Being Effective at Reaching Japan for Christ #2 -- Follow Your Passions

Do what you love to do, follow your God-given passions.

I learned this the hard way. About ten years ago I went through a period of depression that was absolutely no fun but it helped me make some changes in my life. The main change I made, something that made a huge difference, was resigning from the "preacher/church planter/pastor" role I had at the time. This allowed me to start focusing on what I love to do which is working with artists.

Now I am making films. Filmmaking is not easy, it is one of the most challenging things I have ever done but it is also a lot of fun and, most importantly, an effective means of communicating the gospel in Japan.

If I hadn't taken the scary step of resigning from a position that didn't "fit" me, I would have missed out on so much. Things like: being a producer on the award winning film Jitensha, being part of an amazing team that produced a music video of the first documented performance of Wadaiko & Black Gospel (I will embed that video below).

I want to make a difference, we all do. If I hadn't hit a rough spot and started following my passions I would have been locked in a negative cycle of trying hard, not getting anywhere, frustration....

Are you just "hanging on" because you don't know what else to do? Are you settling for "peace and pay" (an easy job and a secure paycheck)? If so, it isn't worth it. It might be time to quit and do something completely different.

If you could do anything, what would you do?

Wadaiko X Black Gospel Fusion Music Video from Studio Re: on Vimeo.

Being Effective at Reaching Japan for Christ #1 -- Death by Meetings

There are aspects of the culture of Japan that "pushes" people to hold a lot of meetings.

A few years ago I decided that life was too short and our mission far too important for me to waste time in meaningless meetings so I avoid them as much as I possibly can.

How big a deal is this issue?

A high level committee in Japan made up of missionaries and pastors discussed a badly needed new translation of the Bible for 15 years. During that time this group didn't make a decision to move ahead and actually do it.

A church in Tokyo established a committee that met for over 100 hours to plan the church's anniversary celebration.

If every church and mission in Japan cut the amount of time spent in meetings by 50% and also had a clear purpose for every meeting that does take place we would be far more effective at reaching Japan for Christ.

I have worked in Japan for over 20 years as a missionary and my observation is that we waste large amounts of time in meetings -- I wonder what would happen if we just quit doing that?

What do you think?

Reflections on IAM Encounter 10: Making Our Art an Expression of Love

Guest post by Julie Robertson (photo at right):

We received a massive blessing from God last week— he allowed my husband Eric and I to attend the IAM Conference in New York City! Due to short notice, we were not certain if we would be able to attend… but then funds started coming in from unusual places. We knew then that God was telling us to go! Paul Nethercott met us there, and it was a blessing to be able to connect with him over the weekend.

IAM (International Arts Movement) is an organization that encourages artists worldwide to change their world through faith and their chosen art field. The conference was held March 4-6 at Cooper Hall in the exciting Greenwich Village area of New York City. We attended seminars by prominent musicians, fine artists, sculptors, designers, writers, and illustrators. Studio Re:'s collaboration, the film Jitensha, was selected from a number of other entries to screen at the Conference. It was encouraging to see the positive reaction and thoughtful questions that people were asking Paul after the showing.

We were encouraged to go out and explore New York City. For those of you who have been/lived there, you know that just being in this city is an

inspiration… it is so busy, exciting, artistic, diverse… and (just like Alicia Keys sings) you truly feel that “there’s nothing you can’t do.” We attended several art shows of a caliber beyond anything that we could possibly see in our current home of Oklahoma.

Eric (photo at right is Eric at Grand Central Station) learned valuable information about music from Jacob Marshall, lead singer of the successful band “MAE.” Among the other fantastic friends we made were Makoto Fujimura (in photo beside his painting), a world-renowned Japanese artist and founder of IAM; Dave and Corey Fuller, who are involved with IAM in Oklahoma City; Kiwa, a Japanese exchange student studying fine art near Boston, and so many others!

The thing that sticks out most in my mind is what Mr. Fujimura said about making our art an expression of Love. We all know the famous description of love in I Corinthians 13, but how many of us artists think of applying these characteristics to our work? How many of us make art that is not envious, boastful, proud, rude, self-seeking, or delighting in evil, but rejoicing with the truth? So much of modern art is purposefully intended to shock, aggravate, horrify, or otherwise celebrate evil. How wonderful it would be if we artists would all use our energy to create art that points people to life in Christ instead of hopelessness and death.

It was also great to see so many successful, prestigious artists who are Christians... something that sometimes I don't think exists. We don't have to stay caged in our small little ambitions that only reach a few people in our immediate area. We can truly make a huge impact on the whole world, like many of these people are already doing. That was what I will always remember from this conference.

That, and the 99c pizza by the slice.

Outreach: Small is often Better Than Big

When over two hundred people showed up for the Christmas outreach we were understandably excited. The combined membership of our two new churches in Kyushu was about ten (including the missionaries) so this was a big event for us. We rented a nice room in a local mall, had decorations, music, a gospel message, and everyone received bags of homemade goodies prepared by the church ladies. It seemed to have been a great success.

However, there were problems: the church ladies complained that it had been too much work; there was disappointment that no one had gotten saved; the event cost more than we could afford; it wore us out. I tried to follow up on the new contacts we made but when I called a few of them they clearly did not like the intrusion.

Several years later we were on staff with a new church in Yokosuka. At this church we established a “Gospel Live House.” The concept is from mainstream “Live Houses” popular in Japan which are venues with live music, food and drinks.

