130th Anniversary of Oyasama – Tenrikyo Pearl Church

The Significance of the 130th Anniversary

Tenrikyo Pearl Church January Grand Service – Sermon 2015

Happy New Year! 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!

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE 130TH ANNIVERSARY

On lunar calendar date of January 26, 1887, Oyasama, Miki Nakayama, withdrew from physical life to hasten people’s spiritual growth and their implementation of the Service, which She had been urging. Since then, true to Her words “I shall save the world from now,” She has been taking the lead at the forefront of world salvation while continuing to guide us by virtue of Her eternal life.

Continue reading The Significance of the 130th Anniversary

January Grand Service – Sermon 2015

Tenrikyo Pearl Church January Grand Service – Sermon 2015

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE 130TH ANNIVERSARY

The significance of observing the anniversaries of Oyasama is to respond to Her boundless parental love with decisiveness. This is what the Anniversary is about.

We all want to live a good and happy life. When God the Parent created human beings, God put the seed of the Joyous Life in the soul of all human beings. That is why everyone has a beautiful soul. However, being given our minds, we have the free use of the mind. We can use the mind in a positive or negative way. But because of neglect we have been accumulating dusts of the mind, by using the mind of miserliness, covetousness, hatred, self-love, anger, grudge-bearing, greed and arrogance. In addition: falsehood and flattery and thereby use the mind in a negative way. We have been using this type of mind on a daily basis without realizing it. Dust is easily swept or blown away, but if it is left unattended or neglected, the dust is embedded and it becomes a stain that is difficult to clean. In the same way our mind becomes stained and this becomes our causality or karma. It becomes the “path of our mind.”

However, we do not know or don’t realize what kind of mind I have been using in our past lives. We like to think that we are always helping people, but we wonder why bad things happen to us. But God knows everything and can see the heart of everyone. That is why God will show our reality, suitable and appropriate, according our use of our mind.

Oyasama said, through experiencing whatever circumstances that is happening to us now, we can understand our causality. By understanding our causality we can repent, cancel our bad causality and accumulate virtue by performing good deeds./

I believe that when we endeavor to repent, like polishing a stained gem stone, little by little, we will find a the sparkling diamond of our soul./

When I, Owen Nakao, pass on, Owen Nakao will cease to exist. But my soul will be kept by God the Parent until it is reborn into a new body. A transfer of spirit ceremony is conducted to symbolically transfer the spirit from the body to God the Parent. / Those souls having been assigned to new bodies will be reborn starting a new life with another name, but depending on their accumulation of virtue or good and bad seeds, the circumstances of their life will differ./

For example, if in our previous life we sowed 100 good seeds, but also sowed 50 bad seeds, we will have a balance of 50 good seeds. On the other hand if we had planted 100 bad seeds and 50 good seeds we would have a balance of 50 bad seeds. The balance of good seeds or bad seeds will determine for better or for worse the circumstances in our present life at birth and that’s how we start our life.

In the Osashizu (or Divine Directions) January 30, 1892, we read:

“…. Although virtue is not visible, the accounting is as dependable as if it were done on paper. Whatever is surplus I return. Whatever is short, I will collect. The balance in each account is very clear.” There are no errors, since God does not make a mistake.

We might look at our neighbor and complain to God by asking why is it that my neighbor seems to have an easy life, while I have to suffer and toil long hours? Life seems so unfair… But we don’t know what our neighbor has done in their previous lives. If we look at only the present situation, we do not see the whole picture!

So the person who has a +50 balance would have an easier life at least in the beginning. But if this person rested on their laurels, squandered their life and wealth, they will end up losing their property and their virtue. Conversely, the person who has a -50 balance would have a more challenging life with setback and struggles, but if this person realizes their lack of virtue and poor circumstances and works hard to plant good seeds, they can live a better life!

Alan Wong’s Restaurant

Everyone knows that Alan Wong’s Restaurant as one of the best in Honolulu. President Obama goes to various restaurants in Honolulu, but the one that he consistently goes to is Alan Wong’s.

Recently Alan Wong opened a restaurant in Shanghai and he was featured in the Honolulu Star Advertiser. (Dec 30, 2015) The article is titled: Alan Wong brings menu and aloha to Shanghai. In the article (by Joleen Oshiro) he said that he told his Shanghai crew that the aloha spirit begins with a thought, and when this thought turns into an act, it means sharing, showing kindness, caring. You give without expecting anything in return. For the first few days he asked them, “What did you do to make someone’s day? What gift or act of kindness did you give? How were you nice to someone?”

