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http://www.greatcom.org/resources/areadydefense/ch27/default.htm
Meaning of Shinto
The word Shinto comes from the Chinese word Shen-Tao, which means "the way of the gods." This term was not applied to the religion until the sixth century A.D., when it became necessary in order to distinguish it from Buddhism. A major feature of Shinto is the notion of Jami. Kami is a difficult term to define precisely but it refers basically to the concept of sacred power in both animate and inanimate objects. Ninian Smart elaborates upon the idea of Jami in the following manner:
Shintoism displayed, and still displays, a powerful sense of the presence of gods and spirits in nature. These spirits are called Jami, literally, "superior beings," and it is appropriate to venerate them. The Jami are too numerous to lend themselves to a systematic ordering or stable hierarchy, but among them the sun goddess Amaterasu has long held a central place in Shinto belief.
Sacred Books
Although Shinto does not consider any one volume as the wholly inspired revelation on which its religion is based, two books are considered sacred and have done much to influence the beliefs of the Japanese people. The works are Ko-Jo-ki, the "records of ancient matters," and Nihon-gi, the "chronicles of Japan." They were both composed around A.D. 720 and because they report events occurring some 1300 years earlier in the history of Japan, they are considered late works.
Worship
The basic place for worship in Shinto is at one of the numerous shrines covering the country of Japan. Although many Shintoists have built altars in their homes, the center of worship is the local shrine. Since Shinto has a large number of deities, a systematic worship of all such deities is impossible. The Shinto religious books acknowledge that only a few deities are consistently worshipped, the chief being the sun-goddess, Amaterasu.
The fact that the highest object of worship from whom the divine ancestors arose is a female rather than a male deity makes Shinto unique among the larger world religions.
Shinto and Christianity
The religion of Shinto is in opposition to Christianity. In its purest form it teaches the superiority of the Japanese people and their land above all others on earth and that is diametrically opposed to the teaching of the Bible. According to the Bible, the Jews are God's chosen people through whom He entrusted His words.
Then what advantage has the Jew? or what is the benefit of circumcision? Great in every respect. First of all, that they were entrusted with the oracles of God (Romans 3:1,2, NASB).
However, though the Jews are God's chosen people, they have never been designated better than any other people (Galatians 3:27) and they have never been taught that they were direct descendants of the gods, as Shinto teaches its people.
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