Buddhism and Christianity

last SG · 2006-05-08T20:16:46+00:00

You don't start new thread can die issit?

vince69 SG

My friend, no one even know who write these Gnostic 'scripture', the Gospel of Judas is definitely not written by Judas, cause he died way before this was written.

from what I have gather, Gnostic teaching and Christian teaching about God and Christ is so far off.
They may call themself christian, like Momons, JWs also call themselves christians, but they are certainly not christian.

An Eternal Now SG

The difference is:

...Christ is the sole end of Christian mysticism. Whereas all Christians have Christ, call on Christ, and can (or should) know Christ, the goal for the Christian mystic is to become Christto become as fully permeated with God as Christ is, thus becoming like him, fully human, and by the grace of God, also fully divine. In Christian teaching this doctrine is known by various namestheosis, divinization, deification, and transforming union.

A common misconception about mysticism is that it's about "mystical experiences," and there are many volumes on such experiences in religious literature. But true mysticism is not focussed on "experiences" (which come and go) but with the lasting experience of God, leading to the transformation of the believer into union with God.

Pls dont confuse it as 'becoming God' but rather, fully submitting to God.

An Eternal Now SG

Nope, like I said,

Yes, of course. That would certainly be occult and suspicious. But as to one's own experience, that experience has nothing to do with 'sourced from other beings' - but his own experience of unity with God, and not in the sense of communicating in words with some other persons.

From the website:

A common misconception about mysticism is that it's about "mystical experiences,"; and there are many volumes on such experiences in religious literature. But true mysticism is not focussed on "experiences" (which come and go) but with the lasting experience of God, leading to the transformation of the believer into union with God.

laoda99 SG

so the superior being…is something like “THE ONE”....or “AUM” as in most “cults” believe…..a very funny thing i came across somewhere is they believed “AUM” sounds the same like God in the bible who says “I AM”....haha…but I think it is too far off…...

An Eternal Now SG

I don't know anything about these cults.. haha

Cults dabble with belief and brain-washing.

Mystics never brainwash you with beliefs and cultic behaviors.

It existed in all religions for centuries.

It will never ask you to believe in a cult leader, in a supreme being, etc.

God in mystical sense is beyond any personal relationship already - the relationship is unity, not emotional or mental prayers kind of communication.

Ito_^ SG

according to the website u posted, every denomination has its mystical foundation. it boils down to the personal union, submission and communication with god. not mystical enough?

Ito_^ SG

is buddha mystical? do we not seek his teaching and guidence towards our own enlightenment?

do we not pray to god for guidence and communicate so we may understand and receive salvation?

all these not beings?

laoda99 SG

Some interesting stuff abt mystics

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mysticism

Mysticism from the Greek ìõù (muo, "concealed") is the pursuit of achieving communion or identity with, or conscious awareness of, ultimate reality, the divine, spiritual truth, or God through direct experience, intuition, or insight; and the belief that such experience is an important source of knowledge or understanding. It may involve a belief in the existence of realities beyond immediate perceptual apprehension, or a belief that true perception of the world goes beyond intellectual apprehension, or that 'beingness' is central to all perception.

Mystics generally hold that there is a deeper, more fundamental state of existence hidden beneath the appearances of daytoday living (which may become, to the mystic, superficial or epiphenomenal). For the mystic, the hidden state is the focus, and may be perceived in any of various ways as God, ultimate reality, a universal presence, a force or principle, psychological emancipation and be experienced or realized directly. Such experiences are spoken of, variously, as ecstatic revelation, theosis, direct experience of the divine or of universal principles, nirvana, enlightenment, satori, samadhi, etc. They are sometimes characterized by a fading or loss of self, or a perceived interconnection with all existence, and are often accompanied by feelings of peace, joy or bliss.

The funny thing is....they have a list of mystics for each faith, even Christianity. Some of the names I never heard of Rolling Eyes , mebbe cultic figures?

Christian mystics
Some examples of Christian mystics:

St. John the Apostle (? -101)
Clement of Alexandria (? -216)
St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430)
St. Gregory I (590-604)
Saint Anselm (1033-1109)
Hugh of Saint Victor (10961141)
St. Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179)
Francis of Assisi (1182-1226)
Albertus Magnus (1206-1280)
Mechthild of Magdeburg (1210-1279)
St. Thomas Aquinas (1224-1275)
Angela of Foligno - (c.1248-1309) )
Meister Eckhart (c. 1260 - 1327/ Cool
Richard Rolle (c. 1290 - 1349)
St. Gregory Palamas (1296 - 1359)
St. Bridget of Sweden (1302-1373)
Julian of Norwich (1342-c.1416)
Margery Kempe (c.1373-143 Cool
Paracelsus (1493-1541)
St. Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)
St. John of the Cross (1542-1591)
Jakob Boehme (1575-1624)
Sir Thomas Browne (1605-1682)
Michael de Molinos (1628-1696)
Sarah Wight (1632-?)
Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772)
William Blake (1757-1827)
Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774-1824)
Jakob Lorber (1800 - 1864)
Rufus Jones (1863-194 Cool
Max Heindel (1865 - 1919)
G. K. Chesterton (1874-1936) (haha...this is the one which a website says: an apostle of common sense...also become mystic liao har? Mr. Green )
Aiden Wilson Tozer (1897-1963)
Daniil Andreev (1906-1959)
Thomas Merton (1915-196 Cool

vince69 SG

Christ is the sole end of Christian mysticism. Whereas all Christians have Christ, call on Christ, and can (or should) know Christ, the goal for the Christian mystic is to become Christto become as fully permeated with God as Christ is, thus becoming like him, fully human, and by the grace of God, also fully divine.

and Jesus became God, as you and I can become God, like Him

see any different meaning between this 2 quotes?

vince69 SG

correction... the statement there stated clearly, become like christ, fully human and fully divine, meaning, like little christs.

in christian teaching, Christ is both fully man and fully God.

putting this two together, its simply means human too can be fully human and fully god (ie. divine), and this is not what the Christian Bible says.

