The was a central government organization of the

Empire of Japan The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent fo ...

established under the

Daijō-kan The , also known as the Great Council of State, was (i) (''Daijō-kan'') the highest organ of Japan's premodern Imperial government under the Ritsuryō legal system during and after the Nara period or (ii) (''Dajō-kan'') the highest organ of Jap ...

system in the early Meiji period for the purpose of national indoctrination through

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

control to replace the

Department of Divinities The , also known as the Department of Shinto Affairs, Department of Rites, Department of Worship, as well as Council of Divinities, was a Japanese Imperial bureaucracy established in the 8th century, as part of the ''ritsuryō'' reforms. It was fi ...

. It sought to advance the

Proclamation of the Great Doctrine The was issued in the name of Emperor Meiji on January 3, 1870 (February 3). �歴代の詔勅�� p.66 河野省三内閣印刷局、1940年（国立国会図書館） It declared the "way of the gods" (Shinto) as the guiding principle of the s ...

and mobilize the people with both

Shinto Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintois ...

and

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

. It was abolished in response to arguments for

separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular sta ...

and the Bureau of Shrines and Temples taking over much of its functions

Outline

1872 Events January–March * January 12 – Yohannes IV is crowned Emperor of Ethiopia in Axum, the first ruler crowned in that city in over 500 years. * February 2 – The government of the United Kingdom buys a number of forts on ...

April 21 Events Pre-1600 *753 BC – Romulus founds Rome ( traditional date). * 43 BC – Battle of Mutina: Mark Antony is again defeated in battle by Aulus Hirtius, who is killed. Antony fails to capture Mutina and Decimus Brutus is murdered ...

, the Ministry of Divinities was reorganized.

Ministry of Popular Affairs The may refer to: # one of the of the Japanese imperial court, established by the Taihō Code of the early 8th century, and continued under the Ritsuryō legal system. # A short-lived ministry during the Meiji period (August–September 1869, A ...

, and established by merging the

Shakaiji Kake. Following the failure of the national teaching based on

and

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

by the Missionary Office established within the Shinto priesthood, the largest religious force of the time,

, especially

Jōdo Shinshū , also known as Shin Buddhism or True Pure Land Buddhism, is a school of Pure Land Buddhism. It was founded by the former Tendai Japanese monk Shinran. Shin Buddhism is the most widely practiced branch of Buddhism in Japan. History Shinran ( ...

, which was the largest religious force at the time. While implementing modern religious policies such as the lifting of the prohibition of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

and the lifting of

Nyonin Kinsei Nyonin Kinsei is a general term for a type of society custom against women that is found in Japan. In particular, it refers to customs that prohibit women from entering sacred places (shrines, temples, sacred sites, ritual sites, etc.). In this se ...

in shrines and temples, the

was unable to achieve the national indoctrination that was required by the Interlocutors. In order to realize national indoctrination, which the

was unable to achieve, a system of

Kyodo Shoku Kyodoshoku is a religious official established for the Proclamation of the Great Religion a religious official established for the movement. It lasted from 1872 (1872) to 1884 (1884). The Taikyōsendō movement proved difficult and was abolished wh ...

was established, and the

Great Teaching Institute The was an organization under the Ministry of Religion in the Empire of Japan. History It was founded in 1872 to train ''kyōdo shōku'' or religious teachers because the Missionary Office and Department of Divinities were unsuccessful in ...

was used for national indoctrination and

Yoshio Yasumaru, Masato Miyaji, eds. Nihon modern thought compendium 5 Religion and the State, p. 431 campaign. The Ministry of Religion was a

voluntary sector The voluntary sector, independent sector, or civic sector is the realm of social activity undertaken by organizations that are non-governmental nonprofit organizations. This sector is also called the third sector, community sector, and nonprofit s ...

appointment system, and included religious figures such as shinkans,

Kannushi A , also called , is a person responsible for the maintenance of a as well as for leading worship of a given .* ''Kannushi'' (in Japanese), Iwanami Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version The characters for are sometimes also re ...

Bhikkhu A ''bhikkhu'' (Pali: भिक्खु, Sanskrit: भिक्षु, ''bhikṣu'') is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male and female monastics ("nun", ''bhikkhunī'', Sanskrit ''bhikṣuṇī'') are members of the Sangha (Buddhist ...

s, ,

Waka poets means a person who composes Waka or Tanka. Description In modern times, a poet usually refers to a person who composes waka or tanka poems on a daily basis and publishes them by some means. Before the modern era, however, poets were not neces ...

