by Gianni Criveller(柯毅霖)
The New Age World
1. The New Age of the Internet
My lived experiences in Hong Kong, the United States and in Italy have convinced me that New Age is significantly influential in society, in the Church, even in some traditional Catholic communities. However, I also have the impression that theologians and pastors alike underestimate the impact and significance of New Age. I believe that the Christian faithful in general, and pastoral workers and missionaries in particular, should know and understand the New Age phenomenon.
The present article is a revision of a research I conducted in 1999. In the meantime, in February 2003, the Pontifical Council for Culture and the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue jointly have published the document: Jesus Christ the Bearer of the Water of Life; A Christian Reflection on the "New Age." I hope that the reader will find this study a good companion to the study of the Holy See's document.
New Age ideas are disseminated on the Internet,(1) and many Web pages carry references to New Age. Both New Age and the Internet seem to be interconnected by being major tools and expressions of postmodernity. New Age and the Internet are a network of networks, nets which connect infinitely different things. New Age is described by New Age writer Marilyn Ferguson in a way that strikingly resembles the description of the power of the Internet: "a network without a guide but full of force is working to bring about a radical change in this world.... This network is a union without political doctrine, without a manifesto."(2) Robert Muller, a former United Nations' vice-secretary and a prominent New Age author, has given philosophical importance to the power of networking, common to both New Age and the Internet: "Network through thought, through action, through love, through spirit. You are the centre of a network. You are free, an immensely powerful source of life... Networking is a new freedom, the new democracy, a new form of happiness."(3)
2. New Age's variegated world
New Age, (sometimes also called Next Age(4) and Age of Aquarius,(5) although these terms refer to something somewhat different),(6) is a loosely connected network of people, groups, activities and practices. According to its adherents, it produces beneficial results such as spiritual and personal growth, improvement in relationships, physical and psychological healing, financial success, individual and global peace, and safeguards the environment.
The content of New Age is both vast and vague, an eclectic and somewhat strange mixture of beliefs, practices and lifestyles. Elements from traditional Eastern religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Taoism are found together with elements from Christian and Jewish thought. But a relevant role is also played by Gnostic thought and relatively new religious bodies such as Scientology, Unity, New Thought, Religious Science and various occult cults such as Theosophy,(7) Anthroposophy,(8) Rosicrucianism(9) and spiritism.(10) Some New Age adherents accept millenarianism, astrology and pre-Christian teachings such as Celtic, Druidic, Mayan, Native American, mythology and traditional folklore. The spectrum of the practices adopted by New Age circles is also quite vast: from traditional Zen and Yoga meditation to body discipline and relaxation therapies, which include fasting, hypnosis and martial arts. Management training, enlightenment and consciousness-raising seminars, enneagram,(11) visualization and positive thinking are also popular. The latter two are based on the assumption that the mind can accomplish and create what it believes it can. New Age circles claim to experience paranormal phenomena such as astral dreaming, mental telepathy, healing, levitations, clairvoyance, automatic writing, chanting, and energy channelling. Practices of Chaldeans, Egyptians, Babylonians and other ancient peoples; horoscopes, palm reading, crystal ball gazing, water divining, pendulum, divining rod, tarot cards, tea leaves reading, divination, numerology, aura readings, iridology, palmistry, Wiccan rituals, study of animal entrails are also to be found in New Age. Unconventional stories such as UFO abductions, extraterrestrial visits, past-life regression, reincarnation and psychic healing are common subjects in New Age gatherings and literature.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, New Age, under the name 'the Age of Aquarius,' found acceptance in the counterculture of radical movements, particularly radical environmentalism and radical feminism. In the 1980s and 1990s, New Age became a well-known international phenomenon.
Most new religions have recognized leaders, doctrines, 'inspired' scriptures, specific practices, and a very tight control over the members, while New Age has no fixed structure nor is it centrally controlled. There are no headquarters, no official doctrines, standard religious practices, or leaders in official capacities. New Age organized religious bodies such as the Church of Spiritual Healing, the Church of Ageless Wisdom, Radiant Light Interfaith Church, the Church of the Earth Nation and the Church of Truth and the New Age communes are expanding with less success than New Age itself. Centres and masters, which propagate New Age concepts and practices through seminars, channelling training and initiation courses without a distinct religious character, are much more successful.
There are many new products on the market to enhance worship, meditation and body practices: prayer mats, yapa beads, incense, clothing from natural fibres, crystals and special lights to intensify them, health foods, vitamins pills, portable massage tables, meditation goggles, subliminal tapes, herbal teas, New Age music and books.
