has universalism its roots in buddhism?

[sven]

this claim is rather ridiculous in my eyes but anyway, I read once in a pamphlet against universalism that this doctrine has its root in Buddhism - is there any hint, that buddhism was even known in ancient Greece? I can hardly imagine the 'church fathers' like Clement of Alexandria knew about Buddhism. I also guess universalism was no platonic doctrine, or was it?

[WhiteWings]

Many religions have lots of things in common.
The key is to figure out what religion was the original.
I don't know what buddhism teaches but I wouldn't be supprised if some parts are 100% Christianity.
Or should I say the OT part of it.

[sven]

some say Jesus = Buddha

but seriously, the claim, that the early Churchfathers were influenced by Buddhism is ridiculous, but just wanted to share this claim.

This people publishing these pamphlets are not honest, concerning eternity that it is a Platonic concept, or hell that it is a pagan doctrine they say, sometime even the pagans are right - so if paganity fits in their concept what they call 'christian' than they argument this way, but when "pagan" doctrines don't fit in their concept of christianity they call it false pagan doctrines.

[WhiteWings]

I understand you very well Sven.
Lets print some pamphlets with a long list of pagan religions that teach ET.
Lets see if they see that as proof too......

[martincisneros]

Depends on the type of "Universalism" that you're talking about.  The Scriptural doctrine of the Universal Restoration is thoroughly rooted in the Scriptures all of the way back to the earliest Scriptures of the Bible.

There are universalistic beliefs that all religions lead to the same place. We do not believe that to be true. The "way, the truth and the life" are not in a system of beliefs, whether it includes the basic components of Christianity or not " the ultimate salvation of all mankind depends upon a person " that person is the very Son of God who came to redeem mankind from the curse.

The above quotation is from the article here, and it gets into the various things called "Universalism": http://www.tentmaker.org/articles/universalism-refuted.htm

The idea that all religions lead to the same place may have started with Buddhism, but the Biblical belief that Jesus Christ will stop at nothing in separating people from their sins and bringing everybody into submission and reconciliation with Father God was prophesied by the Old Testament and taught by Jesus and His Apostles and Prophets in the New Testament.  Unfortunately, particularly in English, many things get called "Universalism" that are the furthest thing from what we're presenting from the Bible here.  Some UR authors in the 19th century saw overtones of Plato in some of the Christian Fathers, but many times that was meant as a subtle jab against Trinitarianism in those books, like some of J.W. Hanson's stuff, stuff by George Rogers, and other UR books you can find online at Tentmaker, at True Grace Ministries, and elsewhere.

[sven]

Depends on the type of "Universalism" that you're talking about.  The Scriptural doctrine of the Universal Restoration is thoroughly rooted in the Scriptures all of the way back to the earliest Scriptures of the Bible.

I know this, but they just don't accept that universalism is a biblical doctrine, they say the church fathers got this from Platonism, Gnosticism, Buddism or what else, but they strictly deny that it has its roots in the New Testament, in the teaching of Jesus and the apostels, especially Paul 

[sven]

something came in my mind, some say that disciples of Jesus came to India, so if Buddhism teaches UR (to be honest I don't know so much about Buddhism), this belief might have its root in Christianity?

do you see this as a possibility?

[WhiteWings]

I've been reading a bit about connections between all kind of religions and it turns out the OT predates about every other religion.

I think it may turn out to be that certain parts of certain other religions have correct parts forgotten by Christianity.
An awful amount of things we think are Christian have pagan roots (even the name Jesus)