Well, whilst you quietly discuss this amongst yourselves, you're going a bit off-topic here.

My original point was to ask you how you would feel if a Buddhist were to try to convince you to consider practising Buddhism instead of Christianity?
I'm not sure either of you have given me an answer to that yet...

EDIT NOTE: Too many keys, to few fingers.....!

I would try to convert the Buddhist to the truth of Christ. I would see it as an opportunity to lead someone to eternal life in Jesus Christ.

If a Buddhist tried to convert me from Christianity to Buddhism, I would simply ask them how they can follow a 600 pound man who preached about self control?

Also, if Buddha existed, he is dead in the grave but Jesus is alive and reigning in Heaven.

As far as Christians trying to convert others, it is our job as Christians to spread the Good News about Jesus. We are all supposed to be "ministers of the gospels".

We do not have to "bible thump" to people. Christians are just supposed to talk with people when the opportunities arise. It is our job to open the door, it's God's job to walk in and convict their hearts.

ROTFLMAO! Where did you get this little snippet of misinformation from? You are funny!
presumably you have seen too many chinese fat guy images. Just as I have seen too many images of a blue-eyed, fair-skinned western christ, and a blonde-haired lily-white virgin mary, in her mid-20's, clad in blue....when in truth, they were arab-looking dark-haired, dark-skinned and vastly different... so let's not go down that route...



They're both dead. They were both human....and mortal. Oh, right, yes, the resurrection.
Very funny.


And at this point, I simply ask how on earth you can put your faith in an "unseen, unheard, unwitnessed, cruel, unjust and discriminating dude" that is only written about in books with no historical foundation.....Works both ways really....


In that case, have the good grace to accept that others have their views, and until the day of judgemnent, as you would have it, everything is open to conjecture and speculation, because all you have is your faith to witness, nothing else. Until then, respect my view and religion, as I sincerely respect yours. truly.

Christians respect people but they do not ( nor are they called to) respect all views. If you believe in anything other than Christ, you believe a lie. Whether by design or deception. That is what Christ taught. To believe something else would be unfaithfulness to God. God is intolerant of other gods. He makes that quite clear in scripture.

God can't be intolerant. That is a human attribute. God didn't write that book, by the way. 'He' doesn't make any such thing clear in the scripture.
It was written by humans purporting to pass on the message.
I think some wires got crossed at some point.
to label God as anything other than completely compassionate/unconditional/tolerant/loving would be to make him biased, prejudiced and judgemental.
In other words, Human.
It's not God that is intolerant of other gods, because that would be to suggest that he feels threatened.
It's humans who can't tolerate the thought of maybe some other religion having a point.

I would like to either keep to topic, or else just leave the discussion here.
I have never tried to convert anyone to Buddhism.
If you read the first passage, you will see just how uncomfortable it is to be assailed by another religion, when there is no reciprocal measure in place.
So all I can do as a buddhist, is to respectfully ask that you read my posts, underastand my sincerity and accept my views as being the Truth for me.
And quit with the proselytising.

I will light incense, make offerings and recite mantras for you that you may perhaps have the blinkers removed, and enjoy the diversity and richness other systems have to offer.

God is intolerant of rebellion.
God is intolerant of other gods.
God is intolerant of sin.
That is all scriptural. We are supposed to be the same.
And the Bible was written by God using men as instruments just as you use you computer to write your posts.

Hmmmm.... Not sure that stacks up, TD....

"We are supposed to be the same."

Would you really, truly be happy in a world where everyone thought said and did exactly as you do?

And If God used men as instruments, as I use my keyboard, that would imply that men are automatons with no ability to process thoughts, opinions or decisions of their own...
Surely the reason God gave Men Free Will was to precisely avoid this problem?
The discerning and cogitative mind is an extraordinary gift, when used to it's greatest potential, and one that belongs to humans alone, amongst all creatures.
I don't - cannot - believe for one moment, therefore, that God expects us all to follow in one direction, like lemmings....

No, men are not automotrons. God put the words on their hearts and they chose to write them but they are still God's words. This was actually quite brilliant. By God choosing to do it this way He had men who fully understood what they wrote and they became passionate ambassadors for God. If He had just handed them some magical book it would be before their eyes but not necessarily in their hearts.
When I said we are supposed to be the same I was referring to intolerance to other gods, sin, and rebellion to God. We should spiritually fight against all these things.

Ah. I see.

But if Man is succeptible to temptation, and is born with Original Sin, do you not think that maybe the interpretation of God's word may have been flawed, or tampered with?
Don't you think that these men, charged with such a heavy task of scribing God's word, cannot have been tempted to put their own slant on things?
It's quite a thing for the Human Ego, isn't it? To believe that you are God's Mouthpiece?
How do we know it's God, and not someone's over-inflated sense of self-importance speaking to us from the page, then?