Religious Studies on the Relationship Between the Use of Religious Resources for tourism and an Assignment a World Heritage listed site

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

In those areas involved in making a great effort to gain an assignment as a World Heritage listed site, the tendency to utilize religion as a resource of tourism has been highly recognizable. This is partly because concerned local governments and tourism industries are eager to do so, but also some religious bodies have used these opportunities to display their religious messages to tourists. However, how they see tourism depends on the position of religion taken in the context of the region. In Kumano's case Shinto has a very positive position with tourism, because Shinto is dominant in the region. On the contrary, local Catholic churches and believers are very suspicious of tourists from outside, because Christianity in Nagasaki was once severely persecuted and there is still prejudice against it among local people. In some area where people are very active with getting an assignment as a World Heritage listed site, those activities contribute to the strength of their local identity because of their becoming aware of their religious tradition and history.