New Age is especially popular with young, single, upwardly mobile, successful urban adults. Through them New Age ideas and practices have spread among those who are influential in society, especially in the entertainment industry, mass-media and financial world. The impact the movement is making in postmodern life is enormous. According to a survey of 1996, 20% of the American population believes in New Age.(12)
In 1997 there were more than 5000 New Age bookshops in the United States. In Hong Kong there is a least one 'New Age Shop', located in Central, and a large choice of New Age activities, such as 'holistic living' seminars, meditations, public talks, 'energy channelling' courses, etc...(13) A Hong Kong based holistic health consultant told a local magazine: "I listen to soft music that has no lyrics to unclutter my mind, and it's good for the right side of the brain... I swim to feel as though I am inside my mother's womb. We all need to learn how to let go of negativity." The article continues: "She meditates to access her inner voice and pray to a divine power, which she loosely defines as God, the universe or herself, but says is separate from religion-for strength."(14)
3. Two New Age streams
I believe that New Age has basically two major streams: the humanistic and the occult.
3.1 Humanistic stream
To many contemporaries, New Age practices are a way to become a better and healthier person, to be in touch with the deeper self, to interact harmoniously with others, to be renewed and reduce stress and fatigue.
New Age enhances awareness of the well being of the individual and the planet, of health and ecology. New Age promotes holistic education, meditation and psycho-training, holistic medicine and health foods.
The New Age humanistic stream sees humankind experiencing the beginning of a new spiritual awakening that will lead humanity into a new era of enlightened spiritual humanism. Writers such as Hermann Hesse, Richard Bach and Paulo Coelho represent this aspect of New Age.
3.2 Occult stream
The New Age occult stream includes a variety of exotic things: pre-Christian beliefs, channelling of healing energy, contacts with spiritual masters, mediums, initiations by gurus and masters, out-of-body experiences, astral travel, UFO abductions, astrology, tarot cards and aura reading, gemstones and crystals, shamanistic traditions, pre-Colombian oracles, magic, witchcraft (now officially recognized as a religion in some Northern countries) and sorcery.
While it is generally assumed that New Age is not an organized force, some conservative Christians claim that New Age expansion in the world follows a precise 'Plan', communicated to Alice Bailey, which consists in infiltrating governments, media, schools and churches with the purpose of establishing a New World Order, a New World Government and a New World Religion.
Moreover, a number of Evangelical and Catholic apologists such as M. Basilea Schlink,(15) Constance Cumbay,(16) Ed Decker,(17) Randall Baers,(18) Carl Raschke,(19) Douglas Groothuis,(20) John P. Newport,(21) and Cornelia R. Ferreira(22) warn that there is a dark side to New Age which includes black magic and even Satanism. Traces of Satanism can be found in the frequent mention of 'Lucifer' by New Age leader David Spangler and in the activities of the Church of Satan, founded in 1966 in San Francisco by Anton LeVey. The latter has somewhat inspired and made a cameo appearance in the horror-satanic cult-movie Rosemary's Baby (1968), directed by Roman Polansky and starring by Mia Farrow. Occultist groups claim that Adolf Hitler was acquainted with secret teachings such as that of occultist Helena Blavatsky and of Satanist Aleister Crowler.
4. Precursors of the New Age
The occultist stream in New Age Movement traces its modern roots to the Theosophical Society, founded in New York (1875), by Russian-born occultist Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1831-1891). Theosophy is a pantheistic religious system. Its adherents believe that all world religions have basic common truths that transcend the differences. Blavatsky taught that people could contact higher spirit entities called Masters of Wisdom, located in the spiritual realm.
Alice A. Bailey (1880-1949), an Englishwoman who emigrated to America was one of the main figures to emerge from the Esoteric Section of the Theosophical Society. Bailey broke away from it to found the Arcane Society in 1923. She and her husband Foster Bailey established the Lucifer Publishing Company in 1922. In 1923 the name was changed to Lucis Publishing Company. She claimed to receive messages from the Tibetan Djwal Khul, a Master of Wisdom. He was an 'ascended brother', forming part of the 'Great White Brotherhood,' whose members dwell in Shambala, a mystical realm.
Some consider Blavatsky and Bailey as the founders of the New Age movement.(23) Occultist Annie Besant (1847-1937), a British feminist who was the Theosophical Society's president from 1907 to 1933, proclaimed that the coming World Teacher would be a spiritual master named Lord Maitreya.
Dr. Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), an Austrian, was an active member of the Theosophical Society when in 1912 he broke away from it to found the Anthroposophical Society. Steiner's 'cosmic' Christology will be described below.
