President of Rissho Kosei-kai Seminary Lectures at Thai University on the Lotus Sutra

During June 9-26, Rev. Michio T. Shinozaki, director of the Chuo Academic Research Institute and president of Rissho Kosei-kai Gakurin Seminary, lectured at the College of Religious Studies at Mahidol University's Salaya campus in Nakhorn Prathom, Thailand, on the teachings of the Buddha as set down in the Lotus Sutra. Dr. Shinozaki's special seminar on the Lotus Sutra was planned and sponsored by the university for 44 undergraduates, who could receive credit for attending the seminar.

Mahidol University is a public university, and one of the most prestigious universities in Thailand. Its College of Religious Studies was founded in 1999. Its academic programs address new, emerging challenges to religion, such as globalization, women's rights, new scientific discoveries, and the use of modern technology in medicine.

Rissho Kosei-kai and the college have had a close relationship. In May 2001 a group of twenty-three students from the college were welcomed at Rissho Kosei-kai's headquarters in Tokyo during a visit to Japan. They also traveled to Nara, Kyoto, and Osaka to study the practice of Mahayana Buddhism. In November 2003 another group of twenty-one students also visited Rissho Kosei-kai for the same purpose. At that time Mr. Masatoshi Shimamura, then chief coordinator of the Thai Rissho Friendship Foundation, which is one of Rissho Kosei-kai's churches overseas, accompanied them to the headquarters of member organizations of Shinshuren (Federation of New Religious Organizations of Japan) and to Taisho University, one of Japan's leading institutes of Buddhist studies.

Dr. Shinozaki said he hoped his lectures on the Lotus Sutra, based on the practical teachings of Rissho Kosei-kai, a lay Buddhist organization in Japan, would promote understanding between Mahayana Buddhists in Japan and Theravada Buddhists in Thailand and that their exchanges would deepen one another's understanding of the One Buddha Vehicle. Dr. Shinozaki said he would lecture again at Mahidol University in August and said he hoped to impress upon students that the Lotus Sutra embodies the message of the Buddha as a manifestation of the great life force.

Rissho Kosei-kai Gives Emergency Relief to Iwate-Miyagi Inland Earthquake Victims

In June, Rissho Kosei-kai's executive committee of the Donate-a-Meal Fund for Peace, chaired by Rev. Takeshi Kawabata, director of the External Affairs Department, decided to provide emergency relief to the victims of the Iwate-Miyagi Inland Earthquake. The magnitude 7.2 earthquake took place on June 14 in the north of Japan's main island of Honshu.

On June 18, the committee assigned regional representatives of Rissho Kosei-kai churches to present a letter detailing the contribution of 1 million yen and then allocated the funds to disaster relief headquarters in the cities of Oshu, in Iwate Prefecture, and Kurihara, in Miyagi Prefecture.

According to Japan's Fire and Disaster Management Agency, as of June 17, 10 people were confirmed dead, 12 missing, and 286 injured, and 10 buildings were destroyed and 204 damaged. Two cities, Oshu and Kurihara, where the earthquake struck at a magnitude of 6, were seriously damaged and about 260 people have stayed in shelters since the earthquake. Landslides and unstable ground in the broader area of the Iwate and Miyagi prefectures may cause further damage.

WCRP/Japan Holds Joint Meeting of Boards of Directors and Councilors prior to World Religious Leaders' Summit for Peace in Sapporo

On the morning of June 16, the Japanese Committee of the World Conference of Religions for Peace held the 101st meeting of its board of directors as well as the 97th meeting of its board of councilors, at the headquarters of Myochi-kai, a religious organization in Tokyo. Fifty-two directors and councilors participated. Rev. Nichiko Niwano, president of Rissho Kosei-kai, attended as president of Religions for Peace/Japan. Other committee members present from Rissho Kosei-kai were Rev. Yasutaka Watanabe, chair of the board of trustees; Rev. Takeshi Kawabata, director of the External Affairs Department; Rev. Yoshiko Izumida, a former trustee; and Rev. Koichi Matsumoto, director of the Youth Department.

