Buddhist-Christian Dialogue
- LAST REVIEWED: 13 September 2010
- LAST MODIFIED: 13 September 2010
- DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780195393521-0129
- LAST REVIEWED: 13 September 2010
- LAST MODIFIED: 13 September 2010
- DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780195393521-0129
Introduction
The field of Buddhist-Christian dialogue is relatively new, having its formal genesis in roughly the last half of the 20th century. In the United States, D. T. Suzuki was instrumental in raising awareness of Buddhism among the general public, Zen Buddhism in particular, and the Dalai Lama has become a popular ambassador of Tibetan Buddhism. It is fair to say that these two forms of Buddhism are the most well known in the United States in the early 21st century. Historically much of the literature has been written from a Christian perspective, making comparisons and seeking insights from Buddhism; however, that is changing in the contemporary landscape, as more and more Buddhist voices are entering the conversation. Major themes that are consistently found in the literature are emptiness, mindfulness, meditation, and comparisons between the Buddha and Jesus as well as comparisons of their teachings. One of the interesting components of this particular interreligious dialogue is that it is one of the few places where one regularly sees discussed the concept of religious dual belonging: that is, self-identifying as a “Christian Buddhist” or a “Buddhist Christian.” There continues to be debate about whether and how such an identification is viable. Most though not all of the literature treats Mahayana Buddhist schools, and Zen continues to have a prominent place. In terms of the specific citations listed in this entry, a few qualifiers need to be stated in advance. There are of course many books, both introductory and advanced, that treat Buddhist-Christian dialogue as part of a larger interreligious conversation. Such works include basic textbooks on world religions as well as books that examine specific issues, such as sin, God, anthropology, and so forth, from the perspective of a variety of religious traditions. Not all such references are included here, as there simply are too many to list and they fall outside the parameters set for this entry. This bibliography also does not list the many Asian Christian theologians who are naturally quite influenced by Buddhism in their work but whose writing is better characterized as Asian Christian systematic theology. Finally, this bibliography entry does not list those works written by Buddhist thinkers but clearly geared toward a Christian audience. While such texts may spark a form of interreligious dialogue among their readers, the books themselves present Buddhist philosophy and practice exclusively. Instead, the books and articles in this bibliography explicitly address aspects of dialogue between Buddhism and Christianity. One common format for books in this category is to collect a variety of perspectives, representing a variety of Buddhist traditions, under general themes; those works are listed under Essay Collections. Where possible, however, references have been grouped by Buddhist school or the specific topic under discussion.
General Overviews
The texts in this section offer a general perspective on Buddhist-Christian dialogue. Lai and Brück 2001 is historical, outlining how Buddhist-Christian dialogue has developed in a variety of contexts across the globe. Cobb 1982 is a seminal contribution to the field and makes an excellent argument for the value of Buddhist-Christian dialogue and how one might go forward with such an endeavor.
Cobb, John B., Jr. Beyond Dialogue: Toward a Mutual Transformation of Christianity and Buddhism. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1982.
John B. Cobb Jr. is one of the pioneers in the field of Buddhist-Christian dialogue, and thus this book, while dated, is still an excellent contribution to the field. Cobb puts Buddhism and Christianity in dialogue, specifically around the interpretation of nirvana, seeking to demonstrate how the conversation enriches both.
Lai, Whalen, and Michael von Brück. Christianity and Buddhism: A Multicultural History of Their Dialogue. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 2001.
The value of this book is that it gives an overview of the state of the conversation and the methodologies used in six very different contexts—India, Sri Lanka, China, Japan, Germany, and the United States—including the particular problems and issues that are emphasized in each.
