Should Christians Use The Enneagram?

Today I would like to tackle the question of should Christians use the Enneagram. I think I was formally introduced to the Enneagram when I received an advanced review copy of Alice Fryling’s book Mirror for the Soul: A Christian Guide to the Enneagram from InterVarsity Press. I had already discerned something was increasingly off at IVP and the book looked off as well. As much as I related to the entire Myers-Briggs INFJ thing in terms of how it explained my personality, there was something instantly off-putting about the Enneagram. I had an actual visceral reaction to the book as I flipped through it. I threw the book in the trash.

I didn’t have time to figure out why it seemed off. Life was full of too many other things. I simply knew I had no desire to go down that rabbit hole. Not only did I not have the desire, I felt distinctly like wisdom dictated I not even mess with it at all.

Last year I believe the Lord led me to some resources that made clear why I felt such a visceral reaction to it. I’m putting all of them together here in one post because I believe this information is important.

If you’ve wondered about the Enneagram or are concerned about someone you know who is bordering on obsessed with it (which I understand is quite common), you’ll find the information below helpful. I think the Enneagram is yet one more example of the Church being infiltrated.

Myers-Briggs Versus The Enneagram

I do want to address my usage of INFJ as my Myers-Briggs type on my website over the years. I’ve gone back and forth regarding the posts I have that discuss personality types. I’ve considered Myers-Briggs typing as a form of shorthand for quickly getting to know someone or relate to them. It was helpful in terms of understanding why I interacted with the world in certain ways that others didn’t. It’s been a helpful tool to helping my child understand why people can act so differently in the same situation. However, it is not Scriptural so I do feel a bit of back and forth with it.

But when observing people who become deeply involved with the Ennegram, it seems like there is something much more all-encompassing that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. Where the Myers-Briggs thing is more of a shortcut tool in conversation, the Ennegram is just… different. In The Enneagram, the Angel, and the Divine Coma, Marcia Montenegro points out this difference:

Moreover, it is a red herring to bring up the Myers-Briggs which, unlike the Enneagram, is not derived from spirit contact. Myers-Briggs is not in the same category as the Enneagram. It is claimed the Enneagram is a spiritual tool; Myers-Briggs makes no such claim. While Myers-Briggs claims to assess the personality, the Enneagram was never designed for that. The Enneagram is not to assess personality types but to figure out which of the nine paths to God each one must take to reconnect with their “true self.” In addition, Myers-Briggs is no longer viewed as valid by psychologists. Many have stopped using it.

So I’ve been finding all the references to INFJ and personality types while I’ve been auditing my website and removing them. They aren’t all gone, but I’m getting there. (Once I post this Enneagram post, I will be able to redirect all of those posts here which will make it much easier.)

I don’t have any problem with the idea of introverts and extroverts because I think that is a basic way of explaining how people function in life. There is no implied spiritual aspect to it. But if my goal is to point people to Christ and the truth of the Word, then I don’t want to muddy the waters by adding in extra things that may be of no real benefit (like the INFJ stuff). I don’t feel convicted it was sinful to write about such things. Rather it feels like wisdom dictates that I can better use my time and space here to focus on the Truth of the faith.

As an aside, it’s interesting to note that a key idea in the Enneagram is the “true self” which is a term I often see. When I learned this while watching these videos, I realized that I think I had even picked up that vocabulary and used it a few times. Not because I follow or even understood the Enneagram, but because it was floating around and I apparently picked it up. In using it I would not have meant it in the same way, but rather as being the person God has created you to be from a Biblical perspective. But the Enemy is so easily able to bring things into our world without our even realizing it. It was a good reminder.

The following sections feature different videos and resources that were originally forums posts. They are now combined here. I pray you find them helpful.

Updated note: I continue to add more resources in the comments to be sure to look there as well. 

“When we start shifting our words to something worldly, something happens inside of us”

YES! THIS! THIS! THIS! I had written down on my tickler list to write a post about “stop using other terminology” when I “happened” upon this video. I’ve cued it up to the part where Krista Bontrager nails it. Watch it to the end.

Christians are obsessed with everything except the Bible. The language of the Bible is rich enough that we don’t need to adopt the words of other cultural movements. Increasing numbers of Christians talk more in the language of the Left than they do the Bible right now. I find that deeply troubling.

(I did write that post: Vocabulary In Your Life & Church – From The Bible or the Woke Left?)

Related article: Explosion of the Enneagram among Evangelicals

Is The Enneagram A Trojan Horse In The Church? With Marcia Montenegro

The timing of this was Providential. I had already been reading and thinking about the Enneagram and personality types.

Why I Quit The Enneagram – Jillian Lancour, Marcia Montenegro, and Doreen Virtue

This video is another helpful look at the Enneagram and its unhealthy and unbiblical impact on Christians and churches.

Book mentioned in video: Richard Rohr and the Enneagram Secret

More Reading About The Enneagram From Marcia Montenegro & Midwest Christian Outreach

I haven’t read all of these, but every interview I’ve seen with Marcia has been very good. I also trust Midwest Christian Outreach to publish solid resources.

A few articles specifically about the Enneagram:

• The Naked “Spiritual Rhythms for the Enneagram”
• The Enneagram, the Angel, and the Divine Coma
• The Enneagram Goes to Church and the Angels Are Not Rejoicing

A sampling of her articles on other topics related to spirituality:

• One Thousand Gifts – A Commentary
• The Labyrinth: A Walk by Faith? Concerns about the Christian Use of Labyrinths
• Is it true that God can Use/Redeem Anything?
• The Basic Spirituality of Yoga
• Contemplating Contemplative Prayer: Is It Really Prayer?
• The Twightlight Saga: Your Soul for Immortality

See all of the articles here: Marcia Montenegro at Midwest Christian Outreach