Han Khan

Chapter 59, Becoming One
It is difficult for me to estimate how many Nestorian Christians there are in the Western Regions. I have only been here for two years, and there are already nearly 200 Yizhou Christians who have converted to Christianity and are willing to pay tithes to the church!

As for the others, I only know that there is a bishop in each of the five cities of Kashgar, Qiuci, Gaochang, Beiting and Yizhou. As for the number of believers, I don’t know!” Alonben said.

Zhang Sheng nodded. He originally thought that the weak Nestorian Church in the East had long disappeared when Emperor Wuzong destroyed Buddhism. He did not expect that there were still clergy and believers of the Nestorian Church left in this vast Western Region!

In the future, the Naiman and Kerait people in the west of the Mobei area, who were closer to the Western Regions, converted to Christianity because of the Nestorian bishops from Transoxiana, Persia, Sogdia and Syria who preached to the nomads in Uighur and Turkic languages.

The cultural level of those nomads who converted to Christianity was much higher than that of the Black Tatars to the east.

At this time, Zhang Zhongxian on the side said solemnly: "Our lord, His Highness Zhang Sheng, is a descendant of the White-robed Emperor. He once died in a fierce battle, and then was reborn in Nirvana in the dazzling golden light!

He single-handedly founded the Jinhan tribe where we live together today.

He also brought the oracle of the supreme and unique God of Heaven above the nine heavens to the Jinhan tribe, and thus established the Holy Church to convey the will of God of Heaven, teach believers to study his will, assist believers in practicing their faith, and organize and lead believers in prayer.

As for us, the Jinhan people, what we worship now is the God of Heaven. He is the supreme ruler, the creator and ruler of all things in the universe, and the one and only god. He sits high in the heaven above the nine heavens.

Although He is the supreme ruler of the universe, He is full of love because human beings were created by Him in His own image.

He inspired many human beings to become prophets and saints, such as His most outstanding disciples and descendants, Suihuang, Xihuang, Wahuang, Xuanyuan, Chunwei, Duke of Zhou, Confucius, Sakyamuni, etc.

These prophets and saints brought the teachings of the God of Heaven to mankind to the people of the Central Kingdom and the grassland.

For tens of thousands of years, the people of Xia, Shang, Zhou, Han and Tang, who were taught by saints and prophets, have never forgotten the Supreme God and the many saints.

The Jinhan people will also continue to worship and sacrifice to the God of Heaven, inherit the long history and civilization, and on this basis, welcome back those who have forgotten the faith passed down by the God of Heaven, the saints and ancestors, and establish the kingdom of God of Heaven on earth. "

Aronbein, the abbot of the Nestorian Church, a branch of Christianity, and Huineng, the abbot of Buddhism, were both stunned at this time. They listened to Zhang Zhongxian explaining the core belief of the holy religion. They were both shocked.

Huineng was deeply confused at this time. In the Buddhist teachings, there was no such god with absolute dominance as in Christianity, Arabism, and the holy religion that Zhang Sheng, who performed miracles before him, talked about.

Buddhists worship numerous images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Even Sakyamuni Buddha is not a god, but is only regarded as an enlightened wise man and teacher.

Guanyin Bodhisattva is also a person famous for his compassion and saving all living beings. He is not a god who can dominate everything in the traditional sense.

They serve more as role models and spiritual guides for practitioners, encouraging all beings to achieve liberation and enlightenment through their own efforts and practice.

Just as the people of China recognized sages such as Duke of Zhou, Confucius and Mencius, they accepted the new Buddha as just a sage, not a god.

As a Nestorian bishop, Aronbein was familiar with the scriptures and rituals of Christianity, but at this time he was more confused than Monk Huineng because he was doubting his own faith. It can also be seen that his belief in Christianity was not so firm.

"Bishop Aronben, I heard that you believe in a god who came to earth as a human and rose from the dead?"

Aronbein then explained the gods he believed in and the teachings of Nestorianism, as well as the differences between them and Western Christianity.

Zhang Sheng, Zhang Zhongxian, Huineng and others were all descendants of the Tang people. After listening to Aronben's story, they felt unbelievable and at the same time unacceptable! The difference between the two sides was too great.

For example, the so-called Trinity is the concept of the Holy Spirit, the Father, and the Son.

There are also people who are born with sin, and it was a man named Jesus who suffered the sin of mankind, and thus he became God.

Therefore, people have to believe that Jesus is God, which is unacceptable to Buddhism and Confucianism.

Everyone couldn't help but sigh in their hearts, no wonder Nestorianism could not be passed down in the Tang Dynasty and disappeared in the Central Plains due to the influence of the anti-Buddhist movement. On the contrary, Buddhism underwent reforms and became more prosperous!
Several people were debating fiercely in the big tent. Zhang Sheng listened with great interest, secretly marveling at the diversity and complexity of human thought.

He coughed lightly, attracting everyone's attention, and then slowly said: "Actually, I have experienced death before.

You can ask all the Jinhan people about this, they can all prove it.

