The End
Chess
Time and Faith
Number Seven
Missouri
English Words
King James Version
Election Campaign
Translation Problems
The Greatest Commandment
The Future
Stamps
Historic Overview #1
Historic Overview #2

The End
04/08/01

Literally, a "year" is the period of time it takes for the earth to make a single revolution around the sun: 365 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes and 12 seconds. According to the Gregorian calendar, a year begins on January 1st and ends on December 31st. Other "years" begin and end at other times, including fiscal years and school years. In my school days in the U. S. A., the school year began in September and ended in June. July and August were vacation months, so August was the end of the summer vacation. This year, August will mark the end of the 5th year of this "Timely Words" homepage and I expect it to mark the end of my present custom of adding a new message 3 times a week. I began the "Daily Word" telephone service in Japan on September 1,1980 and continued it until February 28,1999, when I returned to my homeland; this "Timely Words" homepage was begun on September 1st of that year. Over the years, I have enjoyed composing messages I thought would be interesting, informative, stimulating and inspiring to listeners/readers, but I have decided it is time to retire and try to do other things I had hoped to do upon retirement. I have been very grateful for the dedicated service of Kazuhiko Sakakibara and Tomizo Shobo over the years related to the "Voiced Messages" and "Previous Messages" of the homepage sections and for uploading the messages onto the English Forum of the Nifty-Serve computer network in Japan. At this time, I recall the words of Ecclesiastes 7:8: "The end of something is better than its beginning." (768)

Chess
04/08/04

Chess is called "the game of kings," for the English word comes from the Persian word for "king" and the aim of the game is to checkmate the opponent's king. Chess is played on a square board composed of 64 square spaces. Each of the two players has 16 pieces--a king, a queen, 2 bishops, 2 knights, 2 castles and 8 pawns. Each of these "chessmen" can be moved according to specific rules and is removed from the board when an opponent's piece is moved into its square. The game ends when a king is unable to move into a safe square. Chess has been played for centuries in India and Persia, but it may have originated in Russia, where two ivory chessmen dating to the 2nd century have been discovered. My wife played her first game of chess last month when one of our granddaughters, who was visiting us, taught her. Although I used to play chess at times in my school days, my last game was played 35 years ago in Nagoya, Japan, in response to a telephone call from a newspaper reporter. He informed me of the first Japan-America Chess Tournament to promote friendly relations between the two countries which had been arranged with the approval of both the Japanese mayor and the American consul. The problem was that there were almost no American chess players who were able to participate. He urgently asked if I would not be willing to come and take part. I reluctantly agreed to do so and still have the picture of that event clipped from a Japanese newspaper. An English philanthropist, Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton, made the significant statement: "In life, as in chess, forethought wins." (767)

Time and Faith
04/08/05

Although the passage of time continues at the same rate of speed, depending upon our perspective, a number of minutes may be considered a long time and a number of years may be considered a short time. In this retirement community, most residents are in their seventies or eighties. Some are in their nineties and a few have celebrated their hundredth birthdays. When we talk with other residents in the dining room, in homes or other meeting places, we are reminded of the many interesting and unique experiences we have had in our different kinds of ministry in different countries. Regarding the past, there is much to talk about. My wife and I are once again reading letters my wife wrote to our families from Japan fifty years ago, which my mother had saved. We are amazed at some of the experiences she related which we had forgotten. We may look at past events with both joy and sorrow, but what is our outlook for the future? That depends upon a person's faith. From my perspective, following half a century in Japan, where along with my church-related activities, I studied other religions and tried to understand the thinking of Japanese people, I have come to the conclusion that there is no normal human being who does not have faith. Faith is not always expressed in traditional religious forms and many people who regularly observe religious rituals are not thereby expressing their faith but merely following tradition. According to the faith of some, there is no God, but such people also express their faith in their daily lives and the hope or lack of hope they have for the future depends on their faith. (769)

