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Monday, July 8, 2013

CHRIS LAWSON EXPOSES YOGA AS OCCULT HINDU RELIGIOUS PRACTICES

Lighthouse Trails announced the new booklet tract of Chris Lawson:
"YOGA and Christianity - Are They Compatible?". Below is the tract sample as Lighthouse reports:

YOGA and Christianity - Are They Compatible? 
By Chris Lawson


Western Culture Embraces Yoga It is no secret that Yoga is taking Western civilization by storm. In just a little over a hundred years, a mystical revolution has occurred that millions of Westerners have wholeheartedly embraced. Amazingly, the Western Judeo-Christian view is in the process of a paradigm shift toward the same perspective as yogic India.
To illustrate the magnitude of the Yoga explosion, consider Yoga Journal’s “Yoga in America Study 2012.” This study reveals some incredible statistics:
• 20.4 million Americans practice Yoga, compared to 15.8 million from the previous 2008 study. • Practitioners spend $10.3 billion a year on Yoga classes and products. The previous estimate from the 2008 study was $5.7 billion.
• Of current non-practitioners, 44.4 percent of Americans call themselves “aspirational yogis”—people who are interested in trying Yoga.1
Yoga (or Yogic spirituality) is influencing Christians and non-Christians alike. It only takes 0.27 seconds to come up with over 411,000,000 results for Yoga on Google’s search engine. When searching Amazon.com’s “All” category for Yoga, one quickly comes up with a staggering 143,081 results. That’s just within Amazon.Com. If one searches for book titles only on Amazon.com, the search yields 26,316. Certainly, the influence of Yoga can be found almost everywhere. In Time Magazine’s book, Alternative Medicine: Your Guide to Stress Relief, Healing, Nutrition, and More, it states:
Hard to believe now, but yoga was once considered heretical, and even dangerous. As recently as a century ago, yogis in America were viewed with suspicion; some were actually thrown in jail. Today, though, most gyms offer it, many public schools teach it, and a growing number of doctors prescribe it . . . It may have taken 5,000 years, but yoga has arrived.2
Just What is Yoga?
No doubt, many, probably most, of the millions of Westerners who practice postural Yoga have never read a simple definition of what Yoga really is. Below, I have presented a small selection of definitions of Yoga. While there are countless descriptions on the Internet and in libraries, the definitions I have chosen are an accurate overall representation of the meaning of Yoga.
According to Webster’s New Twentieth Century Dictionary, Yoga is essentially: “a practice involving intense and complete concentration upon something, especially deity, in order to establish identity of consciousness with the object of concentration; it is a mystic and ascetic practice, usually involving the discipline of prescribed postures, controlled breathing, etc.”3
The Merriam Webster Online Dictionary adds: “a Hindu theistic philosophy teaching the suppression of all activity of body, mind, and will in order that the self may realize its distinction from them and attain liberation.”4 Cyndi Lee, expert yogi and writer for Yoga Journal, defines Yoga as such:
The word yoga, from the Sanskrit* word yuj means to yoke or bind and is often interpreted as “union” . . . The Indian sage Patanjali is believed to have collated the practice of yoga into the Yoga Sutra an estimated 2,000 years ago.
The Sutra is a collection of 195 statements that serves as a philosophical guidebook for most of the yoga that is practiced today. It also outlines eight limbs of yoga: the yamas (restraints), niyamas (observances), asana (postures), pranayama (breathing), pratyahara (withdrawal of senses), dharana (concentration), dhyani (meditation), and samadhi (absorption).5
Goutam Paul, author of Bhagavad Gita: The Ultimate Science of Yoga states:
When we talk about linking or connection, an obvious question arises: to connect what with what? The very word “connection” implies that there must be two different entities separated from one another, and they need to be connected. The ancient Vedic* text Bhagavad Gitaexplains that these entities are the individual consciousness and the universal Supreme consciousness. Some may call this universal consciousness an all-pervading energy, whereas most theists consider this Supreme consciousness to be God. . . . The purpose of Yoga is to connect the individual energy with the universal energy, or put another way, to connect the individual being to its source—the Supreme Being.6
One large online archive of New Age, occult, and mysticism-oriented literature states:
The ancient Yogis recognised long ago that in order to accomplish the highest stage of yoga, which is the realisation of the self, or God consciousness, a healthy physical body is essential. For when we are sick, our attention is seldom free enough to contemplate the larger reality, or to muster the energy for practice . . .
The roots of Yoga can be traced back roughly 5,000 years to the Indus Valley civilization. . . . According to the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, the ultimate aim of Yoga is to reach “Kaivalya” (freedom). This is the experience of one’s innermost being or “soul” (the Purusa). When this level of awareness is achieved, one becomes free of the chains of cause and effect (Karma) which bound us to continual reincarnation.7
The Index of Cults and New Religions lists the different types of Yoga:
Karma Yoga (spiritual union through correct conduct)
Bhakti Yoga (spiritual union through devotion to a Guru) 
Juana Yoga
 (spiritual union through hidden knowledge) 
Raja Yoga
 (spiritual union through mental control) 
Hatha Yoga
 (spiritual union through body control/meditation) 
Kundalini Yoga
 (spiritual union through focusing inner energy) 
Tantra Yoga
 (spiritual union through sexual practices)8
Swami Nirmalananda Giri of the Atma Jvoti Ashram, answering the question to “What is Yoga?” states:
What do we join through yoga? Two eternal beings: God, the Infinite Being, and the individual spirit that is finite being. In essence they are one, and according to yogic philosophy all spirits originally dwelt in consciousness of that oneness.9
The Concise Dictionary of the Occult and New Age describes how Yoga is done:
Typical exercises, such as those found in hatha yoga, are practiced under the tutelage of a guru or yogi, a personal religious guide and spiritual teacher. Gurus teach students to combine a variety of breathing techniques with asanas, or relaxation postures. In each of the postures, students must first enter the position, then maintain it for a certain length of time, and finally leave it.10
This dictionary further states that people in the West have mistaken Yoga to be “mere breathing and relaxation exercises,” when in reality “[t]he practice of yoga serves as a gateway to Eastern mysticism and occult thinking.”11 It adds:
Certain postures, such as the lotus position, are taken to activate the psychic energy centers [the chakras]. And specific breathing exercises are practiced to infuse the soul with cosmic energy floating in the air. A guru might have students gaze at a single object, such as a candle, to develop and focus concentration. The guru might have them chant a mantra to clear their minds and become one with the object in front of them. The goal is to achieve increasingly higher meditative states until reaching oneness with the cosmic consciousness.12
Understanding the Meaning of “Occult”
The word “occult” comes from the Latin occultus or “hidden,” and those who employ the term generally do so in an attempt to describe secret and mysterious supernatural powers or magical (magick) religious rituals.
Throughout history, there have been those who attempted to gain supernatural power or knowledge through occult means. Occultism also can generally refer to witchcraft, Satanism, neo-paganism, or any of the various forms of psychic discernment such as astrology, séances, palm reading, and a myriad of other spiritual methodologies for contact with the spirit world. The term occult is often interchangeable with the term metaphysics—these terms share the belief that there is a universal energy (e.g., Chi, Prana, Ki, etc.) that exists in all things. By engaging in the occult (i.e., metaphysical arts), this energy isawakened. Yoga in all its forms is simply one spiritual genre among many designed to induce practitioners into altered states, thereby gaining access into the world of occult spirituality.

