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(Summary)

On June 25, an Oyasato Lecture Series was held at the Dining Hall 2, with Rev. Yoshitaro Fukaya as the guest speaker.

During the speech, Rev. Fukaya stated, “The period of pre-anniversary activities is not a time to harvest, but a time to sow seeds of sincerity.” Regarding “sowing seeds of sincerity,” he provided three concrete examples.

The first example was, rather than sowing seeds that come from a place of negativity, we should instead sow seeds of joy. In every knot we may experience in life there is joy to be found.

The second is to sow seeds of salvation. Oyasama demonstrated the path of “single-hearted salvation” through Her Divine Model.

The third example was to sow seeds of sincerity. Seeds of sincerity that are sown will one day sprout, and when they sprout, we continue to sow additional seeds of sincerity.

As we continue through the final six months of pre-anniversary activities, let us continue to sow seeds of joy, seeds of salvation, and seeds of sincerity.

My wife, Kaori, has been working at the Women’s Association Headquarters since September last year. I heard some of the stories that they are discussing at said meetings.

One of the discussions revolved around these words that we received from the Shinbashira two year ago at the Autumn Grand Service.

“Let us strive to guide as many people as possible to this path and patiently and consistently work with them with loving care until they start putting the teachings into practice with an awareness of being Oyasama’s instruments. Further, let us continue to reach out to as many as possible of those who have already become Yoboku but are temporarily inactive, encouraging them to play active roles in the path with an awareness of being Yoboku. Let us make a point of working with these Yoboku, too, so as to help ensure that the pre-anniversary activities gain ever more momentum.”

The core of a church is the head minister, and one of the activities the Women’s Association Headquarters is to unite their minds with each head minister and activate these people who are “taking a break for the moment” so they can be awakened and walk the path with us.

I would like to ask for your cooperation to connect to the Yoboku in your churches, create momentum toward the pre-anniversary activities, and make spirited progress toward the Joyous Life.

(Summary)

The oldest service performer at my church is Ms. Toe Sugiyama who is 97 years old. She is my aunt and it has been 16 years since she started to live at my church. She takes down the food offerings at my church and she also performs all the musical instruments. She goes out for shopping as well. As for the pilgrimage to Jiba, she returns twice a year for Oyasama Birth Celebration Service and Autumn Grand Service. At Jiba, she goes to the Main Sanctuary, Foundress’ Sanctuary, and the Memorial Hall together with everyone else without help of a cane or wheelchair. She then returns to the followers’ dormitory on foot. She has a gentle nature, and she is not nitpicky.

Aunt Toe used to live with my mother-in-law. She was 80 years old when her husband and my mother-in-law passed away. When I asked her to come and live with us at my church in Odawara City, she responded with “yes” immediately. She got used to a church life very quickly and it has been 16 years since then.

In these 16 years, she never had any major illnesses, and she is very energetic every day. Because she is so energetic, she goes out for missionary work. But she doesn’t take any pamphlets. For her to just walking around, it is missionary work itself. Our neighbors say, “that old lady is very healthy” and that is just enough. I wish her well as long as possible.

Mr. and Mrs. Yoshiyasu Komiyama come to the church to cheer up my aunt. They come to worship at my church every single day at 8:00 AM.

Mr. and Mrs. Komiyama are the parents-in-law for my oldest daughter. Mr. Komiyama was planning to work as a gardener after he retires as a bank employee.

We started to get along well, and one day, Mr. Komiyama said, “I would like to visit the grand church one day.”

I told him we will be staying for a week, including traveling time, as I have grand church sanctuary service duty for five days. But he immediately said yes, and his visit was set very quickly.

We left for the grand church with few lemon and orange plants and his garden tools loaded onto Mr. Komiyama’s car.

At the grand church, he swept the worshipping area during the morning sanctuary cleaning hinokishin. He took care of the plants and trees outside during the day. In early evening hours, we took a bath in a huge tub while it was still light out. We also had delicious meals and he attended the services.

