BHUTAN - BEWARE OF THE CHRISTIAN MENACE:

DO Not let it Destroy the Enviable

Buddhist Culture and the Happy and
Innocent Lifestyle of the Bhutanese
People

Common Agenda: Evangelization 2000

and Beyond

It is no secret that all world churches- most important of them being the Roman Catholic
Church and the Protestant Church- have a common agenda which they call
"Evangelization 2000 and Beyond". Evangelization 2000 is not an isolated phenomenon.
It comes in wake of two other movements, globalization and Westernization.
Westernization has culturally enslaved many people’s minds and lives. All this together
constitute a single, three-pronged onslaught on national sovereignty – economic, cultural
and religious of Buddhist nations such as yours and mine (Sri Lanka). Evangelization is
in fact homogenization. It seeks to impose "one God, one Prophet and one Book” over all
mankind. It will destroy cultural pluralism and religious diversity. It is the evangelizing
faiths that threaten the rich and colorful diversity and impose a monolithic way of life
over all peoples.

Subordination of Humanitarian Service to Proselytizing

According to the World Evangelization Research Center (WERC), there are more than
four thousand mission agencies. Collectively they operate a huge apparatus, manned by
some 434,000 foreign missionaries wielding an annual global income of $18 billion.
They spend an astonishing average of $359,000 for every person baptized.
This subordination of humanitarian service to proselytizing is a matter of theology--
evangelical Christians believe they hold a divine mandate, their "Great Commission"
from God, to spread their creed. But it is also a matter of policy as far as the Catholic
Church is concerned. Pope John Paul II, during his 1998 visit to India, stated
categorically that the "Christianization" of Asia is an absolute priority" for the Catholic
Church in the new millennium. Missionaries have long capitalized on the leverage they
exercise over the young through thousands of church-run hospitals, schools, and
orphanages.

Allurements and Inducements

The practice of allurement, or providing "inducements" to the poor in return for their
conversion to Christianity, is quite common, and one that many missionaries readily
admit using. Today's methods are subtle and more concealed. Converts are now being
"bought" with food, medicine, promises, micro-loans and many other means. This
practice of bribing, rewarding and buying people over to Christianity, is not a recent
phenomenon, it has been the common characteristic of all Christian and western
humanitarian and charity missions and their NGO affiliates operating in poor countries.

Intimidation and Fraud

When these baits and allurements fail, the missionaries resort to more-aggressive means
which border on intimidation and fraud. In Sri Lanka they resorted to making of the
Buddha- shaped cookies to be eaten by children and smashing and destroying statues of
the Buddha in their presence in order to kill children’s spirit of veneration to the Buddha.
For these peculiar Christians the "harvesting" of souls has become an end that justifies
almost any means. "It's not how we convert that matters," Paul insists. "Conversion is
what counts."

Not Humanitarian nor Charitable

Bhutan is known to be a country with gracious people who are simple and innocent in
their disposition. Perhaps most of them are not fully aware of the deplorable nature of
operations of these so-called Catholic and Christian charitable missions operating in
Buddhist countries such as Sri Lanka. Most of our people are unaware that the methods
of assistance of these missions are based on the “give and take” business principle, rather
than on an altruistic humanitarian philosophy. Their generous ‘givings’ are laden with
strings. In terms of real value, what they give is negligible when compared to what they
seek and get. What they do at grassroots level among the innocent and materially poor
people do not qualify as humanitarian or charitable efforts. Humanitarianism or charity is
to generously give without expectation of anything in return.

Buddhist Spirituality

For 2,500 years Buddhism has satisfied the spiritual needs of nearly one third of
mankind. It appeals to those in search of truth because it has no dogmas, satisfies the
reason and the heart alike, insists on self-reliance coupled with tolerance for other points
of view, embraces science, religion, philosophy, psychology, mysticism, ethics and art,
and points to man alone as the creator of his present life and sole designer of his destiny”.
Studies have revealed that Bhutanese are the happiest people on earth. The primary basis
of their happiness derives from their Buddhist way of life and attitude towards life,
towards others and towards their environment.

