What is reality in the world religions?...

Good morning. Wednesday, Feb 4, 2009. What is reality in the world religions? Let us go together through Japan for a moment. I have been in this country many times - went at least once a year over the last years, due to some intensive collaboration with one of the Universities there. I learned parts of the language. If you go into the country you find many temples. These temples are not dead - they are living. People go there and write their prayers onto little pieces of paper or wood. You can observe many people visiting the temples over lunch. Yes, people take the Gods serious and pray.

So what is behind the temples in Japan? What is behind the temples in China and many other countries? Are there Gods which are associated with these places of worship?

Are the Gods real? What type of Gods are they? What is their power?

What is reality? To some extent we could call it a question of science. But the Gods of Japan are not directly accessible to science. We might study the culture. We might study the statements of people who believe. That will not give us a definite answer about the Gods these people talk about. Their experiences cannot be directly translated into knowledge about these Gods!

The questions of Japanese Gods is interesting also with respect to the Christian faith. Christians believe in the one God, who has shown himself in Jesus. They think that the Japanese Gods may be powerful beings, but they are not the creator of the universe. They do not have His power. Of course there are further people in this world who think that all this is nonsense anyway, that no God exists, only matter and ideas about supreme beings. My personal view is different: I think that the Japanese Gods are real, but that the Christian God is the creator. I believe in the God Jesus believed in and Jesus claimed to be linked to in an unbelievably close connection. It is an interesting adventure, to explore this world! ... more texts