A Time of Departing Book Reviews

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Outside of the Bible, A Time of Departing by Ray Yungen is one of the most definitive books ever written about what is wrong with contemplative spirituality and mysticism. Ray Yungen presents concise documentation of why contemplative spirituality is the most dangerous threat to the Church today. As Ray Yungen points out in his book, mysticism has infiltrated the Church through respected ministers who have either bought into the lie of contemplative spirituality or turned a blind eye and deaf ear.—Cassandrah Batya, A Christian Journey

Yungen has done his homework. He documents and traces the source of this modern movement within evangelicalism to people like Thomas Merton and Alice Bailey, who greatly influenced men such as Foster and Manning, who in turn are influencing ministries such as Youth Specialties and leaders such as Larry Crabb, who in turn are infiltrating the Christian ranks. This New Age form of Christianity is not coming, it is here, and we need to be aware of the dangers.—Pastor Gary Gilley, Southern View Chapel, Read Entire Review

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The silence. This book is all about the silence. Whether that silence is part of the religious practice of Buddhists, Hindus, Sufi Muslims, New Agers or Contemplative Christians, Ray Yungen, author of A Time of Departing argues convincingly that it is all one and the same. —Tim Challies, Challies.com Read Entire Review

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The tip of the iceberg began appearing in our ministry mail over the last year, with folks reporting a different kind of prayer meeting in their Church, sometimes called contemplative meditation and sometimes called Christian meditation. Others reported that they began attending prayer meetings in their church, only to find that there was no prayer, only silence, and meditation. Some were surprised to find a "Christ candle" burning in the middle of the room with church members of all ages sitting on the floor around it. Some arriving with prayer lists were told to put them away, that wasn't what prayer was all about. What on earth is happening in the Church?—MacGregor Ministries, Read Entire Review

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I have known for quite some time that the mainstream church (which I will refer to as the "Institutional Church") has been going off in a different direction for many years now. What I really didn't realize how far off base it was moving until I read this book, A Time of Departing, by Ray Yungen. Ray is an author, speaker, and research analyst who has been studying religious movements for more than twenty years. This is the second edition of his book, and it is an eye-opener. If you read any Christian books, magazines, or other literature or listen to any religious broadcasts, you have more than likely heard the terms "purpose driven", "emerging church", "contemplative prayer", or "spiritual formation". Even much of the secular media has reported on these "emerging trends" within the Institutional Church. What isn't obvious is what these terms actually mean and the level of demonic activity they actually represent." (1 Timothy 4:1)—Lee Underwood

While author Ray Yungen discusses obvious New Age influences in our culture like Scott Peck, Dr. Phil, Oprah Winfrey and the Chicken Soup series, the true significance of this book lies in Yungen's willingness to name popular figures such as Richard Foster and Brennan Manning, documenting their mystical approaches that owe much more to the Roman Catholic mystic Thomas Merton than to the Bible. —Randy Brandt, Contend 4 the Faith, Read Entire Review

 

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