Looking back on 2011: My most-widely read online articles

		Views
Home page		67,699
Motherhood and Apple Pie		31,594
Florence Nightingale: Mother of Nursing		26,395
Queen Victoria and Sir James Simpson		17,492
Alexander Graham Bell: Inventing the future		5,324
Thomas Edison: Let There Be Light….		4,131
Samuel de Champlain and Sieur de Monts: Canadian heroes		3,820
Laura Secord: more than just chocolates		3,753
Dr. James Naismith: Father of Basketball		3,738
My Fair Lady		2,768
Sir Alexander Fleming: Countless Millions Saved		2,554
Simon Fraser: Canada’s most successful failure		2,236
Carl Jung and the Gnostic Reconciliation of Gender Opposites		2,204
Taekwondo and the Martial Arts: Mere Exercise or Trojan Horse??		2,044
Louis Riel: Canadian Patriot?		1,856
Carl Jung, Neo-gnosticism, and the MBTI		1,573
The Birth of the Book		1,432
Sir Alexander Mackenzie the Scottish Bulldog		1,378
Captain James Cook: World Explorer		1,264
David Thompson: “Star-Gazer”		1,216
Jesus Loves me, This I know…		1,179

250,000 visitors later

As of today, the http://edhird.wordpress.com  blog has had 250,000 visitors in just over two years.  These are the more widely read of the blog articles:

Home page		63,585
Florence Nightingale: Mother of Nursing		24,444
Motherhood and Apple Pie		18,289
Queen Victoria and Sir James Simpson		17,724
The Unforgettable Benjamin Franklin		15,781
Winston Churchill the British Bulldog		9,406
Alexander Graham Bell: Inventing the future		7,990
Laura Secord: more than just chocolates		4,460
Jesus Loves me, This I know…		4,216
Samuel de Champlain and Sieur de Monts: Canadian heroes		3,682
Dr. James Naismith: Father of Basketball		3,649
Pain: Useless intrusion or gift of God?		3,611
Thomas Edison: Let There Be Light….		3,124
Carl Jung, Neo-gnosticism, and the MBTI		2,918
Alfred Nobel: Lord of Dynamite, Servant of Peace		2,863
Sir Alexander Mackenzie the Scottish Bulldog		2,627
Taekwondo and the Martial Arts: Mere Exercise or Trojan Horse??		2,045
Simon Fraser: Canada’s most successful failure		1,978
Louis Riel: Canadian Patriot?		1,964
Carl Jung and the Gnostic Reconciliation of Gender Opposites		1,919
Don Quixote: Chasing After Marriage’s Windmills		1,859
James Watt: Creative Genius		1,679
Good King Wenceslas last looked out…		1,660
My Fair Lady		1,530
The Gift of Courage Can Be Imparted		1,510
Sir Alexander Fleming: Countless Millions Saved		1,435
When the Saints Come Marching In		1,433
The Birth of the Book		1,395
Captain James Cook: World Explorer		1,392
Lord and Lady Baden-Powell: Character Builders		1,200
David Thompson: “Star-Gazer”		1,088

The Reverend Ed Hird, Rector

St. Simon’s Church North Vancouver

Anglican Mission in the Americas (Canada)

http://stsimonschurch.ca 

-previously published in the North Shore News & the Deep Cove Crier

-award-winning author of the book ‘Battle for the Soul of Canada’

http://www.battleforthesoulofcanada.blogspot.com

p.s. In order to obtain a copy of the book ‘Battle for the Soul of Canada’, please send a $18.50 cheque to ‘Ed Hird’, #1008-555 West 28th Street, North Vancouver, BC V7N 2J7. For mailing the book to the USA, please send $20.00 USD.  This can also be done by PAYPAL using the e-mail ed_hird@telus.net . Be sure to list your mailing address. The Battle for the Soul of Canada e-book can be obtained for $9.99 CDN/USD.

-Click to download a complimentary PDF copy of the Battle for the Soul study guide :  Seeking God’s Solution for a Spirit-Filled Canada 

You can also download the complimentary Leader’s Guide PDF: Battle for the Soul Leaders Guide

200,000 visitors…

Within the next 24 or so hours, we will have had 200,000 visitors to this blog (100,000 new visitors since Jan 2011 http://edhird.wordpress.com

 

Through your dialing in today, you will help us reach that number of people .

