Question 32: ARE CLERGY THOSE WHO SERVE AS INTERMEDIARIES BETWEEN GOD AND THE BELIEVERS, MANAGING THE FLOCK OF BELIEVERS ON GOD'S BEHALF?

Question 32: ARE CLERGY THOSE WHO SERVE AS INTERMEDIARIES BETWEEN GOD AND THE BELIEVERS, MANAGING THE FLOCK OF BELIEVERS ON GOD'S BEHALF?Answer: Yes. Every religion requires dedicated clergy who are no longer preoccupied with family duties. This allows them to devote themselves entirely to spiritual cultivation and caring for the spiritual well-being of their followers. This clergy class is crucial; without them, a religion could perish.Some religions do not have celibate clergy; instead, they select religious leaders from the core believers. Some religions do not require celibacy for their clergy; their clergy can getmarried and still be trained to guide the faithful professionally.From a human perspective, clergy are expected to be exemplary in their moral and spiritual practices according to the standards of their religion.From a divine perspective, clergy are representatives of the Divine, connecting the believers to God. Naturally, these representatives must also possess outstanding spiritual qualities and cultivation, as their religion requires.We often hear about scandals involving the personal lives of some clergy members. After all, they are still human beings with natural, deep-seated instincts that are not easy to overcome, especially the instinct of sexual desire. In Buddhism, to transcend desire, one must attain deep states of meditation, which is highly challenging. Even those who take vows to upholdthe precepts do not necessarily mean being free from the instinct of desire.In addition to desire, humans are also driven by many other instincts, such as selfishness, greed, anger, and jealousy. Without effective spiritual practices, clergy may still fall short of the ideal qualities expected of them.#Religions, #Buddhism, #DialogueBuddhismReligions, #Religious, #Buddhist, #Truedharma, #Meditation, #Enlightement, #Buddhatemple, #TheLawofKarma, #BuddhismforBeginners, #Janna, #JannaOrderMonastery,