Do not Condemn or Insult Other Religions
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To answer your question...hmm...I do not exclusively believe in one faith. As I said before, each religion is a different aspect of God. Put them all together and you can see the whole picture. So it would be foolish to constraint your knowledge to just one book. The truth is out there for you to discern using your intuition. Thats why buddha said if you find truth in the other religions, accept it! Its because other religion also contain truths about God! So to conclude, I love all religions.Originally posted by Beyond Religion:BTW, are you a member of the Bahai faith?
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Shade,
I am not concerned about the relative size of fellowship of the different faiths. I will try and explain where I am coming from. There are two typical aspects of a religion (excluding cults of course):
1. Values. This basically teaches all to be good and to be kind, compassionate, tolerant and loving. It ultimately can be condensed into a very universally acceptable golden rule.
2. Sovereignty. This basically emphasizes the exclusive sovereignty of the deities of that religion.
Virtually all human beings are in agreement over rule #1. It is mostly cut and dried; you are wrong if you murder, kill, steal etc. It is also exceptionally difficult to pervert rule #1 and use that as a pretext to do something nasty to gratify oneÂ’s own ambition. Rule #2 is an entirely different matter. As you yourself have noted, it has often been perverted and used to justify ghastly deeds.
The reason why I do not wish to see Buddhism becoming extinct is because Buddhism places utterly zero value in rule #2. Indeed, one can be a Buddhist without being a Buddhist. I will even venture to say that there are a lot of Christians and Muslims out there who are actually better Buddhists than I am. That is the main reason why I do not wish for Buddhism to be extinguished.
I will be honest and admit that there is a secondary reason. If I am facing this degree of forced evangelism right now, would I even have the freedom to practice Buddhism if, heaven forbid, I become the only Buddhist in Singapore? Even at best, I will be facing endless social and work pressure, even harassment, to convert to that dominant faith.
In short, I wish for nothing more than the following (for all religions):
-Preach, by all means, but not against other religion.
-Respect the feelings of people of other religions. If they request you to stop preaching, do stop.
-Do not abuse your vocational powers to coerce/ pressure others to listen to you preach. -
Well, that would be difficult unless those preachers know what they are preaching about. A pastor can easily say that its his duty to preach in that manner even though it may offend others and claim that its the word of God right?Originally posted by Beyond Religion:Shade,
In short, I wish for nothing more than the following (for all religions):
-Preach, by all means, but not against other religion.
-Respect the feelings of people of other religions. If they request you to stop preaching, do stop.
-Do not abuse your vocational powers to coerce/ pressure others to listen to you preach.
But generally, most people will stop preaching if you request that they stop.
My lecturer is a christian and sometimes he preaches to me outside office hours, but we maintain a standard of professionalism and not listening to him does not mean me getting lower marks for my tutorials etc etc.
So in your case it all boils down on how you communicate I guess. -
Yah lor Shade, thats why I am bidding my time. I dont know my new HOD well enough to formulate an appropriate means of communication. May be when I get to know her better in time, I will think of something.Originally posted by shade343:So in your case it all boils down on how you communicate I guess. -
hahahaha.
Well, there are a lot of religions in this world and they have their own set of teachings in their religion to their followers, so why bother.
Just follow what the Buddha had taught and follow his teachings faithfully.
Remember about kamma and rebirth. those who commit evil acts have to face the evils effect in their next life. After so much evils committed in this lifetime, they have to suffer eons in hell. -
Why get offended? Do you think an army of rag tag evangelists or blasphemours will ever attain salvation, even in their own faiths?
