A welcome reception was held on July 10 at the ambassador's residence, inviting leaders from various faiths.
At the Ambassador's Residence on July 10th; we were honored to host a welcome reception for religious participants in the multireligious event "AI Ethics for Peace: World Religions commit to the Rome Call" held in Hiroshima, with the attendance of Ms. Misako Takahashi, Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Middle East and Africa Bureau.
Ambassador Cohen highlighted the value of dialogue among people of various faiths and different perspectives, stating that civil society, and especially religious leaders, hold the power to use faith as a bridge between people, rather than as a source of separation and hatred.
In a calligraphy performance by Wa Project TAISHI, calligrapher Jakurin beautifully wrote the characters "調和 = Harmony” with a wish for friendship and unity.
Despite ongoing challenges we face, there remains a basis to believe that at the end peace is achievable.
Guest Artists
Hikaru Sato, Cellist
Hikaru Sato began learning cello at the age of five from his father, Yoshio Sato, who was Japan's first student of Casals. After graduating from Tokyo University of the Arts, he received a French government scholarship in 1973 and completed his studies at the Paris National Conservatory of Music. In 1979, Sato became the first Japanese member of the prestigious Paris Orchestra, where he performed until 2021. During this time, he gave recitals across Europe and Japan and was a founding member of the Paris String Quartet.
Jakurin, Calligraphy Artist
Jakurin is a calligraphy artist residing in the Wakasa region of Fukui Prefecture. She has performed large-scale calligraphy demonstrations in France, New York, Hawaii, and Spain. Her achievements include winning an award at the Japan-France World Art Exhibition, performing calligraphy at the Maison du Japon in Paris, and being recommended for exhibition at the Spanish Art Prize Exhibition. Jakurin has also contributed her calligraphy to prestigious shrines and temples in Fukui Prefecture, such as Gokoku Shrine, Shōtoku-ji, and Kehi Shrine. In 2023, she received the Fukui Prefecture Obama City Cultural Encouragement Award.
Guest Speakers
Rabbi Eliezer Shimcha Weisz, Acting Head of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel’s Commission for Interfaith Relations
Rabbi Eliezer Simcha Weiss was born and raised in Manchester and was rabbi of the Whitefield Congregation before he moved to Israel in the 1980s. He has been Rabbi of the Kefar Haroeh community for the last 30 years, which is "considered to be the crown in the jewel of the religious Zionist world," Professor David Newman of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev said.
Rabbi Ari Berman, President of Yeshiva University
Rabbi Dr. Ari Berman is the fifth president of Yeshiva University. Since his investiture in 2017, Dr. Berman has grounded Yeshiva University in its Core Torah Values and laid the foundation for its next great era.
Rev. Takeo Sato, Beit Shalom (Sei-Iesu Kai)
Pastor of Reimei Church: Since 1970, as conductor of the Reimei Choir, he has sent the choir 19 times to goodwill concerts in Israel, North America, and Europe; in April 1971, during a tour in Israel, he met Otto, father of Anne Frank; until 2015, he was professor at Logos Theological Seminary.
Rev. Swami Medhasananda , Head of the Vedanta Society of Japan
Born in Bengal, India, he served as president of a university affiliated with the Ramakrishna Mission before becoming president of the Japan Bendānta Association in 1993. He gives monthly lectures at the Indian Embassy in Tokyo, publishes books in Japanese on Bendānta philosophy, and gives lectures in various parts of Japan.
Rev. Kaiji Yamamoto, Mt. Koya Shingon Buddhism Monk
Kaishi Yamamoto is affiliated with Takayama Zenkō-ji Temple in Gifu Prefecture. He graduated from the History Department of the University of Tennessee in the United States. From 2014, he devoted himself to Buddhist training at Mount Kōya, obtaining his monk qualification a year later. He also holds a certification as a Shingon Buddhism Ajikan meditation instructor.
Rev. Ryutaro Ikeuchi, Chief Priest of Hirata Shrine
While serving as a Shinto priest, Rev. Ryutaro Ikeuchi also works as a psychiatrist and occupational physician. As a clinical religious profession who provides spiritual care through volunteer work in palliative care wards and visits to disaster-stricken areas. He is a Board Member of the All Japan Clinical Religious Professional Association.