Christianity vs Sikhism
Comparison chart
| Improve this chart | Christianity |
Sikhism |
|---|---|---|
| Founder: | Jesus Christ | Guru Nanak Dev Ji |
| Place of origin: | Jerusalem | Punjab, in an area which was partitioned into modern-day Pakistan. Sikhs are now predominant in Indian-Punjab. |
| Practices: | Prayers, Sacraments, worshipping in Church, reading the Holy Bible, acts of charity. Communion-partaking in the Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ, under the appearance of Bread and Wine. | Daily prayers. The three pillars of Sikhism are: a) To remember God at all times which includes being thankful to God for what you have been given, b) To live your life honestly/with integrity and c) Sharing what you have with those less fortunate. |
| Clergy: | Priests, monks, nuns, ministers, & bishops, and deacons. Pastors and some churches Board of Elders | No clergy. The care takers of a Gurdwara are local volunteers (generally). Anybody knowledgeable can lead the prayer. This includes women, who, unlike in many other religions, are given the same rights as men. |
| Place of worship: | Church, Chapel, Cathedral, basilica. | Gurdwara for congregational worship. Anyone may enter a Gurdwara, however-no matter their faith, caste, or skin color. Personal worship can be done in any place at any time. God resides in everything and everyone. |
| Literal Meaning: | Christian: Meaning "Follower of Christ" | Sikh means "Student" in Persian-Punjabi. It Means To Learn. |
| Life after death: | Man is appointed to die once, and after that come judgment. Those that are redeemed, live on in Heaven, those that rejected God suffer for eternity in Hell. Catholics believe souls that need purification before entering Heaven will go to Purgatory | A constant cycle of reincarnation until enlightenment is reached. Sikhs believe that there are 8,400,000 forms of life and that many souls have to travel though a number of these before they can reach Waheguru. The goal is to merge with God. |
| Concept of Deity: | Believe in the Trinity. Three persons in one Godhead: Father, Son and Holy Spirit | Belief in one God and teachings of the Sikh Gurus |
| Use of statues and pictures: | Used in Catholic & Orthodox Christianity; statues are not used in most Protestant denominations. Statues are not worshiped but may help us focus on prayer and meditation. | Not allowed as considered Idolatry. Pictures of the Sikh Gurus are considered Idolatry and are not accepted from a religious perspective. |
| Scriptures: | Holy Bible, a collection of canonical books in two parts (the Old Testament and the New Testament), varies in the old(depending on if its a Protestant, Catholic, or Orthodox)Bible, and 27 in the new testament. | Sahib Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji Maharaaj (Holy Scripture and final Guru of the Sikhs completed by the 10th Guru, Sahib Sri Guru Gobind Singh Sahib Ji Maharaaj) |
| Branches: | Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox. | Udasis – An order of ascetics & holy men, often active as missionaries. Sahajdharis – who are clean shaven but have chosen the path of Sikhism & eventual baptism. The Khalsa, who are baptized and follow the traditional practices of Sikhism |
| Status of women: | They can become nuns in the Catholic and Orthodox Churches and can be priests to Protestant churches. For the most part, women are equal to men in modern-day society. The Bible makes clear that men and women have different roles but are not inferior. | Sikhism teaches that men and women are 100% equal in the eyes of God. Women have the exact same rights as men and are to be respected and honored. God loves both equally and neither is better than the other. |
| Angels: | Angels are God's messengers. | Various beings exist that we, as mortals, cannot comprehend. |
| Time of origin: | Approx. 33 AD. | 1469 AD. |
| Geographical distribution and predominance: | Worldwide. Africa, Europe, North and South America, Asia and Australia. | Sikhs can be found throughout the world in small communities but predominantly in Punjab, India, U.K., U.S.A., Canada. |
| About: | Following Jesus Christ. | Sikhism is the 5th largest organized religion in the world. It was founded in Punjab in the 15th century based upon the teachings of Guru Nanak Dev Ji and 10 successive Sikh Gurus (the last one being the sacred text Sri Guru Granth Sahib). |
