The African Traditional Religions Explicatory Essay

The African Traditional Religions

Introduction

The religious beliefs practiced by African people differ from Christianity in many aspects. First of all, they emerged in specific and rather secluded communities and for a very long time they did not come into contact with other cultures or religions (Crafford, 1996, p 2).

Secondly, they are not unified and written down; there are no canonical sources which would lay down the core principles of African traditional religions, their ritualistic procedures, and ethics.

This paper is aimed at discussing the main tenets of African traditional religions. In particular, it is necessary to critique them from the perspective of Biblical teachings. We need to identify those values, beliefs and practices which are consistent with Christian principles.

Moreover, it is vital to pinpoint those aspects of African religions which contradict Biblical teaching. On the basis of this analysis one can work out strategies of evangelizing a follower of an African Traditional Religion.

Beliefs, Values and Practices in harmony with Biblical teachings

Overall, it is possible to single out several typical characteristics of African Traditional Religions, they are as follows:

1. the belief in mystical powers;
2. the belief in spirits;
3. the belief in gods;
4. the belief in Supreme being (Turaki, 2000, n. p.).

First of all, we need to speak about African conception of God or Supreme Being who is considered to be the origin or the primal cause of life (MBiti, 1989, n. p.). Certainly, unlike Christianity, African traditional religion is not monotheistic, since African people worship lesser divinities and spirit.

Nonetheless, they do acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being who is involved in the creation of the universe. More importantly, we should mention those attributes which are ascribed to God.

He is eternal, omnipotent, and good (MBiti, 1989). These beliefs are quite consistent with Judeo-Christian tradition and Biblical narrative.

Apart from that, it is important some values and practices related to African traditional religion. One of them is respectful or even revered attitude to the ancestors (Turaki, 2000). This respectful attitude is not always analogous to worshipping and African people do not always attribute supernatural qualities to their ancestors.

To some degree, this practice is reconcilable with Christian outlook. To prove this point, one can refer to one of the Ten Commandments, “Honor your father and your mother” (English Standard Version, Exodus 20:12).

This maxim is mentioned in the New Testament as well. The most important thing is that according to African Traditional Religion, the main task of a human being is to achieve harmony with one another and nature.

Beliefs, Values and Practices in conflict with Biblical teachings

There are several aspects of African Traditional religions which are inconsistent with Biblical teachings. One of them is the mythological interpretation of time. The thing is that African people regard history as a cycle that is going to continue forever (Mbiti, 1989).

This belief implies that human beings are deprived of power or free will. Another thing which is very important is the destiny of the soul. According to the beliefs of African people, when a person dies, he/she turns into a spirit that can act as an intermediary between God and man (Mbiti, 1989).

Such vision of the soul is contrary to Christian tradition which lays strong emphasis on such notions as paradise and hell.

The action of human beings are not rewarded or punished in the afterlife, and this is the main difference of African Traditional Religions from Christianity. One should bear in mind that such perception of the soul can result in moral irresponsibility.

In order to show the perils of such a worldview, Christian missionaries should refer to numerous passages in the New Testament describing the afterlife of a human soul, for instance, the Parable of the rich man and Lazarus (English Standard Version: Luke 16: 19).

However, the most important difference between Biblical teachings and African religions is the worshipping of divinities and spirits. They are a part of cosmology, and can have direct impact on a person’s life. From Christian perspective, such a belief and practice border on idolatry and contradict the first commandment.

Such notion as magic is inherent to African religious practices (Turaki, 2000), and it is not compatible with Abrahamic religions like Christianity. It suggests that a human being can gain supernatural power and become alike to a Supreme Being.

In order to correct these beliefs and practices, Christian pastors and missionaries should use the arguments from the Old and the New Testaments that condemn magic and sorcery and show the dangers of trying master the powers of a Supreme Being.