Kundalini—the Energy Behind Yoga
Internationally recognized occult authority, Hans-Ulrich Rieker (author of The Yoga of Light: Hatha Yoga Pradipika) describes the vital role kundalini plays in Yoga when he states, “Kundalini [is] the mainstay of all yoga practices.”13 With this in mind, a brief look at “kundalini energy” (the root of Yoga) is in order.
Born as Chinmoy Kumar Ghose (1931-2007), Sri Chinmoy was an Indian spiritual “master,” spirit medium, occultist, and interfaith guru. Teaching Yoga in the West from the time he moved to New York City in 1964, Chinmoy spent 43 years in the West producing “prayers and meditations, literary, musical and artistic works.” Giving spiritual meditations twice a week at the United Nations building (since 1970),14 Chinmoy’s occult philosophy for life was, “When the power of love Replaces the love of power Man will have a new name: God.”15 Man becomes “God”? According to Chinmoy, yes!
Like many other occultists who promote yogic spirituality intertwined with “love,” Chinmoy masterfully crafted his occultism under the guise of “Concentration, Meditation, Will-Power and Love.” These themes are expanded upon in Chinmoy’s occult manifesto, Kundalini: The Mother Power where Chinmoy explains Yoga’s occult foundation, goals, and the purpose of manifesting the kundalini serpent power.
Chinmoy likened “kundalini arousal” (varying states of demonic possession) to a “game” that is to be “played” between Shakti “The Mother Power” (a Hindu goddess) and the adept who seeks to manifest kundalini. The “power” and “force” that Chinmoy encourages people to “play with” is, in actuality, in many varying religious contexts, demonic spirits (fallen angels) that masquerade as “The Mother Supreme,” “kundalini,” “Chi,” “prana,” etc. Chinmoy wrote:
When the kundalini is awake, man is fully aware of the inner world. He knows that the outer world cannot satisfy his inner needs. He has brought to the fore the capacity of the inner world, which he has come to realise is far superior to the capacity of the outer world. He has brought to the fore the hidden powers, the occult powers, within himself. Either he uses these powers properly or he misuses them. When he divinely uses the powers of kundalini, he becomes the real pride of the Mother Supreme. When he misuses them, he becomes the worst enemy of man’s embodied consciousness and of his own personal evolution.16
Here in the West there are many who feel that the powers of kundalini yoga are nothing but rank superstition. I wish to say that those who cherish this idea are totally mistaken. Even the genuine spiritual Masters have examined kundalini yoga and found in their own experiences the undeniable authenticity of its hidden occult powers.17
The kundalini power is the dynamic power in us. When the dynamic power and the spiritual knowledge go hand in hand, the perfect harmony of the Universal Consciousness dawns and the conscious evolution of the human soul reaches the transcendental Self [godhood].18
Kundalini Awakening
If Kundalini is “the mainstay of all yoga practices,” as Rieker and other Yoga authorities maintain, the Yoga practitioner must understand clearly what the “kundalini” power is, how “it” operates, and what its effects are.19
Kundalini is a term which in Sanskrit means “coiled.” This “yogic life force” supposedly moves through the chakras (energy centers that are “activated one by one through the breath”20 in the human body in order to bring one into a state of occult enlightenment. According to occult philosophy, Kundalini is a non-physical field of energy that yogis say not only surrounds the physical body but can infuse the body.
Lee Sannella, M.D., a noted Psychiatrist, Ophthalmologist, and cofounder of the Kundalini Clinic in San Francisco, explains in his book The Kundalini Experience: Psychosis or Transcendence:
According to this [tantric] Indian tradition, the kundalini is a type of energy—a “power” or “force” (shakti)—that is held to rest in a dormant, or potential, state in the human body. Its location is generally specified as being at the base of the spine. When this energy is galvanized, “awakened,” [which is done during Yoga], it rushes upward along the central axis of the human body, or along the spinal, to the crown of the head. Occasionally, it is thought to go even beyond the head. Upon arriving there, the kundalini is said to give rise to the mystical state of consciousness, which is indescribably blissful and in which all awareness of duality [separation] ceases.21
For those who have doubts that all Yoga has the capacity to arouse kundalini energy, perhaps one ought to think again. After all, the Yoga postures themselves were designed specifically to receive this serpent power. 

Yoga’s Dangers of Psycho-spiritual and Psycho-physical “Emergencies”

