From Lighthouse Trails Research is another article about Charles Stanley's "In Touch" magazine promoting Catholic, ecumenical, interfaith and contemplative ministries and organizations. Complete article reprinted in full unedited below.
See: http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/newsletters/2013/newsletters20131028.htm.
"Charles Stanley’s In Touch Magazine has been the subject of several Lighthouse Trails articles because of the magazine’s continued propensity toward contemplative/emergent people. Just this past summer, our most recent article, “Sad News About Charles Stanley’sIn Touch Magazine,” reported how the August 2013 issue of In Touch featured Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove of the “New Monasticism” emerging church movement. Now in the November 2013 issue, In Touch magazine is featuring an article about an ecumenical interfaith organization that is largely Catholic influenced and was, in fact, the very organization where Henri Nouwen spent the last decade of his life. What’s the big deal about that? some may ask. Well, it is a big deal when you stop and consider the implications. Charles Stanley is seen as the quintessential evangelical Bible teacher by millions. He is trusted, respected, and looked to for understanding of the biblical Gospel. So when his organization starts down a path that promotes contemplative spirituality, the emerging church, and yes, Roman Catholicism – there is a big problem.
In the November 2013 issue is an article written by Benjamin Dolson titled “Our Table.” It is a story about L’Arche, an organization that began in the 60s to offer an alternative living style for intellectually-handicapped people. The work itself is certainly not what we contest as it has removed needy people out of institutions and into a more viable living situation. We are not here to condemn the work being done at the L’Arche communities from a humanitarian point of view. But why does an evangelical ministry feel the need to continually point its followers to organizations or people that do not line up with the biblical Gospel. As Lighthouse Trails has documented scripturally for several years, the contemplative prayer movement and Roman Catholicism are presenting a different “Gospel” than the one the Bible presents. The Roman Catholic “Gospel” is a justification by works gospel, and the contemplative prayer (i.e., Spiritual Formation) “Gospel” is one that has panentheistic and interspiritual roots. And we should mention that the Catholic church is utilizing the contemplative prayer movement to draw in converts to Catholicism (as Ray Yungen explains in his article “Contemplative Spirituality – the Source of the Catholic Church’s Expansion“).
For those who may not realize just how Catholic L’Arche is, here is a statement posted on the L’Arche international website:
L’Arche was founded in a village in France in the Roman Catholic tradition. Generally the communities reflect the predominant faith tradition or traditions of the local population. Thus, with the foundations of the communities of Daybreak in Canada and Asha Niketan in India, the Federation became first ecumenical and then interfaith. Most communities today consider themselves as Christian, some are ecumenical, some identify as Anglican or Protestant, and the majority are Catholic in their practice. The four communities in India and the project in Bangladesh have an interfaith character. All communities of the Federation welcome people of any or no faith and seek to respect and support members in their particular faith choice.1(emphasis added)
Translated, that last sentence means that L’Arche will help people of all religious beliefs to further develop that particular belief system in their own lives.
In a book written by L’Arche founder, Jean Vanier, titled Essential Writings (Modern Spiritual Masters series), it describes how he read Thomas Merton and practiced and was influenced by the spiritual exercises of Jesuit founder St. Ignatius.
While we do not condemn the people at L’Arche for their work with needy people, why is In Touch, a ministry that is supposed to be representing biblical Christianity, pointing its followers to this interfaith and ecumenical organization that has a strong Catholic background?
As you may recall, Lighthouse Trails editors spoke with editors at In Touch this past summer but to no avail. We were told we were on a “witch-hunt” and that the information we provided was “not helpful.”
So, where does this leave untold numbers of Christians who read In Touch, of which some have contacted us expressing their concerns? On the In Touch Ministries website, it reads:
The award-winning In Touch magazine has inspired and motivated readers for more than 25 years with resources to invigorate their faith including daily devotionals, in-depth Bible studies, insightful teaching from Dr. Stanley, and much more.
