CHAPTER FIVE

 

AN ADVAITIC VISION

OF RELIGIOUS PLURALISM

 

 

            Bede Griffiths' life journey leads us directly to his evolving views on the plurality of religions. Such a procedure will situate his own developing views on religions within the wider context of his own experience and life situation. Undoubtedly, his life experiences both in England and in India influenced his theological positions on, and practical orientations to, the plurality of religions. This section is divided according to the three periods of his life as delineated above.

            This chapter is significant for Griffiths' understanding of advaita , that is, the basic metaphysical principle of non-duality.

            Corresponding to the three stages of his life, we would speak roughly in terms of `individuality ,' `fulfillment ' and `complementarity ' as his understanding of religions. There is a gradual evolution, which is deeply influenced by his context and deepening religious encounters.⁴⁸⁷ 

            The stages and the corresponding theories of religion could roughly be tabulated as follows.

 

            Stages of Life              Theology of Religions        

 

            1. Catholic                        Individuality      

            2. Monk                Fulfillment        

            3. Advaitin                       Complementarity          

 

            It may again be mentioned that, since religion forms one of the most fundamental constituents of human life, it has profound implications in personal and social life. An opinion or view of religion has to be based on the totality of experience and encounter which gives rise to it. Although we may not be able to exhaust this totality of possibilities, it is appropriate to experience more of religion before evaluating it. Such an experience will significantly influence our own views on religion. That is precisely what has happened in the case of Griffiths. His practical immersion in a different culture , the developments of the new currents of thought specially in the wake of Vatican II and his own intellectual life have influenced his evolving views on religion. So, as we trace his evolving understanding of religions and the plurality of religions, we shall try to found them in the advaitic experience .

 

FIRST PHASE (-1931): INDIVIDUALITY

 

            In the first stage his attention was focused more on nature and on experiencing the Divine in nature. Following Trapnell ,⁴⁸⁸ we can say that he regarded the diverse religions more in terms of their unique individuality than anything else.

            Of course, it is evident that in this stage the other religions should also include Christianity since he was not much influenced by Christianity as such. Since his own experience of the divine in this first period was totally outside the realm of the Church and the sacraments, it is natural that he be completely open to all religions. Thus it was easy to see each one's individuality in all religions, even though this individuality stemmed more from ignorance than from actual encounter with the various traditions .

            Even at this stage he reads some of the classics of Eastern spirituality . He describes them as follows:⁴⁸⁹ 

 

            It was not that I found anything unchristian in them, but on the contrary that their doctrine seemed to me practically identical with that of Christianity as I understood it. From this time the Buddha and Lao Tzu took their place in my mind with Socrates, Spinoza and Marcus Aurelius , along with the Christ of the Sermon of the Mount, among the great spiritual leaders of mankind.

 

            In this initial stage of his theologizing, there is a relatively naïve and undifferentiat ed individuality between various religions. Based on a deep theory of imagination like that of Colerdige or Maritain, which served to mediate between what is real and unreal and therefore between what is true and untrue, Griffiths could confidently affirm that the knowledge of truth possessed by numerous teachers, irrespective of their religious traditions , is consistent in themselves and so valid. For Griffiths at this time truth is mediated spiritually, not religiously. That is, truth could be revealed to, and known by, the human spirit outside of a particular religious context, as exemplified by his own spiritual awakening through nature. This recognition made it easy for him to conceive revelations occurring within any and all religious, and even non-religious, traditions .

            Such an undifferentiated and generalized view of religions reflects his initial contact with religions. Still, towards the end of this period, when he had to choose between his Anglican belief (of which his mother was so fond) and the Catholic faith, he did make a commitment towards Catholicism, implying that there was something more in there. Hence, the undifferentiated attitude towards religion is more true in the first phase of his searching, whereas towards the end of the same phase, it would become more complex and he would be convinced of the truth that is present (only or more fully) in Catholicism. Late in this phase then, as it culminates in his acceptance of the Catholic faith, we could speak of an almost exclusive view of truth in the Roman Catholic Church .