Evangelizing a follower of an African traditional religion

A person, who tries to evangelize the followers of African traditional religion, must first show that Christianity gives more definitive answers about the moral values of human beings, the interaction with one another and with God. T

he key task is to convince them that Christianity provides clear and concise rules that benefit both individual and community. To prove this point, a pastor can refer to Exodus, name the Ten Commandments and to the Sermon on the Mount.

It is vital to emphasize the point that Christianity views a human being a creature with free and good will who can resist evil and change the course of events if he/she wants to.

Christianity not only offers consolation to a person, but explains the ways of self-improvement. These are the main arguments that should be made by Christian missionaries.

Moreover, they must be supported by real-life examples that would eloquently demonstrate the application of Biblical teaching to everyday problems encountered by people. Without them, one will find it very difficult to evangelize a follower of an African traditional religion.

Conclusion

African Traditional Religions share with Christianity the belief in God or Supreme Being who is omnipotent, omnipresent, all-knowing, and ,most importantly, good. However, African people do not have monotheistic theology which is the main premise of Abrahamic religions.

Furthermore, they regard spirits and lesser divinities as intermediaries between human beings and God. Their religious practices imply that a person can obtain some supernatural powers and that sorcery and magic. This aspect contradicts the main tenets of Christian tradition.

The Basics of Islam

Introduction

Islam is the religion with the second biggest number of followers all over the world succeeded only by Christianity. Its adherents live in the Middle East, northern Africa, south Asia and south East Asia (Anderson, 1985, p 91). Since its founding, Islam has spread from east to west at a rapid rate.

This religion has always been closely connected with Christianity, and very often the relations between Muslims and Christians were tense if not hostile. This paper seeks to discuss the origins of Islam, its development, and major beliefs.

Moreover, it is necessary to analyze the major similarities and differences between these religions. Finally, the main task is to present a feasible strategy for witnessing to Muslims.

Origins and Founder

Prophet Muhammad was born in AD 570 in Mecca (Anderson, 1985, p 93). His father Abdullah passed away before his birth. He was brought up by his mother till the age of six when she too passed away leaving him under the care of his grandfather.

His grandfather did not live long enough to see his grandson’s teenage and passed away soon. Yet, it has to be admitted that scholars do not know much about the early life of Muhammad.

Before prophet hood Prophet Muhammad was commonly known as “the truthful” and “the trustworthy” in Mecca. He felt uncomfortable with the practices of the people of the city and showed no interest in their religious practices, especially idol worshiping (Boa, 1990, p 66).

He began prophesying at the age of 40 in Mecca, at that time he received revelations accompanied by seizures (Boa, 1985, p 68). His revelations were accepted by a relatively few number of people, including his wife, Khadijah and cousin, Ali (Boa, 1985, p 68).

At the early stages, Mohammed and the small group of newly converted Muslims faced several difficulties and even persecutions at the hands of the pagan Arabs and he decided to go to Medina with his companions.

His migration helped him work for spreading Islam in an environment of peace as the people of Medina wholeheartedly welcomed him and promised protection from pagans (Boa, 1985, p 68). Islam gained strength in Medina where many people readily accepted Islam and helped the Muslims gain sufficient man power.

Several wars were fought between the pagans and the Muslims during the years of Prophet’s life after migration to Medina. Initially, Muslims used force only to defend themselves but in later year many conquests took place and many areas were brought under the control of Muslims (Boa, 1985, p 67).

Muhammad lived for 23 years after becoming a prophet. During these years, he established Islam and its social, political, judicial and economic systems all over the land of Arabia. He left behind The Quran and his traditions (Ahadees) for the Muslims to refer to for guidance.

Overall, it is possible to say that Muhammad came into prominence when he explicitly expressed discontent with religious practices of the then Arabic community. However, unlike Jesus, who resisted every form of violence, Mohammad frequently relied on force.

Moreover, unlike Jesus, he managed to acquire a high status in the then society during his lifetime and his revelations met widespread recognition of the contemporaries.

Beliefs and Practices

While discussing the main beliefs and practices of Islam, one should focus on the five pillars on which this religion is based.

