Happy 75th birthday to the Dalai Lama, and may he have many more.
I'm praying (and I know that he'd be happy about that) that he remains healthy and continues to inspire people of all faiths for many years to come. It's especially worrying that China wants to approve the next Dalai Lama–likely only accepting someone amenable to the Chinese rule over Tibet. They aren't even acknowledging that it's his birthday today.
The church, too, struggles with Chinese government's desire to control religion there. Looking at China really makes me glad for the freedom of religion in the United States.
As a Buddhist who believes in rebirth, his Holiness Tenzin Gyatso might not be attached to this life, and having heard him speak twice, I know that he has a lot more patience and peace than most of us. But I still worry for the rest of us. We can only hope that China grants religions more freedom and let's Tibet be free.
