Dallas Willard, John Ortberg, Richard Foster – Are We Wrong in Calling Them Emergent/Contemplative?

CRN agrees with Lighthouse Trails (LHT) that there is no question that these men are Emergent/Contemplatives who are known for engaging in a set of disciplines known as Spiritual Formation. Pastor Ken Silva of Apprising Ministries spent a great deal of his … Continue reading 

Jesus: The Illumined Illuminator (Flashback)

This article by CRN managing editor Marsha West was published April 12, 2012. Contemporary Christianity is following “every wind of doctrine” in spite of the fact that the Bible warns about taking this route. Self-professed Christ followers no longer “endure … Continue reading 

Research: Emergent Church

Emergent Church…aka Emerging and sometimes Emergence Religious leadership must end its intellectual and imaginative failure to think through what it is doing in the light of the new emerging cosmology, which is hospitable to spirit-matter theories and mindbody experiences. ~ … Continue reading 

The Low-Information Evangelical Part 1 (Reprise)

This article by CRN managing editor Marsha West was first published August 12, 2014. We are told throughout the New Testament to judge, to test, to discern, to assess, to rebuke, to hold one another to account, to make moral … Continue reading 

A Whole lotta ‘Christian’ bestsellers are unfit for Christian consumption

(Marsha West – Christian Research Network)  Sadly, “Christian” book sellers line their shelves with books that are clearly unbiblical. Books that put a positive spin on New Age spirituality, Eastern mysticism, LGBTQ+ issues and so forth are available through online … Continue reading 

Research: Spiritual Formation

Spiritual formation is the process of apparent spiritual development through engaging in a set of behaviors, termed disciplines. Advocates believe these disciplines help shape the character of the practitioner into the likeness of Christ. Though superficially similar to discipleship, spiritual formation … Continue reading 

Research: Contemplative Prayer

Definition of Contemplative Prayer:  A form of Christian mysticism that allegedly brings about a mystical union with God. The mystical “spirituality” that is so popular in evangelical and charismatic circles today is a yearning for an experiential relationship with God … Continue reading 

Christians Mystically Encountering God (Reprise)

FLASHBACK FRIDAY This article by CRN managing editor Marsha West was published 4/16/2013. For a couple of decades there has been a big push by numerous evangelical leaders to incorporate pagan practices into the visible Church.  These unbiblical practices have … Continue reading 

Remembering the enticing appeal of Richard Foster and Beth Moore’s Be Still film

Lighthouse Trails does not want us to forget how certain esteemed Christian leaders introduced the evangelical community to contemplative prayer (CP), also referred to as centering prayer, breath prayer, meditation and listening prayer.  Why is this important to remember?  For the reason … Continue reading 

Jesus: The Illumined Illuminator

By Marsha West Contemporary Christianity is following “every wind of doctrine” in spite of the fact that the Bible warns about taking this route. Self-professed Christ followers no longer “endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for … Continue reading