Hypnosis- opinions on it?

[Rachel]

Hypnosis, are there any scriptures about it? If not does anyone have opinions about it?

Thanks,
Rachel

 

[donnA]

To me hypnosis is part of the occult. It is an occultic pratice.

I found these sites about it from a christian prospective, but people will believe whatever they want, even when it contdicts their christian beliefs, they don't want to see when things are occultic, or have never known enough about the occult to know it is occultic. I knwo a lot of christians who beleive in and take part of a lot of thinsg that are occultic, have even seen some on here in the past. Having grown up with new age and the occult I guess I am more sensitive to them and what they are, I see satans plan in them.


http://www.gotquestions.org/hypnosis.html

http://www.rapidnet.com/~jbeard/bdm/Psychology/hypno.htm

 

[Marcia]

I agree with DonnA.

Hypnosis puts one in the same state of mind as Eastern meditation and New Age forms of meditation (which now are called stress reduction and relaxation techniques). I did this kind of meditation for a number of years.

I have heard a number of hypnotherapists say that hypnosis and meditation (I do not mean meditating or thinking on scriptures) get you to the same place. I once gave a talk on the New Age to a Christian group, and after the talk a man came up to me and said that he was not a Christian but had been invited to the talk by a Christian. He said he was a hypnotherapist and that what I had said about New Age/Eastern forms of meditation being forms of self-hypnosis was correct. I have heard other hypnotherapists say this.

Eastern/New Age meditation (also practiced in what is called the Contemplative Prayer movement) and hypnosis put your mind into a state that is very suggestible, where anything can influence it, and in which your critical thinking skills are suspended.

I have an article that discusses this:
http://cana.userworld.com/cana_meditation.html

 

[Paul of Eugene]

Hypnosis is an abnormal manifestation of a normal process of the human mind. We all turn over major parts of our daily functioning to the subconscious and we absolutely have to do that to get thorugh the day . . . we can't be forever re-inventing how to eat, tie our shoes, relate to others, etc. etc.

The heightened state of suggestion is indicative of the normal process of governing ourselves having been given up.

The latent abilities of our minds are seen in unfamiliar form in the hypnotic state; we aren't necessarily wise enough to deal with those things in that way. A trained therapist can do good things for people with hypnosis, help with addictions, for example, or help deal with pain.

Naturally, any mental phenomenon will attract the attention of meditaors and mystics, they'll deal with it in their ways, but hypnosis itself is not evil by itself . . . but it can be dangerous.

 

[Magnetic Poles]

I know of no Bible verses dealing with it, especially since it was invented/discovered much later. I don't believe there is any supernatural element at work, just the suggestibility of the human mind.

You are all getting very sleepy. Eyelids are heavy. When you next wake up, you will send all your money to me!

 

[Ben W]

I once saw on TV an operation carried out on a woman who put herself under a trance like state, and the operation was carried out without the use of Anasthetic's which I found quite interesting.

I hope that people do not oppose it because we as Christians dont understand it. The human brain is very complex and is not even fully figured out by science. If the human body can be put into a state where an operation can be carried out without anasthetic, then it is only because God created it to be that way.

A number of people use relaxation techniques to cure insomnia, I see some forms of hypnosis as an extension of that. Yet I am not so sure about people hypnotising people and instructing them to do thingsfor an audience, that does not seem o.k with me.

 

[Victory in Jesus]

Originally posted by Magnetic Poles:
You are all getting very sleepy. Eyelids are heavy. When you next wake up, you will send all your money to me!

Looks like my posts aren't the only ones that put people to sleep in here.

I tried sending my money, MP, but didn't have your address. My Mastercard number is BR54900001 and expires 12/35. Take what you want.

***************************

I tried to hypnotize my cat once. I seriously held a nacklace in front of him, swung it slowly back and forth...back and forth...then he attacked it.

I tried to baptize my cat, too...right after I got "baptized" (for the first time). I have the scars to prove it.

But seriously, what about accupuncture? Professionals claim this works on animals. Is this in the same "catagory" as "new age"?

I have to go along with Ben at this point. We didn't know much about heart transplants when they were first performed, either. Many people thought it was satanic to place a part of one person's body...especially the heart, of all things-the place "Jesus resides"...and place it in another person.

 

[Jim1999]

Victory in Jesus, I think you are bang on with your assessment.

One thing about hypnosis is that one cannot be made to do something which is against their own moral values. That is one myth that was dispelled years ago.

