Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Buddhists have it wrong
Slade shared this link to a chapter from Pope John Paull II's book Crossing the Threshold of Hope. This particular chapter deals with Buddhism and lays out some of the deceased Pope's thoughts on my favorite Asian faith. I found his ideas interesting, though there is an obvious bias and dismissive tone to the passage. There is no denying that I am in no position to debate or point-counterpoint with a man who spent most of his adult life pursuing a greater understanding of Christian history and heritage. I am no theologian. Even where Buddhism is concerned, I have a layman's understanding, at best, but my opinion is very different than Paul II's.
He portrays the Buddhist practice of seeking transcendence as inherently negative. His argument is that this world is his god's creation and as such is our soul's bridge to his god's grace. The argument is that by disconnecting from the physical realm, a seeker actually limits his development and lives counter to the Christian god's will, as attested to in this passage:
The Second Vatican Council has amply confirmed this truth. To indulge in a negative attitude toward the world, in the conviction that it is only a source of suffering for man and that he therefore must break away from it, is negative not only because it is unilateral but also because it is fundamentally contrary to the development of both man himself and the world, which the Creator has given and entrusted to man as his task.
Obviously, there is little room for making an argument, as a man like the Pope is operating from a position of fundamental belief in Biblical principles. He believed that the Earth was created by YHWH or Jehovah, so his perceptions of the Earth as an object are going to be fundamentally different than someone who does not agree with that foundational assumption. If the Earth was not created by a god, and man is not the product of that same god, then there is no reason to hold an allegiance to either the Earth or a god. Where a Buddhist sees this realization as an essential first step toward greater understanding and transcendence, a Christian, Jew, Muslim, etc will see such thinking as silly, or even blasphemous. In some places, those same children of god will kill you in the name of their love for a god, were they to learn of your dissention. That's one hell of a way to prove a point, but I digress.
So you either embrace the world as god's charge to Humankind, or you are wrong, which means Buddhism is inherently incorrect and thereby blasphemous or sinful. That's the position being taken and it seems to be more than a little negativistic in itself, if not outright egocentric and exclusionary, but a singular god is the core of Christian/Judaic/Muslim understanding. You are either with them, or you are wrong. In effect, their god declares that you can get onboard or you will be left behind. Each monotheistic movement declares that its teachings (and its teachings alone) are the absolute and only Truth as prescribed by their god. They are all trying to monopolize spiritual Truth, some in a way that is very reminiscent of power mad Kings or greed fueled Capitalists. The very idea that humans are so unrepentantly arrogant as to proclaim themselves adjunct possessors of truth is enough to make turning my back on organized monotheism an easy decision. I want no part of people who would presume the will of something they admit to being incapable of understanding, particularly when the primary record of said will is thousands of years old.
Buddhism is a faith of harmony, oneness, and spiritual ascension. It recognizes the perils of the physical world and seeks to find truths where there are so many obvious lies. Every aspect of physical existence can easily be understood as being self-perpetuating falsehoods. From ownership of property, to the significance of social power, to the importance of our species. Take all of it away, wipe every person from the face of the Earth, and what happens? Life goes on. Does that mean I am not as susceptible to losing my sense of perspective as anyone other primate walking the planet? Of course not. I still get angry when someone steals or damages "my possessions", I still seek out abstract sensations like love and acceptance. I am as guilty as anyone, but I do not condemn other peoples' beliefs, so long as they do not harm others while being genuine and sincere in those beliefs. Anything less than sincerity is an escape from integrity and of no real value.
As I have said many times before, I am not a theologian, so I cannot claim to have anything but a basic understanding of formalized religions and faiths. All I have is what is left of my mind, and what I am able to glean from the murmurs coming up through my gut(or dandien, as the negativist Buddhists would say). I believe there is more to this world than haves and have-nots, the in and the out crowd, the saved and the damned. I believe that good people are a benefit to us all, regardless of why they are good. I also believe that people are neither inherently good, nor inherently evil, we are only self-interested. I do not believe any loving, caring god would forsake the good souls because of the name they have chosen for it or the way they have chosen to express their goodness in this world.
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Labels: philosophy
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