Christianity and Buddhism

I do not believe that Jesus was a Buddhist. Although there are many spiritual similarities between the two religions, there is a lack of historical evidence to prove that this is true. First of all, the central teachings of the Buddha and Jesus are not in agreement. Buddhism teaches that nothing exists in and of itself, every being is dependent on something or someone else. There is also the belief that nirvana can only be achieved by the truly enlightened. Tied to this is the concept of “anatman” or no-self. Jesus on the other hand saw himself as an agent of the coming of the Kingdom of God. As Alice said, “I think Jesus came here only to die and suffer for our sins (Matthew 1:21) as the only son of God.” You can not compare the “Kingdom of Heaven” to nirvana. In order to enter heaven, one has to have a good relationship with God, yet to enter nirvana you have to be detached and impersonal. I do not think this is what Jesus would have wanted his followers to do. Although the two religions differ in many ways, they do agree on the concept of compassion. For Buddhists, compassion for all beings is an important concept. Jesus displays this compassion by doing what he came here to do, during his life and death. In regards to the “miracles” Jesus performed, these are only mentioned in the Synoptic Gospels. In John for example, he never uses the term “miracle.” He refers to Jesus’ work as “signs.” By using the word sign the author of John is stressing the way Jesus’ deeds show who he is, not just what he can do. Compared to the Synoptics, where Jesus refuses to do miracles in order to prove his identity, in John Jesus says “Unless you see signs and wonders, you will not believe (4.48). Therefore, I think Jesus’ “miracles” have to be taken into perspective depending on which gospel you are referring to.