_____________________________________________________ EUROPEAN NETWORK OF BUDDHIST CHRISTIAN STUDIES ______________________________________________________ N e t w o r k I n f o - M a g a z i n e ______________________________________________________ (c) by ENBCS September 2001 ______________________________________________________ Editors: Br. Josef Goetz : Josef@erzabtei.de Martin Roetting: roetting@iol.ie Internet: www.buddhist-christian-studies.org ________________________________________________________ Content ________________________________________________________ 1) EDITORS NOTE 2) Next Conferenz 2002 in Samye Ling 3) Book! Buddhist Perception of Jesus !!! 4) Experiencing Culture and Religion in Thailand 5) Spirituality in the Age of Globalization. 6) A Meeting of European Christian Contemplation and Korean Buddhist Zen - Visit Korea in 2002 7) Book! Rötting, Martin, Berge sind Berge, Flüsse sind Flüsse. Begegnung mit dem koreanischen Zen-Buddhismus. -------------------------------------------------------- 1) Editors Note -------------------------------------------------------- A Long time past since the last Newsletter and I have first of all to apologize for all the delay. The promised LUND Special is in the making and because I still wait for some articles to come along, will be published here later. But the response to the Conference in Lund was a great one and all the updates and photos are now on the web-site! All the best, Martin Roetting, Josef Goetz OSB, Editors -------------------------------------------------------- 2) Next Conferenz 2002 in Samye Ling ------------------------------------------------------- Dr. Perry Schmidt Leukel sent us the new date for the conference: Friday , 16.5. - Monday 19.5.2003 in Samye Ling, the oldest tibet monastery in the west! More Information will come up on the web-page! -------------------------------------------------------- 3) Book! Buddhist Perception of Jesus !!! -------------------------------------------------------- The last Confernce in St. Ottilien is published! We are proud to introduce the Book "Buddhist perception of Jesus" Oder on the web page! How did Buddhists perceive Jesus in the initial stages of Christian-Buddhist encounter and how do they understand him today? How do Christians feel about Buddhist perceptions of Jesus? Do they regard these as faulty, insufficient or as providing exciting new perspectives? These and other questions are addresses in the papers collected in this volume. Three historians of religions investigate the Buddhist perceptions of Jesus in China during 17th century (Iso Kern), in SriLanka during 19th and early 20th century (Heinz Muermel) and among the first Buddhists in Germany (Frank Usarski). Three Buddhist authors present and represent a Buddhist understanding of Jesus and Christianity which has moved from the earlier primarily polemical view to a much more sympathetic and dialogical one (Shizuteru Ueda, Santikaro Bhikkhu, Karl Schmied). Finally two Christian theologians, both well experienced and experts in Buddhist-Christian dialogue (Notto Thelle, Michael von Brueck), answer the question "What do I as a Christian expect Buddhists to discover in Jesus?". A detailed introduction by Perry Schmidt-Leukel analyses the background to Buddhist evaluations of other religions in general and of Christianity in particular. ------------------------------------------------------- 4) Experiencing Culture and Religion in Thailand ------------------------------------------------------- Experiencing Culture and Religion in Thailand January 3-27, 2002 In this 25-day study tour of Thailand, we will explore Buddhism, Christianity, and modernization and globalization in Thailand. Our travels will take us for two weeks to the city of Chiang Mai, the beautiful ancient northern capital of Thailand. The rest of the time will be spent in Bangkok and in southern Thailand where there will be opportunities to relax at the beaches of Kah Sumet ("Sumet Island") during a two-night stay. Field trips include: the hill country, Buddhist temples and Christian churches, Elephant Camp, culture presentations, river tours, and the Chiang Dao Cave. Equal amounts of time will be spent in the study of both Buddhism and Christianity within the Thai context. We are seeking a balanced mix of Christians and Buddhists in the tour group, and there will be many opportunities for significant Christian-Buddhist dialogue. This tour is a rare and affordable opportunity to: · Visit an ancient Buddhist country where Christians are in the minority (the opposite of America) · Learn about Buddhism in a traditional setting. · Have a close-up view of the interplay between two world religions. · Study how a foreign religion develops in a new host country. The educational format will include morning lecture-discussions, afternoon field trips, and some special evening programs. Study will focus on: · The historical, religious and cultural context of Thailand [i.e. Buddhism in Thailand]. · The arrival of Christian missions and the establishment of the Christian Church in Thailand--problems of contextualization. · How Thai life, culture and religion are being transformed by modernization and globalization. Tour Facts Approximate cost: $2,500 per person, double occupancy. Single occupancy is an additional $220. Included will be roundtrip airfare from Seattle, all transportation within Thailand, full room and board, and program costs. Deposit requested: Send a check for $500, per person, payable to "William L. Malcomson," to 3644 41st Ave W, Seattle, WA 98199-1836. Indicate that it is for the "Thailand Tour." The deposit is refundable (minus a $25 processing and materials fee) up to October 3, 2001, when the full amount is due. Participant qualifications: The minimum age for the tour is 18. All persons should be prepared to do a fair amount of walking. Credit and CEUs: Course credit for the tour may be arranged through the School of Theology and Ministry of Seattle University. Ask Dr. Malcomson for details. VEI will grant 10 CEUs for full participation in the tour. Tour co-hosts: Dr. William L. Malcomson and Dr. Jeffrey D. Schoening. Website: To find this information on the Internet, go to either http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Marble/4279/thaitour2002.html or http://www.sakya.org (click on "Virupa Ecumenical Institute") Tour Contact Information Dr. William L. Malcomson, 3644 41st Ave W, Seattle, WA 98199-1836 Phone: 206-352-6235, E-mail: wlmalcomson@yahoo.com, Fax: 206-352-6397 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Virupa Ecumenical Institute Education Branch of Sakya Monastery of Tibetan Buddhism ------------------------------------------------------ 5) Spirituality in the Age of Globalization. ------------------------------------------------------   CALENDAR.     