage of ancestors; these can only be sus­ cially as a result of this experience, and my tained through the process of celebrating subsequent reflection upon it, that I began to the obligatory linear and cyclical mortuary be acutely aware of the centrality and rites. 9 It is ultimately through this ritual importance of death-related ritual among process of felicitous observance of the the Japanese and its influence upon the obligatory funerary rites and the concomitant liturgy of the Lutheran Church in Japan. ancestor cult that the "household identity," Clearly, mortuary custom, with its con­ to which the dead and the living belong comitant household ancestor cult, is one of together, is nurtured and maintained. As the most important issues with which the professor Ishii explains, "In the concept of church in Japan must come to terms, if ie are included not only existing family Christianity hopes to take root in Japanese members but also the spirits of the deceased soil. 3 In short, developing a successfully of the lineage. The worship ofthe dead was inculturated funeral rite is an imperative regarded, therefore, as an important task for task for any Christian Church located in the the continuation of ie (family)" (1979, 51). Japanese context.4 It should not come as a surprise then to This essay, then, will examine the newly discover that nearly ninety percent of the "inculturated" 1993 Japan Evangelical Lu­ Japanese population regularly perform theran Church (JELC) funeral rite set against hakamaeri (visits to the family or ancestral the backdrop of mortuary custom in con­ grave) to report important events which temporary Japanese culture, since this is a have transpired in their lives. As Robert necessary preliminary step in gaining an Smith concludes his discussion on "caring understanding of the significance to the for the dead" in Japanese culture, "Death changes in the new 1993 rite.s Ultimately this does not. .. sever the ties between the essay will attempt to analyze and assess deceased and the members of his house­ how the Lutheran Church in Japan has pur­ hold. A person can expect that in the normal sued the issue of inculturating the celebra- course of things his spirit will continue to

19 JAPAN CHRISTIAN REVIEW 62 1996 share in the life of his immediate kins­ these acts, the household structure and men ... " (Smith, 114). This phenomenon of identity is reaffirmed and sustained. "caring for the dead" is understood as a In the final analysis, it must be conclud­ means of sustaining the warm, human rela­ ed that mortuary rites in contemporary tionships of this world into the next, and in Japanese culture are not so much a way to so doing, keeping the family, as well as the "dispose" of the deceased, as they are a way community, intact. Conversely then, as to "transpose" the deceased, from a living Herman Ooms reports, "People who are member of the household to an ancestral thought of as not venerating their ancestors, member. Thus, it is in caring for the dead (as are believed to have broken with the com­ witnessed especially in the offering of munity" (Ooms 1967, 267). incense, flowers, and food, in the "direct In short, an examination of the funeral address" of the deceased, and in the caring process in Japan reveals the fact that at the for the ashes, mortuary tablet, and grave), core of Japanese culture lies an understand­ even as the dead "care" for the living, that ing that the members of the ie, even after the the interdependent relationships of the event of death, go on living together in an household are sustained and nurtured inextricable relationship of interdepen­ through the complex and protracted death­ dence-a concept which Japanese scholars ritualization process. have called, shisha seija kyozon, or the liv­ ing and the dead existing together (Has hi­ THE 1993 JAPANESE LUTHERAN FUNERAL RITE moto 1975).1o It is ultimately this concept of "the household of the living and the dead," It might well be argued that the new 1993 that both undergirds and dictates the long Japanese Lutheran funeral rite offers, for the and complex funerary customs of Japanese first time in the history of Lutheranism in culture. Japan, an inculturated practice of Christian Structural elements which are integral to funerary celebration. Ultimately, it attempts the Japanese funeral process, and which without hesitation or apology to provide a ulti.mately have bearing on the "meaning" of fuller, more complete funeral liturgy which the rite, should be noted as follows (espe­ fits the particular needs ofthe Japanese con­ cially since these play a significant role in the text without simply translating an existing changes made to the Japanese Lutheran " rite" from the Lutheran Church in the funeral rite): The indo (the instructions) United States as done previously.11 The given by the priest to the deceased for a suc­ new rite is unabashedly Japanese. cessful journey into the , the jukai Funerals in Japan are a very serious mat­ (giving of commandments), and okyo (read­ ter. Without the ability to trust that the ing of the Buddhist sutras). The shako funeral process will be observed felicitous­ (burning/offering of incense, which nor­ ly, Japanese are unlikely to embrace mally includes the act of bowing and pray­ Christianity. Mr. Kinoshita, a Lutheran ing) and choji (the funeral oration/eulogy). parishioner and director of a large funeral The sh6k6, invariably includes rei (bowing) establishment in Kurume, Japan, explains and gassho (praying). These ingredients the problem: "Japanese feel uneasiness with directly honor the deceased through the Christianity's handling of the matter of incense offering of each individual, and after-death, and the elderly who pray in bind the family/clan together through the Christian facilities while alive, return to communal act of eating and drinking when they die" (Kinoshita 1993, together in the presence of the deceased. In 17-18).

