The Spiritual Evolution of Lama Rod Owens

Lama Rod Owens, a 44-year-old black Buddhist educated at Harvard School of Divinity, combines the teachings of Buddhism and Judeo-Christian religions to cultivate what he calls “new saints” amongst his students. Raised within the Black Baptist and Methodist tradition, Owens left with a reluctant approach to gender and sexuality, searching for personal religious autonomy and a more inclusive spiritual path.

Owens, reports say I attribute much of it to my spirituality his mother, the Reverend Wendy Owens, whose path as a United Methodist minister inspired his spiritual journey. “Like so many Black women, she embodied wisdom, resilience and vision.” Owens told the outlet: “She taught me easy methods to work. And she taught me easy methods to change because I saw her change,” he said.

After graduating from Berry College, a nondenominational Christian school, Owens redoubled his commitment to ministry, which he said was his latest religion. Owens has trained as an advocate for survivors of sexual violence and has volunteered for projects specializing in education about HIV/AIDS, homelessness, teen pregnancy and substance abuse. “Even though I was no longer doing theology, I was definitely following the path of Jesus: feeding people, sheltering people,” Owens said

Shortly after graduating from Berry College, Owens joined Haley House in Boston, where he met people of various faiths: Christianity, Buddhism, Wicca, Islam, and even monasticism. He credits a friend who gave him a replica of “Cave within the snow,” written by Vicki McKenzie, which tells the story of Tibetan Buddhist nun Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo’s seek for enlightenment, which set Owens on his spiritual path.

“When I first started exploring Buddhism, I never thought, ‘Oh, black people don’t do this because maybe it goes against my Christian upbringing,’” Owens said. “I assumed, ‘Here’s something that may help me suffer less… I used to be only serious about easy methods to reduce the damage to myself and others.’

His contact with various religions deepened only at Harvard Divinity School, where Owens met a member of the Satanic faith. According to La Carmina, creator of “The Little Book of Satanism”, despite the pseudonym, most Satanists are nontheists.

“There are many different types of Satanists, but most do not actually believe in Satan and do not worship him as either a god or a force of evil. “For the most part, Satanists are non-theists and view Satanism as personal liberation from traditional theistic beliefs.” La Carmina said: “We value nonconformity and rebellion against ideas of superstition and arbitrary power. Modern Satanists are non-violent and interested in the pursuit of reason, justice and truth.”

Owens went from “breaking up with God” in college to reconciling with God and refining his image of God, as he said: “God is not some old man sitting on a throne in the clouds who has some very temperamental attitude. God is space, emptiness and energy. God is always that experience, inviting us back through our most divine, holy souls. God is love.”

Owens continues to attract inspiration from figures as diverse as James Baldwin, Harriet Tubman, Alvin Ailey, Andre Leon Talley, Toni Morrison, Tony Kushner and Beyoncé. This wide-ranging group of influences motivates him to proceed to remain fluid, as he said “I want people to feel the same when they experience something I talk or write about.”

Owens added: “That’s part of an artist’s job — to assist us feel and never be afraid to feel. To help us dream in a different way, encourage us and shake us out of stiffness into greater fluidity.