Wednesday 24 October 2001::   Arrivals. Supper. Introduction. Thursday-Friday::   General and monastic papers.           Russian Orthodoxy. European decay and fragmentation.  DK::  Can the Danish Folk Church (p.t. down to 1,5% true believers) be repaired by an effort comparable to Luther´s? Or is it un unrepairable? Saturday-Sunday::    Buddhist-Christian papers.             Bu-Chr relations.     Compatibility of Buddhism and Christianity?       Historical influence of the older religion on the younger?          Are some NT texts translations from ancient sanskrit documents?                             Fa Lun Gong  Buddhist? Monday  29 October::    Peaceful conclusion by survivors.  Future seminar.   CONDITIONS.    Accommodation and entertainment free for participants contributing a relevant paper of reasonable quality.  Transport your own cost.   REFLEXIONS.     (a)  Concerning the theme.          What is Spirituality? Is there only ONE spirituality  (as maintained by Amarananda last year) ? Or are there several, maybe thousands, maybe infinitely many (as suggested by modern pop use of the word) ?   (b)  Concerning Luther.   DK situation today seems incomparable to Luther´s, is is much worse.  Luther was able to make repair at his time by small scale tinkering  (which proved good enough to last for 500 years).      Now, however, the situation is characterized by double pressure, by a combination of internal decay   and external revelation of a handful new (and old !) religions presenting themselves as richer and stronger than your own 1,5% religion. Consequently,  the present incomparable situation may need an effort incomparable to Luther´s.   Hesbjerg,  24 Sept. 2001                                          Jorgen Laursen Vig   ADR     Hesbjervej 50,   DK-5491  Blommenslyst TLF       2121  4533 FAX       6596  7490 E-MAIL   hesbjerg@post5.tele.dk ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 6) A Meeting of European Christian Contemplation and Korean Buddhist Zen - Visit Korea in 2002 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Interested practitioners of Christian meditation mayjoin a group of about 15 people to visit Korea from 3rd - 24th August 2002. · Be a guest in a Korean Buddhist Zen Temple. · Meet Buddhist practitioners of Zen. · Learn about Korean Christian Contemplation. · Visit important Temples and Buddhist places. The dialogue group trip will be guided and planned by Br. Josef Götz OSB, and Martin Rötting. European Christians with a basic knowledge of English and some experience in Christian meditation are welcome to join. A four- day retreat in the Benedictine Abbey St. Ottilien/Germany at Easter 2002 will introduce those interested and give more detailed information about the trip. Price per Person Euro 2250,- (not including the retreat in St. Ottilien) For further Information please contact: Martin Rötting 41 Fitzwilliam Square Winton RD Ranelagh Dublin 6 Ireland Ph.:+353 1 66 74 89 1 roetting@iol.ie Br. Josef GötzD-86 941 St. Ottilien, Germany Ph.:+49 8193-71206 / Fax:- 71332 josef@erzabtei.de ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 7) Book! Rötting, Martin, Berge sind Berge, Flüsse sind Flüsse. Begegnung mit dem koreanischen Zen-Buddhismus. =--------------------------------------------------------------------- Ein Beitrag zum christlich-buddhistischen Dialog. Vorwort: Abtprimas Notker Wolf OSB Beiträge von Thomas Timpte OSB, Bernhard Senecal SJ, Younghae Yoon, Jinwol Sunim Ersch. 2001, 23 x 15,5 cm, broschiert, 192 S., 15 Abbildungen, ISBN 3-8306-7070-2, DM 28.00 / Euro 14.32 Der Zen-Buddhismus in Korea hat sich bis heute seine Frische und Originalität bewahrt. "Berge sind Berge, Flüsse sind Flüsse" möchte zur Begegnung und zum Dialog mit der faszinierenden Welt des koreanischen Zen einladen. Das Buch möchte auch ein Beitrag zum interreligiösen Dialog sein. Buddhisten und Christen erzählen in verschiedenen Beiträgen von ihrer Begegnung mit der anderen Religion. Überlegungen und Gedanken zu wichtigen Themen einer Theologie des Dialogs zwischen Zen-Buddhismus und Christentum runden das Buch ab. Der Autor Martin Rötting (geb. 1970) arbeite als Religionslehrer in der Diözese München und Freising, bevor er in Südkorea als Gast in verschiedenen Zen-Klöstern lebte. Gegenwärtig arbeitet er als Seelsorger und Religionslehrer in Dublin. An der Irish School of Ecumenics (Trinity College Dublin) studiert er Ökumene und interreligiösen Dialog. Bestellungen schriftlich an EOS Verlag, D-86941 St. Ottilien, oder per · Bestelltelefon: 08193/71261 oder 71439 · Bestellfax: 08193/6844 · Bestellmail: mail@eos-verlag.de Subj.: Bestelle 3-8306-7070-2 - Rötting, Berge sind Berge ---------------------------------------------------------------------- _____________________________________________________________________ The Networkinfo-Magazine is a free quartal published email magazine of the EUROPEAN NETWORK OF BUDDHIST CHRISTIAN STUDIES _____________________________________________________________________ To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE this magazine, fill our networkinfo/form in the hompage: www.buddhist-christian-studies.org click NETWORKINFO at the menue bar or send a mail to roetting@iol.ie subject> subscibe magazine or unsubscribe magazine (c) September 2001 by European Network of Buddhist Christian Studies =====================================================================