Michael Newton

Michael Newton's connection with Japan started when, at age 12, he joined a Japanese martial arts class at a local YMCA. "That class began a journey which shaped the rest of my life," he says.

He lived for about nine years in Japan, first as a martial arts student, then as a graduate student studying Japanese religions, and finally as teacher and translator.

His area of speciality is Japanese culture and religion, but he is also interested in Japanese aesthetics and art. He has taught undergraduate courses at SFU on Japanese history and culture, Asian studies, Buddhism, Zen, and other religious studies.

Recently, he finished writing a chapter on Japanese religions in British Columbia for a book on Asian religions in B.C., which will be published by UBC Press.

Newton is also an ordained Zen Buddhist priest and a member of a meditation group in Vancouver.

Previously taught: