Buddhist-Christian Dialogue: Alternatives to Consumerism

When the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies (SBCS) held its annual meeting in Boston in November, the backdrop of holiday lights and lavish window displays in the city as well as the impending WTO meeting in the Pacific Northwest underscored the relevance of the society's discussion topic, the reign of consumerism.

Cutting across all denominational and religious belief systems, the growth of consumerist attitudes and the increasing consumption of resources is a trend with alarming consequences, including: environmental destruction; diminished self-identity; distorted views of what is significant; and erosion of spiritual worldviews. Presenting from the Buddhist perspective, environmental scholar Stephanie Kaza suggested in her remarks that “it will not be enough to focus on individual lifestyle changes; only with serious structural change can the rapacious tide of environment-gobbling consumerism be restrained.” Policy-makers, economists, and activists must all concern themselves with the impact of global consumerism.

While in the past, population control received the heaviest attention as a contributor to environmental crises, the impact of affluence, of consumption, and resource wastefulness now cry out for heightened response. Referring to the reports of the Worldwatch Institute, educator Kaza cited some of the more alarming statistics: Americans consume their average body weight every day in materials extracted and processed from farms, mines, rangelands, and forests; since 1950 the per capita consumption of energy, meat, and lumber has doubled; use of plastic has increased five times; use of aluminum seven times; and average airplane miles per person has soared 33-fold.

In practical terms, there are all sorts of consequences we would see if we were serious about curtailing advertising and the promotion of acquisitiveness. As one set of examples, Stephanie Kaza observed that “if the fueling of greed and desire were considered out of place in schools, advertising would not be allowed on classroom televisions or at school sports events. If people valued conversation with each other over the speech of the television, the social courtesy would be to turn the TV off when eating together.”

When it comes to concrete suggestions, the following appealed to the speaker and to discussion participants: education to unlearn consumerism; active resistance to consumerism with such activities as “Buy Nothing Day;” the changing of structural policies; and the building of new kinds of communities and culture.

Among the options available, discussants suggested, is choosing to reduce self-identification with products by recognizing that product marketing is synonymous with creating and marketing illusion. We can all refuse to buy into what is patently illusional.

There is something more significant we should acknowledge, Christopher Queen suggested, and that is that “greed is the religion of our civilization.” We are, the authority on Engaged Buddhism continued, quite confused about which is more important, spiritual or material contributions to society.

Audience members discussed what might be called the “sickness” of consumerism, concurring that social responsibility can be brought to the fore to alter the influence of even the most powerful kinds of social entities, transnational corporations. Socially responsible investing and lobbying opportunities can create greater corporate accountability.

Alluding to the fact that “consumerism stimulates a craving that is never satisfied,” SCBS member Virginia Straus suggested that the order we want to see re-established is that of economic systems serving humans and nature, rather than humans and nature serving economic systems. She suggested that the principles in the Earth Charter offer important forms of resistance to consumerism.

Responding to audience input, Stephanie Kaza asserted, “Our culture has become a culture without discipline, especially the discipline of restraint.” She recommended the works of Sulak Sivaraksa and Alan Durning —particularly How Much Is Enough? The resonant theme at the meeting was: Each person has to find an avenue to be effective.

In the remarks he presented reflecting a Christian perspective, Professor Jay McDaniel of Hendrix College suggested that consumerism, which is a set of attitudes and values that leads to an overconsuming lifestyle, can be viewed as a corporate-sponsored kind of world religion. This religion continually confronts individuals with temptations to buy. It can, however, be rejected by a three-level Christian response. Intellectually, we can choose to perceive God as Open Space “whose breathings we feel as an indwelling lure toward healing and wholeness.” Practically, we can follow Jesus in His way of simplicity. Spiritually, we can learn from the various contemplative traditions.

Dr. McDaniel suggested that we can turn aside from consumerism by engaging in daily prayer, meditation, and worship that is combined with action and reflection in service to the community. He recommended the following ten healing alternatives to the ten temptations of consumerism: To believe and feel that:

• The true purpose of our lives is not to be attractive, rich, and powerful, but rather to be wise, compassionate, and free.
• Healthy living requires not only creativity and action and good work, but also rest and relaxation so that our work can be productive rather than compulsive.
• It is much more important to be a good parent and be a good neighbor than to have a successful career.
• Truly good work consists in serving others, quite apart from questions of reward and recognition.
• We have made it not when we enjoy prosperity in the suburbs but when we give our time, energy, and money in service to people in need.
• Compulsive shopping is a symptom of a disease, not a cure for depression.
• Small can be beautiful; enough is enough; we don't need it all.
• Sometimes it is much more important for a community to be compassionate than to be efficient.
• The universe is a communion of subjects, not a collection of objects.
• We are not on our own, because the universe is enfolded within an ultimate mercy which renders questions of success and failure irrelevant.

Now a dozen years old, the SBCS was chartered to create “opportunities for study, reflection, interchange, and practice arising out of Buddhist-Christian encounter.” The Society holds an international conference every four years; the next gathering, on “Buddhism, Christianity, and Global Healing,” will take place this August in Tacoma, Washington.

(For information on the next SBCS international conference, email: SBCS2000@aol.com)