Many can say 'I am a Muslim, I am a Christian, I am a Hindu, I am a Buddhist", but in reality, how many actually put in effort to attain the salvation they want? -
There is lots of violence going on in the middle east because tribal violence has been deeply rooted for millenias in that area. Violence has become such a tradition that its really difficult to remove it...Originally posted by jugganotz:sorry if i offend anybody here..
as a muslim i feel blessed that i'm living in sg where there multiracialism is prosperous..
i feel the middle eastern muslims ppl sucks...thats how i feel...there a an arrogant and proud bunch...even they think they r the best amongst all muslims in the world....i can't blame indonesian muslims either man..its their teachings..some have been wrongfully taught..like i said they think they're the best..so they bend some rules teaching these and that...so where's the truth man........regarding those caricatures,isn't it funny they they drew all holy symbols and printed them but refrained from printing jesus,citing it will hurt someone?huh??..of course muslims will be angry..i am furious..so what muslims then practice? instead of showing patience or talking things out..they torch other countries flags..hurting ppl, this is what they call jihad..for that they can kiss my butt man...is that what our religion teaches us..and what piss me off the most is when they do all those things they will shout 'god is great'..wtf..isn't it a wonder ppl r seeing islam in these manner...
well regardless of any faith u believe in..i believe GOD creates us differently so that we will live peacefully together but i think we just screwd up....
remember the tsunami,hurricane katrina....why didn;t the holy places destroyed..isn't that signs that we need to do something..well this is just my view of the world at this point..
The Sufi Muslims have given me the best impression. As a Muslim you may be interested to find out more about its teachings.The true Jihad, is the Jihad against the Self.
...the greater Jihad is the inner struggle against the inner enemies, the Seven Deadly Sins ( lust, greed, anger, jealousy, sloth, covetousness & gluttony)...
http://www.uga.edu/islam/sufismstruggle.html
In this regard, the struggle with one's own nafs has been called the greater struggle or greater "holy war" (al-jihad al-akbar) in contrast to the lesser struggle (al-jihad al-asghar), which is against injustice and oppressors in this world. The concept derives from the popular hadith of the Prophet, in which he said to Muslims returning from a battle, "You have returned from the lesser struggle to the greater struggle." And he was asked, "What is the greater struggle?" He answered, "The struggle against one's self (nafs), which is between the two sides of your body." Needless to say, in Sufism these two struggles are mutually reinforcing and occur simultaneously. In particular, the practice of "engaged surrender" in the "greater" struggle with one's own nafs diminishes certain obstacles in the consciousness of the Sufi, obstacles that--if not stuggled against--will hinder the Sufi's capacity to engage in the "lesser" struggle in their life in the world. -
2. Sovereignty. This basically emphasizes the exclusive sovereignty of the deities of that religion.Originally posted by Beyond Religion:Shade,
I am not concerned about the relative size of fellowship of the different faiths. I will try and explain where I am coming from. There are two typical aspects of a religion (excluding cults of course):
1. Values. This basically teaches all to be good and to be kind, compassionate, tolerant and loving. It ultimately can be condensed into a very universally acceptable golden rule.
2. Sovereignty. This basically emphasizes the exclusive sovereignty of the deities of that religion.
Virtually all human beings are in agreement over rule #1. It is mostly cut and dried; you are wrong if you murder, kill, steal etc. It is also exceptionally difficult to pervert rule #1 and use that as a pretext to do something nasty to gratify oneÂ’s own ambition. Rule #2 is an entirely different matter. As you yourself have noted, it has often been perverted and used to justify ghastly deeds.
The reason why I do not wish to see Buddhism becoming extinct is because Buddhism places utterly zero value in rule #2. Indeed, one can be a Buddhist without being a Buddhist. I will even venture to say that there are a lot of Christians and Muslims out there who are actually better Buddhists than I am. That is the main reason why I do not wish for Buddhism to be extinguished.
I will be honest and admit that there is a secondary reason. If I am facing this degree of forced evangelism right now, would I even have the freedom to practice Buddhism if, heaven forbid, I become the only Buddhist in Singapore? Even at best, I will be facing endless social and work pressure, even harassment, to convert to that dominant faith.
In short, I wish for nothing more than the following (for all religions):
-Preach, by all means, but not against other religion.
-Respect the feelings of people of other religions. If they request you to stop preaching, do stop.
-Do not abuse your vocational powers to coerce/ pressure others to listen to you preach.
actually, Buddhists does emphasize sovereighty of enlightened beings, from deities and gods. Note that enlightened beings are not equated as deities and gods. They have gone beyond deities and gods... deities and gods are still in samsara. Whatever things in samsara cannot be equated to that which is liberated from samsara.
