IS MEDITATION "UN-CHRISTIAN"???.........

Prayer is a form of Meditation, I mean think about it. Staring off into space is a form of meditation. Lets drop these petty beliefs and get back to what a belief in God truly is.
No one goes to hell for the little things anyway

The word meditate or meditation occurs 40 times in the Bible (Check out Joshua 1:8 and Psalm 1:2, for example).
Rick Warren, in The Purpose Driven Life (Zondervan), describes meditation this way: "Meditation is focused thinking. It takes serious effort. You select a verse and reflect on it over and over in your mind. If you know how to worry, you already know how to meditate." Warren goes on to say, "No other habit can do more to transform your life and make you more like Jesus than daily reflection on Scripture. If you look up all the times God speaks about meditation in the Bible, you will amazed at the benefits He has promised to those who take the time to reflect on His Word throughout the day"

I too believe prayer & meditation to be the same thing.

Meditation is prayer. My mother had books on "The Meditations of St. so-and-so", It is a yogi form or relaxation and so is prayer. No difference.

Lectio divina is a form of Christian meditation that dates back to at least the fourth century. Lectio divina means sacred reading. There are four stages:
Lecto: Reading – Select a passage from the Bible and read it deliberately.
Meditatio: Discursive meditation – Ponder the text
Oratio: Affective prayer – Pray about the reading, asking for guidance and the revelation of truth.
Contemplatio: Contemplation – rest in the presence of the sacred.

Your definition says it all...

"I am talking about sitting quietly (cross-legged or not cross-legged is up to you) and closing your eyes and "communing" with God.
This psalm comes to mind:
"Be still, and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10)

I believe there are places in scripture where it tells you to meditate on the word of the Lord. Meditation is not wrong. Practicing another type of religion while being Christian is, and there is a difference.

I agree that meditation is mentioned all through the Bible. "Blessed is the man...whose delight is in the Lord...in his laws doth he meditate day and night." And even spoken of in places where it is not called meditation. "Be still and know that I am God."
But I have learned, through personal experience, that half of prayer is listening. Once I was praying fervently about a matter and God's spirit impressed me to be quiet. When I did get quiet and sit still, the Lord began to speak to my spirit.
I have learned more about the Lord just reaching out to him in quietness, than I ever did just reading through chapters of Bible and listening to hours of sermons. Of course, I learned there, too. But it was only when I meditated on what I heard or read, that the understanding came.

berf interesting question. I am not religious but I would say that meditation would be more for the mind than the spirituality.

It brings a sense of calm.

But, let me say this. Everything that God creates, the devil comes in and try to warp and confuse. Naturally, even Satanism utilizes meditation. The guy who wrote "Stairway to Heaven" was a Satanist who was fasting and meditating to the destroyer.
But I am talking about meditating unto the Lord Jesus Christ., the true and the living God.

I too believe prayer is a form of meditation and yes Satan can try to distort anything, so we need to be careful that we are focusing on God and be aware of anything that is not of God.

Meditation in itself is certainly not wrong. As others have pointed out, there are quite a few verses about meditating upon the Lord and upon the Word. I would add that meditating is NOT the same as praying, though. Prayer usually goes alongside meditation, but the root for meditation is the same as ruminating, like a cow chewing her cud. When we meditate upon the Word of God, it goes beyond memorizing or just thinking about it. It is a spiritual exercise in which we internalize what God has said. So if we are to grow as Christians, really grow, meditation is actually an important ingredient. We shouldn't be content to just read the scripture, but to make it a part of our very being.

Gary E. bet me to the punch, but as he said the desert fathers and mothers from the fourth century practiced wordless prayer (meditation) which continued on until the 16th century where it slowly declined. In the late 60'-70's (?) father Basil Pennington and two other monks brought back wordless prayer renaming it centering prayer with many remarkable results.

On a personal note; I practice centering prayer. I came to find word prayer to ego centered where as sitting in the silence and the presence of God fulfilling and life changing beyond words.

We are all beckened to Christ in different manners this is mine, it is not for all.

no

Great topic Berf, I absolutely think that prayer is meditation .This is a great site that is very informative avout this subject.:)m

http://www.olivetree.com/learningcenter/articles/meditatingongodsword.php

I don't see why it would be Un-Christian. Suppose I just sat here for a few minutes and meditated on bubble gum. Might be a waste of time, or it might actually be relaxing, but it wouldn't be unChristian unless I was meditating on something evil.

