Page:A handbook of modern Japan (IA handbookofmodern01clem).pdf/349

Rh is more a holiday than a holy day, is also proving to be a boon in business and labor circles, and is coming gradually to be observed more strictly. Christian socialism, too, is not without its influence in Japan.

There are a few Japanese newspapers which are owned, managed, and edited by Christians, and are working, in their way, to uphold Christian institutions. They are also striving to introduce into Japanese journalism higher ideals. There is a still larger number of papers, whose managers and editors, though not professedly Christian, favor Christianity, especially in its social and moral aspects, and have, for instance, given a hearty support to the crusade against the social evil. The influence of Christianity may also be seen in the elevation of the tone of the Japanese press.

The impress of Christianity has also been felt even in the political institutions of New Japan. The principle of constitutionalism found no encouragement in the philosophy of Old Japan, but is the fruit of Christian civilization. The doctrine of religious liberty, acknowledged in the Constitution, is of Christian origin. The old idea of impersonality, which recognized no value in the individual, but called him or her a "thing," could not live long after the Christian teachings of individual worth, rights, and responsibility, and personal salvation became prevalent. These points illustrate some indirect, but important, results of Christianity in Japan.