Lighthouse Trails Research Project - Exposing Contemplative Spirituality

Lighthouse Trails is a Christian publishing company. While we hope you will read the books we have published, we also provide extensive free research, documentation, and news on our Research site, blog, and newsletter.

We pray that the books as well as the online research will be a blessing to the body of Christ and a witness to those who have not yet accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord.

What is Contemplative Spirituality?

definition: contemplative spirituality: a belief system that uses ancient mystical practices to induce altered states of consciousness (the silence) and is rooted in mysticism and the occult but often wrapped in Christian terminology; the premise of contemplative spirituality is pantheistic (God is all) and panentheistic (God is in all).

spiritual formation: a movement that has provided a platform and a channel through which contemplative prayer is entering the church. Find spiritual formation being used, and in nearly every case you will find contemplative spirituality. In fact, contemplative spirituality is the heartbeat of the spiritual formation movement.

How Widespread Has Spiritual Formation Become? Read our list of ministries that are promoting it. Please pray for the leaders of these groups that their eyes may be opened.

Myanmar Update

For the latest updates on Understand the Times orphanages in Myanmar where the recent cyclone hit, please visit Understand the Times website.

Be Still Book Confirms True Nature of Contemplative Prayer

booksonshelf

In 2006, Fox Entertainment released the Be Still DVD. The project was an infomercial for contemplative spirituality and featured several Christian figures such as Richard Foster, Beth Moore, Dallas Willard, Max Lucado, Calvin Miller, Henry Cloud, and Jan Johnson. In December 2007, the companion book, Be Still, was released with a heightened emphasis on contemplative spirituality. The book is filled with references and passages written by mystics and contemplative proponents, and a foreword by Dr. Henry Cloud makes comments that clearly show the true nature of this mystical spirituality.

The basic message of the Be Still DVD was You cannot really know God if you do not practice the art of going into the silence. That silence the DVD refers to is a special state of mind, different than normal prayer, and the DVD introduces an array of meditators, from a number of religious persuasions, to tell viewers about this state of silence. From one who promotes guided imagery (Katherine Brown Saltzman) to others who promote interspirituality, the DVD does not promote the biblical Gospel message, and Jesus Christ is rarely mentioned at all. The DVD explains that contemplative practice can be for anyone (not just Christians), and by practicing it anyone can become a portable sanctuary for God's presence.

Richard Foster, one of the speakers in the Be Still DVD, is highly regarded and well respected in much of the evangelical community. His book, Celebration of Discipline, has had a massive influence in Christian circles for many years. And yet, Foster has a long history of drawing from spiritual wells that reflect eastern mystical beliefs. But with names such as Beth Moore and Max Lucado on the Be Still DVD label, most people will automatically trust the content of this program. This means that tens of thousands of people will be introduced to Richard Foster's spirituality with a sense of security that what they are watching is biblically sound, relevant for their lives and accepted by those whom they have long trusted and looked up to.

In the foreword of the Be Still book, Henry Cloud gives strong evidence that contemplative prayer is really what Lighthouse Trails is warning of. Cloud relates: "[S]tarting in the 1960s, Christians started thinking that only Eastern religions meditate." He says that Christian practices like Scripture memorization, learning doctrine, and sharing prayer requests were taken to the "extreme and made the 'spiritual life' all about just the Bible." He acknowledges the Bible is God's Word, but says "it's not the end of things."

Cloud then makes a curious statement: "Christians are finally reclaiming the ground Eastern religions took over in the 1960s." In order to say that Christians are "reclaiming" the same "ground" means that what is being reclaimed is the same as what came before it (i.e., mysticism). In effect, he is saying that mantra-style meditation actually first belonged to Christianity (through the desert fathers), in the 1960s it was made popular in the Western world by eastern religions, and now Christianity is merely taking it back.

For those who may wonder if Cloud is actually referring to eastern-style meditation, he makes a clear case that this is exactly what he is referring to. Cloud says that the health benefits of New Age meditation are "created by God Himself." He adds: "Research has found that when people enjoy the simple practice of getting out of the noise to focus and be still, very practical, physiological things happen. Their blood pressure changes, their brain waves change, their immune system is affected, their head clears." He says that the difference between Christian meditation and New Age meditation is that in New Age meditation, meditators meditate to no one, and Christian meditation is addressed to a person (God). Thus, Cloud sees New Age meditation as physically beneficial but spiritually useless. But he does not denounce the practice itself of New Age meditation (the use of mantras), only that it doesn't include God.

