Special Offering
Buddhist Healthy Boundaries—Nov 13-14
Recurrent
Recurrent
**Update: This offering now has two parts. Friday is a Council Circle for current and past BZC sangha, and Saturday is a one-day training open to all.**
Buddhist Healthy Boundaries at Brooklyn Zen Center is a free offering in two parts on how communities prevent harm and respond with care, with Jan Chozen Bays, Dr. Carolina Franco, and Laura Jomon Martin. Offered in person at Boundless Mind Temple and online via Zoom, the program is rooted in the core teachings of wisdom and compassion, and in how they come alive in our relationships and ethical conduct as a spiritual community. It is an opportunity to deepen our shared commitment to creating and sustaining a safe, healthy, and caring practice environment.
For people who are currently or historically part of the Brooklyn Zen Center sangha. Hybrid: join in person or online.
A one-day intensive, open to people new to the BZC community and to anyone currently or historically part of the sangha. The training can bring clarity to the confusion that arises from misconduct by spiritual teachers. Hybrid: join in person or on Zoom. A vegetarian lunch will be provided.
We’ll explore why healthy boundaries matter in sangha life and look closely at the complexities of power and vulnerability in teacher-student relationships. Topics include warning signs, meaningful consent, role reversal, why misconduct happens, whether an errant teacher can be rehabilitated, and what a sangha needs to prevent abuse and safeguard its members. We’ll also consider how communities can respond when harm occurs, and the role of self-care and peer support in preventing it.
There will be no Saturday Morning Program on November 14 due to this training.
There is no cost to participate but registration is required.
Register by November 12, 2026, 11:50 PM ET.
**Please indicate whether you will be attending in person or online.**
Jan Chozen Bays, MD, is a pediatrician who specialized for thirty years in the evaluation of children for abuse and neglect. She has trained in Zen for forty-five years with two Zen masters, Taizan Maezumi Roshi and Shodo Harada Roshi. She serves as co-Abbot of Great Vow Zen Monastery in Oregon. She has over 30 years of experience in the prevention of, and intervention in, misconduct by Buddhist teachers and is a founder of the course on Healthy Boundaries for Buddhist Leaders. She has published articles about Zen in Buddhist magazines and is the author of six books published by Shambhala including: Mindful Eating, Mindfulness on the Go, The Vow Powered Life, Jizo Bodhisattva and Mindful Medicine.
Dr. Carolina Franco is a clinical psychologist working with individuals, families, and organizations. Her approach is trauma-informed and grounded in depth psychology, with particular attention to the systemic, historical, and contextual factors that shape people’s experiences and that must be part of their healing. She has been supporting BZC’s process over the past year.
Laura Jomon Martin received Lay Teacher Transmission from Chozen and Hogen Roshi in 2019. Within the Zen Community of Oregon Sangha, she has served in various capacities, bringing attention and focus to sangha support. She continues a 30-year career as a social worker, with foundational experience supporting survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, and taught secular mindfulness (MBSR) for 15 years. She now practices as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in private practice, specializing in work with healthcare professionals. She is an apprentice to Chozen Roshi in the work of Buddhist Healthy Boundaries. She and her husband Bansho currently reside at Great Vow Zen Monastery.
Boundless Mind Temple is located in the Parish House of Christ Church Cobble Hill, next to 326 Clinton Street. Enter the driveway on Clinton, go past the scaffolding, and through the double doors.
A Zoom link will be sent to all registered online participants before the event.
BZC relies on donations to sustain its spaces, teachers, and staff. Learn more about supporting us here.
Our health and wellness policy for all visitors has been updated for our current post-pandemic times while still prioritizing community care.
Please see BZC’s Updated Health & Wellness Policy for more information.