History
History of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism in Canada
Jodo Shinshu Buddhism - “True Pure Land Teaching”, is the sect of Buddhism which was founded in Japan in 1224 AD by Shinran Shonin. It is one of the oldest Buddhist groups in Canada.
The basic tenet of Jodo Shinshu lies in the phrase Namu Amida Butsu (I rely upon Buddha of Infinate Light and Life). The phrase, called the Nembutsu, links the Amida Buddha to the common people and crystallizes “all the practices accomplished and virtues accumulated for the sake of (the) attainment”. The follower who utters the Nembutsu is expressing his gratitude for the awakening of Faith that will lead to Enlightenment.
Source: (Excerpt taken from “Bukkyo Tozen, A History of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism in Canada 1905 - 1995, written by Terry Watada.)
Temple History
The Beginning of the Toronto Buddhist Church
Reverend Kenryu Tsuji ventured out of the Bayfarm area near Slocan internment camp where he was teaching and leading a Buddhist congregation to go to the Toronto area in 1944. He carried with him the wooden statue of the Buddha he had managed to salvage from the Vancouver Church and a fervent desire to take the Dharma to the disaffected Japanese Canadians in the east. He had correctly predicted the largest concentration of Japanese in Canada was to be Toronto.
While studying at the University, Rev. Tsuji lived at 13 Division St. people sought him out to perform memorial services. He complied but could only offer as a meeting place his room, which contained a double bed and a huge butsudan, Rev. Tsuji looks upon those times with great fondness.
Many Nisei’s, equally represented by men and women, gathered at 245 College Street on September 8th for the first English Service and meeting sponsored by the Toronto Buddhist Church.
Reverend Tsuji, who spoke at the gathering, explained the difficulties which the Church has had to face since evacuation and asked for the whole-hearted co-operation of the young people to realize a vast and complete re-organization of the Church and its activities. “To see this task through to a successful end is a responsibility that rests upon your shoulders and mine”.
The Young Buddhist Society
The Nisei now in their twenties and early thirties were establishing themselves in Toronto and wanted to resume practicing their religion. They moreover wanted to socialize within a common and familiar environment. In order to do so, they met in the Legion Hall on a fairly regular basis. The Issei continued to meet separately in private homes. In the fall of 1946, Rev. Tsuji held the first meeting to organize the fledging Nisei group. Out of that meeting, the young Nisei group resolved to start a club. The TYBS (Toronto Young Buddhist Society) began a monthly bulletin called the Guiding Light. The first edition appeared in the spring of 1947.
Dharma School
The first year was a busy one for the TYBS filled with social and religious activity. The priority for the group as well as for Rev. Tsuji was to form the Dharma School. Charles Nekoda with Rev. Tsuji as advisor took on the task of organizing it. The growing number of students forced the school to move in 1950.
Early in 1947, the TYBS held its first social at the Jewish Synagogue, thanks to the help of Sukegoro Mori, caretaker of the Synagogue. Later two quite successful endeavors, the Japanese Canadian community concert and the Valentine Dance, brought the organization into its own. The first concert was held in the fall of 1947. The Nisei Variety Parade featured singers, musicians and actors during a two day extravaganza. The concerts followed annually until the early 60’s.
The First Church (134 Huron Street)
The Bukkyo Kai (Issei), made up of first generation Japanese Canadian men in their 40s and 50s, saw the TYBS (Nisei) as a young group motivated only by social activities rather than being interested in the sober responsibility of establishing a church. The TYBS on the other hand was serious in building for the future.
On Sept 8, 1947, the Toronto Young Buddhist’s Society was incorporated. The first task was to raise enough capital for a down payment. With such financial backing, a committee of Harry Kondo, Toshio Nishijima, and Mamoru Nishi purchased a house at 134 Huron Street. Thus the first Buddhist Church was established in Toronto.
With the opening of the Huron Street church, there became an obvious need for co-operation between the TYBS and the Bukkyo Kai in order to co-ordinate programs and services. A Nisei contingent met with the Issei members on a continual basis to dispel the difference of opinion between the two and to open the lines of communication. These meetings paved the way for the founding of the Toronto Buddhist Church (TBC) Central Board in 1952.
Fujinkai
The Huron Street Church became the focal point of Buddhist activity in Toronto. Rev. Tsuji felt the church needed to organize the women into a cohesive whole from the beginning. He therefore suggested the formation of the Toronto Buddhist Women’s League or Fijinkai. Nineteen women began the club in 1948, it expanded quickly, the first executive consisted of 32 officers representing 75 members.
Sangha
In the meantime, the Issei-bu (Bukkyo Kai) members felt the need for a middle group composed of older Nisei to “bridge the gap” between the Issei and the young Nisei. The problems of language and cultural differences had served to create friction within the new church.
In 1949 some older members of the TYBS formed the Sonen Kai, a middle group aged 30 to 40 that acted as liaison between the Issei-bu and the TYBS because of their fluency in both English and Japanese. It was decided the organization must assist in setting church policy if it was to retain the interest of its members who were mature adults. In June 1950 the Sonen Kai became known as the Sangha.
In November 1955 the Sangha initiated the Fall Bazaar, a highlight of the Toronto Buddhist Church calendar. It features baked goods, white elephant items and Japanese meals all at reasonable prices.
The Sangha also formed a Sangha Women’s Division to aid the Fujinkai in their work. The group would eventually separate and become the Dana.