There used to be the old expression about the immigrant who reached the new country and the first thing he said, Is there a government here? I'm against it! Some fundamentalists are like that; their first response is, I'm agin it!

Psychiatrists are now saying that the internet is doing damage to one's psyche and far too many people are getting into a niche. Maybe they are right.

Cheers,

Jim

 

[donnA]

Originally posted by Magnetic Poles:
I know of no Bible verses dealing with it, especially since it was invented/discovered much later. I don't believe there is any supernatural element at work, just the suggestibility of the human mind.

You are all getting very sleepy. Eyelids are heavy. When you next wake up, you will send all your money to me!

Group Hypnosis began with ancient civilizations. Many group rituals, such as mass chanting and meditation to a steady drum beat were parts of religious ceremonies. There was healing of the mind before any medical practice.

http://www.danielolson.com/hypnosis/hypnosis_history.html

The early history of hypnosis actually begins before any recorded history exists. In the religious and healing ceremonies of all primitive peoples on the face of the earth there exist the elements essential to place the subjects into a hypnotic trance. It is assumed, therefore, by the study of ceremonies of primitive peoples who still exist in Africa, Australia, and elsewhere that even before history was recorded, induction's were accomplished by rhythmic chanting, monotonous drum beats, together with strained fixations of the eyes accompanied by catalepsy of the rest of the body.
Such primitive ceremonies had the essential of a central focus of attention, with surrounding neurology areas of inhibition, which two factors are responsible for 95% of the induction of the hypnotic trance. Whether these were called religious ceremonies, healing ceremonies or a combination of religious and healing ceremonies is actually immaterial. The fact is that trances did exist and were hypnotic in character, although the word "hypnosis" was never applied to them since it was not in use until Braid coined the term in 1842.

http://www.infinityinst.com/articles/nartic.html#PART%20A:%20EARLY%20HISTORY

 

[donnA]

I said in my first post there would be those who would claim this religeous pratice(false religeous) who would claim it was alright for christians. There are, no matter the topic, those who will beleive there is ntohing wrong with false religeous pratices for christians. The wortlds man made religions are slowly creaping into christianity, and chritians are the ones allowing it, bring it into christianity, into our daily lives, our churches, adulterating christianity, selling out to the world, and still proclaiming to be worshippers of God. This makes me sick everytime I see this, and we always see it here on the BB, if it is here it is in our pews, mixing Christ with falsness and satanic lies is an ugly thing. We as christians have got to stand for Christ.

 

[TexasSky]

I worked for a psychologist once who could do hypnotherapy. He explained to me that basically hypnosis has about the same affect on you that alochol, truth serums, or being half-asleep have. You get carried to a place where you are you, but you're not "awake" enough for all your inhibitions like, "I don't want them to hear this," to kick in.

I don't think its Satanic per se, but given that description, I don't think its something I want to try.

 

[Jim1999]

New Age philosophy had its rise back in the sixties. I don't know why so many want to point a finger at it now as the cause of all the troubles in the new Christian's life. Frankly, I don't find it a great influence in the Baptist Churches in Canada. In fact, most people haven't a clue what it means.

What I do find is a lot of huff and puff Christianity. The people huff and puff at anything different to what they supposedly believe, and that appears somewhat shallow at best.

Don't try to pick holes in all modernity, but see how it fits into the modern era. As an old bloke, I struggle with change too. It is not easy, but do it I must.

Not all of us have abandoned the spiritual life Christ so benevolently provides us.

Cheers,

Jim

 

[TexasSky]

Jim,

I think many people see the rise of the New Age movement as happening at the same time the world became openly hostile toward Christians. There are many problems with that though.

1) The world has always been openly hostile toward Christians.

2) They put the cart before the horse. New Age doesn't cause a "fall in Christianity." A fall in Christianity causes a rise in New Age.

"Different" is frightening.

Christians look for things to "blame" things on because Christians are humans. We want to say, "It is their fault." I prefer to say, "Maybe its our fault," and I get a lot of people furious when I do that.

But, - maybe it is.

Maybe if we did more to help others, more to fill the voids left in their lives, more to reach and teach - more to introduce them to Christ - they wouldn't feel they needed the other things they fill their lives with.