The fist pillar is the “Kalmah” and its recital. Kalmah postulates that “There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet.” (Quran, as cited in Boa, 1985, p 71). Kalmah sets a stress on the monotheism of Islam and the leading status of Mohammad.

The second pillar is the “Salat” or prayer. It is mandatory that a Muslim prays a minimum of five times every day. Apart from Salat, there are voluntary prayers which can be performed by an individual.

The third mandatory practice of Islam is “Saum” or fasting in the month of Ramadan (the 9^th month of the Islamic calendar). Fasting has been prescribed for Muslims to help them gain self-restraint and control over their worldly desires.

The fourth pillar is the “Zakat” or obligatory charity. All Muslims who have savings of more than the “Nisab” or prescribed level are obliged to spend 2.5% of their savings in charity (Boa, 1985, p 71). A person has the freedom to spend more than the minimum amount due.

Finally, we need to speak about the fifth element of Islam, the “Hajj” or the pilgrimage to Mecca. Hajj or the pilgrimage is an obligation due only on the individuals who can afford both physically and financially to go to the holy cities of Makah and Medina and perform the pilgrimage.

Those who do not possess the resources to fulfill this obligation are spared.

Articles of Faith in Islam

At this point, it is necessary to discuss the main tenets of Muslim faith. The first article of faith is “Tawheed” or to believe in the oneness of Almighty God. The second obligation of a Muslim is to believe in angels of Allah.

As it has been mentioned before, Quran sets emphasis on monotheism of Islam and its close relations with Abrahamic religions like Christianity and Judaism (Boa, 1985, p 71).

Nonetheless, one should take into account that Muslims regard the concept of Trinity as polytheistic; this is one of the major differences between the two religions.

According to the third article of faith, a Muslim must acknowledge 28 prophets, who are mentioned in the Old Testaments and in the Gospels (Boa, 1985, p 70). More importantly, the fourth tenet of Islamic tenet is the belief in all the prophets sent by Allah to this world.

Muslims believe that all the prophets were sent with the same message from Allah and all of them are equal. The Holy Quran discourages any kind of distinction to be made amongst the messengers or the prophets of Allah (Boa, 1985, 71).

This principle is very important since it enables to draw connections between Islam and Christianity, especially the teachings of Jesus Christ. The fifth article of faith is the belief in the Judgment day.

The last or the Judgment day will be the day when all human being will be brought to answer for their doings during their worldly life. Again this is another similarity between Islam and Christianity.

Finally, we need to mention the sixth article of faith or the belief in “Qadar” or the destiny. Islam teaches that destiny of every individual is written by Allah and no one can change it except Allah Himself.

This sense of fatalism is rather untypical of Christian tradition which is based on the premise that a human being has a free will (74). The denial of any article of faith is tantamount to an act of disbelief.

Allah ¹, The God in Islam

The Quran teaches that Allah is eternal, omniscient and omnipotent. Allah (GOD) has existed always and will exist forever. The knowledge of Allah cannot be comprehended by humans as He knows “everything”.

Allah is all powerful. The Quran teaches that Allah is One and only God whom the world should obey. There is nothing comparable to Him as He is above His creations.

According to The Quran, Allah cannot be seen or heard and neither does Allah have a gender as gender is an attribute of man not God. The Quran lays out the principles on which Allah judges’ humans. He is the most just, fair and most merciful.

Muslims worship on Allah as The Quran and sayings of Prophet Muhammad clearly state that only Allah is worthy of worship. Among His countless attributes are the attributes of mercy and wrath.

The Quran mentions in various chapters about the mercy of Allah on all of His creations and at the same time His anger and wrath to which only the most evil and wretched are entitled.

The important difference from Christian tradition is that God is not anthropomorphic and any attempt to understand his motives by means of human reasoning is doomed to failure.

Islam and Christianity

One can single out several similarities between Islam and Christianity. These religions are monotheistic; both of them rely on the idea that God is an all-knowing and omnipotent being, caring about people.

More importantly, Jesus Christ is revered by Muslims and Christians. These religions have many common theological sources, for instance, the Pentateuch, Psalms, and the Gospels (Boa, 1985, p 71).

