Regarding our recent article on Obama spiritual advisor Jim Wallis, the following response was posted on Rose Marie Berger’s blog as she was mentioned in our article. This is really the heart of the matter – is contemplative spirituality an acceptable spiritual outlook, or is it a path to a panentheistic, interspiritual New Age/New Spirituality that rejects the atonement of Jesus Christ as our means of salvation?

from Berger’s blog:

A group in Eureka, Montana, called Lighthouse Trails, recently warned people against me, Jim Wallis, and Sojourners because of our association with Henri Nouwen, Thomas Merton, and contemplative Christian spirituality.

The folks at Lighthouse Trails describes their mission thusly: “In the year 2000, we learned that a mantra-style meditation coupled with a mystical spirituality had been introduced to the evangelical, Christian church and was infiltrating youth groups, churches, seminaries, and Bible studies at an alarming rate.  Thus, in the spring of 2002, we began Lighthouse Trails Publishing with the hope of exposing this dangerous and pervasive mystical paradigm.”

At the same time I was reading the reports from Lighthouse Trails, I was also re-reading parts of Merton’s book Life and Holiness in which he lays out a few basic ideas in Christian spirituality.

Henri Nouwen writes in the book’s introduction, “It is not a book about doctrines or dogmas, but about the life of Christ. … In its great simplicity, this is a radical book. It calls for total dedication and a total commitment [to Christ].” Click here to continue reading.

Our response:

From Lighthouse Trails perspective, the principle reason we are critical of people like Thomas Merton and Henri Nouwen is that their contemplative prayer practices led them to embrace a spiritual understanding known as interspirituality (all religions  lead to God) and panentheism (God is in all things and people), which support each other. This runs counter to the basic mission of biblical Christianity, which is commonly referred to as the “great commission” that Jesus put forth in Scripture. (Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature.) From Sojourners perspective, that gospel is known as the social gospel, which contrasts what we are saying – the preaching of the Cross. Although the great commission has social aspects to it, the primary element is the blood of Christ (the atonement), which justifies us before God.  These other world religions lack this, and therefore we cannot embrace them as legitimate.  I think these two quotes, one by Merton and one by Nouwen illustrate our concerns:

“Today I personally believe that while Jesus came to open the door to God’s house, all human beings can walk through that door, whether they know about Jesus or not. Today I see it as my call to help every person claim his or her own way to God.”—From Sabbatical Journey, Henri Nouwen’s last book, page 51, 1998 Hardcover Edition

“It is a glorious destiny to be a member of the human race, … now I realize what we all are …. If only they [people] could all see themselves as they really are …I suppose the big problem would be that we would fall down and worship each other … At the center of our being is a point of nothingness which is untouched by sin and by illusions, a point of pure truth … This little point …is the pure glory of God in us. It is in everybody.” (from A Time of Departing, quoting Thomas Merton, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander -1989 edition, 157-158)

Finally, Ray Yungen, one of Lighthouse Trails' authors, documents correspondence Merton had with a Sufi master. The two were discussing fana (eastern mysticism). Merton asked the Sufi leader what the Muslim view of salvation was. The Sufi answered that Islam “does not subscribe to the doctrine of atonement or the theory of redemption.” Merton replied:

“Personally, in matters where dogmatic beliefs [doctrines] differ, I think that controversy is of little value because it takes us away from the spiritual realities into the realm of words and ideas … in words there are apt to be infinite complexities and subtleties which are beyond resolution…. But much more important is the sharing of the experience of divine light, … It is here that the area of fruitful dialogue exists between Christianity and Islam.” (Rob Baker and Gray Henry, Editors, Merton and Sufism (Louisville, KY: Fons Vitae, 1999), p. 110.

 Those who study contemplative spirituality from a critical point of view come to understand this is pure contemplative spirituality – doctrine stands in the way of unity and oneness; mysticism eradicates that problem.

 That’s the heart of the matter.

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Bible Study Fellowship, a ministry of Bible studies that has been around for over 50 years, is utilized by many Bible believing Christians. On the BSF website, it states: “In all, there are over 1,000 BSF classes with 200,000 class members in 38 nations across six continents! Over 800 of the classes are held in the U.S.”

Recently, a number of BSF supporters/participants contacted Lighthouse Trails with concerns that the organization may be becoming influenced by contemplative sources, most likely unbeknownst to many or most of BSF board of directors and Bible Study teachers. In the May 2010 issue of the BSF magazine, a book list includes three contemplative proponents: contemplative pioneer Dallas Willard, emerging proponent Dan Allender, and Pastor Timothy Keller of Redeemed Presbyterian in New York.