Number Seven
04/08/09

Numbers can be written in many different ways. In Roman numerals, seven capital letters (I, V, X, L, C, D, M) are used to identify numbers, but the most common system now used throughout the world is the Arabic system. The ten symbols used in this system may be called "digits," derived from the Latin word for "finger." These symbols are given different pronunciations, depending on the language used, but in English, they are pronounced as follows: 0-zero, 1-one, 2-two, 3-three, 4-four, 5-five, 6-six, 7-seven, 8-eight, 9-nine. Depending on cultural tradition, certain numbers have fortunate or unfortunate implications. In the Bible, the number 7 has a special sacred significance. In the Biblical story of Creation, the world was created in six days. Then, God rested, blessed the seventh day and made it holy (Genesis 2:3). In the Ten Commandments, the seventh day was designated a day of rest and worship (Exodus 20:8-11) and even today, a week is composed of seven days, one of which Jews and Christians consider holy. The symbolic visions found in the final book of the Bible, which begins with messages to 7 churches, include 7 candlesticks, 7 stars, 7 trumpets, 7 spirits, 7 horns, 7 vials, 7 plagues, a 7-headed monster, and the Lamb with 7 eyes. As I discontinue composing new messages for this "Timely Words" web page this month, I am looking forward to my 77th birthday later this year and the number of messages composed for this web page will surpass 777. When these are added to the 6,290 different messages composed for the "Daily Word" telephone service from September1980 to February 1999 the total number will be 7,070.(770)

Missouri
04/08/11

It is the custom of this retirement community to hold a birthday celebration in the Dining Hall on the first Wednesday of the month for all residents who have a birthday that month. At this celebration, it is customary to have a word game at each table for diners to think about before the celebration begins. Last Wednesday, the game was to discern the names of states of the U. S. A. hidden in a paragraph that was available on each table. In that paragraph was the sentence: "If nothing goes amiss our intended trip will include Paris," but it required very perceptive eyes to discern the name "Missouri" in the middle of that sentence. Missouri was the name of a Native American group that lived at the mouth of a river that was also given that name. That name eventually became the name of a district and then of a state that was officially admitted to the Union after much debate as the 24th state, 183 years ago, on August 10, 1821. The debate was related to whether or not slavery should be permitted in the new state. Each individual state has its own constitution and the problem was whether or not this new state should be admitted if it recognized slavery. As a result of the so-called Missouri Compromise, Missouri was admitted with a constitution containing no restrictions against slavery, Maine was admitted as a free state and slavery was prohibited in the north. It was in 1865, following the Civil War, that slavery was prohibited throughout the U. S. A. Missouri is one of only two states that share their borders with eight other states. (771)

English Words
04/08/13

As I approach the end of this "Timely Words" web page and look back over the years, I realize how much I, myself, have learned while composing messages for it and for its predecessor, the "Daily Word" telephone service in Japan. I have become especially conscious of the irregularities in the spelling and pronunciation of English words. Since the U. S. A. is now preparing for a national election to be held this fall, I decided to compose a message about the election "campaign" now under way. Then, I realized the strange spelling of the second syllable in that word. There are two other words pronounced the same as that syllable but with different spellings: "pain," denoting an unpleasant feeling, and "pane," related to a glass window. Then, I thought of the white wine that will be drunk at celebrations of victorious candidates. It also has two syllables, the second of which is pronounced the same as the second syllable of "campaign," but has a different spelling. "Champagne," the name of this wine, comes from the region in France where it is produced. In some English words beginning with "ch," the pronunciation is the same as the "c" in "campaign" ("chaos" and "chameleon," for example), so we could imagine "champagne" having the same pronunciation as "campaign." In fact, while composing this message, I discovered a new word I had never known before: "champaign," meaning "a plain," which may be pronounced the same as "champagne." There is a city in my home state of Illinois, however, named Champaign. Yes, indeed. English is an irregular, complicated and confusing language--especially in regard to pronunciation and spelling. (772)

King James Version
04/08/15

James, the Greek form of the Hebrew name Jacob, was the name of two of Jesus' twelve apostles (Mark 3:16-19). It was also the name of a brother of Jesus, who became the head of the Church in Jerusalem (Acts 15:13ff) and who probably wrote the letter in the New Testament that bears that name. It became one of the most popular names in English-speaking countries following the enthronement of James I as king of England in 1603. In Scotland, he was recognized as James VI. It was during his reign that a new English translation of the Bible was ordered in 1604 and completed in 1611. Forty-seven outstanding translators were involved in this translation from Hebrew and Greek to English. Earlier English translations had been made by John Wyclif and William Tyndale but the beautiful English which characterizes this translation resembles that of William Shakespeare. This English translation is now known as the King James Version or the Authorized Version of the Bible and despite the change in the meaning of words and expressions over the past five hundred years, many people prefer this translation of the "Word of God." Since Christians consider the Bible a holy book that reveals the character and plan of God and provides instruction for those who believe, it is very important that the meaning of the original writings are comprehended so new, up-to-date translations are always being made, but the beauty of the King James Version makes it particularly attractive. (774)

