Tenrikyo Pearl Church Serving the community in spirited Hinokishin.

Personal Relationships

Good morning.  I would like to thank all of you for taking the time to attend the February Monthly Service here at Pearl Church and thank you for your kind and sincere offerings.  I am sure God the Parent and Oyasama is really happy to see you all here today and to have performed the service with joy and in high spirits!

Personal Relationships

In this modern world flourishing with materialism the human mind is deteriorating in self-destruction.  In this world, whatever happens is due to the decisions we make.  From the way we use our one mind, we can extend the life of an old item or cut it short by throwing it away.  Because of our materialism, we tend to throw things away.  Sometimes people throw away leftover food.  In this sense we also throw away our relationships, we easily break off relationships with people and vice versa.

A few months ago, we met this man from Japan.  He obtained a green card to live in the U.S. about a year ago and was living in Hawaii.  Because of the bad economy, it was hard for him to find a job in Japan.  Hawaii looked prosperous with tourism, so he hoped to get a job in Hawaii.  However, he doesn't speak English and could only find a minimum wage job.  On top of that, he has an illness that doesn't allow him to stand long hours and therefore was released from his job.  He changed his job several times going here and there.  He couldn't pay his rent with his low income and finally lived on the street with his suitcase.  Sometimes he slept under the bridge at Ala Wai Canal and sometimes near the corner of a building of a hotel.

He finally found the homeless shelter at IHS and was happy that he could sleep under a roof.  At the shelter, he could take a shower and standing in line, he could have a meal there.  In addition he could apply for public housing and now he is waiting for an opening.  We asked him why he didn't go back to Japan.  He said that his parents already passed away and he got divorced many years ago.  For him it really didn't matter where he lived.  We felt that he should ask his relatives and friends for help.  We wondered why he didn't have any relatives and friends he could rely on.  By seeing this man, we realized the reality of the homeless situation in society.  He probably does not have any close connection with his family or relatives otherwise they would be helping him.  He is basically isolated from friends and family.

The Shinbashira in his sermons stressed the importance of keeping close family ties.  What we need now is the tight and close family circle during meal times; talking to each other in a cheerful atmosphere.  However, they are couples who are totally separated yet living in the same house.  For the sake of their children, they remained married, but avoid seeing each other.  We were told by a close friend that in one family the wife prepares the meal for her husband, but they don't eat together…they avoid eating together.  The son talks to both the father and mother, but the parents have never talked to each other for many years.  It's a marriage of convenience; it's not a real marriage.

On the other hand, those children who follow their parents in visiting the graves of their ancestors and praying to God are children who have an enriched spirit.  They have a good sense of values such as respect for parents and caring for others.  In the teachings, if you want to have a close family, you should go to church regularly and devotedly.  Then God becomes the center of the family.

Human relationships are about the connections between people.  In the ten aspects of God's providence the aspect of "connecting" is Kunisazuchi no Mikoto.  In the Truth of Origin, the turtle is the animal related to connection.  The turtle crawls slowly and steadily.  The turtle is not stubborn and because of its low profile, it means humbleness.  This personality is loved by people.  On the other hand, those people who are unfortunately not liked by others or "people to avoid" are unlike the turtle.  They are arrogant, argumentative, and critical of other people and cannot get along.

Why are people disconnected in their relationships?  We often come across people who have difficulty getting along with others because of their negative thinking.  For instance, a neighbor says to you, "Your grass is growing so long that it's growing into the next door neighbor's yard.  You should cut your grass more often."

How would you respond to this?  Some people may respond by saying, "Oh thank you for letting me know.  I didn't realize that."  Another person might respond saying, "It's none of your business."  And think that he is so irritating and that's how this person cuts his relationships.  So depending on how you respond, positive or negative, can make a big difference in your relationships and ultimately your destiny.

Here's a story about Mrs. A.  She always interprets a person's words or actions in a bad way.  She often says to me, "Mrs. B is always lying, I cannot trust her. I feel like she's always imposing on me."  I'm not there so I don't really know the situation, but I said that, you might be making blind assumptions.  Try to be humble, accept what she's saying as true and rely on God.

Chances are that what we are thinking about the other person is a reflection of our self.  If our mind is dusty then what we see in other people will be negative.  If our mind is purified, we can trust and believe in other peoples good intentions.

Causality
The Japanese word for causality is "innen".  When we break it down, "inn" is "cause" and "en" is "effect."  Metaphorically speaking "inn" is like a seed.  When we plant a seed, it will grow into something that we reap, which is "en" or "effect".  Every day we plant a seed by the way we use our mind.  In the above example, Mrs. A assumed that Mrs. B was lying, thereby planting a seed that cuts relationships with people and it will come back to her in a negative way.  After many years pass, the seed will sprout into not being able to make good connections or good relationships with other people.

We suggested that she should go to church as much as she can.  By worshipping at church, the dust in our mind will be swept away and our mind will become purified changing from negative to positive.  Our mind will become humble and kindhearted.

As you can see problems in our relationships is a clue to the cause of the deteriorating human condition in our materialistic world.  The decisions we make especially in terms of making good use of things may determine how we can salvage our relationships instead of giving up or "throw away our relationships."  The teaching of causality teaches us that nothing "just happens" and that there is a seed that was planted that caused something to happen.  By going to church we can learn to sweep away our mental dust, sow good seeds, and keep good relationships with family, friends and co-workers.

Thank you for your attention.

