Christian pioneer spirit in"Hokkaido Doshikyoikukai"(Farm "Gakuden") and Engaru Church

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  • 北海道同志教育会(学田農場)と遠軽教会におけるキリスト教的開拓者精神
  • ホッカイドウ ドウシ キョウイクカイ ガクデン ノウジョウ ト エンガル キョウカイ ニ オケル キリストキョウテキ カイタクシャ セイシン

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Abstract

"Hokkaido Doshikyoikukai" (Farm "Gakuden") was a group organized by two Christians, Masayoshi Oshikawa and Toshiyuki Shida, that settled in the Engaru area in 1887. The purpose of this group was to farm the uncultivated land in Hokkaido and to raise money for the establishment, 30 years later, of a private Christian University. This project collapsed, however, and the group dissolved after about 14 years. This study is part of a series of historical studies on the pioneering spirit of Christian migration groups in Hokkaido. This paper aims to examine the causes of the "Hokkaido Doshikyoikukai" collapse in comparison with other Christian migration groups from the viewpoint of spiritual history and sociology of religion. In summary, the author would like to point out that the collapse of the project resulted mainly from the isolation of the group from their faith (church). In the harsh natural conditions of Hokkaido, settlers needed both moral support and a sense of community solidarity. In similar Christian groups where the church offered such support, they were relatively successful. As a contributing factor to the failure of "Hokkaido Doshikyoikukai", Shida, the local leader of this group, came to see himself less as a Christian, but more as a businessman or politician, and thus neglected the faith of the community as an empowering factor.

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