The Bearing Witness Blog compiles the latest news of the Zen Peacemakers Sangha involved in Socially Engaged Spirituality. It willl also keep you informed on Bernie’s Journey’s to the Field which bring him to different parts of the world touched by war, poverty and genocide including relevant articles from the fields he is going to. Also included are Bernie’s teachings and opinions. We warmly invite you to join the conversation.
Originally posted by Upaya News There is no universal agreement among Buddhists about the right solutions to political issues or even how to prioritize them by Maia Duerr Several years ago on my blog, The Jizo Chronicles, I posed a question to readers: How relevant is your Buddhist background when you consider how you are voting, or to take a step further back, how you relate to the whole electoral/political process in general? (Here is the original post,...
read moreOriginally posted by Jizo Chronicles The UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights declares that food is a basic human right, which must be fulfilled without discrimination of any kind Over the next couple of weeks, there are eight “Walks to Feed the Hungry”happening all around the U.S., organized by the good folks at Buddhist Global Relief (BGR). These walks were initiated in 2010 by Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi and BGR as a way to raise both awareness and funds for food-related projects around the world. He writes: A...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhadharma. The Board of Directors of New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care is pleased to announce their new board members. Robert Chodo Campbell and Koshin Paley Ellison of NYZCCC The New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care(NYZCCC), which trains individuals to care for the terminally ill and sick, welcomes three new members to their board. The news comes from theNYZCCC Facebook group: “The Board of Directors of New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care is pleased to announce our new Board...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhist Channel. A reminder that all we have — no matter how beautiful or carefully created — is impermanent. Seven Buddhist monks was at the Spencer Museum of Art this week painstakingly constructing a sand painting called dul-tson-kyil-khor, meaning “mandala of colored powder.” On Friday, the monks will tossed the sand painting into Potter’s Lake in a symbolic gesture. Lawrence, KS (USA) – Yes, Tenzin Dekyong confirms, creating sand paintings is as difficult as it...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhist Channe. Monks did when they took to the streets in temple-studded Mandalay on Sunday to support the government’s brutal persecution of stateless Muslim Rohingya. Bangkok, Thailand – How do you feel when you see rows of stern-looking Buddhist monks marching through the streets in full force to call for violent treatment of the downtrodden? Myanmar Buddhist monks rally on the streets of Mandalay (AFP) That was what thousands of Myanmar monks did when they took to the streets in temple-studded...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhadharma. Christians from the Chin ethnic minority group are being forced to convert to Buddhism in Burma. According to the Chin Human Rights Organisation (CHRO), Christians from the Chin ethnic minority group are being forced to convert to Buddhism in Burma. Stating that the coerced conversions are the result of state policies, the CHRO has released a 160-page report titled ” ‘Threats to Our Existence’: Persecution of Ethnic Chin Christians in Burma.” The report is based on more than 100...
read moreOriginally posted by The Buddhist Channel Saffron Revolution called for love and democracy, hundreds of monks marching this week in Mandalay called for the expulsion of one of the world’s most oppressed minorities, the Rohingya. BANGKOK, THAILAND – Burma’s Buddhist monk-led demonstrations this week against the Muslim minority Rohingya surprised many observers. Analysts say the country’s Buddhist chauvinism was shaped by authorities’ attempts to form a national identity. But there are worries it could get out of...
read moreBEARING WITNESS IN RWANDA by Eve Myonen Marko Bernie, Roshi Eve Myonen Marko and Sensei Francisco “Paco” Lugoviña were hosted by Dora Urujeni and Issa Higiro. Eve wrote the following report of the journey. BEARING WITNESS IN RWANDA By Eve Marko Kigali at noon in mid-September has blue, hot skies draped by rain clouds, which at times dissolve and at others turn into thundering rain, as they did just an hour after we arrived. We’re met by Dora Urujeni and Issa Higiro, co-founders of Memos-Learning From History, our...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhism About.Com. Asian-Americans and religion, the numbers! The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life has come out with a new survey, this time focusing on Asian-Americans and religion. I haven’t had time to look through it carefully, but one thing jumped out at me right away. “While Asian Americans make up a majority of U.S. Buddhists, roughly a third of American Buddhists are non-Asian; the Pew Forum estimates that 67%-69% of Buddhists in the U.S. are Asian,” it says. That’s not a...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhist Global Relie. To cherish one’s blessings, no food should be wasted. More than 1 billion people suffer from hunger. Yet, a federal study found nearly 100 billion pounds of edible food was wasted by U.S. retailers, food service businesses, and consumers in a single year. For a family of four, that amounted to 122 pounds of food thrown out each month in grocery stores, restaurants, cafeterias, and homes. All of the food we receive comes, at least in part, from the effort and generosity of others. We have...
read moreThe Bearing Witness Blog compiles the latest news of the Zen Peacemakers Sangha involved in Socially Engaged Spirituality. It willl also keep you informed on Bernie’s Journey’s to the Field which bring him to different parts of the world touched by war, poverty and genocide including relevant articles from the fields he is going to. Also included are Bernie’s teachings and opinions. We warmly invite you to join the conversation.
