With his Rejection of Wealth, Jesus is a Maverick in the Bible

The Bible does not reject worldly riches in general. In the Old Testament, King David of Israel, and King Solomon who ascended to the throne after him both increased their kingdom’s wealth.

God said to David: “Your house and your kingdom will continue before me for all time, and your throne will be secure forever.” (2 Samuel 7:16)

Solomon is acknowledged with the words: “So King Solomon became richer and wiser than any other king on earth.” (1 Kings 10:23)

If we look at the Bible as a whole, we find a generally positive attitude towards wealth and riches in this worldly life, while Jesus’s statement that a rich man cannot go to Heaven appears like a maverick position.

Capitalism originated in countries with a Christian background, and led to their good quality of life today, so I believe we can say that not all Christians today are adhering strictly to Jesus’ teachings concerning wealth.

Christians are Not Adhering to the Law Against Idolatry

Criticism 4: Worshipping Master Okawa’s (El Cantare’s) image is against the second commandment “You must not make for yourself an idol. ”

It is impossible to criticize Happy Science, a modern religion, based on the Ten Commandments handed down by Moses, the founding father of the Jewish faith, more than 3000 years ago.

This is equally true for the Christian church today. The Catholic church worships images of Jesus Christ on the cross and of the Virgin Mary.

The Greek Orthodox Church only bans the worship of free standing statues but allows flat images (icons), and apart from the Protestants, there are no Christian sects that fully adhere to the law against idolatry.

Happy Science is based on the ideas of Buddhism. For Buddhists, it is an obvious part of their religion to worship images of the Buddha, who established their religion. In the same vein, Happy Science followers worship images of Master Ryuho Okawa, in whom resides the divine spirit of El Cantare.

(El Cantare is the entity referred to as “El” or “Elohim” in the Old Testament, and as “Our Heavenly Father” in the New Testament.)

Throughout the history of mankind, religions that include the creation and worship of idols have dominated the scene. Religions in Greece, Egypt, and India have a rich history of idol worship, which caused Jews, Christians, and Muslims to protest against this and resort to iconoclasm (destruction of idols).

Religions that practice the law against idolatry have been minor forces.

The Bible itself Proves the Existence of the Cycle of Rebirth

Criticism 5: The teaching of the Cycle of Rebirth disseminated by Happy Science is heretical.

The Christian church considers the Cycle of Rebirth a heretical concept, but so far it has not directly criticized the idea of reincarnation taught by Happy Science.

In its early days, the Christian church actually included the Cycle of Rebirth in its teachings. In the 4th century, Constantine the Great who had made Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire, deleted a section about the Cycle of Rebirth from the Bible, and in the 6th century, at the Second Council of Constantinople, this teaching was officially declared heretical.
It is said that Christian people, at that time, felt obliged to make a clear distinction between them and the one practiced in Egypt at the time, which included concepts like reincarnation and the existence of the spirit world.

No matter how much people want to reject it, since it remains true that the human soul is eternal and reborn on earth many times in order to learn and evolve, the Bible leaves evidence for this.

Jesus said “But I tell you Elijah has already come.” (Matthew 17:12) “Then the disciples realized he was talking about John the Baptist.” (Matthew 17:13) This conversation with Jesus’disciples shows Israelis, at that time, believed in the concept of reincarnation, and believed the saying that Elijah was to come.

“Jesus answered, ‘I tell you the truth, before Abraham was even born, I Am!’” (John 8:58)

Abraham was Israel’s founding patriarch, who, about 2900 years ago, moved to Canaan following God’s command. If Jesus had already existed before Abraham, this shows that he himself must have experienced the rebirth of his eternal soul on earth.

Religions should Improve by Learning from Each Other

The report published after Master Okawa’s lecture in Africa stated that “Happy Science has not given strong counter arguments to the criticism brought forth by the Christian church,” but the opposite is true.

Happy Science happily takes every opportunity to listen to opposition and engage in conversation with other religions. Through this process, the framework of our faith and our teachings becomes clearer.

At the same time, I believe this is also an opportunity to evolve for the Christian church, whose philosophy has become rather materialistic, rejecting the existence of the spirit world.

Religions exist in order to increase the overall happiness of humankind, and to pursue this goal, they need to improve by learning from each other.

(Jiro Ayaori)

Visuals (News Site and Bible)

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/07/10/contentious-religion-from-japan-succeeds-in-uganda/