According to a contemporary labyrinth-walking guide, “There is no right way to walk a labyrinth. You only have to enter and follow the path.”1 So walkers traverse a winding trail that leads to the center of a maze-like design and back out again. Yet unlike a maze, wrong turns are not possible in a labyrinth, just a lazy spiral journey that takes all walkers to the same destination. The walk supposedly aligns the self and puts life in perspective. Though some medieval Christians used the labyrinth to symbolize the difficult path of Christianity, it has taken on a far more pluralistic meaning among many today. For those moderns, it symbolizes the belief that all convictions lead to the same final destination. As another labyrinth guide says, “[T]here are no tricks or decisions to be made—much as the surrender to walking a sacred spiritual path in life—our only decision is to choose spirit/God and surrender to divine guidance.”2 So where is such nebulous spirituality being practiced? Surprisingly, labyrinth walking has grown popular at some supposedly Christian churches and seminaries.

For centuries, a dichotomy existed between Eastern religions and Christianity. For instance, Eastern religion held that many roads led to ultimate reality, while Christianity exalted Christ alone as the way to God. Likewise, Eastern religion believed humans and the cosmos were one while Christianity saw humans as God’s appointed vice regents over the cosmos. The differences were legion.3 However, in recent years the two traditions have melded into a popular syncretism that confuses New Age spiritual practices with traditional spiritual disciplines.

Thus, in addition to the newfound interest in labyrinths, more than 20% of Christians believe that yoga is a valid spiritual practice.4 Of course, the stretching exercises themselves are not immoral—much like the physical act of walking a labyrinth. Such practices may even help one quiet the mind to meditate on Scripture or pray. Yet the spiritual meaning some labyrinth guides and yoga techniques interject contradicts biblical truth. Siddha yoga, for example, teaches how to stop one’s thoughts in order to discover the god-nature within. To do that, participants recite Sanskrit mantras repeatedly to prepare their minds for quiet meditation. The guru, or yoga master, is said to be a fully “self-realized” being, in a sense an object of worship.5

Scores of churches advocate Hindu-based yoga practices as aids to spiritual maturation. One mainline denomination features on its website a sermon citing sacred Hindu texts and praising yoga as a form of thanksgiving. Bowing to fellow yoga participants and saying namaste (meaning “I honor the Spirit in you which is also in me”) is akin to praying before meals, according to the sermon.6 Among the many church websites advertising yoga classes is one that boasts, “We are currently studying an Anusara-Inspired yoga practice, and are learning the five principles of alignment and the different energy loops.”7 Anusara yoga classes typically open with the singing of a mantra that begins, “Om Namah Shivaya Gurave” (meaning, “I offer myself to Lord Shiva, the Auspicious One, who is the True Teacher within and without”).

Sadly, such integration of pagan ideas into Christian spirituality appears to coincide with a widespread devaluation of Bible study. One preacher reported, for instance, that he was told to cut down on the biblical references in his sermons in order not to “lose people.” And a Bible teacher was asked to take questions rather than read relevant Scripture passages to save time and hold interest better.8 Yet deeply pondering God’s precepts brings refreshment that syncretism can never achieve. And it is to Scripture meditation that hungry souls must return. Indeed, the psalmist long ago laid out the perfect model of meditation: “I will lift up my hands toward your commandments, which I love, and I will meditate on your statutes” (Psalm 119:48).
 
Footnotes:
 
1  “Walking the Labyrinth,” Lessons for Living Website, http://www.lessons4living.com/walking.htm (accessed March 8, 2010).
 
2  “The Sacred Labyrinth Walk: Illuminating the Inner Path,” Sacred Walk Website, http://www.sacredwalk.com/ (accessed March 8, 2010).
 
3  James W. Sire, The Universe Next Door: A Basic Worldview Catalog, 4th ed. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1997), 141-161.
 
4  Paul T. McCain, “Dining at the Religious Buffet: The American Way?” First Things Website, December 18, 2009, http://firstthings.com/blogs/evangel/2009/12/dining-at-the-religious-buffet-the-american-way/ (accessed March 8, 2010).
 
5  “Eastern Meditation and Jesus Christ: Are They Compatible?” CHC Publications Website, http://www.chcpublications.net/eastmed.htm (accessed March 8, 2010).
 
6  Steven M. Garrett, “Food, Yoga and Thankfulness,” PCUSA Website, http://www.pcusa.org/food/thankfulness.htm (accessed March 8, 2010).
 
7  “Christian Yoga,” Morristown UMC Website, morristownumc.com/content/christian-yoga (accessed March 8, 2010).
 
8  R. Albert Mohler Jr., “Falling on Deaf Ears?—Why So Many Churches Hear So Little of the Bible,” February 19, 2010, Albert Mohler Website, http://www.albertmohler.com/2010/02/19/falling-on-deaf-ears-why-so-many-churches-hear-so-little-of-the-bible/ (accessed March 8, 2010).
 
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article from Kairos Journal

First Baptist Church of Perryville is located at 4800 West Pulaksiy Hwy. Perryville, MD