Summary
In recent years Asian immigration to North America has risen dramatically, and with these
people has come their Buddhist faith. At the same time many non-Asian North Americans have
adopted Buddhism as their religion. In order to present the gospel effectively to both of
these groups it is clear that Christians need to have a fundamental understanding of
Buddhism. Siddhartha Gautama lived over twenty-five centuries ago, but as the Buddha his
life and teachings still inspire the faith of millions of people throughout Asia. The
Buddha rejected the religions of his day in India and taught a new approach to religion — a life not of luxury and pleasure nor of extreme asceticism,
but the Middle Way. Even in the West many find Buddhism appealing because its principles
seem sensible and compassionate.
I must confess: I love peaches. The juicy texture, the sweet fragrance, the luscious
taste — I love everything about peaches. I always have. As
a youngster I grew up in San Jose, California. During the fifties, San Jose was a small
town nestled in the Santa Clara Valley. At that time it was a valley full of fruit
orchards. Today it is known as "Silicon Valley," and most of the orchards are
gone. Forty years ago I could wander through orchards and enjoy cherries, apricots, and,
of course, peaches.
One day I was with my dad, who worked in the orchards as a field hand. It was a hot sunny
afternoon, and I was famished. When I saw a tree laden with peaches, I scurried over to
it. There was one peach that was within my reach. I quickly noticed the red blush on its
orange skin, and I knew it was ripe for my enjoyment. I touched it, and it felt soft and
round in my hand. I wanted it.
Just as I was about to bite into it, my dad grabbed it out of my hand. He looked at it
closely, and then he broke it open. A slimy worm was crawling around the core.
OBSERVATIONS AT THE PARLIAMENT
At the 1993 Parliament of the World's Religions, held at the Palmer Hotel last summer
in Chicago, I recalled this early lesson about discernment. In fact, three incidents
occurred during the opening plenary session of the first day of this convocation, which
was the centennial celebration of the World's Parliament of Religions held in Chicago in
1893, when many of the Eastern religions were first established in North America.
Since I live in the western suburbs of Chicago, I gave myself an hour and a half to drive
into the city, park my car, obtain my press pass, and find a seat in the Grand Ballroom
where the plenary session would occur. It was not enough time, however, for by the time I
entered the Palmer Hotel, all seats in the ballroom were taken. Initially I kicked myself
for not allowing more time, but then I realized that God had it planned for a crowd of
people to jam me against the lower end of a railing on a stairway going downward. As I
looked over the railing, Parliament staffers were coming up the opposite stairway,
clearing the path for the procession of dignitaries — the
religious leaders who represented the many world religious traditions and who were to
parade into the ballroom to commence the proceedings.
Soon a high official of the Parliament directed one group after another into the ballroom.
What was amazing to me was not so much that I was an arm's length away from these
religious leaders, but the way in which this official commanded the movements of these
people. Here were the leaders in the Hindu, Buddhist, Islamic, and Jewish faiths. There
were also Sikhs, Zoroastrians, Jains, and even Wiccan priestesses. In addition, Catholic
priests and Protestant clerics participated in this procession. But no matter who they
were they all submitted to the directions of that Parliament official, who ordered them
about like a police officer directing traffic.
A moment of levity occurred during the middle of this proceeding when the Parliament
official cried out, "Where are the Protestants? Go get them!" He was obviously
irritated that they had not promptly presented themselves according to his game plan. One
of the spectators shouted, "They're upstairs having a drink." Loud laughter then
erupted just as the Protestants scurried in with meek smiles on their faces.
This was the first incident in which I said to myself, "These people are like
lambs led to the slaughter, but unlike lambs they have chosen to be compliant."
After the entire procession had finally entered the ballroom, I hurried to the overflow
room where televisions monitored the plenary session. One dignitary after another blessed
the conference, such as Swami Ghahanananda of the Vivekananda Vedanta Society, Lady Olivia
Robertson of the Fellowship of Isis, and Cardinal Joseph Bernardin of the Roman Catholic
church. They spoke of harmony and peace, and how this Parliament was a gigantic step
forward in achieving unity among the different faiths.