20 Lumo: The Passage of Death in the japanese Context

Kinoshita is not necessarily suggesting it is possible to do this [the funeral] (JELC that Christians are "converting" back to 1993, 102). The question that must be posed Buddhism at the time of death. Rather, is how this stance was justified by the JELC. because of Christianity's treatment of the In the midst of preparations for the pub­ "after-death process," at the time of death lication of the new 1993 funeral rite, the many Japanese simply rely on Buddhist argument was made by Rev. Maeda Teichi funeral traditions. These practices involve, (former president of the JELC and one of the in particular, the cyclical and linear rites chief architects of the 1993 rite) that "the which follow the funeral. Kinoshita elabo­ question of burying a non-Christian isn't so rates, " ... the problem [with the Christian much a matter of the deceased's faith as it is funeral] is the weakness of what follows a matter of the faith of us who bury" (Maeda after the funeral" (17). In other words, the 1993). Thus, when the new rite was pub­ problem with the Christian funeral in gain­ lished, the practice of using the funeral rite ing acceptance within Japan lies in the fact for the unbaptized was justified by simply that it does not adequately accommodate changing the traditional statement from the expectation within Japanese society for "the Burial of the Dead is provided for the the proper "after care" of the deceased. burial of those who depart this life in the A related issue which the Church in Christian faith," to "the funeral rite manifests Japan faces is not only the question of the way to inter in faith a person who has "what" is done in the funeral process, but died" ("Order for the Burial of the Dead also the matter of "for whom" the funeral is 1958, 253; "The Funeral Rite and Marriage, held-an issue which arises out of a concern 102). In other words, a theological shift was for one's household and the preservation of made from understanding "faith" as a req­ the ie. The question that often arises in ref­ uisite condition on the part of the deceased, erence to unbaptized members of a house­ to understanding Christian burial as an "act hold is "what can be done for those who die offaith" on the part of those doing the bury­ outside of the faith"? In fact, many Japanese Christians actually find themselves desiring ing. In short, it is a shift in focus from the a "Christian" funeral for their family or rel­ "faith of the deceased in order to inter" to the atives, even ifthese relatives are unbaptized "act of interring the deceased in faith." (Ushimaru 1993). Could the JELC theologically Another dramatic change in the new justify a liturgical practice in which the cel­ funeral rite was the inclusion of nearly all of ebration of a non-baptized person's funeral the traditional rites in the funeral process, would be allowed, or even encouraged? The placed together in correct chronological handling of this problem was to become order and in one location in its liturgy book, one of the hallmarks of the new rite. effectively allowing for the multiple-step The new JELC iuneral rite responded to and protracted nature of funerals in Japan. this issue by adopting an almost self-con­ This can readily be seen in the following scious stance toward those who were not a comparative chart between the Buddhist part of the church, taking these persons into rite, the very first JELC funeral rite of 1897, and account and ritually including them in the the new 1993 rite. funeral process. Nowhere is this made more As this chart visually demonstrates, the clear than in the radical policy shift that it new 1993 rite includes nearly all of the adopts concerning the use of the funeral rite missing elements of the traditional Japanese for the unbaptized. The prefatory rubrics of funeral process. Several significant new ele­ the new rite unequivocally state, "even for ments are included in the JELC rite. Three, in those who are not believers, if it is desired, particular, are noteworthy.