 

This blog started on August 2009, less than two years ago.  The next goal will be to have a total of 500,000 visitors which we will hopefully see within the next two years.

 

There are now 353 articles on the blog that you can check out. Thanks for your support and interest. The most popular articles are as follows:

Home page		48,091
Florence Nightingale: Mother of Nursing		18,844
Queen Victoria and Sir James Simpson		16,619
The Unforgettable Benjamin Franklin		15,684
Winston Churchill the British Bulldog		9,288
Alexander Graham Bell: Inventing the future		7,216
Motherhood and Apple Pie		4,939
Laura Secord: more than just chocolates		4,081
Jesus Loves me, This I know…		3,851
Pain: Useless intrusion or gift of God?		3,592
Samuel de Champlain and Sieur de Monts: Canadian heroes		3,320
Dr. James Naismith: Father of Basketball		3,058
Alfred Nobel: Lord of Dynamite, Servant of Peace		2,719
Carl Jung, Neo-gnosticism, and the MBTI		2,668
Sir Alexander Mackenzie the Scottish Bulldog		2,545
Louis Riel: Canadian Patriot?		1,927
Don Quixote: Chasing After Marriage’s Windmills		1,831
Good King Wenceslas last looked out…		1,609
Taekwondo and the Martial Arts: Mere Exercise or Trojan Horse??		1,582
James Watt: Creative Genius		1,542
The Gift of Courage Can Be Imparted		1,502
Thomas Edison: Let There Be Light….		1,463
When the Saints Come Marching In		1,358
Carl Jung and the Gnostic Reconciliation of Gender Opposites		1,335
Captain James Cook: World Explorer		1,257
Sir Alexander Fleming: Countless Millions Saved		1,216
Lord and Lady Baden-Powell: Character Builders		1,138
Simon Fraser: Canada’s most successful failure		1,052
David Thompson: “Star-Gazer”		1,038

Taekwondo and the Martial Arts: Mere Exercise or Trojan Horse??

By the Rev. Dr.  Ed Hird

I was personally involved in Martial Arts, Karate in particular, for a number of years between the period of 1971 to 1991.  My enthusiasm for martial arts even led me to successfully recruit other Christians to join me.  Through the prayer ministry of the group Wholeness Through Christ, I chose to renounce my previous involvement in the martial arts.  Previously, I was opposed to some of my friends dabbling in community centre yoga, but had rationalized my involvement in the martial arts as something innocuous.

In the spring of 1999, my sons discussed with me the expectation that they would take part in Taekwondo as part of their Christian school gym class.  In discussing our concerns with their principal, it was agreed that my sons would be exempted from this expectation.  It was also agreed that I would do some research regarding our concerns about Taekwondo, and present my findings in a paper to the principal and the school board.

As a renewal-oriented Anglican, I believe that it is vital that the charismatic gift of discernment (1 Corinthians 12:10) not be neglected in this neo-gnostic, confused age.  As part of the discernment process, I carefully researched dozens of pro-martial arts books, with a special emphasis on taekwondo books.  I also consulted extensively with a good number of taekwondo and Martial Arts instructors from North America and around the world.  My research led me to believe that taekwondo and the Martial Arts (MA) are far more than just physical gym exercises.  Rather Taekwondo and MA are Zen Buddhist meditational techniques designed to bring a person into the experience of satori or Buddhist enlightenment.[1]  As Buddhism essentially is reformed Hinduism, so too the Martial Arts are essentially Martial Yoga.  Few westerners have enough experience with Zen Buddhism to initially notice the hidden religious nature of martial arts.  Chuck Norris, famous for his role as Walker on the TV show Texas Ranger, holds unreservedly that ‘the ancient system of Zen (is) the core philosophy behind the martial arts.’[2]  It is no coincidence that the occult circular symbol of Ying-Yang constantly appears on even many innocuous-looking Taekwondo websites and brochures.[3] One of the goals of Taekwondo and other martial arts is to enter a zazen meditational state so that ‘the everyday experience of the dualism of subject and object vanishes.’[4]

