The May Monthly Service was performed in the Main Sanctuary of Tenrikyo Church Headquarters on the morning of the 26th. The Service began with the Shinbashira’s prayer, in which he said: “On this day today, which falls in the middle of the year to conclude our pre-anniversary activities, all of us–not only those who work in Jiba but also every Yoboku in every country and district–pledge to work in a unity of minds, with decisive courage and decisive strength, so that we may fulfill the resolutions we set for ourselves. We ask You to bestow free and unlimited blessings in the cause of universal salvation and enable us to accelerate our progress in constructing the Joyous Life World, so that those who experience suffering and anxiety in the increasingly uncertain state of the world may be saved and so that we may instead be shown a joyous state of the world in which the ills of the world have been cleanly swept away, allowing us to live in the spirit of mutual help and in the harmony of universal brotherhood.”<\/p>\n
The Kagura Service and the Dance with Hand Movements were then joyously performed while the congregation spiritedly joined in singing the songs that accompany the Service.<\/p>\n
Next, Honbu-in Yoshizumi Nakayama took the lectern to deliver the sermon. “The anniversaries of Oyasama,” he began, “are seasons when we totally commit ourselves to drawing nearer to the Parent’s intention. One way we may show our sincerity and draw nearer to the Parent’s intention is to ask the Parent to answer the prayers of those who suffer from illnesses or other problems, even if it requires us to take a portion of their pains upon ourselves.” He continued: “We Yoboku have learned a great many teachings at the Besseki lectures, in Shuyoka, and at our churches. Nonetheless, we tend to get distracted by our self-centered thoughts and inadvertently act in self-serving ways, which often leaves us unable to make those teachings come alive in our daily lives. Since the problem stems from our inattentiveness, however, we can correct it simply by going through each day while keeping our minds focused on following the Parent’s teachings and taking care to remain in accord with the Parent’s intention in whatever we do.”<\/p>\n
Reminding the listeners that God the Parent strongly desires to see us reconstruct the world into the world of the Joyous Life, he stressed, “We must take that intention to heart and commit ourselves decisively to doing whatever is necessary to realize the Joyous Life World.”<\/p>\n
In closing, he appealed to the listeners to make the best use of the remainder of the “three years, one thousand days” season leading up to the 120th Anniversary of Oyasama, which will be conducted on January 26, 2006. “We are now in a season,” he said, “when we must bring our pre-anniversary activities to a conclusion. We must also put the finishing touches on our efforts to nurture true sincerity in ourselves and in those around us, and we must work hard to sprinkle the fragrance of the teachings and save others so that we may share the intention of the Parent of Origin with people throughout the world.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The May Monthly Service was performed in the Main Sanctuary of Tenrikyo Church Headquarters on the morning of the 26th. The Service began with the Shinbashira’s prayer, in which he said: “On this day today, which falls in the middle of the year to conclude our pre-anniversary activities, all of\u2026<\/p>\n