We held our “Gospel Live House” four times a year. It was easy to create a relaxed atmosphere in our church by moving out most of the chairs, adding some tables, and providing simple homemade snacks and drinks. We had a live performance and charged 500 yen per person.

The quality and type of music varied a lot. One time we had smooth jazz by skilled musicians. Another time an awful rock band from a local college performed. We never had preaching on the program. Usually, one of the performers would share a short testimony and most, but not all, of the music had gospel themes.

We had a lot of fun with our Gospel Live Houses and they were one of the reasons that we had a thriving church. This was effective outreach. Why did it work out so well?

Doable: The quarterly rhythm did not wear us out and gave us adequate time to prepare for the next one. We held it in the church and it did not require a big staff; the 500 yen per person cover charge paid most, if not all, expenses.

Consistent: People looked forward to the next Gospel Live House. They knew what to expect so they were able to relax and enjoy themselves.

Contextual: What we did and how we did it was appropriate for our church and for our community, it was a good “fit” for our situation. Almost any wholesome activity that a few people in your community are interested in can be a means of gathering people.

Relational: Rather than gathering a large crowd so we could preach at them (very few people like to be preached at and those that do are almost ALL in the church already) we tried to build relationships. The warm atmosphere made it possible to get to know individuals, to become friends and to let them know that we cared about them.

Enjoyable: Did I say it was a lot of fun? This was an important reason people kept coming back and why they brought their friends. We all enjoyed it.

Are big events bad? No, they have their place and can work well.

The good news is, small groups can effectively do outreach because intimate gatherings are often better for building relationships. The single most important factor is genuine love for people. If we don’t have that, we have nothing. And, how we do outreach is not nearly as important as caring, really caring about people which always involves sacrifice.

Free for 24 hours – “The Last TV Evangelist: A Guide to the Media Revolution” by Phil Cook

Phil Cook author of "Branding Faith" has released a book called "The Last TV Evangelist." Phil consistently has valuable insights so I am recommending his new book -- even though I have not been able to read it yet.

There is a review of "The Last TV Evangelist" HERE

For the next few hours you can download the entire book, free of charge. A hot link won't work so copy and paste the following web address: http://www.conversantlife.com/free/TLTVE.pdf

Mobile Phones: An Innovative Approach to Outreach in Japan

Anyone who has lived in Japan for any amount of time has noticed the pervasive use of mobile phones (Keitai denwa - 携帯電話, hereafter "keitai" for short) everywhere, from restaurants to trains to stores. Keitai are becoming the primary method of communication for Japanese young people, even eclipsing the use of computers.

The Numbers
69 million Japanese people access the internet on their mobile phones. This is more than the number of Japanese PC internet users.

The average Japanese high school student uses her keitai for two hours a day (notice I say her, since on average girls use their keitai slightly more than boys). Yet the average students talks for less than 10 minutes a day, with the vast majority of that two hours being email and internet usage. This trend of using one's keitai primarily for email and internet, and not actual talking, is actually true of nearly all keitai users, not just students and young people.

Computer illiteracy is a growing problem among Japanese youth, as many of them are completely bypassing computer usage and using only their keitai for all electronic communication. This trend is only expected to increase in the coming years.

How it works (techno jargon)

Email on keitai
All Japanese keitai come with their own email address, usually ending in docomo.ne.jp, softbank.ne.jp, or ezweb.ne.jp, for the cases of NTT Docomo, Softbank, and AU, for example. You can send email from your keitai to someone else’s keitai or PC email address, or you can send email from your computer to a keitai the exact same way as sending email to another PC, with no extra steps required. Sending email is the primary method of using keitai in Japan, by far eclipsing actual talking.

Internet on keitai
All modern keitai are able to view the internet. Keitai internet websites are specially formatted to be viewed on small screens and slower data connections. Many of Japan's most popular websites actually receive more visitors on their keitai site than their PC site, reflecting the trend of moving away form PCs and towards mobile.

Blogging
A blog is an online journal that others can view. Japanese are the most prolific bloggers in the world, with some 37% of all blogs in the world being in Japanese, where as English comes in second at 36%. Both individuals as well as businesses in Japan use blogging as a way to connect with people. Since this is such an established medium for communication and most people are familiar with it, it is probably a great opportunity for the Christian community to connect with Japanese. Blogs in Japan can easily be both viewed as well as written from either a computer or a keitai.

QR Codes
A "QR Code" is a square-shaped barcode-like image you have probably seen on signs and handouts. A QR code represents an encoded block of text, usually containing a keitai website address and contact information. All Japanese keitai come with the ability to take a picture of these QR codes ("barcode scan" mode). Once the QR code is snapped by a keitai, the decoded website and/or contact info is displayed on one's keitai phone for easy access.
QR Code Flow

1) The QR code you would like to scan

2) Put your phone in barcode reader mode and snap the QR code

3) After successfully snapping the QR code, it shows up on your screen. You can now click
on the decoded website to visit it

4) The actual keitai website on the phone's browser

An Opportunity for Sharing
One of the phenomenon happening with internet usage in Japan is that since it is relatively anonymous, Japanese people are more open about sharing there than in real life. For example, on Facebook, America’s most popular social networking site, more than 90% of users use their real name and real picture on their profile. By contrast, on mixi, Japan’s most popular social networking site, less than 5% of users use their real name and real picture.