Volumes of material could be quoted from regarding the dangers of Yoga, meditation, and other psycho-spiritual and physio-spiritual practices. Modern practitioners—and even medical doctors—are now testifying to the fact that physical dangers associated with practicing Yoga are a reality. In fact, people who have done Yoga for purely “physical exercise” have been spiritually affected to the point of being systematically dismantled by hostile “forces,” over which they have no power. Eastern gurus call this type of Yoga effect “enlightenment,” yet it is anything but that!
In India today, countless millions of Yoga practitioners are influenced by the spirit world, achieving manifold “possession” states and “manifesting” the kundalini-shakti power (also called “serpent power”). It is the same in the West, only it falls under different names and in a Western context. One should note well that it was not until the 19th and early 20th centuries that Yoga was touted as a physio-postural “exercise” in Britain and the USA.22
The following is a mere sampling of what can occur when the kundalini-shakti “force” is “aroused,” “galvanized,” “awakened,” “summoned,” etc. These “spiritual emergencies” can even occur during Hatha Yoga sessions at the local fitness center. Depending on the teacher (yogi/yogini) one has, you never quite know what you will get.
In Lee Sannella's book The Kundalini Experience: Psychosis or Transcendence, Sannella tells how the “Physio-Kundalini” experience is “a dramatic occurrence . . . culminating [in a] state of ecstatic unification.”23 He adds:
[T]he kundalini causes the central nervous system to throw off stress . . . usually associated with the experience of pain . . . It appears to act of its own volition, spreading through the entire psychophysiological system to affect its transformation.24
[T]he kundalini produces the most striking sensations . . . the “heat” generated by “friction” of the kundalini . . . causes turbulence, which may be experienced as painful sensations . . . spontaneous bodily movements, shifting somatic sensations.25
Amongst other kundalini symptoms, “spiritual emergency” scenarios26 and numerous case studies of destructive kundalini manifestations, Sannella mentions Swami Narayanananda, author of “the first detailed book on the kundalini experience.”27 Sannella notes that Narayanananda’s book:
. . . distinguished between a partial and a full arousal of the kundalini energy. Whereas partial arousal can lead to all kinds of physical and mental complications, only the kundalini’s complete ascent to the center at the crown of the head will awaken the true impulse to God-realization, or liberation, and bring about the desired revolution in consciousness. Only then can the body-mind be transcended in the unalloyed bliss of enlightenment.28
Narayanananda catalogued a listing of sensations and experiences that occur as kundalini symptoms. Sannella summarizes some of these:
* There is strong burning, first along the back and then over the whole body.
* The kundalini’s entrance into the central spinal canal, called sushuma, is attendant with pain. * When the kundalini reaches the heart, one may experience palpitations.
* One feels a creeping sensation from the toes, and sometimes the whole body starts to shake. The rising sensation may feel like an ant crawling slowly up the body toward the head, or like a snake wiggling along, or a bird hopping from place to place, or like a fish darting through calm water, or like a monkey leaping to a far branch.29
Sannella arranges the “physio-kundalini complex” into four basic categories, which the following somewhat encapsulates and which Sannella (and others) consider to be “therapeutic.” Of the psycho-spiritual/physio-spiritual process Sannella contends, “[s]everal of my kundalini cases are especially interesting because they serve as support for my contention that the kundalini process can be looked upon as being inherently therapeutic.”30
Therapeutic? I find that absurd reasoning! Surprisingly, Sannella admits to the dangers:
I must, however, sound a word of caution here. I firmly believe that methods designed specifically to hasten kundalini arousal, such as breath control exercises known as pranayama, are hazardous, unless practiced directly under the guidance of a competent spiritual teacher, or guru, who should have gone through the whole kundalini process himself or herself.31
He says the Yoga breathing techniques “may prematurely unleash titanic inner forces,” and the practitioner will have no way to control these forces. He warns, “The kundalini can be forced, but only to one’s own detriment.”32 Basically, one must go through varying stages of what the Bible would consider demonic possession! 

Symptoms of Kundalini Awakening 
There is a very long list of symptoms that can occur during a kundalini awakening. While proponents will tell you that there are many benefits, they readily admit, as I have shown, that there are many terrible consequences. Here are just a few of them:
Tremors * Shivering * Shaking * Cramps * Spasms * Energy rushes * Muscle twitches * Strong electricity circulating the body * Tingling * Intense heat or cold * Involuntary bodily movements * Jerking * Periods of extreme hyperactivity * Periods of fatigue * Intensified or diminished sexual desires * Headaches * Pressures within the skull * Racing heartbeat * Emotional outbursts * Rapid mood shifts * Feeling of grief, fear, rage, depression * Spontaneous and uncontrollable laughing and weeping * Mental confusion * Convulsions * Altered states of consciousness33
I don’t recall Jesus or the disciples ever likening the fruit of the Spirit or the working of the Holy Spirit with any of these symptoms! 