What is important to point out here is Cloud's reference to what is called the Alpha state. Many New Age sources (Wicca, Silva Mind Control, etc.) make reference to the Alpha state, which is what Cloud means by "brain wave changes." In meditation, the mind goes from the normal state (a waking state) to an altered state (the Alpha state). In effect, he makes our case that contemplative prayer is not traditional Christian meditation (thinking upon God and His precepts) but going into an altered state of consciousness through repetition (ie., mantra--focus on word, phrase or breath).

Interestingly, Beth Moore's name does not appear anywhere in the Be Still book. And Philip Yancey (an avid admirer of Merton and Nouwen), who was not in the DVD project, is now in the book. It is uncertain whether Moore is distancing herself from the contemplative prayer movement. A few weeks after the DVD was released, her ministry issued a statement that said "there is no problem with its [the DVD] expression of Truth," and "there is no problem with Beth's participation in the Be Still video."1

Lighthouse Trails spoke with Moore's assistant on two separate occasions during this period of time, and she confirmed to us that Moore and her ministry did not see anything wrong with the contemplative prayer movement. We also sent a complimentary copy of A Time of Departing to Moore. Since that time, we have never heard from her ministry, nor, to our knowledge, has Moore made any statement retracting her support for the Be Still DVD or contemplative prayer. In addition, her book, When Godly People Do Ungodly Things, points readers to Brennan Manning, suggesting that his contribution to "our generation of believers may be a gift without parallel" (p. 72) and that his book, Ragamuffin Gospel is "one of the most remarkable books" (p. 290) she has ever read.

If Moore has read A Time of Departing, she will have read that Manning resonates with panentheistic figures like Basil Pennington and Beatrice Bruteau. It is Bruteau who said:

We have realized ourselves as the Self that says only I AM, with no predicate following, not "I am a this" or "I have that quality." Only unlimited, absolute I AM. 2

Manning says that Bruteau is a "trustworthy guide to contemplative consciousness" (from Abba's Child). If the reason Beth Moore is not in the Be Still book is because she is questioning or maybe even reversing her views on contemplative spirituality, for the sake of her admirers it is pertinent that Moore make a public declaration on where she stands on this issue. In view of Henry Cloud's revealing pronouncements in the Be Still book, there doesn't seem to be any other acceptable alternative. And as for the Be Still book and DVD, we hope Christians will see that contemplative spirituality cannot be equated with biblical Christianity.

Click here for further research on the Be Still project.

May 18th - "World Shift Day" - A Critical Mass and Contemplative Prayer

On May 18th, the World Peace Prayer Society hosted the "World Shift Day" where organizations, groups, and people around the world synchronized their watches and meditated together for the purpose of bringing peace to the earth and helping to create a "critical mass."

This year's event carries a theme of "The 3rd Timely Transformation Event of The Global Peace Meditation and Prayer Day Leading up to 2012." Many believe that the year 2012 will mark a significance shift in world consciousness. The objective is to "Collectively generate a worldwide energy field of Pure Conscious Thought To Urge the World to Shift."1 Participants are encouraged "to amplify the energies and visualize reaching Critical Mass!"

Critical Mass. What does this mean? While this is a scientific term when speaking of populations of people, here it is referring to "an explosion in global consciousness capable of 'touching' or transforming all of humankind."2 The idea is that when a sufficient number of people all sharing the same awareness is reached, then a chain reaction will occur in people's thinking on a global scale. A critical mass does not have to be a majority if it is a powerful enough mass, but unity is essential - and so is meditation.

New Ager Marianne Williamson (Oprah's A Course in Miracles teacher) says this about critical mass:

So it is that a new politics centers around the arousal of that power, using prayer and meditation to create a force field of transformation.

It is a mystical revolution that will usher in a mystical age.

