should a christian undertake martial arts??

[starlightbright]

its occult right? so it is bad i am told.

then there's the part about not turning the other cheek, but christians join the militaty and learn how to kill ppl, thats okay right?

should we be getting involved in martial arts? getting in shape is another goal but is it good idea?

 

[ks777]

I thought the occult was good for you?...Oh wait that's yakult...

 

[starlightbright]

I thought the occult was good for you?...Oh wait that's yakult...

hmm, i wanted this in the advice forum, dont know how it got here. oh well.

 

[Sophrosyne]

its occult right? so it is bad i am told.

then there's the part about not turning the other cheek, but christians join the militaty and learn how to kill ppl, thats okay right?

should we be getting involved in martial arts? getting in shape is another goal but is it good idea?

It depends on the teacher. Some teachers incorporate religious and mystical ideology into the training but you can get teachers that don't but just teach the physical disciplines and even on occasion find Christians that teach martial arts. If you remove the spiritual component from martial arts entirely I don't see anything wrong with them if they are learned not for the purpose of bullying others and killing but mainly self defense. Chuck Norris is a Christian now I don't think he always was one but I am sure he continues doing martial arts I don't think he does much in the way of movies though as far as martial arts although I did see him in a short appearance in an expendables movie.

 

[twnsrkr]

If self defense is a goal, I'd find another program. The situations they train for in martial arts are quite unrealistic.

 

[Blackguard_]

It depends on the teacher. Some teachers incorporate religious and mystical ideology into the training but you can get teachers that don't but just teach the physical disciplines and even on occasion find Christians that teach martial arts.

Kind in mind there are more martial arts than Far Eastern martial arts.

I doubt they teach Eastern philosophy much in Krav Maga or rapier fencing schools.

 

[Crypto]

It depends on the teacher. Some teachers incorporate religious and mystical ideology into the training but you can get teachers that don't but just teach the physical disciplines and even on occasion find Christians that teach martial arts. If you remove the spiritual component from martial arts entirely I don't see anything wrong with them if they are learned not for the purpose of bullying others and killing but mainly self defense. Chuck Norris is a Christian now I don't think he always was one but I am sure he continues doing martial arts I don't think he does much in the way of movies though as far as martial arts although I did see him in a short appearance in an expendables movie.

I didn't know Chuck is a Christian. That's great!

 

[Crypto]

Let's face it: the ultimate purpose of martial arts is to kick someone's ass. The only ones who I regard as good are those in which you immobilize your opponent without hurting him, like Judo and Aikido (although Aikido sucks). Having said all that, my nephew got bullied in school and I told his mom to send him to karate, to punch the poop out of those little sonabavitches. I know we are meant to be peaceful, but sometimes it's too difficult.

 

[Saleena]

My daddy taught me some martial arts, he also showed me that the finisher is the best move to use on a guy if they tried to do something. I've only had to use it 2 times. Big ol' boots I wear too :3

 

[starlightbright]

Kind in mind there are more martial arts than Far Eastern martial arts.

I doubt they teach Eastern philosophy much in Krav Maga or rapier fencing schools.

i meant eastern ones, sorry. wasnt clear on dat.

 

[Messy]

i meant eastern ones, sorry. wasnt clear on dat.

No, that´s occult. Someone told me who did Thai boxing (kickboxing)
I know two Indonesian men from my church who did it before they got saved. One got deliverance prayer, because he had gotten real aggressive. The other one was aggressive too, he did Pentjak or something, he still did it when he was saved sometimes and stayed aggressive. He stopped and lately he had a testimony. His son in law had beaten his daughter and normally he would have beaten him up, but this time he stayed really calm and was full of God´s love for him.

 

[Qyöt27]

People really misunderstand what the word 'occult' means. Eastern religions (and by this, which one do we mean? Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Shinto? Eastern Orthodoxy?) are far from it, and any of them that *might* have some kind of incorporation into a particular style of martial arts are certainly not going to be dealing with the heavily religious overtones of them anyway.

Its purposes are both for defense and for self-discipline, with keeping in shape and physical endurance being part of the self-discipline aspect. Most of the so-called 'mystical' elements are really just concentration and focus and learning to calm oneself/stay calm and think clearly, which are the exact same benefits that a 'non-mystical' approach also advertises about itself. It's not like they're going to be teaching you how to perform a Hadoken.

 

[Sketcher]

I believe it is defensible for the defense of others. We're not supposed to turn others' cheeks for them. And if bad people have to get through me to get to people I am responsible for, such as my nephews or any kids I might have some day, I have the responsibility to be a real obstacle. However, situational awareness also plays an enormous role here, and fighting should be the last resort.

The only ones who I regard as good are those in which you immobilize your opponent without hurting him, like Judo and Aikido (although Aikido sucks).

I don't know how practical a good Judo hold would be in a survival situation on the street. They can always get one of their buddies to kick you in the head. Best to throw them and let the concrete do the rest of the work. Which will more than likely hurt them. And that will more than likely precede a hold anyway.

 

[MehGuy]

I've heard that martial arts is silly. You do all these crazy moves, but they're more for the flash and the presentation. A guy can easily push you down and slam your head against the concrete. Stupid crap like the Karate kid is just a movie. In real life, he'd probably have his head blown off with a gun while he was spinning and kicking like an idiot.

Nothing beats good ol' wrasslin.

 

[Saleena]

I've heard that martial arts is silly. You do all these crazy moves, but they're more for the flash and the presentation. A guy can easily push you down and slam your head against the concrete. Stupid crap like the Karate kid is just a movie. In real life, he'd probably have his head blown off with a gun while he was spinning and kicking like an idiot.

Nothing beats good ol' wrasslin.

It's not so much flash as finding the person's weaknesses. Pressure points are so much fun. It's why I would probably be able to take down a male bigger than me. But yes the flash crap is just that. Slamming a brick into someone's solar plexus is a good way to get them down to my level then a quick kick to the throat or stones is the finisher.

 

[Crypto]

I believe it is defensible for the defense of others. We're not supposed to turn others' cheeks for them. And if bad people have to get through me to get to people I am responsible for, such as my nephews or any kids I might have some day, I have the responsibility to be a real obstacle. However, situational awareness also plays an enormous role here, and fighting should be the last resort.



I don't know how practical a good Judo hold would be in a survival situation on the street. They can always get one of their buddies to kick you in the head. Best to throw them and let the concrete do the rest of the work. Which will more than likely hurt them. And that will more than likely precede a hold anyway.

Well, you have a point. In that case, if we are obliged to hurt them anyways, why not using pepper spray or one of those electrical pistols. They require no training are a guarantee of success. For more extreme cases, a Desert Eagle would do the job:

 

[EazyMack]

Guns > martial arts.

 

[Saleena]

A 45-50 would be terrible. You need a lawyer for every bullet that comes out of that gun. If it goes through that person and hits another...

 

[Messy]

Well, you have a point. In that case, if we are obliged to hurt them anyways, why not using pepper spray or one of those electrical pistols. They require no training are a guarantee of success. For more extreme cases, a Desert Eagle would do the job:

Hey that´s a good idea. That´s defenitely not occult.

 

[Crypto]

This leads us to the following question: if you were a good martial artist, under what circumstances would you use your fighting skills? I am talking about concrete examples.