He was very happy and fulfilled with receiving sincere care from the grand church head minister and his wife, and all the live-in staff members there.

Oyasama once said: “Whoever comes to this house shall never leave without being filled with joy.” In fact, Mr. Komiyama was very happy and during the boat ride back, we talked about coming back the next year.

My pilgrimage to the grand church with Mr. Komiyama for my sanctuary service duty, continued for the following six years.

However, one night while Mr. Komiyama was resting at home, he suddenly felt a tightness in his chest. His wife called an ambulance, and he was rushed to the municipal hospital. It was a heart attack, but the on-duty doctor was a specialist and was able to respond immediately. I believe he was fortunate. The next day, I performed the prayer service at my church. Once visitation became possible, I was able to administer the Sazuke to him for several days. Then I received another news that he had suffered a stroke as well. I once again performed the prayer service. Thankfully, it was mild, and he was discharged, beginning rehabilitation at home.

The aftereffects included some numbness in his left arm and difficulty speaking smoothly, which seemed to make him afraid to leave the house.

Mr. Komiyama’s home is about a ten-minute walk from my church. When the weather cooled, he was able to start coming to the church, and the three of us, including his wife, would sit and talk together. Coming to the church became part of his rehabilitation, and I was also able to administer the Sazuke to him. Little by little, he began to regain his strength.

A little while after that, the 120th Anniversary of the grand church’s establishment was announced and Mr. Komiyama expressed to me, “I would like to go, too.” For a while, thinking about his health, even though he wanted to go out, there were many days that he couldn’t. However, he boldly took this opportunity. It was as if I had received the voice of God telling me, “You don’t have to worry. Things will be alright,” and I felt very happy.

The day before the commemorative service at the grand church, we made our way from Odawara to Tenri. After staying overnight at the followers’ dormitory, we had planned to go to the grand church and come back the same day. We left in a minivan and arrived in Tenri in the evening, and prayed at the South Worship Hall at the Main Sanctuary. As we made our way to the Foundress’ Sanctuary, Mr. Komiyama told me, “When we were performing the service, I couldn’t stop crying.” I believe he was extremely happy.

On the day of the commemorative service, we arrived at the Honjima Port and with all of the other travelers, we walked to the grand church. There were those who came to the grand church for the first time, and those who received the blessings of cure from his/her illness. I am sure each of us had different feelings.

Mr. Komiyama was born with a heart that was smaller than normal. When he became an adult, he was told by the doctor that his life expectancy would be about 60 years old. After that, he suffered from a heart attack and a stroke. He goes to the municipal hospital for a checkup once a month. Sometimes he would get an x-ray of his heart and he would be told, “Your heart condition has gotten worse.” He had just been told the same thing very recently. His heart had gotten smaller, making it worse. But he was still alive. He had turned 77 years old and was told by the doctor, “I don’t know of anyone else who has a smaller and misshapen heart than you.” He worked at the bank until he was 60 years old. Then he started to come to the church for worship and he has come thus far. I assume it is probably because God has been protecting him, but I don’t think I’m wrong.

Every day he receives the blessings from God, and every day, he comes to the church, holding a small copy of the Mikagura-uta booklet in one hand as he sings.

So that they can get through intense summer heat and for God the Parent to protect them, I pray every day for my aunt who is more energetic than I am; for Mr. Komiyama who is concerned about the lemon trees at the grand church; and for those who belongs to my church so they can return to Jiba in fall.

Thank you for your kind attention.

(Summary)

Before the summer break begins, I would like to talk about four things.

First: “Children’s Pilgrimage to Jiba” will be held from July 27 to August 3. This is an event organized by the Church Headquarters and everyone unites effort in nurturing human resources. In such time, it is very important to convey each family’s faith to children. While repeatedly conveying, I think, unwavering faith can take root in their hearts.

