Religious Experience : Buddhism And Christianity

Religion is always a hot topic for debate and is also discussed among social groups. More than likely each person present has their own perception of what religion should be. But who 's to say what is right and what is wrong? It doesn’t seem like a matter of who is right or wrong, but what suits someone the best. To help with that aspect its best to compare religions to determine which views are acceptable and which ones are not suitable by specific preferences. The following is a comparison between Christianity and Buddhism.

““Worldwide, more than eight-in-ten people identify with a religious group,” says a new comprehensive demographic study of more than 230 countries and territories conducted by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life.” (Harper). Within the top five most popular religions, Christianity if found to be at the top with Buddhism ranked number four. With millions of people from around the world participating in these religions, one may wonder how they compare to one another. Upon exploration of Buddhism and Christianity, many similarities are found such as the importance of a spiritual master, shared values, and the followers strive for spiritual perfection. Although Buddhism and Christianity encompass many similarities within the religions, the fundamental differences in the view of God, salvation, and reincarnation ultimately outweigh their likeness.

According to our text, Huston Smith believed that all religions were essentially the same, whereas Stephen Prothero believes that they are all fundamentally different. These two differing opinions can be looked at further by comparing two of the world religions: Christianity and Buddhism. I believe that all religions are a mixture of both; religions are essentially the same and are also fundamentally different. Christianity and Buddhism both have similar aspects within them, and they have different aspects as well. In order to make sense of the world, one needs to have knowledge of religion and the implications it has on society (Prothero).

I visited the Mid-American Buddhist Association, they are a part of the three schools in Northern Buddhism. These schools are Elder teaching, modern Buddhism, and Depant, or strict Buddhism. They are different from other Buddhist communities because they all speak different languages and they all have different cultures which coexist peacefully. I went to Mid-America Buddhist Association with a classmate Angelique Failor, and the address is 299 Heger Lane Augusta, MO 63332.We went on November 12 and we got there around 11:00 a.m. and we stayed until about 12 p.m. We also went back on Sunday, November 13 and we got there around 10 and stayed till 12. Before we entered the Meditation Hall we took our shoes off , and then Master Jiru greeted us. He took us to a sitting area where we could ask him questions. He talked a little bit about their history, and let us ask what we needed. He told us that the land was cleaned in 1995 and the first structure that was build was the Meditation Hall in 1997.The Buddhist community is 15 minutes away from Saint Louis and it is now 17 years old. The community built around the Buddhist have been there at least 10 years based off of the Victorian style homes. Theses Buddhist are funded by a Buddhist community started on Washington University’s- St.Louis campus. Master Jiru actually is from Thailand but lived in New York before coming to Missouri. They believe they are the most diverse Buddhist community because they have many different

I have always been attracted by the study of religion and interested in the different disciplines that study religion such as: psychology, historiography, anthropology, etc; there are many aspects related to religion that can be analyzed. I believe in the existence of something superior; I do not belong to any specific religion, but I sympathize with some specific ideas of different religions. I used to get the ideas that I believe that are more logical and put it in practice. Taking advantage of the research paper ordered in class, I decided to visit a Theravada Buddhist temple. This temple is located in 15200 SW 240th St, Homestead, FL, Miami, and it is called “Wat Buddharangsi of Miami.”

I had an experience I will never forget because it was so different than my own religion. I went to the service with a friend from my class. We decided to go to the Adult Buddhists service on Sunday at noon. We got there early around 11:20 AM. When we walked up to the temple there was a sculpture outside that was about as tall as the building. We later learned that it was custom to bow and pray before entering the temple. Once we were inside the temple we stood over and watched the service. Somehow we were late to the service even though we were early according prayer starting time on the website. We went off the website they use for their information so I guess they start earlier than the start time. The first part of the service involved the members walking around the center room and chanting. Also there was a beating of a loud drum. There were probably around thirty people in the room. They continued to walk and chant for twenty minutes. In the ring of people there was a monk with a microphone chanting. He was leading the chanting of the group. Once they were done with the walking they started

