TV writes: "I had heard that Pope Benedict said that Yoga is not a sin in itself but the worshiping of our bodies is sinful.  Is there more you can share about our Catholic Church's teachings of yoga."

Guidance on yoga can be found in the 1989 document, "Some Aspects on Christian Meditation" issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. This is the first Church document that attempts to deal with the rapid influx of Eastern religious practices into Christianity. In particular, it deals with Zen, Transcendental Meditation and yoga, all of which can "degenerate into a cult of the body" that debases Christian prayer.

It's interesting to note that yoga is treated correctly in this document as a religious practice, not as an exercise program which is how Westerners who are unfamiliar with yoga like to present it.  Yoga has five principles; proper relaxation, exercise, diet, breathing and meditation. Meditation is considered to be the most important principle and is the aim of the other four.

However, eastern meditation and Christian meditation are two entirely different things. When Christians hear the word meditation, they think prayer. In the east, the word means mental exercise. It's about focusing the mind and achieving self-realization.

Christian prayer, on the other hand, "is the raising of one's mind and heart to God . . . " (Catechism No. 2590) Christian meditation is "above all a quest. The mind seeks to understand the why and how of the Christian life in order to adhere and respond to what the Lord is asking" (ibid, no. 2705)

Many Eastern meditation practices, such as TM and yoga, also prescribe postures and breathing control as part of their technique of meditation and this is where dangers can arise for Christians.

"Some physical exercises automatically produce a feeling of quiet and relaxation, pleasing sensations, perhaps even phenomena of light and of warmth, which resemble spiritual well-being," the document states. "To take such feelings for the authentic consolations of the Holy Spirit would be a totally erroneous way of conceiving the spiritual life.

"Giving them a symbolic significance typical of the mystical experience, when the moral condition of the person concerned does not correspond to such an experience, would represent a kind of mental schizophrenia which could also lead to psychic disturbance and, at times, to moral deviations.''

The only other Church statement we have about yoga comes from Jesus Christ, the Bearer of the Water of Life, A Christian Reflection on the ‘New Age’ which says: “Some of the traditions that flow into New Age are: ancient Egyptian occult practices . . . Zen Buddhism, Yoga and so on. ” [n 2.1]

However, this is only a preliminary document with another expected to follow at some time in the future. Perhaps this one will give us more definitive instruction on the practice of yoga.

Until then, we can look to various Church leaders who have given us sage advice on the practice of yoga:

For example, in this podcast, Father Josh Johnson of Ascension Press says, "The Church does not dogmatically teach that Catholics can’t do the stretches or positions associated with yoga, but Catholics are absolutely not permitted to embrace any of the spirituality associated with yoga.

In this blog, Retired Bishop Fabian W. Bruskewitz of Lincoln, Nebraska, advises Catholics to steer clear of yoga because of its basis in Hinduism and to take up other methods of exercise that don’t place the faith in unnecessary danger.

Dominican priest and exorcist Father Juan Jose Gallego of the Archdiocese of Barcelona warns that some forms of yoga can be points of entry for demons.

Bishop Joseph F. Naumann, Archbishop of Kansas City, Kansas, offers this advice to parents who want to decrease the chances that their son or daughter will grow up to be a “none” – don’t sign them up for a yoga class.

Father William Wagner, founder of Opus Sanctorum Angelorum, explains why claims that yoga can be used as physical exercise are misleading.

The Reverend Dr. Ed Hird, an Anglican priest and long-time yoga practitioner, admits that he now knows why yoga is so much more than just exercise.

In this podcast, Exorcist Father Chad Ripperger gives his opinion on the practice of yoga by Catholics.

These testimonies by former Yoga Instructors are also informative:

Nurse Gives Up Yoga After 19 Years

Little Did I Know the Spiritual Reality of Yoga

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