Wednesday, September 21, 2011

On Peace

We cannot be at peace with others because we are not at peace with ourselves, and we cannot be at peace with ourselves because we are not at peace with God. ~Thomas Merton
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2 comments:

  1. Ann at Deep Magic TanglesSeptember 22, 2011 at 4:03 PM

    Hi Brittany! I'm so glad you're posting again! Your love for the Lord and zeal for His Word are a great encouragement to me. However...the first time you mentioned Thomas Merton I blew it off. But with subsequent mentions, and linking his name with Ravi Z's, I became concerned. Concerned on two levels: 1. That you are thinking of Merton as someone to be admired and followed spiritually, and 2. That RZ was, too. So I did a little research on "Grand Weaver", and found, to my chagrin, that RZ is indeed quoting Merton, and has shared platforms with others of Merton's spiritual kind..

    Thomas Merton is a false teacher of epic proportions re New Age Mysticism, Spiritual Formation, Contempletive Prayer, et.al.....all earmarks of the Emergent Movement. Unfortunately, with just a couple of clicks, I found Merton, Richard Foster, Dallas Willard, and Henry Nouwen all mentioned or quoted favorably in past articles (albeit NOT written by RZ) on RZIM.org

    It is my sincerest hope and prayer that you are not involved with or in any way following any of these false teachers (or any of the dozens out there just like them). We are living in a very dark day spiritually - I believe the last days - "when mens' hearts will wax cold" and "many false prophets will appear and deceive many people" (see also 2 Tim 3:13, 1 Tim 4:1, 1 John 4:1) It is more vital now than ever before that we are alert to spiritual dangers, that we never give place to the Devil by following the teachings of men, not only rather than, but even in addition to the teachings of Jesus Christ alone and God's Word alone. It is a day when we must discern with razor sharp spiritual acuity between Truth and untruth. Even the very elect are being deceived. The Father told us this would come to pass, and it is...more and more. I am grieved by the number of respected Christian leaders being deceived and deluded.

    It is also my sincerest hope and prayer that you are not offended by my forthright warnings. It is my obligation to do so, and I will be held accountable for my actions when given the opportunity to "earnestly contend for the faith" Jude 1:3

    I love you, my sister, and have watched with joy your growth in the Lord and boldness for Him.

    Here is a link with the truth about Thomas Merton: http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/merton.htm

    Here is a link detailing the unfortunate association of RZ with Emergent Contemplatives as early as 2009: http://www.rr-bb.com/showthread.php?56990-Ravi-Zacharias-Joins-Robert-Schuller-for-Rethink-2009

    Here is a link to a fantastic sermon by John MacArthur from Jude re false teachers: http://www.gty.org/resources/Sermons/65-1_The-Enemy-Within

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  2. Brittany BardenOctober 6, 2011 at 11:42 AM

    Thank you so much for your thoughts. I didn't mean to ignore your post for so long... it's just that my intentions to post more frequently haven't panned out exactly how I hoped, so I haven't been on my own blog until today. ;)

    I am not familiar with Thomas Merton, apart from what I read in the Grand Weaver. I have been intending to research him a bit more, so your thoughts and links are appreciated!

    Just to set your mind at ease, I am not particularly a fan or follower of Merton; I simply appreciated these few statements he made, especially in the very profound context in which they were set by Ravi Zacharias.

    Thanks for your comment! Hope you all are doing well. :)

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