What About “Christian” Yoga?
In an eye-opening article titled “Yoga Renamed is Still Hindu: I challenge Attempts to Snatch Yoga From its Roots,” Professor Subhas R. Tiwari of the Hindu University of America made some very interesting points in response to inquiries from several journalists around the country. As a graduate with a Master’s degree in Yoga philosophy from the famed Bihar Yoga Bharati University, Professor Tiwari’s response was featured in an article in Hinduism Today. Professor Tiwari enlightened undiscerning American’s with the following:
In the past few months I have received several calls from journalists around the country seeking my views on the question of whether the newly minted “Christian Yoga” is really yoga.
My response is, “The simple, immutable fact is that yoga originated from the Vedic or Hindu culture. Its techniques were not adopted by Hinduism, but originated from it.” . . . The effort to separate yoga from Hinduism must be challenged because it runs counter to the fundamental principles upon which yoga itself is premised. . . . Efforts to separate yoga from its spiritual center reveal ignorance of the goal of yoga. . . .
[Yoga] was intended by the Vedic seers as an instrument which can lead one to apprehend the Absolute, Ultimate Reality, called the Brahman Reality, or God. If this attempt to co-opt yoga into their own tradition continues, in several decades of incessantly spinning the untruth as truth through re-labelings such as “Christian yoga,” who will know that yoga is—or was—part of Hindu culture?34
Some may ask, “Well, can’t I just do the Yoga exercises and forego the religious or spiritual aspects?” One researcher has this to say:
There is absolutely no problem in stretching exercises in and of themselves. . . . No one can deny that stretching helps the blood flow, that breathing in oxygen helps our overall health. . . . There are numerous exercise programs that incorporate stretching that in no way relates to yoga (and its perspective). . . . Religious syncretism is probably the most dangerous thing we can involve ourselves in because we can rationalize its purpose. . . . Essentially one cannot practice a portion of Hinduism and continue to walk with the true Christ who is not a Hindu Guru.35
A former occultist who is now a Christian explains:
You cannot separate the exercises from the philosophy. . . . The movements themselves become a form of meditation. The continued practice of the exercises will, whether you . . . intend it or not, eventually influence you toward an Eastern/mystical perspective. That is what it is meant to do! . . . There is, by definition, no such thing as “neutral” Yoga36
The Conflict Between Yoga, “Christian” Yoga, and the Gospel
Is Yoga a religion that denies Jesus Christ? Yes. Just as Christianity denies the Hindu MahaDevas such as Siva, Vishnu, Durga and Krishna, to name a few, Hinduism and its many Yogas have nothing to do with God and Jesus . . . all of Yoga is all about the Hindu religion. Modern so-called “yoga” is dishonest to Hindus and to all non-Hindus such as the Christians.—Danda, Dharma Yoga Ashram, Classical Yoga Hindu Academy; an e-mail written to Lighthouse Trails Research
Altogether, Western Yoga has become a launching platform for occultism—the very thing that lies at the heart of Buddhism Hinduism, and New Age spirituality. Even the Christian church has been affected by alleged “Yoga for Christians.” Consider the names of such “ministries” that mix Scripture and “Jesus” with Yoga, and then sell it as Christian Yoga exercise: Yahweh Yoga, Holy Yoga; Body Prayer, Christ-Centered Yoga, New Day Yoga, Trinity Yoga, Yoga Devotion, Grounded in Yoga, Be Still Yoga, Atoning Yoga Extending Grace, and many more.
Most Christians would probably acknowledge that occultic practices are the antithesis of biblical Christianity. But when it comes to Yoga—also the outworking of occultism—they seem oblivious. And yet, the philosophies and practices of yogic mediation have the capacity to “unhinge” (dismantle) humans—in every way. These philosophies come from ancient occultism and originally started back in the Garden of Eden. The voice of that old serpent, the Devil and his satanic forces, put forth the exact same lie today that has fueled the world of the occult through all the ages—that humanity can become God. “[Y]e shall not surely die . . . ye shall be as gods” (i.e., like God; Genesis 3:4-5).
The very nature of many of the meditative yogic practices are engineered to (1) blow out the discernment faculties of human beings, (2) create an insulating barrier of spiritual resistance against the biblical Gospel, and (3) generate personal hostile opposition towards Jesus of Nazareth and His teachings. Consider the difference: the Bible teaches that man is sinful and the wages of sin is death; Jesus Christ, came in the flesh, died on the Cross, and was resurrected, paying the penalty for man’s sin with His own shed blood. He then offers salvation freely to “whosoever” believeth on Him by faith. Yoga (i.e., Hinduism), on the other hand, is completely the opposite. Man is already divine, and that divinity only needs to be “awakened” through Yoga. No sin, thus no need for a Savior. Man will save himself.
In place of God’s Word as the ultimate authority, a new higher authority called “experience” is embraced. Thus, the Jesus Christ of the Bible, the clear teachings of Scripture, and the established historical doctrines of the Christian faith, along with “biblical separation” from occult pagan spirituality, are thrown out of the window.
The reality that practitioners of Yoga, including Christian practitioners, can become physiologically and psychologically “unhinged” is a terrifying consideration. When one yields to the spiritual forces of darkness that fuel the world of yogic spirituality, one ought to be prepared to face dire consequences—that for millennia yogis in the East have endured, and by which have tragically been destroyed.
Practicing Yoga can result in the severe dismantling of the human personality, resulting in total spiritual devastation, and oftentimes including demonic possession. The respect, honor, and adoration of rats, snakes, monkeys, cows, and the worship of 330 million gods of Hinduism surely ought to speak volumes to the Western Yoga practitioner who thinks he or she can Christianize Yoga or simply turn it into a benign physical exercise program.
When you stop and realize that increasing numbers of Christian churches are now allowing Yoga classes, and when you look at the sheer facts, this is simply hybridized yogic evangelism in the church. Sadly, the bulk of Western Christians seem to be blind to this.
Paul the Apostle, remembering the sinful disaster that took place in the garden of Eden, warned the early church at Corinth about the danger of spiritual deception in the name of Christ:
But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlity, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. (2 Corinthians 11:3)
The question this booklet title asks is: Are Yoga and Christianity compatible? I hope and pray that after reading this material you will answer that question with a resounding No. We live in a world where forces of darkness, of which the Bible speaks, are seeking to deceive us. But Scripture also says we can protect ourselves through His provision. We do not have to walk in spiritual darkness.
Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. (Ephesians 6: 11-13)
To order copies of YOGA and Christianity - Are They Compatible?, click here

Endnotes:
1. “Yoga in America Study 2012” (Yoga Journal, http://www.yogajournal.com/press/yoga_in_america.
2. Lesley Alderman, “Bend and Be Well,” Alternative Medicine: Your Guide to Stress Relief, Healing, Nutrition, and More (New York, NY: TIME Books, 2012), p.62.
3. Webster’s New Twentieth Century Dictionary of the English Language (New York, NY: Simon and Schuster, Unabridged, 2nd ed., Deluxe Color 1955, 1983), p. 2120.
4. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yoga.
5. http://www.yogajournal.com/newtoyoga/820_1.cfm.
6. Goutam Paul, Bhagavad Gita: The Ultimate Science of Yoga (http://www.cs.albany.edu/~goutam/ScYogaCamera.pdf).
7. http://www.experiencefestival.com/yoga.
8. http://www.sullivan-county.com/id3/expositer.htm#Y.
9. http://www.atmajyoti.org/med_what_is_yoga.asp.
10. Debra Lardie, contributing editors Dan Lioy and Paul Ingram, Concise Dictionary of the Occult and New Age (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2000), pp. 288-289.
11. Ibid.
12. Ibid.
13. Hans-Ulrich Rieker, The Yoga of Light: Hatha Yoga Pradipika (New York, NY: Seabury Press, 1971), p. 101.
14. http://www.srichinmoy.org.
15. Ibid.
16. Sri Chinmoy, Kundalini: The Mother Power (Jamaica, N.Y: AUM Publications, 1992), p. 49.
17. Ibid., p. 51.
18. Ibid.
19. See Hidden Dangers Of Meditation And Yoga: How To Play With Your Sacred Fires Safely by Del Pe.
20. “Chakras,” http://www.sanatansociety.org/chakras/chakras.htm.
21. Lee Sannella, The Kundalini Experience: Psychosis or Transcendence (Lower Lake, CA: Integral Publishing, 1987, Revised 1992), p. 25.
22. See Yoga Body: The Origins of Modern Posture Practice by Mark Singleton, 2010; A History of Modern Yoga: Patanjali and Western Esotericism by Elizabeth De Michelis, 2005; The Yoga Tradition: Its History, Literature, Philosophy and Practice by Georg Feuerstein, 2001.
23. Lee Sannella, The Kundalini Experience, op. cit., p. 31.
24. Ibid.
25. Ibid., p. 32.
26. See also Grof & Grof’s The Stormy Search for the Self: A Guide to Personal Growth through Transformational Crisis, 1992; and Spiritual Emergency, 1989.
27. Lee Sannella, The Kundalini Experience, op. cit., pp. 48-49.
28. Ibid., p. 48.
29. Ibid.
30. Ibid., pp. 93-108, 113.
31. Ibid., p. 116.
32. Ibid.
33. Symptoms of Kundalini awakening, Submitted by zoya on Fri, 03/11/2011—11:57, http://www.gurusfeet.com/forum/symptoms-kundalini-awakening.
34. Subhas R. Tiwari, “Yoga Renamed is Still Hindu” (Hinduism Today, Jan/Feb/Mar 2006, Magazine Web Edition http://www.hinduismtoday.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=1456).
35. Mike Oppenheimer, “Yoga, Today’s Lifestyle for Health” (http://www.letusreason.org/NAM1.htm).
36. Johanna Michaelsen, Like Lambs to the Slaughter (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 1989), pp. 93-95.
A. Sidebar on page 7: Goutam Paul, Bhagavad Gita: The Ultimate Science of Yoga, op. cit., p.1.
To order copies of YOGA and Christianity - Are They Compatible?, click here.CL_Color_suit_2
About the author: Chris Lawson is a missionary and an ordained pastor. Among his achievements and calling as a career missionary, he has served as a long-term church planter in the USA and also in Edinburgh, Scotland. He is the founder and president of Spiritual Research Network, Inc., a Christian outreach dedicated to proclaiming the Gospel and encouraging biblical discernment. You can visit his website where there is extensive research at: http://www.spiritual-research-network.com. Chris lives in central California with his wife and children.
To order copies of YOGA and Christianity - Are They Compatible?, click here.
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BONO INTERVEWED BY JIM DALY OF FOCUS ON THE FAMILY

