Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Mamas Don't Let Your Daughters Grow Up to Date Vampires

By Linda Harvey

This week all the talk is sure to be about Twilight, and I don’t mean the kind that comes to America after several years of an Obama administration. It’s a new movie based on the best-selling book by Stephenie Meyer and deals with a common girl dilemma: what to do when your boyfriend’s a vampire.

Yes, I know, you’ve already talked with your teen about this, but keep reading. After selling a multi-gazillion copies, there was no doubt Twilight would come to the screen with the predictably wide-eyed ingĂ©nue (Kristen Stewart) with her carnivorous metrosexual beau (Robert Pattinson). Bella and Edward fall in love in high school biology, amid the dissections and blood. He’s not really seventeen, but a hundred and something years old.

Even after learning through the grapevine Edward is a vampire, Bella still risks being alone with him, despite his confessed “hunger” for her - really. He spends most of their dates barely hanging onto self-control and avoiding her neck. He and his vampire pseudo-family tend to attract other vampires and one becomes a stalker of Bella. Edward saves her from both an earlier auto accident and from this predatory vampire. Damsel-in-distress Bella is totally captivated by Edward after these rescues, and tries to talk him into having his way with her after the prom.

And we are not talking virginity loss here. She wants to “become like him,” even if it means her death. As the first book in this series concludes, Edward acts like any noble vampire should and resists the temptation to kill his girlfriend. Our kids need so much more than a condom these days, apparently.

Now, I have seen the movie trailer but not yet the movie. I can only speak for the book and it contains no sex, just a few passionate kisses. There are many commentators who think the Meyer series (four books now, Twilight being the first) sets a great example of abstinence for teens. However, let’s not be too hasty with praise.

Despite the absence of intercourse, the glue of this book is barely restrained passion and actually, blood-lust. It’s the Romeo/Juliet star-crossed lover thing, with an occult twist. It’s craving on his part, idolatry on hers. And he’s not human. Isn’t there some passage about demons and human women in the book of Genesis? And the results did not please God.

Edward is Bella’s ideal - “interesting and brilliant and mysterious and perfect and beautiful...” (p.79) and his perfection is a major theme of the story.

But he’s a supernatural being and even though in pop culture, we are familiar with the vampire archetype, there’s a biblical identity that Christians should see right off. If vampires ever did or do exist, the translation of “vampire” for Christians is “demon.”

Now, once you start looking at Edward this way, the story takes on a whole new aura and not a cute one. He wants her blood - her life. He is charming and protective one moment and her greatest threat the next - and he tells her all this. And she loves it and welcomes it. The tension between them is enormous. He is with her always, since he can manifest anywhere without entry through doors, and he needs no sleep. So as she drifts off to sleep, he remains in her bedroom as her “guardian-demon.” Her dad of course has no idea about this presence. And she loves him so much she would sacrifice her young life for him, becoming a non-human herself.

Is this what we want occupying our daughters’ hearts and minds, even in a fantasy world? Romantic obsession with a demonic presence?

The blood thing really should bother us for other reasons. We have an epidemic of cutting as a well-known adolescent pathology. More common among girls, the troubled youth makes small blood-letting incisions on her arms. Why do well-fed and clothed middle American kids engage in something so bizarre and self-destructive? It seems to be a form of punishment, but for what? Kids are too young to be so guilt-ridden.

I believe there are spiritual issues involved. These kinds of strange maladies look a lot like demonic activity. Well, here we are with books that focus quite centrally on the heroine’s blood. Edward saves her life at the end of Twilight, but has to suck venom out of her blood to do so - and nearly cannot control himself from “going all the way.”

I know what everyone is going to say - “It’s only a story! It’s only fantasy!” But have you ever seen teen girls once they become fixated even on a fictional character? It does have an effect on them. I used to want to “be” Scarlett O’Hara at age twelve, which I gave up once I became convinced I would one day marry Paul McCartney. And so on. Today it’s Harry Potter when they’re twelve and vampires when they're fifteen. Great.

These interests do shape prototypes of the kind of romance they want. Especially in this age of girlie men, many young women long for a guy with some life to him. Of course, this is over the top--a guy who lusts after your blood. But what about the appeal of a guy who can’t control himself in other ways - and date-rapes your daughter? Part of her has been trained to believe this is what “real love” is - the guy who is so taken with you, he has trouble not destroying you.

We are setting up our girls to be, at the very least, disappointed with the reality of an ordinary but nice non-vampire guy, even if he isn’t a wimp. At worst, she may tolerate abuse as the normal part of a really “passionate” relationship.

