Christianity & Buddhism

A Comparison of Faiths

Danielle Hernandez11/29/2010

Paul RansonChrist and Buddha1890Private Collection

Paul RansonChrist and Buddha1890Private Collection

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Danielle Hernandez

Ms. Miranda

World Religions

November 29, 2010

Christianity and Buddhism

French painter, Paul Ranson, opened up the public’s eye to his theosophical ideas in

1890. That year, Ranson painted Christ and Buddha, an impressionist work that placed Christ on

a cross adjacent to an image of the Buddha. This juxtapositional comparison demonstrated that,

in many ways, Christianity and Buddhism- two seemingly different faiths- are actually very

similar to each other.

Buddhism is an ancient religion that was born in India around the year 560BC. It is

believed that during that year, Siddhartha Gautama, the future Buddha, was immaculately

conceived and miraculously born. He was born into wealth and luxury but witnessed the

suffering in life through what is called the Four Passing Sights. After this, he gave up his old life

to live with a group of wandering Hindu ascetics. After starving himself, he realized that he

needed to find a life that was neither filled with luxury and pleasure nor completely cast these

away. This, he called the Middle Way and soon after finding this to be ideal, he became

enlightened and discovered the Four Noble Truths. These he shared with the same ascetics who

had previously abandoned him. They became his first followers and the Four Noble Truths

became their most important doctrine. It was then that Buddhism was born.

Christianity is also an ancient religion but is not as old as Buddhism. It is difficult to say

when, exactly Christianity began. There truly is no definitive year that can be given, yet many

agree that it would have started when Jesus Christ, part of the central figure of the religion, was

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born. Even this date is not known positively, yet it has been assumed by scholars that he was

born in or around 4BC. Jesus Christ, believed by Christians to be one of three persons in God (the

Trinity), was born of the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem. He was raised to be a carpenter but was also

very well versed in the Hebrew Scriptures. He began his ministry, was baptized, and was soon

surrounded by crowds of followers. His teachings focused on two main ideas: the coming of God

and the need for ethical transformation. Christ used parables to teach his followers and gave

them the Beatitudes to follow along with the Ten Commandments from Judaism. He was

crucified for being a radical but was supposedly resurrected and lived with his apostles (twelve

closest followers) for forty more days.

All existence is suffering. It may seem a pessimistic view of the world around us but

there is no doubt that it has truth not only in Buddhism but throughout the world. When the

Buddha witnessed the Four Passing Sights, he saw a poor man, a sick man, and a dead man. All

of these states come into our lives and inevitably cause us to suffer. This suffering, called

dukkha, is inevitable because as long as we live and strive for anything or have desires (tanha),

we will eventually be disappointed since everything is impermanent (anicca) including ourselves

(anatta). This concept can be described well by an old Indian proverb:

"Life is a bridge. Cross over it, but build no house on it."

Buddhism and Christianity have obvious similarities. It is often believed that Christianity

was modeled partially in the image of Buddhism since there was a strong Buddhist community

when and where Christianity began. The first obvious similarity would be the birth narratives of

Christ and Buddha. Both figures were born of a Virgin (one conceived by the grace of God and

one by the stroke of an elephant). When both were born, it was said that there would be a bright

star shining in the east (in Buddhist accounts it was called the “flower-star”). Also similar is the

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concept of Nirvana in Buddhism and the concept of everlasting life after death in Christianity.

Although the concepts do differ, they both embody the same idea- that there is a way of life

beyond our physical existence on Earth. Additionally, the perception of the life here on earth by

Buddhists is that everything is interconnected- both divine and mortal. In Christianity, there is

distinct separation between God and Creation.