“Then, the night before we returned to Hawaii, one of crew came out and said, ‘I’ve been searching for something all my life, and you gave it to me.’ Another crew member said he never imagine this existed in another part of the world.”

Alan said, “One of our goals was to leave an imprint, to be able to say the aloha spirit lives in Shanghai, and his crew received the spirit of Aloha extremely well.”

I think this is a perfect example of how similar the definition of Aloha spirit and Hinokishin is. And this is probably why he is so successful in his restaurant business.

Oyasama said to do something small every day that will make another person happy. This is how we can take steps in our spiritual maturity to bring joy to God the Parent and Oyasama for the 130th Anniversary.

We have only a few days left before Oyasama’s 130th Anniversary which will be held on January 26, 2016. Let us all make firm resolutions to grow spiritually, plant the seeds of sincerity and receive blessings during this seasonable time; and return to Jiba for the 130th Anniversary.
Thank you for your attention.
Announcements

Happy New Year! I would like to thank everyone for your support given last year. The major events were the Boys & Girls Association Spring Camp & General Meeting and the annual Tenrikyo Bazaar. Thank you very much!
I would like to thank everyone for your support in helping with the MHQ and Pearl Church spring cleaning, the mochi pounding on December 30 and your generous New Year offerings. Thank you very much!
Thank you for bringing your deposit cans and bottles for our fundraising drive. We are still continuing our fundraising efforts.
The BGA annual New Year Park Cleanup and BBQ Picnic will be held on Sunday, January 31 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. Please bring your own cleaning tools such as rakes and dust pans if you have them. The Leadership Camp will from start from the day before on Saturday, January 30, for kids 12 and above.

Yoboku Gathering this Saturday 9am

Yoboku Gathering for the 130th Anniversary

As an activity leading up to Oyasama’s 130th Anniversary the Mission Headquarters will be conducting a Yoboku Gathering this Saturday, March 15, 9am – 11:30am.

The anniversary of Oyasama is a season to reaffirm our faith and to resolve to do salvation work as Yoboku (timber) to serve as material in building the Joyous Life world. If we pay attention to those around us, we will realize that many people are worrying about their health problems, family issues, and relationship concerns. In order to settle the mind to work for the salvation of others and fulfill our role as Yoboku, let us attend this event as an important step in realizing our goal.

Setsumi’s brother Rev. Toshi Yukimoto of Central Fresno Church will be our guest speaker. The program will also include two video presentations.

To get an idea of how many will be attending from Pearl Church, please respond to this email indicating whether you will be attending or not.

Mahalo for your support.

Rev. Owen Nakao

Tenrikyo Pearl Church January Grand Service Sermon 2013

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!

Significance of Oyasama’s 130th Anniversary

Near the end of Her physical life, Oyasama urged the followers to perform the service despite the strict enforcement by the police not to performed it. After much discussion, the first Shinbashira, Shinnosuke, said to the followers, “Only those should perform who are willing to risk their lives no matter what measures the police use to stop the Service.” The service was finally performed on January 26, 1887. Oyasama withdrew from physical life at the same time the Service had ended, at about two o’clock in the afternoon, as if asleep. She was in Her ninetieth year.

It was totally unexpected. Since she taught that the natural term of human life is 115 years, everyone thought that she would surely live to be 115 years old. After the passing of Her physical self, She spoke through Rev. Izo Iburi on the second floor of a storehouse:

“Sah, sah, I shall level the ground. Has everyone assembled, has everyone assembled? Listen and understand well. All that I have said until now was put into a container of truth. But now God has opened the portals and stepped out. Because of my love for you, My children, the Parent shortened Her life by twenty-five years to step out and save the world from now. Observe well what the path has been and what the path will become. …”

To commemorate this day we conduct the January Grand Service. We cannot see her physically but we believe that Oyasama is “ever-living” working day and night for world salvation. In the Osashizu, we read:

“Sah, sah, I am still living here. I have not gone anywhere. You must look at the path of daily life and ponder.” Osashizu, March 17, 1890

Oyasama, whose parental heart is dedicated solely to the salvation of all Her children, underwent every kind of difficulty and trial in high spirits to open a path of salvation for all humankind, and, in order to hasten their spiritual growth, cut short Her own physical life by twenty-five years. But the heart of Tsukihi remains alive now and forever at the Residence of Origin, providing for the growth of all humankind to spiritual maturity. Indeed, the miracles of salvation which occur daily stand as proof of the continuing life and work of Oyasama. Continue reading Tenrikyo Pearl Church January Grand Service Sermon 2013

January Monthly Service Prayer 2013

Before God the Parent, Tenri-O-no-Mikoto, I, Owen Osamu Nakao, Pastor of Tenrikyo Pearl Church, wish to humbly express the following prayer:

God the Parent, throughout the long expanse of time since the beginning of this world, You have nurtured and guided us as our loving Parent. In order to fulfill Your desire for all of us to purify our minds and live in accord with Your will, You revealed the Truth of Origin, taught us the Service, bestowed upon us the Divine Grant of Sazuke, and opened the path of true salvation for all human beings. This truly fills us with gratitude and we offer to You, our most sincere appreciation.

