Hawaii Betsuin Earth Day Service
April 18, 2021, 10 a.m. HST (YouTube premiere)

With guest speaker
Rev. Don Castro
Seattle Betsuin Rinban Emeritus

Presented on the Hawaii Betsuin YouTube Channel

About Our Speaker

Rev. Don Castro, Rinban Emeritus of Seattle Betsuin Buddhist Church

When Reverend Don Castro retired on December 31, 2016, he had been a minister at Seattle Betsuin Buddhist Temple for 31 years. The last 6 of those years were as the Rinban, or Chief Minister. Rev. Castro is one of only two non-Japanese to have been appointed Rinban of a Betsuin in Buddhist Churches of America. The first ministerial assignment of his career was to San Francisco Buddhist Church in 1977 when he was 29 years old.

A theme of Rev. Castro’s career has been the relationship between Buddhism and environmental consciousness and engagement. He developed the concept of EcoSangha — that to be a Buddhist is to be an ecologist and a conservationist — and promoted ecological awareness and programs both within individual temples and to the Buddhist Churches of America.

At Seattle Betsuin, an example of EcoSangha principles put into practice was the introduction of compostable containers and flatware at major events such as Bon Odori. The program earned recognition from Seattle SeaFair. At the national level, Rev. Castro submitted an EcoSangha resolution to the National Council of the Buddhist Churches of America calling upon member temples to promote “ecologically friendly behavior in the spirit of mottainai.” The resolution passed.

Reverend Castro’s EcoSangha influence continues to be felt in many temple sanghas, including in Hawaii, where in 2016 our annual Legislative Assembly passed a “Green Hongwanji” resolution. Giving Earth Day talks and seminars are among the many ways Reverend Castro continues to share the Dharma and promote EcoSangha in retirement.

Following the service, there will be an informal Earth Day sharing session on Zoom starting at 11 a.m. HST. For more information, see Hawaii Betsuin Earth Day 2021 Dialogue and Sharing (pre-registration required).