As long as they spoke into the microphone, we could hear them well, but if they didn't, we
could only observe them on the television screens. Most of the speakers used the
microphone correctly, but one of the Native American speakers neglected the microphone and
we didn't hear anything he said. Strangely, however, as soon as he concluded his
presentation, the people in the overflow room cheered and clapped enthusiastically.
Here was someone who could have said anything, and the people in the room would have
demonstrated their highest approval. I was amazed at how easily swayed were the people who
attended this Parliament. This was the second incident that reminded me of how alluring
was that peach.
Toward the end of the plenary session, Rev. Gyomay Kubose of the Buddhist Council of the
Midwest offered his blessing to the conference. Kubose spoke directly into the microphone,
and his words were clear and easily understood. He too urged people to promote world peace
and universal brotherhood. He said we must create harmony. He then read an ancient
Buddhist poem, which said that there is one source, one law, and that "all life is
one."
How wonderful for Kubose and all the other speakers to encourage peace and harmony among
different peoples of different faiths! Their words sounded good. They were certainly
appealing. Indeed, they were enchanting. But were they really saying what we thought we
heard? Was what appeared on the surface of what they were saying at the core
of their beliefs as well? Can there really be harmony among all the world religions?
Since I have been a Christian for over 25 years and have seriously studied Buddhism for
nearly 20 years, I believe there cannot be this harmony. Kubose's words were a third
indication to me that a very alluring, but also very corrupt peach was being presented at
the Parliament of the World's Religions.
In this article and the three that will follow, I would like to demonstrate how there can
be no harmony between the Buddhist doctrine and the Christian faith. I will also reveal
how we as Christians can show this difference to Buddhists who are currently living in our
society.
In the past 20 years the number of legal and illegal Asian immigrants into North America
has increased dramatically. In fact, estimates of the number of illegal immigrants alone
entering America each year range from 50,000 to 500,000. With these people has come their
Buddhist faith. Most Americans of Asian descent still are professing Buddhists, which
accounts for a sizable population. For example, according to the 1990 U.S. Census, over
800,000 Americans point to Japan as their nation of origin. At the same time thousands of
non-Asian North Americans have adopted Buddhism as their religion. Not surprisingly, there
are now over one thousand Buddhist temples, monasteries, and centers in the United States.
Of course, Buddhists belong to many religious traditions, and in many cases it seems that
there is little similarity between the various schools of Buddhism. Nevertheless, all
Buddhists point back to the Buddha as the founder of their religion and accept certain
fundamental principles that he taught. Therefore it is important that we preface our
examination of Buddhism in America with a look at the life and teachings of this
historical figure.
THE BUDDHA
Over three thousand years ago the Aryans (a powerful group of Indo-European-speaking
people) spread in several directions throughout Europe, the Middle East, and South Asia.
After conquering the Indus valley, the Aryans instituted Brahmanism (today it has
developed into Hinduism) and the caste system in the Indian culture, which enabled the
invaders to maintain the purity of the Aryan race and establish themselves as spiritual
and social masters over the native Indians. The Brahmin (or Brahman) priests further
centralized their power over all the castes and soon set up a religious monopoly for a
privileged few.
In the sixth century B.C., a number of important religious traditions were formed. One was
Jainism, which was founded by Mahavira and has survived to this day. Another was the birth
of Buddhism, which was to rival Hinduism as a major world religion. The founder of
Buddhism was Siddhartha Gautama, revered by millions of people throughout the world today.
The biography of Siddhartha Gautama was not written during his lifetime.1 The
earliest available accounts of his life were collected some three hundred years after his
death. Since then, both historical and legendary descriptions of his life have been
included in the Pali Canon and Sanskrit accounts. Historians have debated where to draw
the line between history and legend, but no one can know what are the facts. What follows
is an account of the Buddha which most Buddhists accept but which almost certainly
contains much myth. Nevertheless, whether the stories about Siddhartha Gautama be true or
myth, his life has been and still is an inspiration and model for all Buddhists.
Siddhartha Gautama2 probably was born in 563 B.C. and died about eighty years
later.3 His father was King Suddhodana Gautama, a raja (or chieftain) of the
Sakya clan, a family of the Kshatriya (warrior-nobility) caste of ancient
Bharata. His
father reigned over Kapilavastu, a small district on the Indian slope of the Himalayas in
a region that borders between India and Nepal.
