I think it’s important to distinguish what is “fear” and what it “prudence”.
And what is “syncretism”.
Avoiding the teachings, rituals and practices of another religion isn’t always out of fear, it may be out of prudence. We do pick up things from people we hang out with, from things we hear etc. We can’t and do not need to avoid all contact with others and differing beliefs, but it may be prudent to refrain from participating in activities that are connected with other faiths.
Hearing how yoga, tantric healing, etc totally revitalized the life of someone we like and respect may indeed lure us to not only the particular body position, but lead us toward openess to other modes of spiritual practice etc etc. And many of those practices ARE efficatious and do lead to spiritual experiences etc…but also lead one away from the practices of the Catholic faith.
There is a difference between “fearing” yoga (since that is the example being used) and avoiding it out of prudence. We know as humans that we have that vulnerability. Refraining from taking part in those things can be an act of humility, obedience, and even an opportunity for spiritual growth by committing on a deeper level to immerse oneself in the practices of the Catholic faith.
Some may be able to do yoga, guided meditations, and attend a Course in Miracles class and still be totally faithful to the Church and be able to pick and choose from those other things only that which is unchallenging to their faith. They may be able to boldly go where no angel dares to tread. I believe there are Saints who have done just that. But not all have that gift, or calling.
And syncretism is very easy to fall into. “Oh, I don’t believe that nonsense…I’m just cherry picking the good stuff, no problem at all” but the practices, music, talk we hear begins to sink in. Hey, we can be faithful to Christ and have some pretty crystals on the windowsill, and take a bath with certain essential oils believed to open the fourth Chakra…because we only use them because they smell nice. And wow, the sound of the singing bowl is so relaxing…
God warns repeatedly in the Old Testament of adopting pratices of pagans, syncretism can be insidious. One doesn’t even realize, or doesn’t believe it is happening. They don’t recognize their own practices and reasoning to have anything to do with syncretism. They believe they are incapable of falling into such.
I say this because I have seen it happen many many times to those around me. “Hey, you know, I never thought I’d like this but I tried it because a friend recommended it to me and it makes SO much sense, and I feel so good after I do it, so I got a few books about it from the library…”
In older times, religion and culture were one and the same. Foods, festivals, practices etc were all part of a whole. These days it seems less that way, and so we think that we can always clearly delineate what is “faith” or religion based, and what is “everything else”, but many of those practices stem from a time and culture where there was no “everything else”, and some things can’t be teased apart into “spiritual” and “not spiritual”.
Some people are very aware of this and make intentional efforts to maintain their culture and this often includes faith practices, because those ARE culture.
It is good to respect the cultures of others. It is good to respect our own culture as well, and one way of doing that can be to stay true to it’s own practices and refrain from those of other cultures.
During Seder the story of the original Passover is shared. This is what we do, and this is why.
When I was growing up, the Polish culture was shared. The Christmas customs were explained, this is what we do, and this is why. No other culture was despised, we simply did what we did.
Same with Catholicism, when I was growing up, it wasn’t our religion, it was our way of life. This is what we do, and this is why. Others have their things, that lead to their own conclusions. But this is what WE do, and this is why.
When I would ask, “but why don’t we do THEIR thing” the answer was “Because we have this beautiful thing that has been passed down to us and we have the responsibility and grace to maintain it, benefit from it and pass it to others”
