What’s a Buddhist Christian?

I am by no means a religious scholar, so take all of the following with a grain of salt, but at times I would like to consider myself as a Buddhist Christian.

So what does that mean?

There’s a lot you can unpack here, but to start, there’s a reason I order the words as Buddhist Christian and not Christian Buddhist. I write this because I am a Christian and believe in a higher power, God. I recognize I may be wrong about this, but this is my belief, not a truth I would try to force on others.

To add to this, or perhaps somewhat stray, I resonate with a lot of the Buddha’s teachings on how to live an ethical life.

I gain a lot of meaning from my Catholic belief, but I also gain a lot of practical advice from the Buddha.

Below is what I would consider the main difference between the two, but then some ways that Buddhism can complement my Catholic belief.

Major Difference

At their core, they differ. The Buddha did not say he was divine and encouraged others to practice what he advises, rather than just believing him without evidence.

Jesus, on the other hand, is divine and God in the flesh. Christianity presents as the sole truth in the world and is a missionary religion.

Buddha, on the other hand, believed in reincarnation, which was based on your karma, while Christianity focuses on heaven and hell.

Ways Buddhism Can Complement My Belief

While their main beliefs may directly conflict, thanks to living in our modern world, there are ways to focus on the secular aspects of Buddhism that help me live a more ethical life, ultimately supporting me as a Christian. For example, the focus on meditation and mindfulness in Buddhism can help us feel calmer and happier, even if we are not trying to reach enlightenment.

I appreciate the emphasis in Buddhism on working to end suffering. We all suffer in many ways and the Buddha offers an alternative way to live with our typical, monkey-brain mind. We tend to crave for things to be different constantly, rather than accepting where we are and being present. I find immense value in Buddhism’s focus on detaching ourselves from a lot of things. I want to build up and enhance my inner resources to deal with adversity, something Buddhism does quite well.

Now, there are a lot of loose ends here that could only be properly explored in a much longer post or book. With that being said, I would encourage anyway interested in this topic to read Jesus & Buddha: Friends in Conversation, by Paul Knitter and Roger Haight, a Buddhist-Christian theologian and a Christian theologian. A dual-religious identity is possible.

Thoughts on “The Mystery of Life”

I am watching “The Sopranos” on HBO GO and loving the show. During a recent episode Tony is talking with his therapist, Dr. Melfi, about his son Anthony Jr’s recent behavior. Tony is concerned about Anthony’s casual rhetoric and ambivalence regarding the purpose of life. Dr. Melfi points out that Anthony Jr. is entering his adolescent years and existential questions are common for someone his age. She goes on to say “well that’s the mystery of life isn’t it, why are we here?”

Why are we here?

Such a simple, yet profound question.

Many would offer that a divine being created our existence. Deists would stop there and say there is no divine intervention beyond our creation. Theists would argue that their divine being(s) gives us purpose. Finally, atheists would say that there is no divine being at all and we are simply here because of evolution. Then there are those who believe in reincarnation, which does not really fit one of the above categories. Of course there are other general viewpoints, but those cover the main ones I would think.

What do I believe?

I’m not really sure, as I don’t think others are, thus the msytery of it all.

I would like to think there is a divine being out there who wants what’s best for us. What challenges this belief is that the world is full of so much tragedy and unnecessary suffering. Many of us in well-off areas struggle to remember this fact. With that being said, I’ll take my chances and continue to believe that there is one.

Whatever anyone believes, I think there are universal ethics we could agree upon to make the world a better place.

Civilized societies have done an amazing job of putting laws and rules in place over time. Without these, there would be chaos.

There are also incredible individuals who have contributed to society in great ways.

All in all, we are responsbile for our own actions. Free will is a different discussion, but we do have the ability to make our own choices. 

Why do I like Buddhism so much? Because there is more emphasis on actions, rather than just beliefs. Buddhism offers a guide to an ethical way of living. 

One of my goals over my short winter break coming up is to go to a Quaker meeting. Why there? Quakers sit in silence during a meeting and only speak if they feel compelled by God, or the inner light within. For me, this set-up offers a nice combination of what I’m looking for as I can meditate and potentially hear valuable insights from others.

While one could technically be happy and well being totally alone in a cave, our relationships with others, in combination with our relationship with ourselves, is the focal point of our well-being.

With all the craziness in our world, I think we could use more spirituality, for sure. 

“The highest happiness is peace.” -Buddha … LOVE IT

What is Happiness?

What does it mean to be truly happy? That’s a question we’ve probably all heard before.

Well, I was reading an article recently about this and I really enjoyed the perspective that was shared. Please do read the link below if you get the chance…

https://studybuddhism.com/en/essentials/what-is/what-is-happiness

 

The opening line of the article is: 

“Happiness is a sense of long-term well-being, peace of mind and satisfaction with our lives – it’s what all of us look for, all of the time. When we have even a small taste of it, we want it to continue forever.”

But look out, because the market wants us to confuse pleasure and happiness.

 

A dopamine rush achieved by logging onto Instagram to see all the likes one got on their last picture is a short-term experience of pleasure based on an external circumstance, not lasting happiness that comes from within. The feeling will disappear and we will only want more. Short term pleasures come in many forms, especially in our current culture. Look no further than the rampant use of cell phones, even when we are with those we care about.

 

 

 

The way our brains evolved-always on the look for pleasure or potential danger-works against us in our pursuit of lasting happiness and peace. Of course some of these adaptations are incredibly helpful and we survive because of them, but they can also cause a lot of unnecessary suffering in our minds. If you take the time to sit with yourself you will immediately notice how distracted you are most of the time. Our brains jump from one thought to the next, over and over again. Often we are caught in our habitual loops that we’ve experienced time and time again.

The Buddha suggested that our greatest source of true happiness comes from cherishing others: sincerely caring for other’s well-being and happiness. In this way we remove the ego a bit and feel a genuine connection with the other person. There are studies out there (that I didn’t feel like tracking down to cite) that argue a great predictor of our happiness can be based off our relationships with others.

This also comes down to our relationships with ourselves. I’m working on being gentle and kind with myself. Trying to be mindful of all the stuff that pops around in my head , both negative and positive, while trying to not get too caught up in thoughts. At the end of the day, thoughts are just thoughts and they do not always reflect reality. Overall, I really do like the idea of being your own best friend.