Zen master (Catholic Priest) tells curious to embrace a new faith

NorthJersey.com ^ | 01.22.06 | EVONNE COUTROS

[Coleus]

Zen master tells curious to embrace a new faith

RIDGEWOOD - The two-hour lecture at the Old Paramus Church Education Center began with several minutes of silent meditation.  And for many who attended, participating in meditation was a first step in understanding the basic teachings of Buddhism and Eastern philosophy.  "All attempts at mutual education are important to help us grow," said Robert Kennedy, the noted Jesuit priest and Zen master. "It widens our vision."

Kennedy Roshi, as he is known to Buddhists, was the key speaker at Saturday's event, which was attended by more than 100 people of varied faiths. It examined immortality, salvation and schools of thought in Buddhism and Christianity.  It is the third lecture in a series to promote the understanding of Buddhism and Eastern thought sponsored by the Dhamma-Chakra Society of New Jersey. Kennedy is a practicing psychotherapist and retired chairman of the theology department at St. Peter's College in Jersey City. After being ordained a priest in the Jesuit tradition, he also studied Buddhism for many years and in 1991 was installed as a sensei, or teacher, of Eastern thought.

Saturday's lecture focused on many aspects of Eastern philosophy as well as Christian theology.

"I think the Buddhist and Christian traditions are both magnificent and both give wonderfully poetic metaphorical examples of what is inexpressible," Kennedy said. "I don't think the metaphors can be reduced to each other but that makes it all the better. Everything is not reduced to one way of looking at things."

Kennedy praised the strong outreach among Catholics and Jews to Buddhism.

"I don't think Buddhism is interested so much in learning from us, but they are open to us," said Kennedy, who holds doctorates in theology and psychology and is the author of "Zen Gifts to Christians" and "Zen Spirit, Christian Spirit."  "I think we're coming to appreciate each other on a practical level as in marriage."

Parviz Dehghani is a Muslim who has been married to his Buddhist wife for 25 years and attended the lecture as both religious scholar and admirer of Kennedy as a Zen master. The lecture allowed the public to understand the similarities between Buddhism and Christianity, Dehghani said.  "This lecture gives people a different direction in their own faith," he said. "It gives them a sense of enrichment in their own beliefs and a different way of looking at what they have been believing all along and through their lives. If Buddhism can enhance them to be a better Christian or Muslim, that's what it's all about."

Kennedy studied with Yamada Roshi in Japan, Maezumi Roshi in California and Glassman Roshi in New York. Glassman installed Kennedy as sensei and conferred the Inka, or final approval, on the cleric in 1997 that elevated him to master, or roshi. John LoGiudice of Paramus is a practicing Catholic who came to the lecture with several family members and friends to gain more knowledge of Buddhism. "I gained an insight of how the Buddhists and other cultures think and from what I gather - with Buddhism being an older culture - perhaps they are a little bit more advanced spiritually," LoGiudice said. "It's a journey. We're trying to learn more about it."

[GladesGuru]

"do you know how many Zen Buddhists it takes to screw in a light bulb?"

None, for when the light bulb is ready to change it will so do on its own.

[PanzerKardinal]

Perhaps Father Robert Kennedy, or Kennedy Roshi, or whatever name he goes by should remember what Paul said to Timothy.

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word, be urgent in season and out of season, convince, rebuke, and exhort, be unfailing in patience and in teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own likings, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths. As for you, always be steady, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfil your ministry. 2 Timothy 4:1-5

[Mr. Silverback]

But, because you believe in Jesus, that doesn't relegate Buddhism to obscurity for the rest of the world. This isn't a my god is better than your god situation.

Wait a minute.

1. The concept under discussion is whether Buddhist practice can legitimately be a part of Christian practice. If I tell a Buddhist I feel closer to Jesus if I indulge my desire for a dozen jelly donuts while I pray, and he says that would not be compatible with his religious practice, would he be "relegating Christianity to obscurity for the rest of the world" or would he be honestly expressing his view of his faith's precepts?

2. I'll phrase my question another way and you might see my point better: If a Christian believes that Christ is all, the Alpha and the Omega, what place does Buddhism have to offer in that Christian's religious practice? I guess what I'm saying is that Robert Kennedy is about as deep as a wading pool.

and these are what interest me, and why I get miffed when people say Buddhism and Christianity are not at all compatible.

Well, how can a reincarnationist religion be compatible with one that says man dies once and is then judged? How about putting on the mind of Christ versus getting rid of the ego entirely? God giving one the desires of his heart versus the need to extinguish all desires? The biggest difference is the Resurrection.

BTW, why do you think that the trials of Jesus and Buddha ended so differently? Because Buddha didn't have to die for anyone's sins and rise from the grave.

But there are striking differences--many of which, understandably, came from theologians as well as "Christian" ideas posited after the death of Jesus when the Church was being shaped.

No offense, but the idea that Christianity is largely different from the actual teachings of Christ is most often advanced by "scholars" who want to put their words in the mouth of Christ, so that He can endorse their views and/or scold their enemies. Tell me, what is there in the Apostles Creed or the Nicene Creed that conflicts with the New Testament Scriptures? The NT was written by men He personally chose.

