Moya 12, which has long provided venues and accommodations for various Tenrikyo events, will be demolished due to the deteriorating condition of the building and rebuilt on the site where the girls’ dormitory of Tenri High School used to be. On August 17, the ceremony to commence the construction was conducted at the site in Furu, Tenri, near the Oyasato-yakata’s East Right Wing 1.
Originally built in 1965 to accommodate followers returning to Jiba for the 80th Anniversary of Oyasama, Moya 12 was used by large numbers of followers during many events sponsored by Tenrikyo Church Headquarters, such as the Children’s Pilgrimage to Jiba and the Students Training Course, as well as pilgrimages organized by regional churches.
After the demolition of Moya 12, the site it occupied will be cleared to make way for a parking lot. The community bath located underneath the building will be reopened in July next year after renovation at the same location.
The new Moya 12 will be a three-storied, reinforced concrete building, which will occupy a land area of 3,292.16 square meters. It will have 52 Japanese-style rooms with 10 tatami mats each and six Western-style rooms. There will be a large room on the third floor with a carpet, allowing chairs to be used in the room. The new building will be capable of accommodating as many as 463 people.
The first floor of the building will have a dining hall with a seating capacity of about 300. It will be used for Tenrikyo events including various courses and seminars.
The new building will also be equipped with an elevator with a capacity of 13 people. There will be a disabled-accessible restroom that meets the needs of ostomates.
The new Moya 12, which is to be completed by July 2017, will be ready to be used during the Children’s Pilgrimage to Jiba.
During the commencement ceremony, Director-in-Chief of Administrative Affairs Zensuke Nakata delivered a speech saying: “Jiba is the place where God the Parent resides and is the original home for all of us human beings. I hope that the new building will have a welcoming atmosphere in which all those returning to the Home of the Parent can feel at ease.”
The commencement ceremony had been preceded by a prayer service that had been performed in the South Worship Hall with Director-in-Chief of Religious Affairs Hiroaki Yamazawa as the core.