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Community Service

cactocacto New
edited July 2012 in Buddhism Basics
Any of you participate or are aware of buddhist groups or whole sanghas providing service in your community? If so what and where? Any problems encountered, or successes? In my city I'm not aware of any. There is a non-buddhist local Food Not Bombs, the group that takes food donations from supermarkets and cooks it for homeless people, though I work constantly and can rarely participate( I do work in a grocery store, so I try to provide them with as much food as I can).

Comments

  • JohnGJohnG Veteran
    I really don't think that the flavor of the group matters; just that the deed's done are done for the purpose of not obtaining personal glory, but the comforting of the hurt.
  • SimonthepilgrimSimonthepilgrim Veteran
    Is it not astonishing that, here in the U.K., "Community Service" is a punishment imposed by the courts as an alternative to prison?
  • karastikarasti Breathing Minnesota Moderator
    It is the same in the US, community service is a punishment handed down in many different areas (normal court, juvenile court). It's sad that helping your community is viewed as a punishment, and also sad that so many people don't help out unless they are forced to.
  • genkakugenkaku Northampton, Mass. U.S.A. Veteran
    @Simonthepilgrim -- The same is true here in the US. Different context, different meaning, I guess.

    Social involvement has never been high, as far as I know, on a Buddhist agenda. Hence, perhaps, the newsworthiness/surprise evinced in this article noting a Buddhist organization's speaking out about nuclear power. There are notable exceptions here and there, but in general, when it comes to social activism, Buddhism is more talk the talk and less walk the walk.

    Or maybe I'm wrong.
  • karastikarasti Breathing Minnesota Moderator
    The people I know participate a lot on a personal level, but not as a group. They don't have Sangha Adopt-A-Highway programs or anything. But the people who make up the Sangha I'm part of, both our local one and the "HQ" are very active in community projects. I think it would be fine for people to organize such things, but I think it's more important to do it on your own. It tends to lose something (for me) when it's part of a group. That certainly might not be true for other people of course, just what I have seen.
  • VastmindVastmind Memphis, TN Veteran
    @JohnG said....comforting the hurt. Wow.
    That was Compassion described.
    I also think it should be Community Service described.
    @genkaku is describing the part of the US i live in as well.
    Buddhism teaches us to be accountable for our own practice, so
    the group 'blame' becomes insignificant. IMHO
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