Monday, December 8th, is Bodhi Day, when some traditions of Buddhism celebrate Buddha’s enlightenment. This Bodhi Day, the 102-year-old Salt Lake City Buddhist Temple is also welcoming a newly ordained minister.
Doctor Carmela Javellana is a psychiatrist who grew up in the Phillipines. She connected with Reverend Jerry Hirano, the minister of the Salt Lake Buddhist Temple, through a personal ad. They married, and she became his assistant. Doctor Javellana then studied to become a minister herself through the Institute of Buddhist Studies in Berkeley, California. This past month, she traveled to Kyoto, Japan for the tokudo, or ordination ceremony, and she is now a fully-qualified priest in the JodoShinshu tradition. Doctor Javellana sat down with KUER's Dan Bammes to talk about that transformation.
