The Buddhist Churches of America is the United States branch of the Hongwan-ji (also known as Honpa Hongwanji / Nishi-Hongwanji) sub-sect of Jōdo Shinshū ("True Pure Land School") Buddhism. Jodo Shinshu is also popularly known as Shin Buddhism. It is one of several overseas kyodan ("districts") belonging to the Nishi ("Western") Hongwan-ji. The other kyodan are South America, Hawaiʻi, Canada, and Europe. Their headquarters is at 1710 Octavia Street, San Francisco, California, near San Francisco's Japantown. It is the oldest Buddhist organization in the United States. Honden, or main hall, of Higashi Hongan-ji, Kyoto Hongan-ji ), also archaically romanized as Hongwanji, is the name of a number of Buddhist temples, all of the Jōdo ShinshÅ« sect, across Japans history. ... Jōdo ShinshÅ« ), also known as Shin Buddhism, was founded by the former Tendai Japanese monk Shinran Shonin. ... A silhouette of a Buddha statue at Ayutthaya, Thailand. ... Honden, or main hall, of Higashi Hongan-ji, Kyoto Hongan-ji ), also archaically romanized as Hongwanji, is the name of a number of Buddhist temples, all of the Jōdo ShinshÅ« sect, across Japans history. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Largest metro area Greater Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ... Japantown is a common name for official Japanese American or Japanese Canadian communities in big cities. ...

Origins and development

The origins of the Buddhist Churches of America (BCA) began with the arrival of Japanese immigrants to the American mainland during the late 1800s. Devout Shin Buddhists who had expressed concern over the lack of religious services, and the activities of Christian missionaries among the newly-arrived immigrant population, petitioned the monshu (head abbot) of the Nishi Hongwan-ji to send priests to the United States. The first Jodo Shinshu priests arrived in San Francisco in 1893, and the first American temple constructed in 1899. The priests' arrival in San Francisco was a source of concern to the Japanese consul to the U.S. who believed it would strain U.S.-Japan relations: for example, a hostile article by the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper on the arrival of the priests alleged that the priests' intent was to convert white Americans and proclaim that Buddhism was superior to Christianity. In the decades prior to World War II, the mainland American branch of the Nishi Hongwan-ji tradition was named the "Buddhist Missions of North America" (BMNA), and many temples were established throughout the West Coast of the United States, the first being in San Francisco, followed by temples in the Bay Area, the Central Valley, and Northern and Southern California. There were also temples established in the Northwest states, in Seattle, Washington and Oregon. Since the majority of early Japanese immigrants or issei ("First Generation") were farmers or laborers, many of these temples were built in then-rural, and segregated, areas such as Dinuba, Guadalupe, and Sacramento, California. Honden, or main hall, of Higashi Hongan-ji, Kyoto Hongan-ji ), also archaically romanized as Hongwanji, is the name of a number of Buddhist temples, all of the Jōdo ShinshÅ« sect, across Japans history. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... Year 1893 (MDCCCXCIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Year 1899 (MDCCCXCIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday [1] of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Todays San Francisco Chronicle was founded in 1865 as The Daily Dramatic Chronicle by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. ... Honden, or main hall, of Higashi Hongan-ji, Kyoto Hongan-ji ), also archaically romanized as Hongwanji, is the name of a number of Buddhist temples, all of the Jōdo ShinshÅ« sect, across Japans history. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... City nickname Emerald City City bird Great Blue Heron City flower Dahlia City mottos The City of Flowers The City of Goodwill City song Seattle, the Peerless City Mayor Greg Nickels County King County Area   - Total   - Land   - Water   - % water 369. ... The Issei Japanese (一世 lit. ... Dinuba is a city in Tulare County, California, United States. ... Guadalupe (or Guadeloupe) may refer to: The Basilica of Guadalupe, Mexico City Guadalupe, a city part of the metropolitan area of Monterrey, Mexico Villa de Guadalupe, a former town near Mexico City Guadalupe, a village near Tecate, Baja California, Mexico Guadalupe, in Puebla, Mexico Guadalupe, in Zacatecas, Mexico Guadalupe, a... Sacramento is a Spanish- and Portuguese-language word meaning sacrament; it is a common toponym in parts of the world where those tongues were or are spoken. ...