Announcements

1. I would like to thank those of you who came out the BGA annual New Year Park Cleanup and BBQ Picnic held on Sunday, January 23.  Out of a total of 60 participants, 12 were from Pearl Church.  Thank you very much!
2. Thank you for bringing your deposit cans and bottles for our fundraising drive. We are still continuing our fundraising efforts for some debt on the repainting supplies and also the help with the Hawaii Convention that’s coming up on May of this year.  Please continue bringing your deposit cans and bottles and any yard work referrals.  If you haven’t registered yet please do so.  If you have financial difficulty in meeting the registration fee, please see me as we may be able to help you up to 50%.
3. Also in support of the Hawaii Convention we will be conducting a church sale on Sunday, March 6th. From 8am to 1pm.
4. The annual Tenri Cultural Center cleanup is scheduled for President’s day February 21 from 9am with lunch being served at 11am.  Please make every effort to attend and enjoy the beauty of the Tenri Cultural Center.
5. The annual BGA Spring Camp and General Meeting will be held on March 25 -27, (Fri, Sat & Sun) at Tenri Cultural Center.  The General Meeting will be on the camp second day March 26, Saturday, 10:30 at MHQ.

Counting Our Blessings to Our Children

Good morning. I would like to thank all of you for taking the time to attend the January Grand Service here at Tenrikyo Pearl Church and thank you for your kind and sincere offerings. I am sure God the Parent and Oyasama is really happy to see you all here today and to have performed the service with joy and in high spirits!

On January 26, 1887, our Foundress, Oyasama withdrew from physical life. To commemorate this day we conduct the January Grand Service. This would be the 125^th Anniversary. We cannot see her physically but we believe that Oyasama is “ever-living” working day and night for world salvation. In the Life of Oyasama p. 255 we read:

“Sah, sah, I am still living here. I have not gone anywhere. Ponder over the path of daily life and see My workings.” Osashizu, March 17, 1890

Let's Convey the Mind of Counting Our Blessings to Our Children

In the near the end of Chapter Nine in the Life of Oyasama, we read:

Despite the divinity of Her soul and despite Her being the Shrine of Tsukihi, in order to save humankind who would not walk the path of salvation merely by being taught, Oyasama stood at the forefront Herself and bore every hardship to demonstrate, by Her own life, the Divine Model.

Today we would like to talk about the Divine Model of Oyasama, how we can emulate the Divine Model and how we can convey this to our children, no matter what our circumstances are.

I am sure there is no one who does not expect a happy life for our children. We want our baby to drink a lot of milk, to be nurtured properly and grow up healthy. When they go to school, we want them to do well in school and be a model student. When they are grown, we also wish them to have a good job, a good marriage and happy family. This is the common theme with most people.

However, we cannot always be with them to protect them and nurture them no matter how much we love them. They will eventually become independent and live on their own. But when they encounter hardships, how can they overcome their problems. As a parent we worry over their problems and hardships. Our life is not always, having good things happen. Sometimes we encounter frustrations and things happen that may cause us to be depressed.

I’d like to share a story about Mr. K whose daughter when she was a few months old had a condition in which half of her face didn’t move. After taking her to the hospital, she was diagnosed as having facial paralysis. According to the doctor, there are two causes of this condition: One is some kind of bacteria got into the face and that if they removed the bacteria, it would become alright. The other cause is due to a defective spine which could affect other parts of the body. When Mr. K. heard this, he imagined the worst case scenario, it became very dark in front of him and he panicked. Asked himself, “Why did this happen to only my child?” When he saw other healthy kids, he became so envious of them.

During that time, the former Shinbashira’s wife, came to him and said that she learned about his child’s illness and told him, “Your mind is like a glass window that is clouded. It’s only temporary, so just wipe it and see. There are many things you can be happy about. I’m sure there are many things to be appreciative about. One month later his daughter was discharged with a healthy body. Mr. K. felt that no matter how unfortunate our circumstances may be God is trying to polish our mind. From this problem Mr. K. thought that he must find the joy in his daily life by counting his blessings. He remembered what Mrs. Masa Nakayama said, which was that our minds are just temporarily clouded. We just need to clear it away and become refreshed. In order to clear the cloud and refresh our minds, we must perform the prayer service and by helping others. As a result our mind will be cleared and cleansed naturally. Through his child’s illness, he learned to always look for and count his blessings even for the smallest things and always try to be joyful. It was a great message from God the Parent to learn and be joyful.

Oyasama taught us in the Osashizu, July 15, 1901 (Meiji 34):

If the leader goes astray, everyone else will go astray. If the leader serves in joy each day without going astray, truth will prevail. But if the leader is depressed, depression will prevail. When depression prevails, nothing will come out of it.

We as parents, if we are always complaining and cannot be happy, it is a matter of course that the children won’t follow the Path. So we should nurture our children to believe in Oyasama and rely on God with a happy and appreciative mind, no matter what our adversity. We as parents must walk the walk by going to church and teach and show our children how to nurture the mind of finding joy in everything.

