Reflection on "love" in the world

[Mhiriam]

The secular view that the truly loving thing is to say that all beliefs are equal - it's amazing how extremely self-loving that view is when you follow it further.
I had one woman say to me "Jesus, Allah, Buddha, they're all the same God."
I wonder if she would be willing to go to the local mosque and tell the Muslims there that Buddha is equal in worth to Allah, or to a Buddhist monk and tell him he follows basically the same principles as Islam. Somehow, I don't think they'd say "Wow, what a loving, insightful comment! I totally agree."

Mim

 

[bèlla]

I had one woman say to me "Jesus, Allah, Buddha, they're all the same God." I wonder if she would be willing to go to the local mosque and tell the Muslims there that Buddha is equal in worth to Allah, or to a Buddhist monk and tell him he follows basically the same principles as Islam. Somehow, I don't think they'd say "Wow, what a loving, insightful comment! I totally agree."

Were you offended by her comment? It's possible she really believes that. I did and I've studied and practiced most major religions save Islam. It wasn't a random thought. There are a lot of similarities between each. When I read the Bhavagad Gita I encountered these words:

Whatever path people travel is My path
No matter where they walk, it leads to Me.

While I'm aware of the truth of God and Christ, I believed that statement when I read it. Given my experience it was easy to see why that was the case.

 

[com7fy8]

The secular view that the truly loving thing is to say that all beliefs are equal

This can be a way to get out of admitting that certain things are wrong. Ones fear being judged.

And ones don't realize how because God loves us He corrects us > Hebrews 12:4-14. So, His judgment is for our good, with hope for how we can become His way like Jesus, even, in how to be and love.

When ones say all groups are the same, they possibly know nothing about how certain groups have even execution penalties for certain wrong things.

 

[zephcom]

The secular view that the truly loving thing is to say that all beliefs are equal - it's amazing how extremely self-loving that view is when you follow it further.
I had one woman say to me "Jesus, Allah, Buddha, they're all the same God."
I wonder if she would be willing to go to the local mosque and tell the Muslims there that Buddha is equal in worth to Allah, or to a Buddhist monk and tell him he follows basically the same principles as Islam. Somehow, I don't think they'd say "Wow, what a loving, insightful comment! I totally agree."

Mim

I'm just curious...how did you decide that comment is the secular view which is truly loving? I could understand it being inclusive, but loving???

 

[Mhiriam]

I didn't decide that - the woman who told it to me said it was more loving. It is a secular view, there are several.

Labella - I don't doubt she believes that. I just think, as I said, that the faiths she was talking about might see things differently. You could always ask a committed Muslim and a committed Buddhist yourself and see if I'm right or not.

 

[everbecoming2007]

I didn't decide that - the woman who told it to me said it was more loving. It is a secular view, there are several.

Labella - I don't doubt she believes that. I just think, as I said, that the faiths she was talking about might see things differently. You could always ask a committed Muslim and a committed Buddhist yourself and see if I'm right or not.

You are correct that there is more than one secular view. The more academic people I know say the opposite: religions, though they may share some similarities, are very diverse, and the Buddha isn't a god in Buddhism.

Your friend is speaking from a lack of knowledge.

 

[Mhiriam]

Yes, a lack of knowledge and a lack of wanting to find out more, I'm afraid.
But it's a view I'm coming across more and more these days.

 

[Shropshire Anglican]

It's the 'pick and mix' approach, not helped by weakly led churches where people aren't taught the truth.

 

[Paidiske]

I have a good friend who's a Buddhist monk and a hospital and prison chaplain; he shares with me his utter frustration that people who know absolutely nothing at all about Buddhism will say things like, "Well, you know, I'm not really religious, but if I was anything I'd be Buddhist, because you guys are all, like, accepting and stuff." He once even had someone quote Jesus as an example of the excellence of Buddhist teaching (we laughed; you have to laugh or you'll cry).

It's just ignorance, mostly; coupled with a desire to see the good in everyone. But in doing so it blurs out any particularity, or even any of the benefits of committing to a particular position and tradition. But few of these people have ever darkened the doors of a place of worship...

 

[everbecoming2007]

It's just ignorance, mostly; coupled with a desire to see the good in everyone. But in doing so it blurs out any particularity, or even any of the benefits of committing to a particular position and tradition.

I agree and would further point out that it is not actually charitable to erase real differences between people and their traditions. This can and does lead to misrepresentation. This really becomes a problem when a tradition has been repressed or largely destroyed as is the case with some Native American traditions. Ignorant or opportunistic people will pass off hybrid or bogus practices as belonging to a particular tradition -- or even to the "Native American tradition," as if there were only one -- and in spreading that misinformation this makes it difficult for the Natives of my country to actually preserve and teach about their own traditions. In some cases they are no longer even given the right to represent the tradition for themselves. It has been taken away by both well and ill intentioned cons and other people.

I've heard more than one person claim to be a Buddhist without any formal connection to the tradition at all even though a core aspect of the Buddhist traditions is to take refuge in the sangha, nor do they abide by other Buddhist principles and practices. I don't at all find it charitable to casually claim someone's tradition when no such tradition recognizes that claim, especially when the person isn't even practicing it to any degree even in isolation.