Final Days in Tokyo, Japan
Tokyo was a monument to wealth and technology.
I offered some observations on the conference in Tokyo, as well as my son’s analysis of Japanese culture. So, I’d like to close by providing a little summary of the Lord’s Day in Tokyo and some closing scenes of our final days.
May in Tokyo is cool outside, around 65 degrees. There was something serene about walking to church in the largest city in the world. The 20-minute walk was delightful. It was odd to have a tall-white man point his finger at me and say, “What’s up, Pastor Brito?!” He was an American living in Tokyo, attending Mitaka Evangelical. It’s not hard to detect a 6’1 ft. brown-skinned man wearing a collar in mid-Tokyo. Still, the experience was humorous.
I arrived at Mitaka at around 10 am, met some of the saints, and prepared for worship. You can listen to my sermon below from Psalm 24:
After the service was over, we walked to a nearby home and had a delightful lunch and fellowship. Several Americans from CREC churches in the U.S. visited that Sunday. It was great to make those acquaintances. We then returned to Mitaka for an afternoon Q&A, where I fielded questions about biblical typology, politics, CREC cultural and liturgical elements, and more.
When we concluded our business in Mitaka, we hurried to catch a train to Rev. Tom Cotton’s congregation. We arrived on time and were met by a fairly international body. The music alternated between English and Japanese. It was delightful to hear that back-and-forth.
I had met Tom at Council in 2023 in Moscow, ID. Tom is an Australian pastor ministering as the newly elected Senior Pastor of this congregation. He’s a delightful servant doing God’s work faithfully in his community.
Once the service concluded, we enjoyed a delicious dinner and then returned from Q&A, which lasted way past 10 pm. It was a long day, but a fruitful opportunity to share about the work of the CREC with these eager saints.
Our final days in Tokyo were spent in fellowship and touring the busiest city on earth. We kept our walking routine that we had established in Kyoto. Of course, we visited the Shibuya Crossing, which is considered the world's busiest pedestrian crossing, with up to 3,000 people passing through at a time. It’s pretty surreal to see that many people crossing at once. Across the street is also the busiest Starbucks in the world. While we didn’t dare grab coffee, they say the service is light-speed.
While we did quite a bit of touring, the Shibuya Crossing and the Tokyo Tower stand as the two must-sees of the city. The tower is an extraordinary place. It is not the largest tower in Tokyo, but it offers the best view of the city's immensity. We made it to the top. The view is otherworldly!
Tokyo was superb, both for its cultural uniqueness in Asia and for its monuments to technology. It was a different world from Kyoto. Kyoto is renowned for its historical sites, while Tokyo is where modern history unfolds at a rapid pace.
Thanks for your vivid descriptions and stimulating observations of Japan! And thank you, Pastor, for the shepherding watchcare you show for tiny CREC congregations in places as remote as Tokyo and Tucson : )