Coming From the Lighthouse

July 3, 2007

In This Issue -

Velvet Elvis - A Doorway to the New Age

Respected Ministries Say OK to Contemplative J.P. Moreland

Pastors Beware - Retreat Network Offers Contemplative Authors

Christian Classics Ethereal Library Promotes the Mystics

New Age Movement continues to Haunt Southern Baptist Convention

Red-letter Christians' a growing political force

Obama Points to Rick Warren, T.D. Jakes as Models for Faith-Driven Action

Rick Warren OK With Harry Potter...

Publishing News...

New York Times Article Shows Kids Are Learning to Meditate in Schools

Media Spotlight Reviews "The Other Side of the River"

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Our newest release, Faith Undone, has finally gone to press. This book addresses the framework and the agenda of emerging spirituality. We believe that the contemplative prayer/emerging church movement is quickly overtaking much of mainstream Christianity. Please inform your loved ones so when it comes to their churches and school's, they will recognize it for what it really is. God bless you as you contend for the faith.

Velvet Elvis - A Doorway to the New Age

Is Velvet Elvis, the popular book by emerging pastor, Rob Bell, being recommended by your teen's Christian school? In Rabun-Gap, Georgia at the Rabun-Gap Nacoochee School, the answer to that is yes. A Book List for 9th through 12th graders includes Bell's Velvet Elvis. Rabun-Gap Nacoochee School is a Presbyteran-based private school.

At Bellevue Christian School in Clyde Hill, Washington superintendent, Ron Taylor, says this of Bell's book: "Velvet Elvis is a great book that will stimulate much conversation among your friends and family. It certainly has in my household."1

Greater Atlanta Christian School (also in Georgia) has Velvet Elvis on a Bible Department Summer Reading List. The list is not optional. A notice states: "Please note that all books are required for all students.2

The list of Christian schools, which are requiring students to read Velvet Elvis, could go on and on. And some may ask, "What's so bad about that? It seems like a harmless book." But is it? We at Lighthouse Trails believe Velvet Elvis and Bell's Noomas are a trojan horse that will deliver to young unsuspecting kids from Christian homes a hearty helping of the New Age (i.e., mysticism and panentheism). And if they are introduced to the New Age under the guise of Christian literature, many of them will be seduced by "doctrines of devils."

Strong statement? Yes, but well justified (and documented). Listen as Roger Oakland explains (from (Faith Undone):

In Bell's Velvet Elvis, in the "Endnotes" section, Bell recommends Ken Wilber ... Of Wilber, Bell states:

For a mind-blowing introduction to emergence theory and divine creativity [meaning we are co-creators with God], set aside three months and read Ken Wilber's A Brief History of Everything.

Ken Wilber was raised in a conservative Christian church, but at some point he left that faith and is now a major proponent of Buddhist mysticism. His book that Bell recommends, A Brief History of Everything, is published by Shambhala Publications, named after the term, which in Buddhism means the mystical abode of spirit beings. Wilber is one of the most respected and highly regarded theoreticians in the New Age movement today.

Wilber is perhaps best known for what he calls integral theory. On his website, he has a chart called the Integral Life Practice Matrix, which lists several activities one can practice "to authentically exercise all aspects or dimensions of your own being-in-the-world." Here are a few of these spiritual activities that Wilber promotes: yoga, Zen, centering prayer, kabbalah (Jewish mysticism), TM, tantra (Hindu-based sexuality), and kundalini yoga. There are others of this nature, as well. A Brief History of Everything discusses these practices (in a favorable light) as well.
For Rob Bell to say that Wilber's book is "mind-blowing" and readers [of whom many will be teen-agers] should spend three months in it leaves no room for doubt regarding Rob Bell's spiritual sympathies. What is alarming is that so many Christian venues, such as Christian junior high and high schools, are using Velvet Elvis. (Faith Undone, pp. 109-110)

In light of Rob Bell's attraction to the mystical (see our report, "Will the Next Billy Graham Be a Mystic?"), and his obvious admiration for a New Ager like Ken Wilber, handing teenagers a copy of Velvet Elvis for summer reading could have disastrous effects.

