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Showing posts from April 20, 2020

Quarantine Quick Read: Christ our brother - Don’t do this for me. Do it with me.

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Jesus is a spiritual big brother for every Christian. Having suffered in  every way  like us He is able to sympathetically come alongside us with grace to help (Hebrews 2:17, 4:15-16). Some of our politicians have got themselves into trouble in the past few weeks by ignoring the social distancing regulations they have imposed on other people. Leaders who act as though they are above the law do not inspire confidence or admiration! The Bible makes big ethical demands on Christians and this sometimes leads to the perception that God is an angry dictator in the sky. This couldn’t be more wrong! When the Son of God came to live as a human being He did not flaunt His authority and excuse Himself. Instead He lived up to the standards which God has set for people perfectly . So now He can never ask us to do what He has not already done Himself. What is more, He has promised to be with and in every Christian by His Spirit so that we are never on our own. That is true whether...

(3) Dalai Lama Virus Conversation: The Compassion Catalyst

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This is the third of several blogs posts written from a definite Christian standpoint and interacting sympathetically and respectfully with the Dalai Lama's 'Time' article:  "' Prayer Is Not Enough.' The Dalai Lama on Why We Need to Fight Coronavirus With Compassion ". The first blog in this series can be read here:  https://fidzbit.blogspot.com/2020/04/2-dalai-lama-virus-conversation-prayer.html   The article can be read in full here:  https://time.com/5820613/dalai-lama-coronavirus-compassion/ . Both Christianity and Buddhism emphasise responding to human suffering, like this coronavirus pandemic, with compassion . Believers from both faiths would agree that to pray without helping, where we have the resources to do so, reveals a hollow hypocrisy in our religion. But where does compassion originate in Buddhism and Christianity? What motivates and catalyses compassion ? " We Buddhists" the Dalai Lama says, " believe that th...