Alternative Culture: The Theology of Frieren: Beyond Journey's End

 

[The following post is dedicated to my wife, who loves Frieren: Beyond Journey's End]

One of the most popular anime nowadays is Frieren: Beyond Journey's End. I even see it traction among the Christian community who often regard it as the anime version of the Book of Acts.

In this post I want to explore the theology of this anime. I have watched the anime until season 2's end, so all my information is based on that. Furthermore, the creators of the series are probably not Christian, so any apparent relation to Christianity is accidental rather than intentional.

So what happens after the journey is completed?

Unlike most stories, Frieren: Beyond Journey's End takes place after the main quest have been resolved. The demon king is defeated by the human hero Himmel and his companions (one of whom is the elf Frieren). As a result, the story is focused on Frieren trying to find purpose after her quest is done (which includes finding and defeating the remnants of the demon king's followers)

This is similar to the Christian religion where Jesus had already defeated death and assured the salvation of mankind. All that is left with persuading humanity of the truth of the gospel. This immediate aftermath is covered in the book of the Bible called Acts.

The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah. - Acts 5: 41-42

Similarly, Frieren continues to do good with the mantra "what would Himmel do?".

Maturing over time

After Himmel's death (due to old age), Frieren wept. She had spent a good ten years with Himmel but yet she hardly knew him as a person. She understood his battle strategy, his values and his behaviour, but she did not know his personality, his likes and his philosophy. She had kept him at an arm's length, and only at his death she regretted not treasuring him.

Instead of staying at the stage of grief, Frieren moves on and starts her own journey and begins to understand Himmel better.

Similarly in Acts, the disciples of Jesus who once not understood that he was Messiah became transformed by friendship with Jesus and each other. They grew in their knowledge of Christ and became brave even in the face of persecution.

All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all - Acts 4: 32-33

Beware false teachers

Another point that the series make is to beware of the lies from the demon mouth. In one instance, a demon loosely uses the word "mother" to appeal for mercy from humans. However, the demons were shown not to share the same morals -- they do not even have the concept of family.

This parallels the concept of false teachers in Acts. They appear to be fellow Christians, speak the same language or share the same values but seek to lead people astray.

I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.
-- Acts 20: 29-30

Conclusion

In short, Frieren feels like a fantasy "Acts" because it captures the spirit of continuing the mission after the great victory — traveling, forming community, doing good, confronting evil, and grappling with time, loss, and eternity. That's why it resonates so deeply with Christian audiences even without intending to. 

Just bear in mind that:

A) Frieren is not allegory or propaganda. It's a secular Japanese fantasy with Buddhist/Shinto influences mixed in, focused on melancholy, slice-of-life pacing, and appreciating the present.

B) Acts is explicitly evangelistic and theological, centered on the Holy Spirit, resurrection, and salvation through Christ.

C) Frieren is slower and more introspective; Acts is full of dramatic miracles, persecutions, and church growth.

Theology 1.0: Who are the Hidden Christians of Japan?

The 26 Martyrs in Japan

Hidden Christians, often referred to as Kakure Kirishitan in Japan, are communities of Christians who practiced their faith in secret due to persecution and bans on Christianity. The term is most commonly associated with Japanese Christians during the Edo period (17th to 19th centuries) when the Tokugawa shogunate outlawed Christianity starting in the early 1600s

The introduction of Christianity in Japan

Christianity was introduced to Japan in 1549 by Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier, initially gaining converts. However, fearing foreign influence, the shogunate banned it, expelling missionaries and forcing Christians to practice in secret. Their communities were concentrated in areas with historical ties to early Catholic missionary activity and where geographic isolation helped them evade detection.

This led to the development of unique rituals and syncretic practices.

The theology of the Hidden Christians

The theology of the Kakure Kirishitan (Hidden Christians) in Japan diverged significantly from mainstream Christianity due to their centuries-long isolation from the Catholic Church and the need to practice in secret under the Tokugawa shogunate’s ban on Christianity (1614–1873). Cut off from priests, formal scriptures, and ecclesiastical guidance, their beliefs and practices evolved into a unique, syncretic form shaped by oral tradition, Japanese cultural influences, and the necessity of concealment.

