Should Christians Practice Yoga?

Should Christians Practice Yoga?

“What are your thoughts on yoga?” an Instagram follower asked me. “I don’t think Christians should practice yoga,” I replied in my stories. This exchange caused my message box to fill up fast. Many people thanked me for being bold enough to answer the question publicly. Some of them agreed with my answer. Others had genuine questions about why I would say yoga and Christianity didn’t mix.

Should Christians practice yoga? What if they leave out the spiritual aspect of yoga and only do the stretches? Or what if Christian music and prayer were substituted for the pagan aspects of yoga? These were some of the questions that flooded my message box.

I promised a more in-depth response to my stance on yoga as well as links to helpful resources. So here I am, typing up a blog post that I never intended to write yet am thankful for the opportunity to share.

My goal in publishing this post is not to tell you what to think or do regarding yoga. Rather, my desire is to encourage you to make choices based on your own study of God’s Word.

We should be holding everything up to the light of Scripture for “all Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be fully capable, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

Hopefully, some of the verses and Biblical principles will help inform your decision on whether to practice yoga or not.

What Is Yoga?

Dictionary.com defines yoga as the following:

1. A school of Hindu philosophy advocating and prescribing a course of physical and mental disciplines for attaining liberation from the material world and union of the self with the Supreme Being or ultimate principle.
2. Any of the methods or disciplines prescribed, especially a series of postures and breathing exercises practiced to achieve control of the body and mind, tranquillity, etc.
3. Union of the self with the Supreme Being or ultimate principle.

Basically, yoga finds its roots in pagan practices and is used to “yoke” oneself to “god”. I encourage you to take some time to read this article from GotQuestions.org on yoga as well as this one from TruthBehindYoga.com.

Biblical Principles that Apply to the Practice of Yoga

Here are six principles from Scripture that I believe we should apply to the practice of yoga. I tried to keep my summary of each principle short for the sake of this blog post. Realize, though, that each principle could be discussed at length on its own. Hopefully, my short summary and Scripture references can be a starting point for your own study of God’s Word as it relates to yoga.

Remember, that Scripture says to “examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). We should be like the Christians in Berea, who studied the Scriptures daily so that they could properly examine the teachings they were hearing. (See Acts 17:10-11).

Christians Should Actively Pursue Holiness

The first principle to apply to yoga is that, as Christians, we should be actively pursuing holiness in our lives instead of trying to see how close to evil we can get without sinning. 1 Peter 1:15-16 says, “but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.'” 1 Corinthians 10:31 says, “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

“How much of this pagan practice can I incorporate into my life without sinning?” is not the right question to ask of someone who is striving to be more like Christ. Some better questions to ask are, “Will this practice help me pursue holiness? Will it make me more Christ-like? Will it draw me closer to God? Will it bring God glory?”

I believe the answer to the latter questions is “no”. Yoga will not help you pursue holiness or make you more Christ-like or draw you closer to God. Many Christians claim that yoga has helped them feel closer to God, but a thorough study of the Bible will reveal that we draw closer to God through the reading of His Word and through prayer. If God wanted us to draw near to Him through yoga or similar practices then it would be recorded in the Bible. Yet, we only see pagan practices of worship being condemned in Scripture.

If our goal is to be holy (set apart for God), then we should look for ways to become more like Christ as prescribed in the Bible.

Christians Should Flee from Evil (Not Dabble in It)

Secondly, the Bible says to flee evil. (Psalm 34:14, Psalm 37:27) That means to turn around and run as far away from it as possible. Participating in yoga is dabbling in the practices of evil. Christians should desire to walk in the Light and flee darkness. (See Ephesians 5:7-11 and Romans 16:19)

1 Thessalonians 5: 21-22 says, “But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil.” The word “form” in that verse can also be translated “appearance.” That means that we are to avoid even the appearance of evil. Since yoga is rooted in pagan worship that is contrary to the Word of God, we should not participate in it for fear that we might display the appearance of doing evil.

God Condemns Pagan Practices

Third, God makes it clear in the Bible that His children are not to incorporate any pagan worship practices into their lives. We see this most clearly in Deuteronomy. Moses is giving God’s instructions and laws to the nation of Israel as they get ready to enter into the Promised Land. God sets forth clear instructions to destroy everything related to pagan worship. (Deuteronomy 12:1-4)

We cannot pick and choose what aspects of a pagan practice we like and dislike. We are to have nothing to do with anything that comes from other religions. Deuteronomy 12:30-32 says, “beware that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise?’ You shall not behave thus toward the Lord your God, for every abominable act which the Lord hates they have done for their gods…whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor takeaway form it.”

And Deuteronomy 18:9-14 says, “When you enter the land which the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to imitate the detestable things of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, a soothsayer, one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who consults the dead. For whoever does these things is detestable to the Lord; and because of these detestable things the Lord your God is going to drive them out before you. You are to be blameless before the Lord your God. For these nations, which you are going to dispossess, listen to soothsayers and diviners, but as for you, the Lord your God has not allowed you to do so.”

