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Christianity & Jainism: Ahimsa, the Soul, Karma, and the Grace of Christ

Jainism and Christianity share a profound reverence for life, a serious view of moral cause and effect, and a hope of final freedom. They differ deeply: Jainism seeks liberation by the soul’s own effort, freeing an uncreated, potentially divine soul from karmic matter, with no Creator above it, while Christians receive freedom as the gift of a personal God who made us in his image and came to us in Christ. This is a respectful, primary-source walk through the Tattvartha Sutra, the Acaranga Sutra, and the Bible, where the two meet and where they honestly part.

Jainism is one of the world’s oldest and most rigorous traditions of non-violence and reverence for life, and this is a Christian reading of it, offered with respect and without caricature. We describe Jain teaching as Jains themselves hold it, and we name the real differences plainly rather than blur them. Everything here is an invitation, never a demand.

Explore the questions

Ahimsa and loveAhimsa, non-violence in thought, word, and deed toward every living being, is the first and supr…Karma and graceJainism has one of the most concrete visions of karma in any tradition: not merely a moral law b…The soulJainism holds one of the most exalted views of the soul in any religion. Every living being, fro…LiberationThe goal of the Jain path is moksha: the soul's complete release from every trace of karma, risi…Truth and many-sidednessOne of Jainism's most distinctive and generous teachings is anekantavada, the many-sidedness of …

Frequently asked questions

What do Christianity and Jainism share?
A deep reverence for life and a refusal of needless harm, a serious belief that our deeds bind us and must be answered, a call to real inner purity and self-discipline, and a hope that the soul's destiny is fullness rather than the grave. On non-violence and the dignity of every living being, Christians find much to honor in Jainism.
What is the main difference between Jainism and Christianity?
How the soul is freed, and whether there is a God to free it. Jainism seeks liberation by the soul's own effort, shedding karmic matter through austerity, and holds the soul to be uncreated and divine by nature, with no Creator above it. Christianity confesses a personal God who made us in his image and gives freedom as a gift of grace in Christ. Liberation earned by the self, or freedom given by God, is the deepest difference.
Does Living Bread represent Jainism fairly?
That is our aim. Living Bread is openly Christian, but we quote the Tattvartha Sutra and the Acaranga Sutra accurately, describe Jain teaching as Jains themselves hold it, and name real differences with respect rather than blurring them. A Jain reader should be able to say we described their faith fairly.

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Jainism calls you to harm no living thing and to free the soul by your own effort; the Gospel tells of a God who came to bear your burden and to give what could not be earned. The most direct way to know Jesus is to read his words for yourself. There is no pressure here.

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