Ken Wilber isn't the only one with New Age spirituality that Bell resonates with. In Velvet Elvis, Bell recommends a university professor named Marcus Borg. If you aren't familiar with Borg's belief's, you may find them rather disturbing. Again from Faith Undone:

Borg explains in his book The God We Never Knew that his views on God, the Bible, and Christianity were transformed while he was in seminary:

I let go of the notion that the Bible is a divine product. I learned that it is a human cultural product, the product of two ancient communities, biblical Israel and early Christianity. As such, it contained their understandings and affirmations, not statements coming directly or somewhat directly from God.... I realized that whatever "divine revelation" and the "inspiration of the Bible" meant (if they meant anything), they did not mean that the Bible was a divine product with divine authority.

This attitude would certainly explain how Borg could say:

Jesus almost certainly was not born of a virgin, did not think of himself as the Son of God, and did not see his purpose as dying for the sins of the world.20

If what Borg is saying is true, then we would have to throw out John 3:16 which says God so loved the world He gave His only Son, and we would have to dismiss the theme of a blood offering that is prevalent throughout all of Scripture. (Faith Undone, pp. 196-197)

What does Rob Bell have to say about Borg in Velvet Elvis? It's favorable. On page 180 and 184, he praises Borg's book, The Heart of Christianity. Bell also makes reference to Borg's panentheist views (p. 19).

As emerging spirituality is sweeping into Christianity at an alarming rate through many avenues, perhaps the biggest victims will be our kids. Let's not allow that to happen.

Respected Ministries Say OK to Contemplative J.P. Moreland

 J. P. Moreland is Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at Talbot (Biola) School of Theology. He has written numerous books and has spoken at over 200 colleges. He has many academic credentials and honors such as: Outstanding Young Men of America, 1981 and Senior Class Professor of the Year, Biola University, 1992-93. But Moreland has another credential that is not being discussed in evangelical circles - he promotes contemplative spirituality.

Last year, in an article titled "Focus on the Family Continues its Dive into Contemplative," Moreland was discussed. On the FOF website, he wrote a four-part article titled "How Spiritual Disciplines Work." (1) Part III of Moreland's article is called Solitude and Silence as Spiritual Disciplines. Moreland writes a disclaimer for the article stating:

As we dive into the disciplines of solitude and silence, I need to make a very important qualification. While some of the things in this article may, at first, sound like something you'd hear from a New Age guru, these ideas are, in fact, based on Scriptural principles and practices.

Moreland is concerned that his instructions may sound New Age or Eastern. We have noticed that usually when something sounds New Age or Eastern, that's because it is. There is no instance in the Bible where Jesus or the apostle Paul made such a disclaimer, nor did they ever sound that way.

In Part II of Moreland's article he says, "A spiritual discipline is a repetitive practice." Moreland favorably references contemplative-promoter Dallas Willard to describe the importance of silence and solitude. He adds: "People are coming to see that repeated bodily practice in the form of spiritual exercises/disciplines is at the heart of spiritual transformation " (Part II). Moreland says, "Catholic retreat centers are usually ideal for solitude retreats," which are bastions for contemplative spirituality.

In Faith Undone, Roger Oakland addresses Moreland's instructions on repetitive prayer. Oakland quotes Moreland from his book The Lost Virtue of Happiness where Moreland tells readers to say the "Jesus Prayer" three hundred times a day. His new release, Kingdom Triangle, should be viewed with caution. Dallas Willard wrote the foreword, and in an Amazon book review, the reviewer states:

On page 159, Dr. Moreland encourages the reader to participate in an unbiblical form of meditation which is more akin to the religious practices of Yoga and Eastern mysticism than orthodox Biblical Christianity where he details a 2-step process first alluded to in the Lost Virtue of Happiness book. In step one, he tells the reader to "[f]ocus the center of your attention on your physical heart muscle."(2)

Moreland recommends Richard Foster and Henri Nouwen, which makes sense - he co-authored a book with Dallas Willard ten years ago; thus, he has been dancing in contemplative circles for sometime.

