Buddhist Buddha vs Jesus

Akita Suggagaki · Jun 6, 2019

Daniel9v9 said:
The idea that good deeds, meditation or purification methods results in a blessed rebirth - a new life, apart from God, is idolatry. How is it not?

Idolatry is not the mere possession or worship of a statue, but worship of anything other than the one true God. When anyone claim to be able to work their way into paradise or a blessed afterlife of any sort, regardless of their soteriological understanding, they break the first and second commandments.

You subscribe to "Sola Fide" then, faith alone.

It sounds pretty unfair to me that you judge them as idolizing when in their view they are simply taking personal responsibility the best way they know how. Don't forget, The Buddha grew up in pre-Christian Hinduism.

Buddhists today may reject the God presented to them, which by the way, is only a poor image of the real thing. I guess I can sympathize with them. Maybe that is because I can still see Christ in them.

Lukaris · Jun 6, 2019

Non Christians will be judged by their works: Romans 2 etc.

Daniel9v9 · Jun 6, 2019

Akita Suggagaki said:
You subscribe to "Sola Fide" then, faith alone.

It sounds pretty unfair to me that you judge them as idolizing when in their view they are simply taking personal responsibility the best way they know how. Don't forget, The Buddha grew up in pre-Christian Hinduism.

Buddhists today may reject the God presented to them, which by the way, is only a poor image of the real thing. I guess I can sympathize with them. Maybe that is because I can still see Christ in them.

By this logic, all religions and world-views that are perceived morally upright lead to salvation. That goes hard against all Christian doctrine - any Church body that holds to the ecumenical creeds. It also betrays a low view of sin and a disregard for original sin.

To give some quick illustrations of how this works out:
What if a man is a devout follower of Rabbinical Judaism, which is an extension of Pharisaical thought - according to Scripture, is his works acceptable before God? No, for this religion explicitly rejects Christ, and furthermore, Christ rejected it. All of the Gospel accounts are clear evidence of this.

Or what about the ancient devout followers of the Greek religion? Paul, in Acts 14, says "that you should turn from these vain things to a living God" etc.

What about modern humanism? Or any other faith, religion or moral institution? They all fall under the crime of Pelagianism. Whether you're Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican or Reformed, they all reject Pelagianism.

Specifically to Buddhism, however, the religion explicitly denies God and explicitly denies the person and works of Jesus Christ, and by doing this, it is in no way to be understood as "neutral" but absolutely counter to Christianity.

Lastly, in my Church tradition, we hold to the idea that Augustine taught with respects to the Two Cities. That is, Scripture talks about two kinds of righteousness: One righteousness in the world, by worldly standards, and another before God, by God's standards. Though we can commend Buddhism on the good they do by worldly standards, it still falls short of the glory of God.

Akita Suggagaki · Jun 7, 2019

I don't fully appreciate all tha Catholics teach but I do appreciate

Nostra aetate

Lukaris · Jun 7, 2019

Perhaps to form a perspective on Jesus Christ & Buddha, would take some reading. Here a few books that might help.

C.S. Lewis: The Abolition of Man

The great CS Lewis discusses the common elements of conscience found in different religions. There is little or no mention of Buddhism but there is of Hinduism. Basically he states a common understanding of right & wrong between various faiths which I think could be valuable as a foundation to the original point of the thread. Lewis wrote this book during WW 2 & stated that this common understanding (imperfect as it was) would be destroyed.

https://www.amazon.com/Abolition-Man-C-S-Lewis/dp/0060652942

A Christian apologetic book by Ravi Zacharias: The Lotus and the Cross. https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1...46j0j46i20i263j33i22i29i30j33i160.t76qFE7N9sQ

Lastly, Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh:

https://www.amazon.com/Living-Buddha-Christ-20th-Anniversary/dp/159448239X

zippy2006 · Jun 7, 2019

mathinspiration said:
What are the differences and similarities?

Buddhism -> End suffering
Christianity -> Be united with God

RaymondG · Jun 7, 2019

zippy2006 said:
Buddhism -> End suffering
Christianity -> Be united with God

Be united with God --> End suffering?

