Meditation has been around for thousands of years, used as a religious practice to achieve mindfulness. Today, many Christians report practicing meditation at some level of frequency in their lives, but Christians as a whole disagree on what it means, or should mean, to meditate.
New psychological research shows a unique perspective on the kind of meditation wherein spiritual practice and medicinal care intersect.
A recent study on psychiatric anxiety treatments found that consistently participating in meditation practices for extended periods of time can produce similar effects to that of anti-anxiety drugs. Researchers and clinicians praise the study because, according to them, it suggests that both medicinal and meditational treatments may be equally effective for patients if utilized responsibly.
“Consistently participating in meditation practices for extended periods of time can produce similar effects to that of anti-anxiety drugs.”
Of course, there are differences in these two avenues of treatment, and psychologists like Harden Bradford are careful not to “pit medication against the mindfulness-based resources” because each patient will need a unique treatment plan.
For example, patients with panic attacks may require the immediate relief that prescribed drugs offer, while patients with mild anxiety may prefer the long-term process of meditation relief. Some patients also may prefer to utilize both strategies with the proper guidance of their doctors.
Research also shows religious Americans are the most likely to engage in these practices, but meditation’s prevalence varies depending on a few factors.
According to Pew Research Center, 49% of evangelical Protestants in the U.S. meditate. This percentage is higher for historically Black protestants (55%) and Mormons (60%) and lower for Catholics (40%) and mainline Protestants (36%). In comparison to other religious affiliations, Christian groups seem to meditate more than others, with the exception of Buddhists.
Another study done by Pew Research Center shows the frequency of meditation among Christians broken down by demographic categories.
Broken down by age group, when asked how frequently they meditate, researchers found younger Christians meditate less frequently than older Christians. In fact, of Christians who reported meditating at least once per week, Christians in age categories 30 to 49, 50 to 64, and 65-plus represent 88%, meaning that 18- to 29-year-olds represent only 12% of this category.
More young Christians report practicing meditation once or twice per month (20%), or several times per year (20%), but are still outnumbered by the 30 to 49 and 50 to 64 age groups.
So, with the rising emphasis on mental health awareness in schools, workplaces and online, why aren’t young Christians meditating?
The answer may be found in the stigma against meditation as it relates to Eastern religions. Articles like one titled Four Spiritual Dangers in Eastern Meditation claim to expose how Eastern meditation practices are harmful to Christians, not helpful. The author claims mindfulness meditation practices have no Christian roots, are unbiblical, lead to demonic affliction and focus on the self (when one should be focused on God).
“The author claims mindfulness meditation practices have no Christian roots, are unbiblical, lead to demonic affliction and focus on the self.”
Articles like these also emphasize the importance of engaging in Christian meditation, rather than Eastern meditation practices, such as described in an article titled Meditation — A Christian Perspective. The author discusses the benefits of meditation but puts pressure on believers to practice it correctly because doing it incorrectly is considered spiritually dangerous.
Overall, these articles do not throw out the idea of meditation altogether, but instead tell readers that Christians should only meditate if they are doing so in a way that intentionally glorifies God. So, there are benefits to meditating as a Christian, but there is also a pressure to meditate in the correct way.
Perhaps all these rules surrounding what type of meditation is “good” or “bad” has made the topic of meditation seem like something taboo. I can say with confidence that I do not recall learning how to meditate in Sunday school growing up, so perhaps we have just lost the practice altogether in fear of doing it wrong.
And by “doing it wrong,” I mean we have a fear of acting too much like other religious groups, and thus committing a sin by conflating our spiritual practices with theirs.
As a founding member and current president of Wingate Interfaith Leaders, a club on campus that aims to promote interfaith literacy and dialogue, I understand this fear. However, I would like to challenge it. We often scandalize other religions, simply because those religious people are different from us, yet we do not see how alike we are, and we do not consider what we can learn by engaging in conversations with them.
“We have not stopped praying because other religious traditions also pray.”
In doing this, our own faith practices may lose value. When we focus more on distinguishing ourselves from “them” (whoever that may be at any given time), we lose sight of the reasons that we have faith in the first place. We are not Christians because we dislike people who affiliate themselves with other religions. Instead, we are Christians because we know the everlasting love of God is strong enough to penetrate the binary of “us” and “them.”
Christians can and should meditate because it is a life-giving spiritual practice that allows many believers to feel more connected with God. It also helps us home in on what struggles or anxieties we may be going through. And we now know it happens to be good for our health.
It does not make us bad Christians to engage in a practice other religious people happen to do as well. If you find God through meditation, then you should meditate. We have not stopped praying because other religious traditions also pray, nor have we stopped congregating for religious services because other bodies of faith do too.
In fact, coming together with the knowledge that we find spiritual refuge in similar ways may be an opportunity for conversation and togetherness. So, the common ground meditation offers can be an expression of “we” when the barrier between “us” and “them” is broken.
Mallory Challis
Mallory Challis is a senior at Wingate University and currently serves as BNG’s Clemons Fellow.
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