Secular Shrine Theory (神社非宗教論, Jinja hishūkyōron) was a theory of religion from Japan. People came up with it in the Meiji period. It was the idea that Shinto Shrines were secular in their nature rather than religious. It said that Shinto was not a religion, but was a secular set of Japanese national traditions. This was used by State Shinto to argue that the state controlling and enforcing Shinto was not a violation of freedom of religion. It was subject to immense debate over this time and ultimately declined and disappeared during the Shōwa era.