An opening address by President Niwano was followed by an address by Rev. Watanabe, who succeeded Rev. Katsunori Yamanoi, former chair of Rissho Kosei-kai, as a councilor. Participants heard reports on committee activities and approved the expenditures for fiscal 2007 and ascertained the list of participants in, and the schedule of, an international multireligious conference in to take place in Sapporo July 2-3 before the annual summit of the Group of Eight leading industrialized nations (G8), which was set for July 7-9 near Lake Toya on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. They also learned about a preparatory meeting held in May in Jakarta, Indonesia, for the seventh assembly of the Asian Conference of Religions for Peace, to be held in Manila, the Philippines, October 17-20.

The board members also heard reports on emergency relief of victims of Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar in May and detailed reports on fiscal 2008 activities from the subsidiary committees of the Japanese Committee.

WCRP/Japan Holds Special Peace Lyceum Course prior to World Religious Leaders' Summit for Peace in Sapporo

On the afternoon of June 16, the Japanese Committee of the World Conference of Religions for Peace held its 2008 Peace Lyceum course titled "World Religious Leaders' Summit for Peace: On the Occasion of the G-8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit" at the headquarters of Myochi-kai in Tokyo. Some 160 people from member organizations of Religions for Peace/Japan, including its boards of directors and councilors, took part.

The Special Peace Lyceum course was a study session in preparation for the religious leaders' July 2-3 summit prior to the summit of the Group of Eight industrialized nations held July 7-9 near Lake Toya on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido.

On June 16 the course opened with an address by Ven. Eiin Yasuda, an executive director of Religions for Peace/Japan. Its secretary-general, Rev. Keishi Miyamoto, then outlined the religious summit meeting. Rev. Miyamoto said the summit would help people of faith deepen their awareness of the eternal truths shared by all religions in tackling current challenges. Then, in his keynote address, Prof. Akimasa Sumi of the University of Tokyo pointed out that the level of consumption of Japan's energy resources far exceeds the minimum to sustain human life and that Japanese people should adjust their lifestyles to use less energy. He encouraged people of religion to find ways to create ideal communities where people can live contented lives using less energy and where tolerance prevails for the diversity of all individuals.

There was then a panel discussion by Mr. Junichi Sato, director of the International Research Center of Metatechnology; Prof. Minoru Sonoda, head priest of Chichibu Shrine; Dr. Yasuaki Nara, professor emeritus of Komazawa University; and Rev. Keizo Yamada, professor emeritus of Sophia University, led by Prof. Yoshiaki Sanada, director of its Peace Research Institute.

American Buddhist Scholar and Students Visit Headquarters of Rissho Kosei-kai

On June 2, Dr. Stephen G. Covell, associate professor of comparative religion at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan, and eleven graduate students from the university visited Rissho Kosei-kai's headquarters in Tokyo. They visited Japan to learn more about the country's religions and religious organizations. It was the third time that Dr. Covell brought a group of his students to the headquarters of Rissho Kosei-kai.

After visiting the Great Sacred Hall, the Precious Stupa of the One Vehicle, and the Horin-kaku Guest Hall, the group saw a video introducing Rissho Kosei-kai in the auditorium of the Nikkyo Niwano Memorial Museum. At the museum they also heard a lecture by Rev. Tomonobu Shinozaki, president of Rissho Kosei-kai Gakurin seminary, on the Lotus Sutra, the teachings of Rissho Kosei-kai, and the history of Japanese Buddhism. He referred to the parable of the burning house in the Lotus Sutra and explained that the teaching of the One Vehicle means that everyone can emulate the Buddha's attainment of enlightenment. After the lecture, the students asked questions about Rissho Kosei-kai's hoza practice, history, and interfaith dialogue and cooperation activities.

A student specializing in Islam said, "I am very surprised that each structure, even its shapes and numbers, has very profound meaning in Buddhist symbolism, and now I have a strong interest in the dialogue and cooperation among different religions in which Rissho Kosei-kai has been engaging."