New Head of Zendo

After serving on staff for almost 15 years as our Head of Zendo (by far the longest stretch ever for an HOZ), John Pulleyn, while remaining on staff, has handed over his job title to Trueman Taylor. The Head of Zendo holds primary responsibility (under Roshi) for all matters related to the zendo – sittings, residential training, sesshins, and ceremonies and holidays. As John’s assistant for some three years now, Trueman has been doing an increasing share of the HOZ functions, and Roshi concurs with John that Trueman is ready to officially assume the HOZ mantle.

The two will continue to share the same office (and basically the same work) as before, including monitoring sesshins, but John now will be able to give more time to his other staff jobs: managing the Center’s website and Arnold Park repair and maintenance.

Coming-to-the-Path Talk Postponed

Due to some health problems, perhaps related to spring allergies, Sudama Ngo’s Coming-to-the-Path talk this Sunday, May 5, will be postponed. We’ll still have the regular sitting, chanting, and brunch.

Zen Kinhin Practice

Kinhin (Zen meditation while walking) offers the chance to learn to continue one’s practice while in motion, and people who attend sittings are asked to participate in it. The exception to this is at sittings where the periods of zazen are just 25 minutes, which are short enough that we want to allow people who can sit through a kinhin – without moving – to do so. Those sittings are on Tuesday evenings and on those Sunday mornings when there is no teisho or other talk.

Shane Wiegand presents “The History of Segregation and Racist Policy in Rochester” Saturday, June 1

On Saturday, June 1, at 2 p.m. in the Community Room, the Center will host an encore presentation of the famed “Redlining Talk” by Shane Wiegand, a fourth-grade teacher in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District. This talk was a component of last fall’s Sacred Conversations on Race + Action workshops. Given widespread Sangha interest, Shane is offering a repeat of this well-researched presentation, which brings to life the realities of structural racism in Rochester. 

Shane serves as treasurer on the board of the Beechwood Neighborhood Coalition, sits on the Connected Communities Housing Committee, and is the outreach chair of the City Roots Community Land Trust. For more information about this event, please contact Angela Hakkila at hakkila@wisc.edu.

Elephant Path National Broadcast Premiere on WORLDChannel.org

Sangha member Todd McGrain just directed a documentary about the last wild herd of forest elephants in the Central African Republic. There are plans to schedule a Rochester showing at the Little Theatre, though the date is not yet set. In the meantime, you can get more information, see the trailer, and find out how to stream the film here: http://elephantpathfilm.org/.