William Quinn asks the question, “What’s an American Buddhist,” then offers up a good article that addresses it. The crux of his point is this:
North American Buddhists are likely to create their own traditions and schools of thought, but they should do so with the awareness that they are forging a new Buddhist culture, not the true Buddhist culture.
If they dont recognize this fact, the same problem of adaptation would also apply, hypothetically, to any developed North American Buddhist tradition 900 years in the future either by its devout ecclesiastical adherents or when first introduced to the population of some other culture that had neverbeen exposed to the teachings of the Buddha.
via Buddhist Channel | Buddhism News, Headlines | US Northeast | Whats an American Buddhist?.