[Buddha-l] Dangerous religious literature?

[jkirk]

Already sent a couple of inquiring emails, but this organization offers sets
of printed materials, but no books mentioned:
 
Naljor Prison Dharma Service 
PO Box 3990, Santa Barbara CA 93130-3990 / Tel: (805) 682-3338 (877)
277-6075 / E-mail: npds at naljor.us / 
Website: www.naljorprisondharmaservice.org
We offer The Heart of Dharma Collection: ten precious dharma teachings; each
printed on both sides of a sheet of legal-size paper. These accurate,
concise teachings are perfect for daily study, contemplative meditation, and
inspiration. Practitioners of all lineages will benefit from these essential
teachings. You may request the entire collection for a cost of eight (8)
first-class stamps. For individual teachings, please send two (2)
first-class stamps each. Teachings available: Eight Verses for Training the
Mind, The Four Noble Truths & Noble Eightfold Path, The Four Immeasurables,
Twenty-Seven Verses on Mind Training, The Six Paramitas, The Heart-Practice
of Tonglen, The Four Thoughts That Turn the Mind Toward Dharma, Discourse on
Loving-kindness (Metta Sutta), Karma, Transforming the Three Poisons.

Joanna
======================= 

-----Original Message-----
From: buddha-l-bounces at mailman.swcp.com
[mailto:buddha-l-bounces at mailman.swcp.com] On Behalf Of Richard Hayes
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2007 1:56 PM
To: BUDDHA_L Discussion Forum
Subject: [Buddha-l] Dangerous religious literature?

Dear denizens,

Another interesting article in the New York Times that caught my eye
recently was about a policy to clear US prison libraries of potentially
dangerous religious literature. Apparently this whole thing got started
shortly after the 2001 celebration of my daughter's birthday on September
11. Something happened that day that alarmed American prison authorities
into thinking that Muslims might become dangerous radicals if allowed to
read some Muslim writings while in prison.

Not wanting to appear as if they were singling out Muslims for special
censorship, the prison authorities decided to set up lists of up to 150
books from each of 20 religious traditions that prisoners are allowed to
read. (The Napoleonic Code comes to America at last! Everything that is not
expressly declared to be legal is illegal.) All books NOT on the allowed
list must be removed from prison libraries.

The NY Times article reports that many authorities feel the selection of
allowed books in their particular religious tradition is strangely skewed. 
The 150 Christian books, for example, include no writings by church fathers
or traditional Catholic theologians, many Calvinist books and even more
non-denominational evangelical Protestant books; it sounds as though
Lutherans, Baptists, Methodists and Anglicans need not apply. Perhaps The
Rapture is regarded as the only "get out of jail free" card.

I am not sure which books Buddhists are allowed to read. If anyone feels
like doing a bit of Googling (or Ask-ing or AstaVista-ing or HotBot-ing), it
would be fun to get collectively alarmed and outraged about the selection of
Buddhist books that US prisoners are allowed to read. (Lots of Lama Surya
Das and Bhagwan Rajneesh? Or maybe the prison authorities watched Jack
Nicholson in "The Last Detail" and have chosen lots of Soka Gakkai
literature.)

Question for extra credit. Is it actually required, or simply very helpful,
to be uncommonly stupid before being allowed to make policies for prison
libraries?

Still on the outside looking in,
Richard Hayes
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