Labyrinths?

[Deus_tecum]

There are Christian labyrinths and non-Christian labyrinths.

The Passionists in Connecticut have a Christian Labrynth and other monasteries have them, which are used for prayer and meditation.

Just because New Agers use something out of Christianity or paganism, doesn’t make it automatically evil.

New Agers, use Rosary beads too. Should we give up praying the Rosary based on this ?

Heck, in Buddhism, which goes back before Christianity, use Rosary beads.

It’s how these things are used which makes the difference between Christianity and non-Christian practices.

Jim

I was going to say something similar. Catholics have meditated for centuries, but once it was learned that Buddhists and New Agers also meditate, all meditation was panned as either “eastern religion”, or “new age”. By that logic we should stop eating breakfast because Hitler used to eat breakfast so eating breakfast is fascist.

 

[fide]

I was going to say something similar. Catholics have meditated for centuries, but once it was learned that Buddhists and New Agers also meditate, all meditation was panned as either “eastern religion”, or “new age”. By that logic we should stop eating breakfast because Hitler used to eat breakfast so eating breakfast is fascist.

Dt, there is a radical difference between the “new age” and Eastern-religion meanings of “meditation”, and the traditional Christian meaning of the word. The new-age and Eastern methods and techniques and meanings are opposite to the traditional Catholic/Christian methods and meanings.

New-Age/Eastern-Religion “meditation” - empty your mind.

Catholic/Christian meditation - an intentional application of the mind to revealed Truth, in order to better know the Truth, in order to better to love the Truth, in order to better to live the Truth.

Here is a definition from Fr. Jordan Aumann, O.P. from his good book Spiritual Theology which is available on-line:

Meditation - Discursive meditation can be defined as a reasoned application of the mind to some supernatural truth in order to penetrate its meaning, love it, and carry it into practice with the assistance of grace. The distinguishing note of meditation is that it is a discursive type of prayer, and therefore attention is absolutely indispensable.

As soon as we cease to reason or discourse, we cease to meditate. We may háve given way to distraction, deliberately turned our mind to something else, or passed on to affective prayer or contemplation, but without discursus there is no meditation.

note: “discursive” means “reasoned.” The application of reason - critical thinking and reasoning - is essential to Christian meditation. To the contrary, to new-age and Eastern-religion “meditation,” the use of reason is anathema. Such reason is the enemy to them. They seek an empty mind, whereas a Christian seeks a mind formed and permeated by holy Truth.

 

[Godric2]

In essence labyrinths seem to me to be about pausing, reflecting and allowing walking with concentration to help one pray.

Used in this way I see nothing to worry about. People have found them helpful in one way or another for centuries and are today. Some others dont care for them.

Solvitur Ambulado – It is solved by walking