The 28th Europe Spiritual Training Seminar Held in Germany
The Number of Participants Totals 46
The 28th Seicho-No-Ie Europe Spiritual Training Seminar was held from August 3 to 5 at a youth hostel in Mainz, Germany. The number of participants was 46, including 12 first-timers. This was an increase of 14 people over the previous time.
The breakdown of participants by country of origin was 35 for Germany, 1 for Austria, 1 for Sweden, 2 for Switzerland, 4 for Poland, 1 for France, and 2 for Japan.
A new German-language Readers’ Meeting site was launched in Germany at the Seicho-No-Ie Office in Frankfurt in May of last year by Guido Burkner, who returned to Germany after completing his overseas training at the International Headquarters. The Readers’ Meeting is held every month with the members as well as Mr. Burkner’s friends and acquaintances. The promotional activities for this Spiritual Training Seminar included promotion at the Readers’ Meeting and distribution of promotional postcards prepared by a Propagator to Regional Lecturers and Propagators, asking them to promote the Seminar. These efforts contributed to increasing the number of participants.
Rev. Mitsunori Dohi (Ordained Minister, Acting Chief of Secretariat Office of Chief of Missionary Council) was dispatched from the International Headquarters as a lecturer. He provided guidance together with Rev. Yuji Otsuka (Resident Ordained Minister in Europe) with German interpretation. Rev. Dohi gave four lectures, including the closing lecture, “Joy to Save Humanity—Toward Building a New Civilization in Harmony with Nature.” Rev. Otsuka gave three lectures, including “Prayer Changes Our Life.” He also guided Mind Purification Ceremony, Ancestor Memorial Service, and Shinsokan for Mutual Prayer.
Comments from the participants included: “The lectures were very interesting. I liked the Ancestor Memorial Service. I would like to participate in the Seminar again.” There was a journalist among the participants, who takes interest in Seicho-No-Ie. He introduced Seicho-No-Ie in a local newspaper, Goettinger Tageblatt, with its teachings and the fact that Seicho-No-Ie is promoting the discontinuance of nuclear energy use. A Seicho-No-Ie member in the area who read the article decided to launch a Readers’ Meeting site.
Rev. Dohi commented, “The participants were earnest students. I strongly felt that in order to enlighten Europe, it is necessary to develop interpreters so that we can handle many languages.”
Rev. Otsuka remarked, “Mr. Burkner is the first German to pass the Enlightenment Leaders Examination this year. He played an important role in managing and interpreting at this Seminar. I hope that the activities by Mr. Burkner and others in the area will help further promote the Enlightenment Movement in Germany.”