21 JAPAN CHRISTIAN REVIEW 62 1996

THE BUDDHIST RITE THE 1897 JELC RITE THE 1993 JELC RITE At Death (rinju) Prayer At Death Pillow Sutra Rite Coffin Ritual Coffin Prayer Vigil Vigil-Memorial Rite Funeral & Farewell Funeral Funeral -indo -soso no kotoba -choji -choji -shako -kenko/kenka Departure of Coffin Departure of Coffin Rite Cremation Rite -gathering of bones -gathering of bones Purification Ritual Welcoming the Bones Prayer after Cremation Seventh Day Rite Seventh Day Rite Bones Into Grave Rite Burial Bones. Into Grave (49th day) [same day as funeral] (5oth day) Death Anniversaries Death Memorials (1, 3, 7, 13, 17, 23,27, 33) (1 wk, 1 mo, 50th day, 1, 3, 7, 12, 30, 40th year) Cyclical Rites: Cyclical Rites: -omairi (daily homage) -higan (9/23, 3/21) -(All Saints & Easter) -oshogatsu (1/1-3) -obon (8/13-15)

First is the inclusion of the soso no koto­ priest in order to guide him or her to the after­ ba (funeral send-off words). This is a point life.13 in the liturgy where the assembly is invited Second, the seriousness with which the to stand, in order to emphasize the liturgi­ JELC wished to account for and accommo­ cal unit to follow as a central element in the date the protracted nature of the Japanese funeral rite. Rev. Maeda explains the mean­ funeral process is seen in the greater care ing of this liturgical segment: "It is a decla­ given to what happens liturgically after the ration that we have hope in Christ's resur­ funeral; specifically addressed are the rites rection and can thus commit/return the of the whole cremation process (from the remains to God" (1993).12 In fact, this s6s6 no departure of the coffin from the church to the kotoba corresponds to another key element arrival at home with the urn), and the com­ in the Buddhist rite, the indo, a critical plete memorial cycle (including interring juncture in the funeral rite where "words of the bones in the grave) with specific recom­ counsel" are spoken to the deceased by the mended dates for observing the memorial

22 Lunro: The Passage of Death in the japanese Context rites. One of the new rites added to the 1993 which are specifically included in the liturgy is the kasi5go no inori (prayer after cre­ funeral rite for the first time, at least on an mation). While this ritual has always been an "official" level, are the choji (funeral ora­ important part of bringing to a close the ini­ tion) and the kenki5 (incense offering). Both tial two-to-three day Japanese funeral of these have been the subject of debate in process (as the urn is brought home or to the the JELC throughout much of its one hun­ church for safekeeping until interment), dred year history. With the publication of the until now the JELC has never outlined a new 1993 rite, and as a concession to specific rite to observe this crucial ritual. Japanese culture in which these acts are an Ishii captures the sense of the ritual's essential part of the funeral process, they importance when he states: were finally "officially" included, albeit Not only is the kasi5go no inori important with certain caveats. for establishing ongoing pastoral care The choji is recommended for use at the with the family, but it is also important on vigil (but also allowed at the funeral). In a practical level-for helping the family either case, however, the rubrics warn that to establish a place and way for keeping it should be "done in a way that makes clear the urn (i.e., with a home-altar) during the the fact that its meaning is one of condolence and comfort directed toward the bereaved period leading up to interment (1993). family" (103). The implication is that the The memorial rites are significant because, choji is not to be done in the Buddhist man­ for the first time, the JELC included in the ner as a direct address to the deceased for the rubrics specific recommendations for when purpose of offering praise. to observe them. Not surprisingly, these The kenko is inserted into the rite, for concur roughly with the Buddhist cycle. the first time, at the point where the kenka The JELC fiftieth-day rite is in particular (Hower offering) had been officially allowed proximity to an important Buddhist ritual. since the 1968 rite. With the new rite, how­ In the Buddhist tradition it is on the forty­ ever, a choice is given between either ninth day that the ashes of the deceased are employing the kenka or the kenko. This rit­ placed in the grave and the action marked ual act corresponds to the Buddhist shi5ki5 with a special memorial rite. Although the (incense burning); however, the term kenko new 1993 rite does not specifically state was chosen, as opposed to the term shako, that it is on the fiftieth day that the ashes as a way to distinguish the act from what should be interred, it does mention the fifti­ occurs in the Buddhist rite. Seeing the need eth day as one of the days for performing the for caution, lest there be any confusion as to memorial rite; the implication is that this its meaning or association with the would be the appropriate time at which to Buddhist ritual, the JELC inserted into the perform the nokorsu no inori (The Funeral rubrics of the 1993 funeral rite instructions Rite and Marriage, 126). that the participants who offer incense ("as The third and final new element is the a sign of prayer") are to do so "while in allowance for greater flexibility in terms of silent meditation praying, 'God our Father, local ritual customs. The new rite speci­ into your hands I commend this one who has fically states that "local customs concern­ died"' (108). The ritual gestures which ing interment, providing that these are not accompany this act are not specified. While opposed to the teachings of Scripture, may bowing and doing gasshi5 (pressing one's be considered" (102). Needless to say, this palms together in prayer) are the most com­ allows for much latitude in choosing what mon gestures at the , most will, or will not, be allowed. Two ritual acts Christians will bow but keep their hands

