Let’s proceed to Dhammika’s Western knowledge of Buddhism. Dhammika generalizes about Thai people, “Like many Thais, Cioccolanti labors under the conceit that what’s done in Thailand is Buddhism.” He calls Thais’ beliefs about Buddhism conceited despite the fact that Thailand represents the largest practicing Buddhist country in Southeast Asia – both by percentage (95%) and by population (63 million). Dhammika must have missed chapters 4 and 23 in which I explained to readers that Buddhism is a diverse religion with many fractures and divisions; Buddhists do not agree amongst themselves about their text or their leadership. Therefore “it is difficult…to make universal statements about what every single Buddhist believes” (page 35 US edition) and I “have focused on Buddhism as it is lived and practiced in the largest Theravada Buddhist country in modern times [Thailand]. I have not excluded perspectives from other countries when it was appropriate to touch on them.” (page 167) Shall a Western convert define Buddhism better than 60 million Buddhists? His form of confrontational, intolerant Buddhism is indeed foreign to Thais.

The simple fact is: no matter how much Pali and Sanskrit Dhammika learns, no matter how many hours he chants and meditates, he will never know Buddhism the way it’s lived by the average Asian who grew up with it. That is why I wrote my book From Buddha to Jesus: An Insider’s View of Buddhism & Christianity (not an academic’s, professional’s or Western view).

Western Assumptions

Dhammika claims Buddhism is a naturalistic religion in which any of my references to the supernatural, the demonic, or miraculous healing would be scoffed at. This is only true in the Australian’s own mind. I’ve ministered in 30 countries, including many Asian countries, and it is the Buddhists who tell me of their fears of evil powers and the Buddhist monks and nuns who tell me of their encounters with the demonic. I know of many real-life testimonies from Singaporeans to Israelis who have delved seriously into meditation only to encounter evil that nearly drove them insane. Perhaps in Dhammika’s Ivory Tower of Intellectualism, Western materialism reigns, but on the streets of Asia, people know the supernatural and fear the demonic.

When people become Christian, they discover that no other name breaks the power of evil like the Name of Jesus (Mark 16:15, John 14:14, 16:23-26, Acts 3:16). There is real power to deliver people from the cycle of suffering in the Saviour’s Name!

I have come across so many of these stories of native Buddhists from Sri Lanka to Singapore, I am going to write another book documenting such real life experiences. Buddhism does not have to be defined by a Western convert; it can be defined by the thousands of testimonies of ordinary Buddhists.

Western Idealism

On page 6 of his book Good Question Good Answer, he lifts up the dictatorship of Burma as a shining example of Buddhism. Quote: “Parents are honored and respected by their children, the crime rate is relatively low, divorce and suicide are almost unheard of, as are domestic violence and child abuse, pornography and sexual license are non existent.”

This is illustrative of how a Westerner who lives among Asians can gloss over grassroots life. If sexual license is non-existent in Burma, how does Dhammika explain the growing HIV AIDS problem there? I concur that pornography may be limited in Myanmar, but it is no thanks to Buddhism. It is mainly due to the dictatorship’s strict control over Internet access (perhaps one benefit of living under a dictatorship?).

Domestic violence is rampant in Asian countries. I regularly minister to Buddhist women who are abused or cheated on by their Buddhist husbands. The problem exists among Christians, too, but at a far lower rate. Any skeptic who disbelieves that needs only check the HIV AIDS statistics in countries where there are more Christians (Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Singapore, South Korea). Those numbers won’t lie.

Suicide? See statistics on Japan – a country where Dhammika says 93% of the population call themselves Buddhists – Japan heads the list of highest suicide nations in the world. Most suicides (60%) occur in Asia, a place where Buddhist philosophy has dominated. China, India and Japan, all influenced by Buddhism, account for 40% of all world suicides according to the World Health Organization (WHO Statement: World Suicide Prevention Day 2008). Is it a surprise that more people take their own lives in places where they are told there is no God, no meaning, no purpose, and life is recycled? Is it any surprise people have a healthier image of themselves and of life when they discover the truth: that God created us as precious, loves us, and has a good plan for our lives? Suicide occurs less in countries where there are more Christians. Statistics do not lie.