Cis.jd · Jun 7, 2019

mathinspiration said:
What are the differences and similarities? Could they be same person reincarnation?

Similar wise, they were both good men and I believe both had very good teachings that are helpful to society.
One difference is based on my beliefs. I believe Jesus is God made man while also the greatest teacher, while Buddha was a wise and good teacher.

Another differences is Buddha's buddhists have made Buddhism a much better religion than Jesus' Christians with Christianity, just by representation.

aiki · Jun 7, 2019

mathinspiration said:
What are the differences and similarities? Could they be same person reincarnation?

If the Bible is true, there is no reincarnation. The Bible speaks of resurrection, the Final Judgment and an eternal future in heaven or hell - all of which confound the idea of reincarnation. When Jesus described the afterlife in one of his parables, what he described ruled out reincarnation completely. (Luke 16:20-31) Paul wrote of the eternal judgment of God and the Second Coming of Christ to the Thessalonian church, describing circumstances in both instances that also contradict the idea of reincarnation:

2 Thessalonians 1:7-9
7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power.

2 Thessalonians 4:14-17
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also who sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent who are asleep.
16 For the Lord shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

These aren't the only places in Scripture that defy the idea of reincarnation.

Buddhism is essentially religious atheism. As such, it teaches a radically different message than that found in the Bible. And as others have already pointed out, Jesus was quite unlike (the) Buddha, being far superior in nature, teaching and living.

Contenders Edge · Jun 7, 2019

mathinspiration said:
What are the differences and similarities? Could they be same person reincarnation?

That is not possible because Jesus is currently in Heaven sitting at the right hand of God the Father. Just as He ascended into Heaven after His resurrection, so He will also descend back to Earth to reign as King, but He will not be reincarnated or reborn.

Reincarnation is found nowhere in the Bible for the scripture says that it is appointed unto man to die once and then face their judgment. (Heb. 9:27)

Grip Docility · Jun 8, 2019

mathinspiration said:
What are the differences and similarities? Could they be same person reincarnation?

Buddha wasn’t, isn’t God.

Buddhism teaches annihilation as the highest goal.

Jesus Loves us as the unique individuals we are!

icxn · Jun 8, 2019

zippy2006 said:
Buddhism -> End suffering
Christianity -> Be united with God

How about...

Christianity -> Embrace suffering

Romans 5:3: Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Akita Suggagaki · Jun 8, 2019

icxn said:
Christianity -> Embrace suffering

That's a good try but I think both religions transcend suffering. Suffering is our response to what we don't like. Christians accept what they dont like and offer it up. Buddhists accept what they dont like and try to like it or numb themselves to it..

ananda · Jun 8, 2019

Grip Docility said:
Buddhism teaches annihilation as the highest goal.

The highest goal is the cessation of suffering & attaining unending peace & bliss (parinibbana) - not annihilation.

From our earliest texts: "The Noble Truth of the Origin (cause) of Suffering is this: It is this craving (thirst) which produces re-becoming (rebirth) accompanied by passionate greed, and finding fresh delight now here, and now there, namely craving for sense pleasure, craving for existence and craving for non-existence (self-annihilation). The Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering is this: It is the complete cessation of that very craving, giving it up, relinquishing it, liberating oneself from it, and detaching oneself from it." SN 56.1

Grip Docility · Jun 8, 2019

ananda said:
The highest goal is the cessation of suffering & attaining unending peace & bliss (parinibbana) - not annihilation.
......
craving for non-existence (self-annihilation). The Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering is this: It is the complete cessation of that very craving, giving it up, relinquishing it, liberating oneself from it, and detaching oneself from it." SN 56.1

Right.... the pursuit of eternal non-existence.

Per Buddhism, one's sins determine their rebirth, until they become "Empty of Self" in every possible way. The Soul is Lost, and Personal Identity is forever gone.

There is no hope in that.