Announcements

1. Happy New Year! I would like to thank everyone for your support given last year. The major activities were the Women’s Association 100th Anniversary and the church exterior repainting. Thank you very much!
2. I would like to thank everyone for your support in helping with the MHQ and Pearl Church spring cleaning on December 26 and 27, respectively, mochi pounding on December 30 and your generous New Year offerings. Thank you very much!
3. Thank you for bringing your deposit cans and bottles for our fundraising drive. We are still continuing our fundraising efforts for some debt on the repainting supplies and also the help with the Hawaii Convention that’s coming up on May of this year. Please continue bringing your deposit cans and bottles and any yard work referrals. If you haven’t registered yet please do so as soon as possible to take advantage of the early registration discount. If you have financial difficulty in meeting the registration fee, please see me as we may be able to help you up to 50%.
4. The BGA annual New Year Park Cleanup and BBQ Picnic will be held on Sunday, January 23 from 10am, please meet at Mission HQ at 9am for prayer service. This is open to everyone; however, please contact me to let me know who is coming so that we may prepare enough food. Meet at MHQ at 9am or go direct to Moiliili Stadium Park by 10am. If you have them, please bring your own cleaning tools such as rakes and dust pans. The LC will from start from the day before on Saturday, January 22, for kids 12 and above.
5. The annual Tenri Cultural Center cleanup is scheduled for President’s day February 21 from 9am.



Laughter is the Best Medicine With No Side Effects

Thank you all for joining your hearts and minds in performing the October Grand Service here at Tenrikyo Pearl Church. I believe that when we perform the Service spiritedly and in unity, as we have today, God the Parent and Oyasama are truly satisfied with our efforts.

Laughter is the Best Medicine With No Side Effects

When we are laughing, we cannot see how happy our face is. In other words the smiling face is to show other people how joyous life can be. On the other hand, when people frown too often, the muscles which forms the frown stiffens and our face become sullen or gloomy. For those people, it becomes difficult to smile or to laugh. The cheerful smile creates a happy and bright atmosphere for the people around. A dark or gloomy face makes people unhappy and apprehensive. So we should keep in mind how our face influences our health and the people around us. We should not only try to smile, but laughter also promotes good health. Furthermore laughter helps to heal illness, which was proven through research done Dr. Kazuo Murakami with a team scientists.

Dr. Murakami is professor emeritus at Tsukuba University, in Japan. He is also a scientist and a devout Tenrikyo follower.

The study appeared in the United States in the May 2003 issue of Diabetes Care bulletin. We have introduced the relationship of laughter and genes in a 2006 sermon, so it is not something new. There is a proverb which says, “Laughter is the Best Medicine”. So I would like to talk to you about the effectiveness of laughter in curing illness.

The study of type II diabetes, the most common form of the disease, found that laughter was linked to lower blood sugar levels after a meal.

Over two days, participants were given identical meals. On one day, they watched a humorless lecture, and the next they watched a Japanese comedy show. The group of nineteen people with diabetes and five without had their blood sugar monitored during the study. Afterward both diabetics and non diabetics alike had lower blood glucose (sugar) levels after laughing through the comedy show than they did when they listened to the monotonous lecture.

The researchers also found the same results in people without diabetes. They cannot yet explain the laughter-glucose connection. It could be that laughter affects the neuroendocrine system, which monitors the body’s glucose levels. Or it may be an effect of energy used by the stomach muscles.

One of the researchers said, “If positive emotion such as laughter reduced blood glucose, both patients and medical providers would recognize the importance of it and it would improve the mental health and quality of life. We should laugh more.”

Plenty of studies have shown that laughter can combat many common ills. For instance, research suggests that humor may lower blood pressure and release endorphins. Laughter is also thought to improve circulation, stimulate the nervous system, heighten the immune system and make the heart stronger.

Dr. Murakami also conducted research on genes and found out that when we use our minds in a good way a switch on the good gene turns “on” and our bad genes turns “off.” When we do good things the good genes turn “on.”

By laughing the good genes’ switches were turned “on” and the bad genes were turned “off.” This tremendous and marvelous working is done by what Dr. Murakami calls, “Something Great.”

He says that this is the law of the universe, which is the marvelous working of God the Parent. Every one of us has hidden potential possibilities which can be drawn out according to our use of mind. This shows that “something great” can happen to anyone by turning “on” the good genes switch.

In another study, researchers had arthritis patients listen to a comedy show for one hour. The arthritis patients are feeling positive the pain is lessened. When they are depressed the pain increases. After the comedy show the patients’ pains were reduced and they were able to enjoy three weeks without pain. (from Michi no Tomo, May 2006, p. 22, a Tenrikyo publication)

The word “present” has too meanings. One is the “gift” and the other means “now”. I take this to mean that the present time, “now” is a present or gift from God. This means that we should live the fullest and to the best of our ability now.

Rev. Murakami, who as a scientist, met the Dalai Lama XIV, and had several discussions. He asked the Dalai Lama, “When was the best time of your life?” The Dalai Lama promptly answered: “Now is the best time of my life!”

When we are laughing, we don’t think about our past or future and we forget our pain. We become joyous by laughing and become immersed in the present moment and forget about our illness. In addition, now is the best and happiest time of our life. It means to appreciate the blessings of the marvelous and majestic presence of nature and the present.

In the Osashizu, June 1, 1889 it says

“With human beings; the body is a thing lent by God, a thing borrowed. The mind alone is yours. From our one mind any Truth can be revealed."

 

Announcements

1. Thank you for bringing your deposit cans and bottles for our fundraising drive. We are still continuing our fundraising efforts to pay for paint and supplies for the repainting of Pearl Church which was complete earlier this month. Please continue bringing your deposit cans and bottles and any yard work referrals. I would like to thank those you came out to the painting hinokishin. Thank you very much.

2. We would like to encourage people to attend monthly service practice held on the Thursday night prior to the monthly service at 7pm. Please join us so that we may give our best effort in performing the monthly service.

3. This is the last monthly service for 2010, I would like to thank everyone for your support given to us and the church throughout the year. Thank you very much!

