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Zooey
Guest
It’s not true. It denies Christ. That’s about as dangerous as anything can possibly be–it puts eternal souls in danger.
:crying: :crying: :crying:
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:crying: :crying: :crying:
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cmejia
Guest
I have work friends that are Buhddists and I’m ashamed to say that they seem to have a very “Western” view. They chant whenever they need something. We’re not talking cancer cures or anything. An embaressing example was this one girl that was meeting us was looking for parking. She said she began to chant and a parking spot appeared! I could never imagine prayer in that way.
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AnAtheist
Guest
Hi, interesting you asked just that, as there are uncorrupted Buddhist monk corpses as well. What about those?
There are biochemical, thus natural processes, which leave corpses preserved. This might not explain some pictures of the incorruptible Saints I have seen, but chances are, they are simply faked (the pictures and/or the bodies).
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FightingFat
Guest
Isn’t that a poor answer? It’s like you’re saying, ‘how dare you question Catholic teaching’. Surely there must be a better argument- and thankfully many here have posted good ones! Thanks everyone!It’s not true. It denies Christ. That’s about as danferous as anything can possibly be–it puts eternal souls in danger.
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Evanescence
Guest
At least Buddhism doesn’t have a divide amounst itself.
Guilty anyone?
Evanescence
Guilty anyone?
Evanescence
A
AnAtheist
Guest
Oh, it does, Zen, Tibetian, …
But they don’t fight each other, mainly because they not claim to possess the one and only truth.
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utunumsint
Guest
Wars have many causes. For example, nationalism, border disputes, racism, politics. People can go to war for anything they strongly believe in. Scientists also have bitter disputes amongst themselves. They aren’t physically at war with each other, but they are certainly fighting. Buddhists countries have had their bloody wars as well.
Gos Bless.
Gos Bless.
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utunumsint
Guest
How many Japanese or Chinese warlords have practiced Buddhist technique to bring them peace while their armies ravage the country side? People don’t fight about Buddhism because its sole purpose is to bring liberation from suffering. So they can use it to calm the suffering caused by pangs of conscience for slaughtering their enemies. Life is, after all, just an illusion.
(This is a caricature of what Buddhism is about. I am posting this against those who wish to label Christianity as some war mongering religion of persecution and intolerance.)
God Bless.
(This is a caricature of what Buddhism is about. I am posting this against those who wish to label Christianity as some war mongering religion of persecution and intolerance.)
God Bless.
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bhlincoln
Guest
You are apparently not familiar with this phenomena. Preserved bodies (accidentally or intentionally preserved) ALWAYS have a skeletal, distorted appearance, and have a decaying smell as would be expected from a dead corpse. Incorruptibles on the other hand are found lifelike, flexible, contain flowing blood and perspiration etc even after CENTURIES underground, and even more amazing when the casket is opened there is an overwhelming smell of flowers or perfume, and zero smell of decay, and this is all without embalming. Only Catholic Saints have experienced this phenomena, and they are on display in Churches all over Europe for you to see at this moment. Scientists and the world in general are baffled by them and it is clearly not a natural phenomena.
Here is a page that gives a brief overview of the phenomena:
protestanterrors.com/incorruptibles.htm
IF there are preserved Buddhist monks, they are mummies, not incorruptibles.
AnAtheist:
Here is a page that gives a brief overview of the phenomena:
protestanterrors.com/incorruptibles.htm
IF there are preserved Buddhist monks, they are mummies, not incorruptibles.
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ahimsaman72
Guest
Every religion I have learned about has factions/sects/divisions within itself. I personally believe it’s part of our human nature to be divisive. The difference is that in Buddhism it seems less violent and more understanding between the groups.
There are the Theravadans, Mahayana and Vajrayana major divisions, with subdivisions within those. But, they have the same founder in the Buddha and same goals in life. Their paths are more intertwined than one would think. Though different in practice, they are similar in content.
Peace…
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SamCA
Guest
I wasn’t able to dig up the article, but Pravda had a feature a few months back on scientists who were mystified by a Buddhist monk who died in the 20s, whose body had supposedly undergone no chemical decay whatsoever – purportedly, he was still sitting in a lotus position and didn’t even look dead, let alone mummified. According to his fellow monks, he had told them he was about to achieve enlightenment, went into his room and sat down to meditate, and entered the unchanging state he’s been in ever since.
It might be nonsense, of course. But then, I’m skeptical of the incorruptible saints, too.
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Ahimsa
Guest
I greatly admire Pope John Paul II, but I have to say that he is mistaken in his characterization of Buddhist perceptions of the world. The world isn’t “evil” in Buddhism. Clearly, in Tibetan Buddhism, or any of the versions of Mahayana, the world is not seen as “radically evil” (in fact, in Vajrayana, it’s the exact opposite). This world is often depicted as a “pure land”, a place where everything manifests Buddha-Nature.
And even in Theravada (the Buddhism closest to the original teachings of the Buddha), the cosmos is not deemed an “evil” place. Evil is something attributable to humans, so it would be inappropriate to apply the word “evil” to things that can’t make a moral choice.
