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Richard Myers

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Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« on: July 21, 2011, 10:35:19 AM »
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One year after the iron curtain came down in Romania, I was there preaching in our churches for a short visit. It was a blessing to visit with those who had been under Communism for 70 years. There was a hunger and a thirst for the Word of God.

On my first Sabbath in Bucharest, we visited patients in a hospital.  While praying with a young man, we were interrupted by his father who was very angry and yelling at us. He knew we were Seventh-day Adventists. He was a Greek Orthodox. One of his complaints was that if his son wanted to know what the Bible says, he must go to the priest. Only the priests understand what the Bible says. They are the learned ones.

This is not something new. We have heard the same from Roman Catholic's whose people went through 1260 years without a Bible. It was only accessible to the priests who are to act as intercessors between the people and Christ.  The sinner goes to the priest, not to Christ.

And, if we want another example from Scripture, we have a very good one that expresses the very same thought. One must be instructed by the priests in order to know Bible truth. When One came teaching the truth, it was impossible, for He had not been taught by the priests. "Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and taught.  And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?" John 7:14,15.  It is not any different today.  The world places much importance on "higher education" when in fact many of the teachers are ignorant of what is truth. In the realm of Bible truth, Jesus passed by the "lettered" men of His day because they could not be taught. They already knew it all. "Lettered"?  PhD, LLD, LL.M, LL.B, JD, MD, M.Div, D.Min.  I have seen so many letters after a name that I am left to believe that this is a person who really is trying to prove they are somebody. The most "brilliant" of the lettered believe we came from monkeys. God values education, the kind that leads us to rightly represent Him and His truth.

What has this to do with Spiritual Formation? Everything, as we shall see.
Jesus receives His reward when we reflect His character, the fruits of the Spirit......We deny Jesus His reward when we do not.

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #1 on: July 21, 2011, 02:07:16 PM »
Excerpts from our April 2011 Remnant Online Newsletter:

The Remnant Online Newsletter
April 2011

Spiritual Formation—Is It Biblical?
by LindaRS

If you are a reader of church papers, books, periodicals, or a peruser of internet, then you have almost certainly heard the terms spiritual formation and spiritual disciplines and perhaps even spiritual director. What are they; where do they come from; and are the biblical? The following definitions are taken from various sources but give the best overall definition of these terms.

   "Spiritual Formation" is a popular concept that stems from ancient roots. The term describes the dynamic process of growth and change in one's spiritual development. A variety of subjects, methodologies, disciplines and theologies coexist within this framework. (1)

   The spiritual disciplines are an important aspect of discipleship. These are the skills and methodologies that bring about faith and behavioral maturity, and which, in combination with God's Spirit provide the experiential basis of wisdom. (2)

   Spiritual direction is essentially companionship in the spiritual life. Other ways of describing spiritual direction include holy listening, spiritual friendship, or sacred journeying. Spiritual direction invites a deeper relationship with the spiritual aspect of being human, offering a place to explore prayer practices, meditation, spiritual experiences, and our growing desire for significance. (3)


Does the Bible give us a list of practices and methodologies that we are to follow in order to be a disciple of Christ's? Is there any mandate stating that if we develop a certain list of skills that we will become mature  Christians? There is no such list per se; though the Bible gives us the tools that will enable us to develop a Christ-like character. The most comprehensive method of character development, also known as sanctification, we find in God's Word is one we call Peter's Ladder.

And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. 2 Peter 1:5-8

This is the ladder that reaches to heaven, the ladder that all who enter the New Jerusalem will have climbed. How does Peter's Ladder compare with the spiritual disciplines that are promoted through spiritual formation? Lets compare the ladder rungs to the core list of spiritual disciplines that are being promoted within Protestant churches today. The most common list is one endorsed by Richard Foster (4)who writes and teaches extensively about spiritual formation and the disciplines. On his list are the following practices: meditation, prayer, fasting, study, simplicity, solitude, submission, service, confession, worship, guidance, celebration. How does this list compare with Peter's list?

Peter's Ladder                Richard Foster's Disciplines
Faith
virtue
knowledge
temperance
patience
godliness
brotherly kindness
charity (godly love)
          meditation
          prayer
          fasting
          study
          simplicity
          solitude
          submission
          service
          confession
          worship
          guidance
          celebration

As you can see, the differences in the two lists is like comparing grapes to grapefruit. Why are there such discrepancies in these two lists? We know that the first list is definitely biblical. What about Foster's list? He claims it is biblical. What about other lists of disciplines that have even more methods and practices? They may contain one or more of the following different disciplines such as frugality, chastity, secrecy, sacrifice, worship, fellowship, confession, submission, journaling, evangelism, stewardship, learning, accountability, spiritual direction, affirmation, watching. Whose list is correct? Which have a true biblical foundation and which are questionably biblical?

Let's return for a moment to Peter's Ladder. Notice what Peter says about the list he has given.


   For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:8-11)

These things will make sure that you are not barren or unfruitful in your character building. Those who lack these things, Peter says, are blind and forgetful. He then admonishes us to do these things and if we do, we shall not fail or fall. This is the ladder of sanctification.

Let's turn our attention to the other list, a list of practices that are professed to be "the skills and methodologies that bring about faith and behavioral maturity." We can see that perhaps a few of the disciplines on the list have a slight equivalence to some of the rungs of Peter's Ladder. We gain knowledge through study. Brotherly kindness will lead us to serve others. In order to climb the ladder, we must submit ourselves to God. We are told elsewhere in the Bible to confess our sins to God (5), to worship God in the beauty of holiness (6), to prayer without ceasing (7), to meditate day and night in the book of the law ( 8 ). Therefore we see that some of the disciplines have biblical validity.

What is the origin of spiritual disciplines from which these lists are compiled? Why do they differ from Peter's Ladder? What about the practices on the list—are they truly biblical both in practice as well as in concept? The origins of spiritual formation (SF) and the accompanying disciplines go back many centuries and is Catholic (both Roman and Orthodox) in origin. Very often today, the term is used somewhat generically but from it's roots there can be no escape. They began with a group of monks and nuns referred to as the Desert Fathers (and mothers) who are considered the originators of spiritual formation. Who were they?


   In the early Middle Ages, there lived a group of hermits in the wilderness areas of the Middle East. They were known to history as the desert fathers.

   They dwelt in small isolated communities for the purpose of devoting their lives completely to god without distraction. The contemplative movement traces its roots back to these monks. They were the ones who first promoted the mantra as a prayer tool. (9)

   At the heart of Christianity's monastic, contemplative, and mystical traditions lives the spirit of a fourth-century band of Christian renunciates known today as the Desert Fathers. These spiritual zealots lived outside the boundaries of society, pursuing spiritual purification through the renunciation of all worldly distraction. The legacy of their devotion lives on today in the inspiring lives of the contemporary practitioners who are dedicated to the pursuit of the timeless spirit and true meaning of the sacred Word. (10)


It is from these men and women, monks and nuns, that we have gotten these mystical practices. Particular among them was the practice of a form of meditation, contemplative prayer, that is at the heart of spiritual formation. For centuries they were lost sight of until the time of Ignatius Loyola. His spiritual exercises revived the mystical practices of the desert fathers. These practices, including contemplative prayer, lectio divina, the silence, and solitude as well as prayer journaling and spiritual direction are making serious inroads into the protestant, evangelical churches...

