Reiki and the New Age Conscience

By Dennis Edwards:

I want to touch on the subject of the New Age Religions including Reiki.

One of the first promoters of New Age Religion was none other than Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi was well versed in the New Testament and quoted often from the words of Jesus. In his mixture of Hinduism and Christian thought, he developed his idea of political non-violence encouraging his followers to not offer physical resistance to government abuse, but to maintain a non-violent position. Quoting from the Sermon on the Mount, he said, “Resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” When asked if he admired Jesus Christ so much, why did he not become a Christian? He said he would become a Christian if he ever met a real follower of the words of Christ. Henry Thoreau, the famous American skeptic and naturalist, wrote something similar, “Ever stoic was a stoic, but where in Christendom is the Christian?”

The mixture of Christianity with eastern religions became quite popular in the 1960s. The Beatles trip to India, leading to George Harrison’s conversion to Transcendental Meditation, resulted in the Beatles influencing their generation with Eastern ideas. Their songs “Come Together” with the words “you are me and I am you, and we are one,” and “My Sweet Lord” both promoted eastern religious concepts. The Christian west enjoyed “My Sweet Lord” thinking it was dedicated to Jesus Christ. In reality it was song to Lord Krishna and incorporated the words Hari-Krishna. The words later became a familiar sound by the Hari Krishnas who were known for their continual chanting as they walked through the streets and parks looking for new converts. In fact the Krishnas were expected to chant Hari-Krishna at least two hours a day in a way of connecting with the Hindu God Krishna.

We need to understand that the eastern idea of reality, their world view, is totally contrary to the western Christian idea. In the eastern world view, man is captured by his karma in a continual cycle of death and rebirth. Man is doomed to be born again and suffer another life if he cannot improve his karma. Only by connecting with the universal life force or energy can man overcome his bad karma and be released back into the cosmic energy and find his “salvation.”This is usually accomplished through the help of a guru or spiritual guide. One’s ultimate salvation is in the re-uniting with the universal energy or spirit with the complete death of self. You have no personal entity in the eastern world view of salvation or nirvana, but rather the reuniting of your spirit-energy with the great spirit-energy of the universe. Therefore, everything becomes God or part of God, you, me, the trees, the animals- everything is God. The eastern world view also has no concept of sin. Man is born in ignorance and has to be illuminated. Those who have been enlightened and overcome karma are the gurus who teach others how they too can overcome their karma.

In the Judaea-Christian world view, man was made by God in a perfect state and had perfect fellowship with God. Man fell from that state through disobedience to God having been deceived by Satan, the fallen angel. God promised a way of salvation and re-connection with Him. His promised Redeemer would defeat Satan and restore man’s broken relationship with Him. God later chose Abraham as the father of faith to whom he passed his laws and commandments. God knew Abraham would faithfully teach his children after him. “For I know him (Abraham) that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he has spoken of him.”(Genesis 18:19)

As a result we have the Old Testament with hundreds of specific prophecies foretelling of the life of the Redeemer who was to come. The prophecies were fulfilled in Christ and who Paul rightly explains is the way of salvation. In the Judaea-Christian worldview of death we are given once to die, but after that the judgment. There is no continual cycle of birth-death and rebirth. One does not lose his identity in death but faces judgment and punishment or reward. Only through the accepting of God’s own sacrifice for sin, by His coming into the world and dying for man’s sin on the cross, can death be defeated and the way of salvation found. Salvation is a gift of God offered to us by God’s own sacrificial death on the cross. Satan and death are defeated and the way of salvation is offered to as many as will receive it."But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name."(John 1:12)

But in today’s New Age generation we find man rejecting Christ’s claim as the Redeemer. He rather accepts Christ merely as an enlighten one like the Buddha, Mohammed, or Confucius. Christ did not really rise from the dead. Christianity becomes one of the ways of salvation and Jesus a mid-eastern guru showing a path to salvation, a path similar to any of the other paths found in the other religions. Jesus becomes a great moral or spiritual leader or guru and nothing more. Salvation can then be found within many of the differing religious faiths or philosophies.

However, commenting upon the above idea, C.S. Lewis said the following: “I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”

When Jesus’ disciples asked him what would be the sign of his coming and of the end of the world Jesus answered and said, “Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.” (Matthew 24:4,5) A few breaths later he repeats himself and says, “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.” (Matthew 24:11) And then a little later when talking of the Great Tribulation that shall be upon all the world, he says, “For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible,(and it is possible) they shall deceive the very elect.”(24:24)

Paul himself warned, “Now the spirit speaks expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” (ITimothy 4:1) He also warns that Satan comes with “power and signs and lying wonders” and “because they received not the love of the truth,” “for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie.” (2Thes 2:10-11) Satan can indeed do signs, healings, and give us a feeling of peace in order to deceive us.

Paul says that in Christ is “hid all the treasure of wisdom and knowledge (of God). And this I say less any man should beguile you with enticing words.” (Colossians 2:3-4) In other words, we do not need to look elsewhere for some new hidden wisdom even if it all sounds good. “But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that comes preaches another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which you have not received, or another gospel, which you have not accepted, (why do you willingly listen)?” (2Corinthians 11:3-4) It seems mankind is very easily tempted by his need for experiencing God with his feelings to look elsewhere. “And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore, it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness …” (11:14) “Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.”(2Corinthians 2:11)

Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. He that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of light.”(John 8:12) "That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world."(John 1:9) He said, “I am the way, the truth and the life.”(John 14:6) “If you continue in my word then are you my disciples indeed, and you shall know the truth.” (John 8:32) When Jesus prayed to the Father for his disciples he said, “Sanctify them through your truth; your word is truth.” (John 17:17) He also warned, “If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness.” (Matthew 6:23) In other words, if what you think is truth is really a lie, then you are in trouble, like those who followed Hitler, Stalin or Mao.

God has warned us in his word that we should not be deceived by another gospel. Reiki claims to be teaching us a method for healing and spiritual strength that was lost but rediscovered sometime recently in Japan. Reiki presents itself as a non-religious healing or stress relief technique open to all people of faith or of no faith. By using semi-scientific and eastern metaphysical terms the westerner is captivated by its offers of healing and stress relief. But when we look at Reiki closely we see it is indeed a spiritual practice with the calling upon spiritual entities or “angels” for direction and help ultimately ending in the person having what the Bible calls “a familiar spirit” or spirit guide.

Such practices have been condemned in God’s word since the times of Moses. The Lord said, “When you are come into the land which the Lord your God gives you, you shall not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you any one that makes his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that uses divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the Lord your God does drive them out from before you. You shall be perfect (obedient) with the Lord your God. For these nations, which you shall possess, hearkened unto observers of times, and unto diviners: but as for you, the Lord your God has not suffered you so to do.” (Deuteronomy 18:9-14)

Isaiah warns us, “And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep (whisper), and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God?...To the word and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” (Isaiah 8:19-20) Jesus is “the true light, which lightens every man that comes into the world,” not Reiki. (John 1:9)

Please pray for those tempted by Reiki and other eastern religious philosophies. Pray for the Reiki masters who may themselves be seeking for God. We are fighting a spiritual battle, therefore use the weapon of prayer, but also "Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour."(Zechariah 8:16) God expects us who know the word to speak up and “instruct those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; and that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.” (2Timothy 2:25-26)