Recently, we received an e-mail from a reader who is trying to explain to some people in a prominent Christian organization who are practicing contemplative prayer that contemplative prayer (i.e., Christian contemplation) is no different than Eastern meditation (i.e., mysticism). The following article by Ray Yungen explains what contemplative prayer is and how it is … [Read more…]
There’s a lot of talk about it today; umpteen books are published and more are on the way about lectio divina; and an increasing number of evangelical/Protestant figures are writing about it, endorsing it, and teaching it. Some people think lectio divina simply means to read a passage of Scripture slowly (or “praying the Scriptures”) … [Read more…]
Contemplative prayer is hearing the word of God … Contemplative prayer is silence.—Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1994 edition, p. 652 LTRP Note: Since 2002, Lighthouse Trails has continued to issue warnings about contemplative prayer. We began our warnings after meeting Ray Yungen in the year 2000 and examining his extensive research. One of the … [Read more…]
If there is one thing we don’t hear much about from today’s Christian leaders and pastors, it is the importance of testing the spirits. The idea comes from the Bible in 1 John 4:1, which states: Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try [test] the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets … [Read more…]
LTRP Note: Eugene Peterson (d. 10/22/18) and Catholic priest Thomas Keating (d. 10/25/18) have died. The article below (which is promoting Peterson and Keating) is written by Carl McColman (author of The Big Book of Contemplative Mysticism) and is posted for informational and research purposes and not as an endorsement of the content. Both Peterson … [Read more…]
Watkin’s Mind Body Spirit Magazine released its 2016 top 100 most spiritually influential people alive today. If you have been reading Lighthouse Trails for some time, you will recognize several names. One thing all of these names have in common is an affinity toward mysticism. Sadly, a number of these New Ager/New Spirituality names have … [Read more…]
To Lighthouse Trails: Our Pastor has started a series based on a book “The Gift of Being Yourself: The Sacred Call to Self Discovery” by David G. Benner. What can you tell me about this book and the author? What our pastor has read from this book is very strange because in the first few … [Read more…]
I had always been confused as to the real nature of this advance in the Catholic church. Was this just the work of a few mavericks and renegades, or did the church hierarchy sanction this practice? My concerns were affirmed when I read in an interview that the mystical prayer movement not only had the … [Read more…]
LTRP Note: For thirteen years, Lighthouse Trails has been warning about the contemplative prayer movement. In this new booklet, Ray Yungen has provided new information that makes the contemplative argument (against it) irrefutable. We intend to send a copy of this booklet to all of the major Christian leaders whom we have challenged including Beth … [Read more…]
Dear Lighthouse Trails: I thought this link would interest you. The Western Canadian District of the C&MA in Canada is promoting (yet with a disclaimer!) a number of books that teach the practices of contemplative prayer. I was surprised to see it promoted so blatantly on their website. http://www.transformcma.ca/resources-2/ There is also something called a … [Read more…]
Dear Lighthouse Trails: I was given a subscription to Guideposts magazine. In the February issue, there is an article titled “Summoned” written by Anne Simpkinson – Online Managing Editor. The first paragraph reads as follows: I start my day with prayer. Centering prayer, in which, rather than saying prayers aloud, you sit in silence, letting go of … [Read more…]
Presented by Chris Lawson (Spiritual Research Network) Note from Chris Lawson: These videos (links below) briefly express years of my own research observations about the influences and dangers of mystical (and occult) based literature and teachings being embraced by many popular Christian leaders and authors today. My purpose in making this video is to show … [Read more…]
On October 16th, Biola University will host its Torrey Conference 2013, and contemplative teacher Ruth Haley Barton will be a featured speaker at the event. This does not come as a great surprise to the editors at Lighthouse Trails because Biola has been going down the contemplative path for quite sometime. But because there are … [Read more…]
On August 5th-9th, the Assemblies of God will be holding their 2013 General Council conference titled Believe. Lighthouse Trails has written a number of times about the upcoming conference since April of this year. At the end of this report, we have listed the links to those past reports. Basically, our concern has focused on the fact that contemplative pioneer … [Read more…]
A Special Follow-Up Report by Ray Yungen and the Editors at Lighthouse Trails Before we begin our report addressing the public response issued by the Assemblies of God Superintendent Dr. George O. Wood and Dr. Jodi Detrick, chairperson for the Network for Women in Ministry regarding the invitation of Ruth Haley Barton to the 2013 General … [Read more…]
No one group understands emerging “progressive” spirituality as much as those in the New Age. That’s because it is their religion. So when the evangelical emerging church movement rose to the forefront, New Agers must have found it quite intriguing and most likely rewarding to see their belief system finally take root in Christianity. In … [Read more…]
I had always been confused as to the real nature of this advance in the Catholic church. Was this just the work of a few mavericks and renegades, or did the church hierarchy sanction this practice? My concerns were affirmed when I read in an interview that the mystical prayer movement not only had the … [Read more…]
LECTIO DIVINA-What it is, What it is not, and Should Christians Practice it? written by the editors at Lighthouse Trails is one of the new Lighthouse Trails Booklets and is an easy to understand explanation of the practice of lectio divina, a practice that is becoming increasing popular in evangelical/Protestant circles today. The booklet is … [Read more…]
Lectio Divina – There’s a lot of talk about it today; umpteen books are published and more are on the way about lectio divina; and an increasing number of evangelical/Protestant figures are writing about it, endorsing it, and teaching it. Some people think lectio divina simply means to read a passage of Scripture slowly (or … [Read more…]
During the first week of October, Rick Warren made a bold move, revealing his true affinity toward contemplative (centering) prayer. The majority of people who saw this will probably not have recognized the significance of this endorsement, which has led us to put out this communiqué. It was done in a simple Twitter posting on Rick … [Read more…]
LTRP Note: We received an e-mail today from a LT reader who was concerned about things he was reading on the CCEL website. Thus the reposting of this 2008 article. Today, on the recommended reading list, CCEL recommends St. John of the Cross (Dark Night of the Soul), the Spiritual (mystical) Exercises of Jesuit founder … [Read more…]
In a 2009 article in the San Antonio Express-News, it features Thomas Keating, a Catholic monk who has been instrumental in bringing contemplative spirituality out of the monasteries to the layperson. In the article, Keating conveyed what contemplative mystics have been saying for centuries: mysticism is the common ground among all the world’s religions. This … [Read more…]
According to Thomas Keating, the father of the modern day centering (contemplative) prayer movement that is sweeping widely within evangelical circles, the silence or sacred space that is reached during contemplative prayer/centering prayer is the same state that is reached during what is called kundalini. Catholic priest Philip St. Romain wrote a book called Kundalini … [Read more…]
