Happy 45th anniversary to our friends at Tzu Chi

Tzu Chi, the Buddhist organization whose name means compassion and relief, celebrated their 45th anniversary on Sunday in Japantown. I went to represent St. Anthony’s. As well as celebrating their anniversary, they celebrated Buddha’s birthday, raised funds for Japanese victims of the earthquake and tsunami, and celebrated Mother’s Day. That’s particularly appropriate since, as Buddhists, we like to consider that, through infinite past lifetimes, all beings, from the tiniest insect to mass murderers, must have been our own loving mother at some point, no matter their current condition.

One thing Tzu Chi and St. Anthony’s have in common, oddly enough, is that our founders were inspired by Catholic social teaching. In 1966, Tzu Chi founder Dharma Master Cheng Yen met three Catholic nuns. After she told them of the importance of love and compassion in Buddhism, the nuns asked her, “Why have we not seen Buddhists doing good works for the society, such as setting up nursing homes, orphanages, and hospitals?” That inspired her to found Tzu Chi. More information here: http://www.us.tzuchi.org/usa/home.nsf/about/index

Happy anniversary, brothers and sisters of Tzu Chi!