At birth Gautama (his family name) received the name of Siddhartha, meaning "he who
has accomplished his objectives." He is also called Sakyamuni ("the wise sage of
the Sakya clan"), Bhagavat ("blessed with happiness"), Tathagata ("the
one who has gone thus"), Jina ("the victorious"), and, of course, the
Buddha ("the Enlightened One").
During Siddhartha's infancy, the sage Asita4 visited King Suddhodana's court
and prophesied that Siddhartha would become either a great ruler like his father if he
remained within his father's palace or a Buddha if he went forth into the world. King
Suddhodana believed that if his son observed human misery in the world, Siddhartha would
leave his home to seek for truth. Naturally, the king wanted his son to ascend to his
throne after his death. Therefore, he issued strict orders to his subjects that the young
prince was not to see any form of evil or suffering.
As Siddhartha grew to manhood, he manifested extraordinary intelligence and strength. For
example, at the age of sixteen Siddhartha won the hand of his cousin,
Yashodara, by
performing twelve marvelous feats in the art of archery.5 Siddhartha might have
married other women, but if so, Yashodara was evidently his principal wife.
Meanwhile, despite the diligence of his father to sequester him from the sight of evil and
suffering, Siddhartha decided to elude the royal attendants and drive his chariot four
times through the city. During his excursions outside his father's palace, he observed an
old man, a leper, a corpse, and an ascetic.6 He realized from his observations
that life was full of sorrows and that happiness was an illusion. Thus Siddhartha became
aware of human suffering.
On the same night in which Yashodara gave birth to their son Rahula, Siddhartha left his
family and kingdom to seek for truth.7 Siddhartha certainly anguished over his
decision to leave everything he loved, but now that his son, whose name means
"hindrance," was born and could continue the royal line, he felt free to begin
his spiritual quest. He took his faithful servant Channa and his devoted horse Kanthaka as
far as the forest, where he shaved off his hair and changed his robes. He left them there
and began a pilgrimage of inquiry and asceticism as a poor beggar monk.8
For six or seven years, Gautama sought communion with the supreme cosmic spirit, first
through the teachings of two Brahmin hermits and then in the company of five monks. He
practiced the traditional methods of asceticism such as fasting. Other physical
austerities included sleeping on brambles to mortify the desires of his body and
abstaining from sitting by crouching on his heels to develop his concentration. For long
periods he ate nothing except a single grain of rice each day.
Despite all these efforts, Siddhartha did not succeed in attaining truth. Finally, in a
moment of profound insight he realized that his life as an ascetic was of no greater value
than his previous life as a prince. Self-torture was vain and fruitless; privation was no
better than pleasure. He understood then the importance of what he called the Middle Way.
Abandoning a life of extreme austerities, Siddhartha ate solid food. This act angered his
fellow monks, who thought Siddhartha had weakened and succumbed to his physical needs.
They promptly deserted him, thoroughly disgusted with his seeming worldliness.
On the wide bank of Meranjana at Gaya (a major city in northeast India) near the village
of Urvela, Siddhartha sat at the foot of a fig tree (commemorated as the Bodhi tree).
There Mara,9 the evil one, tried to thwart Siddhartha from becoming the Buddha,
enticing him with worldly temptations during his meditations. Siddhartha withstood all the
challenges and experienced the revelation of liberating awareness —
the way that provides escape from the cruel causality of samsara (the cycle of rebirths).
He discovered the Four Noble Truths, which became known as Pativedhanana, the
wisdom of Realization. Siddhartha henceforth was the Buddha —
the Enlightened One.
After his enlightenment, the Buddha was faced with a crucial decision. He could either
renounce the world and withdraw with his knowledge as most monks did who thought they had
attained spiritual truth, or he could remain with people and share the Four Noble Truths
with those who also sought truth. Out of his compassion for others, the Buddha chose the
later. Thus the followers of the Buddha believe that Buddhism is built not only on truth,
but also on compassion — both wisdom and compassion are
equally important to the Buddhist faith.
In the Deer Park at "Isipatana" (near the Ganges River in northeast India) two
months after he had experienced enlightenment, the Buddha gave his first sermon, setting
in motion the Wheel of the Law, the symbol of the Buddhist faith and of the Buddha as
well. There he approached the five monks who had deserted him. At first they ignored him,
but finally they sensed that he had achieved some kind of realization of truth. So they
sat and listened to his teachings and were soon converted. He received them into the Sangha,
the mendicant order that has spread the Dharma (the doctrine of the Buddha) and the
Vinaya (the disciplinary regulations concerning Buddhist conduct).
