World Religions, including Secular humanism, Communism, and Animism

World Religions and Missions
Robert D. Patton
Missionary to Suriname,
South America

To effectively present the
gospel…
 We must understand the beliefs of
the individual – His world view
 This world view is the filter
through which he interprets all of
life, and especially religious
meanings

A number of world views
 Monotheism – only one God
 Christianity
 Judaism
 Islam
 Polytheism – many gods
 Hinduism
 Older religions – Romans, Greeks, etc.

World views
 Monism or pantheism
 Buddhism
 Hinduism
 Animism or folk religion
 Probably 40% of all people in the
world believe in folk religion though
they may list their belief as Christian,
Hindu, Islam, etc.

World Views
 Atheism
 Communism
 Humanism – actually making man his
own god…

Toward a Biblical Worldview
 Worldview = the assumptions we
hold as to the basic makeup of the
universe
 Some believe that demons never
do anything to a “good Christian”
so it is better to ignore them.
 This is not from the Bible - we
must resist, stand against, etc.

―Western‖ world-view
 Although some are atheists and deny any
supernatural, the majority have this worldview:
 The supernatural - God, angels &
demons, - Religion and mysticism
 separated from
 The natural - science –
 Faulty conclusion: No contact above. Therefore the
supernatural can be basically ignored.
 This is a faulty worldview

Modernism is built on
 Rationalism
 Empiricism
 Market-driven economy
 Science & technology

Modernism came from the
―enlightenment‖
 The enlightenment separated
 Science and materialism - public truth
 Religion and faith - private faith &
personal choice
 There was no place for spirits, etc
– superstition

Results of modernism
 There was colonialism which assumed
the superiority of Western culture, and
also cultural evolution advancing from
primitive to polytheistic to monotheistic
to science
 Assumed - magic was the thought of
pre-logical thinking that will die out
with science. No need to study it

Missions leaders worked with
the same assumptions
 They debated the religious leaders
of Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, etc
comparing it to Christianity
 Missionaries also assumed and
taught the split world view
 Science answers questions on earth
 .Religion answers those of heaven

Missions leaders worked with
the same assumptions
 The middle region was ignored
 Converts were reluctant to discuss them
with missionaries
 The old ways were continued in secret
 Thus there was a great deal of
syncretism – combining outward
Christianity with an underlying
animistic world view

We realize that we must
rethink our attitudes
 We must not assume that Western ways
are necessarily Christian
 New beliefs must replace the old ones -
but we must be careful that it is not the
foreignness that keeps people from
getting saved
 We must neither reject old ways
automatically, or accept them
uncritically when there is sin & leads to
cultural relativism

Critical contextualization:
 Study the local culture
phenomenologically.
 Understand clearly the old ways
 We must also study our own culture.
Our own world-view is difficult for us
to comprehend. Like others sin, we
see their problems more clearly than
our own

We must study…
 What the scripture says.
 Note - the church’s purpose is
missions - to call others to Christ
 We must be theologians & cross-
cultural evangelists
 Reality testing - what really is.
 We must avoid ethnocentric judgment

We must study…
 Critical evaluation in terms of
culture and the Bible
 .Some may need to be rejected, or
given a Christian meaning
 Our goal must be transformation of
lives to what Christ wants
 Remember God loves variety – and
made the world so…

Remember…
 Worldviews are implicit assumptions of
reality - rarely examined or questioned
 Satan also uses social structures to
inhibit persons from salvation –
structure of society, persecution, etc
 Bush-Negro family structure is very anti-
Biblical in its matriarchal structure
 Their folk religion is strongly opposed to
Biblical Christianity

Dimensions of religion
 Beliefs: For most people, this is
reality - we need to know these
clearly
 Feelings - powerful, pervasive
walls protecting beliefs. They are
important too
 Values - these are basic
 Dimensions of religion: All the
above are important

There is often a scale of
transcendence
 Things on this earth
 Seen
 Unseen - spirits, gods, restricted to earth
 Other worlds unseen: There may be a
high god - often all-powerful but
distant and not interested. Rarely
placated or offerings made to him (like
deism)

Often there is a pantheon of lesser
gods without eternal existence
 There may be multiple other lesser
beings as well - like angels and
demons. They may come to earth,
go back into “heaven”
 Often felt to have other beings on
earth, and limited to certain areas.
 They may ask pardon of trees they
chop down, or animals they kill

Half-Gods, etc
 Some emperors were considered divine
 Some were supposed to be the marriage
of a god and a human
 Some are human with some relationship
to spirits or live spiritual lives
 Some believe that people have spirits
or souls apart from the bodies; others
that they have multiple souls

Ancestor ―worship‖
 Ancestors are believed to have a part in
the society, and must be treated as such
- food, telling them when you leave, etc.
They can bless or curse the entire family
 Witches - usually those with antisocial
behavior may be accused - sending their
spirits on trips
 There may be belief in subhumans
(trolls,etc)

Other world views…
 Many believe that animals and
plants have spirits that interact in
the world. Nature is seen as alive
 .Mana - the power in everything
that can be given, removed,
strengthened, etc

 Life-force surrounding things - this
is more local
 .You can attack the individual with
curses
 There is a reason for everything -
spiritual or influence of other

 Mechanical other-worldly forces
 Fate or fortune -
numbers, horoscopes, etc
 Cosmic moral order - with results
depending on your good deeds or
evil deeds - karma

Human Substitutes to True
Salvation
False Teaching
Instead of the Truth

Substitutes for True Salvation
 Hinduism
 Buddhism
 Islam
 Secular humanism & evolution
 Cults
 Animism

Hinduism
 Origin 1500-2500 B.C. No specific
founder
 Adherents: 825-850,000,000
 India 780,000,000
 Bangladesh – 20,000,000
 Nepal – 20,000,000
 USA – 1.5-2,000,000

Hinduism
 Books – Upanishads, Puranas,
Bhagavad Gita, and many other
scriptures
 Diverse belief system – no single
creed and no final truth
 Pagan background with forces of
nature personified as gods and
goddesses- give offerings

Hinduism divided into
 Popular Hinduism – worship of
gods through offerings, rituals and
prayers
 Philosophic Hinduism – these few
understand ancient texts, meditate
and practice yoga

Hinduism – Non-reality
 The physical material world is an
illusion – called Maya
 Personality & thinking and feeling
cause suffering
 Karma holds you bound
 Comment – no wonder science
never developed!

Hindu Monism – Reality
 Brahman-Atman
 Impersonal spiritual cosmos
 Absorption into the One
 Loss of personal identity
 Peace, fulfillment, bliss
 The goal is to transcend maya to
reality

Thus…
 God and the cosmos are one
 We are God
 In saving the world, we are saving
ourselves, so to speak
 The state of enlightenment is
called, moksa, samadhi, kayvala
 In Buddhism – Nirvana
 Zen – satori

In the west, different names
for the same thing
 Cosmic consciousness
 Unified field of Creative consciousness
 Absolute Bliss
 One with Self

Yoga – yoke with God
 Astanga yoga – 8 steps to God
 Hatha yoga – first 5 steps –
isometrics and breathing exercises
to make you unaware of the
physical world
 Raja yoga – last 3 steps

Raja yoga
 1. Concentration – on a mantra,
often a name for a Hindu god
 2. Dhyana – continuous meditation
on the mantra
 3. Samhadi – Absorption into the
universe – like a drop of water in
the ocean

What is God?
 Tozer stated that no people rise
greater than their religion
 Here there is no difference
between a person and dirt, or
animals. Then what is God?
 Humans become the same level as
nature, and impersonal as well

Loss of personality
 No love or compassion, because
these are personal. Thus no
hospitals, etc.
 The monk is really a parasite who
does nothing, and lives off begging
 There is no basis for morality
 There is no basis for human will
and freedom of choice = Karma,
which is fatalism…

Science and technology
 No basis in Hinduism
 They come from western schools
and training

Reincarnation
 Part of karma – you can come back as
a lower form
 Therefore you do not kill cows or rats
 All who believe in reincarnation deny
a personal intelligent creator

Christianity vs. Hinduism
 Christians believe in a personal creator
 Christians believe in the atonement of
Jesus Christ, freeing us from sin
 Christians believe in the resurrection of
Jesus Christ, and the resurrection of the
body – as a real person

Hinduism
 In India, there are distinct castes which
you may not come out of. A high caste
Brahman will not associate with a Dalit,
or untouchable, and in fact may wash
the road behind one. One who had a
Dalit eat a meal was totally ostracized
by the entire community.
 Christianity appeals especially to the
Dalits

Worldview – India & USA
American worldview
 Empiricism – the world is
real, and can meet our
needs and give us
position, worth
 Real world is absolute,
true categories. Those
who cannot distinguish
dreams and reality are
mentally ill
Indian worldview
 Maya – the world is
subjective, not objective.
Real meaning is within
 Meaning is relative.
Morals are relative.
Dreams are a part of
reality of the person

American worldview
 Naturalism – the real world
is natural and can be
investigated by the senses.
Spiritual experiences are
subjective and personal –
This is the world of science
 Linear time: We live & die.
Religious prepare for
heaven; secular enjoy life
today
Indian worldview
 No sharp distinction
between natural and
supernatural. All are
blurred together
 Cyclical time – The
universe repeats itself
countless times. People
are reborn many times

