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christian but I want a buddan statue.
In the bottom of my heart I'm a pure christian. I love my God and try my best to respect his commands and follow them, but recently I've wanted to redesign my room. I want to buy a cute little buddah statue and place it next to my candle and amethyst rock which I think would give off a nice vibe. I don't see buddah as a God whatsoever, just another good person who gives advice such as MLK, Gandhi, etc. ect. Just anyone else. I wouldn't dare worship another religion or "god" except my God.
I just like the vibe it gives honestly, I like the look of the om, the message of Buddah, star of david, and just any other stuff. But thats all I see it as, other stuff to decorate my room with. I just want to know if you think it's bad, i dont think it is really.
If you do not like my religion at least find the decency to repsect it and be respectful.
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Want to answer more questions in the Miscellaneous category?
Maybe give some free advice about: Spirituality?
Do you know all the teachings of Buddha?
Do they contradict some of Gods truth?
if they do, should we look up to them. should they give us a good vibe?
The book Basics to Buddhism says: “Buddhists do not believe in an all-powerful divine being in the universe”; “Everyone is capable of becoming a Buddha”; “Everyone has to work on his own to become a Buddha and be liberated from suffering.” Buddhism has inspired, not faith in God, but reliance on self.
Is interfaith warned against in the Bible? The early Christians lived in a multicultural and multireligious world. Yet, when writing about the mingling of different religions, Paul asked: “What portion does a faithful person have with an unbeliever?” Then he warned Christians to “get out from among them.” (2 Corinthians 6:15, 17) Clearly, Paul was speaking against interfaith. Why did he do so?These are questions you might wanna ask yourself if you want to be Christ-like (christian)
Differing religious beliefs cannot bond through interfaith any more than oil and water can mix simply by putting them together in a pot.
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I see nothing wrong with having a statue of Buddha or any other religious relic or symbol you desire to decorate with. I believe your reasoning for doing so is sound and righteous. It also doesn't matter what other people think though you may have to explain to your parents why you have these items in your room.
Now you may have to bow to the wishes of your parents is they say they do not want these items in their home. It is there home and while it is also your room, and they could just close the door and not see these things. It is their home and they have the final say as to how you may decorate your space in their home.
What this would not stop you from doing is finding out more of the vibes and messages you like about these items. IF there were more people like you in this world who seek to learn rather than to ignore or fight those who are different. The world would be a better place.
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If you only see it as decorative, then it's only decorative.
Will other people see it as a religious symbol? Yes, absolutely. There are some 500 million Buddhists on this planet. For lots of people, a statue like that is a religious icon, and part of their faith practice and tradition.
It's also possible that your fellow Christians may judge you negatively for having it.
It's still entirely up to you what you want to decorate your room with.
You might, however, take a moment to ask yourself how you would feel if someone took a symbol that had religious importance to you, and used it merely and solely as decoration.
If it would upset you to see a non-Christian decorating their home with a crucifix or other icon of your faith, wearing rosaries as purely a fashion statement, or using items that are part of your religious service at their dining table on Tuesday nights, then maybe you should offer the symbols of other religions that the same respect you'd want non-Christians to offer the symbols and icons that you have faith in.
Because you live (I assume) in a western country, you have a luck of being in the Christian majority. That means, you often don't have to stop and ask yourself how it feel if other people appropriated your religious objects and beliefs - not disagreed with you, lots of people may disagree - but not many people take Christian objects and symbols and treat them like they are meaningless, trivial or just for decoration. There are enough Christians, and enough ex-Christians, that we generally take for granted that Christian symbols have meaning, and are worthy of respect.
You are free to choose to use this symbol in exactly the way you want. It's not a crime and probably no one you know will ever be offended by you using a Buddhist statue in this way, Lots of people do it, but it's still a sort of shitty thing to knowingly and deliberately appropriate a religious icon that you have no faith in, and no appreciation for it beyond how it looks, for your own personal pleasure.
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I also see nothing wrong with it. However the only issue may be with your parents. I used to be the super taboo Christian mom just parroting whatever the Pastor said on Sunday. So my kids weren't allowed to read Harry Potter in class with the rest of the kids as a whole class assignment. Made them feel awkward. I regret that now. Hopefully your parents won't go overboard on this. As long as you explain that for you it is just a decorating idea. But between you and me, I'd probably leave out the words that you get a nice vibe from it. If they're highly religious and overly protective, that could throw them off and cause them to want to ban you from having one.
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"I am The Lord thy God; not shalt not worship any other gods before me."
You said yourself you don't consider Buddha a god. Therefore, it is not contradictory for you to have a Buddha statue. Buddha probably appreciates you not seeing him as a god, as he didn't view himself that way either.
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