So What’s The Difference?
by Fritz Ridenour
- Spirituality
- Ashto =
- Jonesy =
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So What’s The Difference? – by Fritz Ridenour
We didn’t really know anything about religion, so we decided to try and find out. So What’s The Difference gives a bit of an overview of the world’s major religions and describes their beliefs. Unfortunately, the book isn’t an unbiased account of the world as it’s written by a devout Christian and thus is seen through the lens of a particular belief. Nevertheless, it gave some good insight into what people believe and why.
‘A look at 20 world views, faiths and religions’
So What’s the Difference? (dot point) Summary
Today the difference matters more than ever
- Your worldview is the set of assumptions that make up your personal outlook on the nature of the world and how to live in the world day by day
Can you articulate your biblical worldview?
- There is only one God. Who is supreme and sovereign? While he is transcendent, above and beyond us, he is also immanent, right here among us at the same time.
- He created the world, the universe we live in with absolutely nothing.
- Christians do claim that there are no relatives, the truth is absolute
- 33% of the world’s pop is Christian
Part 1 – Importance of a biblical worldview
- Biblical Christians approach the Bible with reverence and respect because they believe it is true and authoritative – that it contains gods very words
- Jesus is God, stated indirectly many times in the bible. Says things like ‘Before Abraham was born, I am!’
- Jesus born from a virgin
- He rose from the dead
- Trinity
He died for our sins
- Humans are born with a crucial flaw in their natures, that flaw is sin
- This is due to the sin of the first man, Adam, who had free choice but sinned and the whole human race was plunged into sin
- Adam’s act of rebellion plunged us all into sin, but Christ’s act of obedience made it possible for us to be made righteous
- Those who take all truth is relative approach finding themselves making judgments about what is true, what is right and what is good
- With no absolute measuring stick about right or wrong, the ultimate result is moral chaos
Active sin – includes lying stealing murder and adultery
Passive sin – is subtler because it may not involve actions but may involve thought. Lust, selfishness, greed jealousy, pride, indifference, and lack of love
How could Jesus Christ die for everyone’s sins? Isn’t every person responsible for his own sins?
Suppose you go to caught for speeding. But you do not end up paying the fine. You learn it was paid by someone else, good old Dad or rich uncle Charley.
- Getting your fine paid by someone else partially illustrates justification, but God goes one important step further. Whilst your traffic ticket is taken care of, it doesn’t alter the fact that you are guilty
- But when you turn to God through Christ, amazingly (and inexplicably) your guilt is wiped out as well
- Not only has Christ died for our sins, he will return to Earth to judge the living and the dead
Proof of Christ
- Over 300 references that were fulfilled with Jesus Christ. He ticked 300 boxes. Math says that this is 1 in 100 quadrillion
- Unity of bible.
- Another piece is its unity. Bible was written by 40 authors over 1600 years and most writers never knew the others
Part 2 – Other trunks of the Christian tree
Roman Catholicism
- Bible alone is all we need for our spiritual authority
- All the things we need to know are clearly stated in the scriptures given by the inspiration of God
Purgatory takes care of unpaid sins
- Purgatory is a paradox, a state of joy and yet of suffering. As the soul submits to purifying love of God it sheds its immature self-love. The real self then emerges
Summing up major differences
Authority – Protestants say the bible is the sole guide for faith. Catholics say the churches interpretation of the bible is the authority
- Catholics teach that the pope is infallible when he speaks, Protestants say only Christ is head of the church
Eastern Orthodoxy
- Agree that man plunged into sin, but do not agree he is totally corrupt with a sinful nature
- Through the fall, man did not inherit guilt
- A man wasn’t created in fellowship with God but has the task of working towards it
- The more they practice faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance etc… the more effective and productive they will be because they have salvation in their lord
- Church has authority over scripture for orthodox. Protestants say scripture has authority.
