Bishop Koshin Ogui

Socho Koshin Ogui, who has held the post of bishop of the Buddhist Churches of America since April 1, 2004, was officially selected to serve a second term.

A total of 170 attendees at the conference of the BCA Ministers Association and BCA National Council, which was held on Feb. 29 in Portland, Ore., voted unanimously for Ogui.

He was presented with the appointment by the Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji in Kyoto, and his second term, which will last until March 31, 2012, will begin on April 1 of this year.

Ogui was selected as a candidate last Aug. 16 in Fresno along with Rinban Nobuo Miyaji of Fresno Betsuin, and was chosen last Sept. 21 in Berkeley by an election committee representing eight BCA districts. Ogui further received the approval of the BCA National Board, which has 65 members, on Dec. 1, 2007.

When asked about his goals for his second term, Ogui said that he is prepared to make every positive effort to work for the BCA. He further stated that it is his personal goal to convey the wonderful nature of Buddhist tradition here in the U.S., and to do this, he must convey the traditions in a manner that is convincing to Americans.

Ogui, who is based in San Francisco, is the writer of the popular column “Nyozegamon,” which appears in the Hokubei Mainichi’s Japanese section every Saturday.