We should not make publicity to nonBuddhist holydays or the gods and spirits they represent

Some time ago I posted this message advising Buddhists to stop making publicity to nonBuddhist holidays:

Being respectful towards our nonBuddhist neighbours and friends does NOT mean that we should pray to or make publicity to false, nonBuddhist gods. As Pure Land Buddhists we should promote only Amida Buddha and encourage people to entrust only to Amida Buddha. By making publicity to nonBuddhist gods and spirits you create the evil karma of offering false teachings to sentient beings. I very much dislike how fake Buddhists post images (and even praises) of nonBuddhist gods and spirits on various nonBuddhists celebrations, including Christmas, Easter and even pre-Christian holidays. Remember, respect does NOT mean promotion! Respect means working together with your neighbors, helping them in times of need, etc. Promoting the images of their gods and spirits is a mistake, not a sign of respect. Pull yourselves together and stop being stupid when you try to be nice.

Then a frustrated snowflake who is obsessed with Amidaji and constantly upset by our orthodox teaching style said that by calling such Buddhists fake we are guilty of the gravest offence of causing disharmony in the sangha. Well, in the chapter on shinjin from the Kyogyoshinsho, the offence of disrupting the harmony of the sangha is quoted like this: "disrupting the harmony of the sangha through one's inverted views". How can one in his right Buddhist mind do not understand that praying or making publicity to false nonBuddhist gods is actually making publicity to the fake religious teachings taught by those gods or in the name of those gods? How can this be the behavior of a genuine Buddhist? Read carefully what I said above - By making publicity to nonBuddhist gods and spirits you create the evil karma of offering false teachings to sentient beings. Yes, if you do that as a Buddhist, you are actually promoting “inverted views” (nonBuddhist views) to both your sangha members and nonBuddhists who know you. Bad example is spreading like wildfire especially in an environment like here in the West which is filled with many false teachings and mixing of various elements from different religions. I have met so many deluded Europeans or Americans saying, “look Buddhists also believe in God or recognize Jesus” after they saw or met nice smiling Buddhist monks and teachers who supported the stupid idea that one can be a Buddhist and a Christian (like Thich Nhat Hanh for example, etc) or not being very clear and strict on the differences between Buddhism and monotheistic religions. This and Christmas wishes and parties in Buddhist temples contribute even more to the deluded atmosphere of mixing teachings which do not help anybody.

To the idea expressed by that deluded commentator that he is actually celebrating the “Christmas spirit” which we should all encourage, and that shinjin is all that matters, I answered that we don’t need any "Christmas spirit" when we can find enough spirit of Compassion in Buddhist holydays which help people make connections with Amida Buddha and may possibly bring them, sooner or later to shinjin (faith).

Shinran Shonin encouraged us to "receive shinjin (faith in Amida Buddha) and help others receive shinjin". However, celebrating Christmas which is the celebration of a fake god, never leads to shinjin. Turning people's minds towards the Dharma may lead to shinjin. Buddhists and especially Jodo Shinshu Buddhists should observe Buddhist holydays exclusively as that can help in our promotion of the Buddha Dharma, creating a specific Buddhist environment for our own members to grow in the Buddhist faith and be more imbued with the Dharma and Dharmic related symbols while also letting the world and nonBuddhists know that there is an alternative for them if they wish to study it.
Shinran Shonin encouraged us to "receive shinjin (faith in Amida Buddha) and help others receive shinjin". However, celebrating Christmas which is the celebration of a fake god, never leads to shinjin. Turning people's minds towards the Dharma may lead to shinjin. Buddhists and especially Jodo Shinshu Buddhists should observe Buddhist holydays exclusively as that can help in our promotion of the Buddha Dharma, creating a specific Buddhist environment for our own members to grow in the Buddhist faith and be more imbued with the Dharma and Dharmic related symbols while also letting the world and nonBuddhists know that there is an alternative for them if they wish to study it.

I repeat, Buddhists who make publicity to Christian holydays like Christmas or Easter, sending each other Christian related greetings and even celebrating it in their Buddhist temples and centers as I saw many doing that, are actually making publicity to fake gods and spirits and contribute to the confusion that is prevalent in our times. A true Amida Buddha devotee NEVER makes publicity to fake gods of any monotheistic religion because he knows that connections with fake or samsaric gods and spirits never leads to liberation.

I also received the following question:

Can we, as Buddhists, attend family meetings and meals with our nonBuddhist friends and relatives if they invite us on the occasion of Christmas, for example?

To this I answered without hesitation:

YES, of course you can! Why not! My advice is not intended to disrupt families or friendships, but only to make Buddhists and especially Jodo Shinshu Buddhists aware of themselves and the Path they follow, as well as the consequences of the promotion of nonBuddhist gods, spirits and teachings. You can attend meals and celebrations of your relatives and friends without actually making publicity to those holydays and the gods who are celebrated there and without venerating them. You should also invite your nonBuddhist friends and relatives to your Buddhist holidays and events while also not force them to venerate Amida, but simply share a meal or a dance with them.

Sometimes celebrations of different religions fall in the same time. I remember how one day in the past Hanamatsuri (Shakyamuni’s birthday) which is on April 8th coincided with both Orthodox Christian and Catholic Christian Easter. Me and my Catholic and Orthodox Christian friends (as well as some atheists) ordered lots of pizza and drinks and we spent a wonderful night in a rock bar until morning. For them it was Easter and for me it was Hanamatsuri. I could drink, eat and have fun with them without saying the specific Christian words “Jesus resurrected” to which you have to answer traditionally with “Indeed he resurrected” because they knew that I am a Buddhist. I also did not ask them to say Namo Amida Bu.
We also have in our Amidaji branch of Jodo Shinshu, the celebration called Winter Ohigan, so you can join with your nonBuddhist friends and relative while they celebrate Christmas and you celebrate Ohigan.

Thus, as you can see, there is a better way to be friendly without doing things that go against our Buddhist teaching and the dedication we must have towards our religion. I repeat what I said at the beginning of this article - respect does NOT mean promotion! Respect means working together with your neighbors, helping them in times of need, etc.
Promoting the images of their gods and spirits is a mistake, not a sign of respect. Pull yourselves together and stop being stupid when you try to be nice.

Namo Amida Bu