American worldview
 Order and immutability –
the universe is orderly
with set rules
 Knowledge: the human
mind can understand and
control the universe
around. Often judged by
knowledge rather than
life
Indian worldview
 Unpredictability – a
beggar can be a king; a
lion can be a god.
 Wisdom – intuitive true
understanding of reality.
Wisdom comes with
sudden insight radically
changing the person, so
that he has peace and
can be released from
cyclical rebirths

American worldview
 Particularized and
categorized world. They
can be ordered and
placed in order
 Basic equality of things in
a same category
Indian worldview
 Unity of all things with
gods, saints, people, etc.
 OK to worship saints as
they are higher on the
scale than humans
 Hierarchy: all persons
and things are ranked –
and this is good (caste,
etc) Spiritual insight
best, then metaphysical
wisdom, then offerings,
then wealth

American worldview
 Individualism. Freedom
of choice rather than
restriction. Free
enterprise and capitalism
rather than communism
or socialism. Democracy
& choose your own
leaders
Indian worldview
 Specialization and inter-
dependency. Each
person has his own role
in society. Diversity and
cooperation

Hinduism & avatars
 These are godlike personalities who
come to help mankind to escape from
karma and the wheel of life and
eventually find release, samsara…
 One of the most popular is Krisna

Hinduism in Suriname
 We see the multiple temples, and the
multiple gods which they worship
 They are actually worshipping demons
 They will sometimes devote their
children to demons to gain power,
money, etc
 The demons will drink milk, etc from
their Hindu Pandits…

What does the average Hindu
understand?
 I once went to a Hindu wedding.
The two individuals heard the
Pandit saying things in what I
assume may have been a sacred
language, and occasionally
throwing objects into a fire. The
others were sitting talking to each
other, oblivious of the ceremony.

Many Hindus have idols at
home
 We have seen “god-houses” in
front of some Hindu homes. They
apparently have idols which they
worship with flowers, food, etc.
 They often have a number of flags
(often red) on bamboo poles
planted there by the Pandits

Hinduism in practice
 I have seen a snake and Kali
painted on the entrance gate of a
home. Sometimes idols will be on
the wall – such as frogs
 I have seen idols of the monkey
god Hanuman on the top of Hindu
temples

Hindu ―trimurti‖ of Gods –
Brahman, Vishnu, Shiva

Transcendental Meditation
 This is basically a form of Hinduism
adapted to US or western culture
 Initially you must bring 6 flowers,
3 fruit and a white handkerchief
 You come in a darkened room with
incense and candles
 Before a picture of Guru Dev, a
priest will give a Puja – a Hindu
Sanskrit song

 You are given a mantra, which is
the name of a Hindu god. When
you meditate, you try to come one
with him.
 Doing so, you are really opening
yourself to demons

Initiation puja includes
 Whosoever remembers the lotus-eyed Lord
gains inner and outer purity. To Lord
Naryan, to Lotus-born Brahman the creator,
to Vaishistha, to Shakti, to Shankaracharya
the emancipator, hailed as Krishna, to the
Lord I bow down and down again. At
whose door the whole galaxy of gods pray
for perfection day and night.[46]

It is expensive
 n 2009, fees in the US were reduced for a
one-hour-a-day, four-day course to $1,500
for the general public and $750 for college
students.[62][63] Fees in the UK were also
reduced, and a tiered fee structure
introduced, ranging from £290 to £590 for
adults, and £190 to £290 for students,
depending on income.[64]

Save money
Around 1995, Dr. Deepak Chopra created
the primordial sound meditation, that
is very similar to Maharishi's TM.
Unfortunately Maharishi's and
Chopra's techniques are very
expensive ($2500.00 and $325.00).

Save money via internet
 In 2003 a former TM teacher,
R.Harrison, created the Natural Stress
Relief technique, that can be learned
in this website for $25.00 only. The
Natural Stress Relief© technique (NSR)
is based on a single basic syllable or
"mantra", that is suitable for anybody.

Save money…
 By the way, the original TM, that was
taught by Maharishi in 1958, was also
based on a single mantra (around 1968
the TM organization started to prescribe
different "mantras").

 I Tim. 4:1 Now the Spirit speaketh
expressly, that in the latter times
some shall depart from the faith,
giving heed to seducing spirits, and
doctrines of devils.

Transcendental Meditation is
demonic worship
 I Cor. 10:19-20 What say I then?
That the idol is any thing, or that
which is offered in sacrifice to idols is
any thing? But I say that the things
which the Gentiles sacrifice, they
sacrifice to devils (demons) and not
to God: and I would not that ye
should have fellowship with devils…

TM is dangerous
 Any time you allow your mind to go
blank, you can open yourself to
demonic deception. Meditating on the
name of a false god (demon) is even
more dangerous!

Hinduism in practice
 There is a great deal of the
demonic in Hinduism
 It is no wonder that there is great
opposition to true Christianity

Worship Shiva – god of
destruction

Popular Hinduism
 Caste system
 Worship of 33,000,000 gods
 .Revere the cow & monkey, etc
 .The main gods are:
 .Brahma - creator
 .Vishnu - sustainer
 .Shiva - destroyer

Popular Hinduism
 The temple is the place the gods stay
- not primarily worship. The priests
carry the offerings of the people
 They often worship one of the 10
incarnations of Vishnu – especially
Krishna or Rama

World’s largest Hindu temple

Richest & most visited Hindu
temple

Popular Hinduism
 Women’s situation is a little better
now that suttee and the selling of
young girls as temple prostitutes is
basically gone.
 William Carey worked against suttee
 Amy Carmichael rescued many girls
from being temple prostitutes

Hindu suttee – burning widow

Hindu worship
 Most worship privately rather than
corporately
 Worship daily the chosen deity
with chants, flowers and incense

Puja – worship Woman
sewing clothes for idol

Folk Hinduism makes even
human offerings
 Children were thrown into the Ganges
River as an offering
 Other locations, babies were killed
previously in Suriname
 Sometimes children have been
dedicated to the gods

Many Hindus have been
oppressed by evil spirits
 Being freed from demonic oppression is
one of the ways that many are coming
to Christ

There is persecution of
Christians
 There are radical fundamentalist
movements in Hinduism to totally
eradicate Christianity and Christians
 Recently a burial was interrupted and
the body thrown into a tractor – they
said that the body would contaminate
Hindu soil

Persecution
 Persecution is especially heavy now in
Orissa state, but also in other areas
 A number of pastors have been killed
 A missionary doctor and two sons were
burned to death while sleeping in their
car – the doctor worked with lepers

Gandhi against conversions
 Mohandes Gandhi stated that
conversion to Christianity is changing
their nationality.
 The accusation is ―forced conversions‖
by which they mean anyone that finds a
benefit to convert (especially seen with
the untouchables)

Christian response to
Hinduism
 God – if God is God, and impersonal,
then impersonal is greater than the
personal – but we always give more
attention to the personal
 God of the Bible is personal – He thinks,
does, has emotions, etc. No idol can
represent God, and Christians are
forbidden to worship idols

Hinduism
 The material world is real. God is
present in creation but apart from it.
 Don’t confuse God and his creation
(Romans 1 – worship the creature
instead of the creator)
 Time is not cyclical – God created the
world at a specific time and will
consumate it also

Hinduism
 The incarnation of Jesus Christ occurred
within historical time, as well as His
crucifixion and resurrection

Hinduism
 People are created in God’s image
 The human body will be resurrected
physically and has eternal worth
 There is no rebirth – Heb. 9: [27] And
as it is appointed unto men once to die,
but after this the judgment:

Hinduism
 All men are resurrected: Jn. 5: [28]
Marvel not at this: for the hour is
coming, in the which all that are in the
graves shall hear his voice,[29] And
shall come forth; they that have done
good, unto the resurrection of life; and
they that have done evil, unto the
resurrection of damnation.

Hinduism
 Sin is not ignorance of the union with
Brahman, but is rebellion against a holy
personal God.
 Romans 3:23 All have sinned and come
short of the glory of God.

Hinduism
 Salvation for the Hindu:
 Yoga & meditation under a guru
 Good works (karma marga)
 The way of knowledge (jnana marga)
 The way of love and devotion (bhakti
marga)

Hinduism
 Salvation is through a personal relationship
by faith with Jesus Christ throughout
eternity. Salvation is NOT by good works.
Religious deeds cannot save: Eph 2: [8]
For by grace are ye saved through faith;
and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of
God:[9] Not of works, lest any man should
boast.