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Article
- Abe, Masao
- Abhidharma/Abhidhamma Literature
- Abhijñā/Ṛddhi (Extraordinary Knowledge and Powers)
- Abortion, Buddhism and
- Ajanta Caves
- Alāyavijñāna
- Ambedkar Buddhism
- Amitābha
- Ancient Indian Society
- Anthropology
- Anātman
- Aśoka
- Archaeology of Early Buddhism
- Arhat
- Art and Architecture In China, Buddhist
- Art and Architecture in India, Buddhist
- Art and Architecture in Japan, Buddhist
- Art and Architecture in Nepal, Buddhist
- Art and Architecture in Tibet, Buddhist
- Art and Architecture on the "Silk Road," Buddhist
- Asaṅga
- Asceticism, Buddhism and
- Avadāna
- Avalokiteśvara
- Avataṃsaka Sutra
- Awakening of Faith
- Baoshan
- Beats, Buddhism and the
- Bhāviveka / Bhāvaviveka
- Bodh Gaya
- Bodhicitta
- Bodhidharma
- Bodhisattva
- Bodhisattvabhūmi
- Body, Buddhism and the
- Borobudur
- Buddha, Three Bodies of the (Trikāya)
- Buddhism and Black Embodiment
- Buddhism and Ethics
- Buddhism and Hinduism
- Buddhism and Kingship
- Buddhism and Law
- Buddhism and Marxism
- Buddhism and Medicine in Japan
- Buddhism and Modern Literature
- Buddhism and Motherhood
- Buddhism and Nationalism
- Buddhism and Orientalism
- Buddhism and Politics
- Buddhism, Immigrants, and Refugees
- Buddhism in Africa
- Buddhism in Australia
- Buddhism in Latin America
- Buddhism in Taiwan
- Buddhist Art and Architecture in Korea
- Buddhist Art and Architecture in Sri Lanka and Southeast A...
- Buddhist Dharma Protectors
- Buddhist Hermeneutics
- Buddhist Interreligious and Intrareligious Dialogue
- Buddhist Ordination
- Buddhist Statecraft
- Buddhist Theories of Causality (karma, pratītyasamutpāda, ...
- Buddhist Thought and Western Philosophy
- Buddhist Thought, Embryology in
- Buddhist-Christian Dialogue
- Buddho-Daoism
- Cambodian Buddhism
- Candrakīrti
- Canon, History of the Buddhist
- Caste, Buddhism and
- Central Asia, Buddhism in
- China, Esoteric Buddhism in, (Zhenyan and Mijiao)
- China, Pilgrimage in
- Chinese Buddhist Publishing and Print Culture, 1900-1950
- Colonialism and Postcolonialism
- Compassion (karuṇā)
- Cosmology, Astronomy and Astrology
- Culture, Material
- D. T. Suzuki
- Dalai Lama
- Debate
- Decoloniality and Buddhism
- Demons and the Demonic in Buddhism
- Dōgen
- Dhammapada/Dharmapada
- Dharma
- Dharma Protectors, Violence, and Warfare
- Dharmakīrti
- Digitization of Buddhism (Digital Humanities and Buddhist ...
- Dignāga
- Dignāga and Dharmakīrti, The Philosophical Works and Influ...
- Dizang (Jizō, Ksitigarbha)
- Dāna
- Drigung Kagyu (’Bri gung bKa’ brgyud)
- Dzogchen (rDzogs chen)
- Early Buddhist Philosophy (Abhidharma/Abhidhamma)
- Early Modern European Encounters with Buddhism
- East Asia, Mountain Buddhism in
- East Asian Buddhist Art, Portraiture in
- Ellora Caves
- Emptiness (Śūnyatā)
- Environment, Buddhism and the
- Ethics of Violence, Buddhist
- Family, Buddhism and the
- Feminist Approaches to the Study of Buddhism
- Four Noble Truths
- Funeral Practices
- Āgamas, Chinese
- Gandharan Art
- Gandhāra, Buddhism in
- Gelugpa (dGe lugs pa)
- Gender, Buddhism and
