Everything Needs Practice

教　話

By the Rev. Makoto O’obayashi
Konko Church of Izushi

 (From the February 2017 issue)

The Words of the Fourth Konko-sama

     What I never forget about the Fourth Konko-sama, the former Spiritual Leader of the Konko Faith (Konkokyo), is an episode I had when I was an eighth grader.  One day, I went to the Konkokyo Headquarters and asked the Fourth Konko-sama to conduct Sacred Mediation for me for the first time in my life.  続きを読む →

Like Heaven and Earth,
Practice the Mutual Reliance of Aiyo Kakeyo

By Rev. Shizuyo Bando’o,
Konko Church of O’otani

(From the December 2016 issue of Konkokyo-ho Ametsuchi)

“You Will Be Blessed If You Go to O’otani.”

In 1954, four years prior to the start of our propagation in O’otani, Tokushima Prefecture in Japan, my father seriously hurt his spinal cord, after a hard fall to the ground.  This accident also temporarily deprived him of his memory.  This situation was compounded when my eldest brother, whom my mother had depended upon during my father’s hospitalization, suddenly passed away.  These circumstances led my mother to Rev. Hikoshiro Takeda at the Konko Church of Ni’ihama, in desperation for some kind of relief and guidance. 続きを読む →

Let’s Open Up Our Inner Eyes!

By the Rev. Norio Taniguchi
Konko Church of Ikura

(From the November 2016 issue of Konkokyo-ho Ametsuchi)

My Feelings toward My Father in Coma

We, the residents of the Kumamoto Prefecture, were struck with two huge earthquakes in April this year and soon received kind words of condolence and encouragement from many people both inside and outside Japan.  On behalf of the Konko churches in Kumamoto, I would like to express my deep gratefulness to all of you for your warmth and kindness.  We are still on our way towards a full reconstruction of the devastated areas, but we would like to continue to receive blessings from our Divine Parent by relying upon our Parent Deity (Kami) more than ever.  Please continue to pray for us from now too.  Thank you so much. 続きを読む →

We Don’t Know What to Expect Right Now,
But our First Step Will Lead us to Salvation

Step by Step

By the Rev. Seiji Yamasaki
Konko Church of Haruki

(From the October 2016 issue of Konkokyo-ho Ametsuchi)

Importance of Continuing to Work Hard

I started to learn calligraphy when I was a kindergartener and attended a calligraphy class once a week until I graduated from elementary school.  My handwriting was pretty bad, and it didn’t show much improvement despite much practice.  Because of this, I didn’t like the calligraphy class very much.  Moreover, the calligraphy teacher was an acquaintance of my parents, so I knew my parents would quickly know if I missed class even once.  Because I didn’t want to get scolded by my parents for missing the calligraphy class, I made sure I’d diligently go to the school each week.  続きを読む →

Life that Is Kept Alive

By the Rev. Shigenori Yamasaki
Konko Church of Fukuoka-minami

(Reprinted from the July 2016 issue of Konkokyo-ho Ametsuchi)

Getting to Know Kami through Sickness

I became sick as soon as I entered senior high school, and when I went to a hospital to be examined,  the doctor diagnosed that I had asthmatic bronchitis.  I had been blessed with good health until I got this disease, but I gradually became bedridden.  When you have asthma, you often have an extremely hard time breathing.  In the beginning, I didn’t take my sickness very seriously, but my condition increasingly got worse.  Consequently, we had to ask a doctor to come to see and treat me every day.  The doctor’s daily visits and his treatments didn’t cure my disease at all.  To make the matter worse, the doctor even said to me, “I cannot guarantee that you will get better as you grow older.” 続きを読む →

All We Should Do Is to Practice
By the Rev. Mitsuzo Kimbara
Konko Church of Mizushima

(Reprinted from the June 2016 issue of Konkokyo-ho Ametsuchi)

We Are Expected to Follow Konko Daijin’s Teachings 

              Eighty years ago, from April 21^st to September 10^th, 1936, the Headquarters of the Konko Faith  held an event called  “Workshop for Following the Spiritual Leader’s Exemplary Service for our Parental Deity.”  The workshop was a long series, consisting of 16 occasions.  The Headquarters planned and implemented this event, hoping to remind the participants that our primary selfless service for Kami as Konko ministers is following our Spiritual Leader and the way he serves our Divine Parent as the Principal Mediator of the Konko Faith.  At the time, the Third Konko-Sama bestowed many teachings upon the seminar participants.  One of the teachings during the workshop was “If you want our Divine Parent to bestow divine virtue upon you, you are expected to put the Founder’s teachings into practice.  There is no secret other than this.”  To practice the Founder’s teachings…it is so simple and basic that everybody in the Konko community knows its importance very well already.  Yet, the Third Konko-Sama was kind enough to teach the participants about this.

    続きを読む →

If We Are Not Happy and Grateful,

We Are Not Following Konko Daijin’s Faith

Sermon by the Rev. Koji Toshimitsu

Konko Church of Kinoue

 (Reprinted from the August 2016 issue of Konkokyo-ho Ametsuchi)

Being Made to Face My True Self

For the last few years, I had a personal faith motto: “If we are not happy and grateful, we are not following Konko Daijin’s Faith.” Several years ago, I went through a very difficult period in my life. I asked for and received Sacred Mediation, time after time, and I often prayed on my own. Each time, I felt some peace of mind, yet I believed I was left without any divine blessings. I could not even glimpse a clue to salvation. Instead, I was made to see my true self: I was far from being saved. 続きを読む →

Kami’s Blessings Are Unlimited

By the Rev. Ken’o Abe, KonkoChurch of Desaki

(Reprinted from the May 2016 issue of Konkokyo-ho Ametsuchi)

The “framework” for our lives.

One day, Ms. Kiku Okada came to worship and told Konko Daijin, “With my poor health condition, I can’t help thinking that my life won’t be long.”  In response, Konko Daijin said, “Humans are unable to predict their life span.  Since Kami’s blessings are unlimited, practice faith, gain divine virtue, and live a long life.”  If we focus on the phrase, “…Kami’s blessings are unlimited,..” it is possible to imagine a world that easily transcends one’s constrained vision, for this is Kami’s world.  In this divine world, we are embraced without limit and unconditionally, and it extends and expands without end. 続きを読む →

Wasn’t It A Dream?

By the Rev. Ei’ichi Kondo’o
Konko Church of Ueno

What My Mother Wrote in her Diary

Thirteen years have passed since my mother passed away.  My mother was born with a heart condition called atrial septal defect and bronchial asthma.  Because of these congenital conditions, she was very fragile and therefore was not able to take part in school events such as athletic meets and school excursions.  Since I was innately healthy, she often said to me, “How fortunate you are, being given a healthy body!  You can participate in any school event.”   続きを読む →