Witnessing to Hindus
 Short personal testimony of faith in Jesus
Christ
 Pray for the Holy Spirit to work
 Share that Jesus Christ is God’s revelation
of Himself to mankind
 Follow Jesus – no other deities
 Emphasize salvation by faith without works

Hare Krishna – Krishna
Consciousness: A Hindu Sect
 They believe that anyone can chant the
magic words and block the power of
Kali, the God of destruction
 Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna
Krishna Hare Hare
 Hare Rama Hare Rama
 Rama Rama Hare Hare

History of Buddhism
 In contrast to Hinduism, there is a
founder of Buddhism, Siddhartha
Gautama, known as the Buddha
 Although precise dates are not clear,
and the history is mixed with much
tradition, there is a basic history which
can be used

Buddhism
 Sidhartha Gautama, 564-483 B.C.)
was a wealthy Hindu saw the
suffering of the world, left his wife
and son, and became an ascetic.
After 6 years, he became enlightened
and was “the enlightened one”
 Gautama was born into a wealthy
family. His mother died after his
birth

Traditions of Gautama
 His mother’s conception was considered
miraculous – saw a 6 tusk elephant
come into her side
 Many miracles are traditionally
attributed to Gautama, though they are
probably not historical

Sidhartha Gautama
 His father wanted him to be a great
king, but hid suffering from him
 When he finally started seeing his
people at age 29, he met old age,
suffering and death
 He tried asceticism, and nearly died –
almost drown washing himself

Buddha – the ascetic and then
the enlightened one

Siddhartha Gautama
 During his wanderings, he was recognized,
and offered a kingdom. Others wanted him
to become a general
 He found that neither wealth or asceticism
was proper, but sought out a middle way
 He had many followers. One tried to
assassinate him 3 times

Siddhartha Gautama
 Eventually he went to nirvana at age 80
 During his last years, he developed his
philosophy of life

Buddhism
 613,000,000 worldwide
 1,000,000 in USA
 Buddhists are trying to convert those in
the USA
 It is a major force in the New Age
Movement

Buddhism: Four noble
truths:
 1. Life is suffering (dukkha)
 2. Suffering is caused by desire
(samudaja)
 3. The cessation of desire causes the
cessation of suffering (nirodha)
 4. The cessation of desire comes
from the “middle way” between
sensuality and asceticism

Buddhism – the 8 fold path
to achieve the middle way…
 Right view – understanding the 4
noble truths
 Right resolve – determining to follow
them
 Right speech – action to avoid desire
 Right action – action to avoid desire

Buddhism: the 8 fold path
to achieve the middle way
 Right livelihood
 Right effort – emptying the mind
 Right concentration – mind & body
control
 Right ecstacy – cessation of all
sense experiences and obtaining
universal knowledge

Buddhism
 Become free from Karma – the law
of good and bad deeds which is an
impersonal law of monal causation
 Obtain Nirvana – like blowing out a
candle – nothing…

Buddhism
 Nothing in life is permanent
(annica)
 Individual souls do not really exist
(anatta)

Buddhist monk actually taken
in Scotland

Buddhism
 Theravada – “salvation” limited to
monks alone – Thailand, Burma, Sri
Lanka, Laos, Cambodia 38%
 Mahayana – “salvation” open to all true
seekers –
Nepal, China, Tibet, Japan, Vietnam, Kor
ea – and the west 56%
 Tantrismor Lamism, 6%
Tibet, Nepal, Mongolia

Timeline of development of
various schools

Theravada Buddhism in
Thailand

Vajrayana traditions in
Tibet, Mongolia, China

Traditional wheel of life - Tibet

Hinduism vs. Buddhism
 Wheel of life
 Karma
 Maya (illusion)
 Atman (individual
soul)
 Rebirth by
reincarnation
 Wheel of life
 Karma
 Maya
 No atman
 Rebirth without
reincarnation

Hinduism vs. Buddhism
 Moksha (realization)
 Pantheistic
 Caste system
 Asceticism
 Nirvana (oblivion)
 Atheistic-
pantheistic
 Caste system
 The middle way

Buddhism
 Sidhartha Gautama wanted to reform
Hinduism which had thousands of
gods. He was an atheist in fact.
 But now Buddhism has many idols.
The golden pagoda has 3500 idols of
Buddha

Buddhism
 Each man is an island to himself. To
help him is to interfere with his karma
 Christianity gives the true worth of a
soul made in the image of God, and
worth saving…
 Religion is man reaching toward God,
but Christianity is God reaching down
to man

Buddhism vs. Christianity
 God shows that this will happen in
Romans 1:18 ff. Man who rejects God
will make idols
 God shows the foolishness of idolatry
in Jeremiah 10:3-15

Romans 1

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from
heaven against all ungodliness and
unrighteousness of men, who hold the
truth in unrighteousness;
 19 Because that which may be known of
God is manifest in them; for God hath
shewed [it] unto them.

Romans 1

20 For the invisible things of him from the
creation of the world are clearly seen, being
understood by the things that are made,
[even] his eternal power and Godhead; so
that they are without excuse:21 Because
that, when they knew God, they glorified
[him] not as God, neither were thankful; but
became vain in their imaginations, and their
foolish heart was darkened.

Romans 1

22 Professing themselves to be wise, they
became fools,23 And changed the glory of
the uncorruptible God into an image made
like to corruptible man, and to birds, and
fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.24
Wherefore God also gave them up to
uncleanness through the lusts of their own
hearts, to dishonour their own bodies
between themselves:

Romans 1
 . 26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile
affections: for even their women did change
the atural use into that which is against
nature:27 And likewise also the men, leaving
the natural use of the woman, burned in their
lust one toward another; men with men
working that which is unseemly, and receiving
in themselves that recompence of their error
which was meet.

Romans 1

28 And even as they did not like to retain
God in [their] knowledge, God gave them
over to a reprobate mind, to do those things
which are not convenient;29 Being filled with
all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness,
covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy,
murder, debate, deceit, malignity;
whisperers,

Romans 1
 30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud,
boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient
to parents,31 Without understanding,
covenantbreakers, without natural affection,
implacable, unmerciful:32 Who knowing the
judgment of God, that they which commit such
things are worthy of death, not only do the
same, but have pleasure in them that do them.


Jeremiah 10:3-15

3 For the customs of the people [are] vain: for
[one] cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work
of the hands of the workman, with the axe.4
They deck it with silver and with gold; they
fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it
move not.5 They [are] upright as the palm
tree, but speak not: they must needs be
borne, because they cannot go.

Jeremiah 10:3-15

5b Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do
evil, neither also [is it] in them to do good.
 6 Forasmuch as [there is] none like unto thee,
O LORD; thou [art] great, and thy name [is]
great in might.7 Who would not fear thee, O
King of nations? for to thee doth it appertain:
forasmuch as among all the wise [men] of the
nations, and in all their kingdoms, [there is]
none like unto thee.

Jeremiah 10:3-15

8 But they are altogether brutish and foolish:
the stock [is] a doctrine of vanities.9 Silver
spread into plates is brought from Tarshish,
and gold from Uphaz, the work of the
workman, and of the hands of the founder:
blue and purple [is] their clothing: they [are]
all the work of cunning [men].

Jeremiah 10:3-15

10 But the LORD [is] the true God, he [is] the
living God, and an everlasting king: at his
wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations
shall not be able to abide his indignation.11
Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that
have not made the heavens and the earth,
[even] they shall perish from the earth, and
from under these heavens.

Jeremiah 10:3-15

12 He hath made the earth by his power, he
hath established the world by his wisdom, and
hath stretched out the heavens by his
discretion.13 When he uttereth his voice,
[there is] a multitude of waters in the
heavens, and he causeth the vapours to
ascend from the ends of the earth; he maketh
lightnings with rain, and bringeth forth the
wind out of his treasures.

Jeremiah 10:3-15

14 Every man is brutish in [his] knowledge:
every founder is confounded by the graven
image: for his molten image [is] falsehood,
and [there is] no breath in them.15 They [are]
vanity, [and] the work of errors: in the time of
their visitation they shall perish.

Practical Buddhism in
Cambodia
 Cambodians are definitely weaker in their
adherence to Buddhism than their Asian
neighbors.
 Thailand is firmly fixed on Buddhism’s path as
well as animism. Cambodians are also very
Buddhist.
 At present, Cambodians are more open to the
gospel than other Buddhist nations in the area.
Several generations of war and conflict and the
resulting poverty have brought greater openness
to the gospel. Many are willing to listen to the
gospel.

Practical Buddhism in
Cambodia
 Though persecution is alive and well for those
that believe, it is less severe than in some
Buddhist countries, especially those
influenced by Communism (China, Laos, and
Vietnam) or military dictatorships
(Myanmar/Burma).
 Thailand has open religious freedom, but
Thais are more hardened against the
gospel—even with centuries of Christian
mission influence.

Practical Buddhism
 Most Buddhists here do not believe anything like
what the books say they do! One might get the
impression that Buddhists here are deeply
committed to Buddhism from the many Buddhist
temples dotting the countryside and seemingly
on every block in the cities. Monks are
everywhere. It is true that belief in
reincarnation, karma, and nirvana are firmly held.
But where does their true devotion lie? How is
most of their religious energy spent? What types
of beliefs influence every day living?

Karma…
 Certainly the belief in karma is a strong
motivator to follow the Buddhist path. Karma
teaches that one’s circumstances in this life
are the direct result of good and bad deeds
committed in one’s previous life. Of course,
no one wants to return in their next life as an
animal, slave, poor person, etc. when they
could return as a prince or wealthy merchant.

Nirvana – basically
unobtainable
 Almost no one considers the possibility of ever
achieving nirvana, that state of non-existence so
coveted by truly committed Buddhists. Nirvana is a
state that no Buddhist seems to understand or be
able to describe. Life is to be understood simply as
endless suffering. To end this endless cycle of
suffering, one must follow the Four Noble Truths and
the Eight-Fold Path of Buddhism. If one is
successful, he will cease to exist and become one
with the universe. Most people desire merely to
return in the next life to better circumstances.

Folk religion in Buddhism
 I believe that most religions have folk religion
as well. We have seen this in the Muslims and
Hindus in Suriname.
 The next section will show this vividly in terms
of Cambodia

Practical Buddhism
 It is widely believed that our spirits will go to
hell after death and suffer torment. Once a
certain amount of the sin debt is paid, the
person will then be reincarnated. Some
believe that good people will go to heaven for
a while before returning to the earth in
another form. Forms of reincarnation might
include animals, ghosts, gods, and humans.
Human life is most coveted, for only a human
can achieve non-existence (nirvana).

