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     Upon examination, the dazzling forms of modern culture that have been assiduously created and developed over the centuries are simply enchantment and bewitchment that have gone too far. This situation is the reason for the birth of World Messianity. Needless to say, contemporary peoples look at, praise, and glorify this culture, but upon reflection, when its contents are observed, something most unexpected is to be seen. Do observers actually perceive the fact that culture’s external appearance is exactly the opposite from its contents? When I say “opposite,” I am of course referring to the spiritual aspects. No progress is at all observable in spiritual growth. Rather, ancient, primitive peoples seem to have been superior to us. If we could put the hearts and minds of people nowadays on a scale to measure good or evil, evil would unfortunately outweigh and outnumber good.
     That such a situation exerts a harmful influence on human society is possibly far more than can be imagined. Just look! It is clear merely by observing that the abominable aspects which are the greatest sufferings of humanity, whether conflict, disease, poverty, crime, various natural catastrophes, and so forth, are not decreasing in the least, rather they show a tendency to increase. It would be fair to say that the fact that the progress of material scientific culture has not been accompanied by similar advances in spiritual culture is indeed intriguing. Furthermore, not only have doubts about this situation not arisen, rather humanity continues to be increasingly intoxicated with materialistic culture. Why do the religious leaders, academics, politicians, and many intellectuals throughout the world not awaken to this condition? There are a few who have, but since the fundamentals of the problem are not understood, inevitably the world seems to have resigned itself to the situation being innate to humanity.
     Still, in the center of all the desires of humanity is, above all else, happiness, well-being. In order to attain happiness, humanity has devoted its mental resources and expended all means. This was the dream of utopia and the desire for an ideal world. This was the significance in which humanity placed its dependence on religion. But as a result of the possibility of attaining happiness through religion starting to appear doubtful, happiness was sought in other places. Those other places were the fields such as education, morality, philosophy, and so forth, that arose from the time of the middle ages both in China as well as in Europe. In China appeared Confucius, Mencius, Chu Hsi, and in the West, educators such as Socrates, and philosophers such Kant and Hegel. Humanity placed great expectations in these people. In the West, however, since the seventeenth century, materialistically-based science has raised its head, and in all fields gradually a revolution came about. In particular, the development of the civilization of machines brought about the industrial revolution, and the whole world became mesmerized by material science. It was at this point that humanity which had followed the righteous path of religion and morality, took as its highest existence only that which could be grasped through experimental science, that is, with the eye or hand. Not unreasonable was the belief that in this way human happiness could be increased and constructed an ideal world.
     And indeed, when we look at the facts, countries with the most superior cultures are flourishing and prospering, are equipped with and protected by armaments; their populations blessed in daily life, are respected by other nations of the world; and their authority overawes their neighbors, so every other nation that sees these nations competes to emulate them. In this situation conspicuously visible to the present has been the rise and development of scientific culture. But as a result of humanity’s fascination and overconfidence in scientific culture, the world has come to a collapse of the inner, mental world, a great drop in moral principles, and human beings, pursuing only the physical objects in front of their eyes, have become slaves to science. Human beings, who should be controlling science, have come to be controlled by science. Thus, as can be seen in the present, the world is one step away from global disaster. The outlook for humanity can only be termed critical.
     As the preceding shows, humanity’s first desire for happiness as well as for an ideal world was forgotten with the result that at the height of irony, now in conditions where all is impossible, in a state of dilemma, the more culture develops, the more it distances itself from happiness. Like a swing, it goes up but then goes down again. To describe the situation in simpler terms, at first an attempt to create paradise was made with spiritual culture, but since realization this way did not seem to be possible, next it was believed that paradise could be created through the means of materialistically-based science, for which all-out effort has been made. However, as previously discussed, paradise has not been created. We have reached a stage more terrifying than hell, the destruction of humanity. I am talking about the invention of the atomic bomb. As critical as the age has become, humanity does not awaken to its folly and continues in its worship of material science. Basically, the compelling question shared by all humanity is that nothing has been learned from the tragedy of the failure of spiritual culture and then the failure of material culture. What this question should provoke is an acknowledgment of the errors to date and a fresh start. That is, the creation of a new, unbiased cultural form that unifies, leaning neither to the spiritual nor to the physical. Only in this way will paradise appear.