4. Please welcome new faces…

5. Presentation by Hawaii Convention Representative Mr. David Inouye.



This World is a Mirror

Thank you all for joining your hearts and minds in performing the October Grand Service here at Tenrikyo Pearl Church. I believe that when we perform the Service spiritedly and in unity, as we have today, God the Parent and Oyasama are truly satisfied with our efforts.

This World is a Mirror

The Shinbashira, in this past January Grand Service, emphasized the importance of enjoying family time and asked us not miss the precious family gathering time. He said that there is a tendency in the weakening ties between husband and wife and parent and children to become “lost” as to who we can rely on. The breakdown of the family is now undermining society at large.

Marriage

Nowadays, approximately 50% of marriages end up with divorce in the US. One out of two couples is divorced.

Oyasama accepted divorce as an exceptional case, however if the divorce rate increases as a matter of course, we are not really facing toward the Joyous life. There are cases of remarriage with children from the previous marriage. I would imagine the children will be in a complicated situation. Naturally, single parent families are increasing. When the child becomes independent, the parent lives alone and the number people in solitary death is increasing. It is a sad story but this reality.

The development of the internet, video games and cell phones cause people to stay in their room and still communicate with other people. But this is more isolation and people become uncomfortable with person to person relationships. I don’t know if the internet, cell phones and games is the cause, but there is a rapid growth of people who are suffering from depression and autism.

There is a study which shows that the number of autism cases among preschool children has been growing rapidly from 1990 through 2007, especially in California. It is constantly increasing, 7 or 8 times during these 17 years. And it is still increasing even now; not only in the U.S. but throughout the world.

People are wondering what the cause is. Is it mercury, chemicals in our food, synthetic seasoning, contaminated food or is it vaccinations which contained thimerosal? None of them have been conclusive.

Taeko goes to public elementary schools to serve as interpreter for Japanese parent whose children have delayed learning disorder. She has been to many different elementary schools in Honolulu. Most of the meetings involve children who have autism. A psychologist told her that the number of cases is reaching epidemic proportions.

Why does God show us serious illnesses one after another? In the olden days, tuberculosis was the frightening and terrible disease of that time that people wouldn’t survive once they got infected. However, now, due to advanced medicine we are able treat tuberculosis. You would think that because of advanced medicine, we wouldn’t have any disease. But in actuality, there are many incurable diseases, such as mad cow disease, breast cancer and cholera.

In the Mikagura-uta, we sing:

The innermost hearts of all in the world,

Are reflected to Me as in a mirror.

Mikagura-uta, VI: 3

This verse says that all the thoughts of humans are reflected to God entirely like a mirror. Our hand motions go like this: One hand in the front with the palm toward your face and alternating with the other hand in the back with palm toward the back of the head. This means that God can see through our mind.

Just recently, a lady from Moscow, Russia, visited Pearl Church. She said that everything here was new to her and that it was the first time she ever visited a sanctuary like this. She asked , “What is the meaning of the mirror on the shrine.” I promptly answered that the human mind have dust and that it is reflected to God as in a mirror. That is why we have earthquakes, tidal waves, floods and hurricanes. She agreed and said that it makes sense.

Most of the people here today have close family ties. When husband and wife are close in their relationship, chances are that they are successful in everything: their occupation and family life. On the other hand if they are not close and have bad feelings toward each other, they are probably not happy even if they are successful in their occupations.

If you can see the good points of your spouse, then you have a purified mind. However, if you can only see the bad points then it means that YOU also have a lot of faults. When you have a lot of faults, you will always feel uneasy and be bothered by others. You can check your mind by the way you think of others, especially your spouse.

How can we as a family put our minds together so that we can get along and function as a close and loving family? It is to have good communication by talking to each other every day.

Having a mind of appreciation, of helping each other, and a mind of modesty.

What kind of mind is a mind of modesty? I’d like to share a story from the Anecdotes of Oyasama: #32

It Depends on the Wife’s Word

When she was in her teens, Yasu, daughter of Rihei Matsuda of Kosaka Village in Yamato, helped cook for Oyasama for several years. Oyasama said:

“When a meal you have cooked is brought in, my heart seems to open up,”

And She enjoyed Yasu’s cooking. Her meal consisted of rice gruel with a few soybeans. When it was not busy, there were times when Yasu was alone with Oyasama. During these times, Oyasama taught Yasu many things. On one such occasion, Oyasama taught her:

“Dear Yasu, a man, any man, is what a wife’s word makes him. Even if he is a man who is apt to be called a fool by others, if his wife treats him with respect and says politely, ‘Welcome home, dear,’ when he comes home, people will say, ‘Although we call him a fool, judging by the respectful way his wife treats him, he must be a great man.’ Whether the husband becomes a great man or a fool depends on the wife’s word.”

When Yasu was twenty-three, Oyasama arranged a marriage for her into the Inui family of Shoyashiki Village. The meeting of the prospective bride and groom was held in Oyasama’s room. At that time, Oyasama said:

“God says, ‘This person and that person.’ In this way, the matter is settled. After it is settled, do not sever it. If it is severed, the one who severs it will be severed.”

Then She moved Her hands three times, saying:

“Good, good, very good.”

There are many people having problems between husband and wife and between parent and children. The second Shinbashira encouraged us to become a kind-hearted person. This is our given mission as a person of the Path.

Thank you for your attention.

