PETER BAEKELMANS, born in 1960 in Brasschaat, Belgium, has dedicated his life to the study of religions. He holds an MA in Comparative Religion (Lugano, Switzerland), an MA in Buddhist Studies (Koyasan, Japan), and a PhD/STD in Theology of Religions (Nagoya, Japan). He worked twenty years as a CICM missionary at different parishes and universities in Japan where he also practiced in-depth Zen meditation and Shingon rituals at Buddhist monasteries. He is presently the director of SEDOS (Rome), as well as guest professor at KU Leuven (Belgium), where he teaches Hinduism, Buddhism, and Eastern religions on the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies. As a Roman Catholic priest-theologian, he seeks to bring religions closer to each other also on a theological level.
摘要
“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.
目次
CONTENTS PREFACE xi INTRODUCTION: A Christian "Theology of Buddhism" 1 Buddhist theology - 1; "There is no god in Buddhism"? - 5; Buddhist dharmatology - 10; Personal background - 17
CHAPTER I: The "Gods" of Buddhism 23 The Buddhist deity Brahma - 25; Revelation in Buddhism - 31; Growth of Buddhist theism - 36; Summary - 40
CHAPTER II: Buddhist Faith and its Practice 43 Buddhist confession of faith - 44; Double notion of faith - 54; Summary - 61
CHAPTER III: Fullness of the Void 63 Promoting the god without form - 64; Pastoral theology - 68; Negative theology - 77; Creation theology - 85; Summary - 93
CHAPTER IV: Indra's Jeweled Net 95 Universal Justice - 96; Interdependent Existence - 103; Store- house Consciousness - 109; Doctrine of the Two Truths - 115; The Middle Truth - 119; Summary - 122
CHAPTER V: Faith in the Awakened Mind 123 An Obedient Mind - 124; A Trinitarian Mind - 127; Practice in Five Steps - 132; Three plus Five make One - 140; The Buddhi-Mind - 145; Awakening Faith - 149; Summary - 152
CHAPTER VI: Dharma World Power 155 A Third Power - 156; A Cosmic Power (Power of Dharmas) - 161; A Power of Truth (Power of Dharma) - 169; Union of Three Powers - 176; Dharma's Order and Power - 179; Summary - 186
CONCLUSION: The Hidden "God" of Buddhism 189 An Atheistic Religion? - 189; A Monotheistic Religion? - 191; The "God" of Buddhism - 199; A Non-Dualistic Religion - 207; The Hiddenness of the Dharma - 210
APPENDIX 219 INDEX OF TERMS 223 INDEX OF NAMES 229
