I’m not sure I’d put it that way. But anyway, the cases are different. Our faith rests on Jesus Christ as the decisive revelation of God in history, and on His promise to incorporate us into His body. That being the case, any Christian faith worthy of the name must be able to trace itself credibly to Jesus through the past 2000 years of history. Hence any “Reformational” Christianity has a huge credibility problem from the outset. (Note that I remain a Protestant of sorts in spite of this, which is a subject for another thread.)
Christianity does not claim to be the most ancient religious tradition in the world. That is not the basis of faith in Christianity in the first place, so the fact that Hinduism is older is no reason to become a Hindu.
A good case can be made that Hinduism is a natural development of the human religious impulse. While it claims divine inspiration of a sort, this is more of an insight into the nature of reality than the kind of decisive, sovereign divine intervention that the Abrahamic religious claim when they speak of revelation.
Remember that “religion” is really an equivocal term. There aren’t a lot of things called “religions,” all basically the same and making the same claims. Christianity rests on completely different grounds from Hinduism. If God has ever decisively revealed Himself to humans in a universally relevant way, then basically there are two games in town: Christianity and Islam (of course there are some other contenders, and we can talk about them if you want, but it seems to me that these are clearly the two main ones). Hinduism and Buddhism are different things altogether. If God has not revealed Himself to humans in this decisive way, then something like Hinduism or Buddhism is likely to be true, although the cultural specificity of Hinduism has to be taken into account in any kind of Western appropriation.
So you can’t just compare the ages of different “religions.” You have to ask what kind of religion you think likely to be true in the first place.
I would recommend the work of Bede Griffiths (especially The Cosmic Revelation: The Hindu Way to God) for a consideration of the relationship between Catholicism and Hinduism, though there are a number of Catholics who have written about this. I should warn you that many folks here think of Bede Griffiths as one of those evil liberal heretics!
Edwin
According to The Book of Enoch, it was fallen angels that taught the beginning roots of pagan religions that later developed into Hinduism:
The Book of Enoch 7: 1-15
1It happened after the sons of men had multiplied in those days, that daughters were born to them, elegant and beautiful.
2And when the angels, (3) the sons of heaven, beheld them, they became enamoured of them, saying to each other, Come, let us select for ourselves wives from the progeny of men, and let us beget children.
3Then their leader Samyaza said to them; I fear that you may perhaps be indisposed to the performance of this enterprise;
4And that I alone shall suffer for so grievous a crime.
5But they answered him and said; We all swear;
6And bind ourselves by mutual execrations, that we will not change our intention, but execute our projected undertaking.
7Then they swore all together, and all bound themselves by mutual execrations. Their whole number was two hundred, who descended upon Ardis, (4) which is the top of mount Armon.
8That mountain therefore was called Armon, because they had sworn upon it, (5) and bound themselves by mutual execrations.
9These are the names of their chiefs: Samyaza, who was their leader, Urakabarameel, Akibeel, Tamiel, Ramuel, Danel, Azkeel, Saraknyal, Asael, Armers, Batraal, Anane, Zavebe, Samsaveel, Ertael, Turel, Yomyael, Arazyal. These were the prefects of the two hundred angels, and the remainder were all with them. (6)
10Then they took wives, each choosing for himself; whom they began to approach, and with whom they cohabited; teaching them sorcery, incantations, and the dividing of roots and trees.
11And the women conceiving brought forth giants, (7)
12Whose stature was each three hundred cubits. These devoured all which the labor of men produced; until it became impossible to feed them;
13When they turned themselves against men, in order to devour them;
14And began to injure birds, beasts, reptiles, and fishes, to eat their flesh one after another, (8) and to drink their blood.
15Then the earth reproved the unrighteous.
Chapter 8
1Moreover Azazyel taught men to make swords, knives, shields, breastplates, the fabrication of mirrors, and the workmanship of bracelets and ornaments, the use of paint, the beautifying of the eyebrows, the use of stones of every valuable and select kind, and all sorts of dyes, so that the world became altered.
2Impiety increased; fornication multiplied; and they transgressed and corrupted all their ways.
3Amazarak taught all the sorcerers, and dividers of roots:
4Armers taught the solution of sorcery;
5Barkayal taught the observers of the stars, (9)
6Akibeel taught signs;
7Tamiel taught astronomy;
8And Asaradel taught the motion of the moon,
9And men, being destroyed, cried out; and their voice reached to heaven.
