The video was sent to me by a friend who is a Hindu. I share Jesus with him through emails, but he throws back works of false christians telling me that Christianity is full of hypocrates. I have explained him many times who is a real follower of Jesus and who is a mere christian. However he does not get that. This Youtube video was another attempt from him to prove that many churches are adapting Eastern religious stuff.

Pastor Eddie D. Smith Sr. - The Meaning of Namaste' - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izzNFCtFyyY)

I fully know that since we are in the Last Days, mixing of religious practices and people falling away from faith, is bound to happen. This Pastor needs to to be told what wrong he is doing. In my church my priest was doing the same thing every time she would start her sermon. One day I talked to her about this and told about the roots of Hinduism. After that she stopped. Now I do not know whether she does not say "Namaste" when I am present in the congregation, though I had no intention of putting her down. Am I judgemental and should not do it? Or let the pastor know before many fall away from Truth?

All the more to be a christian. Christianty straightens out your life ,you don't come in it already straight. Like jesus said,only those that are sick need a physcian.his purpose,his plan all along.

You are stating premises with no basis. "You fully know" what? How do you know? Prophesies about last days have been 'here' and 'almost here' so many times I can't count (although I saw a list online somewhere).

Why can't you just share with your Hindu friend? Share is the word you use here, so surely you aren't trying to convert him? Is he trying to turn you into a Hindu?

I happen to like religions learning from each other. (And all of them have hypocrites in them as far as I can see.) Hinduism has a philosophical base that I find helpful. I think Jesus may have picked up some of his radical new ideas from Buddhism and Hinduism.

"Namaste" is simply the same as putting palms together in a gesture of peace, and is universal. I wouldn't get upset if my pastor began or ended his sermon with that. Getting upset over it builds one more fence that limits love.

Case and point. No matter what, if you are not a christian, which is to be a follower of jesus christ.your labor, and beliefs are in vain. Vanity,vanity.all for nothong.

"Namaste" is simply the same as putting palms together in a gesture of peace, and is universal. I wouldn't get upset if my pastor began or ended his sermon with that. Getting upset over it builds one more fence that limits love.

I appreciate your input however try telling Hindus to say "All this we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen" at the end of their prayers.

I appreciate your input however try telling Hindus to say "All this we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen" at the end of their prayers.
But that wasn't the concern. And my answer stands; I make no apology.

You are stating premises with no basis. "You fully know" what? How do you know? Prophesies about last days have been 'here' and 'almost here' so many times I can't count (although I saw a list online somewhere).

Why can't you just share with your Hindu friend? Share is the word you use here, so surely you aren't trying to convert him? Is he trying to turn you into a Hindu?

I happen to like religions learning from each other. (And all of them have hypocrites in them as far as I can see.) Hinduism has a philosophical base that I find helpful. I think Jesus may have picked up some of his radical new ideas from Buddhism and Hinduism.

Very interesting input. Now, how do I know we are in the last days..? it is all in The Bible. I read it there and then look around what is going on in the world, from there I conclude what I fully know. Recently a documentary came out known as "The Daniel Project" The Daniel Project Home Page (http://www.thedanielprojectmovie.com). This wonderful DVD picks prophecies in The Bible and then shows the same happening around in the world.

I have no right to convert anyone. I am only limited to tell others about Jesus. Changing a person's heart is all in Lord God's control. Only HE can draw a person to HIM not even Jesus. Yes.. my friend is surely doing a futile effort to pull me down from the Truth.

Had Jesus picked things from Hinduism or Buddhism, HE would had surely adopted "Namaste" and asked HIS followers to greet each other with that word. There is no word, no ritual or ceremony in Old Testament or New Testament which has any tinge of Hinduism. Christianity has very strong roots in Judaism for very obvious reasons. And Lord God had told Jews not to mix with other people, then how could had Jesus learnt stuff from other religions?

But that wasn't the concern. And my answer stands; I make no apology.

I never expected any apology from you and for what? Every one has right to their own views.

I never expected any apology from you and for what? Every one has right to their own views.
At least I didn't twist the original question around 180 degrees.

One can think or find a relationship from almost any Christian act to some other heathen or other religion acts. Bowing, Kneeling, raising your hands above your head.
The idea that there is a "son of god" The story of Adam and Eve ( under other names are in many religions) The story of the flood (Noah) is in many other religions.

We say it is in theirs since it happened and they are talking about a real event.

Christian baptism is related to the early Jewish tradition of the temple cleansing.