Nevertheless, the Quran clearly disagrees with the concept of Trinity in Christianity as Islam only teaches to worship one God. The Quran disagrees with Christianity over the divine status of Jesus Christ and clearly states that Jesus was a prophet who was sent to his people with a message from God.

For Muslims, the belief in the divinity of Christ is not mandatory for salvation; in fact, it runs contrary to their articles of faith.

In their turn, Christians may recognize Islam as a Semitic religion; yet, they refuse to accept Muhammad as a prophet of God.

They regard him as a person who learnt from Judaism and Christianity and also saw dreams which he interpreted in his own way and presented to the people of his time as the word of God. This notion is totally rejected by Muslim theologians.

Evangelizing Muslims

If a Christian tries to evangelize Muslims, he/she should refer to differences in the perception of God. While judging the deeds of human beings Allah simply weighs good and bad deeds of a person. Hence, law can be regarded as an imposed necessity, rather than moral obligation (McCurry, 1994).

Moreover, Christianity pays more attention to a person’s will rather than his/her fate. It attaches importance to moral responsibility and choice and not to fatalism. This can be regarded as its advantage over Islam, and Christian missionaries can make this argument.

Additionally, one may point out that Jesus was the only prophet who was raised from the dead by God and this makes him unique among prophets and suggests his nature is divine.

The main strategy will be to draw similarities between the passages in the New Testament and in the Quran, especially those ones, which indicate at sinless life of Jesus and closeness to God.

Conclusion

Islam and Christianity have similar origins and some of their articles of faith are similar to one another. These religions do not agree on such issue as the divinity of Jesus Christ and his role. Muslims consider him to be a messenger of God while Christians believe him to be a Supreme Being.

Yet, comparative analysis of the New Testament and the Quran suggests that he is really different and maybe even superior to other prophets, especially if we are speaking about his moral integrity and perfection.

Judaism

Introduction

Judaism is the first world religion that suggested monotheistic theology according to which there is only one God, who is all-powerful, omniscient, eternal and good. Later it gave rise to other Abrahamic religions like Christianity and Islam.

This paper is to discuss Jewish Messianic expectations; more importantly, it is aimed at showing that Jesus did fulfill messianic prophecies of the Old Testament.

Jewish Messianic Expectations

Judaism has a long-standing Messianic tradition; yet, the messiah or “moshiach” is normally viewed as a military or political leader, who will observe the Ten Commandments, win battles for his country, and make righteous decisions (English Standard Version², Jeremiah 33:15).

Most importantly, moshiah will be a human being; this person will not have divine or supernatural qualities (Rich, 2006). This idea is entirely alien to Judaism.

There are several indispensible conditions for the arrival of the Messiah, for instance, disrespectful attitude of children to their parents, people’s inability to repent their sins (Rich, 2006).

According Jewish Messianic expectations, this person will accomplish some of these deeds: to spread the knowledge of God throughout the world (Isaiah, 11: 2), to restore the cities of Israelites (Ezekiel 16: 55), and eradicate illness, hunger and war (Isaih, 25: 8).

Overall, the core of Messianic expectations is the belief that moshiah will bring Jewish nation to prominence and make the Law of Moses universal.

Jewish Rejection of Jesus’ Messianic Claims

The New Testament provides several examples of how and why Jesus was rejected by the community. One of the main reasons is that his views and ideas were new or even unprecedented for them.

For instance, John mentions that many people and some of his disciples abandoned him when he proclaimed, “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day” (English Standard Version, John 6: 54). It is possible to say that they misunderstood his words.

It should be noted that this conversation took place in a synagogue, where no one was allowed to make such statements.

The second and probably most important reason is his criticism of the Sanhedrin priests. First of all, need to speak about the incident which is normally known as the Cleansing of the Temple.

According to Mathew, Jesus cast the money-changers out of the Temple and said, “My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers” (Matthew 21:12-17). The phrase “my house” emphasizes Jesus’ divine nature, and it could provoke retaliation of high priests.