An earlier separate branch of the Nishi Hongwanji-ha was established on the Hawaiian Islands in the 1880s, known today as the Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii. Many Japanese had also immigrated to Hawaii to work on the plantations there.

The activities of the BMNA focused solely on the Japanese immigrant community and their families. Priests were expected to conduct funeral and memorial services, teach Buddhism together with traditional Japanese culture, and also to serve as role models for young Japanese men, as at the time they were often considered the most educated Japanese immigrants. Many of these priests only stayed temporarily in the United States, then returned to Japan after serving for a period of a few years; others stayed on in the U.S. temples (a trend that continues today among many priests who are Japanese nationals). Worship services were in the Japanese language, and Japanese-language and English-language schools were common at many temples. Auxiliary temple organizations such as the Young Buddhist Association (YBA) and Buddhist Women's Association (BWA), common in Japan, were also established in America to enhance the feeling of sangha and ethnic solidarity. Many temples also emphasized American civic principles: Boy Scout chapters were active in temples before and after World War II. The desire to assimilate into mainstream American society created changes in traditional Japanese Buddhist religious architecture and ritual and culture in order to conform to the predeominant Protestant Christian religion: temples resembled Christian churches in their interior style and design (replacing tatami mats with pews and introducing lecterns), and supplemented traditional Shinshu liturgy with introduction of Western musical instruments (organs and pianos) in services, singing of gathas modeled after Christian hymns, and male and female choirs. These changes remain today and are considered the norm for American Jodo Shinshu temples. A silhouette of a Buddha statue at Ayutthaya, Thailand. ... The Young Buddhist Association, or YBA, is an auxiliary lay group of the Buddhist Churches of America, the mainland U.S. branch of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism. ... The Buddhist Womens Association (BWA) is the English name of the worldwide auxiliary lay organization of the Nishi Hongwanji-ha branch of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism. ... Polish Boy Scouts fighting in the Warsaw Uprising Boy Scouts originally denoted the organization that developed and rapidly grew up during 1908 in the wake of the publication by Lord Robert Baden-Powell of his book Scouting for Boys. ... This article is about building architecture. ... A ritual is a set of actions, performed mainly for their symbolic value, which is prescribed by a religion or by the traditions of a community. ... The term Christian Church expresses the idea that organised Christianity (the Christian religion) is seen as an institution. ... A liturgy is the customary public worship of a religious group, according to their particular traditions. ... See also hymn - a program to decrypt iTunes music files. ... This article is about choirs, musical ensembles containing singers. ...

Although the focus of temple life emphasized Japanese Buddhism and Japanese culture, there was a very limited outreach to non-Japanese Americans who were interested in Buddhism. A few Caucasian (hakujin) members were admitted into BMNA temples, and a notable few, such as the Rev. Sunya Pratt of Tacoma, Washington, and Rev. Julius Goldwater (a relative of Senator Barry Goldwater) from Los Angeles, even became ordained in the Shin tradition in the U.S. prior to World War II. In 2006, Dr. Gordon Bermant, from Ekoji Buddhist Temple, became the President of the Buddhist Churches of America, the first non-Japanese-American to hold this position. Japanese Buddhist priest c. ... Barry Morris Goldwater (January 1, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–87) and the Republican Partys nominee for president in the 1964 election. ... Ekoji is a Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Temple of the Nishi-Hongwanji Tradition in Fairfax Station, Virginia, near Washington, D.C. It is a member of the Buddhist Churches of America, the oldest Buddhist organization in the mainland United States. ...

World War II and Japanese-American internment

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent entry of America into World War II had a devastating impact on the Jodo Shinshu temples in America, which lingers to the present day. War hysteria, economic jealousies, and racism led to President Franklin D. Roosevelt's signing of Executive Order 9066 which called for the removal of Japanese-Americans from the West Coast and placement into internment camps. Temples were closed and many Japanese-American Buddhist families hid or destroyed their butsudans (home altars), and other religious items. Jodo Shinshu priests were arrested by the FBI, since they were viewed as community leaders, and imprisoned separate from their sanghas. However, Buddhist services were conducted within the internment camps. This article is about the harbor in Hawaii. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... This box:      Racism has many definitions, the most common and widely accepted is that members of one race are intrinsically superior or inferior to members of other races. ... FDR redirects here. ... United States Executive Order 9066 was a presidential executive order issued during World War II by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt on February 19, 1942, using his authority as Commander-in-Chief to exercise war powers to send ethnic groups to internment camps. ... The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a federal criminal investigative, intelligence agency, and the primary investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ...

