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On this day in 1860, some seven months after Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species was published, John Draper of the New York University delivered a talk on the intellectual development of Europe in the light of Darwin’s theory. People don’t talk about the paper & from what one can glean of the subject matter addressed, and the justly earned ill repute of “social Darwinism,” that may all be for the best. What is remembered is what is now... Read more

Beliefnet has been sold. At one time Beliefnet aspired to be the premier spiritual portal on the web. And gave that aspiration a pretty good run. But it’s had hard times for a while now. In fact not all that long ago it was purchased by the media dark lord himself, Rupert Murdoch. And so having a new overlord is hardly surprising. ‘Tis the way of all flesh. And apparently websites… Frankly, my only concern about this is that they... Read more

This was the second year that our church had a “float,” a decked out pickup truck for children and those for whom the walk was difficult at the Providence Gay Pride parade. This is one part of a big deal in our congregation, the celebration of our GBLTQ members, and part of our public stance in favor of full civil rights for all, symbolized, actually more than symbolized by the quest for marriage equality. The Gay Pride parades that happen... Read more

Julian the so-called apostate was by some calculations murdered on this day in 363. As the planter of a reformed pagan faith that could possibly withstand the Christian winds blowing ever stronger, but killed before the faith could take firm root, Julian’s untimely death becomes one of the great what if moments in world history. Read more

On this day in 1963 John F. Kennedy gave his great speech speaking of human dignity and freedom. Four months later he would be murdered in Dallas. I must admit while I have no love for communism, I’m not much more a fan of capitalism. The human heart calls for freedom and responsibility, for the individual and the communal, and any system of human relationship must account for both. The problem with both communism and capitalism is how each ignores... Read more

So, General Assembly, the annual convention of the Unitarian Universalist Association has been going strong for several days. Jan & I arrived on Monday and took in some sights and had dinner with two old and increasingly dear Zen friends before my buckling down for minister stuff on Tuesday and then our launching into the full assembly on Wednesday. I’m not exactly sure what day it is, I do know we’re running on not quite enough sleep. I don’t know... Read more

One of the more interesting problems in Zen is what to do with that pesky ego. Okay, it’s kind of the perennial problem of the human condition. What to do about our egos? And all the ill that follows our egos… Over the millennia much of Zen training, following classical Vinaya monasticism, has been simply to step on it. One Zen line, a classic, is: “Just put it down.” Not exactly the same as stepping on or crushing, although in... Read more

Two letters. The first in response to a note from a monastic reader, and then a response to his response…Dear I meant to underscore that there is something very powerful going on in the Japanese-derived Bodhisattva ordination. It is another form of practice and service which I think is best characterized as priesthood or ministry. I am less familiar with the Korean Taego Order which is also an attempt at reforming the monastic system. From the limited resources I’ve been... Read more

A Modest Call for A Reformation of Ordained Zen Leadership in the West James Ishmael Ford The Vinaya, the Buddhist monastic code can be traced to its founder, Gautama Siddhartha. It is a strict code of behavior monitoring most every action and even thought of those who embrace it. It remains the normative form of Buddhist leadership throughout most of the world to this day. Over the years, however, there have been various attempts at reformation of this model. This... Read more