Buddha’s Calling: “Have compassion for all beings, rich and poor alike; each has their suffering. Some suffer too much, others too little.”

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, – Apostle Paul Colossians 3:12

We must never minimize the suffering of another. Scripture’s calling to us is, “Weep with them that weep.” (Romans 12:15, KJV) – Billy Graham

C is for Calling to Compassion

We see in the news every night

Dark realities

That sweep our lands

Christian and Buddhist can hold hands

To answer the calling to compassion

in Christ

He loves the weak and the forlorn

The downtrodden

Will you answer His call

to nonviolence

To turn the other cheek?

We have common ground of love and sacrifice on which to stand

Envision, Jesus on the Cross

Dying for Humanity

Sin and shame

He can be yours too

If you just open your Heart to His Truth

I remember visiting a monastery for Catholic monks as a college news reporter.  The quietness permeated the grounds. Their lives full of prayer to the Holy Spirit and to Jesus.  Their cause His, praying for the world and salvation for all.

I think it is the closest I have ever been to Holy ground. I cannot imagine living a life of sacrifice and silence to help others without expectation of award. Many do not even know what happens behind closed doors, but this prayer is real and heartfelt.

I only went for a few hours. I long to go back and pray again on the grounds.

I wonder if this is the same for Buddhist monks. Do they feel the same pull to pray for others. I have heard they do not pray to Buddha but to the All Knowing Force.  They do not worship Buddha at all. They seek to enlighten themselves through mediation, sacrifice, and prayer.

I know they are so close to the truth; it is only a breath away. I pray for them to discover real enlightenment. We cannot, no matter how hard we try in our strength reach nirvana or a state of heaven. Buddha lived before Christ. He lived according to his own best beliefs. He is in heaven with Christ.

I practice true compassion when I point others to the Truth, the Way, and the Life. The door: Christ. He did all the work of enlightenment for me. I meditate daily on His Beatitudes and Message of Hope and love.

We live in Christ when we practice His words to their fullest. We pray for the poor; we pray for the sick and hurting. We act in faith when we give food to the poor; visit the sick in the hospital; and bring hope to those in prison.

Why can’t a Buddhist see Christ’s love and sacrifice and believe that He died for him? He lived the perfect life they hope to achieve?

Onr Buddhist monk comes the closest to the truth when he writes:

““THE GROUND OF EXPERIENCE It is necessary to die in order to be reborn. As soon as you experience impermanence, non-self, and interbeing, you are born again. But if the plant does not become dormant in the winter, it cannot be reborn in the spring. Jesus said that unless you are reborn as a child, you cannot enter the Kingdom of God. Thomas Merton wrote, “The living experience of divine love and the Holy Spirit … is a true awareness that one has died and risen in Christ. It is an experience of mystical renewal, an inner transformation brought about entirely by the power of God’s merciful love, implying the ‘death’ of the self-centered and self-sufficient ego and the appearance of a new and liberated self who lives and acts in the Spirit.”
― Hanh Nhat Thich, Living Buddha, Living Christ

They are on a quest for perfection just as Jesus commanded, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Matthew 5: 48

I equate perfectionism and holiness with mindfulness. Engaging with the Holy Spirit in good works to bring Christ’s kingdom to earth. A kingdom where the least of us is the greatest; where we have compassion and love for our elders and sick and dying; and where we strive to take care of each other in love and equality.

These are the teachings of both Jesus and Buddha. Jesus fulfilled these teachings. I pray for all Buddhists today that they open their hearts to Jesus and His love. I guess they pray for me too that I open my heart to the Buddhist way. We both walk the same path, but I hold Jesus’ hand. He is the Truth, the Way, and the Light, none come unto the Father but through Him.

We will probably disagree on this issue of accepting Jesus, but I pray for this anyway. The wonder about Buddhist is that they will not put me down for this because they know that I do it out of a deep love.

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This post is for letter C in the 2016 A to Z Blogging Challenge. Learn more about it here.

I will also join several of the hops listed on my Link-up Parties page.