What is centering prayer? It is contemplative prayer. It is the same methodology that has been used for centuries by the pagan religions, in particular Hinduism, of going into a trance-like or alpha state for the purpose of becoming one with the oversoul (also called universal life force) or in the Christian tradition, of coming into the presence of God. In more recent times in the West the Hindu practice has been called transcendental meditation. Those who promote this practice among Christians claim contemplative prayer is not the same as the pagan practice. However, those who have been involved with New Age (new spirituality) mysticism and have left it to become Christian, are fearless in proclaiming that it is the same as the pagan version. The only difference between the two is that the words, or mantra, used to induce the alpha state are  "Christian" words and phrases or scripture rather than the Hindu word "ohm". Christians who promote this pagan practice have used this difference to say that contemplative is not the same thing as TM...


   Another method of simple praying is the use of one's own breathing, a form often called the breath prayer. Since most religious traditions practice it, can we consider it Christian? Yes, if the content and context are Christian. The way I use the prayer for myself is to pray for the infilling of the Holy Spirit. I simply say as I inhale, "Spirit of the living God" and as I exhale, "Fall afresh on me!" I find the combination of the words with my breath very powerful, especially as I remember that "spirit" means "wind" or "breath." We can employ any scriptural words. In fact, we pray a shortened Jesus prayer. Simply inhale to "Lord, Jesus Christ" and exhale to "have mercy on me (a sinner)." (12)

Breath prayers and the Jesus prayer, are both forms of contemplative prayer. The Jesus prayer came directly from the Desert Fathers.

   The Jesus Prayer or "The Prayer" is a short, formulaic prayer esteemed and advocated within the Eastern Orthodox church: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner."

   The prayer has been widely taught and discussed throughout the history of the Eastern Churches. It is often repeated continually as a part of personal ascetic practice, its use being an integral part of the eremitic tradition of prayer known as Hesychasm (Greek: hesychazo, "to keep stillness").The prayer is particularly esteemed by the spiritual fathers of this tradition as a method of opening up the heart (kardia) and bringing about the Prayer of the Heart. The Prayer of The Heart is considered to be the Unceasing Prayer that the apostle Paul advocates in the New Testament. St. Theophan the Recluse regarded the Jesus Prayer stronger than all other prayers by virtue of the power of the Holy Name of Jesus. (13)

   The hesychastic practice of the Jesus Prayer is founded on the biblical view by which God’s name is conceived as the place of his presence. The Eastern Orthodox mysticism has no images or representations. The mystical practice (the prayer and the meditation) doesn't lead to perceiving representations of God. Thus, the most important means of a life consecrated to praying is the invoked name of God, as it is emphasized since the fifth century by the baidanchorites, or by the later Athonite hesychasts. For the Eastern Orthodox the power of the Jesus Prayer comes not only from its content, but from the very invocation of Jesus' name.

   Based on Christ's injunction in the Gospel of Matthew to "go into your closet to pray", hesychasm in tradition has been the process of retiring inward by ceasing to register the senses, in order to achieve an experiential knowledge of God. (14)


   Multitudes of potential methods for meditation exist, but I want to outline two major possibilities to give an example of what you can do. You can modify both of them to fit your particular need and preference.

   A very ancient art, practiced at one time by all Christians, is the technique known as lectio divina- a slow, contemplative praying of the Scriptures which enables the Bible, the Word of God, to become a means of union with God. This ancient practice has been kept alive in the Christian monastic tradition, and is one of the precious treasures of Benedictine monastics and oblates. (16)


Belden Lane, The Solace of Fierce Landscapes: Exploring Desert and Mountain Spirituality, tells of her experiences of solitude and going to a retreat. The book that inspired her openly promotes contemplative. Lane, a Presbyterian minister teaching at a Catholic college, says of the practice of contemplative:

   My own approach to desert experience is formed, in large part, by a fledgling practice of contemplative prayer, rooted in early desert writers such as Evagrius and John Cassian. These desert Christians practiced a particular habitus, a way of ordering one's life around silence which was shaped by the desert-mountain terrain in which they lived. Calling themselves to a poverty of language and self, as well as goods, they plowed ground for later growth of the apophatic tradition....

   Finally, the ordinary means by which these two deserts (of God and the self) are joined is a discipline shaped by the community's ascetic and liturgical life, anchored in the imitation of Christ. While teachers in the tradition insist that contemplation (and union with God) is a gift having nothing to do with human accomplishment, they also stress that attentiveness to the Word in lectio divina, the Liturgy of the Hours, the celebration of the Eucharist, and even the discipline of the body are intimately a part of the purgative and illuminative process by which one moves toward oneness with God. Sometimes spiritual methods are reduced to the very simplest performances, as in the silent repetition of a single word for dispelling thoughts and entering stillness. Yet the exercise of the discipline necessarily remains centered in the broader liturgical life of the faith community. (23)


The Bible records many beautiful prayers—Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple, David’s prayer of forgiveness, Nehemiah's many prayers while rebuilding Jerusalem, Jesus’ prayer he taught to the disciples. None of these or any other prayers recorded in Scripture teach us to go into silence, to still our thoughts through repeating a mantra so that we can enter into the presence of God. Nor does it teach us to use any of these methods to pray to a holy God who is our Father in heaven:

Indeed, Jesus warned us not to pray as the heathen do, that is, the pagan method of praying. "But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking" Matthew 6:7. Jesus specifically mentions the use of vain repetitions. Repeating a word or phrase over and over is a vain repetition. Whether it is the name of Jesus, or a phrase from Scripture, it is vain to repeat it continuously with the desire to empty one's mind of thoughts so you can hear God speaking to you. Nor does the Bible give any examples of using painting or drumming or play as a method of praying to a most holy Creator God who dwells in the heavens.


   Henry J. M. Nouwen, one of the fathers of modern spiritual formation and others during the last few centuries, have simply revived an ancient mystical method of altering one's consciousness, through the knowledge and control of certain mental processes. They gave these processes the names centering prayer and contemplative prayer, tucking them nicely within the Roman Catholic discipline called spiritual formation, deceiving Christians into believing this is a blessing, promoting the spiritual growth of the Christian and eventually leading to a new experience with God, the experience of coming into His presence.

He goes further by revealing how these mystical practices lead to pantheism, the belief that God is in everything and everything is God.

Faith Undone by Roger Oakland is a definitive book on spiritual formation and the emerging church written by a Protestant author. It is well researched and informative and has been a defining book for those seeking answers to their questions about the mystical practices coming into their congregations. The emergent (or emerging) church, also referred to as emergent spirituality, has been most instrumental in incorporating the Roman Catholic mystical practices of spiritual formation into Christian religious practices. Purported to be the new face of Christianity, Emergent proclaims itself as the religion for the postmodern world in which we live. It is especially attractive to the youth and young adults. It has few doctrines, denying many of the doctrines that Protestants have held for centuries such as the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ for our sins. Referred to as the ancient future faith, it believes in social justice, disdains the belief in the second coming of Jesus, and relishes experience over doctrine, thus setting the stage to incorporate the spiritual disciplines into their rituals and leaning heavily on the mystical experiences they give rise to. Roger Oakland says:


   I believe history is repeating itself. As the Word of God becomes less and less important, the rise in mystical experiences escalates, and these experiences are presented to convince the unsuspecting that Christianity is about feeling, touching, smelling and seeing God. The postmodern mindset is the perfect environment for fostering spiritual formation. This term suggests there are various ways and means to get closer to God and to emulate Him. Thus the idea that if you do certain practices, you can be more like Jesus. Proponents of spiritual formation erroneously teach that anyone can practice these mystical rituals and find God within. Having a relationship with Jesus Christ is not a prerequisite. In a DVD called Be Still, which promotes contemplative prayer, Richard Foster says that contemplative prayer is for anyone and that by practicing it, one becomes "a portable sanctuary" for "the presence of God." (28)

Many are coming and telling us that these are wonderful methods for growing into spiritually mature Christians. But God’s Word does not support that claim. It gives us, instead, a ladder of eight rungs that is promised to keep us fruitful and productive, profitable Christians.

