Taize healing service?

[readytofly]

Is anyone here familiar with these type services? The Methodist church in our neighborhood occassionally puts a sign out by the road promoting a Taize healing service. It's usually held on a Friday night. I looked it up online and I'm not sure what to make of it. It seems very new age to me.

If anyone has any personal experience with it I would like to hear your thoughts. It seems to be becoming very popular. In checking it out on the internet I have seen services held at churches of many denominations, including Unity churches, which was my first big red flag.

[haeschen]

Taize is a retreat house in France - an ecumenical, mainly cath place where people from all over the world gather for prayer, praise, meditation. Sadly much of it has new age overtones, because they use Zen style meditations. I'd stay away because of this mixed, ecumenical background. My sister who is into new age big time was there as an interpreter. She loved the music, the love and acceptance, the meditations. Knowing her brand of spirituality I would not trust that this is a place for a born again believer. They use very little scripture, it is more geared to feelings and new esoteric experiences.

[readytofly]

Haeschen,

I agree that it should be avoided. I did some reading about it online and it just felt really New Age to me. From what I have seen there are churches of many denominations that have these services on occassion. In our city I saw a Baptist Church and a Methodist Church that advertise these services. I'm sure there are others as well. Having never heard of these before I am interested to see if they are prevalent all over the country or if it's just a new thing in my area. I live in a very liberal city so that might have something to do with it.

[haeschen]

I live in a very liberal city so that might have something to do with it.

You might be right that this kind of spirituality attracts the academic liberals - those were the folks my sister hung out with in Taize. They also find our brand of faith too narrow (that you can only come to the Father through Jesus Christ his Son, the Savior of the world, who gave his life on the cross.) Jesus is more of a teacher, prophet, spiritual guide to them. But the services at Taize make you feel good, peaceful, loving etc.

[RobinB]

Thanks for bringing this up. I see those signs too and wonder about them.

[watchman]

Before this thread gets the load of apologetics trying to support everything that has the words: prayer, healing, faith, love, peace, light etc. as being compatible with the Gospel and scripture, simply because it shares the same "words", let me put my opinion out there.

It's not the same thing.


You can take salt, it has sodium and chloride combined. You need it to live. If you don;t intake enough you will die. It is one of the most important components of your body's ability to transmit information of you nervous system. No salt, power failure, you die.

You intake sodium, you die.
You intake chlorine, you die.

Same elements, but not the same results.

That is the way of the old age New Age.

Why do we continue to try every new thing that comes along looking for "more G-d"?

Is He not enough???

Our failure to simply respond in a humble and open manner, we to correct our failure with spiritual "duct tape" and no matter how much we try, we cannot fix the issue of our failure to simply submit ourselves to His voice.

The harder we struggle, the more we "work up" and the more we "bring in" to our time with G-d, we displace Him.

We displace Him by first thinking we don;t have what we need to connect with Him.

G-d has always provided what we need, when we need and how we need.

All we have to do is accept it, and not fight against it.

We only need to b content and satisfied with what G-d gives.

Think of the earth (ground) and the rain. The rain falls gently, all the earth need to is be "relaxed" and accept the rain. The earth does not have to "do" anything, only receive.

We are like the ground. Simply let G-d "rain" and simply "receive" and it will be sufficient.

Imagine how foolish the ground would look moving all over trying to catch the raindrops...

[readytofly]

Well said Watchman. I agree.

When I first saw the signs for these services they caught my eye because I had never heard of one before. The name "Taize" sounded New Age, but the sign was in front of a Methodist Church, so I wasn't sure what to make of it. When I started reading about it online I think I saw something about candles being placed on the floor in the shape of a cross, certain music being played, etc. It sounded very odd.

At our church we have been focusing on prayer in our Sunday evening services. But we don't change the lighting, light candles, play a certain kind of music, etc. We just have a special time of prayer before our regular Sunday night service. Folks can kneel at the front of the church, or sit in a pew, whatever. These Taize services seemed more about turning prayer into an "event" rather than just spending time with God. Prayer seems pretty straightforward to me. I don't think all these bells and whistles are necessary. But maybe that's just me.

[Caleb]

Not knocking the Methodists, but it's interesting that you should bring that up. Just on Saturday, I saw an ad in front of one of the local United Methodist Churches in town, advertising a trip to one of those Labrynths.

[Singlesis]

I don't think all these bells and whistles are necessary. But maybe that's just me.

I agree. I love a good praying-church, love the prayer times when everyone comes together in prayer as you mentioned above, kneeling at the altar, at their seats, whatever.

But I also remember that our Lord Jesus went into the Garden alone to pray. No bells. No whistles. No special music. No candles. Just alone, with the Father. :nod