Is reflexology anti Christian

Answer 1

This isn't an easy question to answer. I will start by saying that reflexology DOES have it's roots in pagan belief systems. All Martial Arts do also. But on the other hand, using martial arts as an example, did the philosophy create the art or were the creators simply using a philosophical belief system to explain phenomena that they observed in nature?

A punch in Chinese Kung Fu is relatively the same as one in western fisticuffs boxing. Jack Dempsey former world champion boxer and one of the hardest hitters the sport ever saw knocked many men out using the same principles of body motion and weight distribution as a practitioner of internal Kung fu. In his book Dempsey makes no mention of "chi", yin/yang, or any mystical matters. Farmer Burns, once the world catch Wrestling champion detailed deep breathing exercises in his wrestling guide and stated that "deep breathing will make the sick person healthy and the weak person strong."

It is not known whether Burns and was influenced by Asian chi gong practitioners but it is apparent that deep breathing exercises had been practiced for some time before as many of the "strong men" of old used them in daily practice.

Using a practical analysis, we get our energy mostly from one primary source - the air we breathe. What our bodies use out of the mixture is oxygen since the more prevalent nitrogen is toxic. Have you ever heard someone tell someone else to "take a deep breath"? There's a reason for that. When we breathe deeply and in a controlled manner our bodies take in more oxygen than normal which gives us energy and helps to relax the body and mind. Therefore I speculate that Farmer Burns was simply taking note of the fact that breathing is a healthy activity and can result in more rapid healing, rejuvenation, and recovery of the body. His Asian counterparts observed the same things and explained it through their religion.

I have been formally trained in Thai massage which is derived from Buddhism. My instructor who was Japanese and a Buddhist told me that the five element theory was a load of crap and all of the effects of the massage on the body could be explained naturally.

I have talked with some fellow Christians who say that Asian massage is a gateway to the occult but that Swedish, or western massage is perfectly alright. What they fail to realize is that western massage and it's forerunner Swedish massage came about as a result of a physician traveling to the orient and studying those occult based methods.

Now back to reflexology. I cannot say one way or another that reflexology or the practice thereof is an activity forbidden by scripture. At the same time as a Christian I have also witnessed to many zealous people trowing some babies out with the bathwater.

The pagan Chinese brought us the compass, by which sailors, pilots, hikers, and common people have navigated for centuries. Muslims developed the science of Algebra. And our own "Father of Western Medicine" Hippocrates was of course a pagan.

In fact every day we use things and say things which in some way pays homage to a pagan God and.or belief system. Any time you refer to a day of the week or a month you are uttering the name of a pagan Roman god. Every time you whip out some greenbacks to pay for a pizza you are using a medium of currency which is covered on both sides with occult symbols. And crying out in worship services and being "slain in the spirit" originally came not from the early church but from the African American church which had mixed many practices of native voodoo religions with their newly found Christian faith.

The question is where should we draw the line and that my fellow believers I cannot answer. I have ern Christians object to general western massage because it requires that you remove your clothes (interestingly Thai, Shiatsu, and Chinese Massage don't) on the basis of having someone touch you in a pleasurable manner is "sinful". Well trust me your masseur is not getting any more hot and bothered than your gynecologist when he spreads your legs and has a look or fondles your boobs to determine whether you might have cancer. If you get sensually charged when a man gives you a massage then that qualifies as a personal problem and please do the world a favor and refrain from basing such judgements on your personal hang ups.

In the end the only advice I can give you is to pray and ask God to guide you in your decision on the matter. Don't take my word for it. I have simply provided a counter argument to the "looking for a demon around every corner" one.