As a loving critical mass coalesces, as hearts around the world continue to yearn and work for peace, then new forms will emerge to actualize our new planetary vision. 3

Two years ago, Lighthouse Trails reported that Rick Warren declared the need for a critical mass in order to transform our society. According to news reports about Rick Warren's participation at the Ecumenical and Interfaith Pre-Conferences (for the International AIDS Conference in 2006), Warren stated: "We are here at these conferences to say to fellow Christians that we believe the Church needs to take the lead in the greatest health concern on the planet." He said that Christians need to come together on this. However, time and again Warren has laid the ground work to show that this coming together does not mean only Christians. He is talking about crossing all barriers, religious, political and other, so that the world's people will be unified to fight the giants of poverty, corruption, ignorance and sickness. At one conference he said that every village has a man or woman of peace, who might not necessarily be Christian and could possibly be Muslim, and that person would help to implement the global P.E.A.C.E. plan in their part of the world. He believes the global peace plan will help to usher in a new reformation, one of many faiths and beliefs. (Much different than the Christian reformation that was a defense of the faith.) At the AIDS conference in Canada, Warren said he is "pressing for a 'coalition of civility,' where diverse groups can disagree without being disagreeable or denouncing one another, and seek unity without requiring uniformity in order to reach critical mass."4

Rick Warren believes that this "critical mass" can only happen when there is a crossing of all barriers--unity is a must!

A three-legged stool will have stability. So I'm going from country to country teaching business its role, teaching church its role, and teaching government leaders their role--you've got to work together! We cannot solve the problem in your country or in the world if we won't work together. (Rick Warren, July 2006)

We have established in previous articles and reports that contemplative spirituality is a New Age belief system (see Merton, Nouwen, Keating, et. al) with which meditation is implemented, and altered states of consciousness are reached. We have also shown how New Agers believe that the one common factor that unites all religious traditions is the metaphysical (i.e., mystical meditation). Ray Yungen explains:

One well-known New Ager revealed what his familiar spirit candidly disclosed: "We work with all who are vibrationally [meditationally] sympathetic; simple and sincere people who feel our spirit moving, but for the most part, only within the context of their current belief system."

The question must be asked, Is there a correlation between the New Age planetary transformation and Rick Warren's planetary transformation? Warren has not kept his mystical proclivities secret. He has teamed up with New Age/New Spirituality visionary Leonard Sweet on a number of occasions, such as this month at the Saddleback Small Groups Conference.5 Sweet is no stranger to the "critical mass" concept. In his book Quantum Spirituality, he addresses it within the context of small groups:

Reaching critical mass means arriving at the number of people required to set off a chain reaction. You don't need very many. Armenian explorer/philosopher/mystic Georges Gurdjieff argued that one hundred fully enlightened people would be all that was necessary to change the world. The transcendental meditation (TM) movement puts the number needed to move to critical mass at 2 percent; psychoanalyst Erich Fromm estimated 20 percent. The means by which these small numbers are gathered are as much through the energies of play and leisure as through work and enlistment. . . . The power of small groups is in their ability to develop the discipline to get people "in-phase" with the Christ consciousness and connected with one another.6

Sweet wrote these words several years ago, but he keeps Quantum Spirituality on his website as a free download, leaving no doubt that he still stands behind his words. When Sweet uses terms like "New Light movement," "Christ-consciousness," and "critical mass," we can correctly draw the conclusion that he means these terms in the same frame that New Agers do because in the Acknowledgements of Quantum Spirituality he thanks several New Age mystics (such as Matthew Fox and Ken Wilber) for their contribution to his spiritual life. He also emphasizes his commitment to mystical practices:

Mysticism, once cast to the sidelines of the Christian tradition, is now situated in postmodernist culture near the center.... In the words of one of the greatest theologians of the twentieth century, Jesuit philosopher of religion/dogmatist Karl Rahner, "The Christian of tomorrow will be a mystic, one who has experienced something, or he will be nothing." [Mysticism] is metaphysics arrived at through mind body experiences. Mysticism begins in experience; it ends in theology (see * below).

