Religious practices by foreigners?

Hi,

I was wondering, for all you people who made the move to Japan and live there at least somewhat long-term, do you participate in Shinto and/or Buddhist religious rituals and festivals like native Japanese people, or not? Are foreigners generally outcast from these events?

I had read somewhere that Shinto in particular wasn't welcoming to foreigners, and only the native-born ethnically Japanese could ''really'' practice Shinto.

Alternatively, has anyone else who was religious in a Western religion, like Christianity or Judaism, continued this in Japan?

do you participate in Shinto and/or Buddhist religious rituals and festivals like native Japanese people, or not?

Yes, I do. But it is made easy by the fact that my wife and her family are Japanese. I married in Shinto style, got the property of my new home purified by our local Shinto priestess, participated at several Buddhist funerals, including two as a close family member, am usually making a short prayer of respect and sometimes buy an amulet or daruma doll when visiting shrines and temples, am member of the neighborhood club that is in charge of a festival float at our local festival, and have been to hatsumode (first visit to a shrine) and various festivals annually for many years.

Are foreigners generally outcast from these events?

No, to the opposite. At festivals, in particular, foreigners are often enthusiastically invited to participate. Many other rituals and ceremonies (e.g. funerals, weddings, purifications of new cars and properties before the construction of a new house) are a form of business and, unless there is a major language barrier, I doubt very strongly that foreigners will be refused.

I had read somewhere that Shinto in particular wasn't welcoming to foreigners, and only the native-born ethnically Japanese could ''really'' practice Shinto.

Then you must have read some right wing literature or the article of a badly informed Western journalist. Unfortunately, there are still quite a few of them out there.

I had read somewhere that Shinto in particular wasn't welcoming to foreigners, and only the native-born ethnically Japanese could ''really'' practice Shinto.

Religion in Japan is certainly different from religion on Europe or the US. In Japan it would be perfectly okay to visit a Shinto shrine,a Buddhist temple and a Christian church on the same day.
I guess the above quote could apply to becoming a Shinto priest but nothing is more simpler than going to a Shinto shrine and have your car blessed, have a marriage ceremony, buy a fortune or charm, pray to the kami for the outcome of an exam or so, or have the kids participate in the yearly 7-5-3 festival, etc..

Not many natives "practice" religion here in Japan in the first place. The majority would just attend shinto weddings if invited, and attend buddist funerals if someone you know passes away. Baptised Japanese might attend Christain churches every sunday, but very few Japanese are enthusiastic enough to give buddist/shinto prayers more than once several months. Religious festivals are held now and then, mostly in summer and autumn, but they're mainly about dancing and performances and less about worshipping rituals. Also, in shinto/budist weddings, only close family are invited to the wedding ceremony itself. The rest is just invited to the banquette. It doesn't matter whether you're native or not.

Young Japanese seem to not be interested in Shinto any more. I'm American and a Minister and when my Japanese wife and I wanted to be married in a Shinto Shrine the Priest was very happy that a foreigner was interested. He even helped train us so we can do Shinto weddings in America and we are doing so now. They are happy that foreigners are interested in their culture.

I attended a big Shinto festival on my first trip to Japan and when the priests saw me (a Caucasian male) in the crowd they all blessed me one another with huge genuine smiles.
I was raised in both the Catholic and Protestants faiths in Western Europe (yes the priests in both religions knew ) and do also like very much the Shinto religion ..its.reminds me of the Celtic religion with its worship of animals, springs, trees, etc (many holy Celtic sites eventually became Christian holy sites and the oldest Virgin Mary statues in Europe are likely Celtic or Roman statues)

I have found that, of all people in the worls, the North Americans in general are much too uptight about religions. Not enough historical perspective I guess..

Have you ever heard of Zen Buddhism? You are very welcome to try it. There might be a place where you can study it even in your home town. But you can come to Japan to study it.

Why would you stop practicing a religion just because you moved?
Every religion and cult is in Japan somewhere.

Japanese people are happy to share religious traditions with foreigners. And they are also respectful of others' religious beliefs.

I am a Chrstian and when I am in Japan, I go about continuing and growing my relationship with God the same as I do here in the U.S. I'm not gonna change just because I am in Japan.
Though, if you are a real Christ-follower, you can feel some spiritual pressure in Japan. There are lots of spiritual barriers and VERY few Christians (actually only around 0.2% of Japan is Christian).

Ok, I'm done blabbing.
Hope that helped.

NeoRaye,

I don't think the OP was asking about stopping or changing his religous practices. He was just wondering if he was free to try out new ones.