Vivekananda on Christianity

[Guest guest]

Writings of Swami Vivekananda -- Christianity

 

Watch and pray, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand," which means,

purify your mind and be ready! And that spirit never dies. You

recollect that the Christians are, even in the darkest days, even in

the most superstitious Christian countries, always trying to prepare

themselves, for the coming of the Lord, by trying to help others,

building hospitals, and so on. So long as the Christians keep to

that ideal, their religion lives.

 

So we find that in almost every religion these are the three primary

things which we have in the worship of God -- forms or symbols,

names, God-men. All religious have these, but you find that they

want to fight with each other. One says, "My name is the only name;

my form is the only form; and my God-men are the only God-men in the

world; yours are simply myths." In modern times, Christian elergymen

have become a little kinder, and they allow that in the older

religions, the different forms of worship were foreshadowings of

Christianity, which of course, they consider, is the only true form.

God tested Himself in older times, tested His powers by getting

these things into shape which culminated in Christianity. This, at

least, is a great advance. Fifty years ago they would not have said

even that; nothing was true except their own religion.

 

This idea is not limited to any religion, nation, or class of

persons; people are always thinking that the only right thing to be

done by others is what they themselves are doing. And it is here

that the study of different religions helps us. It shows us that the

same thoughts that we have been calling ours, and ours alone, were

present hundreds of years ago, in others, and sometimes even in

better form of expression than our own.

 

All religions are, at bottom, alike. This is so, although the

Christian Church, like the Pharisee in the parable, thanks God that

is alone is right and thinks that all other religions are wrong and

in need of Christian light. Christianity must become tolerant before

the world will be willing to unite with the Christian Church in a

common charity. God has not left Himself without a witness in any

heart, and men, especially men who follow Jesus Christ, should be

willing to admit this. In fact, Jesus Christ was willing to admit

every good man to the family of God. It is not the man who believes

a certain something, but the man who does the will of the Father in

heaven, who is right. On this basis - being right and doing right -

the whole world can unite.