Get the hint, every thing we do, or every thing they do, can be related to some other faith or religion.

You are never going to convince someone because of a practice or a custom.

And your friend is right, there are most likely more hypocrites in Christian faith, esp in the US, than there are true believers, people go to help their business, to make business contacts, they go to look good as a community leader, Others go and talk about all the other ones.

Others will fight or argue over silly customs with their friends that only takes away from the only message of conversion, that of the Cross ( although the death and coming back to life of a god is not new to christianity either)

The fact that a custom is used in another faith, does not mean it is not a christian custom also, A christian may do something , not to worship another god, but to remind them of Christ, or to guide them to faith.

Allowing others to make you worry about how we hold our hands, or gestures we use is silly.

Triund,

There are LOTS of hypocrites in the body of Christ today. I for ONE have been one.. haven't we all if we are honest. That is just ONE of the reasons Jesus died for me. I am human and my flesh is a hypocrite sometimes. Yes, Christians can be very disappointing sometimes that is why we need to keep our focus on the Lord who never disappoints.

What this Pastor is preaching I believe is wrong. I could no more see the Apostle Paul getting up and using a pagan term to explain a Christian prinicpal to love one another. Why not go straight to the Bible to teach. Utterly ridiculous in my book.

Triund,

There are LOTS of hypocrites in the body of Christ today. I for ONE have been one..haven't we all if we are honest. That is just ONE of the reasons Jesus died for me. I am human and my flesh is a hypocrite sometimes. Yes, Christians can be very disappointing sometimes that is why we need to keep our focus on the Lord who never disappoints.

What this Pastor is preaching I believe is wrong. I could no more see the Apostle Paul getting up and using a pagan term to explain a Christian prinicpal to love one another. Why not go straight to the Bible to teach. Utterly ridiculous in my book.

Tess,
Paul quoted pagan poets twice in Acts 17:28. In Titus 1:12 he quotes Epimenides and calls him a "prophet." So I'm not sure why you can't see him doing such a thing, because he did it three times that we know of.

using a pagan term to explain a Christian prinicpal to love one another.
That's not what it is! Paul's journeys didn't take him into India to learn this gentle tradition. He didn't travel to the U.S. either to see that we shake hands in greeting. (That's a joke.)

Namaste is a common spoken greeting or salutation originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is a customary greeting when individuals meet, and a salutation upon their parting. A non-contact form of salutation is traditionally preferred in India and Namaste is the most common form of such a salutation. In Nepal, younger persons usually initiate the exchange with their elders. Initiating the exchange is seen as a sign of respect in other hierarchical settings.

When spoken to another person, it is commonly accompanied by a slight bow made with hands pressed together, palms touching and fingers pointed upwards, in front of the chest. This gesture can also be performed wordlessly and carries the same meaning. (from Wikipedia)

Tess,
Paul quoted pagan poets twice in Acts 17:28. In Titus 1:12 he quotes Epimenides and calls him a "prophet." So I'm not sure why you can't see him doing such a thing, because he did it three times that we know of.

I don't believe it is the same thing at all. This pastor is taking a term from a pagan RELIGION ( at least that is what he says it is) and is trying to make it a biblical truth. He isn't quoting a poet. And lets just take what this pastor has to say concerning it. Is it truth? Is a little bit of GOD IN all of us? We are all made in the image of God! We don't all have the Holy Spirit in us. It simply isn't the same. Not the same. Not a biblical truth. Sorry.


WG,

Ok. But that isn't what the pastor says. He says it is from the Hindu relgion.

Edit... one last thought. Quoting JayZ today to explain something to a group of teenagers in a youth group is more in line in what Paul did. He tried to get that culture to understand a biblical truth with someone from their culture. This pastor was talking to people who didn't know about HINDU.. he had to explain what it was.

I don't believe it is the same thing at all. This pastor is taking a term from a pagan RELIGION ( at least that is what he says it is)
Then he is wrong. It is not Hindu; it is part of the Indian culture, like shaking hands for Westerners, like kissing on both cheeks is for Europeans.

Then he is wrong. It is not Hindu; it is part of the Indian culture, like shaking hands for Westerners, like kissing on both cheeks is for Europeans.

Ok. I can accept that. I am still going to argue Dave. This is the most interesting conversation on AMHD in awhile for me. Ha. I love a good argument. :)

There's nothing to argue with Dave about. He's right. Paul didn't live in a bubble.