The term 'Churches' in the name of the sect derives historically from the desire of Japanese immigrant Buddhists to be accepted into North American society and to avoid attracting hostility and discrimination, especially after many Japanese-Americans were interned during World War II. The name was changed from the BMNA to Buddhist Churches of America in 1944 at the Topaz War Relocation Center. During the internment period, many Japanese-Americans enlisted in the U.S. Army to prove their loyalty to America and in the belief that it would end the internment of their families. The BCA also petitioned the War Department to have a Buddhist military chaplain assigned to the segregated Japanese-American units, such as the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, but this request was denied as Buddhism was not a recognized religion (at the time only Protestant Christian, Catholic Christian and Jewish chaplains were endorsed). Buddhist chaplains would not be accepted until 1987 when the BCA re-applied for and was granted official endorser status. Following the end of internment in 1946, Japanese-Americans returned to the West Coast and what was left of their former homes, and most temples were re-opened. Relations with the Nishi Hongwan-ji in Japan were also reestablished. For the architectural structure, see Church (building). ... North America North America is a continent[1] in the Earths northern hemisphere and (chiefly) western hemisphere. ... Japanese Americans ) are Americans of Japanese descent who trace their ancestry to Japan or Okinawa and are residents and/or citizens of the United States. ... Jerome War Relocation Center in Jerome, Arkansas Japanese people heading off to an internment camp. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... The Topaz Relocation Center was an internment camp which housed Nikkei -- Americans of Japanese descent and immigrants who had come to the United States from Japan. ... The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces which has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ... War Department may refer to the military establishments of several different countries: British War Department Confederate War Department United States Department of War, under the leadership of the United States Secretary of War (until 1947) See also: defense minister This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists... A chaplain in the 45th Infantry Division leads a religious service in an unknown location during World War II. US Navy Chaplain Kenneth Medve conducts Catholic Mass onboard the Ronald Reagan (2006) A chaplain is typically a priest, ordained deacon or other member of the clergy serving a group of... The 442nd Regimental Combat Team, hiking up a muddy French road in the Chambois Sector, France, in late 1944. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Honden, or main hall, of Higashi Hongan-ji, Kyoto Hongan-ji ), also archaically romanized as Hongwanji, is the name of a number of Buddhist temples, all of the Jōdo ShinshÅ« sect, across Japans history. ...

Post-war developments

After World War II, the newly reorganized Buddhist Churches of America temples resumed traditional Jodo Shinshu rituals and services, and served as a refuge from continuing racial discrimination in wider American society. For this reason, there was little or no desire by many Japanese-American sanghas in propagating Jodo Shinshu, with few exceptions. The internment legacy also created a stronger desire to assimilate into mainstream American society by many nisei ("Second Generation"). The nisei soon replaced the issei in BCA ministry and leadership positions, and English was used more frequently in services and meetings. During the next several decades, as Buddhism became more widely known and accepted in American society, particularly in its Zen and Tibetan Buddhist forms, Jodo Shinshu Buddhism continued to remain unknown, or misunderstood as an ethnic or "Christianized" form of Buddhism. This view is gradually changing as the organization's membership is becoming more ethnically diverse due to the growing American interest in Buddhism and intermarriage among the sansei ("Third Generation") and yonsei ("Fourth Generation") families, who continue to constitute the majority of sangha membership. English is the predominant language spoken at BCA temples, although some Japanese-language-only services and classes are still held. Sutra chanting (or shomyo) is still in the Japanese-language; some temples have attempted to create an English-language shomyo. Jōdo ShinshÅ« ), also known as Shin Buddhism, was founded by the former Tendai Japanese monk Shinran Shonin. ... Nisei (二世 lit. ... Nisei (二世 lit. ... The Issei Japanese (一世 lit. ... For other uses, see Zen (disambiguation). ... Tibetan Buddhism, (formerly also called Lamaism after their religious gurus known as lamas), is the body of religious Buddhist doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and the Himalayan region. ... A silhouette of a Buddha statue at Ayutthaya, Thailand. ... The Sansei Japanese Americans (三世 lit. ... Yonsei may refer to: Yonsei Japanese American, a fourth generation Japanese American Yonsei University, a private university in Seoul, South Korea. ... SÅ«tra (sex) (Sanskrit) or Sutta (Pāli) literally means a rope or thread that holds things together, and more metaphorically refers to an aphorism (or line, rule, formula), or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a manual. ...

