Seicho-no-Ie
Seicho-no-Ie, sometimes rendered Seicho-no Iye (生長の家 seichō-no ie [se.it͡ɕoː no i.e]), is a syncretic, monotheistic, New Thought religion/philosophy, one of the Shinshūkyō (or new religious movements) in Japan that have spread since the end of World War II. It emphasizes gratitude for nature, the family, ancestors and, above all, religious faith in one universal God, inheriting its basic characteristics from Buddhism, Christianity and Shintoism. Seicho-no-Ie is the world's largest New Thought group.[1] The phrase means "House of Growth". By the end of 2010 it had over 1.6 million followers and 442 facilities, mostly located in Japan.[2]
History
In 1930, Dr. Masaharu Taniguchi, working as an English translator, published the first issue of what he called his "non-denominational truth movement magazine", which he named "Seicho-no Ie" to help teach others of his beliefs. This was followed by forty volumes of his "Truth of Life" philosophy by 1932. Over the next forty years he published an additional four hundred–odd books and toured many countries in Europe, South America, and North America with his wife Teruko, to lecture on his beliefs personally. Ernest Holmes, founder of Religious Science, and his brother Fenwicke were of great assistance to Taniguchi. Fenwicke traveled to Japan and co-authored several books, with one called The Science of Faith becoming a cornerstone of the denomination.[3]
Taniguchi died in a Nagasaki hospital on June 17, 1985, at the age of ninety-one.[4] Today the president of Seicho-no-le is Masanobu Taniguchi.
See also
References
- ↑ "Masaharu Taniguchi." Religious Leaders of America, 2nd ed. Gale Group, 1999. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008.
- ↑ "What's SNI: Summary". EICHO-NO-IE International. December 31, 2010. Retrieved July 30, 2013.
- ↑ Science of Mind magazine, Dec 2008, volume 81, number 12, pages.17-18
- ↑ Associated Press (1985-06-18). "Religious leader Taniguchi". The Montreal Gazette. Retrieved 2010-01-07.
Additional reading
- Clarke, Peter B. (ed.), A Bibliography of Japanese New Religious Movements: With Annotations and an Introduction to Japanese New Religions at Home and Abroad - Plus an Appendix on Aum Shinrikyo. Surrey, UK: Japan Library/Curzon, 1999. ISBN 1-873410-80-8.
- Clarke, Peter B. (ed.). Japanese New Religions: In Global Perspective. Surrey, UK: Curzon Press, 2000. ISBN 0-7007-1185-6.
- Gottlieb, Nanette, and Mark McLelland (eds.). Japanese Cybercultures. London; New York: Routledge, 2003. ISBN 0-415-27918-6, ISBN 0-415-27919-4.
- Masaharu Taniguchi. Religious Leaders of America, 2nd ed. Gale Group, 1999. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008.
External links
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