Therefore it is not hard to find Japanese people engaging in discussions on their blogs or internet forums that they would not do in real life, perhaps even more so than their Western counterparts. This means using the internet may be a key way to get Japanese to open up at the heart level, in different ways than might be possible in person.

Furthermore, since, unlike a computer, one's keitai is on one's person all the time, Japanese are able to engage in online sharing much more frequently than on the PC. As a result, one recent study found that Japanese people engage in the deepest online relationships using their mobile phones, and shallower online relationships using PCs. This would suggest that the keitai, as opposed to the PC, may be a good medium to get Japanese people to open up more deeply about spiritual and other issues.

Recommendations
The following are some concrete steps that you, or the tech person at your church or ministry, can use to get your mobile presence up and running quickly

• Create a mobile portal for your church. You don't need to create a brand new website from the ground up, rather you can sign up at one of the existing popular web portals (see below) and create your own profile and blog within minutes.
• Create a QR code for your mobile portal, and put in on your church flyer, business cards and posters. This way Japanese can easily access your church's contact info and mobile portal.
• Create a keitai mailing list, to send daily or weekly Bible verses, announcements, or other info, to your church members keitai.

Resources
http://qrcode.jp/	Easily create your own QR code for free
http://mixi.jp/	Mixi - The most popular social networking site in Japan, with more than 16 million users. Create a community for your church, and join the existing Christian communities
http://blog.fc2.com/	FC2 is a popular blogging website in Japan, and unlike most other sites, has an English interface
http://plaza.rakuten.co.jp/	楽天 (Rakuten), a popular blogging service with both PC and mobile interfaces
http://ameblo.jp/	Ameba, another very popular blogging service, also with good PC and mobile support

About the Author

I (John Gibbs) am a missionary to Japan with WorldVenture, specializing in equipping the Japanese Christian community with mobile phone evangelism, discipleship and (online) community.

I typically employ nearly all of the strategies noted above in my advice and services to Japanese churches, in addition to constantly looking for better and more effective ways to encourage Japanese Christians and non-Christians to communicate online. For example, churches are usually equipped with a QR code for their Sunday handouts, event posters, and business cards. I also urge churches to start a blog on one of the above services. Additionally, I create a mobile website for each church or organization, and show them how to update it. A message board is always attached to the church's website, and while brainstorming with the pastor, we find ways to get people talking on the message board (i.e. daily Bible study reflections, prayer board, etc).

As for my personal background, I came to Japan in mid-2008, before which I was a software engineer in silicon valley for 7 years. I was motivated for missions by taking the Perspectives on the World Christian Movement course in the fall of 2007. I plan to stay in Japan for the long-term, bridging the gap between the gospel and nonbelievers using technology or any other means available.

I can be contacted at: john at worldventure dot net

View Mujo No Kaze Online Here

Mujo No Kaze (MNK) is the first film that I produced. It was an enriching experience that I enjoyed a lot. MNK was shot on location in Tokyo two years ago when Biola teacher Dean Yamada brought twelve students from Biola University as our production crew.

At this time, I am working on producing our second film with Biola; a group of fifteen will come in Jan 09 to shoot "Jitensha" on location here in Tokyo. It promises to be an excellent film.

Please let us know what you think about Mujo No Kaze:

Mujo No Kaze Movie from Studio Re: on Vimeo.

Japanese Black Gospel Choir & Taiko Troupe in a Music Video?

Almost all the singers in the 300+ member black gospel choir are Japanese; the director is Filipino, the three guest artists are Jamaican, American and Filipino. Then, after the intermission a taiko troupe (Japanese style drum team) joins the unusual choir for one number.

The camera crew is ready, the lights get bright, and with alternating strokes, the drummers pound as if harvesting the very tones. As the rhythm flows, other drums—smaller ones—join in. Suddenly the choir sings “RIDE ON KING JESUS! NO! MAN CANNOT HINDER ME!”

“Wait a moment,” you may ask. “Taiko and Gospel Music? Those two don’t go together.” And you would be right, because, to the best of our knowledge, nobody has ever done it before. But we believe the time is right. Both forms have similar roots, not among the upper-class, but among the lower-class. Both inhabit the world of pop culture. Wa-Daiko, or Group Taiko, is influenced by Jazz music, which grew out of gospel music. Most importantly, however, both forms are part of the folk/pop music culture of Japan.

Hard to imagine it? Then take a few moments to watch the following two videos

Video Below is of the Sendan Taiko troupe from Fukushima Ken, Japan (Scot Eaton, who writes for this blog, is playing the large drum on the left, in the back row)

Video Below is of the Hallelujah Gospel Family (HGF), based in Tokyo, this network of 30 choirs is lead by Ken Taylor. The soloist on this song is Ray Sidney from LA



The black gospel choir/taiko music video will be a fresh presentation of the gospel for Japan and show that Christianity is not just a Western import with no roots in the culture. That is the main reason we are making this music video; to demonstrate, not by preaching, but visually and musically that Jesus is indeed for Japan, as well as the rest of the world.

Further Information:

• The shooting for this music video is planned for June 20, 2009 at Rune Kodiara (ルネ小平) hall in Tokyo, admission is free of charge.
  