BSF does give a disclaimer on their magazine stating: ”The books listed do not necessarily represent the BSF point of view in their entirety but are recommended to challenge your thinking and enlarge your understanding of the world and the church”; however, as we have explained before in other articles, regardless of such disclaimers, recommending heretical teachers is just that, and it can have serious repercussions. Pointing to Dallas Willard can potentially lead readers into the arms of Thomas Merton and Henri Nouwen; and that goes the same for Keller and Allender. On Willard’s website, some of the mystics he resonates with and recommends are Teresa of Avila (see Castles in the Sand), Henri Nouwen, St. Ignatius of Loyola, Richard Foster, Madam Guyon, and Jan Johnson – all proponents of a mantra-style meditation.

Worth noting, on a second page of the four page BSF May 2010 magazine, in an editorial article by BSF executive director, Susan Rowan, Rowan quotes Eugene Peterson’s The Message, which has proven to be a most untrustworthy paraphrase of God’s Word. Additionally, Peterson himself is a strong proponent of contemplative spirituality, is one of the main endorsers of The Shack, and embraces the spirituality of Sue Monk Kidd, who worships the goddess Sophia.1

Lighthouse Trails contacted the BSF office, but was unable to reach anyone. If you are using BSF material or know of someone who does, we urge you to contact the organization and beseech them to reconsider their promotion of contemplative-promoting authors. While a mere quote by The Message and a few book recommendations may seem trivial to some, we know from experience that typically when a ministry or organization opens the door, even ever so slightly, to contemplative resources, it is just a matter of time before the organization becomes influenced with it. In Ms. Rowan’s article, she says that “BSFers are proving that they are fully engaged with Jesus Christ and His work.” If contemplative spirituality (i.e., spiritual formation and the new spirituality) reorient this ministry, they will become “engaged” with the mystics, and we know the Bible says we cannot serve both God and man. “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” Matthew 6:24

When one looks through the websites of Christian colleges, organizations, churches, and ministries, one can easily see that contemplative has indeed had a significant presence. Lighthouse Trails’ very existence is to point out that we believe what II Thessalonians refers to as the falling away from real Christianity to a false mystical “Christianity.” When we look at the statements and beliefs of Thomas Merton and Henri Nouwen, this is glaringly apparent.

Bible Study Fellowship International
19001 Huebner Rd
San Antonio, Texas 78258
(210) 492-4676.

By Mark Alan Leslie

What began as “a brilliant move” by then-President George W. Bush to fund abstinence training in the fight against HIV/AIDS abroad has been turned on its head by the Obama administration. As a result, faith-based missions groups and church outreaches have lost tens of millions of dollars in support.

In addition, President Barack Obama’s decision to cut federal money to faith-based groups unless they give equal training from other religions. Mission groups that received federal aid are left scrambling to make up the difference that, in many cases, equals hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Lavonne Stevens of Nashville, chief operating officer of African Leadership from 2003 to 2009, said that in 2009, word came out of Washington, D.C., that, “if an organization was faith-based and proselytizing was a core part of what it was doing, it lost its funding.”

African Leadership, a Christian education and development organization, trains church leaders in Africa and funds relief and development projects. At least five missionary groups it worked with lost federal funding, Stevens said.

Among them are groups that teach abstinence, such as Living Hope, a church-based outreach, which received funds from the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, established by Congress and President Bush in 2003.

“Our cut was $347,000 per annum,” said Living Hope chairperson John V. Thomas, senior pastor at King of Kings Baptist Church in South Africa. Click here to continue reading.

Related:

Non-Profit Ministries – A view of the future?

A commentary …

by Paul Proctor
News with Views

I view today’s “Christianity” as largely responsible for the spread of Islam in this country. In my view, Muslims are merely filling the void left by biblically illiterate and morally confused Christians who are more interested in getting ahead and getting along than getting the gospel out. When our goals and values become indistinguishable from those of the world, what have the enemies of Christ to fear? - Paul Proctor, News with Views

From Nashville to New York, there has been a lot of angry opposition lately to the building of new mosques in America. Considering the many Islamic attacks and attempts the world has had to endure, is it any wonder?

On May 23rd, the Associated Press reported the following:

“A group of 40 Muslim families that had hoped to build a mosque in the affluent Nashville suburb of Brentwood has withdrawn its rezoning request.

Jaweed Ansari, trustee for the proposed Islamic Center of Williamson County, told The Tennessean that the families were not prepared for the anger from neighbors that the plan excited.”

Yeah, well a lot of families weren’t prepared for the anger from Muslims on 911 either; so, we feel your pain.

On July 3rd, The Tennessean updated readers on the proposed construction of another mosque near Murfreesboro in an article that began this way:

“Opponents of construction of a new Islamic mosque south of Murfreesboro plan to march on Main Street on their way to the Rutherford County Courthouse on July 14.

