[whiteperil] Sean: By any other name

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Posted by Sean:
By any other name
http://whiteperil.com/posts/1187237853.shtml


   The anniversary of Japan's World War II surrender always brings
   controversy over visits to the Yasukuni Shrine, where fourteen men
   convicted as Class-A war criminals by the international tribunal are
   enshrined along with fallen military personnel. Yesterday, former
   Prime Minister Koizumi [1]went, but of the sitting cabinet, the only
   member to [2]make a pilgrimage was Sanae Takaichi, State Minister for
   (of all things!) Okinawan Affairs. The Mainichi also ran an article
   citing high-ranking sources stating that Emperor Hirohito believed
   that including the fourteen Class-A war criminals in the enshrinees at
   Yasukuni was a diplomatic error: "While the Shrine gives repose to the
   souls only of those who died in the war [itself], this would change
   its nature," and "[This move] will plant the seeds for deep-rooted
   trouble in the future with nations that were affected by the war."
   I've always been of two minds about the Yasukuni issue. I have no
   trouble explaining why I disagree with the shrine's [3]official
   position. (This is from the English site.):

     According to the faith conveyed to us by the mythical accounts of
     the Nihon Shoki and the Kojiki, the Kami, Izanagi and Izanami, in
     giving birth to the country of Japan, also gave birth to the
     people. This is to say that the Japanese islands and people are
     both born from the Kami. Therefore, the soul of man is identical
     with the Kami. And so long as this universe continues to exist, the
     soul of man can be nothing else than eternal.
     â¦
     Isn't it a fact that the West with its military power invaded and
     ruled over much of Asia and Africa and that this was the start of
     East-West relations? There is no uncertainty in history. [!]
     Japan's dream of building a Great East Asia was necessitated by
     history and it was sought after by the countries of Asia. We cannot
     overlook the intent of those who wish to tarnish the good name of
     the noble souls of Yasukuni.
     â¦
     To bring an end to war is the earnest wish of mankind. Regardless
     of whether we can realize this or not, the act of despising the
     souls of those who offered their lives for the national community
     by those who were left behind is no more than extreme ingratitude
     of a people without a country.

   Note the way this allows the administrators of the shrine to have it
   both waysâpositioning Japan as in line with the rest of mankind in
   desiring world peace while justifying the practice of honoring those
   who presided over Unit 731 and the Rape of Nanking. Japanese theology
   regards the souls of good and evil alike as passing into the next
   world-âfine. But that doesn't mean it provides a good defense for
   failing to draw moral distinctions among their actions while they were
   alive in this one.
   On the other hand, one can visit a house of worship without
   necessarily buying into the full line pushed by those people in charge
   of it. Koizumi's stubbornness about making pilgrimages to Yasukuni
   always struck me as politically unwise, but his positions on the WOT,
   economic liberalization, and individualism were enough to convince me
   that he wasn't a closet Tojo fan. Koizumi probably does believe that
   you can perform rituals at Yasukuni without letting all the kami off
   the hook for their war conduct. Not so sure about others, including
   those on the cabinet.
   Speaking of conflicting religious conceptions, [4]this (via
   [5]Instapundit) strikes me as very worrying, though hardly without
   precedent:

     A Roman Catholic Bishop in the Netherlands has proposed people of
     all faiths refer to God as Allah to foster understanding, stoking
     an already heated debate on religious tolerance in a country with
     one million Muslims.
     Bishop Tiny Muskens, from the southern diocese of Breda, told Dutch
     television on Monday that God did not mind what he was named and
     that in Indonesia, where Muskens spent eight years, priests used
     the word "Allah" while celebrating Mass.
     â¦
     A survey in the Netherlands' biggest-selling newspaper De Telegraaf
     on Wednesday found 92 percent of the more than 4,000 people polled
     disagreed with the bishop's view, which also drew ridicule.

   Huh? Words refer to ideas, and ideas have consequences, to coin a
   phrase.
   It's one thing for Christians in a mostly non-Christian country to
   call God by the best local equivalent. Professor Bainbridge [6]says,
   "Words matter. To a person of faith, no word matters more than the
   name of God," but in my experience, there is some give there. For
   example, Japanese Christians also call God ç¥æ§ (kamisama: kind of
   like "God, Sir"). However, those I've meet are keenly aware of the
   difference between their god and the Japanese kami themselves. And
   Dutch, presumably, already has a perfectly good word for "God." The
   substitution of "Allah" would presumably imply to the average listener
   that the speaker was mindedly shading it with the conception of God in
   Islam. I'm not sure what can be accomplished through that at this
   historical moment except the beclouding of distinctions between
   religions that it would be wise to keep in mind.

References

   1. http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20070815p2a00m0na006000c.html
   2. http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20070815p2a00m0na034000c.html
   3. http://www.yasukuni.or.jp/english/
   4. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20279326/?GT1=10252
   5. http://instapundit.com/archives2/008236.php
   6. http://www.professorbainbridge.com/2007/08/the-name-of-god.html