Christians and Yoga

  • Christian Chat is a moderated online Christian community allowing Christians around the world to fellowship with each other in real time chat via webcam, voice, and text, with the Christian Chat app. You can also start or participate in a Bible-based discussion here in the Christian Chat Forums, where members can also share with each other their own videos, pictures, or favorite Christian music.

    If you are a Christian and need encouragement and fellowship, we're here for you! If you are not a Christian but interested in knowing more about Jesus our Lord, you're also welcome! Want to know what the Bible says, and how you can apply it to your life? Join us!

    To make new Christian friends now around the world, click here to join Christian Chat.
A

AmmiAmmiel

Guest
#1
#1
I believe that a professing believer should not engage in an activity like Yoga.
I know of many professing believers who participate in Pagan worship.
Whether you know it or not, every Yoga position is attached to a Hindu deity.
The very act of putting oneself in these positions is sending tribute to that deity and is therefore considered worship.

"just for the physical benefit"
This is no excuse! God doesn't care what your motives are when one sins.
The Lord is a jealous God! He doesn't like seeing His people do these things.
Whether for physical benefit or whatever, Yoga is still worship to Hindu deities.


I want to encourage everyone to do a study on Yoga and Hinduism.
You will find that Yoga is how a Hindu worships their many different deities,..
 
O

OceanGrl

Guest
#2
#2
Hmm, I understand your concern, but can't God take something like this and use it for good? Such as how we celebrate The birth of Jesus on Christmas, which has roots as an originally pagan holiday... or also Easter? Yet we use those times for good by focusing them on God.
 
A

AmmiAmmiel

Guest
#3
#3
OceanGrl said:
Hmm, I understand your concern, but can't God take something like this and use it for good? Such as how we celebrate The birth of Jesus on Christmas, which has roots as an originally pagan holiday... or also Easter? Yet we use those times for good by focusing them on God.
Click to expand...
Celebrating the Birth of Christ on Dec 25 means nothing to me. I celebrate that event all throughout the Year[:
just as a good Christian should do. Nevertheless, those who do focus the celebration on that Day are committing no sin. All True Christians worship God the Father Almighty in spirit and in Truth. December 25th may be associated with Pagan worship, but Yoga IS Pagan worship. Try lookin at this through a Divine perspective, from what we know about God and how He says He is to be worshipped, we know that we cannot use forms of Pagan worship to praise our Lord. Here's an analogy; "a man is being pressured by another man to do something that will please his god, the other man belongs to God Almighty. The man of God would not give in to the man pressuring him because God will see him doing somethin that pleases other gods, false gods,..".

It is a deception to think you can do something designed to praise an idol and use it to praise The Lord.
 
JesusChica1991

JesusChica1991

Banned
#4
May 9, 2012
1,514
25
0
#4
There is a difference between the Hindu Context and Christian context and it's pretty simple. Hindus use it to pray and focus on their gods. Some people just use it as a form of relaxing and a form of exercise..that's all...Pigs were used as sacrifices in the old pagan world to defile the temple...but some Christians eat pork...God made everything clean.
 
A

AmmiAmmiel

Guest
#5
#5
JesusChica1991 said:
There is a difference between the Hindu Context and Christian context and it's pretty simple. Hindus use it to pray and focus on their gods. Some people just use it as a form of relaxing and a form of exercise..that's all...Pigs were used as sacrifices in the old pagan world to defile the temple...but some Christians eat pork...God made everything clean.
Click to expand...

Yes, God made pork clean for us. He didn't make unholy practices of idolatry clean for us,..
 
JesusChica1991

JesusChica1991

Banned
#6
May 9, 2012
1,514
25
0
#6
Ummm sacrificing pigs was a form of unholy practice of idolatry...and he made it clean. Some people also do yoga to help themselves concentrate and to help meditate...it all depends on the context of how you do it. Some also do it as a form of exercise and as way to pray to God. Just because something is ''associated'' with something evil, it does not necessarily make it evil.
 
A

AmmiAmmiel

Guest
#7
#7
JesusChica1991 said:
Ummm sacrificing pigs was a form of unholy practice of idolatry...and he made it clean. Some people also do yoga to help themselves concentrate and to help meditate...it all depends on the context of how you do it. Some also do it as a form of exercise and as way to pray to God. Just because something is ''associated'' with something evil, it does not necessarily make it evil.
Click to expand...
Yoga is not "associated" with evil, it originates from it. The very positions themselves are how those deities are worshipped,. I implore you to look into the Hindu origin of Yoga and what it means.
 
