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The
Founding of Sonrise Center for Buddhist Studies, Inc.
During the
Summer of 1984, two Christian books were given to a man who had been
practicing Buddhism for fourteen years. He was also asked some
questions about his Buddhist faith. Questions like, "Where are you
going to go after you die? Do you believe in reincarnation?" Soon
he was reading a bible and within a week was asking, "How do
I become a Christian?
Why don't we hear more stories like this? After his conversion he had a
difficult time finding anything, other than liberal Christian books that
attempted to address the issues he faced as a new convert. He perused
one book on prayer and meditation that recommended he try Zen Buddhist
meditation techniques in his prayer life. However, he knew that the two
were incompatible. Why? As a graduate of a Buddhist study academy and as
a new convert sitting under serious expository preaching of the Word, he
took exception to such syncretism. In 1987, he took the
perspectives
course on missions and discovered a gaping hole in the Church's effort
to evangelize the Buddhist world.
On August 1, 1988, that man, James Stephens, our present Executive
Director, and his wife Elizabeth along with a small fellowship of
believers
started Sonrise Center for Buddhist Studies, Inc. (SCBS) "to equip
Christians for ministry among Buddhists." In 1989, SCBS held a
"Consultation on Mission to Buddhists" in Pasadena with
approximately 40 workers in attendance.
Not desiring to duplicate others' training efforts, an extensive survey
of Christian Colleges and Seminaries was completed in 1990, which
uncovered the virtual absence of any program focused upon equipping
Christians for ministry among Buddhists, and only a few singular courses
ranging from an overview of Zen Buddhism to a brief survey of missions
in an Asian context.
In 1990, SCBS was invited to coordinate the
operations team of a Focus Exhibit on the Buddhist World at
InterVarsity's Urbana student missions conference. The last two Urbana's
we have had the opportunity to survey over 189 mission organizations and
interview 40 agencies claiming work among Buddhists. To our dismay we
have found only a small handful of organizations who are doing any
serious mission work among Buddhists.
Consequently, SCBS began to develop courses in cooperation with
experienced missionaries, educators and writers which focus upon
training
leaders for ministry in a Buddhist pluralistic context. In the summer of
1991, courses were organized in Pasadena, which attracted professors,
missionaries, and other interested Christians. The courses expanded
internationally in 1994, and were held in Pasadena, London, and in
Katmandu, Nepal with over 92 students from 22 countries. In 1998, SCBS
entered into collaborative training relationships with Los Angeles
Missionary Internship and Mission America.
In the year 2000, SCBS launched a virtual institute
http://www.sonrisecenter.org
on the worldwide web. Through our presence on the
Internet we continue to serve our global constituency
with vital information and training through
online resources, virtual classrooms
and global connections.
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