This year, Iemoto's son, Dr. Soin Sen Wakasosho, with his brother,
Nobuyuki Mikimachi Sosho, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of
Omotesenke Domonkai, dedicated kencha tea for all the deceased in
World War II and to pray for World Peace at the Honpa Hongwanji Hawaii
Betsuin. The significance of dedication at this location is that
World War II was a period of great hardship for those of Japanese
ethnicity in the United States, particularly on the West Coast.
120,000 members of Japanese ancestry, both citizens and immigrants
were gathered into internment camps in remote areas in the United
States.
The reason for internment was purely their ethnicity. Giving
kencha tea at Honpa Honwanji Hawaii Betsuin on the 70th year
observance of the end of World War II has deep importance as a way of
praying for resolution of unfortunate actions of the past and to work
towards World Peace in the 21st Century. True understanding and
acceptance of differences begin by embracing one another's cultures
and we each play a role in perpetuating that understanding globally.
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