For more than 40 years the Buddha dedicated himself to his ministry. Although he did not
proselytize among the masses, he was concerned for others and was fired with a zealous
sense of mission. The Sangha quickly grew. Many people were attracted to this man who was
calm, reasonable, gentle, and who possessed a sense of humor.
The Buddha was 80 when Cunda the blacksmith served him pig's flesh or, perhaps, mushrooms.
He became extremely ill. Before he passed away, he sent a message to Cunda saying that he
should not feel guilty for being the cause of his death, for it was destined to be. The
Buddha died at Kusinara (modern Kasia) in the district of Gorakhpur. Just before his
death, he exhorted his disciples not to grieve. His last recorded words were: "Decay
is inherent in all component things! Work out your own salvation with diligence."10
The Buddha probably never believed he was a god but rather that he was an enlightened
human being.
THE DHARMA
Dharma is an Indian term, which can mean either conformity to one's duty within society
or the basic principles of one's existence within the universe. In its general sense it is
simply understood as the law of life. Within Buddhism, the Dharma took on a more specific
meaning, being understood as the teachings of the Buddha.
After the death of the Buddha, his disciples convened their first council at
Rajagrha,
where they tried to organize his teachings within a system of doctrines on which they
could agree. These teachings were then orally passed down to future generations of
Buddhist monks within various Buddhist communities in India. About four centuries later,
in about 80 B.C., Buddhist scribes finally compiled the teachings of the Buddha on paper,
which became the Pali Canon. The written collection of the Buddha's teachings is also
called the Tripitaka (the "three baskets") because they contain rules for
conduct, methods for spiritual attainment, and the ethics taught by the Buddha.
Like many of his contemporaries, the Buddha protested against the aristocratic religion of
his day, first because it was corrupt and tyrannical, and second because it was too
refined and intellectual for the common people. His teachings were open to all who would
listen, and they were taught incisively and clearly so that they could be understood and
experienced.
The religious tyranny of the Brahmins in India was uncompromising. The Brahmins held that
the opportunity for the union of the individual soul (Atman) with the Universal
Soul (Brahman) was reserved for the sage caste and that only through numerous
rebirths could lower castes enter into this caste. Since the spiritual hope of the Indian
people was to someday become one with Brahman, this doctrine forced all other castes to
submit to the rules of the Brahmin priests in order to attain to higher castes through
rebirths. Not only this, but also it created an atmosphere of awe and fear of Brahmin
authority.
Contrary to the prevailing Brahmin doctrine, the Buddha recruited disciples from all
castes. According to him, nirvana (deliverance from suffering) is extended to everyone who
strictly obeys the laws of a monastic life, not withstanding their caste prior to
conversion. The Buddha, however, did not seek to abolish the caste system. Instead, he
believed it was necessary for the framework of the temporal life. Since Buddhist monks
were committed to the Dharma, only they were exempt from caste distinctions. Nevertheless,
however much the Buddha accepted the caste system sociologically, his teachings on this
issue were a gigantic step forward in reforming the religious corruption of his day in
Indian culture.
In addition, the Buddha argued against the philosophical speculations of the Brahmin
priests, who tried to join the concept of the soul's oneness with God (Brahman) and the
concept of reincarnation into a coherent theological system. The Buddha rejected these
speculations as futile because he believed they prevented spiritual seekers from achieving
true enlightenment. He considered such speculations as vain and nonproductive.
Furthermore, the Buddha rejected subservience to a supreme God and denied belief in an
eternal self. His concept of karma (the transcendental effect in a person's life of
actions accomplished in that person's previous existences) has sometimes been
misunderstood. Certainly he believed that karma determines the kind of rebirth a person
experiences according to past merit. The Buddha, however, did not believe there is a self
or soul that is reborn. Instead, he taught that at birth there is a rearrangement of the
elements of a person's identity, which are called the "self" —
much as a "chariot" is a name for a certain grouping of parts that can be
rearranged to be something else while still comprising the same parts.
