A Female Future Dalai Lama? What Are the Real Prospects?
As a Buddhist clergy, 25-year student of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama (HHDL), and female feminist, I always welcome statements from HH highlighting the social position of women, such as those reported this week by The Huffington Post. One thing that the international audience should bear in mind, which was not addressed in the [...]
Buddha Jayanti at Buddhist Vesak: Time of Spiritual Recollection, Celebration, Penance, and Renewal
Introduction Every year in the late spring, Buddhists all over the world celebrate Vesak, i.e., the birth, death, and enlightenment of Siddhārtha Gautama, who came to be known as Śākyamuni Buddha, the sage of the Śākya clan. It is a time of fasting and penance, intensive prayer and celebration, and renewal and fortification of one’s [...]
Compassion: Do Not Kill Buddha, Thou would bury the dead.
“If you see the Buddha on the road, kill him.” This phrase may sound shocking, considering the Buddha’s teachings of the Noble Eightfold Path that talks about “right” (in harmony with the teachings) action and speech, including “speak only words that do not harm.” To kill is indeed a strong word that invokes violence and [...]
Singing the Refuges: Worship and the Interreligious Family
About a month ago, just like every Sunday, I slipped into the worship space just before 10am, bowed before the altar, and found a seat in the back row. I leafed through the service bulletin to take a look at what songs we’d be singing that morning. And after a few brief announcements, [...]
What’s the Big Deal About Interfaith Marriage?
I attended the 2009 Parliament of the World’s Religions in Melbourne, Australia. I was amazed by the preponderance of sacred fashion statements (the hats!), the number of New Age practitioners from the North American West Coast, and the ubiquity of the phrase “interfaith dialogue.” As former chair of the Union Theological Seminary Interfaith Caucus, a [...]
How Paul Tillich Helped Me Matter
I recently received an email from the fine editorial staff at State of Formation informing me that I am officially a lapsed contributor and my posting account might be deleted. This is very true. I have lapsed in my public reflections about all things religious. When I ask myself why I lapsed, my answers are [...]
Tibet and China: Dharma-centric Societies at Odds
Entrance of Buddhism into China and Tibet In the lands of both the Tibetan plateau and Chinese hinterlands, the foreign-born religion of the Dhammapada, the teachings of the Buddha, lies at the crux of spirituality, values, and politics. The earliest significant mentions of Buddhism in the eastern Sinitic territories appear to be through a revelation of [...]
On Being with Dying: A Story of Squirrels and Little Girls
At an evening party some friends of mine threw last spring, two friends came up to me and asked for my help with an infant squirrel they’d found in their yard that seemed nearly dead. I quickly followed them to the basement where they’d placed the squirrel in a box with some leaves and well-meant [...]
What Every Muslim Does When Visiting Barnes and Noble
On a recent visit to Barnes & Noble I did what every Muslim does when they pay a visit. I rearranged the bookshelf. Well, the shelf on Islam to be exact. OK, it was more like the half a shelf we were allotted. But no worries, we’re only .6% of the American population so perhaps that [...]
Multiple Belonging: Thoughts on Belonging to More Than One Religion
I am in the process of articulating how I can be both Christian and Jewish without being a “Jew for Jesus.” Many people hail from a smattering of religious influences and heritages. The current model of religious identification has us choose one or none. But there has to be an intellectually credible, spiritually legitimate way [...]
Contributing Scholars
Ben MatonBen is a husband of one, father of three, a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Charlottesville, VA, and a PhD candidate in "Scripture, Interpretation, and Practice" at the University of Virginia.
Becky SilversteinBecky Silverstein is a 3rd year Rabbinical Student at Hebrew College. As such, she applies her love for text study, theology, and religious community towards the betterment of humanity by being a role model, educator, and organizer. She is spending the year studying in Jerusalem.