Nurses have to face different concerns while on duty because they serve different patients from different locations and religions on a daily basis. To address these concerns, a majority of the issues considered as an ideal show that the community has a varied way of looking at everyday existence. The aspect of humanity is quite different from many, yet, they all agree that something higher and more supreme than humanity exists. The acceptance of this differs from one person to the other, an aspect that shows a different way of observing the concept of one’s life. Nurses must inform their knowledge on such attributes because the source of the strength needed to define one’s existence comes from working on the innermost concentration of a peaceful coexistence. Understanding the reality and working on establishing such constructs shows a need to evaluate certain considerations that consistently shape the way people react to their surroundings. With time, whatever one considers as the basis of reality will define the interactions as well as create the divisions that emanate from working on individual convictions. Examining the role of Christianity and Buddhism in defining the role of the current society is imperative to define the changing strategies needed to establish a nursing environment that caters for every presupposition needed to define the world.
Reality
One important concentration that humans have in life regards the various presuppositions one carries from theological, social, or political constructs. These frameworks are quite important and Christians use them to look at their interactions and relations with the rest of the community (Poplin, 2013). Nurses ought to be aware of this as it presents a hurdle when dealing with a person with a different theological construct. Christians believe in the reality that comes from the Bible. The prime reality is concerned with the atheistic belief that God is the creator of everything and preserves the pleasure of determining right from wrong (Karr, 2013). He considers everything his creation and all should respect and follow him. Christians use the Bible as a way of learning what God wants of them and the scriptures act as a guide when making such choices. It creates the basis of learning what is good and moral while acknowledging God’s omniscience and sovereignty (Coseru, 2015). Nurses know they have to act on what is good and ethical, an aspect best learned when working towards the delivery of such constructs across the community. As part of addressing Christian issues, the aspect of prime reality is an important starting base (Naugle, 2002).
According to Buddhists, the higher being or God is not part of their belief. Instead, they believe in the supreme state or Nirvana. It provides them with the ability to realize that they can be better by aspiring to follow a state considered finite and perfect. In a similar manner, all other religions have similar beliefs regarding their supreme God, and the only difference between Buddhists and Christians is based on the concept of the Supreme Being (Naugle, 2002). Nonetheless, the two religions believe in something bigger than them. To them, the Supreme Being does control the events of everything happen across the world. It creates a certain semblance to the descriptions considered as vibrations, consciousness, and essence. All these help people decipher the meaning of reality (Naugle, 2002).
Matter
Christians understand that God created everything on earth and in the heavens. All creation is dependent on him for existence. Everything considered as the matter has a form that will eventually come to an end. Though he was the creator, God is beyond space and time. He is distinct from all that is created. Nonetheless, matter is real and good and should be used to worship God. As a nurse, when a Christian patient makes such a consideration, it is possible to have such means of creating the intended address to personal convictions (Poplin, 2013).
Amongst the Buddhists, the world is some sort of fantasy that requires an understanding of the lacking realness within. The important thing is to live a life is proud of but not pegging his or her ability to relate to the other on the worldly views or things (Naugle, 2002). As a result, things should not be valued more than personal comfort and needs. People need to value what they consider as the basis of their existence. It should be an integral aspect that creates relief to the soul rather than considering such material possessions as the basis of existence (Coseru, 2015). Nurses treating such patients need to understand their role when it comes to establishing their ventures. An integral bit of such consideration is based on the ability to work on personal growth rather than material possessions.
Humans
The meaning and implication of humans show that people have a different way of viewing others. Christians consider humans as a creation of God in his image. These humans have self-consciousness, intelligence, spiritual abilities, moral accountability and the freedom to make their choices. They are able to work on a relationship that will create a better essence for connecting with God from all positions (Karr, 2013). According to God’s plan, humans should enjoy a fellowship with him both on earth and through eternity. He used Jesus Christ as a means of restoring that fellowship by looking at him as an atonement sacrifice (Sire, 2011).
The Buddhists, on the other hand, downplay individual personalities and believe that all humans ought to be concerned with the unity of the Supreme Being. Everyone needs to help the other grow in all aspects as a way of making that connection. All humans play a vital role in meeting such concerns and assisting others to know God and establish such consideration.
