Great Construction
Salvation by the Sun
The more individuals are considered to be intellectuals these days, it could be said to be a certainty that that there is the dispensation for them to see anything having to do with new religions through filtered glasses. As only one of latest religious comets to streak across the skies, it is only taking advantage of the times with skillfully self-made doctrines, and confusing stupid men and women in order to fill their coffers. These so-called intellectuals think it is a troubling world where since it is a given that the founders are lining their pockets and followers thankfully give away money earned with their blood and sweat and are also made to avoid doctors when they become sick. Yes, if that were true, they would have a point, and even we as individuals involved in religion naturally would not hesitate to agree.
And their viewpoint is not altogether wrong as among the various new religions, apart from two or three, considerable is the number I cannot abide. Examples include those whose members chant sutras in a loud voice, and bang on bells, drums and wooden clappers, not caring how much they disturb the neighborhood as long as they feel good themselves. Such activity is probably a crime of noise pollution.
Another sort of new religion that captures the attention of the public is one whose members without any kind of salutation start singing a strange song while performing strange hand gestures, and dancing. It is as if they are in their own private intoxicated trance. We are most likely not the only ones who do not get a good feeling from having to look at these performances. From a social perspective, people would have doubts about these actions. Having said that, often seen are the very fervent faithful who become quite self-satisfied, and not only do they despise those of other or no faith, there are even those who dislike having to get along with normal social activities. In extreme cases, they are happy to become spiritually possessed, and there are even faiths that seem to create human beings drenched in insanity. These tendencies should be investigated to see if they have a positive or a negative side. Then again, there are faiths without fault. Also, we often see religions where self-styled founders grow their hair long, wear outrageous clothes, and bathe in the environment of being taken for a living god, but such actions are just dissembling to the extreme, and it almost quite unbelievable that there would be people who put faith in such a figure. The world is indeed a large place.
Also since antiquity, an inevitable accompaniment to a certain kind of faith has been asceticism and the practice of austerities. Believers become addicted to performing ablutions with cold water, or else that such as hiding away deep in the mountains, fasting, and standing under waterfalls. Those performing these austerities are most likely satisfied, but we ordinary people just do not understand the meaning of it all. Rather, we take pity on them. In the preceding I have merely presented a rough idea, but it is also troubling that people have fallen for the superstition that such extraordinary practices are the way religions should be. Whenever I see such practices, even though involved in religion myself, I really think that religions who think that such are satisfactory to be really abominable, and I am continually telling people so. These days low level religions as just described are spreading, so as I wrote in the beginning, it is only natural that it would not only be intellectuals who would find them contemptible.
I do not intend to indulge in self praise, but I would like to point out that World Messianity is completely different. To begin, there are the items that we take as our motto such as giving great weight to common sense, that the daily lives and actions of World Messianity’s followers differ in no way from those of the general public, that we try to develop friendships with all, and that in no way do we lack for getting along with others amiably and harmoniously, so that those who do find out about out true aspects find us quite approachable, even if they do not become followers. Because people do not find out about our true aspects, however, they randomly lump us together with the faiths lacking in common sense as described above, so it is quite an imposition.
Therefore, those who interfere with our work are neither atheists or those who superstitiously believe in material science. Rather, it would be fair to say that what impedes World Messianity are the unwelcome new religions described above. Because the interference is not intentional, the problem is intractable. It does not take any thought to see that that is probably the way Japan’s unique religious world is. In the West, in Europe and the United States, all countries are mostly Christian, and because the progress of their culture has been faster compared to Japan, the way of viewing religion is comparatively fair, and it is truly good that the religious view is full of rationalism, but in Japan, there is Buddhism, there is Shinto, there is Christianity, plus each of these is divided into many sects. It is a pell-mell mixing of right and wrong, so it is very difficult to work in such an environment.
But as I always say, World Messianity is not a religion, it is a super religion, salvation never before seen in history, so it differs completely. As all can see from the way World Messianity breaks the mold in so many ways, it is not unreasonable to be unable to accept World Messianity with the mindset of and towards religions heretofore. But, as true understanding begins, there is no exception to the fact that realization that World Messianity is indeed what has been sought after, and joy wells up from the bottom of the heart. Most of all, as can be seen in the growth of the church, it is fact that in just a few years, World Messianity has developed as much as it has. What deserves caution here is that in recent years there has been wonderful growth by two or three religious organizations, but their growth differs fundamentally from that of World Messianity. That is because these other organizations base themselves on existing religions from which they have been able to muster many followers. Opposite to that World Messianity is from one to ten original, so I would hope that this difference be fully recognized.
Another aspect is that the religions totally lacking in common sense as described above are at their fundamentals, needless to say, shojo faiths, so they are confining and have no freedom. To mention freedom, the general public believes that freedom and religion are quite widely separated, but on this point, just like the physical world, without democratic liberalism, the general public will probably not subject itself to one-way governance. To explain in simple terms would be the following. Since the standard for religions until today has been the shojo-type faith, just like the world as a whole, each nation has its own color, and religions are that way, as well. Therefore, as this principle shows, each standard lacks universality, so it is only natural that in those circumstances salvation would also be within a narrow sphere. Shojo faiths, however, have rigid commandments, so they conduct themselves by binding and making others suffer. Such actions deny God’s love and are truly pitiful. I label these faiths of hell.
World Messianity, however, is exactly the opposite. There are hardly any commandments, so it is extremely free, and since we take the enjoyment of life as a blessing of God, World Messianity could be called a heavenly religion. World Messianity, a daijo religion, contains all that is necessary for human beings, such as religion, philosophy, politics, economics, education, art, and healing. Just as the sun with its brilliant white regulates and adjusts all the colors, World Messianity is a religion of daylight; it is the salvation of the sun.
Eikō, Issue 183, November 19, 1952
translated by cynndd
* * *
“Taiyō no Sukui,” which was published originally in Eikō, Issue 183, November 19, 1952, and later, while Meishu-sama still alive, reprinted in the essays anthology for ministers Goshinsho: Shūkyō-hen (Divine Writings: Volume on Religion), March 25, 1954, page 243, has, as far as is known, not appeared in translation.