1. A characteristic of this study is the use of the Internet as one of the sources of information.
2. Marilyn Ferguson, The Aquarian Conspiracy. J.B.Tarcher, Los Angeles, 1980. Quoted by Michael Fuss, The New Age, in Towards the Jubilee of the Year 2000: New Forms of Religiosity, Challenges for Evangelization. Pontifical Missionary Union, Rome, 1999, p. 9.
3. Robert Muller, Decide to Network, in J. Beversluis (ed.), A Sourcebook for the Earth's Community of Religions. CoNexus, Grand Rapids, MI, 1995, p. 302. Quoted by Fuss, The New Age, p. 9.
4. Next Age is an expression which indicates a second stage of New Age, focused on individual happiness.
5. Astrologers believe that evolution goes through cycles corresponding to the signs of the zodiac, each lasting about 2,000 years. We are now moving from the cycle of the Pisces into that of Aquarius. The Aquarian Age will supposedly be characterized by a heightened degree of spiritual and cosmic consciousness.
6. Massimo Introvigne, New Age & Next Age. Piemme, Casale Monferrato, 2000; Gaspare Barbiellini Amidei, New Age - Next Age. Piemme, Casale Monferrato, 1998.
7. Emily B. Sellon and Renee Weber, Theosophy and the Theosophical Society. In Antoine Faivre and Jacob Needleman (eds.), Modern Esoteric Spirituality. Crossroad, New York, 1995, pp. 311-329.
8. Robert A. Mcdermott, "Rudolf Steiner and Anthroposophy," in Faivre and Needleman (eds.), Modern Esoteric Spirituality, pp. 288-310.
9. Roland Edighoffer, "Rosicrucianism: From the Seventeenth to the Twentieth Century," in Faivre and Needleman (eds.), Modern Esoteric Spirituality, pp. 186-209.
10. Michael W. Homer, Lo Spiritismo. Elle Di Ci, Leumann (Torino), 1999; Antoine Faivre, Esoterismo e tradizione. Elle Di Ci, Leumann (Torino), 1999.
11. The Enneagram is an ancient method of personality typing, now adopted also in Christian circles. Sergio Ferrari - Gianni F. Trapletti, L'enneagramma: alcune domande per un dibattito, Religioni e Sette nel Mondo, No. 5, Gris, Bologna, 1996, pp. 94-118.
12. Statistic reported by George Barnia, The Index of Leading Spiritual Indicators. World Publishing, Dallas, TX, 1996; also found in Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance, religioustolerance.org.
13. The periodical, New Age News, gives information on numerous New Age activities in Hong Kong.
14. Hong Kong Magazine, April 30, 1999, p. 10.
15. M. Basilea Schlink, New Age From a Biblical Viewpoint. Evangelic Sisters of Mary, Radlett (Harts), England, n.d.
16. Constance E. Cumbey, The Hidden Dangers of the Rainbow, The New Age Movement and Our Coming Age of Barbarism. Huntington House, Shreveport, Lousiana, 1983.
17. Ed. Decker, Race Toward Judgement. The New Age Movement. saintsalive.com, 1999.
18. Randall Bears, Inside the New Age Nightmare. Walter Publishing, Merlin, OR, 1989.
19. Carl A. Raschke, Painted Black. Harper & Row, San Francisco, 1990.
20. Douglas Groothuis, Confronting the New Age. InterVarsity Press, Downers Groves, IL, 1988.
21. John P. Newport, The New Age Movement and the Biblical Worldview. Conflict and Dialogue. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, MI/Cambridge, U.K, 1998.
22. Cornelia R. Ferreira, The New Age Movement: the Kingdom of Satan on Earth. Canisius Books, Scarborough, Ontario. 1991; "The One-World Church Emerges." Homiletic and Pastoral Review, January 1999, pp. 6-18.
23. See, for example, Robert A. Herrmann, "A Scientific Analysis of the Writings of Alice A. Bailey and their Applications," March 2001, serve.com/herrmann.
The New Age Religious Beliefs
1. New Age as the Religion of Postmodernity
There are, I believe, two religious reactions to the collapse of modernity. One is religious fundamentalism, which can be found in all major organized religions. The religious fundamentalists oppose modernity and postmodernity alike. They uphold a religious attitude, which is not only radically anti-modern, but even pre-modern. Since modernity has been defeated, fundamentalists, seem to advocate a return to pre-modernity, rejecting even basic and significant achievements such as freedom of conscience, human rights and the impartiality of the state toward religion.