On May 18th at the World Shift Day, various groups around the world joined together in meditation because they believe meditation will bring about this needed critical mass to heal the earth. When we stop to realize that Rick Warren and many other Christian leaders are talking about global healing and unity AND promoting contemplative spirituality, we must ask ourselves, is there any difference in what these two movements are doing? Both are promoting mantra meditation as a way to spiritual maturity. For those who are rolling their eyes over this statement, please consider the following quote by Gary Thomas from his book Sacred Pathways in which he says:

It is particularly difficult to describe this type of prayer in writing, as it is best taught in person. In general however, centering prayer works like this: Choose a word (Jesus or Father, for example) as a focus for contemplative prayer. Repeat the word silently in your mind for a set amount of time (say, twenty minutes) until your heart seems to be repeating the word by itself, just as naturally and involuntarily as breathing. (p. 185)

On Rick Warren's website in a promotion for Sacred Pathways, Warren discloses:

Gary has spoken at Saddleback, and I think highly of his work ... he tells them [readers] how they can make the most of their spiritual journeys. He places an emphasis on practical spiritual exercises.

Incidentally, on Warren's May 14th weekly e-newsletter to pastors he is recommending Gary Thomas again. Kay Warren resonates with her husband on this issue. She highly recommends Henri Nouwen's book, In the Name of Jesus (saying she highlighted almost every word in the book) in which Nouwen says:

Through the discipline of contemplative prayer, Christian leaders have to learn to listen to the voice of love ... For Christian leadership to be truly fruitful in the future, a movement from the moral to the mystical is required. (pp. 6, 31-32).

On Rick Warren's website, there is the following statement:

This is a time, which calls for a critical mass of transformational leaders who will commit to creating a synergy of energy within their circle of influence.... We have not, however, developed the leaders we need for this noble task. To reach such heights, we will need to un-tap the leadership potential of skillful leaders.... 7 (pastors.com) Erik Rees, Saddleback Church.

When Rees says we need "skillful leaders" for this "noble task" of finding the "critical mass of transformational leaders," will these leaders be those with mystical affinities who Rick Warren has pointed to frequently in the past: Gary Thomas, Ken Blanchard, Leonard Sweet, Henri Nouwen, Jan Johnson, Dan Kimball, Brother Lawrence, Richard Foster, and Dallas Willard?

In conclusion, ponder these comments by former New Age follower Warren Smith where he has articulated the objectives of an end-time critical mass:

Through prayer and meditation each person begins to envision and create the peaceful world they would like to see. They affirm and hold that vision of peace in their daily thoughts.
People gather together in small groups to increase the power of their individual envisioning. They join together as an expression of their oneness to collectively pray and meditate and hold the vision of a peaceful world.
People meditate, pray and hold the vision of peace at the same time around the world to increase the power of their effort.
Special events are arranged where people around the world can link more openly with one another to increase the power of their collective vision. People begin to see and experience the power that comes from joining together in expressions of "oneness." (from chapter 8, Reinventing Jesus Christ)

*Quoted by Ray Yungen from A Time of Departing, p. 160 from Quantum Spirituality, p. 68.

Decoding the Evangelical Manifesto for Global Ecumenism

By Watcher's Lamp

Since the passing of Jerry Falwell, it seems that politically motivated religious groups are competing for the attention of the American electorate during this campaign season.

First, Red Letter Christians announced that we are trying to create a new movement that seeks to make faithfulness to Biblical Christianity an imperative for progressive politics. With media exposure, the group recasts the image of a "Christian" in the 21st century, i.e. sympathetic toward the bondage of homosexuality and inclusive toward other religious belief systems. The Red Letter Christians misrepresent Biblical Christianity to the general public.

Now, another self appointed "non-group" of public square Christians step up to the podium at the National Press Club to act as spokesmen ( though the event is described as an invitation to join the effort ) for Evangelicals to announce: " We're different, we're sorry, and we'll change for the global good."

The Evangelical Manifesto claims it does not represent a formal organization though it has assumed the responsibility of redefining what it means to be a globally responsible Evangelical.

The expressed intent of the Manifesto claims to "depoliticize" faith or "take religion out of politics." Which is interesting, giving the venue of the National Press Club.

The Proponents of the Manifesto

Liberal "theologians" such as:

Dr. Richard Mouw, President of the man-centered, humanist Fuller Theolgical seminary

Leith Anderson, president of the National Association of Evangelicals

Dallas Willard, contemplative guru for the Emerging church movement.