23 JAPAN CHRISTIAN REVIEW 62 1996 down by their side (i.e., will not engage in the funeral rite: "Those who are left behind, gassh6) precisely as a way to distinguish with a faith that entrusts everything into the what they are doing from the Buddhist ritu­ hands of a God of love, inter the dead, and al (Ishii 1993). honor their memory" (Ishii and Shibata 1993, 44). This act of "entrusting" is most A CONCLUDING ASSESSMENT clearly exhibited at the soso no kotoba (funeral send-off words) which comes near What should be apparent at this juncture, the end of the funeral rite and is understood having examined the Lutheran funeral rite in to be the most important and central part of Japan, is that even though a common litur­ the funeral. gical thread may be present, Lutheran Other areas in the new rite which indicate funerals in Japan are nonetheless signi­ a positive step toward accounting for the ficantly different from those of the United Japanese cultural context involve the inclu­ States. This process of "inculturation" is sion of additional liturgical text and practice ultimately inevitable because, as the late . to accommodate the various steps of the rit­ Edward Kilmartin explains, the liturgy of ual process of celebrating funerals in Japan, the church is always the "culturally condi­ and the inclusion of ritual elements into the tioned expression of the corporate life of funeral rite which corresponds to the faith" (1990, 49). In short, the Lutheran Japanese cultural practice of"offering." In the funeral rite cannot help but be different in Buddhist funeral rite, this offering takes Japan than in United States because it is place primarily at two locations, the sh6k6 "culturally conditioned" by its place of res­ (including rei and gassh6), and the ch6ji. idence. Both these elements, strong and vibrant What then can be said about the new symbols of Japanese funerary culture, are 1993 JELC funeral rite? What assessment can now officially included in the JELC funeral be made? A discussion of some of the rite. Whether these, and other customs, strengths as well as the ambiguities and dis­ flexibly allowed to be expressed in the appointments of the 1993 rite can begin to funeral rite, serve to engender or subvert the address these questions. Gospel can only be judged over time. To begin, the JELC rite may be said to The new JELC funeral rite is not without accord well with Luther's theology of death, controversy, especially at the point of namely, that in our encounter with death, allowing for the funeral of the unbaptized. God completes what is promised in bap­ The inclusion of a funeral rite for the tism-the old self is drowned and the new ' unbaptized, with no appreciable difference is risen in Christ to eternal life (even as from the rite for those baptized, must be Christ died and rose from the grave). Ishii understood primarily as a response to the per­ concurs with this understanding when he ception that Christianity undermines the analyzes the meaning of the new JELC funer­ fabric of Japanese culture. Thus, regardless al rite, "The content [of the new rite] is the of the spiritual status of the deceased, the JELC affirmation of baptism and the anticipation argues that those without faith are able to be (or 'hope') of the resurrection" (Ishii 1994, buried in the faith of the Church. 91). The problem with this stance is its enig­ The funeral is also understood, in matic meaning, both on theological and cul­ Lutheran theology, as a way to entrust or turallevels. Theologically, it is problemat­ commend the deceased into God's care. ic in its reference to death as a completion Here too, the JELC rite echoes this under­ of what is begun in baptism. By ignoring the standing when it expresses the meaning of baptismal faith of the deceased (as well as