The second reaction to the collapse of modernity is New Age and a number of New Religions. New Age is, in a very important sense, the religion of postmodernity.(24) New Age capitalizes on postmodern attitudes: the rejection of strong political thought, ideologies and conventional religious institutions, concerns with the environment, nuclear power, health and feminism.
The disappointment with modern secular humanism, which reduced God and faith to myths, is a major force behind the spectacular spread of New Age. The failure of secular humanism and of the modern ideologies of Communism and Nazism has created the spiritual vacuum which postmodern men and women experience.
To the postmodern lost individual, New Age proposes a 'paradigm shift', a new holistic perspective, the interconnectedness of all things and the concept of wholeness. Rational, analytical and critical knowledge, which is the basis of the scientific method, gives way to intuitive knowledge, based on non-rational experience. The use of reason does not impress New Age followers. They see dependence on logic and reason as a lack of enlightenment.
New Age adherents expand the theory that the two hemispheres of the human brain operate in two different ways. The left side dominates the logical functions while the right governs the emotional and intuitive aspects: the part of the heart, fantasy, dreams and perceptions. Western people have, supposedly, chiefly developed the left side. Techniques such as meditation, poetry, enchantments, mantras, etc., are now available to enable the development of consciousness and thus to regain balance and synchronization between the two parts of the brain.
Postmodernism and New Age share the assumption that beliefs are secondary to experience; they last as long as they are useful, are a matter of preference and not of truth, and are of equal worth. Postmodern people, isolated and lonely in this difficult and complex society, are ready to accept the idea of looking inward for solutions. In a world 'in crisis' New Age offers solutions to be found 'within yourself,' because, according to New Age adherents, 'the only way out is in.'
Since postmodernity is sometimes described as a post-Christian era, New Age seems to have the characteristics of a post-Christian religion as well. New Age, like postmodernity, rather than being a clearly defined doctrine or organization, is a 'mood', an 'atmosphere', "a metaphor for the new cultural pattern that is emerging in the post-Christian society."(25)
Many feel that traditional Christian churches are inadequate to answer these new existential quests. Instead, small groups seem to offer the individual a sense of belonging which is lost in traditional religious, cultural and political institutions. In a fast paced postmodern society, in which everything is consumed fast, New Age's intense experiences of empowerment attract people more easily than do the traditional teachings of the Christian churches, perceived as constrained by a complicated set of doctrines and a boring life.
New Age centres fulfil functions once covered by Christian communities: spiritual guidance, social gathering, fellowship, recreation, etc... Many people perhaps disillusioned, have left traditional Christian Churches and joined these centres and activities.
1.1 New Age as Postmodern Gnosticism (26)
Authors have pointed out similarities between the postmodern New Age movement and Gnosticism. The Gnostics, 'those who know,' belonged to a religious movement which flourished during the first few centuries of the Christian era.
Some New Age adherents say that Jesus was actually teaching New Age truths, and others add that the long-lost sayings of Jesus have now been rediscovered. One major source of these 'rediscovered' sayings is extracanonical literature.(27) New Age considers the Apocryphal or Gnostic Gospels(28) (2nd and 3rd centuries) counter-current literature suppressed by the early Church. Among them the Gospel of Thomas has become, with its Gnostic content, a hobby-horse of New Age.
Christian Gnostics believed that Christ's humanity was merely an illusion. Christ appeared to die, but did not really die. Christ belongs to a group of semi-divine beings (called aeon) located between God and humanity. Christian Gnostics considered matter as evil, and evil was the God of the Old Testament, creator of the material universe. The God of the New Testament, as taught by Jesus, is the God of Love. Salvation is acquired through secret knowledge, which is imparted only to the initiated. Jesus himself attained 'Christhood' through initiation: he is the 'Great Initiate.'
New Age adherents say the human Jesus attained 'Christhood' by raising his 'Christ-consciousness', 'attuning' him to the cosmic Christ. New Age adherents, like Gnostics, use Christian terminology and symbols, but the content of their teaching does not accord with traditional Christian doctrines.
2. New Age religious beliefs
Michael Fuss summarizes New Age religious beliefs as the sum of the interaction of four elements.(29) The first is the Judaeo- Christian tradition, from which New Age draws its terminology and to which it aims to become an alternative. The second element is science, in its anti-Western, anti-material and anti-mechanic form: the quantum science, reality as energy. The third element is the esoteric, occultist and Gnostic tradition. The fourth element comprises the theories of religious pluralism, syncretism and relativism.