America's pastor, Rick Warren has been rumored as a participating architect, but has not officially stepped up as a signatory. Click here to read this entire article.

See: Related Story

Mennonites Dialogue on Same-Sex

by Roll Over Menno

In the latest MB Herald is a review by Kevin Moore (pastor of Jamestown Church, Toronto) of a book called Mennonites dialogue on same-sex - STUMBLING TOWARD A GENUINE CONVERSATION ON HOMOSEXUALITY, a compilation of articles by Michael A. King. One of several comments on the back of this book, which can be viewed at amazon.com, says "God saves some of us to embrace our sexuality. God saves others to seek a different sexuality. For some of us, attempts to change can lead to hell, separating us from God. For others, change can bring a deeper relationship with God."

Mentioned in the MB Herald book review is the following quote from Meister Eckhart by a pastor (named Nisly) whose credentials were suspended by the Pacific Northwest Mennonite Conference when he decided to perform a same-sex wedding ceremony:

"True followers of Jesus are absurdly happy, totally fearless, and almost always in trouble."!

While it is true that Christians can expect persecution and trials, is this the sort of trouble that the Bible tells us to expect? Is Mr. Nisly's situation a godly example of being in trouble for fearlessness while defending the truth in the Bible? Click here to read this entire article.

See also: Mennonites Promote the Shack

Ministries Exposing Contemplative Spirituality?

There is a growing number of Christian ministries that are warning against contemplative spirituality (i.e., spiritual formation) and the emerging church. Below we have listed some of the websites that are reporting on this from a biblical point of view. We hope you'll get a chance to visit them:

A Time of Departing Ministries

Understand the Times

Kjos Ministries

Roll Over Menno blog

Deception in the Church

Olive Tree Ministries
Spiritual Research Network

Take Heed Ministries

The Berean Call

In the Days Ministries

Eastern Regional Watch

Just the Book blog

Watcher's Lamp blog

Franklin Baptist Church

Reinventing Jesus Christ

Herescope blog

The Indigo Children Are Said to be Among Us

By S. E. Ray

Eternal Path ministries

Since 2004, a new scepter is being raised in the name of mysticism as parents and some undiscerning churchgoer's flock to the altar of what some have called "child worship." A mutating facet of the New Age is heralded by induction of the "Indigo Child." Psychic and synesthesiac (see musical notes as color) Nancy Ann Tappe coined the new term. She classifies people's personalities according to the hue of their auras. She claims to identify gifted children as having an indigo colored aura that signifies their mystical grandiosity.

Parents by the thousands have embraced this new thought and now label their children as Indigo Children verses having a neuro-biological condition requiring medication. One can understand why many parents would not want their child to be labeled as ADD or ADHD. The label implies imperfection. Some may even take it to mean the child is "damaged." This new position sounds positive and stimulates pride in one's offspring instead of coping with a medical problem.

Many materials are being written to advance this New Age teaching. "The Indigo Children" is a book written by Lee Carroll, a channeler for an entity he calls 'Kryon'. One thesis that Kryon presented of the Indigo Children is that many children diagnosed as having attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder represent "a new kind of evolution of humanity." The entity stated, "These children don't require drugs like Ritalin, but special care and training." Medical liability issues are yet to be seen from a comment like that. Click here to read this entire article.

LifeWay Stores (SBC) Still Offers Emerging/Contemplative Books to Customers

LifeWay Stores, the Southern Baptist Convention bookstore, continues to sell books that promote contemplative spirituality and the emerging church. Some of the authors being promoted at LifeWay Stores are:

Brian McLaren

Tony Jones

Richard Foster

Gary Thomas

Spencer Burke (the Ooze)

Jan Johnson

Liz Babbs

Ruth Haley Barton

Larry Crabb

Doug Pagitt

Rob Bell

Madame Guyon

Brother Lawrence

Shane Claiborne

Tony Campolo

Jim Wallis

Ken Wilber

Brennan Manning

Laurie Beth Jones

Ken Blanchard

Leonard Sweet

Rick Warren

LifeWay is also still an alliance partner with Leadership Network, the launching organization for the emergent movement and a continued promoter of emerging spirituality.

