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About this event:
Let’s come together to explore the Dharma gate of actively entering the public sphere with practices for social transformation. Cornel West has said, “Justice is what love looks like in public” and the bodhisattva enters the marketplace with bliss bestowing hands.
Hear from panelists with deep experience organizing public rituals and meditations to support social justice, creating cultures of sharing of food and material resources, deepening community relationships, standing in solidarity with folks who are marginalized, and finding creative public ways to manifest our bodhisattva vows.
This is an opportunity to learn more about the challenges and wonders of these practices and to create mutual inspiration.
Location and schedule:
The event is online-only via Zoom.
Sunday, April 20, 2025
2:00 pm- 3:30 pm Eastern Time (Click here for a time converter.)
Fees:
The Soto Zen Buddhist Association relies on the generosity of its supporters to offer programming. All fees offered through registration will be shared with speakers and panelists. We suggest a sliding scale registration fee of $10-15 for online participation. No one will be turned away due to lack of funds.
Meet the Moderator:
Rev. Teresa Bouza, is a journalist, caregiver, and Zen practitioner originally from Spain, where she currently lives. A John S. Knight Journalism Fellow at Stanford and co-author of "A Sense of Something Greater: Zen and the Search for Balance in Silicon Valley", she brings a deep commitment to mindfulness and equity. Teresa serves on the board of the SZBA and actively contributes to the Kannon Do Zen Center by curating guest speaker programs and producing insightful, dharma-focused podcast content
Meet the Panelists:
Rev. Joan Amaral is the founding and guiding teacher of Zen Center North Shore in Beverly, Massachusetts. A dharma heir of Zenkei Blanche Hartman, she trained at San Francisco Zen Center and Tassajara Monastery. Joan’s teaching integrates stillness with movement, informed by her background in modern dance, and centers on the dynamic relationship between formal practice and everyday life.
Rev. So-on Eli Brown-Stevenson is the Abiding Teacher at City Center, San Francisco Zen Center (SFZC). He has practiced at all three SFZC temples and trained at Tassajara. Eli teaches in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi and is committed to Dharma practice grounded in African American culture and Soto Zen tradition. He supports the development of authentic sanghas that reflect our full humanity and hold the intimacy and honesty necessary to embody the Buddha Way.
Rev. Duncan Ryuken Williams, Ph.D is a Soto Zen Buddhist priest and Professor of Religion at the University of Southern California, where he also directs the Shinso Ito Center for Japanese Religions and Culture. His work bridges academic scholarship and spiritual practice, with a focus on Buddhist ethics, race, and social transformation. He is the author of "American Sutra: A Story of Faith and Freedom in the Second World War", exploring Japanese American Buddhist resilience during WWII.
The SZBA 2025 event series, Actualizing and Sustaining Healthy Zen Communities, is generously funded by his event is generously funded by the Hemera Foundation.
