A Comparative Study of Western and Chinese Religion
A Comparative Study of Western and Chinese Religion “Religion is the belief in and worship of a god or gods, or more in general a set of beliefs explaining the existence of and giving meaning to the universe, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.” (wekipedia) Religions vary from place to place due to different culture backgrounds.Throughout our studies,we’ve met religions like Christianity,Judaism,Buddhism,Taoismand so on.Always,the first two religion represent the Western religion while the other two remain the most common religion in China. There must be a lot of similarities and differences between them ,and I am going to give a general analysis. The similarities between Wertern religions and Chinese religions are very clear. They are all mysterious and have a long history .They respect and worship their own gods and they all have their doctines to guilde people’s behaviors, punish wickedness and encourage virtue . That are these common points that made those religions popular for thousands of years . However,big differeces still remain . Here I will list some of them .
1.Monotheism & Polytheism This might be the easiest difference we can find .For western religions ,there is only one god. Though Christianity has the father ,the son and the holy spirit,but they are one in essence .Meanwhile it is polytheism for Chinese religions .Both Buddhism and Taoism have a group of gods .like the supernatural being ,Buddha ,Guanyin,Maitreya and so on. Each one have different talents and super powers ,presenting one of the goodness .
2.The relationship between god and human beings The relationship between god and human beings has a lot to do with the image of god . In western religion ,god is always powerful ,and have full authorities . Since it is the God who created the whole world and human beings ,he is the one in control. As it is written in the bible : “You
1.Monotheism & Polytheism This might be the easiest difference we can find .For western religions ,there is only one god. Though Christianity has the father ,the son and the holy spirit,but they are one in essence .Meanwhile it is polytheism for Chinese religions .Both Buddhism and Taoism have a group of gods .like the supernatural being ,Buddha ,Guanyin,Maitreya and so on. Each one have different talents and super powers ,presenting one of the goodness .
2.The relationship between god and human beings The relationship between god and human beings has a lot to do with the image of god . In western religion ,god is always powerful ,and have full authorities . Since it is the God who created the whole world and human beings ,he is the one in control. As it is written in the bible : “You