Buddha and Confucius have both died, so Buddhists and followers of Confucius worship a dead god. These gods died, so they were conquered by death. If death conquered them then wouldn't death be superior to them? Wouldn't death be the true god? If death had conquered a god, wouldn't it also be able to conquer its subjects? It would be able to, for if it is stronger than the god it would also be stronger than its subjects. Then why are we still living? Jesus Christ is the only god that died and rose again. He became alive again, thus conquering death, for He was superior to death. Thus we are still living because our god is a living god, a god more powerful than death.

   Why was there death in the first place? The first man (Adam) sinned against God, and because of his sin death entered the world. This sin also separated man from God. Why do we still die if our god is a living god? We all die because we have all sinned. Jesus did not have to die, but He gave His life as a sacrifice in order to reunite man with God. Now we can have a relationship with God and receive eternal life. After we die we can have eternal life because Jesus has given it to us. He is able to give it to us because He is superior to death. None of the other gods can give eternal life, for they are all inferior to death.

   Religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism have a form of idol worship. The followers of these religions believe the idols to be sacred, and they worship them as if they were gods themselves. But is the creation greater than the creator? Is a statue greater than its maker? Of course not, but Hindus, Buddhists, and followers of Confucius portray them to be. They believe that the idols are more important and more holy than their makers, and should be worshipped and adored. If a person can make an idol can't he destroy it as well? What real power does that idol have if it can be destroyed by a man?

   Buddhists and Hindus both believe in reincarnation. They believe that every living thing has a purpose, a mission, or a vocation; in other words, every living thing has a given function. If a person, animal, or plant fulfills its purpose or vocation properly, that being can return to life in a more sophisticated form. For example, a spider that does a good job of being a spider may be reborn as a cat, while a man who does a poor job of being a man may be reborn as a snail. This causes them to think that their relatives may have come back to life in less sophisticated forms, such as that of a cow or a tick. If someone was to think that a cow was a relative, he would not eat the cow; he would go hungry. If someone believed that a flea or a tick was the reincarnation of one of his dead ancestors, he would not kill it; he would suffer from the diseases it might carry. Thus the belief in reincarnation can be harmful to a community.

   Many people believe that they have had certain experiences before; they're sure they've seen a certain street or met a certain person in another life. But many places look similar, and many people look similar. These people seem to remember little things from their past lives but can't seem to remember important things. They can't seem to remember things like their previous name, who they married, or what job they had.

   Christians do not believe in reincarnation. They believe that a person is born only once, lives only once, and dies only once. They believe that the individual is very important, with one-of-a-kind talents and opportunities that he will never have the chance to use again.

   The goal of a Buddhist is to eliminate all desires and reach Nirvana. However, this in itself is a desire. Therefore we have a paradox. If one's goal is to eliminate all desires, then one DESIRES to eliminate all desires. If one has the desire to eliminate all desires then one cannot reach Nirvana, because one still has a desire. If one desires to reach Nirvana one never will, for desire is what prevents one from reaching Nirvana. In order to reach Nirvana one must eliminate all desires, including the desire to eliminate all desires. To reach Nirvana one must eliminate the desire to do good, the desire to do evil, the desire to eat, the desire to drink, even the desire to reach Nirvana. If one eliminates the desire to reach Nirvana then one does not desire to reach Nirvana. If a person does not desire to reach Nirvana then that person will live in such a way that he will not be able to reach Nirvana. If a person does not desire to reach Nirvana then that person will not desire to eliminate all desires, thus he will never eliminate all desires, and he will never reach Nirvana. For example, I do not desire to reach Nirvana so I will not try to reach it. If I do not try to reach it I obviously never will. So, by desiring to reach Nirvana one cannot reach Nirvana, and by not desiring to reach Nirvana one will not reach Nirvana. So, how is it possible for anyone to ever reach Nirvana?

   The following verses are taken from the Dhammapada, a Buddhist sacred text. "As swans can fly easily through the air, as those who persevere can perform wonders, wise men can easily conquer death."(verse 175) "Heedfulness is the path to the Deathless, (Nibbana) heedlessness is the path to death. The heedful do not die; the heedless are like unto the dead."(verse 21) Those verses state that the heedful don't die and the wise men conquer death. "Not in the sky, nor in mid-ocean, nor in a mountain cave, is found that place on earth where abiding one will not be overcome by death."(verse 128) That verse states that no matter where one is one cannot escape death. In other words, everyone will be overcome by death. These verses are direct contradictions. "Should one see a wise man, who, like a revealer of treasure, points out faults and reproves; let one associate with such a wise person; it will be better, not worse, for him who associates with such a one."(verse 76) "Associate not with evil friends, associate not with mean men; associate with good friends, associate with noble men."(verse 78) Those verses encourage one to associate with others (specifically with wise, noble people). Those verses encourage human ties. "He who, discarding human ties and transcending celestial ties, is completely delivered from all ties, - him I call a Brahmana."(verse 417) That verse states that by discarding human ties one will be a Brahmana. The goal of a Buddhist is to become a Brahmana and reach Nirvana (Nibbana). So, this verse discourages all human ties and association with others. These verses contradict each other. "For one who is in the habit of constantly honouring and respecting the elders, four blessings increase - age, beauty, bliss, and strength."(verse 109). Will one's physical features really improve by respecting one's elders? Will one really become stronger by honouring his elders? I doubt it. That verse is illogical.

   Muslims believe that Jesus was not crucified, but that He ascended into heaven without dying (Surah 4:157-158). This is contrary to both Christian and secular texts that were written during the time of Christ. Both the Christian and the secular texts state that Jesus died on a cross.

   Muslims claim that the Bible has been corrupted, and that the Koran is the only trustworthy scripture in existence. However, this belief cannot be according to the Koran. The Koran says that the books of Moses, the Psalms, and the Gospel were all given by Allah: "We gave Moses the Book and followed him up with a succession of messengers..."(Surah 2:87), "We have sent thee inspiration, as We sent it to Noah and the Messengers after him: we sent inspiration to Abraham, Isma'il, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes, to Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron, and Solomon, and to David We gave the Psalms"(Surah 4:163), "It is He Who sent down to thee (step by step), in truth, the Book, confirming what went before it; and He sent down the Law (of Moses) and the Gospel (of Jesus) before this, as a guide to mankind, and He sent down the criterion (of judgment between right and wrong)..."(Surah 3:3-4), "And in their footsteps We sent Jesus the son of Mary, confirming the Law that had come before him: We sent him the Gospel: therein was guidance and light, and confirmation of the Law that had come before him: a guidance and an admonition to those who fear Allah"(Surah 5:46).

   If the books of Moses, the Psalms, and the Gospel were all given by Allah, then they would be the Word of Allah. It might seem that Muslims do not believe the Koran, for the Koran states that the Word of Allah cannot be altered: "Rejected were the messengers before thee: with patience and constancy they bore their rejection and their wrongs, until Our aid did reach them: there is none that can alter the words (and decrees) of Allah. Already hast thou received some account of those messengers."(Surah 6:34), "The word of thy Lord doth find its fulfillment in truth and in justice: None can change His words: for He is the one who heareth and knoweth all."(Surah 6:115), "For them are glad tidings, in the life of the present and in the Hereafter; no change can there be in the words of Allah. This is indeed the supreme felicity."(Surah 10:64).

   The Koran contains several contradictions. Note what the Koran says about contradictions: "Will they not ponder on the Koran? If it had not come from Allah, they could have surely found in it many contradictions."(Surah 4:82). The following are some contradictions found in the Koran: Creation took six days or six "spans of time" (Surah 7:54, 10:3, 11:7, 25:59) / Creation took eight days or eight "spans of time" (Surah 41:9-12). Earth created first (Surah 2:29) / Heavens created first (Surah 79:27-30). All angels obey Allah (Surah 16:49-50) / Not all angels obey Allah (Surah 2:34). Pharaoh drowned (Surah 17:103, 28:40, 43:55) / Pharaoh did not drown (Surah 10:90-92). One angel spoke to Mary (Surah 19:17-21) / Several angels spoke to Mary (Surah 3:42-45). Allah can have a son (Surah 39:4) / Allah cannot have a son (Surah 6:101). Man was created from an embryo (Surah 96:2) / Man was created from clay (Surah 15:26) / Man was created from dust (Surah 3:59) / Man was created from a drop of semen (Surah 16:4).

   New Agers claim that we are all God. If we are all God, then why do we act so badly? They might say it is because we have not come to a full realization of our true divine potentials, and it is ignorance that leads to bad deeds. How then, if we are divine, could our mere ignorant self so easily override our divine goodness? We cannot be God, a budding God, or part of God. All New Agers admit there was a time when they were not New Agers, thus there was a time when they were unenlightened and limited. God, according to New Age theology, is absolute, infinite and unlimited. A New Ager as God, cannot be both unlimited and unenlightened. God, who is unlimited, would always know that he was God and would never need enlightenment.

   New Agers state that God is all and all is God. They also state that humans are divine or God. Unless our senses are totally deceiving us, other persons and things exist. If I am not other things or persons, then I am not all that exists. I am not a rock or a tree, thus I am not all that exists. If I am not all that exists then I cannot be God, since God is all. Thus the assertion of human progression toward divinity is false.

   A New Ager might say that one can create one's own reality. According to them, each person can create his own reality and all realities are considered equally valid. So, why do some "realities" contradict each other? Why do some people see a light as red while others see it as green? New Agers might say that these realities don't contradict each other, they are simply different shades of light on the same picture (or something like that). Truth does not contradict itself. The logic is that if we are all in different forms of truth, then these different truths can't ultimately contradict each other--or they wouldn't be true. Thus this belief in creating one's own reality is ultimately untrue.