Contemplative Mennonite Retreats
In May 2004 a retreat for pastors in the BC MB Conference (Mennonite Brethren of British Columbia, Canada) took place at Silver Star Mountain Resort. It was a prayer retreat for pastors and their spouses, focusing on spiritual direction (www.bcmb.org/bclinks/feb04.doc).
Pastors and spouses meet
June 11, 2004
http://www.mbherald.com/43/08/news-2.en.htmlExperiencing quiet time of affirmation
The B.C. Pastors and Spouses’ retreat, which followed the B.C. MB convention, was held at Silver Star resort near Vernon. B.C., a beautiful venue with breathtaking views of God’s creation. The speakers were brothers Steve and Jeff Imbach, spiritual directors. They educated us on what spiritual direction is – ”listening and attending to God and His ways for us, and being affirmed in who we are and how God sees us” – and what it isn’t – ”telling people what to do,” “the latest fad” or “cure-all.” They also said, “It’s a simple gift of offering to another gentle but tenacious encouragement to open fully to Jesus’ loving presence, and to co-discern the action of the Holy Spirit.”
…The Imbachs introduced the practice of imaginative or contemplative prayer originated by St Ignatius. “Scripture begs for the use of imagination,” they said. We also experienced the quiet beauty of a Taize service.
The leaders of this retreat were Steve and Jeff Imbach, the founders of a contemplative organization called Soulstream, where they draw heavily from the teachings of Thomas Merton.
ROM would like to remind readers that it was Thomas Merton who said the following:
“I’m deeply impregnated with Sufism.’” Thomas Merton, from The Springs of Contemplation, p. 266
“I see no contradiction between Buddhism and Christianity … I intend to become as good a Buddhist as I can.”
(David Steindl-Rast, “Recollection of Thomas Merton’s Last Days in the West” (Monastic Studies, 7:10, 1969)
The Imbachs have also been involved with the Thomas Merton Society of Canada (see speaking list here) as well as the Henri Nouwen society in Canada(see here). In fact, Jeff Imbach is the president:
Jeff Imbach, MDiv, is the current president of The Henri Nouwen society in Canada. He lived in Calgary for many years and is the author of two books: The Recovery of Love: Christian Mysticism and the Addictive Society and the award winning book, The River Within: Loving God, Living Passionately. Jeff has been in pastoral ministry and spiritual direction for more than twenty years…
-http://www.spiritualdirections.com/WhoAreWe.html
It was Henri Nouwen who said:
“Today I personally believe that while Jesus came to open the door to God’s house, all human beings can walk through that door, whether they know about Jesus or not. Today I see it as my call to help every person claim his or her own way to God.”
—From Sabbatical Journey, Henri Nouwen’s last book
page 51, 1998 Hardcover Edition
-http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/nouwen.htm
Jeff Imbach also teaches a distance education course called NOU: A Theology of the Heart: The Life and Writings of Henri Nouwen at St. Francis Xavier University, a Diploma in Ministry Program which offers tradition studies based on Catholic theology.
In spite of their background in Catholic contemplative mystical tradition and Jesuit spirituality, the MB Conference thought it wise to invite Steve and Jeff Imbach to teach their pastors, even though they should have know better. The Imbachs had already been facilitators of the November 2003 contemplative prayer retreat for Mennonite Brethren worship leaders and youth workers. During that weekend the Imbachs introduced these leaders to various forms of Catholic prayer and contemplation, both new and ancient, such as encountering God through a Byzantine painting of Jesus and Mary and using their imaginations for Bible readings.
Read about this retreat here:
Come Away: Worship leaders and youth workers meet for contemplative prayer retreat
http://www.mbherald.com/43/01/comeaway.en.html
It should not be surprising when we see things like silent retreat centers, spiritual direction and contemplative prayer becoming so prevalent among Mennonite Brethren churches in the last few years. Sadly, the leaders who have been trained in spiritual formation and have accepted it (they do have a choice) are simply promoting to their congregations what they’ve been taught.
Beneficial reading:
The Evangelical Attraction to Mysticism (Berean Beacon)
ROM Index: High
“Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.” James 3:1
It sounds like the people that died for our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word only as a beacon of Truth and Light to our souls have been forgotten by our last days Mennonite Churches. Menno Simons, whom our dear older Mennonite Churches were named after, used to be a Catholic priest and CAME OUT of that Babylonian Pagan Church. Man-made laws and traditions and things we don’t need to do to have a wonderfully fulfilling life in Jesus Christ are not in the Bible. There is NO Purgatory in the Bible and other man-made traditions. We don’t believe that the Pope is Christ Jesus or the Holy Spirit on earth as the Roman Catholic church does, and there are so many other differences! So then, why would be invite people from a pagan church to the Mennonite Retreats?! Its sounds like we have taken into our bosom of the Mennonite church people that don’t belong there. People that have not been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and are not capable of telling born-again believers how to walk with The Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Jesus did our work of salvation on the Cross of Calvary and shed His precious blood for our sins! He rose again to give us His life when we ask Him for forgiveness and to come into our lives to live. There is no room or need for some weird, esoteric new age type of mind control or strange “wisdom” that is being taught in these retreats or in the church. Why are people interested in the “something more” than God’s Pure Word and Wisdom that can only come from Him? Be very careful people for the deceiver is like a roaring lion ready to pounce and that means he has already pounced and is upon you before you know it. Wake up and look what is happening to your church! Get the Jesuits out of your church, and from your Christian colleges and seminaries and wake up!!! You think they seem wise but they are great at manipulation and deception. That is what they are trained to do… to destroy evangelical churches! Please wake up and learn and get out of your lulling sleep of apathy!
Here is an interesting website:
http://www.arcticbeacon.com/confessions/18-Nov-2006.html
[...] all the promotion of mysticism and contemplative spirituality within Mennonite circles lately (see Contemplative Mennonite Retreats), the information in the following important and revealing article about Thomas Merton is something [...]
[...] MB Conference promoting contemplative retreats, contemplative spirituality and centering prayer: http://rollovermenno.wordpress.com/2008/03/28/contemplative-mennonite-retreats/ http://rollovermenno.wordpress.com/2007/12/19/silently-retreating-mennonites/ [...]