Reincarnation and Christianity

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Reincarnation and Christianity
Comments by Mike Shaw - 9 Sep 2010

Hi Betty,

It is true that I spent a long time in Buddhism and occasionally still interact with the Buddhist community, however, this past year I have resigned from all my Buddhist associations and now solely focus on my Christian path, though it may differ from others. In my opinion, Buddhism does not fit well with Christianity. I do not say this out of ignorance nor prejudice, as I hold a dual ordination having studied both Buddhism and Christianity to some depth. Buddhism denies God, denies the soul (I know some Christian groups do too, such as the JWs and other groups, but most Christians believe in a soul) and in my opinion, Buddhism denies a difference between good and evil. Now, those are rather blanket and general statements for me to make, and I will not bore anyone here with detailed explanations.

My belief in reincarnation does not really stem from my Buddhist studies. Buddhist do not believe in a soul and thus, their concept of reincarnation is much different than ours. Rather, my belief in reincarnation has to do with my own experiences from early childhood. I was only curious to find out if anyone had a pet that they thought was a reincarnation of another previous pet. I have not had this experience, but I know some folks who are convinced they have.

Thanks for chatting, Betty,

Mike