Ron Roth

Ron Roth

Christian Theologian or New Age Charmer?

To the Reader: According to his website, Ron Roth served in the Roman Catholic priesthood for 25 years, is the founder the Celebrating Life Institute, is a best selling author and modern-day mystic, and an "ordained Exorcist" who, on his Mass for Deliverance page, claims to deliver individuals from their "negative energies and spirit attachments (ghosts)"

(http://www.ronroth.com/home/mass1.cfm).

With a B.A. in Philosophy and an M.A. in Theology in religious studies, Roth is also the founder of the Spirit of Peace Monastic Community, which is an interfaith Benedictine order.

The following is a summary of Ron Roth's philosophy and teachings on prayer and God, and how they vastly differ from historic Christianity and the Bible. Scriptural quotations and commentary follow immediately afterwards.

Ron Roth and prayer:

In "A Prayer Exercise for You," Roth adheres to what is commonly called the Contemplative/New Age process of meditative prayer, which encourages proponents to center on and listen to the "Divine Spirit" that exists within everyone:

"In ancient times prayer was actually a time for listening to the Divine Spirit. Out of that tradition you are invited to join us in creating a sacred space for yourself.

"You will begin by relaxing and breathing in a certain way so your focus is centered inward. The three breaths you are to take will be drawn in through your nose while thinking 'I am.' When you slowly exhale through your mouth, think 'God breathed.' Repeat this three times. Next you will turn your attention to the sacred writing on the screen. Let those words flow into and through to the center of your being, where they will be metabolized by the Holy Spirit and become part of your being. You will rest in that state of receptivity for 3 to 5 minutes where you will experience true prayer which is listening. When you come out of that state, give thanks to the Divine Spirit in any way that is comfortable for you"

(http://www.ronroth.com/home/chapel.cfm. emp. theirs).

Concerning this Contemplative/New Age/mantra-meditation style of prayer that Roth promotes, it is ironic that Jesus Christ, Himself, addressed it specifically in His Scriptural command that:

When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him (Matthew 6:5).

Roth ends this prayer exercise with "Peace, Shalom...Namaste." According to Yoga Journal, the gesture or word, Namaste "represents the belief that there is a Divine spark within each of us that is located in the heart chakra. The gesture is an acknowledgment of the soul in one by the soul in another. 'Nama' means bow, 'as' means I, and 'te' means you. Therefore, Namaste literally means 'bow me you' or 'I bow to you'" (Aadil Palkhivala, http://www.yogajournal.com/newtoyoga/822_1.cfm).

Ron Roth and God:

It is important to note that during the above prayer exercise, Roth states that "The three breaths you are to take will be drawn in through your nose while thinking 'I am.'" The words, I am, were first used by God in Genesis 15:7, then elaborated on in Exodus 3:13-14:

And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

Needless to say, God refers to Himself as the great I am throughout the Old Testament. In the New Testament, it was Jesus Who referred to Himself as the I am:

Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad. So the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am." Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple (John 8:56-59).

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God (John 10:27-33).

In the book of Revelation, we find additional references to Jesus being the I am:

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty (Revelation 1:8).

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last (Revelation 22:13).

Therefore, the Father is God (2 Peter 1:17); The Son is God (see above); and the Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:3-4). Yet, there is only one God, Who reveals Himself as Triune:

Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour (Isaiah 43:10-11).

I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me: That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else (Isaiah 45:5-6).

New Age philosophy and teachings dictate the "divinity" within man and that man is God, but the Bible clearly teaches that the position of God is reserved for God alone. Man can claim to be God or a god, but God's holy word says they walk in darkness, that God will judge those who think they are "gods," and they will "die like men" (Psalm 82:6-7).

Ron Roth's Christianity and tradition:

I have come to realize--no, to KNOW--that everything our heart

desires is possible when we can connect with the Light, the Divine

source, Creator, God--whatever name you wish to call this Presence.

And this all-powerful Divine Light doesn’t care which religion,

race, gender or sexual orientation you are. -- Ron Roth

In "An Interview with Ron Roth," Dennis Hughes, the publisher of Share Guide: The Wholistic Health Magazine, asks Roth a series of questions, to which Roth replies:

"I don't believe that anybody has to belong to a certain religion to be healed or to be loved by God. I studied Christianity because that was my background. But there were a lot of things I did not like, and I could not see Jesus as being a promoter of those things."