Second: Being aware of one’s causality. When I reflect upon my own awareness of my causality, my father passed away at a young age. I returned to Japan from the US at the age of 17, and through the sincerity of so many people, I was able to transfer into high school in Japan. At such cornerstone of my life, I am not sure if I was able to be aware of my own causality at that time. However, I think I was aware that passing down the faith from one generation to another is a wonderful thing. I think such awareness has lead to my faith today.

Third: Age 15 is the final year as a member of Boys and Girls Association and they are at a crossroads of their lives. Let us convey the faith on the day of the child’s 15th birthday—an important day when the child’s life begins based on his/her own responsibility instead of his/her parents’.

And finally the fourth: Let us talk about Oyasama to our children, ideally in front of Oyasama’s shrine at the church. Let us convey that Oyasama is our parent, Who is everliving, although we cannot see Her physically, and Who watches us over and guide us through. Her parental heart is written a lot in the Life of Oyasama as well as in the Anecdotes of Oyasama.

Thank you very much.

(Summary)

The first time I took part in the activities for the pre-anniversary activity period for Oyasama’s anniversary was for the 110th Anniversary of Oyasama.

Exactly 30 years ago from now, in June during my third month after entering Saitama Missionary House, I was able to make a pilgrimage to Jiba accompanying my very first person to attend the Besseki lectures. Today, I would like to share with you the deep emotions I felt at that time and some of the mistakes I made along the way.

At the Missionary House, I struggled daily with my own mind, feeling as if I might lose heart at any moment. As I went door to door visiting each home with great dreams and hopes, I constantly reminded myself of the words received by the Shinbashira: “Courage and Perseverance.” However, in reality, things did not go as smoothly as I had hoped.

I was not able to have confidence in myself. Every time I pressed the intercom button, my heart would pound with anxiety, fear, and hesitation. I was a pitiful sight, and I seriously worried, “What would become of me from here on?” Most of the homes I visited turned me away coldly. Not only would they not listen to what I had to say, but the thought of administering the Sazuke was completely out of the question. Each day was a battle within myself.

Up until then, I had thought that once I entered the Missionary House, I would be taught all kinds of techniques for missionary work. But the truth is, they did not teach us anything. This is the truth. Every morning, we performed the prayer service, and immediately set out. There was nothing to do but go out and do the work ourselves, and that was truly difficult. Even at that, I gradually began to meet people who were willing to listen. The day I was allowed to administer the Sazuke for the first time, the day someone served me a cup of green tea for the first time, and the day someone made a donation to me for the first time—each of these moments were unforgettable treasures that I hold dearly. There was a joy in those experiences that cannot be replaced by anything else.

At the end of May, we were given 500 flyers each to pass out in preparation for the “Joyous Life Seminar” that we were going to host. When I finally finished handing out all of mine, I felt I should not just go back to the dorm directly, so I decided to go door-to-door as we usually did. When I visited a home, I met someone standing in his yard with a cane. He was an elderly man who was about to turn 80 years old.

When I talked to him, I learned that he had had a stroke and was paralyzed on one side of his body. I explained about the Sazuke and he let me into his living room so I could administer the Sazuke to him.

At this moment, I suddenly felt something and I remembered a salvation story that I had heard at a church. It was about a person who had doused himself in cold shower and performed a prayer service at midnight every night. He believed that he could receive blessings of a cure for the person for whom he prayed if he did that for 21 days, and he went from being a missionary with no roof over his head to establishing a church.

So, I resolved to perform a prayer service and administer the Sazuke to this elderly person every day for 21 days. Every night at midnight, rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I would douse myself in cold water and perform the prayer service. When I would finally return to bed, morning came quickly. Each day I was very tired, but as it was the first time I seriously committed myself to a resolution, I persevered and saw it to completion.

I’m going to change the subject just a bit. I would like to share with you the advice I received from a missionary that I could not help having tearful eyes.