Major religions of the world
Judaism
Foundation of the Christian faith but still looking for the Messiah
- Jews have been persecuted many times. In 1948 the state of Israel was born and became the homeland to Jewish people.
Jewish Customs and Laws
Orthodox Jews follow the letter to the law. They carefully study the Torah written down by Moses
They not only obey the Hebrew Bible (old testament) but observe teachings of famous rabbis that have been added through the centuries
Christians share a great deal with the Jews
- Jews accept Jesus as a cool prophet
Differences
Regarding God – Jews believe he is one, not 3
Reg Jesus – Good teacher and prophet only
Reg sin – Man is not good or evil, but is free to choose between the two
Islam
- Youngest but one of the largest religions
Mohammed
- Lived with his uncle where he herded flocks
- Went into the caravan trade. Married a 40-year-old as a 25-year-old
- From 25-40 he spent most of his time in meditation. At 40 he received his first revelation while contemplating in a cave on Mount Hira near Mecca.
- Arch Angel Gabriel came to him
- Mohammed couldn’t read or write. The Quran is his reciting of revelations given to him
- He started struggling where no one believed him. Left the city then came back with a crew
- Over a few years, he strengthened his position of the leading prophet and ruler of Arabia
- His death in 632 did not lessen his following, they carried the faith
Five pillars of the faith
Statement of belief – publically say there is no god but Allah and Mohammed is the prophet of Allah
Prayer – Muslims pray 5 times a day and bow in the direction of Mecca
Alms – 1/40th of profit goes to widows, orphans, sick and other unfortunates
Ramadan – Muslims required to fast for the entire month. No food drink ciggies or sexual pleasures
Pilgrimage to Mecca – Must be performed once, but can send someone in your place
Quran denies Jesus is the son of God but is a prophet
Jesus never really died on the cross. They slew him, didn’t crucify him, Allah took Jesus to heaven just before the crucifixion. God wouldn’t do that
Regarding salvation. Allah doesn’t love those who do wrong, and each person must earn his or her salvation
Hinduism
The East emphasizes everything in the world is temporary, changing, ephemeral and unreal and that our perceptions of the world are often misleading and illusory
The physical universe isn’t seen as a rationally ordered universe revealing Gods glory but as a hindrance to experiencing ultimate reality
- Between 2000 and 700Bc the Aryans wrote down their hymns, prayers, mythic stories, and chants
- These are regarded by Hindus to be inspired.
- Many Gods
- Around 500 BC more writings were added to the Hindu scriptures, a rigid caste system
- People are placed on a ranking scale
Brahama
The highest goal is union with Brahma, the impersonal absolute
The greatest spiritual challenge is that of the soul, separated from Brahma and trapped in Samsara, the seemingly endless process of being reincarnated over and over
3 paths to Moksha which is the liberation from Samsara. The path of works (dharma), the path of knowledge (inana) the path of passionate devotion (bhakti)
- According to the way of Bhakti, they have 330 million Gods, but almost all Hindus follow Vishnu or Shiva
Hindu Evangelization of the west
- Hindu ideas came through in mid 19th century
- The movement said that all spiritual disciplines of Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam are many different paths leading to the one reality
- All approaches to God are true and valid
Regarding sin – Hindus call sin utter illusion.
Buddhism
- The man who formulated it was Siddhartha Gautama who was born a Hindu in 560BC
- Grew up in a palace and wondered if there was more to life
- He left the palace at 29 determined to solve the riddle of life
- After a lot of trial and error, finally, he sat under a tree for 40 days and 40 nights. He wouldn’t move until he found what he was looking for, nirvana.
- The blowing out of the flame of desire and the negation of suffering
- He felt he found it and became the enlightened one
The middle way and the eightfold path
- Suffering is universal
- Cause of suffering is craving
- The cure for suffering is to overcome ignorance and eliminate craving
- Suppress craving by the middle way. Right viewpoint, right aspiration, right speech, right behavior, right occupation, right effort, right mindfulness, right meditation
- The only way to rid yourself of selfish desire is through self-effort
Part 4 – cults, new religions, and the occult
Where did the cults come from?