Moreover, one can refer to the famous Parable of the Wicked Husbandmen which is mentioned in the canonic Gospels.

It tells a man who entrusted with the task of maintaining a vineyard to tenants or husbandmen. When this man sent his son to take the part of the crop, the tenants killed him. According to Luke, the priests perceived this parable as accusation (Luke 20:9-19).

One can also argue that many people misunderstood Jesus and viewed him as a rebel or mutineer against the Law of Moses, although he never spoke anything against the Ten Commandments and pointed out that his intention was to improve or elaborate this set of beliefs and practices (Luke, 16: 31).

The most important thing is that the Sanhedrin priests took him as a threat to their authority and realized that his accusations had been justified.

The Messianic prophecies accomplished by Jesus

Overall, it is possible to provide several examples indicating that Jesus did accomplish at least some of Messianic prophecies. One of the requirements is to spread the knowledge of God to other nations and make them abide by the Law of Moses (Isaiah 2:11-17).

Yet, this theme is also referred to in the Old Testament, where Paul says that for God there is “no distinction between Jew and Greek” and “everyone who believes in him will not be put shame” (Romans 10).

Again, we need to mention that Jesus did seek to undermine the main tenets of the Old Testament; instead he elaborated it and wanted to make it universal. Matthew mentions that he often encouraged the Apostles to “make disciples of all nations” and convert them (Matthew 28:19-20).

Furthermore, according to Isaiah, the messiah “will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces” (Isaiah 25:8). This is one of the main deeds that the Messiah is expected to accomplish.

It is directly related to the Christian concept of salvation and Jesus’ self-sacrifice for the redemption of people’s sins. Mark says, “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (English Standard Version: Mark 10: 45).

This argument is further elaborated by Paul, who points out that the followers of Jesus will be given salvation and eternal life (John 3:16).

Thus, if we draw the parallels between Isaiah’s prophecies, especially the belief that the Messiah will convert gentiles to Jewish faith, resurrect people from the dead, and save them from suffering, we can say that Jesus was the Promised Messiah.

Moreover, it is possible some of the expectations set for “moshiah” by Jewish theologians were mostly political but not spiritual, and this is why they rejected Jesus, who did not accept any form of violence or brutal force.

Conclusion

The tensions between Christianity and Judaism can be explained by the fact that Christian and Jews offered different interpretations of Messiah’ role and deeds. The followers of Judaism believe that the Messiah is mostly a political leader, who will bring their fame to their nation.

In contrast, Christians view him as a spiritual guide who will showed people the way in which they should act in order to earn salvation from suffering and eternal life. Jesus was largely misunderstood and even feared by his contemporaries, and this is the main reason why many of them rejected him and later crucified.

Hinduism

Introduction

Hinduism is believed to be the oldest religions of the world; its founding predates the recorded history of humankind (Himalayan Academy, 2006).

Despite the fact that some people, especially journalists, emphasize several similarities between Christianity and Hinduism; it is of utmost importance to show their fundamental differences in understanding the concepts of sin and salvation as well as in the perception of God as a Supreme Being.

This paper is aimed at showing that Christian beliefs are incompatible with Hinduism and that Christians must do their best to evangelize Hindus.

The main differences between Christianity and Hinduism

Christianity originated out of Judaism and it was based on monotheistic theology; Christian tradition postulates that God is one, omnipotent, omniscient, and good.

The followers of the Hindu religion share this belief in a Supreme Being; however, they also accept the possibility that there are other divinities or gods which should also be worshipped.

In addition to the worshipping of smaller divinities, Hinduism does not reject sorcery and magic which are condemned in the Bible (Himalayan Academy, 2006). The adherents of Christian tradition do not tolerate these beliefs and practices; in fact, they are considered to be idolatry.

It should also be noted that Hindus can visualize their gods in any form, for instance, this Supreme Being can assume a shape of an elephant that symbolizes power and strength (Pancholi, 1998, p 13, 25). Thus, Hinduism does not restrict its followers in assuming and visualizing their gods from being whatever.

