Budism And Catholicism Essay Research Paper Many

Budism And Catholicism Essay, Research Paper

Many people believe that the religions of Christianity and Buddhism are completely different. They are practiced in different areas of the world and began at different time periods in history. Although there are many differences between Christianity and Buddhism, they are also similar in many aspects.

To start with the differences of the two religions, people must look at the founders of them. The one who started Christianity was Jesus Christ. He was born into a poor family, but not dire poverty. His family had a profession of carpentry, meaning they were poor but had enough to survive on. The founder of Buddhism was Siddhartha Guatama. He was born prince, son of King Suddhodana, and lived a very rich and sheltered life. Guatama was not satisfied with his life and did not know why. He decided to live the ascetic life, being in complete poverty. This did not satisfy him, so after much contemplation, he decided on the middle way. Where Jesus was never in dire poverty or even close to having riches, Guatama touched both these ways of life. Another difference between these two are that Jesus is considered the son of God, the savior, where Guatama, or Buddha as he was later called, is considered a prophet. His name of Buddha, meaning enlightened one, was given to him because his followers believed him to be enlightened by God. Jesus was called savior, or Christ, by his followers because he was believed to be son of God who would save them.

These differences in upbringing and different settings, including time and place, for the religions may affect the way these religions view god. Christianity refers to God as being a trinity, father, son, and holy spirit. Buddhism on the other hand, views God in only one way, as an impersonal god. References to him are not as commonly made. In prayer, Christians pray directly to God calling him father or something of that sort, whereas Buddhists meditate without spoken words. Christians believe in a personal relationship with God as though he is a family member. They believe that throughout history God has stepped in, or intervened at various times. The scripture, or the bible, is said to be the word of God, influenced by him in its writing. People in Christianity need to read the voice of God to get a better idea that he is close. Buddhists believe God to be impersonal and away from the people. He created all and now lets it live on its own. They hardly refer to God at all. They mostly follow the teachings of Buddha, who they believe to be enlightened by him. Once God is referred to in a name, he no longer is impersonal and is more earthly. He is suppose to be beyond anything people can truly understand here on earth. That is why Buddhism has no written word of God, as the Christians do. Christians believe these images and names allow him to be made personal. People can not have a true loving relationship with an ultimate that is too far beyond that it is out of their understanding. It must be related to things they truly love on earth, such as family members.

Next, many of the specific beliefs are different. Christianity beliefs revolve around Jesus Christ. The belief of incarnation, or the idea that God came to the world in the human form of Jesus Christ in order to redeem the people, is the first major doctrine. This is God showing that he loves the world and will save the people of its sins. From this belief comes the belief of atonement. God died and suffered on the cross in the human form in order to take away the sins of the world. The last doctrine goes back to the trinity, or belief in the three forms of God, as father, son, and holy spirit. Buddhism believes in dharma and karma. Dharma is the divine ordering or structuring in which everything has its place. Karma is the environment or atmosphere that one brings to the dharma, or the ordering of the universe. If a person brings good karma upon himself, he will cause good results upon the order of the universe. If he brings bad karma, he will cause bad results. A person either enhances dharma or destroys it based on the karma he brings. Also Buddhism holds the doctrines of anica and anatta. Anica means everything is inter-related. Anatta means that since everything is constantly changing and if the anica is true then, Buddha said, there are no selves. People are linked together and have a responsibility for all. This connects to the belief of nirvana. This means to blow one s mind away, to be open to see things differently. These concepts lead to the four truths which are life is full of suffering, life is full of selfishness, there is a cure for the selfishness, and the cure is the eightfold path.

There are also differences among the codes and ceremonies of the two religions. Christianity s code, or actions, are based on the ten commandments, the teachings of the prophets, and the gospels. The first three commandments are what is owed to God and the next seven are what is owed to your neighbor. Buddhism follows the eightfold path as expressed by Buddha. These focus on right views, right intent, right speech, right conduct, right occupation, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. Buddhism believes, Universal suffering is caused by craving, which can be eliminated by Buddha s Eightfold Path of self-righteousness (www.soulseekers.org). These eight things can eliminate this human caused suffering