Rev. Danny Fisher

Back in January, I posted about the Seventh Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche being named as a plenary speaker for this year’s annual conference of the Association of Professional Chaplains (A.P.C.).

As I mentioned then, the conference will be held in Burlingame, CA, from April 28th until May 2nd. This year’s theme, which Ponlop Rinpoche and the other plenary speakers will expound upon, is Discovering Sacred Horizons: Encounters that Enrich.

The latest mailing I received from the A.P.C. about the conference includes, among other things, more information on each of the plenary speakers’ lectures. The title of Ponlop Rinpoche’s is listed as “Facing Death – The Sacred Horizon” and it is described this way:

Death can be a powerful experience that connects us with our own deeper or higher nature. According to the spiritual insights of Buddhism, in order to die well, we must learn to live well and fully now. By becoming more intimate with our own experience, we learn that dying is part of the process of living.

In addition to Ponlop Rinpoche’s speech, the conference this year will also offer educational excursions that should certainly be of interest to both Buddhist chaplains as well as chaplains who just want to know more about Buddhism: trips are planned to Marin County for a tour of Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Japantown and Chinatown (where the itinerary includes a visit to a Jodo Shinshu Buddhist church), and the Zen Hospice of Project.