Asceticism- Discussion

I think it's interesting to draw back to the idea of workers in japan / korea. My initial intention was to look at how the protestant work ethic was pushed onto demilitarized (colonized) countries by the US but if we look at how these two countries are working, perhaps they are working in closest alignment with Lutheran's idea of the calling. Perhaps, in working to death, you are most likely to be fulfilling the work that will most likely bring you closest towards God's glory.

This is my personal opinion but I believe that the case of over-working workers from Japan/Korea challenges Lutheran's idea of calling. The idea of calling is that the people were each provided with a vocation by God. It also includes that people shouldn't work beyond what is required to live. Today, in our modern society, people work to gain earnings beyond what is necessary to live because people are constantly being evaluated based on material possession (like money and objects). This means that often times the over-working workers are also working to achieve more than what is required to live, which contradicts Lutheran's idea. If those workers were to follow God's calling then there would be no reason for them to over-work until karoshi. However, there also exists this irony that over-working occupations could also be God's calling.

I am not sure that work has to be paid work. After retirement it can be volunteer work at a church or contributions in the home. I think that the type of work is dependent on age and health and focuses on staying productive and busy, rather than sitting around at home watching television. Also in terms of over-working in Japan, I find that culture plays a very big role. Their work ethic comes from a comprehensive culture that embeds and values pride, respect, and honor. Though I agree with the parallel drawn with the protestant ethic, it may be less related to religion and more to cultural attitudes and social values.