What’s Wrong with Karma?
The initial concept of karma predates the 5th century BC with the founding of the Hindu religion. Later it was incorporated into Buddhism, Sikhism, and more recently, New Age. The term and concept has become so mainstream in America that many Christians believe it is consistent with the Biblical concept of sowing and reaping. On the surface, karma appears to incorporate simple principles of justice that the universe distributes fairly to everyone. Because everyone longs for cosmic justice, its appeal seams irresistible. The law of karma is the idea that everyone accumulates good or bad karma based on their actions, thoughts and motives. It stays on your account until justice is served, even through successive lives. If you hurt someone, karma will inevitably come back to settle the score; you do a good deed, and your reward is in the mail. Too much bad karma and you may come back as a spider in your next life; good karma and you’re next life is in the king’s court. How could such principles of justice go so wrong?
First, let’s distinguish it from the Biblical principle of sowing and reaping. The primary distinction is that sowing and reaping are within the free will of the person sowing, while karma can bring good or bad events into a person’s life from previous lives, outside the control of the individual. With karma it is presumed that when something bad happens to someone, it’s deserved, the product of bad behavior no matter how disconnected from the event. On the other hand, sowing and reaping makes a strong connection between the behavior and the outcome. You do your homework, you get good grades; you commit adultery, you lose your family; you love your neighbor, you win favor. Karma is an account that can rear its ugly face at any time, during any season of life, despite the fact that the individual may have repented and seeks a new path in life. Repentance, forgiveness or even good living does not clear your account in anyway under principles of karma.
This brings us to the first problem with karma and where I usually start my conversations with proponents; there is no forgiveness in karma. While many involved in New Age reject Christianity because of its concept of sin and hell, they forget that karma is far worse in that there is no escaping it. You can come back as a maggot and only by being a good maggot can you get out of your predicament. While the concept of hell is inseparable from Christianity, only in Christianity does God provide an escape through the simple act of faith. Many New Agers also complain that Christianity is far too judgmental, but once again karma is not only judgmental, but it lacks any method of escaping judgement. To make matters worse, there is no clear moral standard to follow in order to avoid the perils of bad Karma; so the entire proposition is a shot in the dark. Does premarital sex and smoking produce bad karma? There is no way of knowing because most of these worldviews have very little in the form of ethical or moral standards.
So as one goes through life, there is no telling whether smoking pot or gossiping is adding to one’s bad karma and no way to identify where one’s account stands. This is unusual at best. When we open a bank account we usually get a statement every month which gives us the status of our account; not so with karma. You go through your entire life and have no idea if you are going to come back as a possum or a prince. With Christianity we have assurance of a blissful afterlife, despite the mistakes we may have made in the past.
Some have asserted that the law of karma is much like sin and righteousness, but there are some significant distinctions. First, with sin we have a clear law given by God that we willingly violate. As mentioned, with Hinduism, Buddhism and New Age there is very little in the form of law to distinguish clear lines of conduct. With Christianity there is a clear law from God and violating that law separates us from a holy, righteous God. With New Age and Hinduism we are separated from Brahma (ultimate reality) until we attain moksha and break the cycle of birth and rebirth. Bad karma does not change our status in that we are already made of god’s essence, and sin does not change that.
Though it is often used to regulate behavior, it is also used to explain the way things are, leading us to the most pressing problem that has arisen from karma theory. It can be found in the way people view each other’s condition and hence the way they treat one another. If you go to India where Hinduism is the prevailing religion, the way Indians treat each other cannot go unnoticed. There is very little sympathy for poor children, child sex slavery is rampant and they do not place the same value on life and suffering that we do here in the West. Surprisingly, the reason for this neglect is the view that suffering in all its forms is deserved and therefore there is no need to intervene. In fact many Hindus believe that interfering can bring bad karma upon one's self, because you'd be interfering with the dispensation of justice. Because proponents of Hinduism assure us that the law of karma is inevitable, justice is left to the universal forces that distribute it fairly. Therefore, if you are born poor or face starvation, it is certain to be the product of your past actions. This of course leads to nihilism and extreme pessimism because if a child finds himself failing at something, it can be implied that it’s due to his or her bad karma, something they can never change. It acts like a time bomb that will explode in the future as a result of the things they've done, said and thought in the past.
Of course, the entire system is flawed because it perpetuates evil forever; therefore, there is very little chance of escape for most of us. Suppose the first evil act was when John punches Sam in the face. Karma then evens the score by having Sam or someone else punch John in the face sometime in the future. Now Sam or that someone else will have bad Karma to settle in the future for the revenge punch. When does it end? How is evil ever extinguished even for one punch? Furthermore, when you do reincarnate into a lion or a cow or a baboon, how do you make your way back to a human body? A wolf, shark and a lion have to kill to eat. Must they become vegetarians to accumulate enough good karma for a human promotion?
As for reincarnation, it is also wrought with problems, one of which we’ve already mentioned. In the 14th century, there were almost 400 million people living on earth. Today there are over seven billion. Where did all of these new souls come from? Certainly not animals as we need more livestock to feed that many more people today. To break the cycle of reincarnation, we must be completely harmless in this life and according to many Buddhist sects can’t even kill microbes, something our body does automatically every day.
