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JAINA-NEXT 25 YEARS
Previously, I have chronicled the 25-year journey of JAINA from its inception to the silver Jubilee year of 2005. The formative years of JAINA have seen a phenomenal growth from a handful of centers in 1981 to 67 centers spread all over North America in 2007. Founding visionaries Gurudev Shri Chitrabhanuji and late Acharya Shree Sushil Kumarji inspired a non sectarian organization that is the foremost example of unity in the Jain universe. Today JAINA serves over 100,000 Jains without any regard to language, place of origin or sect and is the largest such organization in the world. JAINA is seen as a model of unity around the world and admired for its ability to unite so many individuals with a common goal.
Admirable as JAINA's accomplishments and stature are, it is time we paused to contemplate where we go from here. The next generation of Jains will have to meet new challenges and our growth will have to be a planned one. What follows is a discussion of ideas that have been considered many times in JAINA Executive Committee and at social occasions. The vision presented here is not a complete one just to allow people to consider what the future course of JAINA can be.
JAINA is an umbrella organization - an organization of organizations. JAINA functions through Directors nominated by its member centers. It publishes a quarterly magazine Jain Digest that is mailed freely to 9,000 homes in North America and maintains a web site that provides information about the workings of JAINA. Every
two years, the JAINA conventions give the community a rare chance to meet the
volunteers and elected representatives and participate in workshops and discussions. Every convention demonstrates the community's enormous goodwill for JAINA and their hopes and expectations; however, the community at large does not really interact with JAINA. At the end of the convention people go back to their homes and leave JAINA back in the hands of their representatives, very similar to participating in a wedding ceremony but leaving the newlyweds on their own thereafter.
This disconnect between JAINA and the community at large has been of great concern to JAINA leaders for some time and it must be addressed. The various committees of JAINA do strive to serve segments of the community. For example, the Education Committee creates uniform Pathshala curriculums for children of all ages; the Pilgrimage Committee arranges annual pilgrimages to Teerthdhams in India; the Scholar Invitation Committee facilitates visits of monks and scholars; YJP and YJA serve the young generation and JNF enables social interaction among young adults. World community service committee and North American family assistance committee taps into reservoir of generosity of community and funds relief operations world wide or helps needy families here. For all the useful services these and other committees provide, the impact of JAINA on the lives of most of the community members is fairly limited.
With some help from JAINA, the Jain community in North America will continue to get more organized, a few more centers will be formed and more Temples will be built in the coming years but for JAINA, the real growth will come from providing meaningful service to all the segments of the community. To provide that kind of service, JAINA will have to transform itself into a service organization. JAINA must provide service not only to the member centers but to the community at large. From strictly a volunteer organization it will have to become somewhat professional organization.
14th Biennial JAINA Convention 2007
cation International
26
For Private & Personal Use Only
Dilip V. Shah Philadelphia, PA
Every two years,
the JAINA conventions give the community a rare chance to meet
the volunteers and elected representatives and participate in workshops
and discussions. Every convention demonstrates the community's enormous goodwill for JAINA and their hopes and expectations; however, the community at large does not really interact with JAINA.
PEACE THROUGH DIALOGUE
www.jainelibrary.org