First: It is not a good thing if you go out doing the missionary work by yourself. Always say, “Oyasama, Oyasama” repeatedly in your mind, and believe in Oyasama completely, become a useful someone for Oyasama, and walk with Oyasama.

Second: Waste is important. During missionary work, no one will like you, you will get turned down, and repeatedly ridiculed and disrespected. However, cherish these times. Then, your mind will be smoothened and polished, and you will be become a useful material for God.

Third: Offer your time. Tsukihi is God the Parent. The Shinbashira, the emperor, and the prime minister all equally live 24 hours a day. The reason why the Missionary House members skip lunch to do the missionary work is to offer lunch to go door-to-door. When you engage in salvation work, you exert effort to build a foundation by offering your time to sleep or your personal time. Cherish such time.

Going back to the story, on the final 21st day of the spiritual resolution, I had made a promise to administer the Sazuke to this elderly person at the worship hall of the diocese administrations office and was on my way to pick him up. However, he told me he just can’t go. I had firmly believed that I would be shown miraculous blessings having tried so hard for 21 days, so I was disappointed and shocked that I could not continue salvation work. As an apology, I performed the Twelve Songs of the Hand Dance at the worship hall of the diocese administrations office. While I was dancing, I could not stop weeping tears. With the realization of my misunderstanding, that I had pressed my own convenience on another person, I felt better later.

The next day, in better spirits, I made my way to the elderly person’s home to thank him for everything. When I arrived at his home, he was wearing a suit and had the engine of his car running. I asked if he is going somewhere and he said, “to the diocese administrations office.” We promptly made our way to the diocese administrations office, and I was able to administer the Sazuke for him at the worship hall. At that time, I asked him, “tomorrow evening, there is a bus leaving for the Jiba. Would you like to go with me?” He responded, “I’d like to go.” Without a thought, I did an internal fist pump. The elderly person even paid for the trip for the both of us.

We arrived in Jiba early in the following morning and we got off the bus at the Honjima followers’ dormitory. My father had left for the morning service at the Church Headquarters, so after having breakfast, I had the elderly person rest in the room.

I think after that there were activities for the Young Men’s Association, so I was invited to participate in street speeches at Nara Station. Although I was a bit concerned about the elderly person, I left the at the followers’ dormitory. When I returned to the followers’ dormitory, refreshed in mind from participating in the activities, the elderly person was quivering and became incontinent. It was obvious that he was in a dangerous condition, and I became very concerned that he might pass away. I didn’t know what to do and I panicked.

At that point, my father returned to the room and asked me, “Have you gone to the Main Sanctuary?” I replied, “Not yet.” “Go run to the Kanrodai,” he said. I asked for mercy as I sat in front of the Kanrodai at the Jiba for the first time and performed a prayer service.

When I returned to the followers’ dormitory, my father was administering the Sazuke to him and received miraculous blessing. My father looked divinely and majestic at that time.

The next day he was able to attend the monthly service on a wheelchair and he was able to attend the Besseki lecture for the first time. Further, on our way to the Foundress’ Sanctuary to receive the Proof Amulet, his leg that was disabled began to move and he stepped up the stairs on his own. I was stunned.

Thanks to my father and other people, the pilgrimage to Jiba was successful and heart-touching.

Today, there are various ways to do missionary work such as social welfare, disaster relief, foster parents, social media, etc. There are many ways that suit the current of the times. For example, if I use baseball as an example, there is breaking ball such as slider, curveball, and splitter. Although they are important technique, but most importantly, fastball is the “basic.”

“Go straightforward in doing missionary work.” Combine various methods today into the straightforward method. I think it is important to polish up the “straight ball” during the pre-anniversary activity period.

Ponder and come follow Me with firm resolve.
There is a path of hope in the future.
(Ofudesaki V:24)

Thank you for your kind attention.