Election Campaign
04/08/18

The word "campaign" is derived from the Latin word, "campus," meaning "field." A "field" is open country suited to military maneuvers and the primary meaning of "campaign" is "a series of military operations with a particular objective." Its secondary meaning is "a series of organized, planned actions for a particular purpose, as for electing a candidate." This kind of "campaign" is now being waged in the United States of America. Included in campaigns to elect the nominee of the Democratic Party, John Kerry, or to re-elect the nominee of the Republican Party, George W. Bush, are related campaigns to gain support for certain issues that highlight different emphases of these two candidates. Such issues include conditions related to governmental regulations regarding taxes, health care, the environment, marriage, abortions, stem-cell research, international relations and how to effectively express onefs religious convictions. Obviously, the personalities of the candidates, their personal histories and their running mates for vice-president are also important elements to be taken into consideration. Furthermore, the election on November 2nd is not only for president and vice-president but for members of Congress as well, so many factors must be considered by sincere and conscientious voters. P. S. This personal note at the conclusion of this message is to inform readers that the recent hurricane that caused great damage in certain areas of Florida did not disturb us at all--even though we had made preparations for it. (773)

Translation Problems
04/08/20

After studying Spanish for two years in high school and one year in college, I was asked by the dean to tutor a couple of Spanish-speaking students from Latin America whose English was deficient as one of my part-time jobs at my university. One of these students was the son of a wealthy lawyer in Mexico City, who invited me to visit him during the summer vacation. So I hitchhiked from Chicago to Mexico City and lived as a guest in his house for six weeks while attending summer school at the University of Mexico and became quite fluent in Spanish. Following seminary and graduate school, I went to Japan where I spent the next 48 years, seeking to communicate Christian truth in Japanese. Consequently, I am well acquainted with translation problems and have concluded that a perfect translation from one language to another is impossible because of the difference in the meanings and connotations of words in particular languages and cultures. Following the speech of a well-known priest from South America who was visiting Japan, in which he stated that, "in Japan, it is not sufficient to affirm that 'God is love,' one must explain what is meant by 'God,'" I informed him that it was also necessary to define "love," for I had recently spoken with a Buddhist priest who told me that "love" was one of the passions that hinder the attainment of enlightenment. I now believe that truth in the true sense is communicated more by life and spirit than by words, in keeping with the well-known proverb that "Actions speak louder than words." (775)

The Greatest Commandment
04/08/22

All people who live orderly lives follow certain rules. Some rules are clearly stated in the form of laws or regulations. Others are simply traditional customs that are followed unconsciously. Some are applicable only in very limited areas while others have universal implications. Among the many commandments written in the Old Testament for the Israelites following their escape from Egypt, the most famous ones are known as the "Ten Commandments" found in the 20th chapter of the book of Exodus. But when Jesus was asked "which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" he replied: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind" (Matthew 22:37; Deuteronomy 6:5). In this statement, we face the problem not only of translation but interpretation. What is the meaning of "heart," "soul" and "mind" (or "strength") in Hebrew (the language of the Old Testament), Greek (the language of the New Testament), or English? Both physical and spiritual, or symbolic, meanings can be discerned. The "heart" is the essential physical organ at the center of the human body and the most important part of anything. The "soul" is the life that invigorates a human being. And the "mind" is the reasoning faculty of human beings. Thus, according to Jesus, the greatest commandment is to love God with all onefs powers. And the second most important commandment is "Love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22:39; Leviticus 19:18). In the Christian perspective, love is the basic element in a wholesome life. (776)

