Inter-Faith versus Inner-Faith
A Reflection of Personal Discernment*
A Reflection of Personal Discernment*
An August (of 2008) retreat at Picture Rocks (a Redemptorist Retreat center) perked my senses. It had all the right words in its definition – meditation, silence, vegetarian meals, teachings by the "master", etc. It would be a nice 4-day August break from the concrete summer heat of Phoenix into the “cool” Tucson Sonoran desert. I was comfortable with this retreat style – so, I thought. My previous experiences were called “Contemplative Intensive” retreats with a mixture of Christian and Eastern contemplative techniques which were very enriching. But, this new adventure would be a Zen retreat – a pure Zen Buddhist Sesshin – Japanese style.
Everything seemed to be the same – the 25-minute sittings interspersed with very slow meditative walks – but, the worship liturgy and prayers were Buddhist. The prayers, toned in the Japanese language and the rhythm of the chants were comforting. But, the adoration (prostration – full floor bow) to Buddha was soul-stopping. During one of the first liturgy sessions, we (the participants) were invited to prostrate before and be prayerful to the Buddha. In a freeze-frame of time, my body tried to move into prostration but the spirit said “stop.”
I am a follower of the "teacher" Jesus aka a Christian, but yet, drawn into an inter-faith connection with Eastern (i.e. Tao) and Buddhist things – meditation, the theology of compassion, Zen architecture, etc.; and, always finding, and looking for, similar messages to Jesus’ gospel. So what was this impulse? After this “frozen in motion” experience, and at the first opportunity to enter the chapel at the retreat center, in a deep bow, I fell to my knees before the sanctuary’s large Corpus cross of dark carved wood – feeling humbled and almost ashamed. It was a wakeup call to my inner-faith. It was a discernment call to look more deeply into my spiritual living that feeds into my inner-faith. It is my interfaith relationships, whether Buddhist, Islamic, etc. that are the tools which feed, strengthen and validate my inner-faith as a Christian. Jesus’ messages of love, doing justice and feeling compassion are universal, and that it is “Jesus” who is embedded into my DNA.
Postscript (3/14/2009): The serenity of the Buddhist statues continue to draw my attention. The slight smile or Happy Buddha's joy --- these are the silent looks of compassion and wisdom. Jesus smiled but unfortunately it's not written in the scriptures!
* NOTE: This text is from my "Diaconal Annual Report 2008" to Bishop Kirk Smith
Everything seemed to be the same – the 25-minute sittings interspersed with very slow meditative walks – but, the worship liturgy and prayers were Buddhist. The prayers, toned in the Japanese language and the rhythm of the chants were comforting. But, the adoration (prostration – full floor bow) to Buddha was soul-stopping. During one of the first liturgy sessions, we (the participants) were invited to prostrate before and be prayerful to the Buddha. In a freeze-frame of time, my body tried to move into prostration but the spirit said “stop.”
I am a follower of the "teacher" Jesus aka a Christian, but yet, drawn into an inter-faith connection with Eastern (i.e. Tao) and Buddhist things – meditation, the theology of compassion, Zen architecture, etc.; and, always finding, and looking for, similar messages to Jesus’ gospel. So what was this impulse? After this “frozen in motion” experience, and at the first opportunity to enter the chapel at the retreat center, in a deep bow, I fell to my knees before the sanctuary’s large Corpus cross of dark carved wood – feeling humbled and almost ashamed. It was a wakeup call to my inner-faith. It was a discernment call to look more deeply into my spiritual living that feeds into my inner-faith. It is my interfaith relationships, whether Buddhist, Islamic, etc. that are the tools which feed, strengthen and validate my inner-faith as a Christian. Jesus’ messages of love, doing justice and feeling compassion are universal, and that it is “Jesus” who is embedded into my DNA.
Postscript (3/14/2009): The serenity of the Buddhist statues continue to draw my attention. The slight smile or Happy Buddha's joy --- these are the silent looks of compassion and wisdom. Jesus smiled but unfortunately it's not written in the scriptures!
* NOTE: This text is from my "Diaconal Annual Report 2008" to Bishop Kirk Smith
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