• The HGF choir is booked and we are in touch with a taiko troupe interested in participating.
• This music video is a collaboration between HGF, CAN, and Studio Re:
• Our goal is to produce a high quality music video. We are seeking a skilled music video director and $10,000 funding. If you know of anyone you think might be able to help, please write to the following eMail address: pnethercott (at) mac (dot) com

Related Posts on this blog:

1. Impacting Japanese culture through redemptive films

2. Mujo No Kaze Wins Inigo Film Festival Award

Thanks to Scot Eaton for contributing to this post.

Teresa Wilson's Response to "Mujo No Kaze"

"Mujo No Kaze" is a short film we made last year in collaboration with Biola University. I loaned a copy to Teresa Wilson (see photo), who lives near Tokyo and is a member of Mission to the World (MTW). Here is her response to the film:

"I'll tell you honestly, we started watching the film weeks and weeks ago and I had to stop because it elicited such strong emotions for me. It really made me remember so keenly some of the feelings I had when I was planning suicide myself, when I was so depressed during my 20's. And I can certainly say that it captured some of the grave, desperate feelings and just FUINKI (mood) of that desperate state. It (Mujo No Kaze) is very moving, very troubling, actually. It makes me want to share the hope of Christ more with people. Like I said, it did remind me so much of the desperate feelings I had at one time, and it's so very sad to think about so many people having that experience and having nowhere to turn. I can see how it can really elicit some great thought and conversations. Great job! Congratulations on such an excellent start! I pray God will continue to bless and use you all mightily as you use that film for good conversation and as you continue in future film-making projects. God bless you all for capturing such a gaping problem in Japan and spurring on many to think about the hope we can have in Christ. Drama is SO very powerful; it's wonderful to see you all using that powerful tool for the gospel. God bless your present and future work in bringing many, many more projects like this to fruition."

It is great to get feedback like this, very encouraging. Our vision is to make films that will touch the lives of Japanese, to make films that lead Japanese to discover that there is more to life, much more. Right now we have one short film in post-production, and two in pre-production. We also plan to make a taiko/black gospel music video in June of next year (Scot and I discussed this very exciting project this morning, we will be doing a detailed post on it soon but briefly it will feature the taiko troupe that Scot is a member of and Hallelujah Gospel Family --- a large network of black gospel choirs led by my good friend and colleague Ken Taylor).

As soon as I am done with this post, I am delivering a copy of Mujo No Kaze to a friend who teaches at a local Japanese school where a student committed suicide a few months ago

You can watch a trailer for Mujo No Kazw at www.mnkmovie.com

In the near future I think we will be posting the entire film online

Mujo No Kaze Wins Inigo Film Festival Award

Mujo No Kaze, The film CAN produced in collaboration with Biola University has won an award!

Inigo Film-Festival in Sydney Australia has chosen our film to receive a significant honor — details will be announced later (we know what the award is, but want to honor their right to make the announcement first). But our film is listed on their site, and we have been told that actress Cate Blanchett is slated to be in Sydney for the awards ceremony on July 18, 2008.

Biola professor Dean Yamada wrote, “I think this is an auspicious start for Studio Re: (the CAN Film Project) and I hope it’s just the first of many great collaborations.”

Right now, I am in the US (Minnesota to be exact). I checked into going to Sydney for the July 18 awards event but the price is around $3,000!! So, as much as I would love to be there, I gave it up. Dean Yamada, and one or two Biola students, are planning to attend.

You can view the trailer below:



Or, a higher quality version here: MNK TRAILER

Our next Biola/CAN film project is in the "pre-production" stage -- which involves what has to happen before you shoot a film including: setting a budget, choosing a script, choosing staff and assigning roles, gathering equipment, and making sure all logistical issues are taken care of. Then, in Jan of 2009, Dean Yamada will bring a group of twelve Biola film majors to Tokyo to shoot our film.

iMissions: internet based collaboration

I did a post recently called "Missional Art" that was a collaborative effort utilizing the social networking site called facebook. We used a feature on facebook that allows those who are connected as "friends" the option of sending a message to multiple individuals. On facebook my "friends" are all those individuals who I have permitted access to my profile, photos, and other information (and I have access to theirs).

Here is a step by step explanation of how our collaboration worked (all messages were exchanged using facebook):

1. One of my facebook friends, Jon Hirst, encouraged me to expand on an idea about art being missional that I had mentioned to him in a personal message.

2. Jon also sent me several good questions, that really helped me get moving on the article, and he also gave me a deadline -- deadlines REALLY help!

3. I wrote a rough draft, with most of the main ideas, but there were many spelling and grammatical mistakes, the flow was not good, and it needed clarity.

4. I posted a rough draft to a select group of my friends on facebook -- I chose people who I thought would have something to contribute, and/or would benefit from the discussion. The majority of the group I chose are younger than me (I am 52). Actually, I think ALL of them are younger than I am, most by about 25 years. This group included people living on three continents -- N. American, S. America, and Asia. Geographic location made no difference in terms of the ability of members to be involved.

5. Every time one person posted a message, everyone got a copy via eMail AND we could all see every message sent by everyone involved using the inbox on facebook. So, it was easy to keep track of everything being contributed by members of the group.

6. About half the group of twenty did not respond at all, while five members contributed at a significant level. One other person (my wife Nancy) was in this group but contributed off-line. There were just over thirty messages posted, over a period of about two weeks.