Fantasy has a spiritual aspect to it, which even Christians dismiss in this media age. Yet does Scripture provide for a separation of garbage into a neat “entertainment” category in our minds and hearts? No, we are to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. Spending lots of time fascinated with romance involving demons is not the obedience of Christ.

Christ gave His blood for us. He did not ask for ours in return. No fantasy should twist such a desire into “love.” This sounds a lot more like the calling card of a demonic enemy.

We continue to hand our kids over to the mental environments of death. Unless we change course, they will see spiritual twilight indeed.

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Reiki, and its Connection to the Contemplative Practices of Thomas Merton and Richard Foster

by Ray Yungen

A mystical pragmatism is growing particularly fast through various New Age healing techniques. One such procedure is called Reiki (pronounced ray-key), a Japanese word that translates to Universal Life Energy or God energy. It has also been referred to as the radiance technique. Reiki is an ancient Tibetan Buddhist healing system, rediscovered by a Japanese man in the 1800s, that only recently has come to the West.

The Reiki technique consists of placing the hands on [or near] the recipient and then activating the energy to flow through the practitioner and into the recipient. One practitioner describes the experience in the following way:

When doing it, I become a channel through which this force, this juice of the universe, comes pouring from my palms into the body of the person I am touching, sometimes lightly, almost imperceptibly, sometimes in famished sucking drafts. I get it even as I'm giving it. It surrounds the two of us, patient and practitioner.1
What is this "juice of the universe?" The answer is an important one, given by a renowned Reiki master who explains:

A Reiki attunement is an initiation into a sacred metaphysical order that has been present on earth for thousands of years ... By becoming part of this group, you will also be receiving help from the Reiki guides and other spiritual beings who are also working toward these goals.

While this is not widely advertised, Reiki practitioners depend on this "spirit guide" connection as an integral aspect of Reiki. In fact, it is the very foundation and energy behind Reiki. One Reiki master who has enrolled hundreds of other masters spoke of her interaction with the spirit guides:

For me, the Reiki guides make themselves the most felt while attunements are being passed. They stand behind me and direct the whole process, and I assume they also do this for every Reiki Master. When I pass attunements, I feel their presence strongly and constantly. Sometimes I can see them.

A Christian's initial response to this information might be, "So what? I don't travel in those circles, so it does not concern me." This nonchalant viewpoint would be valid except for the fact that Reiki is currently growing to enormous proportions and in some very influential circles. (It may even be in your local hospitals, schools, and youth organizations.) It is essential to know that many nurses, counselors, and especially massage therapists use Reiki as a supplement to their work. It is often promoted as a complementary service....

One Reiki master delightfully noted this surge of interest when he stated:
Over the years, there has been a shift in the belief system of the general public, allowing for greater acceptance of alternative medicine. As a result, we are seeing a growing interest in Reiki from the public at large. People from all backgrounds are coming for treatments and taking classes.

One very revealing statistic involves Louisville, Kentucky, where 102 people were initiated into Reiki in just a single weekend. This denotes a large number of people are drawn to Reiki in the Bible belt, traditionally a conservative part of America.

It is important to understand the way in which Reiki is presented to the public at large. Despite its underlying metaphysical foundation, when one reads the literature put out by Reiki practitioners it is not at all apparent. One Reiki master who runs a day spa repeatedly uses words like comfort and nurture in her brochure. Reiki is something that will give you pleasure. Another woman who is a professional counselor tells her potential clients that Reiki will give them deep relaxation and reduce pain. Again and again these same themes emerge from promotional literature on Reiki--relaxation, well-being, reduce illness, reduce stress, balance your mind, etc. How can one say that Reiki is bad when it claims to help people?

The reason for this level of acceptance is easy to understand. Most people, many Christians included, believe if something is spiritually positive then it is of God. A pastor friend of mine recounted a situation in which a Christian, who had some physical problems, turned to Reiki for comfort. When this pastor advised the man that Reiki fundamentally opposed the Christian faith he became furious and responded with the following defense, "How can you say this is bad when it helped me?" That is why I titled [a chapter in my book] "Discernment." To discern is to "test the spirits" (1 John 4:1). If something is of God it will conform to the very cornerstone of God's plan to show His grace through Christ Jesus and Him alone (Ephesians 2:7). Reiki, as I defined earlier, is based on the occult view of God.

This assessment of Reiki is beyond question. Every Reiki book I have ever seen is chock full of pronouncements that back up the point I am trying to make.

In The Everything Reiki Book, the following clears up any doubt about Reiki's incompatibility with Christianity: During the Reiki attunement process, the avenue that is opened within the body to allow Reiki to flow through also opens up the psychic communication centers. This is why many Reiki practitioners report having verbalized channeled communications with the spirit world. (emphasis mine)

What is even more disturbing is that the Reiki channeler may not even have control over this "energy" as the following comment shows: Nurses and massage therapists who have been attuned to Reiki may never disclose when Reiki starts flowing from their palms as they handle their patients. Reiki will naturally "kick in" when it is needed and will continue to flow for as long as the recipient is subconsciously open to receiving it.

