research paper

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Research Paper

Wanzheng Xu (Valerie)

International Degree completion: Trinity Western University

LDRS 375 I6 - Culture & Christianity

Mr.Chris Christiansen

Nov.24, 2020

Research Paper

Introduction

Homogeneity of religious practices is representative of most cultures in the world. This research paper discusses and examines the advent of Buddhism and its contrast with Christianity objectively. It seeks to explore these two types of faith by exploring some of its core convictions, practices, and incompatible facets. Moreover, the paper gives details about the autobiography of Siddhartha Gautama, also known as “Buddha”, the founder of Buddhism. The description of these distinctions should also cause Christianity to be differentiated from Buddhism. (Hey Wanzheng. Great job on your introduction. It had everything I was looking for.)

The Buddhist definition says that an individual who participates in worldly pleasures is not strong enough to withstand the devil’s induction. Unlike him, who controls his impulses and renounces earthly bliss, he stresses that it is not easy for those people to slip into temptation (Hopfe & Woodward, 2009).

Christianity is a belief believes (This sentence is a bit unclear.) by its followers in the presence of Jesus’ baby. They see Jesus as the link between them and their God, who is his lord. Christians know the Bible as the paramount book comprising the values they can adhere to. A Christian must practice the values that are highlighted by the Scriptures to further this. This is the primary faith that contains different religions, such as the Protestantism and Roman Catholic Church (Hopfe & Woodward, 2009).

Discussion

Biography of Siddhartha Gautama

The Buddha later identified as Siddhartha Gautama is believed to be the father of the Buddhist faith. Buddha’s discoveries and lectures are based on multiple Buddhist values and lessons. The Siddhartha Gautama shaped Buddhism in one of the most significant ways by successfully promoting religion and spreading this lesson to people who became disciples who were continuing to propagate Buddhism. Upon touching light, the Buddha sought the solution to misery, which in religious scripts is often called Dukkha. He established the four noble truths of grief on his basis, an essential principle in Buddhist teachings (Leukel, 2006). In essence, the first of the realities, recognized as the truth of suffering, note that everything contributes to suffering in life. The second fact that where suffering arises from represents the understanding that suffering derives from cravings and selfish greed. The third truth advises the elimination or removal of misery in one’s life, and to get over any impulses or wishes that trigger suffering. The fourth truth teaches what to do to eradicate suffering, ultimately telling adherents how to reach utopia. Buddha has developed the eight-fold course, a popular principle and emblem in Buddhism, centered on the fourth of the Noble Truths. This describes eight philosophies of how life should be lived, which direct a person to end pain and achieve fulfillment. Meditation within the Buddhist faith is a central ritual, one that can be traced back to the Buddha, like many. To detach themselves from their thoughts and feelings, he instructed followers how to meditate. He advocated the ideology that mindfulness and meditation are personal, such that each man would find his path to enlightenment. (Where did you get all this information from? This should be cited.)

Siddhartha Gautama was born in a life of privilege, shielded from the reality of misery and deprivation, born into royalty. Siddhartha was granted a tour of the city one day after going against his father’s instructions to sit within the palace walls, where he learned of the three sufferings. The prince witnessed the reality of sickness, age, and death beyond. Siddhartha was terrified of the destiny of misery and death that faced everybody and saw little purpose in everything after that. He saw no other worth in the riches he had and the enjoyment of living when he knew that the inevitability of pain and death would all go to waste. Siddhartha tried to figure out how, instead of unavoidable misery, to find satisfaction (McCoy, Corduan, & Stoker, 2016). He separated himself from everybody and sat underneath the Bodhi tree until the pain was completely known. Following Buddha’s awakening, more inspiration arrived. He made it his goal to help people find this awakening, to learn the reality regarding pain, after seeing the real nature of suffering, and how to embrace it inside one’s existence. While Buddha had achieved Nirvana, he decided to live on earth to teach others how, just as he had, to achieve enlightenment. He felt that everyone should have fair opportunities to be believers and to study the principles of their faith. Instead of holding his enlightenment to himself, this was his inspiration to propagate Buddhist teachings. He attracted adherents who continued to promote Buddhism more and inspired followers, instead of only pursuing his term, to doubt anything he said to discover a route to enlightenment on their own. He wished to be known not as a worship representative, but as an instructor on how to achieve enlightenment (Platz, 2003). (This was a well done biography. It included all the important elements of Buddha’s life.)