I think what the Pope was trying to say was that Buddhism characterizes conditional existence (our world of matter, energy, and mind) as “suffering”. This statement is false because it implies that Buddhism sees everything in life as suffering, where suffering is defined as painful, unhappy, and not worth the trouble. Instead, when Buddhism speaks of conditional existence as “suffering” what is meant is that conditional existence is not permanent.
Things are born, they exist, and then they pass away. They aren’t permanent. So, in that sense, things “suffer”. When reading Buddhist texts, one could thus replace the word “suffering” with “impermanence”, and get a more comprehensive idea of what is being discussed.
So things in and of themselves are impermanent and thus “suffer”. Suffering also works on the psychological level as well. Things are impermanent, and this impermanence can lead to suffering in a person’s mind and soul IF that person binds herself to, and becomes dependent upon, those things, hoping that they will last forever and fearing that they won’t.
If you simply enjoy the world, without binding yourself to it, the world (though itself still arising, existing, and passing away) ceases to be a source of fear and greed. It ceases to be a source of psychological suffering. And once one sees the world as a manifestation of Buddha-Nature, the world itself ceases to “suffer”.
And even in Theravada (the Buddhism closest to the original teachings of the Buddha), the cosmos is not deemed an “evil” place. Evil is something attributable to humans, so it would be inappropriate to apply the word “evil” to things that can’t make a moral choice.
I think what the Pope was trying to say was that Buddhism characterizes conditional existence (our world of matter, energy, and mind) as “suffering”. This statement is false because it implies that Buddhism sees everything in life as suffering, where suffering is defined as painful, unhappy, and not worth the trouble. Instead, when Buddhism speaks of conditional existence as “suffering” what is meant is that conditional existence is not permanent.
Things are born, they exist, and then they pass away. They aren’t permanent. So, in that sense, things “suffer”. When reading Buddhist texts, one could thus replace the word “suffering” with “impermanence”, and get a more comprehensive idea of what is being discussed.
So things in and of themselves are impermanent and thus “suffer”. Suffering also works on the psychological level as well. Things are impermanent, and this impermanence can lead to suffering in a person’s mind and soul IF that person binds herself to, and becomes dependent upon, those things, hoping that they will last forever and fearing that they won’t.
If you simply enjoy the world, without binding yourself to it, the world (though itself still arising, existing, and passing away) ceases to be a source of fear and greed. It ceases to be a source of psychological suffering. And once one sees the world as a manifestation of Buddha-Nature, the world itself ceases to “suffer”.
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Shinobu
Guest
I don’t have anything against Buddhism. I can’t say I agree or disagree with it. I’m not going to condem people who practice this and in that same note I would ask that they do not condem me for wanting to become Catholic. We don’t need to agree with others, but we can still be understanding and care for one another.
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bhlincoln
Guest
I occasionally hear stories like you mention below, but these stories are never presented with proof, or if supposed proof is presented, we find out claims were inaccurate to begin with. Happens every time.
Incorruptibles on the other hand have occurred repeatedly for the last 2000 years. They occur in different countries and over different lifetimes. These bodies are on display in Churches all over Europe. These have all been researched and documented and the proof is there for anyone who wishes to spend a few hundred on a plane ticket. The only skeptics are those who choose not to go look at the facts firsthand…
BH
SamCA:
Incorruptibles on the other hand have occurred repeatedly for the last 2000 years. They occur in different countries and over different lifetimes. These bodies are on display in Churches all over Europe. These have all been researched and documented and the proof is there for anyone who wishes to spend a few hundred on a plane ticket. The only skeptics are those who choose not to go look at the facts firsthand…
BH
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bhlincoln
Guest
Yes, we should love one another, and care for one another, and get along. We all agree on this.
On the other hand, if you claim to be a Christian, then you must admit that Buddhism is totally contrary to Christianity, and you must, as a Christian, disagree with it and avoid it. It is not something to be indifferent about. I foyu are following the truth, then all else is false. If you are Catholic and interact with non-Catholics it is your DUTY to try to correct them as best you can, as we see the Apostles and Saints dedicated and risked their lives to going on missions to do so. This “politically correct” view of “everyone is OK doing their own thing” has been condemned over and over by the Catholic Church in the past, so if you claim you want to become Catholic, you had better research these teachings thoroughly.
BH
Shinobu:
On the other hand, if you claim to be a Christian, then you must admit that Buddhism is totally contrary to Christianity, and you must, as a Christian, disagree with it and avoid it. It is not something to be indifferent about. I foyu are following the truth, then all else is false. If you are Catholic and interact with non-Catholics it is your DUTY to try to correct them as best you can, as we see the Apostles and Saints dedicated and risked their lives to going on missions to do so. This “politically correct” view of “everyone is OK doing their own thing” has been condemned over and over by the Catholic Church in the past, so if you claim you want to become Catholic, you had better research these teachings thoroughly.
BH
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Ahimsa
Guest
It’s not a choice of either (1) verbally correcting non-Catholics, when you’re not avoiding them; or (2) allowing everyone to “do their own thing” on the basis that “everyone is right”.
There’s a whole world of options between those two extremes.
I think St.Francis said something to the effect of, “Spread the gospel; use words if necessary”.
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utunumsint
Guest
Always make sure you practice “Ahimsa”, rather than “Himsa”. He who lives by the sword will die by the sword.
God Bless.
God Bless.
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