The Amida Sangha will soon be holding one of its annual meetings. This one is called Conclave.

Conclave is a meeting of all of the ordained members of the Amida order. Conclave is a private meeting in the sense that the proceedings of the meeting are not made public but only the final outcomes.

Conclave is a meeting at which matters that affect life of the Amida Sangha as a whole are considered and reflected upon. So, it’s a way of taking action on matters that advance the harmony of the community. The fundamental issue here is: What constitutes a good Sangha? What is a good Sangha all about?

The Buddha created a Sangha in order that it be an example, a model, something worthy of respect, something worthy of emulation, a group of people who try to do their best to live the spiritual life in the Buddhist manner, characterized by the virtues of the Buddhist life.

One of the things that will be considered at the conclave is who should be invited to join this community; and also, within the community, who should be invited to take further steps, advancements of one sort or another. So, specifically, who should be invited to join Amida Shu, who might be invited to join the Amida order, who might be ready for ordination, who is ready within that ordained group to take further steps in the progression in their spiritual life?

But when we consider these things, we are not just considering the individual. We are not just considering what is right and best for that one person. We’re considering that, within the frame - within the context - of what is right and best for the Sangha as a whole, so that the Sangha may manifest this example of a community that is worthy of respect; because the ultimate aim is that we contribute something to the greater society. This is not a way of withdrawing and disappearing from the world. This is a way of living together in a manner that demonstrates and illustrates the possibility of harmony in the community.

At this present time in the world there is a great need for harmony in the community. We see many conflicts around the world. We see many conflicts in our own societies. We can participate in the various social actions that are demonstrating, that are trying to bring our society to a greater sanity; and we can do things that will help those who have suffered as a result of the inequalities and frictions and conflicts in society.

But we can also together create the demonstration of an alternative; and this is the Sangha. This was the Buddha’s intention: to create a group that would be a kind of leaven in society; and you can only demonstrate harmony in community, if you have a community. It needs a plurality of people. Its not a matter that can be done by one person on their own.

So, this is what we are concerned with, with conclave, which will happen very soon. We will be looking at: Is there harmony in the community? And how can harmony in the community be deepened, extended, made more meaningful and made such that the Amida Shu is a community worthy of respect?

 

Namo Amida Bu
Thank you very much

Dharmavidya
David

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