24 Lumo: The Passage of Death in the japanese Context baptismal language and baptismal sym­ cause of the overriding concern for "evan­ bols), it quite possibly subverts the central gelism"), it still presents a dilemma. The point of Christian burial: that dying in temptation for many Lutheran pastors Christ is a completion of the baptismal working in Japan, both Japanese and expa­ covenant. This certainly does not agree triate alike, is to focus on those who are in with Luther's own baptismal spirituality. church for the first time for a funeral rather While the practice of interring the unbaptized than give attention to the bereaved family and is theologically explained by stating that it the deceased. This is especially true of the is really done "for the benefit of the "funeral sermon," which invariably be­ bereaved and not the deceased," in the end, comes an "evangelistic message" on the this simply serves to obscure the core theo­ tenets of the Christian faith. Intentions may logical meaning of the celebration of death. be honorable, and certainly the presence of This theological justification also has the a preponderant number of "first-timers" unfortunate effect of creating ambiguities must be acknowledged, nevertheless, when on the cultural level as well. By stating that the church uses the funeral as an evangelism the funeral rite is primarily for the benefit of service, the ability for "passage" to take the bereaved, the idea of the funeral as a rit­ place is lost. The bereaved and the deceased ual for the deceased is completely lost. are not given the opportunity to properly Himonya Hajime summarizes this "cultural journey through the stages of "transition." In ambiguity" well when he states: short, the need for pastoral care is neglected. Fourth, and last, is the ambiguity which The worst part of the Christian funeral is arises in the use of North American that .. .in ignoring the deceased it ulti­ Lutheran liturgical material in the JELC mately ignores the living. After all, the funeral rite. Some argue that this serves to way we treat the corpse says a lot about veil the Japanese Lutheran Church's unique what we think of life .... We must take "cultural" identity. Others argue that it con­ into account the deceased. We may not be nects them with the universal tradition of the able to "save" the deceased, but we cer­ church. To be sure, for many Japanese tainly can "take care" of them, showing Christians, "the 'imported' pieces are a them honor and respect, and entrusting badge of Christian idimtity and a bond with them to God's care (Himonya 1993). Christians elsewhere" (Brand 1984, 309).14 Second, there is a certain vagueness with They also argue that if North American the "after-care" rituals. For example, no Lutherans freely "take" their liturgy from clear directives are given for the handling of the West then there is no reason why the urn or the use of a home-altar. While Japanese Lutherans should not feel free to do the new JELC rite is to be commended for its the same. Others, however, argue that the inclusion of specific rites for use after the ini­ church has failed to grow in Japan precise­ tial funeral stage has been completed, it is not ly because it is too "Western." As Dr. Kanai clear about how these are to be used and Shinji (Professor of Modern Religion at what exactly they entail. Tokyo University) trenchantly argues: Furthermore, the tendency to use the Japanese Christians are trying too hard funeral rite as an opportunity for evange­ to achieve a universal brand of Christ­ lism, at the expense of pastoral care, ulti­ ianity-and of course, universal means mately obscures the purpose of the funeral Western. Priests and pastors here are too celebration. While this was especially a keen to turn their followers into Western­ problem in the early years of the work of the style Christians. As a result, the believers Lutheran Church in Japan (primarily be- even though they are Japanese, end up

