SM Stirling's Father Ignatius can compare only human traditions but these differ at least as much as any imagined alien world views. Ignatius thinks that the Buddha and Plato were holy men but without "'...the fullness of the Divine Logos to guide them!'" (The Sword Of The Lady, Chapter Sixteen, p. 487)
Why did they not have the fullness? The Logos/reality/source of enlightenment is within everyone. The Word is the light that enlightens everyone (see here) and the Buddha is the Enlightened One. I find his spiritual teaching more helpful than anyone else's.
3 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
Great and good men like Buddha and Plato did not have the fullness of the Divine Logos because they were not aware of God revealing Himself to mankind thru the Jewish people, sages, and prophets. A revelation reaching its culmination in the Incarnation, Passion, and Resurrection of Christ.
Buddha taught a high ethic and Plato sought to find the First Cause thru reason and logic. But neither could achieve CERTAINTY because I don't believe God spoke directly to or thru them--as He had done with the Prophets of Israel.
Sean
That's precisely the reasoning Ignatius uses, of course.
Dear Mr. Stirling,
I thought so! And it's a bit of reasoning I believe to be true.
Sean
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