The Meaning of “Supra-Religious”

Growing up in a protestant Christian community, there was little talk about interfaith connections. In this community, we were taught that only those who accepted Jesus Christ as their personal savior would go to heaven. We were taught that we were favored by God. By early high school, I had questions about the nature of God’s great love and why a loving God would condemn so many, even if they had lived in a pure, righteous and God-centered way.

In college, my heart of loving God grew stagnant and fell asleep. I devoted myself to my university studies with the goal of becoming a university professor. In my first semester of university teaching my mentoring professor introduced me to Sukyo Mahikari. The warmth of the spiritual energy radiated through my body when I received True Light. It spiritually awakened my heart again, and I signed up for the three-day seminar to learn how to give True Light and began to study the teachings.

Through my studies, I discovered that the founder of Sukyo Mahikari proclaimed that the age of religious separation had ended, and now was the age of “supra-religious cooperation.” He explained that essentially there are two basic classifications of religion: monotheistic faiths and polytheistic faiths. And he followed up by stating that there is only one Original God, and that this One God, created many deities. Thus, he taught that actually there should be no barrier of separation between monotheistic and polytheistic faiths.

In a lecture entitled, “The Dawn of the Spiritual Civilization,” which was presented to Japanese religious scholars in 1964, Mr. Kotama Okada, the founder of Sukyo Mahikari, explained that humankind was entering a new era, where race and sect would be transcended and people of religion would clearly grasp the spiritual laws and unite for the sake of humankind. He reminded religious leaders that the great souls on which various faith traditions were founded, such as Moses, Buddha, and Jesus, understood that their mission was to bring hope and spiritual awakening to all God’s children. He encouraged all people of faith to positively understand the present situation, and to transcend the barriers of religion for the sake of humankind by working for the fulfillment of God’s Great Prayer—to move the hearts of humankind away from separation and into the realm of “peace and harmony” by uniting God, humankind, and nature in a three-dimensional cross.

Through these studies, I discovered the meaning of “supra-religious” interfaith work, and my heart again opened spiritually. After moving back to Kansas several years ago, I discovered the Greater Kansas City Interfaith Council, a place where interfaith dialogue, friendship, and service are put into action. What a blessing it is to be a part of this amazing interfaith fellowship.

by Susan Nakao, Ph.D.
Sukyo Mahikari