“The one who understands and sees this becomes passive in pain; this is the path to purity.” Many central Buddhist teachings are expressed in this quotation, as many teachings surround the concept of transience, from one life to the next. It shows how one must consider what misery is and that it is present in all life to achieve enlightenment, and to be free of pain and suffering. Buddha saw that pain stemmed from lust and greed. In the second of the Four Noble Truths, this conviction was outlined, understanding where pain arises from. He felt that one would give up materialistic and narcissistic impulses to end the misery. The quotation can be converted back into the philosophy of the Four Noble Truths, as these truths explain the essence of suffering in one’s life, facts that need to be understood to find enlightenment. The quote alludes to the desire to obtain liberation with this clarity and awareness of pain. One of Buddha’s multiple teachings is the three Markers of Life. Dukkha, which is pain, is the first one. The second is anitya, the teaching of impermanence, which says that nothing remains, and it is a transfer to something new. Anatman, the third, advises being compassionate, in the context that a human does not live indefinitely, such that nothing that is deemed part of one’s identity can live on. They may be connected to the concept set out in the quotation, that of consistency and the inevitable consequence of Dukkha, or misery when considering these teachings. Of these the second teaching, the Anitya, gives the most apparent connection to the sense of the quotation. Anitya teaches that nothing endures indefinitely, just like the quote says that all ends and that, which is partially achieved through knowing the Three Signs, must be understood (McCoy, Corduan, & Stoker, 2016).(Well done on describing the teachings.)

Differences between Christianity and Buddhism

A detailed analysis of some of the essential discrepancies between Buddhism and Christianity shows that while Buddhism is based on the values of coolness and tolerance and certain realities reside in Buddhist teachings, and they are not consistent with Christian reality. The Buddhists don’t believe in the Almighty God’s presence. Consequently, on the Day of Judgment, they had no discussions concerning incentives and penalties. Yet Christianity and also contemporary science affirm that one all-powerful Deity is the Maker of heaven and earth. The Creator, who invented all, has full power, according to Christianity, to prescribe justice to all humans because he is a just God. Therefore, since he is and fair, God punishes both wrongdoing and sin. There are retribution and compensation in Christianity not defined in Buddhism, and both are connected with judgment and obligation for one’s sins (Leukel, 2006).

Since Buddhism does not accept sin, there is a notable absence of the idea of the savior. Though Buddhists pursue refuge from Buddha, they don’t receive that Buddha’s refuge renders one clean. However, in Christianity, only through trusting Jesus and embracing He in one’s own life is the path to redemption and purification. The bond among Buddha and Buddhism adherents may be compared to that between a pupil and an instructor. This means that the Buddha is therefore not an embodiment of heaven, as some Hindu proponents say, but Jesus is the manifestation of God himself in Christianity. Although Buddhists are consequently seeking to purify themselves by meditation, give up earthly materials, Christianity insists that these will never correct or save one (Platz, 2003).

Buddhists dedicate themselves to their gods, but neither of these gods is a real deity. On the other side, Christianity provides a distinct view of God. Although Buddhism is polytheistic, Christianity is in one ultimate Deity. Buddhists assume that if they have a condition of illumination, they will achieve the same degree as Buddha. Buddhism’s teachings and rituals are negative, whereas Christianity is focused on optimistic values. Though Buddhists believe life to be full of suffering, Christianity is often positive and is committed to humankind. The more faithful you serve, the more you glorify God and therefore have recourse to God’s blessings. In the teachings and rituals concerning diet and food, the incompatibility of Buddhism and Christianity is further postulated. Here the Buddhist teachings are too stringent while Christianity is more inclusive

In Buddhism, a vegetarian is strictly appropriate. Christianity presents all sorts of food as sanctified and safe for human use. It is claimed that eating poultry or eggs can act like a chicken. Furthermore, feeding those creatures is thought to subject one to restitution in the existence to come. In this Christianity, thus the Buddhism seems preferable since it grants one the right to use all development for one’s needs. In reality, at the beginning of the existence of God, man was given total authority and dominion over all creation (Tsai, Miao, & Seppala, 2007).