I am stopping here. I want to invite others to post comments that explore the broader implications for missions. Scot and I will choose "the best comment" and the contributor will get one copy of one of the following books (the winner can choose):

1. Manga Messiah in English (distributed widely, in English and other languages, via Amazon, etc.)
2. Manga Messiah in Japanese (available only in Japan!)
3. Manga Metamorphosis in Japanese (available only in Japan!)

Deadline will be July 17, 2008

Manga Messiah: Expanding Around the Globe

New Life League Japan's director, Roald Lidal, just sent me the following exciting news about Messiah Manga's spreading global influence:

1. As of the end of this week we have printed a total of 760,000 copies in six languages -- English, Japanese, Norwegian, Spanish, Indonesian and Tagalog.

2. Twelve more languages are in process, most of them being close to completed. These are: French, Portuguese, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Polish, Russian, Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese, Khmer and Arabic.

This is amazing... a wonderful example of what can happen when Japanese Christians express their faith with authenticity and originality, with art that reflects the beauty of the culture.

PHOTO: The recently published Spanish version.

I would like to post a cover photo of all the published versions of Messiah Manga -- if you can send me a photo, post a comment with your eMail address and I will write you back (we will not divulge your eMail address to the public unless you specifically say that is what you want).

Manga Outreach + A Sneak Peak at Manga Metamorphosis and Manga Mutiny

I [Scot] don't know how many of you who frequent this site read the comments, but I'd highly recommend doing so. We don't get many of them, but the ones that we do get almost always add something really important to our ongoing discussion of Worship and the Arts in Japan. Anyway, I found this following cartoon in a link from Paul's February posting about the Channel of Hope. It shows, in a sardonic way, the potential for "New Media" outreach in Japan (New Media includes, well, new media, like youtube, animation, manga, or whatever was just released yesterday).

Anyway, it was taken from the "Internet Evangelism Day" website, and the article as a whole is so good I'm tempted to quote it verbatim. But, as it is, I'll just give you the link:
http://ied.gospelcom.net/japan-web-evangelism.php

Manga outreach is something that I am personally very interested in. Manga became popular in the USA during my college years, and to this day, there are six separate series that I follow in their weekly and monthly incarnations (this doesn't include series that are already finished that I have read through or am reading). I think this, in a way, is directly related to my childhood dream of becoming a comic book artist. I realize now that God has given me a different skill set, and that I will probably never become an artist, but my love of the medium has never waned. And every time I step outside of my house, I'm reminded of how widespread this interest is in Japan. I mean, even Lawsons and 7-11 sell the latest volume of several manga series. Think about that for a moment and let it sink in. First, that the manga series have several volumes. Second, that these volumes are sold in convenience stores. A few years ago in America, graphic novels took up a fifth of a bookshelf in smaller stores, and whole shelf in larger stores. Finding the graphic novel that you actually wanted was a near impossibility. I'm STILL searching for Spiderman's "Maximum Carnage" arc--a search I started in Middle School. If you lucked out and the graphic novel was still in print, your only option was to special-order it from a big chain like Barnes and Noble or Borders.

And last month, in Japan, I picked up Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 19 in a convenience store in Yonomori--a town which doesn't even have its own post office.

So I am very glad that people are starting to do manga outreach in Japan. We have posted many times on this blog about Next, a division of New Life League Japan, who is publishing manga based on the Bible. They released Manga Messiah last year, which covered the gospels, and they will be releasing Manga Metamorphosis later this year, which will cover Acts.

Back in December, Next hired me as an English proofreader/ Quality Checker. As such, I have seen and edited the first 150 pages of Manga Metamorphosis, and I can tell you that it is quite a bit better than Manga Messiah. Here are a few pictures to whet your appetite. Posted with permission of course. Click on the images to see a higher resolution.

The Great Comission


















Pentacost











I also had the chance to visit Next and New Life League Japan about three weeks ago. I was very impressed with what I saw. Manga may be a new step for them, but printing is not. They print Bibles for so many languages that I stopped counting after 20. They also print calendars, books, and pretty much anything else that combines paper and ink. In their staff of about 50, eight different nationalities are represented. The highlight of my visit though was the chance to preview the art of Manga Mutiny, the tentatively-titled third volume in the series that covers the book of Genesis. Next had decided from the very beginning that they were going to have different artists for the Old and New Testament, and it shows. My two main concerns for the art in Manga Messiah and Manga Metamorphosis were that the art seemed to be aimed at young children, and that there were way too many panels on every page, which made it feel cramped and rushed at times. I understand the reason for this, as they are trying to fit a whole book into one manga volume, but I miss the full-page splash images that are so prevalent in manga. It just so happens that both of my concerns were addressed. The art feels much more mature in the third volume, bearing a slight shojo style, and there are some BEAUTIFUL splash pages. They are without any text right now, but I think these pictures will speak for themselves. Click for a higher resolution (my apologies that the only camera I had on me was my cellphone camera).

Creation


The Garden of Eden


Babel Tower and Abram


Lot's Wife


So, things are looking good. Thanks for reading and thinking about this New Media outreach. It could have profound effects.

“Channel of Hope”

Redemptive Media For Japanese

Photo by Dan Waber

Description:
Produce quality, captivating films, in Japanese, that will “connect” with mainstream Japanese and draw them towards putting their faith in Jesus Christ. We will use the strategy of building bridges to people by telling great stories and by posing the great questions of life. “Channel of Hope” is a “New Media” approach that will allow interactivity and worldwide distribution via the Internet. We will pursue leveraging the “Power For Living” campaign by seeking permission to feature several of the celebrities that took part in that project. We will also network, encourage, and empower a select group of individuals in the art of filmmaking.

