"He always thinks of others"

Among my many memories of Dr. Greeley and Rev. Niwano, working together in all the corners of the world, was how they talked repeatedly of what had taken place at the second bilateral conference, the Inter-Religious Consultation on Japanese-American Relations, in 1972.

The venue was Hawaii, a place of eternal summer. Dr. Greeley showed up wearing a Hawaiian aloha shirt. Rev. Niwano, like any Japanese gentleman, appeared in suit and tie. Exchanging greetings, both men noticed the disparity in their attire. After lunch, they returned from their rooms to the meeting, and this time Rev. Niwano was wearing an aloha shirt while Dr. Greeley was in the suit and tie! It produced a big laugh among their colleagues. However, the episode pointed up the attitude common to the two men--forever looking at things from the other's point of view, trying better to understand, and always making a sincere effort to promote religious cooperation by accommodating others.

Dr. Dana M. Greeley (left) in an aloha shirt and Rev. Niwano in suit and tie before they were to attend the morning session of the second bilateral conference of the Inter-Religious Consultation on Japanese-American Relations, on June 19, 1972.

In peace activities over many years, Rev. Niwano greatly respected Dr. Greeley's views. Dr. Greeley, too, listened carefully to whatever Rev. Niwano said, and the two often found themselves in agreement.

In his final years, Dr. Greeley suffered from cancer. He underwent major as well as minor operations on several occasions, and Rev. Niwano sent many letters of sympathy and encouragement, always including prayers that he would soon be well. Dr. Greeley was a strong-willed man, and demonstrated an almost miraculous recovery from his surgeries. Surprisingly, he attended the 25th IARF Triennial Congress convened at Rissho Kosei-kai headquarters in Tokyo from July 23 to August 1, 1984, and in less than one month even extended his travels to Nairobi, Kenya, to attend the Fourth General Assembly of the WCRP. Throughout these two world congresses he continued his passionate, almost superhuman, efforts toward peace--showing no sign of weakness, and touching the hearts of all participants.

In the United States at that time, though not in Japan, it was already common practice for physicians to inform their patients when they had cancer, and Dr. Greeley had not kept his condition a secret. Thus peoples' eyes widened with astonishment at the behavior of this man with an incurable disease. A frequent comment was, "Even in such a condition, he always thinks of others instead of himself."

One day in Nairobi, too many participants had come to find seats at a particular workshop. Dr. Greeley brought in a chair from the next room, carrying it on his shoulder, and then gave it to someone who was standing. Since this was just a common courtesy, the person who received the seat may well not have known that it was Dr. Greeley who got it for him, nor certainly that Dr. Greeley was a man fighting cancer.

Over the next two years Dr. Greeley's condition had worsened. He was unable to attend the third assembly of the Asian Conference on Religion and Peace in Seoul in 1986. During that conference, the attendees learned that he had passed away.

Several days before his death, Dr. Greeley had recorded his very last words on tape. The Rev. Dr. Malcolm Sutherland, a former president/dean of the Meadville/Lombard Theological School affiliated with the University of Chicago and a close colleague, took the tape to the conference. International officers listened to it together, as Dr. Sutherland commented on it. The tape began with Dr. Greeley's voice saying "Rev. Niwano," and then in turn the names of other officers who had worked with Dr. Greeley from the very beginning of the movement. The tape continued with a farewell to his colleagues, a prayer for the success of the conference, and so on. He sounded hoarse and betrayed his difficulty in breathing and speaking. Every word came from the heart. All of those gathered were deeply moved and prayed that Dr. Greeley's spirit might rest in peace. Rev. Niwano, after returning to his room, recited from the Threefold Lotus Sutra as a further prayer for his good friend.