This leads us to the biggest problem with reincarnation; that attaining nirvana or moksha (escaping the cycle of rebirth) by living a life of only good karma is incredibly remote, virtually impossible. I’ve often asked Buddhists and Hindus if they know anyone who has obtained nirvana or moksha. Inevitably they’ll point to a monk or two that are nearing that stage on a remote mountain somewhere. With a population of seven billion people, these are grim prospects, and a great time to share Jesus, the son of God and the free gift of salvation that can come only through his sacrifice on the cross. Jesus in essence took upon Himself the penalty for the sins of humanity, so we won’t have to pay the price that we owe. It’s only here that we can find forgiveness for all of the wrongs we’ve done and truly wipe away all our debt, something all the meditating in the world could never do.
First, let’s distinguish it from the Biblical principle of sowing and reaping. The primary distinction is that sowing and reaping are within the free will of the person sowing, while karma can bring good or bad events into a person’s life from previous lives, outside the control of the individual. With karma it is presumed that when something bad happens to someone, it’s deserved, the product of bad behavior no matter how disconnected from the event. On the other hand, sowing and reaping makes a strong connection between the behavior and the outcome. You do your homework, you get good grades; you commit adultery, you lose your family; you love your neighbor, you win favor. Karma is an account that can rear its ugly face at any time, during any season of life, despite the fact that the individual may have repented and seeks a new path in life. Repentance, forgiveness or even good living does not clear your account in anyway under principles of karma.
This brings us to the first problem with karma and where I usually start my conversations with proponents; there is no forgiveness in karma. While many involved in New Age reject Christianity because of its concept of sin and hell, they forget that karma is far worse in that there is no escaping it. You can come back as a maggot and only by being a good maggot can you get out of your predicament. While the concept of hell is inseparable from Christianity, only in Christianity does God provide an escape through the simple act of faith. Many New Agers also complain that Christianity is far too judgmental, but once again karma is not only judgmental, but it lacks any method of escaping judgement. To make matters worse, there is no clear moral standard to follow in order to avoid the perils of bad Karma; so the entire proposition is a shot in the dark. Does premarital sex and smoking produce bad karma? There is no way of knowing because most of these worldviews have very little in the form of ethical or moral standards.
So as one goes through life, there is no telling whether smoking pot or gossiping is adding to one’s bad karma and no way to identify where one’s account stands. This is unusual at best. When we open a bank account we usually get a statement every month which gives us the status of our account; not so with karma. You go through your entire life and have no idea if you are going to come back as a possum or a prince. With Christianity we have assurance of a blissful afterlife, despite the mistakes we may have made in the past.
Some have asserted that the law of karma is much like sin and righteousness, but there are some significant distinctions. First, with sin we have a clear law given by God that we willingly violate. As mentioned, with Hinduism, Buddhism and New Age there is very little in the form of law to distinguish clear lines of conduct. With Christianity there is a clear law from God and violating that law separates us from a holy, righteous God. With New Age and Hinduism we are separated from Brahma (ultimate reality) until we attain moksha and break the cycle of birth and rebirth. Bad karma does not change our status in that we are already made of god’s essence, and sin does not change that.
Though it is often used to regulate behavior, it is also used to explain the way things are, leading us to the most pressing problem that has arisen from karma theory. It can be found in the way people view each other’s condition and hence the way they treat one another. If you go to India where Hinduism is the prevailing religion, the way Indians treat each other cannot go unnoticed. There is very little sympathy for poor children, child sex slavery is rampant and they do not place the same value on life and suffering that we do here in the West. Surprisingly, the reason for this neglect is the view that suffering in all its forms is deserved and therefore there is no need to intervene. In fact many Hindus believe that interfering can bring bad karma upon one's self, because you'd be interfering with the dispensation of justice. Because proponents of Hinduism assure us that the law of karma is inevitable, justice is left to the universal forces that distribute it fairly. Therefore, if you are born poor or face starvation, it is certain to be the product of your past actions. This of course leads to nihilism and extreme pessimism because if a child finds himself failing at something, it can be implied that it’s due to his or her bad karma, something they can never change. It acts like a time bomb that will explode in the future as a result of the things they've done, said and thought in the past.
Of course, the entire system is flawed because it perpetuates evil forever; therefore, there is very little chance of escape for most of us. Suppose the first evil act was when John punches Sam in the face. Karma then evens the score by having Sam or someone else punch John in the face sometime in the future. Now Sam or that someone else will have bad Karma to settle in the future for the revenge punch. When does it end? How is evil ever extinguished even for one punch? Furthermore, when you do reincarnate into a lion or a cow or a baboon, how do you make your way back to a human body? A wolf, shark and a lion have to kill to eat. Must they become vegetarians to accumulate enough good karma for a human promotion?
As for reincarnation, it is also wrought with problems, one of which we’ve already mentioned. In the 14th century, there were almost 400 million people living on earth. Today there are over seven billion. Where did all of these new souls come from? Certainly not animals as we need more livestock to feed that many more people today. To break the cycle of reincarnation, we must be completely harmless in this life and according to many Buddhist sects can’t even kill microbes, something our body does automatically every day.
This leads us to the biggest problem with reincarnation; that attaining nirvana or moksha (escaping the cycle of rebirth) by living a life of only good karma is incredibly remote, virtually impossible. I’ve often asked Buddhists and Hindus if they know anyone who has obtained nirvana or moksha. Inevitably they’ll point to a monk or two that are nearing that stage on a remote mountain somewhere. With a population of seven billion people, these are grim prospects, and a great time to share Jesus, the son of God and the free gift of salvation that can come only through his sacrifice on the cross. Jesus in essence took upon Himself the penalty for the sins of humanity, so we won’t have to pay the price that we owe. It’s only here that we can find forgiveness for all of the wrongs we’ve done and truly wipe away all our debt, something all the meditating in the world could never do.