There is considerable interest in Christianity in Japan, especially among youth. A comprehensive study of Japanese people and religion - conducted by Gallup - documented that six to seven percent of Youth identify themselves as ‘Christian’. Another research project – ‘Elijah Symposium’ - identified 7% of the youth of Japan as ‘hot prospects’ for the Gospel.

For information on the strategic opportunity for Internet based outreach in Japan, see the Internet Evangelism Day Site.

What We See:

• A skilled, dedicated core team with common values & vision.
• A small cadre of Christians trained and equipped to become influential leaders in Japan’s film industry.
• A partnership with several key churches and ministries.
  
• A large network of churches, groups, and individuals praying for and supporting the project.
  
• A personal connection (via the interactive channel on youtube) between viewers and a believer who will follow up on questions, comments, and provide referals to local churches.
  
• A growing library of award-winning, redemptive films in a wide variety of genres (five films the first year, ten more the second).
  
• A well-funded project with a good business plan that results in long-term financial stability.
  
• A project that benefits Japanese society by addressing social issues such as suicide, depression, and the hikikomori syndrome.
  

Missions & Filmmaking Converge in Tokyo

Description:
Produce quality, captivating films, in Japanese, that will “connect” with mainstream Japanese youth and draw them towards putting their faith in Jesus Christ. We will use the strategy of building bridges to people by telling great stories and by posing the great questions of life. “Channel of Hope” is a “New Media” approach that will allow interactivity and worldwide distribution via the Internet. We will pursue leveraging the “Power For Living” campaign by seeking permission to feature several of the celebrities that took part in that project. We will also network, encourage, and empower a select group of individuals in the art of filmmaking.

There is considerable interest in Christianity in Japan, especially among youth. A comprehensive study of Japanese people and religion - conducted by Gallup documented that six to seven percent of Youth identify themselves as ‘Christian’. Another research project – named ‘Elijah Symposium’ - identified 7% of the youth of Japan as ‘hot prospects’ for the Gospel.

For information on the strategic opportunity for Internet based outreach in Japan, see the Internet Evangelism Day Site.

What We See:

• A highly skilled, dedicated team with common values & vision.
• A partnership with several key churches and ministries.
• A large network of churches, groups, and individuals praying for and supporting the project.
• A link to a web site that connects viewers of films to a believer.
• A growing library of award-winning, redemptive films in a wide variety of genres (five films the first year, ten more the second).
• A well-funded project with a good business plan that results in long-term financial stability.
• A small cadre of Christians trained and equipped to become influential leaders in Japan’s film industry.
• A project that benefits Japanese society by addressing social issues such as suicide, depression, and the hikikomori syndrome.

the indie contingent

Mark spent a year in Tokyo as an Artist In Residence (AiR) with CAN. He left behind a lot of good friends who miss him, a lot. Thanks Mark for this post, and, welcome to the blog. Come back to Tokyo sometime soon and make my Taylor (guitar) sound really good again. It was great having you here with us for a year! (Paul Nethercott)

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con·tin·gent - [kuhn-tin-juhnt]
–adjective

1.dependent for existence
2.A representative group forming part of an assemblage.

There are several things I've been learning on my journey as an "independent" artist:
1.There is no such thing as an independent artist
2.Artists can not possibly survive independently
3.and for you math people out there I've come up with this little formula A^1=undefined

What am I saying? Am I throwing in the sweaty towel? Chucking my guitar against the wall and walking away? ummmm... here is another equation - NO x INFINITY = ANSWER :)

What the term independent means in music, is that we are free to follow our heart's passion, free to express that passion in our art as we desire, and free to distribute and use our art to benefit others with out being inhibited. But to accomplish this, we are actually very, very dependent - on people like you. A group of people that goes beyond just a "listener" or a "fan", into what I am calling the Indie Contingent.

These are the people who share a common vision with me, a vision of reaching out to the oppressed, seeking healing and justice for the exploited, and loving them with the Love that has been poured into us. Are you willing to merge your time and abilities with me in this?

Morocco Trip:

Many of you have heard me express my vision for loving the oppressed around the world, but only some of you know how we plan to let this vision manifest in the near future. I want to take a small team of people to different countries where significant exploitation is happening for 2 to 3 months. Our goal is to hear their stories so that we can present them in forms of media - songs and other art - to raise awareness and funds to bring aid, practical help, and loving people to the sides of the hurting. We are currently in the planning stages of preparing for the first of these trips - to Morocco, in the summer of 2008. There is a lot that has to fall into place, but we are preparing, brain storming ideas, and planning in full expectation of it happening.
ALL of these positions below aid this, either in actually participating directly in Morocco, or preparing our distribution base back in America and around the world where we hope to share the stories.