Meaning/Death
Christians take the world to be an important transition to eternity. Christ came and died on the cross so that they could be forgiven their sins. God used him as a sacrificial lamb so that he could atone for the sinful nature of man and ensure he received the eternal life promised thereafter (Karr, 2013). The basic Christian teaching shows that there is life after death and that the material bodies will decompose but the soul of every human will go to a better place thereafter. Christ’s resurrected body was proof enough that there was more after death (Sire, 2011).
The Buddhists, however, believe that life is a continuous cycle. Once one dies, he or she is reborn. Everyone has to repay the consequences of behaviors committed in the previous life. Many consider this as karma (Sire, 2011). The only way of becoming righteous and exercising such abilities is based on the ability to define higher being and state of consciousness in life. By acquiring this, one becomes a better person and can use that as an advance towards the optimistic advance towards being one with the righteous life (Poplin, 2013).
How People Know Things
Christians believe that the scriptures provide them with the needed intelligence. God has given humans intelligence and an ability to define what is right and wrong the morality of such considerations takes into account the ability to make the right choices, an aspect that has been granted to man since time immemorial (Sire, 2004). God also makes certain revelations that show the humans what they consider as part of learning more about life and human existence.
According to the Buddhists, the changes that happen across the world show a basis of delivering what is important when making such cases are noted (Sire, 2004). The intentions that come with various considerations show that an integral part of addressing the inner self. Having time to look deep within is important because it creates a change to develop a new way of assisting others to make the right decisions (Karr, 2013). The ultimate basis of knowing is being conscious about what is happening. The divine within is the basic and most trustworthy setting that allows one to distrust reason and make better use of inward revelation.
Morality
Knowing what is right or wrong is very crucial for existence. God is perfect and he is the basis of everything that is right in the world. As a way of addressing the diminishing qualities of humanness, God ensured that he created people with the qualities of goodness and morality. He knew that with the ability to make the right choices, the growth of the common society was only ideal if the basis of moral natures controls such developments (Coseru, 2015). Sin taints human goodness, an aspect that leads to condemnation as a way of seeking justice. God created humans who were morally right but with time, they all sinned and fell short of his glory. Nurses need to know that they are considered as morally upright and that is imperative as a way of establishing the basis of morality amongst human beings (Sire, 2004).
Buddhists consider morality as an ignorance of the nature of reality. People need enlightenment rather than forcing them to repent. Working on enlightenment ensures that more people can objectively stand in righteousness and uphold morality as a basis of responding to issues in their midst (Sire, 2004). Given that the two sides of the coin emanate from having one single coin, even humans have both the good and bad sides. The secret is to learn to cultivate the better side more compared to the other.
History
Christianity takes precedence from the stories that emanate from handling the changing character of God’s work. It is important to establish the essence of such traditions and histories because God used them as a basis for letting humans know what he intended to do or what he had done in the past (Sire, 2004). The essential chronicles kept by the kings were critical in defining the changing times and the events that characterized their eras. Christians learned from this as a way of knowing what to do in their eras as well. God was the beginning of everything in the world, and everything on earth has its existent tied to Him (Karr, 2013).
Buddhists have different thoughts altogether. They believe that history is a cycle that comes from birth to death and then starts against after reincarnation. For this case, history has very little meaning to them (Naugle, 2002). They feel that the basis of such individual purposes should train one to live a better and make the right changes as part of delivering the intended change in one’s life. Problems arise when various natural processes are ignored yet one has to grow and be better persons. Enlightenment is the only way of breaking various barriers in the area of such bad cycles.
In conclusion, Buddhism looks more at ways of making one better and be in touch with self. The aspect of knowing and loving God is mainly amongst Christians. Nurses need to learn of such diversities and use them to their advantage. They have to establish new contacts that will boost their interactions with clients as well as reestablish their connections with the patients. Learning this will improve their reactions.
References
Coseru, C. (2015). Perceiving reality: Consciousness, intentionality, and cognition in Buddhist philosophy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Karr, A. (2013). Contemplating reality: A practitioner's guide to the view in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism. New York: Shambhala Publications.
Naugle, D. K. (2002). Worldview: The history of a concept. Boston, MA: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.
Poplin, M. (2013). Is reality secular?: Testing the assumptions of four global worldviews. Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity Press.
Sire, J. W. (2011). The Universe next door. Chicago: ReadHowYouWant.com.
Sire, J.W. (2004). Naming the elephant: Worldview as concept. Downers Grove, Ill: Intervarsity Press.