We don’t see how lifting up contemplative spirituality and Roman Catholic-prone organizations is going to “invigorate” Christian biblical faith. It is interesting to note that in the Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove article as well as this recent one on L’Arche, the emphasis in both articles is about helping the needy. We do not dispute and actually wholeheartedly believe that part of the Christian walk includes reaching out to the poor, hurting, and needy. This is a natural response for those who live and abide in Christ. But that is not the Gospel message. The Gospel is not about what we do (good works), but rather it is about what Jesus Christ has done for sinful man through his death on the Cross. The contemplative prayer movement traditionally teaches that man is already divine and contemplative prayer can help him find that divine self. Like contemplative icon Richard Rohr says, we are all the “immaculate conception[s]” (i.e., sinless/divine – Rohr, Falling Upward, p. ix). In addition, leaders in the emerging church say that when the Reformation took place five hundred years ago, the reformation moved us too far away from the Catholic church. We need to come back together as one universal church, they say. If this were true, that would mean that all the believers who died standing against the Catholic church died in vain (read John Foxe’s story about a woman who died for such a cause.)
Breaking down the barriers between Catholicism and Protestantism opens up hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Protestants to interact with Catholic spiritual directors. Organizations such as Promise Keepers, while inspiring certain legitimate commitments (e.g. loving your wife and children), include a promise to tear down denominational walls, which specifically include the Roman Catholic Church. These Catholic spiritual directors have led people into the contemplative “silence.” This is exactly what happened to Ruth Haley Barton, a Protestant who was experiencing turmoil in her life. She went to a Catholic contemplative nun who directed her into the contemplative life. Today, Barton is a major figure in teaching contemplative prayer to pastors and church leaders.
There is an interesting sidebar in the In Touch article on L’Arche. It reads:
Communities of faith, of God’s reign, bring together into oneness those who by culture and by education are far apart. This is the body of Christ. This is the church.
What this is suggesting is an all-inclusive “community” (that certainly is the expanse of humanity), but if we say that the body of Christ is an all-inclusive church, then we are saying that there is no distinguishing between the various belief systems and religions.
Benjamin Dolson, the author of In Touch’s article, “Our Table,” is an editor for a group called The Burnside Writer’s Collective, a group of writers that promotes “social justice” and the emerging church. Their website features figures such as Jim Wallis and Shane Claiborne who promote a liberal social justice “Christianity.” In our article “They Hate Christianity But Love (Another) Jesus: How Conservative Christians Are Being Manipulated and Ridiculed, Especially During Election Years, we document how some of these emergents are part of an effort to keep conservative Christians from voting – at all. Is this just guilt by association that one of the In Touch contributing writers belongs to this group? We don’t think so. Jonathan Wilson-Grove (featured more than once in In Touch) falls in this category too. With all these articles in In Touch magazine featuring emergent names, it’s hard not to wonder if there is an underlying political agenda by In Touch editors.
While any hidden political agenda is only a guess at this point, one thing is for sure, In Touch editors are drawn to the contemplative/emergent persuasion as is much of current evangelical Christianity. There has been a subtle paradigm shift over the last twenty years, and this is something that is going to eventually change the message coming out of Charles Stanley’s In Touch ministry. Once he is passed or steps down (he is 81), as in the case of so many other ministries where the founder does not adequately equip his ministry to spot and remove spiritual deception, In Touch ministries could potentially become a leader for the emerging church movement.
In reading our article here, some may feel we are being too nit-picky and critical. After all, In Touch is talking about helping the needy. But if that reasoning is legitimate, then basically, as Christians, we are to embrace an anything-goes mentality (i.e., the church should embrace all “faith communities” without any protection over the Christian message of redemption). But the Bible so clearly and so frequently warns of beliefs that are contrary to the truth of Scripture. In writing this article about In Touch and L’Arch ecumenical interfaith communities, we are reminded of something Henri Nouwen said in the last book he ever wrote. We’ve quoted it often over the years because it shows very succinctly the “fruit” of contemplative mysticism, which Nouwen fully adhered to and practiced:Today I personally believe that while Jesus came to open the door to God’s house, all human beings can walk through that door, whether they know about Jesus or not. Today I see it as my call to help every person claim his or her own way to God. —From Sabbatical Journey, page 51, 1998 Hardcover EditionIt boils down to this: Christian organizations like In Touch Ministries have been presenting themselves to their readers and supporters for many years as having a solid biblical message. Yet now, many of them appear to be changing course. Isn’t it only right and fair for them to come forward and tell their followers that they are no longer adhering just to biblical Christianity?
Does Charles Stanley know what has happened to his magazine? some may ask. We have no idea as he has remained absolutely silent on the situation. We’ve sent books, made phone calls, and we know there are LT readers who have contacted his ministry. But to date, we have never heard of any response. At least Focus on the Family has come right out and admitted that they see nothing wrong with the contemplative tradition. With In Touch, we will just have to keep putting pieces of the puzzle together until a complete picture can be seen."
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