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May 7, 2009, 2:06 GMT
Church brands tai chi devil's work
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Tai Chi – an occultic religion
“Tai Chi Chuan”, or Tai Chi, is based on Taoist religious teachings of Lao Tzu, who wrote “Tao Teh Ching”, a book which is central to Chinese religions like Taoism and Confucianism, as well as Indian Buddhism.
Tai Chi promotes worship of “chi” and “shen” (energy and spirit). , it involves emptying your mind, so as to be filled with these other “energies”, which are really harmful spirits or demons. A Tai Chi scholar, Vincent Chu, says: “when a practitioner achieves a high level of skill and knowledge, it was so because he understood and was able to utilize substances from the Spiritual Reality” (reference below).
Tai Chi is undeniably an occultic practice, invoking unknown spiritual forces to take over one’s body and mind. The Holy Bible prohibits such occultic and pagan practices, especially in verses like Leviticus 19:31, and Deuteronomy 18: 10 – 11, which describe divination, sorcery and wizardry as “abominations” to the Lord.
Christians have both a duty and a right to keep ourselves unpolluted by sin and practices that are anti-God. No church premises should be used for promoting Tai Chi or any other occultic or pagan practices.
Christians are also entitled to freedom of religion without any interference from unbelievers or church opponents. Outsiders should respect the right of any church to regulate what happens on their premises.
I congratulate the Wynyard Baptist Church for taking a stand against pagan superstition and I wholeheartedly stand with them.
NB: The Watchman website article on Taoism says:
“Taoism, Lao-tzu: Chinese philosophy teaching that there is no personal God—all is the impersonal Tao (similar to the impersonal God-force of pantheism in Hinduism). The Tao is composed of conflicting opposites (Yin and Yang) which should be balanced or harmonized through yoga, meditation, etc., to promote spiritual wholeness. According to legend, Taoism founder Lao-tzu wrote Tao Te Ching (“The Way and Its Power”) about 550 BC. His teaching was developed and spread in the third century BC by Chuang-Tzu, whose writings inspired the Tao Tsang, 1200 volumes of Taoist scripture. ”
I would provide links but they are not allowed on this site. Sorry.
Unbelievable Kenneth. This was a group of elderly arthritis sufferers undertaking a specific program developed especially to assist in pain management, and recognised across the world as having extremely beneficial results. That was the only program being conducted. You are as miserable as the Wynyard mob.
i think you don't know nothing about tai chi; and nothing about religion.
' be careful of the false prophets who came to you like....
Tai Chi, _as_practiced_by_most_people, is most certainly not a religion. To assert that it is is to ignore this patently obvious fact. To believe that even the totally secular indulgence in the exercises is to toy with forces that put one at risk for the influence of malevolent minor deities is silly superstition. That's OK though. I've heard much sillier notions espoused by well-meaning xtians, and even those are harmless enough, in and of themselves. If the silly people would just do as this congregation has done, and only extend their silliness to their own organization, the world would be a far, far better place. It's sad that they're being run off by the fools, but good xtians who want to practice Tai Chi have many other churches to choose from.
I am a Christian, but I am not only a Christian; I am a practicing hard core bible thumper, and I do TaiChi on a regular basis. I do TaiChi because I am 40 years old with massive arthritis due from a car accident in 1990. The doctors had me on so many pills it wasn’t even funny, so what the Church is saying is; they would rather have me on massive potentially addictive pain pills; than to do a exercise proven to help arthritis suffers? We can literally date back the Olympics from the book of Philippians, and if one does a study on this area one would find out how barbaric those exercising test of men were. TaiChi with the right vitamins is how the Lord uses to heal my body. Yes, I believe 100 % that Jesus can heal my physical body in an instant, and I pray for this, but until He answers my prayer; He is using TaiChi; along with my biblical studies, praying, fasting and so forth.
Christ came to set the captives free; so if this is true which it is; then why does the Church put upon His followers more bondage? He came to set me free from bondage and He wants me and you to live, so why in the world would I or anyone stop doing what they enjoy, because the Church says so?
The Greek word for exercise is gumnavzw, to mean; “to exercise vigorously, in any way, either the body or the mind.” Now, I got this translation from my King James Version Greek lexicon Thayer's and Smith's Bible Dictionary.
Dear blinded friend,
'To know the unknowable, that is elevating.
Not to know the knowable, that is sickness.'
Tao Te Ching (71)
There is more wisdom around the World, than the Bible.
Which by the way doesn't say much, which has not been said before.
Tai Chi maniac.
There are different levels of intellectual and spiritual development and different systems and traditions appeal to them based on these levels.
So, people who are at relatively more base levels of development will do well with the system that the institution (which has banned Tai Chi) propagates. The more enlightened souls will practice Tai Chi and Yoga, Meditation, etc.
The problem with dogmatic systems (unlike Tai Chi, Yoga etc) is that they blindfold the practitioner into thinking they are exclusive in their truth claims and that only they have the proverbial key to the kingdom.
Only those who practice Tai Chi will know the power and benefits of this excellent health (physical, mental and spiritual) management system. Those who don't will have to be satisfied by merely 'Banning' it.
Tai chi may have some christians in an uproar because tai chi is an internal martial art with a taoist philosophy. christians are on earth tapping their foot waiting for the end times, taoists are living for the here and now. Taoist are moral and good because we want to see our neighbors smile, christians are good because they want a reward. We want to be one with the earth, they want to pave it and build a church. Christians are anti-intelectual and pro-government. taoist tend to over-think everything and think rules are liquid not made of stone. I teach tai chi in the bible belt of alabama. Christians can ban tai chi but their congregation may sneak off to do tai chi. That works for me. For those christians who are very taoist in mind, any gnostics out there? I apologize for my gerneralizations.