In the Encyclopedia of New Age Beliefs , John Ankerberg and John Weldon state that “Because most (martial arts) methods incorporate eastern teaching and techniques, the martial arts are easy doorways into Taoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and other non-Christian religions.”[5]  They went on to comment that “Traditionally, martial arts are forms of spiritual education that function as means towards self-realization or self-enlightenment.  It is true that the spiritual dimension of martial arts can be downplayed or ignored, but that is not consistent with their ultimate purpose historically.”[6]

Taekwondo and other martial arts can be traced to a 6th century Buddhist monk Bodhidharma who travelled from India to China and established Zen Buddhism at the Shaolin temple of Ko San So Rim.  There he taught them both sitting meditation and the martial arts (moving meditation) to enable his disciples to free themselves from all conscious control in order to attain enlightenment.[7]

Since Taekwondo’s Olympic debut in 1988, its popularity has spread like wildfire across the world.[8] Taekwondo means ‘ Hand (Tae) and Foot (kwon) Way (do).  According to the official WTF Taekwondo book, Taekwondo ‘is now the national sport of Korea.’[9]  Eddie Ferrie holds that ‘every child in (Korean) school is compelled to practise Taekwondo…’[10]  David Mitchell notes that Taekwondo ‘is taught to all members of the Korean armed forces’.[11]  It is estimated that 20 –30 million people worldwide now have been initiated into Taekwondo.[12]

One of the major concerns by Christian researchers is the sitting meditation commonly done in Taekwondo and most Martial Arts.  The Fighting Back Taekwondo book describes the Chung Shin Tomil or sitting meditation as ‘another essential part of your taekwondo training’.[13] “Before and after any taekwondo class, the students meditate…first, you may be asked to clear your mind of all thought and to relax completely…The 2nd method of meditation is related to visualization.”[14]  Mitchell claims that ‘…the empty mind (is) needed to master taekwondo.’[15]  Key to both Buddhist and Hindu occult meditation is manipulation of one’s breathing, which is described as Hohup chojul and Jiptung (synchronized breathing) in Taekwondo.  In contrast, biblical meditation is meditating on God’s written Word the Bible, rather than meditating on the empty mind by using occult breathing and visualization techniques.

Another area of concern relates to the ritual forms or poomse used in Taekwondo.  The karate equivalent to the poomse is the kata patterns.  As the Taekwondo author and instructor Eddie Ferrie puts it, “Many of the patterns of taekwondo are rooted in semi-mystical Taoist philosophy and their deeper meaning is said to be far more important than the mere performance of a gymnastics series of exercises.  This is not immediately obvious, either when performing or watching the poomse being performed…”[16] The eight Taegeuk poomses performed in taekwondo are derived from the eight triagrams of the occult I’Ching.[17] Richard Chun holds that ‘the forms of Taekwondo…are more than physical exercises: they are vehicles for active meditation.’[18]

One of the most questionable poomse patterns is the Ilyo or Ilyeo poomse.  Ferrie teaches that the “Ilyo is a pattern which has a spiritual orientation containing 24 movements.  The title of the pattern refers to the development of a state of spiritual enlightenment which is one of the ultimate aims of the disciple of taekwondo.  The student who has attained Ilyo is capable of completely spontaneous reaction without any interference from the conscious mind.”[19] I was surprised to find out that the Ilyo poomse is done in the shape of an actual swastika.  Hitler stole this ancient occult symbol from the Buddhists and Hindus who had used it for centuries as a symbol of monism (all is one, and all is God).[20]  The Taekwondo Textbook teaches that ‘The line of poomse symbolizes the Buddhist mark (swastika) in commemoration of Saint Wonho (or Won Hyo), which means a state of perfect selflessness in Buddhism where origin, substance, and service come into congruity.’[21] The Buddhist swastika in Taekwondo ‘teaches that a point, a line, or a circle ends up after all in one.  Therefore the poomse Ilyeo represents the harmonization of spirit and body which is the essence of martial arts.’[22] The swastika in Taekwondo has the occult (i.e. Hidden) purpose of teaching the higher-level students that all is one and all is God.

