Buddhism and Racism - With Rev. Myokei Caine-Barrett

Explicit content warning

08/04/21 • 55 min

Hosted by filmmaker Yujiro Seki, Carving the Divine TV is a series of Q&A sessions with Buddhist scholars and practitioners. These Q&A sessions explore the basic concepts of Buddhism, the history of Buddhism and of course Buddhist sculptures/sculptors (bustuzo/busshi) so that when viewers finally watch the documentary Carving the Divine - Buddhist sculptors of Japan, they will get the maximum value of the documentary.
We live in a complex world with countless causes and effects creating our reality. But we have a tendency to try to make things black and white. Personally, I think it is because our culture does not encourage critical thinking as much as it ought to. Racism is one of the issues that people think they have figured out; they say that they are not racists and racism must stop. But do they really understand racism to start with? Do I really understand racism? Just because we don’t believe we are racist, are we immune to racism? Are we free from it? Is it other people’s problems? What is unaware racism? Today, we will be dissecting racism from the ground up. We have an amazing and highly qualified guest, Rev. Myokei Caine-Barrett from Nichiren Order of North America who is not only a benevolent, compassionate priest but a strong advocate against racism for over 30 years! She will help us understand racism not only as a simplistic term but in a profound way. I’m ready for this discussion. I hope you are too!
We will be asking important questions such as:
In your own words, what is racism? And why should we care about it?
What is the brief history of racism in the USA?
What has been your own experience of racism?
Why did you choose Buddhism instead of other religious paths?
Is Buddhism diverse in this day and age?
Does racism exist in the Buddhist community? If so, in what form?
What is cultural appropriation and how does it affect our culture?
So, I often hear people saying that in Buddhism, everyone is equal and race is not the issue. What do you think of this statement?
Is it important to have diversity in the Buddhist community? If so why?
What can we do as individuals to promote equality in both the Buddhist world and society as a whole?
Myokei Caine-Barrett currently holds the position of iBishop of the Nichiren Shu Buddhist Order of North America. She is the first woman and the first American to hold this position. She is also the first American woman and first person of African American-Japanese descent to be fully ordained, having completed this process in 2007 with Archbishop Nissho Uchino in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. She is the guiding teacher and priest at Myoken-ji Temple in Houston, Texas. Myokei Shonin currently volunteers with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice as clergy to two prison Sanghas for the past 16 years in keeping with the Lotus Sutra teaching of full equality of all beings. Her writings have been published in a variety of Buddhist magazines and newspapers and is featured in “The Hidden Lamp: Stories from Twenty-Five Centuries of Awakened Women.” She is currently developing curriculum for (1) the Nichiren Shu tradition and the Lotus Sutra and (2) dealing with the trauma of incarceration and racism. She also supports weekend trainings for Healing Warrior Hearts, a Texas for Heroes project designed to truly welcome veterans home. She is also a licensed Religious Science practitioner.

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"What is Theravada Buddhism?" - With Bhante Ananda Path

Hosted by filmmaker Yujiro Seki, Carving the Divine TV is a series of Q&A sessions with Buddhist scholars and practitioners. These Q&A sessions explore the basic concepts of Buddhism and the history of Buddhism so that when viewers finally watch Carving the Divine they will get the maximum value of the documentary.
In this special episode, we will have a Theravada Buddhist monk, Bhante Ananda Path, to explain to us about the basic concept of Theravada Buddhism.
We will ask important questions such as:
1. What is Theravada Buddhism? What is the core teaching of it?
2. Do we have to give up our ordinary life to be a Theravada Buddhist?
3. How is Theravada different from Mahayana? Why is Theravada your choice?
4. Do you live in a monastery?
5. How can you utilize Buddhist teaching in real life?
6. What is the Theravada view of Buddha (Buddhist) statues?
Bhikkhu Ananda is a socially engaged Buddhist monk of Nepal who entered the Order of Theravada Buddhism in 1981. He mastered in Oriental and Buddhist Studies. Ananda helped coordinate the “Civic Solidarity for Peace” movement to end a decade of war (1995-2005) between the Maoist Insurgency and the State of Nepal. From 2007 to 2012, as a Member of Constituent Assembly and Legislature Parliament, he secured religious rights and reservations in the new constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal. In 2007, the Universal Peace Federation (UPF) of Korea named him an “Ambassador for Peace.”

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Next Episode

Religious multiplicity - How can we be Buddhist and Christian at the same time? With Dr. Duane Bidwell

Hosted by filmmaker Yujiro Seki, Carving the Divine TV is a series of Q&A sessions with Buddhist scholars and practitioners. These Q&A sessions explore the basic concepts of Buddhism, the history of Buddhism and of course Buddhist sculptures/sculptors (bustuzo/busshi) so that when viewers finally watch the documentary Carving the Divine - Buddhist sculptors of Japan, they will get the maximum value of the documentary.
Years ago, when I first came to the US as an exchange student from Japan, I knew very little about the country. I read a book about living in America that stated, “In the US, you have to believe in one thing. You have to be affiliated with one religion. If you believe in multiple things or nothing at all, people will not respect you.” I have no idea if that statement was entirely true or not, but I did feel that the majority of Americans I met at that time saw religion very differently from the way Japanese people saw religion. It was difficult for me to understand that statement because believing in multiple things or nothing at all is a common practice in Japan. Well, I do not think there is a right or wrong way to think, but there is a question of whether a Western religion like Christianity and an Eastern religion like Buddhism can co-exist with each other in a single individual. Yes, today we are talking about religious multiplicity. In other words, we want to ask the daunting and controversial question, “Can we be a Christian and Buddhist at the same time?” Yes! We will be joined by an expert on this subject, Dr. Duane Bidwell, professor of Practical Theology, Spiritual Care, and Counseling at Claremont School of Theology at Willamette University. Well he also happens to be a Christian pastor and Theravada Buddhist practitioner at the same time!
We will be asking important questions such as
What is the concept of religious multiplicity? In the United States, if you do not believe in one religion, is there something wrong with you?
What is your Buddhist affiliation? Please tell us your story.
What is your Christian affiliation? Please tell us your story.
How can your Buddhist identity and Christian identity work together? Can you show us some examples?
Can we be a Buddhist and Christian at the same time?
Duane teaches practical theology, spiritual care, and counseling at Claremont School of Theology at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, USA. He is an ordained minister of the Presbyterian Church (USA) and practitioner of vipassana (insight meditation) in the Theravada Buddhist tradition. His work has been featured on NPR, CNN, Interfaith Radio, and other media. Since 2014, students have given Duane three teaching and mentoring awards, and he has published several books, including When One Religion Isn't Enough: The Lives of Spiritually Fluid People (Beacon, 2018), which is a Christian Century bestseller and a Library Journal "Best Book 2018." Duane serves on the boards of the Taos Institute and the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies. He is also an advisor to the International Buddhist Chaplains Foundation.

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