I don't understand what you meant by 'you can be a buddhist without becoming a buddhist'. Can you explain further? Note that one is NOT a Buddhist until he takes refuge in the Three Treasures: Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. He also does not take refuge in any other worldly deities or gods.
Secondly, practise the dharma and you won't feel any work/social pressure.
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For your number (1) concern, no worries.Originally posted by Beyond Religion:I am not feeling stressed because people convert to other faith. The reason I am feeling frustrated are:
(1) Buddhism are being ridiculed and attacked left and right by the monotheistic faiths in order to convert Buddhists, but the very premise of Buddhism prohibit Buddhists from even responding to this encroachment. As a religion, Buddhism may be heading towards extinction. For example, the Middle East (at least Afghanistan) used to be rife with Buddhism, but then Islam invaded, and Buddhists yielded. We are seeing a repeat of history right now. If Buddhists are to yield every time we are encroached, where is Buddhism heading except towards extinction?
(2) I am being preached in office by my boss. Therefore I am under duress. I do not have the option to ignore my boss and tell her to stop what she is doing! And this is but a small manifestation of a bigger phenomenon; Monotheists using an underhanded and unfair advantage to preach their faith to people whom they have a heavy degree of influence resulting from their vocational powers.
Buddhism will NOT become extinct because it is spreading very very fast in Western countries as more and more people become enlightened by the teachings of the Buddha. It is there that ironically, monotheist religions are falling rapidly. What you see in certain parts of the world is not true for the other part of the world. Furthermore, Buddhism is doing quite well in Singapore. Buddhism has been rising from around 31% to 42.5% from 1980 to 2000 in Singapore. -
No good religions, filled with love and truth, will ever become extinct
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The age old questionOriginally posted by shade343:No good religions, filled with love and truth, will ever become extinct
Will good overcome evil, or evil overcome good?
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It might be simpler if we look at this from a scientific (rather than religious) angle. Its like a darwinian process of evolution, survival of the fittest. From this perspective, it is arguable that Buddhism will never fend for itself against any form of ancroachment, be they physical or ideological, as such defense goes against the very fabric of Buddhist teachings.Originally posted by laurence82:The age old question
Will good overcome evil, or evil overcome good?
Therefore, if you pit Buddhism against the other proselytizing monotheistic faiths (some of which can be very aggressive), Buddhism is doomed to go extinct (at least theorectically), since we yield everytime we are encroached, and we do not make ourselves heard. It is even happening to this board. I read that some of the previously Buddhists poster has converted. (dumbdumb! is one of them I think)
The ironic thing is that Buddhism as a religion would be destroyed by its own benignity. The whole situation is not unlike throwing a herbivorous and pacific rabbit into a prehistoric jungle full of razor-sharp teeth predators, the rabbit just wouldn't survive.
But then we Buddhists cannot do anything about this (arguably) inevitable outcome, for if we do, we might have forfeited ourselves as Buddhists ... this is what causes my frustration. -
Firstly I need to make a point that I do not think dumbdumb! was ever once a Buddhist. Maybe he can clarify here. A Buddhist is someone who has taken refuge in the three treasures, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. I don't think there are many people who converted to Christianity in Buddhism. Buddhism is also gaining lots of converts in Singapore, if you have read the article about half a year ago in the straits times.
So far I haven't really met someone who have converted from Buddhism to Christianity. I suspect there are - but they are those who probably simply follow their parents to the monastery, took refuge, knows nothing about Buddhism, and later got converted to Christianity after following their friends to church. What I mean is that I never knew of a true buddhist who have had a good knowledge of Buddhism who chose to convert to Christianity... yet. If there is, I just haven't known anyone myself yet.
On the other hand, lots and lots of people I know have converted from Christianity to Buddhism. This is true among my dharma friends on the internet and also in my dharma centre. As I have pointed out, my Shi Fu was a Christian pastor himself. (see Curious - Any Christian-turned-Buddhist converts here? - 03 December 2005 · 03:51 AM) My local dharma teacher was also very devoted towards Christianity. There are a lot of others in my dharma centre who were ex-Christians, including a few of those who were the ones who led my dharma teacher into Christianity initially.
