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quote:
Originally posted by daNNy LuV 1TYM
i heard Buddhism isn't realli a religion but thaz it's more way of life.
Many cultures have a different perception of "religion" than the one most of us inheiret from living in a western culture. Christianity is unique among the big three religions (Christianity, Judaism, Islam) in that it encourages an orthodoxy, or rather, a "right way of thinking." This can be traced back to the Sermon on the Mount given by Jesus (e.g. "Thou shalt not think lustful thoughts"). Other cultures in the world, such as the Jewish religion or Islam stresses an orthopraxy, or "right practice/action." To them, their religion is not a way of thinking, but rather is a set of rules on how to live your life, essentially, a lawbook. Let's take Judaism for example. A jew doesn't have to believe in one "God" in order to gain entrance into heaven. All he/she must do is follow the rules set by the torah. Its about, "do this, this, and this, and you're good," rather than "believe this and you're good." Christians smite down non-believers as heathens that would not be able to enter heaven. Religions such as Judaism are different. Again, its the belief of an Orthodoxy versus an Orthopraxy.
So, in conclusion, to say that "its a way of life, not a religion" is really a one-sided, biased view of how one should look at various beliefs around the world. Western civilization has warped the word "religion" to suit its own desires and developments, instead of recognizing the differences in percieving religion and its affect on life that are present among different cultures.
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ni pour ni contre; ça m'est égal
"The weight of this sad time we must obey,/ Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say./ The oldest hath borne most; we that are young/ Shall never see so much, nor live so long."
King Lear (V.3.300-304)
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12-08-2002 08:58 AM
