refers to several independent organized Shinto groups that were excluded by law in 1882 from government-run State Shinto. These independent groups have more developed belief systems than mainstream Shrine Shinto, which focuses more on rituals. Many such groups are organized into the . Before World War II, Sect Shinto consisted of 13 denominations, which were referred to as the 13 Shinto schools. Since then, there have been additions and withdrawals of membership.

Whereas Shrine Shinto is an aggregation of various shrines and customary beliefs in various parts of Japan (which became united under the Ise Grand Shrine after the Meiji period), denominational Shinto is based on the  () school of philosophy. Tenrikyo was categorized as Sect Shinto but is often considered a separate monotheistic religion.

Overview 
Starting in the late Edo period, Sect Shinto became established in the Meiji era after the Meiji Restoration. Its formation was stimulated by religious policies of the Meiji government, and it emerged at a time when there was increasing theological discussion among people of a wider range of classes, rather than only intellectuals.

In 1868, the religious administration of the new Meiji government issued the Shinto-Buddhist Separation Order, resulting in the  and the restoration of the unity of ritual and government system. Following the Taikyo Proclamation, which designated Shinto as the state religion, the Taikyo Institute was established, though it was soon reformed into the Bureau of Shinto Affairs and later the sect Shinto Taikyo.

During these early trial-and-error religious policies, the Meiji government promoted a nationalized system of Shinto education by religious instructors known as . However, with the spread of the separation of church and state and freedom of religion, the  came to an end. This produced a division in Shinto between shrines for state-run public rituals and religious groups centered on edification. Groups that met certain conditions (such as the number of followers) were officially recognized as "independent denominations". This was the beginning of denominational Shinto.

This separation strengthened the idea that it was necessary to establish an institution that was a more developed version of the former Shodo Shido Practice Center. Accordingly, the Meiji government established the Office of Japanese Classics Research in Tokyo Prefecture, independent of the Bureau of Shinto Affairs, in order to organize the exploration of ideas unique to Japan. It was later succeeded by Kokugakuin University.

Establishment

Formation of a united government 
The impetus for denominational Shinto was the separation of Shinto and Buddhism, which began in 1868 (first year of Meiji) with the revival of the Department of Divinities and the separation of Shinto and Buddhism, which started with the Shinto-Buddhist Hanzen Order, a Daijo-kan directive. This led to the formation of the unity of ritual and government, and a Shinto government was revived. Around then, official decrees abolished the hereditary system of Shinto priests, thus ending the jurisdiction of the  and  over Shinto.During this transition, the concept of missionaries to propagate Shinto remained. In 1870 (Meiji 3), the imperial Taikyo Proclamation designated Shinto as the state religion. The Taikyo Institute was established in 1872 (Meiji 5) as a missionary organization, but was dissolved in 1875 (Meiji 8). It was succeeded by the Bureau of Shinto Affairs in the same year, to which the originally disparate folk belief religions belonged.

Ministry of Religion, , and the Taikyo Institute 
In 1872 (Meiji 5), the Missionary Office was abolished and replaced with the Ministry of Religion. In April, Shinto priests and monks were assigned  positions, of which there were 14 ranks. The Ministry was later dissolved in 1877, and  was abolished in 1884.

The priesthood was initially divided geographically in two on April 29, with the eastern division headed by Konoe Tadafusa, priest of Ise Grand Shrine, and the western division headed by Senge Takatomi, the grand priest of Izumo Taisha Shrine. Since it was assumed that one's religious affiliation was free, there was a struggle for power between the Ise and Izumo factions. On January 30, 1873, the two-part system was abolished and the two were combined as Shinto. However, it later became a three-part system with Senge Takatomi, , and Inaba Masakuni, and then a four-part system with the addition of Tanaka Yoriyasu, the grand priest of the Ise Grand Shrine. On that same day, the Kurozumikyō and Shinto Shusei were specially established as denominational Shinto sects, and the compartment system was abolished.

