禁漫天堂

Believe God for her to become a Christian

Believe God for her to become a Christian - @lambieallan

A great way of starting divorce proceedings.

Other than that, the thread is a bit rubbish anyway as the OP is hunting rather than talking about a specific person.

According to the internet, there are approximately 7 million Roman Catholics in Vi峄噒 Nam, so that might work unless you're a staunch Protestant.

Also, Vi峄噒 Nam is not really a Buddhist country, as (according to wikipedia) "the majority of Vietnamese do not follow any organized religion, instead participating in one or more practices of folk religions, such as venerating ancestors, or praying to deities, especially during T岷縯 and other festivals. Folk religions were founded on endemic cultural beliefs that were historically [influenced] by Confucianism and Taoism from ancient China, as well as by various strands of Buddhism. These three teachings were later joined by Christianity (Catholicism), which has become a significant presence. Vietnam is also home of two indigenous religions: syncretic Caodaism (膼岷�o Cao 膼脿i) and quasi-Buddhist Hoahaoism (Ph岷璽 gi谩o H貌a H岷�o).

"Officially, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is an atheist state, as declared by its communist government."

As for Thailand, which is truly a majority Theravada Buddhist country, there are very many western men married to Thai women, and a few vice versa. You can post on the Thailand forum for more comments:

/en/forum/asia/thailand/

Any thoughts on the viability of a western christian marrying a buddist in 'vietnam or 'thailand? - @marrbuff

Viability is a good choice of words.

I'd predict DOA (dead on arrival) if in fact, both people are fundamentalist believers in their respective religions.

However, as JR has pointed out, it seems that most "Buddhists" in Vietnam are practitioners of tradition and freely intermix those practices with elements of the Vietnam folk religion, Confucianism and Taoism.

From my perspective (married to a Vietnamese woman) it's a beautiful thing to observe, although sometimes a little laughable when you discover that some people are only making daily trips to the pagoda to pray that their lucky lottery numbers are successful.

Yet in fairness, that's an absolutely valid way to practice their faith, and I have zero right to cast negative aspersions on them.

Please don't get me wrong, this country has many, many deeply dedicated Buddhists who follow their faith quite scrupulously, including being absolute vegans who are unwilling to even swat a fly.

In my experience, they are the most trustworthy and peace-filled and non-judgmental people in this country.

An agnostic or atheistic man will be absolutely blessed to be married to a woman like that, as long as he is totally willing to support her in the practice of her faith.

That doesn't mean he needs to adopt those practices in his life (though he's probably only going to get vegan food cooked for him).

He can even accompany her on her daily prayer trips to the Pagoda as well as family memorials and seasonal festivals without needing to actually worship with her.

If he truly loves her, then he's probably going to want to do that.

But when you refer to a "Western Christian", it's also worth noting that The West is full of people who are Christians in name only.

By that I mean, they are theologically ignorant as to the absolute fundamental beliefs of their faith.

Or, if they are aware of the absolute fundamental beliefs of their faith, they choose not to be obligated to follow the edicts that spring from those beliefs.

So the answer to your spurious question really depends upon how deeply committed the Western Christian is to his faith and also, how strictly the Vietnamese woman follows a Buddhist lifestyle.

Also, there are myriad traditions and denominations in Western Christianity, so it's really difficult to give you an absolute answer when the Western Christian might be Anglican or Catholic or Protestant or some other offshoot of one of those faiths.

ironically, I think that a person raised as an Orthodox Christian ("Eastern" Orthodox) might stand the best chance of success since the Eastern mindset is much more harmonious with the Buddhist mindset.

Any expat who is seriously asking this question (based on a true relationship that's developing to the point of actually considering marriage) would be well advised to do their own personal faith inventory and decide what it is they truly believe, and which of their beliefs are negotiable, and which beliefs are absolutely immutable.

Then ask the prospective bride to tell you what's absolutely important to her in the living of her faith.

I believe it's possible to have a successful marriage here between a Westerner raised in a Christian environment and a Vietnamese woman raised in a Buddhist family.

it's just going to take a lot of work...

A quote I heard attributed to the Buddha many years ago, " A THOUSAND MONKS, A THOUSAND RELIGIONS"

I'm also very happily married to a Vietnamese woman of nominally buddhist faith.聽 I'm not a fundamentalist christian though raised RC.聽 Funnily, my belief system is probably most closely aligned to the buddhist practises rather than any other.

The challenges in our relationship are usually culturally based rather than religious.聽 My wife is extremely intelligent but she has not had the same educational opportunities that some of us in the west have had.

Like all countries, find the right person and you will be smiling for life.

@marrbuff

My answer to you is that you will be disappointed in many ways between the 2 persons.

@Fred

That is very interesting how do you know that I am intrigued

Any thoughts on the viability of a western christian marrying a buddist in 'vietnam or 'thailand? - @marrbuff

I think that would depend upon how Christian, and how Buddhist each party is.

I've no doubt that a "fundamentalist" Buddhist would be much more accepting of a Christian's beliefs, than a "fundamentalist" Christian would of a Buddhist's.

@Fred
That is very interesting how do you know that I am intrigued - @lambieallan

I have a brain.

The thread title mentions two countries, so we know this isn't about a specific partner and great love.

@marrbuff

聽 1 question,, how devoted are you ????????????????????

Any thoughts on the viability of a western christian marrying a buddist in 'vietnam or 'thailand? - @marrbuff
I think that would depend upon how Christian, and how Buddhist each party is.
I've no doubt that a "fundamentalist" Buddhist would be much more accepting of a Christian's beliefs, than a "fundamentalist" Christian would of a Buddhist's. - @Aidan in HCMC

I was dating a lass in Ben Tre, I was clear on my beliefs which was ok,聽 聽 until a friend of hers told her it couldn't work, i suspect she was speaking from a Catholic point of view. my gf dropped everything.

@marrbuff

Buddhism like Christianity has some variations. Th茅 most important variable though is the 2 people involved. I think step one is research. There are videos on yt that do a kind of philosophical comparison. In case you鈥檙e not currently involved with someone, then you are kind of putting the cart before the horse. So if/when you are in a relationship then you should really view it as a the unique case that it is. And in that light you should have your answer. In the end it will depend on your fianc茅鈥檚 feelings about religion. I think Buddhism is very much less likely to cause an issue regarding belief than closely held values of another religion. My 2 cents fww. All the best.

From my own experience:

Some churches will give difficulties if both partners aren't Christian.

So it depends a bit how flexible you are.

From Buddhist perspective no issues.

That's pretty much "live and let live" 馃榾