While it is quite obvious that Moreland is a promoter of contemplative prayer, what isn't so clear is how Christian ministries are viewing Moreland as a trustworthy source. For instance, in the recent Summit Ministries (Dr. David Noebel) student conference, Moreland was a featured speaker. (3) And in an apologetics book on the emerging church, Reclaiming the Center, Moreland was a contributing writer. That book is being recommended by Christian colleges, even ones that have in the past said no to contemplative, such as Corban College in Salem, Oregon. (4)

Our concern is that contemplative spirituality will further seep into Christianity through the acceptance of Moreland's spiritual disciplines. The fact that he has spoken at over 200 colleges, shows that his audience is largely the younger generation. Corban College's promotion of his book as well as Summit's student conference are points in fact. Once again, Satan is going after the minds of the youth. But it is tragic when it happens through respected ministries. We pray and hope that Summit Ministries and Corban College will make clear statements to their students that Moreland's repetitive prayer instructions are unbiblical and dangerous.

Some people might criticize us for coming on so strong against good organization like Summit and Corban. But we are compelled to do so. What we are concerned about is that ministries that have not gone the contemplative way but have been reticent to strongly stand against it and speak out against it often have succumbed to it. If we truly believe that contemplative spirituality (i.e., mysticism) is the driving force behind a great falling away, then boldest is absolutely required, and to do less could have serious implications.

Note: Lighthouse Trails has listed Corban College as a Christian college that does not promote spiritual formation (contemplative). You may view that list by clicking here.

For related information:

What is Spiritual Formation?

The New Age ... Why Should I Think About That?

Pastors Beware - Retreat Network Offers Contemplative Authors

The Pastors Retreat Network, founded in 1997, "offers five-day retreats to pastors and pastor couples." On the website, it states: "Scripture reading and meditation are at the heart of the experience." According to the ministry's Recommended Book list, this experience being offered to pastors and their wives is going to be mystical and similar to Eastern religion. Books include those by Richard Foster, Ruth Haley Barton, Thomas Merton, and Henri Nouwen, all of whom are/were mantra-meditation promoters.

There are a number of Christian websites that recommend or link to the Pastors Retreat Network, some of which are Crosswalk.com, Denver Seminary, the Spiritual Formation Forum, the Center for Church Advancement, Moody Broadcasting Network (a ministry of Moody Bible Institute), and many, many others.

If your pastor and his wife attend a retreat by the Pastors Retreat Network, very likely their spirituality will begin to take on a whole new mystical approach.

Christian Classics Ethereal Library Promotes the Mystics

The popular Christian Classics Ethereal Library is promoting mystic Madame Guyon. The CCEL has been used as a resource for many Christians. It is unfortunate that this promotion is taking place. On the CCEL website, it states (referring to Madame Guyon):

Jeanne-Marie Bouvier de la Motte-Guyon (commonly known as Madame Guyon) (April 13, 1648 - June 9, 1717) was a celebrated French mystical writer of the Quietist school. This little book was written for a few individuals who wanted to love God with their whole hearts, and as others wanted a copy, it was committed to the press. It quickly went into multiple printings. Since then this work has been widely distributed and very influential - to places as far as China, where Watchman Nee gave copies to new converts.

It was Guyon who said: "Here [the contemplative state] everything is God. God is everywhere and in all things." The Christian History Institute said this of Guyon:

"Modern critics say that Jeanne-Marie used self-hypnosis to achieve her 'spiritual' states and trances and point out that she used 'automatic writing' which suggests spiritualist practice. They wonder that she had so little to say about Christ (in proportion to the total number of words she wrote)."

For more information about the mystical proclivities of Madame Guyon, please refer to our research site.

Red-letter Christians' a growing political force

LTRP Note: The following is from an outside news source. Please see our related story, Pentecost 2007 - A Step Closer to Global Unity - A Step Further from Gospel Truth

Associated Baptist Press
By Hannah Elliott

NEW YORK (ABP) -- In what is shaping up to be a faith-filled race for the presidency, Republican and Democratic candidates have pulled out all the stops -- hiring religion gurus, conscientiously attending church, discussing the intimate details of their prayer lives on national TV and publicly admitting personal struggles with sin.

I's an effort to appeal to religious voters and -- especially for Democratic candidates --- dispel a perception that they don't take religion seriously. The latest effort came at a George Washington University forum sponsored by the progressive Christian group Sojourners.

At the event, Sens. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and John Edwards (D-N.C.) spoke at length about their faith. Some pundits called it an indication the left has stopped assuming religious voters automatically will vote for the Republican Party. Others claim Democrats are pandering.

