The Japanese Ten-noh is generally called Emperor globally, but I suppose that he stands totally at the opposite side of what you call Emperor, like Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, and so on. He is just the leader of Shinto priests. So, I believe that we should call him the Priest King or Ten-noh, not the Emperor in English.
By the way, the present Ten-noh will soon pass his position on to his successor. His era "Heisei" will end and another new era will start. The government announced today that the coming new era will be named "Reiwa". What will become of the new era, "Reiwa"? Almost all Japanese expect something good or happy in the new era, I think. The new era will start on May 1st with the enthronement of the 126th Ten-noh.
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