Murder? Check out Sri Lanka – a bastion of Buddhism and of violence. Buddhist countries have some of the highest murder rates in the world. Spread out the newspapers of Asia and see murder on the front cover nearly every day. Spread out Australia’s The Age and I can rarely find a murder story. Is it a surprise that murder is more common when people are told human life is no more special than a fly’s or mosquito’s life? Agree or disagree with abortion, but at least everyone knows Bible-believing Christians would not dare to even take an unborn baby’s life. Such is the respect for life a believer in God has. Because God made humans in His image and in His likeness, we are the crown of His Creation. We are very precious to Him, so precious He came to die for our sins!

Western Materialism

Without a belief in God, Dhammika teaches what is common to godless people: “What is the purpose of life? To get or to be content and happy.” (p 13) This does contradict Buddhism! If all Buddha cared about was happiness, he would have stayed in the three palaces his rich father provided for him and lived with his wife and newborn child. Buddha did not leave his palace to search for happiness but for an end to samsara – the vicious cycle of suffering and reincarnation.

What did Buddha say was the cause of human suffering? Karma. Hence Buddha was seeking a solution that the Bible provided – a way out of sin, suffering and death. Being a rejecter of Christianity, Dhamikka would never admit that, but most native Buddhists I know have no problem seeing the similarity between Buddhism and Christianity.

Notice how vigilantly the Western convert to Buddhism tries to avoid Christian-sounding terms like ‘sin’ (which is what karma is in day-to-day usage) and ‘salvation’ (which is the goal of every honest sinner). We do good, seek religion, and pursue information because we are all seeking salvation from our moral and physical decay, not to be “happier” people. Happiness is the goal of Western materialism. Salvation from karmic suffering is the goal of Eastern religion – both Buddhism and Christianity (which originated in the Middle East).

Western Myopia

Dhammika says he has never heard of racism in Asia. I wrote, “’Nearly all…Buddhists who believe in reincarnation desire to come back in the next life with whiter skins…” Dhammika responded, “I lived in Sri Lanka for 20 years, studying and later teaching Buddhism and I count amongst my many Sinhalese friends simple villagers, middle class people, monks and university professors and I have never heard anyone ever express such an idea. Likewise, I have taught Buddhism in Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and India and I have never heard this idea mentioned there either.” Of course not.

Why would anyone tell this Westerner? Asians tend to be subtle and not loud-mouthed. No matter how long he lives in Asia, no Buddhist is going to tell him if they have a bias towards lighter skin.

The caste system of ancient India placed light skin people at the top and dark skin people at the bottom. Whereas in the Christianized West, we see this as racism, many Asians see this as the lot of reincarnation – something to be accepted because of one’s past deeds in some previous life. Many Indians are proud of their “Aryan” or light skin heritage. Reincarnation has given them the socio-economic upper hand. If Dhammika doesn’t understand that racism is pervasive throughout Buddhist Asia, he might ask his Buddhist friends how many of them would marry their daughter to a black man?

Dhammika rightly says there is also racism in ‘Christian’ America. Wherever there are sinners, there are unfortunately racists. Racism against the Jews, and God’s hatred of it, is well documented in the Bible. But the racism in America is more poignant only because of the rich ethnic diversity there.

Has Dhammika never noticed there are almost no blacks in Asia? Has he never noticed that Asians carry around umbrellas to protect their skin from becoming darker? Has he not noticed that lighter-skinned Asians generally tend to hold higher political power? No one in Asia is going to draw attention to this because Asians are polite. No one likes to talk about it, but prejudice will be around as long as there are sinners. For Dhammika’s sake, I will reveal the unspoken truth that many Buddhists are prejudiced against their own people based on shades of skin tone. This attitude is pervasive among millions who believe in reincarnation, even if Dhammika has never heard of it.

Western Superiority Complex

Dhammika misapplies quotes and misuses statistics. He quotes from my book, “The 2006 Census tells us that the number of Buddhists has grown by 107% since 1996.” Then he asks, “Why do so many Westerners leave Christianity and embrace it [Buddhism]?” He seems to have an outdated image of “white Australia”! Today Australia is a very multicultural society. The rise in Buddhism has little to do with white Westerners leaving Christianity, or with the superiority of Buddhism, but mainly with the rise of Asian immigrants.