This tradition does not seek to impose religious dogmas on people, especially if one speaks about ritualistic practices. This form of liberty is not typical of Christianity and the adherents of this religion believe that ritualistic part is also important.

Nonetheless, the most important differences between these religions are the beliefs about afterlife and sin. Hinduism rejects such concepts as concept as Heaven or Hell according to this tradition the soul of dead person moves to another body (Pancholi, 1998, 36).

Thus, one can speak about never-ending reincarnation of soul. This idea is entirely incompatible with Christian doctrine. The thing is that the notions of paradise and hell and necessary to emphasize the brevity of worldly life and that the deeds of a person can either be rewarded or punished by God.

These notions suggest that a human being should take moral responsibility for his/her actions and be aware of their consequences. The idea of soul reincarnation can a person morally irresponsible since it implies that he/she will always have another chance to amend ones misdeeds.

This is one of the reasons why Christianity and Hinduism can hardly be compatible with one another. Those Christians, taking interest in Hinduism should be aware of these differences and remember about the perils entailed by this philosophy.

Another important thing which distinguishes Hinduism from Christianity is the interpretation of moral life. According to this tradition, a person who wants to obtain salvation (mocksha), has to conduct oneself in a righteous way, achieve economic prosperity and derive enjoyment from life (Pancholli, 1998, p 15).

It is supposed that a person must balance each of these objectives. Certainly, Christianity does not prohibit the enjoyment of earthly life and economic prosperity, but they are taken as the major objectives of a human being. The thing is that they can entirely oust a person’s devotion to God.

Such famous representative of Hinduism as Professor Radhakrishnan argue that “the theists and the atheist” can become Hindus if the accepts the value system of this tradition; moreover, he argues that conduct is the most important thing, but not belief (Radhakrishnan as cited in Pancholi 1998, p 13).

This ideology is unacceptable for Christian tradition since this religion stresses the premise that God always cares about humankind and wants to forgive them their sins or shortcomings.

The premise, according to which conduct is more important than belief, can lead to self-righteousness, narcissism and subsequently pride which is one of the deadly sins. This is the main danger of Hindu outlook.

The methods of evangelizing Hindus

In order to evangelize Hindus, Christian should first argue that their different divinities do not reflect omnipotence and omnipresence of God. He permeates every aspect of human life and cannot be reduced only to power or beauty.

The worshipping of these divinities can eventually result a distorted perception of God and his relations with human beings. Hinduism accepts magic as a part of religion; this practice implies that a person can gain supernatural powers (Himalayan Academy, 2006).

Christian should show that this idea is very perilous and draw Biblical examples showing the dangers of sorcery and magic; one of them is the destiny of ancient Egypt, rooted in idolatry and magic.

Secondly, Christians need to argue that Biblical teachings provide reliable guidelines for people’s behavior, for instance, they may refer to the Ten Commandments or the Sermon on the Mount.

Moreover, the followers of Christian tradition should point out that Hindus’ overemphasis on the significance of conduct as compared to belief, can transform into pride and vanity. On the whole, Christian critique of Hinduism must focus on the dangers of this theological approach and the benefits of Biblical teachings.

Apart from that, Christian people should point out that the concepts of heaven and hell are essential for moral behavior of people; in this way they will be able to highlight the limitations of Hindu philosophy and religion.

However, one should bear in mind that evangelizing is possible only if these arguments are expressed during a thoughtful and respectful discussion between the representatives of two religions; otherwise, Hindus will not accept Biblical teaching.

Conclusion

It has to be admitted that Hinduism has certain similarities with Christianity, for example the belief in goodness and omnipotence of God. Nonetheless, these religions present different theologies and moral codes.

Hinduism urges people to act in a righteous way, but unlike Christianity, it does not give any specific instructions.

Biblical teachings attract a person’s attention to the notion of paradise and hell and show that his/her actions will be either awarded or punished after his/her death. This is probably the main difference between these religions.