25 JAPAN CHRISTIAN REVIEW 62 7996

floating about on the surface of Japanese Briefly, in order to allow the use of this rite society (Kanai 1992). for the non-baptized, the full significance of In the end, one is left with a sense of "cul­ interring those who have died in Christ tural" ambiguity. Are Japanese Christians, (including the full use of baptismal imagery) as a result of their liturgical choices, "float­ is never adequately observed. ing about on the surface of Japanese society"? Secondly, the matter of addressing the Or, is it possible that over time and with deceased is problematic. Prayers in the new sufficient use, this liturgical material might rite where the deceased is mentioned by become a part of the Japanese ethos so com­ name, such as the prayers of "commenda­ pletely that it is imbued with a "Japanese" tion," are more declarative in nature than cultural identity?I5 petitionary. In other words, there seems to Although the new 1993 JELC has made be a decided reticence on the part of the JELC significant strides toward inculturating the to refer to or pray for the deceased. When ref­ Lutheran funeral rite in the Japanese context, erence is made, it is done only with great cau­ there are, nonetheless, areas which would tion, avoiding any semblance of directly have to be called "disappointing." addressing the deceased. However, a theo­ The issue concerning the use of bap­ logical distinction can and should be made tismal language and symbol has already between praying "for" the deceased and been noted. Given the Lutheran theological praying "to" the deceased. It is clear that understanding of death and the purpose of the Lutheran Confessions indicate that its celebration, it seems that much more including such prayers are permissible: baptismal imagery can and should be used "We know that the ancients spoke of prayer in the funeral rite. It may be that this is for the dead. We do not forbid this ... " omitted, at least in part, out of sensitivity to (Apology of the Augsburg Confession, 26 7). the possibility that the funeral rite may be cel­ Thus, including such prayers in the ebrated for those who are unbaptized. Japanese Lutheran funeral rite should not The best solution for rectifying the ambi­ theoretically be a problem. To refrain puts guity and disappointment caused by the the church in a position where, despite the new rubric in the 1993 rite may be simply to cultural expectations of the Japanese funer­ produce two distinct rites: the one for those al process, it is unable to fully account for the baptized and the other for special circum­ deceased. stances (including those unbaptized). In Third, is the matter of celebrating the this way, it would be possible to employ Eucharist at the funeral. To structure the with lavish abandon reference to baptism service in the church around the Mass but and baptismal imagery, such as the use of then only celebrate the ante-communion Romans 6:3-5, which connects so well the (the Liturgy of the Word) lends itself to imagery of death and baptism (not current­ liturgical ambiguity. Either the funeral ly found in the JELC rite); the Apostle's should be celebrated as a Eucharist, or it Creed (the traditional baptismal creed ofthe should be structured differently, such as in Early Church); the use ofthe Paschal candle the form of a Divine Office. Of course, (the symbol of Christ's resurrection); a Pall including the celebration of the Eucharist (as a symbol of one's baptismal garment) to is preferable. This, after all, has a long his­ cover the casket or urn; the sprinkling with tory in the church, starting with the Early water (recalling the deceased's baptism); Church practice of celebrating the Eucharist and the use of white vestments and para­ at the funeral and on the anniversary of ments (which bespeak baptismal new life, as those "fallen asleep. "16 While reticence to do well as ritual purity in Japanese culture). so on the part of the JELC is certainly under-

26 Lumo: The Passage of Death in the japanese Context standable (stemming from a concern for the as "Morning and Evening Prayer") which fact that the overwhelming majority of could be prayed as a family in front of the those present at funerals are non-Christian Christian home-altar (housing the bones or and therefore "marginalized" in their exclu­ "memorial tablets"). At the very least direc­ sion from communion), the celebration of the tives should be given for greater use of a Eucharist is simply too important to be cyclical ("ongoing") pattern of remember­ ignored. One solution may be to wait until ing the deceased of the parish at particular the following "Lord's Day" when the normal celebrations of the Eucharist during the sea­ gathering of the faithful takes place and, sons of the liturgical calendar. together with the cremated ashes of the In the final analysis what is certain is deceased (ceremonially placed near the that the Church in Japan must continue to altar), celebrate the Eucharist as a sign of grapple with these and other related issues the "communion of saints." concerning the funeral rite and the care of the Fourth and last, is the matter of the cult dead, as it seeks to enflesh the Gospel of of ancestors and the linear and cyclical Jesus Christ within the context of Japanese memorial rites. While several aspects of this culture. This may not necessarily be too issue the JELC has handled successfully in the difficult a task. As Professor Shibata con­ new funeral rite, there are, nonetheless, cludes, "There are many areas concerning the some aspects which require further atten­ funeral rite in Japan that are adiaphora and tion. According to one survey of Japanese Christians, when asked, "Where are your thus we can do them!" (Ibid.)Y ancestors?" only 3 percent answered "in heaven," while 61 percent answered "near NOTES by" (Doerner 1977, 158). In another survey, 1 For example, the recent discovery of fossil over 75 percent reported that they "daily pollen in Neanderthal graves, in present day think ofthe dead" (Reid 1991, 132). Clearly, Northern Iraq, is suggestive of the fact that homo sapi­ even for Japanese Christians, the world is ens had perhaps established a ritual of offering understood and experienced in terms of flowers to the dead as far back as 40,000 years ago. "the living and the dead existing together," See, Cohen 1991, 230. resulting in a closeness to their ancestors 2 For a brief historical account of funerary cus­ which is not adequately being addressed for tom in pre-modern Japan see, Earhart 1982, 25, 41. in the Church. 3 The Agency for Cultural Affairs in Japan The new JELC rite does make an attempt to touches on this issue in its statement that, "One of address this, to an extent, with the inclusion the reasons Christianity is not more generally of the new "prayer after cremation" and the accepted may be that to the Japanese religious con­ linear memorial rites, with suggested dates sciousness, with its orientation toward family and for use. However, certainly much more can household religion and with its almost instinctive and should be done, without running the inclination to affirm an essential continuity risk of turning it into superstitious or idola­ between the divine and the human, as opposed to a religion of individual choice and commitment, trous worship. Some Japanese theologians Christianity simply seems utterly alien." See, have argued, for example, that "the idea of japanese Religion, 1072, 25. 'the communion of saints' should be fully exploited as a symbol of the unity we have 4 The theological imperative for inculturation arises out of the event of the Incarnation itself. As and experience, through the act of worship, one scholar puts it, "If the Word of God became a Jew, between those who have departed and the Church in the various countries of the world must those still living" (Shibata 1993). This become native to each of them." See, Chupungco might take the form of a Daily Office (such 1982, 87.

