2016 Hawaii Buddhist Council Memorial Day Message by Bishop Eric Matsumoto of Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii   Today, as we gather for our Hawaii Buddhist Council Memorial Day Service, let us revisit the significance and purpose of Memorial Day. Memorial Day is a time when we remember and honor those who died in our […]

Continue reading

Message from Bishop Eric Matsumoto on January 28, 2016   To the Family, Relatives and Friends of the late Colonel Ellison Onizuka and the Members and Supporters of Kona Hongwanji, As you gather at Kona Hongwanji, on the occasion of the 30th Anniversary of the passing of the late Colonel Ellison Onizuka and his fellow […]

Continue reading

On Sunday January 17, Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii Bishop Eric Matsumoto spoke at St. Andrew’s annual bell ringing ceremony in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Here is his message. As we gather for this year’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Bell Ringing Ceremony, I am encouraged by the Doctor’s words, “We must accept […]

Continue reading

Bishop Matsumoto delivered the dharma message at Hawaii Betsuin’s Ho’onko service (Shinran Shonin memorial service) on January 9, 2016. In the message, the Bishop highlights the sense of a new beginning with the accession of our Spiritual Leader, the 25th Gomonshu, His Eminence Kojun Ohtani. He notes how the 24th and 25th Gomonshu have encouraged […]

Continue reading

The Gomonshu is the spiritual head of our denomination based in Kyoto, Japan. The current Gomonshu is His Eminence Monshu Kojun Ohtani, the 25th-generation descendant of Shinran Shonin to head the Hongwanji. Here is his New Year’s message.   At the beginning of the new year, I would like to extend my greeting to you. […]

Continue reading

Change, Vision, and Engagement in 2016 We enter 2016 shaped by the theme: EMBRACE CHANGE: NEW VISION, and this vision for the future is to be borne out of our engagement with each other and our communities. Let me share two thoughts on this theme. First, let us be guided by the Jodo Shinshu concept […]

Continue reading

This message is from the Gomonshu, the spiritual head of our denomination based in Kyoto, Japan. The current Gomonshu is His Eminence Monshu Kojun Ohtani, the 25th-generation descendant of Shinran Shonin to head the Hongwanji.   As a special observance expressing our wish for peace, I solemnly pay tribute to the memory of all those […]

Continue reading