These four elements constitute the ideological background of New Age religious beliefs in relation to Christian faith:
2.1 All is one
'Scientific' and religious holism (or wholism) is one of the fundamental tenets of New Age. No distinction is drawn between creation and created reality, humans and nature, God and creatures: such distinctions are illusions. New Age's God is an impersonal Ultimate Unifying Principle, a mystical Oneness, which coincides with the universe. The universe is the source of life and possesses an intelligence that guides and guards everything. God is consciousness, or an impersonal energy force. Expanding on the theory of quantum physics, reality is considered energy. According to the quantum physics that Fritjof Capra advocates, the universe is a living body, governed not by the law of matter and mechanics, but rather by relations of energy. In New Age literature, this energy goes by many names: prana, mana, force, odic force, orgone energy, holy spirit, qi, mind, healing force, reiki.(30) Energy has healing power, can be released and channelled through various forms of meditation, body therapies and magic rites. The Force is with you is the title of one New Age book. For New Age adherents, personal transformation is the process of mystically experiencing oneness with the universe.
Holism is an updated form of monism, a worldview which perceives the totality of all that exists as a reflection of an ultimate oneness. The Ultimate Principle, Higher Self, may assume several material and concrete appearances in history. These appearances in history, the 'lower self,' rather than the 'real self,' are just an illusory phenomenon that has a mere symbolic value. The religious consequence is that history in incapable of authentic revelation. All historical religious expressions have the same limited and vague value.
2.2 Everything is God
As a direct and logical consequence of the previous axiom, New Age adopts the ancient pantheistic view: everything in the universe, plants and humans, partake of the one divine essence. 'Everything is God. You are God. I am God. This microphone is God. This table is God, All is God.' Expressions like this are often heard at New Age lectures and found in numerous New Age books.
Since we are God in disguise, only ignorance (and not sin, which does not exist) keeps us from realizing our divine reality. If the whole is contained in each of its parts, then each part is the whole. "You never knew how beautiful you were, for you never really looked at who and what you are. You want to see what God looks like? Go look in a mirror, you are looking God straight in the face."(31) Judith Hampton-J.Z. Knight, in her website, provides an explanation of spiritual exercises and practical guidelines to attain the science of knowing and super-consciousness. She proclaims that "God lies within us, and there is no other redemption than for mankind to realize their Godhood."(32) She covers topics such as death and ascension, creation and evolution, reincarnation, and the purpose of existence. Again, according to New Age, a human being simply needs to discover and develop his/her divinity by expanding his/her consciousness through meditation and other spiritual practices.
2.3 Consciousness(33)
As just mentioned, the concept of consciousness is a key for understanding New Age's religious transformation. The human being has to overcome illusions and ignorance with a new consciousness. He/she must have a change of consciousness to realize that we are not finite and limited. The human being has to find his/her 'Higher Self' through consciousness expansion. The human condition is hampered by ignorance and various unfavourable cultural conditions. Evils are the result of human-produced factors and/or of the law of karma.
This perspective does not include the biblical and Christian concept of sin, which is a tragic yet real consequence of human freedom and responsibility. It also excludes the necessity of any redemption, reducing Grace and Faith to senseless doctrines. Godhood is within yourself, you have just to remove the veil of ignorance and be enlightened about your true self. Human methods, such as meditation, channelling, initiation will bring you to a superior knowledge of your superior Self.
2.4 Reincarnation and Karma (34)
According to the definition above, 'progressive spiritual evolution', embodying the doctrines of Karma and reincarnation, explains the inequalities and negativities of life, thus doing away with the Christian doctrines of sin, responsibility, redemption, hell and Heaven. New Age can partly be classified as a Western-postmodern expression of classic Hinduism. The latter was welcomed in the West especially during the 1960s, when Hindu masters went to North America and Europe to offer their teachings, and many Westerners went to India in search of the spiritual.
2.5 Channelling and spirit contact
Channelling, which means contact with entities, including angels,(35) allowing oneself to become a 'channeller' and a messenger of spiritual messages, and spirit contact are activities that have had huge success in the New Age movement. Spirit contact is a renewed and developed form of contact with the spirit of the dead, practised in the last 150 years by the occultist societies. The messages are from loving entities, which help humanity to reach perfection through a spiritual evolution. The medium J. Z. Knight (Judith Hampton), claims to be the channeller of Ramtha, a 'Sovereign Entity' who lived on earth over 35,000 years ago, who has ascended to a higher level of consciousness to teach humankind how to rediscover the 'God who lives within you.'(36) In the practise of Reiki, the initiated individuals are said to become channels of Reiki energy.
