Buddhist Peace Fellowship sets a direction

With Hoko facilitating and Tonen taking notes, the Buddhist Peace Fellowship met tonight at the Mindfulness Community of Milwaukee.  The group, made up of practitioners from several different Buddhist traditions, discussed the four areas of activity that it’s identified for itself:

• facilitating connections between Milwaukee’s Buddhist communities
• raising awareness of Buddhist practice
• making ourselves available to provide a Buddhist perspective on public issues
• offering resources to the larger community on working with issues of social, environmental, and economic justice in ways that accord with the Buddha’s teachings

The next meeting is Tuesday, March 6 from 7 to 8:30 pm, again at the Mindfulness Community.  Everyone is welcome.

2011 annual report

Every year the Soto Zen Buddhism North American Office asks its temples to submit an activity report and some photos so that the denomination can keep track of how American Soto Zen sanghas are developing.  The reports are sent on to Sotoshu Shumucho in Japan.

Here’s our 2011 Annual Report.

Dinner at Serenity Inn

On Monday, March 26, MZC practitioners will prepare and offer dinner at Serenity Inn, a comprehensive, seven month transitional living program for homeless men who choose recovery from drug and/or alcohol addictions. This highly-structured program addresses the physical, social, emotional, financial, and spiritual needs of its residents.  As part of this program, individuals and community organizations bring dinner and eat with the men, talking together and sharing experiences.  On the Sunday before our visit, the dharma talk will focus on issues of addiction and will help prepare us to practice at Serenity Inn.  For more information, or to sign up to participate, please contact MZC’s president, Peter Johnson, at panddjohnson@sbcglobal.net.

Showing us Shoji

The path from the zendo at Hokyoji

Registration is now open for this year’s Great Sky sesshin, August 11-18.  ( See previous post here.)  This Soto Zen style sesshin draws together teachers and practitioners for seven days of deepening their understanding of the dharma under the extraordinary great sky of Hokyoji in southern Minnesota.  Our theme and text for this year’s sesshin is Dôgen’s Shôji (Birth and Death) fascicle of the Shôbôgenzô.

The sesshin is cosponsored by MZC and Cedar Rapids Zen Center.  A number of MZC practitioners have attended in previous years, taking advantage of the opportunity to meet and practice with teachers and practitioners from around the midwest.  This year’s teachers include Issho Fujita, Sôtô Zen Buddhism International Center, San Francisco; Tônen O’Connor, resident priest emerita of the Milwaukee Zen Center; Zuikô Redding, resident teacher of the Cedar Rapids Zen Center; Rosan Yoshida, resident teacher of the Missouri Zen Center; and Dôkai Georgesen, resident teacher of Hokyoji Zen Practice Community.

Our flyer and information packet provide additional information and the registration form.  Please look them over and make plans to join us for this truly wonderful practice opportunity.  New this year: pay your sesshin fees via PayPal.

Days of Dogen

We’re having a great two-day sitting this weekend in honor of Dogen Zenji, whose birthday falls next Saturday.  We’ve been doing and discussing zazen, the centerpiece of Dogen’s practice and teaching.  Yesterday’s talk presented Dogen’s poem about zazen, including its sung form as part of the baika canon:

Nigori naki 
Kokoro mizu ni
Sumu tsuki wa
Nami mo kudakete
Hikari tozo naru 

Today we hit the high points of Dogen’s Fukanzazengi, Universally Recommended Instructions for Zazen, the first text he wrote upon his return from China.

Participation has been very strong this weekend, and has included several folks who are returning to MZC after some time away.  Tenzos Peter Johnston and Mary Bernau-Eigen have kept us well fed, jikidos Larraine McNamara-McGraw, Susan Winecki, Aaron, and Kevin Kostick have kept us on schedule, and doans Larraine, Kevin, Chuck Eigen and John Eimes have facilitated our chanting.  It’s been terrific to see the sangha come together and really dig into practice.

Board business

Larraine McNamara-McGraw makes her point.

MZC’s board of directors met tonight to consider a full agenda of items.  Directors received updates on our financial status, website improvements, building maintenance and repairs, the westside zazen group, the annual appeal, Sunday practice, and the dharma book fund.

Nominations are now open for board elections set to happen March 10 as part of MZC’s annual meeting.  If you or someone you know is interested in learning more about serving on MZC’s board, please e-mail or call MZC.  We’ll put you in touch with the Nominating Committee.

Caring for the temple

Peter Johnson steadies the ladder while Eddie Gonzales replaces some loose siding.

Board president Peter Johnson came by today with contractor Eddie Gonzales to look over the facility and begin putting together a work plan for repairs and maintenance.    High on the list are repairs to the siding and other areas of the exterior.

While some of the work will need to be done by professionals, sangha members will band together to take on other tasks.  We’ll hold work afternoons on the first Sunday of each month.  After a potluck lunch, we’ll turn our attention to cleaning, painting and other jobs around the building.

It feels great to take care of the temple that takes care of us.

New video in our library

Thanks to the local PBS station and the Interfaith Conference of Greater Milwaukee,  MZC now has a library copy of United We Stand, a video recording of a live statewide broadcast of a September 11, 2011 event held at Cathedral Square Park in downtown Milwaukee.  Hoko was one of the local clergy asked to offer a short reading at the event, which included performances by the Bel Canto Chorus and the Milwaukee Chamber Orchestra.

Speaking of video, don’t forget that on January 13 (Friday) we’ll be showing Cherry Blossoms, a film by German Buddhist practitioner Doris Dörrie.

 Only Trudi knows that her husband Rudi is suffering from a terminal illness.  She decides not to tell him and convinces him to visit their family in Berlin.  Then, suddenly, Trudi dies.  Rudi is devastated but vows to make up for her lost life.  And so he embarks on his last journey—to Tokyo—in the midst of the cherry blossom festival, a celebration of beauty, impermanence and new beginnings.

We’ll begin the film at 7:15 pm, after the regular 6:30 pm zazen period.  Following the movie, we’ll chat about the movie’s Buddhist themes.  Everyone is welcome, including friends and family.  There’s no charge (although donations are always welcome).

First Sunday

It’s been a weekend of firsts here at MZC.  Yesterday we had our first informal breakfast, prepared and offered by Larraine McNamara-McGraw.  The first Saturday of each month, our breakfasts will be informal, giving practitioners a chance to get to know each other and share their thoughts on practice.  For the remaining Saturday breakfasts, as well as meals during our two-day sittings, we will continue to use oryoki and conduct the meal in formal style.

Today we held our first Sunday practice.  The day began with Introduction to Zazen, followed by a period of sitting and a dharma talk.  Afterward, we all got together over informal tea, prepared and offered by Kevin Kostick.  New faces and old friends all came together to practice, and everyone seemed to feel that the day was successful and worthwhile.  It was a great way to begin 2012!

New: Buy or give online

Now you can buy incense, donate to the Dharma Book Fund, become a member, and more by visiting MZC’s website.  The added functionality makes it easy to complete your transactions at your own convenience, and all without writing and mailing checks.  Want to send a gift in response to our annual appeal letter?  Go to our donations page.  And while you’re there, check out the other ways your donations can help support practice at MZC.