Question: What About Using Crystals as a Christian?

1st Light Mission received the following question...

"Wanted to ask your views on using crystals as a Christian? I want to use sage and use crystals in my home but don't want it to be an act against God as everything I've researched talks about how in the bible God directly speaks of the use of witchcraft and that crystals and burning sage etc. counts. Thanks in advance!"

Here is Dr. Norwood's response... 

Thank you for your very interesting question. It is good for every believer to regularly re-examine themselves to ensure that they are striving to do all that our Lord has commanded and not doing anything he has forbidden. Practices that can be interpreted by some to be non-Christian or pagan certainly should be carefully examined to ensure that a believer in Jesus Christ does not step into sin by participating in them. In regard to your use of sage and crystals, because there is no specific scripture that directly addresses sage or crystals, determining if they violate sound Christian doctrine would be based, at least initially, on why you are using them and how you are using them.

In stating that you use sage, I am assuming its not merely because burning sage has a wonderful aroma, but you are instead referring to the Native American practice of smudging, in which traditional medicine, in this case plant material such as sage, sweetgrass, cedar, or tobacco, is burned in order to symbolize (or request) the Creator’s blessing and to represent prayers rising to the Creator. If this is the case, it is similar to the use of incense in any Christian worship. However if the smudging is done in order to ward off evil spirits or to invite good ones (which is the understanding of some who smudge), then this is certainly inconsistent with the Christian faith. Disciples of Jesus Christ have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit who also dwells within us. The Bible tells us that we must resist the devil and he will flee from us (James 4:7), which is an act of faith, relying on the grace of Christ. Reliance on anything other than the presence of God and the Word of God, in this regard, is to disregard scripture by presuming it is insufficient and we must add to it. It would also be to erroneously attribute spiritual power to the material being smudged or the practice of smudging beyond it being a symbol. Smudging can be an appropriate contextualized / indigenous symbol of blessing and prayer used by a Christian because the use of incense is clearly displayed in the Bible and a common practice throughout the history of the church.  However, any reliance upon it - as though it has power beyond being a symbol - would be syncretistic (blending of incompatible beliefs or practices of different religions). 

Similar parameters could be applied in the evaluation of the use of crystals. The decorative use of crystals would not conflict with scripture.  Any use that is specifically medicinal (with which I admittedly have little familiarity, but have heard of some studies that cite some potential benefit) may not be in conflict with scripture, so long as no spiritual power or significance is attributed to them.  However, the blending of “new age” practices and beliefs with Christianity typically leads to the sin of syncretism.  Why and how crystals are used would determine whether this is the case.  

Jesus tells us that “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matthew 28:18). It is upon him that we rely, for he is our salvation.  The most powerful symbols of his saving grace are in the rituals he commanded us to continue, Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.  We are nurtured, matured, and strengthened by assembling ourselves together through the blessing of the church (Ephesians 4:11-16; Hebrews 10:19-25). Our faith should be guided by scripture alone. Our salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, all to the glory of God.

Additionally, it would also be important to ensure that your freedom in any of this does not cause a fellow believer to stumble, or mislead a non-believer, as many who may see your private practice could associate it with an interpretation that you do not embrace. We are instructed, in Romans 14, to never let our liberty become a stumbling block for another. It would be important to explain why you may smudge so that there is no misunderstanding. And, if your explanation is not understood but only seems to cause confusion, out of love for your brother or sister in Christ, and to protect your witness before the non-believer, you should refrain from the practice in front of them…  while praying for their spiritual growth and your own (as should always be our aim). 

I pray this was helpful.

Dr. J.R. Norwood

Canceling the Gospel of Grace

"Canceling the Gospel of Grace" - a sermon by Dr. J. R. Norwood

Today, so called "cancel culture" has run amuck!  Anyone goes against popular opinion or fads is quickly shut down... they get "cancelled" by the public.  Any who challenge the momentary fashionable "group think" becomes ostracized and outcast. 

As Jesus proclaimed the truth of salvation... the very people who should have been happy to hear it were instead offended by it... instead of embracing it, they walked away from it... instead of rejoicing over it, they attempted to cancel it.... they shut their ears and turned their backs and left. Unbelievers turned away from the true Gospel of Jesus Christ then and they still do today... they still try to cancel the true Gospel of Grace.

John 6:66-69 (ESV); 66 After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. 67 So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” 68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, 69 and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.” 70 Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.” 71 He spoke of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray him.

Your Primary Identity

"Your Primary Identity" - a sermon by Dr. J. R. Norwood

This sermon is based on Jude 1:1-2 (ESV); 1  Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ: 2  May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.

