Japan Inspired by the Devil
From the publication Consolation, from the Watchtower Society, Feb. 18, 1942. This is Part 1 of a four-part series.
Part 1: Japan Inspired by the Devil.
The title page.
1. The paper notes the Mikado is a sinner.
2. This part is accurate. Emperor worship was taught at the schools.
1. Again, the emphasis on the spiritual origins of the Emperor as opposed to all other leaders.
1. The paper again points up the superiority of Christianity.
2. The paper takes a blast at Japanese and Japanese Americans living in Hawaii.
1. There has, indeed, been factiousness towards the throne. At one point, actually dual Emperors and dual courts.
2. Japan's plan to conquer the world.
3. The racial aspect is raised. It was true, though, that the white race had subjugated Asian countries for a long time in the period of colonial growth.
1. Japan is destined to rule the world.
1. The idea that all of Japan should be united totally under the rule of the Emperor. This is expanded to also mean that the entire world, all 'four corners' as the saying goes, should also be united under Japan's rule.
1. This refers to the idea that, once a soldier dies properly in battle, his soul is enshrined at Yasukuni to be a god forever for Japan.
2. What the Japanese belief, in brief.
1. The Tanaka Memorial reference.
2. Japan's method of starting an attack.
German and British views of the Japanese military.
Part 2: Japan Deceived by the Devil.
The title of the second part of the series.
1. The article looks at Shinto.
1. They write about Jehovah's Witnesses in Japan.
2. Another reference to the schools promoting Emperor worship.
1. The article says the Shinto gods are really devils or demons.
Nothing really special on this page.
Pages 17 through 21 pretty much establish that the magazine doesn't care for the Pope or for Catholics. Not one single bit.
Part 3: Japan Oppressed by the Devil.
The title of this third part of the series.
1. The Vatican is equated with Berlin and Tokyo.
1. Another of the rather numerous forewarnings of an attack soon to take place on Pearl Harbor.
2. The attack was actually supposed to happen after war had been declared but, due to some mixups, the message didn't get to the U.S. before the attack, but afterwards. Even Yamamoto, who led the attack, was not happy when he found out about that.
3. A good point. The white races had oppressed their Asian colonies, but when the Japanese took over these areas their behavior was not any better; in many cases it was worse.
1. Hearst was the newspaper man who basically led the anti-Japanese attack on those persons of Japanese ancestry who were living in the U.S.
1. This is something that actually did upset the Japanese considerably. They felt they were surrounded by colonial powers and they were correct. America had the Philippines and some other areas. British and Dutch areas included India, Java and other countries. They were also worried quite a bit about Russia.
2. From the description, the writers didn't really understand how Japanese took baths.
This page continues to describe the rather poor living conditions of the average person in Japan.
1. The role of women in Japan.
1. It is true that sometimes daughters were sold into prostitution.
2. This talks about Japanese politeness.
1. The article claims that some of the Japanese on the West Coast are spies.
2. Yet the article also notes that the children are becoming 'increasingly loyal citizens.' This entire article is sort of schizophrenic, actually. It points up a lot of information about Japan, yet the vast bulk of that has nothing at all to do with the religious nature of the series. For example, that the average Japanese citizen was poor and led a rather difficult life doesn't mean they were 'oppressed by the devil.' If that was true, then the same could be said of all the poor people with harsh lives in India, in Africa, and anywhere else in the world that had similar living conditions.
3. This goes further than any of the other rumors I have read.
1. The dual citizenship was not the fault of the Nisei. That was just the way Japan considered things.
2. The Dies investigation, the committee establishing new highs (or lows, depending on how you consider it) for prejudice and racism.
Part 4: Japan Ruined by the Devil
Title for the last part of the series.
1. Again the claim of loads of Japanese spies in Hawaii.
2. The rumor of the short-wave radio sets used by fishing boats to communicate with spies, etc.
1. A 1932 warning about a Japan-U.S. war.
2. Billy Mitchell warns about Japan.
3. Something which became critically important later during the fire-bombing.
1. Back to the west-coast Japanese.
1. Some of the things done to influence Japan.
1. Not everyone in Japan wanted war.
1. An earlier forecast about the Japanese blitz.
1. Again something that became more important later, the kamikaze.
2. The Japanese didn't get along perfect well with the Nazis.
1. Once again the article equates the Vatican with Nazi Germany and Japan.
About the Watchtower publications.
Main Index
Japan main page
Japanese-American Internment Camps index page
Japan and World War II index page
|