Spiritual darkness has covered the earth and gross darkness the people. There are in many churches skepticism and infidelity in the interpretation of the Scriptures. Many, very many, are questioning the verity and truth of the Scriptures. Human reasoning and the imaginings of the human heart are undermining the inspiration of the Word of God, and that which should be received as granted, is surrounded with a cloud of mysticism. Nothing stands out in clear and distinct lines, upon rock bottom. This is one of the marked signs of the last days. (30)


1.  Description found in a college syllabus

2.  H. Bruce Stokes

3.  Newsletter for St. Mary's Road United Church

4.  Another well known author, Dallas Willard, has his own list with differs somewhat from Foster's list.

5.  1 John 1:9

6.  Psalm 29:2, 96:9

7.  1 Thessalonians 5:17

8.  Joshua 1:8

9.  Ray Yungen A Time of Departing

10.  Enlighten Next online magazine

12.  Hunger, page 52. As quoted in "How to Still the Hunger of the Soul: A Critique of the Book, Hunger" by John Witcombe.

13.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus_Prayer

14.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_Fathers

16.  Accepting the Embrace of God: the Ancient Art of Lectio Divina by Fr. Luke Dysinger, O.S.B.

23.  Pages 11-13

28.  Faith Undone, page 91

30.  1 Selected Messages 15.2





Rev 14:6  And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,
Rev 14:7  Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
Rev 14:8  And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
Rev 14:9  And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
Rev 14:10  The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
Rev 14:11  And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
Rev 14:12  Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89 

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #2 on: July 21, 2011, 02:18:46 PM »
A word about Spiritual Disciplines:

Here is a press release from Religion Press Release Service. It is steeped in the Gnostic writings of the Nag Hammadi. This is what I was studying before trashing the entire library of collected works to study the words of Jesus from the Bible.

This stuff is so cunning, so deceptive, so spiritualistic! When introduced into mainstream religion, which is happening, it can throw most completely off the track we know as "the narrow way" because the masses want something deeper, something surreal, something that has nothing to do with humility and submission at the foot of the cross. 

Quote
Teachings from Disciple Thomas
Bridge Eastern and Western Religious Traditions

The Eastern Path to Heaven: A Guide to Happiness from the Teachings of Jesus in Tibet contains quotes by Jesus taken directly from the ancient Greek scriptures and brief historical summaries showing how the teachings of Jesus entered India with Thomas, traveling along the routes pioneered by Alexander the Great, and then reached Tibet. The gospel of Thomas was found in Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in 1945. These sketches utilize information from Syrian, Coptic, Greek, Tibetan, and Sanskrit manuscripts translated by authors Geshe Michael Roach and Lama Christie McNally.

Geshe Michael Roach and Christie McNally have, for the last ten years, explored together the ancient cities, rare manuscripts, and oral traditions of India and Tibet which bear witness to teachings of Thomas--the disciple that Jesus sent to the East. The Eastern Path to Heaven presents the great ideas that came to those lands through Thomas, and describes how we can use authentic Christian teachings of the East to achieve six goals of life: physical health; financial security; love; happiness; freedom from aging and death; and fulfillment in the service of others.

Geshe Michael Roach, who grew up in an Episcopal family, had plans of becoming an Episcopal priest when he went to Tibet: "I studied in the monastery for 20 years and I came to learn that Jesus' teachings affected Buddhism greatly. I think that is why so many Westerners are attracted to the Dalai Lama. A lot of his teaching is coming from Thomas."

Believing fervently that the spiritual life of Christians can be deepened by incorporating Buddhist meditation practice into their daily lives, Geshe Michael and Lama Christie work to spread this awareness through their program, Star in the East.

Star in the East Director Mercedes Bahleda explains: "The core teachings of Christ are a perfect path to all of the realizations that are described in the Eastern tradition. We are teaching Christian meditation that has been heavily informed from Scripture."

Last spring The Very Reverend Dr. Brian Baker of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Sacramento, California, met at an ecumenical event with Geshe Michael and Lama Christie at the Church of St. Paul the Apostle in New York City to hold a discussion on heaven and how both Christians and Buddhists can get there.

"Their teachings have inspired me to be more intentional about my own spiritual practice and be more focused in my own spiritual life," he said. "As an Episcopal priest, my spiritual life has become deeper because of my association with Geshe Michael and Lama Christie."

Baker is on the board of Star in the East, an ecumenical organization created to teach Christians how to incorporate spiritual practice into their daily lives. To learn more about Star in the East, visit xxx (removed).

Geshe Michael Roach is the first American to earn the degree of geshe, or spiritual master, after 20 years of study in a Tibetan monastery under Khen Rinpoche Geshe Lobsang Tharchin. Before that, he received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University, and worked in New York City as a director of a large diamond firm for many years. He has been teaching Buddhism since 1981 and is a translator of Sanskrit, Tibetan and Russian works and the author of bestseller, The Diamond Cutter: The Buddha on Managing Your Business and Your Life.

Lama Christie McNally is a professor of religious philosophy at Diamond Mountain University. She is a graduate of New York University, and has studied both in Tibetan monasteries and with masters of yoga in both India and in the West. She is a translator of classical Sanskrit and Tibetan, and one of the founders of Tibetan Heart Yoga.
  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89 

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #3 on: July 21, 2011, 02:21:28 PM »
Another spiritual discipline under the umbrella of Spiritual Formation is Prayer Stations, a spinoff of the Stations of the Cross. Many may be familiar with this RCC tradition.

In this topic we will examine this practice as it originated and as it has spread to Protestantism, the emergent church groups.


Stations of the Cross – Roman Catholic in origin

http://www.catholic.org/clife/prayers/station.php?id=1
First Station: Jesus is condemned to death
Second Station: Jesus carries His cross
Third Station: Jesus falls the first time
Fourth Station: Jesus meets his mother
Fifth Station: Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry his cross
Sixth Station: Veronica wipes the face of Jesus
Seventh Station: Jesus falls the second time
Eighth Station: Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem
Ninth Station: Jesus falls a third time
Tenth Station: Jesus clothes are taken away
Eleventh Station: Jesus is nailed to the cross
Twelfth Station: Jesus dies on the cross
Thirteenth Station: The body of Jesus is taken down from the cross
Fourteenth Station: Jesus is laid in the tomb

This website shown above, does not explain why prayers are offered at the Stations of the Cross. So, Wikipedia will explain this to us.

Quote
Stations of the Cross (or Way of the Cross; in Latin, Via Crucis; also called the Via Dolorosa or Way of Sorrows, or simply, The Way) refers to the depiction of the final hours (or Passion) of Jesus, and the devotion commemorating the Passion. The tradition as chapel devotion began with St. Francis of Assisi and extended throughout the Roman Catholic Church in the medieval period. It is less often observed in Anglicanism, and Lutheranism as well. It may be done at any time, but is most commonly done during the Season of Lent, especially on Good Friday and on Friday evenings during Lent.
The object of the Stations is to help the faithful to make a spiritual pilgrimage of prayer to the chief scenes of Christ's sufferings and death, and this has become one of the most popular devotions for Roman Catholics.

