The Adventures of a Southern (Baptist) Buddhist by Pamela McConnell MSW LCSW

Author:Pamela McConnell, MSW, LCSW
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Buddhist pilgrimage, Appalachian women biography, asian adventure travel, backpacking/trekking, fundamentalist/evangelical, marriage and divorce, child abuse and domestic violence
Publisher: Pamela McConnell, MSW, LCSW
Published: 2022-08-10T00:00:00+00:00

I CONTINUED TO ATTEND SGI and to contemplate karma and past lives and how they intersected with this life. I visited Deer Park Monastery in Escondido. It was established by the late, great Thich Nhat Hanh: a famous Vietnamese monk who had championed civil rights for his people. He became famous in the West for his teachings and books, such as: No Mud, No Lotus. He was of the Zen tradition.

I enjoyed the beautiful and serene surroundings and found it very interesting to meditate in silence and to eat with others in silence. I was used to public and private chanting and that helped me to focus and concentrate.

I read the new book that came out by Paramahansa Yogananda(all 1696 pages and 75 chapters): The Second Coming of Christ; The Resurrection of the Christ Within You; A revelatory commentary on the original teachings of Jesus. It cemented what I had been thinking about Christ Jesus and The Gospels. I especially loved the artist drawing of Jesus in a meditation position.

Living in SoCal, S. Korea and Pakistan gave me a sense of the world. I had studied Cultural Competency in Social Work classes; but really learned it in my jobs, relationships and travels.

I realized how much living abroad had changed me. It had been a helluva education, alongside my degrees. It had given me a world view and forever changed the way I looked at things. The things people turned their nose up at: a bad sewage system, trash/garbage on the street, a dirt floor in a home, or the smells of a live food market/farm; was not catastrophic to me. I had a much higher tolerance level than most people I knew.

I often thought I would love to be on a spaceship to look at beautiful planet Earth from space; to get an even deeper perspective.

Those experiences made me more empathetic and wise. At the same time, I became more ostracized. I was now seen as more of an outsider in the fundamentalist/evangelical communities of the DEEP South. I could only fit in if I kept my mouth shut and pretended; but I wasn’t a poser. I could only be who I am. I would advocate for ME the way I advocated for all our patients, families, clients.

It was still hurtful, but it made me stronger. I was learning Patience from my fundamentalist family, and especially from Saint. They were helping me become a better person.

Mom would say, “I’m praying for you.”

I told mom, “Thank you for all your prayers. Your prayers have helped me find My Path.” She wasn’t exactly happy: SHE wanted a different path for me.

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