LIHU‘E — Rev. Shoryu Akiya and members and friends of the Kapa‘a Jodo Mission were joined by nearly 50 guests from Japan during the church’s centennial celebration in February. Among the visiting dignitaries from Japan, three former ministers at Kapa‘a Jodo
LIHU‘E — Rev. Shoryu Akiya and members and friends of the Kapa‘a Jodo Mission were joined by nearly 50 guests from Japan during the church’s centennial celebration in February.
Among the visiting dignitaries from Japan, three former ministers at Kapa‘a Jodo Mission, brothers Rev. Kyosho, Rev. Junyu Kudo and Rev. Koyu Shinde, were hosted by the church and its members.
Ten ministers, including guest ministers from Zojoji, the head temple in Tokyo, Japan, led a commemorative service where they performed traditional Japanese court music known as Gagaku.
Kapa‘a Jodo Mission was started with the missionary work of Rev. Tatsuyu Yoshida, who was followed by a line of successors. These ministers dedicated themselves to the temple with the cooperation and hard work of its members and friends.
When World War II broke out, the mission was closed, and then-minister, Rev. Shoyu Kitajima, and his family were interned in a camp on the Mainland.
Following the war, and the return of Rev. Kitajima and his family to Hawai‘i, the temple acquired the present property in 1950, and a new temple was built in 1951.
Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. was present, and joined four hula dancers from Japan who dedicated two hula, a Japanese number and a Hawaiian number to the celebration, which played out to close to 200 people at the church’s social hall.
“On this auspicious occasion, once again, I extend my deepest appreciation to those in the past and to all of you in the present, our hardworking members and our Sangha, our loyal dharma friends in our community,” Akiya said.