Wikipedia offers an alternative exercise:

Quote
1.   Jesus institutes the Eucharist
2.   Jesus prays in Gethsemane
3.   Jesus before the Sanhedrin
4.   Jesus is scourged and crowned with thorns
5.   Jesus carries the cross to Calvary
6.   Jesus falls under the weight of the cross
7.   Jesus is helped by Simon of Cyrene
8.   Jesus meets the pious women of Jerusalem
9.   Jesus is nailed on the cross
10.   Jesus promises Heaven to the repentant thief
11.   Jesus entrusts Mary and John to each other
12.   Jesus dies on the cross
13.   Jesus is laid in the tomb
14.   Jesus rises from the dead

The alternate version is widely used in the Philippines, where most of the population is Roman Catholic. Although not part of the traditional set of Stations, the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is now more and more integrated as part of The Way. Usually at the end of these stations there is a place where you can light candles and place them upon an altar.

Modern Usage
In the Roman Catholic Church, Pope John Paul II led an annual public prayer of the Stations of the Cross at the Roman Colosseum on Good Friday. Originally, the Pope himself carried the cross from station to station, but in his last years, he presided over the celebration from a stage on the Palatine Hill, while others carried the cross. Just days prior to his death in 2005, Pope John Paul II observed the Stations of the Cross from his private chapel in the Vatican. Each year a different person is invited to write the meditation texts for the Stations. Past composers of the Papal Stations include several non-Catholics. The Holy Father himself wrote the texts for the Jubilee year 2000 and used the traditional Stations.

Scriptural Way of the Cross
Pope John Paul II created a version, for the Roman Catholic Church, in which all of the Stations were taken from Scripture known as the Scriptural Way of the Cross. It was first publicly celebrated by Pope John Paul II on Good Friday 1991 in the Coliseum in Rome. In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI approved this set of stations for meditation and public celebration:

They follow this sequence:

(1) Jesus in the Garden of Olives,
(2) Jesus is betrayed by Judas and arrested,
(3) Jesus is condemned by the Sanhedrin,
(4) Jesus is denied by Peter,
(5) Jesus is judged by Pilate,
(6) Jesus is scourged and crowned with thorns,
(7) Jesus takes up his cross,
(8 ) Jesus is helped by the Cyrenean to carry his cross,
(9) Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem,
(10) Jesus is crucified,
(11) Jesus promises his kingdom to the good thief,
(12) Jesus and his mother and disciple,
(13) Jesus dies on the cross,
(14) Jesus is laid in the tomb.

The celebration of the Stations of the Cross is especially common on the Fridays of Lent, especially Good Friday. Community celebrations are usually accompanied by various songs and prayers. Particularly common as musical accompaniment is the sequence Stabat Mater Dolorosa. At the end of each station, the Adoramus Te is sometimes sung. The Alleluia is also sung; however, that holy word is buried during Lent.

Today, many advocate the addition of a 15th station depicting Christ's Resurrection, because without his rising from the dead he would not have accomplished the salvation that Christians believe was his mission – the same consideration that causes the three days commencing with the evening Mass of the Lord's Supper on Holy Thursday and concluding with Vespers on the evening of Easter Sunday to be regarded as a liturgical unity, the so-called Holy Tridium, the Easter Tridium or Paschal Triduum. Others have begun the practice of the Via Lucis in Eastertide to meditate on the Resurrection and Ascension of the Lord.

Structurally, Mel Gibson's 2004 film, The Passion of the Christ, follows the Stations of the Cross. The fourteenth and last station, the Burial, is not prominently depicted (compared to the other thirteen) but it is implied since the last shot before credit titles is Jesus resurrected and about to leave the tomb.

  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89 

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #4 on: July 21, 2011, 02:23:29 PM »
Prayer Stations as defined by the RCC

What are prayer stations? Prayer stations are 11 unique, interactive, reflective activities in which you can participate to enhance your pray experience. Each station has a theme which encourages the participant to reflect on God, themselves, others and the world using a narrated CD and reading guide.

http://www.stwendelin.org/parish/par_bulletin_arch/2007/0211257.pdf

It appears this practice has many adaptations.

Prayer Stations - Stations of the Cross – Emergent Church Adoption

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/stationsofthecross.htm

There are many programs to this practice - even one for young children.
  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89 

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #5 on: July 21, 2011, 02:26:00 PM »
More on various aspects of prayer:

Synopsis on Barnes and Nobles website ...

Quote
Red Moon Rising: How 24-7 Prayer is Awakening a Generation,” by Peter Greig and Dave Roberts.

An extraordinary story about the adventure of faith and the power of persevering prayer...

On a summer's day in 1727 a community of Moravians started praying and didn't stop for more than 100 years. Throughout history God has mobilized such movements and moments of 24/7 prayer - from the Upper Room of Pentecost to Azusa Street in Los Angeles, through ancient Celtic saints and extraordinary characters like Alexander the Sleepless.

This is the story of a movement of the Spirit in our time, a move as ancient as it is modern.

A new generation is learning to pray and obey like never before. From Communist China to Washington DC and from the ranks of the Salvation Army to anarchic German punks, the 24-7 Prayer movement has been interceding continually, night and day, since 1999 in more than fifty countries. This is their extraordinary story; an honest account of pain and perseverance alongside pioneering mission and miraculous answers to prayer.

And from the Lighthouse Trails Research Newsletter, more on the authors and the contents of the book:  Source

Red Moon Rising: 24-7 Prayer Leads Youth into Contemplative and New Age Thought


Red Moon Rising: How 24-7 Prayer is Awakening a Generation (2003, Relevant Books), by UK author Pete Greig, is becoming an increasingly popular book among Christian youth. Greig is the founder of an international prayer movement called 24-7 Prayer and Boiler Rooms. In a magazine interview with Greig, he explains that his organization is now in over 65 countries and has partnered with groups such as Salvation Army and YWAM and has established "modern day monasteries based on the example of the ancient Celts."

While Greig's book and ministry may, at first glance, appear to be a movement of prayer, research shows that both the book and the movement are heavily influenced by contemplative spirituality and New Age thought. And while youth around the world are taking shifts (to pray) in Greig's boiler rooms (prayer rooms), they may be getting into something entirely different than biblical prayer. If your youth group is considering incorporating Red Moon Rising and 24-7 Prayer into their agenda, a second look may be worthwhile.

Greig tells readers to look to Brennan Manning's book, Abba's Child. It is in Abba's Child that Manning says Dr. Beatrice Bruteau is a "trustworthy guide to contemplative consciousness." Bruteau is the founder of The School for Contemplation and believes God is within every human being. She wrote the book, What We Can Learn from the East and says:

    "We have realized ourselves as the Self that says only I AM, with no predicate following, not "I am a this" or "I have that quality." Only unlimited, absolute I AM"

Also in Manning's book, he says: "[ I ]f I find Christ, I will find my true self and if I find my true self, I will find Christ." Thomas Merton believed what Bruteau and Manning have stated, that God is already within every human being, we just need to become aware of this. When Greig tells readers to turn to Abba's Child, he is pointing them towards the mystical, panentheistic views of Thomas Merton.

Red Moon Rising instructs readers on lectio divina, but warns readers that their "inner fundamentalist" voice may be telling them this isn't biblical - in actuality that may be the voice of the Holy Spirit. The book cites contemplative proponents like Leonard Sweet, Brian McLaren and Henri Nouwen and talks about a paradigm and cultural shift that is taking place in the world.

On the 24-7 Prayer website, a section called Labyrinths and Liturgy states: "t's about time we pooled our resources and created a collection of homegrown liturgies, and make them available for anyone out there who wishes to use them in their prayer rooms or as part of their personal rhythm of prayer."

Throughout Greig's site, articles and discussion cover topics such as monks, monasteries, and meditation. One article, titled "The Cross and the Cellar", is written by Morton Kelsey. Kelsey, an Episcopalian priest, was a strong advocate for contemplative spirituality and said: "You can find most of the New Age practices in the depth of Christianity.... I believe that the Holy One lives in every soul (A Time of Departing, p. 67).

