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More than an Ocean: The Social Isolation of Japanese Young People and Hikikomori

Though separated from the rest of the world by an ocean and an intensely private culture, the young people of Japan are suffering from an isolation far greater than their position on the map – hikikomori.  Definined by the BBC article cited below, hikikomori “translates as ‘withdrawal’ and refers to a person sequestered in his room for six months or longer with no social life beyond his home.”  This withdrawal is completely voluntary (rather like an eating disorder, in that regard); affects mostly young men (most of whom are oldest sons under a lot of pressure to succeed); and from all accounts, usually occurs after a traumatic failure of some kind – social or academic. Some hikikomori do not leave their homes for years or only leave in the middle of the night when they are most assured of privacy; some cut themselves or punch the walls in frustration.  In an MSNBC article, one hikikomori stated that she became like the family pet.  This problem, though it sounds strange to an American audience, hangs heavily over the deeply private country of Japan, and may contribute to the extremely high rates of suicide there.  It is estimated that between 100,000 and 1 million individuals suffer from this disorder in Japan, and the consequences, as the New York Times states, are “dire … Some experts predict that most hikikomori who are withdrawn for a year or more may never fully recover … if they emerge from their rooms, they either won’t get a full-time job or won’t be involved in a long-term relationship.” They become so crippled by their isolation, so riddled with mental illness and fear (see the later pages of the New York Times article for further information on that particular topic) that they cannot function in society with other people in a healthy and mutually supportive way.

That is not how God designed us to live.  The Bible tells us clearly that it “isn’t good for the man to live alone” (Genesis 2:18, CEV).  Furthermore, in Hebrews 10:25, GNB, Paul wrote, “Let us not give up the habit of meeting together, as some are doing.  Instead, let us encourage one another all the more, since you see that the Day of the Lord is coming nearer.”  The liberating truth of God’s perfect plan for us is that He calls us to community, calls us to loving relationships with other people – that’s how He created us!  To be a reflection of the fellowship experienced in the Trinity!  He did not design us to spend years of our lives inside small rooms, with no human interaction at all.  And because they are not easily accessible, these people have been largely forgotten by people like us – Christians who want the Gospel to expand.  So, I challenge each of you (as well as myself) to be intentionally praying for the hikikomori to be liberated through the knowledge of Christ.  God still sees them, still knows their names, still has good plans for them, still longs to see them free.  And I believe, these are the people God has sent us to as Christians; they are too in bondage to seek Him out for themselves, so we, like the four friends who carried their crippled friend to Jesus and ripped the roof off to get healing for Him, need to tenaciously intercede for them.  No matter how many walls they’ve surrounded themselves with – our prayers can find them, can empower them, can change their lives and the course of eternity.  Our prayers can introduce them to the “life and life more abundantly” that Jesus Christ died to give them (see John 10:10). 

So, what do we pray?  We pray that God would provide workers for the harvest; that sold-out, on-fire, love-filled Christians will inundate the lives of the family members of the hikikomori, so that they can bring the message of liberation home to this forgotten population.  We pray that the hearts of the hikikomori would be softened to hear that Jesus stands and knocks at their door, and that they'll realize if they'll open the door - He'll come in and eat with them, that He'll enter their hearts and change their lives (Rev. 3:20).  We need to pray that the Spirit of the Lord God would take control of His servants in Japan and that He would lead them to the right houses, to the right doors, “to tell the oppressed the good news, to heal the brokenhearted, and to announce freedom for the prisoners and captives” (Isaiah 61:1, CEV).  We need to pray that as people of faith “knock [on the door of isolation] … the door will be opened for them” (Luke 11:9, CEV) to share the Gospel and to bring brothers and sisters out into the light of abundant life God has planned for them.  And we need to thank God that when He opens a door, no one can close it (Revelation 3:7).  In addition, once the hikikomori emerge from the shadows of their bondage, we should pray in accordance with Psalm 16:3: that they would be surrounded by God-chosen lives who would make splendid friends for them (MSG), that the beauty of faith-filled people would encompass them and thrill their hearts beyond measure (Voice), that their greatest pleasure would be to be in the presence of God’s chosen people, celebrating His faithfulness (GNB) – and that therefore, they would never return to the shadows.    

Websites I gathered information from:

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  1. yay for God's transforming power on my favorite country :D :D

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