Ok. I can accept that. I am still gonna argue Dave. This is the most interesting conversation on AMHD in awhile for me. Ha. I love a good arguement. :)

All I can tell you is, check out the quotes Paul uses in Acts 17. They are statements about God. And he quotes the poets with approval. So yes, it actually is the same thing. He's citing/using something from a pagan religion to illustrate the gospel of Christ. Paul did it with pagan writings, and he did it with the Synagogue when trying to reach the Jews. Your objection to what this pastor did doesn't hold up.

Dave,

I checked them out. Please. I am me. ;)

Not the same. Paul tried to preach to the culture of the day. He only preached truth. This pastor took something from what he thought was a pagan relgion and tried to make it a biblical truth. What he taught was False. Didn't work. Paul NEVER did that. I wouldn't sit under this pastor teaching. Would you?

There's nothing to argue with Dave about. He's right. Paul didn't live in a bubble.

Paul didn't live in a bubble. He also didn't preach something that wasn't truth.

We don't know how much of what Jesus said is lost. We do know that as a Jew he had new ideas about life, God, everything, that were non-Judaic (the poor and meek, heaven on earth, forgiveness, etc). Since Hindusism and Buddhism were around before he was born, and since ideas from India and China and other parts of the world did filter through to the middle east, and since some of the earliest gospel writings that have been found have a touch of 'other' about them, including that Jesus included women as equals in religious gatherings, some people are thinking that he did pick up ideas from those places.

Anyway, all that matters is that your friendship is not ruined over religious haggling that isn't going to go anywhere. I am puzzled that you would expect a Hindu to follow Jesus.

The discussion is really interesting. I stand with Tess. The reason, I shared this video is to show how much slowly and slowly and very subtlely Christianity is being watered down by including harmless looking rituals and traditions from other religions. Namaste, called Namaskar, is trademark of Hinduism. There are many religions in India and the religious fabric is very closely knit where people from all religions live together in harmony and celebrate festivals and fuctions together which is the beauty of Indian culture even though she had maximum riots in the name of religion yet, no non-Hindu uses this greeting. This is exclusively for Hindus. We can come up with thousand points to declare Namaskar as a very gentle gesture of greeting someone like shaking hand or Mid-eastern style of kissing on cheeks. However, Namaste is not cultural. It is very much religious. I am not a scholar of The Bible, but I am sure that whatever Paul was referring to in the Acts was not suggesting Christians to stoop low and follow pagan traditions. The Pastor in the video is clearly saying about Namaste taken from Hinduism and he is asking others to follow it too. We know in the Old Testament Lord God has been very big on mixing of HIS people with others. HE has said that HE is a jealous God. HE is not jealous about people's wealth, fame, accomplishments, jobs or any other thing except their bowing down to other gods. That is Lord God can not tolerate. Now a days in the name of humanism and tolerance, why is it that only Christianity has to bow down whereas other religions can walk holding their head high. The Bible also says that HE was the same yesterday, today and will be tomorrow. Then how can Jesus be different?
On the issue of buliding mosque at Ground Zero in New York, World renowned Apologist Ravi Zacharias says that he has no problem with the mosque provided the muslim leadership builds a church in Saudi Arabia.

My assignment and subsequently endeavor to share Jesus and HIS message with Hindus and others is assignment from Jesus Himself in Matthew 28:19. It is Light which displaces darkness and not the otherway round.

Namaste/Namaskar, as I wrote earlier in this thread, is Indian, NOT Hindu. It is part of the culture, not the religion. Anyone who says it a function of a religion is greatly misinformed.

And religion esp Christianity has often allowed parts of the local culture to come into the service, in forms of music, some customs and language,

Customs does not dilute anything, it is the teachings of salvation. Had some charges not been allowed, we would all have to convert to be Jews to become a Christian

Fr-chuck and WG-

Even if this is just a custom that is NOT what this pastor is preaching. He is preaching that the word means a little bit of God in everyone. It isn't scriptural. What he says is just not TRUTH.

What the word actually means and what this pastor says it means. Two different things. And I wouldn't go sit under a teaching like that. It isn't biblical.

Namaste/Namaskar, as I wrote earlier in this thread, is Indian, NOT Hindu. It is part of the culture, not the religion. Anyone who says it a function of a religion is greatly misinformed.

WG, I was born in India and grew up there. Mine was the only Christian family in circle of 50 km there.

