A Response to:

"Living Buddha, Living Christ"
by Thich Nhat Hanh

Copyright 1999-2002 by John WorldPeace

All  rights reserved

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Foreword

Chapter by chapter responses:

Chapter One: Be still and know
-A. Religious life is still life
-B. Dialogue: The key to peace
-C. Touching Jesus
-D. Real communication
-E. Interbeing
Chapter Two: Mindfulness and the Holy Spirit
-A. The seed of the Holy Spirit
-B. Present moment
-C. Making peace
-D. I am there for you
-E. The light that reveals
-F. Our true home
Chapter Three: The first supper
-A. To be greatful
-B. Looking into our food
-C. Living in the presence of God
-D. The bread we eat is the whole cosmos
-E. The body of reality
-F. Everything is fresh and new
Chapter Four: Living Buddha, Living Christ
-A. His life is his teaching
-B. Mindfulness is the Buddha
-C. More doors for future generations
-D. The mother of all Buddhas
-E. The daughter of God
-F. We continue to be born
-G. Touching our ancestors
-H. Suffering and the way out
-I. I am the way
-J. I am always there for you
-K. Seeing the way is seeing me
-L. I am understanding and love
-M. Freedom from notions
-N. Seeing the way, taking the path
-O. Your body is the body of Christ
-P. Enjoy being alive
Chapter Five: Communities of Practice
-A. Mindfulness of working
-B. Monastic culture
-C. Community as a refuge
-D. Community as a body
-E. The holy spirit is the soul of the church
-F. The holy spirit is the energy of love and understanding
-G. To be real salt
-H. Are we practicing the true teaching
-I. Jesus needs Christians
Chapter Six: A peaceful heart
-A. Collective awareness
-B. Looking deeply
-C. The highest form of prayer
-D. Understanding brings liberation
-E. Understanding brings compassion
-F. Understanding transforms
-G. Understanding ourselves helps us understand others
-H. Understanding brings forgiveness
Chapter Seven: For a future to be possible
-A. Rerooting
-B. The jewels of our own tradition
-C. Cultivating compassion
-D. Cultivating loving-kindness
-E. The oneness of body and mind
-F. More than one root
-G. Unmindful speech can kill
-H. Mindful consuming
-I. Real love never ends
-J. Practicing and sharing
Chapter Eight: Taking refuge
-A. A safe island
-B. Mindfulness is the refuge
-C. The foundation of stability and calm
-D. Embracing, not fighting
-E. Touching the living Christ
-F. A mini-pure land
-G. Devotional and transformation practice
Chapter Nine: The other shore
-A. Continuation
-B. Manifestation and remanifesting
-C. True faith is alive
-D. Each moment is a moment of renewal
-E. Enlightenment grows
-F. Nirvana is available now
-G. The extinction of notions
-H. More time for your tea
-I. The other shore is this shore
-J. Everything can be spiritual
-K. Touching the living Buddha
-L. Trees and birds preaching the dharma
-M. Rinsing the mouth, washing the ears
-N. The holy spirit can be identified
-O. Touching the ultimate dimension
-P. Touching the water within the waves
Chapter Ten: Faith and practice
-A. Penetrating the heart of reality
-B. Only the son and the holy spirit know him
-C. The substance of faith
-D. Taking refuge
-E. Interior recollection
-F. Afflictions block the way
-G. The abyss of doubt
-H. The original mind
-I. An expression of love
-J. How not to lose the contemplative life
-K. Mindful living is possible
-L. Our original purpose
-M. The well is within us
-N. Religious experience is human experience
-O. Loving God is loving living beings
-P. Empty of what?
-Q. The nature of being
-R. The ground of experience
-S. Concrete prayer
-T. Total surrender
-U. Two types of causation
-V. Who is not unique?
-W. The difference is in emphasis
-X. Real dialogue brings tolerance

FOREWORD

What I have done here has not, to my knowledge, been done before.  I have virtually responded line by line to Brother Hanh's book "Living Buddha, Living Christ".

It is not my intention to criticize Brother Hanh.  I have never met him except through his books.  I have nothing against monks. I have nothing against Buddhists.  I have nothing against Vietnamese.

What I have is a perspective with regards to the subject matter of Brother Hanh's book. And my perspective is radically different from his because my life has been and is radically different from his.  I have worked and lived in society as an accountant and lawyer, father and husband.  I have served in the military.  I was born and raised in the United States.  I have been divorced and bankrupt.  I have had a near fatal heart attack.  

At the same time, like Brother Hanh, I have followed a spiritual path all my life. We are about the same age.  We are of the same sex.

So what follows is a perspective about spiritual teachings.  He has written his perspectives from his position as a monk and I have responded with my perspective as an attorney.  Nothing more.  Nothing less.

How can we manifest peace on earth if we do not include everyone (all races, all nations, all religions, both sexes) in our vision of Peace?

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