Orange County Buddhist Church

This Sunday, Nov. 8, is our annual All Life Forms Memorial Service, when we remember our departed pets, and remember that the Buddhist path embraces all living beings, human or otherwise. Memorial services are a time to reflect on the meaning our loved ones have had in our lives, including our pet friends. Join Rev. Ellen Crane as we delve even deeper to consider all the living beings that impact our existence.

"A Lifetime of Wandering." At our live Family Service on Sun., Nov. 1 at 10 a.m., Minister's Assistant Jim Pollard shares how poet, travel diarist, and Zen student Matsuo Basho's evocative writings help us to reflect on our own lifetime of spiritual wandering. A lifetime adrift in a boat, or in old age leading a tired horse into the years, every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home. -- Matsuo Bash (1644-1694).

"Please Don't Overthink This." At our live Family Service on Sun., Oct 25, Rev. Jon Turner will use the film "A Beautiful Mind" to explain that Buddhism teaches us "how" to think, not "what" to think. Service is live on YouTube at 10 a.m. on 10/25. Please join us! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz3eeMAlJRs&feature=youtu.be

"Monsters and Demons and Ghosts -- Oh My!" Halloween is full of scary creatures. Buddhism also has its own monsters, demons, and ghosts. At our Oct. 18 Family Service, Minister's Assistant Janis Hirohama talks about how, instead of running away from our demons, we can face them and see what they are trying to tell us. Please join us! Live on YouTube, Sunday at 10 a.m.

Although the current COVID-19 situation in Orange County is improving, OCBC is proceeding with caution, so the temple will continue to be closed through 10/31/20. If you have an emergency and need to visit the office, please request an appointment with our office staff. You can keep connected with the Dharma through our OCBC YouTube channel, Weekly Wheel podcast, and Everyday Buddhist online school. Thanks for your cooperation and patience during these challenging times. We hope things continue to improve.

How do we find a life of meaning and fulfillment? We sometimes find it in things that "spark joy," as house decluttering guru Marie Kondo famously says. In our Oct. 11 Family Service, Rev. Ellen Hamada Crane explains how Shinran's teachings can also help our search for happiness at a deeper and more profound level.

How many times a day did Honen Shonin recite the Nembutsu? Test your knowledge of Jdo Shinsh with Rev. Dr. Mutsumi Wondra’s Sakyamuni to Shinran quiz in today’s Sunday Family Service!

How do we deal with the burden of injustice and racial inequality after the death of George Floyd? In this Oct. 10 webinar, "Good Trouble!", past BCA President Rick Stambul will speak about his work in the civil rights movement during the 1960s and the racism we live with and confront today. Presented by the BCA's Center for Buddhist Education.

What does Jodo Shinshu and the Netflix cooking series "Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat" have in common? Rev. Jon Turner explains in today's Sunday Service, "Living Life Without a Recipe." Watch and learn!

Welcome back! It's September and that means Dharma School has begun again -- with classes meeting virtually for now. Enjoy this new original song, "Time for Dharma School," composed by Donna Sasaki and performed by BCA temple members.

There's still time to register for our Fall Ohigan Seminar, "Buddhist Values: Six Paramitas, Three Poisons, and the Middle Way." The seminar, featuring Rev. Harry Gyoko Bridge of the Buddhist Church of Oakland, is on Sat., Sept 19 at 10 a.m. via Zoom. Register by emailing: ocbc.seminar.info@gmail. com

BCA Bishop Marvin Harada talks about letting go of our attachments -- and shares a valuable lesson he learned from a shower squeegee.

Welcome back after our Labor Day break! Join us online for our service this Sunday, Sept. 13. In her Dharma message, Rev. Dr. Mutsumi Wondra will discuss "Shinran and Pole Vaulting." Shinran discovered the theory of pole vaulting in Pure Land Buddhism -- and you can apply it in your everyday living. YouTube will go live at 10 a.m.

Today is Labor Day in the United States. Let us all recognize the contributions workers make to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country. Interdependence at work. [Japanese American farm workers in Centerville, CA, 1942. Photo by Dorothea Lange.]