MINDFULNESS: NOT FOR CHRISTIANS!
....’bringing every
thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ’. 2 Corinthians 10:5
Introduction
There is a practice that is becoming more widespread and
increasingly embraced by governments, public sector organisations and the
global corporate world as well as by individuals that is professed to be
secular, non-spiritual and validated by science. You may have heard of it but
unless you are involved you probably have little in depth knowledge about it
other than what has been presented by its enthusiastic proponents. It is being
promoted as a route to happiness,
better personal well- being and
better business performance as well
as a tool for reducing stress. It is
labelled and known as ‘Mindfulness’.
The practice is increasingly directed towards the leaders
at all levels of society with some success in order to supposedly create lives
with a deeper sense of peace and purpose and to positively influence the world
around them. One can suppose that if this continues to take hold it may become
more and more mainstream and embedded in company and organisation culture so
that those who feel inclined or prefer not to follow this path could
increasingly find themselves marginalised.
Time magazine majoring on the practice on its front page
in the January 2014 edition headlined it ‘The
Mindful Revolution’. One can see how the promised rewards of having happier
citizens enjoying better wellbeing and staff who are happier, less stressed and
more productive is appealing to companies and organisations apart from the
appeal to the individual seeking inner peace and relief from stress.
However, the bible believing Christian has a
responsibility to check this practice against scripture in deciding whether it
is the right path for them. The apostle Paul warns in 1 Timothy 4:1 of the doctrine of demons and deceiving spirits in the end times. He
also urges us in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 to ‘test
all things’. This paper seeks to do that.
So what is
mindfulness?
Let’s take a look into what its proponent websites say
about it. One such typical definition is as follows:
‘Mindfulness means
maintaining a moment by moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily
sensations and surrounding environment. Mindfulness also involves acceptance,
meaning that we pay attention to our thoughts and feelings without judging
them-without believing for instance, that there’s a ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to
think or feel in a given moment'
In summary it is a meditative technique. Similar
definitions can also be found on the www.themindfulnessinitiative.org.uk
and www.themindfulnessfoundation.org.uk
. These websites also make interesting reading as to UK Parliamentary interest
plus wider policy visions for the practice including ambitions for getting it
into schools where it is already creeping in.
So what are its
origins?
The modern
concept of mindfulness is generally attributed in origin to Jon Kabat-Zinn. Per
Wikipedia Zinn is the Professor of Medicine Emeritus and creator of the Stress
Reduction Clinic and the Centre for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care and
Society at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in the USA.
But when you start to examine Zinn’s spiritual past and
indeed those of many other leaders in the subject it becomes clear that the true
origins lie in Buddhism albeit Yoga devotees also seem to sit comfortably with
it. According to Wikipedia Kabat Zinn
was a student of Buddhist teachers such as Thich Nhat Hanh and Zen master Seung
Sahn. Zinn’s practice of yoga and studies of with Buddhist teachers led him to
integrate their teachings with those of science. He also taught at the Insight
Meditation Society. Zinn has created the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction
(MBSR) programme which he says can help people cope with stress, anxiety, pain
and illness.
He is a board member of the Mind and Life Institute, a
group that organizes dialogues between the Dalai Lama and Western Scientists.
For further confirmation of the link to Buddhism see the www.actionforhappiness.org website
and the ‘Exploring what matters course ’which is mindfulness based. And who is
the Patron of ‘Action for Happiness’? The Dalai Lama. With his endorsement as
follows “I wholeheartedly support the
Exploring What Matters course and hope that many thousands will benefit from it
and be inspired to take their own action to create a happier world”. The
action for happiness course, coming to a parish hall (or maybe church hall !) near
you shortly.
In simple terms, what
is Buddhism?
Buddhism originated around 560BC through an Indian gent
named Siddarta Gautama who by a spiritual journey and meditation (the
prevailing faith around him was Hinduism) when sitting meditating under a
Bo-tree received what he understood to be divine enlightenment. This resulted
in him becoming known as the ‘Buddha’ or ‘Enlightened one’. In short he arrived
at his understanding of ‘truth’ and ‘salvation’. He arrived at the conclusion
that all suffering is rooted in desire (tanha), in the will to live and to
possess and in attachment to this world. The sole release from suffering is to
completely destroy desire. The means to do this is ‘cessation’ achieved through
morality, meditation and the attainment of wisdom. This was principally
achieved through the ‘eightfold path’ of Buddhist principles. Those which
should most concern the Christian are 1.