In another article Greig says 24-7 Prayer is part of a "global prayer explosion" that includes the Catholic Renewal Movement, Taize worship, IHOP, and other prayer movements.

The 24-7 Prayer organization has another ministry outlet called "The Order of the Mustard Seed." Based on an 18th century order, participants are asked to take a vow and then wear a specially made ring. When we study the Mustard Seed website a clear picture begins to unfold, that this vow is a vow to be contemplative. Contemplative and occultic concepts, references, quotes, etc. so fill the pages of this site, that it would take much more than this article to describe it's depth of deception. In one Mustard Seed article, Greig states his admiration for Henri Nouwen, saying: "I am firmly in the Henri Nouwen fan-club, yearning for greater spiritual depth and getting excited about Rhythms and Rules of Life." But these rhythms and rules are filled with mysticism and spiritual darkness. "Rules have been the heartbeat of life for many of those we esteem the most," Greig adds and then lists several contemplatives including Thomas Merton and Mother Teresa (see her address: "Contemplatives in the Heart of the World"). A "Vision Study Guide" gives instruction on the spiritual disciplines including the silence and sacred space.

Unfortunately, as we have shown over the past few years, this cultural shift that is occurring within Christendom is one steeped in mysticism and a joining together of all the world's religious traditions. And when Greig talks about his vision for an army of young people who have a "violent reaction to compromised religion," this sounds similar to Erwin McManus' "barbarian way," Teen Mania's "battle cry" and Kids in Ministry's army of children with supernatural proclivities. It is frightening to see a growing trend that sounds more like a preparation for the Crusades than the language of Jesus Christ and the disciples. Couple this with contemplative mysticism, and we may have a combination that will bring about unmentionable results.





Contemplative Spirituality Glossary of Terms

This information is from the Lighthouse Trails Research Project as seen at this website.

Contemplative Spirituality Glossary of Terms

A -F

    Ancient Wisdom: The supposed laws of the Universe that, when mastered, enable one to control one's own reality—another word for metaphysics or occultism.

    Aquarius/Aquarian Age: Sign of the Zodiac represented by the water carrier, Earth Age associated with this astrological sign. The term New Age refers to the coming Aquarian age which is in the process of replacing the Pisces age. According to astrologers, every 2,000 years constitutes an age. New Agers predict this Aquarian age will be a time of utopia.

    Alice Bailey: British-born occultist who wrote under the guidance of a familiar spirit and channeled nineteen books on the New Age. She also popularized the term.

    Centering/Centering Prayer: Another term for meditation (going deep within your center). A type of meditation being promoted in many mainline churches under the guise of prayer.

    Chakras: Believed by New Agers to be the seven energy centers in man which open up during the kundalini effect in meditation.
    Christ-Consciousness: Taught by New Agers to be the state of awareness, reached in meditation, in which one realizes that one is divine and one with God and thereby becoming a Christ or an enlightened being.
    Contemplative Prayer: Going beyond thought by the use of repeated prayer words.
    Creative Visualization: Imaging in the mind, during meditation, what you want to occur and then expecting it to happen. In simple terms, you are creating your own reality.


    Desert Fathers: Mystics who first taught the practice of contemplative prayer.

    Ecstasy: The hoped for outcome of contemplative prayer or mediation

    Existentialism: an atheistic philosophy in which everything is relative; there are no absolute truths


    False Self :The false self is the ego or personality that is observable by others. One rids oneself of the false self to find the true self through mantra-meditation. New Agers would consider people like Buddha, Ghandi, and even Jesus Christ as examples of people who found their true self.


Contemplative Terms
 Recognize these "inside" terms used by contemplatives:

 

    * Labyrinths
    * Enneagrams
    * Prayer Stations
    * Breath Prayers
    * Jesus Candles
    * The Jesus Prayer
    * Lectio Divina
    * Taize
    * Palms Up, Palms Down
    * Yoga
    * The Silence
    * Sacred Space
    * Ancient Prayer Practices
    * A Thin Place
    * Divine Mystery
    * Spiritual Direction
    * Ignation Contemplation
    * Contemplative
    * Centering
    * Centering prayer
    * Prayer of the Heart
    * Dark night of the soul
    * Practicing the Presence
    * Divine Center
    * Inner light
    * Mantra
    * Awareness of Being
    * Slow Prayer
    * Being in the Present Moment
    * Beyond Words
    * Spiritual Disciplines
    * Spiritual Formation

Many of these terms are considered "inside" terms according to many contemplatives, such as Youth Specialties writer, Michael Perschon. On April 16th, 2006, Youth Specialties issued a new article by Perschon that coincidentally illustrates the very thing we are saying here.

"Fitness buffs have an inside language. The really serious ones like to use proper anatomy terms, like gluteus maximus instead of bum. They still mean bum but, like most experts, enjoy having some special knowledge others don't have. People who practice contemplative prayer are often no different. Like any other practice, contemplative prayer has its own inside language, which is clear to the initiated but means little to outsiders. Much of the writing on contemplative prayer uses this inside language." Michael Perschon, Contemplative Prayer Practices

G - Q
Guru: Master of Metaphysics who teaches students how to attain their optimal spiritual level.

Higher Self: Supposed God Self within that New Agers seek to connect with through meditation. Also called the Christ Self.

Kundalini: Powerful energy that is brought on through meditation, associated with the Chakras.

Mantra: Word or words repeated either silently or verbally to induce an altered state.

Meditation: Meditation is practiced by all major world religions and is often described as an essential discipline for spiritual growth. Yet, like mysticism, there is great diversity in the practice of meditation. While some see meditation as simply spending time thinking quietly about life or about God, others use meditation techniques to experience altered states of consciousness that allow them to have esoteric experiences. In addition, meditation is promoted in secular society for the personal benefits of health, relaxation and improved productivity.

New Age: The Age of Aquarius, supposedly the Golden Age, when man becomes aware of his power and divinity.

New Thought: Movement that tries to merge classic occult concepts with Christian terminology.

Occult/Occultism: Kept secret or hidden; the practice of metaphysics throughout history.

Pantheism: God is all things. The universe and all life are connected in a sum. This sum is the total reality of God. Thus, man, animals, plants, and all physical matter are seen as equal. The assumption—all is one, therefore all is deity.

Panentheism: God is in all things. In panentheism God is both personal and is also in all of creation. It is a universal view that believes God is in all people and that someday all of God's creation will be saved and be one with Him.

R - Z

Reiki: Spiritual energy that is channeled by one attuned to the Reiki power. Literally translated god energy.

Self-Realization: Full contact with the higher self resulting in knowing one's self to be God.

Theosophical Society: Organization founded by Helena P. Blavatsky in 1875, to spread the Ancient Wisdom (i.e. occultism) throughout Western society. The forerunner of the modern New Age movement.

The silence: Absence of normal thought.

Universalism: All humanity has or will ultimately have a positive connection and relationship with God. A universalist belief system or universalism states that every human being will be reunited with God whether they believe in Jesus Christ or not. This belief system also says that every human being has Divinity or God within them.

 
  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89 

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #6 on: July 21, 2011, 02:32:49 PM »
LindaRS's research gleaned the following:

Roman Catholicism's role:

And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.… And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Rev 13: 3, 8.

At the Second Vatican Council, the RCC laid its plans for the new evangelization of the world. What plans did they lay and what does it involve? Something that every Protestant should know because it is making serious inroads into denominations. Here is the evidence for the RCC plans from the papal letters and encyclicals. The first was written in 1965 by Pope Paul VI. All the emphasis in italics or bold and italics is in the original. Those in color are mine.




