Catholicism and Buddhism

Today was quite a day. This morning was the last service at St. Joseph’s (the family church) before its doors were closed. News of the closure had been around for quite a while so everyone knew it was coming but that didn’t change the atmosphere. I decided to go along with mom and dad to support Grammy, a woman who has been around almost as long as the church building itself. That church is steeped in family history. My great grandfather, Frank Piff, was one of the two founding members who financially supported the Church, and petitioned the diocese to have a church built to serve the ethnic Slovenians (known as the Windish people) living in South Bethlehem. The church, started in 1913 and completed in 1917 lasted over 90 years before the Allentown Diocese decided it, along with dozens of other churches, would be closed and consolidated. Much of my family was baptized there: grandmother, both grandfathers, mom, aunt, cousins, brother, and me; my cousin was married there; great uncles and aunts were buried there; the list goes on. Many other families have the same connection to St. Joe’s.

Emotions ran high as the service went on. People who have spent most if not all of their lives going to that church cried as their home was being closed. It wasn’t so much the building for some as it was the memories and friends they have made. The sadness turned to anger as people filed out and many, surprisingly, were talking about abandoning the Catholic Church and turning to a Protestant denomination. They felt abandoned by the faith they have devoted their lives to. It was a sad affair as they lowered the candle from the ceiling and extinguished the flame. For dramatic effect, they turned the lights off as the priest left and we all gathered outside as they locked the doors amongst tears. It was sad affair indeed (even the priest got choked up).

It seems ironic that one of the wealthiest religious denominations in the world would be closing churches. It was indicative of the problems that seem to plague the Roman Catholic Church in America. A shortage of priests and a declining attendance are signs that the Church is faltering here and little if nothing seems to be done to correct the situation. A denomination that was once the most powerful in the country if not the world, seems to be losing its luster and the faithful that remain are victimized by having their houses of worship taken from them.

After we all got through the service, my thoughts and attention turned to the afternoon’s activity and what could be called a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I was fortunate to get a couple of tickets to see His Holiness (H.H.) the 14th Dalai Lama give a public lecture on generating a good heart. I didn’t really know what to expect going into it and I must say, it was an interesting experience. I knew a little about Buddhism but not enough to speak intelligently about it. The Dalai Lama is world-famous and almost everyone in the world knows of his existence and about his basic struggle about the freeing of Tibet. What surprised me about his visit was the amount of protesters who were outside protesting the Dalai Lama. Who protests the Dalai Lama? He is all about peaceful negotiations, winner of the Nobel Piece Prize, leader of a persecuted people… Apparently, he outlawed the worship of a certain deity which some Buddhists are very happy about because they worship Dorje Shugden. I’m sure there are two sides to this whole issue and I’m not going to pretend to claim to know who is right…but protesting the Dalai Lama?!

Anyway, as the Lama himself came out onstage, he struggled to walk but had a large and gracious smile on his face. He began to speak (with his translator by his side) after some formal welcomes and speeches by academic types (in their graduation robes). I was expecting a solemn speech from a quiet and reserved old man but instead got a speech that was broken at times but ultimately, very witty. His sense of humor surprised and I would have to say was my biggest takeaway from the talk. It was refreshing to see this man, a religious world leader, known by so many, considered to be extremely wise, to crack jokes. It showed that no matter how important or wise you are, it’s important to keep things in perspective and be able to take a light-hearted approach to things.

His general message (from what I was able to piece together through broken phrases and heavily accented English) was that the key to generating a good heart was through compassion. By having compassion, you can learn to treat your enemy’s like brothers and sisters and that is the gateway to love. It was a good message overall and he really preached (can Buddhists preach?) a balanced approach to life and harmony (religious and otherwise) which I think is a good thing no matter who you are.

One of the more surprising things he said was that there are some things in life you cannot control and you need to accept that. Because he is Buddhist, he can blame karma, for Christians, you can just blame God. That generated a lot of laughs and perhaps he meant it as a joke but I was surprised by the apathy that statement pointed towards, especially coming from a man who leads his people in exile and struggles for freedom, something he will not achieve in his lifetime. But if you look at this statement in that context, accepting that there are things you cannot change doesn’t necessarily mean you give up on your mission, you just take a more balanced approach and don’t let your expectations consume you.

Overall, it was neat just to see the Dalai Lama as few people (at least in this country) have the opportunity.