Deputy Secretary General of BLIA Oceania arrives

Deputy-Secretary General of BLIA Oceania, Venerable Yilai and Venerable Juetung arrived in BLIA NZ Earthquake Relief Centre to understand the earthquake situation. BLIA NZ Venerable Abbess Manshin, Venerable Juexi, BLIA NZ South Island Vice-President Chen Mei-Hwa, BLIA NZ North Island president Dolly Tsai and other BLIA members welcomed them together in the Main Shrine. At 7pm, the Oceania Deputy Secretary and approximately 50 BLIA members had a discussion on the Earthquake event, several BLIA members reported back on the situation of the earthquake. Venerable Abbess Manshin thanked the Deputy-Secretary General of BLIA Oceania, Venerable Yilai to come all the way from Australia to encourage and bring hope to BLIA NZ South Island despite her busy schedule. The Abbess then introduced the volunteering team to her and thanked all the BLIA members for their caring support to the victims of the earthquake.

During the discussion, each leader of the volunteer group, including kitchen leader Chen Yen-Ying, Shrine attendant Louisa Kuo, reception group leader Sally Lim, lecturer Chen Pu-Chang, food serving group leader Kara QiuYu-Shan and news group Xie Xiao-Yun shared their thoughts on the earthquake event. Volunteers were appreciated for helping and serving everyone at the front line of the disaster. Understanding that some disaster victims got wounded emotionally from the earthquake, the Abbess advised every volunteer to listen attentively to the victim’s aspiration and help them to relief their innermost melancholy.

BLIA NZ North Island president Dolly Tsai did a PowerPoint presentation to report progress and support of the BLIA NZ Earthquake Relief Centre. She also shared her experience in the earthquake support. She expressed that several BLIA members were victims but they gain strength and motivation, lose the pass and helped by serving the society at the BLIA NZ Relief Centre. As the society now sees a BLIA vest, they would raise a thumb to show acclaims. The society is grateful to our Venerable Master in bringing BLIA to New Zealand and letting everyone in BLIA giving light and heat.

Venerable Abbess Manshin felt grateful for the Oceania Deputy-Secretary General Venerable Yilai to come immediately to the venue, showed her concerns and spread the disaster aid experience to everyone so that everyone in the BLIA Earthquake Relief Centre would be guided in the correct way. She emphasized, doings of the BLIA Earthquake Relief Centre had followed Venerable Master Hsing Yun “to give” manner; in not only providing the disaster victims with commodities, it is also a place for them to feel consoled, a place for the media and the New Zealand Police to set up their temporary office. BLIA members had also assisted the police to translate and print posters and to lighten the government’s burden during this disaster. In all, BLIA members are practicing Master Hsing Yun’s “four gives” objective.

Deputy-Secretary General of BLIA Oceania, Venerable Yilai was moved for the live filling experience that everyone shared during the discussion and emphasized that if there were no religious believe during the disaster everyone will feel devastated and helpless. Fo Guang Shan and BLIA provided a stage for every BLIA members to calm down the society’s fearful heart. Any disaster occurred will remind people that everyone is vulnerable and everything is impermanent. Everyone should cherish and feel appreciated for the things that they own. The Deputy-Secretary General also acclaimed the BLIA NZ team for a systematic assistance for the earthquake event and manifested the non substantiality of the three aspects of giving. She congratulated BLIA members to display life value and announced that the experiences shared during the earthquake will be shared worldwide to different Fo Guang Shan branches around the world. Lastly the Deputy-Secretary General blessed everyone for a safe and propitious life.