The Hidden "God": Towards a Christian Theology of Buddhism
Baekelmans, Peter
Synopsis "The Hidden "God": Towards a Christian Theology of Buddhism"
"Theology" means "discourse about god." Christian theology is a reflection on the Christian faith in which God takes a central place. Therefore, the Christian theology of other religions seeks to understand if and how "God" as Christians call their experience of Him may be present in the thought, devotion, and ritual of those other religions. Christian theology of Buddhism is then a Christian reflection on the Buddhist faith in "god" or "gods." Now, Buddhist teaching contains many seeming contradictions (as does Christian teaching). Accepting these, and looking for clues to understand how they came about and how they might be reconciled, is not only an intellectual challenge but also a religious duty. The Hidden "God" feels like a detective story, taking the reader along on an exacting investigation of the manifold themes, concepts, and persons of the different Buddhist faith traditions in order to discern whether they can be related to the Christian understanding of who God is. The result, which is both complex and simple, will enable readers to take steps toward uniting both religions in the mystery that God or the Dharma is. "This book is courageous and necessary: courageous because it breaks a taboo of placing interreligious dialogue on a theological level; necessary because it brings to light a sincere comparative study of the relationship between faith and practice-which is common ground for all the great spiritual traditions."-GUGLIELMO DORYU CAPPELLI, Zen Anshin temple, Rome"The 'god' question is almost absent from Buddhist scriptures and teachings, yet everywhere present in the searching eyes of a Christian. Peter Baekelmans is well equipped to tackle this elusive question owing to his many years in Japan and long acquaintance with several branches and schools of Buddhism."-FR JACQUES SCHEUER, author of Wisdom and Compassion "As Peter Baekelmans is a renowned theologian and scholar of Buddhism, whom I consider the Christian expert on esoteric Buddhism-both theoretically and practically-the reading of this challenging work will be deeply illuminating."-MARTIN REPP, author of The One God and the Other Gods "The Hidden 'God' takes us along with the author on a journey to the discovery of Buddhism and its many facets. His path-breaking manner of comparing Buddhism to his native Christianity with a view to enhancing the understanding of both is immensely respectful."-ALICIA GUINOT, Europe Books
