Buddhism and Christianity?

[LovelyLadybug]

Maybe a “Catholic Buddhist?” I know some Catholics (sadly) blend the two religions. I don’t think it’s right for a Catholic to embrace Buddhism. It sounds to me like you’re more of a Buddhist than you are of a Catholic. I’m sorry if I sound rude. I’m just trying to express concern for your soul. I recommend dropping all Buddhist practices and returning to Catholocism. You won’t regret it. God Bless!!!

 

[anon99031074]

Maybe a “Catholic Buddhist?” I know some Catholics (sadly) blend the two religions. I don’t think it’s right for a Catholic to embrace Buddhism. It sounds to me like you’re more of a Buddhist than you are of a Catholic. I’m sorry if I sound rude. I’m just trying to express concern for your soul. I recommend dropping all Buddhist practices and returning to Catholocism. You won’t regret it. God Bless!!!

You don’t sound rude. You sound as if you care, and that can only be a good thing. I don’t really blend the religions, but my life is sometimes complicated. I could resign from the CC, but I know it would cause suffering and existential angst in people I care about, so what is the harm in staying a member? Returning to belief is another matter entirely. That I view as more or less… impossible…

 

[LovelyLadybug]

. I could resign from the CC, but I know it would cause suffering and existential angst in people I care about, so what is the harm in staying a member?

Is that the only reason you’re staying a member? What about God’s opinion? God is our loving father (So, he is also a family member) and he loves you so, so, SO much!!! (No, I’m not exaggerating) and he wants you to love him too. God Bless!!!

 

[anon99031074]

Is that the only reason you’re staying a member? What about God’s opinion? God is our loving father (So, he is also a family member) and he loves you so, so, SO much!!! (No, I’m not exaggerating) and he wants you to love him too. God Bless!!!

I don’t think a God of love could make a universe like this out of the goodness of his heart. It could perhaps make more sense as a purgatory or prison camp for evil spirits in need of rehabilitation, but that doesn’t really work either, once I think deeply about the matter. There could be a powerful being or beings, working for the good of all sentient beings. That is possible, although I haven’t seen much evidence for such an idea. But as I see it, he/they could not be the maker of this mass of suffering, because contrary to the book of Genesis, I think it is not good, but almost sinister.

 

[annem]

shunyata

You don’t feel even the slightest need to present at least some evidence for this radical claim, before you denigrate someone you know others look up to?
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Oh, I am sorry. You are right, I just assumed this was common knowledge, but clearly, you have never heard of it. So, that the “Dalai Lama poisoned to death Father Burdin” is a loose quote from the well known book “Martyr in Tibet”.

The history of Tibet is extraordinarily bloody and ugly. Please look up the 1905 Tibetan Rebellion on, sigh, Wiki. Yes, I know Wiki cannot be trusted, but you can at least check it for a quick source of information about the terrible martyrdom of Christians by Tibetans during 1905. Here are some direct quotes from Wiki:

Tibetan monks "slaughtering all Catholic missionaries and Qing officials…the French Catholic priests, who were all massacred…

…and killing two foreign missionaries, Père Mussot and Père Soulié… In the palace, they killed all Christian converts, both Chinese and Tibetan… At Yarragong and near the Yangtze the Tibetans murdered two Catholic French priests…Around the Mekong river every Catholic priest was murdered…they mounted Father Dubernard’s head on the Atuntze Monastery’s gate…On July 22, 1905… killed the French Catholic missionaries Père Pierre-Marie Bourdonnec …The Tibetans “disembowelled, beheaded and quartered” the body of Pere Bourdonné after he was shot to death…At Batang, the Tibetan Lamas massacred 66 Christians … hunt down the priest Père Étienne-Jules Dubernard, breaking his arms and subjecting him to death by three days of torture, while lashed to a post at the destroyed mission…Dubernard had been tortured for days by the Lamas. His upper limbs were both fractured and restrained, he was secured on a stake, his eyes were gouged out, his tongue, ears and nose severed, and while he was living, his extremities were severed…At the Atuntze Monastery the Tibetans mounted the decapitated heads of the French priests,

Thorns were used by the Tibetans to whip Father Mussot, a French Priest, and his severed hands and head were affixed to a monastery door after the Tibetans shot him to death… Methods of execution such as encasing victims in yak skins which were then sewn shut and left out to be exposed to the elements were used upon Christians by the Tibetans. The Tibetans executed Father Soulié and took to the Atunze monastery the head and liver of Bourdonnec after they slayed him and Dubernard

 

[annem]

shunyata

There are a few doctrines that are common to all of Buddhism. The four noble truths. The noble eightfold path.

Then how do you explain the 2,500 years of books and teachers insisting intellectual inquiry was pointless?

Distorted elements of Buddhism were abused in WW2.