And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming.
Genesis 24:63

I belive in meditation and do it quite often.Just my Lord and me.

I heard someplace that prayer and meditation are 2 sides of the same coin - that prayer is talking to God and meditation is listening to God.

If the act of meditating is done specifically to practice rituals and beliefs of a different religion, like, talk to some other god or some other being, then sure, it's not Christian, but I think meditating, per se, is a general term like "cooking"!

At the church I am currently attending, we offer classes in yoga, holistic healing practices and their relation to Christianity and the like, so I definitely was never brought up to believe that meditation of any kind was "un-Christian." Also, I believe that there are about as many ways to meditate as there are people. Anything, when accompanied by relaxation and deep thought, can be a form of meditation, especially when the person doing it feels that an inner cleansing is present. So "meditation" is really a broad statement there and covers such a vast range of territory (prayer included) it is rather silly to say that meditation in and of itself is un-Christian, especially - as several have pointed out already - that the word and descriptions of figures performing it appear in the Bible so often. Maybe some forms of meditation can be in some schools of thought, but I would need specific examples in order to really see where this un-Christian argument is coming from... and even then I still probably wouldn't see it necessary to deem it against Christian values unless the meditation was based upon something morally wrong or evil.

No I don't think so Berf. I meditate to clear my head and to relax as I have a health problem that will not let me sleep and this helps me relax so that I can. The only thing that I can say is that I never meditate alone, I always ask the Lord to watch over me and he is with me the whole time. I would never attempt it without him as you could be vulnerable to any evil that might be near. I have been a Christian all of my life and I trust the Lord to watch over me. There might be some groups that misuse it, there always is in everything you hear about, but my ancestors have used this method for 100's of years to relax. You see I am part Black Foot Indian on my dad's side. I hope I helped to answer your question a little.

From dictionary.com

med·i·ta·tion /mdten/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[med-i-tey-shuhn] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun 1. the act of meditating.
2. continued or extended thought; reflection; contemplation.
3. transcendental meditation.
4. devout religious contemplation or spiritual introspection.

We must trust and believe that God will protect our minds and our spirits when we meditate on Him and His Word.

Meditation is certainly a very Christian practice. I think it is a deeper communion with God than written prayers. In meditation, we are open, listening for God to speak to us.
Most prayer is not a dialogue and doesn't include listening. Meditation also relaxes us and puts us at peace.

there is more than one kind of meditation. in eastern meditation the object is emptying yourself. in Christian meditation the goal is filling yourself with the presence of God.

Meditation is a name for something that naturally occurs in us when we observe. It is not something we do. If we are doing, we are not meditating.

I think Bethany points this out quite clearly, when she speaks of ceasing to do anything, and just be still. God speaks to us in a very subtle and profoundly relevant "voice". He knows our mind better than we ourselves, he made it.

Prayer is simply a conscious invitation for God to meditate with us.

PS

He answers all such invitations. But can't be heard if you don't shut up.

Not un Christian and not exclusively Christian.

Human.

Meditation has always been a big part of my life, so please pardon me for sharing this long ramble that your article inspired.

I believe that the spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ lives within me; and I've practiced meditation since I was ten.

The protestant churches I was raised in promoted prayer (sometimes referred to as petitioning) and meditation (also referred to as reflection) as two things one does to worship and serve The Lord well.

This opened the door for the ideas of meditation from the spiritual mystics who published, were reported on and who became mirrored on movie and television in the 1960s and '70s, to have their teachings of enlightenment through contemplation to take root in my soul.

Meditation sounded like something Jesus did.

I started then to always start my meditations with prayers for protection and guidance from my God.

Others have already pointed to the use of the word in The Bible, as we know it.

Famous Christian writer-thinkers like Thomas Merton, St. Thomas Aquinas and Brother Lawrence all promoted meditation as an important tool in discerning the true will of God.

Brother Lawrence's writing promotes a form of constant meditation that he refers to as; Practicing The Presence of God.

Norman Vincent Peale was also a popular voice that promoted meditation (conscious relaxation) as a key to internal peace and long life.