Originally posted by Upaya News There is no universal agreement among Buddhists about the right solutions to political issues or even how to prioritize them by Maia Duerr Several years ago on my blog, The Jizo Chronicles, I posed a question to readers: How relevant is your Buddhist background when you consider how you are voting, or to take a step further back, how you relate to the whole electoral/political process in general? (Here is the original post,...
read moreOriginally posted by Jizo Chronicles The UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights declares that food is a basic human right, which must be fulfilled without discrimination of any kind Over the next couple of weeks, there are eight “Walks to Feed the Hungry”happening all around the U.S., organized by the good folks at Buddhist Global Relief (BGR). These walks were initiated in 2010 by Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi and BGR as a way to raise both awareness and funds for food-related projects around the world. He writes: A...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhadharma. The Board of Directors of New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care is pleased to announce their new board members. Robert Chodo Campbell and Koshin Paley Ellison of NYZCCC The New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care(NYZCCC), which trains individuals to care for the terminally ill and sick, welcomes three new members to their board. The news comes from theNYZCCC Facebook group: “The Board of Directors of New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care is pleased to announce our new Board...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhist Channel. A reminder that all we have — no matter how beautiful or carefully created — is impermanent. Seven Buddhist monks was at the Spencer Museum of Art this week painstakingly constructing a sand painting called dul-tson-kyil-khor, meaning “mandala of colored powder.” On Friday, the monks will tossed the sand painting into Potter’s Lake in a symbolic gesture. Lawrence, KS (USA) – Yes, Tenzin Dekyong confirms, creating sand paintings is as difficult as it...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhist Channe. Monks did when they took to the streets in temple-studded Mandalay on Sunday to support the government’s brutal persecution of stateless Muslim Rohingya. Bangkok, Thailand – How do you feel when you see rows of stern-looking Buddhist monks marching through the streets in full force to call for violent treatment of the downtrodden? Myanmar Buddhist monks rally on the streets of Mandalay (AFP) That was what thousands of Myanmar monks did when they took to the streets in temple-studded...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhadharma. Christians from the Chin ethnic minority group are being forced to convert to Buddhism in Burma. According to the Chin Human Rights Organisation (CHRO), Christians from the Chin ethnic minority group are being forced to convert to Buddhism in Burma. Stating that the coerced conversions are the result of state policies, the CHRO has released a 160-page report titled ” ‘Threats to Our Existence’: Persecution of Ethnic Chin Christians in Burma.” The report is based on more than 100...
read moreOriginally posted by The Buddhist Channel Saffron Revolution called for love and democracy, hundreds of monks marching this week in Mandalay called for the expulsion of one of the world’s most oppressed minorities, the Rohingya. BANGKOK, THAILAND – Burma’s Buddhist monk-led demonstrations this week against the Muslim minority Rohingya surprised many observers. Analysts say the country’s Buddhist chauvinism was shaped by authorities’ attempts to form a national identity. But there are worries it could get out of...
read moreBEARING WITNESS IN RWANDA by Eve Myonen Marko Bernie, Roshi Eve Myonen Marko and Sensei Francisco “Paco” Lugoviña were hosted by Dora Urujeni and Issa Higiro. Eve wrote the following report of the journey. BEARING WITNESS IN RWANDA By Eve Marko Kigali at noon in mid-September has blue, hot skies draped by rain clouds, which at times dissolve and at others turn into thundering rain, as they did just an hour after we arrived. We’re met by Dora Urujeni and Issa Higiro, co-founders of Memos-Learning From History, our...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhism About.Com. Asian-Americans and religion, the numbers! The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life has come out with a new survey, this time focusing on Asian-Americans and religion. I haven’t had time to look through it carefully, but one thing jumped out at me right away. “While Asian Americans make up a majority of U.S. Buddhists, roughly a third of American Buddhists are non-Asian; the Pew Forum estimates that 67%-69% of Buddhists in the U.S. are Asian,” it says. That’s not a...
read moreOriginally posted by Buddhist Global Relie. To cherish one’s blessings, no food should be wasted. More than 1 billion people suffer from hunger. Yet, a federal study found nearly 100 billion pounds of edible food was wasted by U.S. retailers, food service businesses, and consumers in a single year. For a family of four, that amounted to 122 pounds of food thrown out each month in grocery stores, restaurants, cafeterias, and homes. All of the food we receive comes, at least in part, from the effort and generosity of others. We have...
read more