| Goal of religion: | To love God and obey his commandments. To gain a relationship with Jesus Christ, live forever with Christ, spread the good word of God. | To merge with and have the greatest relationship with God possible. To love and obey God unconditionally. Guru Nanak Dev Ji stressed that we should not be afraid of God's wrath, but instead be afraid of not receiving the full benefits of God's love. |
| Principle: | God created man. Man sinned and fell under its curse. God redeems sinful man through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Those that He redeems, He regenerates and they become "born-again". | The worship of the One God through prayer and devotion. Sikhs are required to meditate on God's name to clear their mind and eliminate the 5 evils. Meditation is also used to bring oneself closer to God. |
| Population: | 2.4 Billion includes Catholics, Protestants, and all other Christians. | 30 million |
| Definition: | Follower of the Christ | Disciple, student or learner of God. |
| Identity of Jesus: | Son of the Living God, and Saviour of the world, and 2nd person of the Godhead. | Jesus is looked as a "saint". Sikhs do not believe that Jesus is God because Sikhism teaches that God is neither born, nor dead. Jesus was born and lived a human life, therefore, he cannot be God. However, Sikhs still show respect to all beliefs. |
| Status of Adam: | Adam was the first man created by God. He fell into temptation and brought sin and death to the human race. | Only God knows who was created first and who will be created last. |
| Means of salvation: | Through Christ's Death, and Resurrection. | Worship God, do Good Deeds in the name of God, performing service for community. Fight 5 evils (5 sins) - Greed, Ego, Attachment, Anger, and Lust. Meditate, pray, and improve your relationship with God and God will forgive, cleanse, and save you. |
| Rites: | Christian rites comprises the way all services for the worship of God are performed, including the 7 Sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Penance, Anointing of the sick, Holy Orders, Matrimony. | Amrit Sanchar (Being Initiated into the Khalsa. Mandatory for both men and women). |
| Second coming of Jesus: | Affirmed, No one knows the date of return not even Jesus, only the Father | N/A |
| Human Nature: | Man has inherited "original sin" from Adam. Mankind then is inherently evil and is in need of forgiveness of their sin. By given the knowledge of right and wrong we choose our actions. We pray that the Holy Spirit strengthens us to avoid sin. | People are essentially good; the divine spark within them needs only to be fanned into a flame of goodness. Guru Nanak taught that a man's sins are moral lapses caused by his environment. They may be cleansed through meditation and prayer. |
| Prophet: | Moses, Abraham, John the Baptist, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekial, Nahum, Elijah, Elisha, Obadiah, Amos, Hosea, Zechariah, Zephaniah, Malachi, Daniel, Nathan, and many others | No prophets in Sikhism only direct relation with God with no mediator. |
| Clothes: | No Prohibitions, except in some sects | Men should wear turbans and women are permitted to wear turbans or scarfs if they so desire, once baptized. In addition to that, they wear the five articles of faith: Kesh(uncut hair), Kanga(comb), Kara(metal bangle), Kirpan(dagger), Kachera(shorts). |
| View of other Abrahamic religions: | According to Christian doctrine, Judaism is a true religion, but with incomplete revelation (incomplete without the Messiah). | All faiths will get what they work towards. Sikhism does not condemn others to Hell or say if you are not Sikh you are eternally damned. Sikhs prays for "Sarbat Da Bhala", meaning the good and prosperity of all Humanity regardless of differences. |
| Marriage: | Monogamistic: "And two shall become one". One man and one woman are united under God in the holy sacrament of Matrimony. In Heaven, marriage does not exist. | Marriage can be arranged or it can be a love marriage. Monogamistic, against premarital sex. Marriage is the merging of two souls as one. |
| Birth of Jesus: | Virgin Birth, through the Father. | Not relevant to Sikhism. |
