As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) we attend a local congregation called the Hikari ward. It is a Japanese congregation (meaning the whole service is conducted in Japanese) and there are two other American families that attend every Sunday with us. Around 80-100 people attend the congregation every Sunday, which is small compared to Utah but not much smaller than congregations in other parts of the states and the world. Even though we don't speak any Japanese and their English is limited, they have tried very hard to welcome us. Recently the relief society (women's organization) of the ward held a cooking activity where we learned to cook "American muffins". One of the other American ladies and I attended the class. You might think it is silly to attend a cooking class on making American food, however baking here in Japan is completely different than baking in the USA. The muffins were more like cupcakes, as I think they were trying to imitate Costco's muffins. Here is a picture of some of the ladies who are in our ward (and one of the husbands who snuck in for a treat) and the other American sister.
Presentation is huge in Japan. This was an example of how to wrap the muffins!
Picture of the sister missionaries. The missionary on the right is a brand new missionary from Hawaii. She helped translate a bit for us and we helped her cook!
My attempt to replicate!
Mike and I are amazed at the members of the church here in Japan. To be a member here requires a huge amount of sacrifice. It requires long commutes to church, long train rides to do your home teaching and visiting teaching, and a lot of financial sacrifice to pay tithing. The members will spend their entire Sunday commuting to church, fulfilling their callings, and doing their home teaching and visiting teaching. One sister told me she leaves for church around 9am with her 1 year old baby and often returns home around 6:30pm. I can't imagine wrestling a 1 year old baby for 9 hours at church meetings.
The Japanese business culture creates a lot of obstacles for members too, especially priesthood holders. The Japanese business culture makes it difficult for priesthood holders to keep the word of wisdom. It is considered an honor to be invited out to dinner with your boss. Many business dinners in Japan include alcohol and large amounts of sake (Japanese alcohol). It is considered offensive to not drink with your boss.
Due to these obstacles, most members of the church here own their own business or are doctors. Owning your business can be prosperous, but often is very time consuming and most members struggle financially. Doctors are part of the socialized medical system here so they are not as wealthy as doctors in the USA. There are many, many, many sisters who attend without their husbands.
It has been a good reminder and example for Mike and I to see the amount of service the Saints provide here!
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