In May 1873 (Meiji 6), the Ministry of Religion issued a church ordinance, which set standards for the approval of  (religious lecture or meeting). In August, the Ministry approved the Kurozumikyō, the Tohokami (later Misogi-Kyo), the Mitake, and the Fuji Isan (later Fuso-kyo), as well as Buddhist .

In 1873, the Taikyo Institute was established—first in Kojimachi, Kioicho and later in Masukami, Shiba at Zōjō-ji—as the head temple for  of a joint Shinto and Buddhist sect. The Taikyo Institute was initiated by the Buddhist side to concretize teaching by the Ministry of Religion, but it later became focused entirely on Shinto. The Buddhist side, led by Shinshū, broke away from the religion. On April 30, 1875 (Meiji 8), the Taikyo Institute was dissolved by order of the Ministry of Religion.

Bureau of Shinto Affairs 
Just prior to the dissolution of the Taikyo Institute, the Bureau of Shinto Affairs was formed in March 1875 by a group of Shinto shrines, mainly at Ise Grand Shrine, and other shrines throughout Japan, as well as Shinto priests and instructors belonging to private Shinto-related . The Shinto side sensed that there was no organization that corresponded to the various Buddhist sects, and on March 27, 1875 (Meiji 8), Grand High Priest Suechi Sanjonishi, Grand Priest-in-Charge Inaba Masakuni, Yoriyasu Tanaka, Hirayama Seisai, and Konosetsu Tsume jointly petitioned the Ministry of Religion for the establishment of a government office for Shinto.

The next day, March 28, 1875 (Meiji 8), he received permission to establish the Bureau of Shinto Affairs. On April 8, he requested the Ministry of Religion to establish the Bureau of Shinto Affairs. The content of the request was that even small shrines, centering on the Imperial Shrine at Ise, should be able to cooperate with each other for the purpose of propagating Shinto. On April 15, the Bureau of Shinto Affairs was opened in the Tokyo Branch Office of the Jingu Shichosha. Once the Bureau of Shinto Affairs was prepared—which brought together the traditionally existing shrines, Shinto , and churches of folk beliefs—various denominations that met certain conditions were able to branch out and become independent from it. 

The following year, in 1876 (Meiji 9), a dormitory was established in the Shinto Office to train priests. Also that year, the Kurozumikyō and Shinto Shusei, which had been flourishing, became independent denominations.

Inaba Masakuni was the first president of the Bureau of Shinto Affairs. Yoriyasu Tanaka was the Chief of Ise Jingu and the first head of Jingūkyō. Hirayama Seisai was the grand priest of Hikawa Shrine and the first headmaster of Shinto Taiseikyo and Ontake-kyo. Kousetsu Tsume would become the second head minister of the Ontake Sect.

In 1886, the Bureau of Shinto Affairs was reorganized, later becoming the sect Shinto Taikyo.

Controversy over shrine deities 
The Bureau of Shinto Affairs had a plan to make Jingu Haruhaiden (later becoming Tokyo Daijingu) the central temple and a center for missionary work. Since Jingu Haruhaiden was to enshrine a branch spirit of Amaterasu, not only the Ministry of Religion but also the Emperor visited the building and obtained permission from the  to begin construction, which was funded by donations from the Imperial Household Agency and various families.

In 1880, the opinion of Senge Takatomi on the deities to be worshipped in the Bureau of Shinto Affairs' temples was so controversial that it divided Shinto into the Ise and Izumo factions. By order of the Meiji Emperor, a great conference on Shinto was held in January 1881 (Meiji 14), attended by 118 people, including all the chief priests of the government buildings and the instructors of the sixth grade and above. However, the issue could not be settled. Thus, it was settled in February by the imperial decision of the Meiji Emperor.

