JadeOrchidSong Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 Christians, I would like your view on this. Thank you! PLEASE do not quote My boys and my friend's daughter just started martial art class thanks to a very cheap coupon we bought. She sent me this link after we did two weeks of this class. I deleted the link. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I skimmed the article. I know that some Christians have similar concerns about doing Yoga. I also know that there are some Karate programs around here (we are in the Bible Belt) that advertise themselves as Christian Karate. I'm not sure exactly what that means -- whether they simply remove the spiritual elements that are contrary to Christianity or replace those elements with Christian-friendly elements. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emzhengjiu Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 We are committed Christians and I think much of what this article discusses doesn't apply to karate the way it is taught in this country. My first reaction is this ridiculous, but I'm trying to be nice this week. ETA: I studied Karate several years ago and my 14 yo DD is working on her black belt. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 big huge eyeroll. I've had two kids in MA . one is in now, the studio owner is Christian. I'm more familiar with this mindset from yoga. I do yoga - I hear from many uber conservative/evangelical Christians about how 'yoga is a religion' and it's evil to do yoga. smh. :svengo: I do it from dvd for my convenience, and so I know *exactly* what practice I get before I start. I have many yoga dvds from many different yogis. only one dvd has *ever* made me uncomfortable from a religious standpoint. I simply tossed it. the rest have been of great benefit for my mental health and physical condition. of course - these same uber conservative Christians will go on how harry potter is evil because it uses magic. :willy_nilly: to tell an epic tale of good vs evil and good ultimately triumphing after persevering through very dark and difficult times. (but tolkein and lewis are okay.) some people need to :chillpill: but there are people in all religions who fearmonger. I recall in india where the imams were telling women to NOT have their children vaccinated against polio because it was all a trick by authorities to harm their children. the hindu and Sikh women had their children vaccinated. then polio came to their village. eta: when I say "chill" I'm referring to the writer of the article who is fear mongering - that is NOT the same thing as asking questions about their PoV. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slipper Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I didn't read the whole article, but enough to understand your concern. I have one daughter who takes karate and is in her 6th year. I took aikido for four years. I loved martial arts and am excited that my daughter enjoys it as well. Some MA (martial arts) instructors will emphasize spirituality and some do not. Every place that I have visited was careful to explain the significance of bowing - that it was a form of respect, not worship. They also stated that it was not a requirement. There is spirituality in MA. I found it peaceful and relaxing. I didn't find anything that conflicted with Christianity. There was emphasis on humility, patience, compassion, willingness to both learn and teach, respect towards others and so on. It appears to be a frequent discussion. If you have concerns, I feel confident that the Sensei of the class would be willing to discuss them with you. If he's not willing to discuss them or acts belittling in any way, then I would pull your kids out. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butter Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 Is the instructor of the school you go to pushing Far Eastern religions or is the instructor teaching punches, kicks, forms, etc? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Junie Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I think it depends on the way the class is taught; and I agree with the previous poster who said that martial arts are not usually associated with religion in the U.S. I have taken Tai Chi in the past. I once heard a pastor preach on the evils of Tai Chi. However, what he talked about did not sound very much like my class. I talked with an assistant pastor after the service (the pastor's son-in-law and a native of the Philippines, so I figured I would get a balanced answer from him) and he said that as long as I was only taking the class for exercise -- that there was no religious overtones -- that he saw no problem with the class. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6packofun Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 We are committed Christians and I think much of what this article discusses doesn't apply to karate the way it is taught in this country. My first reaction is this ridiculous, but I'm trying to be nice this week. ETA: I studied Karate several years ago and my 14 yo DD is working on her black belt. I agree. On another note, I think it's important to understand the mindset of *anyone* who is teaching our children to see if they are trying to impart a worldview we disagree with. And that doesn't mean we yank our kids out, but we evaluate and THINK about these things. "Chill out" is the response of people who tend to think everything is relative; your concern may be unnecessary in this case (and I think it *probably* is) but to HAVE a little concern when other people are speaking into our children's lives isn't something that we as Christians should feel sorry about. Just didn't want you to think you were foolish for asking. :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JadeOrchidSong Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 A side question: How much do you pay for your dc's MA class? We are trying to decide if it is reasonable to pay $125 per student a month for 2 45-minute classes per week. The ratio is pretty low as of now, 1 instructor with 3 students. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristi26 Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I'm a Christian. I see nothing wrong with yoga or karate. I skimmed the article very briefly. When you're to "meditate," use it as prayer time. Focus on God. Commit that time to God. I think too often "religion" makes things wrong that just don't matter. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JadeOrchidSong Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 OP here. I practice yoga for exercise and meditate on God. I love love love love Harry Potter and hope every Christian (or not) will read it. I grew up practicing martial art every night for free with a kungfu master, no religion involved ever. I would love my kids to continue martial arts. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I do attend the classes with my kids, so I know they are not studying the worship of evil spirits. :P There is a group of Muslim siblings in our class. It is apparent to me that the parents got the teacher's promise that the daughter would never spar with a male. He always puts her with a female (which isn't the norm for the class). Her mom sat in to watch for many sessions; now she seems to trust the folks. :) I really don't think our teachers are trying to turn students away from whatever religious teachings their parents choose for them. The "spirituality" aspect of the course is stuff that I think we all can agree on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FriedClams Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 My kids take TKD...at a local church...where lessons open and close with prayer...and everyone is invited to special services at the church...and it's a mission outreach. Anything can be an idol, but not everything is an idol. As everyone said, it's about focus, teachers, etc. If in doubt, pray about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsheresomewhere Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 A side question: How much do you pay for your dc's MA class? We are trying to decide if it is reasonable to pay $125 per student a month for 2 45-minute classes per week. The ratio is pretty low as of now, 1 instructor with 3 students. That would buy a month at the cheap place of once a week for thirty minutes. That is a good rate you got. It would be around 250 here for what you are getting. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 A side question: How much do you pay for your dc's MA class? We are trying to decide if it is reasonable to pay $125 per student a month for 2 45-minute classes per week. The ratio is pretty low as of now, 1 instructor with 3 students. cost varies with location. I didn't do a "coupon" for a month from one place because their *regular* price was 75% MORE than everywhere else. It also felt like a belt factory as opposed to actually teaching them in a quality manner. I almost went with one good dojo I am familiar with, good summer price (which is what their coupon was for. keep 'em coming during the summer when families go on vacation), but they have large classes and that would be a bad combination with dudeling. he's now in a small class where he's one of the youngest and it is a good fit. he was with this studio last winter, in a younger class and he was the oldest. the class was too big too. (and that it's pretty easy for me to get to - location, location, location, and I've known the owner for 25+ years, helps.) price doesn't guarantee quality - and for that you really have to watch them. (some places also have many expensive mandatory add-ons) I like lower ratio as they can get more attention from the instructor/sensei. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 I agree. On another note, I think it's important to understand the mindset of *anyone* who is teaching our children to see if they are trying to impart a worldview we disagree with. And that doesn't mean we yank our kids out, but we evaluate and THINK about these things. "Chill out" is the response of people who tend to think everything is relative; your concern may be unnecessary in this case (and I think it *probably* is) but to HAVE a little concern when other people are speaking into our children's lives isn't something that we as Christians should feel sorry about. Just didn't want you to think you were foolish for asking. :) I agree with this. Also, do you have local friends you could ask about this dojo (or dojang for those of us who are involved with Korean MA)? When I queried local Christian friends, they all said to go to the same guy, so that's what we did. They all said they had never seen anything concerning, and the instructor is also happy to discuss concerns with the parents. Ask around! Fwiw, I interpret "way" as "method." My children do hapkido, which is "the way of coordinated power." I interpret that as "we teach them to use a method of self defense that involves coordinating their body parts to get the most effective power." If they took shooting classes, we might call that "the way of the gun," or "a method of self defense that involves using a gun properly and safely." 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JadeOrchidSong Posted July 28, 2015 Author Share Posted July 28, 2015 Update: My sons are both happily doing MA. I am very proud to see how much effort they willingly put into it and they have better stamina and strength now. We will go to my hometwon in China and visit the mountain an hour away where this most famous martial arts originated. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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