Rev. Dr. Tom Shepherd's online radio program "Let's Talk About It" is featuring discussion on the topic of the Dalai Lama and his Buddhist teachings in relation to the Christian season of Lent (which we're currently in).
Here's a short description of the upcoming show:
"His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso, the great spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, is known worldwide simply as the Dalai Lama. He has written a grand summation of the most important things in life, which includes these words: 'Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.' Buddhism generally understands love as compassion for all sentient beings and, paradoxically, detachment from desire itself. Christian love is about forgiveness and altruism; there is a self-sacrificial tone to the love of God in Jesus Christ. Yet there is much that Buddhists and Christians share in common. Compassion, kindness, and selflessness. This week Dr. Shepherd looks at what Christians can learn from their Buddhist counterparts as his panel of distinguished guests discusses 'Lenten Lessons From the Dalai Lama.'" (Unity.FM)
As a scholar of Buddhist-Christian dialogue and a participant in interreligious interface, I'm curious to see who Dr. Tom's guests are and where the discussion leads, especially in terms of relating Tibetan Buddhist principles to Christian practice of Lent. Since Lent is normally understood as that time in the Christian liturgical year when we recognize our mistakes and shortcomings and reflect on how we might improve ourselves through anticipating and then sharing in Christ's death and resurrection, which are essentially archetypal symbols for the process of overcoming unsatisfactoriness and distorted relationships and living a new existence characterized by life in Christ. This world-renouncing activity of self-emptying and self-discipline in the Christian practice of Lent resonates quite well with the Buddhist ideas and practices of anatta/anatman (no self/soul) and paticcasamuppada (dependent origination) that tend to emphasize the importance of the interdependency of all phenomena and the resulting ethical implications of compassion and altruism that follow.
Tune in on Friday February 26, 2010 at 4pm CST for what ought to be an exciting and stimulating show on "Let's Talk About It."
This sounds like an interesting program. It is refreshing to hear a Christian perspective on Buddhist practice that does not reduce itself to "Buddha is the devil and you are going to hell unless you accept Jesus as your savior".
ReplyDeleteRather a respectful comparison that doesn't lead to a religious pissing match. My personal favorite has been the comment that one faith is "better" than the other one rather than focusing on what the individual needs.
Cheers,
John
www.zendirtzendust.com