The Future
04/08/25

Nowadays, it is common to read predictions of the future--including such natural phenomena as the time of the sun's rising and setting and the weather. Various factors may cause a change in the weather forecast, but even the time of the sun's rising and setting is based on the "faith" that the natural laws will continue to function in the future as they have in the past. Actually, we are not sure what will happen tomorrow. We make plans on the basis of our experience in the past, but we do not know what the future holds for us, our country or the world. Also, we do not know the future of this "Timely Words" homepage which I began five years ago on September 1,1999. This message is number 777, and until now, I have been adding a new message every Monday, Wednesday and Friday night (Florida time). As noted in recent messages, I plan to discontinue adding new messages regularly at the end of this month, but in response to the requests of readers, I will continue composing new messages at my convenience but without the pressure of adding them on certain days. This permits me to engage in other activities I had envisioned in my retirement. Although I am unsure of the future of the "voiced messages," I plan to add written messages sporadically as I feel stimulated to do so. The "Previous Messages" and "Previous Voiced Messages" listed on the homepage should remain accessible for those who wish to read or listen to them, but we must wait and see what happens in the future. Incidentally, I am always happy to read the comments of readers. (777)

Stamps
04/08/27

Some people stamp their feet when they are cold or to emphasize a point or to call attention to themselves. Some people have a special kind of stamp with their name and address on it which they stamp on envelopes or other articles to designate the sender of a letter or the owner of an article. But another kind of stamp is a small piece of gummed paper sold by a government for attachment to an article that is to be mailed. Such stamps are called postage stamps. "Philately" is a specialized word denoting stamp collecting and a stamp collector may be called a "philatelist." Although I do not think I deserve such a designation, I have been a stamp collector since my childhood, following the example of my father. In my case, I do not collect new stamps nor do I search for special stamps with great value. Rather, I simply collect used stamps from mail that has been sent to me or stamps that others have given to me. I do not know how many thousands of stamps I have in my stamp books, but I find that there are 104 different countries represented. Most of the stamps have come from the U. S. A. and Japan, where I have lived most of my life, but many have also come from other countries where relatives or friends have lived. The size, shape and style of stamps vary depending on the country, but it is now possible to have a photograph of oneself or of someone/something else put on a regulation U. S. postage stamp, good for collecting or mailing, at a cost twice the face value of the regular variety, according to the information provided at . (778)

Historic Overview #1
04/08/29

Having reached another milestone in my "message ministry," I will here begin a historic overview of the past 25 years. On January 1,1979, I began transmitting a daily, recorded Biblical message called "Message for Today" in Japanese from the message telephone in our church in the city of Takahama. I continued that telephone service until May 31, 1998. In December 1994, a book was published containing one of those messages for every day of the year (selected by church members). On September1,1980, I began transmitting a daily message in English from my residence in the city of Nagoya called "Daily Word." Printed copies of the messages were mailed to those who requested them and meetings of listeners were held regularly at a public place in Nagoya on the afternoon of the 5th Sundays of a month. At these meetings, where we spoke in English, copies of "'Daily Word' Echoes," consisting of corrected English essays written by listeners on themes I had suggested were available. The final issue (#60) of "'Daily Word' Echoes" was published on May 31, 1998. Following reports of the "Daily Word" telephone service in newspapers and on radio and television, it became very popular and callers complained to the telephone company that the line was always busy. Telephone company officials informed me that, according to their investigation, I needed two more telephones to handle all the calls. I opened a postal transfer account, informed listeners of the problem and received enough funds to purchase another telephone and message machine, so when one line was busy, it would switch to the second one. (To be continued.) (779)

Historic Overview #2
04/08/31

In 1986, the "Daily Word" telephone service was taken over by NTT (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone) . An NTT employee came daily to my home to pick up the cassette tape of the message for the following day. It was also possible to read the messages on the screens of monitors in certain public places. After moving into an area with a different area code, a special telephone pole was erected beside our house with a direct connection to the telephone office so that the "Daily Word" number did not need to be changed. "Daily Word" messages were introduced into the English Forum of the Nifty-Serve computer network (with Japanese translations) and then onto the Internet. Later, NTT provided me with the equipment to record the messages and transmit them from my home, but eventually, the messages were recorded on a chip in the telephone office when I called a certain number. Over the years, the average number of calls was over 130 a day and on January 14, 1988, following special preparations, a record number of 5224 calls were received in one day. Tapes of the messages were made available at a library for the blind in the city of Kobe. In 1989 and 1991, English textbooks for university and high school students made up of "Daily Word" messages were published. This "Timely Words" homepage, to which new messages have been added three times a week, was begun on September 1, 1999. Although from now on, I will add new messages irregularly, I hope that interested readers will continue to activate it at times and also inform me of their impressions along with their comments or suggestions. (780)