Who is Teaching the Lambs?
Speaking of Mennonites promoting ancient practices…how about this one.
Mike Perschon, part-time associate pastor of Holyrood Mennonite Church in Edmonton, AB, Canada, has some good advice about how the church needs to go about reaching its youth and the generations to come (here). Unfortunately, he says that Bible study is not one of those ways. Instead, he recommends ancient spirituality such as deep breathing, Lectio Divina, prayer labyrinths (see here), and spiritual disciplines, mystics, drum circles, and the “thin place” (here).
In the Dec. 3rd issue of Youth Worker was an article called Disciplines, Mystics, and the Contemplative Life by Mike Perschon in which he said:
“I built myself a prayer room, a tiny sanctuary in a basement closet filled with books on spiritual disciplines, contemplative prayer, and Christian mysticism. In that space I lit candles, burned incense, hung rosaries, and listened to tapes of Benedictine monks. I meditated for hours on words, images, and sounds. I reached the point of being able to achieve alpha brain patterns…”
- The Issue of other Religious Practices as Worship in the Church
(http://www.letusreason.org/current74.htm)
The promotion of these contemplative practices (the names of which Mike Perschon calls “inside language”) in church youth groups is nothing new. While it is concerning that a part time pastor has no problem teaching contemplative spirituality to youth, there is something even more disturbing that he is okay with. In an article at The Ooze called ‘A visit to “Where Faeries Live’, Mike Perschon tells about his visit to have his tarot card reading:
“Finding a place to engage the “community of faith” with Wicca was a near impossible task, but one which I was determined to succeed in. As a young teen, I was fascinated by the concept of white magic, but being that it was the early 1980’s and preceded the greater acceptance Wicca has found in the late 1990’s and early 21st century, there was little information on the subject. It remained but a curiosity even after I became a Christian in 1985. As a young adult, I believed I sensed the call of God to minister to people caught up in the New Age movement and began to research the movement, but not as Evangelical Christians classically look at things they believe to be ‘deceptions of Satan’ or simply ‘cults’. This approach assumes the utter deprivation of the people involved in the movement, and that their beliefs have no value to us. At best, Evangelical Christians will tip their hat to the fervor with which Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses seek to proselytize, going door to door. But to actually admit that there would be something we could learn from the New Age movement, or worse yet, Wicca with its witches and pentagrams, would be heretical….”
After his (very descriptive) visit to a witch where he had a Tarot card reading done and his fortune told, his time was up…
“Our time up, we said our goodbyes and I thanked her deeply for her time and the experience. On my way out I stopped to buy some Sandalwood Incense and talk with Dorothy. She indicated interest again in how my Christian community would react to me having gone to a witch for a Tarot reading. We talked at length about tolerance and openness in the area of faith, and then I left.
As I sit, contemplating events only hours old, I am at a loss for what to think. I prayed extensively before and during my visit, and believe I have a sensitivity to demonic activity, none of which I sensed. And yet, there is a part of me, the part trained in Bible School and then Seminary, to think of this as ‘of the devil.’ This part isn’t getting much of a hearing though.
I do not understand everything in the universe. I do not know how ESP or telekinesis works. I have never seen an angel, or for that matter a devil. So as a seeker of God’s face, I can only say that I believe that tonight I participated in a numinous event where I connected with something Divine and was enlarged for the experience.
As I was working on this paper, a friend I went to Bible School with in the early 90’s was on MSN chat. When I told him of my experience, he asked, “Why can’t I go to a pastor and have him be that insightful into my life?” My reply was, simply, “I guess we have some things to learn from these people.””
-A visit to “Where Faeries Live, The Ooze, September 1, 2003
(http://www.theooze.com/articles/article.cfm?id=621)
As Christians, the Bible is clear that we are to stay far away from the ancient practice of witchcraft. But even when given the opportunity, instead of sharing the gospel, Mike Perschon mistakenly thought he could connect and learn from these witches.
What are we to think of a part time Mennonite church youth worker/worship leader who speaks at youth camps and retreats, writes articles for Youth Specialties, meditates to change his alpha brain patterns, and visits nice friendly witches on the side to experience something Divine? What does this tell us about the discernment of Youth Specialties, the major distributor of materials to church youth leaders, who carries Mike Perschon’s articles?
Who is teaching the lambs? Could there be a better sheeps clothing costume for a wolf to wear? Meanwhile, the Mennonite Brethren Conference is promoting the Canadian Youth Worker’s Conference which is put on by Youth Specialties (see here).
Whether Menno is rolling over in his grave or not over this one is irrelevant.
Lord have mercy.
Some recommended reading pertaining to this topic might be:
“Pragmatic Evangelicalism” Has Peaked
by Orrel Steinkamp
http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/orrel26.html
What is Wicca?
http://www.carm.org/wicca.htm
What Does the Bible say about Wicca?
http://www.carm.org/wicca/bible.htm
What Do Witches Believe?
http://johnankerberg.com/hp-articles/hp-believe.htm
Youth Specialties:
Promoting Mysticism and Interspirituality
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/youthspecialties.htm
Christian Colleges That Promote Contemplative
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/Colleges.htm