Such differences from mainline Christianity include:

A) Simplified theology
With no access to the Bible or formal teachings, Kakure Kirishitan relied on oral transmission of prayers (called orasho, derived from Latin or Portuguese oratio). Over time, these prayers became distorted, and their meanings were often lost or reinterpreted. Core Christian doctrines, like the Trinity or the Resurrection, became vague or were understood in localized terms.

Their theology became less dogmatic and more focused on devotion to specific figures (e.g., Mary, Jesus, and certain saints) rather than complex theological concepts. For instance, the concept of salvation was often understood through a lens of ancestral continuity rather than the eschatological framework of mainstream Christianity.

B) Syncretism with Shinto and Buddhism

To avoid detection, Kakure Kirishitan blended Christian practices with Shinto and Buddhist elements. For example, they venerated the Virgin Mary as resembling Kannon, the Buddhist goddess of mercy, and used Buddhist-style statues or scrolls to represent Christian figures. Prayers were often disguised as Buddhist chants, and Christian rituals were performed in ways that mimicked Shinto or Buddhist ceremonies.

This syncretism led to a theology that incorporated animistic and polytheistic elements from Shinto and Buddhist cosmology, diluting the monotheistic core of Christianity. Some Kakure communities revered ancestors alongside Christian saints, reflecting Shinto ancestor worship, which mainstream Christianity would not typically emphasize in this way.

Japanese Christians praying, Nagasaki 2017

After Japan legalised Christianity

After the ban was lifted in 1873, some Hidden Christians rejoined the Catholic Church, while others, known as Kakure Kirishitan, continued their distinct traditions, which diverged significantly from orthodox Catholicism. They maintained rituals like chanting "orasho" prayers (derived from Latin or Portuguese) and used hidden icons, such as scrolls of Mary and Jesus disguised as Buddhist figures.

In 2025

Today, Kakure Kirishitan are a dwindling group, primarily found in remote areas like Ikitsuki Island and the Gotō Islands in Nagasaki Prefecture. Their numbers have drastically declined, with estimates suggesting fewer than 100 practitioners remain on Ikitsuki as of 2025, down from thousands in the mid-20th century.

Theology 1.0: 26 Martyrs of Japan

 

Martyrdom of Paul Miki and Companions in Nagasaki, unknown Japanese artist, c.1635

In terms of proportion, Japan has one of the lowest Christian population in developed countries. As of 2015, only 2% of its population are Christians. This is in contrast with South Korea (29.2%), Singapore (18.9%) and Hong Kong (11.7%). This is considered unusual because in such places, religious freedom is allowed.

However, one must remember that Japan was not always tolerant to the Christian faith.

The first missionaries
In 1543, the Portuguese came into contact with the Japanese. As part of their cultural norms, they brought along Roman Catholic missionaries with them. 

The Japanese authorities initially were supportive of the missionaries and Jesuits (religious order of Roman Catholic monks). After all, they took power away from the Shinto Buddhist monks, and were essential to trade with the Europeans. By 1573, Japan had about 130 000 Christian converts.

The banning of Christianity
However, the Christian converts began to disrupt the social fabric of Japan. Not only did they challenge the feudal system, the more violent factions sacked Buddhist provinces and temples. In response, the the second great unifier of Japan, Hideyoshi issued a ban on Christianity in 1587.

The reputation of Christianity took a further hit when the Spanish ship San Felipe wrecked itself in Japan in 1596. The captain of the San Felipe poorly communicated the purpose of the Spanish missionaries, and this caused the Japanese authorities to think that the missionaries were here to subvert Japan, and colonise Japan for Spain.

26 Martyrs
For refusing to leave the country, the Japanese rounded up 26 Roman Catholics and forced marched them for 30 days. 24 of them had their ears cut off. Finally, they were executed in Feburary 1597 via crucifixion and spearing.

