Letter to the Editor: A Warning About the “Rooted Pilot Course”

LTRP Note: Lighthouse Trails identified Mariner’s Church, the creators of the “Rooted Pilot Course,” as an “emergent/contemplative” church as far back as 2009. With current teaching pastors such as Christine Caine, Ed Stetzer, and Doug Fields, and with their “Rooted” program, they remain in that category. This letter to the editor from one of our readers is an important warning because of the popularity of Rooted.

Dear Lighthouse Trails Editors:

My church is testing a program called “Rooted Pilot Course.” An examination of the participants’ workbook, Rooted: Connect with God, The Church, Your Purpose, and articles on the Rooted Network’s website shows unbiblical teachings and practices in it. Mariner’s Church in California adapted this program for westerns from a course developed by Pastor Muriithi Wanjau and Mavuno Church in Nairobi, Kenya.

Aesthetically, the workbook is a winner. It is a ‘just right’ size and weight and a pleasure to hold; its print and layout are attractive. Contents include 10 weeks of material for group and individual settings. It teaches basics of the Christian faith using extensive quotations from Scripture. I can see how leaders would be eager to use this material in their churches, but a careful look shows that “Rooted” introduces and emphasizes “contemplative” concepts and practices. Participants are tutored in “7 Rhythms” to practice in community and on an ongoing basis after the course concludes. A “Rooted Covenant” on page 15 is to be signed by participants, giving their agreement to attend all group meetings and keep things shared therein confidential.

Week three is “How Does God Speak to Us?” On page 54 of the workbook, God’s omnipresence is acknowledged, but readers are warned

. . . there is no certainty you are engaging Him. It is possible to have dinner with your spouse, but because you are distracted, never enter into his or her presence. We can do that with God, too.

Prayer as a “conversation” is introduced as the “give and take” of prayer (speaking and listening). “Prayer is not just talking to God, it is giving space for Him to communicate back to us” (pg. 54). Page 55 continues:

Listening to God can be a bit mysterious. . . . By slowing down, emptying our minds, and praying, God can communicate directly to us through thoughts and ideas. (emphasis added)

Further tutoring in prayer techniques states:

To yield means to be quiet after you have spoken to God and to listen for what He might say to you. If you regularly take time to listen, you will begin to hear God’s voice.

Journal use is encouraged to record these thoughts and promptings as “keeping record of what God says to you” (pg. 61). 

Articles on Rooted Network’s website refer to Spiritual Formation, Ignatian exercises, and the use of experiential prayer practices including lectio divina and prayer labyrinths. An article on the site titled “5 Benefits of a Centralized Prayer Experience” states:

[W]e wanted to stretch our Rooted participants through Lectio Divina (pages 108-109 of the Facilitator Guide). We also designed a prayer labyrinth and other experiential elements for the experience. One of our joys has been seeing people grow in comfort with these ancient practices and desire to use them. (source)

There are other pitfalls with Rooted, but an identification of its “contemplative” elements alone shows it should be marked and avoided.

Ori

Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. (Romans 16:17)