Religion in Japan

A Closet Full of Beliefs, But Not A Stitch To Wear
There seem to be two sentiments here regarding religion: it's either so far ingrained into the Japanese lifestyle that they themselves don't distinguish between the two (i.e. Shinto and, to an extent, Buddhism), or that it is treated as a sort of household appliance that you keep in a cupboard until you feel like you need to use it (i.e. Christianity or otherwise.)

The second floor of this building is some kind of Christian reading room. Given its size, I doubt it is an actual church. (Then again, Makino Sake Dojo didn't look like a good place to eat...) Regardless of its specific function, its purpose is to lead people to discover a higher purpose and achieve spiritual enlightenment, right? So perhaps you'd expect the general vicinity to have an uplifting feel to it, or to have at least some kind of spiritual effect, whether it reminds you of the Judeo-Christian God or of your own personal set of beliefs. (My theory is that this is what many Japanese are going after when they decorate with Western religious paraphernalia.)
So what's going on downstairs?
The greater goal of the establishment directly under it is to rent you a DVD illustrating the results of a meeting between 2 secretaries and a tentacle monster.
What does Western religion mean to the Japanese? Given its relatively recent arrival in Japan (4oo years plus change for Catholicism vs. B.C. Shinto), can it be taken as seriously? I see ads on trains for generic-looking wedding chapels and think not.

It's Just Not Done.
On the other hand, Japan still takes some tenets of its native religion pretty seriously. At Itsukushima-ji, a world-famous Shinto shrine, three rules set down in ancient times are still obeyed to the word:
1) No agriculture of any kind
2) No births
3) No deaths
However, the old rules preventing women, seniors, and commoners from setting foot on the island's soil appear to have been repealed, as the site is now one of the most popular tourist spots in this part of Japan. Back in the mukashi mukashi, the main shrine was built on stilts over the water so that worshippers could pay homage to the gods without being "on" the island.

At high tide, the water reaches the shrine, and the structure appears to be floating. See those three stone lanterns past the great red torii? The unclean masses used to row through the giant gate and park their boats right up against the shrine. The gods chuckle over our silly technicalities. さすが人間。
Make no mistake! Those other three rules are still in effect. We didn't see any cemetaries near the shrines or rice paddies between the buildings - sights I'd begun to take for granted in this country. I'm not so sure about rule #2, though. I assume the welcome staff at the ferry terminal are keeping an eye out and turning away any women in their third trimester.