New Posts For Thread: Buddhist similarities with Christianityhttp://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianityprobably deserves it's own thread to focus ONLY on things Buddhism has in common with Christianity...1. the sanctity of life2. compassion for others3. rejection of violence4. emphasis on charity5. the practice of virtueif these things are not shared,So far as I know most if not all religions have religous adherents who do "meditate". I also feel certain that both Buddhists and Christians have a "desire" for ice cream and that an excessive desire for ice cream is.....frowned upon. What I would behttp://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianity?post_id=520607145#520607145So far as I know most if not all religions have religous adherents who do "meditate". I also feel certain that both Buddhists and Christians have a "desire" for ice cream and that an excessive desire for ice cream is.....frowned upon. What I would beFri, 08 Jun 2012 16:02:46 -0500Seraphim,Either that, or the Buddhists have missed a trick.[/quote]Check out my response below, and the new topic I started on Anger and Buddhism.But there are many more parallels. Dispassion is the most obvious. That is a major goal of both Buddhihttp://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianity?post_id=519255179#519255179Seraphim,Either that, or the Buddhists have missed a trick.[/quote]Check out my response below, and the new topic I started on Anger and Buddhism.But there are many more parallels. Dispassion is the most obvious. That is a major goal of both BuddhiWed, 02 May 2012 11:20:37 -0500Well, sometimes avoiding ice cream is good. Sometimes it is just necessary. For example, if I need to lose a lot of weight, avoiding ice cream might be a good thing. I am lactose intolerant, so unless I have some Lactaid or similar supplement, avoidihttp://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianity?post_id=518949841#518949841Well, sometimes avoiding ice cream is good. Sometimes it is just necessary. For example, if I need to lose a lot of weight, avoiding ice cream might be a good thing. I am lactose intolerant, so unless I have some Lactaid or similar supplement, avoidiMon, 23 Apr 2012 18:37:08 -0500There's nothing actually wrong with this. Wanting an ice cream cone in and of itself does not necessarily lead to suffering any more than an itch on the nose leads to suffering. It might; it might not.Here's where my practice differs. I do not just phttp://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianity?post_id=518948939#518948939There's nothing actually wrong with this. Wanting an ice cream cone in and of itself does not necessarily lead to suffering any more than an itch on the nose leads to suffering. It might; it might not.Here's where my practice differs. I do not just pMon, 23 Apr 2012 18:10:11 -0500I would like to add this in regard to the ice cream example:The way the Orthodox Christian dealt with the craving for ice cream and the comment that God gives us the ability to rise above the craving do indeed sound familiar, but only because that wahttp://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianity?post_id=518948293#518948293I would like to add this in regard to the ice cream example:The way the Orthodox Christian dealt with the craving for ice cream and the comment that God gives us the ability to rise above the craving do indeed sound familiar, but only because that waMon, 23 Apr 2012 17:49:36 -0500Sound a tad familiar?[/quote]Buddhists don't require any god belief to deal with desire/dukkha. It is simply one more distraction.http://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianity?post_id=518937615#518937615Sound a tad familiar?[/quote]Buddhists don't require any god belief to deal with desire/dukkha. It is simply one more distraction.Mon, 23 Apr 2012 12:20:48 -0500Here is a quote from a blog by an Orthodox Christian:Sound a tad familiar?http://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianity?post_id=518936671#518936671Here is a quote from a blog by an Orthodox Christian:Sound a tad familiar?Mon, 23 Apr 2012 11:56:36 -0500I am not convinced that they are using similar techniques. To a degree, perhaps. Certainly, I'd surmise, there is some degree of common ground. But a Buddhist would not use anger as a tool towards "cleansing the mind," as the Wikipedia article youhttp://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianity?post_id=518935989#518935989I am not convinced that they are using similar techniques. To a degree, perhaps. Certainly, I'd surmise, there is some degree of common ground. But a Buddhist would not use anger as a tool towards "cleansing the mind," as the Wikipedia article youMon, 23 Apr 2012 11:36:30 -0500This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have goodhttp://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianity?post_id=518929439#518929439This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have goodMon, 23 Apr 2012 08:18:47 -0500This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have goodhttp://community.beliefnet.com/go/thread/view/43851/29038093/Buddhist_similarities_with_Christianity?post_id=518922969#518922969This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have goodMon, 23 Apr 2012 00:37:33 -0500