Separation of ritual and faith 
In January 1882, the separation of ritual and religion was enacted by the Ministry of Home Affairs through Bill No. 7, which prohibited those in the  (priest-teacher position) from performing rituals, thereby promoting the separation of those who continued to be priests performing rituals or preaching the teachings, and solidifying the formation of Sect Shinto.After this, on May 15, 1882, the six factions (including Jingūkyō) became independent. Jingu Haruhayashiden (the source of the ritual god controversy) was transferred to Jingūkyō's ownership and renamed Daijingu Shrine, and Jingū Taima were distributed by Jingūkyō. Senge Takatomi took the opportunity to resign from his position as priest of Izumo Taisha Shrine and handed it over to his younger brother, who became the head of the Izumo Taisha Sect.

On August 11, 1884, the government issued a proclamation abolishing the  position. In turn, this meant the Bureau of Shinto Affairs had lost its original reason for opening, and so in 1886, the Bureau reorganized; it later became Shinto Taikyo, one of the schools of Shinto.

Office of Japanese Classics Research 

On November 4, 1881, the Office of Japanese Classics Research was established as a successor to the Bureau of Shinto Affairs. Like its predecessor, it was a unified Shinto missionary organization established to train Shinto priests. Funded by an imperial gift, it purchased a mansion in Iidacho, Kojimachi-ku (present-day Chiyoda-ku).

Immediately after the Great Council of Shinto, it was decided to establish the Office upon the proposal of Akiyoshi Yamada of . Prince Arisugawa Takahito was appointed as its first president, and announced his intention to pursue a unique Japanese academic discipline. In the "Announcement of the Establishment of the Imperial Academy" (jointly signed by Li-Kuro Kubo, Yorikuni Inoue, Nakasaburo Itsumi, and Hans Shishino), the intention of the establishment of the academy was to train personnel to maintain  (national identity). The Imperial Institute established branches in the provinces and qualified students for priesthood.

The Office was later succeeded by Kokugakuin University.

Academics 
In December 1868 (the first year of Meiji), the Imperial Academy was established in Kyoto but was abolished the following year. When the Ministry of Religion was established in 1872, it was responsible for research.

In 1882 (Meiji 15), institutes of imperial studies were established one after another. This was due to a keen awareness of the need for doctrinal studies in the rites and rituals controversy. The controversy was divided between the doctrinalists (denominational Shinto sects) and the national scholars (academics). As the doctrinalists became independent, the national scholars were stimulated and the separation of doctrine and learning progressed. On April 30, Jingūkyō established Kōgakkan University in Ise. On May 30, the Department of Classics was established at the University of Tokyo.

After World War II 

On December 15, 1945, the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (GHQ) issued the Shinto Directive aimed at dismantling State Shinto. In January of the following year, the Dai Nihon Shinto-kai, the Imperial Academy, and the Jingu Bonan-kai were dissolved to form the Association of Shinto Shrines, a religious corporation. In March, Jingu-Shogakukan University was abolished by the Shinto directive; in April, representatives of each denomination explained their denomination to the GHQ Civilian Information and Education Department at Broadcasting Hall 108. In June, at a meeting at Tenrikyo's Honshiba Grand Church between the presidents of the various schools and W. K. Vance, head of the Religious Affairs Division at GHQ, the occupying forces promised not to impose any restrictions on the religious activities of the Shinto sects.

Tenrikyo established a policy of restoration immediately in 1945, and Konkokyo established the Council for the Establishment of the Faith in 1951 to eliminate Shinto colors.

The system in which there were 13 Shinto sects and 13 Buddhist sects recognized by the government was broken up into even smaller groups as religious organizations when the Religious Corporation Law was enacted.

Shinto research institutions 
Many of the scholars who had played a central role in Shinto research and education were expelled and replaced by folklorists such as Shinobu Orikuchi and Kunio Yanagita, as well as younger Shinto scholars who escaped expulsion. On March 20, 1946, Kokugakuin University became a corporation, and the training of priests, which had been commissioned by the Ministry of Home Affairs, was continued from April as a new commission from the Jinja Main Office. The following year, Vance and Woodard of the Religious Affairs Division of GHQ decided that there was no problem with the study of Shinto and training of priests as a private university, and in 1948, the Shinto Affairs Department was established to form a Shinto training organization.

