2009 December Message

With Gratitude to the Outgoing Year
Tetsuya Abe, Acting Chief, SNI Hawaii Missionary Area

　　　December is the month of Christmas and year-end; it is also the month in which Rev. Masanobu Taniguchi, President of Seicho-No-Ie, was born. He was born on Christmas Eve in 1951. As some of you may know, he has a master's degree from Columbia University in international relations and he is really enthusiastic about propagation in English more than anyone else. He came to the United States on his Public Lecture tours in 1992 and 1994, chose New York as the first venue of the Special Conference for World Peace, and frequently came to this country and guided us in English.

　　　As a Japanese who is engaged in propagation activities in English, I know how much energy, time, and patience are necessary to disseminate the teachings in a foreign language. Despite his and Mrs. Junko Taniguchi's extremely busy schedule, they come all the way to the U.S. because they consider the development of our movement in America as being essential to bring about real world peace. Let us be appreciative for their thoughtful consideration and strive to make every effort to promote the "Movement that Grows with Nature" in the Hawaii Missionary Area.

　　　By the way, how are you going to spend the Christmas holidays? I hope you have a cheerful and happy time. The custom to celebrate Christmas prevails not only in countries like the U.S. where Christianity is practiced but also in countries where many of the people do not believe in Jesus Christ. However, to our astonishment, it was more than 300 years after Jesus passed away that December 25th was decided on as the birthday of Jesus Christ.

　　　According to "Shokan Zakkan Part 6" or "Random Thoughts Part 6," (pp. 52-55) written by Rev. Masanobu Taniguchi, a faith that worshipped the sun god or Sol was very popular in the fourth century of Rome, and the shrine to worship the god was built by government expenditure and all the costs to employ priests were also covered by the nation. They designated December 25, the day of the winter solstice in their calendar, as the holiday for the sun god. However, the leaders of the Roman Church, who felt a sense of crisis, made the day an important holiday for Christianity to prevent people from going to the shrine of the other faith. This was around 336 A.D.

　　　Whether December 25 is Jesus' actual birthday is open to question; according to "Random Thoughts," there is no description about the birthday of Jesus Christ in the Holy Bible, nor is there any evidence that early Christians celebrated December 25th as Jesus' birthday: "Christmas is a holiday in which Jesus and the teachings of Jesus are taken into the cultures and customs of a given area and restructured. In other words, Christianity, a religion based upon Judaism, accepted a pagan culture. Taking the fact that it has been celebrated for thousands of years throughout the world into consideration, I strongly feel the significance of culture and custom in religion" ("Random Thoughts Part 6," p. 55)

　　　It can be said that for the teachings of Seicho-No-Ie to be rooted in the United States, further efforts to make the outward elements in religion blended with our culture seem necessary.

　　　In conclusion, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all of you who practice and convey the teachings in your areas and positions. It is my sincere prayer and hope that the next year will be a much more productive and meaningful year to you. Please purify your mind by reading the following article by our founder Masaharu Taniguchi, and have a happy new year. Thank you very much.

　　　This year will finally end today. We vow to cease all bad habits, getting angry and showing hate, holding a grudge, grumbling, and having needless fear of the future. We never get angry about anything, see only the goodness and never see the evil in people's minds and deeds, live the present moment, and proceed with a bright and cheerful mind. We swear to awaken ourselves that are perfect and harmonious children of God, endowed with infinite abilities and health, and steadily advance the way of God. (Masaharu Taniguchi, "Shimpan Komyo Hogo," or "Sermon on Light: Volume on the Way," new edition, pp. 317-318)