Why I am a Hindu and not Christian

When I was a graduate student some years ago at a university known for its Theological school, I was faced with several attempts to convince me to convert to Christianity.

I have a deep respect for Christian traditions and customs and among the three western religions Christianity might be regarded as the most secular.

However I don't believe in conversion, neither did M.K. Gandhi who had studied the Bible.

In this post I would like to highlight the reasons that Theologians highlight when converting one to Christianity

The key beliefs of the Christian tradition are as follows

1. The sin of Adam and Eve applies to all of mankind since we are descendants of Adam and Eve.
2. Jesus Christ is the son of God. He performed miracles and he was resurrected after death. By following Jesus, i.e. through the process of baptism and communion, one can redeem him/her from the sin and join Jesus in heaven. Also this is the only path to heaven else one shall suffer a life in hell. These are the words of Christ himself.
3. Since he was innocent and did not commit any crime, by dying on the cross, He relieved all of mankind of this sin.
4. Several Christians have personal experiences in which they have seen Christ and have had life changing experiences.

Let me address each one of these one at a time

1. The sin of Adam and Eve applies to all of mankind since we are descendants of Adam and Eve.

As was stated in my blog on the Introduction to Western Religion, according to the three western religions God created the world about 5768 years ago according to the Jewish Calendar. (See note below) And God created Adam on the sixth day, and then created Eve using one of ribs and so forth.

Even if one does not believe in evolution, one can argue using multiple sources of evidence such as the fossils of the dinosaurs, carbon dating of plants and other animals that have been found to exist much before, sometimes even millions of years before this date. Hence for all practical purposes there was no Adam and Eve.

Secondly for Adam and Eve to grow to a population of 6 billion in 5768 years it seems like an enormous undertaking. According to one theologian the book of the Genesis is actually metaphorical and it doesn't translate to actual events.

In any case, if we say that Adam and Eve did not actuall exist and hence we can deduce that the original sin was never committed and hence we are not affected by it.



2. Jesus Christ is the son of God. He performed miracles and he was resurrected after death. By following Jesus one can redeem him/her from the sin and join Jesus in heaven. Also this is the only path to heaven else one shall suffer a life in hell. These are the words of Christ himself.

It maybe true that Jesus was a historical figure. One cannot confirm the fact that he performed miracles also whether he was actually resurrected.

Coupled with the fact that this occurred over 2000 years ago in a time when the Egyptians and the Greeks would use the laws of physics to perform "miracles" to attract followers to the temples. It is possible that these can be overstated and one cannot use spoken word as evidence.

Even if I were to accept that Jesus actually did perform these miraculous acts, here is a counter argument to that.

In India towards the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, there was an individual who is worshipped by the name of Sai Baba. Baba performed several miracles and there is a lot of stories regarding these. Considering that Baba's stories are far more recent than of Jesus which was over 2000 years ago, one can say that maybe Jesus wasn't the only one.
Also there is substantially more historical evidence on the existence of Sai Baba such as actual photographs.

Also here I haven't stated other historical miraculous stories that have been told in India. There are also individuals such as the Buddha who offered a totally different path where the ultimate purpose is not Heaven but the freedom from birth and death.

Although Jesus maybe a path to Heaven if that is one's purpose in life, that is not the only path that is available. If Jesus said "follow me" as the only path to Heaven, Baba said "there is only one God. It doesn't matter how you worship Him."

Hence to say that the path of Jesus is the only path is not be true. This might something that the Church invented to instill a fear of God and make people follow their ideals.

3. Since he was innocent and did not commit any crime, by dying on the cross, He relieved all of mankind of this sin.

OK Jesus may have been innocent and didn't deserve to die on the cross. But a lot of people in the Roman times were crucified on the cross. Some of them may have been innocent. Were they all "Sons of God". ?

4. Several Christians have personal experiences in which they have seen Christ and have had life changing experiences.

There are also similar stories in India on how people's lives were changed when they visited Sai Baba temple in Shirdi for example. Each person has their own personal experiences and one cannot use these as a basis for converting others to his/her faith.



Finally what about the sins one commits in his own life.

Shouldn't each person be responsible for his/her own actions and is aptly rewarded or punished based on his/her actions and not based on the actions of his/her ancestors (Adam, Eve or who ever) or faith or religion ?

I personally believe is that all religions have good and bad. Each religion has evolved to address the issues of the particular culture and the people. One shouldn't use religion as a basis to discriminate other people nor should one feel the need to convert others without understanding the other person's point of view.

Note: (Unlike its civil counterpart, Judaism's calendar starts with a far more universalistic perspective from the birth of mankind. Jews are now in the eighth century of the sixth millennium (the year 2007 will correspond to the years 5767-5768). The Jewish calendar doesn't start from the time the Jews became a nation, but rather from the creation of the world.