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As Yoga has grown, outside of India, so have the many contemporary styles. Among the contemporary styles is Christian Yoga. Just mentioning the words, Christian and Yoga in the same phrase, could start a controversy, depending upon who is listening.

Some fundamentalist Christians will state that Yoga and meditation are evil. To go a bit further on this issue, they point to the traditional roots of Yoga, in India, and the connection to Hindu beliefs. They claim that the millions of Yoga practitioners in the world are being indoctrinated into the Hindu faith.

Let’s look at Christian meditation. This practice began when monks read from the scriptures. In fact, many ministers, monks, brothers, and priests, continue to meditate. So, is meditation evil?

Some point to the meaning of the word Yoga. Yuj is the root word for Yoga, and there is a much deeper meaning. The Yuj, or Yoke, was used to tie two wild horses together to a chariot. To think about this a little deeper, the Yuj held together two wild horses, a chariot, a driver, and an archer, to create an ancient weapon, which worked in complete unison.

Most often, you will hear Yoga means “union.” In the spiritual sense, there is the union of your soul with God. Now, is that evil? Most Christians are counting on seeing God in the after life.

Now, evil might be considered mischievous, morally depraved, wicked, or vicious. Intolerance is not accepting or respecting different cultures, opinions, or practices. Intolerance often leads to hate crimes, pogroms, witch hunts, wars, and holocausts.

Christianity is a living philosophy, based upon love, peace, tolerance, forgiveness, equality, and inclusion. The principles run parallel to Yogic philosophy. If you do not believe it, please take a look at Matthew 22:36-40. Below are those five verses, according to the King James Version of the Holy Bible.

36: Master, which is the great commandment in the law?

37: Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

38: This is the first and great commandment.

39: And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

40: On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

A point worth mentioning: Love, peace, tolerance, forgiveness, equality, and inclusion, should be a part of every religious leader’s daily life. If you find yourself in the midst of intolerance and hate, you may want to consider going to a religious center, which is more in line with your moral values.

On the other hand, if you suddenly find your Yoga class has turned into a cult following, and it is leading you away from God, you should also consider changing your surroundings.

In our hearts, we feel right and wrong. In our minds, we know right from wrong. Anyone who teaches hate and intolerance is a danger to the rest of the world.

Copyright 2008 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

CHURCH NEWS
Adams United Methodist Church will hold a joint service at Metropolitan United Methodist Church, Onancock, on Sunday, Oct. 3, at 10:30 a.m. They will be celebrating World Communion Sunday.

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What is the Christian view of yoga?
Is yoga just a stretching routine, or are there spiritual aspects to it?

Of the many of types of yoga, the most well-known is the Hatha Yoga. This is the most popular simply for the reason that most people often associate this type with the general yoga practice. Also, hatha is one of the best types of yoga that provide the basics to the practice. It involves the basic yoga poses and movements, as well as the fundamental breathing techniques. The movements are slow paced and gentle, making this type really perfect for the beginners.

There is also the Kundalina Yoga which pays much emphasis on breathing techniques which are executed along with proper physical movements. It is this type actually which is more focused to the aim of freeing energy in the lower part of the body, allowing it to flow directly to the upper parts of the body. Of the types of yoga, kundalini is the one that considers the discovery and use of the effects of proper breathing on the poses as vital.

Although yoga is said to have begun from Hinduism religion, the practice and the goal that it tries to achieve is a union of oneself with the Supreme Being; as such, a number of Christians have been performing “Christian yoga” as their means of making a closer connection with God.

Even though the freedom of practicing this yoga lies in every Christian practitioner, these practices have been met with a lot of criticisms from Hindus, purists, and some Christians themselves, and a silent holy war has emerged from its midst. These criticisms have been based on each ones beliefs and practices, and have become a significant barrier for some, to have a better understanding of the true meaning of unity with God.

One particular practice of this form of yoga instructed by Cindy Senarighi in Mahtomedi Minnesota is set in St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church’s main chapel, where one finds the yoga teacher sitting in lotus position on top of a refined wooden platform with verdant woods as her backdrop, seen through panoramic windows.

Overhead speakers tinkle soft music, and about two-dozen students in outfits, mostly women, settle on top of blue and purple mats to start the class with a breathing exercise called “ujjayi”, and is performed using a recommended mantra from their instructor called “Yahweh” or The Jesus; the platform – an altar, the tune -praise music.

This particular class is a part of a movement that’s rapidly growing, which seeks to retool the practice of the five-thousand year-old yoga practice to fit Christian teachings. Hundreds of sessions for Christian yoga are now in practice, from Grand Rapids, to Michigan, to New York, and a national association for teachers of Christian yoga was founded in July of 2005, as well as a swing of videos and books that are to hit the market.

Although the action has stiffened yoga purists and a number of Christians who believe yoga can’t be separated from its roots, a boom has still been seen by its backers and is considered to be just the beginning. Some Christians have avoided the conflict of yoga application with Christianity and have instead created what they call “PraiseMoves”.

I’ve always believed that Christians should stay away from it. I have Christian friends who are doing yoga and claim it is only stretching. What are your thoughts?
Thanks to all my friends.

Starting from the fact that God is one and the same in the whole universe: the Architect, the Maker, the Universal Source of all things, Christian yoga brings a new approach to an ancient practice. Christian yoga is about becoming healthy both physically and spiritually by ensuring peace of mind and quieting the restless part in each of us. According to the philosophy of this approach, the yogi is able to let behind the world’s frequency and get tuned to the divine vibration of the universe.

Christian yoga began in US Alabama, and so far it has reached thousands of people not only throughout the country but worldwide. The great appeal of this hybrid yoga type comes from the fact that yoga is no longer seen just as the path that leads to personal spiritual fulfillment as it covers the only way one can ensure long-lasting peace and serenity: the communion with our God and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Furthermore, one major element that makes Christian yoga so appealing to the westerner is compatibility. There is a huge difference of practice and education between the eastern and the western world, and the Hindu yoga variant is not always suitable for the spiritual pattern of the western mind. For anyone who’d be inclined to see contradictions between yoga and Christianity, all we need to say is that they are unfounded and superficial in argumentation.

Hindus are out for personal fulfillment, wisdom, knowledge and inner strength, but these goals do not contradict Christian principles, on the contrary, they complete them. Any positive thing that generates good results is definitely compatible with the love and kindness Jesus Christ brought to the world. A combination not of religious issues but of attitudes and spiritual patterns is the main achievement of Christian yoga.

We should nevertheless mention the fact that there are many voices that speak against Christian yoga: Christians should go to church and be with other Christians! The main claim here is that one may have the tendency of putting too much distance between Christian teachings and personal thinking, with the emphasis and preference for the subjective attitude. Thus, critics of Christian yoga claim that the practitioner may forget the “ways” and get interested only in the inner world.

Taking up Christian yoga classes is definitely a matter of personal choice; after all, how many people have changed their religion after starting to practice yoga? Christian yoga is more of a personal approach that does not have a clear-cut set of principles, the important thing is that you work to combine the two.