PL Kyodan, or the Church of Perfect Liberty (パーフェクト リバティー教団, Pāfekuto Ribatī Kyōdan), is a Japanese Shinshūkyō (new religious movement) founded in 1924 by Tokuharu Miki (1871–1938), who was a priest in the Ōbaku sect of Zen Buddhism.[1] The stated aim of the Church of Perfect Liberty is to bring about world peace.[2]
PL teaches that "Life is Art" and that humans are born to express their own unique individuality in everything they do, "creating true art".[2] To assist them in improving their lives and overcoming hardships, church members are taught why they have these problems and are guided in solving them by the Patriarch (known as oshieoya-sama 'teacher-parent') and church ministers.[2]
PL does not have a holy book, but it has 21 PL Precepts which were announced by Tokuchika Miki on September 29, 1947. They became the basic teachings of the Church.[1]
The 21 PL precepts are:[3]
The church claims to have more than one million followers worldwide and 500 churches located in ten countries.[4]
Most of the parishes are located in Japan, but due to the active missionary work in the 1960s PL was established in South America and the United States as well. In the 21st century it also has a presence in Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Peru. The Oceanian headquarters was founded in the 1990s in Brisbane, Australia. Small communities exist in Europe as well, especially in France, Portugal and Hungary.
1970 saw the construction of the 600-foot-tall (180 m) PL Peace Tower, a monument to all the people who have died in war, from the beginning of time.[1]
PL's spiritual leader, the Patriarch, is called Oshieoya-sama (English: Father of the Teachings). The third and current Patriarch of the church is Takahito Miki.[1] Miki is also the vice president of Shinshuren, the Federation of New Religious Organizations of Japan.[5]
The second Patriarch Tokuchika Miki three times visited the Holy See, and met two Popes to improve inter-religious cooperation.[1]
