Jesus told a parable about a lost son. We can find it in Luke 15, starting with verse 11:
The Parable of the Compassionate Father
Then Jesus said, “A man had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the estate that will belong to me.’ So he divided his assets between them. After a few days, the younger son gathered together all he had and left on a journey to a distant country, and there he squandered his wealth with a wild lifestyle. Then after he had spent everything, a severe famine took place in that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and worked for one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He was longing to eat the carob pods the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. But when he came to his senses he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired workers have food enough to spare, but here I am dying from hunger! I will get up and go to my father and say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired workers.”’ So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way from home his father saw him, and his heart went out to him; he ran and hugged his son and kissed him. Then his son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his slaves, ‘Hurry! Bring the best robe, and put it on him! Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet! Bring the fattened calf and kill it! Let us eat and celebrate, because this son of mine was dead, and is alive again – he was lost and is found!’ So they began to celebrate. (Luke 15:11-24 NET)

We've heard this story a thousand times. Yeah, yeah, we get it. A son takes his father's money and goes and squanders it on wild living, realizes his mistake and heads home only to find that his father is waiting for him to come to his senses to bless him with more than he had before.

Well, that tells the story--- but boy, does it skip over what it means. Did you know that there's a Buddhist version of the parable of the Prodigal Son? It goes like this:

Once upon a time a young boy stole his rich father's money and ran away from home so that he could enjoy life. But, once the money was gone, he had to beg to survive, becoming used to the poor and miserable life.

One day, the rich man became very sick and knowing that his death was near, he gathered all servants and employees in a room, including his son. "Young man" he said, "I am your father and you've proven that you deserve everything that has always been yours, now take it, all this belongs to you."
(From the Lotus Sutra by Maha-Kasyapa, )

It's the same story, right?
A lot of people would try and convince you of that- that we share the same stories and the same condition and the same 'god'... but if we look at the heart of each of the stories, we see how different and special our faith is.

First- In Christ's parable, the son is given his inheritance by the father- he didn't steal it. This part of the parable is unique in so many ways. It was unheard of for a son to ask for his part of the estate from a healthy father- so much so that this is the ONLY known passage in all Middle Eastern literature where this occurs. You only got your inheritance when your father died- or was incapacitated... you never got it from a vital, healthy father and you NEVER asked for it.

We've all heard the phrase: "You're dead to me". The son severed his relationship with his father by taking his inheritance early- he essentially declared his father dead before his time. This was so far worse than merely stealing money, this was the death of the father-son relationship.

So the son took what he inherited and squandered it. Hungry, he sought work- and found it in very humble surroundings.

The son in Jesus' story came to his senses- the one in Maha-Kasyapa's did not.

Important difference #2- The son sought out the Father. In the Buddhist parable, the son was without hope- begging in the streets when the father found him. In Jesus' story, the son realized he was wrong, repented and though he knew that he had ended the relationship with his father.... by his actions, they were no longer legally father and son, he hoped that he could find work as a servant in his father's house.

Humbled, he sought to be a servant. This was not a gift given to him by a father who remained anonymous- this was honest repentance and realization of how far he had fallen from his father's good will.

Recently, it came to my attention that we have to learn sin--- not learn how to sin, we already do that quite well, thank you very much. But learn how our very society, our very culture is doomed due to the wages of sin. We live in a culture of death, where death is actually welcomed, where it's not seen as the enemy that was introduced by sin in the world. We don't realize that living in sin introduces death into our bodies, into our families and into our world. Christ didn't come into the world to make bad men good, he came to make dead men live- our battle is with sin and death-- which is something else missing in Buddhist dogma. They believe in reincarnation- a belief that cheapens the significance of death in our lives, and therefore cheapens the sacrifice that Christ made for us.

The Buddhist son did not seek the father- in fact, he was brought into his father's house by subterfuge, and he had to work his way up from Janitor to recieve what he 'already deserved'. His working his way up reflects the idea of reincarnation as nothing more than changing jobs, never knowing the father. In stark contrast, Jesus' parable makes it clear that repentance came and the son sought out the father because the son KNEW THE FATHER'S HEART. He knew that his father was not the sort of man who would let his servants go hungry.

So, instead of working at a series of ill defined jobs with no obvious connection to his father, the son practices a speech. He runs through it again and again in his head on his way to his father's house. He tops the last hill, and can go no farther- because running down the road in the most undignified manner is his father... being chased by his personal servants. He's kicking up clouds of dust in his wake in his haste to see his son. The son opens his mouth and starts his speech, where he begs for servant status, but he only gets a fraction of it out of his mouth before his father starts barking orders to his servants- Get him the finest robe! Get him a ring for his finger! Get him some shoes for his feet! Butcher that calf we've been fattening and start the barbecue! This is my son- the one who declared me dead, who was dead- He's alive! He was lost and is now found!

In Maha-kasyapa's story, there is no such joy. The father declares himself to his son on a deathbed. There is no celebration, only a passing. There is no joy on the son's part, and I can't find any happiness in the rich father's heart-or even the desire to be known by his son.

We hear so much that all paths lead to God, that all religions have some validity and that we should co-exist. I read some Buddhist commentary on the story where they claim that the parable of Christ and the story of Maha-kasyapa are fundamentally the same- though they admit that they are bothered by the fact that the son in Christ's parable didn't have to work for what he got....

I have to disagree. Although they appear similar on the surface, they are in no way equivalent. There is no true redemption in the Buddhist parable. There is no joy. There is no repentance. There is no Father who cares more for his son than his own pride in station. There is no son who strives to know the father's heart---The Buddhist parable misses the whole point- That we do not deserve a place at our Father's table. We are not worthy- we took what he gave us in creation and have made a royal mess of things. We fell out of communion with him by declaring him dead to us. But our Father is always looking for us- for us to take those steps toward Him- For us to repent of what we've done and strive to know His heart. That we should humble ourselves due to our sin, not exalt ourselves through work--- and most of all, there is pure joy in His heart for a son that was dead is now alive!

Our lives that were lost are now found through a direct encounter with our Lord Jesus Christ. As Paul says in Ephesians 4:
There is one body and one Spirit, just as you too were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

The wayward son knew that there was only one road to salvation: the one that led to his father's house. Our faith is unique- although others have pale shadows of the truth, we are alone in our special relationship with our creator- and alone in the joy that our redemption brings.