Rev. Mario Kawakami

In this newsletter, I would like to share a prayer from the July 2025 Truth of Life magazine titled “Prayer to Know That There Is Nothing Useless.” In the first paragraph, the prayer explains that there are no useless things in this world. We may think something is useless because of our prejudiced view: It is said that “useless” comes from “futile.” There is, however, not futility in the world of Reality created by God.

I attended the Seicho-No-Ie Northern California Missionary Area’s Public Lecture in September, where I had the opportunity to give a lecture. Today, I would like to share a summary of that talk with you. The theme is “Let’s Use Gratitude to Bring Peace into the World.” This theme contains two key words: gratitude and peace. First, I’d like to ask you a question: compared to the past, do you think the world is becoming more peaceful, or worse than before?

Dear Spiritual Friends, On Saturday, September 20, 2025, the Seicho-No-Ie New York Missionary Area held the Blessings of Nature Festa in Central Park. Last year, we had planned a similar event, Central Park Day, but it was unfortunately canceled due to bad weather. This time, with the blessing of clear autumn skies, we were able to joyfully connect with nature.   To deepen our experience, we invited birdwatcher Ellen Yamaguchi to guide us through lesser-known parts of Central Park. Our...