An Eternal Now SG

It cannot be 'mystical' when there is still a dualistic relationship. From a mystic point of view in the beginning it is dual, then as you submit to God that duality falls apart.

laoda99 SG

like what Benny Hinn and Kenneth Hagin believe...christians can become little gods???

this is like heresy liao Twisted Evil

Ito_^ SG

does it mean the first becoming like christ, the son of god, yet retaining human ego; and second mean becoming god? but christ is god mah, thanks to the complicated holy trinity. Laughing

An Eternal Now SG

"Someone who looks for me in form or seeks me in sound
is on a mistaken path and cannot see the Tathágata."

"All forms are but illusions; in seeing that all forms are illusory, then one sees the Tathagata."

- Diamond Sutra

Your 'being' is still a form. God cannot be perceived by the mind as an entity. When Buddha said 'see the Tathagatha', he is pointing to a deeper essence - to our Buddha Nature.

Ito_^ SG

its too chim for u to understand la.. juz obey. Laughing

vince69 SG

somehow I don't think AEN knows/understand Christianity, sometimes I feel that he is interpreting the Christianity using his own belief systems.

An Eternal Now SG

I am not speaking from the conventional viewpoint of a Christian.

I am speaking from the viewpoint of Christian mysticism.

If you have been following my posts you would have known..

Ito_^ SG

im pretty sure jesus spoke to god in the bible; and not himself inside of him.. and isn't buddha teaching in the higher realms?

An Eternal Now SG

??

No, union can only be possible when you completely relinquish your ego and submit to God.

And it is not your ego become God, but rather, let God overtake your ego.

vince69 SG

Originally posted by laoda99:
Some interesting stuff abt mystics

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mysticism

[b]Mysticism from the Greek ìõù (muo, "concealed") is the pursuit of achieving communion or identity with, or conscious awareness of, ultimate reality, the divine, spiritual truth, or God through direct experience, intuition, or insight; and the belief that such experience is an important source of knowledge or understanding. It may involve a belief in the existence of realities beyond immediate perceptual apprehension, or a belief that true perception of the world goes beyond intellectual apprehension, or that 'beingness' is central to all perception.

Mystics generally hold that there is a deeper, more fundamental state of existence hidden beneath the appearances of daytoday living (which may become, to the mystic, superficial or epiphenomenal). For the mystic, the hidden state is the focus, and may be perceived in any of various ways as God, ultimate reality, a universal presence, a force or principle, psychological emancipation and be experienced or realized directly. Such experiences are spoken of, variously, as ecstatic revelation, theosis, direct experience of the divine or of universal principles, nirvana, enlightenment, satori, samadhi, etc. They are sometimes characterized by a fading or loss of self, or a perceived interconnection with all existence, and are often accompanied by feelings of peace, joy or bliss.

The funny thing is....they have a list of mystics for each faith, even Christianity. Some of the names I never heard of Rolling Eyes , mebbe cultic figures?

Christian mystics
Some examples of Christian mystics:

St. John the Apostle (? -101)
Clement of Alexandria (? -216)
St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430)
St. Gregory I (590-604)
Saint Anselm (1033-1109)
Hugh of Saint Victor (10961141)
St. Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179)
Francis of Assisi (1182-1226)
Albertus Magnus (1206-1280)
Mechthild of Magdeburg (1210-1279)
St. Thomas Aquinas (1224-1275)
Angela of Foligno - (c.1248-1309) )
Meister Eckhart (c. 1260 - 1327/ Cool
Richard Rolle (c. 1290 - 1349)
St. Gregory Palamas (1296 - 1359)
St. Bridget of Sweden (1302-1373)
Julian of Norwich (1342-c.1416)
Margery Kempe (c.1373-143 Cool
Paracelsus (1493-1541)
St. Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)
St. John of the Cross (1542-1591)
Jakob Boehme (1575-1624)
Sir Thomas Browne (1605-1682)
Michael de Molinos (1628-1696)
Sarah Wight (1632-?)
Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772)
William Blake (1757-1827)
Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774-1824)
Jakob Lorber (1800 - 1864)
Rufus Jones (1863-194 Cool
Max Heindel (1865 - 1919)
G. K. Chesterton (1874-1936) (haha...this is the one which a website says: an apostle of common sense...also become mystic liao har? Mr. Green )
Aiden Wilson Tozer (1897-1963)
Daniil Andreev (1906-1959)
Thomas Merton (1915-196 Cool
[/b]

I wonder how true this list is, anyone can claim that so and so is a member (as long as these people are dead)

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