Lighthouse Trails first addressed concerns about the Women of Faith conferences in 2006. In an article, we stated:
Women of Faith is a Christian franchise that has held conferences for over 3 million women since its inception in 1996.
In 2000, Christian publisher Thomas Nelson bought the Women of Faith franchise and has a strong influence in the organization. Nearly all of the regular Women of Faith speakers are Thomas Nelson authors, and Thomas Nelson books are sold at the Women of Faith conferences, thus women attending the conferences will get a hearty dose of Thomas Nelson.
In light of books published by Thomas Nelson that have contemplative slants, women attending these conferences should use discernment and wisdom. Below is a list of some Thomas Nelson books and authors that have New Age and/or contemplative content. Incidentally, nearly all of these books below are sold through the Women of Faith online bookstore, including Yoga for Christians and The Secret Message of Jesus:
Yoga for Christians by Susan Bordenkircher
The Secret Message of Jesus by Brian McLaren
Cure for the Common Life by Max Lucado
Speaking My Mind by Tony Campolo
Celebration of Discipline (Spanish) by Richard Foster
The Sacred Romance by John Eldredge
Turn My Mourning into Dancing by Henri Nouwen
How to Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life by Mark Victor Hansen
Seeing What is Sacred by Ken Gire
So You Want to Be Like Christ (Workbook) by Chuck Swindoll
In 2007, Lighthouse Trails posted an article titled “10, 000 Expected to Attend Women of Faith Conference.” In that article, we stated that the “women who attend Women of Faith conferences will be exposed to mystical spirituality, and because they trust Women of Faith, they will be caught unaware and put in harm’s way.”
In 2010, we posted John Lanagan’s article “Why Are Women of Faith Promoting Mystic/Emerging Brian McLaren?” Lanagan expressed his concerns about Women of Faith including the fact that the organization was selling Brian McLaren’s books. Lanagan stated:
When a well known organization like Women of Faith is the reason women are exposed to false teaching, whether through exposure to The Message paraphrase, or to the apostate rebellion of Brian McLaren, this should not be accepted with a yawn and a shrug. . . . Is Women of Faith on its way to purveying a generic spirituality?
We fear we must say yes to John Lanagan’s question. Women of Faith is going from the frying pan into the fire. In a June 21st Christian Post article, “Mark Burnett, Roma Downey Partner With Women of Faith, ‘Believe God Can Do Anything’ Tour,” it explains how Women of Faith “has partnered with ‘The Bible’ producers Mark Burnett and Roma Downey to incorporate parts of the highly successful History Channel program into its ‘life-changing’ tour. That probably sounds UN-alarming to most people. After all, what could be wrong with a program called The Bible? And the series (now seen by over 100 million people), The Bible, is being promoted widely by many Christian organizations and ministries with a broad marketing target.
It was concerning enough knowing these past several years that Women of Faith introduced their women to Brian McLaren and other emergent-type names. But Roma Downey falls as much in the New Spirituality camp as McLaren, if not more. First of all, Roma promotes the Roman Catholic church. In an article we posted earlier this year,Rick Warren Endorses 2013 Book, “Catholics Come Home” – Calls Catholic Evangelization “Critically Important,” we quoted Downey as saying this about the Catholics Come Home book: “Catholics Come Home inspires each of us to share God’s love with others, in order to help change the world for the better, for eternity!” And, in a book titled Practical Praying: Using the Rosary to Enhance Your Life, there is a companion “Meditation” CD by Roma Downey that comes with the book.
But Roma Downey isn’t just a Catholic promoter. She is a New Age/New Spirituality promoter. Within the pages of a book titled Loyalty to Your Soul by Ron and Mary Hulnick (published in 2010 by the New Age publisher, Hay House), Downey endorses the book saying:
As a USM [ University of Santa Monica – a New Age metaphysical school] graduate, I know firsthand the value I received from participating with Ron and Mary in the Master’s degree Program in Spiritual Psychology. I am so grateful to have Loyalty to Your Soul to sweetly remind me of all I have learned. Let’s just say that I went from playing an angel on TV to living more of an angelic life every day. The teachings in this beautiful book have sent me on a journey to the very center of my own being where, wrapped in the safe wings of Love, I feel as though I have come home.
