Easter Too Childish for Japan

[Mulboyne]

ABC (2004): A quiet Easter in Japan
Living in Tokyo, there's usually only one Easter mystery where's Easter? It's simply not celebrated. Chocolate eggs are hard to find, fluffy bunnies are virtually unheard of. In some ways, it's disconcerting, in others, a huge relief to be rid of the overwhelming merchandising...I still can't quite work out why a Japanese Easter isn't more popular than it is. Other western festivals, such as Halloween, are huge events. Valentines Day is so big there are two of them.
MARK SIMKIN: Why don't you think Easter hasn't been commercialised in Japan?
KO OKAZAKI: Well, that's a very difficult question indeed. I don't think Japanese adult people can enjoy having that small chocolate egg type of thing. Relevancy with Japanese people is pretty much important to commercialise something and relevancy and association with something that is very close to Japanese life is very important to commercialise something. An Easter egg is not so relevant for adult Japanese because that is purely the kids' chocolate I think.
MARK SIMKIN: It's an explanation that makes sense. A Japanese Christmas is much more a festival than a religious event, and it's largely driven by adults.

[ichigo partygirl]

too childish for japan???? LOL whatever. This is the country where housewives wear aprons with cartoons on them - where you can buy cartoon character ovens, toasties, toasters etc!!!!
Most japanese ive told about easter just cant get their heads around hollow chocolate eggs - they cant understand the concept - and when they eat them they get sorta freaked out!! its rather funny

[FG Lurker]

I think there are two reasons that Easter has never "taken off" in Japan:

a) it moves every year
and
b) it does not involve gift giving.

Christmas and Valentines took off because unlike Easter they are easy to mark on a calendar and they involve buying gifts -- something the dept stores adore.

As for Halloween...It's big here?? In 10 years here I've never seen decorations or parties outside of the "gaijin world".

[GomiGirl]

But I really wish I could find some Hot Cross Buns!!!!

[AssKissinger]

I had to teach a 'culture lesson' about Easter. The kids seem to have some kind of aversion to it here. The only thing they liked was when I compared Jesus to Jason because he came back from the dead.

[ichigo partygirl]

But I really wish I could find some Hot Cross Buns!!!!

awww poor gomigirl. i had a couple of them today - toasted with butter in them, yummy.

[Charles]

In a country with a religious culture that includes reincarnation, there isn't anything particularly miraculous about christian myths of resurrection. There isn't much point to easter in Japan. Hell, there isn't much point to easter outside of Italy and Israel.

[Charles]

I had to teach a 'culture lesson' about Easter. The kids seem to have some kind of aversion to it here. The only thing they liked was when I compared Jesus to Jason because he came back from the dead.

Maybe they are fearful because they heard the story about how Tokugawa crucified all the christians in Japan.

"Crucifixion? Good. One cross each, line on the left."

[Andocrates]

I am currently in Bible Thumping land and it's as boring here as Japan. Oh wait, big change this year, Some of the more progressive churches are have started to call them "ressurection eggs." So, it's got that working for it.

[Taro Toporific]

Gee, I cannot imagine way a dead Jesus festival would not seem fun to the Japanese.

[Samurai_Jerk]

When I was teaching high school on JET the Japanese teacher asked me to explain Easter to the students (mostly female, btw). So I talked about the Crusifixion and the Ressurection while the Japanese teacher translated for the class. Something must have been lost in translation because they got a horrifed look on their face and when I talked about Jesus rising from the dead one of the girls said, "Kowaii." I guess they pictured some sort of Night-of-the-Living-Dead zombie Christ.

[sillygirl]

As for Halloween...It's big here?? In 10 years here I've never seen decorations or parties outside of the "gaijin world".

As if Disneyland wasn't scary enough:

http://nowseehere.typepad.com/photos/tdl_halloween2003/

[FG Lurker]

In a country with a religious culture that includes reincarnation, there isn't anything particularly miraculous about christian myths of resurrection. There isn't much point to easter in Japan. Hell, there isn't much point to easter outside of Italy and Israel.

One could say with equal correctness that there isn't much point to being Buddhist outside of Asia.

[katakori]

come on, if filipinos can find an interest in it, japanese should find a way to make it even more fun!




somehow related, why would tokyo have a saint patrick parade on omotesando?

[Taro Toporific]

...somehow related, why would tokyo have a saint patrick parade on omotesando?

Perhaps it's the green beer and pink leperchauns.

[sillygirl]

...somehow related, why would tokyo have a saint patrick parade on omotesando?

Perhaps it's the green beer and pink leperchauns.

V disappointed not seeing any of the pink fellows last Sunday :P

[dimwit]

I talked about the Crusifixion and the Ressurection while the Japanese teacher translated for the class. Something must have been lost in translation because they got a horrifed look on their face and when I talked about Jesus rising from the dead one of the girls said, "Kowaii." I guess they pictured some sort of Night-of-the-Living-Dead zombie Christ.

Originally when Christianity was introdcued to Japan, the idea of crucifixion was not at all distasteful. The concept of painfully dying for a noble cause was quite appealing to many samurai. It partially explains why up to 10% of Japanese converted to Christianity during the later half of the 16th century.

[Neo-Rio]

My GF sat down and watched "The Passion of Christ".

Suffice to say, she never understood what the bleeding hell was going on. Personally I was able to see what was intended because I knew the story and religion behind it, but since she had no understanding of the background to it she got quite bored.

I asked her what she thought of it later and she said "It's just a movie about how some people murdered a guy, with no real plot. What's the big deal with it?"