Similarities between Christianity and Buddhism (You covered some really important differences.)

Similarities between Christianity and Buddhism

As these two beliefs are contradictory in certain respects, both Christianity and Buddhism seem to be similar in some aspects. Christians assume that they should be promised a place in heaven by adhering to Christian values. They believe firm observance of the theory, its proponents would contribute to change in the life of a man, and good luck will repeat his virtuous deeds. This suggests that the application of the Christian guidelines positively affects the environment of the person. A similar perception is adopted by Buddhism, as it stresses that performing virtuous endeavors would trigger a pattern in which the person will experience good deeds in exchange. “The continuous execution of positive deeds leads to the rebirth of an individual, and ultimately one can achieve “Nirvana. This word represents the pinnacle of self-realization and comprehension that people obtain when participating in the right actions. (It looks like you’re quoting something here. What’s the source?)

As an instruction manual for administering their everyday tasks and their interactions with other individuals, Christians stick to the ideals of the Ten Commandments. The Buddhists embrace a similar precept that contains five core rules that govern human relationships consisting of refraining from ending life, refraining from taking what is not offered, refraining from cheating, refraining from deceit, and not participating in actions that cause temptation. The variables suggested by these rules are identical to the Ten Commandments contained in Christian literature (Tsai, Miao, & Seppala, 2007).

Many of the world’s faiths, including Christianity and Buddhism, include mutual ethics. This theory tends to be the guiding authority for interpersonal interactions. It determines how to handle each other. Christianity, for example, is focused on the golden rule which dictates that one can do to others as he/she will like. Morality as a subject is apparent both in Buddhism and Christianity. The only exception, and perhaps the best position for Christianity than Buddhism, is the idea that spiritual values are imposed for life in Christianity. Therefore, spiritual decadence in Christianity contributes on the last day to judgment and retribution, although this is not influenced in Buddhism. In contrast to Buddhism, compliance, and conformity to the conditions of morals is therefore rigid (Hopfe & Woodward, 2009). (Well done on noting some important similarities. Once we can identify those, we can figure out ways to build bridges for the Gospel.)

Conclusion

Buddhism and Christianity share some philosophies on the element of human conduct against his fellow countryman. The mechanisms under which he will apply these values are comparable. Many of the principles which rule the two faiths, however, vary, including the holiness of their primary targets. Buddhism does not recognize God’s presence but follows individual values. This illustrates the assumption that while both sects are diverse, they still have common characteristics. To conclude, Buddhism and Christianity are two different sects with views that are unique to each other. In Christianity, values and practices are usually informed and treasured because conformity with the teachings renders one right with heaven. In comparison to those of Buddhism, the concepts of Christianity are supported and easy to explore and obey.

Hey Wanzheng.

Well done in covering everything that the syllabus asked for you. You gave an in depth look at the life of Buddha and what his key teachings were. You also did well in drawing out the similarities and differences between Christianity and Buddhism. I hope you continue to investigate this subject on your own.

There were a few issues. First, there were quite a few grammatical errors throughout so be careful about those in the future. Also, the paper was a bit light on sources. It was 9 pages long and I only saw about five in your bibliography. Third, there was no real section discussing the significance of the similarities and differences.

All the best in the future.

God bless.

Chris

B

References

Hopfe, L., & Woodward, M. (2009). Religions of the world. Newyork: Vango Books.

Schmidt-Leukel, P. (2006). Buddhism and the Idea of Human Rights: Resonances and Dissonances. Buddhist-Christian Studies, 26(1), 33-49. doi:10.1353/bcs.2006.0024

McCoy, D., Corduan, W., & Stoker, H. (2016). Christian and Buddhist approach to religious exclusivity. Do interfaith scholars have it right? HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies.

Platz, R. (2003). Buddhism and Christianity in Competition? Religious and Ethnic Identity in Karen Communities of Northern Thailand. Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, 473-490.

Tsai, J., Miao, F., & Seppala, E. (2007). Good Feelings in Christianity and Buddhism: Religious Differences in Ideal effect. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 409-421.