Announcements

1. Thank you for bringing your deposit cans and bottles for our fundraising drive. We are still continuing our fundraising efforts for the repainting of Pearl Church which is nearing completion.  Please continue bringing your deposit cans and bottles and any yard work referrals.
2. I would like to recognize Robert Nam, Moses Nakao, James Katsumoto and Russell Barre who have been helping with the painting hinokishin.  We still have a little touch up painting, scraping off paint from the windows and concrete and putting everything back. If you happen to be available anytime during the day, please join us in this important church hinokishin.
3. We would like to encourage people to attend monthly service practice held on the Thursday night prior to the monthly service at 7pm.  Please join us so that we may give our best effort in performing the monthly service.
4. Due to your support I was able to attend the October Grand Service at Tengen Bunkyokai on October 23 and church HQ on October 26.
5. I would like to thank everyone for your support of the Trick or Treat for UNICEF fund drive by passing out and returning the orange collection boxes.
6. At this we have an important announcement from the Hawaii Convention Committee staff member, Moses Nakao.
7. Please welcome new faces…

Meaning of Being Healthy

Thank you all for joining your hearts and minds in performing the September Monthly Service here at Tenrikyo Pearl church. I believe that when we perform the Service spiritedly and in unity, as we have today, God the Parent and Oyasama are truly satisfied with our efforts.

The Meaning of “Being Healthy”

We say that people who don’t have any illness are healthy. However, can we really say that we are healthy if we are only physically well, but we don’t have the will or enthusiasm to live?

The WHO or the World Health Organization, since 1998, says that “health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. This is how the WHO defines a healthy person. As you can see the healthy person is not just a person with a healthy body. The human being has three aspects: the body, mind and soul.

Dr. Takanobu Imanaka who is the former vice president of the Ikoi no Ie Hospital in Tenri, says that having a healthy soul is very important. Accordingly, the WHO are discussing and considering adding the “health of the spirit and dynamic state of the mind” to the definition of the “healthy person.” So even though people have illness and other problems, they are considered to be in good health if they can and have the will do what they want to do. In this way the WHO is putting more importance on a person’s spiritual and mental state.

“Spiritual health” is the “state of the soul.” It doesn’t matter whether a person has faith in God or not, every one of us has a soul. It isn’t visible but it surely exists. For example if we compare the human being with a tree: The human soul can be considered the root of the tree. However, even if the leaves are green, if the tree is without the roots, it will fall and die.

Some people tend to ignore the existence of our spirit. And they are living like rootless wanderers thinking, “If everything is well with me now, and then everything’s fine.” For those people, when they come across obstacles, they tend to end their lives taking their life lightly. They are poor with the reality of living and living with a sense of purpose. And they only place importance on money and material things and they rely excessively on doctors and medicine.

In Tenrikyo we say “pass away for rebirth” in the case of death. In that case, the person’s use of mind doesn’t disappear all of a sudden. It stays with (or is recorded onto) the soul. This is what we call “causality.”

The soul or spirit is eternal. We are reborn again into a new body and come back to this life. This is passing away for rebirth in Tenrikyo. How much the soul is purified, depends on how that person lived in the previous life and this life. That is why it is important in our teachings, how we live in our everyday life.

We pray for those people who are ill. We have seen many people who have been blessed with healing from illness through the three-day administration of the sazuke. However, when they are healed or saved, it is easy to forget the inspiration and the miracle of the moment. In these instance, it is not the real cure. Oyasama taught us that the real cure is being positive and appreciative and receiving the problems and illnesses with that positive and grateful mind. So this is what the goal of the joyous life and what true salvation is. The soul will be saved and one’s destiny is changed for the better.

In one of my salvation work, Mrs. A asked me to pray for the pain in her leg. Before administering the sazuke I explained the basic teachings like the Joyous Life and a thing lent and a thing borrowed. Without me asking she made a large donation to the church. After the three-day prayer, the pain disappeared. After a couple weeks, she called to say that she now has pain in her neck and asked me to pray for her again. This time I explained that the sazuke is not a magical trick or that I have healing powers, but that God is working through me to bestow a blessing. I explained that there is a message in your condition. If we ignore the message, then the illness will come back again. She asked me what is the message? I replied that I’m not sure, but I think God is calling you to go to church. She said “I don’t think so, but I believe in your magical hands.” After the three-day, prayer she got well again. But after a week she called to say that her leg is sore again. So again I administered the sazuke for three-days. She didn’t call after the 3^rd day, so I assumed, she still had the pain, however, I saw her the other day and she thanked me for the prayers and said that she was better, but that the pain was off and on. I am continuing my contact with her so I hope she will eventually learn something from this experience. So you can see this as an illustration of just being physically well as opposed to spiritual wellness.

There is a book titled, “Complete Recovery,” written by a doctor Yoshitoshi Shinohara. This doctor, a rheumatoid arthritis specialist described the treatment for lupus which is to ease the pain or lower the fever. This illness is very difficult to treat and to relieve the pain. This illness called lupus is declared an incurable disease by the Japanese government. However there are cases in which lupus patients got well, despite being incurable. He has seen several cases.

The common features in cases where the patient got well are:

 

1. Those people who give up getting well.

2. Those people who give their best in serving others.

 

He also mentions common characteristics of patients who didn’t get well:

1. People who want to get well.

2. People who think negatively saying or thinking, “because of this illness, I can’t do this or that.”

He recently met a patient who has lupus and who he hasn’t seen for a long time, because a family member got critically ill. Dr. Shinohara asked him how he was. He said that because he was busy taking care of this family member he didn’t have time to come in for a checkup. This person completely forgot about his own condition and was desperately trying to help his family member. Upon checking his blood, Dr. Shinohara found that he did not have lupus. In other words, his patient’s lupus condition was cured.