Asoka Society
The final organization to be formed during those critical first years was the Asoka Society, an English speaking group of Nisei and non-Japanese interested in Buddhist studies. They held philosophical discussions and delved into the spiritual aspects of the religion. They translated Japanese sutras, sponsored lectures on Buddhism and wrote articles on several topics of interest. Their first publication was the Asoka Review. The Asoka Society remained active until Rev. Tsuji left for the United States in 1958.
The Toronto Buddhist Church was incorporated in July 1952 under the Ontario Companies Act. With a new constitution and by-laws in place, the Central Executive Board was formed in March of the following year at the AGM with representatives from the TYBS, Sangha Fujinkai, and the Bukkyo Kai. One of the first decisions was to instruct the building committee to build a new church rather than finding an old one. They found property on Bathurst Street north of Bloor St. The Nisei lobbied for the purchase and the church established a fund raising committee.
918 Bathurst Street (1955 – 2005)
The Toronto Buddhist Church, the first Japanese Canadian built center in Toronto, was designed by George Yamazaki and Roy Matsui and built by the N&S (Nakamura-Sakaguchi) Construction Co. Both architects felt the design “(was) in keeping with the spirit of Buddhism, depicting the harmony of man with nature”.
The floor plan contained a library for Buddhist literature, social center, kitchen, rooms for Sunday school, administrative offices, and “minister ready rooms”.
The dedication was held on March 1955 included ritual offering of incense by various representatives. Church groups participating included the Club Ami, a teenage club, the TYBS, the Sangha, the Fujinkai, and the Asoka Society.
A unique feature of the church is the original, handcrafted Onaijin. The alter was designed by architect and interior designer Nobuo Kubota with Rev. Tsuji as consultant.
The recessed concave steps from the incense burner up to the naijin floor is an invitation of continuing sensual progression toward the main or principal object of reverence Gohonzon… a standing figure of Amida Buddha, later replaced by the scroll with six character calligraphy Namu Amida Butsu, a treasured gift presented to the Toronto Buddhist Church.
A Period of Transition
The Toronto Buddhist Church on strong recommendation from the late Bishop Shigefuji of the Buddhist Churches of America has appointed the Rev. Newton Ishiura of Honolulu, Hawaii, to succeed Rev. T. Tsuji as the resident minister of the Toronto Buddhist Church, September 1958.
Fortunately, the Toronto Buddhist Church found in Rev. Newton Ishiura and his wife Mary the vision, boundless energy and progressive attitude necessary to overcome the residual wartime scars and the generational and cultural struggles to lead the congregation into an era of great activity and significant work.
Mary Ishiura was not just a minister’s wife doing her duty, but almost from the day she arrived in Canada, she was committed. Her heart and mind cared not only for the welfare of her church members, but also for her community, for people across the country and even those across the sea.
Administering the church’s affairs was very complicated and thus too much for one minister to handle by himself. Therefore, the church was divided into departments.
Membership in church organizations was in theory determined by age. In practice it depended on association, cultural preferences and friendship.
Once the activities petered out in about 1958, the members did not move up to the TYBS. Instead, they became the Junior Young Buddhist Association (Jr. YBA). The first executive was elected in January 1959. At the same time the Sangha women created the Dana. The church officially recognized both organizations on January 27, 1959.
With the formation of the Sangha, many members left the TYBS thus leaving the young group with a small number. It managed to survive until 1962 when the TYBS was officially disbanded.
Church Leadership
The duties of the minister evolved into a rather complex job with a heavy workload. The Toronto Buddhist Church then petitioned for more ministers.
The following is list of the ministers who served the TBC 1976-2009
1976 - 1978 Rev. Takamasa Moriki/Rev. Yujo Omori
1978 - 1980 Rev. Shinei Shigefuji/Rev. Yasuhiro Miyakawa
1980 - 1985 Rev. Shodo Tsunoda (Bishop of BCC 1981-1986)
1985 - 1988 Bishop Toshio Murakami
1990 - 1992 Rev. Hisao Handa
1980 - 1994 Rev. Orai Fujikawa
1980 - 1995 Rev. Fukashi Nakatsumi (part time Minister basis)
1990 - 1991 Rev. Doreen Hamilton (Assistant Associate Minister)
1992 - 2008 Rev. Grant Ikuta
1994 - 1995 Rev. Yasuo Izumi
1997 - 2002 Rev. Masanobu Nishiaki
2002 - 2005 Rev. Masumi Kikuchi
2005 - present Rev. Tomofumi Fujii
2008 - present Rev. Shigenori Makino
1011 Sheppard Ave. West (2005 - present )
Camp Lumbini
Sam Baba had in mind a youth camp for the Toronto Buddhist Church and led a campaign to buy a one acre lot at Wasaga Beach in early 1960. After a few meetings, the Sangha, Dana and the Fujinkai agreed to buy this property.
The project got underway in 1964. Kay Kawano and Yukio Koyanagi agreed to head the development of the campsite. The campsite was officially opened by the visiting Abbot Ohtani and Lady Yoshiko with a ribbon cutting ceremony in July 1964.
Initially, many youth programs took place at Camp Lumbini usually during weekends. The Boys and Girls Clubs went up for Dharma lessons, swimming and cookouts.
Eventually, the Lumbini Camp Site Committee was formed to oversee the programs and maintenance of the grounds.
By 1977 Camp Lumbini offered church members an excellent respite from the busy city. Its three cottages were in constant use throughout the summer by individuals, families and organizations.
Source: Information on the Temple History is from the Bukkyo Tozen: A history of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism in Canada 1905 – 1995 by Terry Watada