Monks, the king, and a water
ceremony to carry away sins

Ancestor Worship in Buddhism
 Ancestor worship, which is not central to Buddhist
doctrine, has become a central part of Folk
Buddhism. Every year Pachum Bun is celebrated.
During this festival, Buddhists must go to the
temples and give money and rice to the monks in
exchange for blessings and prayers to help their
ancestors be released from hell. If money and rice is
given and prayers are offered, it is believed that the
spirits of the ancestors are set free until the end of
the festival, only to return once again to hell until
their debt is paid.

Ancestor worship in Buddhism
 People are fearful that if they do not
worship their ancestors, these spirits
will one day curse their lives and cause
great suffering.
 Parents also have power over their
children after their death before they
are reincarnated. The same is true for
grandparents, etc.

Ancestor worship in Buddhism
 Parents are perceived as ―gods‖ and
actually referred to as such (in
teaching, anyway). The parent gave
the child life and sustained them and
raised them. Thus, they earned much
merit that must be acknowledged by
the children.

Inconsistency in belief
 . Buddhism is not the focus of most
Cambodians. Even though all of the
festivals, including weddings and
funerals have Buddhist trappings, most
Cambodians believe much more
strongly in the spirit world. Belief in the
spirits should be contradictory to
Buddhist thought, but to the average
Buddhist, these two very different forms
of religion just work together in ways
not to be understood.

Inconsistency in belief
 . As a matter of fact, even many
monks are heavily involved in
spiritism. What is most important
to ask of those that you are trying
to reach in a Buddhist country is
not “What does Buddhism teach?”
but rather “What do people really
believe?”

Syncretic religion except…
 Buddhism accommodates all other
religions except, of course, true
Christianity.
 Buddhists can add any god or spirit to
their belief system, as long as Buddhism
is not denounced.
 It becomes very important, then, to press
upon them the exclusivity of Christ.

Tattoos
 Throughout Cambodian history, the primary
reason for getting tattoos etched in the skin was
to bring the owner of the tattoo protection in
battle. For those with tattoos, bullets would miss
their mark; swords will not cut, etc.
 All soldiers in Cambodia, no matter their station,
had these tattoos and many do today. Tattoos
are not merely pictures. Tattoos are filled with
spiritual significance, and, when received,
supposedly communicate spiritual power to the
owner.

Tattoos
 Another popular reason for getting tattoos is
their ability to cause attraction and
admiration. They increase the likeability of
an individual, especially in reference to the
opposite gender.
 For some seeking spiritual power or influence
over others, tattoos are attractive. They
cause others to respect or fear them. Others
just get tattoos because others have them. It
seems that all sorcerers are tattooed heavily
as well

Tattoos
 The tatooist must be a spiritually powerful
individual. His work is extremely difficult to
accomplish and it is done is an entirely
spiritual manner. Those who come to him
worship the spirits upon entry. The
tattooist’s shrine is full of idols:
Buddhas, Vishnus, hermit
spirits, symbols, incense, bones, etc. There
are spiritual laws that govern the diet and
manner of practice that the man must
maintain.

Tattoos
 For instance, they cannot put a curse on the
individual. They do not sacrifice animals.
Drums are played throughout the process.
Those who receive a tattoo receive spells and
instructions to maintain the power of the
tattoo. These tattooists are honored in their
practice but not in every day life as
authorities in other matters. However, monks
may do this also.

Tatoos
 Tattoos are usually symbols, ancient
Pali writing (the language of the
Buddhist writings and that used by
monks in rituals), drawings of the
Buddha, Vishnu (a Hindu deity), a
mythological bird or snake, or
sometimes human beings.

Amulets & Charms
 One object highly regarded for its influence is a
kind of belt charmed by a sorcerer or holy man.
Nearly all Cambodians wear these. The chief
reason for this item is protection—protection
from the spirits--from harm, sickness, poor
business, etc. These are worn about the waist
and are made from nylon. Attached to the nylon
are flattened metal pieces with Pali writing and
other symbols which are rolled up and then put
on the belt. Of course, all such items are paid
for.

Amulets & Charms
 Elaborate rules are given for how to
maintain the power of the belt. For
example, when entering the rest room, the
belt must be taken off a certain way and
hung in a certain fashion. To forget to do
this would negate the power of the belt.

Amulets…
 Amulets, or objects of spiritual significance,
hung from a necklace, are also revered.
These too are obtained for protection from
evil workings of the spirits. Some hang
Buddha figurines or Vishnu on these.
Buddha figurines are to influence the
wearer to do good works. Others put
animal horns, though these are considered
less powerful.

Amulets…
 Some may have a bone from an
ancestor. In Thailand, amulets are
extremely popular and large amounts of
money spent of ancient or artistic
amulets or amulets blessed by well-
respected monks.

Amulets…
 At least in Cambodia, the amulet known to have
the most power is a human baby fetus. The
method of obtaining this is varied. Some insist
that this is done through murdering a pregnant
woman. Others insist that the woman be asked
permission to have it taken from her by knife, not
telling the woman that it meant death for her
and the child.

This amulet contains the
powder of a chosen baby who
died (amulet enlarged greatly)

These monks bless amulets –
advertised on the internet

Amulets…
 Yet others claim that it is done ―above board‖ by
the woman’s consent and that she does not die
in the process. It appears that if the woman
does not give consent than the fetus has no
power. It is then grilled and dried then hung
from the necklace. This amulet gives the power
to know whom and when a person plans to harm
you, even premonition of evil that will happen to
you.

Building rituals
 Before a house can be built, a monk or sorcerer
must first come to the property and give counsel
as to the place to build the house—the exact
place. Why? Every house built has its own spirit.
Also, the land has a spirit. If the house were built
in the wrong spot, a spirit would be angry and
cause evil to the house owner. Somehow too, the
rituals are meant to trick the spirits into thinking
different ways.

Building rituals
 The night before building begins a monk or
sorcerer must be invited to a party held in the
home to perform certain rites. While the poles are
being put in the next day, a tattooed cloth must be
placed in order to hang from the ceiling. ALL
Khmai homes have one (until Jesus came here!)

Spirit houses
 Within the house is found either a Buddha statue or
the bones of the grandparents. Buddhism encourages
the bones to be brought to the Wat, so many have a
Buddha within instead.
 The purpose of the house is to worship the spirit of
the ancestors. Buddhism teaches that ancestral spirits
need to be placated. There is an annual festival
devoted to this. The more money given to the temple
in honor of the ancestors and other deeds greatly
raise the chances that spirits will do good deeds
towards the doer.

Spirit houses
 Four times each month, Khmais are to leave
a flower and fruit offering at the spirit house.
Every day prayers are offered to the spirits of
the ancestors and/or Buddha. These prayers
are accompanied by incense burning.
Buddhism no where teaches the worship of
Buddha’s image. As a matter of fact, the
Buddha does not exist because he achieved
nirvana!

Territorial spirits
 Just as every house has a spirit, so does
every area. The village has a spirit, the
forest nearby has one, the river does, etc. It
is most important to be in favor with the spirit
of your area. If you travel outside the
territory of your spirit it is wise to offer
worship at its altar there or at least have an
amulet or belt for protection.

Territorial spirits
 This spirit can be represented by idols such
as a stone, skull, amulet, animal figure, etc.
Every Buddhist pagoda/wat has an altar to
the territorial spirit. Altars are often found
underneath great trees or on small hills.

House with occult blessing
object

Holy men
 The Monks are sought for in all Buddhist ceremonies
and generally hold the respect of the people. There
is an ever growing number of monks in the
monkhood for natural reasons—saving up money,
learning English or computer skills (especially in
Phnom Penh), showing respect for one’s parents,
earning merit for one’s parents, and others. Most of
these are ―short-term‖ monks. The older and more
seasoned men command great respect. These
monks are the ones most appealed to in matters
dealing with spirits. They can tattoo, bless charms,
cast out demons, give holy water, etc.

Sorcerers
 Sorcerers are those whose main occupation is
knowing how to placate and manipulate, even
trick, the spirits. These are most often
appealed to for blessings and receiving of
powers in amulets, giving herbal medicines,
and directing those suffering how to placate
the offended spirits. Sometimes these are
involved in animal sacrifices. Sorcerers also
are involved in exorcisms. Many go to them
for cures even after given treatment or
prescriptions from a doctor!

Sorcerers
 Monks who throw rice at possessed
individuals in a certain manner can perform
exorcisms. Sorcerers or monks may splash
individuals with holy water also. The
Sorcerer may just go to the house and
discover the reason why a spirit is angered
and give a remedy.

Sorcerers
 Sorcerers are also paid to curse people. Those
angry or seeking revenge will appeal to them for
assistance. I am told that many Khmais do this
for revenge. These men are said to be able at
times to cause foreign object to appear in the
stomachs of the cursed. Other sorcerers who are
aiding the cursed then draw out the foreign
object which is usually a piece of buffalo skin,
nail, or a needle.

Importance of cultural
understanding…
 Understanding our audience is of utmost
importance. Though we cannot assume that
every person believes the same way, we can
assume that many, if not most, of our hearers in
Cambodia will be listening to the gospel through
this theological grid. It reveals the necessity to
spending time with people introducing to them
the nature of the One True God.

