My friend Jessi has been my friend since we started high school. Over the lifetime of our friendship we have shared many experiences. At some point, our phone calls and visits became less frequent. Not because we drifted apart but because we became adults. With adulthood came buying our own homes not close to one another, getting married, having kids, et cetera, et cetera. What I treasure most about my friendship with Jessi is that it never feels like talking to a stranger when we do finally get a chance to talk on the phone or get to visit in person a few times per year. I asked Jessi over last week because Easter was on my mind.
I knew that my friend could talk to me about Hinduism and Christian-based beliefs. Jessi is a practicing Catholic. My initial question I wanted to ask her was about the actual rebirth of Jesus Christ. So, is reincarnation a concept that is part of Catholicism? In Hinduism, your karma from your past life follows you to your next, but you come back in a different form. It seemed to me that Jesus was still Jesus when he arose on Easter morning. That is different than in Hinduism, but still, He was “reborn.” Well, resurrected. Does that count as being kind of the same?
What Jessi explained to me was that on Easter morning, no one really saw Jesus. The two women only saw that the cave was open and Jesus’ body was missing. And when Jesus did make himself known to the Apostles, all except Thomas, He was in a different form. This made me made me think of another idea. Warning, a little rambling thought process here. Could it be not that Jesus entered another cycle of life, but because Jesus is God, could this different form He showed up as to the Apostles be a separate incarnation of God like Bhudda was the 9th incarnation of Lord Vishnu? Ok, so it there is more similarity than I had first thought but which direction it goes is still a mystery.
I have more reading to do, but I think there is more commonality in these two belief systems than differences. It is my belief that religious texts are based on historical events. And I believe that the “rules” of religion are based on the culture where the scriptures originated. But, the core messages about being a good human being are very similar. Jessi and I talked for a long time. The comparisons we found between Hinduism and Catholicism were amazing. There’s no way I can tell you all of it. Well, I can tell you more but in another post, or another few posts. So, I’ll leave you with this. This made both of us stop and say, “Whoa.”
I had told Jessi that Jesus’ role in Christianity reminds me of Krishna’s role in Hinduism. Krishna was the 8th incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Hindu scriptures say that Lord Vishnu will come down to Earth in the form of an avatar when He is most needed. There is a 10th avatar still to come. He will arrive to end the Age of Darkness, when society is polluted and extremely corrupted. This avatar, called Kalki, will ride in on a white horse with a flaming sword and make the final judgment on mankind. This description reminded Jessi of the Book of Revelation. She said that she would need to read it again but it sounded very familiar. Jesus is also said to appear again. Perhaps there was even a mention of white horses and a sword. To be confirmed.
I love talking with Jessi. As mothers and wives, we do our fair share of griping about our families. But what really makes me enjoy conversation with her is that we talk about ideas and concepts that we may question together or ones that may challenge each other. On this day we talked about Easter. On other days we may talk about baking. But whatever the topic, after talking, we leave a little more enlightened and excited to learn new things. Well, at least I know I do. Thank you for doing that for me, Jess. Who is this friend for you?
We all come from somewhere in this big world. But it’s not such a huge place when we learn that we share so much more than we can imagine.
Do you have a story to share with me about how the world got smaller for you? Please get in touch with me !
