|
Maezumi Institute: Overview: Resident Training Program in Socially Engaged Buddhism The Core Program The Maezumi Institute will offer a five-month residential training program in socially engaged Buddhism beginning in September 2008. The curriculum will cover four areas - Zen training, financial and managerial skills, service methodologies, and communications. All these aspects of the curriculum are considered spiritual practices. Study at the Institute will be followed by a six-month residential service internship in a Zen House. Upon completion of requirements in the two phases of study, students will be eligible for either certification as a Socially Engaged Buddhist Mentor or for ordination as a Socially Engaged Buddhist Minister. In addition to the core, residential faculty, an array of the leading teachers and educators in socially engaged Buddhism will lead workshops within the program at the Maezumi Institute. The Harvard Divinity School (HDS) invited Roshi Bernie Glassman to serve as an adjunct faculty member and teach courses in the Buddhist Arts of Ministry beginning in the fall of 2007. HDS students may specialize in Buddhist ministry in the Masters of Divinity program at HDS, and then go on to receive further ministry training with the Zen Peacemakers Order, at the Maezumi Institute, to achieve Ordination as a Zen Peacemakers Minister. Christian students of many denominations have long sought ordination from religious institutions that recognize HDS training as part of their academic preparation for ministry, but the current HDS graduating class contains the first students who will go on to receive lay ordination from a Buddhist order.
Internships in Zen Houses After a four month residency at the Zen Peacemakers campus in Montague, Ma, trainees will move to internships in Zen Houses. These houses embody a new model of residential Zen service center and training site, devoted to socially engaged Buddhism, where the residents will run social service projects. The training program and Zen Houses integrate social action and Buddhist practice through direct community service, emphasizing the transformation of the individual and society. Zen Peacemakers will open the first Zen Houses in 2009. They will be located in an underserved urban area and an underserved rural area. Future Zen Houses will be initiated by groups of Zen practitioners, trained at the Maezumi Institute, who choose to live among and serve the people who fall between the cracks of our society, and whose needs-economic, social and spiritual-often remain unmet. Daily life in a Zen House will be regulated and focused on service in the projects sponsored by the house. Each Zen House will develop its own social service projects and structure its programs, schedules and staffing based on the needs of the community being served. The supervision and training of staff and interns at the House will be supplemented by advanced workshops and retreats offered at the Maezumi Institute. Services will be delivered from a holistic, dignity-based perspective. They will offer training that provides the skills and tools necessary to empower people to hold market-wage jobs and move toward economic self-sufficiency. Each House will also network with existing service agencies. Fees include room, board, classes, and workshops: $20,000 There are a limited number of scholarships up to 100% of the total annual fee. These will be awarded on a competitive basis. Those receiving full scholarships will be asked to commit to working in a Zen House for one-year at a reasonable salary. To Apply for this Program Please fill in the application form and send it to: Daniel Herman Contact Information Daniel Herman |
Bernie's Zen
The Dude Abides