religion

The following are the pages in the belief section.

This section is still being developed, and pages are still being edited.

belief
Summary page
god
Has God revealed him or herself?
world religions
12 major world faiths summarised.
religion
Which religion is more likely to be true?
christianity
What Christians believe, and why.
jesus & history
What unbiased historians can tell us about Jesus.
who was jesus?
What the historical evidence tells us about who Jesus was.

the story so far .....

In god (show me a sign), we looked at the main teachings of the major world religions, as a step towards answering the question of whether God (assuming he exists) may have revealed himself through one or more of them. In this chapter, we take another two steps:

looking at how the various religions answer some of the most pressing questions we might want to know about God, and
setting up some criteria based on all our discussion so far, that might assist us in judging whether each religion might be true, and then applying the criteria to see which religions stand up the best.

some crucial questions

We can study the core beliefs and history of each religion (see show me a sign and a summary of world religions) to learn more about them, but in the end, the most important questions are probably those relating to the purpose of life, how we know truth about God and how we can know what God is like, what he/she/it requires of us, whether we are able to live as God requires, and how we can relate to God (if at all). It is extremely difficult for an outsider to grasp and summarise the subtleties of these religions - I have done my best, but further reading is recommended if you want to know more.

the purpose of life

In the monotheistic religions, the purpose of life is to live in order to earn God's favour and so attain the afterlife.
In the dharmic religions, the purpose of life is to live so that one escapes the cycle of rebirth, and so attain unity with the life force of the universe.
In the taoic religions, the purpose of life appears to be to live according with natural law.

how can we know the truth about God?

All of the 12 major world religions have their sacred writings. In some cases the writings are believed to have been dictated by God (e.g. Islam) or at least originated with God (e.g. Christianity, Judaism); in others the authority of a teacher is considered sufficient (e.g. Confucianism, Baha'i, Sikhism, Buddhism). The Hindu sacred writings have many authors and were developed over more than a millenium.

The important question for us is whether we can believe these scriptures came from God or at least tell us real truths about him.

how can we know what God is like?

Most religions began with a prophet, teacher or leader who inspired and taught others. Leaders such as Moses, Jesus, Mohammed, the Buddha, Lao-Tzu, Baha'u'llah, Guru Nanak and Confucius (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Taoism, Baha'i, Sikhism and Confucianism, respectively) are believed by historians to be historical figures (whether or not all stories about them are historical is another matter). However some religions did not begin with one teacher (Hinduism, Shinto); in others the historicity of the teacher is less certain (Jainism, Zoroastrianism).

These leaders have differing status and authority within their religion:

Mohammed, Moses, Guru Nanak, Mahavira, Zarathustra and Baha'u'llah claimed or are believed to be prophets or a spokesmen for God. They each died, but their words and writings live on after them and are authoritative for believers.
Lao-Tzu and Confucius also died and left teachings behind them, but are believed to have become gods after their deaths.
The Buddha ("awakened one") was a human being who achieved nirvana and whose teachings were written down after his death, but he did not teach about God.
Christianity claims that Jesus was not merely human, but the one true God in human form. Although he was killed, he didn't stay dead, and is thus alive today, although not in a human bodily form. Thus the Christian God differs from the other Gods in that he has given the human race a portrait of his character, and has 'got his hands dirty' in the world in a way which the others do not claim. Some other religions (e.g. Islam, Judaism) find this claim blasphemous.

how can we please God and earn his favour?

Most monotheistic religions, and Sikhism, believe that God requires a strict observance of ethical codes of behaviour, and/or the particular rituals of that religion, for example:

a good Muslim gains paradise through loving submission to the will of Allah, expressed though practising the five pillars;
to be approved by God, a good Jew obeys the ethical and ritual laws of the Torah;
a good Sikh is able to leave the life cycle and be united with God by practising meditation, work, charity and service; in Jainism, the ethical and ascetic requirements are especially stringent;
Baha'is believe if we become closer to God in this life, through obedience to him, we will be close to him in the afterlife.

These elements of rules and rituals are also found in some forms of Christianity, but at its heart, Christianity is more about receiving forgiveness than about earning merit. Thus Jesus did not just provide the teachings which started the Christian faith, but Christians believe his death was a sacrifice which provides forgiveness for those who ask for it.

In the taoic and dharmic religions (apart from Sikhism), the aim is not to please God (not all have firm beliefs in a god or gods), but rather to conform one's behaviour to the life force of the universe (however that concept is expressed):

Hindus escape the cycle of rebirth and return to Brahman by following the path of duties, knowledge or devotion; Buddhists by following the eightfold path,
Confucianism and Taoism require appropriate behaviour; on its own, Confucianism says virtually nothing about gods or an afterlife, but Taoism, with which it is often combined, stresses certain rituals which align the worshipper with the spirit world,
in Shinto, worship at shrines is important to appease the gods or spirits.

how do we get the strength of character to live as God wants?

Trying to live an ethical life is not easy. Obeying rules can be difficult, and maintaining a right attitude is even harder. For all believers, regardless of their religion, there is an element of us struggling 'down here' while God watches from "up there'.

In most world religions, believers are required to discipline themselves in order to live the life expected of them. The rituals and practices of their religion assist them to achieve this, and most religions believe God is gracious and assists those who seek to please him. However the struggle to please God is a core part of most beliefs.

