Can Christians practice 'Mindfulness'?

"Mindfulness" has been a Buddhist practice for centuries, and some Christians might be wondering if they, too, can practice it. An Episcopal priest has addressed the question and has said that it depends on the reason behind its practice.

"If you take up mindfulness not to enhance but to replace religion, if its appeal is because of its non-threatening, inoffensive, benign nature, while I have no doubt you will still enjoy mental and physical benefits from it, you are likely to end up spiritually disappointed," Rev. V.R. Marianne Zahn wrote on RevZ.

According to Zahn, mindfulness is not Christian, but it not anti-Christian either. There is no reason for it not to be part of Christian practice, although one should "view it with a hermeneutic of suspicion" before getting into it.

Explaining mindfulness, Zahn says that it is, in its most basic form, simply being aware of the present moment. It does not require creeds, mantras, gurus, poses, and such like. Thus, she explains, it can by practiced by anyone of any religion or of no religion, without causing offense. She also said that this mental focus can be seen in Christian traditions, although with Christianity, it is more on putting the mind on sacred texts or icons "which then facilitates a deeper understanding and/or felt experience of God."

The practice of mindfulness can retrain a person's mind to see what is present at the moment "without all the personal and cultural baggage that our constructs of God have accumulated over the millennia," she explains.

"If we wish to know God, we must strip away everything we think we know and are supposed to feel and come to the encounter afresh, or else we are not really understanding God but only the idea of God we have inherited from others," Zahn wrote. "For this reason, I would urge any Christian, even if they are already engaged in contemplative practices, to learn and practice mindfulness as a way of cleansing their minds of automatic conditioned responses that actually inhibit our understanding of God rather than enhance it."

However, she warned, if one is using mindfulness as a replacement to religion rather than something to enchance it, then they are likely to be disappointed spiritually. She said that some people are looking for practices that would fill a spiritual void, and they find mindfulness as a means to fill it. However, the restlness would not be gone for long and they would "eventually search for something deeper, something that not only quiets their minds, but enlarges their spirits." Religion, meanwhile, challenges a person to grow, and it is in facing those challenges that a person develops character.

Mindfulness is being used in some workplaces and schools to alleviate stress, and some doctors reportedly recommend it for some patients.