"What I do teach is how to develop a God Consciousness, because that is what I believe heals--that connection with the Divine Essence, the Divine Spirit, the energy that's not limited. To teach people how to make that connection, I would say pick something that suits your personality, whether it be meditation, sitting in silence, etc--but remember to listen. Those thoughts, hunches and ideas that are coming to you are from the Divine Connection, the God Consciousness" (Ibid).

"The statement that used to bother me the most is, 'Our God is a jealous God.' That is not true! What happened is, God created us in His/Her image and we returned the favor" (Ibid).

"What I always share with people are the same concepts as Sai Baba or Mother Theresa. I don't know who said it first but I am here to help the Christian to be a better Christian, the Jew be a better Jew, the Moslem be a better Moslem, etc. I am not looking for people to cross over to my path. Recently I was happy to hear the Dalai Lama say that is not wise to be jumpy. If you are born a Western individual, for example, and you are fed up with Christianity and you are trying to be Buddhist...a lot of times people get very confused because it doesn't work. Then you need to go back to the roots of your particular tradition and find out the truth for you."

Sai Baba, who claims to be the "second of a triple incarnation," is an internationally known Hindu guru, who urges mankind to:

"Believe in God--for there is only ONE GOD for all mankind, though He may be called by many names.
"Follow sincerely their respective religions and live their daily lives in consonance with the teachings of good behavior and morality.
"Respect all other religions--for no religion advocates the negative and lower qualities of man" ("The Essence of His Teachings" at http://www.sathyasai.org/intro/message.htm#HisTeachings).

Roth admits to sharing the "same concepts as Sai Baba," and even claims that he has learned to "tap into this Stream of Light Energy," which is the "secret that has been hidden from people for thousands of years..."

(http://www.ronroth.com/home/index.cfm).

Yet, Sai Baba's teachings are not new, neither are Ron Roth's. Their "concepts" originated thousands of years ago in the Garden of Eden (refer to Genesis chapter 3).

And what Roth doesn't understand, or refuses to understand, is that Christianity is exclusive to other beliefs, world religions, and man-made traditions, and that Jesus Christ is exclusive to the man-made gods; for it was Jesus Who said: Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins (John 8:24).

Sai Baba is, however, correct by saying "no religion advocates the negative and lower qualities of man." While religion advocates diversity, indifference, tolerance, harmony, heresy, bridging-the-gapism, and conformity--which results in severe compromise--Christianity draws the line in the sand, makes the comfortable uncomfortable by pointing out the rotten, sinful nature of mankind, compels the unsaved to fall on their faces and repent before Almighty God, be born again, and trust in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

Indeed, Christianity isn't a religion, but a relationship with Jesus Christ. Big difference!

Ron Roth and 'God Consciousness':

The New Age Movement defines "God Consciousness" as:

"People want to know what is God, and what is God consciousness. The reality is that consciousness IS God. Consciousness is totally singular, as is God. They are two names for one thing. The illusion is that there is an individual separate from God or separate from consciousness. The 'individual' seeks to know God or to be in God consciousness" (Aja, "What is God Consciousness"? http://www.newconnexion.net/article/07-00/whatis.html).

But the Bible teaches the opposite:

For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things (Romans 1:20-23).

As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one...For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:10-12, 23).

According to Roth, "The most important activity in life is to experience Divine Love. The power of devotion to God is THE missing link to freedom and peace of mind that we all desire in our lives. All sacred teachers are pathways, whether it is Jesus, Buddha, Yogananda, yet the ultimate goal is to make a connection to God, learning to live our lives from our heart rather than our head" ("The Healing Power of Devotion to God," Sedona Creative Life Center, http://www.sedonacreativelife.com/pre0391.html).

But Jesus said, I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me (John 14:6).

Ron Roth and Gnosticism:

"Celebrating Life Ministries is composed of spiritual shepherds (bishops), ordained spirit-directed ministers and a monastic community. We see ourselves as a model for a Christ-centered community, based on the ancient, mystical Christians such as the Gnostics and Theraputae" ("Who We Are, Celebrating Life Ministries, http://www.ronroth.com/home/CLM.cfm, emp. added).