The more Dhammika cites how some Westerners accept Buddhism, the more he sounds like he has a Western supremacist mentality. Does Dhammika really think that Westerners embracing Buddhism makes it more credible? He assumes that if some Westerners like it, therefore it must be logical and rational. But the majority of Westerners reject Buddhism, bowing to idols, and belief in reincarnation, does that make them illogical?

That some Westerners are turning to Buddhism does not equate to ‘Buddhism must be the most logical religion in the world.’ Studies of Western post-modern culture reveal that Westerners are drifting away from a rational to experiential culture. The desire to reject authority and tradition and to experiment with something different and mystical is the prime motivator of Westerners looking into Eastern mysticism. Many Western converts to Buddhism are driven by strong emotions against Christ and the Church. As Buddhist converts, they revile God, mock the Church, and crusade against Christianity. Is this real Buddhism?

I certainly am one person who teaches that “Buddhism is a religion of reason,” but for different reasons than Dhammika. His reason is that some Westerners like him have ‘seen the light’ that Christianity is illogical; therefore by the mere fact that some Westerners like him have turned to Buddhism, it must be more logical. I believe it’s logical to find an end to suffering. I believe it’s reasonable to find a way out of the vicious cycle of karma. And I believe it’s humble to stop trying to “help myself” but admit “I need Help.”

I have found by personal experience that people who think Westerners are superior also hate the Jews. I would like to hear Dhammika’s official stance on the Jewish people. I have a letter from one of his friends which states, “The root cause of all religio-political evils in the world – Judaism, the religion of the Jews. Many misguided people today refer to the Jews as the most intelligent and blest (sic) people of God! What a shame.” I am concerned that people who follow Western converts to Buddhism may not be aware they might be following bigoted neo-atheists. Many Asians would not have considered the connection between white supremacy and anti-Semitism (Jews seem equally ‘white’ to us), but history proves the connection. One need only mention Adolf Hitler. I would be glad to know for certain that Dhammika loves the Jews, but then why does he associate with such anti-Jew, anti-Christian bigotry?

Growing up in Asia, I never once heard of Buddha claiming superiority. He was on a logical and moral quest for freedom from karma - respectful of all religions.

I also have never claimed to be superior in logic or morals to any person, Buddhist or otherwise. On the contrary, to become a Christian, I had to admit that I have done many things worthy of Hell, I have done nothing worthy of Heaven, and therefore I need a Saviour. I am like a beggar who has found a Rich Man (Jesus) willing to save my life. Would it be ethical if I should keep this news to myself? Am I not honour-bound and duty-bound to go tell others who were like me, “Come and meet this kind and generous Saviour who rescued me!”? If some say, “I don’t believe Jesus. No one can be that good. Who is going to help me? I have to help myself,” then they are entitled to stay where they are. But thank God millions like myself have trusted in Christ to erase all our karma and give us liberty!

Reincarnation

On pages 27-28, Dhammika tries to answer the question of reincarnation, “How does the mind go from one body to another?” He says, “Think of it [the mind] being like radio waves…At death, mental energy travels through space, is attracted to and picked up by the fertilized egg. As the embryo grows, it centres itself in the BRAIN from where it later “broadcasts” itself as the new personality.”

This is nothing but his imagination. He is believing what he wants. He claims, “When we die, the MIND…re-establishes itself in the fertilized egg.”

First, there is a mathematical problem with this reincarnation model. There are more people being born than dying. So where are all the new MINDS coming from?

Second, by Dhamikka’s own definition, a human is only a brain, a mind, or a collection of mental impulses. This is one reason why I say Buddhism is a religion preoccupied with the flesh. The Bible says we possess a mind and a body, but we are more than our bodies and minds. We are an eternal spirit made in the image and likeness of God. Dhammika denies all things of the spirit and claims I do not know the Buddhist doctrine of “anatta” or “no soul,” but I addressed it and disproved it using Buddhism itself in chapter 26 of From Buddha to Jesus.

