Bay Area Fellowship in Corpus Christi

In June 2007 in the youth meeting of Bay Area Fellowship church of Corpus Christi, TX (grades 6th through 12th), there was a video shown promoting meditation saying, while in the lotus position, “…empty your mind and find the inner child within you….” The church is Emergent/Emerging which means they are using the “ancient faith” and “ancient paths” of the Roman Catholic mystics in order to “conversate” with God. Jesus Christ is the Only Way to God; we cannot bypass Him and expect to “find God”. What we will find with contemplative spirituality (meditation, centering/listening/soaking prayer, yoga, lectio divina, spiritual formation) is an array of spirits, angels of light, who are more than happy to inhabit those who “empty their minds” and without the protection of God Almighty, venture off into a redefined “Christianity”.

The pastor, Bil Cornelius, was a speaker at Saddleback Church (Rick Warren’s church) in 2005. In this article, Cornelius outlines his philosophy for converging the purpose-driven paradigm into an Emergent/Emerging church (the name of the church is incorrect in the article).