Warren Smith, Ray Yungen Speaking at Calvary Chapel Conferences this Summer

#1 Warren Smith, author of Deceived on Purpose and The Light That Was Dark, will be a featured speaker at the 2008 Senior Pastors Conference in Murietta, California this coming June. This conference is the annual pastors conference for Calvary Chapel Senior pastors.

#2 Warren Smith will join Ray Yungen, author of A Time of Departing and For Many Shall Come in My Name, for the Pastors and Leaders Conference in Johnson County, Kansas on August 7th. The theme of this conference will be "The Shepherd and the Watchmen."

Both Smith and Yungen have written extensively on the New Age/New Spirituality, documenting how it is coming into the church through various avenues such as Purpose Driven, the emerging church, spiritual formation, and more.

Launching: A Time of Departing Ministries

Ray With the fast spread of contemplative/emerging spirituality taking place today, Ray Yungen has recently decided to enter full-time ministry. We are pleased to announce the beginning of A Time of Departing Ministries. Because of the wealth of information Ray has, after nearly 25 years of research and writing, Ray is compelled to get this information to as many as he can.

This summer, Ray will be going on a two-month road tour through the United States and Canada. If you would like to have him speak to your group, please call us at 503/873-9092 to arrange the details. Ray will speak to both large and small groups, college and high school students, at seminars and conferences and in people's homes. He charges no fee, but we ask each group to pay for his lodging and food during his stay, and honorarium offerings can be given to his ministry for his support.

Ray's exuberance for life and his love for Jesus Christ and for people are evident in both his writing and his speaking.

A Time of Departing Ministries website

Publishing News

See our Falling Sparrow series.

Click here for more publishing news.

THREE WAYS TO ORDER DIRECTLY FROM LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS PUBLISHING:

1. Online Store

2. Toll Free Order Line: 866/876-3910

3. Mail/Fax Printable Order Form

Quantity Discounts: 40% off retail for orders of 10 or more copies, 50% off for international orders of 10 or more copies

We ship both retail and wholesale orders within 24 hours of receiving order.

BOOKSTORES AND OUTLETS for small retail orders: Lighthouse Trails books are also available to order from most bookstores (online and walk-in). If your local bookstore isn't carrying one of our titles, you can ask them to order it for you. While you may have to wait longer to receive your order, the advantage of ordering through bookstores is that you will have no shipping charges.

BOOKSTORES MAY ORDER DIRECTLY FROM LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS OR FROM INGRAM OR SPRINGARBOR.

LIBRARIES MAY ORDER DIRECTLY FROM LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS OR FROM BAKER & TAYLOR.

SAMPLE CHAPTERS OF LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS BOOKS:

Lighthouse Trails Publishing now has sample chapters available online for most of the books we publish. We believe you will find each of these books to be well-written, carefully documented, and worthwhile. Click here to read some of the chapters.

Newsletter in Print - Coming Soon

If you would like to receive the Coming from the Lighthouse newsletter in print form by mail, please send an email to newsletters@lighthousetrails.com. Be sure and include your mailing address in the email. We will be issuing a printed newsletter several times a year for those who prefer that over the email edition or for some reason need both.

Both email and printed editions will be free.

Book Spotlights

These two important books expose the truth about contemplative spirituality, spiritual formation, and the new age.
A Time of Departing and For Many Shall Come in My Name

HOLOCAUST: LEST WE FORGET
A true story that will change your life and challenge your faith ..

"Will sweep you into 1930s Germany and back with your faith intact ... [Trapped in Hitler's Hell] carries a stark message for today's Western Christian ... will refocus your priorities and recharge your spiritual life."-Leo Hohmann, Read entire review at The Messianic Times Trapped in Hitler's Hell

See all books and DVDs on the Holocaust

The Other Side of the River by Alaskan Kevin Reeves

When mystical experiences and strange doctrines overtake his church, one man risks all to find the truth ... a true story. Read more about this important book.

Find out the truth about the emerging church and the avenues through which it is entering Christianity.

Faith Undone by Roger Oakland

Find out more about the book that tells it like it is.

Featured Resources