I am sorry, but I think you need to check more deeply into history. This was not simply a problem only in World War II.

For example, as early as the 8th century The Tale of Genji describes Buddhist monks as terrorists, who raided and pillaged the villages near their monasteries. Later, The Tale of the Heike, describes an army of Buddhist monks who slaughtered fearlessly. One was Saka no Shiro Yokaku, who used scything horses’ legs so he could make horsemen fall, and kill them. Samurai warriors for centuries quoted the Buddhist doctrines of no-self and the illusory nature of life as justification for killing.

 

[LovelyLadybug]

I don’t think a God of love could make a universe like this out of the goodness of his heart.

A universe like what? Our universe is amazing!!!

It could perhaps make more sense as a purgatory or prison camp for evil spirits in need of rehabilitation, but that doesn’t really work either, once I think deeply about the matter. There could be a powerful being or beings, working for the good of all sentient beings. That is possible, although I haven’t seen much evidence for such an idea. But as I see it, he/they could not be the maker of this mass of suffering, because contrary to the book of Genesis, I think it is not good, but almost sinister.

God loves us SO much that he gave us free will. The reason people suffer is because they sin. If Adam and Eve hadn’t sinned, there wouldn’t be any suffereing in this world. It isn’t God’s fault. So, you’re right. God is not the maker of this mass of suffering. It’s our fault, not God’s. Also, suffering can bring us closer to God. I offer my sufferings up to him and he uses them to save souls. As I said earlier, suffering is our fault not God’s. I hope this helps!!! God bless!!!

 

[openmind77]

openmind77:

Christianity is best for average people

Christianity is best for everybody, including intellectuals. God Bless!!!

Actually I agree - Christianity is suitable for ALL types of people. But there are many misunderstandings and inaccuracies in Catholic beliefs - these will be all sorted out when the Christ Returns. Buddhism has no major inaccuracies - but it is difficult to understand for the lay person.

 

[annem]

Shunyata

I no longer believe …However, culturally (and karmically, I guess) I am very much still connected to it, *
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Yet here you are trying to talk Catholics into Buddhism. That strikes me as anything but kind. In fact, Isn’t there something rather spiteful in that? Why would an honest person do that, except to cause harm? I truly do not see any other explanation, but perhaps you can put forth some reason.

 

[anon99031074]

Then how do you explain the 2,500 years of books and teachers insisting intellectual inquiry was pointless?

I have yet to see you produce any evidence for this claim.

I am sorry, but I think you need to check more deeply into history. This was not simply a problem only in World War II.

I was responding to your claim about WW2, but I did not say humans were uniquely evil in the last century. All religions, even jainism which is as non-violent as it gets, have been abused by humans. This still has nothing to do with the teachings of the Buddha, and the vast corpus of suttas preserved in the Buddhist community, both from his time and later, which condemn war, torture, malice, anger, lust, hatred, greed and all the other acts & mental defilements that lead humans to wreac havoc on this planet. Most religions have understood these simple words, but humans find it difficult to practice them:

All tremble at violence; all fear death. Putting oneself in the place of another, one should not kill nor cause another to kill. All tremble at violence; life is dear to all. Putting oneself in the place of another, one should not kill nor cause another to kill. One who, while himself seeking happiness, oppresses with violence other beings who also desire happiness, will not attain happiness hereafter. - Dhammapada 10.

 

[anon99031074]

Yet here you are trying to talk Catholics into Buddhism. That strikes me as anything but kind. In fact, Isn’t there something rather spiteful in that? Why would an honest person do that, except to cause harm? I truly do not see any other explanation, but perhaps you can put forth some reason.

I have done no such thing. I have responded to what I perceive as unfair and unbalanced attacks against the faith I practice. Double standards. Pot calling kettle black, and gross distortions of Buddhism. I actually stopped posting on this forum quite a while back, and had no intention of starting again, but weak as I am (mea culpa) I couldn’t resist responding to some of the more unbalanced attacks.

I have no interest in trying to deconvert you or anyone else from Catholicism. In fact, if you are happy and it develops your potential to be a kind and compassionate human being, then it is a force for good in this life and any next life for you. If I really wanted to attack Catholicism, I would not lack weapons to do so in my mental “arsenal”. But I believe in practicing non-violence in word as well as deed, and like I said, why try to tear down something that works for good in someone’s life?

God loves us SO much that he gave us free will. The reason people suffer is because they sin. If Adam and Eve hadn’t sinned, there wouldn’t be any suffereing in this world. It isn’t God’s fault. So, you’re right. God is not the maker of this mass of suffering. It’s our fault, not God’s. Also, suffering can bring us closer to God. I offer my sufferings up to him and he uses them to save souls. As I said earlier, suffering is our fault not God’s. I hope this helps!!! God bless!!!