The Shinto Scholarship Association, which had been conducting Shinto courses, was also dissolved in 1946. In July 1949, at a meeting of the Federation of Shinto Sects at the Kinko Grand Church of the Tenrikyo Tokyo Branch Office, it was decided that Shinto lectures would be held at the Shinto Training Department of Kokugakuin University on behalf of the Federation of Shinto Sects; this practice continued until 1966. Holding the Shinto course promoted the university as a Shinto university that combined both Shrine Shinto and Sect Shinto. As of 1996, Kokugakuin University was said to be the only university with a course on Sect Shinto.

Sects

Overview 
There are five main groups of Sect Shinto:

 Fukko Shinto (Revival Shinto) lineage – includes Shinto Taikyo, Shinrikyo, and Izumo-taishakyo (which originates from Izumo Taisha)
 Confucian Shinto –  and Shinto Shusei
 Mountain worship lineage – includes Jikkō kyō, Fuso-kyo, and Ontake-kyo
 Purification sects – Misogikyo and Shinshu-kyo
 Utopian groups – Kurozumikyō, Tenrikyo, and Konkokyo

Tenrikyo is now classified by the Agency for Cultural Affairs as one of the various religions, not as a Shinto denomination.

History 
The first independent denominations were Kurozumikyō and Shinto Shusei in 1876 (Meiji 9). Jingūkyō was founded in 1882, but later reorganized into the Ise Shrine Offering Association in 1899 (Meiji 32). 

In 1895, eight denominations—Izumo Taisha-kyo, Kurozumikyō, Ontake-kyo, Jikkō kyō, Shinto Taiseikyo, Shinshu-kyo, Fuso-kyo, and Jingūkyō—joined to form the  (). In 1899 (Meiji 32), the group was joined by Shinto Headquarters (Shinto Taikyo), Shinrikyo, and Misogikyo, and the name was changed to ; the same year, Jingūkyō reorganized as Jingū Hōnsaikai and withdrew from the federation. In 1912 (Meiji 45), Konkokyo, Shinto Shusei, and Tenrikyo joined, forming 13 groups (14 if including the breakaway Jingūkyō), and the name was changed to . In 1934, the current name  was adopted.

After World War II, Oomoto joined the federation, but Tenrikyo and Shinto Taiseikyo withdrew.  was re-established after the war, but never joined the federation. Shinshu-kyo withdrew in 1959 but returned in 1994.

In 1995, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of its formation, the "100th Anniversary of the Formation of the Federation of Shinto Churches" was held. In addition to Misogi-kyo, Shinto Taikyo, Jingūkyō, Konkokyo, Kurozumikyō, Fuso-kyo, Ontake-kyo, Shinrikyo, Oomoto, Shinshu-kyo, Shinto Shusei, Izumo Taisha-kyo, and twelve other denominations, the presidents of Tenrikyo and Shinto Taiseikyo also attended.

Today, the federation has 12 affiliated groups.

Kurozumikyō 

Kurozumikyō (黒住教) is a group highly linked to Amaterasu.

Shinto Shusei 
 is considered a form of Confucian Shinto. It was founded in 1849 by  (1829–1902), who was known to have read the Analects at age 9. He founded the sect at age twenty, and considered Japanese people to be descendants of deities. He considered allegiance to the Emperor of Japan to be central to his philosophy; he was a supporter of Sonnō jōi but supported the Boshin Rebellion and the Meiji Restoration later.

Alongside Kurozumikyō, it was one of the first two Shinto sects to gain independence in 1876. It has not been very active in the postwar era.

Jingūkyō 

 was a sect run out of Ise Grand Shrine which distributed Jingu Taima. It was a rival to Izumo-taishakyo and eventually left the federation and came to dominate State Shinto.

Izumo-taishakyo 

Izumo-taishakyo was founded by Senge Takatomi.  and has 1,266,058 followers. It is a Fukko Shinto lineage and at one point was a major rival with Jingūkyō.

Fuso-kyo 
 is a mountain worship sect traditionally seen to have been founded by Hasegawa Kakugyo (who was also associated with Jikkō kyō).

