Gender and New Religions in Modern Japan

This article considers the characteristics of gender in modern Japanese new religions. I analyzed these through three types: "Sex Complementarity," "Sex Polarity," and "Sex Unity." As examples, I take up Soka Gakkai, Reiyukai, and Nippon Kaigi. Many Japanese new religious groups have adopted the androcentric "Sex Complementarity" type. This characteristic has reflected the gender of the whole of Japanese society, and gender within new religions has also transformed with the times. There is a need to rethink gender in Japanese society from the perspective of gender among the new religions.