Importance of cultural
understanding…
 There is no Creator in Buddhism. Buddhism
leaves room for an unlimited number of gods. If
a person does not understand Divine revelation
about who God is, there is no possibility of them
grasping the gospel. The cross and the
resurrection, heaven and hell, etc. have no real
meaning apart from the person of God the
Creator and the promise of a Savior.

The power of the gospel
 The Biblical teachings of the Kingdom of God
and the kingdom of Satan take on much more
significance in this context. The realities of
spiritual powers become a daily reality rather
than theory. Missionaries must be aware of this
and be intimate with passages of Scripture on these
issues.

The power of the Gospel
 . New believers will need much help
understanding the importance of the
Holy Spirit indwelling them and how it
relates to these matters. As we grow in
these ways, we begin to realize that the
Bible was written in such a context and
addresses these issues often

We need a proper background
 In both Hinduism and Buddhism,
understanding God as the creator is
vital. They need to understand that He
is a person – and not an impersonal
force. He is a God of love, who
interacts with His creation.
 Genesis 1:1 In the beginning, God
created the heavens and the earth.

Other important concepts
 We automatically assume the reality of
the created world, but this needs to be
communicated to the Hindu and
Buddhist

Bridge to suffering
 Our suffering as Christians is only
temporary – the seen. But the future is
without suffering, because Jesus Christ
has won the victory over the cause
of suffering, which is really sin
 Sin is rebellion against a personal creator,
and Jesus has restored the relationship

Victory over sin and suffering
 [17] For our light affliction, which is but
for a moment, worketh for us a far
more exceeding and eternal weight of
glory;[18] While we look not at the
things which are seen, but at the things
which are not seen: for the things
which are seen are temporal; but the
things which are not seen are eternal.

Jesus gives worth to life
 Romans 5: [6] For when we were yet
without strength, in due time Christ
died for the ungodly.[7] For scarcely for
a righteous man will one die: yet
peradventure for a good man some
would even dare to die.

Jesus gives worth to life
 Romans 5: [8] But God commendeth
his love toward us, in that, while we
were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
[9] Much more then, being now
justified by his blood, we shall be saved
from wrath through him.

The moral law and karma
 Karma is impersonal – they try to earn merit
with good deeds
 Jesus gives us His merit: Romans 8: [1]
There is therefore now no condemnation to
them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not
after the flesh, but after the Spirit.[2] For the
law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath
made me free from the law of sin and death.

Suggestions for witnessing
 Avoid terms like new birth, regeneration
 Talk about endless freedom from
suffering, guilt and sin
 Talk about new power to live a holy life
 Talk about Jesus’ gift of unlimited and
unearned merit

Buddhism
 Be careful to avoid syncretism
 Share your testimony
 Freedom from guilt
 Assurance of heaven without pain
 Personal relationship with Christ
 Pray – do not witness in your own
strength

Radical Buddhism is
persecuting Christians
 Where the Buddhists predominate,
there are places where they try to
eliminate Christians and Christianity

China – some have Buddhism,
Confucianism & Taoism

Many Chines have all three
religions
 Confucianism
 Taoism
 Buddhism
 They view them as complementary, and
not as conflicting

Confucianism
 Not confined to China
 Also in Japan, Korea and Vietnam
 It is an ethical and moral system as
much as a religion

Confucius
 Chinese sage 551 BC – 479 BC
 Initially many of his ideas were not
accepted
 He was expelled from various states
 His ideas were best outlined in Analects

Summary of Confucianism
 In Confucianism, human beings are
teachable, improvable and perfectible
through personal and communal
endeavour especially including self-
cultivation and self-creation.
 A main idea of Confucianism is the
cultivation of virtue and the
development of moral perfection.

Analects of Confucius
 Often very condensed sayings,
conversations,
 His disciples later codified and
organized his thoughts
 Rites were very important
 People need to know their place and
role in society -

Rites and rituals
 Gives balance between extremes
 Politeness, harmony
 One must learn to control himself
 They developed a civil service system
where one could rise to importance and
honor the entire family

Confucianism and society
 Confucianism has been used as a kind
of "state religion", with
authoritarianism, legitimism,
paternalism and submission to authority
used as political tools to rule China.

Confucianism and the roles of
people
 Relationships, and the differing duties arising
from the different status one held in relation
to others. Individuals are held to simultaneous
stand in different degrees of relationship with
different people, namely, as a junior in
relation to their parents and elders, and as a
senior in relation to their children, younger
siblings, students, and others.

Confucianism and the roles of
people
 While juniors are considered in Confucianism
to owe strong duties of reverence and service
to their seniors, seniors also have duties of
benevolence and concern toward juniors. This
theme consistently manifests itself in many
aspects of East Asian culture even to this day,
with extensive filial duties on the part of
children toward parents and elders, and great
concern of parents toward their children.

Loyalty
 Loyal is the equivalent of filial piety on
a different plane, between ruler and
minister. Like filial piety, however,
loyalty was often subverted by the
autocratic regimes of China
 We can see how this can support a
totalitarian regime

Ruler and those ruled
 If the ruler lacks rén, Confucianism holds, it
will be difficult if not impossible for his
subjects to behave humanely. Rén is the
basis of Confucian political theory: it
presupposes an autocratic ruler, exhorted to
refrain from acting inhumanely towards his
subjects. An inhumane ruler runs the risk of
losing the "Mandate of Heaven", the right to
rule.

Ruler and those ruled
 A ruler lacking such a mandate need not be
obeyed. But a ruler who reigns humanely and
takes care of the people is to be obeyed
strictly, for the benevolence of his dominion
shows that he has been mandated by heaven.
Confucius himself had little to say on the will of
the people, but his leading follower Mencius did
state that the people's opinion on certain
weighty matters should be considered

Five fundamental relationships
 The Five Bonds
 Ruler to Ruled
 Father to Son
 Husband to Wife
 Elder Brother to Younger Brother
 Friend to Friend

Relationships are important
 Specific duties were prescribed to each of the
participants in these sets of relationships.
Such duties were also extended to the dead,
where the living stood as sons to their
deceased family. This led to the veneration of
ancestors. The only relationship where respect
for elders wasn't stressed was the Friend to
Friend relationship. In all other relationships,
high reverence was held for elders.

Filial piety
 The idea of Filial piety influenced the Chinese
legal system: a criminal would be punished
more harshly if the culprit had committed the
crime against a parent, while fathers often
exercised enormous power over their children.
Now filial piety is also built into law. People
have responsibility to provide for their elder
parents according to law.

The ideal man
 They were to:
 cultivate themselves morally;
 show filial piety and loyalty where these
are due;
 cultivate humanity, or benevolence.
 The ―small man‖ is petty, interested in
only materialism, greedy

Taoism – Chinese religion
Often combined with
Confucianism

Difficult to know how many
participate
 Often Chinese will have 3 religions, or
mix with Chinese folk religion
 Estimates from 20,000,000 to
400,000,000!
 The number has declined since
communism

The essence of Taoism
 Taoism refers to a variety of related
philosophical and religious traditions with
the word Tao meaning– path or way.
 Three Jewels of the Tao:
 compassion,
 moderation,
 humility,

The essence of Taoism
 Taoist thought focuses on nature,
 the relationship between humanity and
the cosmos (天人相应),
 health and longevity,
 wu wei (action through inaction),
 These produce harmony with the
Universe.[

Tao is almost indefinable
 In reading descriptions, it is like a flow
of basic energy
 A basic concept is that of effortless
effort – that the master aligns himself
with this flow ―qi‖ accomplishes things
without effort

Pu – the state when you follow
wu wei (effortless effort)
 It is believed to be the true nature of the
mind, unburdened by knowledge or
experiences.
 In the state of pu, there is no right or
wrong, beautiful or ugly. There is only pure
experience, or awareness, free from learned
labels and definitions. It is this state of being
that is the goal of following wu wei.

Lau viewed as a god; Taoist
priest

White Cloud Monastery
Beijing, China

Islam
 Rapidly growing religion
 Dominates in 52 countries
 Total population of Islam – about
1,000,000,000 – 1/6 world population
 Although we think of the middle
East, only 20% are there. The largest
Muslim country is Indonesia

Islam
 Rapidly growing in Europe – now the
second largest religion in Europe
 However, only a small percentage of
missionaries have been working with
Muslims

Islam
 It is tied with 7th century Arabian
culture, and is a deification of that
culture.
 You cannot separate the culture
and the religion – they are tied
together in politics, family structure,
food, clothing, religious rites, etc.