Right understanding: to see life characterised by impermanence, suffering
and ‘no soul’ (i.e. there is no true ‘I’, only pure consciousness of which our minds
are fragments). This is in direct contradiction to the Bible which clearly recognises
that humans are body, soul and spirit and that for better or for worse the
human soul is real and eternal albeit ultimately subject to God’s judgement. 7. Right mindfulness: constant awareness of the ‘truth’ about the
body and its feelings, the mind and its ideas (as outlined in the practices critiqued elsewhere in this paper) and
8. Right concentration: the
direction of the mind to a wholesome object in disciplined meditation.
You can see therefore that mindfulness and the associated
meditation are essential elements of Buddhism which in addition holds a belief
in reincarnation and the concept of karma. The ultimate aim is to break free
from the cycle or wheel of birth and death and enter Nirvana - the Buddhist
heavenly state.
Buddha in his enlightened state proclaimed himself to be
the perfect one, to have found The Way. He then proceeded to preach around
North East India for forty five years being hailed as saviour and the perfect
master.
The comparison and contrast with the gospel of the Bible
and the Lord Jesus Christ is stark. Jesus in John 14:6 said ‘I am the way, the truth and the life .No one
comes to the Father except through me’. In Christian belief suffering comes
from the fall of man and the coming of sin into the world. The true and only solution
has been gracefully provided by God who offers us reconciliation with Him
through faith and acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and saviour. That opens up
all the resources and comfort of the Holy Spirit to help believers in their
suffering.
Paul in Galatians 1:8 warns: ‘But even if we, or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel to you
than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed’. Strong words!
But what is wrong
with the mindfulness now being promoted?
As Christians we should embrace all the promises and
resources promised us in God’s Word. Christians should not be running after the
practices and techniques that are not in the Bible and which are actually from
a religion that Christ himself would have classed as pagan.
Consider:
Ø Isaiah 26:3 tells us ‘You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you’
Ø Jesus said ‘You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
Matthew 22:37.
Ø Paul
enjoins us in Colossians 3:2 to ‘set your mind on things above, not on the earth’.
Ø and
to be ’bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ’. 2 Corinthians 10:5
Ø 1 Peter 1:13 tells us ‘Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober and rest your hope fully on the grace to be
brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ’.
Our minds are to be actively focussed on Christ. We are
to practice self-control. Suspending control and discernment (i.e. judgement)
as advocated and practised in mindfulness is a reckless and spiritually
dangerous exercise. Sinful thoughts should be strangled at birth. Cut off by
the neck as soon as they appear. The Bible is quite clear. To allow random
thoughts (and possibly even entities) free access to the mind while suspending
judgement is completely contrary to the Word of God. Who knows what thoughts or
worse might take root and stay rather than go?
Christians should not be indulging in this practice but actively
walking and talking with our Father through Christ in the ways outlined in the
Bible.
So where might
this be heading?
Those who hold to a liberal interpretation of scripture
or a post millennial eschatology should look away now!
In considering ‘mindfulness’ the following scriptures
seem appropriate in seeking to discern the direction of travel and what might
actually be going on here :
Ø Little children, it is the last hour; and as
you have heard that the Antichrist is coming... 1 John 2:18
Ø And this is the spirit of the Antichrist,
which you have heard is coming and is now already in the world 1
John 4:3
Ø So the great dragon was cast out, that
serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world Revelation 12:9
Ø lest Satan should take advantage of us : for
we are not ignorant of his devices 2
Corinthians 2:11
Ø But evil men and imposters will go from
worse to worse to worse, deceiving and
being deceived 2 Timothy 3:13
Ø The coming of the lawless one is according
to the working of Satan, with all power, signs and lying wonders, and with all
unrighteous deception among
those who perish because they did not receive the love of the truth that they
might be saved. 2 Thessalonians 2:9-10.
Ø And all
the world marvelled and followed the beast. So they worshiped the
dragon who gave authority to the beast and they worshiped the beast, saying,’
Who is like the beast?’ Revelation
13:3-4
Ø For we do not wrestle against flesh and
blood but against principalities….spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly
places. Ephesians 6:12
Is mindfulness a spiritual
Trojan horse parading as pseudo-science in order to condition and prepare the
masses into an unquestioning acceptance of the Antichrist when he comes? Time
will tell.
Conclusion
Notwithstanding, those who
consider themselves Christians might like to heed Pauls warning in 2
Corinthians 11:3 ‘But I fear, lest
somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds
may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
There is an end time battle
going on for your mind. Mindfulness: Not
for Christians!
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