I worked with immigrant and second-generation Indians and Pakistani for 25 years. My experience is that Namaste is part of the culture, not the Hindu religion. It's like a Christian shaking hands.

And religion esp Christianity has often allowed parts of the local culture to come into the service, in forms of music, some customs and language,

Customs does not dilute anything, it is the teachings of salvation. Had some charges not been allowed, we would all have to convert to be Jews to become a Christian

Rev Father, with all due respect, I am aware that Christianity has inducted things from non-Jewish culture too, but the point is that what was the need of those inclusions? What were Christians lacking in their worship to Lord The Father that they had to adapt ideas from other worldviews rather than asking Lord God to give them creativity to add more things to HIS worship? If we think on this, do we not find that somewhere someone fed into his own motives to get some fame or name by introducing things to Christianity? I am OK with inclusions as long as they are cultural and has no string attached withit to any religion.

Secondly, if Jesus tells us to be a Jew to follow HIM, I would gladly do it. And Paul is telling repeatedly not to do things Jews do to fulfill their Law. For we Christians are not under the Law, we are because of HIS Grace.

Another thing is that as we are heading towards End Time and second coming of Jesus, Satan is working overtime to lure us and to thin the Word of God. Satan can not match with God, hence he is corrupting HIS creation. And since The Bible tells us that Devil will appear as Angel of Light, I think we should pray to Lord God to give us spirit of discernment to see through the light which Angel of Light is dispersing and identify him.

I worked with immigrant and second-generation Indians and Pakistani for 25 years. My experience is that Namaste is part of the culture, not the Hindu religion. It's like a Christian shaking hands.

WG, we are not in any debate here, but what ever I have said is what I learnt and saw growing up for more than three decades back home. Since our family was the only one in that area, my Mom was very big on religious issues since she is very strong believer in Lord Jesus and she was very careful on what me and my siblings were bringing home. She would explain us what was acceptable for us as a Christian and what was not, what was cultural and what was not. Her being a teacher, we had no reason not to trust her. And when I grew up and observed the society around me, I did not find anything she said in my childhood contradictory to what society was offering.

Ah, yes. Now I understand. I too had a mom whose personal beliefs and opinions filtered everything I experienced.

Ah, yes. Now I understand. I too had a mom whose personal beliefs and opinions filtered everything I experienced.

Whether Triund"s mother had personal beliefs and filtered experiences really isn't the point. Truth WG... will always be just that.

Whether Triund"s mother had personal beliefs and filtered experiences really isn't the point. Truth WG... will always be just that.

Agreed. The question is, which interpretation of Namaste is the truth?

I'm not usually real big on Wikipedia, but this bears quoting:


As it is most commonly used, namaste is roughly equivalent to "greetings" or "good day," in English, implicitly with the connotation "to be well". As against shaking hands, kissing or embracing each other in other cultures, Namaste is a non-contact form of respectful greeting and can be used universally while meeting a person of different gender, age or social status.

Namaskār (Devnagari/Hindi: नमस्कार) literally means "I bow to [your] form".

"The spirit in me respects the spirit in you," "the divinity in me bows to the divinity in you," and others, are relatively modern interpretations, based on literal translations of the Sanskrit root of namaste.[citation needed] They are usually associated with western Yoga and New Age movements.

In other words, the interpretation that this pastor is taking, and apparently some are accepting, is based on a slavishly literal rendering of the term, coupled with a total misunderstanding of the actual cultural factors involved, with a touch of guilt-by-association thrown in for good measure.

This pastor is full of something other than the Holy Spirit.

Ah, yes. Now I understand. I too had a mom whose personal beliefs and opinions filtered everything I experienced.

WG, the filter my Mom used on me saved me a lot of time in checking all theories about other worldviews myself. She told me about the Truth in the Word of God and about Jesus. Later in life when I looked at other religions and followings I can see whom to trust and put my faith in. I still have my free choice to apostate. And I can do it anytime, but I am not interested at all to crawl on the ground when I am soaring high in the sky with blessings of Lord Jesus.

WG, the filter my Mom used on me saved me a lot of time in checking all theories about other worldviews myself. She told me about the Truth in the Word of God and about Jesus. Later in life when I looked at other religions and followings I can see whom to trust and put my faith in. I still have my free choice to apostate. And I can do it anytime, but I am not interested at all to crawl on the ground when I am soaring high in the sky with blessings of Lord Jesus.