Islam – submit
 Islam = submission of body and soul to
Allah
 Muslim = those who submit

Islam
 Culture – the authority was in the
Sheik, who had absolute authority
 Therefore, democracy is basically
incompatible with Islam. You can
expect a ―strong man‖
 There is no concept of personal
rights or civil rights per se

Contact with the West
 Some western ideas have been
implemented in some places
 Veil not always worn
 Law of apostacy not always enforced
 Western goods bought
 Some places polygamy is reduced or
even against the law

Conflict with western
civilization
 Western racial problems
 Colonialism
 ―peace-keeping‖ wars
 Moral degeneracy
 N.B. – Conflict is mostly where the west
has abandoned Jesus’ teachings

Islam
 Very difficult to win
 More difficult to remain faithful and
grow
 Opposition from family
 Ridicule from friends
 Social and economic pressures

Main areas of theologic
problems
 The innate sinfulness of man
 The Sonship of Jesus Christ
 The doctrine of the trinity
 Jesus’ death and resurrection

Further inconsistencies
 They believe that there were 124,000
prophets, all sinless
 This actually contradicts the Qur’an,
where God tells one or another prophet
to confess and repent of his sins
 To them, a prophet is an authentic
messenger of God to bring God’s true
revelation

Signs of respect to a Muslim
 Take off shoes when entering a home
 Shake hands both coming and going
 Never sit cross-legged in a chair (don’t
show bottom of feet)
 Be careful of petting dog (unclean)
 No alcohol, pork, certain seafood
 Be careful how you handle the Bible;
not on the floor

Signs of respect
 Avoid
 Being free with the opposite sex
 Joking about sacred things
 Religious jewelry
 Pictures of Jesus

How to witness
 A devout life with deeds of love and
service – especially schools and
medicine
 Sharing common interests
 Disaster relief
 Teaching English
 Selling literature, especially Bible
correspondence courses

Witness to Muslims
 Where permitted, public evangelistic
meetings with much prayer and printed
invitations
 Radio & TV may penetrate as well
 Be sure to relate the convert to
Jesus, and not just to yourself

Islam
 Background information:
 Just before Mohammed, Arabia was animistic
with worship of stones. The tribe of Mohammed
had the black stone put in the Ka’ba
 Sabianism was dominant, worshipping the
heavenly bodies, with a lunar calendar and the
moon as the male deity. They fasted with the
appearance of the crescent moon

Allah
 Allah was originally the name of the moon
god for Mohammed’s tribe, represented by
the black stone which was believed came
from heaven.
 The sun was female, married the moon,
and produced three daughters of Allah,
which were the top of 360 idols.
Mohammed later destroyed all idols but the
black stone

Muslims and the Ka’ba
 Believe it was first built by Adam, but
destroyed by the flood
 Rebuilt by Abraham and Ishmael

Mohammed – 570-632 AD
 His father died before he was born, and his
mother died when he was six
 He was reared by uncle, became a camel
driver at age 25 met a wealthy 40 year old
woman, Khadijah, and lived happily. He lived
only with her, but had at least 9 wives after
her death.
 He apparently heard about Jesus both from
the Bible and extra-Biblical sources

Muhammed’s call
 Age 40, while meditating, the angel
Gabriel came and gave a revelation
from God.
 First messages – one God there; repent
from idolatry before the day of
judgment
 About 40 people initially accepted his
teaching

Opposition grew
 He started sending groups of leaders to
Yathrib (Medina), and finally fled with
Abu Bakr on June 20, 622
 This is the Hijra – the beginning of
Islam
 In Medina, he plundered rich caravans
and had military success.

Successful re-entry in Mecca
 With 10,000 soldiers, he entered Mecca
without a fight, cleared the Ka’ba of
idols, and made decree for an annual
pilgrimage there – the Hajj

Five pillars of Islam
 The creed – there is no God but Allah
and Muhammed is his prophet‖
 Prayers in Arabic 5 times per day
 Alms to the poor
 Fasting, esp. Ramadan, with no food,
drink or sex from sunrise to sunset for
one month
 Hajj once in a lifetime

Some benefits of Islam
 No idolatry
 No burying live baby girls
 Uniting Arabian tribes
 Civil brotherhood among Muslims
 Some rights of women were improved

Qur’an
 Believed to be the very words of God
 Muhammed did not write them, but
followers memorized them
 Caliph Uthman ordered their assembly –
114 suras (chapters) a little more than
the New Testament
 Some memorized the entire book

Qur’an
 Used in Arabic in the services
 Private believers may have bilingual
editions
 Some read the entire Qur’an during
Ramadan
 It reads as poetry in Arabic

The spread of Islam
 Abu Bakr consolidated the Arabian tribes and
won a number of victories
 There was rapid spread over 100 years –
taking over the Persian empire, much of the
Byzantine, north Africa, Spain, and were
finally stopped at Tours in France by Charles
Martel – 732
 90% became Muslim. Countries slowly lost
their advanced civilization

Initially Islam brought
advances
 Golden era – great advances in
medicine, science & art
 1300-1600 Ottoman empire expanded,
as did the Moghul empire in India with
expansion to East Indies and Philippines

The mosque of the Prophet –
second most holy place

20-21st century advances
 Initially the Arabian slave traders were
hated. However, colonialism stopped
the slave trade, and colonialism
replaced the hatred for the slavers
 Much expansion in Africa, and also in
Europe and to a lesser degree in
America

Ahamdiyya movement
 Very anti-Christian, using anti-Christian
western critics to argue their point
 Black Muslims initially were political, but
later more orthodox Muslims

Sunni & Shi’a groups
 Shi’a say that Muhammed’s son-in-law,
Ali was supposed to be his follower, but
Uthman suppressed 3 sections of the
Qur’an which showed that Uthman was
not legitimate.
 Ali was assassinated, and there was a
struggle between two successors
leading to the split

Shi’as have Imam
 Imam is a successor to Muhammed and
an infallible guide – at least 12 so far.
The last, the Madhi, disappeared in
878, but they believe that he is still
alive, will return at the end of the age,
and convert the world to Islam
 Sunnis have a caliph
 90% are Sunni; 10% Shi’a

Sufi’s
 Muslim mystics
 Sought actual contact with God through
emotional experience

The Hadith
 These traditions of what Muhammed
said were brought together and cover
virtually every action of life, including
the most intimate
 To the Shi’a, the authorized interpreters
of the law are called Mudtahids

Qur’an and the Bible
 Muslims accept 4 books as inspired:
Taurat (Law) given to Moses
 Zabur (Psalms) given to David
 Injil (Gospel) given to Jesus
 Qur’an given to Muhammed

 In Surah 5:44 it implies that the Jewish
scriptures are still valid and unaltered
 [5.44] because they were required to guard
(part) of the Book of Allah, and they were
witnesses thereof; therefore fear not the
people and fear Me, and do not take a small
price for My communications; and whoever
did not judge by what Allah revealed, those
are they that are the unbelievers.

 Surah 5:68 – Christians must obey the
book: [5.68] Say: O followers of the
Book! you follow no good till you keep
up the Taurat and the Injeel and that
which is revealed to you from your
Lord; and surely that which has been
revealed to you from your Lord shall
make many of them increase in
inordinacy and unbelief; grieve not
therefore for the unbelieving people.

 The Qur’an is sent to guard the scriptures
 [5.48] And We have revealed to you the
Book with the truth, verifying what is before
it of the Book and a guardian over it,
therefore judge between them by what
Allah has revealed, and do not follow their
low desires (to turn away) from the truth
that has come to you; you differed;

 [5.48] for every one of you did We
appoint a law and a way, and if Allah
had pleased He would have made you
(all) a single people, but that He might
try you in what He gave you, therefore
strive with one another to hasten to
virtuous deeds; to Allah is your return,
of all (of you), so He will let you know
that in which you differed;

 On the other hand:….
 Surah [5.51] O you who believe! do
not take the Jews and the Christians for
friends; they are friends of each other;
and whoever amongst you takes them
for a friend, then surely he is one of
them; surely Allah does not guide the
unjust people.

 Surah 3:78 the Muslim must believe the
scriptures
 [3.78] Most surely there is a party
amongst those who distort the Book
with their tongue that you may consider
it to be (a part) of the Book, and they
say, It is from Allah, while it is not from
Allah, and they tell a lie against Allah
whilst they know.

Qur’an conflicts with the Bible
 Jesus spoke to men from his cradle (Surah
[19.23] And the throes (of childbirth)
compelled her to betake herself to the trunk
of a palm tree. She said: Oh, would that I
had died before this, and had been a thing
quite forgotten![19.24] Then (the child)
called out to her from beneath her: Grieve
not, surely your Lord has made a stream to
flow beneath you;

 Jesus was not crucified, but one who
resembled him: Surah 4:157. But Jesus
himself predicted his death, all the
disciples saw it; he had marks on his
hands and feet, Jesus prayed for his
persecutors, and this was the purpose
of his coming and his death

 [4.157] And their saying: Surely we have
killed the Messiah, Isa son of Marium, the
apostle of Allah; and they did not kill him nor
did they crucify him, but it appeared to them
so (like Isa) and most surely those who differ
therein are only in a doubt about it; they
have no knowledge respecting it, but only
follow a conjecture, and they killed him not
for sure.

Jesus did not die according to
the Qur’an
 [4.158] Nay! Allah took him up to
Himself; and Allah is Mighty, Wise.

 Qur’an states one of Noah’s sons drowned
(Surah [11.42] And it moved on with them
amid waves like mountains; and Nuh called
out to his son, and he was aloof: O my son!
embark with us and be not with the
unbelievers.[11.43] He said: I will betake
myself for refuge to a mountain that shall
protect me from the water. Nuh said: There
is no protector today from Allah's punishment
but He Who has mercy; and a wave
intervened between them, so he was of the
drowned.

 Because they called Isaac his only son,
the Arabs believe that it was Ishmael
who was offered but God sent a
substitute, although the Qur’an
mentions Isaac a few verses later, and
does not say which son. (when
discussing, focus on the main point, a
substitute)

Conflict with supposed
Christian teaching
 Christ is the son of God – they think that
Christians believe that God had intercourse
with Mary:
 The trinity – that Christians believe in three
Gods, one of which is Mary: Surah 5:116, 79
 Answer with Jesus words in Mark 12:29:
Here, O Israel; the Lord our God is one Lord

Qur’an suggests Christians
believe in three gods
 [5.116] And when Allah will say: O Isa son of
Marium! did you say to men, Take me and my
mother for two gods besides Allah he will say:
Glory be to Thee, it did not befit me that I
should say what I had no right to (say); if I
had said it, Thou wouldst indeed have known
it; Thou knowest what is in my mind, and I do
not know what is in Thy mind, surely Thou art
the great Knower of the unseen things.

