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Question Title	Posted By	Question Date
Pilates	rachael	Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Question: Dear Brother Ignatius, My husband has a sore back and his physiotherapist has now recommended him to start doing Pilates. I have warned him about getting involved with New Age but he thinks Pilates will just strengthen up his back. Is this OK to do. Also the physiotherapist has used accupuncture on his as part of his treatment. Thank you. and God Bless you.
Question Answered by Bro. Ignatius Mary, OMSM(r) Dear Rachael: I really do not know much about Pilates. From what I gather there are some medical effects that have been demonstrated with some of the techniques. On the other hand, some of the underlying philosophy is really problematic -- the mind over matter aspects and some of the ideas about breathing -- a typical exaggeration of effects that is most common with alternative medical techniques. I would be cautious, but as far as I know none of the techniques brings on into a altered state of consciousness (which is the primary problem with most Eastern methods). It does not appear, as best as I can tell for now, that your husband's participation in this method would be spiritually harmful. But... ...the problem with these sorts of techniques is that they are co-opted by New Agers and intertwined with everything from feng fooy to Ch'i and other forms of what is called vitalism. Vitalism is "the metaphysical doctrine that living organisms possess a non-physical inner force or energy that gives them the property of life. Vitalists believe that the laws of physics and chemistry alone cannot explain life functions and processes." Even if Pilates is in itself spiritual neutral, in a lot of cases the instructors will contaminate it by infusing the gobbledygook of the New Age, sometimes in way subtle enough to not be noticed by the average person. Thus, caution is warranted. Frankly, there are many specific exercises that have been prescribed for many years, and used by physical therapist (before the age of gobbledygook) that work just fine. One does not have to go to some "systematic" program that is oftentimes intertwined with New Age philosophies. As for acupuncture, the fundamental and essential foundation of acupuncture is the non-existent Ch'i, the vitalism philosophy that is nonsense. Scientific studies, however, has discovered that acupuncture can be useful for pain control, but not necessarily any better than normal pain medications. Acupuncture does not have any efficacy beyond pain control. God Bless, Bro. Ignatius Mary For information on how to receive help see our Help page. We suggest that before contacting us directly for help you try the Seven Steps to Self-Deliverance. These self-help steps will often resolve the problem. Also our Spiritual Warfare Prayer Catalog contains many prayers that may be helpful. If needed you can ask for a Personal Consultation.

Question Title

Posted By

Question Date

Pilates

rachael

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Question:

Dear Brother Ignatius,

My husband has a sore back and his physiotherapist has now recommended him to start doing Pilates. I have warned him about getting involved with New Age but he thinks Pilates will just strengthen up his back. Is this OK to do. Also the physiotherapist has used accupuncture on his as part of his treatment. Thank you. and God Bless you.

Question Answered by Bro. Ignatius Mary, OMSM(r)

Dear Rachael:

I really do not know much about Pilates. From what I gather there are some medical effects that have been demonstrated with some of the techniques. On the other hand, some of the underlying philosophy is really problematic -- the mind over matter aspects and some of the ideas about breathing -- a typical exaggeration of effects that is most common with alternative medical techniques.

I would be cautious, but as far as I know none of the techniques brings on into a altered state of consciousness (which is the primary problem with most Eastern methods).

It does not appear, as best as I can tell for now, that your husband's participation in this method would be spiritually harmful.

But...

...the problem with these sorts of techniques is that they are co-opted by New Agers and intertwined with everything from feng fooy to Ch'i and other forms of what is called vitalism.

Vitalism is "the metaphysical doctrine that living organisms possess a non-physical inner force or energy that gives them the property of life. Vitalists believe that the laws of physics and chemistry alone cannot explain life functions and processes."

Even if Pilates is in itself spiritual neutral, in a lot of cases the instructors will contaminate it by infusing the gobbledygook of the New Age, sometimes in way subtle enough to not be noticed by the average person.

Thus, caution is warranted.

Frankly, there are many specific exercises that have been prescribed for many years, and used by physical therapist (before the age of gobbledygook) that work just fine. One does not have to go to some "systematic" program that is oftentimes intertwined with New Age philosophies.

As for acupuncture, the fundamental and essential foundation of acupuncture is the non-existent Ch'i, the vitalism philosophy that is nonsense. Scientific studies, however, has discovered that acupuncture can be useful for pain control, but not necessarily any better than normal pain medications. Acupuncture does not have any efficacy beyond pain control.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary

For information on how to receive help see our Help page. We suggest that before contacting us directly for help you try the Seven Steps to Self-Deliverance. These self-help steps will often resolve the problem. Also our Spiritual Warfare Prayer Catalog contains many prayers that may be helpful. If needed you can ask for a Personal Consultation.