Zen Buddhist vs Christianity or Zen Buddhist Christian ???

[gord44]

Zen really isn't even a religion in my opinion. Just a way of looking at things in life. An idea of how things are and a practice of be at peace with it all. In my first post I mentioned it doesn't gel with mainline Christianity, but it can gel with more eastern or esoteric types of Christianity. So I can see how in some ways Zen can clash with Christianity while at the same time go along just fine with other traditions of Christianity.

 

[Mikeb85]

Your response confuses me.

One one hand, you claim they are incompatible.

On the other hand, you say that they are redundant, implying that they are very similar.

Which is it - are they very similar, or are they very different?

Both. The dogmatic bits of each religion are very different, the contemplative practices are quite different, but the goal is the same (salvation and knowing God), so using a different (and incompatible) method of 'meditation/contemplation' to achieve the same goal is also redundant.

 

[Wesley1982]

The internet can be used as a tool to research anything (including Buddhism) ...

 

[dlamberth]

The internet can be used as a tool to research anything (including Buddhism) ...

Ya...it's a pretty cool tool for research.

.

 

[Gxg (G²)]

Some things you have to judge on a case-by-case basis...

 

[lupusFati]

One can't be a follower of Jesus Christ, which means one believes what the Bible says, and yet embrace Zen Buddhism which holds to teachings contrary to the Bible.

Jesus said "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." in John 14:6. In other words, one can't gain eternal life but through Jesus Christ.

I don't think you understand what Zen Buddhism is. They're not religious, far as I know; at least, they're not required. I should know, I practiced it for a bit, never saw what the big deal with it was.

"Thinking about not thinking"... ah, good times. Goooood times.

 

[veritasVII]

I see no reason why a practicing Christian can't meditate, as long as your faith isn't in question.

 

[smaneck]

A Christian couldn't do zazen, which is a practice that is contrary to the Bible.

Jonathan, you were ask a couple of times to provide your biblical sources for this assertion and so far you have failed to do so. Instead you simply reasserted that Christians aren't suppose to meditate on anything but Jesus. Show me where the Bible says I can't meditate on swiss cheese if I want to. And mind you I want to see the chapter and verse from the bible itself, not some vid from your favorite preacher. It is time you stop listening to them and start reading the Bible for yourself.
Sorry to sound so harsh but you're an adult now and its time you stop taking other people's word for stuff.

 

[smaneck]

Both. The dogmatic bits of each religion are very different, the contemplative practices are quite different, but the goal is the same (salvation and knowing God),

Uh no. Buddhism explicitly rejects the notion of a creator god.

 

[smaneck]

What if the Christian was sitting on a pillow and staring at a wall while thinking about Jesus?

In Buddhist meditation you are not supposed to think about anything. Ideally you empty your mind.

 

[smaneck]

I know several Christians who practice Buddhism, in fact I'm married to one.

By that I presume you mean they practice Buddhist meditation.

I often go to a Trappist Monastery and sit in meditation with the Monks there, one of which has been to Buddhist retreats. That monastery has one of the finest meditation rooms that I've had the pleasure to sit in.

Thanks to Thomas Merton, the Trappists have a special relationship to Buddhism. Thomas Merton found the Buddhist emphasis on compassion appealing as well as their meditation practices. That doesn't make their theologies compatible, however.

If one desires to explore Christianity mysticism and Buddhism further from the mystical direction, one of my more favorite reads is a book by a Jesuit Priest who's name is William Johnston.

I think the mystical experience is pretty much the same in all religions.

 

[smaneck]

So... how is that experience of Unity with the Father not the same as the experience of Nirvana of which the Buddha spoke of?

.

Probably the experience is the same, but they are certainly conceived of differently. Nirvana literally means to 'blow out' It is the extinction or letting go of any attachment to the self. That's not generally the way Christians conceive of being 'saved.'
Ultimately it might be the same thing however. The goal of Islamic mysticism has always been the annihilation of the self (fana) in order to abide (baqa) in God. I'm not sure Buddhism takes that second step, but Nirvana is supposed to be a state beyond being and non-being, so maybe it does.

 

[Lovely Jar]

Both. The dogmatic bits of each religion ..

That is where you err. Buddhism, Zen Buddhism, are not dogmatic.

 

[gord44]

That is where you err. Buddhism, Zen Buddhism, are not dogmatic.

Buddhism can be dogmatic. You can find people arguing over sutra's and techniques the same as you can see people arguing in Christianity over different doctrines.

Zen Buddhism (especially Soto) though I have found is extremely un-dogmatic about anything. It's quite refreshing!

 

[Mikeb85]

That is where you err. Buddhism, Zen Buddhism, are not dogmatic.

While some new agey western Buddhist types claim so, it's far from the truth. Buddhism is as dogmatic as any religion.

In Buddhism you have the Three Jewels (Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha), the four Noble truths (truth of dukkha, origin of dukkha, truth of cessation of dukkha, path leading to cessasion of dukkha), the Eightfold path (right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration), and other dogmas depending on which path of Buddhism you follow. As far as I know, every Buddhist sect holds to the Three Jewels, four Noble truths and the Eightfold path.

The definition of dogma is a set of principles which one believes to be true. Christianity has dogmas, Buddhism has dogmas, and every other religion has dogmas.

 

[smaneck]

The definition of dogma is a set of principles which one believes to be true. Christianity has dogmas, Buddhism has dogmas, and every other religion has dogmas.

I sometimes hear my fellow Baha'is say the Baha'i Faith has no dogma and no rituals. I can't help but quip, "Yeah, we neither believe anything or do anything."

 

[BruceDLimber]

Buddhism explicitly rejects the notion of a creator god.

True of some forms of Buddhism, though others are theistic.

And as you're doubtless aware, there is the passage in the Buddhist scriptures about "the uncreated" which sounds to me quite analagous to God.

(As to rituals, it's my understanding the Baha'i Faith has five--and only five--rituals:

• the daily obligatory prayer
• daily recitation of the Greatest Name 95 times
• the Fast
• the marriage vow
• the burial prayer.)

Peace,

Bruce

 

[Gxg (G²)]

True of some forms of Buddhism, though others are theistic.

Which forms of Buddhism are theistic?

 

[Gxg (G²)]

Hi Yall
Isnt zen buddhism and Christianity kinda the same ? If not whats the difference from zen buddhism and christianity?

Ravi Zacharias Q & A: Morality Evolving and Resurrection in Buddhism​

 

[RisingSpirit]

Has anyone heard of Zen Buddhist speaking in tongues or just babbling due to certain awakenings?