The Invention of Religion in Japan

I like to consider myself a casual scholar (meaning I’m not a professional and it is not my career) of religion and religion in Japan (and I don’t mean necessarily how they affect each other, I mean as topics and areas of study). The Invention of Religion in Japan is both a look at history itself, and how religion fits into it. It discussed how the Japanese had their set of beliefs, like folk beliefs that later became categorized with Shinto, and Buddhism, but, because they were a part of life, they were not defined as a “religion”, so when the Japanese encountered Christianity, they struggled to define their beliefs. Christianity was originally seen as a heretical form of Buddhism.I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in religious studies, the history of Japan, or Japan in general.

I skimmed this book at the bookstore when it came out and found that it mostly overlapped with research I have already done. At last, I am writing on this subject again so I decided I had to own a copy. I just wanted to affirm that this is a very well-researched book which introduces an important topic which remains trendy in religious studies. It is backed up very strongly by Japanese and Western academic consensus, but it also contains plenty of stuff that was new for me. I highly recommend this book to undergrads considering a religion major, as well as people who want a summary of various topics related to the formation of the religious category in Japan.

Incredible not only as an introduction to a fascinating period in Japanese history, but also as an examination of the concept of "religion" and the assumptions that underlie our idea of a modern, secular, free society. My only mistake was getting the kindle edition--buy a hard copy to share with friends.Fair warning, though, this is not a popular-level history. It is academic. Share it with your friends, but share it with your *nerd* friends.

Josephson makes a profound argument about the nature of the category of religion through a detailed examination of how that category was formulated in Japan following Japan's encounter with The West. The implications of this work spill well beyond the bounds of Japanese religions, and "The Invention of Religion in Japan" can be read as a study of how a new shared concept comes into being. However, unlike many books making arguments about that nature of human culture, Josephson supports his arguments with a detailed historical narrative. I found the book to be extremely readable and many of the stories of early Japan-Western interaction are downright entertaining. I heartily recommend it to anyone interested in religion, Japan, or the formation of shared conceptual categories.

Written by a friend from high school, The Invention of Religion in Japan was a requested Christmas gift for my son. Sixty pages into the book he called me to say that the book is amazing. He told me that it opens new territory in the understanding of the development of Buddhism in Japan and the effects of the intersection with Christianity on both the Japanese and Europeans who brought Christianity to Japan. Included are old Japanese documents and accounts that the author translated into English.

This is an excellent overview of the history of State Shinto and its development as a tool both for control and for adaptation to international assumptions about religion.

Wonderful dissection of what is science, religion, and how they interweave. A must for any student of Japanese religion

Essential reading for those interested in the development of modern Japanese religion. As other reviewers have said, this is an academic text, not a popular history, and there is some theory about how historical actors made sense of religious difference as well as the relationship between religion, superstition, and science, but it is all relatively accessible. I've read it several times and it's always a treat.

very good book if you want to learn more about history of Japan.