A question that is sometimes raised for those beginning to explore Christian Mindfulness is whether it is a doorway to more eastern, new age, Buddhist or Hindu forms of meditation. I want to provide a definitive answer to this important question. Regarding this website and the teachings I offer on this website - the answer is no. All of the teachings and meditation practices on this website are based on a Christian and biblical worldview. All of the teachings and practices have been submitted to the final authority of the Bible and the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
What about the practices that are similar to Buddhist, Hindu or secular practices?
For me the most important question to consider is the intention and purpose of the practice - what is the goal? This takes careful thinking through. For Christian Mindfulness to be fully Christian then it must be entirely compatible with the Bible and the rule and reign of Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Saviour. The act of focussing attention on the breath or the body is not in itself attached to one religion and is common in all of the main world religions. All of the world religions, including Christianity, have used attention to body and breath as a way of focussing attention in the present moment. The most important question is - For what purpose? For eastern forms of meditation the goal may be contacting the spirit world and even worshipping an idol. This is incompatible with Christian mindfulness. The only spirit with which Christians are to commune with is God himself who is revealed in Scripture as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. So Christian mindfulness, as taught on this website rejects any worship or contact with any spirits other than worship and relationship with the God of the Bible himself. This is in keeping with the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20:3-5. “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them." The posture of the heart during Christian mindfulness involves submission and surrender to the Lord Jesus Christ and acceptance of the final authority of the Bible. Under the protection of the blood of Christ we can commune with God knowing that our sins are forgiven and the devil (our enemy) cannot touch us.
It's also worth stating here that Christian mindfulness practices (meditation practices) although having some similarities to secular or Buddhist mindfulness, are not rooted in an atheistic or Buddhist worldview. They are rooted in Scripture and the Christian monastic and contemplative traditions. These developed separately from Buddhism and have existed long before "secular mindfulness" existed, so it is quite inaccurate and misleading to conflate the roots of Christian mindfulness with Buddhism or an atheistic worldview.
See the Table below for a more detailed comparison of Christian mindfulness v Buddhist Mindfulness
Director of Christian Mindfulness
