I am preparing to travel to Germany, with SFZC’s Central Abbot David Zimmerman, to attend ceremonies at Zen Buddhist Center Black Forest (ZBZS) from September 5 to 8. Zentatsu Richard Baker will be stepping down as Abbot, and Tatsudo Nicole Baden will climb the Mountain Seat to become the new Abbot. Hoitsu Suzuki (Shunryu Suzuki’s son) will be participating in the ceremony.
Tatsudo Nicole Baden will also become the Abbot of sister temple Crestone Mountain Zen Center in Crestone, Colorado. ZBZS became a Branching Streams affiliate in 2023 and now the Crestone temple is also an affiliate. Both Baker Roshi and Abbot Nicole Baden will teach at the two centers, though Baker Roshi will primarily be in Crestone, while Nicole Baden will split her time between the two centers.
Welcome to another new affiliate, Salt Spring Zen Circle, on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Canada. The new guiding teacher, Judy Daylen, is a long-time member of the sangha who has practiced at Green Gulch Farm and with Tenshin Reb Anderson and Zoketsu Norman Fisher. She received Lay Entrustment from Salt Spring Zen Circle’s founding teacher Peter Levitt in 2023.
Beloved teachers Greg Fain and Linda Galijan have spent the last several months as visiting teachers at San Antonio Zen Center (TX), which was transitioning between teachers after founding teacher Colin Gipson stepped down in December 2023. The new SAZC guiding teacher, Karen deKotis, has moved to San Antonio from Bozeman, MT and will begin leading the sangha. There will be a Chosan ceremony and farewell lunch for Greg and Linda on August 24 just before they move on to Berkeley Zen Center for the Fall, supporting Alan and Laurie Senauke and the BZC sangha as visiting teachers.
In April I visited Montaña de Silencio in Medellin, Columbia, whose founding and guiding teacher is Sanriki Jaramillo. Sanriki was Shuso for the Fall 2023 practice period at Green Gulch Farm and received dharma transmission from Jiryu Rutschman-Byler in December 2023. During my two weeks with the Montaña de Silencio sangha I experienced the dedication to practice of Sanriki and the sangha. They have begun a crowd-funding campaign to finance their relocation to a rural area near Medellin. If you would like to contribute, here is the link to the crowdfunding site.
Brooklyn Zen Center is offering a six-session class, Writing to Study the Self, meeting Sundays, 3–5:00 PM EST, every two weeks: September 8, 22, October 6, 20, November 3, 17. More info and registration here. “How might the practice of writing allow us to look deeply at our personality, karma, history, and social conditioning—a sustained engagement in studying the self? Participants will be offered craft talks, prompts, and practices to look deeply at the self. Sessions will feature guest teachers Chenxing Han, Ruth Ozeki, Norman Fischer and Jenny Xie, along with BZC practice leaders in a non-dual exploration of dharma and writing. This course is open to all, whether new to writing, or those with a long-term writing practice.”
The Sati Center for Buddhist Studies is accepting applications for its yearlong Buddhist Chaplaincy Training programs that start in September. “There are two programs – an in-person one for folks who can make it to the monthly workshops in Redwood City, CA; and an online program for those living further afield. Both programs deliver the same level of training and are suitable for those wishing to engage in spiritual care on a voluntary basis, or as the first step in a professional trajectory. The program is also a wonderful way to engage dharma practice in the world, and to develop facilitation skills in other areas, as well as in one’s own sangha. It can also be a rich parallel track for priests in training.” To apply, use this link, or contact Vanessa at bct@sati.org for more information.
I have found some of the speeches at the Democratic National Convention this week uplifting, and am motivated to continue writing postcards to get out the vote in swing states.