Buddhism is the inversion of the correct Pagan ideology.

Buddhism is a religion that has, from day one of me discovering it, to this very date fascinated me despite my family having inherent dislike for the philosophy and being angry at me for defending Buddhist monks among other things. My family generally has the idea that Buddhism is a religion of laziness and corruption that only is able to last due to others doing the work for the Buddhist. I won't go into specifics about my dad beyond that but it's understandable why his side of the family think this about Buddhists. 

As I grew I learned very much about the ideology and still today believe strongly in its methods and overall application but the core idea behind it is inverted. Buddhism aims to lead you to become nothing, to preserve things only so as to obstruct the rich and powerful and yet in practise Buddhism has always served the powerful by trying to be 'peaceful' and letting others hurt others around them remaining catatonic in the face of it.

Buddhism in many ways is what I call benevolent pyschopathy but the issue with this is that it ends up enabling the naturally gifted to brutally dominated the naturally cursed in an unfettered, Darwinistic manner. In being vegetarian and aiming to stop and hurt no one, you do end up somewhat helping the unfairly rich or unfairly powerful to continue on an upwards spiral of continual decimation of any who stand in their way. Buddhism is a good strategy to play it safe in life and end up happy at the sake of others but ultimately there's a core idea that I disagree with them on: not having ego and not being a hero.

You need to love yourself, you need to feel things... Deeply... Passionately. Otherwise why live at all? The Buddhist mentality would and has at times made me utterly suicidal. If you believe you're nothing, just a figment of reality happening by accident and aiming to just exist as is progressing towards nothing and being here for no purpose other than to eat, breathe and be a basic bitch then what the fuck are you alive for at all? Why not speed up the process and end it all? The enjoyment of life itself ends up contradicting the Buddhist ideology that says the reason you enjoy life is to aim to become nothing more than the moment here and now. If you're nothing more than the moment here and now, you can't then base everything on a greater philosophy that requires memory and strategy to maintain itself.

I believe strongly in ego and think we are taught to be humble because that benefits the powerful. If everyone is humble, aims to just live in their little corner assigned by the rich and ruthless, then no one changes anything and that lets them live in peace only so long as they ignore the agony and injustice at the hands of those around them. In the end, you can't be a proper Buddhist ever. If you sit by and do nothing, you're knowingly enabling the sadistic to be so, if you do act to stop them it requires ego, anger and passion which contradicts Buddhist philosophy at its core.

I understand why they choose to be cowards, it's a very calming way of life. I understand, really I do. That's why I aim to be only as calm as I need to be to fight another day. Stress has physical ailments as a result of it, you need to maintain a level of calm and zen and in that way I totally understand Buddhists and Taoists. Where I differ to the Buddhists is that the aim of this inner peace is to be the end in itself. Rather I believe it's the way to be smart and strong enough on the later times to fight smart and ruthlessly so as to stop a less smart but more unfair and ruthless group of leaders/tyrants.

That's my true belief.

Even though this is a topic about Buddhism, this quote from St. Paul the apostles letter to Corinth is very relevent 

“For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” 

Really, they don't see it as being cowardly. Quite the contrary, they would probably look at you as if you are a slave to the vices and vanities of this world. 

It isn't too dissimilar to the Christian perspective.

Dispassion is something Buddhists and Christians habe in common.

Jesus said, "Blessed are the pure in heart, they shall see God."

The eightfold path of Buddhism is a guideline to aid in heart purification. People who don't know better think that Buddhism is atheistic, but that isn't true at all.

In fact, it is written in the Pali Canon in Nibbāna Sutta — Parinibbana

This, what Buddha is talking about is what we call God in Orthodox theology.

Likewise, in The Tao Te Ching, what it describes as "The Tao" is what we call God in Orthodox theology.

Buddhism doesn't give two shits about Jesus and thinks Jesus was a very heavily Karmic-debt-owing soul that had egomania beyond many humans who ever lived.

Don't even begin to compare Buddhism to Christianity, you will fall at every hurdle. 

The actual core idea of the two religions is so utterly opposite in itself in the first place. Buddhism thinks the aim is to cease to exist and be reborn at all, Christianity tells us to aim to live forever in active pleasure and reward. Buddhism says the 'bad outcome' is being reborn and having unlimited tries to achieve Nirvana (which is literally to no longer exist at all and stop being reborn) whereas Christianity says 'one chance or you're gone'. Buddhism would sooner sense a good person who hated Buddhist officials and Buddhism as a religion-by-name to its Nirvana than a crooked person serving it in name, Christianity is much murkier on this matter and holds doubting Jesus and the Christian God's supremacy as almost an equal sin to child abuse and many other things.

I understand that this is what you understand these two traditions to be, but I don't really believe you get either.

And well, I certainly don't see in my faith what you ascribe to it.

I would also like to point out that the vast majority of English speaking Christians would be considered heretics by Orthodox standards.

 

There is no pagan ideology. Pagan is just an umbrella term for a bunch of non Christian religions. 

Orthodox Christianity does not believe in coercive methods to get people to convert. Emphasis is on freewill.

In fact, we look down on the missionary activity of some churches that bribe natives with things like food and supplies in order to gain converts.

Of course, we can hardly be blamed for not wanting unbelievers as our priests and bishops!

Our church supported a missionary school that brought people from Asia to the US for training then sent them home to start churches. He man who ran the place, Baptist, stated: Best way to spread the word of god to someone is in their own language with someone who knows the culture. He felt white people witnessing in non white/ English lands was silly.

Historically, the Orthodox Church in America has been an immigrant church that has mostly kept to itself.

A few decades ago even, you would not have the type of written material available today in English. It is my hope that protestants in the US will start coming to Orthodoxy in droves.

Really, protestant pastors are becoming Orthodox in droves!

You have to start somewhere. 

I feel the same way for the most part as the guy who ran the missionary school you speak of.

I certainly liked that someone who was Christian was training to run a church more than missionary work. I did vacation bible school. Turned me off to witnessing entirely. 

You can't be a good witness if you aren't actually a witness, you know.

What Orthodoxy really means is to get back to the Gospels leave behind religious authority (which INCLUDES yours) in favor of the pursuit of spirit, life and freedom and all things related to that. There is no group or organization that represents that, it is an individual empowerment and no institution can touch that truth. The Gospels are for the people, not religious authority. By dividing yourself from others using the excuse of some pipe dream you call "orthodox" you are putting your energy to the wrong outlet, welcome to religion Mopac.