21 October 2019, The Tablet
Bishop bans yoga for being 'unchristian'
Catholic schools under the
patronage of the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore have been told by
their bishop not to do yoga in the classroom because it is not
Christian.
In a letter to schools sent on 10th October, Bishop Phonsie Cullinan
said yoga was not suitable for a parish school setting, “especially not
during religious education time”.
Explaining to school staff that he had been asked by several people
to speak about yoga and mindfulness, the bishop indicated that schools
need to incorporate Christian mindfulness which he said was “not
mindlessness but is meditation based on Christ”.
Elsewhere in his letter, Dr Cullinan reminded staff that October is
the “month of the Rosary” and he encouraged principals and teachers to
pray the Rosary and help children to spend time with Jesus in adoration
or in quiet meditation in the classroom.
The Bishop also referred to a homily given by Pope Francis in 2015 in
which he said: “Practices like yoga are not capable of opening our
hearts up to God.”
The Pope continued: “You can take a million courses in spirituality, a
million courses in yoga, Zen and all these things but all of this will
never be able to give you freedom.”
Bishop Cullinan said the Pope’s views were “very much in accordance with the spirit” of the new RE programme, "Grow in Love".
Bishop Cullinan recently announced that his diocese would be setting up a deliverance ministry.
His decision follows warnings by Irish exorcist Fr Pat Collins who said Ireland was facing a “tsunami of evil”.
Writing in the November issue of Intercom magazine, which is
published by the Catholic Bishops, Fr Collins, who has been ordained for
48 years, says there has been “an exponential growth in requests” for
deliverance ministry to deal with demonic activity.
“There is objective statistical evidence in all Western countries
that there is a growing need for this kind of ministry,” he says.
Warning of the trend in post truth spirituality to be syncretistic,
Fr Collins criticises the tendency to mix beliefs from non-Christian and
Christian sources and warns that many “spiritual pilgrims” are getting
involved in things like yoga, reiki, witchcraft, fortune telling,
kundalini, channelling and consulting mediums.
By getting involved in occult practices and using things like a Ouija
board or tarot cards in a misguided effort to contact the world of
spirits or to gain control of their futures, Fr Collins warns people are
unwittingly “opening themselves to the influence of the devil”.
https://www.thetablet.co.uk/news/12140/bishop-bans-yoga-for-being-unchristian-
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