Fr. Michael Marcantoni: Yoga cannot be Christianized because it yokes practitioners to Hindu deities

The post promotes Episode 83 of the Orthodox Health Podcast, "Why You Can't Find Real Peace," featuring Fr. Michael Marcantoni. He addresses the question of whether yoga can be "Christianified" with an emphatic no. His objection is not simply that yoga originated outside Christianity but that the word itself carries a definite meaning.

Yoga comes from the Sanskrit root "yug," meaning to be yoked or joined, a concept related to the word conjugal. Fr. Marcantoni notes that Scripture uses similar language to describe becoming one flesh, so the question becomes what a person is making themselves yoked to. In the practice of yoga, this yoking is directed toward Hindu deities rather than the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob or the faith of the apostles.

He observes that those who become deeply involved in yoga tend to become more yogic, not more fervently Christian. He concludes that Christianity does not need yoga to complete it and that there are plenty of ways to train the body without importing a pagan spiritual practice along with the workout. The discussion centers on the theological incompatibility of yoga with Orthodox Christianity and the availability of alternative forms of physical exercise that do not involve Hindu gods or pagan practices.