In conclusion, my research and personal experience has led me to the conviction that Taekwondo and the Martial Arts are not merely physical exercise, but in fact are Zen Buddhist meditational practices, both in their sitting and moving forms.  Taekwondo and MA are a Trojan Horse in the House of the Lord, eroding the spiritual barriers between Zen Buddhism and the Christian Gospel, and potentially leading vulnerable children and teens into the early stages of eastern occultism.  As a result of this research, our Christian School Board decided to no longer offer Taekwondo or other Martial Arts.  The good news about religious syncretism is that it is never too late to repent and start afresh, serving one Master and one Master alone, Jesus Christ our Lord (Matthew 6:24)

The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, Rector, BSW, MDiv, DMin

St. Simon’s Anglican Church North Vancouver

Anglican Mission in the Americas (Canada)

Past Chair, Anglican Renewal Ministries of Canada

   -previously published in the February 2,000 Anglicans for Renewal Canada Magazine

http://stsimonschurch.ca

-award-winning author of the book ‘Battle for the Soul of Canada’

http://www.battleforthesoulofcanada.blogspot.com

p.s. In order to obtain a copy of the book ‘Battle for the Soul of Canada’, please send a $18.50 cheque to ‘Ed Hird’, #1008-555 West 28th Street, North Vancouver, BC V7N 2J7. For mailing the book to the USA, please send $20.00 USD.  This can also be done by PAYPAL using the e-mail ed_hird@telus.net . Be sure to list your mailing address. The Battle for the Soul of Canada e-book can be obtained for $9.99 CDN/USD.

-Click to download a complimentary PDF copy of the Battle for the Soul study guide :  Seeking God’s Solution for a Spirit-Filled Canada

You can also download the complimentary Leader’s Guide PDF: Battle for the Soul Leaders Guide

---

[1] Nathan Johnson, Zen Shaolin Karate, “Ch’an (zen) monks of the Shaolin Temple” (Ch’an comes from an Indian word dhyana meaning meditation.)

[2] Chuck Norris, The Secret Power Within: Zen Solutions to Real Problems, Top Kick Productions, 1996, inside cover; ‘…Zen is integral to the Oriental martial arts…(p. 23)’

[3] Taekwondo Textbook, Oh Sung Publishing Company, Kukkiwon Edition, p. 235; The Complete Idiot’s Guide To Taekwondo, Karen Eden & Keith Yates, Alpha Books, New York, 1998, p. 22

[4] Encyclopedia Brittanica, 15th Edition, ‘Martial Arts’, p. 886

[5] John Ankerberg & John Weldon, Encyclopedia of New Age Beliefs, Harvest House, 1996, Oregon, p. 351

[6] Ankerberg and Weldon, Op. Cit., p. 356

[7] Richard Chun, Tae Kwon Do: The Korean Martial Art, Toronto, 1976, p. 2

[8] Fighting Back: Taekwondo for Women, YH Park Publications, 1993, p. 8

[9] David Mitchell, Official WTF Taekwondo, Antler Books, London, 1986, back cover

[10] Eddie Ferrie, , Taekwondo: Traditional Art and Modern Sport, The Crowford Press, UK, 1989, p. 101

[11] Mitchell, Op. Cit., p. 9

[12] J.S. Eldon, Essential Taekwondo Patterns, Paul Crompton Ltd, London, 1994, p. 5; The Complete Idiot’s Guide To Taekwondo, Op. Cit., p. 18

[13] Fighting Back, Op. Cit., p. 150

[14] Op. Cit., p. 150

[15] Mitchell, Op. Cit., p. 12

[16] Ferrie, Op. Cit., p. 99

[17] Ferrie, Op. Cit., p. 99, p. 100

[18] Chun, Op. Cit., p. 34

[19] Ferrie, Op. Cit., p. 100

[20] Taekwondo Textbook, Op. Cit., p. 235, p. 506

[21] Taekwondo Textbook, Op. Cit., p. 506 “Won Hyo is a 28 movement form or poomse which is named after the 7th century monk who purportedly introduced Zen Buddhism to Korea. (Ferrie, p. 101)”

[22] Ferrie, Op. Cit., p. 506