Stephen Prothero has written a recently published book called God Is Not One: The Eight Rival Religions that Run the World and Why Their Differences Matter. In it he argues that the rather mushy new-think promotes the notion that all religions are basically the same and we should downplay the differences. Prothero maintains that they are different and we need to understand how and why they differ.
I am inclined to agree, even though I believe we should be in respectful and civil dialogue with other religions. Christianity is not the same as Buddhism or Hinduism or Islam and while all of these encourage compassion and love in different forms I would be willfully blind to suggest that the incarnation of my faith is perfectly compatible with these other religions. Buddhism is not theistic (no god) while Hinduism is polytheistic, and Islam regards Jesus as a prophet but not a saviour. These differences don't rule out conversation and seeking common ground, but we are not the same.
In a recent opinion piece in the New York Times the Dalai Lama comes at this challenging subject in a different way:
Granted, every religion has a sense of exclusivity as part of its core identity. Even so, I believe there is genuine potential for mutual understanding. While preserving faith toward one’s own tradition, one can respect, admire and appreciate other traditions. An early eye-opener for me was my meeting with the Trappist monk Thomas Merton in India shortly before his untimely death in 1968. Merton told me he could be perfectly faithful to Christianity, yet learn in depth from other religions like Buddhism. The same is true for me as an ardent Buddhist learning from the world’s other great religions. A main point in my discussion with Merton was how central compassion was to the message of both Christianity and Buddhism. In my readings of the New Testament, I find myself inspired by Jesus’ acts of compassion. His miracle of the loaves and fishes, his healing and his teaching are all motivated by the desire to relieve suffering.
The key, it seems to me, is to avoid stereotypes, to enter conversation with humility, and to be confident and educated enough in one's own beliefs that belligerence is not necessary. That's where we often fail.
Thoughts?
3 comments:
I think you and the Dali Lama said it all. Being open is essential for any sort of dialogue.
I agree with the comment from the Dalai Lama. We need to be more tolerant of other religions. There is much to learn from others, and in my opinion it is wrong to feel that one is right and everyone else is wrong.
Thanks to all three of you for your responses.
It's interesting, Ron, that you bring in mysticism, because Thomas Merton was moving deeply into his own mystical quest at the time of his death and was in the Far East as part of that exploration.
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