40. Religious institutes of the contemplative and of the active life have so far played, and still do play, the main role in the evangelization of the world. This sacred synod gladly acknowledges their merits and thanks God for all that they have expended for the glory of God and the service of souls, while exhorting them to go on untiringly in the work which they have begun, since they know that the virtue of charity, which by reason of their vocation they are bound to practice with greater perfection, obliges and impels them to a truly catholic spirit and work.

Institutes of the contemplative life, by their prayers, sufferings, and works of penance, have a very great importance in the conversion of souls, because it is God who sends workers into His harvest when He is asked to do so (cf. Matt. 9:38), God who opens the minds of non-Christians to hear the Gospel (cf. Acts 16:14), and God who fructifies the word of salvation in their hearts (cf. 1 Cor. 3:7). In fact, these institutes are asked to found houses in mission areas, as not a few of them have already done, so that there, living out their lives in a way accommodated to the truly religious traditions of the people, they can bear excellent witness among non-Christians to the majesty and love of God, as well as to our union in Christ. source




Pope John Paul II expounded on this new evangelization even further in several encyclicals.




A valid method...

27. We should not be surprised that our relationship with Christ makes use of a method. God communicates himself to us respecting our human nature and its vital rhythms. Hence, while Christian spirituality is familiar with the most sublime forms of mystical silence in which images, words and gestures are all, so to speak, superseded by an intense and ineffable union with God, it normally engages the whole person in all his complex psychological, physical and relational reality.

This becomes apparent in the Liturgy. Sacraments and sacramentals are structured as a series of rites which bring into play all the dimensions of the person. The same applies to non-liturgical prayer. This is confirmed by the fact that, in the East, the most characteristic prayer of Christological meditation, centred on the words “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner”(34) is traditionally linked to the rhythm of breathing; while this practice favours perseverance in the prayer, it also in some way embodies the desire for Christ to become the breath, the soul and the “all” of one's life.

... which can nevertheless be improved

28. I mentioned in my Apostolic Letter Novo Millennio Ineunte that the West is now experiencing a renewed demand for meditation, which at times leads to a keen interest in aspects of other religions.(35) Some Christians, limited in their knowledge of the Christian contemplative tradition, are attracted by those forms of prayer. While the latter contain many elements which are positive and at times compatible with Christian experience, they are often based on ultimately unacceptable premises. Much in vogue among these approaches are methods aimed at attaining a high level of spiritual concentration by using techniques of a psychophysical, repetitive and symbolic nature. The Rosary is situated within this broad gamut of religious phenomena, but it is distinguished by characteristics of its own which correspond to specifically Christian requirements.

In effect, the Rosary is simply a method of contemplation. As a method, it serves as a means to an end and cannot become an end in itself. All the same, as the fruit of centuries of experience, this method should not be undervalued. In its favour one could cite the experience of countless Saints. This is not to say, however, that the method cannot be improved. Such is the intent of the addition of the new series of mysteria lucis to the overall cycle of mysteries and of the few suggestions which I am proposing in this Letter regarding its manner of recitation. These suggestions, while respecting the well-established structure of this prayer, are intended to help the faithful to understand it in the richness of its symbolism and in harmony with the demands of daily life. Otherwise there is a risk that the Rosary would not only fail to produce the intended spiritual effects, but even that the beads, with which it is usually said, could come to be regarded as some kind of amulet or magic object, thereby radically distorting their meaning and function.…

Silence

31. Listening and meditation are nourished by silence. After the announcement of the mystery and the proclamation of the word, it is fitting to pause and focus one's attention for a suitable period of time on the mystery concerned, before moving into vocal prayer. A discovery of the importance of silence is one of the secrets of practicing contemplation and meditation. One drawback of a society dominated by technology and the mass media is the fact that silence becomes increasingly difficult to achieve. Just as moments of silence are recommended in the Liturgy, so too in the recitation of the Rosary it is fitting to pause briefly after listening to the word of God, while the mind focuses on the content of a particular mystery. source




The plan to use contemplative practices, i.e., contemplative prayer, centering prayer, breath prayer, the Jesus prayer, was made in the early to mid 1960's, nearly a half century ago. What was the Second Vatican Council? Some have called it the second Council of Trent. That council was to formulate plans to overthrow the reformation. What Catholic group figured prominently in those plans? The Society of Jesus, commonly known as the Jesuits. What are their methods? The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius Loyola,— contemplative practices.
  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89 

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #7 on: July 21, 2011, 02:34:23 PM »
Continuing ...

Call for the use of Lectio Divina




4. The example of St Benedict and the Rule itself offer significant direction for fully accepting the gift of these anniversaries. First and foremost they invite a witness of tenacious fidelity to the Word of God, meditated on and received through "lectio divina". This involves maintaining silence and an attitude of humble adoration before God, for the divine word reveals its depths to those who, through silence and mortification, are attentive to the Spirit's mysterious action.

While the requirement of regular silence establishes times when human words must be stilled, it points to a style marked by great moderation in verbal communication. If it is perceived and lived in its profound sense, it slowly teaches the interiorization by which the monk opens himself to a genuine knowledge of God and man. In a particular way, the great silence in monasteries has a unique symbolic power of recalling what really counts: Samuel's absolute availability (cf. 1 Sm 3) and the total, loving gift of self to the Father. None of the rest is eliminated, but is accepted in its profound reality and brought to God in prayer.

It is this school of "lectio divina" which the Church expects from monasteries: she does not seek masters of biblical exegesis, who can also be found elsewhere, but rather witnesses to a humble and tenacious fidelity to the Word in the inconspicuous setting of everyday life. Thus the "vita bonorum" becomes a "viva lectio" which can be understood even by those who, disillusioned by the inflation of human words, seek what is essential and authentic in their relationship with God and are ready to understand the message given by a life in which a relish for beauty and order is combined with moderation.

Familiarity with the Word, which the Benedictine Rule guarantees by reserving much time for it in the daily schedule, will not fail to instil serene trust, to cast aside false security and to root in the soul a vivid sense of the total lordship of God. The monk is thus protected from convenient or utilitarian interpretations of Scripture and brought to an ever deeper awareness of human weakness, in which God's power shines brightly. source

Listening to the Word

39. There is no doubt that this primacy of holiness and prayer is inconceivable without a renewed listening to the word of God. Ever since the Second Vatican Council underlined the pre-eminent role of the word of God in the life of the Church, great progress has certainly been made in devout listening to Sacred Scripture and attentive study of it. Scripture has its rightful place of honour in the public prayer of the Church. Individuals and communities now make extensive use of the Bible, and among lay people there are many who devote themselves to Scripture with the valuable help of theological and biblical studies. But it is above all the work of evangelization and catechesis which is drawing new life from attentiveness to the word of God. Dear brothers and sisters, this development needs to be consolidated and deepened, also by making sure that every family has a Bible. It is especially necessary that listening to the word of God should become a life-giving encounter, in the ancient and ever valid tradition of lectio divina, which draws from the biblical text the living word which questions, directs and shapes our lives.  source
  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89 

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #8 on: July 21, 2011, 02:37:48 PM »
More on contemplative and a connection with mariology




Prayer

32. This training in holiness calls for a Christian life distinguished above all in the art of prayer. The Jubilee Year has been a year of more intense prayer, both personal and communal. But we well know that prayer cannot be taken for granted. We have to learn to pray: as it were learning this art ever anew from the lips of the Divine Master himself, like the first disciples: "Lord, teach us to pray!" (Lk 11:1). Prayer develops that conversation with Christ which makes us his intimate friends: "Abide in me and I in you" (Jn 15:4). This reciprocity is the very substance and soul of the Christian life, and the condition of all true pastoral life. Wrought in us by the Holy Spirit, this reciprocity opens us, through Christ and in Christ, to contemplation of the Father's face. Learning this Trinitarian shape of Christian prayer and living it fully, above all in the liturgy, the summit and source of the Church's life,17 but also in personal experience, is the secret of a truly vital Christianity, which has no reason to fear the future, because it returns continually to the sources and finds in them new life.