 

[Victory in Jesus]

Originally posted by donnA:
I said in my first post there would be those who would claim this religeous pratice(false religeous) who would claim it was alright for christians. There are, no matter the topic, those who will beleive there is ntohing wrong with false religeous pratices for christians. The wortlds man made religions are slowly creaping into christianity, and chritians are the ones allowing it, bring it into christianity, into our daily lives, our churches, adulterating christianity, selling out to the world, and still proclaiming to be worshippers of God. This makes me sick everytime I see this, and we always see it here on the BB, if it is here it is in our pews, mixing Christ with falsness and satanic lies is an ugly thing. We as christians have got to stand for Christ.

There will never be a place on Earth you can go that will encompass a group of people who will agree totally with everything you say.

I've never been hypnotized and never plan to be placed in that position. And... now that I've said THAT, it'll probably happen. LOL! But, hypnosis has been used in forensics to help people remember details of a crime they would not remember otherwise. It's been instrumental in capturing and convicting criminals who would have gone free.

It's been used by psychologists to help people get to details of problems that they had forgotten existed, but was imperative to the beginning of their healing (and I'm not talking about the false memory stuff).

Though I can't explain why, hypnosis has helped people quit smoking, calm pain, stop bad habits that drugs couldn't do. I don't know how this works, but if it's a tool that can be useful-and the doctor knows what he's doing and how/why it works, who are we to stomp on it and throw stones at people who have been helped by it?

Hypnosis is not a religion. It's a tool, if performed responsibly by the right person. Like everything else in this world, hypnosis can be abused. The abuse of it I don't agree with. I don't believe it has a place in church or in front of an audience. But, I do believe it is an effective tool when used properly by a trained professional in the privacy of his office.

I asked about accupuncture earlier in this thread. I don't understand how that works, either. But, I do know I have injury in my back, neck and shoulder, but I feel the pain as far down as my ankles and wrists, which aren't injured. Somehow-in the same way- the needles seem to be able to cease the pain that exist through running nerves. So I can understand this much by the referred pain I experience. Veterinarians claim accupuncture works on animals who experience tremendous amounts of pain...who could barely walk in, but walks away with ease. I've actually considered giving accupuncture a try, but...eeeewwwww! I don't want needles sticking out of me.

Just because I don't know how something works, or don't understand why it works, or even understand the people who utilize certain methods...it doesn't give me a reason to believe it doesn't work or shouldn't be used. I'm almost always skeptical when I first hear about something new, but I try to keep an open mind...and yet I stay focused on the Lord to avoid getting sucked into things I shouldn't.

 

[Marcia]

hypnosis has been used in forensics to help people remember details of a crime they would not remember otherwise. It's been instrumental in capturing and convicting criminals who would have gone free.

In the U.S., remembering things under hypnosis is not accepted as testimony in courts, and for good reason. People can remember things under hypnosis that are not true, but they think they are.

Also, experiments have been done with people where they put them under, told them something false about their pasts, and then brought them out. The people absolutely believed what they had been told under hypnosis was true and could not accept it was planted in their mind as a memory while they were hypnotized.

Trance states are an integral part of the occult because that is a way to open the mind and change one's worldview. People have become depressed and unstable after doing a lot of the meditative states you do in the New Age (which is the same as hypnosis). The mind is not something to play around with.

 

[Paul of Eugene]

I'm reminded of a story I read somewhere about a forensic artist who by being very careful in the way she interviewed the witnesses and helped them draw out their memories was able to draw good pictures of suspects where others, who were less skillful interviewers, consistently got bad results drawing unreliable pictures.

In the area of hypnosis, who are we going to trust to be a really qualified practitioner?

 

[Jim1999]

In the area of hypnosis, who are we going to trust to be a really qualified practitioner?

That is prolly true in any profession.

Cheers,

Jim

 

[Marcia]

Qualified -- depends on what you mean by that. If the problem is with hypnosis itself, it doesn't matter.

In some states, hypnotherapists are not required to be examined or licensed. And in those states where they are, they are examined by other hypnotherapists and the state recognizes it. But that does not mean it's legitimate or a good thing.

Paul of Eugene -- it still remains that testimony or memory under hypnosis is not accepted in the courts. Studies have found memory under hypnosis to be unreliable.

Most people who "recall" alien abductions did so under hypnosis; and most accusations of satanic ritual abuse (which had no other evidence) was recalled the same way. Hypnosis is no way to assuer the truth will be recalled.

 

[donnA]

Some christian refuse to test the spirits and will accept anything the world throws at them.

 

[Magnetic Poles]

Originally posted by donnA:
Some christian refuse to test the spirits and will accept anything the world throws at them.

While others see spirits where none exist.