SNAPSHOT CULTURE
WE SAT DOWN WITH AYA NOEL, A YOUNG JAPANESE CHRISTIAN WITH A DESIRE TO SEE THE PEOPLE OF HER COUNTRY FIND GOD {and she wants to find a husband too}. New Identity Magazine: Where were you born? Aya Noel: I was born in Tokyo, Japan. It’s a big city. NIM: In what year? Aya Noel: 1976, I’m 32. NIM: And how long have you been a Christian? Noel: Since I was 10 years old. So 22 years. NIM: How did that come about? Noel: There was a big evangelistic concert and at the time I was just, you know, my heart was really opened to receive Christ because I was inspired by the preaching. And Jesus needed help, you know, Jesus needed disciples to go to the world. So I was 10 years old and was really pure and I loved Jesus, so I just said yes. And received Christ. NIM: And where was this concert? Did your parents bring you or did you go with friends? Noel: Well, I grew up in a Southern Baptist church in Tokyo called Oui Baptist Church, my home church. My parents are still there. But the preacher was an American missionary from the United States, and since I was a little kid I’ve been interested in different cultures. So maybe the American missionary opened my heart to receive Christ.
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new identity magazine
Winter 2008/09
Photo: Peter Hamza/Stock.xchng
NIM: Is it rare to grow up in a Christian church in Japan? Noel: Yes, it’s very rare. The Christian population in Japan is only less than one percent of the population. But the really active Christians are maybe only 20 percent of that 1 percent. ... [M]aking a Christian home is so hard because a lot of women are Christian but not men, so it’s hard to get married to Christian guys ...that’s why creating a Christian family is so difficult. www.newidentitymagazine.com