History of Japan

Latest Episodes:

Episode 353 - The Rising Sun Will Come to Us From Heaven, Part 5 Aug 28, 2020

Show notes

This week, we wrap up our history of Christianity in Japan with a look at the Occupation and Postwar Eras -- and with some final thoughts on what it means to be a part of a faith viewed as "outside" the mainstream of the nation.

Show notes here.

Episode 352 - The Rising Sun Will Come to Us From Heaven, Part 4 Aug 21, 2020

Show notes

This week, we'll cover the striving of Japanese Christians to be accepted as genuine patriots by the government during the pre-war era. This striving will lead to closer and closer ties between the state and religion; it will also invite danger once we get into the war years.

Show notes here.

Episode 351 - The Rising Sun Will Come to Us From Heaven, Part 3 Aug 14, 2020

Show notes

This week, we're going to talk about the heyday of Japanese Christianity during the Imperial era: the 1870s and 1880s, when the church, finally free of government restriction, began to grow. But behind that growth lurked a dangerous reality about the religion's relationship with the state.

Show notes here.

Episode 350 - The Rising Sun Will Come to Us From Heaven, Part 2 Aug 07, 2020

Show notes

This week, we're talking about Christianity during the Bakumatsu Period -- the era that saw the forced opening of Japan and the collapse of samurai government. How did debates around Christianity figure in to this turbulent time in Japanese history?

Show notes here.

Episode 349 - The Rising Sun Will Come to Us From Heaven, Part 1 Jul 31, 2020

Show notes

This week, we're turning our attention to Christianity in Japan after the "Christian Century." Despite its status as a minority religion in Japan, Christianity has had a major historical impact on the country. How did this happen? We'll start this week by looking at the Christian persecutions which destroyed the communities built by European missionaries in the 1500s.

Show notes here.

Episode 348 - By the Sun and Its Brightness Jul 24, 2020

Show notes

This week, we cover the short yet fascinating history of Islam in Japan. What factors led to a connection between the Islamic world and Japan? Who led the efforts to build bridges between the two? And why is the history of this relationship so generally unknown?

Show notes here.

Episode 347 - Blackness in Japan, Part 5 Jul 17, 2020

Show notes

This week, we wrap up the series with a look at black history during the Occupation and Postwar eras, with some final thoughts on the series as a whole.

Show notes here.

Episode 346 - Blackness in Japan, Part 4 Jul 10, 2020

Show notes

This week, we turn our attention to the black experience during the war in the Pacific, and to the fascinating story of the Pacific Movement of the Eastern World.

Show notes here

Episode 345 - Blackness in Japan, Part 3 Jul 03, 2020

Show notes

This week, we're talking about political and cultural exchange between black communities and Japan in the 20s and 30s, as well as how one prominent black leader found himself bamboozled by Japan's pro-empire propaganda in the 1930s.

Show notes here.

Episode 344 - Blackness in Japan, Part 2 Jun 26, 2020

Show notes

This week, we look at Japan's relationship with blackness and black communities in the wake of the Meiji Restoration, and at the beginnings of a movement among black people to make Japan into a champion of non-white peoples.

Note: this episode includes some language that may be considered dated or offensive (though no use of slurs).

Show notes here.

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected