The Catholic religion also teaches love of God, or love of Christ. So if I say the truth, it will not be very palatable, but this movement is reformation. But another thing is Catholic, Hindu, Muslim, or whatever you may be, everyone accepts there is God. So we are teaching not to formally accept there is God, but know what is God and love Him. So those who are interested for higher knowledge of God, they'll take it. The point is simply officially to accept God, There is God, know. You know what is God, what is His..., what He is doing, what He is acting, what is His name, what is His address. Everything you know and try to love Him. That we are teaching. So those who are actually serious to know about God, they'll come to this movement. And those who simply know God officially: "There is God. That's all," that is different thing. That is also good. But if you want to know more, then you have to take this Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We are therefore presenting these books, eighty books, four hundred pages each, and just to explain what is God. So it is a great science. Any intelligent man will appreciate.
Catholic (Books and Lectures)
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta
CC Madhya-lila
From early histories it appears that the entire earth was under one culture, Vedic culture, but gradually, due to religious and cultural divisions, the rule fragmented into many subdivisions. Now the earth is divided into many countries, religions and political parties. Despite these political and religious divisions, we advocate that everyone should unite again under one culture—Kṛṣṇa consciousness. People should accept one God, Kṛṣṇa; one scripture, the Bhagavad-gītā; and one activity, devotional service to the Lord. Thus people may live happily upon this earth and combine to produce sufficient food. In such a society, there would be no question of scarcity, famine or cultural or religious degradation. So-called caste systems and national divisions are artificial. According to our Vaiṣṇava philosophy, these are all external bodily designations. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is not based upon bodily designations. It is a transcendental movement on the platform of spiritual understanding. If the people of the world understood that the basic principle of life is spiritual identification, they would understand that the business of the spirit soul is to serve the Supreme Spirit, Kṛṣṇa. As Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā (15.7), mamaivāṁśo jīva-loke jīva-bhūtaḥ sanātanaḥ: "The living entities in this conditioned world are My eternal fragmental parts." All living entities in different life forms are sons of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore they are all meant to serve Kṛṣṇa, the original supreme father. If this philosophy is accepted, the failure of the United Nations to unite all nations will be sufficiently compensated all over the world by a great Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Recently we had talks with Christian leaders in Australia, including the Catholic Bishop of Melbourne, and everyone there was pleased with our philosophy of oneness in religious consciousness.
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
So whole thing is summarized in one word: "Kṛṣṇa," means all-attractive. He draws the attraction of Vasudeva. He draws the attraction of Yadu-kula. He draws the attraction of Arjuna. He draws attraction of everyone, all devotees. Mama vartmānuvartante pārtha sarvaśaḥ. The whole world, civilized world, they have got some religion-Christian religion, Muhammadan religion, Hindu religion, Buddhist religion, and many other subordinate religions. Under the groups of Christian, there are so many churches-Protestant, Catholic. In the Muhammadans, they have got Shiya, Suni, Sek,(?) so many. In Hindus also, Vaiṣṇavas and Śāktas and Sauras, Gāṇapatyas, so many. But Kṛṣṇa says that "All of them, seeking after Me." Mama vartmānuvartante pārtha sarvaśaḥ: "Everyone, they may go on under different religious systems, but the aim is how to approach Me." Vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ (BG 15.15).
So if you want freedom from this fearfulness or this material existence... Material existence means struggle for existence. This is material. Everyone has struggle: "I want to stay. I want to..." In your country there has been so much fight, the French Revolution and so many fighting, fighting between the Protestant and the Catholic. And your Napoleon Bonaparte, he also fought. So fighting, this is called struggle for existence. Everyone wants to exist, and he has to fight. At least, we have to fight with the winter season. If there is no fighting, so at least there must be fighting with the winter season or summer season. Without fighting, you cannot stay. Without fighting, you cannot stay. That is called struggle for existence and survival of the fittest. You must be fit. This is called material world. And spiritual world means there is no fight; simply friendship, that's all. This is spiritual world. Vaikuṇṭha. Vaikuṇṭha. Kuṇṭha means "anxiety," and vaikuṇṭha means "without anxiety."
Just like there are everywhere the same thing. In Ireland the fighting is going on between the Protestants and the Catholics. Is it not? Going on continuously. Now it has become so dangerous that you cannot walk on the street. At any moment there will be bombs. Last time when I was in London I had the experience. All of a sudden our car was diverted. The police came: "There is bomb. You cannot go there." So this is going on. In London, in Germany, and other places it has become a terrible place. At any moment there can be bomb. And what is the bombing? The fight between the Catholics and the Roman Catholics and Protestants. Just like we have got experience, Pakistan and India, in 1947. Calcutta itself became divided into two, Pakistan and Hindustan. Nobody was going. There is one big road, Chitpoor Road. So up to Hanson Road, it is Hindustan, and after that, it is Pakistan. The Pakistanis did not dare to come to this side.
In our country I have seen fight between Hindus and Muslims. And in the history you will find Europe, the Prostestants, and the Roman Catholics, and the Crusades. So this kind of religion has no value. Religion means when one understands Kṛṣṇa, or God, he understands automatically that all living entities are Kṛṣṇa's part and parcels. Some way or other, they have been put into this māyā. Anādi bahirmukha jīva kṛṣṇa bhuli gela. They have forgotten. Therefore a devotee tries to bring them back to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, back to home, back to Godhead. This is vision. He has no discrimination that "Here is a Hindu. Here is a Muslim. Here is a Christian. Here is an African. Here is a white. Here is a black." No. "Everyone is Kṛṣṇa's part and parcel. Let them revive their Kṛṣṇa consciousness and be happy." That is religion. All others cheating.
Just see how much they have lost their faith. So at the present moment it is very difficult position, no faith at all. (break) ...have no good qualification. Harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇa (SB 5.18.12). Oh, their education, their scientific advancement, their so-called civilization... Don't you see? The everyone is expected to have national feeling, but the postal strike, mail strike went on for twenty days. The whole nation became disturbed and harassed. Why? They wanted money. "What is this? Go to... Your national feeling go to hell! You pay us. Then we work." So nobody has any faith. Simply he has faith in sense gratification. That's all. "You satisfy my senses. Then you are very good. Otherwise, go to hell." That's all. This is the position. And therefore they are denying the topmost head of Catholic Church, "We don't care for your instruction," because they have become faithless. And that is not their fault. It is fault of the heads of the churches. They did not teach them properly. They were satisfied simply by money. That's all. They did not try to teach them. Now what is the use of teaching? They have gone out of hand. The same thing: if you want to bend bamboo, do it while it is green. And when it is dried, oh, it is not possible.
Philosophy Discussions
Prabhupāda: So if he does not serve God, then how he will get direction how to serve the humanity? If he does not know how to serve humanity from God, then what is the value of his service to humanity? (break) ...giving direction that "You serve humanity in this way, by preaching His message, Bhagavad-gītā, to all humanity." Then he becomes very faithful servant of God. So to give service to the humanity means when one is a faithful servant of God, he can service to the humanity or to all other living entities, and if he manufactures his service, that is useless.
Hayagrīva: Kant writes, "There is only one true religion, but there can be faiths of several kinds. It is therefore more fitting to say, 'This is..., this man is of this or that faith"—Jewish, Muhammadan, Christian, Catholic, Lutheran-'than he is of this or that religion.' "
Prabhupāda: Yes, that is going on. Actually, religion means obedience to God. So religion does not mean some sect. They are trying to understand God some way, but that is not actually religion. That is a method of understanding God. But religion begins when one has actually understood God and giving Him, rendering Him service. That is religion.
Prabhupāda: Yes. But doing all nonsense against the instruction of Christ. So what is the use of such philosopher, and (indistinct)? Act.
Devotee: Prabhupāda, before I was going to Vietnam, I did not want to go. I went to a Catholic priest and I brought this Bible, and I said to him, "It says here, that 'Thou shalt not kill,' and yet you are saying that I should go and kill." And he said, "Yes. You should go anyway." He just said, "You should go anyway." No reason, no explanation, just "You go anyway and kill."
Prabhupāda: Just see.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: We saw a very interesting thing yesterday, myself and Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa. We were reading in the Time magazine that there is a big fight going on in Ireland between the Protestants and Catholics. Now the Pope and, I think, the Archbishop of Canterbury...
Prabhupāda: Yes, the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Prabhupāda: Actually the main philosophy is Socrates. He is (indistinct).
Hayagrīva: Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, these have been done. Just a little, a few additions. But then there's Plotinus, Origen, and Augustine, and these were the three philosophers who shaped Christian thought or Catholic, the Church thought, Church fathers, and St. Anselm, St. Thomas Aquinas, Scotus and Eckhart, these are Christian...
Prabhupāda: So they are not philosopher; they are Christian with different point of views. So we are not going to discuss with a person he is from the stand..., deviating from the standard way and thinking in their mental speculation.
Hayagrīva: But these, these are considered philosophers...
Prabhupāda: Considered, but because they belong to a certain sect of religion...
Hayagrīva: Because they are followers of Christ?
Prabhupāda: Yes. And they are deviating from the original Christian father, so they are useless.
Hayagrīva: That man is all there is.
Prabhupāda: Huh? Can you explain what is the idea expressed in this sentence?
Hayagrīva: He wants to do away with the Catholic religion and institute the worship of humanity, or the worship of man. He says that everything else is abstraction, is speculation, and that only man is the..., man is the only existence in the true sense. Atheism.
Prabhupāda: Man is existence?
Hayagrīva: Man is the only existence.
Prabhupāda: Then? There is nobody else? What about the animals? Man is the only existence, and what about the animals? They are also...
Hayagrīva: He doesn't seem to consider the animals.
Prabhupāda: So what, what is the position of the animals? They are also living being.
| Page Title: | Catholic (Books and Lectures) |
| Compiler: | MadhuGopaldas, Serene |
| Created: | 17 of Jan, 2012 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=1, OB=0, Lec=10, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 11 |