A Buddhist community in Lowell, Mass., wants the archdiocese to sell them a closed church for half its assessed value. “We are hoping they will hear the programs we offer and consider us,” said Samkhann C. Khoeun, a spokesman for the Glory Buddhist Temple Development project.
An interesting question: Is it in the best interest of the Catholic Church, and by that I mean the mission of the Gospel, to help Buddhists expand their presence? I think that interreligious dialogue is a good thing, as is cooperating with those of other religions in projects that benefit people. But should the Church help advance the religious work of another religion in this way?
Of course, the other question is whether it would be better to turn over a closed church to a completely secular project than it would be to turn it over to a (let’s admit it now) false religion.
Well it would be interesting to see how many parishioners notice that Sunday mass is actually a Buddhist prayer service. Buddhists believe we are all god and the ultimate goal is inner peace – which sounds a lot like some homilies I have heard recently…
Maybe someon ought to just go bun the place down before it it too late LOL!
MS