It is only those who know nothing about Buddhism, have not taken refuge in Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, and thus not considered Buddhists, who have converted. And those who worship deities and gods, practise Chinese folks traditions that are deemed as 'superstitious', all these are NOT Buddhism... that have dwindled over the years. They are those who call themselves Taoists in Singapore.
Statistically speaking:
Taoists (mostly just folks tradition practitioners) which made up of 30% in Singapore in 1980s consensus, has fallen to only 8.5% in Singapore in year 2000 consensus.
On the other hand: Buddhism which made up of only 27% of the population in Singapore in 1980s consensus, has risen to 42.5% in 2000 consensus in Singapore.
This is because more and more people in Singapore getting to know Buddhism... and are attracted to the teachings. This trend is also happening in the Western countries right now. Many western countries, like Australia, Canada, and several European countries, Buddhism is currently the fastest rising religion there. In the rest of the Western countries like U.S, Buddhism is probably the 2nd fastest rising religion. More and more westerners are getting to know the Dharma and attracted to its teachings.
My point: Buddhism does not need forceful evangelism at all. People who truly seek SPIRITUALITY will eventually find their way to Buddhism. Other religions may need to evangelise in a forceful manner in order to spread their teachings, but this is not in the case of Buddhism.
You may think that Buddhism has been around in Singapore for centuries, but wrong. The revival of Buddhism is in fact only a recent trend. In the past, there is not many Buddhist monastries, only those that practise worshipping of deities/folks tradition. -
In fact, Shakyamuni Buddha has already predicted HOW Buddhism will end. Yes, Buddhism WILL end, all religions WILL eventually end. This is the law of impermanency. When it ends, it will be a period of time before the next Buddha will arise.
http://taipei.tzuchi.org.tw/tzquart/96winter/qw96-3.htm
The Dreams
Ananda had strange dreams one night, so the following day he told the Buddha, "Oh Enlightened One, I had strange dreams last night, and I hope that the Buddha can clarify them for me.
"I first dreamed that all the rivers and oceans were burned up by great fire.
"In my second dream, the sun had descended and the world was in total darkness. My head was supporting Mount Sumeru4, but I didn't feel its weight.
"In the third dream, I saw the sangha putting on Buddhist robes, but not following the Buddha's teachings.
"In the fourth dream, the monastic order did not wear Buddhist robes, and they faltered among the thorns and difficulties of the world.
"In the fifth dream, there were a lot of wild pigs rooting at the base of a huge, lush candana tree.5
"In the sixth dream, young elephants trampled green grass and polluted the river while ignoring warnings from the large elephants. The large elephants could only go away to a place with clear water and green grass. The young elephants later starved to death because there was no grass to eat and they could not drink the water from the river.
"In the seventh dream, a lion died, but other carnivorous animals did not dare to approach to eat the flesh. Instead, worms came out of the lion's body and ate its flesh.
"Why would I have these strange dreams?"
Then the Buddha replied with concern in his eyes. "Ananda, let me explain them to you. In the first dream, you saw the fire burning up the rivers and the oceans. This indicates that in the future, monks and nuns will betray my teachings and start disagreements within the sangha.
"In the second dream, your head supported Mount Sumeru. This means that in ninety days I will pass away. All the monks, heavenly beings and human beings will need your help to remember and pass down my teachings.
"In the third dream, you saw monks and nuns putting on the robes but not following my teachings. This means that after I pass away, the sangha will give lectures on my teachings to large gatherings of people, but the sangha itself will not follow my teachings.
"You saw monks not wearing the robes, lingering among the thorns. This shows that in the future there will be monks not wearing the robes but commoners' clothes. They will abandon the precepts and adopt commoners' lives, and they will also have wives and children.
"You saw wild pigs rooting at the candana tree. The sangha in the future will not promote my teachings, but will only look after their own livelihood by selling statues of buddhas and holding various services for commoners.
"Sixth, you saw young elephants not listening to the adult elephants and later dying from starvation. This means that in the future, new monks and nuns will not listen to the teachings of the elder monks, and they will fall into purgatory after death.
"Seventh, you saw worms eating the lion's flesh. It indicates that no other religions will destroy my teaching, but the monastic order itself will be destroyed from within.