In the Ofudesaki we read:

If you are truly of a mind to save others single-heartedly,
I shall firmly accept you, even if you say nothing. III: 38

Ponder from your innermost heart to understand.
Through saving others, you will be saved. III: 47

 

Thank you for your attention.

 

Announcements

1. We would like to thank you all for your support of the Tenrikyo Bazaar held on August 29 at Tenri Cultural Center. Thank you for purchasing scrips and chicken tickets, thank you for your donations and thank you for your hinokishin help!

2. Also, thank you for participating in the all Tenrikyo Nioigake Day held at stadium park on Labor Day, 9/6. We had 60 person of which 18 was from Pearl Church.

3. Thank you for bringing your deposit cans and bottles for our fundraising drive. We are still continuing our fundraising efforts for our next project which is the repainting of Pearl Church this summer. Please continue bringing your deposit cans and bottles and any yard work referrals. Proceeds will help pay for paint equipment and supplies for our church painting. We have tentatively set our church exterior painting from September 22-October 2. If you happen to be available during that time, please join us in this important church hinokishin.

4. We would like to encourage people to attend monthly service practice held on the Thursday night prior to the monthly service at 7pm. Next month it will be on July 8 at 7pm. Please join us so that we may give our best effort in performing the monthly service.

5. September is the Autumn Memorial Service month. The Pearl Church service will be on the 4^th Saturday, 9/25 at 8am.

6. Please welcome Bishop and Mrs. Hamada.

One Man's Spiritual Journey

Thank you all for joining your hearts and minds in performing the August Monthly Service here at Tenrikyo Pearl church. I believe that when we perform the Service spiritedly and in unity, as we have today, God the Parent and Oyasama are truly satisfied with our efforts.

 

How One Man’s Spiritual Journey Led Him to Find Meaning in the Service

This Service, the Tenrikyo Service is long. You might think, “why is it so long?” I thought the same too. In the Doctrine of Tenrikyo, Chapter Two, it says, “…moving hands in unison to the song and in harmony with the music of the nine instruments. Through this we can sever the root of illness and purify our minds; then the world will be restored to joyousness.

Our monthly service is only once a month. We can thank God the Parent for all the good health and being safe in peace. Through this service one’s life can be renewed.

Today, we would like to explore the significance of the Service as the fundamental way to salvation by sharing a minister’s spiritual journey that led him to become a head minister of a church in California.

Rev. Marlon Okazaki hated it when people told him that he was the next successor to his dad’s church since childhood. However, in his college years, he came to respect his dad’s work as a minister working for society and the world.

After graduating from college, he worked for Sony Headquarters in Tokyo for four years and left to pursue a spiritual life entering the three-month Spiritual Development Course, the Minister Qualification Course and did hinokishin at the Translation Section of the Overseas Department and published the Service Hand Dance Guidebook in English which is still in use today. He also served as young volunteer at his upper church, Honjima Grand Church and did missionary work in Japan.

It was during his time at the Overseas Department that was a turning point in his quest to find meaning in the Tenrikyo service. I shall quote from his sermon given at his grand church:

 

I was attending a post-reception party of a friend from the Overseas Department, and began to talk with a good-looking young man seated next to me.

He was a church minister, and I was still confused about whether I should become a church minister. I said arrogantly, "I don't know if I should become a church minister. Besides, I really don't know why we perform the Service, or what positive effect it has? For example, when the Service is performed at the Church Headquarters, there are people who worship within the main sanctuary, in the inner courtyard, or talk throughout the service as they worship, worship from the followers dormitory, or worship from America. Is there really a difference in the effect? Is there more effect if we sing in harmony? If we don't, is it decreased? Is there a difference if you understand the Mikagura-Uta or not? I don't understand it at all." It was really an arrogant diatribe (criticism). And embarrassingly enough, I had just completed the Spiritual Development Course and the Head Ministers' Qualification Course.

This young minister, I have since forgotten his name—to my dismay—told me something that, more than anything else I have learned about the Service, helps me as a church minister.

He said, "Please look at my face.” As I did, I saw, as I have stated before, a handsome face. He said again, "Please look at my face carefully." So, as I looked at him, I saw scars from his nose to around his eyes to his forehead. Then, he explained to me.

"Seven years ago, I was in an accident."

He had received a call from one of his church members who had a family shrine. "Reverend, my son has been drinking all day and he's drunk and yelling that he is going to throw away the shrine. Can you please come and help?"

He had to travel a long distance to his follower's home. In the dead of winter, he hurried and caught a train and spent many hours to get to there.

When he arrived, the son was still drunk and nothing was coming of it. His parents said, "Reverend, Reverend," and to that, the son yelled, "Who are you? Great Reverend? Who are you to tell me anything?!"

Although he tried talking, nothing came of it, nothing was resolved and he decided to return home.

The church minister thought, "I don't know why I even came here," and was disappointed for coming such a long way.

When he was about to walk to the station, the son said, "I will take you to the station." Seeing that he was still drunk, the minister turned him down thinking it was dangerous. But the son became angry saying, "You can't accept my offer to drive you to the station?!" He thought that he had no choice but to accept and the mother rode with them to the station.

On their way, the son began to speed along the narrow street and crashed into a telephone pole.