Jikkō kyō 
 is a mountain worship sect traditionally seen to have been founded by Hasegawa Kakugyo (who was also associated with Fusō-kyō).

Shinto Taiseikyo 

 is a Confucian Shinto sect founded by Hirayama Seisai.

Shinshu-kyo 
 is a "purification sect" alongside Misogikyo.

It was founded by Masaki Yoshimura (1839–1915), who was a survivor of the Ansei Purge. He worked at Ise Jingu and later was head of Tatsuta Shrine, but due to laws restricting teaching, he entrusted his children to Itō Hirobumi (before he became Prime Minister) and established a new branch based on his family traditions.

Ontake-kyo 

 is a mountain worship sect dedicated to Mount Ontake. It had 3 million members in 1930, which decreased to around 40,000 members in 2020.

Shinto Taikyo 

 is the direct successor to the Taikyo Institute. Its name "Taikyo" refers to the Three Great Teachings first proclaimed in the Proclamation of the Great Doctrine.

Shinrikyo 
 is a Shinto sect considered to be part of the Fukko Shinto lineage of Sect Shinto, alongside Shinto Taikyo and Izumo-taishakyo. The name "Shinrikyo" is relatively common among Shinto groups, and uses different kanji characters than Aum Shinrikyo, a cult and terrorist organization.

It was founded by  in 1880. Sano had previously studied medicine and was an advocate of traditional Japanese medicine. He studied kokugaku in his youth under Nishida Naokai.

Sano's thought blurred the lines between monotheism and polytheism, entering transtheism. His concept of  was aimed at resisting the propagation of Christianity while composing teachings that were in line with the aims of popular national indoctrination. His core elements of the concept of  did not change throughout his life.

He believed the etymology of  was derived from . He saw this as emphasizing the interconnectedness of everything, from humans to nature, and as such this could be interpreted as a monotheistic view. He saw all the  as unified under a divine principle, hence the name of the group.

Misogikyo 
 is considered a "purification sect" alongside Shinshu-kyo.

The group is quite obscure today. It is very ritual-focused, with little theoretical theology. In this way, it contrasts with Yoshida Shinto. It emphasizes right state of mind and self-control. It has influence from Confucian Shinto but is its own tradition.

Konkokyo 

 is a group often considered to be its own religion, which emerged from Shinbutsu-shūgō.

Tenrikyo 

 is a Sect Shinto group founded by Nakayama Miki. It is often considered a separate religion from Shinto.

Tensha Tsuchimikado Shinto 

In the Edo period, the Tsuchimikado family, descendants of Abe no Seimei, established  influenced by Confucian Shinto through Suika Shinto. However, because of the inclusion of fortune-telling and magic, the Meiji government considered it pagan and issued the . After the war, it was restored as "Tensha Tsuchimikado Shinto Headquarters", and registered as a religious corporation rather than a Sect Shinto or a Shinto shrine.

Oomoto 

 is often seen as a new religion.

New Sect Shinto 

 is a subset of Sect Shinto, and consists of numerous organizations. It is influenced by Buddhism and Confucianism.

It is part of the Sect Shinto movement not centering upon 13 sects. New Shinto sects have shamanistic leadership, syncretism of religious and philosophical beliefs, closely knit social organization, and individualism. Some groups have characteristics of monotheism, in the extreme case making a compromise of Buddhism, Confucianism, and folk religion.

See also 

 Ko-Shintō
 Shinbutsu-shūgō
 Haibutsu kishaku

Notes

References

Sources 
 
 （文庫：1994年.ISBN 4886924603.）「教派神道に流れる古神道の本質」の章あり.
 
 
 小滝透『神々の目覚め-近代日本の宗教革命』春秋社, 1997年7月.ISBN 978-4393291245.
 田中義能『神道十三派の研究 (上・下)』 第一書房, 1987年. 昭和初期に刊行された同書の復刻版.

External links 
 Official site of Kyōha Shintō Rengōkai (in Japanese)

Shinto
Shinto new religious movements
Shinto in Japan
History of Shinto