2.6 New Age and Religious Pluralism
According to the pluralism of New Age, the enlightened ones of all the great religions, Jesus, Buddha, Krishna, Laozi, Mohamed, Zoroaster etc... have taught an experience of the same oneness. There are many paths to the one truth, many methods to become one with the One. All the differences are superficial and external. Truth can be revealed in diverse ways and through diverse agents. No individual, collective, or church possesses a monopoly on the truth, an attitude shared with postmodern thought. Paulo Coelho in one of his novel writes:
The Buddhists were right, the Hindus were right, the Muslims were right, and so were the Jews. Whenever someone follows the path to faith, sincerely follows it, he or she is able to unite with God and to perform miracles. But it wasn't enough simply to know that you have to make a choice. I chose the Catholic Church because I was raised in it, and my childhood has been impregnated with its mysteries. If I had been born Jewish, I would have chosen Judaism. God is the same, even though He has a thousand names; it is up to us to select a name for Him.(37)
We will return to this point.
2.7 The glorious New Age future
From astrology the New Age derives cosmic optimism, a principle based on evolution and on eventually reaching the Omega Point. We are at the dawn of a new era, characterized by a 'collective enlightenment of human consciousness'. Some foresee the appearance of a 'Greater Christ', a New Messiah, a New Avatar,(38) who will take humanity to the universal experience of cosmic harmony and bliss.
2.8 The cult of Gaia
Women and feminism hold a prominent position in New Age where it is common to refer to God as 'Mother' or 'She.' Some radical New Age adherents take up the ancient belief that equates 'woman' with 'nature,' resuming interest in female gods of pre-Christian cultures such as Iris, Astarte, Demeter, Hera and especially Gaia. The radical vanguard of the New Age feminist movement, dissatisfied with the masculine character of the Biblical God, advocates the introduction of the cult of the goddess Gaia, the Greek 'Mother Earth.'
Gaia is also the name of a scientific hypothesis formulated by James Lovelock. According to the Gaia hypothesis, to put it simply, all living matter on the earth is believed to be a single living organism, and humanity is considered the nervous system of the living earth.(39)
2.9 The Great Mother
There is a Catholic version of the cult of the 'Great Mother' proposed by Paulo Coelho, perhaps echoing a hypothesis of Brazilian theologian Leonardo Boff.(40) Coelho offers for consideration the 'Virgin' Mary as the feminine face of God. She is the feminine incarnation of God, as Jesus is the masculine incarnation of God.
"She is the cosmic bride, Earth, which opens to the heavens and allows itself to be fertilized. ... She allowed God to come down to earth, and She was transformed into the Great Mother. She is the feminine face of God. She has her own divinity.... This woman, the Goddess, the Virgin, Mary, the Shechinah, the Great Mother, Isis, Sofia, slave and mistress, is present in every religion on the face of the earth. She has been forgotten, prohibited, and disguised, but her cult has continued from millennium to millennium and continues to survive today.... In every religion and in every tradition, she manifests Herself in one form or another. Since I am Catholic, I perceive Her as the Virgin Mary.(41)
Coelho goes as far as proposing "a Holy Trinity that includes a woman. The Trinity of the Holy Spirit, the mother and the Son."(42) "How wonderful that God may be a woman, I said to myself, as the others continued to chant. If that's true, then it was certainly God's feminine face that taught us how to love."(43)
24. For postmodernity see my articles, The Postmodern Condition and the Enduring Good News of the Gospel. Theological Annual, 1999, pp. 57-102; Mission in Postmodern Times," in Philip L. Wickeri, (ed.), The People of God Among All God's Peoples: Frontiers in Christian Mission. Christian Conference of Asia & The Council for World Mission, Hong Kong-London 2000, pp. 183-203. See also Aldo Natale Terrin, New Age, La religiosita del Postmoderno. Dehoniane, Bologna, 1992.
25. Fuss, The New Age, p. 3.
26. Andrea Porcarelli, Il New Age: una forma di Gnosticismo moderno, Religioni e Sette nel Mondo, No. 6, 1996, pp. 51-77.
27. Some of these texts were discovered in 1945 at Nag Hammadi, a locality in Upper Egypt. Nag Hammadi's writings are fourth-century papyrus manuscripts that formed part of a Gnostic library. Among the writings are the Apocryphon of John, the Gospel of Philip, the Gospel of Thomas, the Apocalypse of Paul, and the Gospel of Mary.
