The per capita income for the village was $18,389. About 5.5% of families and 9.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.0% of those under age 18 and 2.6% of those age 65 or over.
Shinto plays a ceremonial role in daily Japanese life as opposed to an important role. Why is the ceremonial assumed to be unimportant? Others might say that ritual and tradition are the heart of a culture, and the fact that even being a Christian can't dissuade your coworker from shrine worship is clear evidence of the importance of Shinto to Japanese culture.
Religion Library: Shinto. Share. Shinto (the way of the Kami) is the name of the formal state religion of Japan that was first used in the 6th century C.E., although the roots of the religion go back to at least the 6th century B.C.E. Shinto has no founder, no official sacred texts, and no formalized system of doctrine.