Similarities and Differences Between Christianity & Hinduism

Examine and comment on contrasting standpoints about God and/or existence in relation to the topic you have investigated. Christianity and Hinduism seem to have profoundly different views in relation to God and/or existence. For example, creation within Christian belief is primarily ex-nihilo (out of nothing). God created everything in 7 days from the light and darkness, to the day of rest. This can be illustrated by reference to Genesis 1:1 – 2:4a “In the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth” From this it is quite clear that God pre-existed before the beginning of creation. In contrast, Hindus reject the concept that something can come from nothing for several reasons such as, the Bhagavad Gita (BG) states the eternality of matter: "Material nature and the living entities should be understood to be beginningless” and also, from the Rig Veda: ‘There was neither non-existence nor existence: there was no realm of air, no sky beyond it’ - Instead they believe that the sacred sound ‘Om’ (a symbol of Brahman) was the first sound of creation. There was always something before creation, as it is an impossible notion to assume that anything can come from nothing. Brahman (the one ultimate reality) is believed to have 3 functions, which are shown by 3 Gods: Shiva, Brahma and Vishnu. He is the source of all manifestations. The universes are created by Lord Brahma, the creator, maintained by Lord Vishnu, the preserver, and destroyed by Lord Shiva, the destroyer. Brahman was before creation in which he was unmanifest; this is similar to God in Christianity as he is a spirit and is incomprehensible. ‘The wind from God is invisible’. Both religions state that ‘God’ created the universe by the power of his word/command. (e.g. ‘Let there be light’), and with reference to The Cosmological argument, God within Christianity is timeless and spaceless, because this was part of his creation, the same as Brahman. However, whilst both God’s are eternal, it may not be