James Ishmael Ford (Zeno Myoun, Roshi) is an American Zen Buddhist priest and a retired Unitarian Universalist minister. He was born in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the ...

on July 17, 1948. He earned a BA in psychology from

Sonoma State University Sonoma State University (SSU, Sonoma State, or Sonoma) is a public university in Rohnert Park in Sonoma County, California, US. It is one of the smallest members of the California State University (CSU) system. Sonoma State offers 92 Bachelor's ...

, as well as an M.Div. and an MA in the Philosophy of Religion, both from the

Pacific School of Religion The Pacific School of Religion (PSR) is a private Protestant seminary in Berkeley, California. It maintains covenantal relationships with the United Church of Christ, the United Methodist Church, and the Disciples of Christ, ensuring the school ...

Biography

Ford began his Zen studies in 1968 at the

Berkeley Zen Center Berkeley Zen Center (BZC), temple name , is an Sōtō Zen Buddhist practice centre located in Berkeley, California currently led by Hozan Alan Senauke. An informal affiliate to the San Francisco Zen Center (SFZC),Ford, 129 BZC was founded in 196 ...

under the direction of

Mel Weitsman Hakuryu Sojun Mel Weitsman (July 20, 1929 – January 7, 2021), born Mel Weitsman, was an American Buddhist who was the founder, abbot and guiding teacher of Berkeley Zen Center located in Berkeley, California. Weitsman was a Soto Zen roshi p ...

, later Weitsman, Roshi. He was ordained

unsui ''Unsui'' ( ja, 雲水), or ''kōun ryūsui'' () in full, is a term specific to Zen Buddhism which denotes a postulant awaiting acceptance into a monastery or a novice monk who has undertaken Zen training. Sometimes they will travel from monaster ...

and received Dharma transmission from the late Jiyu Kennett Roshi. After leaving Kennett Roshi's Shasta Abbey and for a brief time exploring other religious traditions including the Episcopal Church, the western Gnostic tradition and

Inayat Khan Inayat Khan Rehmat Khan ( ur, ) (5 July 1882 – 5 February 1927) was an Indian professor of musicology, singer, exponent of the saraswati vina, poet, philosopher, and pioneer of the transmission of Sufism to the West. At the urging of his ...

Sufism Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality ...

, Ford pursued Zen

koan A (; , ; ko, 화두, ; vi, công án) is a story, dialogue, question, or statement which is used in Zen practice to provoke the "great doubt" and to practice or test a student's progress in Zen. Etymology The Japanese term is the Sino-Jap ...

introspection for nearly twenty years in the Sanbo Kyodan tradition with John Tarrant Roshi, with whom he completed formal training and from whom he received Inka Shomei (formal recognition as an authorized Zen teacher) in 2005. Ford began to be seriously involved in

Unitarian Universalism Unitarian Universalism (UU) is a liberal religion characterized by a "free and responsible search for truth and meaning". Unitarian Universalists assert no creed, but instead are unified by their shared search for spiritual growth, guided by ...

at about the same time he began his work with Tarrant Roshi. After completing theological studies he became a Unitarian Universalist minister, serving Unitarian Universalist congregations in Wisconsin and Arizona before becoming senior minister of the

First Unitarian Society in Newton The First Unitarian Universalist Society in Newton occupies a prominent location at 1326 Washington Street in the heart of the village of West Newton in Newton, Massachusetts. Architect Ralph Adams Cram designed the church, Frederick Law Olmsted ...

, MA in 2000. In May 2008 First Unitarian Church of Providence, RI called him to its pulpit; he began his ministry there in the summer of that year. Roshi Ford also maintained his relationships within the Soto community, and in 2004 Ford participated in the first Dharma Heritage ceremony of the forming North American

Soto Zen Buddhist Association The Soto Zen Buddhist Association was formed in 1996 by American and Japanese Zen teachers in response to a perceived need to draw the various autonomous lineages of the North American Sōtō stream of Zen together for mutual support as well as ...

. This event, designed to be the equivalent of the Japanese Soto Zuisse ceremony, was a public acknowledgment of Ford (among others) as a senior member of the North American Zen community. Ford, a past president of the

Unitarian Universalist Buddhist Fellowship The Unitarian Universalist Buddhist Fellowship (UUBF) is a "Related Organization" (formerly an "Independent Affiliate") to the Unitarian Universalist Association Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) is a liberal religious association of ...

, was the first Unitarian Universalist minister to be named a Zen master. Roshi Ford is a significant figure in the establishment of Zen in North America. He is the co-founder and first abbot of Boundless Way Zen, a network of meditation groups mostly in eastern Massachusetts. He was also influential in the development of th
Buddhist Temple of Toledo
in Ohio. In 2015, Ford retired from his ministry at the First Unitarian Church of Providence, left Boundless Way, and moved to Long Beach, California. He then established th
Empty Moon Zen Network
a network of Zen Centers in California, Washington state, and Pennsylvania. In 2020 he started serving as consulting minister to the historic First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles. Ford is co-editor of ''The Transient and Permanent in Liberal Religion'', and is the author of ''This Very Moment: A Brief Introduction to Buddhism and Zen for Unitarian Universalists'', both published by

Skinner House Books Skinner House Books is a book publisher run by the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), specializing in books for Unitarian Universalists—meditation manuals, worship and church resources, and books on theology, UU history, and social justic ...

. He is also the author of a study of Zen teachers and communities in North America, ''Zen Master Who? A Guide to the People and Stories of Zen'', the co-editor of ''The Book of Mu: Essential Writings on Zen’s Most Important Koan'', and the author of ''If You're Lucky, Your Heart Will Break: Field Notes from a Zen Life'' from

Wisdom Publications The Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT) was founded in 1975 by Lamas Thubten Yeshe and Thubten Zopa Rinpoche, who began teaching Mahayana Buddhism to Western students in Nepal. The FPMT has grown to encompass over ...

. His most recent book is ''Introduction to Zen Koans: Learning the Language of Dragons'' also released by Wisdom. Ford is a member of the

American Zen Teachers Association The American Zen Teachers Association (AZTA) was founded in the late 1980s as the Second Generation Zen Teachers Group. It is a peer-group organization of ordained and lay Zen Buddhist teachers, all of whom have received either teaching authorizat ...

and served on its membership committee for a decade. he is also a member of the

, in which he served on the board of directors. He maintains connections with the Unitarian Universalist community through his work with their Society for Community Ministries and Spiritual Director’s Network. Roshi Ford has nine Dharma heirs including Josh Jiun Bartok Roshi;

Melissa Myozen Blacker Melissa is a female given name. The name comes from the Greek word μέλισσα (''mélissa''), "bee", which in turn comes from μέλι (''meli''), "honey". In Hittite, ''melit'' signifies "honey". ''Melissa'' also refers to the plant ''Me ...

Roshi of Boundless Way Temple; Dosho Port Roshi of the Vine of Obstacles: Online Support for Zen Training (https://www.vineobstacleszen.com); and Jay Rinsen Weik Roshi of th
Buddhist Temple of Toledo
Ohio.

Bibliography

* * * * * *

References

External links

Monkey Mind Online
- James Ishmael Ford's blog {{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, James Ishmael 1948 births Living people Zen Buddhism writers American Unitarian Universalists Zen Buddhist priests American Zen Buddhists Unitarian Universalist clergy Pacific School of Religion alumni

Biography

Bibliography

See also

References

External links