Christianity and Buddhism Distinctions Essay

     As world religions, Buddhism and Christianity will share similar dimensions or aspects that become distinctive in the view of reality and the world. Christians and Buddhists respond to common dilemmas and the human condition. Some of these dilemmas are obtaining happiness, ridding loneliness, and having something to follow. These are responded to similarly by Christians and Buddhists but become distinct in practice and reasoning. Buddhism follows the practice of non-self and awareness and Christianity follows the practice of Christ, the life of a man who died and resurrected for humans. 

Both Buddhists and Christians have methods of responding to the desire or dilemma of attaining or sustaining happiness in life. However, in order to receive or come upon happiness the Christian and the Buddha follow different methods. Fr. Giussani responds to the dilemma of happiness by saying gladness is affirmed in Jesus Christ's life, death and resurrection. Jesus offers to show people truth and truly cared about humans as he was one himself. Fr. Giussani conforms this to his world view by seeing how profound Christ's influence is; he sees communities forming and he himself forming one in the name of Christ and his goal. Experiencing Christ in this way helps him understand happiness and achieve it. A buddhist, Thich Nhat Hanh however says that happiness gain be obtained through the practice of non-self and ability to love. He emphasizes the importance of cultivating non-self and learning to love oneself and then others in order to achieve equality and harmony with others. He views the world as an effort to erase individualism or the notion of distinct objects and achieve the idea of realizing everyone makes up a larger whole. In the Christian and Buddhist distinctions of happiness comes another common idea yet distinct practice, which is community and companionship.

Again, Buddhists and Christians are on common ground when emphasizing the importance of community and sharing but distinct on the reasons. Fr. Giussani noticed how quickly will appeal to and follow the teachings of Christ. When he noticed this he continued to lead a community because he too wanted to follow Christ because he saw how unifying Christ can be. Community is important to Christians because it helps them understand Christ together and practice and take his teachings in their personal lives and lives of others. Buddhists value community too in a similar way as Thich Nhat Hanh says, "The sangha is very important-- the insight and the practice of the teacher can be seen in the sangha. It has a much stronger effect when you share in the practice and the teaching as a sangha." The distinction, then, is how profoundly buddhists use community to emphasize the importance of non-self and being one organism. Thich Nhat Hanh values community building of highest important for the 21st century in order to get rid of the notion of individualism and to be able to live peacefully. 

A final similarity is the emphasis of a teacher, Christ for Christians and Buddha for Buddhists; Christ and Buddha are examples of the ultimate, whether it is relationship or dimension. Additionally, both religions view these teachers as people that can be emulated and can be the basis of how to live and understand life. The distinction is the divinity. Christians view Jesus Christ has both fully human and fully divine therefore it is capable for humans to be like Christ but Christ also has a divine authority and credibility. Fr. Giussani emphasizes the Christ is the Mystery, the divine that religion commonly tries to seek and therefore Christ becomes important because he is humans access to Mystery. Thich Nhat Hanh however says, "I don't need the Buddha to be a god. He is a teacher, and that is good enough for me!" He also uses this as the reason that "countless buddhas become possible." Buddhists let go of needing a divinity and emphasize a teacher who can be epitomized and reflected by anyone as buddhists all seek to be non-self and practice togetherness with others. 

Christianity and Buddhism resemble each other through reaching happiness, building community and following a teacher. However, there are distinctions that allow Buddhists to view the world as a goal of letting go of notions of one and many and sameness and otherness, and practicing non-self. Christians emphasize the experience of Christ's life, death and resurrection and Christ is the Mystery that we can depend on because he was fully human and fully divine.