In that instant, the mother, who wasn't wearing a seatbelt, was thrown from the car and died instantly. The son was badly injured. And the church minister was thrown from the car, and the right side of his head collapsed from the impact. His hands, legs, neck, spine and head suffered numerous injuries and broken bones. He had internal bleeding. He was taken to the hospital and it was a miracle for him to be even breathing.

Days later, he regained consciousness and the doctor told him, "You're going to be okay. Your life was saved. But you suffered many broken bones and I cannot guarantee that you will walk. And it looks like your right eye flew out at the accident site. The firefighters searched for it, but they couldn't find it, so we were unable to perform surgery for your eye."

This young minister's spirits fell suddenly. "I only tried to help them and now look at me. How could this have happened?" he thought. Without saying anything further, I think you can all understand what he was feeling.

He might not be able to work. He might be invalid all his life. He was only thirty years old. He had lost his right eye. He might never get married. All these thoughts ran through his head. He had hit rock bottom―He could sink no lower.

He received administration of the Sazuke from his grand church minister, family and friends, hundreds of times, but not once did he feel joy or any emotion.

Many weeks passed and his face slowly began to heal. His eye socket began to swell up. A few days later, the eye that was supposedly lost, emerged from the back of his head--A true miracle, indeed. Actually, at the time of the collision, due to the impact, the eyeball was pushed back and hidden somewhere in his head.

The minister could now see out of the eye that he had thought was gone and was now filled with gratitude to God the Parent and his spirits were lifted again. One year later, he was able to walk on his own. Many years later, he was able to walk normally. His face, which was disfigured before, became handsome once more. He married and welcomed a cute child, and lived a happy life as a church minister.

Lastly, he said to me, "Marlon, this is the blessing of the Service (Pointing to his face). The blessings of ‘Big problem, small problem; Small problem, no problem.’ This is why we perform the Service."

I could not stop my tears upon hearing this. Despite my arrogant attitude, I was able to hear this precious story from this great man. Before God the Parent, before this man, I was embarrassed. From then on, my attitude toward the Service forever changed.

 

I would like to share an excerpt from Mrs. Nakao’s sermon given at the mission headquarters in 2001, she said:

 

A few months ago (May 2001) in the Island Life section of the Sunday, Honolulu Advertiser, there was an article about UH professor Mitsuo Aoki. He is long time religion professor Aoki who taught for 40 years at UH Manoa campus.

What interested me in the article was the sentence: “The ‘cosmic dancer,’ he calls himself, and University of Hawaii students in religion classes over the years have been astonished as he leapt on top of his desk and danced.”

The philosopher, “Nietzsche (NEE’ che), said, ‘until you have learned to dance, you have not understood God,’” says Professor Aoki, “So dancing is a form of transcending limits.”

His words are quietly intense. It’s the same intensity with which he has lived life.

“Dancing is a form of transcending limits,” says Professor Aoki, which is beyond human power and we can receive God’s omnipotent workings.

This sounds something very familiar to our “teodori,” which we have just performed.

In our faith, Oyasama taught us the teodori (or Hand Dance). For three full years following 1867, Oyasama devoted Her time to adapting melodies and dance movements to the songs and teaching them.

She said, “These are the songs of truth. So you must dance to the truth. You should not just dance. You must dance the truth.”

Further, She gave instruction in the Truth of the performance of the Service.

“Hands that are limp in the performance of the service betray a mind that is undisciplined. Also, it will not do to make even a single mistake in the manner of moving your hands. Through this Service, one’s life can be renewed. So important is this Service.”

 

In the Ofudesaki (Divine Revelations) we read:

 

What do you think this Service is about? It is solely

to bring peace to the world and salvation to all. IV: 93

 

Day by day, hasten to begin the Service. You will

escape any danger whatever. X: 19

 

 

Announcements

1. Thank you for bringing your deposit cans and bottles for our fundraising drive. We are still continuing our fundraising efforts for our next project which is the repainting of Pearl Church this summer. Please continue bringing your deposit cans and bottles and any yard work referrals. Proceeds will help pay for paint equipment and supplies for our church painting. We have tentatively set our church exterior painting from September 22-October 2. If you happen to be available during that time, please join us in this important church hinokishin.

2. We would like to encourage people to attend monthly service practice held on the Thursday night prior to the monthly service at 7pm. Next month it will be on July 8 at 7pm. Please join us so that we may give our best effort in performing the monthly service.

3. This month is the month for the annual Tenrikyo Bazaar to be held on Sunday, August 29^th from 8:30 – 2:30. We would like to again ask for everyone’s support in purchasing bazaar scrips and BBQ chicken and in Bazaar hinokishin.

4. Also on Labor Day, Monday, September 6, the mission headquarters will be conducting the annual All Tenrikyo Nioigake Day from 9am – 11am at Stadium Park.



The Gulf Spill

Thank you all for joining your hearts and minds in performing the July Monthly Service here at Tenrikyo Pearl church. I believe that when we perform the Service spiritedly and in unity, as we have today, God the Parent and Oyasama are truly satisfied with our efforts.

What is the Message Behind the Gulf Oil Spill?

As all of you know we are experiencing an ongoing oil well leak in the Gulf of Mexico that is turning into a giant ecological disaster. We hear it in the news every day, how wildlife such as birds, turtles and fish are killed by this massive pollution. Also how peoples livelihoods are being affected, by jobs that have been discontinued and companies going out of business, such as in fishing and tourism. There are also reports of underwater oil plumes that are depleting the oxygen in the water killing fish and other deep sea animals.