Downey’s endorsement in the Hulnick’s book is nestled in with full-blown New Agers like Barbara Marx Hubbard, Joan Borysenko, and Gay Hendricks (The Corporate Mystic). By the way, Neale Donald Walsch, the New Ager who said that Hitler did the Jews a favor by killing them,1 wrote the foreword to Loyalty to Your Soul.
Clearly, Downey read this book and resonates deeply with it to say what she did about it. To get an idea of this “journey” that Downey is on, listen to a few quotes from Loyalty to Your Soul:
Center your awareness in your heart and consciously look for the Loving Essence in the person in your presence. By doing so, you’re signifying your respect for the Soul before you . . . Maintain awareness that you’re in conversation with another Divine Being who is engaged in having a human experience. (p. 209)
We ask for the presence, protection, guidance, and Love of the Divine Beings who work with each of us. (from the “Invocation” – emphasis added
“When people speak of spirituality, they simply mean awareness of the sacred reality of the Divine Essence within and beyond all creation.” (p. 8, quoting favorably a New Age “spiritual teacher”)
For the awakening person, there is a growing yearning for time in the silence. There is a sense of needing time and space for contemplation, meditation, walking in nature, and just plain being alone. Attuning to the inner channel of Divine Love is supported by quiet moments. (p. 27)
You begin to recognize others as Divine Beings, and the situations and circumstances of your life as learning devices. (p. 31)
Those familiar with New Age teachings will recognize such statements as being the core essence of the occult (that man is divine). Loyalty to Your Soul is a contemporary version of A Course in Miracles (the New Age book Warren B. Smith talks about in his biography, The Light That Was Dark).
In addition to endorsing Loyalty to Your Soul, Downey also endorsed a book called Angels in My Hair: the true story of a modern day Irish mystic by Lorna Bryne. The book is about spirit guides in people’s lives.
We find it disconcerting to know that someone with Downey’s spiritual propensities, who attended a New Age university, helped to create a program on God’s Word.
So, the question we have is this: Now that Women of Faith has “partnered” with Roma Downey, will the millions of women who attend Women of Faith conferences be led down the same path Downey has found herself on? Perhaps we should ask Beth Moore, Priscilla Shirer, Lisa Harper, and Sheila Walsch the answer to that question – they will be the speakers at the Women of Faith “Unwrap the Bible” conference in 2014 (see video below where Downey promotes this conference). But then, you might get a biased answer – Moore, Shirer, Harper, and Walsch are all proponents of contemplative spirituality, and those who understand the dynamics of contemplative prayer know that it is a comfortable companion to the “theology” behind A Course in Miracles.
Evangelical and Protestant Christianity are becoming synonymous with contemplative spirituality. In other words, where you find evangelical and Protestant Christianity, you will increasingly find contemplative spirituality (i.e., Spiritual Formation). And in this paradigm shift, we can see that Alice Bailey’s prediction that the church will be the avenue through which the “Aquarian Age” will enter the world, preparing for that one whom the Bible warns will deceive the whole world.
Related Video:
Who’s Promoting Burnett/Downey’s The Bible:
Southern Baptist Convention: http://www.lifeway.com/Article/The-Bible-Miniseries-An-Interview-with-Roma-Downey-and-Mark-Burnett.
Focus on the Family: http://www.focusonthefamily.com/radio.aspx?ID={8AA137FE-2171-40A9-9569-E902F99BD82B}
Willow Creek Association: http://www.willowcreek.com/events/leadership/speaker_mark_burnett.asp
Rick Warren and Saddleback: http://saddleback.com/blogs/communityblog/mark-burnett-and-roma-downey-coming-to-saddleback/
Oprah: http://www.oprah.com/own-oprahs-next-chapter/Why-Diogo-Morgado-Didnt-Feel-Worthy-to-Play-Jesus-Video
More endorsements, click here.
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