28. Bentley Layton (ed.), The Gnostic Scriptures. Garden City, Doubleday & Co., 1987.
29. Fuss, The New Age, p. 4.
30. On Reiki, see: Mauro Roventi Beccari, "Rei-ki, energia che guarisce," Religione e Sette nel mondo, No. 6, pp. 78-114.
31. Transchanneller J. Z. Knight, born Judith Darlene Hampton. See her websites: seekersway.org; ramtha.com.
32.Ibid.
33. Jean Vernette, Dai cambiamenti nella coscienza e nel cervello al risveglio interiore, Religione e Sette nel mondo, No.5, pp. 57-70.
34. Julien Ries, New Age e Reincarnazione, Religioni e Sette nel mondo, No. 5, pp. 45-56.
35. Daniel Gagnon, Gli Angeli e il New Age, Religioni e Sette nel mondo, No. 6, pp. 115-131.
36.See seekersway.org; ramtha.com.
37. Paulo Coelho, By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept. HarperCollins, London, 1996, p. 90.
38. An Avatar descends into human form from above as a manifestation of divinity and reveals divine truth to people.
39. David L. Brown, A Brief Dictionary of New Age Terminology, logosresourcepages.org.
40. "The Holy Spirit has made Her (Mary) His Temple, Sanctuary and Tabernacle in so real and genuine a way that She is to be regarded as hypostatically united to the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity." Leonardo Boff, The Maternal Face of God. The Feminine and Its Religious Expressions. Harper & Row, San Francisco, 1987, p. 93.
41. Coelho, By The River Piedra, pp. 66-67, 69.
42. Ibid. p.148.
43.Ibid. p.118.
The New Age Jesus Christ
1. Jesus Goes East(44)
Shirley MacLaine in Out on a Limbo recounts a conversation with a friend,
You know that nothing is recorded in the Bible about Christ from the time he was about twelve until he began to really teach at about thirty years old. Those eighteen missing years were spent travelling in and around India and Tibet and Persia and the Near East.(45)
That Jesus travelled East has become one of the 'major secrets' revealed by the New Age adherents. All started with The Unknown Life of Christ, a book published in 1894 by Nicolas Notovitch, a Russian war correspondent, who claimed that in 1887 he had visited the Lama Monastery of Himis (Northern India). There he learned about a Grand Lama named Issa (the Tibetan form of Jesus). A chronicle of the life of Issa, written down in scrolls located at the monastery, were read to and translated for the Russian traveller. Notovitch learned that Jesus had wandered to India and to Tibet as a young man studying the laws of the Buddha. Eventually the priests of Brahma taught him to read and understand the Vedas, to cure, to teach, to preach and to drive out evil spirits. Issa-Jesus had become a perfect expositor of the sacred writings. After long travels in various countries, Issa-Jesus returned to Israel and preached what he had learned to all.
As early as 1894, although partial to oriental doctrines rather than to Christianity, Orientalist Max Muller of Oxford University rebuked Notovitch for his fantastic tale in the scholarly review The Nineteenth Century.(46)
J. Archibald Douglas, Professor at Government College in Agra, India, who visited the monastery of Himis in 1895, also denied the whole story.(47)
Nevertheless Notovitch's book, under the title of The Life of Saint Issa, was republished in New York in 1926. Since then other authors, such as Edgar J. Goodspeed(48) and Per Beskow,(49) Joseph Gaer,(50) Philip J. Swihart,(51) Anne Read,(52) Tal Brooke,(53) and the above-mentioned Douglas Groothuis and Ron Rhodes, have rejected Notovitch's account. But some members of occultist societies, such as Elizabeth Clare Prophet,(54) Nicholas Roerich,(55) Holger Kersten,(56) David Spangler,(57) Janet Block(58) and others have published several books perpetuating the tale. Elizabeth Clare Prophet's book, The Lost Years of Jesus, was made into a movie in 2001.
2. The Akashic Records
A major source for the 'Jesus goes East' stories is The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ,59 written by occultist Levi Dowling (1844-1911). This 'gospel' is a transcription from the Book of God's Remembrances, known as the Akashic Records. 'Akasha' is, according to the occultists, a spiritual field that surrounds earth, in which every person's word, thought or act is inscribed in imperishable records, known as Akashic Records. Levi's gospel developed the tale of the travels of Jesus: after having travelled throughout India and Tibet, Jesus arrived in Egypt, where he passed through seven degrees of initiation until he attained Christhood. Other occultists, such as Edgar Cayce (1877-1945), followed in the same line of the Akashic Records, which they claim to have read while in a trance.
