Buddhist head: “Donations as Spiritual Training”

At symposium on dissolution order and liquidation of assets, Buddhist leader brings up highly relevant topic of donations as spiritual training

Tokyo, 3rd November 2025 – Published as an article in the Japanese newspaper Sekai Nippo. Republished with permission. Translated from Japanese. Original article.

Donations Made Without Attachment Are a Form of “Spiritual Training”

Symposium in Shizuoka on the Dissolution Order of the Family Federation

by the Editorial Department of the Sekai Nippo

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A symposium was held on 1^st November in Shizuoka City to exchange views on the dissolution order issued against the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (formerly the Unification Church), the issues surrounding its corporate liquidation, and Japanese attitudes toward religion.

The event was hosted by the Shizuoka Prefectural Association for the Protection of Fundamental Human Rights and Freedom of Religion and drew about 200 participants, with a live broadcast streamed online.

Rev. Shindō Mizuta (水田真道), chief priest of Kongōji Temple (Myōshinji branch of the Rinzai school) in Numazu City, raised concerns about the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s recent (20^th October) guidelines for the liquidation of “designated religious corporations” subject to strengthened financial monitoring. He pointed out issues with the clause stating that “the liquidator has the authority to manage and dispose of all property belonging to the liquidated corporation.”

From a religious standpoint, he explained that “donation” is “a form of spiritual training performed without attachment or expectation of return,” and criticized the policy strongly, saying,

“It is unreasonable that not only assets obtained through unlawful acts but also donations sincerely offered by believers are subject to disposal.”

Rev. Haruhisa Nakagawa (中川晴久), pastor of Christian Church of the Lord’s Sheep in Yokohama, who has been addressing cases of abduction and forced faith-breaking [See editor’s note below] suffered by Family Federation members, condemned the actions of deprogrammers, saying, “Third parties intervene in families, causing serious divisions and conflicts, and even exploiting them politically. It’s truly unforgivable.” He added, “In my estimation, there may be more than 10,000 victims.”

Islamic commentator Humayun A. Mughal expressed concern that “religious hate has increased in Japan over the past year,” and appealed for mutual respect, saying,

“People may hold different beliefs and ideologies, but in the end, what matters most are human beings, life, and the soul. Peace begins from there.”

See also Press Release: Final Submission to Appeal Court

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See also Buddhist Priest Warns Japan ‘Cult’ Ban Risks All

Featured image above: Participants at the symposium. From left: Rev. Shindō Mizuta (水田真道), chief priest of Kongōji Temple of the Myōshinji branch of the Rinzai school; Islamic commentator Humayun A. Mughal, and Rev. Haruhisa Nakagawa (中川晴久), pastor of the Lord’s Sheep Christian Church; – afternoon of 1^st November in Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture. Photo: Takahide Ishii (石井孝秀).

[Editor’s note: Coercive faith-breaking (“deprogramming”) in Japan refers to the practice of coercively attempting to separate individuals from their religious affiliations or beliefs, typically through intervention by family members, professional faith-breakers (deprogrammers) or organizations hostile to new religious movements (NRMs). This phenomenon often targets members of such movements, e.g. relatively large faiths like the Family Federation or Jehovah’s Witnesses, but also smaller groups like Happy Science (Kōfuku no Kagaku) and other newer religious movements.

However, also Soka Gakkai, a Buddhist-based lay organization with more than 8 million Japanese members, and affiliated with Nichiren Buddhism, has occasionally been subject to faith-breaking attempts.

The practice gained attention in the latter half of the 20th century, particularly in the 1980s and 1990s. Parents or concerned family members often hired faith-breakers who taught them how to abduct and forcibly detain believers. Almost all such cases involved confining the individual believer and cutting him or her off from the religious community. During the confinement, the believer was subjected to intense questioning or indoctrination designed to break his or her faith. The aim was to “rescue” the person from what the family often had been tricked by faith-breakers or lawyers to regard as harmful influence from the religious organization.

Critics of forced de-conversion argue that it violates fundamental human rights, including freedom of thought, religion, and association. Reports of psychological trauma and accusations of unlawful detention have sparked debates over its ethical and legal implications. In response, some religious groups, particularly NRMs, have lobbied for greater protections against such practices.

Japanese courts have been inconsistent in addressing cases of coercive faith-breaking. While some verdicts have condemned the practice as illegal detention, others have been more lenient, citing family concerns about “mental health” or alleged “exploitation” as mitigating factors.]

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