__________________
It's the difference between suicide and slow capitulation... - Jim Morrison

Eastern religions, including Buddhism, are philosophically useful but do not provide enough practical answers to bring us to our maximum ethical potential. The idea of the identity of opposites, for example, is common in Buddhism, and although I frequently apply it to cosmology, it is of no ethical benefit. Having stated that, Buddhism is preferable to many distorted pseudo-Christian belief systems.

__________________
"I am a Tory Anarchist. I should like every one to go about doing just as he pleased- short of altering any of the things to which I have grown accustomed." (Max Beerbohm)

Satan creates the doubt that leads to faith in false Gods. God doesn't want to punish you but He really can't do anything about it.

If you don't love God and accept Jesus, how can God take you to Heaven? You more or less are screaming at Him by your denial of Him that you don't want to be with Him (heaven) you want to spend eternity without Him. (hell)

The absence of union with God in eternity is Hell.

Since deception is an evil, what is really being discussed here is the problem of evil. Opponents of the Judeo-Christian-Islamic system of thought point to the problem of evil as proof that God does not exist or that God's existence is improbable. However, such atheologists (atheist thinkers) contradict themselves. They rely on the assumption that they know what is moral independent of anything supernatural and can therefore judge the actions of a supernatural being. This is how the problem of evil is traditionally stated:

(1) God is almighty, (2) God is perfectly good, and (3) evil exists.

Source: Encyclopedia Britannica

However, a person who claims to be able to define good and evil perfectly, which definition is necessary for this argument, is acknowledging the existence of perfection and so negates his or her own logic. To go beyond this point, one must, to the best of my knowledge, use the philosophical identity of opposites.

__________________
"I am a Tory Anarchist. I should like every one to go about doing just as he pleased- short of altering any of the things to which I have grown accustomed." (Max Beerbohm)

Summary of the Teachings of Buddha:

* Karma: Actions have consequences; so our lives are conditioned by our past actions

* Rebirth: Consciousness continues after death, and finds expression in a future life

* Liberation from karma: By following the Buddha's path one escapes the cycle of craving and suffering

* The Four Noble Truths: The essentials of Buddhism

* Enlightenment:The highest goal of life is to reach Enlightenment; a state of being that goes beyond suffering

* Dharma: The teachings and hence the way to nirvana


Facing the Truth
The Buddha taught that the human tendency is to avoid the difficult truths of life and this in turn leads to suffering.
By enabling the mind to be at peace through meditation a human being can confront reality and overcome hatred and craving.

Source:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religi...fs/index.shtml

How does that not help us ethically?

__________________
It's the difference between suicide and slow capitulation... - Jim Morrison

I'm not attacking Buddhism. As I wrote earlier, it is preferable to distortions of Christianity. However, meditating in an effort to find the truth is not as ethically useful as having the truth set before us. Both approaches are based on an underlying and unprovable faith, but the latter leads to greater progress if followed honestly. Christianity offers original sin as an alternative to the doctrine of reincarnation. The idea that, in an ultimate sense, we are all equally sinful is better than the idea that some of us deserve better lives than others based on past lives. Having stated that, I am aware that most Buddhists don't take the latter attitude even if it would be a logical conclusion of their theology. That is the problem with Buddhism, however. It is a constructive religion, but it is too open to fallible interpretation to serve as an absolute path.

__________________
"I am a Tory Anarchist. I should like every one to go about doing just as he pleased- short of altering any of the things to which I have grown accustomed." (Max Beerbohm)

...but the fact that there are so many different subdivisions within it, many of whom conflict, sometimes violently (N Ireland) shows how open to interpretation in is. Especially when compared to Buddhism which has a few different subdivisions, none of whom conflict and all of whom differ only slightly.

They do however, have similar ethical worth. The Bible teaches to 'love thy neighbor' and preaches forgiveness and says that if you follow it's rules you will be rewarded in the next life. Buddhism teaches that if you do good things, good things will happen to you, and vice versa (Karma). In effect that means, if you are good you are rewarded, which is similar to what the Bible teaches.

You say that having the truth laid out for you is preferable than searching for it. I beg to differ. By searching for the truth (as Buddhism teaches) you gain personal spiritual development and the attainment of a deep insight into the true nature of life. Thereby becoming more ethical and emphatic, something not always achievable by Christianity.

Buddhism also demands no blind faith or deep trust. It teaches that people should test its teachings against personal experience. It teaches the path to Enlightenment is through the practice and development of morality, meditation, and wisdom and that all life is interconnected, so compassion is natural and important. Again, allowing one to become more ethical and emphatic through personal experience which Christianity cannot do.

Also Buddhists, unlike other religions, do not believe in a creator God nor a personal God, but are tolerant of those whose beliefs are different from theirs. Whereas Christianity, teaches that in order to reach Heaven (Nirvana) one must follow the teachings of Christ and the Ten Commandments but also that one must believe in God and have blind faith in him. Therefore, if someone leads a good life, but by personal experience has come to doubt the existence of God, they will go to Hell but someone who has not led such a life, but believes in God, will go to Heaven. It is this teaching that has allowed Christianity to be the reason behind wars, slavery and oppression. Whereas Buddhism cannot be construed to support any negative action on humans or even nature.

The Buddhist teaching of reincarnation means that after death, the energy in you is recycled and forms another being. This is an endless cycle. In order to break free of this cycle one must achieve enlightenment which is done trough meditation and searching of the soul. The teaching of Karma effects your current life. Bad things done in your past will have adverse effects on your future and vice versa.


If you want more information http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religi...sm/intro.shtml is a good website although it is not very in-depth.

__________________
It's the difference between suicide and slow capitulation... - Jim Morrison

The belief in Hell is the primary trouble to Christianity. It creates too many contradictions about God.
For one, why would God create a place to torture dissenters and the ignorant beyond just being removed from his presence, especially when those punished are never going to eventually be saved.
Especially when God wishes for everyone to be saved.
This indicates that either God is sadistic and has a childish temper or that God has limitations to his power. Both of these are denied by Christians.
Buddha on the other hand smiles because he knows at some point that all will be saved (stupid quote from a children's story, but cute). That is the appeal of Buddha and why I keep his likeness rather than the likeness of a somber, crucified Jesus. I prefer to think God is somewhat of an optimist or at least not a cynical pessimist.
Many older versions of Christianity held that salvation would not end until even Lucifer was redeemed. These groups died because they held too closely to Scripture and turned the other cheek when destroyed by the more powerful sects.
If Hell is a state of being without God while still being conscious, it seems that it would have to be possible for Hellions to gain redemption eventually. If consciousness ends, then Hell doesn't make sense at all, insofar as being eternal. If God brings people back just to make them suffer, I fail to see how he is worthy of worship.

__________________
"Man lives in the sunlit world of that which he believes to be reality. But unseen by most is an underworld, a place that is just as real... but not as brightly lit... A DARK SIDE!"
-opening from Tales From the Darkside

All of this is the Fundamentalist viewpoint. I am not a Fundamentalist, and neither are most other Christians. Intent is what determines a person's figurative destination in the afterlife. In fact, Fundamentalism tends to minimize the importance of good works and so, ironically, is un-Biblical. I have a 100% chance of finding clear instructions on how to live ethically in Christianity. None of the Eastern religions provide this, and Islam and Judaism present other problems.

__________________
"I am a Tory Anarchist. I should like every one to go about doing just as he pleased- short of altering any of the things to which I have grown accustomed." (Max Beerbohm)

Buddhism does give clear instruction on how to live ethically. Did you actually read my post?

__________________
It's the difference between suicide and slow capitulation... - Jim Morrison