Among them was a Japanese Jesuit called Paul Miki. According to certain accounts he said, 

"All of you who are here, please, listen to me... I have committed no crime, and the only reason why I am put to death is that I have been teaching the doctrine of Our Lord Jesus Christ. I am very happy to die for such a cause, and see my death as a great blessing from the Lord. At this critical time when, you can rest assured that I will not try to deceive you, I want to stress and make it unmistakably clear that man can find no way to salvation other than the Christian way. The Christian religion tells us to forgive our enemies and those who do harm us, and so I say that I forgive the emperor and those responsible for my death. I have no hatred for the emperor; indeed, I wish that he and all the Japanese would become Christians."

This was the first execution ordered by the highest authority in Japan because of religious belief.

Aftermath
The martyrs were canonized as Saints in 1862, while Japan eventually allowed freedom of religion again in 1889. The feast day is on February 6.

Alternative Culture: Japan Sinks review

 

It is well known that the Japanese home islands were formed by volcanic eruptions. But what happens if the islands start sinking? That is the scenario that Japan Sinks seeks to explore in the year 2020.

Synopsis

Japan Sinks follows the adventures of the Muto family as they attempt to survive the collapse of the Japanese home islands. Aided by strangers (including the enigmatic Kite) along the way, the Muto family overcome challenge after challenge to find refuge from the disaster. But will there be true safety from the disaster? How different will the Muto family be post-disaster?

Theological review
There are many themes explored in the ten-episode long series. For instance, there was a storyline involving a cult and the strength of their religion. There were also an arc showing the racism of some Japanese nationalists. Yet I just want to write about one of the themes.

When it all falls apart, what do you hold on to?
One of the things that kept the Muto family going was that they hold something to hold onto. Initially it was the unflinching optimism of Koichiro (the father) that drove the family, followed by sheer determination of Mori (the mother). Due to changing circumstances, the family and their associated group repeatedly have to change their motivations for going on.

Thus the members are consistently demoralised as their source of hope is unseated over and over again during the series.

What about us?
Japan Sinks is a thought-provoking film as it brings us to the age-old question: What is our source of hope? When things go wrong, who do we turn to?

Where can I go from your Spirit?
    Where can I flee from your presence?
 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
    if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
    if I settle on the far side of the sea,
 even there your hand will guide me,
   your right hand will hold me fast.
 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”
 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to you. -- Psalms (139: 7-12)

Alternative Culture: Spirited Away Review

One of the great things about this circuit-breaker (or the Singapore "lockdown") is that I can spend some time with my wife to catch up on all the Netflix films I had planned to watch.

So one of the movies I hopped on was the classic from Hayao Miyazaki, Spirited Away. While portrayed as a children's show combined with imagery and themes from Shinto Buddhism, I found some ideas that resonated with Christianity.

Synopsis
The film follows Chihiro, a ten-year old girl, as she entered the spirit world with her parents unwittingly. As her parents get turned into pigs, Chihiro seeks the help of spirit world residents to return her family to the earthly realm.

Greed
Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” -- Luke 12:15

One of the main theme of the movie is greed. One thing that united the residents of the spirit world is their greed for gold. As the spirit No-Face is seen as a high-spending customer, the residents are willing to suspend all rest hours and services in order to serve him. Seeing that this was a pattern, No-Face also tries to buy the affection of Chihiro by offering her a huge number of gold nuggets. Chihiro rightly ignores him.

Note on this point: He did not trust Chihiro to like him for who he is; he just trusted her to be greedy.
This assumption also extends to the owner of the bathhouse and her relationship with her baby. She

This point is reflected in our daily lives. After all, it is a governmental belief that high salaries and bonus retains talent. We can trust game companies to charge extra for content. Even highly-paid world leaders are not immune from corruption.

Be careful of who you trust
“From the least to the greatest,
    all are greedy for gain;
prophets and priests alike,
    all practice deceit." -- Jeremiah 6:13

What lesson can we learn then? From the Bible we know that not even priests, leaders or our own hearts are immune to greed.

It still shocks me today that people blindly follow certain leaders, reporters or even governments (instead of insisting on some form of discernment).