(Summary)

There are only 8 months left till the 140th Anniversary of Oyasama. In the Instruction Four, the Shinbashira says:

The period of “three years, one thousand days” that leads up to an anniversary of Oyasama is a time for us to actively move forward on the path of single-hearted salvation by implementing the teachings with our sights set on the Divine Model.

The Divine Model is the path that Oyasama Herself went through as an example for us. There are many stories noted in the Anecdotes of Oyasama, Foundress of Tenrikyo. I would like to share a few examples.

7. OFFERING WITH A SINCERE HEART

The following occurred at a time when the Nakayama family was living in the depths of poverty. One day at the end of the

year, a follower brought some small, beautifully made rice cakes in the finest of boxes and said, “Please, offer this to Oyasama.” Kokan, Oyasama’s youngest daughter, promptly took it to Her. Oddly, Oyasama only said:

“Oh, is that so?” and did not seem to be particularly pleased.

About two or three days later another follower came. She brought out a package in a plain kerchief and said, “Please, will you offer this to Oyasama?” In it were only a few sweetened rice cakes in a bamboo wrapping. Kokan as usual took it to Oyasama. Thereupon, Oyasama said:

“Please, offer it to God the Parent at once,” and seemed very pleased.

The following fact became known later. The follower who had brought the finely made cakes was well to do. She had made some rice cakes for New Year’s, and as there were some left over, she took them to the Residence as an afterthought. The follower who had brought the plain cakes was poor, and barely able to make enough rice cakes for New Year’s. However, her family said, “This is also the blessing of God the Parent. First of all, let us make an offering.” They took the first freshly made rice cakes to the Residence.

Oyasama had known what was in the heart of each of these two persons.

There were many such incidents. Later, many followers began to bring the rare seasonal foods grown in their localities to Oyasama when they visited Her. Oyasama always appreciated the sincere heart with which the followers brought these offerings more than the offerings themselves.

Further, when things were presented to Her with arrogance, She often gave them to those nearby. When, on occasion, She did eat them, She said:

“It has no taste at all. It tastes as though we are forcing ourselves to eat when we do not want to eat.”

160. SELECTING A PERSIMMON

It was autumn, the season of persimmons. Osame Masui happened to be in the presence of Oyasama and there was a tray full of persimmons in front of Her. In trying to select a persimmon from the tray, Oyasama looked at them from this angle and that. Observing this, Osame thought, “Even Oyasama chooses the best in selecting a persimmon.” But the persimmon that She selected appeared to be the worst of the lot.

She then offered the tray with the other persimmons to Osame and said:

“Now, please take one.”

Observing Oyasama’s actions, Osame thought, “It is true that Oyasama makes Her selection, but what She chooses is different from that which we humans choose. She chooses the worst one for Herself. This is Oyasama's parental love. She leaves the tastiest ones for Her children, wishing them to have the pleasure. This is truly the parental love of Oyasama.” Osame was impressed by Oyasama’s thoughtfulness and she ate her persimmon as told by Oyasama, while Oyasama ate another.

Osame said that she would never forget for the rest of her life the way Oyasama was on that day.

Next, the Instruction Four mentions that this is “a time for us to actively move forward on the path of single-hearted salvation.” “Single-hearted salvation” could mean helping those who are troubled by physical illnesses and other problems to be saved. It can also mean relaying the teachings to children who will shoulder the future of the path and making sincere efforts to make sure the path is relayed from parents to children, children to grandchildren and rather, so that the path is further widened. These are also ways to conduct “single-hearted salvation.”

The key points I took away from Rev. Shimamura’s talk from the Vertical Mission Seminar today was to: “relay the origin of the family’s faith (to the children) regardless of whether they understand it or not;” to “relay your understanding of one’s causality, even if it is hard to talk about;” “to talk about the everliving Oyasama;” “let children know that once they reach the age of 15, their usage of the mind becomes their own responsibility.”

Instead of saying, “They won’t understand yet,” but for the sake of the future, I pledged in my heart once again the importance of relaying the faith to Boys and Girls Association members without giving up.