The BCA continues to struggle with the legacy of the internment and the effects of assimilation, as it confronts many serious issues: temples which are in isolated rural or deteriorating urban areas (which were formerly Japanese-American enclaves), a dwindling membership, lack of interest by young Japanese-Americans in Jodo Shinshu Buddhism, and misconceptions of their doctrine within American Buddhism. There are also ongoing debates regarding the adaptation and change of traditional Shin doctrine to Western ideas of Buddhism, such as whether or not temples should offer meditation, a non-Shinshu practice, in order to attract new members, who would not be ethnic Japanese. However, it is hoped that ongoing American interest in the Dharma will lead to a new interest in Jodo Shinshu Buddhism and a revival of Jodo Shinshu in the United States. The BCA has attempted to accomplish this goal chiefly through academia, "minister's assistant" training, and through cultural events open to the public, such as the Obon Festival, taiko drumming, and Japanese food bazaars. This article is about the usage and history of the terms concentration camp, internment camp and internment. ... Cultural assimilation (often called merely assimilation) is an intense process of consistent integration whereby members of an ethno-cultural group, typically immigrants, or other minority groups, are absorbed into an established, generally larger community. ... Covering 15 acres (61,000 m²), California’s Hsi Lai Temple is the largest Buddhist temple in the western hemisphere. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For other senses of this word, see Meditation (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Dharma (disambiguation). ... Jōdo Shinshū ), also known as Shin Buddhism, was founded by the former Tendai Japanese monk Shinran Shonin. ... Academia is a collective term for the scientific and cultural community engaged in higher education and research, taken as a whole. ... Illuminated by the Albuquerque Bridge, Japanese volunteers place candle lit lanterns into the Sasebo River during the Obon festival. ... It has been suggested that Japanese_Taiko_Drumming be merged into this article or section. ...

The majority of BCA temples are in California, although there are other temples and howakai ("Jodo Shinshu Dharma Associations") in Washington, Idaho/Oregon, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, Nevada, Illinois, Ohio, New Jersey, New York, and Virginia. The BCA is administratively and regionally divided into six districts: Northern, Coast, Southern, Central, Eastern, and Northwest. Each district may sponsor its own yearly conferences, lectures, and social and religious events. The BCA also publishes a bilingual monthly newspaper, Wheel of Dharma.

In the United States, BCA priests may be addressed as either sensei ("teacher"), "Minister," or "Reverend." BCA ministers have historically been all male and ethnically Japanese, but there is now a substantial number of female, and non-Japanese, ministers. BCA minister's dress or koromo includes the full-length black fuho, which is the everyday priest's robe, and wagesa, a type of stole which is said to symbolize the original Buddhist robe worn by the historical Buddha. Additional, more formal robes include the kokue, a heavier black robe with longer sleeves and pleated skirt, hakama, and gojo-gesa, a colorful five-paneled apron which is draped over the kokue. These are worn for major services such as Obon or Hoonko. In Japan, Jodo Shinshu priests typically wear a white hakue, or undershirt, under their robes, and tabi, a traditional split-toe sock, but this is usually not worn in America. BCA ministers also carry an ojuzu, a string of beads with tassels said to symbolize a person's bonno or "evil passions" which one must be mindful of. They are similar to the mala in other Buddhist traditions. Jodo Shinshu Buddhism does not have monastic vows (vinaya)so priests may marry: priests' spouses are called bomori, an archaic Japanese word which may mean "temple helper." Bomori are very active in temple activities, and may also be ordained and assist in rituals and services. The stole (a liturgical vestment of various Christian denominations) is an embroidered band of cloth, formerly usually of silk, about two and one-half to three metres long and seven to ten centimetres wide, whose ends are usually broadened out. ... Media:Example. ... YOSAKOI1(2004 August at Enomoto Primary School Osaka) Yosakoi2(2004 August at Enomoto Primary School Osaka) O-bon is a Japanese Buddhist holiday to honor the departed spirits of ones ancestors. ... Jōdo Shinshū ), also known as Shin Buddhism, was founded by the former Tendai Japanese monk Shinran Shonin. ... Jōdo Shinshū ), also known as Shin Buddhism, was founded by the former Tendai Japanese monk Shinran Shonin. ...