- Globalization
- Goenka
- Gotama, the Historical Buddha
- Hakuin Ekaku
- History of Buddhisms in China
- Homa
- Huineng
- Image Consecrations
- Images
- India, Buddhism in
- India, Mahāmudrā in
- Internationalism, Buddhism and
- Intersections Between Buddhism and Hinduism in Thailand
- Iranian World, Buddhism in the
- Islam, Buddhism and
- Japan, Buddhism in
- Jonang
- Jātaka
- Kagyu
- Kūkai
- Kālacakra
- Korea, Buddhism in
- Kyōgyōshinshō (Shinran)
- Laos, Buddhism in
- Linji and the Linjilu
- Literature, Chan
- Literature, Tantric
- Local Religion, Buddhism as
- Lotus Sūtra
- Luminosity
- Maṇḍala
- Madhyamaka
- Mahayana
- Mahayana, Early
- Mahāsāṃghika
- Mahāvairocana Sūtra/Tantra
- Maitreya
- Mañjuśrī
- Malaysia, Buddhism in
- Mantras and Dhāraṇīs
- Marpa
- Medicine
- Meditation
- Merit Transfer
- Milarepa
- Mindfulness
- Miracles, Buddhist
- Mūlamadhyamakakārikā
- Modern Japanese Buddhist Philosophy
- Modernism, Buddhist
- Monasticism in East Asia
- Mongolia, Buddhism in
- Mongolia, Buddhist Art and Architecture in
- Mārga (Path)
- Music, and Buddhism
- Myanmar, Buddhism in
- Nembutsu
- New Medias, Buddhism in
- New Religions in Japan (Shinshūkyō), Buddhism and
- Nāgārjuna
- Śāntideva (Bodhicaryāvatāra)
- Nuns, Lives, and Rules
- Oral and Literate Traditions
- Pagan (Bagan)
- Pehar
- Perfection of Wisdom
- Perfections (Six and Ten)
- Philosophy, Chinese Buddhist
- Philosophy, Classical Indian Buddhist
- Philosophy, Classical Japanese Buddhist
- Philosophy, Tibetan Buddhist
- Pilgrimage in India
- Pilgrimage in Japan
- Pilgrimage in Tibet
- Pratītyasamutpāda
- Preaching/Teaching in Buddhism Studies
- Prātimokṣa/Pātimokkha
- Psychology and Psychotherapy, Buddhism in
- Pure Land Buddhism
- Pure Land Sūtras
- Relics
- Religious Tourism, Buddhism and
- Āryadeva
- Sakya
- Sangha
- Sarvāstivāda
- Saṃsāra and Rebirth
- Satipaṭṭhāna-sutta
- Sautrāntika
- Sādhana
- Secularization of Buddhism
- Self, Non-Self, and Personal Identity
- Sexuality and Buddhsim
- Shingon
- Shinnyoen
- Shinran
- Shinto, Buddhism and
- Siddhas
- Soka Gakkai
- South and Southeast Asia, Devatās, Nats, And Phii In
- Southeast Asia, Buddhism in
- Sri Lanka, Monasticism in
- Sōtō Zen (Japan)
- Stūpa Pagoda Caitya
- Suffering (Dukkha)
- Sugata Saurabha
- Sutta (Pāli/Theravada Canon)
- Taixu
- Talismans, Buddhist
- Tathāgatagarbha
- Texts, Dunhuang
- Thai Buddhism
- Thích Nhất Hạnh
- Theravada
- Three Turnings of the Wheel of Doctrine (Dharma-Cakra)
- Tiantai/Tendai
- Tibet, Buddhism in
- Tibet, Mahāmudrā in
- Tibetan Book of the Dead
- Tārā
- Tāranātha
- Tri Songdetsen
- Tsongkhapa
- Uighur Buddhism
- Upāya
- Vairocana/Mahāvairocana
- Vasubandhu
- Verse Literature, Tibetan Buddhist
- Vidyādhara (weikza/weizzā)
- Vietnam, Buddhism in
- Vinaya
- Vision and Visualization
- Visualization/Contemplation Sutras
- Visuddhimagga (Buddhaghosa)
- Warrior Monk Traditions
- West (North America and Europe), Buddhism in the
- Wheel of Life (Bhava-Cakra)
- Women in Buddhism
- Women in the West, Prominent Buddhist
- Xuanzang
- Yasodharā
- Yogācāra
- Yogācārabhūmi
- Zen, Premodern Japanese