"Ananda, what you dreamt last night is the future of Buddhism," the Buddha said sadly. -
An Exerpt from Shurangama Sutra
Thus I have heard. At one time the Buddha was in the state of Kushinagara. The Tathagata was to enter Nirvana within three months and the bhikshus and Bodhisattvas as well as the great multitude of beings had come to the Buddha to pay homage to the Buddha and to bow in reverence. The World Honored One was tranquil and silent. He spoke not a word and his light did not appear. Worthy Ananda bowed and asked the Buddha, "O Bhagavan, heretofore whenever you spoke the Dharma, awesome light would naturally appear. Yet today among this great assembly there is no such radiance. There must be a good cause for this, and we wish to hear the Bhagavan's explanation.";
The Buddha remained silent and did not answer until the request had been repeated three times. He then told Ananda, "After I enter Nirvana, when the Dharma is about to perish, during the Evil Age of the Five Turbidities (see Five Turbidities), the way of demons will flourish. Demonic beings will become Shramanas (see entry); they will pervert and destroy my teachings. Wearing the garb of lay persons, they will prefer handsome clothes and their precept sashes will be made of multi-colored cloth. They will use intoxicants, eat meat, kill other beings, and they will indulge their desire for flavorful food. They will lack compassion and they will bear hatred and jealousy even among themselves.
"At that time there will be Bodhisattvas, Pratyekabuddhas, and Arhats who will reverently and diligently cultivate immaculate virtue. They will be respected by all people and their teachings will be fair and egalitarian. These cultivators of the Way will take pity on the poor, they will be mindful of the aged, and they will save and give counsel to those people they find in difficult circumstances. They will at all times exhort others to worship and to protect the sutras and images of the Buddha. They will do meritorious deeds, be resolute and kind and never harm others. They will forsake their bodies for others' benefit. They will hold no great regard for themselves but will be patient, yielding, humane, and peaceful.
"If such people exist, the hordes of demonic bhikshus will be jealous of them. The demons will harass them, slander and defame them, expel them from their midst and degrade them. They will ostracize the good monks from the monastic community. Thereafter these demons will not cultivate the Way-virtue. Their temples and monastic buildings will be vacant and overgrown with weeds. For want of care and maintenance their Way-places will drift into ruin and oblivion. The demonic bhikshus will only be greedy for wealth and will amass great heaps of goods. They will refuse to distribute any of it or to use it to gain blessings and virtue.
"At this time, the evil monks will buy and sell slaves to till their fields and to slash and burn the mountain forests. They will do harm to living creatures and they will feel not the least bit of compassion. These slaves will themselves become bhikshus and maidservants will become bhikshunis. Totally lacking in any Way-virtue, these people will run amok, indulging in licentious behavior. In their turbid confusion they will fail to separate the men from the women in the monastic communities. From this generation on, the Way will be weakened. Fugitives from the law will seek refuge in my Way, wishing to become Shramanas but failing to observe the moral regulations. The precepts will continue to be recited twice a month, but in name alone. Being lazy and lax, no one will want to listen any longer. These evil Shramanas will be unwilling to recite the sutras in their entirety and they will make abbreviations at the beginning and at the end of the texts as they please. Soon the practice of reciting sutras will stop altogether. Even if there are people who recite texts, they will be unlettered, unqualified people who will insist, nonetheless, that they are correct. Bumptious, arrogant and vain, these people will seek fame and glory. They will display elegant airs in the hope of attracting offerings from other people.
"When the lives of these demonic bhikshus come to an end their essential spirits will fall into the avici hells. Having committed the five evil sins, they will suffer successive rebirths as hungry ghosts and as animals. They will know all such states of woe as they pass on through aeons as numerous as sands on the banks of the Ganges River. When their offenses are accounted for they will be reborn in a border land where the Triple Jewel is unknown.
