Rev. Danny Fisher

Visit http://www.hrc.org/transgender.

I just joined Twitter. If you want to follow me there, make your request here.

In a related story, Ven. Loden Jinpa lists all the Buddhists he knows on the social networking service.

Over at the Buddhist Peace Fellowship‘s website, Executive Director Zenju Earthlyn Manuel offers reflections on both the election of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States and the passage of Prop. 8 in California. On the latter subject, she writes:

A wise Zen teacher told me while I had tears in my eyes that the people who are mistreating me because of my darkness and gayness actually love you, but they just don’t know that they love me. In the moment of so much pain, I found it hard to believe but in another instant I knew that I loved them and that is exactly why their inability to return love hurt so much.

There is no left and right politics in the Dharma. There is simply undeniable love and respect for each living being. To deny someone’s right to choose marriage is to deny oneself freedom because you have to continue the denial. What peace is there in such efforts?

Time Magazine reports on the summit of Tibetan leaders in exile at Dharamsala this week. Author Jyoti Thottam writes:

…The summit will be considered a success if it reaches some consensus on how to choose the Dalai Lama’s successor, and if it brings Tibetans together to discuss issues like education and how to involve young Tibetans in the political process. [Columbia University professor Robbie Barnett] notes that China may find it more difficult to control a movement that is strong and unified around a common purpose. “If they can achieve that, it will really be quite significant,” he says. And perhaps the most radical move of all.

Sitting With Fire, a blog created to aggregate “news about [this past summer's California] wildfires threatening [the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center] and other helpful stuff for the dispersed workers,” has new updates after a long stretch without much posting.