Reincarnation is one of those unprovable doctrines. Dhammika spends a lot of time on it trying to offer proof by supposedly using science.

On page 33, he asks a rhetorical question, “Well, have there been any scientists who believe in rebirth?” To which he answers, “Yes. Thomas Huxely [Darwin's bulldog].” Isn’t that something? One can find scientists who believe in anything – God, no God, Bible, Quran, or nothing. He likes to name scientists who believe Buddhism, but the truth is far more scientists believe in the Bible than Buddhism. The greatest pioneers of science professed Christ.

Dhammika believes that another “proof” of reincarnation is the psychological reports of people who have memories of their “former lives” (pages 31-32). Dhamikka calls these reports “cold, hard facts”.

But there are many more reports (books written) of Christians who have been to Heaven and Hell. (e.g. Choo Thomas’ bestseller Heaven is So Real.) There is Scriptural precedence as both Paul and John visited Heaven while they were alive. Jesus Himself spoke of both Heaven and Hell, claiming He “came from Heaven” (John 3:13, 6:41, 51, 58). Yet Dhammika would dismiss such evidence as irrational. What a double standard!

It raises suspicion to me how many who believe in reincarnation claim they were someone famous like Marilyn Monroe or Napoleon Bonaparte in their past life (how many Napoleons can there be?); how no child has any recollection of their former language; how supposed memories of past lives are often induced by mind-altering drugs. Pit these spurious stories against the testimonies of cogent people who didn’t take drugs and taught people not to lie – Jesus, John and Paul – and I would choose to believe in Heaven and Hell over reincarnation any day!

In chapter 16 of my book From Buddha to Jesus I asked, “Who has escaped reincarnation? Most Buddhists would say we don’t know who has done it SINCE BUDDHA.” This is correct. Since the time of Buddha, we cannot be certain of anybody who has attained enlightenment.

Dhammika takes me out of context to try to refute my point. He says, “The first 35 pages of the Vinaya mention more than a thousand people who attained enlightenment.” Yes, but that was 2500 years ago. Would Dhammika provide a 21^st century list of who has attained enlightenment from the millions of Buddhists today? Of course he cannot.

My point is that the chances of self-enlightenment through self-effort are slim. In context my question was clearly asking how likely is it for a present-day follower of Buddhism to escape the cycle of suffering? If I had known how belligerent Dhammika would feel, I could have rephrased the question as, “Who has attained enlightenment since the TIME OF BUDDHA or in OUR MODERN TIMES?”

But in context this was unnecessary since I went on to acknowledge that Buddhism claims that some ancient followers had attained enlightenment. I cited the first 5 disciples as examples (Ananda conveniently was declared enlightened hours before the First Buddhist Council met). I am well aware lots of people claim enlightenment, but on what basis do we trust their claim? Can Dhammika give anyone an assurance of freedom from the law of karma? If not, why gamble?

Why convince yourself that through your own self-efforts you can attain what millions of people for 2500 years could not attain? Is this not self-deception (loeng as Buddha called it)?

Honesty makes us acknowledge we are full of karma and only someone with no karma could show us the way out. Jesus was without karma. Jesus said He is the way out. It’s so logical.

Corrections of From Buddha to Jesus

Dhammika tells us that the picture of the bodhi tree in my book is not the right species of bodhi tree (Ficus bengalensis instead of Ficus religiosa). I thank him for pointing it out. Book illustration is understandably not my job and the reader is not being given a horticulture lesson, but a bridge to understand the similarities between Buddhism and Christianity.

Dhammika corrects my spelling of Buddhist terminology. I humbly accept. The fact is I never said I spoke Pali or Sanskrit. I have no interest to and I know most Buddhists also share my view. Most Christians do not need to know Greek or Hebrew to become a better Christian, and those scholars who learnt Greek and Hebrew have not necessarily become better Christians by their study of languages. The fact is I am translating well-known Buddhist terms from my native language of Thai. Tamma is the Thai pronunciation of Dharma. Gumma is our pronunciation of karma. It’s a “tomato” “toMAto” distinction. What we care about is how to escape the law of karma, not argue about how to spell it and die in karma!