Buddhism

Introduction

From theological point of view Buddhism cannot be regarded as a religion since it does not emphasize the idea of a Supreme Being; more likely it should be considered as a set of beliefs about human nature and a code of conduct that enables to achieve enlightenment.

This paper will discuss the main principles of Buddhism, its origins, schools, and the major concepts. Furthermore, it is vital to work out practical strategies of evangelizing the followers of this moral and philosophical tradition.

The origin of Buddhism

Siddhartha Gautama, who lived during the fifth century before Common Era is believed to be the founder of Buddhism (Mc Donnell & Steward, 1982, p 304).The moral philosophy of Buddhism is mostly based on his teaching. It should be noted that Buddha did not arise ex nihilo or out of nothing.

At the time when Siddhartha Gautama began his preaching the people of ancient India practiced Hinduism and adhered to the rules and principles laid down in the Vedas (Mc Donnell & Steward, 1982, p 304).

At the beginning Buddhism was a part of Hinduism, but it later years it transformed into a separate religion; moreover; its followers rejected the authority of Veda. To a great extent, the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama were a direct response to the religious beliefs and practices of that period and an attempt to improve them.

The life of Siddhartha Gautama

Buddha, Siddhartha was a member of the royal family; his father was rajah or a ruler (Mc Donnell & Steward, 1982, p 304). According to a prophecy, he would have become the next king while if he stepped out to see the world and roam around, he would rather become a spiritual leader.

His father wanted Siddhartha to inherit the title and learned about the prophecy; thus, he kept him in the palace ensuring that no ugly or bad things of the world were ever witnessed by his successor (Yamamoto, 1994).

He believed that if Siddhartha did not see the difficulties faced by common people and remained in the palace; he would be more willing to accept the throne. However, later Siddhartha insisted that his father should allow him to see the world.

His father permitted him, but asked the state to ensure that streets are clean; things are fine across the way where Siddhartha passes through. However, Siddhartha met some people who were poor and sick and also saw a funeral realizing what a common person had to go through all his life.

This incident was a turning point in Siddhartha’s life since he decided to focus on spiritual rather than on moral life (Mc Donnell & Steward, 1982). Later he began preaching to monks and common people, many of whom became his followers.

Buddhism and Its Four Truths

Buddhism is premised on the so-called Noble Truths. The First and Second Noble Truths emphasize the belief in the existence of suffering and explain their origins.

According to Buddhist traditions, suffering and misery are an inseparable part of human life; most importantly, they originate primarily from people’s desire and cravings.

Thus, in order to end sufferings, one should to get rid of passions desires (The Third Noble Truth). The Fourth Noble Truth postulates that this goal can be accomplished only if a person adopts a certain way of life that is usually known as the the Eightfold path (Mc Donnell & Steward, 1982, p 307).

The Eightfold path of Buddhism

Overall, Eightfold path can be defined as a way of learning and acting that allows a person to lead a peaceful and righteous life. The first step is usually called the Right view or belief. To have the right belief, one must first accept the Four Noble Truths. The second step is to have the right aspirations or aims.

A person must enable oneself to escape all the desires and get rid of the pleasures that he/she is craving for (Mc Donnell & Steward, 1982, p 307). Moreover, a follower of Buddhism must not intent to harm any living creature as ill will violates the principles of righteousness.

The third step is known as Right Speech. One must not lie, malign or abuse anyone or indulge in the idle talk that leads to useless thinking and a waste of time. Right speech is closely connected with the fourth step which right behavior or conduct.

This concept prohibits the destruction of any living creature, be it human or animal. The fifth step is right occupation or livelihood. One must earn a lawful livelihood which does not harm others (Mc Donnell & Steward, 1982, p 307). Deception or any other immoral way to earn a living is highly condemned by Buddhism.

The sixth step is right effort. It means that one must be steadfast in effort to resist any form of evil. More importantly, a Buddhist must always try to acquire good qualities and strive to improve oneself (Mc Donnell & Steward, 1982, p 307).