At that time, my soul left my body and ascended to heaven. There, I had the honor of seeing the Supreme God. "

At this point, Zhang Sheng's voice became full of awe, as if he had actually experienced that shocking scene personally.

“Then, I was taught by God himself, who gave me new life and brought me back into this world.

However, I am not a god. I am still an ordinary person, but I have received inspiration from the gods. Master Alonben, how do you think this should be explained? "

Monk Alonben's eyes widened. He had just witnessed Zhang Sheng being enveloped by a sacred golden light in Yizhou City, and the scars on his body miraculously disappeared. At that moment, he was filled with awe for Zhang Sheng, and even speculated that he might be Jesus, or an Eastern disciple of Jesus.

Hearing what Zhang Sheng said at this moment, the faith that Aaron had held on to in his heart collapsed instantly.

It turns out that Jesus was not the only one who was resurrected. Zhang Shenggou in front of him also experienced resurrection from the dead.

So, does this mean that Jesus is not God, and humans are not born with sin, but the so-called sin is only caused by people themselves?

This also means that Jesus has not and will not save mankind, and those who believe in Jesus cannot enter heaven when they die.

Everything is fake, I believed in the wrong God, he thought at this moment.

This thought kept circling in Aronben's mind, and he felt that his worldview was undergoing a radical change. His original unshakable belief began to waver, and he fell into deep thought...

At this time, looking at the two confused people, Zhang Zhongxian smiled slightly and said to Alongben in a gentle voice: "My Lord, the Son of Heaven, is not a god.

But he is the messenger of Haotian God in the world, carrying the mission bestowed by Haotian God.

Just as Aaron Benni said, Moses and Jesus, they were not gods, nor even saints and prophets. It is possible that they knew the will of the God of Heaven from somewhere, perhaps the thoughts of the saint Sakyamuni, and then began to spread distorted doctrines.

With the power and wisdom given by God, the Son of Heaven will lead us to a bright future."

Aaron was fascinated by what he heard, as if he had found a bright light in the darkness.

He murmured to himself: "So that's it... I understand..."

Monk Huineng nodded thoughtfully, and seemed to "resonate" with Zhang Zhongxian's words.

Zhang Sheng laughed in his heart. He finally tricked two professional charlatans. However, as he looked at them, a sense of mission surged in his heart.

Even if there really was no Lord Haotian in the past, then from this moment on, Lord Haotian was truly born. This is the name of that deity!

In the future, the Holy Religion will take this Lord Haotian as its core belief and spread the Holy Religion to everyone in the world.

He knew that the road ahead was still long, but he was confident that he could lead everyone to glory.

Zhang Sheng stood up and walked towards the two men steadily. The heavy armor on his body made a sound of metal colliding and interweaving. He looked at Huineng first and said slowly:
"Master Huineng, are you willing to convert to Buddhism? Lord Haotian only asks you Buddhists to acknowledge that he is the only supreme god.

In this way, when the Holy Bible is compiled in the future, Buddhist doctrines, creeds and precepts that are in line with God's will will be selected from Buddhist scriptures and added to the Bible.

Then, you can continue to teach and spread the teachings of the saint Gautama Buddha to the world, because that is also the teaching that God wants to tell the world. "

Monk Huineng clasped his hands together, bowed his head and thought for a moment, then replied: "I am willing to convert to the holy teachings."

Zhang Sheng nodded calmly, then turned to ask the Nestorian monk Aronben:
“Master Aaronben, I don’t know whether Jesus is a god or not, but I have experienced death and resurrection, so I know for sure that there is only one God in this world, and that is the Supreme and One God of Heaven.

Here, I want to ask you, are you willing to give up your previous beliefs, are you willing to take the idea that God loves the world and convert to the Holy Religion at this time, to the true God - Haotian God?"

Aaron looked at Zhang Sheng with a firm gaze, knowing that his choice would change his life. He took a deep breath and said solemnly, "Your Majesty, I am willing to convert to the Holy Religion and believe in the Lord of Heaven."

After hearing this, Zhang Sheng smiled with satisfaction and said:
“Then I will give you a name from the Holy Church and the Jin Han people as your Dharma name or religious name. From now on, you will be called Ben Zhengyuan. Ben is your surname and Zhengyuan is your name. It means to find the true and correct path!

By the way, the Holy Church does not mind priests having wives and children, because having a family and remembering ancestors is what Haotian God likes to see! Haotian God created us humans, and His human side is our earliest ancestor.

In this way, you will have descendants to inherit your surname and clan name, and when you ascend to heaven, someone will continue to remember you and commemorate you!

Offering sacrifices to ancestors is offering sacrifices to the Lord of Heaven, because all the righteous and kind ancestors of mankind live in heaven."

With the help of Huineng, he stumbled over and spoke in elegant language: Thank you, Emperor, for giving me the surname and name!

Aaron nodded excitedly and expressed his gratitude to Zhang Sheng.

Thus, the two men, who were respectively the leaders of Izhou Buddhism and Nestorianism, converted to the Holy Religion and the Lord of Heaven.

(End of this chapter)