"When the Dharma is about to disappear, women will become vigorous and will at all times do deeds of virtue. Men will grow lax and will no longer speak the Dharma. Those genuine Shramanas they see will be looked upon as dung and no one will have faith in them. When the Dharma is about to perish, all the gods will begin to weep. Rivers will dry up and the five grains will not ripen. Epidemic diseases will frequently take the lives of multitudes of people. The masses will toil and suffer while the local officials will plot and scheme. No one will adhere to principles. Instead, all people will be ever more numerous like the sands of the ocean-bed. Good persons will be hard to find; at most there will be one or two. As the aeon comes to a close, the revolution of the sun and the moon will grow short and the lifespan of people will decrease. Their hair will turn white at the age of forty years. Because of excessive licentious behavior they will quickly exhaust their seminal fluids and will die at a young age, usually before sixty years. As the life-span of males decreases, that of females will increase to seventy, eighty, ninety, or one hundred years.
"The great rivers will rise up in disharmony with their natural cycles, yet people will not take notice or feel concern. Extremes of climate will soon be taken for granted. . . .
"Then there will be Bodhisattvas, Pratyekabuddhas, and Arhats who will gather together in an unprecedented assembly because they will have all been harried and pursued by hordes of demons. They will no longer dwell in the assemblies, but the Three Vehicles will retreat to the wilderness. In a tranquil place, they will find shelter, happiness, and long life. Gods will protect them and the moon will shine down upon them. The Three Vehicles will have an opportunity to meet together and the way will flourish. However, within fifty-two years the and the , the Standing Buddha Samadhi, will be the first to change and then disappear. The twelve divisions of the canon will gradually follow until they vanish completely, never to appear again. Its words and texts will be totally unknown ever after. The precept sashes of Shramanas will turn white of themselves. When my Dharma disappears, it will be just like an oil lamp which flares brightly for an instant just before it goes out. So too, will the Dharma flare and die. After this time it is difficult to speak with certainty of what will follow.
"So it will remain for the next ten million years. When Maitreya is about to appear in the world to become the next Buddha, the planet will be entirely peaceful. Evil vapors will have dissipated, rain will be ample and regular, the crops will grow abundantly. Trees will grow to a great height and people will grow to be eighty feet tall. The average lifespan will extend to 84,000 years. It will be impossible to count all the beings who will be taken across to liberation."
Worthy Ananda addressed the Buddha, "What should we call this Sutra and how shall we uphold it?"
The Buddha said, "Ananda, this Sutra is called . Tell everyone to propagate it widely; the merit of your actions will be measureless, beyond reckoning."
When the fourfold assembly of disciples heard this Sutra, they grieved and wept. Each of them resolved to attain the true Path of the Supreme Sage. Then bowing to the Buddha, they withdrew. (SS I xiv-xvi)
ref:
http://online.sfsu.edu/~rone/Buddhism/BuddhistDict/BDD.html
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Evil will overcome Good, at least in this degenerating trend of humanity, according to Buddhism.Originally posted by laurence82:The age old question
Will good overcome evil, or evil overcome good?
Then the next cycle of 'regeneration' begins. -
That's why I still not taking refugeOriginally posted by An Eternal Now:Evil will overcome Good, at least in this degenerating trend of humanity, according to Buddhism.
Then the next cycle of 'regeneration' begins.
For there is something really bad in me
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That 'something bad' is simply Ignorance.Originally posted by maggot:That's why I still not taking refuge
For there is something really bad in me
Due to ignorance, people do not seek the way of Deathlessness, and continue their cycle of samsara. -
Just ignore them. It happens to me, but now that I completely ignore them, they leave me alone. One thing about them: some can quite persistent. They can continue to pester you even if you ignore them. Got one kept calling me everyday even I told her to stop that. I've got to threaten her that I will call the police if she doesn't stop. Only after that threat did she stop pestering me.Originally posted by Beyond Religion:Someone help me please. I am getting increasingly offended by followers of one of the monotheistic faiths. Right now there is a lot of anger and frustration in me. I know these are destructive sentiments, so I am seeking some help here.
First, something about me; All my life, I have experienced members of a particular monotheistic faiths trying to convert me.
In the late 1970s, there was a very vocal and aggressive campaign in Singapore not only to promulgate that monotheistic faith, but also to denigrate the traditional Chinese religions such as Taoism and Buddhism. I even get preached everywhere. On the streets, while waiting for a bus, even at home! And these preachers do not stop preaching even after I requested them to stop.
