The Path of Peace: Following the Dalai Lama, who follows... Jesus?

The March 31, 2008 issue of Time Magazine has as its lead story, “The Dalai Lama’s Journey.” As I read it, I could not help but be impressed with his vision of what is, and what could be. Also heard echoes of things Jesus said 2,000 years ago.

Pico Iyer, the author, reports, “But having spent time watching wars and revolutions everywhere from Sri Lanka to Beirut, I’ve grown intrigued by the quietly revolutionary ideas that the Dalai Lama has put into play. China and Tibet will long be geographic neighbors, he implies, so for Tibetans to think of the Chinese as their enemies – or vice versa – is to say they will long be surrounded by enemies. Better by far to expunge the notion of “enmities” that the mind has created.” Later, he says, “Thus, calling Chinese individuals your enemy and Tibetans your friend, the Dalai Lama might suggest, is as crazy as calling your right eye your ally and your left your adversary; you usually need both to function well, and all parts of the world body depend on all other parts.”

Sound familiar? “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.” –Matt. 5:43-48 (NLT)

But that is not what really struck me. A link on Canon Fodder led me to this article on how Jesus conceptualized the future. I encourage you to read the article to understand the connection I’m making better. Basically, Jay Gary, the author, describes three different ways of viewing the future: Conventional View, the Counter View, and the Creative View. The Conventional View, at the time of Jesus, was basically one of the status quo; the Romans would be the rulers, and the Jews would be subjects to the brutality of the Pax Romana. The Counter View, held by the Zealots and Pharisees, was, of course, the opposite view. They held that the future would bring tremendous change, where the Jews, with God’s help, were able to throw off the shackles of Roman imperialism and initiate the true Messianic Kingdom of Peace in Judea. Gary argues that Jesus saw these two views of the future ultimately colliding and bringing utter destruction to the Jews, of both views. There, Jesus proposes and develops a third way, a Creative View. This Creative View envisioned a “New Israel” that would not be tied down to a geographic location or nationalistic; it would be a cultural expression of the Kingdom of God, diffused throughout the world, seasoning the world around it like salt. It was neither militaristic, as the Counter View was, nor assimilationist, like the Conventional View. It was a view where the distinct culture of the New Israel would survive and transform those around it. It embraced the enemies as neighbors, yet had a strong sense of community; it was inclusive and influential precisely because of that approach.

Fast forward 2,000 years to Central Asia. Much of the Time article seems to be describing a “revolutionary” third way of viewing Tibetan future. It is this Creative View presented by the Dalai Lama that the author finds so intriguing.

Essentially, there is a Conventional View, held officially by the Chinese government, that Tibet is a part of China and will be integrated and “liberated” with the rest of the country. Iyer describes it this way: “For Chinese pledged to material development, freedom simply means liberation from the past, from religion and from backwardness.” The Counter View is held by some in Tibet and more by Tibetans in exile. This view is expressed thusly: “But more and more Tibetans in exile ask how they can sit by and practice nonviolence while their homes and families are being wiped out by the Chinese occupation. ‘Why is he thinking of the future and not the present, the past?’ asks an outspoken Tibetan in Dharamsala [India]… ‘I want freedom in this world, not from this world.’”

Since the Conventional View is essentially one of assimilation, like the Roman Conventional View, it envisions an end to the unique Tibetan culture that weaves Buddhism, politics, and economics into one social fabric. The Counter View, similar to the one held by the Zealots and Pharisees of long ago, envisions a mass rising, where Tibet throws off the shackles of Chinese assimilation and is free to be a light to the world. And, like Jesus, the Dalai Lama seems to be proposing a Creative View. He does not call for Tibetan independence, just autonomy to protect their culture, language, and religion; essentially, to protect their way of life. He does not get angry about the “demographic aggression” of the Chinese in building a high-speed train from Beijing to Lhasa; he simply accepts it as “a form of progress, of material development.” He understands that to save the Tibetan culture, it must invariably change (similar to the changes Israel had to go through to be the New Israel). The Dalai Lama said in 1996, “At a certain stage, the Dalai Lama institution will disappear. But that does not mean that Tibetan Buddhist culture will cease. No!” Iyer describes the Dalai Lama’s Creative View this way: “The deeper issue, as the Dalai Lama always stresses, is that names and forms are unimportant so long as something more fundamental is sustained. The Buddha’s job – and therefore that of his most prominent contemporary student – was not just to be clear-sighted and compassionate but also to show how compassionate and clear-sighted any one of us can be. In that regard, It hardly matters whether the terms Dalai Lama or Buddhism or even Tibet continue to exist. As it is, thanks to the exodus of Tibetans in the past half-century, Tibetan culture and Buddhism have become part of the global neighborhood.”

The parallels between the Tibetan and Judean crises are intriguing. More over, I find the Creative Views of the Dalai Lama and Jesus strikingly similar. They both propose a vision of peace created by a culture of love and accomplished through release of nationalistic and militaristic goals.

For me, this parallel is a call for the church to renew her vision of the future. We need to collectively lift our eyes to the prophetic horizon that Jesus envisioned, and embrace the path of peace in the power of the Spirit. Though I think Buddhism misses something (God), I wonder if the Dalai Lama understands the future that Jesus envisioned better than the church does.

A little guy humor...

So, I'm watching Comedy Central. This guy is flippin' hilarious. He mentions that he was confirmed a Lutheran, and that at his confirmation, he had to pick out a verse in the Bible that reflected his faith, and read it to the congregation. His verse?

Genesis 43:23
And he said, Peace be to you, fear not: your God, and the God of your father, hath given you treasure in your sacks.

Amen, right guys? :-)