I don't see how Buddhism can ever be considered extremism when the primary teaching is to avoid extremism of any type and follow the "Middle Path" or middle way.
Those with extremist behavior who claim to be Buddhist are not true followers of Buddhism because they are disobeying the core tenets of that faith....I say faith an not religion because Buddhism is a way of life rather than a religion and does not try to force you believe that any of their teachers are really posing as an all knowing prophet or mystical son of god.
the problem with Christianity and Islam is they have yet to consider their extremists as being outside of their religion because you can be an extremist and still be following the teachings of the Bible or the Q'ran, both of which I have read.
iowastate
So what is the middle path then, if not another subjective evaluation that sounds nice and woolly but has little objective meaning? How can you avoid extremism as perceived by others if it does not seem extreme to you? Doesn't, for example, the perpetual cycle of rebirth seem extreme to some people? How about concepts of liberation and of overcoming ignorance? Don't those seem extremely indulgent?
That hoary old chestnut of "if they don't believe what I believe then they don't belong in the religions we both claim to be in" is getting wheeled out again. That's what Shias say of Sunnis (and vice versa). That's what evangelicals say of relevance Christians and most Christians say of Mormons, who would also say same of Rastafarians, etc, etc, etc.
I'd say Buddhism is a religion rather than a way of life, since different Buddhists have different ways of life, but they submit to the same dogma and often advertise the "superiority" of their beliefs through devotional and ritualistic actions. There is a suspension of critial awareness of particular religious doctrine, where skepticism would be the more rational approach.
The problem I think is the same with Buddhism as in the other faiths you mentioned: It is in applying subjective evaluations (like extremism) to other religions while denying those same labels can be easily placed on your one, because you think you have found the "truth" of your faith.
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