The Christian Sentinel
April 2003 issue
A
Time of Departing
By Ray Yungen
Book
Review by Jackie Alnor
ã
2003 Christian Sentinel
| Twenty years ago there was
a big outcry by watchmen in the church about
the growing New Age movement that got the
attention of the Christian community.
Unfortunately, the "paradigm
shift" of consciousness that New Age
promoters were foreseeing has actually taken
place. A Time of Departing gives an
update of how those once alien ideas have
now become the norm.
Ray Yungen gives the church a much-needed reminder of the insidiousness of the philosophy basic to the New Age that poses the biggest threat to Christian orthodoxy -- panentheism, the idea that "God is in everything and everything is in God" (pg. 35). This is different from pantheism that sees God as an impersonal substance that incorporates all of creation. Yungen traces such ideas to the Catholic mystics of the Middle Ages who introduced "contemplative prayer" as a way to empty the mind and encounter God. This mystical prayer has had a revival in the Catholic Church in recent years as the New Age movement’s promotion of meditation has caught on. And these concepts have infiltrated the evangelical church as leaders close their eyes to the dangers. The author points to two influential writers who have popularized such ideas in the evangelical church, Richard Foster and Brennan Manning. Both these men have written popular "Christian" books about contemplative prayer, also called "centering prayer." And, both quote the Catholic mystics such as Thomas Merton and Thomas Keating. It is evident that the Roman Catholic Church is the bridge between Christianity and the New Age movement. Problems arise for Christians who use "contemplative prayer’ to reach God. Entering into a self-induced trance state is dangerous even when it is attained by following seemingly biblical talk such as "be still and know that I am God." When Christian mystics enter what is known as "The Silence" things can and do go wrong. Yungen quoted one author as reporting, "Saint Anthony, one of the first desert mystics, frequently encountered strange and sometimes terrifying psychophysical forces while at prayer" (pg. 52). And St. Romain "would feel ‘prickly sensations’ on the top of his head and at times it would ‘fizzle with energy.’ This sensation would go on for days" (pg. 50). Richard Foster in his book, Prayer: Finding the heart’s True Home, he speaks of the practice of "breath prayer," in which a Christian-sounding word or phrase is repeated over and over again like a mantra. Foster wrote that "Christian meditation is an attempt to empty the mind in order to fill it" (pg. 72), but fill it with what? This "breath prayer" idea has gained popularity in charismatic circles that frequently sing of "breathing in Jesus" or variations thereof. Brennan Manning’s fans can get very offended when his books are critiqued as I have found since placing my review of The Ragamuffin Gospel on-line. After all, a major evangelical publisher publishes his books and many Christian music artists recommend him (see my review of this book and my correspondence with Multnomah Books). "Just because a writer is emotionally stirring, sincere, and uses Biblical language," warned Yungen, "does not necessarily mean he or she advocates Biblical truths" (pg. 84). Too bad Manning’s followers can’t see this. A Time of Departing is the perfect book to buy for someone who has crossed the line away from biblical truth into New Age practices. It is not uncommon today to run into people who claim to be Christians yet go to their local YMCA or gym for Yoga lessons every week. Recently I met a "pastor" whose job on the side is the New Age medicine practice of reflexology. And I met an owner of a health food store who has crosses and scriptures around her store yet practices the occult art of iridology. Too many Christians today are oblivious to the contradictions of Christianity and these Eastern practices. They need a wake-up call.
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