Earlier today I posted about Peter Senge, who said:
“I think it’s because Buddhism presents itself as a way of life, and Christianity presents itself as a system of belief.”
I posted it because in many ways it caught my attention. Sometimes perception is reality. We read Christianity primarily through the lens of belief as opposed to a way of life.
And then Ken Silva posted a comment and said:
“I think it’s a tired old straw man who needs to retire.”
At first I had a sense of pushback, given that I think Peter is on to something. And the reason I say that is because if you visit virtually any church website, the primary means of defining the community is the list of beliefs. We fight over doctrinal positions and interpretations the same way my dog chews on a ham hock, with every ounce of our being.
But a friend of mine suggested that at the same time Ken is also on to something. Both are in essence correct. Christianity is seen and even presented as a system of belief, but it is not. Christianity is then seen as a strawman, which kind of suggests why a lot of people I know complain about the state of the church. We know we love Jesus, but we’re not really interested in what it means to follow.
What do you think? Which side do you fall on, or both?
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