27 jAPAN CHRISTIAN REVIEW 62 1996

5 In using the term "inculturation" I mean pre­ word-for-word translations of Lutheran liturgies cisely "the integration of the Christian experience of from North America. the local church into the culture of its people, in such 12 Up until the 1993 rite, Maeda argues, there was a way that this experience not only expresses itself no one single climax to the funeral, and thus its in elements of this culture, but becomes a force that purpose was unclear. animates, orientates and innovates this culture so as to create a new unity and communion, not only in 13 Ishii concurs, as he writes: "Words of com­ the culture in question but also as an enrichment of mittal" is first [time to be] included. The people the Church universal." See Crollius 1979, 735. who attended the seminar in February, Christians and non-Christians alike, said in their reaction, 'Oh you 6 Although space will not permit an examination adopted a kind of indoh!' It sounds so, and our of the early JELC funeral rites (published in 1897, 1925, intention was so." 1949, 1952 and 1968), there is evidence of an uneasiness with the disparity between Lutheran 14 Brand argues that these "western" rites liturgical practice and Japanese funerary custom should be a "point of departure" rather than a throughout the Lutheran Church's one hundred "point of reference" (311). year history in Japan. For a thorough treatment of the 15 This is, after all, the way in which much of subject see Luttio 1995. the so-called "Western Rite Tradition" came into 7 The following composite analysis focuses on being, assimilating various cultural elements over Buddhist funerary practice, since this is by far the time. Perhaps the question then is, "How long does predominant means of ritualizing death in Japanese it take before it can be claimed as one's own?" culture. Current statistics indicate ninety-four per­ 16 For example, the Didascalia Apostolorum cent of all funerals are Buddhist, two percent are (c. 250) states, "Come together even in the cemeter­ , another two percent are Christian, and two ies ... and offer an acceptable eucharist.. .on the percent are "other." departures of them that sleep." See, Connolly, 8 The classic work on rites de passage theory is, 1929,257. Arnold van Gennep, The Rites Of Passage. The 17 Adiaphora is a Greek word meaning "things three stages involved in every rite of passage are: sep­ indifferent." It is commonly used in the corpus of aration, transition, and incorporation. In JapanesE) Lutheran confessional documents to refer to ele­ funerary custom, the first stage lasts from death to ments in Christian theology or practice which are cremation (usually on the second or third day). the "not essential to salvation"; thus, their use/disuse is second stage until deposition of the ashes into the simply left up to local discretion. grave (usually on the forty-ninth day). and the third stage for as long as thirty-three years until the soul has joined the ranks of the ancestors at the tomura­ REFERENCES iage. Agency for Cultural Affairs. Japanese Reli­ 9 The cyclical rites are those which occur year­ gion: A Survey by the Agency for Cultural ly (at the vernal and autumnal equinox or higan, and Affairs. Translated by Yoshiya Abe and at the summer festival of obon). The linear rites occur David Reid. Tokyo: Kodansha Inter­ at specific points after a person's death, culminating national, 1972. on the thirty-third year when the deceased is said to Apology of the Augsburg Confession. In join the ranks of the ancestors. See Smith, 1974. The Book of Concord, n.d. 10 Hashimoto argues that Japan must be under­ Brand, Eugene. "Response to the Beraka stood as a culture which "embraces death," as Award: Ecumenism and the liturgy." Wor­ opposed to its "denial" or "defiance." According to ship 58 (1984). Hashimoto, this "embracing of death" happens in Japan precisely because the living and the dead are Chupungco, Anscar. Cultural Adaptation of understood actually to exist together, in an ongoing the Liturgy. New York: Paulist Press, 1982. interdependent relationship. Cohen, David. The Circle of Life. San 11 The earlier publications of Japanese Lutheran Francisco: Harper, 1991. funeral rites in 1897,1925,1949,1952,and 1968were Connolly, R. H., ed. Didascalia Apostolorum. all (with partial exception in the 1968 rite) direct Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1929.

