I love your story and especially rejoice at God's faithfulness. I know of at least one lady at my church who is into yoga and other acquaintances who practice "Christian Yoga." While I have shared my concerns at Bible Studies, my concerns have been brushed aside. It's difficult to refute something that wears the term Christian. Can you speak to "Christian" yoga? I put the word in quotes because I believe it to be any oxymoron. I believe my acquaintance at church truly knows the Lord, but for some reason doesn't see a problem with yoga. I do realize prayer is the best weapon for this kind of situation.
Thank you so much for your thoughtful comment, Linda. Since sharing this with my CBS class, I have had many conversations regarding the very thing you’re asking. What I believe is most troublesome about yoga and Buddhist meditation for Christians is the origins and intent behind the postures. The Sanskrit meaning of the term yoga is “to yoke” with the intent to join the individual spirit to the universal spirit (and this doesn’t mean with the Lord Jesus!). The way this is done is through the physical postures. The eastern culture does not separate the physical from the spiritual practice. They do not see what Americans do and call ‘yoga’ as truly being yoga because (generally speaking) Americans only use the postures as a form of exercise for the body. The eastern cultures use the postures to better discipline the mind- the postures are important, but not as important as the spiritual connection/discipline they’re working toward.
My argument has been surrounding the title the western culture gives the exercises. Should it even be called ‘yoga’ if the spiritual intent of true yoga is dropped off?
In my experience, the beginner classes focused solely on the stretching/strengthening postures. The teachers did not call them by their Sanskrit names and did not mention yoga’s origins. That really wasn’t ‘yoga.’ The more advanced classes that I began taking, however, merged the origins, mental discipline, and spiritual aspects with the physical practice. They used the Sanskrit language, incorporated eastern philosophy, and (some) even told the stories of the Hindu deities each posture was named for.
While I thought of the stories merely as entertaining, I saw the other students in my classes embracing the various ideas as truth. This is really where the dangers lurk, in my opinion. No one there was pointing me to Jesus (much less talking about Him). We are made to worship, and if we’re not worshiping the Lord, something is bound to replace Him.
I really wish someone clever enough could come up with a new name for exercises that improve flexibility, mobility, and strength that also have nothing to do with any religious/spiritual origins. But ‘yoga’ has been so long ingrained into American culture, a new name would probably never stick!
In a nutshell, I think we have to continuously guard our minds against what we let into it- it’s too easy (unfortunately) to get swept up in “fine sounding arguments and deceptive philosophies” that look and sound completely innocent enough on the surface.
Very touching! I pray your open confession encourages others! I, too, was dabbling in "secret" knowledge that the Lord called me away from. I, too, threw away all my books. The Lord has blessed me with unimaginable happiness, joy, and peace! You are right, Vanessa, all the knowledge we could ever want to gain is in His Holy Word! Amen.
Thanks so much for this encouraging feedback! That is my prayer too- that all who Christ calls to Himself will come to know the height and depth and width and length of His supreme worthiness! Anything else only has the appearance of wisdom— He alone satisfies our hungry minds, hearts and souls❤️🙌🏼
I love your story and especially rejoice at God's faithfulness. I know of at least one lady at my church who is into yoga and other acquaintances who practice "Christian Yoga." While I have shared my concerns at Bible Studies, my concerns have been brushed aside. It's difficult to refute something that wears the term Christian. Can you speak to "Christian" yoga? I put the word in quotes because I believe it to be any oxymoron. I believe my acquaintance at church truly knows the Lord, but for some reason doesn't see a problem with yoga. I do realize prayer is the best weapon for this kind of situation.
Thank you so much for your thoughtful comment, Linda. Since sharing this with my CBS class, I have had many conversations regarding the very thing you’re asking. What I believe is most troublesome about yoga and Buddhist meditation for Christians is the origins and intent behind the postures. The Sanskrit meaning of the term yoga is “to yoke” with the intent to join the individual spirit to the universal spirit (and this doesn’t mean with the Lord Jesus!). The way this is done is through the physical postures. The eastern culture does not separate the physical from the spiritual practice. They do not see what Americans do and call ‘yoga’ as truly being yoga because (generally speaking) Americans only use the postures as a form of exercise for the body. The eastern cultures use the postures to better discipline the mind- the postures are important, but not as important as the spiritual connection/discipline they’re working toward.
My argument has been surrounding the title the western culture gives the exercises. Should it even be called ‘yoga’ if the spiritual intent of true yoga is dropped off?
In my experience, the beginner classes focused solely on the stretching/strengthening postures. The teachers did not call them by their Sanskrit names and did not mention yoga’s origins. That really wasn’t ‘yoga.’ The more advanced classes that I began taking, however, merged the origins, mental discipline, and spiritual aspects with the physical practice. They used the Sanskrit language, incorporated eastern philosophy, and (some) even told the stories of the Hindu deities each posture was named for.
While I thought of the stories merely as entertaining, I saw the other students in my classes embracing the various ideas as truth. This is really where the dangers lurk, in my opinion. No one there was pointing me to Jesus (much less talking about Him). We are made to worship, and if we’re not worshiping the Lord, something is bound to replace Him.
I really wish someone clever enough could come up with a new name for exercises that improve flexibility, mobility, and strength that also have nothing to do with any religious/spiritual origins. But ‘yoga’ has been so long ingrained into American culture, a new name would probably never stick!
In a nutshell, I think we have to continuously guard our minds against what we let into it- it’s too easy (unfortunately) to get swept up in “fine sounding arguments and deceptive philosophies” that look and sound completely innocent enough on the surface.
Well said. Amen!
Very touching! I pray your open confession encourages others! I, too, was dabbling in "secret" knowledge that the Lord called me away from. I, too, threw away all my books. The Lord has blessed me with unimaginable happiness, joy, and peace! You are right, Vanessa, all the knowledge we could ever want to gain is in His Holy Word! Amen.
Thanks so much for this encouraging feedback! That is my prayer too- that all who Christ calls to Himself will come to know the height and depth and width and length of His supreme worthiness! Anything else only has the appearance of wisdom— He alone satisfies our hungry minds, hearts and souls❤️🙌🏼