HomeNewsSravasti Abbey releases statement about Orlando attacks, call for compassion, gun control

Sravasti Abbey releases statement about Orlando attacks, call for compassion, gun control

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In an announcement this week Sravasti Abbey, the Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Newport, condemned the Orlando mass shooting and said responding with “Bigotry, discrimination, and angry retaliation” isn’t an effective response.

“As Buddhists, who cherish life and the intrinsic worth of every living being, we believe it is vital to preserve a heart of compassion for victims and perpetrators, even amidst challenging public discourse,” the statement read.

They urged people to wish for true happiness for one another before calling on lawmakers to enact “common sense gun laws.”

“The inaction and failure of our Senate and House over many years to enact common sense gun laws is a disgrace. We call on them to act for the welfare of all common citizens. We have the right to live in safe communities, and gun ownership does not foster safety,” the abbey stated in the announcement.

Tracy Simmons
Tracy Simmons
Tracy Simmons is an award-winning journalist specializing in religion reporting and digital entrepreneurship. In her approximate 20 years on the religion beat, Simmons has tucked a notepad in her pocket and found some of her favorite stories aboard cargo ships in New Jersey, on a police chase in Albuquerque, in dusty Texas church bell towers, on the streets of New York and in tent cities in Haiti. Simmons has worked as a multimedia journalist for newspapers across New Mexico, Texas, Connecticut and Washington. She is the executive director of FāVS.News, a digital journalism start-up covering religion news and commentary in Spokane, Washington. She also writes for The Spokesman-Review and national publications. She is a Scholarly Associate Professor of Journalism at Washington State University.

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Paige
Paige
10 years ago

Good PR opportunity. I think that makes 5 groups so far.

Neal Schindler
Neal Schindler
10 years ago
Reply to  Paige

Having met some folks from this place, I don’t think it’s PR they’re about so much as lovingkindness toward every living being.

Bardsbrood
Bardsbrood
10 years ago

This is pretty serious, for them to make such an endorsement. I’m really glad they have taken a stance.