| Confessing sins: | Catholic & Orthodox Christians confess their sins to the priest, in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Most Protestants do not believe in the Sacrament of Confession. | As the Divine light is in all of us, God already knows of our "sins". We are to pray to God for God to forgive us and cleanse us. Only through God and doing Good Deeds in God's name in a way that God is pleased can we obtain salvation-escape from sin |
| Geographical predominance: | Christianity has spread worldwide across all six settled continents, predominantly Europe, North, Central, and South America, Australia, and New Zealand | Indian Punjab, hundreds of thousands in the US, Canada, UK , Europe, Africa, Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere. |
| Place and Time of origin: | Jerusalem 33 AD | Nankana Sahib, Punjab, Pakistan, 1469 AD.Earlier Known As Talwandi. |
| View of Oriental religions: | There are many variants on religious belief; some are Pagan. | Sikhism is a Dharmic religion, not an Oriental religion, however, it teaches that all faiths lead to God. |
| Belief: | Belief in one God, the Father Almighty, God the Son is Jesus, our Lord and Savior. After his death and Resurrection God the Holy Spirit came down to Earth and remains with us. | Sikhs believe in one God and the teachings of the Gurus as per Sri Guru Granth Sahib Jee. |
| View of Animistic religions: | Pagan. | N/A |
| Views on the afterlife: | Eternal life in Heaven or Hell. | Sikhs believe that there are 8,400,000 forms of life and that many souls have to travel though a number of these before they can reach Waheguru. |
| Holy days: | Sunday is the Lord's Day, Good Friday, Easter, and Christmas. | Khalsa Day, Birthday/Martydom of the Sikh Gurus, Bandi Chor Diwas, Diwali, Vaisakhi, Holla Malla |
| Day of worship: | Worship should be a continual process in the lives of Christians. Sunday is not the only day Christians can attend Church. | Every day Sikhs worship the one God at their homes, even with or without a Gurdwara service. |
| Religious Law: | Christians no longer live under the curse of the law but under grace. We are still expected to live by the law. | No necessary laws but a sikh may follow the 3 rules of their life such as 1)Naam Japna 2)Vand K Shakhna 3)Kirat Karna. |
| Holy days/Official Holidays: | Christmas (birth of Jesus), Good Friday (death of Jesus for our sins), Sunday (day of rest) Easter (resurrection of Jesus). | No one day is deemed holier then another. However dates that have historical significance such as Vasaikhi and Gurpurabs are celebrated with Prayers in Gurdwaras. |
| Praying to Saints,Mary, and Angel: | Catholics, Orthodox, and Anglican Christians ask for the intercession of Mary, the Saints, and the angels. Most Protestants choose to pray directly to God. | They have no relevance to Sikhism at all. Sikhism believes and prays to only One God. |
| Belief of God: | God is the Omnipotent, Omniscient, Omnipresent, Holy, Just, Loving Creator of the Universe. Oneness of God in the form of the Holy Trinity. | God is the one True Creator. God has always existed, none existed before him and will exist forever. He transcends life and death. God is omnipresent and resides in every living being's heart. All of humanity is loved equally by God. |
| Views on other religion: | God has provided one way for men to become right with Him, and that way is through Jesus Christ. All other religions are vain and futile attempts to win favor with God and are thus false. | All religions are equal, 15 of the legendary saints in sikhism (Bhagats), in the Sikh Guru, have came from different religions and reflect its universality. |
| View of God: | One God: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (three persons in One God, known as the Holy Trinity). | Unseen, Merciful to all. One God. |
| View of Abrahamic religions: | Judaism is incomplete without the Messiah; Both Islam and Baha'i are wrong to believe in men that are greater than the Messiah | N/A |
| Prophets: | http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prophets_of_Christianity | No prophets in Sikhism, but sikhism has 10 living Gurus(Teachers) and the present Guru(Teacher) Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji(Holy Book). |
| Three Jewels: | Faith (in Christ), Hope, and Love | Naam Japna (Meditate on God), Kirat Karni (To work and earn by the sweat of the brow, to live a family way of life, and practice truthfulness and honesty in all dealings), Vand Chakna (To share with others without expecting anything in return). |
