Now now, I have been accused of being a bigot on this forum before, but now I am sure everybody will understand after talking to a real one, I was never one in the first place 
SD, you a bigot? Now who said such a thing? Shame on them! 
I know many spiritually enlightend Catholics. I do not know any who are paranoid, insecure, dogmatic, and dishonest, though I don’t doubt they exist, but this would be in spite of and not because of Catholicism.
Can’t get anymore representative than the pope now can we? This pope of yours certainly is dishonest, for he covered up the molestation of children going on in your Church
Look if Christianity could provide the well being that Yoga provided, then people would not have turned away from Christianity in droves this century and Christians would not have been fighting with their local churches and pastors to do Yoga. And there would have been no Christian Yoga.
It is clear to any honest person that Yoga provides what Christianity does not provide. To be honest, Christianity provides nothing more than false promises of salvation in the life here after. Yoga, on the other hand provides physical and mental health and well being in this life. This is not even debatable as it is backed up by the testimony of millions of people all over the world and decades of scientific studies.
Yoga > Christianity
Surya says…It is clear to any honest person that Yoga provides what Christianity does not provide. To be honest, Christianity provides nothing more than false promises of salvation in the life here after.
The things is you dont know that, it goes back to what I said about many Christians must have experienced the divine at some point in History and will in the now and in the future and no matter what can be said about any religion/or practice it is the individual that the divine reaches out to when on a spiritual quest and even when they are not. Yoga I agree provides the individual with steps of truth towards self realisation that may be more comforting in progress/proof terms But the divine is present in both.
It is clear to any honest person that Yoga provides what Christianity does not provide.
This is very true. Christianity does not tell us how to exercise or give us exercises to do. It doesn’t tell us what to eat, either.
See, we do get to use our minds sometimes.
So yoga gives us something that our religion doesn’t–a good way to exercise. And some Christians instead are running or walking or lifting weights or doing pilates or playing sports, etc. It’s all good.
I would very much like to stay out of this beyond the Yogi Bear bits but I looked at the title of this thread today “Can a Christian be a Yogi” and I had a thought.
Can a Yogi be a Christian?
Actually that is a serious question and I am not trying to make light of this.
Mathematically (geometrically) a square is a rectangle but a rectangle is not a square and I was wondering if the answer was different if you reversed the question.
Brilliant! Not much else to say, except brilliant again! You do some great thinking while ill!
well lets see whats said about that Yulaw:-D
Can a Yogi be a Christian?
The square/rectangle analogy doesn’t work if one is not the subset of the other, and I don’t think that’s the case.
At any rate, ANYONE who is not a Christian may become a Christian by accepting what Christians believe and by discarding any baggage that they are currently carrying which is in conflict with Christianity, which pretty much puts us at the same place as the original question.
[QUOTE=thomas;41286]Can a Yogi be a Christian?
The square/rectangle analogy doesn’t work if one is not the subset of the other, and I don’t think that’s the case.
At any rate, ANYONE who is not a Christian may become a Christian by accepting what Christians believe and by discarding any baggage that they are currently carrying which is in conflict with Christianity, which pretty much puts us at the same place as the original question.[/QUOTE]
A true Christian response.
Can a yogi be a Christian may or may not, from the Yogi’s point of view, have anything to do with discarding anything. Therefore from the Yogi side of the issue it may or may not put one right back to the original question. It could be a very different question actually.
Mathematically, if you could ask a square if it was a rectangle it would say yes I am a rectangle but mathematically if you ask a rectangle is it is square it will say no. A square need not discard anything to be a rectangle but a rectangle has to discard part of 2 sides to be a square.
But since you can’t ask either of them ask a mathematician because talking to squares and rectangles may make one look as if they are a few fries shy of a happy meal 
What is a yogi?
What is a Christian?
We could debate both questions for a couple of years.
And then we could address your question and maybe come up with an answer by 2015.
There is no need for a debate.
A Yogi is one whose highest value of life is self-development and who practices self development in this life. They have no other priority. As soon as they become aware of the Self, their aim is then to achieive it through Yoga. This involves stuff like mind-body training via exercise, diet, meditation and balanced living.
A Christian is one whose highest value in life is to attain salvation in the hereafter. To pass the test of judgement day and be given an immortal body to live a life of eternal happiness with god his son Jesus. In order to achieive this they endeavour to live a religious life by not sinning. This involves stuff like attending church, praying, confessing sins and following the dictates of the chuch. As well as adhering to the 10 commandments and striving to love others and bring them to Jesus.
Neither are the values the same or the goal.
