Reiki
I have been a part of a WELS since I was a child. Recently at my childhood church my pastor's wife has started practicing Reiki, which is the massaging of others' spiritual energy to help their body, mind and spirit. I do not want to be judgemental about what she does, but I am curious if this practice aligns with the teachings of God's Word. Thank you for any insight that you might have on the matter.
Previous responses to questions like yours included the following:
“Reiki attempts to connect its practitioners more strongly to God, in order to ‘turn on’ their innate powers to heal through touch. Christian practitioners of Reiki are encouraged to precede their ‘attunement’ sessions with prayers to the Father, Son, or Holy Spirit. Or, they might find angels such as Michael or Gabriel willing to help if asked.
“Many forms of ‘Christian meditation’ are simply adaptations of Oriental meditation techniques using some Christian words or terms instead of Buddhist or Oriental terms. These may be harmless if they are simply techniques for relaxation, but they are not inherently Christian. To use these as a relaxation technique, a person could recite either Hare Krishna or Hallelujah and it would not make any difference. Simply reciting the name of Jesus repeatedly would not necessarily make this technique Christian meditation. Non-Christians could and do use Jesus’ name as a mantra.
“The Bible warns us against vain repetition, which lacks thoughtful reflection on the meaning. Oriental forms of meditation cannot be easily adopted to Christian use because they flow from a very different view of God and of how we reach him. Many Oriental meditation techniques view God as a force we harness or utilize. We view God as a person who communicated with us in revealed words.
“Real Christian meditation is thinking about the words of Scripture. We understand that we do not raise ourselves up to communicate with God by following a certain technique of meditation. God comes down to us in his Word and we meditate on what it means. Christian meditation focuses on listening to what God says in his Word not just repeating a word to relax. We have the best form of meditation–meditating on God’s Word. Christians can use natural relaxation methods based on physical principles. They should not become involved in techniques that are based on a false view of God or false spirituality.
“Phenomena like Reiki are typical of the New Age movement. Reiki promises supernatural power to its devotees, and it isn’t particular about where the power comes from.”