The Buddha also defined nirvana differently from the Brahmins. Whereas in Brahmanism,
nirvana or moksha is attained when the individual soul becomes one with the
Universal Soul, the Buddha held that nirvana is actually the termination of rebirths — that is, the identity of an individual is extinguished. One way
to distinguish classical Hindu teaching from Buddhist teaching on this subject is to
present the traditional metaphors taught in these two religions. In describing nirvana
symbolically in classical Hinduism, the individual self is like the raindrop that falls
into the ocean, becoming one with the Universal Soul. In describing nirvana symbolically
in Buddhism, the identity of a person is like a candle flame that is blown out.
The Buddha taught that true nirvana is not immediately accessible —
several lives are required to achieve it. He declared that if nirvana depended only on the
suppression of all feeling and thought, then the deaf, the blind, and the insane could
enter into it. Instead, he said the journey to nirvana is long and difficult, but the
fruits of this spiritual quest are inner peace and harmony with all beings prior to
nirvana and finally deliverance from suffering at nirvana.
The Buddha believed that suffering dominates the lives of all human beings, and he taught
a practical way of deliverance from suffering. These teachings on suffering are the heart
of the Dharma and are known as the Four Noble Truths: (1) the universality of suffering,
(2) the origin of suffering, (3) the overcoming of suffering, and (4) the way leading to
the suppression of suffering. The first Truth defines the nature of being; the second and
third Truths develop various aspects of being; and the fourth Truth indicates a practical
way to deliverance from suffering.
The first Noble Truth is known as Duhkha. The Buddha taught that all people
discover that life is full of sorrow through the experience of birth, aging, and death.
Contrary to the pantheism of Brahmanism which taught that a divine thread is woven in all
beings, the Buddha spoke of the self as a temporal creation cursed with suffering until
deliverance is achieved.
The second Noble Truth is Tanha. The Buddha taught that suffering is caused by the
false desires of the senses that have been deceived into clinging to the impermanent
world. A hopeless quest for immortality further aggravates human pain, either because
people are obsessed with survival or because they fear the failure of obtaining ultimate
peace.
The third Noble Truth teaches how deliverance from suffering can be attained. If the false
desires of a changeable and perishable self cause suffering, then the desires need to be
suppressed, abandoned, or rejected in order to nullify their effects. Ignorance of the way
of deliverance and the delusion that there is a permanent self are the primordial cause of
suffering.
The fourth Noble Truth is the Buddhist ethic, which the Buddha taught as the Noble
Eightfold Path. It is a sacred path with eight branches called: right views or
understanding, right aspirations, right speech, right conduct or action, right livelihood,
right effort or endeavor, right mind control or concentration, and right mindfulness.
These eight branches are not stages that can be lived out in succession or isolation from
one another. Rather they are different dimensions of a total way of life.
According to the Buddha, suffering is the result of selfish desires that chain people to
the wheel of insubstantial impermanent things. Living according to the Dharma aims at
eliminating these selfish desires in ways described in the fourth Noble Truth, thus
guiding the individual to nirvana.
Although the Buddha did not deny the existence of gods, he taught that the worship of gods
obstructed one's quest for nirvana. To him the gods inhabit the cosmos and are impermanent
like all other living beings. Thus they too must escape rebirth through nirvana.
Ironically many Buddhists revere the Buddha above the gods. What was important to the
Buddha, however, was certainly not the worship of gods or himself but the following of his
teachings.
THE SANGHA
After the Buddha addressed his first sermon to the five monks near
Benares, he
continued to preach the Dharma to his followers rather than to the masses. The five monks
and those disciples who came later became the first Buddhist monastic order known as the
Sangha, a society of Buddhist believers. During the Buddha's lifetime, these Buddhist
monks were wandering beggars and not priests. They tried to exemplify the way of
deliverance through the conduct of their lives. If a person wanted to learn the Dharma and
become a part of the Sangha, he had to become a beggar-monk.
Those who did join the Sangha were usually at least 15 years old. After one was accepted
as a novice, his head was shaven to symbolize his renunciation of the world. He was then
given a new name and a new robe. Finally, he made the vows of a Buddhist monk. Later,
after having completed his term as a novice and having been accepted into the order, he
again was given a new name and a new robe. At any time, as a novice or a full monk, he
could return to lay life either temporarily or permanently.