This is indeed a terrible blemish on the teachings of Jesus and just goes to show you how lost the 'teachers' of Christianity are today. Jesus said very clearly that only those with 'ears to hear' will 'hear' and very few acclaimed Christian churches today have the necessary 'ears to hear'. How very unfortunate for the masses following these misguided leaders for this is literally the blind leading the blind. There always has been and always will be One Truth. Lao-tse reluctantly espoused it in his famous work, Tao Te Ching, before he left China, and then Chuang-tse spread this Truth two hundred years later. This Truth was subsequently turned into the religion, Taoism. Buddha came shortly after Lao-tse and taught this One Truth which later became a religion, Buddhism. Jesus of Nazareth came along about five hundred years after Lao-tse and taught this One Truth which subsequently became the religion, Christianity. Many others have understood and taught this One Truth throughout the history of mankind and many times they, too, were turned into some form of religion. The point should be evident to all. All religions are Egoistic interpretations of this One Truth by individuals or groups of individuals who do not have the 'ears to hear'! They do not have a clue and can not understand this timeless One Truth at all. This is why there are so many different religions each claiming to be the 'One Truth' and these Egocentric ideals have been the greatest cause for the massive amount of killing, torture, abuse, hatred, and destruction by humans throughout all of mankind's history. This display of unbelievable ignorance is just one more prime example of how utterly lost these 'Christians' are today. Wake up people before you destroy everything!!
Chi is not a mystical or occult power. Chi is created by combining water, air, and food. We convert it into energy that is used to power our muscles and nerves. This energy is common in all things. Qigong and Tai Chi Ch'uan are methods of guiding your breath, which guides the blood flow, which guides the energy flow. Since we use our blood stream to move nutrients around, this is not far-fetched mysticism... it's a metaphorical representation of what actually happens. If you want proof, feel your pulse, breath in and out. You will notice your heart rate change with your breath. This is how energy work is done.
The Taoists said that all matter and energy are the same thing, which science proved with a nuclear explosion. Taoism is not a proclamation of what is, but a call for people to recognize what is and live in harmony with it. It is a way to harmonize with His Creation, a way to maximize your spiritual potential in His Service. Especially if you're Gnostic Christian, Taoism can be a great philosophical extension of your spiritual belief, because it also teaches that Creation is sacred, and the sacred is immanent. Most forms of Christianity and most forms of Taoism are not mutually exclusive, because they deal with different things. Some orthodox forms of either make such a fusion impossible. However, since both Jesus and Lao Tzu taught moderation, I don't believe much good can come from any form of fundamentalism or extremism.
Buddhism is based on the belief life is suffer and caused by desire, so the goal in life is to release all desire, thusly life. Taoism is diametrically opposed, because it is focused on being, through form and formlessness. You can see this philosophically applied when comparing Buddhist martial arts, which are typically 'hard' (focused on dealing damage), and Taoist martial arts, which are typically 'soft', designed to turn away and redirect force and preserve life. However, Shaolin Buddhist Monks and Neigong practitioners are historically linked in exchanging ideas in martial arts, and some philosophy. However, the core beliefs remain different.
The Bible also says don't judge only love.
I was baptized in the holy spirit on 06/05/2008 in a hospital room I was saved by his amazing grace and after being baptized or very strong medication I spoke with many people real or imagined never learning Tai chi before I was taught that night and I believe it was from God for if it wasn't I would of felt the pressence of evil. He told me amazing things things I never heard of before about how religions cause divisions that if we believe in Christ and are Christians and there is only one God called by many names then denomiation should not mean a thing. whether baptist lutherian catholic we are all one under God. buddha was a teacher jesus christ the real resurection. People make divisions and stereo types not God he luved us so much that he sent his only son to die for our sins not just mine but yours to. its like seperating by race we are of on race the human race. it doesn't matter if baptized in a river dunked all the way or sprinkled on the for head as long as your baptized in his holy name. its not the religions that cause divisions but the people of religions arguing over whos better when the end comes all that is going to matter is good or evil what is inside of you. working out or prepairng your temple is aceptable and holy so tai chi i don't think is evil Tai chi never caused starvation it builds inner strength which is better than outter appearance. because we are judged on that also. So quit judging and start loving.
This is just like some Christians to judge without knowing with their almightier than thought attitude. To know Christ is not to turn people away for Christ. We are to draw people to Christ and show them the strength of what it is to believe in God and be true Christians. I would check this churches creadentals. Sounds to me this smells of evil to turn people away from Christian churches is wrong. To the Light not away.
Its like the church turnig a homeless person away these are Gods people who really need help so they dont have much for tithes $1.00 is alot to him. There it is Money being the route. Love is the answer
As someone who has practice Taiji for many years, I can assure all of you that Taiji is fundamentally beneficial to the human body and mind. As for the spiritual aspects of Taiji, I believe the force known as Qi/Chi is a physical entity that exists within the body and is controlled through practice by the mind. The spirituality of Christianity is somewhat different; I believe the spirituality of being 'Christ Like' is controlled by not only our mind, but by our heart. I conclude, there is no contradiction between practicing Taiji for health and well being as suggested by bible and practicing Christianity.
from the USA: I am to the point where I don't care about what 'any'
Fundamentalist says about anything or thinks about anything.
Practice tjj if you want
to, and find another church.
Fumdamentalists have dominated American religion and politics since 1980,
and I would just as soon let them do what they want as long as I do not have to hear them.
The fact that Pastor Whatever thinks that tjj is Buddhist (not Taoist!)
show that he is willingfully ignorant- all other traditions send you to hell, and that's all you need to know about any of them.
Willful ignorance. Today in the US, southern fundamentalists are trying to destroy Obama's health care initiative, even those most of them are the working poor and need insurance security.
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