33. Is it not one of the "signs of the times" that in today's world, despite widespread secularization, there is a widespread demand for spirituality, a demand which expresses itself in large part as a renewed need for prayer? Other religions, which are now widely present in ancient Christian lands, offer their own responses to this need, and sometimes they do so in appealing ways. But we who have received the grace of believing in Christ, the revealer of the Father and the Saviour of the world, have a duty to show to what depths the relationship with Christ can lead.

The great mystical tradition of the Church of both East and West has much to say in this regard. It shows how prayer can progress, as a genuine dialogue of love, to the point of rendering the person wholly possessed by the divine Beloved, vibrating at the Spirit's touch, resting filially within the Father's heart. This is the lived experience of Christ's promise: "He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him" (Jn 14:21). It is a journey totally sustained by grace, which nonetheless demands an intense spiritual commitment and is no stranger to painful purifications (the "dark night").** But it leads, in various possible ways, to the ineffable joy experienced by the mystics as "nuptial union". How can we forget here, among the many shining examples, the teachings of Saint John of the Cross and Saint Teresa of Avila?

Yes, dear brothers and sisters, our Christian communities must become genuine "schools" of prayer, where the meeting with Christ is expressed not just in imploring help but also in thanksgiving, praise, adoration, contemplation, listening and ardent devotion, until the heart truly "falls in love". Intense prayer, yes, but it does not distract us from our commitment to history: by opening our heart to the love of God it also opens it to the love of our brothers and sisters, and makes us capable of shaping history according to God's plan.18

34. Christians who have received the gift of a vocation to the specially consecrated life are of course called to prayer in a particular way: of its nature, their consecration makes them more open to the experience of contemplation, and it is important that they should cultivate it with special care. But it would be wrong to think that ordinary Christians can be content with a shallow prayer that is unable to fill their whole life. Especially in the face of the many trials to which today's world subjects faith, they would be not only mediocre Christians but "Christians at risk". They would run the insidious risk of seeing their faith progressively undermined, and would perhaps end up succumbing to the allure of "substitutes", accepting alternative religious proposals and even indulging in far-fetched superstitions.

It is therefore essential that education in prayer should become in some way a key-point of all pastoral planning. I myself have decided to dedicate the forthcoming Wednesday catecheses to reflection upon the Psalms, beginning with the Psalms of Morning Prayer with which the public prayer of the Church invites us to consecrate and direct our day. How helpful it would be if not only in religious communities but also in parishes more were done to ensure an all-pervading climate of prayer. With proper discernment, this would require that popular piety be given its proper place, and that people be educated especially in liturgical prayer. Perhaps it is more thinkable than we usually presume for the average day of a Christian community to combine the many forms of pastoral life and witness in the world with the celebration of the Eucharist and even the recitation of Lauds and Vespers. The experience of many committed Christian groups, also those made up largely of lay people, is proof of this.  source

Evangelization of the world

6. There have always been in the Church many men and women who, prompted by the action of the Holy Spirit, choose to live the Gospel in a radical way, professing the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience. This multitude of men and women religious, belonging to innumerable Institutes of contemplative and active life, still plays "the main role in the evangelization of the world" (Ad Gentes, n. 40).

With their continual and community prayer, contemplatives ceaselessly intercede for all humanity. Religious of the active life, with their many charitable activities, bring to all a living witness of the love and mercy of God.

The Servant of God Paul VI concerning these apostles of our times said: "Thanks to their consecration they are eminently willing and free to leave everything and to go and proclaim the Gospel even to the ends of the earth. They are enterprising and their apostolate is often marked by an originality, by a genius that demands admiration. They are generous: often they are found at the outposts of the mission, and they take the greatest of risks for their health and their very lives. Truly the Church owes them much" (Evangelii Nuntiandi, n. 69). source

I leave this pastoral proposal to the initiative of each ecclesial community. It is not my intention to encumber but rather to complete and consolidate pastoral programmes of the Particular Churches. I am confident that the proposal will find a ready and generous reception. The Rosary, reclaimed in its full meaning, goes to the very heart of Christian life; it offers a familiar yet fruitful spiritual and educational opportunity for personal contemplation, the formation of the People of God, and the new evangelization. I am pleased to reaffirm this also in the joyful remembrance of another anniversary: the fortieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council on October 11, 1962, the “great grace” disposed by the Spirit of God for the Church in our time. source

On this journey we are accompanied by the Blessed Virgin Mary to whom, a few months ago, in the presence of a great number of Bishops assembled in Rome from all parts of the world, I entrusted the Third Millennium. During this year I have often invoked her as the "Star of the New Evangelization". Now I point to Mary once again as the radiant dawn and sure guide for our steps. Once more, echoing the words of Jesus himself and giving voice to the filial affection of the whole Church, I say to her: "Woman, behold your children"(cf. Jn 19:26).  source



**This is a reference to a book by Catholic mystic, John of the Cross, The Dark Night of the Soul which is a book on contemplation.
  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89 

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #9 on: July 21, 2011, 02:44:38 PM »
The following is from Lighthouse Trail's http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/researchtopics.htm (Excellent source for this topic)

Quote
Contemplative Spirituality: A belief system that uses ancient mystical practices to induce altered states of consciousness (the silence) and is rooted in mysticism and the occult but often wrapped in Christian terminology. The premise of contemplative spirituality is pantheistic (God is all) and panentheistic (God is in all). Common terms used for this movement are "spiritual formation," "the silence," "the stillness," "ancient-wisdom," "spiritual disciplines," and many others.

Spiritual Formation: A movement that has provided a platform and a channel through which contemplative prayer is entering the church. Find spiritual formation being used, and in nearly every case you will find contemplative spirituality. In fact, contemplative spirituality is the heartbeat of the spiritual formation movement.

Below is our 2006 review on Max Lucado's book, Cure for the Common Life:

Cure for the Common Life, by author Max Lucado, is a book about "living in your sweet spot." Lucado tells readers in chapter one to "[h]eed that inner music," and quoting mystic Martin Buber from his book, The Way of Man (a book on Jewish mysticism), Lucado tells readers they each have a "divine spark." Buber had panentheistic affinities as he embraced the teachings of Hasidism (Jewish mysticism) and believed that this divine spark that Lucado refers to is in every human being and every part of creation.

 

Through Lucado's book he quotes other mystics and contemplatives: Saint Thomas Aquinas,Thomas Merton, Eugene Peterson and Richard Foster. It is Thomas Merton who said,

    It is a glorious destiny to be a member of the human race,... now I realize what we all are.... If only they [people]could all see themselves as they really are ... I suppose the big problem would be that we would fall down and worship each other.... At the center of our being is a point of nothingness which is untouched by sin and by illusions, a point of pure truth.... This little point ... is the pure glory of God in us. It is in everybody.

Merton and Buber shared this belief that everyone has a divine spark. When Max Lucado quotes men of these persuasions, telling readers they each have a "sweet spot" then referring to a divine spark in everyone, this is very confusing and will leave the unaware spiritual seeker believing him.

