Pachinko
Min Jin Lee
Contributed by Zonia Jines
Chapter 14
Summary

The next morning, Isak finds his way to Ikaino’s Hanguk Presbyterian Church, where he’ll be the associate pastor. There he meets Hu, a young Chinese man who’d been rescued and raised by Pastor Yoo as an orphan and now serves as the church’s sexton. Pastor Yoo, who’s suffering from severe glaucoma and can’t see well, is counseling a pair of young siblings in his office, but stops to joyfully greet and bless Isak.

Pastor Yoo is counseling a girl of about 20 and her younger brother. They’re from rural Korea and have come to Japan for work. The girl accompanies her married boss to restaurants for extra cash and sends the money home to her family; her younger brother says this is sinful. The sister maintains that she’s willing to be disgraced in order to honor her parents. Since they don’t know Japanese, they’re stuck in low-paying jobs that barely cover expenses and the brother’s schooling.

Listening to this discussion, Isak feels foolish, realizing he’s never had to worry about money. Pastor Yoo warns the girl that she needs to be careful of her virtue and that her boss might want more than dates later. Her brother can postpone his schooling and get a job to help so that his sister doesn’t feel the need to earn cash by questionable means. He asks Isak to pray for the young people.

As Pastor Yoo, Hu, and Isak eat lunch, Pastor Yoo talks to Isak about his wages, which will hardly be enough to support one man. He’d been counting on Isak’s family being able to support him, but Isak explains that his parents have had to sell off much of their land to pay the exorbitant colonial taxes. Isak feels ashamed by the realization that he’ll have nothing to contribute to Yoseb’s household. Pastor Yoo assures him that the Lord will provide for their material needs.

Analysis

The church, with its humble and tenuous position within colonial Japanese society, will have a huge impact on Isak’s and Sunja’s lives, and Isak’s arrival is a joyful development for its isolated pastor. As shown by Hu’s devoted attachment to the congregation, it’s a place of refuge for the outcasts of this society.

The situation of the young church members is not atypical for Koreans who’ve come to Japan in search of work. Their opportunities in Japan are quite limited, and they find themselves rationalizing scenarios they wouldn’t have otherwise justified in order to get by and help their families back home.

Isak realizes that in certain ways, he’s been rather sheltered. The siblings aren’t that much younger than him, but the situation in Japan forces them to face situations and make decisions that have never crossed his mind.

Isak has been naïve and short-sighted in his acceptance of this pastorate; he’d assumed his wages would be enough to support himself and Sunja. He begins to realize that the situation in Osaka will be even more challenging than he’s bargained for.

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