Essay - Japanese History 1. Discuss the Yasukuni Shrine Issue and Situate...

Japanese History

1. Discuss the Yasukuni shrine issue and situate it in the context of the chang*****g relationship between the state and religion in occupied Japan after 1945.

Before one can beg***** to underst***** and appreciate the Yasukuni Shrine Issue of recent history ***** must have an *****anding of the shrine itself and its meaning. The Yasukunki Shrine is a shrine th*****t is located in Tokoyo, *****. It is a shrine that was erected and has been maintained for the purpose of honoring ***** spirits ***** every military man or woman who ***** died in a w*****r that Japan was engaged in s*****ce 1853. Once Japan surrounded in World War II the shr*****e ***** converted to a private organization for religion so ***** it would follow the new democratic mandates of maintaining a separation of church and state(Rissho Kosei-kai and the ***** Shrine ***** (http://www.rk-world.org/yasukuni/yasukuni2.html).

***** Shrine Issue first began in the year 1955. It was at that time ***** a campaign was undertaken ***** restore ***** government support ***** the shrine. It was not a successful c*****mpaign in the initial years but by 1969 it had gained enough support that ***** ruling party of ***** at that time, (Liberal Democratic Party) designed a bill to introduce ***** the Diet ***** would provide state support for the shrine once again making it a government ent*****y(Rissho Kosei-kai and the Yasukuni Shrine ***** (http://www.rk-world.org/yasukuni/yasukuni2.html).

Not surprisingly, it was strongly opposed ***** religious groups. Before World War II, ***** Shinto not only held a special position and received ***** support, but its doctrines were imposed on the populace. Other religions were discriminated against ***** many religious organizations suffered outright suppression(Rissho ***** and the Yasukuni Shrine Issue (http://www.rk-world.org/yasukuni/yasukuni2.html)."

The restoring of ***** support for the ***** would ***** meant that the government ***** making a public statement of the support ***** one religions over all others, which would have further *****ed the suppression of various religious faiths.

***** ***** the way the constitution is designed, if ***** governing body was to support the shrine it ***** have clearly defied the government's constitution.

Th***** bill ***** actively ***** by Rissho Kosei-kai and o*****rs who opposed the bill. The organization became actively involved in the opposition by having meetings in churches, gett*****g people to sign petitions opposing the ***** and other steps trying ***** cause a defe*****t. The group al***** organized ***** ***** demonstrations throughout the area protesting the government's refusal to sponsor and support the *****.

Rev. Niwano made continuing appeals ***** Japanese society, saying ***** Yasukuni ***** should be supported ***** by the state ***** ***** the people(Rissho Kosei-kai and the ***** Shrine Issue (http://www.rk-world.org/yasukuni/yasukuni2.html)."

***** LDP bill was passed through the process of government every single year until 1974. Each time that it would come before the governing body it would fail again. In ***** ***** sponsors ***** the bill ***** ***** decision to give up and stop attempting to gain its passage.

On August 15, 1975, however, Prime Minister Takeo Miki became