Lighthouse Trails reports:

On June 25th, the mega-rock star leader, Bono, was interviewed on Focus on the Family. In the interview, Bono stated that he believes Jesus is Lord. A reviewBono of that interview (see below), written by Religion News Service is titled "Bono: David sang the blues and Jesus did some punk rock."  According to the RNS document, Bono told Focus on the Family's Jim Daly, “And I believe that Jesus was, you know, the Son of God.”
We are not here to dispute whether Bono believes that or not, but a Scripture comes to mind when reading this: "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble" (James 2:19). Bono may or may not believe; but he has been sending out a very confusing message as you can see in Joe Schimmel's documentary The Submerging Church (see trailer below) where Schimmel devotes an entire DVD to discussing Bono.
Does it even matter, some may ask, what Bono believes or doesn't believe? It matters greatly because Bono is a major influence to millions of young people (and many of them proclaiming Christians) around the world. What leaders (and yes, Bono is a leader) say or do has the potential of changing the views and behaviors of countless youth. It could even alter elections as we have shown through our own documentation in our booklet tract They Hate Christianity But Love (Another) Jesus – How Conservative Christians Are Being Manipulated and Ridiculed, Especially During Election Years. 
In Berit Kjos' new book, How to Protect Your Child From the New Age & Spiritual Deception, she has some interesting things to say about Bono:
Few entertainers have more effectively confused young minds and corrupted the Gospel than Bono, the ultra-famous star of the Irish rock band, U2. Playing the devil, twisting God’s Word, and mocking genuine Christianity, Bono has tragically led many Christian youth into the dangerous world of occult music.
Bono’s great leap forward came in the early nineties, when he claimed the persona of MacPhisto: "the devil."1 With his red horns, whitened face, bright red lipstick, black hair, and golden suit, his message grew more outrageous. But the celebration of evil—joined to an enticing illusion of "good"—enlarged the crowds and helped popularize the emerging, unrestrained "Christianity" that’s becoming a norm today.
Back in 1989, he was asked in a Mother Jones interview, "Do you still believe that Jesus is the way? Doesn’t that biblical injunction deny that followers of other religions can enter paradise?" Bono answered:
"I don’t accept that. I don’t accept that fundamentalist concept. I believe, what is it? 'The way is as narrow as the eye of the needle,' and all that. But I think that’s just to keep the fundamentalists out. . . . (laughs) I never really accepted the whole 'born again' tag."2
U2’s 2005 tour was aimed at joining all religions into a unified global spirituality. To emphasize the coming solidarity, the word "COEXIST" was featured on a giant screen. The capital "C" pointed to the Islamic crescent, the "X" symbolized the Jewish Star of David, and the "T" was a reminder of the Christian cross. Bono led massive crowds in a vibrant chant: "Jesus, Jew, Mohammed—It’s True!"3
Not everyone approved. Singer/songwriter Tara Leigh Cobble said, "He repeated the words like a mantra, and some people even began to repeat it with him. I suddenly wanted to crawl out of my skin. . . . Was Bono, my supposed brother in Christ, preaching some kind of universalism?"4
"I felt like I was witnessing an antichrist," said her friend.5
In one song, "God’s Country," Bono belts out the words, "I stand with the sons of Cain."6 The Bible tells us that Cain "was of that wicked one, and slew his brother" (1 John 3:12), not exactly someone who a Christian would want to be found standing in agreement with.
Are Christian leaders speaking up and warning others about Bono? No, on the contrary, reveals one Christian journalist:
"One of the leaders being promoted today by those purporting to be officiating the way for our young people—to include Bill Hybels, Brian McLaren, Rick Warren, and Rob Bell—is 'Christian' Rock star Bono of U2, whom many emergents view as their 'prophet' and the main icon of their movement. In Bono’s rendition of Psalm 23, he alters the entire thrust and message of this beautiful psalm to something that sounds nothing less than blasphemous. For example . . . he alters the wording to say 'I have cursed thy rod and staff. They no longer comfort me.'"7  [This rendition of Psalm 23 is documented in The Submerging Church DVD.]
And in the summer of 2005, Rick Warren attended the Live 8 Concert with Bono where he was made the official pastor at the event.8 Rick Warren did not issue a warning at the event about Bono, leaving the impression on thousands of young people’s minds that Bono is OK.  (from chapter 17, HPC)
Bono
Bono being interviewed by Focus on the Family's Jim Daly
Something else Joe Schimmel brings out in The Submerging Church is that Bono has been considered by many emergents, like Brian McLaren, to be a leader or "prophet" of the emerging church movement. Bono's influence on youth can certainly be substantiated, not just by comments from emergents themselves but other sources as well. In a 2009 Christian Post article, it stated:
"Across the nation, young evangelicals are naming Rick Warren or Bono as their role model for social engagement, rather than a Christian Right leader, says Michael Gerson, senior research fellow in the Center on Faith & International Affairs at the Institute for Global Engagement."(9)
It's worth noting that both Rick Warren and Bono, named as the "role model[s]" for young evangelicals have the trait of speaking out of both sides of their mouths when it comes to the Christian faith and causing much confusion. This is where 2 +2 do not add up to 4. Saying one thing to one audience and another thing to another - well after awhile, no one knows what to think. It reminds us of when Rick Warren told the liberal think tank, the Pew Forum on Religion, in 2005 that the 5 fundamentals of the faith were "legalistic" and "narrow" but then later in front of another audience said he believes in the 5 fundamentals of the faith. Such maneuvers have people's heads spinning. Will the real Rick Warren, will the real Bono please stand up?
In a June 25th Focus on the Family article by Jim Daly (a follow up to the Bono interview), "Why Orthodox Christians Should Appreciate an Unorthodox Bono," Daly states, "What sometimes gets lost in the mix, however, is the motivation behind Bono’s work. It’s his very real Christian faith." This is suggesting that regardless of how one lives his or her life or regardless of how one represents the Christian faith, if the motivation or intent is "Christian," then that person should be taken seriously or "appreciated." But that line of reasoning is precarious and can lead followers down many deceptive paths. That is like saying that because Bono professes the Christian faith, he should not be scrutinized for any inconsistencies in that faith or representation of that faith. It's a basically everything goes, all is OK kind of attitude - an attitude that has gotten the evangelical church into a lot of trouble in recent years.
In the follow-up article by Daly, he quotes Bono as saying that "Jesus wants us to engage our world." We know that the Bible is very clear that Christians are to help the poor and care for the needy (something those who have a relationship with Jesus Christ have been doing since the beginning of the church because of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit), but when emergents, like Bono, say "engage our world," they mean much more than helping the poor and needy - they mean becoming absorbed into the culture and becoming unified in purpose with all people. Roger Oakland talks about this new kind of missiology in his article "The New Missiology: Doing Missions Without the Gospel." It's a little scary when the president (Jim Daly) of one of the largest most influential evangelical organizations ends his article by saying, "All this because real people joined together for the common good."  Sounds more like a socialist pep rally than an interview that shows listeners how vital the preaching of the message of the Cross is to the world's poor and needy (the main thing that the poor and needy - and the rich - need).
Speaking of social justice,  SoJourners magazine, the social justice (i.e., socialist) publication of liberal/emerging Jim Wallis, has also given Bono a platform, like in an article titled "Bono Preaches the Gospel of Social Justice at Georgetown," where Bono is quoted as calling Obama "an extraordinary man" and in many many other  articles in SoJourner that have helped turn Bono into practically a household name - for the emergent households anyway.
In the Christian church today, many things are not adding up as a  mystical eastern-style spirituality and the accompanying ecumenical emerging "theology" are gaining momentous ground, and Christian leaders are running toward the beat of a different drum than the biblical Gospel. When organizations like Focus on the Family give Bono a platform and credibility, a lot of people are going to take notice. If Bono is heading in the right direction, as Focus on the Family seems to be saying, then we have nothing to worry about. On the other hand, if he is going in the wrong direction, we have plenty to be concerned about. Either way, he'll be taking a whole lot of young people (and maybe some older ones too) with him. Let's make sure we have gathered all our facts, however, before assuming that what appears Christian because of its own proclamation is weighed out with the evidence and the fruit. Ironically, Focus on the Family has traditionally stood for conservative Christianity; by many indicators, Bono is an emerging/new spirituality guru whose significant influence will sway the spirituality (not to mention the votes) of millions of youth from Christian homes. The outcome could be disastrous from more than one front.
 If you have not yet seen The Submerging Church DVD, we encourage you to get a copy. You can watch a trailer of the DVD set or order it by clicking here. Two other items  we'd like to recommend at this time are "Sojourners Founder Jim Wallis’ Revolutionary Anti-Christian “Gospel” (and Will Christian Leaders Stand with Wallis?)"  and "Ingrid Schlueter/Lighthouse Trails Editor Radio Show on Those Who Claim Orthodox Christianity But Promote Emerging/Contemplative."
The trailer of The Submerging Church: (click here if you cannot see the video below)

