Adobenchisuto Raifu [Adventist Life]

Adobenchisuto Raifu [Adventist Life] (1972- ) is a monthly periodical published by the Japan Publishing House in Yokohama, Japan. It is a successor to Owari no Fukuin [The Gospel for the Last Days], 1899-1913; Shimei no Otozure [Tidings of the Message], 1913-1920; and Shimei [Message, 1921-1943, 1946-1971; monthly] and the official monthly magazine of the Japan Seventh-day Adventist Church. It features articles and discussions on doctrinal, devotional, health, and practical topics. The content also includes church news, serialized translations of Ellen G. White’s books, daily devotional readings, and an exchange of views and experiences, all aimed at enriching and uplifting the lives of Adventists in Japan.

History

In 1896, the first official Adventist missionary, William C. Grainger, arrived in Japan. Grainger, with the help of his former student of Japanese descent, Teruhiko H. Okohira, he started the Adventist mission in Japan.¹ Three years later, in July 1899, Grainger started a monthly publication, Owari no Fukuin [The Gospel for the Last Days]. This was the first Adventist periodical in the Japanese language, and an evangelical tool to reach the population with the gospel message.² Teruhiko Okohira and two of the first four men baptized, Mokutaro Kawasaki and Hide Kuniya, did the editorial work on the first paper published. The publication of this magazine began with 2,000 copies and was paid for by profits from the sale of health foods to foreigners.³ Lizzy Grainger, William Grainger’s wife, reported on an incident in the paper’s early history.

In this country a journal has to pass through the hands of a press censor. A few days after our Owari no Fukuin was out, Brother Kuniya received a note requesting him to call at the office of the censor. He went with fear and trembling. Although the paper had been examined and approved, he feared that the officer had found some objections to it. The man said that he had sent for him because he was greatly interested in it; that he had never heard such wonderful things before, and wished to know more about them.⁴

The paper continued to be well received, as seen from the missionaries’ reports. For example, in 1915, Mrs. F. H. DeVinney wrote that she and several other ladies from the “Fujinkai,” or Women’s Missionary Society in Japan, sold 180 copies in only three hours.⁵ Another early report reads:

The need for a Japanese paper was soon felt, and in July 1899, the first issue of Owari No Fukuin (Gospel for the Last Days) was published. This paper has been of great value to the work in Japan. Nearly all other denominations give away their literature, but ours is sold. Giving it away would reduce its value in the eyes of the people and does not provide good training for them. Although the price is very small, its purchase requires some sacrifice, which increases its value in the eyes of the purchaser. Furthermore, this approach enables us to reach more people by producing more literature. In 1914, the circulation of Owari No Fukuin averaged about five thousand copies a month, most of which were sold by canvassers. Over three million pages of tracts and other periodicals were also sold during this period.⁶

Testimonies from Owari no Fukuin were occasionally translated from Japanese into English and republished in Adventist Review and Sabbath Herald for the benefit of members in America.⁷

The paper later became Jicho [Sainzu obu za Taimuzu], the Japanese Signs. Later, it was renamed Toki no Shirushi [Signs of the Times] and Shimei no Otozure (“Tidings of the Message”).⁸ Although it was an evangelistic magazine, it also contained information on church internal affairs, such as church members’ nurture, evangelistic reports, and personnel matters.⁹

From the March 1920 issue, the name of the magazine was changed to Shimei [Message]. The contents of Shimei included editorials, testimonials, reports from mission fields, personnel, and news.¹⁰

During World War II, pressure from the Japanese government on the Christian church increased, and the magazine ceased publication in the summer of 1943. On September 20, 1943, 42 church leaders were arrested on suspicion of violating the Security Law, and the church was dissolved.¹¹ After the war ended, the church reopened, and Shimei was resumed in October 1946.¹²

In 1972, the magazine’s name was changed to Adobenchisuto Raifu [Adventist Life], reflecting the central message entrusted to the Adventist Church: the promise of abundant life in Christ, both on earth and in eternity. The new name also highlights the magazine's focus on the significance of everyday life, offering practical content for the daily lives of church members.¹³

The magazine was originally edited by Japan Publishing House, but in 1980, an editorial office was established within the Union office, with the executive secretary serving as editor-in-chief. Since then, the magazine has been positioned more as the official publication of the mission.