But exactly who are the religious voters they hope to attract? Tony Campolo, noted author and sociologist, has coined a term that describes at least part of the movement: "Red-letter Christians." These people, named after the red ink some Bible publishers use to denote the words of Jesus, hold to traditional Christian beliefs and believe the Holy Spirit inspired the Bible, which they view as authoritative and relevant for faith and practice. Click here to read more of this news article.

For related news:
Research on the spirituality of Tony Campolo

The End of the World ... As We Know It

Tony Campolo and Mysticism

Obama Points to Rick Warren, T.D. Jakes as Models for Faith-Driven Action - "we are all connected"

LTRP Note: For a related story, please see our December 2006 article: "The Spirituality of Barack Obama and Rick Warren".

Christian Post
Michelle Vu
"Obama Points to Rick Warren, T.D. Jakes as Models for Faith-Driven Action"

Prominent Christian leaders such as Rick Warren and T.D. Jakes were praised by Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) this weekend as role models of Christians who put their faith into action.

In his first speech on the intersection of faith and politics as a presidential contender, Obama discussed how religion should inspire people across the Christian spectrum to unite in helping to eradicate social problems rather than divide them.

"I'm hopeful because I think there's an awakening taking place in America," said Obama on Saturday at the United Church of Christ's 50th anniversary convention. "People are coming together around a simple truth - that we are all connected, that I am my brother's keeper; I am my sister's keeper."

During his speech to a crowd of nearly 10,000 people, the senator, a member of Trinity UCC in Chicago, criticized division within the Church, but praised Christian leaders and groups that have worked together to remedy social problems. Click here to read this entire news story.

 Rick Warren OK With Harry Potter

According to the June 21st issue of Rick Warren's weekly newsletter, the headline above is accurate. This week's Ministry Toolbox, which is Warren's way of communicating with pastors and church leaders around the world, has a link titled "Recommended Reading List." While the list is actually that of contemplative promoter James Emery White, (a contributor to Warren's newsletter), it ended up on Warren's own newsletter as recommended reading. 1

On the Recommended Book list is the following description of the upcoming Harry Potter release:

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling. Though the seventh and final installment is yet to be released (July 21, to be exact), when it does, it will be well-worth reading. Though some would disagree, I am one to put Rowling's work in the camp of fantasy literature, along with Lewis and Tolkien, with her use of magic more mechanical than occultic. I found her earlier six volumes instant classics of the genre, and the final book will undoubtedly cement this series as among the best written.

Clearly, Rick Warren is OK with Harry Potter or this would not be promoted on his website as well as in his e-newsletter.

While many people think Harry Potter is harmless (even many Christians), facts should not be ignored. Some of those facts are presented by research analyst Ray Yungen. He explains what he has discovered about Harry Potter:

There are probably very few people in the western world who haven't heard of the Harry Potter book series phenomenon. Not just millions, but tens of millions of adults, adolescents, and children have read these books or seen the movie versions of them. Going by the numbers of the books that have been purchased, few under 25 have not been influenced to some degree by the adventures of this boy wizard. And many ask, what is wrong with that?

The Potter series, though fiction in the technical sense, does make a very real connection to the realm of metaphysics in one spot specifically. In the book called Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, one of the main characters, a professor, tells her class that they will learn divination or see into the future. It's at this point that the book departs from the world of make believe, and enters into the actual teachings of Wicca (witchcraft). The teacher informs the students:

Crystal gazing is a particularly refined art... We shall start by practicing relaxing the conscious mind and external eyes, ... so as to clear the Inner Eye and the superconscious.

All one has to do is type in the word "superconscious" on Google on the Internet and see just how highly promoted that term is. It comes up nearly 130,000 times! Keep in mind, this term is used specifically within the context of metaphysics, and is never used in a non-metaphysical sense. What this means is that any impressionable young person who reads this term, could become more open and comfortable with the mystical realm in real life.

This is what you would be taught if you attended a real school of witchcraft. Relaxing the conscious mind is, of course, meditation, and the Inner Eye is an occult term used for the Third eye chakra from which all psychic powers, such as divination, spring. But the absolute clincher is the term "superconscious." If you were to ask any New Age teacher, guru, or practitioner what the "superconscious" is, you would get the same answer--it's the New Age concept of God. In fact, Buckland's Complete Book Of Witchcraft actually uses the term "Superconsciousness" in reference to what or to whom witches tune into during meditation.

