Have you been born again?

In the Book of Romans Paul says “ There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”. When I first strayed from the Christian path it wasn't because I no longer believed in the bible but because I was sick of feeling guilty. It wasn't because I lacked an intellectual understanding of this verse but because I lacked an intimate experience of forgiveness. At some point I realized that the happiest Christians weren't those that Jesus forgave but those who found forgiveness in themselves.
At some point along the way I found myself as a student of Zen Buddhism. It just somehow made sense to me. People ask why I became a Buddhist and I might have said I don't know but really it just makes sense to me. Sometime people ask “ Does it help” and I would just say “no”, but this isn't the compassionate answer. The truth is I don't know. I didn't come to Buddhism for help, by that point I'd already forgiven myself, I came because it just made sense. I've heard it said that Christianity is better because you can be born again. Buddhism also teaches rebirth, the Buddha said that each instant we experience completely, birth life and death. We are always only co arising each instant together with the entire cosmos. I suppose in Buddhism it would be a greater miracle NOT to be reborn! Because of this there is always only a fresh slate. Below is a chant thats heard in many Zen centers.

All evil karma ever committed by me since of old,
Because of my beginning less greed, anger, and ignorance,
Born of my body, mouth, and thought,
Now I atone for it all.

May all beings intimately experience forgiveness

Conundrum

While I'm not that interested in the Zen / Christian conundrum I did enjoy this video. I know this is a difficult subject for some, I hope it is helpful.

Special thanks

We had a good meeting last night with a wonderful break from the same old incense we've been using. Ven. Kobutsu donated a wonderful and rare jinkoh incense, "the stink of Buddhism" Deep bows to Kobutsu and the kind person that shares enough of this that Kobutsu is able to spread the love.

By Popular Request

We had a good meeting tonight. My thanks to all who attended. Instead of a reading and discussion we listened to a Teisho by Bonnie Myotai Treace, Sensei called "Buddha Fields". By popular request you can find this and several other talks through the teaching link on the Hermitage Heart web site.

Meeting and thanks

Meeting tonite 7:00 to 8:30. A special thanks and deep bows to Randy Nowell of the Arizona Zen Buddhist Society for his contribution of 4 zafus and support cushions.

Dharma talks

There are some good books out there. Better than a book is a live dharma talk from a genuine teacher. If you can't get that how about some recorded talks. I like the talks from Nyogen Roshi and Kobutsu. I may be playing some of these at our sangha meetings, so listen to them now and you may do better on the quizzes.