The doctrines held at the center of both these faiths are very similar. The Noble Eight-

Fold Path of Buddhism and the Ten Commandments of Christianity are nearly parallel. In

example, the Buddhist idea of “right speech” can be equivocal to the Commandment stating

“thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” Also “right action” calls to mind “thou

shall not kill” and “thou shall not steal.” In Buddhism, there are Five or Ten Precepts that you

also follow as a moral code. It is different for someone who is just an average follower and for

one who is engaged in the clergy. Similarly, Christian clergymen and women may take separate

vows such as a vow of poverty, chastity, charity, or seclusion. Both religions also see these

doctrines as well as the teachings of Buddha or Jesus as the cure for the existential problem that

is rampant among people.

The first and strongest contrast between these two faiths is the existence of a God figure.

Buddhism is, in fact, non-theistic while Christianity is monotheistic. They both do, however,

have some sort of “saint” figures. In Buddhism, they are called arhats. Another difference is the

way that the central figure of the religion presents the faith to the people. Buddha is often called

the “Silent Stage” because there is less and less emphasis on words in his sermons. In fact, in his

final sermon- the “Flower Sermon”- the Buddha says nothing at all but simply holds up a flower

to his companions. Jesus, on the other hand, strong emphasized word- primarily the “word of

God” which is a constant concept regarded in the Bible. Sometimes Jesus, like the Buddha,

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would present his messages in simple and often riddling ways. These were his parables. More

often, though, he was clear and spoke often at sermons.

The practices of these religions are very different. While Buddhism focuses on

experiencing Enlightenment through meditation, Christianity focuses on creeds, theology, and

finding a logical truth. Salvation in Buddhism is based on one’s ability to attain this

Enlightenment but in Christianity it is based on salvation by grace through prayer, reconciliation,

and good works.

It is understood that all religions must contain the “Seven Dimensions of Religion.” This

includes experiential, mythic, doctrinal, ethical, ritual, social, and material. Analyzing these areas

gives one a basic comparison between religions. In Buddhism, the experiential factor includes

enlightenment and nirvana, the mythic factor is given through the biography of the Buddha as

well as through stories and descriptions of the bodhisattvas. The doctrinal aspect of Buddhism

entails the Middle Way, the Three Marks of Existence, and the Four Noble Truths. The ethical

factor revolves around the Five (or Ten) Precepts and an ideal of compassion. Rituals of

Buddhism encompass Mahayana acts of religious devotion and prayer to the bodhisattvas as well

as Vajrayana chanting of mandalas (visual icons used to stimulate and enhance meditation) and

practice of mudras (choreographed hand movements). The social structure includes the Sangha

(the Buddhist community of monks and nuns), the figure of arhat (saints), and the Dalai Lama

(the spiritual leader of all Tibetan Buddhist). The material symbols of the faith include the

mandalas mentioned before and the Bodhi tree (the tree that the Buddha sat under when he

became enlightened).

Christianity’s experiential factor entails experiencing the “fruit of the Spirit,” having a

relationship with Jesus, and experiencing emotional effects of the Eucharist (the body of Christ).

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Mythic aspects of the religion include the gospel accounts of Jesus’ birth and other mythic

aspects of Jesus’ life (examples include the Last Supper which underlies the ritual of the

Eucharist). The doctrines of Christianity are the Incarnation (Jesus was both human and God),

the Trinity (there exist three persons in one God), apocalypticism (the Jewish notion that there

was an “End Time” coming where God would intervene and save us with perfect justice and

goodness), the Apostle’s Creed, the Nicene Creed, original sin, and predestination. The ethical

dimension revolves around the Beatitudes and Jesus’ commandment to love one’s enemies.

Rituals of Christians involve the celebration of the Eucharist, Baptism, and other sacraments

(such as marriage or holy orders). Christianity’s social dimension includes the Church, the

communities of monks and nuns, hierarchies within the Church (bishops, presbyters, deacons),

the Pope (the spiritual leader of Catholics), and the patriarch of Constantinople (due to the Great

Schism). Finally, the material symbols of Christianity (particularly Catholicism) are Cathedrals,

churches, and icons.

When you lay out the beliefs of many religions, you begin to notice that human faiths

aren’t all that much different. Although wars have been fought over religious differences and

geographic boundaries separate believers it seems that we all have more in common that any of

us would have guessed.