OGDEN -- The Rev. Jerry Hirano looks relaxed as he sits in a room in the Ogden Buddhist Church, where he has been the minister since 1999. With him are his assistant ministers, Annette Koga and Mike Monson.
Hirano is also the minister -- or kaikyoshi in Japanese -- for the Salt Lake Buddhist Church and chairman of the Buddhist Churches of America Ministers Association.
He also teaches advanced classes in Jodo Shinshu, a branch of Mahayana Buddhism, which recognizes all people as potential buddhas.