I am like no one else you have ever met.
My Buddhist name is Konchok Jangchup Dorje, my Christian church name used to be Bishop John Columba, my Cherokee name is Yona Gadadoli which means "Praying Bear" and I am a native Floridian. Although I grew up Southern Baptist, or rather, because I did, I found my way many years ago to the Orthodox Church, where I eventually began my monastic life and was tonsured a Stavrophore monk. Several years later, I was ordained to the priesthood in the American Catholic Church, Diocese of Central Florida, which was subsequently reorganized as the Holy Orthodox Catholic and Apostolic Church. I was consecrated a bishop in the American Orthodox Catholic and Apostolic Church, Holy Synod of the Americas which was to be reorganized because the corporation had been dissolved. I have been Grand High Priest of the Sacred Circle of Florida and last year was ordained a Ngakpa in the Drikung Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism.
My faith has been shaped by my Baptist upbringing which included the strong historical teaching of my mother and the simple faith and Christian "caritas" of my beloved maternal grandmother, which made me firmly committed to Christ, as well as traditional Eastern Orthodox theology, which taught me to see "salvation" as "theosis." However, Bishop Marinus Peters, who ordained me, broke me out of my earlier narrowness both liturgically and pastorally. Furthermore, I have been shaped by Gnosticism, Holy Bishop Ignaty Brianchaninov, Archbishop Anthony Khrapovitsky, Holy Archbishop John Maximovitch, the Dalai Lama, other Tibetan Buddhist monks, Thich Nhat Hanh, Black Elk, others on the "Red Road, " Theosophy, and Creation Spirituality. Two touchstones that guided me through many changes and decisions: "Where is the love of Christ here?" and "What would the Master do?"
For some time I have been reading on a Yahoo group the postings of Bhikku Samahita and even went so far as to formally join his cyber sangha. At that point I added to my daily spiritual practices certain Buddhist practices. This led to my discovering a special event in my local area. I had a most wondrous weekend attending a Medicine Buddha Retreat. During practice at one point my overly busy mind was quiet for a moment, such a blessed moment. However, more importantly it was clear to me that this needs to be part of my practice for the benefit of others. I am often asked to pray for those who are sick. With regard to my own health issues which include arthritis, I can say that after hours of sitting, I was able to rise although stiffly, yet without pain. However, there were elements of the weekend which have to do with my own past life memories.
An incident that Sunday relates to a spontaneous memory that I had around a year earler. That day a friend at a pagan gathering was giving a workshop on dance. While she danced I watched her hand movements, and remembered being told by my teacher in another lifetime to "study the mudras." I saw my own hands in that past time, that they were dark. I also knew that although I understood my teacher's words, he spoke them in a language that was not my mother tongue. This Medicine Buddha Retreat was given by Tibetan Buddhists. That Sunday, I had the occasion to recall that memory fragment because this, of course, involved learning to do mudras. Noticing one gentleman at the retreat who is from India, I realized that my skin color in my memory was identical to his. However, that was not the most striking thing that day. I'm sure that you have had the experience of forgetting a name or a fact when you had the distinct feeling that you knew it, but just couldn't recall it at that moment. "The name is on the tip of my tongue." In Sunday's practice we chanted in Tibetan and read in English. During our chanting of Tibetan, I had the powerful feeling that I was supposed to be understanding it, but that the meaning was just beyond my reach, rather like the "name ... on the tip of my tongue." Furthermore, the practice required me to learn to do the offering mudras which are part of this practice and, I later learned, are common to other practices.
I see myself as having grown into being a Buddhist rather than leaving being a Christian.
I seek to learn from all who will teach me and am available to teach, in whatever limited way I am able, whoever would learn from me.. After exploring many Buddhist groups, I became active with a local Dharma Center which is part of the Drikung Kagyu lineage. Early last year I received White Tara empowerment, but that summer I "took refuge," received Medicine Buddha empowerment, took Ngakpa Ordination, and received Amitayus Long Life empowerment. From the moment I took refuge, I felt a profound sense that I had come home after so many centuries. I fully intend to take full monastic ordination, hopefully getsul in the 2010, although, according to some sources, I am doing things backwards in that more traditionally the commitments of the Ngakpa come only after many years of practice as a monastic.