You appeared through Oyasama as Shrine, to teach us the truth of our origin and the purpose of our creation…, which is for all of us to live in joy, and to share that joy with You, God the Parent. And, knowing the nature of us human beings to forget, You left a vivid example for us to follow in Oyasama’s Divine Model of 50 years.

Then on January 26, 1887, while the first followers of the path fulfilled Your request for the Service to be performed by all means, our beloved Oyasama opened the portals and hid Her physical form, to work forever, in spirit, for the salvation of all humankind.

In commemoration of this event, today is set aside for the performance of the January Grand Service. We, yoboku and members of this church, have assembled before You, to perform the service in high spirits and in unison with the harmonious sounds of the musical instruments. We pray, that as You look upon us, our joy may be truly shared with You.

As we look forward to this New Year, we remember and give thanks for your deep parental love through the blessings of miraculous healings, and the many people who have attended the various church activities during this past year. With the pastor of this church serving as chairman of the Boys and Girls Association Hawaii chapter, activities were successfully held without serious accidents. Last year, an average of twenty-three persons attended the Pearl Church monthly service. Eight persons from Pearl Church participated in the Boys and Girls Association park cleanup and BBQ picnic in January; ten persons helped at the all Tenri Cultural Center Cleanup Hinokishin in February; four children and eleven adults attended and helped at the annual Boys & Girls Association Spring Camp and General Meeting; ten persons attended the Boys and Girls Association Oyasama Birthday Activity, twenty-three persons from Pearl Church participated in the All Tenrikyo Hinokishin Day at Honolulu Zoo in April, twenty-four persons attended the annual Tenrikyo Picnic, 3 persons participated in the YMA International Hinokishin Corps in Jiba, 2 persons participated in the Children’s Pilgrimage to Jiba, one person joined the Tenri University Japan Earthquake-Tsunami relief effort, one yoboku entered the one-year mission program at MHQ in Los Angeles, twenty-one persons helped at the Annual Tenrikyo Bazaar in which the pastor served as chairman, and six persons attended the Young Men’s Association-Women’s Association-Young Women’s Club Joint General Meeting. An average of three persons helped with the weekly yard work on neglected sidewalks and yards of the elderly and physically challenged throughout the year, as well as at the Tenri Cultural Center. Also, a special tree trimming hinokishin was done at MHQ by four Pearl Church members on November 20th and 27th. The Sazuke was administered a total of 306 times in 2012. In addition, solar panels were installed on June 29th, utilizing the sun’s light to produce electricity for the church and inhabitants. The pastor of this church was appointed president of the Jarrett Middle School Foundation in July of last year. We give thanks for all these blessings.

This month we will start the three years, one thousand days leading up to Oyasama’s 130th Anniversary since Oyasama hid her physical self. The Shinbashira has issued Instruction Three in the hope that we yoboku and followers will make decisive efforts to grow spiritually and conduct our activities with a unity of mind. With the Shinbashira as the core we resolve to engage in nioigake and salvation work to plant seeds of sincerity during this seasonable time towards Oyasama’s 130th Anniversary.

In this 176th Year of Tenrikyo, please accept our sincerity as we strive to become single-hearted in our efforts of salvation work. We shall spread the fragrance of the Path even further, so that the minds of all in the world may become awakened to the Truth that You teach. We pray that our actions throughout this New Year will bring us yet closer, to the goal of the Joyous Life.

In union with the congregation, I humbly pray, may it be so.

Instruction Three

In anticipation of the 130th Anniversary of Oyasama to be observed in 2016 (Tenrikyo 179), I would like to share some of my thoughts in the hope that they will be useful to all Yoboku and followers as they make decisive efforts to grow spiritually and conduct their activities in unity of mind.

Oyasama revealed the ultimate teachings to save all people throughout the world. She devoted Herself to single-hearted salvation with Her heart filled with parental love for all human beings, Her children, and left us with the path of the fifty-year Divine Model.