We also should watch our own hearts.

"For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God." -- Ephesians 5:5

Alternative Culture: Confessions (2010 Japanese film)

My friend, who is doing a Masters in art asked if I wanted to watch a Japanese film with her. The last Japan films I watched were of the Death Note series, and it was L: Change the World.

So wondering what the film was like, I decided to watch Confessions with her. After all, it was an Academy Award nominee, so it had to be at least a decent film.

Confessions tells the story of a teacher who seeks to avenge her daughter's death, by going after her killers. The two killers are her own students.

The storyline
Moriguchi Yuko (Matsu Takako) announced to her form class of 13 year-olds that she is resigning. She revealed that her daughter (Ashida Mana) had been killed by two students of the class-- Shiomura Naoki (Fujiwara Kaoru) and Murakawa Shinya (Amami Juri), even though the police concluded that her death was via accidental drowning. The rowdy class remained apathetic and rude until Yuko reveals that she had injected HIV-positive blood into the milk of Naoki and Shinya. Although none of them would be infected with HIV (you can't get HIV from drinking tainted milk! More people should study Biology, like me!). the class shrieked in horror as they back away from both Noaki and Shinya. Yuko reminded the class that "all life is precious" hypocritically and finally took her leave.

Confessions is unlike a typical revenge story, as it is told from five perspectives, thus involving flashbacks and flashforwards. Let's go through each of them.


Shiomura Naoki
Naoki suffered from inferoirty complex. He joined a sports school, but was not good at sports. He joined a cram school, but was not good in his studies. Everyone in class bullied him, and he longed for a friend. Everyone, except Shinya.

Sick of Yuko's attempts to help him, Naoki suggested that they should target Yuko's daughter to teach Yuko a lesson. On the day of the murder, Shinya rigged a purse to deliver an electric shock to render Yuko's daughter unconscious (but alive). Thinking that he had killed her, Shinya boasted that he finally did something note-worthy. He then confessed that he never liked Naoki anyway, and was just using him to lure a target. In other words, Naoki would never amount to anything, much less a killer.

As Shinya left the scene of crime, Naoki discovered that their victim was still alive. Remembering Shinya's words, he tossed the Yuko's daughter into a swimming pool, effectively drowning her to deny Naoki's claim to murder.

Upon thinking he was infected with HIV, Naoki dropped out of school, and refused to attend classes in the new term. He refused to let everyone and everything touch him, and scrubbed everything he touched, thinking that he had infected it (like Lady Macbeth).

New teacher Yoshiteru Terada (Okada Masami) naively attempts to reach to him with enocuragement and messages from the class (the class had made notes of encouragement for him, but contained cryptic messages to remind Naoki of his murder), but his attempts only drive him further to insanity. Kitahara Mitsuki (Hashimoto Ai), the class moniteress suggested to Terada that he was pursuing a lost cause, but this drive Terada (who does not knowthe whole story) to increase his efforts.

Mrs Naoki
Naoki's mother (Kimura Yoshino) is incapable to believing that her son's mediocrity is his fault. She blames society, Yuko, Terada, his classmates and herself (basically everyone except Naoki) for her son's condition. Continually absolving her son's innocence in the light of recent events, she finally hits a breaking point when Naoki confesses that he intentionally killed Yuko's daughter. Taking the blame of her son's action, Mrs Naoki wrote a letter of confession and stabbed her son in the chest. Naoki then demostrated what he was really good at-- killing, and stabbed his mother.

Kitahara Mitsuki
After the resignation of Yuko, the class began to taunt and bully Shinya, constantly reminding him that he was a killer. Only the class monitress Mituski refused to take part in such activities. Upon discovery of severe bullying, Terada reprimanded the class, and Mituski was immediately suspected as Terada's informant. So she shared the bullying with Shinya.

Such bullying made Mituski close to Shinya, and they become good friends. Believing her love for him would change him, Mituski confessed she admired Shinya's genius. To impress Shinya, she told the police the reason for Naoki's breakdown-- the frequent visits of Terada. This destroys the naive Terada's personality, confidence and ultimately his faith in the character of his students.

