The Church is Permanently Underway: Reflections on the COVID‐19 Pandemic from Tokyo
This article examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the unity of the human community in Japan, specifically Tokyo, where the 2020 Olympic Games have been postponed until 2021. This allows reflection on the issue of ecclesiology during this time of uncertainty. First, the article describes t...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
[2020]
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| In: |
The ecumenical review
Year: 2020, Volume: 72, Issue: 4, Pages: 636-649 |
| IxTheo Classification: | KAJ Church history 1914-; recent history KBM Asia KDJ Ecumenism NCC Social ethics ZC Politics in general |
| Further subjects: | B
Nationalism
B renewal of the church B ecumenical movement in Japan B self-responsibility theory B unity of human community B Covid-19 Pandemic |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (doi) Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | This article examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the unity of the human community in Japan, specifically Tokyo, where the 2020 Olympic Games have been postponed until 2021. This allows reflection on the issue of ecclesiology during this time of uncertainty. First, the article describes the critical response of the ecumenical leaders to the country’s first-ever declaration of a state of emergency. Second, it reflects upon the impact of the compulsion to conform to intolerant social order and the neoliberal “self-responsibility theory” that abandons the most vulnerable in society. Third, it explores the relationship between Tokyo and the Olympics, which has been inextricably linked to the aim of national unity. Finally, this article draws the conclusion that we must steer clear of any “unity” that conceals a deeper disunity. Therefore, the church must distance itself from both the “self-responsibility theory” and the enthusiasm of nationalism and instead work toward the restoration of the human community and the renewal of the church, which are currently the main issues of concern. |
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| ISSN: | 1758-6623 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: The ecumenical review
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1111/erev.12550 |