, haiku poets, etc. were also appointed as instructors. The highest rank in the Ministry of Education was kyosei, and in order to further promote the teaching of the people, the

was established to oversee the entire nation, the to oversee each prefectural unit, and the were established throughout the country. However, the Great Teaching Institute did not achieve much due to serious conflicts of opinion between the Shintoists, who were then up-and-coming, and the Jodo Shinshu, who had maintained their old power.

Issues surrounding the Ministry of Religion

The Ministry of Religion was created in response to the failure of the missionary policies of the Divine Council and the missionary messengers, but ultimately resulted in its abolition. One of the reasons for this was the confusion in the religious administration at the time. The government initially intended to use the authority and grounding of traditional religions to defend Christianity and to teach the people about the new system after the Restoration, but in order to establish the

modernity Modernity, a topic in the humanities and social sciences, is both a historical period (the modern era) and the ensemble of particular socio-cultural norm (social), norms, attitudes and practices that arose in the wake of the Renaissancein the " ...

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

, the

Separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular sta ...

and

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedom ...

as basic policies of the state were inevitable, and the lifting of the ban on Christianity became essential for diplomatic relations with Western countries. In addition, the government was skeptical of the existence of the Ministry of Religion, believing that the objectives of missionary policy could be achieved through the establishment of , and the above confusion caused the existing religious forces to move left and right. The above confusion caused the existing religious forces to move to the right and left. In the midst of such confusion, Buddhist forces, which had been outnumbered by the

Shinbutsu bunri The Japanese term indicates the separation of Shinto from Buddhism, introduced after the Meiji Restoration which separated Shinto ''kami'' from buddhas, and also Buddhist temples from Shinto shrines, which were originally amalgamated. It is a ...

, supported the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

, especially the However, the

Ikkō-shū or "single-minded school" is usually viewed as a small, militant offshoot from Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism though the name has a complex history. Originally Ikkō-shū was an "obscure band of Pure Land proponents" founded by Ikkō Shunjō in the fif ...

led to a growing opposition to the government from within the Jōdo Shinshu sect, and the Ministry's measures ran into a deadlock. When the Ministry's measures ran into a deadlock, the Jodo Shinshu movement withdrew from the organization from the standpoint of separation of church and state.

The Great Teaching Institute's Temple Issue

The

, which was the national governing body for the Ministry of Religion, was established within Zojoji Temple in

Shiba, Tokyo Shiba (芝) is an area of Minato ward in Tokyo, Japan and one of districts in the Shiba area. Shiba area Shiba was a ward of Tokyo City from 1878 to 1947. It was merged with Akasaka and Azabu wards to form Minato ward on March 15, 1947. The Sh ...

. The establishment of the Great Teaching Institute was a Buddhist initiative, and Zojoji's donation of facilities was voluntary, but when Shinto forces began to take control, the temple refused to accept the donation. However, the dedication of Zojoji Temple went ahead as planned, and the main hall of Zojoji Temple was taken over as the Great Teaching Institute and used as the worship hall of the Great Teaching Institute's Temple. Furthermore, the temple's rituals required the participation and worship of priests, which angered some of the Buddhist authorities (some priests, on the other hand, enthusiastically expressed their blessing by displaying banners and other symbols). Later, on January 1,

1874 Events January–March * January 1 – New York City annexes The Bronx. * January 2 – Ignacio María González becomes head of state of the Dominican Republic for the first time. * January 3 – Third Carlist War &ndas ...

, the old main building of Zojoji Temple was burned down by arsonists from the former Satsuma Clan, who were opposed to the establishment of a shrine in the Buddhist temple. The shintai was temporarily moved to

Shiba Tōshō-gū is a Tōshō-gū Shinto shrine located in the Minato ward of Tokyo, Japan. Like every other ''Tōshō-gū'' shrine, it is characterized by enshrining the first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate, Tokugawa Ieyasu with the name Tōshō Daigong ...

, and then to a temple newly established by Shinto forces at the

Bureau of Shinto Affairs was the successor to the Great Teaching Institute, which was founded in 1875. In the religious administration of the Meiji era, it is an organization that brings together Shinto factions nationwide. It was a public central institution. Meiji Gove ...

Officials

Secretary of Education * Saga Sanae (1872) * Oki Takatō (1872–1873) Daisuke Kobe * Fukuha Mitsushige (former Shinto Daisuke - 1872) * Shinji (1872–1877) Teaching position * Reference to the teaching position.

Outline

Issues surrounding the Ministry of Religion

The Great Teaching Institute's Temple Issue

Officials

References

See also