BUDDHIST COUNCIL NEWS ARCHIVE
JULY 2007
July 5 - Council initiates first Buddhist Chaplaincy Course
There are many Buddhists in hospitals and prisons who are not visited by a Buddhist chaplain simply because there are not many available, and many feel that they are not equipped with the necessary skills to do the work. Recognising this important need, the Buddhist Council of NSW is now putting a high priority on training new chaplains. One of the challenges is getting the right training for Buddhist chaplains accredited by the College of Clinical Pastoral Education.
We recently teamed up with the Rozelle CPE Centre to provide prospective Buddhist chaplains with an introductory 40 hour (5 day) course. A total of 13 people are attending this course. The benefits are that volunteer chaplains gain useful skills and knowledge, professional recognition and the confidence to provide spiritual and pastoral care. The current course started on 5 July at our premises in Crows Nest and will finish on 2 August. Another course is being planned for later in the year.
Course facilitator Alan Galt with participants
July 6 – A Visit by Council member, LingYen Mountain Temple
The Council warmly welcomed representatives from the LingYen Mountain Temple who came to pay us a visit. Ven. Hsiu Yen and Ven. Hsiu Nong, together with their assistant and translator, Mr. Kevin YunWang, took the opportunity to have an hour-long discussion with Secretary Mr. T.C. Lim, Office Manager Ms Sujata Lim and Council volunteers, Mrs. Punna White and Mrs. Floris Hsu.
The Venerables expressed their confidence in the capability of the Buddhist Council and believe that it will continue to develop strongly and thrive to bring Buddhism in Australia into a whole new era of prosperity. They also confirmed their support and offered their assistance, if needed, to the Council. We take this opportunity to thank LingYen Mountain Temple for the kind visit of the Venerables and warmly encourage other members to pay us a visit. You are certainly most welcome!
L to R: Kevin YunWang, Sujata Lim, Ven Hsiu Nong, Ven Hsiu Yen, Floris Hsu and T.C.Lim
July 12 – Council represents Buddhism in meeting with Dirk Ficca for the World Parliament of Religions
The spiritual equivalent of the Olympic Games, the World Parliament of Religions, will be held in Melbourne in 2009. Mr. Dirk Ficca, an executive on the organising committee, recently visited Sydney for an interfaith information briefing session about the 2009 event. The Buddhist community was represented by our President, Mr. Brian White. Mr. Ficca emphasised that the World Parliament of Religions is an inclusive event which needs the full support of the Buddhist community. Mr. White agreed, saying that the event provides a means of developing greater understanding between the faiths and highlighting the common teachings of different religious traditions such as peace, sustainable living, harmony within society and good moral conduct.
July 13 - A Night with Rev. Heng Sure
The Council was deeply honoured to have Rev. Heng Sure, Director of the Berkeley Buddhist Monastery, as a guest speaker at our office premises on July 13, 2007. An experienced and entertaining speaker, Rev. Heng Sure presented his message in English, interspersed with flawless Mandarin, some French, Vietnamese, Cantonese and Spanish. He spoke on the Buddha’s compassion and acceptance of people from Brahmins to untouchables and related stories from the Buddhist Theragathas and Therigathas, some of which he had put into song. Quite a few tears were flowing as he sang about “Sunita the Untouchable” whom the Buddha accepted into his order of monks and nuns, without question or judgement.
Rev. Heng Sure also spoke of the legacy that his teacher, Ven. Master Hsuan Hua left and his contribution towards the growth and spread of Buddhism into North America. He elaborated on the importance of interfaith dialogue and gave examples of discussions he has been involved in between Buddhist, Jewish and Christian ministers. Belief and practice are both found in Buddhism, although the emphasis is greater on the practice. Rev. Heng Sure went on to comment on the Buddha’s Kalama Sutta, which sets it apart from many belief-based religions in that this Sutta spoke more about the “do not believe” aspects of the Buddha Dharma. Instead, the Buddha invited people to “test it out, find out if it is good for you and others” before you accept the teachings.
The Council takes this opportunity to express our sincere thanks to Rev. Heng Sure for accepting our invitation. The Council will continue to organize talks and discussion sessions which we hope will help foster a better understanding of the Buddha Dharma.
July 14-15 - Council participates in Mitra's Annual Convention
The Buddhist Council of NSW was the Primary sponsor and supporter of the Annual Convention of the Mitra Youth Buddhist Network which was held at the Conservatorium of Music in Sydney. More than 400 participants attended this conference which brought together excellent speakers from all traditions.
The Buddhist Council of NSW operated an information stall which distributed over 6 cartons of free Dharma books. It was made even busier by the interest in volunteering in our Chaplaincy and Education Programs and by people registering interest for our new Introduction to Buddhism Course.
July 27 - Council welcomes visit by Indonesian Buddhist Society of NSW
The President of the Indonesian Buddhist Society, Mr. Lim Djit Man (Iman) paid a visit to the Council on July 27. On hand to greet him were President, Brian White, Secretary, T. C. Lim, Treasurer, Tissa Mohotti and Office Manager, Sujata Lim. The meeting enabled a good two-way communication with both parties having a clearer picture and understanding of the vision, plans and activities of each other’s organization which will pave the way for greater cooperation and support for each other. The Council welcomes all Buddhist organizations, members and non-members to visit our office and give us the opportunity to share our vision and plans on how we can develop “a Dharma community with open arms.”
L to R: Sujata Lim, Tissa Mohotti, T.C. Lim, Lim Djit Man and Brian White