End of debate.
A Yogi is one whose highest value of life is self-development and who practices self development in this life.
And Christians don’t practice self development? Of course they do. Why wouldn’t they? This is how they would reach salvation.
They have no other priority. As soon as they become aware of the Self, their aim is then to achieive it through Yoga. This involves stuff like mind-body training via exercise, diet, meditation and balanced living.
And this excludes Christians how? I certainly hope they are aware of self. I do believe Christians exercise, watch their diet, meditate via prayers and try to live a good balanced life.
Neither are the values the same or the goal.
End of debate.
If you look at the sutras and the eight fold path, many, if not all the ideas can be applied to most religions. Goal is the same. As far as values, who cares? If the goals are basically the same and the values are based on attaining those goals or goal, it matters not whether you are a christian, jew or muslim. The end goal is the same albeit different paths.
I don’t believe we can be so narrow minded in our views here. Yoga, whether it is embraced though Hinduism, christianity, etc can lead to living a better, happier life. Why would anyone deny that of another?
And I do believe Yulaw stated this brilliantly.
[QUOTE=kareng;41176]Surya says…It is clear to any honest person that Yoga provides what Christianity does not provide. To be honest, Christianity provides nothing more than false promises of salvation in the life here after.
Kareng says…The things is you dont know that, it goes back to what I said about many Christians must have experienced the divine at some point in History and will in the now and in the future and no matter what can be said about any religion/or practice it is the individual that the divine reaches out to when on a spiritual quest and even when they are not. Yoga I agree provides the individual with steps of truth towards self realisation that may be more comforting in progress/proof terms But the divine is present in both.[/QUOTE]
Well put …!
I am in total agreement with Lotusgirl on this Surya, Ive backtracked to what I said previously, not feeling too good today, save me typing.xx
[QUOTE=Surya Deva;41313]End of debate.[/QUOTE]
It ain’t over 'til it’s over. - [B][U]Yogi[/U][/B] Berra
[QUOTE=thomas;41300]What is a yogi?
What is a Christian?
We could debate both questions for a couple of years.
And then we could address your question and maybe come up with an answer by 2015.[/QUOTE]
Then why don’t we?
Oh Oh, I sense a challenge here!
[QUOTE=Yulaw;41329]Then why don’t we?[/QUOTE]
I could come up with a good definition for a Christian (that not all who call themselves Christians would accept, but would be accepted by most), but I can’t define “yogi.”
[QUOTE=thomas;41337]I could come up with a good definition for a Christian (that not all who call themselves Christians would accept, but would be accepted by most), but I can’t define “yogi.”[/QUOTE]
Then post it.
I am sure someone will come up with another definition as well as a definition of a yogi.
To start lets start with dictionary definitions to try and avoid the emotional attchments that go with both of these words and see where it goes
[B][U]yogi[/U][/B]
- a person who practices yoga.
- a person who is a master of yoga
Word Origin & History
yogi - “one who practices yoga,” 1619, from Hindi yogi , from Skt. yoga-
Origin: 1610–20; < Skt yogī, nom. sing. of yogin, deriv. of yoga yoga
yogini - female
[B][U]Christian[/U][/B]
1.of, pertaining to, or derived from Jesus Christ or His teachings: a Christian faith.
2. of, pertaining to, believing in, or belonging to the religion based on the teachings of Jesus Christ: Spain is a Christian country.
3. of or pertaining to Christians: many Christian deaths in the Crusades.
4.exhibiting a spirit proper to a follower of Jesus Christ; Christlike: She displayed true Christian charity.
5. decent; respectable: They gave him a good Christian burial.
6.human; not brutal; humane: Such behavior isn’t Christian.
7. a person who believes in Jesus Christ; adherent of Christianity.
8. a person who exemplifies in his or her life the teachings of Christ: He died like a true Christian.
9. a member of any of certain Protestant churches, as the Disciples of Christ and the Plymouth Brethren.
10.the hero of Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress.
11.a male given name.
Origin:
1250–1300; < L Chrīstiānus < Gk Chrīstiān?s, equiv. to Chrīst ( ?s ) Christ + -iānos < L -iānus -ian; r. ME, OE cristen < L
EDIT:
And I have to tell you based solely on the dictionary definition I see nothing that would prevent a Yogi from being a Christian or vise versa
thomas
I have one more question, are you arguing for Christians or Catholics?
The two are, to be entirely honest, the same but different. What a Protestant Christian might believe or feel is not necessarily what a Catholic Christian might believe or feel.
But then again this may all be sorted out in the definitions
.