TOC New Year’s Day Service of the 175th Year of Tenrikyo Held Joyously

New Year's Day service Performance

Blessed with perfect fine weather for the first time after many years, the New Year’s Day Service of the Oceania Centre in the 175th Year of Tenrikyo was performed joyously and spiritedly from 11:00 a.m. on the first of January (25 attendees).

In the prayer, Rev. Adachi, head of the Centre, thanked for God the Parent’s unlimited blessings we received throughout the past year and expressed his joy and gratitude for the safe arrival of the new year. Furthermore, concerning the activities of Yoboku throughout the new year, quoting the Shinbashira’s words at the Autumn Grand Service last year: “When it comes to those of us who have faith in Oyasama’s teachings, it is important, I think, to accept it as a stern way in which God the Parent is telling us something and to ponder deeply over it because we are taught that natural disasters can be seen as expressions of God’s regret and anger. While we cannot necessarily generalise about how to interpret what God is saying to us, I think we would do well to begin by reflecting critically on ourselves, asking ourselves whether or not we have been living in a way that fails to accord with God’s intention”.

Rev. Adachi pledged that all of us Yoboku and followers in this diocese would exert our utmost to respond in the new year to the intention of God the Parent in our daily life, as well as to continuously nurture as many “real Yoboku” as possible who engage in spreading the teachings.

After the service, Rev. Adachi made his new year’s greetings, instead of the delivery of a sermon, and all the attendees were provided with Japanese Sake, which had been offered to God the Parent. After that, Osechi-ryori (Japanese festival dishes for the new year) prepared by the Centre was served for lunch and all present shared a good time with each other in a friendly atmosphere of the New Year’s Day.