Matthew Abrahams, writing for Tricycle:
The American Buddhist nun and bestselling author Pema Chödrön has stepped down as an acharya (senior teacher) at Shambhala International in response to the group’s handling of the allegations of sexual abuse against Shambhala lineage holder Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche. Pema Chödrön, who had remained a part of the organization after the Sakyong stepped away from teaching and administrative duties, decided to resign after the Sakyong announced that he would resume teaching and a transitional board of directors invited him to lead an upcoming event in France.
In her letter to the board, released publicly on January 14, 2020, Pema Chödrön wrote, “I have decided to step down as an acharya. As you know, I haven’t actually served as an acharya for a long time, and I have been considering retiring for a few years. And now, the time has come.”
I haven’t followed Chödrön’s career closely, and still haven’t gotten around to reading her classic book When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times. But even though I’m not intimately familiar with her ideas or the alleged sex abuse that took place at Shambala, her reaction seems to be completely reasonable.