 

SECOND PHASE (1931-1968): FULFILLMENT

 

            In general, it could be said that during the first period Griffiths had a relative and distant acceptance of other religions. From this view, it occurred to Griffiths that all the great teachers of humanity had basically the same teaching as Jesus Christ. Here, of course, the differences between various religions are not very significant, since they could lead to underlying similarity or oneness. But this attitude would change at the second stage of his life in 1931 because of his serious reading of the Gospels. So he could affirm:⁴⁹⁰ 

           

            [A]t this time I do not think that they [the texts of Hinduism , Buddhism and Taoism ] did much more than give a wider non-Christian background to my thought. It was not that I found anything unchristian in them but, on the contrary, that their doctrines seemed to me practically identical with that of Christianity as I understood. . . . But that was before I had begun seriously to read the Gospels for myself, an event that was to change my attitude completely. Yet the influence of Eastern thought was to remain as an undercurrent, as I have said, and the effort to bring it into relation with Christianity was to occupy me for many years, and indeed to continue to the present day [1954].

 

Justin 's Theory of Religions

 

            In an article⁴⁹¹ published in 1937 Griffiths appreciates the guidance that the martyr Justin offers to the Church in its relationship to non-Christian religions. Following Justin, Griffiths also accepts that `seeds of truth ' (logoi spermatikoi ) are to be found in the various religious and philosophical traditions . He also advocates that Christians should encourage these `seeds,' rather than attack the errors and superstitions found in the other religions.

            The principle lying behind Justin 's logoi spermatikoi found in other religions is the Greek concept of lógos , `Word ', which is identified with Jesus Christ in the Johannine Gospel . The logoi spermatikoi, as the seed of reason and truth found in all humanity and reflected in their search for God, is fully revealed and incarnated only in Jesus Christ. While thus establishing the common basis for the truth in all religions and particularly that of Christianity , Justin, according to Griffiths, overemphasizes the similarities between Christian and non-Christian teachers. Still Justin's overall approach to non-Christian religions is applauded by Griffiths. His own reflections would be guided by the logoi spermatikoi and by Justin's belief that Christianity `fulfills' the aspirations of all other religions. This would ultimately lead him to define his own "fulfillment theory" of religions which would help him to understand and appreciate the other religions throughout this second phase.

            It is interesting to note that in the same article of 1937 that Griffiths quotes with approval one of the pioneers of Christian understanding of Hinduism , Pierre Johannes "[A]lmost all the claims of Christian religion . . . are to be found among them [the Hindus] in a higher form than they were even known among the Greeks."⁴⁹² This affirmation helps Griffiths' own further enquiry and insights into Indian thought. He formulates his hope for the future:⁴⁹³ 

 

            Thus it may well be that just as the contact of Christianity with Greek philosophy , of which we have the first example in St. Justin , led to the gradual devel opment of Catholic philosophy and theology along the lines of Greek thought, so the contact of the Church in the coming centuries with the philosophical and religious mind of India may lead to a corresponding development of Christian thought.

 

            This hope would be a fundamental guiding factor in Griffiths' own theological activities when he came to India . It is obvious that his own conversion to the Catholic faith and his own transformation of world view did not restrict his openness to other traditions and view points.

 

Fulfillment Theory Prior to Leaving England

 

            Actually he began his writings on non-Christian religions in the 1950s. He first portrays an `inclusive view of the Church' drawing from Henry de Lubac's Catholicisme, wherein he incorporates all those who do not deliberately choose to place themselves outside the Church and who live by the `Natural Law' of reason and conscience. For him, this Natural Law is a means of divine grace through which all human beings are drawn towards the truth that is Christ, and so all religions are "different expressions of the Natural Law."⁴⁹⁴ From this it follows that those from other religious traditions are alike and related to each other and are saved by Christ, whose grace alone brings salvation, through an openness to the guiding power of the Spirit . So he adds: "[W]e must affirm that no religion has any value in itself apart from Christ. No one can be saved by the Law, whether of Moses or of Buddha or of Confucius: salvation comes to all humanity by the grace of Christ alone. We are all alike sinners, and we are all alike saved by Christ, whether His grace comes to us by way of the Natural Law or the Law of the Jews, or the Law of the Gospel . All men, therefore, in-so-far as they follow the light which is given them, are members of Christ, that is to say of the Church, and we are bound to regard them as our brothers [and sisters]."⁴⁹⁵ At the same time, he admits that the differences between the religions are also significant. While Christians are called to respect the elements of truth found in all religions, they must also have a responsibility to lead the other religious traditions "to recognize the fulfillment of what they believe in the doctrine of the Church" and "to see in Catholicism the fulfillment and completion of every form of religion."⁴⁹⁶ In this formulation we find clearly the fulfillment theory of Griffiths. Here again he stresses the primacy of knowledge through faith available in the Church.

