1. YOUR RELIGION IS NOT IMPORTANT A brief dialogue between a Brazilian theologist Leonardo Boff and the Dalai Lama. Leonardo is one of the renovators of the Theology of Freedom.

2. In a round table discussion about religion and freedom in which Dalai Lama and myself were participating at recess I maliciously, and also with interest, asked him: “Your holiness, what is the best religion?”

3. I thought he would say: “The Tibetan Buddhism” or “The oriental religions, much older than Christianity” Dalai Lama paused, smiled and looked me in the eyes …. which surprised me because I knew of the malice contained in my question. He answered: “The best religion is the one that gets you closest to God. It is the one that makes you a better person.”

4. To get out of my embarassment with such a wise answer, I asked: “What is it that makes me better?” He responded: “Whatever makes you more compassionate, more sensible, more detached, more loving, more humanitarian, more responsible, more ethical.” “The religion that will do that for you is the best religion”

5. I was silent for a moment, marvelling and even today thinking of his wise and irrefutable response: “I am not interested, my friend, about your religión or if you are religious or not. “What really is important to me is your behaviour in front of your peers, family, work, community, and in front of the world.” “Remember, the universe is the echo of our actions and our thoughts.”

6. “The law of action and reaction is not exclusively for physics. It is also of human relations. If I act with goodness, I will receive goodness. If I act with eviI, I will get evil.” “What our grandparents told us is the pure truth. You will always have what you desire for others. Being happy is not a matter of destiny. It is a matter of options.”

7. Finally he said: “Take care of your Thoughts because they become Words. Take care of your Words because they will become Actions. Take care of your Actions because they will become Habits. Take care of your Habits because they will form your Character. Take care of your Character because it will form your Destiny, and your Destiny will be your Life … and … “There is no religion higher than the Truth.”

8. Dalai Lama is right. There is no religion higher than the truth! Dalai Lama says if a person having all the virtue, he is reflecting the characters of God. Such person is living a godly life. (He has admitted there is God.) But he has not provided the answer to this question: how can people to be able to live a godly life?

9. A dog lives a life of dog A cat lives a life of cat….. Therefore, the person who can live a godly life must be the people of God. The questions is: where is God and Who is he?

10. Christ Jesus says “ I am the way, the truth and the life.” He has not built a religion for the world, but sacrificed Himself and raised from the death to give abundant life to men. The fullness of life (and of God) is IN Christ. 5“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5) Who is Jesus Christ? What has he done?

11. Christ Jesus : 15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. 17He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. 18And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy. 19For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, 20and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross. A

12. 6Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Jesus Christ is not giving a kind of philosophy or teachings. He is showing to all men the only way for life, and the eternal life. Simple logic: People cannot restored the virtue in lives when the lives have been deteriorated. Only when the cause of the deterioration been dealt with, the original quality of lives is to be restored and it is not by the work of the man who is in the state of such deterioration, but by faith in Jesus Christ, the creator of all lives.

13. You may ask: “can I ignore God and simply take the advice from Dalai Lama to live as good as I can?” If you are wise enough, you may ask these questions: 1. If there is a God, what should I know about him? 2. If there is a God, what is he going to do with me? And the other people? 3. If there is a God, what would happen to me if I totally ignore him? 4. If there is a God, what shall I get if I do good ? 5. How can I know that the God as you said the only & true God?

14. Answers to the questions: 1. If there is a God, what should I know about Him? The God must be supernatural, and possesses the following characters: Holy Righteous Faithful Supremacy over all Eternal Mercy Powerful Cause and Source of all things

15. 2. If there is a God, what is he going to do with me? And the other people? Due to sin, all man is destined to face the death, eternal death (body+soul+spirit), disregard to your good work or religion. It is called eternal judgment that all people will face in front of the Great White Throne. “15If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:15)” – this is eternal death! You have to get your name written in the book of life. For this, God has provided a Way-Out for you (& every one), scroll down.

16. HE is God of love and righteousness. He resumes our position – people of God 16"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son,that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) He has made a covenant with those who accepts Him : 7”so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:7) 9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. “ (1Peter 2:9)

17. 3. If there is a God, what would happen to me if I totally ignore Him? The scriptures says: 3 “how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard Him.” (Hebrews 2:3) 8"I tell you, whoever acknowledges Me before men, the Son of Man (Christ Jesus) will also acknowledge him before the angels of God. 9But he who disowns Me (Christ Jesus) before men will be disowned before the angels of God.” (Luke 12:8-9) 1 “The fool says in his heart, "There is no God.” (Psalm 14:1) If you insist to ignore Him, the only divine God, you have to face the ultimate perish that last FOREVER !

18. 4. If there is a God, what shall I get if I do good ? You will not earn the eternal life out of your good work (even if you live godly) ! 8 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) The standards from God’s divinity and almighty is far too high for men to meet. It is this reason that God has to send His begotten son (Christ Jesus) to pay the price (of sin) for all men so that through Him we could be saved (reborn) and to receive the guarantee to enter to eternity of glory – the indwelling of the Holy Spirit who becomes our seal.

19. 5. How can I know that the God as you said the only & true God? You may consider this approach: a. Historical – Where and how God has reveal Himself? Have He lifted people from death? Have He healed people? Can He affect the environment? Can he affect the climate? Has He played miracle(s) that benefited other people? Was He morally clean ? Is there evidence of His presence or intervention? b. World – Has He forecasted what would happen in the future? Has such forecast (prophecy) come true ? Yes, 98% already. How many intelligent people on earth has trusted in Him (scientist; artists; lawyers; philosophers; politicians; professionals; professors; Nobel prize winners; ) c. Science – If He is the creator of the universe and lives; in His words is there passages that explain how such things are come to the world? Can He explain why man has to die and where will man go after death? Will He answer honest prayer?

20. What you should do : You should be humble and open your heart to : Admit Jesus Christ as your Savior and LORD. Believe that He has died on the cross to pay the price of your sin and raised from the death in 3rd day, He will come back to rule the world. Confess you are unable to save your self and are seeking for forgiveness. Make this prayer and end it in the name of Jesus Christ. 17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.” (2Corinthians 5:17)

21. Tips: How long has Christianity come to the world? Christianity began as a Jewish sectand is classified as an Abrahamic religion. Originating in the eastern Mediterranean, it quickly grew in size and influence over a few decades, and by the 4th century had become the dominant religion within the Roman Empire (Wikipedia) However, the name Christianity is a word used to describe the belief of followers of Jesus Christ in early century. It’s root is planted in the God of the Old Testament, that tells (as per the book of Genesis) “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. “ (Genesis 1:1) 「God says “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” (Genesis 1:26) 」 When we say God, it means the Holy Father, Holy Son and the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the core belief of Christianity is originated at the beginningof time, the universe and all live forms.