Reflections on Taoism

I had this in my mind for quite a long time already. The concept of Taoism and its connection with Christianity. The main reason of which was the TAO TE CHING that I've read, it was written by a Chinese philosopher named Lao Tzu. It mainly speaks about the peace that you get once you just let things happen, without you and your subjective emotions interfering. It has since then captured my interest, since I myself is in the quest for inner peace. Peace that not this world can give. Peace that comes from a profound source. The peace that comes from something divine, from God alone. And this brought me to find a certain link between Christianity and Taoism. But sure there are differences, and the following text is a copy from a forum, by which the topic is somewhat close to what I'm looking for.

"Concerning the Taoist views of the afterlife, there can be various views as it’s not really a matter of doctrine. However, Chuang-Tzu wrote:

“The true men of old did not know what it was to love life or to hate death. They did not rejoice in birth, nor strive to put off dissolution. Unconcerned they came and unconcerned they went. That was all. They did not forget whence it was they had sprung, neither did they seek to inquire their return thither. Cheerfully they accepted life, waiting patiently for their restoration (the end). This is what is called not to lead the heart astray from Tao, and not to supplement the natural by human means. Such a one may be called a true man. Such men are free in mind and calm in demeanor.”

Basically, we are all from Tao, and we return to Tao. The human body is built from the sustenance and DNA provided by the parents. As you grow, your body is built from what you consume. When you die, your body decomposes and eventually returns to the planet from which it came. The life which powers our body is drawn from the body of all energy that surrounds us and it is there it returns.

In essence, life is a cycle that ebbs and flows like the oceans.

We do not profess to understand the entirety of that energy, just as Christians sometimes say “Only God knows” or “we cannot fully understand the will of God” or even “the Lord works in mysterious ways”. We all recognize we are part of a greater whole. We believe we are part of the energy of the Universe, just as Christians believe they are are the children of God.

Certainly there are fundamental differences between Taoism and Christianity and I always tell people to follow their instincts when searching for what is right for them. I agree that the teachings differ in many ways but I also recognize there are similarities.

For me, I don’t find a need to focus on the differences and pointing at one or the other to say “this way is absolutely right and this way is absolutely wrong”. Jesus taught to love each other. Anyone who has read the core Taoist doctrines know that the three great treasures are compassion, moderation and humility. These are very compatible with the teachings of Christ.

Christ didn’t tell anyone to love only those who followed him. We are to love, respect, and just be good to each other. We don’t have to agree with everyone else’s viewpoint, and likewise everyone else doesn’t have to agree with ours.

And just a thought, you will be hard pressed to hear about a Taoist killing anyone because of their beliefs. We don’t shoot doctors because we don’t like abortion, we don’t blow ourselves up in marketplaces because our religion will reward us for killing infidels. We are loving, tolerant, compassionate and try to live with as little conflict as possible. "