Roll Over Menno

Mennonite Church Canada promotes a university on their leadership links page called Conrad Grebel University College. CGUC was started in 1961 by Ontario Mennonite leaders who saw that young Mennonite adults were attending secular universities for courses not available at traditional Mennonite colleges or Bible schools. Today, while they are joined with a secular university, their mission to teach Christian values has not changed:

“Conrad Grebel University College is a Christian educational institution informed by the vision and values of the Mennonite tradition and dedicated to serving students, the university community, the church, and society”… Conrad Grebel University College serves the Mennonite Church by sustaining a Christian community and providing instruction that reflect the perspectives of the Mennonite community on the University campus. The College is a centre for the preservation and interpretation of the Mennonite heritage.” -grebel.uwaterloo.ca

However, if you look at the Calendar of Events on the Conrad Grebel University College website and click on June 24 – 25, 2008 you will see this:

Spiritual Practices for Conflict Resolution (Waterloo)
Where: Conrad Grebel University College
Description: This 14-hour, 2-day workshop introduces you to 4 different faith perspectives on personal spiritual practices. You will gain insight into the sacred avenues to inner peace offered through Buddhism, Judaism, Islam and Christianity. You will have the opportunity to explore how the elements of silence, postures, words, signs, movement, symbols, gestures and sound can help you bring harmony to mind, body and spirit. Each of these traditions will assist you in learning more about your own journey through conflict and peace in your daily life. For more information see here:

SPIRITUAL PRACTICES FOR CONFLICT RESOLUTION
http://grebel.uwaterloo.ca/certificate/courses/spcr.shtml

Day 1 of this workshop teaches Buddhist Spiritual Practices and Judaism. Day 2 is Muslim Spiritual Practices (meditation, readings etc.) and the following Christian Spiritual Practices:

• Breathe Prayer: The Jesus Prayer
• Breathe Prayer in the Heart
• Candle Meditation
• Consciousness Examen
• A Short Guide to Lectio Divina
• Unclutter Your Time
• Rule of Iona Community

Has Conrad Grebel University forgotten their mission statement? Is this the kind of “instruction that reflect the perspectives of the Mennonite community on the University campus”? If their founders are still alive today, do they know what is being offered at the school they founded on Christian principles? Or are they rolling over in their graves too?

ROM Index: High

PLEASE NOTE: For those who are not familiar with the terms used for these so called Christian spiritual practices, see the following links:

Breathe Prayer: The Jesus Prayer:

Do You Pray the ‘Jesus Prayer?’ (’youtube’ video biblical expose)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVb1JVbpKAc&feature=related

Breathe Prayer in the Heart:

This is a description of Breath Prayer:
http://www.christiansoulcare.com/spiritualdiscipline/spiritualdisciplinebreathprayers.htm

This is a warning about Breath Prayer:
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/breathprayer.htm

Candle Meditation:

Candle Meditation
http://www.project-meditation.org/a_mt2/candle_meditation.html

Lectio Divina:

What is Lectio Divina?
http://www.gotquestions.org/lectio-divina.html

Rule of Iona Community:

Iona website:
http://www.iona.org.uk/iona_community.php

Contemplative Terms:
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/contemplativeterms.htm

Dangers of interspiritulaity:
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/interspirituality.htm

Christians colleges that promote contemplative spirituality:
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/Colleges.htm

This is also a very good article:

Contemplative Prayer
Seducing Spirits and a Doctrine of Devils
By Christine A. Narloch
http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/006/contemplative-narloch.htm