Murakawa Shinya
Shinya is a genius with a superiority complex. Despite winning a science fair, he craves fame, and was upset when news of a juvenile murdering her whole family made the front page. Abandoned by his mother (a professional physicist) when he was young, Shinya was hoping that his genius would allow his mother to finally accept him. He would show off his inventions in his blog (his source of confessions), but she did not reply.

He went to the extent of intenting to kill Yuko's daughter but failed. This denied him the chance of fame. He finally broke and decided to blow the whole school up. When ridiculed by Mituski for his craving for fame (as mummy issues), he beat her to death via a blunt object.

Despite planting the bomb at the school hall, it failed to detonate as he activated it. What happened?

Moriguchi Yuko
Yuko had planned everything all along. Refusing to over her evidence to the police (as they would have pressed light charges to minors), Yuko took revenge into her own hands.

She had played on Terada's enthusiasm, and advised him to keep visiting Naoki (counting on the nastiness of her ex-class to ruin Naoki further). As Mituski regularly met up with her, Yuko learnt about Shinya's family issues. She was the one who had moved the bomb, and confessed this act to Shinya over the phone, and that the bomb was placed at his mother's office. In other words, Shinya killed his mother.

Confronting Shinya (who was now in tears), Yuko told him that he had tasted his own medicine (death of a loved one), and now he had to work on a road of reformation and redemption. "Just kidding," she ended, rejecting his possiblity of redemption.

Discussion
Social responsiblitiy: Classic Liberialism and Conservativism
One of the ideas the film explores is the idea of responsibility. Who is responsible when a person commits a crime. Traditional Liberialism (sounds like an oxymoron) tends to place the blame on society, while Classic Conservativism places blame on the individual.

And to some extent, the film explores both cases. Naoki can be easily seen as a leaf in the ocean, being pushed an influenced by Shinya, his classmates and his mother. He bases his self-worth on his friends and parent, and he slips into depression upon Shinya's betrayal and the painful reminders by his classmates.

Shinya, on the other hand is a force of his own. Other than motivated by fame (his self-worth), he attempts to kill Yuko's daughter and the school, and actually kills Mituski and his mother himself. Despite his genius and strong personality, he fails to choose what is right. This is most poignant when Yuko rightly pointed out that Shinya could have chosen not to detonate the bomb. But he did.

Self-worth
The film places a lot on self-worth. It does not take a philosopher to underline the importantness of this question. For Naoki's mother, it is her son. Thus when realising her son was beyond redemption, she murders him. For Shinya, it was his mother's respect and the need for global recognition. Upon wanting those, he planned to murder a school to make headline news.

However as Christians, we have to remember that our self-worth is in God. After all, if we believe in God, then we are reasonable to believe in our own value. God made us his unique creations, possessing unimaginable, intrinsic worth.  Furthermore, each child of God has a unique gifting from the Spirit, indispensable and irreplaceable (1 Cor 7:7).

In the film, we see how family, fame and love can lead to destructive circumstances. Although the three can be admirable things, they can be devestating once made the ultimate goal in life. As you can see, theology matters.

For more details on self-worth, read this.

Redemption
The film lastly suggests that some people are beyond redemption. Naoki's mum saw it in her son. Yuko saw it in Shinya. Even Mrs Naoki's and Mituski's attempts to redeem Naoki and Shinya respectively ended in failure and death. In fact Yuko concludes the movie by stating that redemption for Shinya is a joke.

However, in the Christian view, we have to remember that no one is beyond God's reach (John 3:16). It's not about what we did, but what has been done for us. It's not about where we been, but where our brokeness leads us to. And it's not about what we feel, but what He felt to forgive you. And that's what we preach a Gospel of Christ crucified, to redeem all mankind.

Review
I did like the movie, but found it unnecessarily brutal. I cringed at Mituski's death and dismemberment. I kind of thought that the movie missed out the views of Terada, the new and enuthsiastic teacher, to provide a optimistic framework to the pessimistic tone of the movie.

I give it a 68/100.