Letters to the Editor: A Christmas message of human powerlessness?

To the editor: Reading Bonnie Kristian’s Christmas Day piece about ending war, illness and cruelty, I was struck by the impotence that Christianity instills in some of its followers. The message of Christmas seems to be that God will save us, and yet here we are, more than 2,024 years later, with war, illness and cruelty still plaguing us.

At the other end of this spectrum of belief, for example, is the highest teaching of Buddhism — that all people possess within them infinite potential for good. And, since almost all our problems are created by us, the power to solve them lies within us. We don’t need to look to an outside power or force.

That’s where Buddhist practice comes in. In contemporary terms, we could call this practice “human revolution.” We need to change ourselves on a fundamental level, gain mastery over our more base instincts and cultivate our nobler qualities.

Then, we ordinary humans can bring about a peaceful and compassionate world.

David Tempest, Mar Vista