I don't think the structure of Zen confounds Christian belief either. When you start to work into the ideas of emptiness and dependent origination, perhaps then, there would be a more wordy integration, but the practice of sitting and working in mindfulness is good.
I personally haven't integrated meditation on god. Beyond the time when I was studying Hindu intentions of meditation. And that conception of god, to me, felt much larger and inline with my 'god' ideas.
When I first found Buddhism, I felt I was seeing the inner workings of Jesus' mind perhaps, or finding a figure that was really helping me reach, what i thought was important to me all through my Christian life, and that was the love compassion and action in the Gospels.
For me that was the crux of everything and always had a really hard time wrapping my head around the resurrection and what not, although in recent years I have found good metaphors for overcoming death in the Hindu ideology
The thing I really value about Zen enlightenment is that it can come at anytime and not just through a next life or rebirthing process. This idea of chopping wood and carrying water, really fits and I it, concerning the type of work I happiest doing. Since I'm a gardening landscaper this is a good time to practice, which can so often be forgotten in more stress riddled jobs
I am glad to hear about your interest and understanding of Zen. I hope you sense I am not telling you your wrong about things. The concept of worship without a god can be confusing to the western religion programmed mind. And I think spirituality is a fine word for what we're talking here.
Quote:
Originally Posted by flappy
Buddha may have only reached the Mental Plane,where most of the paradises, written about from man's holy books, exist. That is not enough to get you off the wheel of incarnations. Of course, a true master doesn't care if he reincarnates again to this world or any other physical planet. Service is the only thing he thinks about, whether on the physical,astral,caus ual,mental or spiritual planes. There is no end to the journey,where nothing is finite.
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I agree with you wholly, because I don't feel that is a representation of what Buddha was teaching at all. Nothing you said sounds like anything I've learned in my years studying and practice of Buddhism.