A DERRY priest has warned that taking part in yoga and Indian head massages risks “communicating a bad spirit”.
Waterside-based Fr. Roland Colhoun shared his caution with parishioners during mass in Drumsurn a fortnight ago.
Regarding Indian head massages, he said: “While I haven’t done a great study into it, the difficulty is that it involves the laying on of hands on another person’s head.
“There is a risk when you do that because that is a rite we use in the sacramental practice for the communication of the Holy Spirit in baptism and confirmation, and ordination as well. But if you do that outside of a sacramental rite you’re running the risk of communicating a bad spirit, not the Holy Spirit.”
Fr. Colhoun also spoke of the potential dangers of yoga.
“Pope Francis said ‘do not seek spiritual answers in yoga classes’. Yoga is certainly a risk. There’s the spiritual health risk.
“When you take up those practices from other cultures, which are outside our Christian domain, you don’t know what you are opening yourself up to. The bad spirit can be communicated in a variety of ways.”
Hindus, meanwhile, are urging Pope Francis to discipline the priest for linking the centuries old practice to Satan.
President of the Universal Society of Hinduism, Rajan Zed, said that yoga - given its 'proven benefits' - should be introduced in all the schools of the world.
He stressed that incorporating yoga into students’ lifestyles would be a positive step to take.
Zed added that yoga, although introduced and promoted by Hinduism, has a global heritage as it is a practice adopted by cultures worldwide.
See More: Derry Priest, Yoga Risks