One of the main founders of Alcoholics Anonymous claimed to find great spiritual strength and better moral clarity from practicing meitation.

In general society, a familiar, espoused axiom states that: prayer is talking to God, meditation is listening to God.

In scientific terms, meditation is a practice that helps blend the power of spirit (emotion) to the power of mind (awareness) in self-assisting feedback loop, with an increased homogeneousness that stellarly improves acuity and functionality (awareness).

Meditation's biggest danger is that people take their own fears into it with them; which can end up becoming outrageously magnified in the individual mind.

This is why prayer and faith are important components and safeguards to meditation. They give someone something to cling to if things start getting bumpy, seriously rough or veering wildly astray.

Meditation is best practiced with an anchor.

Bill,

I was meditating on the stark differences in how we arrived at what appears to be the same understanding. I was a longtime agnostic, that explored philosophy and many of the arts and sciences, whereby I came upon the thing called "stillness of the mind". There was never the slightest discord with what I eventually learned or practiced as a devout Christian. To be comfortable observing the inner reality without anxiousness was excellent preparation for approaching the Word, it seems.

I believe it is a natural and intentional aspect to the human being. We are designed to walk with God. We are His children.

In prayer I meditate on Jesus.

Where did you hear/read that meditation is un-christian? That's absurd. Like many have already said, meditation is all through the Bible. How can it be un-christian. As a Catholic, we are encouraged to meditate/pray. When someone meditates, one tries to focus on nothing but the one thing. It's an intensely focused prayer. One could consider reciting the Hail Mary over and over a mantra. As long as you think about what your mantra is saying and it helps you focus on prayer, I wouldn't consider it un-Christian.

Seems to be Biblical. Not sure how it could be un-Christian. As with many things, it's how and why we do them that matters.

I would think it would depend on the form of meditation. If you are simply using relaxing techniques, to free your thoughts to commune with God, then it is Christian.
If you are using strict eastern meditation, then I would think perhaps that is slightly un-Christian. The eastern techniques are after all derived from Hinduism and Buddhism, and not the Christian faith.

I went to a Christian seminar on Meditation once and we were shown the proper way to meditate. We were strongly discourage from totally emptying our minds, we should fill them with scripture that we should then meditate on. Since then I do not think that it is wrong if you are truly connecting with God. What I found was that it wasn't for me, my mind is too busy and I couldn't stop thoughts of family and work from interfering.

I'm much more spiritual now that I've been meditating.

no meditation is not un christian at all, or against any other religion. meditation is simply a way to quiet your mind and get in touch with your inner self

I don't think it's wrong!

Quakers use silence as an active meditation.

The modern Quaker writer Arthur O. Roberts outlines the characteristics of this meditative time (in his Devotions on Silence)" as opportunity that:

1. fosters awe before the Almighty;
2. indicates submission to God;
3. provides a posture for worship;
4. provides freedom from noise and distraction;
5. condition for tranquility;
6. sets the stage for prayer;
7. signifies respect for others;
8. renews wonder at the world;
9. provides holy space;
10. prepares for effective social witness.

I believe in mediatation as a form of prayer. It can ease the mind and draw you closer to God at the same time.

We have been participating in Lectio divina, mentioned by Gary above at church with our pastor. In it we read and discuss scripture and then move into contemplative prayer. Sometimes we only practiced contemplative prayer a form of Christian meditation. The idea is to clear your mind completely and LISTEN to God rather than asking for something as we do often when we pray. We always lead up to it and end it with traditional prayer. We did this in 20 minute sessions. I found it to be a very profound and moving experience but was amazed how difficult it was for me to clear my mind and not let life creep in and give myself totally to God alone. I always feel very at peace and closer to God afterward, I highly recommend it. There are several books on the subject.

I always thought praying is a form of meditation. Reading the Bible or Bible study could also be considered meditation.

Meditation is no un-Christian - Centering prayer and similar methods can be a very effective way to be closer to God.
If you like it - each to his or her own.
Sometimes Christians can be very selfrighteous - the Michigan Turtle Island Project - run by two Christian pastors - promotes respect for all religions and interfaith prayer.
After all, there is only one "divine" being aka God - so we are all praying to the same entity.