Comparing various faiths...

[Anarchist Patriot]

Here is my assessment of various religions. These are completely my own opinions:


Christianity:

Advantages: Offers salvation to all who have faith. Emphasises particular grace given to meek, weak and poor.
Disadvantages: Biblical texts on which it is based on offer many contradictions. Old Testiment is one of war and justice without mercy. New Testiment has Jesus offering salvation but also showing discrimination against non jews. Only in St. Peter and St. Paul is salvation offered to Gentiles. St Paul condemns homosexuals among others. Historic tendencies of Christians to not practice what they preach. Little tolerance shown towards non-believers and heritics.


Judism:

Advantages: Salvation available to all man who abide by "7 Noahchide laws", chosen people given special status as elect of God.
Disadvantages: Among Orthodox Jews, only those born into the Jewish people are worthy of being part of God's elect. Old Testiment beliefs show very harsh justice and warlike character. Modern day Zionists show little tolerance towards non-jews in Israel.

Islam:

Advantages: Faith emphasises salvation of all man though Allah. 7 pillers of Islam. Emphisis on love of God, equality of all mankind through God and the virtues of love and compassion.
Disadvantages: Modern Islamic societies tend ot be undemocratic. Justice in Islamic societies can be very brutal. Fanatical Muslams can be very intollerant of others.

Hinduism

Advantages: All life held sacred. Preaches that all humanity, believers as well as non-believers can petition God or Gods. Hindu temples and rituals are known for their beauty. Hindu art is very sophisticated. Modern Hindus include Ghandi who preached pacifism. Modern India is an example of democracy in a developing nation.
Disadvantages: Polytheism and various sectionalist tendencies have made the Hindu faith disunited. Hindu dogma has been used to justify the ancient Caste System and social stratification. Hindus are historically known to practice such cruel acts as Suttee or widdow burning. Emphasis on reincarnation suggests that men can be condemned to a life of perpetual rebirths.


Buddism:

Advantages: Faith preaches all life, including human life is sacred. It is a religion of peace. Buddist monks practice a live of humility and poverty.
Disadvantages: Buddists societies are not always know as democratic societies. In spite of Buddist pacifism, Buddist societies can be warlike and practice inhumane justice. Reincarnation is held as the post life state until a soul reaches Nervana. No real explaination of what happens after.


Zorosterism:

Advantages: Often called "Fire Worship" this faith holds one supreme diety. It was once the principal faith in Persia. Today it survives in small communities such as the Parshi of Bombay India. Emphasises a life of virtue and ethical behavior.
Disadvantages: Feeds the dead to vultures. Not really to my taste. The Zorosterist community tends to be small and exclusive. Though Zorosterians are now peaceful, in the past they were warlike and intolerant of other faiths.


Manichism:

Advantages: An early faith combining aspects of Christianity, Zorosterism, Budism and Gnosticism. Was a dualist faith holding that there are two dieties fighting a cosmic struggle. Holds that materialism is part of the dark kingdom and spiritualism is of the devine realm of brightness.
Disadvantages: Has ceasted to exist as a religion. Said to survive among the Cathari however.


Cathari:

Advantages: Described as a neo-Manichist faith, though modern day Cathars deny this. Calling itself the "Assembly of Good Christians" it is remarkably like Roman Catholicism in that it emphasises a Celibate Clergy and the virtues of self denial. Differs in Catholicism in its pacifism, disregard for law and public government.
Disadvantages: The number of Cathari is very small and they do not seek public recognition.


Bahai:

Advantages: Incorporates Christianity, Islam and Budism. Believes in one God. Holds that God loves all faiths and believes that all who pray pray to the same God. Holds that all humanity is equal before God. Practices pacifism.
Disadvantages: Small in number.


Universalist-Unitarism:

Advantages: Initially a Christian faith which denies the Trinity (not unlike Coptic or Armenian Churches), it later became adapted a Ecumenical approach. Unitarian Worship has incorperated non-christian rituals.
Disadvantages: Holds itself as Christian but seen by many as being non-christian.


Dietism:

Advantages: Modern Diests have called themselves "America's Religion" because the number of American Patriots who adhered to this belief. While not rejecting the Christian Bible, Diests have adapted a theology which holds that Biblical Revelation is of the past and that devine intervention is not of this world.
Disadvantages: Diests do not hold public rituals preferring individual prayer.

[fishamaphone]

Nothing against your opinions here, just check some of your spellings... "Buddism"? Interesting read, the afformentioned ignored. :)

[Impenitent]

Dietism?

the temple of the sugar free cookies or the church of the weight watchers?

thou shalt eat lard...

[fishamaphone]

Dammit, Imp, you're so serious all the time, I almost missed the fact that that was a joke...

Add more humor into your life, and not the dry kind... trust me there, it's my area of expertise.

[white rice]

I think the search for a person's self truth would allow him to break some conventions of whatever particular faith they worship.

</span><blockquote><span class="smallfont">Quote:</span><hr size="1" />Originally Posted by (Anarchist Patriot,)


Bahai:

Disadvantages: Small in number.
<hr size="1" /></blockquote><span class='postcolor'>

In that respect, being small in number isn't that negative since the only number that matters is number one.

Unless you believe in Gods being a human manifestation where the numbers is proportional to its power.

[G. Adams]

Buddhism doesn't need to teach what comes after, its not interested in satisfying someones clinging on for life, be it on earth or a heaven, but to end the grasping.

Buddhism 101. (i learned about buddhism principally from The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, so my knowledge is from a death perspective)

All life is suffering (oh how positive). Any pleasure you derive is temporary, and its inevitable loss is just another pain to add to your misery. This suffering is because we 'grasp'. We constantly try to hold on to that which is fleeting. If we are to end our suffering, we must end our grasping.

Reincarntation occurs because our soul still grasps at life, and so we return to life just to go through all of this pain again.

Buddhists seek enlightenment (i won't go into how here). An enlightened person is someone who has stopped grasping, and realised themselves. When this person dies, they will not return (unless they want to, mahayana buddhists intend not to release from life untill they have helped everyone else). This is Nirvana, buddhists usually don't describe nirvana because they're bright enough to realise they don't know what it is, they would have to be there to know that.

[white rice]

It's desire that causes suffering. You have to end all forms of desire in order to achieve Nirvana. The greatest desire is the will to live. I'm saying that achieving Nirvana isn't like winning first prize at an eating contest. In the extreme end of aestheticism, it goes to the denial of base emotions and want.

Why not enjoy life for what it is as well as understanding the unexpected pain and suffering? There are Buddhist sects who address this, and I think the causal person could be better helped by it.

[shunyadragon]

</span><blockquote><span class="smallfont">Quote:</span><hr size="1" />Originally Posted by
Bahai:

Disadvantages: Small in number.

In that respect, being small in number isn't that negative since the only number that matters is number one.

Unless you believe in Gods being a human manifestation where the numbers is proportional to its power.<hr size="1" /></blockquote><span class='postcolor'>

Baha'is are not that small in number (6 to 12 million worldwide), spread out and quieter (established in all nations where legal), less agressive in teaching the faith, no door thumping and agressive manipulative prosletizing.

Other advantages: First modern religion to believe as law, the social and legal equality of men and women, end of slavery, the need for a unversal language and standards, end of priesthood (replaced by elected hierarchy, harmony of science and religion, the independent search for truth and mandatory universal education with the priority being women.

Disadvantages: In some countries being a Baha'i is punishable by death, ie, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia. Other countries the forming of Baha'i institutions is illegal, ie PR China.