28 Lumo: The Passage of Death in the Japanese Context

Crollius, A. R. "What is new about incultura­ Kinoshita, Isamu. "From the perspective of tion? A concept and its implications." the practical affairs of funeral.'' Unpub­ Gregorianum 59 [1979). lished manuscript. 1993. [Translated by Doerner, David L. "Comparative analysis of author.] life after death in Folk Shinto and Maeda, Teichi. Interview by author. Tokyo, Christianity." Japanese Journal of Religious Japan, 30 September, 1993. Studies 4 (1977). Luttio, Mark D. Lutheran Liturgy in the Earhart, H. Byron. Japanese Religion: Unity Japanese Context: The Japan Evangelical and Diversity. 3rd. edition. Belmont, CA: Lutheran Church Funeral Rite (1893-1993). Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1!:182. Phd. diss. The University of Notre Dame, 1995. Hashimoto, Mineyo. Ukiyo no shiso [The idea Mead, Margaret. "Ritual in social crisis." In of the other world]. n.p. 1975. Roots of Ritual. Edited by James Himonya, Hajime. Interview with author. Shaughnessy. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, Tokyo, Japan, 1 October 1993. 1973. Ishii, Masami. "Some problems in the rela­ Ooms, Herman. "The religion of the house­ tionship between Japanese culture and hold." Contemporary Religions in Japan 8 Christianity." Northeast Asian Journal of (1967). Theology 22/23 (March/September 1979). Order for the burial of the dead. In The ---. Interview by author. Tokyo, Japan, 25 Service Book and Hymnal. Philadelphia: September 1993. United Lutheran Publication House, 1958. ---.Personal correspondence with author. Reid, David. "Christians and their ancestors.'' 8 May, 1993. In New Wine. Berkeley: Asian Humanities ---. The Christian Funeral and Its Liturgy. Press, 1991. Tokyo:AVACO, 1994. Shibata, Chizuo. Problematic Areas of the --. "The theological meaning of the Christian Funeral in Japanese Society. Lecture given 15 February 1993 at Japan Christianfuneralliturgy." n.p., 19 Febru­ Lutheran Theological Seminary, Tokyo, ary, 1993. Japan Ishii, Masami and Shibata, Chizuo. "Rutaaha ---. Interview by author. Tokyo, Japan, 30 no sogi [The Lutheran funeral]. Sogi: The September 1993. Magazine for Funeral Service 3 (May 1 993). Smith, Robert J. Ancestor Worship in Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church (JELC). The Contemporary Japan. Palo Alto, CA: Funeral Rite and Marriage. Tokyo: JELC Standford University Press, 1974. Shuppan Bu, 1993. Toynbee, Arnold et al. Man's Concern With Kanai, Shinji. Christians must 'Japanize.' The Death. St. Louis: McGraw-Hill, 1969. Japan Times, 22 December 1992. Ushimara, Seigoro. Interview by author. Kilmartin, Edward. Culture and the Praying Tokyo, Japan, 1 October, 1993. Church: The Particular Liturgy of the van Gennep, Arnold. The Rites of Passage. Individual Church. Ottawa: Publications Translated by Monika Vizedom and Service, Canadian Conference of Catholic Garielle Caffee. Chicago: University of Bishops, 1990. Chicago Press, 1908, 1960.

29