Let us work diligently, by helping one another cheerfully and joyfully and by being united in mind, until the very last day of our “three years, one thousand days” pre-anniversary activity period.

(Summary)

I would like to talk about the day of origin of my family faith and about our family causality.

I am the 5th generation of my family faith. My great-great-grandfather, Rev. Kikutaro Shimamura, the 1st person to start our family faith, entered the faith in 1888. My great-great-grandfather was originally form Kochi Prefecture but he was running a business in Osaka at that time. He was suffering from severe hemorrhoids. The record indicates that he had bloody pus, and as such, it appears that it was anal fistula rather than just simple hemorrhoids.

While he was suffering from the illness, he hears about the faith from someone, who was also from Kochi. He told my great-great-grandfather, “This God is the God of Origin who created everything in the world and human beings. This God is also the God in Truth who not only lends us the body but also provides with divine providence everyday.” Upon hearing the talk, my great-great-grandfather thought, “If this God provides us with the divine providence since the human creation and also for forever in the future, I am very certain that this God can cure any illnesses. If I cannot be helped by this God, there should not be any other way for salvation. I’m now determined to rely on this God at all cost.” He, then, pledged to his heart to follow the teachings. And after returning to Jiba three times, he received a complete cure. However, the guidance by God the Parent continues.

As he continues to run his business, he suffers from a lung disease, which was an inflammation of the membrane covering the lungs. This lung disease would not become severe by itself and in most cases, its development is triggered by illnesses such as cancer, tuberculosis, and pneumonia. Around this time, the record indicates that my great-great-grandfather spat up blood, so he might have had tuberculosis. I hear that the anal fistula can develop from tuberculosis as well. Therefore, it is highly likely that he had tuberculosis, which was a fatal disease at that time. It is easy to imagine how serious his condition was.

The symptom began with pain in his right lung and he had high fever from time to time. The condition eventually worsened to a point where he had bloodstained sputum and he became completely bedridden.

At that point, there was a missionary who visited my great-great-grandfather. He talked about the divine intention contained within my great-great-grandfather’s illness. He said: “Pondering from the pain in the right lung, I presume you are hurting the feeling of your mother, your wife, or someone working for you.”

In fact, my great-great-grandfather got married in Kochi shortly before he suffered from the lung disease. However, he told his wife, “Even if I take you to Osaka with me, there is no place where the two of us can live. I will be back in a month or so to come pick you up. So please wait for me,” and he left for Osaka by himself, leaving his wife all alone. He realized what he had done. He sincerely apologized to God the Parent and wrote apology letters to his wife and his parents.

Then, his condition began to improve. Out of his indebtedness of gratitude from getting better, he made a spiritual resolution to “help 1,000 people be saved and to take them back to Jiba,” and he returned to Kochi and diligently engaged in missionary and salvation work. He eventually received the blessing of a cure from the lung disease.

This is the day of origin of my family faith. If an elderly person five generations ago did not receive the blessings of cure from God and did not engage in missionary and salvation work to repay the blessings he received, I would not be here today. Considering that point, I should never forget the origin of my existence.

I would like to talk about one more instance of realizing my own causality. There is a situation in my family that has been continuing in which, every other generation is unable to have children and has been adopting. My great-great-grandfather was unable to have children and my great-grandfather entered the Shimamura family through adoption. My grandfather was born and he is the 3rd, but my grandparents didn’t have any children and my father was adopted by marriage. Then, I was born and I am the 5th generation in the faith.

So, if we are talking about patterns, I fit the pattern of not having children. One might think, “How absurd to think about patterns,” but it has always stuck in my mind and something that I have always considered it to be my causality.

Presently, we are in an era in which diversity is important to us, and there are people who have made the choice not to have children. That should be respected. On the other hand, there are those who wish to have children but are having a difficult time. I, myself, was born because my father came to the church as an adoptee. When we think about it in that sense, blessings come in varying forms. This is something that happened to our Shimamura family over the generations and I hope you will understand that I relayed this story only to share with you that I came to the realization that this was my causality.

