How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Indeed it sometimes happened because of this that the peasants confused Christianity with Buddhism, thinking that they were the same thing. (4.142)
That's like saying that LeBron James is your favorite football player. Still, this passage shows us how complicated religion can be—no matter how much they're told otherwise, the Japanese can only view Christianity in terms of the religion they were raised with. As a result, many Japanese Christians innately lean toward Buddhist concepts. But what does it mean that it's so easy to combine religious concepts from both Christianity and Buddhism? Are they complementary?
Quote #8
These peasants had learned their catechism like children; they dreamt of a Heaven in which there was no bitter taxation and no oppression. (5.22)
As time goes on, Rodrigues becomes increasingly skeptical of Japanese Christianity. But what did he expect? These people aren't college-educated theologians—they're poor, destitute people desperate for anything that promises them relief.
Quote #9
"My reasons for opposing Christianity are different from those of the people at large. I have never thought of Christianity as an evil religion." (7.25)
Inoue doesn't hate Christianity, but he's not going to let that rain on his parade. This is purely a practical matter to him: the Catholic Church threatens his power; therefore, it must be stopped. This just goes to show how impossible it can be to fully separate religion from politics.