The news agencies also report that people are very angry. They are angry at the oil company British Petroleum for not taking safety precaution, they are angry at the government for not enforcing or making stricter safety regulations and they are angry that BP and the government is not doing enough to stop the oil leak and not doing enough to clean up the oil mess or to prevent the oil from reaching the shores. So everybody ends up playing the blame game.

While the investigation into the cause of the disaster, the final capping of the leak and cleanup will take months if not years, the fact remains that this is a big problem and it could happen again, if we don’t take steps to prevent it.

Here in Hawaii, we don’t feel the effects of the gulf oil spill at least not yet, perhaps the long term effect might be felt in increased gas prices and higher electricity costs. The tendency might be to think that it doesn’t concern us, but we all live on the same planet and we all must take steps to help solve this problem.

In the Ofudesaki we read:

The thought that all is well if the present is well for the self

alone, is entirely mistaken. III: 33

 

In the case of illness and personal problems, we as Tenrikyo followers must reflect on the way we use our mind on a daily basis, realize God’s message, and to take steps that will be in accord with the intentions of God the Parent.

What is God’s message in this Gulf Oil Spill?

On the internet, I found a several websites which addressed this question: One website http://www.prayerforce.org/prayerblog/2010/06/04/spiritual-approach-to-bp-oil-spill-part-3/ instructed its readers to “envision all that oil spewing out as love,” that the oil represents “God’s love,” and that “everything is God.”

It continues: “Affirm it is love. See it as love. Make it beautiful. What you are telling God is that you want God to transform that oil, and this situation into something beautiful. Two or five or ten or twenty years from now the repercussions from this spill may have transformed how we produce energy.

The Gulf could be a paradise without oil wells, Energy companies and environmentalists may be working together for the highest good. We may all be more engaged and empowered.

Another website (http://indianinthemachine.wordpress.com/2010/06/07/what-is-the-spiritual-meaning-of-the-oil-spill-that-is-occurring-in-may-2010-in-the-gulf-of-mexico/) said that this is “wake up call”… that we should wake up and realize that we should stop damaging the environment.

Another website called ezinearticles.com gave an answer I thought is in more line with the Tenrikyo teachings. It says:

One cannot hold just the owners or managers of the rig to blame. One must hold the entire human race and culture to blame in which the Earths' needs have not been given the highest priority. Such an imbalance has set man's greed as the highest priority, and the needs of the Earth as a much lower level priority.

Out of the pain that this tragedy is causing to the Earth, a steadier movement shall grow toward balance and respect for the Earth that has not yet taken place.

When the Earth becomes part of one's self, then, and only then, will the correct balance be achieved, and not with the present idea of 'having' and 'getting' being uppermost in people's minds.

All these are interesting and good to consider. In the Tenri (Jiho) weekly newspaper there is an article about the oil spill that I would like to share:

It says that the all things including the oil are blessings of God. The oil provides us with gasoline for our cars, energy to produce electricity and oil byproducts help to make many useful things.

However with many useful things when received in excess, causes problems. It causes us to waste things. It tells us to use things in moderation.

Just seeing the oil spewing out from the well thousands of feet on the ocean floor, with no end in sight… it seems so wasteful not to mention being harmful to the environment. And I cannot help but feel that it’s a reflection of how I’ve have been wasteful in the use of this resource and being wasteful in general, in our daily lives… whether it be using the car instead of walking a short distance or leaving the light on in a room that I’ve already left. The constant oil gushing out is a reflection of my excess and the wasteful way I’ve been using my time like watching TV for a long time. I would like to take this opportunity to “wake up” from my unawareness and take positive steps toward living in moderation and protect the earth. I’m more conscious of how I use my time, more conscious of my use of electricity and try to turn off things while not in use. Try to walk or bike instead of using the car.

As one person, we cannot do big things like end wars and we cannot stop the oil leak. But we can start with ourselves. We can start by changing the way we think about how we use our resources, reduce our greed; reduce the amount of energy we use and reduce the things we buy. And as a church we’ve started using the reusable eco bags for our shopping to reduce the amount of plastic being produced and we recycle our newspaper, cardboard and containers. Please take this opportunity to reflect and join us in taking active steps to curb our excess and make good use of things, cut our energy waste and protect the environment.

In the Osashizu, we read:

I have all sorts of things reflected in the world. There, everything is reflected in the world. The world is a mirror. With each of you, everything is reflected on the body according to your own state of mind. February 4, 1889 (Meiji 22)

Announcements

1. I would like to thank all who helped at the recent Tenrikyo picnic and for joining us in fun and fellowship.

2. Thank you for bringing your deposit cans and bottles for our fundraising drive. We are still continuing our fundraising efforts for our next project which is the repainting of Pearl Church this summer. Please continue bringing your deposit cans and bottles and any yard work referrals. Proceeds will help pay for paint equipment and supplies for our church painting. We have tentatively set our church exterior painting from September 22-October 3. If you happen to be available during that time, please join us in this important church hinokishin.

3. We would like to encourage people to attend monthly service practice held on the Thursday night prior to the monthly service at 7pm. Next month it will be on July 8 at 7pm. Please join us so that we may give our best effort in performing the monthly service.

4. This month is the month of the BGA annual Children’s Pilgrimage so as chairman I will be accompanying a group to Jiba from July 19 through the 30^th.

5. Next month is the annual Tenrikyo Bazaar, we would like to again ask for everyone’s support in purchasing bazaar scrips and BBQ chicken and in Bazaar hinokishin.

6. Please welcome…