Christianity differs from the other religions in its belief that God is present and active in the life of each believer, in the form of his Spirit. Jesus taught that his Spirit (not just an impersonal force, but God in a personal but non-visible form) would give his followers advice and power to overcome their tendency to fail.

conclusion

When we ask these important questions, it is evident that, with two exceptions, each of the religions in the three groups (monotheistic, dharmic and taoic religions) shares many similar attributes with the others in that group. The two "exceptions" are:

Sikhism, which shares some characteristics with the monotheistic religions (belief in one God and the importance of practical ethical behaviour) and some with the dharmic religions (the ultimate aim of attaining nirvana and release from the cycle of re-birth); and
Christianity, which is unlike the other monotheistic religions (and the dharmic and taoic religions for that matter) in its belief that its founder was divine and not just human, its emphases on salvation through God's grace and forgivness (rather than moral effort) and its belief in the presence of God's Spirit in the believer.

how would we know a true God if we saw one?

This is the crucial question for anyone seeking to find if God has revealed himself on earth, and the question we have ben leading up to. But how can we possibly answer it?

In clues, certain aspects of the universe and human life were considered, that lead some people to believe God probably exists. It therefore seems logical that those same considerations should give us clues to what a god may be like and thus how we would recognise the true God amongst all the alternatives.

So perhaps a true God would be like this:

If our belief in human-ness and love suggest there may be a God who made us (see "people"), then perhaps she has personality and is loving?
Perhaps our belief in reason and logic (see "people") indicates that a true God would value truth and could be known through logic? Belief in a god should therefore be compatible with the discoveries of science.
If our deep-down belief in the truth of ethics (see "morality") indicates God may be the source, then surely he must be ethical too? We may also wonder if God has a way of dealing with human evil.
The big bang, and the beauty and order in the universe (see "the universe"), indicate a creative God, with enormous power, but the 'harshness' of nature may indicate that God is 'tough'.
Because the universe looks like it was specifically designed to allow life (see "the universe"), we may perhaps think that God is interested in life, especially human life, and to have a purpose in our existence. This being so, we might also expect God to have revealed herself to a lot of people (otherwise what is the point?).

if the shoe fits .....

This is how I assess the claims of the gods of the many world religions (see the table below for a summary).

monotheistic gods

As we have seen, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Baha'i, Zoroastrianism and Sikhism all believe in one God. These Gods meet most of the above criteria - they are creators, have ethics, are 'personal' and reveal themselves. They have a lot in common, but they each place different requirements on those who believe. Christianity, Islam and Judaism are generally considered by historians to have promoted the rise of modern science.

However only Christianity and Islam have really become 'world' religions, believed by a significant percentage of people, so belief in the others is more problematic.

diffuse gods

Hinduism, some other Asian religions (Jainism and perhaps Shinto), and many local or tribal religions (for example, ancient Greek, Roman or Norse, and animistic religions today), believe in many gods, or a God or spiritual force revealed through many aspects which may appear as separate gods.

These Gods don't satisfy the criteria so well - some are ethical but some are not, they are not always seen as the great creators of the universe and they appear to be less connected to the human race. Philospher Mortimor Adler and physicist-theologian John Polkinghorne both suggest that some aspects of eastern religions (and probably many polytheistic religions as well) are incompatible with the scientific method - for example, often their worlds are chaotic or even an illusion, lacking the hard reality and physical laws we are familiar with, and their logic can allow mutually exclusive things to both be true, which does not fit with modern science.

Of these religions, only Hinduism can really claim to be a "world" religion.

less knowable gods

The Buddha did not teach much about God, the taoic religions (Confucianism, Taosim, and perhaps Shinto) also stress ethics and philosophy rather than faith in a god. Thus these, also, do not meet many of the criteria we have suggested - it is hard to see a ceator god among them, nor a god interested in people as individuals. Only Buddhism can claim to be a world religion.

These beliefs may be more attractive to those who don't believe that the evidence points to the existence of a creator God.

roll your own gods

Surveys show that many people in the west these days have a belief in a God, but are not strong adherents of a particular religion. Their God has some characteristics of the Christian God (good, powerful, loving) but few of the 'tougher' characteristics (high ethical standards, interfering).

Other people may talk about the divine presence within all people.

It is hard to assess such beliefs, because they offer little beyond personal faith as a reason to believe. However they do not satisfy the criteria that God has communicated to many people, nor do their gods have much of the tough realism required by other criteria. It seems that most of these believers claim no more than subjective "truth" for their belief.

summary table

The table below shows my assessment of how the Gods of each of the major religions measure up against our criteria. I encourage you to develop your own criteria and make your own judgments (if you are interested).

Table: Assessment of the characteristics of god in 12 world religions

Religion	1. Personal & loving - interested in people	2. Values truth & logic + compatibility with science	3. Ethical	4. Creator of universe	5. Revealed truth to many people
Baha'i	✔	✔	✔	✔
Buddhism			?		✔
Christianity	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Confucianism		✔	✔
Hinduism				✔	✔
Islam	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Judaism	✔	✔	✔	✔
Jainism
Shinto
Sikhism	✔	✔	✔	✔
Taoism			?
Zoroastrianism	✔	✔	✔	✔

a tentative conclusion

This brief survey suggests that one of two approaches to religion seems most logical for those who are looking for a spiritual approach to life.

We could investigate the two great monotheistic religions, Christianity or Islam, on the basis that their Gods are the only ones that look like they could have created the universe and human beings, and have attempted to communicate to the whole human race.

We could believe that God exists, but is unconcerned about which belief we hold, as long as we live in a moral way. (Such a belief has a lot in common with Deism - the belief that God exists but has not communicated with humans.) We could thus make a choice to hold a personal and ethical belief which doesn't involve a god. We may pick up on some of the ethical ideas in any of the religions, but would not hold completely to any of them.

Further chapters will examine these options, plus the option of unbelief.

what do you think?

Do you think we can trust our logic to decide our spiritual beliefs, or does it require something different? Does this rather theoretical approach appeal to you, or do you need to approach these questions with more passion?

Which view, or which religion, seems most promising?