My readers would be puzzled by the topic heading. Has Alex been converted to Buddhism? Not at all. Last Sunday, I touched superficially on the the topic of religious dialogue and felt unfinished. With this inclination behind, I saw more common elements in the gospel reading today. Thus, I would like to continue elaborating a little more on the topic of religious dialogue and common beliefs among world religions.
The gospel reading today is the famous "I am the True Vine" passage in John. Traditionally, this passage is understood to be an exposition on the relation between Jesus and his believers. Jesus is the true vine. We are his branches. Our (spiritual) well-being depends on how well we are connected with Jesus, like a branch with the trunk.
I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him,
the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing (John 15:5).
This interpretation is not wrong. But it is not the only interpretation possible.
Following the logic mentioned above, the following verse will easily be interpreted as condemning to the fire of Hell all those who don't believe in Jesus.
If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered;
and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned (John 15:6).
In previous generations when the Christian God was depicted as a righteous Judge in the Supreme Court who kept a detailed record of our good deeds and evils; and passed judgment accordingly, the above interpretation was the most logical of all. However, this is not the only interpretation possible.
Deacon Tsang spoke well in his homily this morning. He stressed the malleability of human beings. In the first reading, we found a ferocious persecutor of Christians, Saul converted to a bulwark of Christianity so much so that the Hellenists planned to kill him.
And he (Saul) spake boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus, and disputed against the Grecians: but they went about to slay him (Acts 9:29).
Deacon Tsang stressed that the grace of God, the work of the Holy Spirit transformed the notorious Saul to the co-founder of Christianity, Paul. God works in wondrous ways which human could never dream of.
On the other hand, we should not belittle the malleability of the human nature. Some theologians argue that Original Sin damaged our human soul but not completely enough to render it irredeemable. God has already implanted in us the inclination to seek Him. Therefore, God is capable of transforming all men into creatures higher level than angels. The mystery of Incarnation has already guaranteed us the possibility to attain the status of children of God.
So what can we make out of those who refuse to accept God's salvation? Should they not be condemned to the eternal fire of Hell?
Personally, I believe that the seed of eternal life is implanted in all of us and cannot be taken away from us. Even if we do not allow it to grow and bear fruit, God will not waste it. He can still make good use of it. Yes, those branches will be burnt and give out heat which God has other uses beyond our imagination. Let us keep our mind and heart open to glorify the wondrous deeds of God.
All living things have Buddha-nature. All of us have been implanted with the capacity to communicate with God our Creator. This is the common belief between Buddhism and Christianity. All living things will go through different cycles of reincarnation and be finally enlightened and attain Buddha-hood. All of us will go through different paths of redemption and attain the status of children of God. This is the common belief between Buddhism and Christianity. We have many more common beliefs than we are aware of. In the end, we will all reach the other side. Let us take one more look at those who refuse redemption.
Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away (John 15:2a)
If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; (John 15:6a)
The gospel does not tell us what special treatments God will do to these branches. Surely they will wither and will be burnt. But that does not stop God from making them valuable and useful in ways beyond our understanding. Perhaps God sends them to other universes to go through different paths of purgation. I still insist that God will not forsake them.
Dear Lord, may we continue clinging to You to bear fruit to glorify You. May our hearts be big enough to discern Your wondrous deeds. Amen.
P.S.
I have to make myself clear. Firstly, I do not deny the existence of Hell and eternal fire of punishment. Jesus also mentions casting "the children of the kingdom" into the "outer darkness where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth" in Matthew 8:12. There is no doubt about the existence of Hell. The gospel also talks about everlasting fire and punishment. But I still insist that God's love is also everlasting. For some of us, perhaps it is logically contradictory to combine love and punishment together into one. Remember, for God, nothing is impossible.
The only thing I mentioned above that would cost me my life 400 years ago is the idea of multiple universes. The cosmology four hundred years ago could not accommodate such an idea and Giordano Bruno was burnt at the stake. Nowadays, we know that there are 11 dimensions instead of 4. We are free to speculate that there are multiple universes.
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