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Against Monisms with Dualistic Consequences 反一元論的二分法：The Importance of Shengyan’s Critique of the Character and Teachings of Jesus=反一元論的二分法：論聖嚴批判耶穌人格特徵及教義之重要性 |
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| Author |
Ziporyn, Brook (著)=任博克 (au.)
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| Source |
聖嚴研究：第七輯=Studies of Master Sheng Yen Vol.7
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| Date | 2016.01 |
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| Pages | 7 - 52 |
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| Publisher | 法鼓文化 |
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| Publisher Url |
http://www.ddc.com.tw/
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| Location | 臺北市, 臺灣 [Taipei shih, Taiwan] |
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| Series | 聖嚴思想論叢 |
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| Series No. | 7 |
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| Content type | 專題研究論文=Research Paper |
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| Language | 英文=English |
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| Note | 作者單位：美國芝加哥大學神學院教授=Professor, The University of Chicago Divinity School, USA |
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| Keyword | Dualism=二元論; Monism=一元論; Christianity=基督教; Jesus=耶穌; Gospels=福音書 |
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| Abstract | Master Shengyan’s book Studies of Christianity, published in 1967, is a collection of essays on the Christian religion, written largely as a counterattack to Christian critiques of Buddhism. In this paper I want to focus especially on Shengyan’s critique of biblical religion from the ground up, which picks up and develops some of the themes already found in Master Yinshun’s works on the same topic and in the same historical context, but especially on the critique of the teachings and character of Jesus himself as depicted in the Gospels. It is currently unfashionable for religions to critique each other, preferring to stress commonalities and dialogue as roads toward harmony and peace, and indeed Buddhism has led the way in opening new paths for interreligious dialogue and tolerance, due partially perhaps to the resources of its traditions of the multiple expressions of truth in the Mahayana notion of upaya. But I want to suggest that Buddhism has also a unique role to play in the equally important critique of religion, and especially of the monotheistic idea, which as its global expansion continues unabated threatens to absorb atheistic religious sentiment into itself, even under the aegis of ecumenical claims that all religions somehow teach the same truths and encourage the same morals: those truths and morals turn out more and more to be monotheistic truths and morals, and the precious inheritance of non-monotheist religion becomes harder and harder to discern. Of special importance here is the critique not only of the Old Testament God and classical theology—no brainers to many modern people, including Christians themselves, for whom these are already obviously antiquated and offensive—but more especially the critique of Jesus specifically. For Jesus is unthinkingly praised and accepted by many non-Christians, indeed by most of the world, both religious and non-religious, as some kind of sage and man of peace, as if he could be ranked next to figures like Confucius or the Buddha. Jesus is a hero in Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Communism, much secular humanism, even some Jewish nationalism. Against this tendency, Shengyan’s work coins the term “dichotomizing monism” 一元論的二分法 to identify a feature of monotheistic religious that is especially pronounced in Christianity, and makes clear that this is not a distortion of the teaching of Jesus as depicted in the Bible, but is the essence of Jesus’ teaching. The key structural feature of this dichotomizing monism is that it combines two apparently sharply opposed tendencies: 1) the tendency toward inclusiveness, linked to histrionic gestures of self-sacrifice, as seen in the teaching of universal love, and 2) the tendency toward aggressive self-assertion and extreme exclusivity, linked to the fanatical demonization of one’s ideological enemies. Jesus applies the inclusive, forgiving tendency, transcending the dichotomy between nationalities and between saint and sinner, only to Christians, i.e., only to those who accept his authority and pledge themselves to absolute obedience. This goes hand in hand with the opposite tendency, to demonize and condemn anyone who does not accept this condition of obedience, i.e, all non-Christians. Shengyan’s work shows the inner connection between these two seemingly incompatible trends in the most basic premises of the gospel’s religious vision, and how they necessarily go together on those premises. This structure of demonizing one’s ideological enemies, pitting in-group against out-group, which was invented or perfected by the Jesus of the Gospels, remains influential and due to its association with Christian prestige has come to be defended as morally and spiritually desirable. It is arguably a structure that lives on and animates modern racism, fascism, and Bolshevism, all of which give all-inclusive affirmation with one hand while simultaneously building this in-group solidarity on the basis of a vociferous condemnation of an out-group, ma |
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| Table of contents | 1. Introduction 10
2. Monism and Dualism in Shengyan’s theory of Religion 13
3. Monism and Dualism in the Bible 15
4. The Rosetta Stone for Interpreting the Gospels 19
5. What is Commanded When “Love” is Commanded 25
6. The “Now-Versus-Then” Structure of Early Christian Eschatology as Ends-Means Relation Between Monism and Dichotomy 31
7. General Proposition for Comparative Method 35
8. Importance of the Critique Specifically of Jesus 37
9. Alternatives to Monisms with Dualistic Consequences 42
Bibliography 49
中文摘要 50 |
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| Hits | 482 |
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| Created date | 2020.10.22 |
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| Modified date | 2021.08.05 |
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