A person's immediate, gut level response to the question of “who you are” is their primary identity. It is the foundation upon which other aspects of a person's life are based. It is the underlying chief value that orders decisions and behavior. A person's primary identity guides the way they live, the way they think, the way they view the world, the way they interact with others. 

Because your primary identity is the way you view yourself, first and foremost above all other things, then - for a disciples of Jesus Christ - being a servant of Jesus Christ, a follower of Jesus Christ, a worshiper of Jesus Christ, one who has been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ… must be, in an ever-increasing way, your primary identity.

Indigenous People's Day Flag Raising at Philadelphia City Hall

Trinity Norwood was one of the speakers during the Indigenous People's Day Flag Raising Event at Philadelphia City Hall on October 7, 2021.  Her comments, and those she shared from her father, are below... 

Columbus Day: A Celebration of Genocide, Colonialism, and Fake News

by Trinity Norwood (Op-Ed from the Philadelphia Inquirer, October 9, 2020)https://www.inquirer.com/opinion/commentary/columbus-day-philadelphia-indigenous-peoples-day-parade-20201009.html  

Columbus Day idealizes a murderer who was lost and minimizes the negative effects of colonialism on America’s Indigenous Peoples. In the same way Germany does not have a national holiday or statues to memorialize Hitler because of his deplorable actions against humanity; Christopher Columbus should not be celebrated either. The actions of Columbus and the colonizers who followed him sparked the two greatest crimes in the history of the Americas: The Trans-Atlantic slave trade, and the systematic genocide of Indigenous Peoples. 

Re-Thinking the Meaning of Christopher Columbus

 This audio recording* is from the American Myths Symposium held at the Arch Street United Methodist Church in Philadelphia, PA on October 7, 2015. The moderator and second speaker is Dr. David M. Krueger who invited Dr. John Norwood to also speak at the event.  Why are so many in the U.S. preoccupied with the notion that America was discovered? Columbus’s exploration of the Caribbean is often understand as discovering a “New World.”

What God Requires - Doing Justice, Loving Kindness, Walking Humbly with God

What God Requires - Doing Justice, Loving Kindness, Walking Humbly with God

Dr. J.R. Norwood 

Preached on June 7, 2020 - Ujima Village Christian Church

12th Online Sermon during Coronavirus Pandemic Lock-down

The Prophet Micah lays out a charge against the sinful hearts and actions of his people…  He tells them that God himself has indicted them… Micah 6:2 (ESV); “2  Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the LORD, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the LORD has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel.”

 

Micah not only lists the charges against his people, but also proclaims the will of the Lord.  He not only condemns their sin, but also summons them to faithfulness… In the dog-eat-dog days of the privileged elite ignoring the plight of the oppressed downtrodden… when people of every station point out the faults of others but justify their own fault… when we shout about the sins of others but don’t repent of our own sin, the words of our text ring out… Micah 6:8 (ESV); “8  He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

I Can't Breathe

by Dr. J.R. Norwood

"I can't breathe!" These words have been said by both Eric Garner and George Floyd while they were being restrained by police in a manner that caused these panicked utterances to be some of their last. The murder of George Floyd happened during the same week that Christopher Cooper was able to avert what could have been a similar situation perpetrated against him as he simply asked that a white woman obey the laws of the park they both were enjoying and keep her dog on a leash. Her response was to use her privilege to threaten him and then call for the police with the lying claim that she was being attacked by an African-American man. Thank God that Mr. Cooper was video recording the event and that he kept his cool throughout. 

Sadly, these are not rare occurrences. Many people of color, perhaps most, have experienced injustice at the hands of both authority figures and by our white brothers and sisters acting out of a sense of superiority and privilege that is based in the entanglements of the backdrop of racism that permeates so much of our society.

Get Right With God

A sermon by Dr. J.R. Norwood delivered at the 2019 Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Pow-Wow Sunday Morning Worship Service held on June 9, 2019…

Grace Makes the Difference

A sermon by Dr. J.R. Norwood delivered at the 2018 Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Pow-Wow Sunday Morning Worship Service held on June 10, 2018…

Nothing Can Compare

A Sermon by Dr. J.R. Norwood delivered at the Harmony United Methodist Church of Millsboro, DE on May 6, 2018…

Reflecting on Our Blessings

by Chief Mark Quiet Hawk Gould

To All My Relations and Supporters.

This has been a long seventy six year journey with many pleasant memories. We can fixate on the atrocities, but it serves us well when we live with the lessons that came with those atrocities. Those

Gratitude: Tribal Mothers

by Chief Mark Quiet Hawk Gould

Thank you to all of the MOTHERS that carried the Tribe through these trying years.

