[NOTE: This blog has been updated as of 2/10/2024 with repaired links to Dr. Jay Medenwaldt's articles, and an additional recommended resource I've read since the original posting.]
If you are a Christian and are using the Enneagram, you most likely have been led to believe things about the Enneagram that aren’t true regarding its origins, its purpose, and its underlying philosophies. The purpose of this blog is to shed light on some of the ‘secrets’ of the Enneagram, hoping it will convince you to look into it further and to seriously reconsider whether you—or any Christian—should use the Enneagram.
In many cases, Christians who are using the Enneagram were introduced to it by a church leader or a trusted friend, and therefore felt no need to question or research it. (I would suggest that being Berean-like is always wise, regardless of the source of the recommendation.) There are many popular books and seminars promoting the Enneagram as an effective Christian tool for self-improvement and improving relationships with others. There are plenty of positive testimonials from Christian individuals who claim the Enneagram has helped them in these areas. For these reasons, it's not surprising that the Enneagram has become so popular among evangelicals and that its popularity continues to grow.
Many Christians who have used and recommended the Enneagram are not aware of its true origins or underlying theology and philosophy. They don't know the Enneagram's 'secrets.' By ‘secrets’ I'm referring to information about the Enneagram that is generally undisclosed either because it is unknown or it is dismissed as inconsequential by its advocates. I recently read two very well-researched books, several articles, and watched hours of video interviews that explain the true origins and purpose of the Enneagram, and demonstrate that its underlying theology and philosophy are antithetical to biblical Christianity. It is far different from what most people, particularly evangelical Christians, think it is. I am convinced these 'secrets' need to be revealed.
Here, I will give a list of 'secrets' of the Enneagram that were revealed to me through my research, along with some brief background information on each. I encourage you to use this information as a springboard for doing more research on your own. To that end, I will provide a list of recommended resources below and link others in this blog.
Secret #1: The Enneagram is not a scientifically reliable test or tool. The original Enneagram had no numbers or types and had nothing at all to do with personalities. It was created by Geroge I. Gurdjieff (1866-1949), a mystic who claimed it was a diagram through which one could see all the secret laws of the universe. Gurdjieff's disciple P.D. Ouspensky (1878-1947) wrote about Gurdjieff's teachings and called them 'The Fourth Way' which influenced New Age thinking. Oscar Ichazo (1931-2020) adopted Gurdjeiff's teachings at his school in Arica, Chile where he claimed he received information from spirit beings named Metatron and the Green Q'tub, and added new ideas to the Enneagram. But he never used it for typing personalities.
The ‘types’ were added by Claudio Naranjo (1932-2019), a New Age psychiatrist who learned about the Enneagram from Ichazo. Naranjo claims he received the information on the 'types' mostly through automatic writing. The personality ‘types’ were not developed through any psychologically or scientifically valid methods. The Enneagram 'experts' claim the philosophy and purpose of the Enneagram is not really about personality at all. According to Russ Hudson, co-founder of the Enneagram Institute: “Type isn’t a ‘type’ of person, but a path to God…the Enneagram is less about nine ‘types of people’ and more about nine paths back to our true selves and nine paths to divine love.”
In 2019 Christian psychologist/apologist Jay Medenwaldt published an article on the Enneagram's scientific reliability. In his conclusion he wrote, "Any scientist who studies personality would simply look at the reliability scores [of the Enneagram] and conclude the test is not accurate enough to be helpful, and therefore, they wouldn't use it because the potential for harm will be too high." In Part 2 of the article, Medenwaldt offers twelve reasons the Enneagram seems to work for so many people, and four reasons to avoid it.
Secret #2: The Enneagram does not have ancient Christian roots. The history of the Enneagram has been grossly misrepresented, misleading people to think it has ancient Christian origins. Claudio Naranjo admitted on video that he and Oscar Ichazo fabricated the story that the Enneagram had ancient origins in order to give it more credibility. Other claims that Gurdjieff got the Enneagram from a Sufi brotherhood, or the Enneagram originated with fourth-century mystic Evagrius Ponticus and the Desert Mothers and Fathers, have been debunked.
Secret #3: Enneagram advocate/author Richard Rohr has an unbiblical worldview. What seems to be one of the most well-kept and dangerous 'secrets' surrounding the Enneagram is the worldview of Richard Rohr. One of the most influential proponents of the Enneagram today, Richard Rohr is a Franciscan priest whose teachings became popular among evangelicals after his book Discovering the Enneagram: An Ancient Tool for a New Spiritual Journey was translated from German to English in 1990. The implementation of Rohr’s books and teachings has become very widespread among evangelical Christians. They are even being used in Christian universities, seminaries, and churches.
Although he calls himself a Christian and is considered by many to be a true follower of Christ, Rohr's theology clearly says otherwise. Rohr denies several basic doctrines of the Christian faith including the sinful nature of man, the need for salvation, the Trinity, the atonement, and the inspiration of Scripture. Rohr holds to the Perennial Tradition which claims the same ‘Ultimate Truth’ is at the core of all religions. He is a panentheist (not to be confused with pantheist) who believes God is in the universe as a soul is in a body, and that He is growing in His knowledge and being. Panentheism also teaches that everything in the world has ‘divine DNA.'
