Becoming Japanese

Once you have collected all the paperwork, and the public servant / case worker assigned to you determines that everything is in order, you will then be given the oath paperwork to sign and date (two copies). Compared to other countries, the oath is very simple and commonsense. There's no mention of the emperor, protecting Japan from its enemies, serving in the military, references to religion, or other non-Constitutional or law references with the exception of "being a good citizen." Here's the text of the oath, in full: 宣誓書 { senseisho } 私は、 { watashi wa, } 日本憲法 { nihon kempō } 及び { oyobi } 法令を守り、 { hōrei o mamori, } 定められた義務を履行し、 { sadamerareta gimu o rikō shi, } 善良な国民と zenryō na kokumin to } なることを誓います。 { naru koto o chikaimasu. } Translated into English, this means: Oath Statement I swear to obey the Constitution of Japan as well as its laws and ordinances, fulfilling the established duties, and become a good citizen. (There's only on...