Assertion that the Bible
predicts Muhammed
 Surah 61.6] And when Isa son of Marium
said: O children of Israel! surely I am the
apostle of Allah to you, verifying that which
is before me of the Taurat and giving the
good news of an Apostle who will come
after me, his name being Ahmad, but when
he came to them with clear arguments they
said: This is clear magic.

Assertion that the Bible
predicts Muhammed
 They claim this for John 14-16
concerning the coming of the Holy Spirit
(name resembles a name given to
Muhammed), as well as Deut. 18:15-18

They believe that the Bible
has been corrupted
 In fact, the Qur’an does not state that the
scriptures were corrupted, but that some
Jews and Christians denied and perverted
that truth, and that the Jews had changed
some scriptures. Surah [2.75] Do you then
hope that they would believe in you, and a
party from among them indeed used to hear
the Word of Allah, then altered it after they
had understood it, and they know (this).

They believe that the Bible
has been corrupted
 They believe that the 4 gospels were not
from the mouth of Jesus directly as speech
from God like the Qur’an

The Jews alter the Bible
according to the Qur’an
 [4.46] We have heard and we obey,
and hearken, and unzurna it would
have been better for them and more
upright; but Allah has cursed them on
account of their unbelief, so they do not
believe but a little.

The Jews alter the Bible
according to the Qur’an
 [4.46] Of those who are Jews (there
are those who) alter words from their
places and say: We have heard and we
disobey and: Hear, may you not be
made to hear! and: Raina, distorting
(the word) with their tongues and
taunting about religion; and if they had
said (instead): a little.

Answers to Muslims re Bible
 No true believer would dare tamper with the
Bible. Gal. 1: [8] But though we, or an angel
from heaven, preach any other gospel unto
you than that which we have preached unto
you, let him be accursed.[9] As we said
before, so say I now again, If any man
preach any other gospel unto you than that
ye have received, let him be accursed.

Revelation 22:18-19 Don’t
tamper with the Bible
 [18] For I testify unto every man that heareth
the words of the prophecy of this book, If any
man shall add unto these things, God shall
add unto him the plagues that are written in
this book:[19] And if any man shall take away
from the words of the book of this prophecy,
God shall take away his part out of the book
of life, and out of the holy city, and from the
things which are written in this book.

Answers to Muslims re Bible
 The Bible had spread to many different
lands in different translations long
before Muhammed was born and these
are the same as the texts we have now

Answers to Bible tampering
charge by Muslims
 There are many manuscripts before the
birth of Muhammed today, and they are
essentially the same as ones after his birth
 Translations are not different Bibles
 The Qur’an basically believes in the truth of
the scriptures

The truth of scriptures
 Its own testimony that it is God’s word
 The wonder of its unity in diversity
 The power to reveal God and change
the lives of the readers
 Its scientific and literary accuracy

Muslim concept of God
 All powerful and the only truly active
force in the universe. However, the
God of the Bible
 Cannot do anything to violate His own
nature = He cannot lie
 Has given us free will, but acts upon our
will to accomplish His own purposes

Muslim concept of God
 Omnipresent – same as Christianity, but
not the concept that God can live in a
person. He is more distant
 Omniscient – God knows everything.
However the God of the Bible knows
our inner thoughts, and He promises to
forget the sins of those He forgives

God is Holy
 Quite a difference – for the Muslim,
holy is used only once, and means
really wholeness, completeness
 No concept of moral righteousness and
purity. He is said to create from Adam
one group for heaven, and one for hell

God’s Justice
 Christian – we face a righteous God who will
be faithful to His own Word
 Muslim – no such thing as an absolute
principle to which God must adhere. Right or
wrong is what Allah commands at a particular
time, and it can change.
 There are 225 commands in the Qur’an which
have been cancelled. They feel that binding
God to any principle makes Him less than
God

God Forgives Sins
 But God of the Bible forgives sins and
gives the GIFT of salvation – not earned
 Forgiveness extends to changing the
heart of the believer and restoring a
proper relationship with God
 Only an outside power can save us from
the power of sin

The love of God
 Muslim concept – God is too far away to have
a feeling for man. They feel that love comes
from a sense of need – and God needs
nothing
 Also – the existence of pain and suffering
 Also – man is insignificant in the vast universe
 Christian – God loves because it is His nature
to love, and His love extends to sinners

Muslim belief of sin
 Adam & Eve forgot God’s command. It was
satan’s fault
 Their sin did nothing to others, and they can
reform as Adam did
 The muslim looks at man as good but
imperfect. The prophets are to remind us
not to sin, and man can avoid sin. Muslims
do not see sin as a major problem…
know what to do, and do it…

Muslim concept of Jesus
 The Qur’an accepts the virgin birth &
sinlessness – a direct creation of God
like Adam.
 He is given special titles showing his
unique relationship to Allah
 He is considered a man, a prophet and
an intercessor.
 Allah gave him a book as a boy

Muslim concept of Jesus
 His teaching confirmed previous
revelation
 He told of an apostle who comes after
him
 His ministry was to the people of Israel
 His message was a word of truth
 He healed and raised the dead

Muslim teaching re
Muhammed
 Nothing about a miraculous birth
 Although they believe he did miracles,
this is denied in the Qur’an
 Muhammed’s teachings came from
visions – later compiled in the Qur’an
and also the Hadith – traditions
 Muhammed’s ministry was enforced by
the sword – Jihad

Their deaths
 Muslims believe that God changed Jesus and
they only thought they killed him, but God
raised him to heaven, where he lives today.
 The Qur’an talks about Jesus’ death, but they
say this is in the future. He will return 40
years on the earth, marry and have children,
die, and be raised in the general resurrection

The death of Muhammed
 Muhammed was sick several days, and
then died. He left no instructions for a
replacement. Abu Bakr took over the
prayers, and was chosen as the first
khalifah

The prophets and sinlessness
 The Qur’an agrees that prophets
sinned.
 The Qur’an also supports that Jesus
was sinless.

Conversion
 Muslim – simply a heart-felt repetition
of the creed is enough
 Christian – you must receive Christ in
you as your new life – later shown by
baptism

The value of the individual
 Jesus is unique – He placed the highest value
on all mankind
 The value of something is what you are
willing to pay for it. Jesus paid for our
salvation with His own life.
 Muslims & children
 Don’t kill children
 Care for orphans (Muhammed was one)
 Jesus placed great value on children

Woman and the Qur’an
 Men are superior to women. You can beat
them, but rod no thicker than your thumb
 Legalized polygamy – but you must treat your
women the same – in material things
 Some places are opposing polygamy now
 They allow ―temporary wives‖ also
 Wives veiled – sometimes a burka
 Only men could divorce – after saying it three
times…

Women and the Qur’an
 Women get ½ inheritance of men
 Woman’s testimony = ½ a man
 Majority of women were illiterate
 Jesus made basically no difference in
treating men and women

Qur’an and brotherhood
 Brotherhood of all believers – but don’t
make friends of Jews or Christians
 Still many consider non-Muslims
unclean
 Jesus standard was higher than that of
the Pharisees – love even your enemies

Jesus & Qur’an & apostates
 Surah 4:89 – kill apostates [4.89] They
desire that you should disbelieve as they
have disbelieved, so that you might be (all)
alike; therefore take not from among them
friends until they fly (their homes) in Allah's
way; but if they turn back, then seize them
and kill them wherever you find them, and
take not from among them a friend or a
helper.

Jesus & Qur’an & apostates
 Jesus prayed for Peter knowing he would
deny him. He showed love even to Judas,
who betrayed Him.
 God loves all; Jesus died for all; each
individual is priceless

Jesus death
 Surah 4:157 states that the Jews did not kill
Jesus, but God protected him. However, it
says ―we have slain the Messiah, Jesus, the
son of Mary, the apostle of God‖
 Problems – They claim Jesus did not claim to
be God. Then why would the Jews kill him?
Further, if they called him the messiah, they
would have followed him, not killed him. So
the teaching is inconsistent…

Jesus atonement
 Denied by Islam – first, he didn’t die,
and second, no need for atonement
 God has decreed the fate of all men
from the beginning, and they cannot
change it.
 God does not truly love man.
 However, each man’s deeds are
weighed in the balance…

Christian predictions about
Muhammed
 Surah 61:6 says that Jesus predicted
Muhammed. ―Ahmed‖
 Deut. 18:15-19, which refer to Jesus
 Jn. 14-16, where they believe that parakletos
(the comforter) was originally periklutos –
which means praise, as does Ahmed
 Hundreds of copies written long before
Muhammed all had parakletos (comforter)

Answers
 Muslims claim brothers = Muslims
 But brother is used in Deut. 17 referring
to kings, who were Jews, and Samuel
anointed Saul, a Jew
 Peter in Acts 3:22-23 shows that the
reference is to Christ

Answers
 The comforter was to comfort the
disciples on Jesus’ death. How would
someone born 500+years later comfort
them?
 Jesus called the comforter a ―spirit
whom the world shall not see.‖
 The spirit was to be in the disciples
 The spirit would come ―not many days
hence‖

