Late Night on Lloyd Street: The Wheel and the Star: Do the Shapes Fit?: Buddhism and Judaism Meet in the Modern World

Thursday May 22, 2014

6:00 to 9:00 pm

Admission is Free

 

Did you know the first American to convert to Buddhism on American soil was Jewish?  Charles Strauss converted in 1893 at an exposition on world religions. Join us for this panel discussion on the connections between Judaism and Buddhism.
As with all Late Night on Lloyd Streets there will be plenty of snacks and drinks.

 

The three participants are:

 

Don O’Rourke has been meditating for twenty-five years with the Theravada Forest tradition.  His teacher is Ajahn Amaro who is a student of Ajahn Chah and Ajahn Sumedho.  He tries to do at least an annual retreat at Amaravati (a Buddhist Monastery in Hemel Hempstead, England) where Ajahn Amaro is now the abbot. He has also done retreats at the Theravadian Bhavana Society Retreat Center in High View, West Virginia. The Abbot there is Bhante Gunaratana. Don is now retired but was previously a high School teacher at a Public School in Baltimore.

 

Joshua Rothschild is a teacher of yoga and meditation in Baltimore.  He first found meditation in 2000, when he was suffering from what had been a long and deep depression.  With the support of learning meditation, his depression lifted, and he was hooked on a new spiritual practice.  After 7 years of practice, Josh went to an ashram and was certified as a teacher of both yoga and meditation.  For  4 years he taught the practices full time in classes, seminars, workshops, and one on one coaching sessions.  In that time he taught yoga and meditation in diverse areas such as jails, homeless shelters, corporate offices, retreat centers and yoga studios.  In the past three years, Josh has been a full time Baltimore city 2nd grade teacher and has integrated the practices into his classroom.  He also continues to teach yoga and meditation to adults in classes and retreats on the weekends.  In addition to teaching the practices, Josh continues as a student as well, primarily learning in the zen lineage from his teacher, Sensei Bruce Blackman.  Josh grew up Jewish in Pikesville, and still celebrates the Jewish holidays with his family.

 

Chava Evans is a student at Yeshivat Maharat, the first institution to ordain Orthodox women as clergy. Graduates of the Yeshiva are conferred the title “Maharat,” a Hebrew acronym for Manhiga Hilkhatit Rukhanit Toranit, one who is teacher of Jewish law and spirituality. Chava was  born in Boston MA, and grew up in rural Vermont.  She holds a dual B.A. in Illustration and Religious Studies from Rhode Island School of Design and  Brown University. She is a recipient of the James Manning Medal for Excellence in Religious Studies and a Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholar. She studied at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, the Jerusalem Studio School, Hebrew University, and the Nishmat Center for Advanced Torah Study. She holds an M.F.A from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and worked for many years as a freelance illustrator.

 
Late Night on Lloyd Street programs are FREE thanks to generous support from the Grandchildren of Harvey M. and Lyn P. Meyerhoff Philanthropic Fund.