Differences between Buddhism and Christianity
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Like I've said. Concept of absolute truth. For someone who claimed to be God, he must offer a solution that only he can provide. If Buddha had said believe in him or go to hell, I will definitely check what he says. Not just that, I will make sure that Buddha is indeed the truth, or not. I will thus become a Buddhist, or not. Because eitherOriginally posted by marcteng:if you do not accept christ as saviour, you will go to hell is not a scare tactic, i dunno what is frankly speaking.
do good, avoid evils are the teachings of the Buddha.
u prefer evils than good in this world? how can doing evil obtain salvation?
it harms other and oneself isnt it.
1) He is the truth, or
2) He is not the truth.
Is it a scare tactic then? I don't think so. It is a simple statement. Truth is ultimately exclusive and objective. Truth is intolerant of untruth.
One should never reject a statement just because he does not like it! -
i'd like to correct this part.Originally posted by SocialOutcast:The same way I can say that the concept of karma is also a fear tactic. It prevents me from doing bad things, so that next life I won't get bad things coming my way.
karma is not a fear tactic. karma is the nature of how things work. one do not have to have fear in oneself at all. when you are calm, clear and conscience free, what is fear to you. it is nothing, as good as doesn't exist. using fear to work this out is not the solution at all. even if it does or can, it is not genuine and literally not eternal. -
Exactly what I was saying then. The nature of things! If Christ is the only way...then that is the nature of things as it is! If buddha, or muhammad, or whatever is the only way, then that is the nature of things as it is! Why is it a fear tactic?Originally posted by paperflower:i'd like to correct this part.
karma is not a fear tactic. karma is the nature of how things work. one do not have to have fear in oneself at all. when you are calm, clear and conscience free, what is fear to you. it is nothing, as good as doesn't exist. using fear to work this out is not the solution at all. even if it does or can, it is not genuine and literally not eternal. -
Originally posted by SocialOutcast:Exactly what I was saying then. The nature of things! If Christ is the only way...then that is the nature of things as it is! If buddha, or muhammad, or whatever is the only way, then that is the nature of things as it is! Why is it a fear tactic?
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If you compare past and present religions, all centred on a god or many gods concept, that the world was created by that god. If you accept their religions, you will go to heaven forever when you die.Originally posted by SocialOutcast:Like I've said. Concept of absolute truth. For someone who claimed to be God, he must offer a solution that only he can provide. If Buddha had said believe in him or go to hell, I will definitely check what he says. Not just that, I will make sure that Buddha is indeed the truth, or not. I will thus become a Buddhist, or not. Because either
1) He is the truth, or
2) He is not the truth.
Is it a scare tactic then? I don't think so. It is a simple statement. Truth is ultimately exclusive and objective. Truth is intolerant of untruth.
One should never reject a statement just because he does not like it!
You look at the context of the religion some 2000 years back, pple then were not sophisticated in thinking and illiterate, and science and technology were backward then. But with science and technology improving each passing year and people getting educated and well travelled, science has mentioned our earth are billion of years ago and not a mere 7 thousands years.
How can a planet evolve in a mere 7 thousand years old? formation of planet alone already take dunno how many years, maybe millions years to form and not to mention water?
I would like to ask, how come god created animals to be slaughtered by humans for food, so many viruses afflicting us, esp SARS in recent years, not to mention avian flu that has the potential to kill millions of people.
if the god is truly omniscient and ominpotent, why cant he rid of all the sufferings of this world and make the world a better place to live? why so much injustices and wars, and natural diasters. -
Buddhism is a teaching that is beyond philosophical confusion, doubts, and beliefs. The core of this problem is in dualism.Originally posted by SocialOutcast:Like I've said. Concept of absolute truth. For someone who claimed to be God, he must offer a solution that only he can provide. If Buddha had said believe in him or go to hell, I will definitely check what he says. Not just that, I will make sure that Buddha is indeed the truth, or not. I will thus become a Buddhist, or not. Because either
1) He is the truth, or
2) He is not the truth.
Is it a scare tactic then? I don't think so. It is a simple statement. Truth is ultimately exclusive and objective. Truth is intolerant of untruth.
One should never reject a statement just because he does not like it!The buddha-dharma is called the middle way because it rejects any extreme view, what the Buddha called "frozen views." These are views that attempt to wrap Reality into nice, neat packages.
We're strongly inclined to hold tight to certain views since they give us a sense of solidity under our feet. Unfortunately, they simply can't hold Reality, and thus they always leaves us susceptible to doubt and confusion - duhkha. Most of the views we hold might not seem extreme to us at first glance, but the more closely we examine them, the more extreme (and absurd) they become.