Another such method is Therapeutic Touch. Like Reiki, it is based on the occultic chakra system, portrayed as the seven energy centers in the body aligned with spiritual forces. The seventh chakra identifies with the God-in-all view.

Therapeutic Touch is widely practiced by nurses in clinics and hospitals. It is seen as a helpful and healing adjunct to nursing care.

If the connection between Reiki healing and other metaphysical practices can be seen, then we more fully understand why the following quote is one of the most powerful statements as to the true nature of contemplative prayer.

A Reiki master in the course of promoting the acceptance of this method relayed: Anyone familiar with the work of ... or the thought of ... [she then listed a string of notable New Age writers with Thomas Merton right in the center of them] will find compatibility and resonance with the theory and practices of Reiki.

Reiki comes from Buddhism, and as one Merton scholar wrote, "The God he [Merton] knew in prayer was the same experience that Buddhists describe in their enlightenment."

This is why it is so important to understand the connection between the writings of Richard Foster and Brennan Manning with Merton. Promotion indicates attachment, and attachment indicates common ground. Something is terribly wrong when a Reiki master and two of the most influential figures in the evangelical church today both point to the same man as an example of their spiritual path. (from chapter 5, A Time of Departing) To understand more about the connection between Foster, Manning, and Merton, read A Time of Departing in its entirety.

What is the Spiritual Formation Movement, and Why is it Unbiblical?

Spiritual Formation: A movement that has provided a platform and a channel through which contemplative prayer is entering the church. Find spiritual formation being used, and in nearly every case you will find contemplative spirituality. In fact, contemplative spirituality is the heartbeat of the spiritual formation movement.
by Roger Oakland

When I first began writing in the field in the late 70s and early 80s the term "Spiritual Formation" was hardly known, except for highly specialized references in relation to the Catholic orders. Today it is a rare person who has not heard the term. Seminary courses in Spiritual Formation proliferate like baby rabbits. Huge numbers are seeking to become certified as Spiritual Directors to answer the cry of multiplied thousands for spiritual direction. 1--Richard Foster

A move away from the truth of God's Word to a mystical form of Christianity has infiltrated, to some degree, nearly all evangelical denominations. Few Bible teachers saw this avalanche coming. Now that it is underway, most do not realize it has even happened.

The best way to understand this process is to recall what happened during the Dark Ages when the Bible became the forbidden book. Until the reformers translated the Bible into the language of the common people, the great masses were in darkness. When the light of God's Word became available, the Gospel was once again understood.

I believe history is repeating itself. As the Word of God becomes less and less important, the rise in mystical experiences escalates, and these experiences are presented to convince the unsuspecting that Christianity is about feeling, touching, smelling, and seeing God. The postmodern mindset is the perfect environment for fostering spiritual formation. This term suggests there are various ways and means to get closer to God and to emulate Him. Thus the idea that if you do certain practices, you can be more like Jesus. Proponents of spiritual formation erroneously teach that anyone can practice these mystical rituals and find God within. Having a relationship with Jesus Christ is not a prerequisite. In a DVD called Be Still, which promotes contemplative prayer, Richard Foster says that contemplative prayer is for anyone and that by practicing it, one becomes "a portable sanctuary" for "the presence of God."2

Rather than having the indwelling of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, spiritual formation through the spiritual disciplines supposedly transforms the seeker by his or her entering an altered realm of consciousness.

The spiritual formation movement is widely promoted at colleges and seminaries as the latest and the greatest way to become a spiritual leader. It teaches people that this is how they can become more intimate with God and truly hear His voice. Even Christian leaders with long-standing reputations of teaching God's Word seem to be succumbing. In so doing, many Christian leaders are frivolously playing with fire, and the result will be thousands, probably millions, getting burned.

It isn't going into the silence that transforms a person's life. It is in accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and allowing Him to change us that transformation occurs.

And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel. (Colossians 1:21-23)

We are reconciled to God only through Christ's death (the atonement for sin), and we are presented "holy and unblamable and unreproveable" when we belong to Him through rebirth. It has nothing to do with works, rituals, or mystical experiences. It is Christ's life in the converted believer that transforms him. (For more information on this topic and emerging spirituality, read Faith Undone.)

Notes:
1. Richard Foster, "Spiritual Formation: A Pastoral Letter" (January 18, 2004, click here).
2. Richard Foster, Be Still DVD (Fox Home Entertainment, 2006), section titled "Contemplative Prayer."