I don’t want to derail this thread, and if you are able to believe the universe is good, awesome and created by a loving Father, it is certainly not my wish to try to take that belief from you, but I am unable to believe this.

At any rate, time for me to go back to lurking. Best wishes.

 

[Peaceable]

Are you disputing Nalanda? It’s a UNESCO world heritage site and the heart of Buddhism for its time. According to an archeological survey, they studied astronomy and philosophy (not to mention construction related sciences that would be required to build the thing in the first place).

You maybe quoting Hanh out of context and misunderstanding Buddhists (and some Hindus) who refer to illusion or “Maya.” They may be referring to the spiritual context, and endorsing that excessive philosophical discussion and inquiry gets one too far away from the experiential aspects of Experiencing “the ultimate reality” (mistranslating here). This didn’t mean that they didn’t engage in more practical matters also for which reasoning and knowledge would be useful. The Dalai Lama today I in fact interested in science.

In any case the “knowledge” that “gets in the way” may not be relating to other areas of practical inquiry that they did participate in.

In a sense a similar argument would be akin to saying that the Bible doesn’t explore science, so Christians aren’t scientific. But it’s the wrong context for scientific discussion.

This is why even Hindus with similar beliefs that excessive theorizing can get in the way of spiritual inquiry, managed to have exceptional for their time scientific, medicinal and mathematical systems, as well as industrial arts.
Don’t know enough about Chinese history but my sense is that they were plenty advanced in many ways that we still profit from.

 

[Peaceable]

I disagree that Christianity is for “average people”. There are plenty of extraordinary Christians and Buddhists out there! Both traditions have also intellectual as well as popular traditions if that’s what you’re meaning. Plenty of non-intellectually motivated people practice Buddhism as well!

 

[Peaceable]

There are Catholic priests who blend both traditions, Without abandoning the Catholic faith or diminishing it. I suspect there’s more compatibility and sources for fruitful discourse than not. Particularly in the monastic aspects of the traditions. I worry that Catholics feel threatened by Buddhism. Why does this need to be the case? Can’t people find a common ground that can help each move forward in their faith tradition? You can see the good in other traditions, but that doesn’t mean you are disrespecting or abandoning your own. By trying earnestly to understand another tradition, you may even grow in your own religious faith!

 

[openmind77]

I disagree that Christianity is for “average people”

Actually I said Christianity is for ALL types of people, but it is the best choice for average people. Sure non-intellectuals practice Buddhism, but they don’t understand it very well.

 

[LovelyLadybug]

I don’t see how Buddhism can help me, a Catholic, grow in my faith. I’m sorry if I sound rude. I just don’t understand that, since it goes against Catholic teachings. Yes, they have similar moral teachings to Catholics, but Catholicism is all I really need. Why would I want to add another religion onto it? Especially since it’s anti-Catholic and agnostic/polytheistic.

 

[Randolph]

I don’t see how Buddhism can help me, a Catholic, grow in my faith. I’m sorry if I sound rude. I just don’t understand that, since it goes against Catholic teachings. Yes, they have similar moral teachings to Catholics, but Catholicism is all I really need. Why would I want to add another religion onto it? Especially since it’s anti-Catholic and agnostic/polytheistic.

Well said. But no need for apology. Christ is the answer. Christ wants a loving relationship with us and us with each other. We are to attach to Him and to carry His Cross. Whereas, Buddhism teaches attachment (yes, even to Christ) is the source of all human sufferings.

Buddhism is incompatible with Catholicism—stating it kindly and emphatically.

 

[Peaceable]

I think you’re misinformed about Buddhism, which is why you don’t see its merits. It’s not anti-Catholic. Of course, it’s not specifically pro-Catholic either.

There are virtues in both traditions and each can learn from the other. Of course it’s not required for you to know about Buddhism be a good Catholic. But if you’re going to make comments about Buddhism, for the sake of charity, it would help you to be more informed about it I think. And thus, by being more charitable you’ll be a better Catholic.

 

[Randolph]

Sure non-intellectuals practice Buddhism, but they don’t understand it very well.

This is such an arrogant statement. It is false and I am embarrassed for you. I am not a supporter of Buddhism. But I know a lot about it through learning, through having Buddhist friends and monks, and through living a large portion of my life in a predominantly Buddhist country.

Most Buddhist monks are not intellectuals. Most practicing Buddhist followers are also not intellectuals. Although Buddhism is incompatible to my catholic faith, I have lots of respect and admiration for many Buddhists. These people are simply ordinary people, who through their acts of kindness and gentleness, communicate the tenets of their faith very well and effectively—much more effectively than those intellectuals with their words.

 

[openmind77]

Although Buddhism is incompatible to my catholic faith, I have lots of respect and admiration for many Buddhists.

I have lots of respect for Buddhists too (and Christians for that matter) Where did I say otherwise? So sorry, i embarrassed you. My apologies.