When I was studying in a missionary school of that faith, our pastor would often tell us stories of a Buddhist/ Taoist converting to that faith after realizing that the statutes they worship are nothing but pieces of wooden blocks. That pastor never fails to gleefully narrate the way these new converts smashed up the Buddhist statutes after being ‘saved’.
Even while I was in the armed forces, a fellow soldier freely distributed evangelical materials graphically depicting Buddhists/ Taoists burning in hell for not believing that faith. Even now in the work place, my head of department (HOD) is a member of that faith. On her first day of work, she conducted interviews to familiarize with each of us, and in that interview, not only announces her religion but also ask if I share her faith. I do not. Subsequently, she will seize every opportunity to talk about her faith in office, even to the extent of leading the department in prayer during company sponsored department lunches! By the way, I work in a profit-oriented, secular company. There are people of different religions working in my department.
Things like that are still happening all over Singapore. Just not to long ago, there were some public concerns over members of that faith exploiting their institutional/ vocational advantages to spread their faith. Eg, a doctor trying to convert his terminally ill patient and lecturer leading prayer sessions with his students etc. members of this faith even manage to insert its influence in sex education, culminating in the recent ST forum discussion of a supposedly secular sex education program not being secular at all.
The members of this faith areÂ…insidious, for want of a better term. Is there no escaping these evangelists? The latest incident in my office disturbed me the most. I cannot tell my HOD of my concerns. That would be a career limiting move on my part, no matter how politely I may request that. I can of course report her, but that might jeopardize her career. I donÂ’t want something bad to happen to her career tooÂ…
You know Buddhists as a whole are a stoic lot. They donÂ’t push back even while they are encroached! This is especially true of Singapore Buddhists, who tend to have a very low profile while members of that monotheistic faith are getting increasing vocal. I am having a hard time looking for fellow Singapore Buddhists to share my concerns and to offer me advice on how to manage my feelings of being indignant.
Help please!
For your career, perhaps you can try writing it down in your own personal diary? Take it as a way to vent your anger.
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No such thing as true religion.Originally posted by DailyFreeGames.com:Should tell this to some christians... They keep saying other religion not good, only theirs is the true religion... I hear until damn sianz. -
For a start, I believe if you know about Buddhism well enough, you have no fear confronting these people.
You can simply ask them to disprove Buddhism - and along the way, teach him what Buddhism is all about. -
Originally posted by An Eternal Now:Ok. Back to topic. 'Any Christian-turned-Buddhist converts', as I have mentioned briefly in the first few posts, my master, my dharma teacher, and many people in my dharma centre were ex-Christians.
My Master for instance used to be an ex-Christian Pastor himself. I may have mentioned this several times in different posts, whether briefly or more in details, but I will elaborate on that now.
My Buddhist Master (Shi Fu) first went into spirituality after an incident when he was 12 years old. He was returning from school and along the way on the mountain (in China), a blizzard struck and he sought to take cover in a cave. It was so cold that he was going to freeze to death. At that time, he witnessed a divine sign. Huge words in red appeared in the sky, telling him "Humanity's bliss awaits you to be found". From that point he had the strength and survived and thought it was a miracle from God.
So this is how he became a Christian pastor. He was quite an active pastor in preaching and also wrote Christian books (he passed one of his Christian books with his author name to some of the Christians in U.S who visited him before just to show that he really was a pastor). Then at times, he was aggressive in evangelising and went on to insult Buddhism and degrade Buddhism as a superstitious and demonic religion. That was during his university days if I'm not wrong. His university lecturer heard about his aggressive evangelism and spoke with him about it. The lecturer asked him why is he doing this? My master replied "because the other pastors did so, if I didn't do it, the other pastors will say that I do not know how to preach"... thus he followed them. His university lecturer then told him that it was not the right way - people disliked it, and it will even bring down the university name. He asked my master to study the Buddhist teachings, and from that, write a critique based on his understandings.
