Rev. Shawn Yagi explained the elements that may be part of an altar on special occasions during a Minister’s Lay Assistant Retreat held at Līhu’e Hongwanji on Aug. 23.
VOLUME 5 • ISSUE 4 • December 2025
Helping Ministers While Strengthening Our Temples
The Minister’s Lay Assistant program — once a cautious idea — is finding its footing through quiet, dedicated service
BY GAIL S. TAGASHIRA
MANAGING EDITOR, KA LEO KĀHEA
Some 15 years ago, at a Giseikai meeting in the Social Hall of Honpa Hongwanji Betsuin, temple leaders and a few ministers voiced a warning that has become all too true today:
The shortage of ministers was growing, and it was only expected to get worse in the coming years. Even then, ministers serving their temples in the mid-1980s were overworked, under compensated, and being asked to cover more temples across an ever-widening geographic area — with no relief in sight.
In short, something had to be done to help ministers, and quickly.
Up until then, the idea of Lay Assistants — trained volunteers who could help ministers by handling time-consuming but necessary daily and weekly duties — had already been discussed in Japan and on the U.S. mainland. In some places, programs were already up and running.
But in Hawai‘i, plans for a Minister’s Lay Assistant Program struggled to take hold, partly due to resistance from those who feared their roles might change or disappear, that the program might lower standards, fail to meet its goals, and ultimately not serve the sanghas adequately.
Fast forward to 2025 and under the Ministerial Training Committee, the MLA program has made gradual progress, but now faces a need for a reassessment of its purpose and direction.
Over the years, the landscape has changed dramatically.
Participants at the Oct. 25, 2025 Minister’s Lay Assistant Retreat were: Seated, front: Rev. Tomo Hojo, left, Bishop Toshiyuki Umitani, Rev. Blayne Higa and Rev. David Fujimoto. Standing, first row, left: Nannette Gantoisi, Shinobu Fukakusa, Wendy Harman, Jackie Furuta, Alan Goto, Dr. Kaethe Kauffman and Brandon Hee. Back row, left: Dean Sakamoto, Irene Nohara, Barbara Brennan, Wayne Yoshioka, Natasha Lopes, Ed Diehl, Pete Doktor, Rod Moriyama, Dexter Mar and Raymond Takiue.
The number of temples, the composition of sanghas and the structure of the kyodan itself are vastly different from what they were in the ‘80s, shaped not only by shifting demographics but also by technology that has transformed how ministers communicate, teach and serve their communities.
What hasn’t changed is the Dharma, basic service protocols and the need for more ways to assist ministers.
Today there are several trained MLAs and 25 Certified Minister’s Lay Assistants statewide according to Bishop Toshiyuki Umitani and Rev. Blayne Higa, resident minister of Kona Hongwanji and chair of the Ministerial Training Committee.
A comprehensive review of the program’s focus has been underway, examining the needs of each temple, island and district.
“We will recommend improvements as we seek to grow the program and ensure it is helping to meet our current and future needs,” Rev. Higa said.
In late August, each active temple on Kaua‘i was represented at a half-day long, district-wide Minister‘s Lay Assistant Retreat at Līhu‘e Hongwanji.
Starting with an explanation of the levels of ministry — from MLA to CMLA, MLA with Tokudo Ordination and the Kaikyoshi/Kyoshi or fully ordained minister — the program covered a wide range of basic subjects without going into deeper details, given the time constraints.
Basic temple etiquette including the proper posture for sitting, standing (kiritsu), bowing (raihai and yuhai), walking and handling Buddhist implements began the session, ending with the proper way to strike the kansho or event bell.
Of the 12 members who participated in the retreat, no one decided to participate in the follow-up session two months later, the annual MLA session at Honpa Hongwanji Betsuin. Which is not to say the Kaua‘i district temples are not dedicated — only that their efforts are less formal.
Each temple has a core of dedicated volunteers (hosha) — mostly women — who, rain or shine, gather to clean and help set up the altar every Friday morning and are available to do more when their ministers ask for help.
“The MLAs are appointed by the resident minister and are not required to report to Headquarters,” Bishop Umitani said. “We know many dedicated volunteers are not recognized as MLAs but are helping their temples which I appreciate. Their temples’ success depends on the collaborative effort between the resident ministers and the MLAs.”
We are gearing the program around how to run a Sunday service but we are making some changes and hope we can better improve its quality.
– Rev. David Fujimoto
Largely because Hawai‘i is made up of islands— each with its own unique history, population density, social and economic characteristics — the program has evolved depending on the needs of each district.
At Wailuku Hongwanji, for example, Rev. Shinkai Murakami conducts his own training session with temple members who express an interest in assisting him when he is off-island.
“I tried to organize an island-wide Lay Assistant (training) session similar to Kauai’s but there was no interest at that time,” he said.
Wailuku’s program follows a set path: Vandana & Ti Sarana, sutra chanting, an annual Dharma talk, altar safety and recognizing what is each person’s path and goal. Most MLAs at Wailuku still work full-time jobs and have personal, family responsibilities.
At the Kauai retreat, the subject of incense was raised — not only how to offer incense (oshoko) but also what to do with the ashes at the end of weeks or months depending on how full the burner.
The four MLAs at Puna Hongwanji consistently help with setting up the altar, dismantling it, ringing the kansho, serving as emcees, chanting and delivering the Dharma message when Rev. Satoshi Ka‘imipono Tomioka is away.
“One new potential MLA in her 20s is already doing well with the kansho and learning altar procedures,” Rev. Tomioka said.
To spread interest in getting members more involved with service procedures, Rev. Tomioka has posted a tutorial on both on Facebook and YouTube on the proper way to ring the kansho, demonstrating the opening seven strikes, the crescendo to decrescendo, five strikes and so on.
At both Pāhala and Nā‘ālehu, which Rev. Tomioka oversees, one person handles both the altar and kansho.
The Oct. 25 MLA Retreat at the Betsuin offered six workshop and hands-on, skills-based sessions in a day-long session. It covered Buddhism in general, an explanation of the program, “How to Prepare and Deliver a Dharma Message” and a large portion discussed the status of the program.
“The retreat was sort of a ‘fact-finding’ mission on what exactly is going on in the program and what is going on in the temples, what more needs to be done and how can we, as the ministerial training committee, better manage the program,” Rev. David Fujimoto, Mōi‘li‘ili resident minister said.
“We are gearing the program around how to run a Sunday service but we are making some changes and hope we can better improve its quality.”
Several of those attending the session were “Observers,” uncommitted to the program and several times, the question of “How can we help you?” was asked of attendees without clear responses or demands.
Oddly, the numbers of committed, trained MLAs and CMLAs don’t necessarily correlate with the size of the temples. Two of the largest temples have fewer MLAs and CMLAs than many of their smaller counterparts.
In the end, no matter how many members and how many MLAs and CMLAs are on board, all involved share the same goals:
To assist the ministers;
To grow the sanghas, and
To spread the Dharma.