Incompatibility with Culture and Way of

life

What Catholic and Christian missions are attempting to introduce to predominantly

Buddhist countries such as yours and ours, is incompatible with the way of life and the
social value system of our countries. Bhutan’s well-established Buddhist culture extends
to the 7th century, a period that exceeds 1400 years and is marked by ingenious creativity
and accomplishments.
Bhutan’s Buddhist culture is characterized by cohesive families, respect for parents,
elders, strong and lasting family bonds, children being great sources of inner satisfaction
and pride for parents, taking personal care of parents and elders during their sunset years,
maintaining close ties with ones relatives, taking pride in their accomplishments, and
helping those in need, being charitable and compassionate towards others, generation of
satisfying community feelings through numerous religious, cultural and recreational
activities where Buddhist principles form the basis, and people’s active participation in
these festivals, ceremonies, rituals and celebrations. People’s community attachment and
feelings of togetherness are best expressed at the varied colourful rituals and festivities
that characterize life in Buddhist Bhutan.

Negative social tendencies that characterize western ‘Christian societies are uncommon
in Buddhist countries such as yours and ours. Among these undesirable tendencies are
excessive divorces, broken families, family violence, single parents, abandoned children,
child abuse, abortions, teenage pregnancies, drug and sex addiction, proneness to stress
and depression, excessive sensuality.

Divisiveness and Disharmony

Proselytization actions of Christian organizations not only work against Buddhism and
Buddhist culture that form the foundation of life in countries such as yours and ours, but
also, in the process, bring about divisiveness and disharmony among our people. This is a
most reprehensible form of exploitation. Divisive tendencies thrust upon people become
threats of the well-known community coherence, hospitality, cordiality and unity that
characterize out Buddhist communities. Community feeling pervades our Buddhist
societies, especially among our predominantly rural masses. Individualistic tendencies
are promoted by the Christian western corporate culture where aggressiveness, craving
and sensuality reign supreme. This so called culture promotes limitless craving for
material possessions, physical comforts and sensual pleasures.

Sustainable Development Strategy

Buddhism and Buddhist culture are essential components of the tangible and visible and
intangible and unseen socio-cultural infrastructure of our Buddhist nations. Sustainable
development means implementing a process that integrates environmental, economic and
social considerations into decision making. As far as countries such as Bhutan and Sri
Lanka are concerned, with a rich and well-established ancient Buddhist cultural heritage,
sustainable development means the achievement of continued economic and social
development at the expense of the spiritual development that are essential components of
our cultures, providing stability to our society. Uprooting something that has become
essentially a ‘part of nature’ in Bhutan with something foreign and incompatible is
against “sustainable development”.

Western Christians find Solace in

Buddhism

The sensible and intelligent people of the western world are withdrawing from
Christianity in increasing numbers, and through their own conviction, have turned to the
meaningful Buddhist way of life. Today Western Europe, the traditional homeland of
Catholics and Anglican Protestants, is a post-Christian society. The churches are empty,
the people increasingly secular and some significant sections turning to Buddhist
meditation and yoga. A similar situation exists among many in USA among whom are
the educated, professionals and celebrities.

Former Christians are in increasing numbers, turning towards Buddhism and Buddhist
practices such as meditation to enrich their lives, because they do not see depth and
meaning in the lifestyle promoted by the western materialistic and individualistic life
style. They find it to be both stressful and shallow. Buddhism is the fastest growing
religion and spiritual influence in most western countries at present.

Science and Buddhist Knowledge

In recent years western scientists in fields such as psychology, cognitive science,
neuroscience and medical science have shown much interest in the vast field of Buddhist
knowledge. They concede that Buddhism has refined meditation methods in order to
probe the nature of mind, using the mind itself as the instrument of investigation. Today,
bio-behavioral scientists in increasing numbers are extending their methods and
expanding their conceptual frameworks realizing the complementary nature of the
approaches of science and Buddhism. What science and Buddhism really share is the goal
of understanding the nature of reality. Science uses that scientific method and a lot of
technology – it starts from the outside and probes the nature of reality. Buddhism uses the
human mind, reformed through meditation, starting from the inside, looking at the same
questions.

Dr. Daya Hewapathirane

Vancouver, Canada

February 01, 2011