The gospel of Barnabas
 Two are there – one rejected in 496 of
which no copies have been found
 One written in Italian found in 1709
 Many faults
 Calls Barnabas one of the disciples
 Accuses Paul of being deceived & refuted him
 Quotes Jesus as saying he is not worthy to
untie the sandals of the messiah – instead of
John the Baptist

Gospel of Barnabas
 Historical & geographic blunders
 Year of Jubilee every 100 years
 Wine stored in barrels, which had not yet
been invented
 Wearing stockings – done by Italians,
never by Jews in Palestine
 Had Jesus arrive in Nazareth by sea
 Pilatus governor at Jesus birth rather than
at his death…

Epistle of Barnabas
 The Muslims were interested because it
claims that Jesus did not die, and that
he predicted Muhammed
 But it is clearly a fraud and not related
to the earlier book

Jesus predictions vs. Qur’an
 Many of Jesus predictions have already
been fulfilled
 Jesus predicted many times that He
would return personally on earth in glory
 Muslims claim he will return to live as a
man 40 years, become a muslim, make
children, and die to arise on the
judgment day to be judged as all men

Jesus and Qur’an – the future
 Both predict a judgment time unknown,
with good in heaven and evil in hell
 Qur’an looks at paradise strictly in
materialistic terms – food, drink, sex

Folk religion dominates also in
Islam
 What magic must he use
 What demons must he placate?
 What fetishes must he use
 We have seen obvious demonic
involvement
 His world is dominated by the evil eye,
sorcery & curses, sickness and death

Jihad
 Used to talk about physical war against
apostates
 Used to talk about control of desires
 The most severe persecutions against
Christians now occur in communist and
Muslim lands

Roman Catholicism
 About 620,000,000 people worldwide;
50,000,000 in the USA
 Dominant figure in the middle ages in
politics, art, literature, education
 Many of the central beliefs of the faith –
virgin birth, trinity, sinlessness of Christ,
atonement, deity of Christ

Problem is what is added
 Church built on Peter, who was the first
pope
 Purgatory after death to clean from sin
 Prayer to Mary and dead saints
 Images to kneel to
 Confession to a priest, who absolves
 Mass as a saving sacrament

Added…
 Veneration of Mary
 Holy Water
 Canonization of dead saints
 Rosary
 Celibacy in the priesthood
 Tradition of the church = the Bible

The Pope
 Based on Mt. 16:18 [18] And I say also unto
thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I
will build my church; and the gates of hell
shall not prevail against it.
 The wrong Rock – not Peter but Christ
 We are commissioned to preach the gospel –
those who receive it are forgiven of their sins

Traditions of Mary
 Mother of God & Queen of heaven
 Immaculate conception – born without sin
– contradicted in Luke 1: 46] And Mary
said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,
[47] And my spirit hath rejoiced in God
my Saviour.
 Assumption (raised directly to heaven)

Traditions of Mary
 Perpetual virginity – no: Mt. 1:19-20, 24-
25; [24] Then Joseph being raised from
sleep did as the angel of the Lord had
bidden him, and took unto him his
wife:[25] And knew her not till she had
brought forth her firstborn son: and he
called his name JESUS.

Traditions of Mary
 Perpetual virginity – Mt. 13:[55] Is not
this the carpenter's son? is not his mother
called Mary? and his brethren, James,
and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?[56]
And his sisters, are they not all with us?
Whence then hath this man all these
things?

Traditions of Mary
 Co-redeemer & co-mediator with Christ –
 I Tim. 2:5 [5] For there is one God, and
one mediator between God and men, the
man Christ Jesus;
 Jn. 14:6 [6] Jesus saith unto him, I am
the way, the truth, and the life: no man
cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Doctrine of Purgatory
 Sale of indulgences to shorten the time
in Purgatory
 Saying masses & prayers for the dead
 Further the Catholic church believes
that you must be subject to the Pope
and come through the church for
salvation.

False ―Christian‖ and Non-
Christian cults
 Christian cults:
 Jehovah’s Witnesses – Jesus is Michael, the
archangel
 Mormons – Jesus is the son of Elohim, a
man who had sex with Mary, and the
brother of Lucifer
 Christian science – Jesus is a divine idea
 Etc…

Oriental Cults
 Some type of Hinduism or Buddhism
 Hare Krisna
 Divine Light
 Transcendental meditation
 Hindu pantheism, we are part of an
impersonal universe, the world is an
illusion, we must get rid of the illusion
and be part of the impersonal universe

New Age combines
 Western secular Humanism
 No personal God or creator
 Evolution
 Man is supreme
 Man is basically good
 Humans have potential to become god

New Age…
 Eastern Hindu Mysticism
 Pantheism
 We are one with nature
 We are part of the impersonal cosmos
 Yoga, TM
 Reincarnation

New Age…
 Occult
 Spiritism
 Channeling
 Spirit guides
 Astrology
 Crystals
 Tapping into cosmic forces

Spiritist cults
 Astrology
 Tarot cards
 Palmistry
 Numerology
 Witchcraft
 Satanism
 Seances

Jehovah’s Witnesses
 Largest publisher in the free world –
 44 million books & 550 million magazines
in a single year!
 Plan to have every home visited 1-2
times per year in the USA
 Started by Charles Taze Russell, taken
over in 1917 by Joseph Rutherford

Watchtower – 1907 –
publication over 100 years

Watchtower is available in
 407 different languages!
 PDF and audio files
 ACC files – more up to date than mp3

Charles Taze Russell – founder
of Jehovah’s Witnesses

Judge Rutherford – second
man for Jehovah’s Witnesses

 God’s theocratic government – all other
governments are satanic
 No Christmas because they deny the
incarnation, and no Easter because they deny
the bodily resurrection
 Under Knorr, they developed a strong
missionary outreach
 They continue to grow under Franz &
Henschel

 The organization is the prophet of God
 The organization is God’s sole channel of
the truth
 To reject the organization is to reject God
 Only the organization can properly
interpret the Bible
 The Watchtower has God’s truth directed
through the organization

Kingdom Hall – worship center

Kingdom Halls are overall in
the world

Jehovah’s Witness teaching
denies:
 The trinity
 The bodily resurrection of Christ
 The deity of Christ
 The visible return of Christ
 The person of God the Holy Spirit
 The promise of heaven to all believers
 The necessity of the new birth for all
believers

Jehovah’s Witnesses deny:
 The Lord’s supper for all believers (not
144,000)
 Eternal security of believers
 Eternal conscious punishment of the
lost

False teachings of the JW
 Jesus is a created being, actually
Michael the Archangel
 Jesus is just a spirit being
 Jesus was not resurrected bodily, but as
a spirit being
 Jesus returned invisibly in 1914
 Jesus was only a man on earth

False teachings of JW
 Hell is simply the grave
 The Holy Spirit is simply an active force
 Heaven is only for 144,000
 The majority of JW’s will remain on earth
 Salvation is found only through the organization
 Salvation is maintained through working hard for
the organization
 Satan is the author of the trinity
 Do not worship Jesus, just honor him

Ways to witness to Jehovah’s
Witnesses
 One method is to attack the power of
the Watchtower by demonstrating that
it is a false prophet. There are some
books which duplicate the prophecies of
the witnesses, which are patently false

Ways to Witness
 Another method is to ask if Jesus is
really an angel
 The 5 references in the Bible do NOT
show that Jesus is Michael the arkangel
 Then go to Hebrews 1, which contrasts
the Son with angels in a very clear way.
 Then – who is Jesus? Is the
Watchtower truly God’s organization?

Witness to Jehovah’s Witness
 Couple the various verses concerning
Jesus and Jehovah
 Isaiah 44:6 [6] Thus saith the LORD
the King of Israel, and his redeemer the
LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am
the last; and beside me there is no God.

 Revelation 2:8 [8] And unto the angel
of the church in Smyrna write; These
things saith the first and the last, which
was dead, and is alive;

 Revelation Revelation 1:[17] And when
I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And
he laid his right hand upon me, saying
unto me, Fear not; I am the first and
the last:[18] I am he that liveth, and
was dead; and, behold, I am alive for
evermore, Amen; and have the keys of
hell and of death.

Mormon church
 One of the wealthiest churches around
– profits $3,000,000 per day! Value is
in the billions
 They claim to be the fastest growing
church, although not true in the USA –
most growth is overseas

Mormonism
 The law of eternal progression:
 ―As man is, God once was; and as God
is, man may become‖
 They believe that there are a vast
number of planets scattered through
the universe ruled by men-gods who
were once like us. And so we work to
become a god and have our own planet

Mormon teaching…
 One god & goddess made a spirit child
called Elohim, who was later born to
human parents and given a human
body. In obedience to Mormon
teaching, he proved himself worthy and
was elevated to godhead like his father.
He lived with his wives on a planet near
the star Kolob, making billions of spirit
children.

Then
 The head of the mormon Gods decided to build
planet earth where the spirit children would be
sent to take mortal bodies and learn good and
evil. Lucifer, one of Elohim’s sons, wanted to be
the savior of the new world, but planned to force
everyone to become gods. The Mormon Jesus
wanted to give man the choice like on other
planets. They voted and chose Jesus. However,
Lucifer rebelled with 1/3 of the spirit children,
who became demons, and were denied the
possibility of having bodies of flesh & bone.

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