When my wife and I got married, I thought that maybe there was actually no such causality and that God might bless us with a child right away. However, things were not that easy. A year passed, two years passed and we still could not conceive. Three, four, five, six years; the years went by. I thought maybe we could not have children in this lifetime after all. I was passing the days with such thoughts when, seven years ago, we were blessed with a baby boy. It was in our 8th year of marriage. After so many years, we received a blessing.

In thinking about our present situation, I am grateful for the accumulation of faith over the generations. Oyasama said,

. . . virtue is more deeply planted in the second generation than in the first one, and deeper still in the third than in the second. By becoming ever deeper, it will become virtue which lasts forever. It depends on the mind of a man whether it lasts for one generation only, or for two or three generations, or forever. By the continuation of this virtue even a bad innen becomes a good one.
(Anecdotes of Oyasama, 90: Deeper in the Second Generation Than in the First)

As the generations in the faith deepen, one’s causality becomes better. These words of Oyasama really resonate with me. Because my ancestors worked diligently in the faith and passed the faith on from the first generation to the fourth, cancelling out their causality a little bit at a time, I think we are so blessed today.

Some people may think, “Whether the child follows the faith or not can be left up to the child. The child can think for themselves.” However, I feel that real blessings can not be shown like that. Of course, passing on the faith is not an easy thing. First of all, I feel that it is important for parents to have strong faith and not give up their wish to have their child carry on the faith no matter what.v

Something else that I am reminded of after having been blessed with a child is the importance of being connected with the Jiba.

I served a position for the Young Men’s Association Headquarters for several years. When I first started working there, I was told several times by a worker who was senior to me, “If you work diligently in Jiba, you will be able to conceive.” In fact, three months after my duty in Jiba was over, we found out that my wife was pregnant. We were really grateful.

Oyasama said:

Unite your heart solely to Jiba. If you unite your heart solely to Jiba, then roots will spread to four sides. If the roots spread to four sides, even if one side decays, three sides will remain. If two sides decay, two sides will remain. Strong buds shall sprout.
(Anecdotes of Oyasama, 187: Solely to Jiba)

By connecting one’s heart solely to the Jiba, strong roots will spread. No matter what kind of knot may come, one will be able to keep from falling and persevere. Eventually, a strong bud, a large blessing can be received. How grateful I am for these wonderful words!

Even if it is hard to return to Jiba directly, going to a nearby church and connecting one’s heart to the Jiba while engaging in various faith practices can count as connecting to Jiba.

Setting Jiba as the focal point, connecting one’s heart to the Jiba and sowing seeds are very important things to do in the vertical mission.

One must diligently and patiently relay to their children the origin of the family’s faith, causality of the family, and the teachings of Tenrikyo, regardless of whether they understand it or not. The parents must also continue on with the faith that has been passed on through generations with a strong conviction that doesn’t give up. Furthermore, it is important to connect their heart solely to Jiba.v

In the Divine Directions, we find,

In this path, faith must be reflected in the minds of children while they are still young.
(Osashizu, Nov. 16, 1900).

Boys and Girls Association activities are not something that reap results overnight, but they are activities that are continued with a long-term perspective. If asked whether blessings will be seen right away, that may not be so. However, when the children grow up and they face a turning point in their life, I want them to be able to think, “I have Tenrikyo. I’m going to go to a Tenrikyo church.” And, I want them to receive wonderful blessings. We are enjoying planting one seed at a time as we look forward to future buds. Such are the activities of the Boys and Girls Association.

I would like to ask for your assistance and support in vertical mission, Boys and Girls Association activities, and especially this year’s Children’s Pilgrimage to Jiba so that the children’s lives will be firmly connected to this path and be a bright one.

Thank you for your kind attention.