Recent Events | 2006 | 2005

Recent Events

A Time of Harmony

Michelle Lau-Seim, Albany Unified High School

Growing up as a Chinese American in the Bay Area, my family was eclectic when it came to religion.  My grandmother was Catholic, my uncle practiced traditional Chinese incense burning and ancestral worship, and my father became a Chinese Methodist.  My father always told my sister and me that church was not necessary if I did not believe, however he would like me to attend.  Throughout my young life I did not investigate religion or try to be part of a religious group.  I considered myself atheist, but with a considerable amount of curiosity about different religions.  In college I was able to learn about world religions, the Eastern and Western traditions.  I was intrigued by the Eastern philosophies of Buddhism and Taoism.    When I met my husband, he introduced me to Shinnyo-En and there I was able to become closer to the Buddhist tradition.  I began to practice but found that becoming a religious and spiritual person was difficult. The past five years of becoming Buddhist has been difficult, I felt I had built a wall that I could not pass through in my practice.  Fortunately I had an opportunity to go to Arizona with a group of Catholic followers and another Shinnyo-en follower to learn about Native American traditions on the reservation.  This trip helped me in many ways; what I learned about Native Americans gave me ideas to incorporate into my work as a school teacher, it rejuvenated my religious practice, and the time spent gave me spiritual growth.

Before I left for this trip I was familiar with its purpose to learn about reverse missionary work within the Catholic Church.  The group of eight was there to learn about Native Culture and Traditions of the Navajo, Hopi and Apache Tribes.  There is a long history of oppression experienced by these native groups, and the Catholic Church has historically dominated these people.  Not all Catholic Churches make it their mission to learn about native traditions and incorporate them into their Christian practices or faith.  Nonetheless, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to go to two Catholic churches on the reservations that had a mission to include the natives by learning about their traditions and culture.  Ultimately, the goal of the mission was to create harmony within the church and native groups through learning, participation and dialog.  Throughout the week I was exposed to the fantastic geography of the Southwest and I learned about the different cultures of these native groups.  While on the Apache reservation our group met a medicine man that discussed his personal experiences, we were taught to cook native food, participated in a sweat lodge ceremony, and observed and participated in a sunrise ceremony.  Another amazing part of the experience was going to mass three times and seeing how the Catholic Church had incorporated native traditions into their ceremony and practice, whether it was by the church itself built in the shape of a hegon, a traditional native house, or the native images and ceremonial items placed in the church. These were examples of reverse missionary at work.  By learning about native traditions, the Catholic Church was able to recognize similarities the native faith shared with the church.

What I experienced was harmony at work.  One of the main practices Shinnyo-en has focused on is to create harmony within myself, my community and with the world.  When I was told of this practice, it made logical sense, but seeing the work of these Catholic Churches and the Apache people was a real example of harmony in action.  Catholics and Buddhists going on a mission together to learn about the Native American experience, not just traditionally but also difficulties they experience today on reservations, really created an example of how harmony works.  Despite the long history of these two groups, it was encouraging and inspiring that they can find religious peace and harmony with each other.  Violence and hate is easy to find throughout the world, and as a society we must find ways to live together for a better future.  The reverse missionary work we saw is one way that gaps between Native Americans and the Catholic Church have been overcome and began to establish better dialog and existence with each other. This can serve as an example of how to promote harmony among other unique religious and cultural groups.

When I left this group, I felt as if I made a more personal connection to my spiritual growth and faith.  Having the time to talk with a group of people that have a strong sense of faith was inspiring.  I was able to participate in conversations that included my questions of how they become spiritual and how they practice their faith.  I have never been interested in the Christian faith, but now having a better understanding of creating harmony, I needed and wanted to ask questions and learn about the Christian faith in order to practice a harmonious state with other groups.  The time spent was priceless, as individuals with their own experience were able to share their thoughts and faith with everyone in a respectable and harmonious fashion.  This was what people should strive for, a mutual respect for each other as individuals and religious groups.  Because of the time I spent with people of different levels of faith, I was able to grow spiritually beyond where I was at the start of the trip.  I had always had a wall that stood in the way of my spiritual practice, but by establishing this dialog I was able to break down the walls of my assumptions and move forward in my spiritual practice.  I have a better understanding of why my Buddhist faith needs to be incorporated into my daily life to help create harmony with the world I live in.  As a teacher I will also pass on what I have learned in Arizona to my students about the current state on native reservations, how Native Americans still suffer the legacy of persecution, in hopes that this will inspire them to improve the situation and create harmony with others regardless of religion, culture or tradition.

Destiny Arts Youth Performance Group, a Foundation grantee, in action.

Destiny Arts perfoms "Six Billion Paths to Peace" as part of the Bioneers Conference in Marin, CA. The conference hosted over 3,000 people (11,000 viewed around the world via video satellite) who are committed to social change and a more environmentally friendly way to live. Destiny partnered with the Shinnyo-en Foundation to create the performance as a way to share a message that peace is something everyone can contribute to, every day.

photographer: Jennifer Esperanza