     In light of this situation, the present is precisely a period of great global transition, a time of change from the old culture to the new, the transition of which we always speak. Surely, now is of great moment for humanity, indeed an unprecedented crisis. Still, what will the culture that replaces the old culture be like? Needless to say, the answer to this question is something that human beings today with their level of intellect and intelligence can not grasp even by a hair. Even so, the question remains. Probably many people wonder whether such a new culture is within reach. Whether believed or not, the fact is that the only alternative is to affirm the actuality of God.
     So here I will explain about God. Even when we say the word God, there are various levels of God, from high to low, with an infinite variety of roles. In Shinto, the phrase eight hundred myriads of God is used, and indeed it is so. To date, when the word “God” is used, the term is meant monotheistically in Christianity and in Shinto, polytheistically. Both these conceptions, however, are biased. Actually the spirit of the one God is divided into many, so the right way to look at God is as one in many, many in one. This is the conclusion that I have reached after many long years of studying the spiritual and divine worlds. I have had this view for a long while but until today have not been able to discuss the subject in greater detail. Indeed, what has been worshiped until the present as the highest level of God is actually a God below the second level, and the highest level of God was way in the distance to whom humanity could only pray to from afar. The God of the highest level is none other than Lord God with names such as Jehovah, Logos, Deus, Lord of Hosts, the Infinite, the Arisen Christ, and Messiah all of which have come to be known by the populations of each nation and nation-state. The purpose of the Lord God is the construction of an ideal world of complete truth, virtue, and beauty, for which preparations have to be made, so God has waited for the time for those preparations, and that time is the present. Humanity must first recognize the critical nature of the times and then the most pressing duty is the spiritual revolution itself.
     Let me offer one piece of evidence as to why now is the time for such a revolution. There is the concept, the phrase “World State,” that has recently begun to be discussed in the United States. This is obviously the ideal world united. That this idea has appeared means that material civilization has progressed that much. No matter the effort put into constructing heaven, if there are conditions where the level of culture is low and nations and countries are all separate and apart, with no adequate transportation system available, then the world is opaque, and the fundamental of uniting the thought of humanity in one is impossible. As it has become the time for the creation of a new civilization, there is surely a necessity to have knowledge of this grand concept in advance. God is conducting this project through one human being, and that person is the engine for undertaking this great aspect of divine economy. Who has been chosen for this role? If it is myself, then the reason for the appearance of the Church of World Messianity should not be impossible to comprehend. Consequently, moment by moment God reveals to me plans for the construction of paradise, so I, in accord with those orders, undertake phases of divine economy. At this critical period, God will keep that which is of use from the old culture, and that which is not will be reformed and made to be useful. Such a course shows the great love of God. That which does not fall into these two categories will probably perish forever.
     This process can only be the last judgment. It is indeed both welcome and also frightening. What is to be regretted, though, is that when I teach according to divine revelation, materialists consider me to be a heretic and shower me in censure, and in a way such a reaction is not unreasonable. As previously described, humanity has experienced culture that was either spiritual or materialistic, so it is only natural that a fair and impartial new culture that favors neither is not easy to understand. Then again, those on the spiritual side of culture assert that faiths which emphasize only the spiritual to be of a high level. In their teaching great satisfaction is taken in stringing along words of a nature academic and difficult to comprehend. In actuality, however, to save the greatest number of people, relying only on theoretical religion has very weak effect, and I do believe the cause for the stagnation of existing religions to have some basis on this point.
