“Without inner change there can be no outer change. Without collective change, no change matters.” - angel Kyodo williams
“Our era calls for saints who are from this time and place, who speak the language of this moment, and who integrate both social and spiritual liberation. I believe we all can and must become New Saints.” - Lama Rod Owens
Join us on Saturday, November 21st for The Sacred Work of Liberation: Transforming Ourselves and Our World with Rev. angel Kyodo williams and Lama Rod Owens, two beloved spiritual teachers whose work brings contemplative practice into conversation with liberation, justice, belonging, and social change.
Amidst the complexities of modern life and a world asking so much of us, how do we deepen our spiritual grounding without turning away from what is happening around us? What does it mean to remain present without becoming passive? How can our inner work be a wellspring for collective healing?
Guided by the intersection of Zen Buddhism and Black queer liberation, Rev angel and Lama Rod invite us to consider what becomes possible when contemplative practice moves beyond personal tranquility and into the terrain of relationship, justice, liberation, and social change. angel’s teachings call us toward radical self-acceptance, belonging, and collective liberation, reminding us that inner transformation is interwoven with the transformation of our world. Lama Rod brings Buddhist wisdom into conversation with Black liberation, exploring radical self-care, anger, grief, embodiment, and freedom, inviting us to turn toward what we often try to avoid.
Together, they open a deeper inquiry into how we can remix contemplative practice for these times—drawing from ancient wisdom while responding honestly to the realities of our contemporary lives and communities. What does liberation ask of us today—in ourselves and in our world? How can we meet our pain with enough courage and care that it does not become a barrier to our liberation or our capacity to care for others?
This wisdom conversation invites us into a shared space of reflection, practice, and possibility—a place where spiritual grounding meets courageous action, where healing and justice inform one another, and where our individual journeys are understood as part of something larger.
As we gather together, may we meet the complexity of these times more fully—rooted in the sacred, connected to one another, and awake to what is possible.