I recently met someone who is a minister of Reiki, or so she says. I don't fully understand it, but it seems there is some interesting (and not necessarily Christian) theology behind it. What are your thoughts?

http://www.reiki.org/FAQ/WhatIsReiki.html

That is interesting.

Just looking about the site a little...





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God's power is not used this way. He is no vending machine. Yes, He can fuel healing and recovery through 'laying on of hands', but that is by the power of His Spirit, working through His own.
If it even works, I would be a bit concerned as to whether I was being touched by power other than God's, though there's a possibility it has some natural benefit or something. If it's indeed some kind of spiritual thing, it isn't given or received through God's spirit.

Very interesting, thanks for posting about it. *looks forward to seeing others' thoughts*

Reiki comes from an ancient Buddhist healing technique. I find it dangerous because it's not a healing from God, but is a 'spiritual healing'. Rieki is apparently independent of any religion; but from what I've heard it's said to be a practise that Buddha and apparently Jesus both used. I have read testimonials in the past from Christians who came out of Reiki, and they said people can 'pray' for healing from Mother Nature, Mother, Jesus, father, and so on; there is no specific prayer to God, it's an all faiths, and not specific to any one god, or religion etc. Channeling is supposedly also involved, which is like a medium, channeling spirits etc, one 'healer' claimed to have a Spirit Guide who gave her strength to heal and so on. My neighbor is deeply into Reiki. I'd look at it from the perspective that it's more of the occult than Christian from what I've heard. I've always been very wary of it, personally.

Interesting topic, Shorty!

Hmm... I get a bad feeling looking into stuff like that. While I personally believe God has given us His power to heal others, and be healed ourselves, the fact anybody of any "religion" can procure healing outside of God doesn't seem to fit well Scripturally in my mind.

In Popular Culture:

That sounds like what happened at the end of the first Karate Kid movie...



I wouldn't suggest touching it with a thirty-nine and a half foot pole for the reasons stated above. Anything that gives you the power rather than God is asking for trouble...

(The person says she is an "open-minded Christian." I stated clearly that I believe there is only one way to God and to Heaven and referenced John 14:6.)
Yeah, I agree with all of you (well, Kitra, I never saw that movie, but I'll take your word for it ).
I was just wondering what y'all's thoughts on it would be, since I'm quite new to learning of it.
Now my next question is, how would one go about explaining why one doesn't believe it's a good practice to be part of? (The woman's a new friend of mine, and I may be going over to discuss art/writing/music soon. I want to know how I can refute it if it comes to that...)

*meant to reply earlier*

I think it would just be important to emphasize the fact that something that claims to be spiritual, but doesn't need to be Christian is probably highly dangerous. Perhaps urge your friend to pray and ask God whether she should follow it. And pray that God is the One guiding you when you do talk to her.

Precisely. It says that with Reiki you will be able to experience the power and presence of God, no matter what you believe. But God said that Christians will experience his power and presence. Although I do not know if Reiki is really something demonic or is something natural that God has built into the world, I highly doubt the latter, especially since they are wrong on most of their 'explanations' about what Reiki is.

I think it's probably like acupuncture or something, that claims to be spiritual, but the spiritual feeling is just from a release of chemicals in the brain caused by the process, like the emotional high often felt at church retreats. It may also be related to chiropractic and massage.

So yeah, I think it's really more of a mental thing like the placebo effect than anything actually spiritual.

Well, that's what I was thinking, Varon, but then I had a customer at work rambling on and on about Reiki and how amazing it was, and how she had been paralyzed and someone told her to see a minister of Reiki, and the minister waved her hands around in front of her face and did these weird motions and stuff, and then when she touched her, her skin was hot, and her bones popped back into proper alignment, and I know that was extremely run-on, but I'm sorry, it's late. xD

That would be some impressive chiropractic. Is that a normal occurrence with reiki? Or a one time deal?

I don't know. That's the only Reiki testimonial of that kind that I've heard.

The woman who I mentioned first told me that her daughter had kidney disease and it was cured by Reiki.

Interesting. Very....interesting.

Yep. (She also says she's a Christian, and believes that there are many ways to God. )

I'm moving this to GD because it's primarily a discussion about personal experiences (or friends' personal experiences). Carry on!

I had noticed that and was going to post something on this thread related to my writing. * laughs * Oh well...

Say whatever you like, Juliet!

1. Healing (without the use of technology/drugs/medicine) is not necessarily a miracle from God. There are many things in our world which we don't understand, and I believe that many things like healing may have once been within our power (as the lords of our dominion), and may indeed still be fore some. Additionally, it is entirely possible that healing is an angelic power, which can therefore be used, or mocked, by the demonic.

2. Every false healer has those who claim to have been genuinely healed. Whether they are liars, benefiting from the attention, or deceivers, working for the healer, or the deceived, so mentally and spiritually weak that they really believe they have been healed. Personal testimonials mean nothing when it comes to healers. What they teach, and what they do, are how we can know whether they are with God, or against him.

3. Reiki offers a general "spirituality" which is exactly the sort of tool which the devil uses to blind people to the truths of God. Be peaceful, be happy, believe whatever you want, and you will be fine, allows people to escape the search for truth and believe in nothing particularly at all.

4. Reiki claims to treat the spirit and mind. If this is true, then Reiki is using spiritual forces, but since one does not need to be a Christian to use Reiki, then clearly these powers do not come from God. Unwary and uneducated dabbling in the spiritual is merely an invitation to the devil.

5. Reiki is one of the more remarkably un-scientific healing teachings that I have heard of. It doesn't attribute any illness to a rational, physical cause at all, but attributes them to weak "life force energy". I mean, if the power was genuine (hypothetically) then what would be the point in saying things that are clearly not true?

6. "attunement" The gift of Reiki isn't taught or learned, but passed from teacher to student using some sort of spiritual event called an "attunement". In all honesty, this remind me of practices of the modern charismatic church, and their teachings, such as receiving an "anointing" from God or being "slain in the spirit". Opening yourself up to spiritual things without knowing what you are opening up to is one of the ways people are lured into the occult.

Honestly, it sounds to me like this is either a cult, or the guy who started this all is making a pretty penny. Maybe both. But any teaching that deals with spiritual forces and is not Christian is in that sense automatically in opposition to Christianity. Things not of God are either of man, who belongs to the Devil, or of Satan himself.

There are lots of ways that Satan lures people into the occult. Mindless, seemingly harmless dabbling in the spiritual is one effective starting place. Many people are happy to stay there and simply believe in nothing. But many people, once they have opened themselves up to the demonic, continue down the path towards truly occult.

Very interesting and informative. Thanks, Neil.