These are the talents I am specifically looking for to join the Indie Contingent -

The people we are looking to potentially have come with us to Morocco are listed below...we hope that those numbers can be replaced soon with names :)

1-2 song writers
1 photographer/video documenter
1 translator or translators in country

And maybe you aren't into traveling around the world, or simply can't... Here are several talents that we really need tons of here in America, or abroad

Graphic Design:
-Merchandise (designing t-shirts, wrist bands, and whatever your mind come us with)
-Web Work (design, Flash, and programming)
-Promotional Material (merch layout at shows, promo posters/flyers, CD designs)

Tour Management:
-Venue Scouts (finding interesting, artistic venues to play in and promote our vision)
-Booking Agents (booking shows at venues like art spaces, colleges, churches, bars)
-Local Talent Scouts (finding artists to join the show in their area and bring new people to listen who normally wouldn't be there)
-Promoters (people who spread the word about new music/shows through word of mouth, distributing flyers, writing reviews and notices for newspapers, getting announcements through connections to radio stations, etc)

Visual Art:
-Artists of nearly any medium (I love to have artists performing during the shows to turn the musical and lyrical message into a fresh visual connection)

Are you interested in joining the Indie Contingent, or just wanting more information?
email me at

We sure hope you are, as we are truly impotent without you. Your ideas, hearts, and abilities only make our visions more viable, and its potential reach far greater!

Mika's Book "Kimi No Soba Ni" 「君のそばに」

Our good friend and colleague Mika Tsuneda's CD/book set will be released on December 1st. "Kimi No Soba Ni" (Close to You) includes a CD with original music composed by Mika, and performed by her group "Wings." It also includes all the lyrics of the songs on the CD, photos by Mika, several essays by Mika, and some Scripture. This set is a wonderful combination of visuals, sound, and printed words. But, the really exciting thing is that Book Com, the publisher, is a mainstream Japanese publishing house. This means that this book is going to be sold all over Japan, in hundreds of bookstores! Making it accessible to a wide range of readers here in book loving Japan.

I went with Mika to Book Com so I got to meet the two men she has been working with (a promoter and an editor). It was amazing to here them say things like, "this book is for people who are seeking something, this book is for people who are looking for healinhttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifg, these photos have power." They were warm and supportive towards Mika and seemed genuinely excited about the book. One incredible fact they told us is that every day there are four hundred books published in Japan! That does not include manga, magazines, or newspapers. Amazing.

If "Kimi No Soba Ni" sells well, and I think it will, all kinds of possibilities will open up for publishing other books by Mika, as well as others. Perhaps it will become a series.... with several artists who are Christians publishing similar works of art.

How to Order:

++Book Details in Japanese: 「君のそばに」 CD付フォト＆エッセイ/常田美香（ウイングス）

++Any bookstore in Japan should be able to order the book, if asked to do so.

++You can order directly from the Publisher "Book Com"

++Japan Amazon also has it but at this time is out of stock "Kimi No Soba Ni" on Japan Amazon

++If you live overseas and want to place an order, write to me by putting a comment on this blog, if you want to keep it private just indicate that and no one else will see it.














The center page is this photo of "love" written on a moist window, with flowers visible in the background

Bible Manga: How Will the Church Respond?

A Report on the Bible Manga Meeting:

We held a "Bible Manga Informational Meeting" in Tokyo on October 27th, 2007. At the meeting Roald Lidal, director of New Life League Japan, announced that the Japanese version of Manga Messiah (the first book in a series of five) will be released early in 2008 and sold in mainstream bookstores in Japan for between 800 and 1,000 yen per copy.

MM (Japanese version) will also be available in Japan to churches and other ministries for the deeply discounted price of 250 yen per book -- if ordered by the case directly from the publisher.

Lidal emphasized that the Japanese used in this series of books will be genuine "street Japanese" in typical manga style. Participants speculated that many, if not most, Christians in Japan will not appreciate the Bible being published as manga. But, Lidal is deeply committed to his almost forty-year-old dream of producing genuine Bible based manga that will connect with mainstream Japanese.

We got to see a full color draft of "Manga Mutiny," the first of the five Bible Manga books. No details but I can assure readers that NLLJ is taking a bold and exciting approach to depicting the early chapters of Genesis.

The attendance at this meeting was low, only a dozen. It could have been one of those days when lots of people had other things going on. But, my feeling is that it indicates the established church is not very interested in Bible Manga. This is because Japanese pop culture is feared, ignored and/or rejected by a large percentage of Christians. This is a huge blind spot but people can't see that because, well, because it IS a blind spot.

How important is pop-culture in Japan?

Lidal told the group that a few years ago a Japanese manga series called Shyonen Jump, was publishing 6 million copies per week. One of the well known series published in the weekly Shyonen Jump magazine is a series called Bleach. The manga called "Bleach" is an amazing depiction of a cosmic battle between good and evil spirits. The story is squarely based on widely held Japanese beliefs about the spirit world. Bleach has also been produced as an anime series.

This kind of story is part of pop culture in a country where people are said to be "secular" and "not interested in spiritual things!"

Both "Shonen Jump" and Bleach are popular in the US market as well.

Note: "Shyonen" is the standard way to spell this word and also better reflects Japanese pronunciation, apparently the publishers decided to use "shonen" to make it shorter.

This photo is a montage of images from "Bleach"

Announcing an Informational Meeting Regarding "Bible Manga"

New Life League Japan (NLLJ) is publishing a very important and exciting series of books called “Bible Manga.” Japanese artists are creating five genuine manga books based on the Bible (three Old Testament and two New Testament). The original art and text is in Japanese but Manga Messiah has already been released in English and is available at Amazon. According to Roald Lidal, NLLJ will publish the original Japanese version of Manga Messiah in Japan in early 2008.

“Bible Manga” is probably the most contextualized mass media presentation of the gospel in the history of Christianity in Japan. Remarkably, it is already being translated into at least twenty different languages.

