Being a ‘not-quite-Buddhist theist’

Abstract

Buddhism is a tradition that set itself decidedly against theism, with the development of complex arguments against the existence of God. I propose that the metaphysical conclusions reached by some schools in the Mahayana tradition present a vision of reality that, with some apparently small modification, would ground an argument for the existence of God. This argument involves explanation in terms of natures rather than causal agency. Yet I conclude not only that the Buddhist becomes a theist in embracing such explanations as legitimate, but also ipso facto abandons their metaphysical project and ceases to be a Buddhist.

Towards a Buddhist theism

“…More recently, McNabb and Baldwin (2022) have even argued that the Buddhist doctrine that all phenomena are impermanent, interdependent, and lack intrinsic nature is compatible with a commitment to the God of Classical Theism, that is, the form of monotheism that insists on God's simplicity and metaphysical independence from creation (cf. Rooney (2021)).…”