            In his other writings, while still in England , Griffiths formulates two additional ideas with regards to the relationship between Christianity and other religions, which may even sound a bit conflicting. The first is the idea that the truths found in other traditions serve as a "propadeutic function"⁴⁹⁷ in relation to the teachings of Jesus Christ in the Church. Such a concept is integral to almost all forms of the fulfillment theory. According to such an articulation, the religions prior to Jesus Christ do function as a kind of revelation of truth and so could be seen as "the Primitive Revelation." They are based on a timeless metaphysical tradition articulated in the perennial philosophy .⁴⁹⁸ This prior revelation is, of course, not final and complete, since it serves as "the divine preparation by which the people of the ancient world were prepared for the coming of Christ."⁴⁹⁹ As a uniquely historical revelation, contrary to the timeless and metaphysical revelations, Christ fulfills the other religions through and in time. The ancient myths and rituals are completed and fulfilled in history through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

            This idea is further corroborated by Griffiths' vision of the cosmic Christ. In Jesus we see mirrored the perfectly revealed Cosmic Being. It is the same principle of Godhead active throughout human history. He elaborates this view:⁵⁰⁰ 

 

            The Cosmic Christ may be seen working in and through the Israelites and speaking though the patriarchs and prophets. In like manner the same Cosmic Being may be seen moving in and through all the great religions in every age.

 

            With the intermingling of the cultures of East and West witnessed during this century, it has become increasingly difficult not to recognize this activity of the universal Christ. For it has become increasingly apparent that nowhere in the world and at no period of history has God left Himself without a witness. At the same time, Christ is indeed the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the one who embraces all history in meaning and purpose.

            The second idea which Griffiths articulates in a creative interaction with other religions is the view that inter-religious dialogue will help also Christianity to express more fully the Truth that Christ is. So he writes:⁵⁰¹ 

 

            This is not merely a question of introducing some new concepts into Western theology , but of introducing a new way of thought and a new outlook on life. For centuries now Christianity has developed in a Westerly direction, taking on an ever more Western character of thought and expression . If it is ever to penetrate deeply into the East it will have to find a correspondingly Eastern form , in which the genius of the peoples of the East will be able also to find expression. For Christianity will never realize its full stature as a genuine Catholicism, that is, as the universal religion of mankind, until it has incorporated into itself all that is valid and true in all the different religious traditions . If we believe that in Christ is to be found the revelation of Truth itself, then we must recognize that all truth wherever it is to be found is contained implicitly in Christianity. As St. Justin Martyr again said, "All truth wherever it is found belongs to us as Christians."

 

            So for him, Christianity that fulfills all other religions is not one that should eventually replace the other traditions . On the other hand his conception of Christianity would include all these various traditions in all the richness of their particular cultural forms and expressions of truth . In the same way, the Christian tradition and its knowledge through faith does not deny the worth and status of other valid ways of knowing. Nevertheless, Griffiths is univocal in affirming, as he does towards the end of The Golden Strings , the clear superiority of Christianity over all other religions. According to him, grace is certainly universal, but there is only one way to salvation and one way of knowledge alone leads to the final Truth , who is Christ. So he affirms:⁵⁰² 

 

            All religious traditions contain some elements of the truth , but there is only one absolutely true religion; all religions have taught something of the way of salvation, but there is only one absolute Way. Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life, and without him no man comes to the Father .

 

            At the same time he does not rule out in any way the fact that the Christians can also learn much from other religions through dialogue and meaningful interaction with them. The interior dialogue between the rational and the non-rational forces, which had influenced him from youth, sought its partial resolution in an exterior dialogue between the religions and cultures of East and West, even before his departure from England .

 

Fulfillment : First Stage in India

 

            As he reached India , he was convinced of the need of dialogue as the best means for learning and for seeking fulfillment . Further, he maintained that one should approach dialogue not by attacking the imperfections of non-Christian religions, but by affirming the `seeds of truth ' in them, then by seeing how they relate to the Gospel, and after that by showing how these `seeds' are already fully developed in Christianity . Thus the goal of dialogue emerges as a more explicit expression of the truth already contained in Christianity. Griffiths sensed that there was a lingering restlessness or incompleteness in the Church and in the West as a whole, just as much as in his own soul. Hence, the title of one of his early books in this period regard a `marriage' between East and West.

            In an article written in 1953, Griffiths expresses an early vision of dialogue not only for inter-religious, but also for cultural understanding between East and West.⁵⁰³ This vision already integrates his own intuitions on knowing and his own critiques of the world (western) cultures. Here he pleads for a union of the forces:⁵⁰⁴ 

 

            What is required is a meeting of the two traditions at a deep level of understanding , so that their full potentialities can be realized. This will require on our part a real effort to assimilate the mode of Eastern thought. Eastern thought differs from our own most of all in its mode. Whereas Western thought tends to be rational and discursive, Eastern thought is intuitive and contemplative. The one is the product of the animus, the other of the anima. The difference is therefore primarily psychological.

