As usual, I don’t think of these things until I get feedback.  And with this topic – given that it has religious overtones, the feedback was back channel.

So you think I’ve become a Buddhist, too, huh?  Don’t worry.  I still have my roots firmly amidst Christian belief.  But, I will admit that I find that too often people become adamantly parochial when it comes to politics and religion.  You can hear their volume go up, voices strident and too frequently defensive.  What if we were able to listen, really listen to what people said and just take it at face value?  What if we didn’t always look for hidden values and ulterior motives?

Meditating like a Monk – that is to say, projecting a “‘compassion and loving kindness’ toward others –  is this kind of meditative attempt that produce[s] the healing necessary to overcome empathy fatigue”.  Notice that it says nothing about worshiping Buddha?  Notice that in projecting compassion and kindness you are in effect, loving another human being.  Love.  And that is what Christ Jesus wants us to do.  Love one another.

Not convinced?  Let’s see what Richard Foster in his book called Spiritual Discipline says about praying for others.  (Prayer, by the way, goes hand in hand with meditation.) “…Jesus was ‘moved with compassion’ for people.  Compassion was an evident feature of every healing in the New Testament.  We do not pray for people as ‘things,’ but as ‘persons’ whom we love.  If we have God-given compassion and concern for others, our faith will grow and strengthen as we pray  In fact, if we genuinely love people, we desire for them far more than it is within our power to give, and that will cause us to pray.”

Foster goes on to talk about the importance of imagining Jesus pouring his love out on those who need Him.  We are to imagine wellness, wholeness, love, joyfulness to those who sick, broken, and feeling unloved.  That is the “projection of compassion and kindness” – a picture in your mind of healing for that other person…not an expression of how sorry you are!  So when you say “May God bless you”, imagine what that blessing will look like!

Meditation is often associated with yoga and eastern religion.  Too bad.  We stiff-necked Christians could use a lesson or two about getting in touch physically and spiritually with our Creator and using His power to serve as a healing force in a broken world.  Maybe there would be far less burn out where He sends us to serve.