 "Bono: David sang the blues and Jesus did some punk rock" (Religion News Service)
by Sarah Pulliam Bailey
(RNS) U2 frontman Bono exchanged Bible references and bantered about music, theology and evangelicals’ role in AIDS activism in a recent radio interview with Focus on the Family President Jim Daly.
Growing up in Ireland with a Protestant mother and a Catholic father, Bono imitated C.S. Lewis in “Mere Christianity,” where Lewis argued that Jesus was a lunatic, liar or Lord.
“When people say ‘Good teacher,’ ‘Prophet,’ ‘Really nice guy,’ … this is not how Jesus thought of himself,” Bono said. “So, you’re left with a challenge in that, which is either Jesus was who he said he was or a complete and utter nut case.” “And I believe that Jesus was, you know, the Son of God,” Bono said, according to a transcript provided to Religion News Service. “I understand that for some people and we need to … if I could be so bold, need to be really, really respectful to people who find that ridiculous.” Click here to continue reading.
 Notes:
1.  "MacPhisto, Who the Devil?" (http://www.canadanne.co.uk/macphisto/who.html).
2. "Bono Bites Back" (Mother Jones magazine, May 1989, http://www.motherjones.com/media/1989/05/bono-bites-back), p. 35.
3. Elliott Nesch, "U2 Frontman Bono: Christian or Antichrist?" (August 12, 2012, http://www.holybibleprophecy.org).
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid.
6. Cited from The Submerging Church: DVD 2 by Joe Schimmel. A trailer of this can be seen at: http://www.lighthousetrails.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=LTP&Product_Code=SMC
7. David Dombrowski, "In View of the Recent Tragedy, a Timely Message"(Lighthouse Trails blog: http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/blog/?p=10511).
8. Marc Gunther, "Power Pastor: Will Success Spoil Rick Warren?" (Fortune Magazine, October 2005, http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2005/10/31/8359189/index.htm).
9. Michelle A. Vu, "Evangelical Movement at ‘Head-Snapping’ Moment, Says Scholar" (Christian Posthttp://www.christianpost.com/news/evangelical-mov-t-at-head-snapping-moment-says-scholar-41337).
_______________________________________________________________________
In our previous post about Jim Daly, successor to James Dobson at Focus on the Family, we reported on the Martin Bobgan analysis which revealed both men's psychoheresies and apostasies:

Also see Americans For Truth About Homosexuality's article "Is Jim Daly Emasculating Focus on the Family?":

Also see World Net Daily article: 

FOCUS ON THE FAMILY 'HIDING BEHIND COMPROMISE'

Prominent Dobson supporter chastises ministry's new leadership (Jim Daly). 

http://www.wnd.com/2012/12/focus-on-the-family-hiding-behind-compromise/.