You are in good company. Timothy also was taught the truth by his mother and grandmother and Paul writes about it in one of his epistles to Timothy. Nothing in the world wrong with being taught truth at an early age and having things filtered. In the end, we all are given a choice concerning Christ. Being brought up a Christian and being a Christian are two completely different things. And AMEN to your statement about not being interested in crawling on the ground. There are not enough Chrstians BOLD enough to say that.

Romans 6:1 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

What this pastor is preching is NOT Christian. You can spin it... call it just another custom or a difference in culture but it is WRONG. Way to call a spade spade. I can't stand milquetoast Christianity. I'm totally impressed by your posts. :)

What this pastor is preching is NOT Christian. You can spin it...call it just another custom or a difference in culture but it is WRONG. Way to call a spade spade. I can't stand milquetoast Christianity. I'm totally impressed by your posts. :)

Yes, what he's preaching isn't Christian. It's also not correct about the meaning of the word. I'm not sure what part of that isn't getting through to you, Tess.

Dave,

I got it. Does it matter?
HE is teaching it is a HINDU term. Whether it IS or it isn't... HE BELIEVES it is. And what he is saying is in my opinion... heresy. I don't know why you want to split hairs. Blown away by it.



NOTE:
Edit... I re read the question to make sure I am not missing anything. I stand by what I have already said. If the priest, pastor or whoever is teaching it as a hindu relgious term... does it matter if it isn't? I don't understand Why you aren't getting that??

I would just like to add that the word NAMASTE is a Sanskrit word, which is a combination of two root-words - Nam:+te i.e. Namah(s)te, where Nam means 'I bow (before)' and te stands for 'you/thou' and so NAMASTE means I BOW BEFORE YOU.

Kahani, is it more of a cultural thing or a religious one?

Dave,

I got it. Does it matter?
HE is teaching it is a HINDU term. Whether it IS or it isn't....HE BELIEVES it is. And what he is saying is in my opinion...heresy. I don't know why you want to split hairs. Blown away by it.

Believe me, I've seen much worse "teaching." Also, you and Triund seem to be going at it as if what he's saying about Namaste is true. That's my problem. And again, it's not a HINDU term. It's an Indian term. He calls it a Hindu term, but he's wrong.

Dave,

It isn't about worse teachings. It is about wrong teachings..

Triunds concern is that Christianty is being watered down and mixed with false teachings. It is subtle... but then so is Satan. The teaching is false! Who cares if it is a hindu term or a indian term, if it is being taught in error? You miss the point I think.

So then Christians should stop celebrating Christmas, which came from the pagan and lusty Roman holiday Saturnalia. Jesus wasn't born on December 25th.

Wondergirl,

It is merely cultural. No doubt about it. Thanks!

So then Christians should stop celebrating Christmas, which came from the pagan and lusty Roman holiday Saturnalia. Jesus wasn't born on December 25th.

WG,

?? We should stop if it is biblically incorrect and if it changes the truth of the Gospel. Neither is true.

I don't know why this is so hard to understand. How this word was being preached is biblically wrong. Why tolerate it?

Tess got me right on this issue. Whether Namaste is a religious or not, the point is are we Christians so dumb that we have to borrow traditions from others to worship and communicate with our Living God who is the one who loves us and cares for us? Has not Jesus told us how to communicate with our neighbour? Should it not be that others should look up to and listen to our God? I know two incidences in Old Testament where people from other followings attested about Living God. One is in the story of Army commander Naaman in 2 Kings 5 and reference for second is eluding me. Anyway, this was OT, and there are millions of cases today who attest the sovereignty of Lord God. Namaste is just a small thing, but if we are not alert and careful, slowly and slowly we will lose our saltiness. And Jesus has already told about worthlessness of salt.

I've never met a Sikh who says Namaste. They denounce all things Hindi, orthodox are not allowed to do yoga or yogic mudras either. The ignorance in this thread was utterly astounding. I love the way some of the posters tried to tell a person BORN and RAISED in INDIA about what namaste meant. You guys are so ignorant. Learn about the diversity and difference in people before you make such blanket statements. Namaste comes out of ancient vedic texts which are the basis for hinduism. A Muslim will not say Namaste nor will a Sikh. Each religious group has different ways to greet one another, ergo the arrogance in saying that everybody indian says Namaste which simply isn't true.

Mode of greeting: the Hindus use "Ram Ram Namaste", the Muslims say "Aslaamlekum" the Sikhs have Waheguruji da Khalsa, Waheguruji Di Fateh."