Bernie Glassman Dharma Talk: Holy Week in the Streets

NEW YORK, USA. I go on the streets at other times of the year, too, and each occasion is special in its own way, but the streets feel different during Holy Week. The re-memberance and caring that spring to life during that time are unmistakable and unforgettable.
Helsinki, Finland Street Retreat

Helsinki, Finland Street Retreat 7–10 September 2022 A few weeks ago, I lived on the streets for a couple of days with an inter-faith group of Peacemakers in Helsinki. We did this without money, without phones, begging for food, and sleeping on cardboard in parks and abandoned lots. We also visited homeless shelters to bear […]
Bernie Glassman Memorial: “Bernie on the Street”

Bernie on the Street Presented by: Roshi Genro Gauntt Pat Enkyo O’Hara Roshi Fleet Maull Catherine Genno Pagès Roshi Ken Tetsuji Byalin Roshi This is the first session of a 4-part series celebrating Bernie Glassman’s life and legacy. This panel discussion will focus on Bernie’s groundbreaking work with Street Retreats. Duration: 90 minutes Format: A video […]
Faith in the Night: the San Francisco Night Ministry

For 57 years, since 1964, the San Francisco Night Ministry has quietly walked the streets of the city in the very late-night hours, offering a ministry of presence, loving attention, and hope to anyone we meet. Please join Rev. Trent Thornley, the Executive Director of the San Francisco Night Ministry, as he shares the mission […]
35 Backpacks

Sensei Edward Sangetsu Sullivan,a teacher in the White Plum Lineage, discusses how even in a time of pandemic a small group of highly motivated people can still accomplish something.
Hard Bed by the White House: reflection on a street retreat in Washington DC

WASHINGTON DC, USA. “On the street retreat, spending four days and three nights on the streets of Washington DC, USA, mere blocks from the White House, my mind often muses about giving…”
Full Moon Campers Society: Play and Burdens on the Streets of Helsinki

HELSINKI, FINLAND. In 2017 Zen Peacemaker Mikko Ijäs contacted Roshi Frank DeWaele, asking him to lead the first Street Retreat in Helsinki, Finland.
Plunging on the Streets of Helsinki: Civil War, Child Slavery and The Ease of Generosity

HELSINKI, FINLAND. This September, Zen Peacemakers will be holding a street retreat in Helsinki, Finland. In this article, Mikko Ijäs describes the historical context of what these streets have born witness to in the past hundred years: Civil War, Child Slavery and Generosity.
Knowing When to Quit: Roshi Genro Reflects on 1999 New York City Street Retreat

NEW YORK, NEW YORK, USA. “…Once you’ve experienced a certain amount of difficulty as a group, and the group’s gone through a lot, sometimes you don’t need four days on the street to get it.” Roshi Grover Genro Gaunt reflects on his experience during a street retreat in 1999.
Cardboard Boxes, Begging and Birdsong – Reflection from Street Retreat in Chicago

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, USA. “We ended up sleeping in cardboard boxes on the banks of the Chicago River…I didn’t sleep much, but I felt the cold to be a deep cleansing, the rocks breaking through my cardboard box to be incentives to stay aware, and the birds on the river were surprising rushes of interconnected joy. As the sun rose and the sky lightened, I came out the other side of my fears.” Skye Levin shares about her first experience on Street Retreat this past month in Chicago.