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Christianity Today, March (Web-only), 2009 |

Muslim Priest and Buddhist Bishop-Elect Are Raising Questions About Syncretism

For years, Episcopal Church leaders have taught that God can be found in other faiths. Now some clergy are pursuing him there.

George Conger | posted 3/27/2009 09:29AM

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Forrester supporters within the Episcopal Church have also rejected charges that his use of Zen Buddhism was inappropriate. "When did the way in which we are deepened into the Presence of God become a litmus test for being a follower of Jesus Christ?" one retired bishop asked in a letter to his colleagues. Other defenders have cited examples of Roman Catholic clerics and religious who practice Zen.

However, in his 1994 book Crossing the Threshold of Hope, Pope John Paul II warned against appropriating Buddhist practice. Buddhism "is, like Christianity, a religion of salvation," but the doctrines of salvation contained in it are "contrary" to Christian doctrine. Buddhism's salvation is "negative," based upon the conviction that "the world is evil, and is the source of evil and suffering for man," and that "to free oneself from this evil one must free oneself from the world."

For the Buddhist, freeing oneself from the world does not mean drawing nearer to God as the Christian does in prayer. "Complete detachment is not union with God, but the so-called Nirvana, or rather a state of perfect indifference toward the world," he said.

In the end, "Buddhism is to a great extent an atheistic system," the pope wrote, and "it is not out of place to warn those Christians who open themselves enthusiastically to certain proposals coming from the religious traditions of the Far East."

A majority of bishops and dioceses within the Episcopal Church must affirm Forrester's election within 120 days of having received notice. It is not clear whether he will receive the necessary consents, as questions have also been raised about integrity of the process that led to his election.

Whatever the outcome of the Forrester affair, the challenge for the Episcopal Church and all churches is to respond to the question, "What's so special about Jesus?" The decline of mainline Christianity and the practices of some of its clergy may suggest that its answers, so far, have not been persuasive. Then again, the nascent backlash against syncretistic clergy may mean that dual religious allegiance is one line the Episcopal Church is unprepared to cross.

Related Elsewhere:

See our special section on The Widening Division in the Anglican Church, as well as our sections on theology and other religions.

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March (Web-only) 2009, Vol. 53

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jimmy

Posted: April 09, 2009 5:56 PM

We were Epsicopalians for 15 yrs but we finally couldn't deal with this stuff any longer, and left. The typical congregation is dominated by "lifers" who have too many social and family ties to consider leaving. They are dying off, and others without such binding ties are leaving. Leadership view themselves in a similar light as acedemics; they confer on themselves sabbaticals, and really do believe they are higher thinkers than leaders of other Christian faiths. Many of the decisions underlying leadership's strategy - the examples given in this article, the unending gay issue, other very left wing views - are deeply offensive to the rank and file. And so, with diminishing budgets, Diocese's become thier own primary source of support - they have become their own largest charity. Any significant outreach is impossible, and like many liberal groups the whole organization has become an inwardly focused and inwardly congratulatory entity while the walls come crumbling down

Charles Macaulay

Posted: April 06, 2009 10:19 PM


Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. You don't compromise on that fact! If you compromise on that you are saying that Jesus Christ is a liar. Then you are saying that He Himself is not fit for the kingdom He came to die for and is now living for.

Bertrand

Posted: April 04, 2009 9:36 AM

Hi to all there, we mut know that Christ is a more universal and being than we can imagine. He has no boundaries, so the "Church" can not contain him. Following Christ, Mohamed, Buddha, Krisna, is just walking on path of of divine wisdom that lead to the Kingdom of God within, and Christ is the gate we have to cross to get to the destination. They are all the differents manifestations of the same reality. We should not have na narrow mind. It so stupid and idiot to divide the humanity an God in such a way. The Truth is one and the same Truth came on this Earth on differents, occasion, for different purposes. As Christ the Truth came to open the Gate to the Kingdom of God within. As Mohamed the Truth came to teach the that we should surrender to God (Allah) by getting rid of our Ego. Now the human being should stop following all these institutions that divide and start listening the call of God within.

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