Zen which is imported from Japan has become a faddish religion in the West in which there are several hundred thousands of believers just in the U.S. alone.
This form of Buddhism claims to trace its heritage back to the Buddha but in reality it is a divergence and rebirth from the traditional forms of Buddhism so much so that if the Buddha himself were alive today he would have had a difficult time discerning the aggregates of this new form of religious being.
This resultant impermanence to Buddhist philosophy is just a further evolutionary development towards a narcissistic outlook which has attracted many of its followers especially those from America and even Hollywood who already subscribe to this form of lifestyle and have gotten into the backseat of this vehicle of faith in order to enjoy the proverbial pleasure ride of reaching enlightenment or Satori.
Within Zen, subjectivism and mysticism are the order of religious behavior without any set of rituals or sacred text to follow.
Works is replaced by meditation and enlightenment can be achieved in the here and now.
The danger to Zen is that it has picked the thorny rose of moral relativism which appears to be a beautiful form of self expression yet in essence it is a prospect which could lead to a sense of lawlessness, chaos, and finally anarchy.
Zen also follows it own directions and depends upon intuition as a means to chart ones course which leads people in various directions as to which way to turn whether to the right or the wrong. In the end this kind of philosophy could lead one down a collision course since there are no traffic rules to follow except for the guidance of the master’s who want to be in control of the wheel.
Also this philosophy doesn’t necessitate a sense of social responsibility either because this form of atheistic belief has no supreme moral law code or lawgiver to govern the hearts of society which is like driving a vehicle without brakes down a crowded street of pedestrians. We have seen this kind of godless and recklessness behavior before which had heralded its propaganda as the final solution by leaving a holocaust of victims in its wake.
What was advocated as forms of humanism and altruism were perpetrated through the realms of communism and socialism which ironically led to the sociopathic slaughter of millions who disregarded the inherent value and sanctity of human life in this disillusionment of idealism.
I wrote a blog on this of which you may find of interest at
jesusandjews.com/wordpress/2009/10/21/religion-causes-bloodshed/
Though Zen Buddhism has not been guilty of these extreme crimes it is nevertheless theoretically plausible that if left to itself that nothing would necessitate a restraint based on the outcome of its final destination.
That’s because Zen is rebellious against governing authorities as it has no concept of sin as violating others but rather it sees the individual as the supreme authority that has the right and potential of self deification as the Buddha mind.
Though this religion is centered on the self it is nonetheless social as it unavoidably interfaces with society.
So would you really want a whole world order that was controlled and influenced by the precepts of the Zen spirit?
Personally I am zenical of any cultish movement that is egocentric and self governed and whose main objective is focused on the meditation of personal fulfillment.
So I would encourage you to contemplate and reevaluate your position regarding this philosophical system by looking beyond the conceptual views of this movement towards the rationale field of objective truth.
In the meanwhile I would like to offer you a challenge to muse about the scripture which according to 2 Timothy 3:15 states that it is through meditating on the word of God that makes one wise unto salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.