October 24 - 26, 2008

UPDATE: 
The next Gathering in New York will be on March 28 & 29, 2009.  Click here for a flyer with more information.

Also, on Saturday, March 28, please ask for the "Rotunda Room" when you arrive since there is a Memorial Service also being held at the facility.

The New York Faith Gatherings were held from October 24-26, 2008 and Rev. Joanne Tolosa (Head Minister of the Konko Church of San Francisco) was welcomed as the new officiating minister by the local believers.  She was appointed by the Head Minister of the Konko Church of Tokyo less than one month prior due to a scheduling conflict with the previous officiant, Rev. Richard Grange.  Fortunately, Ms. Saomi Okamoto, a local believer, was instrumental in making introductions beforehand, allowing Rev. Tolosa to contact them through phone calls and email before leaving San Francisco.

New York City is vibrant and fast-paced, and so are the believers who live there.  One believer could not attend because of a business trip to the Middle East as a representative of the United Nations!  Others could not attend because of work, but Rev. Tolosa kept in touch with them as best she could.  She met one woman a day before the gathering at a café near the East Village.  Although it was their first meeting, they found they knew the same minister in Japan and quickly were able to get acquainted and share their faith with each other.

Rev. Joanne (left) and Ms. M. Terasaki

The scheduled informal gathering took place on a rainy Saturday in a crowded café in Chinatown.  Over seasonal pastries and coffee, Rev. Tolosa spent time with two believers in Sacred Mediation and conversations about faith, work, and everyday life.

Rev. Joanne (left) and Ms. S. Kamada during the gathering

The Prayer Service took place on a beautifully crisp Sunday in a meeting room at Onigashima Restaurant, just off of Fifth Avenue.  A newly framed “Tenchi Kakitsuke,” hand-carried from the West Coast, was placed on the altar along with a bouquet of fresh flowers and San Francisco chocolates used as offerings to our Divine Parent, Tenchi Kane no Kami.  While reciting the Saishi (Main Pastoral Prayer), Rev. Tolosa expressed appreciation on behalf of the believers for allowing them to “…live in a place where they could meet a cross-section of all humanity on earth, all children of Kami, each person striving to live in harmony with each other and the world.”

Rev. Joanne during the Saishi

In her sermon, she touched on the wish of the late Rev. Kiyoshi Hata (the third Head Minister of the Konko Church of Tokyo) to spread the Konko Faith “to the East and Beyond.”  New York is a significant part of that wish and she acknowledged that the faith training for residents there is more difficult because at this time, there is no established church to seek guidance.  However, she also assured them that through these gatherings, and especially through emails, phone calls and letters, she will continue to relay their appreciation, apologies and requests to Kami on a regular basis. 

Upon leaving, each person was given a music CD compiled of popular Konkokyo songs in Japanese, and the English version of “Hikari Kagayaku Michi” (“Shining, Shimmering Light”) so that they can have these uplifting, inspirational songs to give them encouragement and feel closer to Kami Sama while at home.  New efforts to nurture and spread Konko Faith for the individual, and as a group, in the New York area have begun.