During those years, Oyasama made all arrangements for the path, such as teaching the Salvation Service and revealing the origin of all things. On the lunar calendar date of January 26, 1887, She withdrew from physical life to hasten people’s spiritual growth and their implementation of the Service, which She had been urging. Since then, true to Her words “[I shall] save the world from now, “She has been taking the lead at the forefront of world salvation while continuing to guide us, as ever before, by virtue of Her eternal life.

The significance of observing the anniversaries of Oyasama is to respond to Her boundless parental love with decisiveness. This is a season when each and every Yoboku should, with a fresh mind, take to heart the true intention in founding the Teaching, enhance his or her awareness of being a Yoboku, a useful timber for building the Joyous Life World, and accomplish genuine work while striving to follow the Divine Model.

The Joyous Life is a state of the world where, first and foremost, all human beings, the children of God the Parent, live together while helping one another. In addition, we read:

Greed is fathomless like muddy water. When your mind is completely purified, Then comes paradise.

Mikagura-uta X:4

If only the mind is purified completely, there will be nothing but delight in everything.

Ofudesaki XIV:50

These verses tell us that the Joyous Life is also a way of living that entails purifying the mind.

Greed, which knows no moderation, can lead people astray, give rise to conflict, disrupt the harmony of the world, and even threaten the future. The ever-growing tendency to think that all is well if it is well for oneself is progressively weakening interpersonal ties; indeed, even family bonds seem fragile in today’s societies. This tendency is contrary to the Joyous Life.

It is our duty as people who follow Oyasama’s teachings to work for world salvation by conveying the intention of the true Parent to those who have worries about the uncertainty of the future with no spiritual guide to help them.

Now is the time for all of us followers of the path to stand up and show people a way of living based on purifying the mind and helping one another. We should thus pour our energies into reconstructing the world.

Let those of us who are Yoboku study and internalize the teachings and put them into practice each day to become people who effortlessly make the truth of the teachings self-apparent to the local community. Let us ensure that our own families—including husband and wife, who represent the truth of the embrace of heaven and earth—are living in accord with the teachings and implementing mutual help. In this way, let us expand the circle of the Joyous Life, starting right where we are.

Let us also keep our minds connected to our churches, visit our churches, and participate in the performance of the service, which is the mission of each church. Let us work together with our church head ministers as the core to demonstrate a model of the Joyous Life to our local communities.

Concerned about our future, God the Parent urges us through various knots, or challenging situations, to replace the mind.

Whatever I do, it is solely from Tsukihi’s single desire to save you.

Ofudesaki XII:78

This verse teaches us that everything God does is motivated solely by the parental love that desires to save all human beings.

All misfortunes and difficulties are expressions of the parental love that desires us to cleanse our hearts. We should not only reflect critically on ourselves but also work proactively for the salvation of others by accepting that, through the challenging situations that have arisen, we are being urged to help others be saved. In fact, staying always focused on helping to save others is a prerequisite for being followers of these teachings that are aimed at world salvation and is also the true way to achieve salvation ourselves, as can be seen from Oyasama’s words “Through saving others, you will be saved”

Salvation work begins with paying attention to those around us. If we find people who are suffering from illnesses or other problems, let us first pray for a solution, speak proactively to them, and reach out to them. We can administer the Sazuke with utmost sincerity to those who are ill and listen to what is on the minds of those who have worries. We can give support to those people, convey the voice of the Parent to them, and guide them so that they can change the orientation of their minds. Moreover, let us continue guiding and nurturing them until they join us in working for the salvation of others.

Let us keep working tirelessly toward the realization of the world of joy where God and humankind dwell in perfect union, a world where all people throughout the world are aware of the Parent of Origin and are awakened to the truth that all human beings are brothers and sisters so that they can live harmoniously together while helping one another. Over the “three years, one thousand days” leading up to the 130th Anniversary of Oyasama, I hope with all my heart that all of us Yoboku, who are Oyasama’s instruments, will maintain a full awareness of our mission and strive to carry out our work, thereby bringing joy to the ever-living Oyasama.

October 26, 2012 (Tenrikyo 175)

Zenji Nakayama
The Shinbashira

January Grand Service 2013 Reminder

This month will mark the start of the three years, one thousand days leading up the Oyasama’s 130th Anniversary to be observed on January 26, 2016. So what is the significance of the 130th Anniversary? Why do we have to make decisive efforts during this three years, one thousand days leading up to this Anniversary? Answers to this and more as we perform the service for universal salvation on:

Sunday, January 13, 2013
10:00 a.m.
Tenrikyo Pearl Church
1634 10th Avenue

Sincerely,
Rev. Owen Nakao