This March, Middlebury will welcome the Bread Loaf Mountain Zen Community (BLMZC) as they fully consolidate in a new location at 76 Court Street. BLMZC is an organization that distinguishes itself from other Vermont Zen communities based on its mission to practice community-engaged Buddhism.
The BLMZC is currently centered at a monastery in Cornwall, Vt. and at the Middlebury-based outreach center Gather at 48 Merchants Row. The new location will unite the ceremonies, meditations and sittings that currently take place in Cornwall with the community services provided by Gather.
“Our practice is going out into the community and sharing our sense of compassion and hospitality and welcoming people. It's a basic tenet of Bread Loaf Mountain Zen to see other people as yourself and to see yourself as the other,” said Colleen Jishu Brown, a co-founder of the group.
The Zen Community’s Cornwall location opened in December 2017 as a hub for Zen practice in the Middlebury area. The community was founded by Brown and her long-time friend Joshin Byrnes, a pair who had previously pursued their Zen journeys independently. In the early 2000s, Byrnes lived in Middlebury and served as the executive director of the Vermont Community Foundation. He later undertook formal Zen training at Upaya Zen Center in New Mexico — one of the country’s most renowned Zen institutions. Upon returning to Vermont and reconnecting with Brown, Byrnes decided he wanted to teach and form a community based on his Zen practices.
“We wanted to form a community here with him as our lead teacher, and through the generosity of a few people, we were able to buy this building in Cornwall, which became our home for the Bread Loaf Mountain Zen Community,” Brown said.
The Cornwall monastery provided Addison County residents an opportunity to become acquainted with the Zen Community’s Buddhist practices without having to commute to towns further from home. BLMZC’s Buddhism is rooted in the schools known as Soto Zen tradition and White Plum Asanga lineage.
The organization’s dedication to community outreach extends specifically to individuals living on the margins, according to Brown. With this mission in mind, BLMZC established a program called Gather, which provides those in need with a place to eat, shower, and access to essential resources out of their Middlebury location.
“Many of the people who come to Gather are people who are struggling with housing insecurity, substance issues, mental health struggles, poverty, or loneliness, and in many contexts, they're known just by their diagnosis,” Brown said.
Mark Orten, director of Middlebury College’s Scott Center for Spiritual and Religious Life, spoke with The Campus about Gather’s impact on the Middlebury community.
“[BLMZC] bought [48 Merchants Row], renovated it and made it a place for anybody who needed to or wanted to, to stop by,” Orten said. “There was a washer and dryer so they could wash their clothes. There was a shower so that they could clean up. Volunteers were always there as resources, to help them learn where there were other community services around town for housing, banking or getting money for things.”
Over the years, Middlebury students have become involved with Gather, and Orten said he has always recommended it as an opportunity for students to connect with often-overlooked aspects of the community.
“I imagine that there are probably a number of Middlebury College students who are interested in meditation and maybe Buddhism, or how Buddhism and social action intersect, and those are all things that are right up Bread Loaf Mountain’s alley,” Brown said.
She believes that BLMZC’s consolidation this March will make it easier for students on campus to get involved with their programs.
“Seventy-six Court Street will open up to have all of the Bread Loaf Mountain projects, activities, and retreats, all under one roof,” Brown said.
BLMZC provides numerous opportunities for students to get involved, whether they are interested in Buddhism or in community service. Students who wish to get involved should visit the Bread Loaf MountainZen Community website and visit Middlebury’s Crest Room in McCullough Student Center, where they can participate in community building and spiritual practices.