I explained that it was my first time at a Buddhist temple so I was a bit unsure of what I was supposed to do. A lady, named Bindhu, quickly introduced herself and was very eager to help me. She walked me around what is called the Main Ashram Room, which is primarily the most used part of the building. Bindhu walked me around the Main Ashram Room and explained what each room was used for. We saw the Kriya Vedanata Library, which holds numerous Buddhists texts and scriptures. She explained that this was a popular meeting spot for people to come and discuss the history of Buddhism and different texts they are reading. The next room we saw was a large space similar to what a church hall looks like. This was the Kriya Vedanata Meditation Hall. This was lacking any type chairs for the people to sit in. At the front of the room, there was an altar. Bindhu explained that various meditation sessions and conferences occurred in this space. She also explained that this was where my meditation session would occur. Next we visited the Kriya Vedanata Kitchen and Dining Hall. Bindhu explained that the people of the temple get together here to cook and serve meals as a means of togetherness and to enjoy one another’s company. After my tour, Bindhu escorted me back to the Kriya Vedanata Meditation

When I first pulled up to the Won Buddhist Temple, it was sort of what I had expected. Being that the original Buddha was a human, I did not expect an elaborate building, such as the Hindu temple. I did not have a clear picture in my mind about what the temple would look like, but I did picture a smaller and simpler-looking building. One of the most pleasantly surprising aspects I noticed at the beginning of the visit was how those at the temple were of all different ages, races, and genders. Seeing this made me more excited for the service because it showed that the teachings were something that appealed to a wide range of people.

Between 600 BCE, and 600 CE, Buddhism and Christianity were spreading across India and the Middle East, but the two religions have a lot in common, yet each have their differences.

There are over 7 billion people on this world and over four-fifths of these people identify with a religion in one way or another (Livingston). Upon the hundreds of religions on Earth it is difficult to even begin to comprehend all their most basic beliefs, their scriptures, or even to whom they worship. The least any person can do is to learn about one of them and understand their belief system. During an assignment for school I was required to immerse my-self in a totally different religious belief system in order to acquire a greater knowledge of what it is like for humans to have religion and to have a

The purpose of this essay is to briefly compare some key elements of the Christian and

At first glance the traditions of Christianity and Buddhism appear very different from each other. One centers around a God that was at one time physically manifest on earth in the human form of his "son" Jesus Christ, the other primarily worships a historical figure that gained divine status through enlightenment. This assessment is broad at best, especially in the case of Buddhism where the Theravada and Mahayana traditions differ significantly. Christianity also has division within itself, the most prominent being between the Roman Catholic and Protestant systems. There are however, despite obvious differences, some very interesting similarities between Buddhism and

Due to the emergence of universal religions, a new idea known as syncretism started to emerge. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the idea of syncretism as “the amalgamation or attempted amalgamation of different religions, cultures, or schools of thought.” (Merriam-Webster) However, in historical term, syncretism is defined as the accepted idea that was believed to enhance people’s willingness to adapt or adopt to a certain religion because of the appealing ideas. During the first millennium C.E, two universal religions, Buddhism and Christianity, primarily spread through the idea of syncretism, although, a secondary factor contributed to the spread of these religions, which were political rulers and religious representatives such as

It’s inarguable that Islam is not the same as Buddhism, just as Christianity is not the same as Hinduism. The multitude of religions in this world remain separate through differences in theology, culture, and sometimes conflict. Although the various world religions are diverse in their history and geographical origins, they all share the common goals of regulating, enlightening, and unifying groups of people.

Buddhism Christianity Comparison When comparing two of today’s religions they often have many similarities and differences in their teachings, and overall structure of the religion. Comparing the two religions of Buddhism and Christianity we start to see some similarities in their spiritual leaders, teachings, and their basic rules. These two religions also show major differences in the time they started, geographical location, and their deism. Even though these two religion were created in different time periods and different parts of the world, it is very surprising to see the amount of similarities that the two can have.