Dhammika cites the Tripitaka as if it is on par with the Bible. That’s elevating the Tripitaka to a status that is unknown to the rest of the world. Not even practicing Buddhists give the Tripitaka the same attention Christians give the Word of God. Why? Because the Tripitaka has no original manuscript, was not published in a single volume until the 20^th century, and cannot be agreed upon even by Buddhist authorities. The Burmese edition of the Tripitaka contains 40 books, Thai 45 books, Pali 57 books, and the Mahayana version adds 2184 other sacred writings! If the Bible were like the Tripitaka, varied so much from country to country, had no original manuscripts, and were not published in its entirety until the 20^th century, I wonder how many people would still trust the Bible? No test can prove the various modern versions of the Tripitaka represent the original words of Buddha. The Tripitaka is a valuable piece of literature, but any assertion that it has never been changed is completely unreliable.

In contrast, our New Testament is confirmed by 24,000 manuscripts in Greek, Latin and multiple other languages. No other text in the world has been more verified and scrutinized over. It is still winning the hearts and minds of lawyers and farmers alike.

Unlike Christianity, Buddhism is not a textual religion. That is why none of the Buddhist denominations can agree which text is correct. It is likely that Hindu, Taoist and various cultural pressures have influenced the modern versions of the Tripitaka.

The reason we know the Bible was not corrupted is because it was and continues to be 1) the most quoted book in the world and 2) the most translated book in the world – early believers translated it into all known languages for immediate dissemination. That means any alteration in one copy would also have to alter all the quotes and translated copies elsewhere in the known world. From partial quotes by poets to full translations by scholars, we can prove that the Bible is precisely preserved and intact.

Closing Remarks

Dhammika is right that I only quote stories and parables that most lay Buddhists know about. That is my intention.

Studying Buddhist texts in ancient languages is the pursuit of academics and the elite. I am interested in the millions of lay Buddhists whose faith is not perfect and often syncretic. What I wrote concerning Buddhism is what the lay Buddhist knows: Buddha was a prince who left everything (including his wealth, family and former religion) in pursuit of the truth and a way out of karmic suffering. I admire Buddha. Let me repeat that if Buddha were alive today, I believe he would greatly admire both the Bible’s message and the Saviour it presents to the world.

At the end of the day, Dhammika cannot claim he has achieved the 8-fold path, that he has exerted “perfect effort.” “We all get a second chance to improve our lives” sounds nice like a pipedream. The honest truth is humans are failing miserably to improve themselves. It appears we are getting worse with each successive generation. It was only within the last century that we waged two world wars against each other. Japan, a Buddhist country, was the instigator. Hitler and Stalin were avowed atheists (Hitler had a Catholic upbringing which he left long before taking power). Who rescued the war-torn world? Christian nations – America, Australia and Great Britain.

The reality is people are not getting better and the Bible predicted that worse wars are yet to come. Today we have more serial killers, more criminals, more divorce, more social and economic disparity, yes even among the Buddhists. There is more karma in every way. Both the Bible and Buddha predicted it. Only Western converts to Buddhism would mislead people to believe in their own goodness. We are not good enough. That is why we carry drivers’ licenses, lock our doors, close our gates, put up fences, walls, security systems, and surveillance cameras, pass through metal detectors, memorize passwords… are these not sufficient reminders that humans don’t trust each other and the only humans worth trusting are those who obey God’s moral standards – don’t lust, don’t lie, don’t steal, don’t kill, don’t covet?

The longer we live, the more sins we pile up on our account. Dhammika has no solution but to tell us to just keep trying, just keep exerting more effort. But what if he is wrong? Then his followers die in their sins and suffer karmic revenge forever. It’s a terrible gamble. If Christianity is wrong, no loss will be incurred by living a good clean life trusting a Loving Saviour Jesus Christ. If Christianity is right, we have everything to lose by dismissing the Saviour and everything to gain by embracing Him!

“Every knee shall bow…and every tongue shall confess…that Jesus Christ is Lord”
(Romans 14:11, Philippians 2:10-11)

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© 2009 Steve Cioccolanti

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