[Mr. Silverback]

If you need any assistance at all, please don't hesitate to ask. Just remember she needs parayer more than apologetics; the ground must be prepared for the seeds..

[Coleus]

Luke 1:28

Matthew 16:16,17; John 8:58; 10:30

Isaiah 43:25; Mark 2:7

Jesus had the power to forgive sins Mark 2:10
Matthew 26:63-64

[Mr. Silverback]

Heh-heh!

[Mr. Silverback]

Is my answer in post 100 wrong, or are we both right.

BTW, did you hear about the Unitarian and Jahovah's Witness who got married? Their kids were knocking on every door in town, but they couldn't figure out why...

[Mr. Silverback]

Ah, you were much more through than I.

[Mr. Silverback]

through=thorough.

[PAR35]

I don't know what you know about Buddha, but you certainly don't know much about Christ if you think that there are "similarities" between the two.

Here's what all Christians can say about Jesus:

" And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made.

" Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end."

[mississippi red-neck]

But, he's a practicing Catholic...What's that mean???

That he ain't got it right yet.

From the contents of the article there is a whole lot more he ain't got right yet.

[RobbyS]

I don't that Jesus set out to "defeat" suffering, rather to end it by reconciling man with God.

[Lochlainnach]

Well, I'm not a scholar looking to put my words into Jesus mouth. Nor am I saying that Buddhist practices can be a part of Christian ones. I'm simply looking at the root of
Jesus and Buddha's struggle with the ills of humanity.

Obviously, we have two different figures and religions here. Vastly different. But the men who spawned them share some similarities that I think should not be simply thrown away. I'm not saying that their rituals and practices and traditions are similiar.

As far as the trials of Christ and Buddha, I never meant that they should have ended the same. Each has a dynamically different mission. They, by the religious traditions and history that precede them, cannot end the same.

Finally, that the Gospels were written by men he personally chose, and that followed him is of no doubt. But much of the NT is written by Paul, and by others who never met Christ. Now, of course, Paul says God was revealed to him through a ray of light, and looking at the amount of passion he exuded forming the early church, I'm inclined to believe him. But this hints at what I meant by the religion being formed after Jesus death.

By the way, what in the world does the Bobby Kennedy quip mean?

[stig]

Prayer for a Christian was taught to us by Christ himself

If that were the case then Catholics would only say the Our Father. The eastern orthodox catholic monks have numerous tools above and beyond standard prayer they use to deepen their spirituality. The fact that there are charismatics in the catholic church who try to speak in toungues indicate that many people within the catholic church are looking for something more than standard prayer to deepen their spirituality.

There is a movement called centering prayer which, from my reading, is zen meditation replaced with christian themes to help a person concentrate on a single theme and keep random thoughts in check.

Part of the point of zen is to cut through our insecent inner chatter and experience life in a pure form without our usual preconceptions. This is done through meditation of a particular form that zen teaches. By the way this meditation is starting to be studied by doctors and seems to bring added health benefits to those who practice it.

Finally I would say that people who pray the rosary are probably very close in technique to those who practice zen meditation. In saying the Rosary to yourself while kneeling especially you put yourself into the kind of posture that helps to focus your attention. By breathing normally while you say the rosary silently to yourself you are controlling your breath in much the same way. I would venture to say that if we studied the brain wave patterns of those who are adept at praying the rosary we would probably see similar brain activity to those that meditate.

[Lochlainnach]

You need to look beyond one creed and read the Gospels for yourself. And I'm not saying they are the same. Their paths have vastly different forks and purposes, but to say that they are figures where no compormise between teachings can be made is incorrect.

This doesn't mean that everything, or even a good part of what they preached, can be reconciled, but some of it can.

[stig]

What is the difference between a buddhist prayer beads and a Catholic rosary?

On purely mechanical level they're the same a device used to track what prayer to say, when to say it, and how many times more you need to say it.

On a mental level they are the same because you are trying to internalize a particular religious concept.

In terms of what they are trying to internalize they are completely different in religious content.

[stig]

Both are tools to help one remember prayers, but the view of Christian orthodoxy is that the prayers couldn't be more different.

Yes that's true but your missing some of the point there is zen and there is zen buddhism. Zen can be lifted out of its buddhist context because it is a mechanical and physiological technique. From there one can place the scaffolding of christian themes and questions. This can lead you to greater insight in christianity. It doesn't replace prayer it would be something you use along side of prayer. This would be analagous to the gregorian chanting that monks do. Certainly it is a type of prayer but not one that Christ talks about in the bible. It has a different mechanism of action and incorporates different parts of the brain.

Also buddhist prayer beads are not used in Zen meditation. It is really just a technique for breathing and trying to hold spurious thoughts in check. The operative phrase is in check. Spurious thoughts occur but as one becomes more focused on what they concentrating on those spurious thoughts happen less and less.

[Lochlainnach]

Never mind about the ROBERT Kennedy quip. I see Robert Kennedy and immediately think of THE Bobby Kennedy.

[Lochlainnach]

Never mind about the ROBERT Kennedy quip. I was somewhere else for a minute.

[NYer]

I will not double-click the "Post" button.

Ahhhh .... another graduate of the Jesuit system of 'rote' :-)