     To address the view of those on the side of materialism, because the center of their world is the physical, anything not visible to the eye is deemed to be superstition. So, of course, there is no room for belief in the actuality of God. Further, what makes this situation difficult to deal with, at least in Japan, is the fact that the leadership classes, those on the side of so-called intellectuals, include many with this kind of conviction. Due to these circumstances, our faith is looked upon as an extreme form of superstition, and we are opposed both by word of mouth and in print. In the most extreme cases, it is to the point where there are even those who admonish others not to even approach us. Thus, members of the general public are taken in by these admonishments, are unable to grasp the true situation, so they hesitate to contact us. Judged by results, this means that most intellectuals are unwittingly obstructors of the progress of culture. Whether in the East or in the West, when something new appears, it can be said to be a certainty that there will be those who oppose it, so obstruction can be called the sad destiny of woe that pioneers of the age must bear.
     An interesting aspect to these circumstances is that if a new theory appears which is only barely above the level of the culture of the times, intellectuals will praise and applaud it. That is because this is the level that is easiest for those who have received a materialistic education to understand, and Nobel-Prize-awardees are of this type. However, when there does appear a singular theory that is too much ahead of its time, since it cannot be understood, rather it is rejected, denounced, censured, and efforts are made to obliterate it. Such is more than clear when we see examples of this as in Europe with the history of the suffering of such pioneers not only of Christ but of Socrates, of Copernicus, of Galileo, and of Luther.
     The theories I expound, however, are much more unprecedented than those of these pioneers, by one or two centuries, so that those who hear of them for the first time, those who are frozen in existing culture, are too amazed and no attempt is made to investigate, with World Messianity being buried in the back of their minds as an extreme superstition. But if my theories were simply outrageous, the fact that our work, even in the face of censure and attack, not to speak of the pressure we have borne from governmental authorities, continues to show steady growth without a moment’s rest, still must signify something. In our work until now many have been the times when we have trodden paths of thorns and passed through lines of soldiers ready to pounce on us at the drop of a hat. In spite of all this, that the advancement of the project for the construction of paradise exceeds expectations and continues cannot but be difficult to perceive with the understanding of human logic. The best illustration of this growth is the fact that those who become followers of World Messianity, no matter who, can display the same amount of salvation power as the founder of a religion. It is fair to say that followers manifesting miracles is nothing out of the ordinary. Indeed, followers produce wonderful actual benefits. Thus, through the teachings of World Messianity, the secrets of life may be understood, the truth can be awakened to, daily life may be improved, the inner being become clear and bright, and with unshakable conviction, vision into the future is possible, so true peace of mind may be obtained. This is shown by the fact that as time passes, the countenance of the followers of World Messianity brighten. They become possessors of pure blood, their health strengthens, unease over the future disappears, and their characters improve, so trust in them by members of society rises, and they become true persons of virtue, respected by others.
     In this sense, the fundamental condition for the motto of World Messianity, the construction of paradise on earth, starts from one person with the formation of an individual who is qualified to be a dweller in heaven. Since the world is a collection of individuals, when the number of such persons has increased, it is natural that paradise on earth will appear.

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“Honkyō no Tanjō,” originally published as the first chapter of the Sekai Meshiya Kyō (Church of World Messianity) publication Sekai Meshiya Kyō Hayawakari (A Guide to World Messianity), November 20, 1950, and reprinted while Meishu-sama was alive in the essays anthology for ministers Goshinsho: Shūkyō-hen (Divine Writings: Volume on Religion), page 359, March 25, 1954, has appeared in translation. Citation is given below for reference.

“Birth of Our Religion,” A Guide to World Messianity, 1955, page 3.

“World Messianity’s Purpose,” Teachings of Meishu-sama, Volume Two, 1968, page 7.

“World Messianity’s Purpose,” Foundation of Paradise, 1984, page 407 (reprint of “World Messianity’s Purpose,” Teachings of Meishu-sama, Volume Two, 1968, page 7).

“The Birth of This Movement,” The Light from the East, 1986, page 262.

“Our Purpose,” Teachings of Meishu-sama, Volume Two, 1968/2004, page 73.