Recalling Ram Mohan Roy who coined the word “Hinduism”

April 22, 2024 By James Ford

Ram Mohan Roy (also spelled Rammohan Roy) was born in Radhanagar, Bengal, on the 22nd of April, in 1772. A towering intellect, seeker of justice, and religious reformer, Roy deserves to be more widely known outside of India. He is generally credited as coining the term “Hinduism” as an overall term for the family of religions on the Indian subcontinent. Frankly for that alone… Roy has been called the Father of the Bengali Renaissance, an amazing cultural, religious, intellectual, and... Read more

Noting a step toward a coherent theology of a natural Jesus

April 21, 2024 By James Ford

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The 21st of April is an interesting day in the Christian calendar. During the Reformation the small town of Pińczów in southern Poland was a hotbed of radical thought. Lots of Calvinsits. But also some rather more daring Christian thinkers as well. The good folk held some twenty-two synods there over the years. On the 21st of April in 1562, twenty-eight clergy including Stanisław Paklepka and Gregory Paul of Brzeziny and twelve laymen gathered in synod, voted to reject the... Read more

When You Come to a Fork in the Road: A Zen Meditation

April 20, 2024 By James Ford

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What follows is a Dharma talk delivered by Sensei Edward Sanshin Oberholtzer at the regular Saturday morning gathering of the Empty Moon Zen sangha on the 20th of April, 2024. I’m sure that one of those gateway drugs that nudged me in the direction of Zen practice was a PBS series of Japanese films, introduced by Edward O. Reischower, and broadcast in the mid 1970’s on the Boston station, WGBH. It featured films by Ozu and Ichikawa, including that Buddhist... Read more

Swami Vivekananda on the Buddha’s Message

April 17, 2024 By James Ford

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Swami Vivekananda was a close disciple of the Nineteenth century Hindu saint Ramakrishna. He became one of the founders of the Ramakrishna Order, which today is represented in the West by the Vedanta Society. The swami is justly considered a major spiritual figure on the world stage at the turn of the Nineteenth and Twentieth centuries. What follows is a talk the swami gave at, I believe, Union Square Hall in San Francisco on the 18th of March, in 1900. This... Read more

My Three body Problem: Zen, Jesus, and a Holy Communion

April 15, 2024 By James Ford

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Two things have been burrowing into my heart of late. The first happened with a manuscript I’ve written for an introduction to Zen scheduled to be published next year. A number of my early readers commented on the Christian references in it. One noted straight out that it was “Christian Zen.” The confusion for me was that I never saw it that way. I thought I was simply enriching a pretty straight forward Mahayana Buddhist pespective. And if there were... Read more

B. R. Ambedkar’s Socially Engaged Buddhism

April 14, 2024 By James Ford

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Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar was born in Mhow, a town on the road between Mumbai and Agra, on the 14th of April, in 1891. The 14th of April is celebrated in India, called Abedkar Jayanti (sometimes Bhim Jayanti) and Equality Day. Known to those who admired him as Babasheb, “Respected Father,” B. R. Ambedkar was one of the singular figures of Twentieth century India. He served first as an advocate for civil rights. Then he was in leadership with the... Read more

George MacDonald & the World of Wonder: A Zen Meditation

April 11, 2024 By James Ford

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My friend Richard Kollmar observed that I have an interest in the Inklings and asked if I’d ever read George MacDonald. I had to admit I had not. He encouraged me to give the old Scot a try. He influenced a lot of that band of literary Christian intellectuals, especially C S Lewis and J R R Tolkien. And his influence extended beyond that flock, as well. G K Chesterton immediately... Read more

The Birth of the Buddha

April 7, 2024 By James Ford

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The actual date when the person Gautama Siddhartha who became the Buddha was born is not known. In the major schools of Buddhism, using lunar calendars although by somewhat different calculations, come up each year with dates that float mostly in the area of April or May. The Japanese, however, have adopted the Gregorian calendar and have set an annual celebration on the 8th of April. And that’s the one I count. The truth is... Read more

ALL THE CENTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: A Zen Meditation

April 6, 2024 By James Ford

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The master Nanyang Huizhong called to his attendant three times. And each time his attendant responded. The master said, “I was about to say I was ungrateful to you. But, you are ungrateful to me.” Gateless Gate, case 17 According to the Buddhist lunar calendar observed in most of Asia, the Buddha’s birth will be observed this year in the middle of May. However, in the late 19th century, the Japanese officially adopted... Read more

Spiritual communities when Religions collapse

April 4, 2024 By James Ford

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Very recently I attended a small gathering of UU clergy. It’s something I believe clergy do in most faith traditions. It provides mutual support among people who have similar experiences and challenges. Even moving well into retirement I find it a powerful thing to do. At this meeting one of the senior colleagues addressed the specifics of the difficulties being encountered in the details of church life today. Not so much the spiritual aspect,... Read more