On June 30, 2001, the magazine celebrated its 100th anniversary as the longest running Christian magazine in Japan. It was noted that there was no Christian magazine in Japan, besides Signs of the Times, that had continued to publish for over 100 years and printed more than 30,000 copies monthly.¹⁴

Currently, the magazine is a 24-page monthly publication with a circulation of 2,400. The contents consist of the Japan Union Conference president’s message, spiritual readings, introducing church member and local churches, and articles translated from Adventist World, an official publication of the Seventh-day Adventist World Headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, U.S.A. Adventist Life magazine will continue to play a role in nurturing and developing church members in Japan.

Editors in Chief

Teruhiko Okohira (1913-1917); Benjamin Philip Hoffman (1918-1921); Harry Farmer Benson (1922-1923); Victor Tracy Armstrong (1923-1926); Shohei Miyake (1926-1934); Teruhiko Okohira (1934-1939); Hiizu Kuniya (1939-1940); Moriyoshi Sasaki (1940-1943); Tsumoru Kajiyama (1943); Magoji Fukazawa (1946-1948); Kazuyoshi Kuniya (1949-1958); Takashi Saito (1958-1968); Minoru Inada (1968-1975); Minoru Hirota (1975-1980); Yonezo Okafuji (1981-1985); Susumu Yamaguchi (1985-1988); Minoru Hirota (1988-1991); Kenyu Kinjo (1991-1996); Akinori Kaibe (1996-1998); Yukio Ebihara (1998-2001); Katsumi Higashide (2001-2003); Tadaomi Shinmyo (2003); Masaki Shoji (2003-2006); Tadashi Yamaji (2006-2009); Yutaka Inada (2009-2015); Norihiko Hanada (2015-2016); Toshio Shibata (2016- ).

Sources

Adventist Life, November 2014.

E., A. B. “Our Work in Japan.” Youths Instructor, December 21, 1915.

Grainger, Lizzy W. “Another Year’s Experience in Japan.” The Missionary Magazine, September 1, 1899.

Grainger, W. C. “Our Work in Japan.” The Missionary Magazine, September 1, 1899.

Hoffman, Benj. P. “From the Far East.” North Pacific Union Gleaner, May 1, 1913.

Kajiyama, Tsumoru. The History of Seventh-day Adventist church in Japan. Japan Publishing House, 1982.

Nemoto, K. “A Japanese Farmer’s Experience.” ARH, November 3, 1910.

NSD and ANN Staff. "Japanese Longest Running Christian Magazine Celebrates 100 Years." Adventist News Network, July 16, 2001. Accessed April 7, 2025. https://adventist.news/news/japans-longest-running-christian-magazine-celebrates-100-years.

Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia. Second revised edition. Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald Publishing, 1996. S.v. “Japan Publishing House;” “Japan.”

Notes

1. Tsumoru Kajiyama, The History of Seventh-day Adventist church in Japan (Japan Publishing House, 1982), 21.↩

2. Benj. P. Hoffman, “From the Far East,” North Pacific Union Gleaner, May 1, 1913, 2.↩

3. W. C. Grainger, “Our Work in Japan,” The Missionary Magazine, September 1, 1899, 3 [381].↩

4. Mrs. Lizzy W. Grainger, “Another Year’s Experience in Japan,” The Missionary Magazine, September 1, 1899, 15 [393].↩

5. Mrs. F. H. DeVinney, “Women’s Work in Japan,” Asiatic Division Mission News, October 15, 1915, 3.↩

6. A.B.E. “Our Work in Japan,” Youths Instructor, December 21, 1915, 6.↩

7. E.g., K. Nemoto, “A Japanese Farmer’s Experience,” ARH, November 3, 1910, 7.↩

8. However, the name Jicho appears to be retained by some, possibly as an unofficial designation, for the Japanese Signs of the Times (e.g., “Dr. Getzlaff reports that. . .,” Far Eastern Division Outlook, February 1, 1949, 5; Vinston E. Adams, “I Have Decided,” Youths Instructor, January 4, 1949, 12).↩

9. Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia (1996), s.v. “Japan Publishing House;” “Japan.”↩

10. Kajiyama, The History of Seventh-day Adventist church in Japan, 319.↩

11. Ibid., 352.↩

12. NSD and ANN Staff, "Japanese Longest Running Christian Magazine Celebrates 100 Years," Adventist News Network, July 16, 2001, accessed April 7, 2025, https://adventist.news/news/japans-longest-running-christian-magazine-celebrates-100-years.↩

13. Adventist Life, November 2014, 8.↩

14. NSD and ANN Staff, "Japanese Longest Running Christian Magazine Celebrates 100 Years," Adventist News Network, July 16, 2001, accessed April 7, 2025, https://adventist.news/news/japans-longest-running-christian-magazine-celebrates-100-years.↩