 

The meeting of the Eastern and the Western minds would thus be a true marriage of East and West, the masculine mind of the West meeting the feminine mind of the East in a fertile union.⁵⁰⁵ According to Griffiths both East and West would profit from such a `marriage'. The former would receive guidance in renewing "intuitive thought and interior life,"⁵⁰⁶ whereas the latter would be reminded of its own deep spiritual roots at a time when the East is coming under increasing external pressures.

            Thus, dialogue is the necessary method of fostering this `marriage', indicating a deliberate and mutual learning process. This mutual interaction would bring about greater balance in the approaches of both East and West towards truth , and might, so hopes Griffiths, eventually lead to a further renewal of Christian theology , as was the case in the first centuries with the encounter with the Greeks. At the same time it may be stressed that the mutual benefit is to be perceived always from a framework of the fulfillment theory, just as his own interest and devotion for India is secondary compared to his own interest and devotion to the Church. The Church had much to learn from the East, but has even more to offer to the East.

            It may be recalled that, prior to his leaving for India , Griffiths had already worked out some of the key intuitions on other religions: finding common ground in the activity of lógos or `Natural Law' in spite of the genuine differences between them; the `Primitive Revelations' in other religions which ar e preparations for the coming of Christ; the need for the Church to encounter the truth in other traditions so that it might bring out fully the truth inherent in Christ; the claim that Catholicism embraces the aspirations of other religions and fulfills them; the need for a `marriage' between East and West to facilitate the process of mutual learning and fecundating.

 

Developments in India

 

            His first actual encounters enabled him to experience the primary means of knowing the truth , which is God, going beyond faith to contemplation and meditation . So it is not surprising that Griffiths' writings in India show both traces of continuity and change with his earlier intuitions. In his "Fulfillment for the East" (1955) although he "praises the knowledge derived from contemplation"⁵⁰⁷ found both in Christianity and in Eastern religions, he is of the opinion that Christianity with its own contemplative methods can contribute significantly to Hinduism and to the whole perennial philosophy . He asserts that Catholicism can give both `precision' and `strength' to the spiritual and metaphysical traditions of the `primitive revelations'.<sup>508</sup> He asserts the need to bring the contemplative knowledge of these `primitive Revelations' into contact with the grace and person of the incarnate Christ in history.

            At the same time he insists on the value of inter-religious and intercultural dialogue even for Christianity. He advocates meetings between representatives of various traditions "on the level of contemplation," enabling the Christians themselves to recover their own contemplative heritage. Griffiths hopes, through a dialogue at the contemplative level as well as through a study of comparative religions like Buddhism and Islam, to show how it is only the Word of God which has enlightened humanity from the beginning of history and manifested itself to all the different nations respecting their differences in cultures, limitations in world views and diverse ways to open to transcendence . He would seek to find out "how Christ is, as it were, `hidden' at the heart of Hinduism . . . and show how it is the one Word of God which has enlightened humanity from the beginning of history and manifested Himself to all the different nations according to their different psychologies, permitting many errors to remain but never withdrawing the guidance of His Spirit ."⁵⁰⁹ Instead of destroying the preparations made by other religions, Christ came to "correct, complement and fulfill them."⁵¹⁰ 

            Such an openness to the other religions at this time in his personal history enabled him to encourage non-traditional approaches to missionary activities. The earlier attempt at converting the `heathens', which had actually produced little fruit was replaced by `mutual assimilation' and `dialogue' which for him was a more effective approach and in tune with the spirit of the Gospels.⁵¹¹ Rejecting vehemently the conquest approach to missionary activities, which had actually characterized the earlier centuries, Griffiths advocates that Christians "approach the peoples of these dif ferent religious traditions not as . . . enemies but as . . . friends, who share in part the Truth which we claim to possess."⁵¹² 

            In Kuri_umala particularly, inter-religious dialogue represented for Griffiths an opportunity for the renewal of Christian theology and for a revitalization of its mission. Eastern spiritualities would enable Christianity to rediscover the internal, contemplative dimension of its spiritual practices. Christianity, in turn, would enrich Eastern tradition s with deeper clarity with regards to the relationship between God, soul and world.⁵¹³ 

            As he