God and Religion

Throughout the novel 1Q84, organized religion and God play significant roles. Organized religion -in the form of the Society of Witnesses and the Sakigake- drive Aomame and Fuka-Eri away, each for different reasons. For Fuka-Eri, Sakigake meant that she was raped; for Aomame, the strictness of the Society meant that she turned away from God and spirituality toward purely physical pursuits.

While the Society was a Christian sect, the Sakigake was a religious cult which was ultimately organized around the voices of the Little People, heard by the Leader of the commune. Aomame's experiences with the Leader help her to understand that their is a transcendental power, and her immaculate conception (a very Christian idea) leads her to understand that she does believe in God after all. She also understands that organized religion can get in the way of man's relationship with God, and that shouldn't...