Why cults grow so fast?
- Why do they teach error and heresy and grow so fast? They answer human needs and offer practical solutions to problems like loneliness, spiritual emptiness and the desire to find a way to please God to serving him faithfully
- They offer counterfeit salvation
Jehovahs Witness
- In 1998, JWs spent almost 183,000,000 hours preaching the US alone. Worldwide it was 1.2 billion
- All began with Charles Taze Russel, 1852 -1916
- As a teenager rejected a lot of the church, particularly the trinity, doctrines of hell which struck as unreasonable
- Started his own bible study at 18, developed his own theology emphasizing the second coming of Christ
- In 1879 launched the Watchtower
- In 1917 Joseph Rutherford took charge of the Watchtower
- In 1925 set the date for Armageddon
- He started the door to door visitation program
- The main goal was to increase membership, by spreading the word only 144,000 people would make it to heaven
- He said anyone who came before 1935 would go to heaven, after 1935 they could look forward to a living Earth in a new paradise after Armageddon
- Called for the new Armageddon for 1975, told everyone not to have kids and quit their jobs, give up college
- Then 1975 came and Armageddon did not. They stopped calling Armageddon on specific dates
Reg authority – JW must absolutely adhere to the decisions and understanding of the watchtower society
Mormonism
- Fastest growing and most successful cult in the history of the US
- The church of Jesus Christ and the latter day saints
- Started when a 14-year-old boy had a vision of two people, believed to be the father and the son
- At 17 the angel Moroni appeared at his bed. Dug up two special stones Urim Thummim
- He translated these plates into the Book of Mormon
- Published in 1830
- Polygamy became a formal practice of the church. The guy who brought it in had 20 wives and 57 children
- They have unshakable faith in Joseph Smith
- Gods existed before the heavenly father who rules Earth today. Gods were created by Gods ad infinitum
- God the father came down to Earth in human form to have sexual intercourse with Mary, and she conceived Jesus
- Jesus was married to 3 birds
New Age
Serpents old lie in an updated package
- Despite a lack of normal structure and organization, millions of NA activists hope to transform society by bringing about a reawakening that will emphasize self-discovery, spiritual growth, and enlightenment
- NA draws heavily on Hinduism, yin, and yang, nothing is absolute, everything is relative including morals and ethics
- Hard to describe the new ager, some buy into some portions of new age thinking
How new agers define gold
- New agers think that reality is that everything is interrelated, interdependent and interpenetrating
- For New Agers, the creation in Genesis is a myth because there is no creator
- There is no creator. How it got here is not the new agers concern
- Instead, it is all about how the new ager can develop his godlikeness because if all is a god, then he too is God
New agers find salvation in themselves
- Not a matter of saving one’s soul, but achieving a new awareness of his or her divinity
- Many names. Cosmic consciousness, God consciousness, god realization, self-realization, enlightenment or illumination
- Instead of repenting from sin. New ager reawakens to himself or herself
- Christ is demoted from Trinity to one of many cosmic christs, including Buddha, Moses, Elijah and Mohammed
Channeling
- One of the most anti-biblical messages comes from A Course in Miracles
- Message dictated to her for 7 years
- Reincarnation is a big part
Bahai
- The movement started by an Iranian wool merchant and Shi ite Muslim to reform Islam
- Claim that the world’s major religions are not contradictory or competitive but equally true (Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Christianity, and Hinduism)
- The major goal of Bahai I is the unity of mankind
Hare Krishna
- Was started in the US by Abhay Charan, a Hindu from Calcutta
- Quickly grew a worldwide network of ashrams
- Chanting the name of Krishna is the best way to attain freedom from samsara
- First few decades were seen chanting in airports, sporting long robes and shaved heads, playing drums, finder cymbals, doing the chant “Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Hare Rama”