ANGLICAN CHURCH OF ENGLAND TO BLEND CHRISTIANITY WITH PAGANISM TO ATTRACT SPIRITUALISTS




Stand Up For The Truth reports here: http://standupforthetruth.com/2013/06/church-of-england-to-blend-christianity-with-paganism-to-attract-spiritualists/.
Quote from above article: "Here’s a new twist on church growth: creating a pagan atmosphere and branding campaign for New Age spiritualists in order to increase the number of bodies in the pews. The Church of England is actually training its ministers to create “a pagan church where Christianity [is] very much in the center” to attract spiritual believers. That means changing the Anglican church doctrine to make it more inclusive for people of alternative beliefs. The Church of England admits that its motive is to retain congregation numbers who have embraced paganism." 
See also: "Church of England creating ‘pagan church’ to recruit members" at:
http://bloggingtheology.wordpress.com/2013/06/22/13549/.
See also: "Has the Church of England finally lost the plot?" at:
http://ishtarsgate.wordpress.com/2013/06/21/has-the-church-of-england-finally-lost-the-plot/.
Meanwhile, there has been much about Anglican/Catholic reconciliation and unity:

Anglican Primate Rowan Williams 

speaks to Catholic Bishops:


The Vatican publishes law for Anglicans 

to join the Catholic Church:

DOES THIS NOW INCLUDE THE PAGANS?

LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS SEES CONNECTIONS BETWEEN HOMOSEXUALITY & PEDOPHILIA & OBAMA THE WORLD FACILITATOR OF CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE

Lighthouse Trails Research has published this very insightful story about the "grave increased danger of sexual abuse" for America's children and children around the world coming from the homosexual community. Deborah Dombrowski has this special commentary, quoted in full:

A Special Commentary
by Deborah Dombrowski
As I read the headlines on the computer screen from an article a Lighthouse Trails reader had sent me the morning of July 6th, I remembered another headline I had seen just the day before. One was about a child pornography sex ring, and the other was about Obama. Putting those two stories together with this year’s earlier events of the Boy Scouts of America lifting the ban on openly homosexual scouts, I knew I would be writing an article myself, one that would be considered most un-politically correct by today’s standards. But that didn’t matter – it was the children I was concerned about.
Mark Newton and Peter Truong – Arrested and convicted child molesters
Just by the headlines, I knew before even reading the story, it was going to be bad: “Model gay adoptive ‘fathers’ sexually abused 6-year-old for years: offered him to pedophile ring.” A homosexual ”couple” who lived in Australia (one of the men is American) adopted a baby boy from a Russian woman to whom they had paid $8,000 to be a surrogate mother. One news story wrote, ”Adam was handed over to [Mark] Newton and [Peter] Truong a mere five days after his birth in 2005.” The story of the adoption was actually highly publicized to show how a homosexual couple was no different than any other loving adoptive couple. But as this and other news stories have broken over this case, this was no loving couple. On the contrary, according to news sources, Newton and Truong are members of an international syndicate called Boy Lovers Network.  One of the U.S. investigator’s on the case said it was “one of the worst [pedophile] rings” he had ever heard of.1    And he used the word “depraved” in describing what happened to the little boy. The men began sexually abusing the boy at 22 months old (some reports say even earlier than that). In the course of four years, the boy was molested by several other men, and the abuse was often turned into child pornography (a very “lucrative” industry). Newton, the American pedophile “father,” was sentenced to 40 years in prison on June 28th in a U.S. District court because of his role in the abuse.2 According to prosecutors, Truong has pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing. 
After reading this tragic story, I recalled the headlines of another story I had read the day before, “Obama Uses African Trip as Platform to Urge Nations to Decriminalize Homosexual Behavior.” The president of the United States was calling for countries around the world to legalize homosexuality. How ironic was this! The article, written by Christian News Network, stated:
CNN“During his visit to Senegal, a largely Muslim country, Obama praised the United States Supreme Court for its decision to strike down key parts of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, stating that it was a “victory for American democracy and a proud day for equal rights.” He called upon African governments to likewise work to make homosexuals equal under the law, comparing the “controversial” issue in Africa to the American civil rights battle of the 1960s.”3
Earlier this year, as many know, the Boy Scouts of America, under pressure by homosexual activists and the U.S. media, caved in and removed a long-standing ban on openly practicing homosexual scouts.4 GLAAD and other homosexual activists immediately began their next campaign – for the Boy Scouts to allow openly practicing homosexual leaders into the scouts. We have no doubt now that this will happen – it’s just a matter of time.5
And then just last week, to make matters worse, Alan Chambers, the founder and director of the Christian organization Exodus International (a ministry to help homosexuals come out of that lifestyle) shut down the organization and made a public “apology” to the homosexual community for what he had done to them all these years.6 It was a devastating blow and betrayal to those Christians who have sincerely and lovingly worked to help homosexuals. And as we stated in an article, it was more “fruit” of the emerging church.
As Lighthouse Trails has been testifying to for many years, where there is homosexuality, there will be often be pedophilia. Are we saying that every homosexual will molest children? No. But when lust is let loose with no constraints (which is the category that homosexuality falls under), the “flesh” (i.e., the sin nature – which the Bible says is wicked and perverse) can never be satisfied. Carnality has an appetite that only grows the more you feed it. And like drug addiction, sex addiction when allowed to run freely must have “harder drugs” (in this case sex) to be satisfied. So, the practicing homosexual, just like the practicing pornography addict, is at greater risk of turning to molesting children than the person who does not give in to his lusts and sexual appetites.
As we have watched in horror the fall of the United States by its huge pornography (including child pornography) industry and now the  embracing of the homosexual lifestyle and the destruction of the family (the God-given core of civilization) through the same-sex marriage laws, we have no doubt that child molestation in this country is going to escalate greatly. But what we predict will happen, as has already happened in other places (such as Amsterdam) and other time periods, child molestation will no longer be a crime. Impossible!, you say. Not at all. In 1973, the American Psychological Association (APA) changed the category of homosexuality from abnormal to normal. Then,  in 1998, the APA released a “research” report in their publication, Psychological Bulletin, which stated that sexual relations with children is not necessarily harmful to them.7 And here we have an activist for homosexuality in the White House, voted in twice by the American people – and the damage has only just begun.
In 2006, when it came out that mega-pastor Ted Haggard was caught having a two-year homosexual relationship with a prostitute, I wrote an article titled, “Ted Haggard Story Will Raise Serious Questions For All.” It was in that article I told our readers that I was the Catherine Brown of Laughter Calls Me (a very personal account of how my children were the victims of a child pornography sex ring many years ago). And what I find troubling is that many of today’s American adults are ignorant of reality when it comes to the magnitude of children who are being abused in this country. I remember after our Haggard article came out, a reporter called me in my Lighthouse Trails office and said she did not believe child pornography was a big problem or a multi-million dollar industry as we have often stated. I told her to call the Los Angeles Police Department’s child exploitation division and ask them to show her the 15+ foot wall of gym lockers that were stuffed with confiscated evidence of child pornography. I know it’s there – I have stood in front of that wall of filth and gazed in shock upon some of its contents. And that was just one city of hundreds throughout this country with similar caches.
In my Ted Haggard article, I stated:
What does homosexuality and pornography do to families? Add to that the victimization of children, which is often the case, and you have the ingredients to destroy a society. Throw in drugs and New Age mysticism . . . and you have little to hold on to.
Anyone who does not realize what is happening to children needs to have his head examined. And anyone who does not see the connection between pornography – homosexuality  – and child molestation is not putting two and two together.
A different, but related, tragedy we are watching unfold is the fast-changing views of the evangelical and Protestant church regarding homosexuality. We have written about this many times, and Roger Oakland wrote about it in his book Faith Undone calling it the “new” sexuality We’re not going to repeat ourselves in this article, but you can read one recent article where we documented this change: “We Said it Would Happen, and It Has – CNN: ‘At evangelical colleges, a shifting attitude toward gay students.’” 
A few years ago, one of the Lighthouse Trails readers, whom we had come to know personally, told us that weeks after their 18-year-old son graduated from the Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa High School, he announced to them that he was “gay.” Today, at twenty-something, their son has gone fully into the homosexual lifestyle, recently announcing to them he was moving across the country with his new- found boyfriend. Are we saying that it is Calvary Chapel’s fault that this boy became homosexual? No, not directly or entirely anyway. But as we wrote about in 2009, the Calvary Chapel High School was introducing their students to contemplative authors, and we have time and again shown the connection between contemplative – emerging – and a growing laxed view on homosexuality. They have always gone hand in hand, and they will continue to do so. Why? Because the premise behind each is the antithesis of sinful man needing a Savior, but rather it is man can be his own God. Each is earthly, sensual, and devilish (James 3:15) and only feeds the lusts and carnality of men and women.
While we probably are not going to be able to stop the freight train of destruction that America’s politicians, Supreme Court justices, activists, and lobbyists have the country on, as Christian believers, we must continue our efforts to call out to Christian leaders to stop going down the path they are on, repent (turn around), and get going in the right direction. Christian leaders, you are calling for some kind of national repentance and turn around, but you yourselves are embracing the very spirituality that is causing much of America’s ruin. Can not just one major Christian leader come forth, humble himself, and admit that the contemplative/emerging mystical paradigm shift is wrong and dangerous? You may not think that has anything to do with children being molested, but remember, there is only one root of evil – that enemy of God – the Devil and his forces – and he is the father of all sin. Whether it’s practicing contemplative prayer, practicing homosexuality, or molesting children – it’s all coming from the same source. Yes, that is an indicting statement.
We are exhorted in the Bible to run to the light – that Light who is Jesus Christ. We are to resist evil and cling to that which is good. There are only two choices – toward the Light or toward the darkness!
If the Christian leaders and pastors in North America would truly repent, many would follow, and there could be genuine pure revival. It won’t be a politically correct revival, keep in mind, and won’t win over the masses (like a coming false revival will do). But it will return many to their first love and will save many out of the fire of destruction. What’s more, one fruit of such a true revival would  mean fewer kids being sexually abused. That’s one thing you can be sure of. As I stated in my 2006 Haggard article,  ”Christian leaders, as a whole, have been walking in deception and sin for some time, and they have bankrupted the Christian church at the price of truth, and souls have been lost because of it.”
 As I sit here writing this article, another headline has come across my desk this morning,” ‘The Boxtrolls’ Trailer, New Animated Film By Laika, Features Gay Parents.” The article states:
Laika, the same company that brought us “Coraline” and last year’s Oscar-nominated “Paranorman,” returns with the trailer for their next feature, “The Boxtrolls.” Anyone who saw “Paranorman” (co-directed by out director Chris Butler) knows the film’s punchline when cheerleader Courtney (voiced by Anna Kendrick) asks meathead jock, Mitch (voiced by Casey Affleck), to a romantic movie, only to find out he’s gay with a boyfriend.
Having an out gay person as a lead character was a first for a mainstream animated film, and the film not only received an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature, but also a GLAAD Media Award Nomination as well.
The culture we live in, dear Christian, has dramatically changed. The Bible says these last days will be like that. What is good is being called evil, and what is evil is being called good. But if the church loses its love for the truth, how can we share the truth of the Gospel with the unsaved if we no longer have it ourselves. Remember the warnings Jesus gave in Revelation to the churches. May we heed those warnings while there is still time to do it:
Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. (Revelation 2:4-5)
I want to end with a note of exhortation to Christian believers who are remaining faithful to the truth and the Gospel and who understand the times in which we live. In my 2006 article, I stated:
As leaders like Rick Warren have contacted us at Lighthouse Trails, and as I have seen first hand their efforts to defend themselves and cover up the truth, I have wondered why they should still be called the leaders of the church. And then I realized, the true body of Christ is not made up of leaders that compromise, deceive, and preach false doctrines that the Bible warns about.
The true body of Christ has one leader, and He is a powerful – yet loving, a righteous – yet compassionate God. And He is the only way of salvation – there is absolutely no other way. As opposed to the religions of the world, with Christ we cannot earn salvation; He gives it freely. While we are all sinners and equally need forgiveness from him, and while we do sin and need to go to Him in humility and confession, we cannot abide in sin if He lives in us. And He will live in the repentant soul who humbles himself and asks Jesus Christ to be Lord of his life.()
We can count on Him and on His Word. May those who are remaining faithful stand, by His grace, until He returns.
Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. (Ephesians 6:13)
Related Articles:
Our Resources on the Protection of Children:
Seducers Among Our Children by Investigative Sergeant Patrick Crough
The Color of Pain: Boys who are abused and the men they become (a tribute to abused boys) by Gregory Reid
Laughter Calls Me by Catherine Brown
The Kinsey Syndrome by Adullam Films
PRINT BOOKLET TRACT – 5 Things You Can Do to Protect Your Kids From Sexual Predators
See video below, a preview of The Kinsey Syndrome, exposing the works of Alfred Kinsey and his role in North American’s sex education in public schools. If you cannot see the video below, click here.