| Resurrection of Jesus: | Affirmed. | Not relevant to Sikhism. |
| Offshoot religions: | Rastafarianism, Unitarian Universalism, and Deism. | Dharmik Schools and Teachings In Gurudwara. |
| God's role in salvation: | Salvation is a completely free gift from the Lord and comes by grace alone through faith in Jesus Christ only. This faith is demonstrated thorugh accepting his message of selfless compassion and producing good works in keeping with repentance. | Only God Knows. |
| Goal of Philosophy: | Salvation | Refer to Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. |
| Virtue in which religion is based upon: | Selfless love. | Sikh Gurus (teachers) taught 5 virtues to unite with God: Sat (truth), Daya (compassion), Santokh (contentment), Nimrata (humility), and Pyar (love). |
| View of the Buddha: | A sinner in need of God's redemption just like everyone else. | N/A |
| View of other Dharmic religions: | All religions outside of belief in Christ's death and resurrection for our sins are false. | Sikh Gurus defend the rights of Christians, Hindus, Muslims and other sects to practice their religious ideas free of persecution. However, Sikhs respectfully disagree with some of those practices. |
| Original Languages: | Aramaic & Greek. | Punjabi and Persian. |
| Saints: | Catholic & Orthodox Christians venerate the Saints; most Protestants do not venerate the Saints. | The Sikh notion of a saint or prophet is called a guru, meaning one who can offer salvation, and deliver a soul from darkness, into light. |
| Authority of Pope: | The Catholic Church teaches that the Papacy goes all the way back to St. Peter; the Coptic Church's Popes go back to St. Mark; Orthodox Churches also have Apostolic Succession;Protestants do not believe in Apostolic Succession or having a Pope. | Not relevant to Sikhism. |
| Marriage and Divorce: | An unbreakable contract and a type of Christ and the church. Divorce is not permitted. | One can marry peacefully and take Laavan in Gurudwara but if personal differences occur they can take divorce. |
| Original Language(s): | Aramaic, Greek, & Hebrew | Punjabi was the original language in Sikhism and Persian also but Sikhs can learn as many languages as they want to learn. |
| Authority of Dalai Lama: | N/A. | N/A |
| Teachings about Behavior: | Love mercy and walk humbly with your God. | Never Commit any sin always do good thing and praise god's name. |
Contents |
edit The concept of Heaven and Hell in Christianity vs Sikhism
edit Heaven and Hell in Christianity
Christians believe that God created human beings to live with Him eternally. Resurrection of all people; judgment; eternal life in heaven or hell. Heaven is God's abode. Salvation is finally received and fully realised when people go there and be with God individually. Many Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven, but for a few it is a mixed matter. Hell is the bottomless pit unto which God cast away Satan after his rebellious acts against God. The people who are not close to God and reject him will be judged and be separated from God forever.
Another theory is that before judgement day, Satan's home is here on earth where he is busy deceiving and destroying. On judgement day Satan, the fallen angels, his followers and the people that did not commit to God the creator will be sent to hell.
edit Heaven and Hell in Sikhism
Sikhs believe that through good deeds, worship of God, helping the poor, and living a pure life, you can join God in Sach Khand (Sikh concept of Heaven). It is a Sikh's goal to end his own suffering, and join God.
Heaven: Known as Sach Khand. Salvation is finally recieved when a Sikh unites with God, master and creator. Sikhs believe that all religions are paths to God, but must follow their religions truthfully.
Hell: Hell is a mixed matter in Sikhism. Mainstream Sikhism believes that Hell is the cycle of rebirth over and over again. Unless one finally reaches God, he/she must go through 8.4 million lives (different life forms) to become human again and get the next chance to reach God. Yet other Sikhs believe Hell is a real place, and the wicked are sent there.
edit Further Reading
For further reading, there are several books available on Amazon.com on Sikhism and Christianity:
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