Many use the yoga poses for exercise but he Bible says that even our bodies should be used to honor (not dishonor) God. Romans 12:1-2 says, “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Satan is Crafty and We Should Be On Guard

Another principle has to do with being on our guard against our enemy. The Bible says that Satan is crafty (Genesis 3:1), that he is a liar (John 8:44) and that he “prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8) Satan will use any means possible to deceive us and draw us away from God. As Christians, we must be on the alert for anything that could tempt us away from the truth of God’s Word.

James 4:7 tells us to resist the devil. We are in a spiritual battle (Ephesians 6:10-13) and must be leery of anything that could lead us away from God and into sinful practices.

2 Corinthians 11:14 warns us that “Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” Satan deceives us by giving us a counterfeit gospel. He makes things look innocent when they are actually a means to draw us into darkness. Consider Pauls warning in 2 Corinthians 11:3, “But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.”

Consider this quote from a study regarding people’s motivation for practicing yoga. “Findings suggest that most initiate yoga practice for exercise and stress relief, but for many, spirituality becomes their primary reason for maintaining practice.” (Source)

Do you see how deceptive Satan can be? The study found that most people start yoga for exercise but eventually continue with it for spiritual reasons. Don’t you think Satan wants to use this same tactic on believers? How easily can we be drawn away from the proper worship of God through the practice of yoga?

Some Christians claim that they can avoid the temptation to fall into the spiritual practices of yoga. However, the Bible makes it clear that we should avoid all situations that could tempt us to fall into sin. Romans 13:13-14 says to “make no provision for the flesh” and 1 Corinthians 10:13 talks about God providing a “way of escape” from temptation. How does God provide a way of escape and how should we make no provision for the flesh? By fleeing from any practice that could cause us to be drawn into sin.

Christians Should Be Careful Not to Cause A Fellow Believer to Stumble

The fifth principle I’d like you to consider has to do with not causing our fellow believers to stumble. As Christians, we do not live our lives in isolation. We are called to “encourage one another and build up one another.” (1 Thessalonians 5:11) Our actions can affect our fellow brothers and sisters-in-Christ by encouraging them in the faith or causing them to stumble in their walk with the Lord.

Paul addresses this principle in 1 Corinthians 8:9-12. In verse 9 he says, “But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.” (I encourage you to read all of 1 Corinthians 8 as well as Romans 14:13, 21 for context.)

Many of our fellow believers have come out of Hinduism and other pagan religions that use yoga and similar meditative practices. Seeing us participate in yoga (in any form) can cause them to stumble in their walk with the Lord and hinder their spiritual growth. Our desire, as Christians, should be to build each other up even at the expense of our own liberties.

Christians Should Avoid Hindering Unbelievers

Finally, as followers of Christ, our desire should be to see the unsaved people around us come to faith in Christ. (See Matthew 28:19-20, Mark 16:15, 2 Timothy 2:15, 2 Corinthians 5:20, and 1 Peter 3:15)

We don’t want to cause confusion in an unbeliever who is searching for truth. When Christians practice any aspect of yoga, they may hinder an unbeliever from understanding the truth of the gospel and may even cause an unbeliever to search for truth in the spiritual practices of yoga.

Answering Some of Your Questions

I received a lot of questions regarding yoga and most of them fell into two categories. I address those two types of questions below.

Can I Practice Holy (Christian) Yoga?

Numerous people asked me if I thought it was okay to practice what is called Holy Yoga (also referred to as Christian Yoga). The idea is that you take what is “good” from yoga while substituting the pagan aspects for Christian ones.

The simple answer to that question is “no”. I don’t think Christians should incorporate any aspect of yoga into their daily life. For a more detailed response to this question check out the following links:

• What is holy yoga? (An excellent article on Christian yoga with Scripture references.)
• Yoga for Exercise Only

Is There a Good Alternative to Yoga?

Pilates is an excellent alternative to yoga. While yoga has its roots in a pagan religion, pilates was actually developed for physical training and rehabilitation. Be aware that some pilates instructors incorporate yoga and New Age practices into their pilates classes. As always, use discernment when taking a pilates class. (Further reading: What is the Christian view of Pilates?)

Helpful Resources Regarding Christians and Yoga

Are you still uncertain about whether Christians should practice yoga? Here are some helpful resources for you to use in your own research on this topic.

• I highly recommend you listen to the following two podcast episodes where a Christian, who was a former yoga instructor, shares her story and why she believes Christians should not practice yoga. Here is part 1 and part 2 of the interview.
• The Subtle Body- Should Christians Practice Yoga? (Albert Mohler)
• Is Yoga Sinful? (John Piper)
• A comparison of the Bible and Yoga teachings