Finally, the Eightfold Path culminates in right contemplation or mindfulness and right contemplation (the seven and the eighth step). In other words, a person must be strenuous, observant, alert, contemplative, and devoid of passions and desires.

Definitions of Buddhist concepts

At this point, it is vital for us to provide definitions to the main concepts of Buddhism such as Karma and Nirvana.

Karma is the belief that the present existence of a human being is dependent on his deeds in the previous life (Yamamoto, 1994). The concept suggests that suffering is never undeserved.

In its turn, such a notion as Nirvana refers to the absolute truth that one has to get after escaping from the cravings of all the desires and achieve the goal of the religion and that goal is something beyond imagination and conventional understanding of this world.

The different schools of Buddhism

There are different schools of Buddhism which interpret the teachings of Buddha in a different ways. The Tibetan school was strongly influenced by Mahayana Buddhism (Yamamoto 1994b); the major peculiarity of this school is skepticism or the belief that one should never take the words of others for granted.

According to them skepticism is an indispensible condition for a person intending to take the Eightfold Path. Gelug is another Buddhist school which strongly rely on the teachings of Je Tsongkhapa,who described the principles of Buddhist apprenticeship.

However, whatever the school of thought may be, each of them concentrates on the basic learning of humanity and the ways of mastering ones desires

Ways of evangelizing Buddhist

Christians should demonstrate that Biblical teachings offer clear-cut guidelines and standards of pious and righteous life. To prove it, one can refer to Noah, Abraham, Moses, and certainly Jesus. The lives and actions show how a righteous man should act.

Secondly, unlike Buddhism, Christianity has an elaborate set of rules that are applicable not only to individuals but to the community as well, namely the Golden Rule, “love your neighbor as yourself” (James 2: 8).

The teachings of Buddha focus primarily on the avoidance of harm, while Christian doctrine encourages a person to be good to others. Thus, in a sense, Biblical teachings are superior to Buddhist philosophy.

This is the main point that one should stress in order to evangelize Buddhist. Secondly, one should note that Buddhist does not provide any explanation of God as a Supreme Being, and this is one its main limitations.

Conclusion

Buddhism is a complex set of rules or instructions that are aimed at helping a person lead a righteous life. It is based on the premise that soul is continuously reincarnated and that the life of a person should be dedicated to the search for truth and enlightenment.

The morality of this religion is based on the avoidance of harm to other people or any living beings. Unlike Christianity, it attaches importance to the avoidance of evil but to love of other people.

Reference List

Anderson, Norman. (1985). The world’s religions. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.

Bible: English Standard Version. Crossway Bibles. Web.

Braswell, George W. (1994). Understanding world religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Judaism and Islam. Nashville, Tennessee: Broadman and Holman Publishers.

Boa K (1990). Cults, world religions and the occult. Colorado Springs, Colorado: Chariot Victor Publishing.

Crafford, D. (1996). A world of religions: a South African perspective. Pretoria: Kagiso Publishers

Himalayan Academy. 2006. Hinduism. Web.

McDowell J and Stewart D (1982). Handbook of today’s religions. Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

Mbiti, John S. (1989). African Religions and Philosophy, 2nd ed. London: Heinemann

McCurry D. (1994). Witnessing to Muslims. Christian Research Institute Journal. Web.

Pancholi, Nila. 1998. Six world faiths. Wellington House, London: Castle Publishers.

Rich, Tracey R. 2006. Judaism 101. Web.

Yamamoto, J. Isamu. (1994). ‘The Buddha and what he taught.’ Christian Research Institute Journal. Web.

Yamamoto, J. Isamu. (1994b). ‘The arrival of Theravada: Southeast Asians bring their school of Buddhism to America.’ Christian Research Institute Journal. Web.

Yusufu T. (2000). Africa Traditional Religious System as Basis of Understanding Christian Spiritual Warfare. The Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization. Web.

Footnotes

1. Allah is an Arabic word meaning God.
2. This version of the Bible will be cited throughout the paper.