Jesus Christ offers ETERNAL LIFE.... not eternal NON LIFE.

ananda · Jun 8, 2019

Akita Suggagaki said:
Buddhists accept what they dont like and try to like it or numb themselves to it..

Not exactly. We are taught to deconstruct our attachment to this mundane level of reality and to focus instead on its underlying foundation.

E.g. - to use a more modern day metaphor - Instead of being attached to the digital pet on my computer desktop, I should look deeper, into the programming which caused that "digital pet" to arise. Then, instead of being attached to the programming, I should look even deeper, into the hardware which enables the programming to arise. Then, look into the atomic particles which enable the hardware to arise. Etc. The digital pet - seen in terms of the component parts which creates it - becomes insignificant, at that point, once I understand the deeper layers of reality which composes them.

zippy2006 · Jun 8, 2019

ananda said:
Not exactly. We are taught to deconstruct our attachment to this mundane level of reality and to focus instead on its underlying foundation.

E.g. - to use a more modern day metaphor - Instead of being attached to the digital pet on my computer desktop, I should look deeper, into the programming which caused that "digital pet" to arise. Then, instead of being attached to the programming, I should look even deeper, into the hardware which enables the programming to arise. Then, look into the atomic particles which enable the hardware to arise. Etc. The digital pet - seen in terms of the component parts which creates it - becomes insignificant, at that point, once I understand the deeper layers of reality which composes them.

That actually strikes me as an accurate analogy and it also reveals a basic reductionism inherent in Buddhism. There is an inability to accept higher level ontological realities (what some might call "emergent realities"). That is one of my fundamental criticisms of Buddhism. Christianity, on the other hand, is more balanced and less reductionistic. It understands the building blocks but also acknowledges the complex realities. Admittedly insofar as Buddhism interacts with Western psychology this error is sanded down to some extent.

ananda · Jun 8, 2019

Grip Docility said:
Right.... the pursuit of eternal non-existence.

Per Buddhism, one's sins determine their rebirth, until they become "Empty of Self" in every possible way. The Soul is Lost, and Personal Identity is forever gone.

There is no hope in that.

Jesus Christ offers ETERNAL LIFE.... not eternal NON LIFE.

We don't see any "sin" (aka offenses against a deity). Instead, we do see the existence of unskillful behavior which does influence our rebirth.

We see no enduring soul or personal identity; after all, we do see a "personal identity" which continually changes from moment to moment, from thought to thought, etc. I am not the same person I was 1 second ago, much less 10 years ago, for example.

Additionally, "eternal life" is not seen as the summum bonum - take for example, many individuals who perceive suffering in the idea of life (much less eternal life), seek eternal death & nothingness or annihilation, and then take their own life in suicide. We, as Buddhists, understand that both individuals - the one who seek eternal life, and the one who seeks eternal death - are actually searching for a deeper goal: lasting peace & bliss. This is what the we identify as the summum bonum, and we find great hope in that, and in our testable, methodical Path which leads to it.

RaymondG · Jun 8, 2019

Grip Docility said:
Right.... the pursuit of eternal non-existence.

Per Buddhism, one's sins determine their rebirth, until they become "Empty of Self" in every possible way. The Soul is Lost, and Personal Identity is forever gone.

There is no hope in that.

Jesus Christ offers ETERNAL LIFE.... not eternal NON LIFE.

What do you think of the notion of "dying daily".....after which, there is "no more I but Christ that liveth?"

ananda · Jun 8, 2019

zippy2006 said:
That actually strikes me as an accurate analogy and it also reveals a basic reductionism inherent in Buddhism. There is an inability to accept higher level ontological realities (what some might call "emergent realities"). That is one of my fundamental criticisms of Buddhism. Christianity, on the other hand, is more balanced and less reductionistic. It understands the building blocks but also acknowledges the complex realities. Admittedly insofar as Buddhism interacts with Western psychology this error is sanded down to some extent.

I do see the acceptance of "emergent realities" in the early Buddhist texts. We are merely taught to not attach to them, because attachment to ever-changing emergent realities causes suffering.

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