The Buddha taught the Middle Way to his followers. He wanted them to abstain from
self-torture as well as self-indulgence. Therefore, these early Buddhists renounced the
world and material comforts, but they also rejected severe self-mortification.
Heated debate currently rages in Buddhist circles over the Buddha's teaching concerning
women in the Sangha. Certainly women had great difficulty being accepted into the Buddhist
community. Some say the Buddha was deeply suspicious of women: since he taught against the
physical temptations of the world, he must also have denounced the sensual attraction that
women exercise on men. Therefore, the Buddha continually warned his disciples against the
sinister guile of women.
For a long while, the Buddha apparently resisted having women in the Sangha, but finally
he consented to their becoming a part of his wandering entourage of followers.
Nevertheless, numerous restrictions were placed on the nuns. First and foremost, the nuns
were subject to the authority of the monks in all circumstances. "A nun," the
Buddha laid down, "though she be a hundred years old must reverence a monk, rise on
meeting him, salute him with clasped hands and honor him with her respects, although he
may have been received into the order only that day."11
Some Buddhists continue to hold this kind of attitude toward women within their Buddhist
community. But other Buddhists argue that the Buddha went against the male chauvinism in
his culture by permitting women to serve in prominent roles within the
Sangha. His remarks
about women, they say, were made because he could only communicate on the level that his
listeners could spiritually grasp at the time. Later Buddhists would come to realize that
women have equal value to men, which the Buddha already knew. It is indeed interesting
that today the teachings of the Buddha attract a strong following within the feminist
movement in the West.
Meanwhile, the laity during the Buddha's lifetime were permitted to follow his teachings
while they continued to live in the world. Although they could earn some benefits (such as
material prosperity) for aiding the monks in the Sangha, the laity could not attain
nirvana or receive any of the higher fruits of the Dharma (such as inner
tranquillity).
One significant benefit they could receive from their dedication to the Buddha and their
generosity to the Sangha was that they could be reborn as a person who becomes a
beggar-monk — for only total renunciation of the world
leads to deliverance.
After the Buddha passed away, his followers continued to wander from village to village,
spreading his doctrine of deliverance from suffering and receiving food, clothing, and
sometimes shelter. As the Sangha grew, the Buddhist monks broke apart from one another,
forming numerous groups with each interpreting the Dharma a little differently than the
others.
During the rainy season, wealthy landowners would provide shelters for many of these
groups of monks. In time one group after another would accept the patronage of a
landowner. Thus monasteries were established throughout India, the Sangha eventually
evolving from a society of wandering monks and nuns to a community of Buddhist
monasteries.
Since a systematic Buddhist theology was apparently not put into written form until four
centuries after the Buddha's death, schisms split the Sangha as Buddhists within different
monasteries argued over the content of the Dharma. By the close of the third century B.C.,
the Buddhists were separated into no less than 18 schools. Three major branches of
Buddhism eventually developed: Theravada ("the doctrine of the elders"),
Mahayana ("the Great Wheel"), and Vajrayana ("the Diamond Vehicle").
How these branches of Buddhism reveal themselves in the West will be the subject of my
next three articles on Buddhism. At this point it is enough to know that the Buddha, the
Dharma, and the Sangha are known as the "Three Jewels" of Buddhism.
FURTHER OBSERVATIONS AT THE PARLIAMENT
As the various forms of Buddhism have arrived in the United States, there has been a
general desire among these schools to achieve some type of unity. But just as the leaves
of a maple have their source in the same tree, yet must inevitably fall and go their own
way because of their individuality, so the individual Buddhist schools have divided and
separated because of their difference in practice and doctrine, despite their common
origin. Now the Eastern winds are blowing across the West and bringing with them foliage
of a variety of shapes, colors, and designs, but all from the same tree.
How should we, as Christians, respond to the presence of these people who follow the
teachings of the Buddha in our society? Should we demand that they get rid of their idols?
Should we forbid that they teach their false doctrines in our Christian country? Should we
tell them to go back to where they came from?