‘The people have spoken clearly that they don’t want this mosque proposal that is before them,’ march organizer Kevin Fisher said during a Friday phone interview.”

And, then there was the anti-mosque demonstration in New York as reported on June 7th by CNN:

“Protesters gathered in lower Manhattan mid-day Sunday to demonstrate against plans to build a mosque near the site of Ground Zero, where the twin towers of the World Trade Center were destroyed by Islamist hijackers on September 11, 2001.”

You see, civilized people conduct peaceful marches to publicly protest things they oppose rather than fly planes into buildings and blow people up. Call it your religion, but the God of Abraham said: “Thou shalt not kill” and “Vengeance is mine,” meaning murder is unacceptable. Click here to continue.

MINNEAPOLIS- This week’s General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) will consider redefining marriage to include same-sex couples and allowing ministers to perform same-sex weddings.

Carmen Fowler, president of the Presbyterian Lay Committee, believes those sorts of initiatives are to blame for the denomination’s declining membership.
    
Her group supports upholding the church’s traditional definition of marriage.
    
The PCUSA’s newly-elected moderator, Cynthia Bolbach, supports gay marriage but told the assembly on Saturday that the denomination has become paralyzed.
    
Fowler says that’s what happens when a church body becomes disconnected from its head — Jesus Christ. Click here for source.

OneNewsNow – Used with permission.

Related Stories:

General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church

by Berit Kjos

“…when in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another [England] and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
“We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights [cannot be taken away], that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” – The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776. (Thomas Jefferson, primary author)

——————————————————————————–

Is that true? Does our sovereign Creator give us certain “unalienable rights” as American citizens that cannot be lost or taken away?

Like most of our presidents, Barack Obama affirms that historical promise. In The Audacity of Hope, he referred to Jefferson’s introduction as “the foundation of our government” and “the substance of our common creed.”[1]

Yes, we have taken our freedom for granted. But, no, we don’t “arrive” in this world with a bundle of irrevocable rights. Today’s evolving laws and government “entitlements” are actually replacing our original “rights” with unthinkable restrictions on speech and liberty! The most offensive “right” of all is our fading freedom to share God’s unchanging truths! As He warns us,

“…the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.” 1 John 5:19

From Freedom to “Change”

James Madison was alert to the threats ahead. As the main author of our “Bill of Rights,” he saw the need to limit government control over personal liberties. Ratified on December 15, 1791, the First Amendment states:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

But, as we have seen, this promised protection is not irrevocable. Step by step, those wise legal guidelines are being torn down.

Historically, it makes sense. God doesn’t promise us earthly “freedom” in this world. Nations that reject His guidelines will suffer the consequences:

“…when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them… when your heart is lifted up and you forget the Lord your God. …you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.’… Then it shall be, if you by any means forget the Lord your God, and follow other gods… you shall surely perish. As the nations which the Lord destroys before you, so you shall perish, because you would not be obedient to the voice of the Lord your God.” (Deut. 8:12-20)

Naturally, that warning doesn’t fit our thinking today. It’s far easier to believe the nice-sounding illusions in The Audacity of Hope that appeal to our feelings than to accept a disturbing reality based on facts. For example, the historical balance Obama mentions in the next paragraph has little in common with his communitarian dictates,[2] which are fast transforming America:

“In every society (and in every individual), these twin strands — the individualistic and the communal, autonomy and solidarity — are in tension, and it has been one of the blessings of America that the circumstances of our nation’s birth allowed us to negotiate these tensions better than most.”[3]

Today, those tensions are simply resolved through his undefined plan for “change,” which embraces the UN vision of communitarianism, solidarity and control. Our old individual “rights” have no place in this rising global collective — nor in the UN Alliance of Civilizations, which recently added America to its roster of western and Muslim nations committed to unity through “dialogue.”

Yet those promised “rights” are fast being crushed by a vast machinery of blurry laws and oppressive regulations. Obama’s next comments only illustrate the confusing double-speak so often heard from Alinksky-trained change-agents:

“…the essential idea behind the Declaration — that we are born into this world free, all of us; that each of us arrives with a bundle of rights that can’t be taken away by any person or any state without just cause; that through our own agency we can, and must, make of our lives what we will — is one that every American understands…. Indeed the value of individual freedom is so deeply ingrained in us that we tend to take it for granted.” To continue reading click here.

Below is a partial speaking schedule for Lighthouse Trails authors Warren B. Smith and Ray Yungen. If you live near any of these areas, we hope you will get the chance to attend. All these events are offered free of charge. If you are interested in having Warren or Ray (or both) speak to your group, call us at 406/297-7756, or email at editors@lighthousetrails.com.