All the views we hold (and hold dear) appear in sets of two or more. more often, they appear as pairs of opposites: pro and con, Western and eastern, liberal and conservative, dualistic and non-dualistic. For example, "People are basically good" posits an ultimate quality of goodness, then attributes this quality to every member of our species. As soon as it's offered, however, it immediately invites a counter view: "People are basically evil." This is essentially the same view, but leaning in the opposite direction.
Can you see, based on your immediate experience alone that neither of these views point to Reality? They are both concepts - attempts to freeze Reality into something hard, fast, solid and packaged.
Review your own experience. Do you find a specific thing called Goodness that provides the primary motivation for everyone you've met? What about Evil? Do you find that Evil exists as a specific thing, and that it serves as the biggest motivation in every human being's life?
Inherent Goodness and inherent Evil are both frozen views - notions, concepts. They don't refer to anything in actual experience. This is not to say that people don't act in ways that can be called good or evil, but only that inherent Goodness and inherent Evil are conceptual inventions - philosophical objects of our own creation. Both of these views fail to point to Reality. Reality is far more fluid than either of these extreme views is capable of indicating. Indeed, any such frozen views is, by definition, extreme - and, therefore, incapable of reflecting Reality.
What we generally fail to appreciate is that it's simply by holding onto a specific view - believing in it, relying on it, clinging to it - that it becomes frozen and extreme.
The Buddha repudiated all such views. Because they are by nature conceptual, they attempt to freeze the world into solid, separate entities, whether those entities are Goodness, Evil, selves, non-selves, books, light , enlightenment, Buddhism, or any thing or thought whatsoever. Of course, all such attempts fail. The world of experience simply isn't frozen. Reality won't be condensed into concepts. Our immediate, direct experience bears this out. -
I ask you a simple question, all of the religions in this world, past and present, which religion has spoken the truth and which has not?Originally posted by SocialOutcast:Exactly what I was saying then. The nature of things! If Christ is the only way...then that is the nature of things as it is! If buddha, or muhammad, or whatever is the only way, then that is the nature of things as it is! Why is it a fear tactic?
Other religion say their religion speaks the truth and all else are false. -
There is a very serious flaw in your analysis.Originally posted by SocialOutcast:Like I've said. Concept of absolute truth. For someone who claimed to be God, he must offer a solution that only he can provide. If Buddha had said believe in him or go to hell, I will definitely check what he says. Not just that, I will make sure that Buddha is indeed the truth, or not. I will thus become a Buddhist, or not. Because either
1) He is the truth, or
2) He is not the truth.
Is it a scare tactic then? I don't think so. It is a simple statement. Truth is ultimately exclusive and objective. Truth is intolerant of untruth.
One should never reject a statement just because he does not like it!
I agree that "truth" is intolerant of "untruth". But while the monotheistic religion's "truth" presuppose a dogmatic belief in their respective Gods and a blind obedience to subscride to whatever standards of ethical conduct that God proclaims, Buddhism's truth is an absolute, universal and unconditional standard of ethical conduct itself.
Why do Monotheists do good? Its because their God tell them to do so... (likewise, they can well wage war and kill if and when their God so commands).... On the other hand, why do Buddhists do good? Because it is the unmitigated "truth", and that we seek to cultivate that level of loving kindness and compassion from within, not motivated by a desire to curry favour with any gods, and certainly not hoping to reap a good 'reward' by being 'good'. -
Yes.In other words, Buddhism always accentuates experiential knowledge-wisdom rather than some dogmatic viewOriginally posted by Beyond Religion:There is a very serious flaw in your analysis.
I agree that "truth" is intolerant of "untruth". But while the monotheistic religion's "truth" presuppose a dogmatic belief in their respective Gods and a blind obedience to subscride to whatever standards of ethical conduct that God proclaims, Buddhism's truth is an absolute, universal and unconditional standard of ethical conduct itself.
Why do Monotheists do good? Its because their God tell them to do so... (likewise, they can well wage war and kill if and when their God so commands).... On the other hand, why do Buddhists do good? Because it is the unmitigated "truth", and that we seek to cultivate that level of loving kindness and compassion from within, not motivated by a desire to curry favour with any gods, and certainly not hoping to reap a good 'reward' by being 'good'.
Rather than blind obedience to subscride to whatever standards of ethical conduct that God proclaims Buddhism let us rediscover our true nature.What is this true nature of ours?It is Our buddha nature.The nature of loving-kindness and Compassion.
We do good not because we can use this as a bargain to go to heaven.
We do good not because we are afraid of being punished to hell.
We do good because this is what we are.
We do good because we are happy to do so
We do good because we have loving-kindness and Compassion
This is what we really are and Buddha has certainly made us realise that.