From Marxism to Religion: Thought Crimes and Forced Conversions in Imperial Japan
This article examines the role of prison chaplains in the forced conversion (tenko) of political prisoners in imperial Japan in the wake of the repressive Peace Preservation Law of 1925. The records of the Shin Buddhist prison chaplaincy indicate that chaplains understood tenko as a religious proble...
| Auteur principal: | |
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| Type de support: | Électronique Article |
| Langue: | Anglais |
| Vérifier la disponibilité: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Publié: |
Nanzan Institute
2019
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| Dans: |
Japanese journal of religious studies
Année: 2019, Volume: 46, Numéro: 2, Pages: 193-218 |
| Sujets / Chaînes de mots-clés standardisés: | B
Japan
/ Jōdo shinshū
/ Pastorale des prisons
/ Dissident
/ Marxiste
/ Prisonnier politique
/ Conversion
/ Mesure coercitive
/ État
/ Religion
/ Histoire 1925-1935
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| RelBib Classification: | AD Sociologie des religions BL Bouddhisme KBM Asie ZC Politique en général |
| Sujets non-standardisés: | B
Prisons
B Buddhism B Religious Studies B Parole B Criminals B Repentance B Chaplains B Marxism B Prisoners |
| Accès en ligne: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Résumé: | This article examines the role of prison chaplains in the forced conversion (tenko) of political prisoners in imperial Japan in the wake of the repressive Peace Preservation Law of 1925. The records of the Shin Buddhist prison chaplaincy indicate that chaplains understood tenko as a religious problem. Shin chaplains contributed to public order by converting politically disruptive and criminalized beliefs (that is, commitments to Marxism) into socially acceptable religious aspirations contained in an apolitical private realm. Correctional bureaucrats and Shin chaplains sought to discourage political activism by supplanting it with introspection, and they understood this turn as an effect of religion. The success of tenko programs was taken as evidence of religions' capacity to contribute to the public good. The article concludes that the most enduring legacy of the tenko program was the development of Japan's modern probation system for adult offenders initiated by the passage of the Thought Criminals Protection and Surveillance Law of 1936 |
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| Contient: | Enthalten in: Japanese journal of religious studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.18874/jjrs.46.2.2019.193-218 |