But he's correct and I've heard priests say the same thing.
If you can't separate Hindu spirituality from the exorcise, then you'll have a problem
doing any exorcise, for much comes out of Greek culture. As it is, if you go to
most gym classes, you'll end up doing yoga stretching without even knowing it.
Yoga stretching is part of the exorcise routines in most of the exorcise programs.
Are you worshiping pagan gods doing these stretches? Of course not.
I do not agree with with that assessment. Exercise for physical health or meditation is fine but of limited value for our heavenly selves.
Yoga says we are focusing on God and want to come to enlightenment, but that is not the path Christ has shown us, or else He would have taught it.
Yoga takes the focus off of obeying God and puts the focus on ourselves. “I only do it for exercise.” “It makes me feel better, what could be wrong with it?” “It’s not worship”
Well, regardless of our intention, yoga mimics physical postures used in the worship of Hindu “gods” aka demons. You may not realize it, but the demons can see what you do, and use your unguarded relaxed state against you. Also it’s just ignorant.
Think if I went through a gang neighborhood and started throwing Crip and Blood signs. I could say that they don’t mean anything to me, but the people that live there see things differently, and my life may not go well if I keep throwing those signs.
I believe that Thomas Merton was in error and was seduced by false ecumenism. Zen is not life, Jesus is the way the truth and the life. Satan and his demons are perfectly capable of manipulating your feelings and even thoughts, as scripture says he seeks whom he may devour.
Satan as the adversary wants to make himself out to be God. His best way is imitation, and it is not flattery. Demon possession is the imitation of the incarnation. Pagan religions imitate aspects of Christianity to deceive, as they are not real worship, but a replacement for real worship. Scripture says that there is a way that seems right to a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. Satan will do all he can to make you think there is nothing wrong and what you are doing is absolutely right, so much so that you will not be convinced otherwise.
But just think of the fool in a gang neighborhood throwing signs, do you want to appear before Jesus and tell him how great those demon signs made you feel? Worship the Lord your God and Him only shalt thou serve, and don’t tell me that you are doing it while you are giving a shout out to demons
The great Fulton Sheen took the opposite view of Thomas Merton. The goal of evangelizing is not to learn pagan religions and tell us how great they are because they have some things similar to Christianity. The wise evangelist observes those similarities and uses them to tell pagans how great Jesus is. I heard a story that a man tried to tell Bishop Sheen how he read a book that melded zen and Christianity. Bishop Sheen threw him out and said something to the effect of don’t speak to me of other gods and tell me how they look like Jesus, they are not Jesus
Our Lady of Guadalupe shows real evangelism with Juan Diego in Mexico in the sixteenth century. The indigenous peoples were trapped in paganism and practiced human blood sacrifice.
Juan Diego brought the testimony form Our Lady and the understanding of blood sacrifice, but preached Christ and Him crucified. The king has already shed His blood for us and we do not do him honor by shedding more blood. We thank Him and present our bodies as living sacrifices.
Mexico stopped human sacrifice and became one of the most Catholic nations on Earth.
I want to see zen or practitioners come to an understanding and love of Our Lord Jesus, not seduce Christians to believe that there is nothing wrong with zen and Buddha is some how equal to Jesus
Exercise is good, meditation is good. Meditate on the Lord and His word. Theresa of Avilla has great teaching on meditative prayer. John of the Cross has teaching on the ascent of Mt Carmel. You may say they are similar to Buddhism, but they are not zen. They focus on Christ
I will not judge a person who thinks that yoga is ok. His works are between him and God, but don’t try and bring yoga class to my parish or try and teach it to my kids. It is junk, and what I was taught in high school, by well meaning but ignorant Christian Brothers. It took me 38 years and the grace of God to get over that error.
If you like zen, read John of the Cross and Theresa of Avila instead
Spiritual practices that are not of Christ put souls at risk. Modern exorcists tell us that God is not the only one that broadcasts on that channel. Test the spirits to see who is speaking, approaching it with a naive can’t we all just get along attitude will only lead to trouble