JesusChica1991

JesusChica1991

Banned
#8
May 9, 2012
1,514
25
0
#8
Again, it all depends on context. I know plenty of women in the church that do yoga. Are you going to automatically call them Hindus simply because they do yoga? I do yoga myself because it helps me concentrate and commune with Christ in the morning before classes. Are you going to automatically call me a Hindu? People use that same logic with the electric guitar being evil because it came out of Rock 'n' roll which most people believe to be evil. Are you going to say that the electric guitar is an evil object?
 
M

MissCris

Guest
#9
#9
Electric guitars are totally evil. There's one sitting in the corner right now, sending off evil guitar vibes all over the place.

Yeah, I've never done yoga, but really, I can't see a problem with it. I think it's a little odd- too much bendy-ness for me- but bad? I don't know.
 
leelee

leelee

Senior Member
#10
Sep 5, 2011
1,258
8
38
35
#10
I do yoga, it really helps my back which gets sore from nursing work (patients like to fall on me). It also strengthens your core muscles, meaning it hurts less wheb patients fall on me. I have prayed about it as I know it is a Hindu practice but God didn't send me any objections. I also use buddist medidtation techniques to relax and re-focus my mind after a hard shift. Some see it as wrong bur God has never told me to stop and the physical benifits are amazing.
 
A

AmmiAmmiel

Guest
#11
#11
JesusChica1991 said:
Again, it all depends on context. I know plenty of women in the church that do yoga. Are you going to automatically call them Hindus simply because they do yoga? I do yoga myself because it helps me concentrate and commune with Christ in the morning before classes. Are you going to automatically call me a Hindu? People use that same logic with the electric guitar being evil because it came out of Rock 'n' roll which most people believe to be evil. Are you going to say that the electric guitar is an evil object?
Click to expand...
No, I'd call them ignorant idolaters,.. We as Christians shouldn't need anything to help us communicate with Christ. Just because I can have Christ in mind while I'm practicing a form of worship to another god doesn't mean it's ok,..
 
A

AmmiAmmiel

Guest
#12
#12
leelee said:
I do yoga, it really helps my back which gets sore from nursing work (patients like to fall on me). It also strengthens your core muscles, meaning it hurts less wheb patients fall on me. I have prayed about it as I know it is a Hindu practice but God didn't send me any objections. I also use buddist medidtation techniques to relax and re-focus my mind after a hard shift. Some see it as wrong bur God has never told me to stop and the physical benifits are amazing.
Click to expand...
Have you ever stopped to think that maybe He's telling you it's wrong through His people? What sense does it make to say that God would tell some of His people it's wrong and not all of them? It's clear to me that if God convinces some of His people that it's wrong, then whoever is telling them it's right isn't God,..
 
leelee

leelee

Senior Member
#13
Sep 5, 2011
1,258
8
38
35
#13
flip that round. do you ever think God telling me it's fine makes your opinion wrong? I am not about to argue over this but I am going to continue stretching so I don't end up unable to do my job by the time I am 30.
 
A

AmmiAmmiel

Guest
#14
#14
leelee said:
flip that round. do you ever think God telling me it's fine makes your opinion wrong? I am not about to argue over this but I am going to continue stretching so I don't end up unable to do my job by the time I am 30.
Click to expand...
Stretching is just fine lol, I'm not arguing about that. It's when you start practicing Yoga itself. The effects of Yoga are likened to those of Witchcraft and Shamanism.
 
leelee

leelee

Senior Member
#15
Sep 5, 2011
1,258
8
38
35
#15
i do yoga stretches.
 
leelee

leelee

Senior Member
#17
Sep 5, 2011
1,258
8
38
35
#17
no i put myself in weird positions and then am in less pain after. no chakra, just some peculiar looking shapes. i don't stand on my head though.
 
A

AmmiAmmiel

Guest
#18
#18
leelee said:
no i put myself in weird positions and then am in less pain after. no chakra, just some peculiar looking shapes. i don't stand on my head though.
Click to expand...
Well nevertheless, you must understand those peculiar shapes are designed to give tribute and praise to a certain deity,..
 
leelee

leelee

Senior Member
#19
Sep 5, 2011
1,258
8
38
35
#19
well, since i am not praising that particular deity i think its irrelevant. people can sing hymns with no intent on praise, in this country several football songs are hymns.
 
A

AmmiAmmiel

Guest
#20
#20
leelee said:
well, since i am not praising that particular deity i think its irrelevant. people can sing hymns with no intent on praise, in this country several football songs are hymns.
Click to expand...
You're not understanding my concern,.. I know several people who used to practice Yoga and then became aware of the true nature of it , ceased of their participation in it because they felt conviction from the Holy Spirit. Explain this to me,..
 
You must log in or register to reply here.