Dear John,

For more than 600 years, since the beginning of the lineage of the Dalai Lamas, Tibetan Buddhists have named the successor to the Dalai Lama according to the guidelines of our faith. Now China is planning to upend this tradition by installing the next Dalai Lama as someone of their choosing.

A Chinese government-approved Dalai Lama won’t be accepted by the Tibetan people. The right to selection and appointment of religious leaders should remain with the Tibetan Buddhist community and not the Chinese Communist Party. This is how China wants to destroy our sacred religion—from the inside.

ICT urgently needs your support to help halt China’s political takeover of Tibetan Buddhism. Your gift today will be matched through the Flame of Hope Matching Gift Challenge by Richard Gere and friends—going 2x as far in helping to safeguard religious freedom.

Imagine if the US President declared the right to select the next Pope. Or sent police into houses of worship and private homes to monitor religious practices.

This would be a clear violation of the basic human right to practice one’s religion without government interference. Yet Tibetan Buddhists endure this intrusion every day.

While China’s top leaders scheme to interfere in the sacred Tibetan Buddhist practices of selecting their religious leaders including a future Dalai Lama, their foot soldiers storm into family homes and imprison Tibetans simply for displaying an image of His Holiness.

With your help, ICT has been working towards passage of the Tibetan Policy and Support Act (TPSA), which happened earlier this week! This law makes it official US policy that only Tibetan Buddhists have the right to determine how the next Dalai Lama will be selected. If China tries to select a Dalai Lama or interfere in religious practices, they’ll face serious sanctions. Your gift today will be DOUBLED to help advocate for the full implementation of the TPSA.

The US Congress spoke with a clear voice when they passed the TPSA with an overwhelming bipartisan majority earlier this week. Add your voice by making a gift today and help protect Tibetan Buddhism for generations to come.

With Gratitude,

Tencho Gyatso
Director of Outreach

P.S. There’s still time to help stop China’s takeover of Tibetan Buddhism. Please make a gift today that will be doubled through the match challenge to protect the future of our sacred religion.