July 25th, 2010 (8:30 and 10:30)
Candlelight Fellowship
Warren B. Smith
5725 N. Pioneer Drive
Coeur d' Alene, Idaho
208-772-7755
No cost.

August 12-14, 2010
Pastors and Leaders Conference
Warren B. Smith, Xavier Reis
500 South Lee Ave
Olathe, KS 66061
Phone: (913) 829-9306

September 10-11, 2010
Calvary Chapel Appleton, Wisconsin

September 18, 2010
Calvary Chapel Pasadena, CA (Pastor Xavier Reis)
Warren B. Smith and Ray Yungen

2011

April 9-11, 2011
Prophecy Conference
La Crete, AB, Canada

April 2011
Cedarburg Cultural Center
W62 N546 Washington Avenue
Cedarburg, Wisconsin
Warren Smith, Larry DeBruyn, Sarah Leslie

May 21, 2011
(9:30-4:00)
Gold Country Calvary Chapel
Warren B. Smith, Ray Yungen, Johanna Michaelsen
13026 LaBarr Meadows Rd
Grass Valley, CA 95949
530-274-2108
No cost. Free will offering.

October 12-15, 2011
Winnipeg Prophecy Conference
Winnipeg, MB, Canada

2012

April 13-14, 2012
Discerning the Times Conference
Warren B. Smith, Rob Lindsted, John Plantz, Dave Dunn, Steve Herzig
Ramada Inn
806 Idylwyld Drive North, DIEFENBAKER ROOM
Saskatoon, Sask.
1-306-371-6877 (conference contact)
No cost. Free will offering.

On June 22, 2010, Lighthouse Trails launched its first interactive online forum and message board. Please take a moment to check it out and consider joining so you can make comments, post topics, and see what others are saying. We are still working on adding many more topics, but it is ready to go for those who would like to register. The forum is free, and we hope many will find it beneficial. It's a chance to meet others who are contending for the faith and also an opportunity to discuss some of the vital topics affecting Christians and the world today. Click here to visit the Lighthouse Trails Forum.

1. FREE PRINT NEWSLETTER: Starting January 2010, From the Lighthouse print newsletter will be mailed to those requesting it. If you would like to request the newsletter, please fill out our Newsletter Request Form.

2. FREE CATALOG: Fill out our short form to receive a free catalog. Click here to access form.

3. FREE E-NEWSLETTER: Sign up to receive our free e-newsletter, delivered to your email box 3-4 times a month.

4. FREE SAMPLE CHAPTERS: Check out our free sample chapters of many of our books.

5. FREE SHIPPING OFFERS: Lighthouse Trails has a growing number of FREE SHIPPING offers on our books, DVDS, and CDs.

6. New Lighthouse Trails interactive forum - CHECK IT OUT.

7. FREE ONLINE E-BOOKS: Lighthouse Trails currently has two free e-books. We also hope to soon be offering some of our titles as Kindle books (digital books to be read on Kindle machines) for low prices. We hope that in offering these digital versions of our books, readers will have the chance to see the quality of our workmanship before purchasing print versions. Click here to see our available e-books.

8. FREE SHIPPING: Lighthouse Trails offers free shipping on a number of items on our store. You can check out those specials, by clicking here.

The 2nd issue of the print Lighthouse Trails newsletter is in the mail to those on the mailing list. Many of you have probably already received it. We have about 500 extra copies, and if you would like some to distribute at your church or Bible study, just give us a call, and we can send you some. This is a free 32-page newsletter that will be coming out 4-6 times a year. Each issue will carry Lighthouse Trails’ most significant stories as well as other features like Letters to the Editor, Product Catalog, Q & A, Resources and more. While the newsletter is free (on a donation basis for those who wish to help cover printing and postage), for these quantity mailings we only ask that you cover postage to send you your extra copies. Typically, we can ship 8 for $4.95 or about 45 for $10.20 for U.S. mailing (more for international). You can pay us by check, Paypal, or a credit card. If you want extra copies, call us at 866/876-3910 (US & Canada). For other international, call 406/297-7756. Or you can email at editors@ftlh.org or fax request to: 406/297-7993.

Bob Ayanian's new CD, At the Edge of the World, is now available. Lighthouse Trails was privileged to help with the design of the packaging. We are very happy to be able to carry this CD. The music is Americana Folk Gospel, and the lyrics are biblically sound, pointing to the Cross and the Gospel.

Lighthouse Trails Research Project | P.O. Box 908 | Eureka | MT | 59917

OFFICE: 406/297-7756  **  FAX: 406/297-7993