Seminary and education

The BCA's American seminary, the Institute of Buddhist Studies (IBS), is located in Berkeley, California and is affiliated with the Graduate Theological Union. This seminary and graduate school offers a Master of Arts in Buddhist Studies and offers on-line courses. BCA priests graduate from the IBS after three years and are ordained at the Nishi Hongwanji-ha in Kyoto, Japan in an evening ceremony called tokudo. Most BCA priests receive additional ordination called kyoshi (which permits them to teach doctrine) and kaikyoshi, literally "overseas teacher" which permits them to teach outside mainland Japan. A typical course of instruction for priesthood includes study of Jodo Shinshu doctrine, history, and liturgy, courses in comparative religions, general overview of Buddhism, and some Japanese-language instruction. Recently the IBS introduced Buddhist-based courses for chaplaincy training in partnership with the Sati Center for Buddhist Studies. The Institute of Buddhist Studies is a Jodo Shinshu-affiliated seminary and graduate school, located in Berkeley, California. ... Berkeley is a city on the east shore of San Francisco Bay in northern California, in the United States. ... The Graduate Theological Union is a consortium of nine independent theological schools and eight program centers in Berkeley, California. ... A Master of Arts is a postgraduate academic masters degree awarded by universities in North America and the United Kingdom (excluding the ancient universities of Scotland and Oxbridge. ... Kyoto )   is a city in the central part of the island of HonshÅ«, Japan. ... Jōdo ShinshÅ« ), also known as Shin Buddhism, was founded by the former Tendai Japanese monk Shinran Shonin. ...

On October 20, 2006, the Jodo Shinshu Center, located in downtown Berkeley, was opened, to function as a training center for ministerial candidates and assistants in the U.S., sponsor continuing education programs for priests and laymembers, and as a major site for the propagation of Shin Buddhism in North America. The Center is also the US headquarters of Ryukoku University based in Kyoto, Japan. Ryukoku University is a major university located in Kyoto, Japan. ... Kyoto )   is a city in the central part of the island of HonshÅ«, Japan. ...

Currently, the Buddhist Churches of America is the only Buddhist organization which can endorse chaplains of Buddhist faith for U.S Armed Forces, as recognized by the National Council on Ministry to the Armed Forces (NCMAF). The BCA may also endorse Buddhist chaplains for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet department of the United States government responsible for administering programs of veterans benefits for veterans, their families, and survivors. ...

External links

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• Buddhist Churches of America website
• Institute of Buddhist Studies Shin Buddhist seminary in Berkeley, CA.
• Ekoji Buddhist Temple - BCA Temple in Fairfax Station, VA, near Washington D.C.
• New York Buddhist Church
• Seabrook Buddhist Temple BCA Temple in Seabrook, NJ.
• Seattle Betsuin Buddhist Temple
• Idaho-Oregon Buddhist Temple
• White River Buddhist Temple BCA Temple in Auburn, WA.
• Oregon Buddhist Temple - BCA Temple in Portland, OR.
• Tacoma Buddhist Temple
• Midwest Buddhist Temple - BCA Temple in Chicago, IL.
• Ogden Buddhist Church
• Honeyville Buddhist Temple
• Pasadena Buddhist Church
• Mountain View Buddhist Temple
• Buddhist Temple of Salinas
• Fresno Betsuin Buddhist Temple
• Buddhist Temple of San Diego
• Gardena Buddhist Church
• Los Angeles Hompa Hongwanji Buddhist Temple
• Vista Buddhist Temple
• Buddhist Church of Sacramento
• Placer Buddhist Church
• Marysville Buddhist Church
• Lodi Buddhist Church
• San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin
• Orange County Buddhist Church
• San Fernando Valley Hongwanji Buddhist Temple
• Oakland Buddhist Church
• Berkeley Buddhist Church
• Buddhist Church of San Francisco
• Enmanji Buddhist Temple - BCA Temple in Sebastopol, CA.
• Southern Alameda County Buddhist Church
• San Mateo Buddhist Temple
• Arizona Buddhist Temple
• National Council on Ministry to the Armed Forces
• Buddhist Military Sangha - Resource for Buddhists in US Armed Forces http://buddhistmilitarysangha.blogspot.com/