These questions came to my mind at the Parliament of the World's Religions during one of
the Buddhist sessions. The speaker, Havanapola Ratanasara, a Sri Lankan and president of
the American Buddhist Congress, was enraged. Evidently he had come across a handout that
Christians were passing out at the conference. After bitterly commenting on the handout,
he read a portion of its content, which stated that the reader would be blessed "if
you obey the Bible and cursed if you don't....You may come here from another nation as an
individual but you may not bring your gods, festivals, your temples and your priests, nor
your statutory ways, because they violate the blessings of our country and bring on God's
judgment."12
Needless to say, these words not only infuriated the speaker but also angered most of his
listeners. At that moment the handout confirmed in their minds that Buddhism is a religion
of tolerance and peace while Christianity is a religion of bigotry and ignorance.
In one sense, the teachings of Christ are intolerant. Jesus quite frankly said
there is no way to the Father except through Himself. In another sense, this handout
disturbed me as well. I don't mind being ridiculed by nonbelievers because I believe that
only in Christ can we find salvation. I do mind, however, when my witness is linked with a
provincial and condemning attitude.
At a time when many countries are closing their doors to Christian missionaries, I welcome
the opportunity to share my faith with Buddhists who are coming to our shores. Indeed, we
should see the immigration of Buddhists to North America as an opportunity to share the
Gospel with these people rather than a reason for God to angrily punish the United States
and Canada. For that reason I want to examine the beliefs of the three major types of
Buddhists who live in our communities in the next three issues of the CHRISTIAN RESEARCH
JOURNAL — not for the purpose of equipping Christians with
information so they can clobber Buddhists with the truth, but for the purpose of enabling
Christians to intelligibly convey to them with power and grace the wonderful news that
Jesus has died for them.
I have one final observation to share regarding my experiences at the Parliament. I
attended another Buddhist session, which was held in a small room. There were about 20
people squeezed in this room to hear Yoga Guru, an elderly holy man from India, talk about
Nagarjuna (Nagarjuna is as important to Buddhism as Paul is to Christianity) and the
philosophy of emptiness in Buddhism.
After this modest gentleman spoke for about 10 minutes about Nagarjuna's background, one
of his listeners interrupted him. He, like most of the listeners, was a Caucasian
Westerner who was not really interested in what Yoga Guru had to say. Instead, after
briefly saying how wonderful are the teachings of the Buddha and Nagarjuna, he then
encouraged all the people in the room to chant the sacred Hindu word OM. For the rest of
the session, everyone — except myself —
chanted this word.
From my 20 years of interacting with people of other faiths, I knew that these people were
much like most Westerners who dabble in Eastern religions. They are far more interested in
what they can mystically experience than what they can theologically understand. Using the
metaphor of the peach once more, they would prefer to enjoy the consumption of the fruit
rather than examine the quality of its content.
Clearly, how we present the Gospel to these people must be different than how we
present it to Asian Buddhists. This is another subject that I would like to address
in my upcoming articles on Buddhism.
The life and teachings of the Buddha can be quite enchanting with their emphasis on
compassion and wisdom. The call for peace and harmony among people of different faiths can
also be alluring. But what is the fruit that is really being offered? What will it cost
those who partake of it? As Christians, we will resist such a temptation. But we must also
be like my dad. We must open the fruit in the sight of Buddhists of all backgrounds so
they can see what is crawling inside of it.
NOTES
1 My primary source for the biography of Siddhartha Gautama is The Life
of Buddha as Legend and History by Edward J. Thomas (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul,
1969).
2 Devout Buddhists avoid the use of his personal name and refer to him as the
Buddha.
3 Theravadin tradition dates his birth at 623 B.C.
4 Other accounts say he was visited by eight Brahmin holy men.
5 Other texts give her such names as Yasohara, Bhaddakacca, and
Bimba.
6 Other accounts say he merely envisioned these four states of humanity.
7 Other accounts say he was born seven days before; others say that his mother
conceived him that night.
8 Some accounts say his horse died of a broken heart and was reborn a god.
9 The name Mara is found in Sanskrit accounts outside of Buddhist texts
in the identity of death, but not as a character. In early Buddhist texts, Mara appears as
a demonic figure who personifies at various times evil, transitory pleasure, and death.
10 Christmas Humphreys, Buddhism (London: Penguin Books, 1951), 41.
11 Henri Arvon, Buddhism (New York: Walker and Co., 1962), 55.
12 This handout was produced by the Cumberland Missionary Society in
Evensville, Tennessee.
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