In his article, "The Gnostic World View: A Brief Summary of Gnosticism," Stephan A. Hoeller, a Gnostic Bishop, writes that,

"GNOSTICISM IS THE TEACHING based on Gnosis, the knowledge of transcendence arrived at by way of interior, intuitive means. Although Gnosticism thus rests on personal religious experience, it is a mistake to assume all such experience results in Gnostic recognitions. It is nearer the truth to say that Gnosticism expresses a specific religious experience, an experience that does not lend itself to the language of theology or philosophy, but which is instead closely affinitized to, and expresses itself through, the medium of myth. Indeed, one finds that most Gnostic scriptures take the forms of myths. The term 'myth' should not here be taken to mean 'stories that are not true', but rather, that the truths embodied in these myths are of a different order from the dogmas of theology or the statements of philosophy" (Stephan A. Hoeller (Tau Stephanus, Gnostic Bishop), http://www.gnosis.org/gnintro.htm; emp. theirs ).

For in-depth Christian information on Gnosticism and how it has infiltrated the Christian church, refer to, "Strange Fire: The Rise of Gnosticism in the Church" at http://www.discernment-ministries.org/StrangeFire1.htm).

The apostle Paul dealt with the Gnostics of his day, and was inspired by the Holy Spirit to write: See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ (Colossians 2:8).

Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret (Ephesians 5:11-12).

All the man-made gods, Gnostic secrets, Contemplative prayers, false doctrines and traditions of men in the world won't mean diddly-squat when the unsaved appear before the Great White Throne Judgement of Jesus Christ:

And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:15).

Ron Roth and the counterfeits:

While much more could be written, it is important for Christians to understand that vain philosophies and false teachings, such as what Ron Roth espouses, are in diametric opposition to the Scriptures, and are extremely dangerous to the spiritual welfare of the believer.

Therefore, with Galatians 1:6-9 and 2 Corinthians 11:3-4 in mind, Ron Roth preaches a counterfeit Jesus, counterfeit gospel, and a counterfeit spirit--none of which have the power to save, sanctify, and redeem the unsaved.

Furthermore, Matthew 7:15-20 is a Scriptural command for Christians to be on the alert for people who claim to be a believer on the outside, but inwardly they are wolves in sheep's clothing. Jesus said we would know them by their fruits.

If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain (1 Timothy 6:3-5).

Brian Flynn (former New Age psychic), is the Director of One Truth Ministries and the author of Running Against the Wind: The Transformation of a New Age Medium and His Warning to the Church. After reviewing Ron Roth's website and additional information on the internet, Brian wrote that,

"It is not one's personality or their successes, it is what they teach. What does he teach? This is a man who does not believe that Jesus is the only way to salvation. He shares the typical New Age belief, all paths lead to God. Whether his healings are true or not it really doesn't matter. Through him and his philosophy you may get physically healed but you will never be saved. He should be avoided for that reason alone."

Brian is right. Regardless of whether the signs and wonders (including physical healings) take place, a false Jesus is incapable of saving anyone from eternal separation from God.

If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder comes true, concerning which he spoke to you, saying, Let us go after other gods (whom you have not known) and let us serve them, you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams; for the LORD your God is testing you to find out if you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul (Deuteronomy 13:1-3).

Furthermore, in Matthew 16:4, Jesus informs us that, A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.

In conclusion, the New Age movement has slithered its way into the Christian church on the backside of Contemplative Spirituality, and can cause well-meaning but gullible Christians to walk down a primrose lane to spiritual destruction. The unsaved, many of whom search for truth, will be driven deeper into sin and further away from the One who loves them the most.

Ron Roth's so called "Christian" theology may seem charming to his followers, but in reality, Roth's theology is a deceptive, mixed-bag of Contemplative Spirituality, Hinduistic mantra-prayer, Gnosticism, and New Age philosophy. It is not Christian by any stretch of the imagination, and must be rejected.

Indeed, Ron Roth, and those who espouse his teachings, would do well to heed God's solemn warning in Deuteronomy 6:14-15:

You shall not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who surround you, for the LORD your God in the midst of you is a jealous God; otherwise the anger of the LORD your God will be kindled against you, and He will wipe you off the face of the earth.

Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me (Revelation 3:20).

Researched & Compiled by:

Bud Press, Director

Christian Research Service

www.christianresearchservice.com

June 14, 2006

For further information regarding Ron Roth, please refer to Steve Muse's informative article, Ron Roth and Inclusive Spirituality.

For further information on the New Age Movement, Gnosticism, and Contemplative Spirituality, please refer to the following websites and reading materials:

Lighthouse Trails Research Project (Dave & Deborah Dombrowski)

Eastern Regional Watch Ministries (Steve Muse)

Discernment Ministries, Inc. (Jewel van der Merwe)

Kjos Ministries (Berit Kjos)

Let Us Reason Ministries (Mike Oppenheimer)