The purpose of this meeting is to build vision for and provide information about the “Bible Manga” project. We want the Christian community in Japan to be prepared to make the most of this tremendous opportunity to communicate the gospel to the millions of mainstream Japanese who are manga readers.

Program: Roald Lidal (Director of NLLJ) and his associate, Toshi Iwaoka (Assistant General Director of NLLJ), will make a presentation. They will also bring samples of Manga Messiah for attendees and a copy of the artwork for the next book in the series. Finally, we will have about an hour for Q & A. This meeting will be conducted in English.

When: Thursday, September 27, 2007 10:00 AM to Noon

Where: Harvest Hall, Matsukawa Place, Higashi Kurume, Tokyo
(Matsukawa Place is located next to Christian Academy in Japan)

Cost: 500-yen donation

Registration: None needed – just come

Sponsor: CAN (Christians in the Arts Network)

Questions? Contact Paul Nethercott at info@japancan.com or call 090-9845-0091 (in Japan)

Japanese Pop-Culture’s Popularity in the West: What does it mean for missions in Japan?

This post is my column for the fall issue of Japan Harvest magazine. The readers are primarily career missionaries serving with established mission organizations in Japan so the article is written specifically for that group.

Some definitions (adapted from wikipedia.org):

Manga (漫画) is a Japanese word for comics and print cartoons. Outside of Japan, it refers specifically to comics originally published in Japan.

Anime (アニメ) is an abbreviation of the word "animation". Outside Japan, the term popularly refers to animation originating in Japan.

Otaku (おたく) is a complicated word that in Japanese slang refers to a narrowly focused obsessive person. In English “otaku” is often used to refer specifically to fans of anime and/or manga, but can mean "geek."

J-Pop is an abbreviated form of “Japanese pop” and refers to popular Japanese music; it is often featured in anime.

Hayao Miyazaki is a famous creator of anime and manga. Ghibli Studios, co-founded by Miyazaki, has been called "the Japanese version of Disney."

For further information go to the The Anime and Manga Portal on wikipedia

After WW II, there was a surge of missionaries to Japan, many of whom “connected” with Japan because of the war. The current popularity of Japanese pop culture in the West may be the catalyst for a new surge of young people coming to Japan as missionaries. These young people are “connecting” with Japan via anime, manga, and J-pop. They tend to be bright, creative, media savvy, unconventional, and many aren’t interested in raising support; some young adults who fit this profile are already showing up in Japan. And, there are signs that many more will follow.

Murray Trim represented TEAM Japan at the last Urbana missions conference where he was extremely busy meeting with students interested in Japan: “I was amazed at the number of young people who came to talk to me regarding possible service in Japan who said their interest began due to their involvement with anime and/or manga.”

I sent a survey to a number of young Westerners who are, or have been, involved in Japan-focused missional activity. Eight of fourteen respondents said they are fans of Anime and/or Manga. Of those eight, four said that manga/anime was a factor in them being involved in missions in Japan.

What these young adults said:

Jesse Gillespie (artist in his twenties):
Anime is becoming more popular each year here (in the USA), and I'm amazed at how many series are being translated in print and video. There are not many series, which Americans aren't able to get in English.

Bryan Davidson (musician in early 30s):
As manga is embraced by all ages here (in Japan), understanding and caring about what our neighbors enjoy will often show we love them. To not observe the art (pop or otherwise) of a culture is a foolish and unloving mistake for any missionary to make.

Jessica Stebbing (college student):
Just like any media, people have to be careful and mindful of what is good and pleasing to God. I think some people are a little overboard and assume it is all pornography, and tend to come off as condemning of the people who are interested in it. I think it’s good to have an understanding of the good aspects of manga and anime so they can approach discussing the bad elements in a less condescending way.

Scot Eaton (graduate student):
For me, anime, manga, and video games really helped raise my awareness of Japan. They also helped me to start understanding the (Japanese) world view.

Miwa Isomura (college student):
It is very interesting that much of the manga/anime has a lot of spiritual aspect in it, more than it has in the past.

Stephe Halker (artist):
I have found no better way to understand the Japanese spirit than through its commercial arts. Couched inside every fight scene and comic situation is a myriad of epic, culturally based, moral, and ethical positions. I think it would be very difficult to learn about Japanese culture without having comics and cartoons as treasure maps and porters.

Missionaries who want to learn about manga and/or anime deal with a massive amount of material, some of which is perverted, so it is difficult to know where to start. My suggestion is to start with one of Miyazaki’s films, which are available in Japanese rental stores. In particular, I recommend “Princess Mononoke” 『もののけ姫』There is violence, so it is not appropriate for young children.

How we respond to this new surge of young adults arriving in Japan is critical. One response is to wring our proverbial hands in despair over their faults and criticize them. If we do that, we will lose the strategic opportunity to invest in the lives of these gifted young people. Instead, we need to ask constructive questions:

• How can we help them grow and to be effective?
  
• Are they going to fit into current structures and programs? Should they?
  
• Should we expect them to sit through long meetings?
  
• How can they contribute to media related outreach?
• What special contributions can they make to building up the church?
  

These young fans of Japanese pop culture need people who believe in them, accept them as they are, guide them, and nurture them. Wow, what an exciting opportunity!

Links to pertinent articles:

Weekend Beat: Cashing in on over-the-counter culture

Manga Demographics

What's hip, fresh and appeals to young readers? MANGA!