Presently I have a few books im reading simultaneously, but this one I really, really wish more folks would read it. Especially today, with the total bastardization of Christianity, which in this country is becoming more blasphemous by the day, the way the leaders of churches are interpreting and selling their soul. As they allowed politics - bad politics - to "mesh" with what should be holy, and off limits to all that. Now we are seeing a huge decline of it all, to the point any original teachings could be lost. IOW: the original Intent of Jesus in the first place.
But as I recently read The Gospel of Thomas, finally, its funny because in the beginning of this book, The Gospel of Thomas is heavily quoted. And if anything, it falls more in line with what could be complimentary to Buddhism than not. But also, tho it is considered "new age" though it is not. Thich Nhat Hahn makes a case for Christ Consciousness here, in a much more succient way:
"I see the rite of Baptism as a way of recognizing every human being, when opened to the Holy Spirit, is capable of manifesting these qualities, which are also qualities of being a son or daughter of God. We do not speak about Original Sin in Buddhism, but we do talk about negative seeds that exist in every person - seeds of hatred, anger, ignorance, intolerance, and so on- and we say that these seeds can be transformed when we touch the qualities of a Buddha, which are also seeds within us. Original sin can be transformed when one is in touch with the Holy Spirit. Jesus is the Son of God and the Son of Man. We are all, at the same time, the sons and daughters of God and the children of our parents. This means we are of the same reality as Jesus. This may sound heretical to many Christians, but I believe that theologians who say we are not have to reconsider this. Jesus is not only our Lord, but He is also our Father, our Teacher, our Brother, and our Self. The only place we can touch Jesus and the Kingdom of God is within us."
That's basically it, in a nutshell, and it isn't heretical at all. Its the Truth. It's also in line with what is said in scriptures. Anyway its a good read. Pretty amazing it takes a Buddhist to grasp it better than our modern day preachers.
