Tao Te Ching


Chinese paganism? The pursuit of emptiness? Of course it's not that simple.

My interpretation of the Tao is that of a reflexive action - something not existing until it's jarred. This comparison is not exactly apt - you can train your reflexes to be better, faster, but with the Tao the harder you train the farther it recedes. 
9

Fill your bowl to the brim 
and it will spill.
Keep sharpening your knife 
and it will blunt.
Chase after money and security 
and your heart will never unclench.
Care about people's approval 
and you will be their prisoner.

Do your work, then step back.
The only path to serenity.

(From A New English Version by Stephen Mitchell)
This philosophy of embracing emptiness believes that the Answer to our all our longings comes from within us, and when we reached this enlightened state we can say: 'I am the Tao, the Truth, the Life.' It recognizes neither good nor evil; immorality is a deficiency of the Tao. It is not nihilistic but humanistic. God is not irrelevant, but he exists only within the us, within the confines of the Tao. When our universe finally ceases to exist, whether by Big Crunch or heat death, the Tao will vanish with it.

Is it Unchristian, then, to consider the wisdom that these Zen masters purport? Clearly many elements of the Tao are compatible in the best sense with what Christ taught: Service, Love, Compassion and Humility. I can recommend wholeheartedly that you try to understand what the Tao is striving for, but its essence remains false. The destination is Peace with yourself and the Universe at the expense of true Peace with God.