There is another more subtle, yet perhaps more far-reaching aspect to the Potter books. In the series, those people who are "non-magical" or ordinary are called "muggles." They are portrayed as dull, backward, and lacking in personality. It is inferred that if you are a "muggle," you are living an inferior and unsatisfying life. Now if there were no such thing as "muggles" this comparison would be meaningless. How can you feel bad about being something that doesn't exist? But, as I have already shown, The Prisoner of Azkaban presents real witchcraft. So then, not to have access to the "superconscious" makes one a "muggle," (i.e., a non-mystic). This means that the spiritual beliefs of potentially millions of young people, many of them from conservative homes too, may be altered if they pick up this outlook, even subconsciously; thus the Harry Potter books may be a highly effective tool in giving the New Age movement a boost that is unimaginable. It will implant in the minds of multitudes that to fail to embrace mysticism makes you, well, muggle-like. (from For Many Shall Come in My Name, 2nd ed., pp. 94-95)

The fact that Rick Warren has given the green light this week to Harry Potter through his recommendation of James Emery White's reading list could have disastrous effects on the spiritual lives of countless people, potentially 400,000 pastors (the number who have done the Purpose Driven Life program) and the millions of congregants who sit under the teachings of these pastors.

Rick Warren's continuous promotion of the New Age (e.g., emerging spirituality, contemplative (mysticism), spiritual formation, ecumenism, etc.) has drawn virtually no response by most of today's Christian leaders. Either they have wholeheartedly supported Rick Warren's teachings or have perhaps, and just as detrimental, said nothing at all. This week's uplifting of Harry Potter is just another Purpose Driven step away from biblical truth and a closer view of the occult.

Interestingly, five and a half years ago in 2001, Rick Warren ran a story on his website that spoke up against Harry Potter. That article made a clear statement that Harry Potter was dangerous for kids because of its witchcraft element. All we can say to that is, "You've come along way Rick Warren!"

For related information:
"What Do the Secret, Harry Potter, and Yoga Have in Common?" by Caryl Matrisciana

English Occult: A Look at Black Magic in England by CBS News

Rick Warren Promotes Another Contemplative Author - James Emery White

James Emery White's Mysticism Reading List

Publishing News

New York Times Article Shows Kids Are Learning to Meditate in Schools

The following news story from The New York Times illustrates how quickly meditation is overtaking our society. Children are the newest target! This is not only affecting kids in public schools - through the contemplative prayer movement and the emerging church - Christian schools are heading in this direction too. A whole generation is being taught how to enter dangerous demonic realms through practicing mantra meditation!

If you have a child in either a public or private school, please contact the school immediately and find out if your child is being introduced to any type of meditation exercise (this includes lectio divina and breath prayers). Tell the school you do not want your child participating in any of these activities. This would include Rob Bell's popular Nooma films and his book Velvet Elvis, which are both being used in Christian junior high and high schools. See our links below for more information on children and meditation.

"Focus on Quieting the Mind"
by Patricia Leigh Brown
The New York Times
OAKLAND, Calif., June 12 - The lesson began with the striking of a Tibetan singing bowl to induce mindful awareness.

With the sound of their new school bell, the fifth graders at Piedmont Avenue Elementary School here closed their eyes and focused on their breathing, as they tried to imagine "loving kindness" on the playground.

"I was losing at baseball and I was about to throw a bat," Alex Menton, 11, reported to his classmates the next day. "The mindfulness really helped."

As summer looms, students at dozens of schools across the country are trying hard to be in the present moment. This is what is known as mindfulness training, in which stress-reducing techniques drawn from Buddhist meditation are wedged between reading and spelling tests.Click here to read the rest of this news article.

Related Research:

Focus on the Family's Adventures in Odyssey - Promoting Contemplative?

Yoga for children (in public school, that is)

Christianity Today: Contemplative for Children

Jesus Camp, Film Reveals the Mystical and the Militant, Not Biblical Christianity

NOTICE TO PARENTS: Christian Schools Introducing Teens to Mysticism Proponent

Ancient Wisdom for Babies

For more information on how the New Age is coming into schools, read For Many Shall Come in My Name.

Media Spotlight Reviews "The Other Side of the River"