AH Challenge: Eastern Orthodox (Russian-style) Japan

[Communist Wizard]

Your challenge, readers, is to get Japan to be Eastern Orthodox by 1850 (i.e. official religion). And not just any Eastern Orthodox, Russian-style Eastern Orthodox. Slight divergences from the Russian style to a Japanese style are allowed. Bonus points if:
-The religion is larger than any other religion in Japan
-Japan and Russia are closely allied countries
-Both have Tsars/Emperors
-Japan spreads Eastern Orthodoxy or it spreads on it's own to Eastern Asia
-This does not involve Russian conquest
-Japanese culture blends with the religion to be... interesting, to say the least!
Well? Tough, yes, but hey! It's a challenge!

 

[The Sicilian]

Ahem...Zajir beat you to it: https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=100440

 

[Communist Wizard]

Ahem...Zajir beat you to it: https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=100440

But this is different, if similar! First, it needs to be by 1850, and it doesn't have to be 60%, but just official and a bonus point of being bigger than any other, not a majority.
Also, that one doesn't mention the Emperor, conquest, and alliance clauses...

 

[Dan1988]

Your challenge, readers, is to get Japan to be Eastern Orthodox by 1850 (i.e. official religion). And not just any Eastern Orthodox, Russian-style Eastern Orthodox. Slight divergences from the Russian style to a Japanese style are allowed. Bonus points if:
-The religion is larger than any other religion in Japan
-Japan and Russia are closely allied countries
-Both have Tsars/Emperors
-Japan spreads Eastern Orthodoxy or it spreads on it's own to Eastern Asia
-This does not involve Russian conquest
-Japanese culture blends with the religion to be... interesting, to say the least!
Well? Tough, yes, but hey! It's a challenge!

Probably involve this, right?

In any case, I think the best places for Orthodoxy to take root would be in Hokkaido (especially among the Ainu people) and maybe even northern Honshu, but that would be about it. However, I would think that Japanese Orthodox missionaries would be just as interesting (for lack of a better word) than Korean Protestant missionaries, probably since they might include in bits and pieces of Japanese culture (i.e., how would, for example, the onsen, or the traditional Japanese tea ceremony, be adapted to Orthodoxy?).

In addition, I could see services conducted entirely in Japanese. Maybe the Orthodox Church could be behind the abandonment of the usage of kanji in Japanese?