Let's talk about a crazy "what-if" situation here ...?

Question

If the US had been founded by Buddhists, would you be happy to let Buddha's name appear on currency and be part of the Pledge of Allegiance?

Even though you were still free to practice your beliefs, would it bother you to see "Buddha" all over everything, or to have to acknowledge Buddha in order to pledge allegiance to your country?

mike -- Fact is, god didn't create anything either. But that's not the issue here.

Answer 1

It wouldn't particularly bother me ... but then again, having God on the money or in the pledge doesn't mean anything to me. Simply putting the phrase on dollars or mentioning God's name in the pledge doesn't make him anymore powerful, and it also doesn't really show any kind of REAL dedication, either! We'd probably be better off without it, honestly.

Answer 2

Hypothetical questions are great to illustrate certain points, but the fact of the matter is "reality". The reality is that America would not have been founded by Buddhists. It was the pursuit of religious freedom in a Christian context that founded America. It is in the fundamental of the fabric of every founding document of this country. I believe that it is the result of something that was started 2000 years ago. Christianity changed (thereby destroyed) the Roman empire and carried us through the Dark Ages and then sparked the Renaissance. It even caused the Age of Enlightenment (which you can argue that we are still in) whose embrace of science challenges the superstitious aspects of "religion" .
You think science negates Faith in the divine. I think that it will expose the possibility that what we call the Divine actually exists and that the Universe if far more organized and complex than a random happenstance.
Its just that we, as primitive people have interpreted this sense of the "spiritual and Divine" the only way we would have known how to, by making it a religion of rituals and dogma. If there is "something" there we would sense on a certain level and try to explain it in our own feeble way and then as science advanced to a certain level we would then reject God as nonsensical and superstitious simply because if we can't prove his existence or perceive it , he logically must not exist, or maybe we just don't have the ability yet to perceive the divine in a purely empirical way. That doesn't he doesn't exist because you can't ignore thousands of years of this ingrained "sense" of the divine. Is there any culture that has not embraced some type of belief system?
None comes to mind. I think soon (next 1000 years or so) the thought of atheism will seem as backward as the worship of the volcano god. It'll seem so 20th century. We will studying the nature of the entity or intelligent process that created everything and still exist on a different dimensional level and that ain't gonna be Buddha.

Answer 3

I am not American, but I live an hour from the US border and find our countries are very similar anyhow, so if this was the case with Canada, or if I was a US citizen, I would have a problem with this.
I'm not Buddhist (nor am I Christian) and I don't like constantly having to participate in religious customs that are not my own.
This being said, I don't think anyone should be subjected to practices they do not agree with.
I fully believe church and state should be separate... we now live in a multi-cultural society and if we can raise prices, taxes, change laws about other major moral issues, then there is no reason we should be keeping church and state together... and hey, maybe if people weren't having religious beliefs from others thrown in their face 24/7 there would be a bit more acceptance for other faiths.
I look at it this way... either we accept multi-culturalism in our society and accept that it can change our whole way of life, or we do not... we can't pick and choose what we're willing to accept about another culture... and as long as we're telling people how to control their countries, we can't get hostile for having someone from another country saw how we should control our own.

Answer 4

Assuming the underlying points you are making are that the word "God" should not appear on American currency or in the American Pledge of Allegiance, I agree.

There may have been a time when the United States was sufficiently homogenous to assume a belief in a higher power. This being the case, it was harmless to use the name of God without worrying about the freedom or religion. After all, there is no reference to how one would worship God, and in reality, it was only in the manner of worshipping a higher power that people truly seemed to disagree (Protestant vs. Catholic, e.g.). This being said, it is most assuredly no longer the case that a belief in a higher power is to be assumed, and without the safety of that assumption, using the term God so liberally amounts to a presupposition of a religious view that many Americans do not have.

The above being said, your points are well taken.

Answer 5

As a Protestant I don't think that I would like to see Buddha's name printed on everything, however, if the United States had been founded by Buddhists, my family would not have immigrated to this country. We live here not because we can practice our beliefs (there are plenty of Western nations where that is possible), but to live in a country that was build on the principles and in the faith that we believe.

Answer 6

Well let's put this in perspective - Buddha is the equivalent of Christ and neither the name nor image of Christ appears on our money or in our pledge.

The phrases "In God we Trust" and "Under God" contain the generic sense that we as a nation must pursue justice since, as per Judeo-Christendom, we will be judged by God for our behavior.

The Buddhistic equivalent to Christianities cosmic judge is Karma. If I were living in a historically Buddhist country, I would not object to a national pledge containing "One Nation, under Karma" or money saying "What Goes Around Comes Around"

If you are worried about what's printed on the money instead of which politicians favor economically debilitating tax rates, your priorities are desperately screwed up.

If European Calendar had used BB and AB (Before/After Buddha) for thousands of years, I would still like to pummel the neurotic academics who felt BCE & CE were more politically correct.

Answer 7

If the US was a Buddhist society, I would probably be a Buddhist, and therefore have no problem with the name appearing.

As it is, I am Christian, because I am on a constant search for God, and this has been the closest and easiest religion to grab hold of. Fortunately for me, I beleive the search for God will lead you to Him, no matter what you call Him.

CONSIGLIERI - I gave you a thumbs down. I do not do this often, especially for matters of religion, so I feel I must explain. I beleive your comments about Buddah were disrespectful and did not answer the question at hand or add anything to it. Please don't disrespect other people's religions and beliefs, as I am sure you would not want others to disrespect yours.

*EDIT*
As to the point that the "Under God" should be taken out of the Pledge of Allegiance, it won't matter to me if it is. I will still say "Under God" when I say the Pledge. I will exercise my freedom of speech and free will to say it. Just as those who do not believe it can exercise their free will and freedom of speech NOT to say it currently.

Answer 8

I would personally, since I adore Buddhist principles. But, I would understand why some people would dislike it. Obviously this has no parallels to any real life situations in America...involving currency and the Pledge of Allegiation...tacitly condoning one religion over others...no parallels at all...

Answer 9

I am a Christian and I do believe in God, but no it would not bother me. Part of being a Christian is tolerance. While I might not agree with Buddism or support it, I can handle seeing it on my money. I mean as long as it spends like the money with IN GOD WE TRUST does, that's all that matters right? It's silly to get so upset over something so minute.

Answer 10

If I am in a country where the culture has Buddha, or any deity or folk hero. on currency and any pledge etc..wouldn't bother me..