Pope Benedict when NOT speaking with Magisterial authority, which he is not in this case, is NOT > LilyM. And a third party quoting what he is saying - which may or may not be referring to the exercises as pure exercises - is most assuredly not more authoritative than me!
Yoga has nothing to do with magic or occultism as then Cardinal Ratzinger spoke about.
So, repeating the Jesus Prayer or the Hail Mary’s from the English definition, is a mantra.
I’d be willing to make a largish bet that your Uncle the yogi would say the asanas in and of and by themselves do nothing - that one needs to combine prayer, meditation, breathing exercises and possibly other things with the poses in order for them to have any effect - to break that cycle of death and rebirth.
You have your opinion & Cardinal Ratzinger, now Benedict the 16th has a different one, as is plainly evidenced by his statements.
From his statements his concern is the exposure to eastern ideologies that are so prevalent today.
Just doing physical exercises is good. The Church is not concerned with the exercises.
Cardinal Ratzinger is a traditonalist.
I am ill and may have to go to into the hospital. I am really nauseated but you all need to understand that there is clearly a line. You have to discern what that line is and what is means to cross it.LilyM,
Why don't you find that interview? The name of the person who gave the interview and the date is given.
I have the full interview translated albeit rather poorly; but I get the definite sense of the message that Cardinal Ratzinger is trying to impart. It is the exposure to the ideologies behind yoga.
I can tell you this the Mass Media of the USA censors and edits statements made by top Catholic religious leaders such as the Vatican curia.
Your correct as you are the one in authority who will answer to God; but just remember this ignorance is one of the three sins against faith.
Obama had a great portion of the Catholic vote or rather people who call themselves Catholic because they are only nominally Catholic.
Oh, I practiced yoga and karate for a long time; but I Don't any longer. I took instructions from a student of Gogen Yamaguchi, a Shinto priest. God intervened and I am thankful. There are things not so apparent.No, doing yoga is not demonic. Most people aren’t even aware that yoga has any spiritual element; it’s just exercise. I honestly don’t see any reason to be concerned. If what your yoga instructor tells you bothers you, then ignore her and just do the physical exercises.
Learning interior stillness is very much part of Christianity.
Cardinal Ratzinger, ANY person involved in holy orders and vocations > LilyM / random posters on an internet forum.
Except those things have nothing to do with worship or spiritualityThank you. I thought I was now morally obligated to develop a liking for cats, Mozart and Prada shoes - and just wondering how on earth I was going to find out if His Holiness enjoys football and if so what his favourite team was so that I could become a supporter
That’s like saying pentagrams and ninja hand signs have to do with spirituality. Suffice it say, I have demonstrated how that is not the case. In turn, your camp remains without a substantial response other than blind appeal to authority and base assertion.Except those things have nothing to do with worship or spirituality
Yoga does.
This thread exists because some people are hyper-cautious to the point of near scrupulosity. To those people I say, do not do it. Yoga, as practiced in the West, is stretching and holding - nothing wrong there. Now what is one’s intention, motive, goal? That makes all the difference.