Answer

In the today’s world, there are a number of different faiths, cultures and religious orders and philosophies that healthcare workers are daily exposed to. Due to this, healthcare workers ought to have a deeper comprehension of and respect for the philosophies and doctrines. The healthcare workers should become familiar with at least the main fundamentals of each religion or culture (Lienau, 2007). This they can learn from the patients themselves or from the family members of the patients.  This paper will offer a complete comparative analysis of two faith in regard to the major worldview with reference to healthcare practices. That two religions that have been chosen for this paper are Buddhism and Christianity. Finally the paper will address the implications of these believes for healthcare.

There a number of worldviews that have been considered by different faiths. These ought to be known by healthcare practitioners so that they may be able to deal adequately and efficiently with their patients. Equally important to know is that different faiths hold different views on healing. Christians hold to the idea that through prayer, by an individual or by his or her fellow believers mingled with faith, is able to heal the sick (Wedemeyer, 2013). They also believe that healing is original with God and that only through Him can humanity be free from Illnesses. On the other hand, the Buddhism faith advances that healing is all about living aright with the principles of nature. This is because they believe that sickness is as a result of abuse of the principles of nature (Winkler & Tang, 2009). These views are as discussed here below.

1. What Is Prime Reality?

The Christian theistic teaches about the existence of a “transcendent, triune and omniscient, immanent, good and sovereign God: (Sire, 2009, p.28). The Christian faith believes that “prime reality is the personal, infinite God who is revealed in the Holy Scriptures” (Sire 2009 pg. 28). The Christian theistic God is triune and thus there is none like Him. The Trinity confirms the communal or personal nature of the Ultimate being.(Sire 2009, pg. 29) Therefore, God is not only an actually existent being, but also a personal being that we can relate with in personal ways (Walvood et al, 2005). On the contrary, according to Buddhism, everything is God. They believe that all human beings share same stuff or essence, which is spirit. According to Buddhism, all objects possess Nirvana as the spirit, a philosophy called Monism (Kang, 2012). They also believe in a “concept of God as an impersonal, and is often described as Energy, Force, Essence, Consciousness, Principle, Vibration or Being”.      

2. Explain The Nature Of The World?

According to this Christian philosophy, about the nature of the world, the external reality of the world that comprises the cosmos were created ex-nihilo to work by means of a consistency of a reason and result principle in an open system (Mercer, 1990). According to this philosophy, God never created all that there is in the universe out of a cosmic chaos nor form that matters out of Himself, instead God created out of or from nothing. This is because they believe that God spoke and the universe came into existence (Mercer, 1990). Additionally, God created the natural laws that keep the universe together and allows the earth to operate in an ecological harmony (Story D, 1998). Additionally, God did not create the world in any confusion but rather in an order and uniformity. “God’s character and the nature of universe of God are thus closely related” (Sire, 2009, p.32). This provides a foundation for morality for Christians as well as purpose and science. Our, Christian’s, worldview starts with God, not with ourselves, the Christians. This philosophy thus helps the Christians understand human existence and the meaning of life since they understand who created them. On the other side, the Buddhism faith believes that the material world is not real, but instead a sort dream or fantasy of certain kind (Walvoord et al, 2005). The “realized soul” believes that this world is of no significance or value and that the world means nothing. Ultimately, the Buddhists believe that salvation comprises escaping from matter and the new agers are urged to add extra value to this world as compared to the Buddhists of old (Walvoord et al, 2005). In other words, this faith believes that the development and improvement of the world is all dependent on the effort placed by those who live in it and that the forces that shape the world are human generated.

3. What Is A Human Being?

The Christian theistic worldview is absolutely fascinating and unique. They hold to the Philosophy that “Human beings were created by God in His very image and consequently possess self-transcendence, personality, intelligence, gregariousness, morality and creativity” (Sire, 2009, p. 32). Author J.F. Walvoord (2005) advances that the phrase “Being made in God’s image” has the meaning that humans share, even though finitely and imperfectly, in God’s nature. That is, man possesses God’s transmissible attributes (personality, life, truth, love, wisdom, holiness and justice), and thus man has the capacity for spiritual communion with God (Walvoord, 2005, p. 29). He further suggests that because God is self-aware, as He knows that He exists, human beings are also self-aware of their existence. God has intelligence and so are we humans since we also have the capacity for knowledge and reason. God is good and moral, He is the final judge of what is wrong and right. Humans too have a capacity (even though it was corrupted by the fall of man) to comprehend what is wrong and right. God is gregarious. We too as humans have a gregarious capacity within us since we desire relationship and community. God is creative.  Humans too have been gifted with the capability to create things and be creative (Walvoord, 1985, p. 29). The philosophy that human being was created in the image of God is a great strength to Christian faith because it gives us a sagacity of worth. We are not just an animal in the higher family of the Kingdom Animalia. Thus human life matters. Additionally, in the Christian faith, human beings are really dignified. According to the psalmist, they are “a little lower than the heavenly beings, for God Himself has made them that way and has crowned them with glory and honor” (Psalm 8:5) (Williams, 2011). On the other hand, the Buddhism faith, human beings are one with God. Human beings’ unity with all realism is emphasised and that distinct personality is dismissed.

