The September Monthly Service of Tenrikyo Church Headquarters was performed on the 26th in the Main Sanctuary, with Successor-Designate Daisuke Nakayama serving as chief officiant on behalf of the Shinbashira.
In the Service prayer, Rev. Nakayama first expressed gratitude for God the Parent’s warm, profound parental love that desires us to lead the Joyous Life. Continuing, he said, “As the anniversary of Oyasama approaches, all of us Service performers as well as church head ministers and other Yoboku are determined to make concerted efforts to further the work of single-hearted salvation with utmost sincerity and thereby fulfill our resolutions so as to bring ourselves into accord with the intention of the Parent, who urges us children to make progress in spiritual growth.”
The prayer was followed by the joyous performance of the Kagura Service and the Dance with Hand Movements. After the Service performance, Honbu-in Tomoyuki Itakura took the podium to deliver the sermon.
In his sermon, Rev. Itakura said that the “three years, one thousand days” period leading up to the 140th Anniversary of Oyasama is a time when we can receive more parental love than usual as well as more knots, or challenging situations. Inquiring into the intention of the Parent through our knots with the belief that there will be a day when we can gain convincing insights will allow us to see the path of spiritual growth and thereby move closer to the Joyous Life, said Rev. Itakura.
