I am often asked how I can be a massage therapist, especially one who promotes energy work, and call myself a Christian. Honestly, the first few times I was taken aback by this question. As time has gone on I've come to understand it's coming from a place of misinformation more than accusation. Because the term 'energy work' has been associated with so-called New Age practices, many Christians assume that it is the same as some darker practices that fall under that classification. While in some instances energy work can be and is used with negative purpose or in a way that involves true occult practices, this is not the norm.

To understand what energy work is, we have to start by looking at the human body and how it works. It is God's design, of course, and everything that happens within is because of that design. A look at how our bodies work is very awe-inspiring. How wondrous is our God that he designed them to work on a basis of energy, and the environment He created for us to also work on an energy base in ways that stimulate and sustain us!

The base of the human body is the nervous system. It is comprised of two parts, the central and peripheral. The central nervous system {CNS} is referred to as the control panel of the body. It is made up of the brain and the spinal cord. The peripheral nervous system {PNS}, which connects the CNS to the rest of the body via thousands of nerve endings. The nervous system controls the body through an infinite combination of electrical processes. The PNS receives sensory information from our skin, and send those inputs to the CNS using electrical impulses. Likewise, the CNS uses electrical impulses to send basic life-sustaining commands back to the body and to the vital organs, such as to the heart to beat, lungs to draw and expel air, digestive system to disassemble and remove vital nutrients from the food it calls for us to eat. Without this constant flow of electrical energy, there would be none of this communication within the body and the body would shut down.

Numerous studies have been done on the effects of human touch on the body, and even how the lack of touch can cause serious physical and psychological problems in humans from birth to the grave. What might be called 'the original study on the effects of touch' are the accounts in the Gospels of Jesus healing the sick and touching those who sought Him, as a physical manifestation of the change He was working in their heart. And then those in Acts of those healed and brought to faith through the laying on of hands as practiced by the Apostles, in the fashion they had been taught by Christ during His time in their midst. {see Acts 8 in particular} Prior to and since that time the church has used the laying on of hands to confirm the rites of sacrament, ordain, baptize, and to fill new believers with the Holy Spirit. In recent times more 'scientific' studies have been done on the body and it's reaction to touch or the lack thereof. The most famous, reputable study was done by Harvard researchers regarding the effects of touch on infants. Current studies are tracking the effects of touch on the electrical impulses of the brain, also at Harvard. Their MRI studies are fascinating to look at.

So how does all of this relate to energy work from a Christian perspective? It establishes the Biblical and scientific basis for accepting massage in Christian life, and for establishing that all interactions of the body are energy based and therefore could be considered energy work. It explains how energy, which has been said in certain Christian circles to be of the occult 100% of the time, no questions asked, is not so. Energy is another name for electricity in most cases. It's a matter of individual interpretation. Energy blocks are purely an energy related thing to some therapists, a God-revealed site of trauma to others, and so on. Grounding, for just about everyone I know, includes some form of prayer, be it to God or whatever deity their faith system believes in. For others it is merely a time to 'fold in' mentally all the things that would be on their mind if they weren't working with a client and no God or deity of any sort enters the process. The various hot, tight, bound, or otherwise out of sync spots that are encountered in the course of a session are a function of God's design, His way of signaling to the therapist that something is wrong in that area and needs attention. This is a result of God showing the therapist what needs to be healed, using energy as the means to do so. So it stands to reason that the release of tension, fluids, or simple psychological stress is a manner of energy work, since it is electrical energy put in place by God that will cause these changes within the body. Without the energy-stimulated heat or tension, the therapist would not know there was a problem with that part of the body. Neither would the client for that matter, since it takes electrical energy to transmit the signals of the symptoms, both mental and physical that cause people to seek relief. By releasing these problems, manipulating the tissues and the muscles, therapists are initializing changes in the way the client's body both feels and functions. This is accomplished through the chemical and electrical reactions that many call energy.

In closing, I won't say that all forms of therapy that are called energy work are acceptable or even good in the eyes of God. The term is too broadly used across too many spectrum of work for that. I will however ask that we as brothers and sisters in Christ not automatically dismiss or condemn someone who says they are both a Christian and an energy worker out of hand. Dig deeper first, find out exactly what they mean and how that individual interprets the terms first. You might be pleasantly surprised. Remember, at the basic level every movement of our minds and our bodies causes and is caused by electrical energy. Also remember that it is not our place, but God's, to judge a person's true intent. As 1st Samuel 16:7 reminds us, “the Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” It would do us well to do the same.