The Nature of Religion

This quote from Karen Armstrong, a noted commentator on world religions, follows on the tail of the recent article, Joanna Macy Talks about The Kingdom of Shambhala. In that article, we learned that we must act as bhodhisattvas and take up the challenge of becoming a Shambhala warrior.

Now, Karen Armstrong is telling us the the truth about the nature of religion. I’m sure she is talking about the same Barbarians the Joanna Macy talked about. They use religion, especially fundamentalism, to keep people under their thumbs. They have made a scapegoat of faith and religion.

The Truth about Religion | March 11, 2015  Our world is dangerously polarized at a time when humanity is more closely interconnected—politically, economically, and electronically—than ever before. If we are to meet the challenge of our time and create a global society where all people can live together in peace and mutual respect, we need to assess our situation accurately. We cannot afford oversimplified assumptions about the nature of religion or its role in the world. – Karen Armstrong, “The Myth of Religious Violence” The Golden Rule

I recently watched two documentaries on YouTube. One (Jesus was a Buddhist Monk BBC Documentary) was about a legend that Jesus left Palestine after being taken down from the cross and traveled to Kashmir, where he became a Buddhist monk. There is a tomb in Khanyar Rozabal, Kashmir bearing the name of Yuz Asaph (Yus Assaf, Issa), who was said to have come from Palestine about 1900 years ago. Some biblical scholars suggest that Jesus survived the crucifixion and escaped Palestine through one of the spice boats that constantly traversed the way to between India and Palestine.

The other film (The Lost 40 Days of Jesus) told the story of the research into the forty days between the crucifixion and the ascension. I wonder where he ascended to. It has always puzzled me that the foundation of Christianity is based on such a mysterious and incomprehensible event. Where did he ascend to? Some say, “Heaven.” But, where is that?

Can someone please clarify this puzzle from me? I just don’t understand.

Books by Karen Armstrong

A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam by Karen Armstrong “An admirable and impressive work of synthesis that will give insight and satisfaction to thousands of lay readers.” THE WASHINGTON POST BOOK WORLD In this stunningly intelligent book, Karen Armstrong, one of Britain’s foremost commentators on religious affairs, traces the history of how men a… [Read More…]