Celebrating 200 Years of Grace!

by Dr. J.R. Norwood

On May 6, 2018, I was asked to preach at a church in Millsboro, Delaware, that has a special place in the history of my family. 200 years ago, the Harmony Church trustees purchased a plot of land from

Pocahontas and the President

Originally posted on www.ACET-Online.org by Dr. J.R. Norwood, ACET General Secretary

In a ceremony at the White House honoring Native Code talkers, who are known to have been vital to the success and victory in World War II (and a lesser known fact is that code talkers even were used to aid the victory in World War I), President Trump decided to deviate from the focus on their valiant service to take a swipe at a political opponent, once again making a reference to Senator Elizabeth Warren as "Pocahontas" (see link below).

Heritage and Contextualization

By Dr. J.R. Norwood

After a recent presentation hosted by my church, “Building Greater Understanding about Native American History,” presented by the artist and activist Arla Patch for her group’s incubation grant aimed at educating, encouraging, and enabling non-Natives to speak to other non-Natives about Native American history and issues of social concern, there was an increased interest among the congregation regarding my own work in this area.    To that end, provided below are links to two academic works and one booklet that I authored. Click on the red text to link to the writings…

The Painful Overlooked Words of the Declaration of Independence

by Rev. J.R. Norwood, PhD

I write this on July 4, Independence Day in the United States. As many gather to celebrate America’s break from royal tyranny, they will read the Declaration of Independence both in public gatherings and in private homes. There will be a sense of pride as the words are spoken. Many have pointed to these words as a standard, or aspiration to which our nation continues to strive. For those who are enlightened, there is the constant realization that many who signed the declaration declaring their own freedom and inalienable rights were enslaving other human beings who they deemed to be unworthy of such blessings because of the color of their skin. But, for the Declaration of Independence, the argument has been that in its lofty wording can be found the roots of emancipation for those who were held in bondage at its signing. However, this does not apply to the words of condemnation placed upon indigenous people.  In listing the complaints against the British crown, far less lofty words are found: “He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare, is undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.”

These words are repeated again and again in the celebration of American independence as the declaration is read. They suggest that indigenous disputes with American expansion must have been stirred by foreign manipulation instead of the natural human response to broken promises, stolen lands, inhumane treatment and subjugation. We Eastern nations of Turtle Island, who in many cases practiced obligatory hospitality enabling the very survival of the ancestors of those who penned these awful words, who extended a welcoming hand to the early immigrants to share our land with the expectation of them continuing to acknowledge that it was indeed ours to share, who suffered as much as a 90% death rate in our population due to conflict and foreign disease (sometimes spread by accident and at other times as an early form of biological warfare)… we were the merciless ones? For my own ancestors, whose practice of warfare was typically limited to small skirmishes and characteristically resisted the killing of women, children, and the elderly… we were the savages? A simple look at the facts of history make the statement laughable at least and hypocritical at worst. But the damage is not limited to the mid-1700s. The impact of these hate filled words continues today. They stab at our hearts, reopening an old wound that refuses to be healed.

At American Indian gatherings, the American flag is held high and given great respect. But, as we claim our own place in this so-called “nation of immigrants,” we are constantly reminded that though we were here first, we are so often excluded, still treated as outsiders or non-entities, relics of the past whose issues, struggles, and concerns are easily ignored.

I acknowledge the significance of Independence Day, while also remembering it’s hypocrisy. In one sense it may have been a great stride forward in the human struggle to establish a government of the people and declare the right of the people to regulate their government. Yet, in another sense, it is a reminder that even in the most celebrated moments, human sin is still present and the need for repentance remains.  As Americans, often mindlessly, repeat the refrain, “God bless America,” it is far more vital that we thoughtfully and prayerfully summon America to truly serve God and be a blessing… and, realize the need for repentance, healing, and reconciliation.

Deep Clean

 Deep Clean - Jeremiah 2:22

by, Dr. J.R. Norwood
June 11, 2017

In this sermon, preached at the 2017 Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape tribal powwow worship, Dr. Norwood explains that there is a depth of dirt, an insidious stain left by sin that leaves each and every one of us staying by sin. We need deep cleaning! We need a cleansing that goes beyond our own capability! We need to be washed not only outwardly but inwardly.  Click the red title above for the audio.

A Position Statement on “Indigenous Peoples Day”

From the Alliance of Colonial Era Tribes (ACET)

ACET is an intertribal league of sovereign American Indian Nations continuing from the colonial era of the eastern and southern seaboard of the continental United States. The Nanticoke-Lenape confederated tribes are charter members of the organization.  The following statement by ACET well represents 1st Light Mission's perspective on Indigenous People's Day.

A Talk by the Water

The Clearly Quaker Podcast recorded an informal "Talk by the Water" presentation by Dr. JR Norwood on October 1st, 2016 at the Tri-Quarter Meeting of Friends held by the lakeside at Camp Ockanickon in Medford, New Jersey.