Buddha and Jesus: Could Solomon Be the Missing Link? by R. E. Sherman Read Free Book Online

earth, took the initiative to seek and rescue mankind from a fallen world—in which all people are inherently sinful.
    Buddhism denies the ultimate existence of evil. However, forms of “evil” appear in the relative reality of this world. Christianity stresses the active presence of evil in the world and the need to confess one’s own sinful nature and need of a savior as a basis for escaping the power that evil now has in this world.
    Monists look for truth within themselves, since they believe they are a central part of a universal whole. Dualists look for truth outside of themselves—for example, to a sacred book, to a specific church, or by direct appeal to a personal God far superior to themselves.
    The life and worship of a dualist is rich and varied because it involves the interaction of a human soul with something other than itself. In the case of Christianity, this interaction is with a personal God who loves every human being and desires to be actively involved in each person’s life. To the extent that any individual is willing to invite God into his or her life, that individual will experience an intimate relationship with him. If someone who is not a dualist believes in God, that God is impersonal. Hence the degree of richness of religion as an exercise of man relating to God is much greater for the dualist than for the monist, much as life in a world with both men and women is much richer than one in a society consisting only of men or only of women. The apostle Paul referred to the church as the bride of Christ. 18 Buddhism has notinspired great works of music, such as Handel’s Messiah or Bach’s B Minor Mass, or the large body of hymns and songs of worship present within Christianity. Such works are expressions of individual people with their own personalities who were inspired by their interaction with a personal God. The chants and meditations of a Buddhist, in contrast, are designed to help the seeker to transcend self and to minimize or eliminate personal identity.

Major Contrast # 10: Women

Buddhism
Christianity

Buddha’s attitude toward women could best be summarized by saying that any kind of contact should be avoided whenever possible. “So long as the love of man towards women, even the smallest, is not destroyed, so long is his mind in bondage, as the calf that drinks milk is to its mother.” 19
In over a dozen instances during Jesus’ ministry, he demonstrated a level of deference toward and concern for women that was astonishing in the ancient world.
    Jesus’ ministry was supported to a large degree by women of means. 20
Buddhist nuns have 311 vows to take, in contrast to the 227 for monks. 21
    “There is no gender equality in Buddhism.” 22
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” 23
“It is always better to be reincarnated as a man than a woman. That’s one reason why Chinese parents have been known to throw away their baby girls, long before the communists’ ‘one birth policy.’” 24
Catholic monks and priests have clear authority over nuns. In many conservative Protestant churches, women are not allowed to preach to men.

    Jesus lived in a patriarchal society where women were regarded as chattel. The Gospels contain many examples of Jesus respecting and caring for women in a way that was revolutionary for his day.
    Apart from his twelve disciples, some of his closest followers were women:
    After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joanna the wife of Cuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means. 25
    In addition, Mary Magdalene was the first person to whom