So this is the turning point... my master researched into all the Buddhist teachings and could not find anything to write in his critique. On contrary, he agreed on all of the teachings! This is the teachings that will truly bring bliss into humanity. (He always say that Buddhism is the Culture of Bliss.. my dharma centre website is www.humanbliss.com.sg) That is when he begin to truly regret and repent his earlier actions to the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.... he turned into a Buddhist monk as a result. He often says "even blapshemy can become a 'yuan' for one to encounter Dharma". Sometimes inconceivable. -
By the way, if anyone notice, condemning people who insulted other religions have some gray or shared area with condemning other religions.
I think many need to be aware of the distinction here. Essentially, truth-based faiths are different from faiths like Buddhism, where its part of their doctrine to evangelise, albeit overzealously. Its also essential to their doctrine that other religions are bad or false. By questioning their actions, there is a possibility, you are using your own values to override their values and in the proces, judge them.
My personal take on this? I have so far personally target people who sully other religions, but not overzealous preachers who are pushy, but not to the point of condemning other religions.
And from the way this thread goes, most of the time you guys are talking about Christians and Christianity. But, pardon me, my personal view is that its inappropriate for a forum like a Buddhism forum. I guess its allright to discuss the differences in the values upheld by these two faiths, but the mood has gone to Christians bashing and using our values to put their religions in the negative light, for example, pooh pooh their view that their faith is the true one.
We may have done what we dont want others to do to us, that is, to a bunch of non believers discussing in full length about other religion.
I hope I have made add some valuable points to the discucssions. -
nobody (none) has the right to criticise any religion whether they are good or bad untill u find the truth face to face yourself. even so when truth is realised, universal love tolerance and compassion sovereign all illusions and delusions and there's no need to even say a single word. simply cos thats the truth.
use yr brains yr working minds and don't be led blindly just cos its instructed. experience yourself truthfully not making false statements just to impress people.... "wahhh!"
u can't stop people from condemning or insulting other religion cos they are brain washed not awakened out of fear. that fear is none other than the "you" you representing yourself. be kind i mean literally be kind, tolerant, authentically purely sincere going well with your body movement like songs & lyrics. all beings have feelings they can sense it no matter how evil they are they CAN feel the brightly goodness of a pure heart. -
Not surprisingly, in due course, society revolted against such revolting religious ways. Europe today is mostly a museum of churches, many abandoned and used for secular purposes. The church-going population has drastically dropped, even then restricted to mostly old people. New religions are becoming attractive since people still feel a need for something spiritual.
In 2001, in Italy, Buddhism was elevated to a “state religion” amongst others. In Australia,Buddhism is today the fastest growing religion thanks mainly to its emphasis on meditation and mental healing.
The blessings that Westerners and Australians see in Buddhism surprisingly differ from what most Asians see in Buddhism. While the “First World” has gone through a painful period of religious domination and global political power through Christianity, its thinking population find in Buddhism a refreshing answer to their spiritual needs mainly through inner peace, that is, the conquest of self, replacing the world-domination ideology their ancestors saw in the Bible.
Many Asians who have emerged from the colonial lifestyle, somehow remained loyal to the colonial religions probably because of past conditioning and convenience.
The younger Asians who have never really known what the colonial period was like in their own homelands tend to have the wrong notion that the Christianity is a “modern” religion and a faith of the elite. In other words, they see worldly advantages in it, rather something spiritual.
To follow a religion simply to keep up with the Joneses is a classic “kiasu” (one-up-manship) attitude.Such a person who lives by the standards of others will always be left behind since they are stuck in their captive colonial mentality. This is especially ludicrous because the descendents of those same colonial masters are now turning to Eastern religions,especially Buddhism. Maybe it will take another generation for the new fad to catch up.
With the rediscovery of Greek learning during the Renascence and the age of colonial discovery (which brought Oriental wealth and spirituality to Europe), Christianity began to decline and the people became more free to think for themselves. The discovery of Buddhism by the West, however,occurred only a couple of centuries ago.
With better communication and the influx of Oriental migrants to the West, Buddhism is getting a stronger foothold there. Westerners are discovering the fresh spiritual air and mental peace that meditation breathes for them.
Btw ... don think dumbdumb was a buddhist b4 ... rather i think he is wat we call 'joss stick buddhist' ...
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/06/17/1023864406040.html