 

Cure for the Common Life has drawn endorsements from an assortment of Christian leaders, and their names sit on the front inside covers of Lucado's book as well as on the back cover. New Age sympathizer Ken Blanchard says of the book, "Max Lucado has done it again! He has taken simple truths and made them available to all of us (emphasis mine). Richard Foster says, "I'm so glad for Max Lucado's insightful call for us to live and work as we are intrinsically designed by God." Sheila Walsh said that the "message of this book could change your life forever." Bob Coy (Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale) and Bob Buford (creator of the emerging church) also gave raving reviews of the book.

 

On the back cover, New Age sympathizer Laurie Beth Jones says, "This book can cure whatever 'blah' that ails you!" In Jones book, Teach Your Team to Fish, she states: "I have been challenged by the concept of meditation ... I decided recently to accept the invitation of a friend to experience the sheer silence of meditation-undirected prayer. ... I had before only sensed intellectually ... But by going deep into prayer I could almost feel it." (p. 142.)

 

Lucado seems to be coming out of the contemplative closet. Recently he was featured on the Be Still DVD, along with Richard Foster and Beth Moore. In that DVD, Lucado emphasized the importance of contemplative prayer, saying "It's nothing mystical, necessarily. It's nothing secretive. It's just what we do with our body we do with our soul." But Richard Foster would probably disagree - contemplative is mystical, and in many ways is very secretive.

 

Christian leaders with contemplative and New Age sympathies are not the only ones who love Cure for the Common Life. Barnes and Noble bookstores recently began a New Age-promoting project called East West that is "a resource for conscious living. It opens doors to self-discovery, higher awareness and true understanding." Under the best sellers list are five titles, one of them being Lucado's book Cure For the Common Life. This is what East West says of Lucado's book:

    According to New York Times bestselling author Max Lucado, you were designed as a one-of-a-kind to achieve one God-given purpose. And embedded in your soul are the power and passion to fulfill it. As Dr. Phil McGraw writes, "Cure for the Common Life can help you find that uniqueness that puts it all in perspective, and show you how to live it every day so that you aren't just existing in God's creation but thriving in His plan."

Apparently, those with New Age persuasions admire Lucado's "divine spark" in everyone idea. And why not. That's what the New Age is really all about. But the questions must be asked, Why is Thomas Nelson publishing another book that promotes New Age ideas (see their book Yoga for Christians, 2006), and is this book going to be carried in Christian bookstores and churches and considered another worthy book for Sunday school classes?
  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89 

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #10 on: July 21, 2011, 03:19:58 PM »
The Three Angels' Messages:

Rev 14:6  And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,
Rev 14:7  Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
Rev 14:8  And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
Rev 14:9  And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
Rev 14:10  The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
Rev 14:11  And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
Rev 14:12  Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.


And the Fourth Angel of Revelation 18:

Rev 18:1  And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
Rev 18:2  And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
Rev 18:3  For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
Rev 18:5  For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
Rev 18:6  Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
Rev 18:7  How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
Rev 18:8  Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.
Rev 18:9  And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
Rev 18:10  Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
Rev 18:11  And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
Rev 18:12  The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble,
Rev 18:13  And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men.
Rev 18:14  And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all.
Rev 18:15  The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
Rev 18:16  And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!
Rev 18:17  For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
Rev 18:18  And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!
Rev 18:19  And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89 

Mimi

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Re: Spiritual Formation, Why the Lie?
« Reply #11 on: July 21, 2011, 10:06:28 PM »
All three messages, given separately and repeated by the angel of Revelation 18, are linked together as they give a combined warning to the world about who it is we should worship and obey.

First Angel's Message
Revelation 14:6-7 - "And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a LOUD VOICE, fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters."

This message is to be proclaimed to the world with a loud voice because of its end-time importance. We are approaching a great final test that is to come upon the inhabitants of the world.

The theme of the three angels' messages is who we worship. The first calls us to worship God who "made the heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." There is one strong link between this message, the creation account, and God's ten commandments, focusing on the seventh-day Sabbath. At the end of creation week, God set aside a special day for worship, a day for us to rest and spend in special communion with our Creator God and He blessed this day and made it holy. The 4th commandment points back to creation and the seventh day of rest, just as the first angels' message points to the creation account and the God of creation. The seventh-day Sabbath is a sign for all those who keep it, that they are worshiping the true God of creation, whereas those who keep Sunday as the sabbath are following the tradition of man rather than following their Creator God.

You will see this Sabbath link as you study the three angels' messages because the third angel warns us about receiving the mark of the beast and then reveals that those who do not receive the mark are the one's keeping the commandments of God. The one commandment that reveals God as Creator is the Fourth Commandment. This is the one commandment that the majority of professing Christians have been deceived upon by keeping a tradition of man, Sunday sacredness, over the commandment of God.

Second Angels' Message
Revelation 14:8 - "And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication."

We see another warning of Babylon being fallen in Revelation 18:2-3: "And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies."

Babylon is also mentioned in Revelation 17 as "Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots." The early church incorporated many of the Pagan practices from Old Testament Babylon. Babylon also means "confusion." But who are the harlots? They are the Protestant churches who God lead to separate from the Church of Rome during the Reformation but who stopped advancing in the light God was shedding on their path and held on to some of Rome's false doctrines. So "Babylon" in the second angels' message encompasses the Roman Catholic Church and all Protestant churches that have rejected God's truth and adopted the traditions or commandments of man.

The churches have been progressively falling further into apostasy by fornicating with the world and allowing heathen practices to influence their worship. Part of this apostasy is the teaching that we can be saved while continuing to sin, when the Bible clearly teaches that Jesus saves us from our sins. In other words, when we truly come to Christ Jesus and accept His righteousness, the evidence of our true faith is turning away from sin and keeping the commandments of God. The third angel confirms that the Biblical saints are those who are keeping God's commandments and following Christ Jesus.

Third Angel's Message
Revelation 14:9-12 - "And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus."

This is the most solemn end-time message and we must make every effort to search and seek the truth of this matter. What is the mark of the beast?

Many people have been deceived into thinking that the mark of the beast is something other than its true identity. The third angels' message gives us the clue as to what the mark of the beast will be. First the angel describes what will happen to those who receive the mark and end up worshiping the beast. Then he says something of great importance and truth. He says that the saints, the one's who do not take the mark, are keeping the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. If we are keeping God's ten commandments and following in the footstep of Jesus, we will not receive the mark.

Looking at the ten commandments the angel says the saints are keeping, which one has the majority of the professing Christian world been deceived upon? The seventh-day Sabbath. Satan has deceived the Christian world into believing that we no longer need to keep the 4th commandment, or that it has been changed, when in reality the seventh-day Sabbath is as important today as it was when God wrote it on the tables of stone. God does not change. The early church took it as a sign of her authority to change God's day of worship from Saturday to Sunday.

What does the three angels' messages tell us? That those who believe in Christ Jesus and accept His righteousness by faith, accept the gospel and follow Christ, worship the Creator and keep His ten commandments, will not receive the mark of the beast and will be saved. But those that substitute the holy precepts of God for traditions and laws of man will be lost.

We have presented a very brief synopsis of spiritual formation as it relates to the Word of God and the sure word of prophecy. Many are coming to tell us that the practices falling under the umbrella of spiritual formation are wonderful methods for growing into spiritually mature Christians. God’s Word does not support that claim. It gives us, instead, a ladder of eight rungs that is promised to keep us fruitful and productive, profitable Christians.

Spiritual formation is built upon the commandments of men. Our prayer is that you will compare these practices to Scripture and turn to God's methods of spiritual growth.
  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Psalm 119:89