4. What Happens To A Person At Death?

 The Christian faith answer to this question is: For all Christians, death is either the gateway to life with the Creator, God, together with his people or the gateway to the everlasting parting from God, the hope of our aspirations (Sire, 2009, pg. 41). In general, whatever happens at death remains a mystery to most people. While others think there is nothing that happens at death as it is all about going into an everlasting sleep, others have argued that at death one is reincarnated into another being like an animal. However, the Christian philosophy about the dead teaches that everybody perishes once and then encounters judgment. They too believe that death is never their end but instead is the beginning of their everlasting existence. This is strengthened by the fact that Jesus died and thereafter resurrected, however it will either be to an everlasting life with God in glory or to eternal damnation under the pain of God’s wrath. Death, therefore, is no longer perceived as an enemy of the Christian faith but is actually perceived as the gate to real life and glory as depicted in the book of Daniel, 12 1-3 (Gaffin, 2001). On the other hand, the Buddhism faith does not know what happens when one dies and therefore has to guess. The Buddhists are promised a paradise, but they do not have an assurance of it since Buddha is dead. Buddha even preached of the eternal life and a paradise, which he never demonstrated.

5. Why Is It Possible To Know Anything At All?

For many, this has been a puzzling question. The Christians believe that Human beings have the ability to know of the world in their surrounding and God Himself. This is because God endowed them with the capacity to so do. Additionally, He takes an active role in communing and communicating with them (Sire, 2009, pg. 36). Human knowledge is basically a quality of our bearing of God’s image. God is omniscient. He virtually knows everything. He is the centrepiece of intelligence agency within the universe. God is the universal CIA and since humans have been created in His image, all of us have a capacity to have intelligence and understanding (Oliver, 1999). This is a good strength to the Christian faith since it demonstrates to man that all of us have somewhat to contribute. On the other side, the Buddhism faith advocate that human significant learning originates from extraction from looking within, the world, having an understanding of our real selves and from the divine within. Buddhism have a distrust of the concept of reason. In Buddhism the Final is unknowable and unknown. It is neti neti, that is, ‘not this, not that’.

6. How Do We Know What Is Right And Wrong?

An agnostic or atheist might say, “I determine what is right and wrong in my life”. However, Hitler thought it was just to kill masses of human beings who he considered subhuman. Other people will suggest that it is the state’s job (or government) to make standards and define what is wrong or right (Rouben, 1952). All these are very subjective and flimsy views of morality. The Christian faith believe that ethics are supreme and are founded on the God’s character as good (loving and holy) (Mercer, 1990). The Christian faithful believe that the standard of morality is God. Morality is has always been and is objective. It is thus important to underscore that just because our civilization has decided to consent to a given practice does not mean it is right. It remains wrong as long as it is contrary to God’s decrees, which is the ultimate reality, and the created order (Collender, 2014). God is both the source of physical and the moral worlds. On the contrary, the Buddhism faith believes that sin is merely an obliviousness of the real nature of reality. We need not repentance but enlightenment. According to this faith, suffering as the greatest problem rather than an evil (Smith, 1994). This implies that the Buddhists have no need of mediation and prayer for healing. For them, there is no objective average of wrong or right. Similarly, Carl Frederick in his book Playing the Game the New Way wrote that “You are the Supreme Being … there isn’t any right or wrong.” The Buddhists thus believe that there is not wrong or right.

7. What Is The Meaning of Human History?

The Christian faith believes that history is in line, consisting of meaningful events in life that leads to the fulfilment of Gods’ purpose for humanity (Wedemeyer, 2013). These events are geared toward the conclusion of times awaiting the Lord’s second coming. The validity of this argument is that we are not here on earth for no reason. Our presence here on the earth is for God’s purposes and antiquity is actually God’s story (Winkler & Tang, 2009). The Buddhism faith on the other side believe that since we are ever in this endless cycle of renaissance, history has very little meaning. They tend not to comprehend the world in regard to purpose. They believe that there is change and movement minus involving the concept of purpose.

In conclusion, it is much important that healthcare staff understand philosophical views held by different faiths with regard to healing. This will help them to know how to offer medication, treatment and intervention in case of sickness. For instance, they ought to know that while the Christians believe in one Ultimate God, the Buddhism faith believes that everything is a god. Additionally, morality is a characteristic original of God, to the Buddhists it is either the government or state that determines the standards of morality. This implies that when dealing with a Buddhist, it may not be well if you keep talking of an Ultimate God while that will be quite encouraging to Christian. Similarly, while it will be comfortable to talk of morality as original with God to a Christian, it may not make sense to a Buddhist. Ideally, there are a number of philosophical believes that all, especially the healthcare personnel ought to strive to comprehend.