“But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”

Matthew 12:28

Do you, or someone you know, experience difficulty in getting your child to take a nap, brush their teeth or clean their room? If so, Japan has the perfect parenting app just for these kinds of situations. It’s called “Oni Kara Denwa” (鬼から電話), or “Phone Call from a Demon/Ogre.” This highly unusual, and rather controversial, concept straddles the line between creepy psychological abuse and facetious fun. However, the clear and laudable intention of this unique parenting approach is to promote better behavior among disobedient children. Surprisingly, over ten million desperate Japanese parents have downloaded the somewhat questionable Oni Kara Denwa app in an attempt to raise socially responsible children.

Oni, often translated as ogres or demons,are usually depicted in Japanese folklore and modern stories as malevolent, fearsome creatures who dispense misfortune or act as agents of divine justice when unwittingly provoked. Over the centuries, well-meaning parents have routinely tapped into these semi-benign stories by subtly invoking the threat of demons to their uncooperative children with the goal of promoting better behavior from them. For example, if one’s child refuses to do their homework, eat their vegetables, throws a tantrum, or is caught in the act of lying, a tech-savvy parent can just download the app and choose an ogre who seems best suited for that particular problem. The phone then rings, is handed over to the child, and the oni will proceed with warnings and threats in an attempt to scare the child towards improved conduct. The variety of characters available for such an assignment may include a number of characters ranging from traditional ogres to witches, ghosts, zombies, aliens, wolfmen, scary ninjas and even a frightful old hag. The content and tone of the threat will vary according to the conscripted character and the nature of the misbehavior. The app also employs the partly humorous, yet frightful facial expressions of a famous comedian known as Kintaro, as well as several animated creatures whose images are equally unsettling. 

The idea of employing fraudulent ogres to terrorize a child into better behavior seems to be an abhorrent and rather dubious parenting technique, particularly if one’s worldview includes the actual existence and activities of demons. Scriptures tell us that one of the identifying signs of the promised Messiah was that he would have unprecedented authority over both the physical and spiritual realms, enabling him to heal all manner of illnesses and cast out demons (Luke 7:18-23). Jesus himself testified that such an exhibition of power over evil was an important indicator of the imminence of God’s kingdom (Matthew 12:28). He further affirmed this truth through an analogy where he compared himself to one who “ties up the strong man,” in reference to Satan, in order to “plunder his house” (v.29). Possessing such knowledge, as children of God, we should not live in fear of darker entities and their evil intentions. Instead, we are repeatedly exhorted in the Scriptures to fear God, not because He is capricious and needs to be placated, but because He is worthy of our worship. Solomon arrived at the same conclusion noting: “Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13) Therefore, rather than utilizing an app based on terror, we should revere our holy, omnipotent and omniscient Heavenly Father who desires our well-being above all else. We can approach Him anytime, anywhere, even without an app.