One of Rohr’s most heretical teachings is that Jesus and Christ are two separate beings. He claims that creation (the Big Bang) was the first incarnation of God and that Jesus became Christ. He teaches that Jesus can’t save you—only the universal/cosmic Christ can. He also claims that Jesus “ignores (or even opposes) parts of his own Scriptures that were in any way punitive, imperialistic, exclusionary, or presented God as the same” (read Rohr's blog post here). It’s worth noting that popular Enneagram authors Susan Stabile and Christopher Heuertz were both mentored by Rohr. Stabile and her co-author Ian Cron have both taught at Rohr’s Center for Action and Contemplation. Rohr and Andreas Ebert co-authored the book The Enneagram: A Christian Perspective which has gained huge popularity with Christians. The title is appealing, but raises an important question: Can someone who denies essential doctrines of Christianity write from a truly Christian perspective?
Secret #4: The Enneagram cannot be 'Christianized.' Those who are aware of the Enneagram’s spurious origins and unbiblical philosophy often argue that it’s possible to ‘Christianize’ the Enneagram or use it in a non-religious way. Christopher Berg gives a very thorough and theologically-sound response to this argument in his book The New Age Trojan Horse. I will give a very brief summary here (and strongly encourage you to read the book!):
A practice cannot be separated from its underlying theology and ‘Christianized’ or used in a religiously neutral way if any of these four statements are true:
1. The practice was designed to accomplish something that violates a biblical view of morality.
2. The practice asserts itself, rather than Scripture, as a source of theology.
3. The practice acts as a substitute for a biblically proscribed practice.
4. Engaging in the practice entails a moderate to high risk of engaging in its underlying theology.
All four of these criteria apply to the Enneagram. First, the Enneagram views sin not as man’s rebellion against God, but failure to recognize your ‘true self’ which is inherently good. Second, the Enneagram in all its forms favors an esoteric ‘higher consciousness’ form of revelation over Scripture. Third, sanctification is redefined not as the work of the Holy Spirit, but as the result of using our ‘Holy Ideas and Holy Virtues' to fight against the obsessive parts of our personalities. The ultimate goal of the Enneagram is to find our way back to God through the nine paths. Fourth, the Enneagram's teachings are deeply steeped in New Age philosophies and the false teachings of Richard Rohr. Nearly every Christian who has published works promoting the Enneagram cites Rohr as a major influence. This should be seen as a problem, and an obvious risk of being deceived by a spiritual counterfeit.
Concluding Thoughts
As mentioned earlier, I'm convinced the 'secrets' of the Enneagram need to be revealed so people will have a better understanding of what the Enneagram really is and what it is not. I'm also convinced Christians need to be more Berean-like with any new teachings and practices, and not be so quick to accept them based on how good they sound, how well they seem to work, or who recommended them.
Rather than being an ancient tool for analyzing personality types and aiding in self-improvement, the Enneagram is a recent invention based on New Age philosophy very similar to astrology and numerology. In fact, there is a significant amount of overlap in these philosophies. (The books and articles recommended below go much more into depth regarding this aspect of the Enneagram.) This should be a concern for anyone who holds to a biblical worldview. There are warnings throughout the Old Testament against involvement with any kind of pagan practices. God's people are to be ‘set apart’ and not participate in idolatrous practices such as necromancy, astrology, divination, or witchcraft (i.e., Deut. 18:10-12; Lev.19:31) Those same warnings are also evident in the writings of the New Testament and apply to all believers today (i.e., Acts 19:18-19; Gal 5:19-21)
Contemporary Christians have been following a destructive trend of uncritically adopting unbiblical teachings and practices. Theologian and apologist Christopher Berg describes this as a 'rising tide of syncretism.' This is largely due to a high level of biblical illiteracy and the consequential lack of discernment. This can—and must—be remedied by carefully reading and studying Scripture so that we have a theologically sound grid through which we can rightly discern whether any teaching or practice is in line with orthodox Christianity. This is the only sure way we will be equipped to stand for the truth of Scripture and against anything that is antithetical to biblical Christianity.
See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.
(Col 2:8 ESV)
Recommended resources:
Richard Rohr and the Enneagram Secret, Don & Joy Veinot and Marcia Montenegro
The New Age Trojan Horse, Christopher Berg, PhD
Enneagram Theology, Rhenn Cherry
Origins of the Enneagram – video interview featuring Marcia Montenegro:
Book review of Christopher Heuertz’s The Sacred Enneagram:
Article “Tell Me Who I Am, O Enneagram” https://www.equip.org/PDF/DN067.pdf
(My Catholic friends will be especially interested in reading this excellent article by a Jesuit priest, Fr. Mitch Pacwa. The book mentioned at the end of the article was published in 1992: Catholics and the New Age. I mention it here with the caveat that I have not read it.)
Alisa Childers blog on Richard Rohr:
Sean McDowell interviews Chris Berg (author, The New Age Trojan Horse)
Midwest Christian Outreach livestream conference (10 video sessions):
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