I am a 61 year old retired legal academic - and therefore
baby boomer, like many of the older OBC monks and ex-monks, I notice
. I currently
work as a freelance researcher, law teacher and legal consultant. I am also involved
in a range of political and social activities.
My religious history is that I was brought up as a Presbyterian, became an
Anglican (Episcopalian), and had periods of agnositicism. I read about Buddhism
from the age of 16 or so but became seriously interested in it as a spiritual
path in the early 1990's. I have been happily married to a Roman Catholic for
almost forty years and we have three adult children and a granddaughter. I have
always retained membership of the Buddhist Society of London (founded by
Christmas Humphreys) and like to keep in touch with other traditions e.g. I
subscribe to Tricycle. The Amida Trust have been kind enough to accept me as a
participant in their website although I am not a part of their Sangha. I have
been interested to read Dharmavidya's posts and to see their way of dealing
with these issues. I posted on their debate on these issues at
http://amidatrust.ning.com/group/criticalbuddhism/forum/topics/how-does-a-sangha-not-become-a
My OBC participation has been as a lay person in a local meditation group
for the last 15 years or so. I have visited Throssel Hole Abbey here in the UK less than
once a year over the last nine or ten years. I took the precepts as a lay
Buddhist at the Abbey in the early part of this decade and I identify with that
tradition. I recognise Andi's experiences as similar to mine although I am not
a Lay Minister. Like him I have tried to post a photo (as an avatar?).
I have always found teaching, wisdom and compassion at the Abbey and in dealings
with monks there and in connection with our meditation group. I have also
generally found a willingness to engage in open and honest discussion of
matters around the Order or the Abbey and its direction as well as matters of
Dharma and practice. I have also found the practice very valuable. We can only
speak as we find.
I am very grateful to Lise and the others for providing this Forum which I feel
is very helpful to those on all sides of these issues.
Home 
It's very good to have you here.
