Buddhism finds home in some Churches

From the Denver Post: Buddhism stengthens ties to Church

What in the recent past seemed exotic and foreign is now almost routinely folded into "the fold." Buddhism is not only accepted as a mainstream American religion, it is a path increasingly trod by faithful Christians and Jews who infuse Eastern spiritual insights and practices such as meditation into their own religions.

I've stated before that most of my practicing sangha are primarily Christians who utilize Buddhism or meditation in addition to or as a supplement to their primary Christian faith. It is encouraging that at least some churches accept this as an important aspect of spirituality that is often found lacking in Christianity - the comptemplative.

The Pew Forum's Religious Landscape Survey in 2007 found that seven in 10 Americans who have a religion believe there is more than one path to salvation. A growing number of people are contemplating more than one each. And they are contemplating contemplation itself.

Yay! 7 out of 10 Americans are not close-minded idiots. I am impressed but doubtful with this number. Would all those differing paths be Christian, perhaps? Hmm?

There are Jubus — Jews who bring Buddhism into their practice of Judaism — and Bujus, who are Buddhists with Jewish parents. Then there are UUbus, or Unitarian Universalist Buddhists, and Ebus, or Episcopalian Buddhists. There are Zen Catholics.

Damn, do we need to label everything? "No, sir! I am not a Buddhist...I'm a Buju". Yeah, I'll being saying that out-loud anytime soon. Zen Catholic does have a fancy ring to it though.

"There is a definite trend and movement that will not be reversed," said Ruben Habito, a laicized Jesuit priest, Zen master and professor of world religions at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. "We are in a new spiritual age, an inter-religious age."

Judaism, Catholicism and Islam have rich traditions in contemplative practices, yet these had all but disappeared from everyday congregational life. For many Christians cut off from the past, or alienated from the faith of their upbringing, Buddhism has served as the bridge to ancient wisdom.

"We sensed that the Eastern religions, with their highly developed spirituality, had something we didn't have," Keating said. "In the last generation, 10 to 20 years, some didn't even think there was a Christian spirituality, just rules — do's and don'ts and dogma they didn't find spiritually nourishing. It's important to recover the mystical aspects of the gospel."

No problem there...rules suck and get in the way of everything. I like the blurring of the edges between spiritual and religious outlets. This is even occurring within Western Buddhism itself - practitioners are attempting to combine different vehicles together to better serve our own spiritual needs. Some complain that this is going against the "true" Buddhist teachings or blur the edges too much to the point that it is degrading the Dharma. For the most part historically different vehicles, sects and schools adapted teachings from each other and monasteries would often be filled with both Theravada and Mahayana monks. Evidently, some even included Christian monks and missionaries (if you really want the citation, I can look it up but seriously, its a freaking blog).

A great blog to check out this blog of a great melding of Christianity and Zen - Although granted it's Sweden...

Christian contemplative practices were lost or weakened in the Protestant Reformation and later in the Great Awakening — religious revolutions in colonial America that advanced the themes of Protestantism.

I am so psyched that I can just sit back and blame Kirby. Damn you Kirby, you f-ed up Christianity. I'm kidding Kirby, no need to comment here....ever.

The Buddha was non-dogmatic and non-authoritarian — a compassionate guide, not a god, Buddhist texts say. The Buddha was silent on the subjects of a supreme being and the immortality of the soul.

"Buddhism is more about spiritual practice than believing in certain doctrines," Habito said. "There are more definitive and particular requirements for saying 'I am a Christian.' " Yet the fusion of strong Buddhist elements with mainstream Christian religion has created a backlash, Simmer- Brown said.

*Heavy Sigh* - Well, no wrong. Buddhism does have dogma and sure as hell is authoritarian (currently reading about Togagawa Japan) but the preferred Western view tends to be that Buddhism lacks all those things that makes Christianity unpalatable to many.

In "The Three Pillars of Zen" Kapleau describes 5 levels of Zen Practice. This melding falls well within the second level "Gedo" Zen or "Outside Way" Zen where you incorporate Zen spiritual practice into another spiritual framework to further and enhance your spiritual path.

Overall, an encouraging article with a positive message.

Cheers,