It is obvious that 'Jesus goes East' stories and the Akashic Records lack any rational, scientific and historical evidence. These writings cannot be compared to the witness of Jesus rendered by New Testament. Any critical study would exclude the possibility of such travels.
3. The New Age Christ (60)
New Age's own reinterpretations of the person and work of Christ are rooted in esoteric thought from the end of the 19th century. American metaphysicist Phineas Parkhurst Quimby (1802-1866)(61) has played a significant role in New Age Christology. He advocated that the source of physical healing lies in the mind. Physical diseases are caused by wrong thinking or false beliefs, which can be corrected by 'the Christ.' Clearly distinguishing Jesus from the Christ, Quimby credited Jesus with discovering the 'Truth,' elevating him above any man who has ever lived. Quimby's thought greatly influenced Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of Christian Science.
Quimby also inspired a number of inclusive metaphysical groups that emerged in the 1890s. These were generally described as 'New Thought.' These groups see the Christ is an impersonal Divine Nature or Principle. They believed that Jesus had embodied the Christ-principle, more than any other human had before, fully realizing his Christ-nature. Jesus was not a saviour; he was merely a 'way-shower.'
The success and dissemination of New Thought's Christology has given rise to various offshoots such as the Unity School of Christianity, founded by Charles and Myrtle Fillmore (1845-1931 and 1854-1948) in 1891; and The United Church of Religious Science, founded by Ernest Holmes (1887-1960) in 1926.
Swinburne Clymer (1878-1966), a Rosicrucian,(62) anticipated the New Age pantheistic view of enlightenment. According to Clymer, author of numerous books on Christ, each life is a spark, a germ of the Divine Nature. This spark is the potential Christ within.
Helena Blavatsky thought that the Supreme World Teacher, also known as 'the Christ,' enters the body of a disciple to guide the spiritual evolution of humanity.(63) Each 'incarnation' of 'Christ' reveals something more about God. The five incarnations of Christ were Buddha (in India), Hermes (in Egypt), Zoroaster (in Persia), Orpheus (in Greece), and Jesus. Along the same lines, Annie Besant said that the Christ needed a human form, and did not die on the cross. Salvation in fact is obtained by spiritual evolution, which comes through successive incarnations, which allow every person potentially to become 'Christ.'(64)
Rudolf Steiner, in polemics with Besant, maintained that the death of Jesus has something to do with human salvation. Steiner's Christology is based on Akashic Records, which according to Steiner, says that the incarnation of the Christ in Jesus was the central event of human evolution, and restored humanity to the spiritual realm. The blood that flowed from the wounds of Jesus Christ at the crucifixion flowed into the earth and passed through a process of 'etherisation'. At the moment of his death, the Christ left Jesus' body and 'incarnated' into the etheric earth, and now seeks to 'mass incarnate' into all humanity, for the sake of its redemption. Christ belongs now to the whole earth and can enter all human souls, regardless of nation and religion: this is his true 'second coming.'(65)
For David Spangler, Christ is "a cosmic Christ, a universal Christ, a New Age Christ."(66) He is a cosmic principle, which utilized Jesus' body, "a spiritual presence whose quality infuses and appears in various ways in all the religions and philosophies that uplift humanity."(67) Through the resurrection, the out-flowing of Christ-energies from the etheric earth, and ascension of Christ-consciousness in humanity, the cosmic Christ became saviour since he entered into the process of evolution.
Alice Bailey, differently from Steiner, argued that the 'second coming' referred to the Christ coming in a single Avatar, not in all humanity. Christ will come again in a way that will create no religious, social or ideological divisions. He is 'the World Teacher and not a Christian teacher.'(68)
Guy and Edna Ballard were Theosophists who opted to believe in the 'Ascended Masters,' a reference to those masters who have supposedly reached the highest level of spiritual consciousness, and have become guides of the spiritual evolution of humankind. Jesus is one of these 'Ascended Masters.'(69)
In 1958 Mark Prophet (1918-1973) founded the Church Universal and Triumphant, now headed by his widow, Elizabeth Clare Prophet. Their beliefs include revelations from the 'Ascended Masters,' who guide the spiritual evolution of humanity. They reject the doctrine of Redemption through the death of Jesus. Rather Jesus attained Christhood as did other 'Ascended Masters.(70)
Esoteric and New Age writer Lola Davis affirms that the New Age Christ resides on a different plane of consciousness. 'Christ' is the name given to the leader of the Spiritual Hierarchy of Masters.(71)
New Age's authors M.S. Princess and Helen Schucman (1909-1981) supported the theory of the inherence of Christ in humans and the importance of the rediscovery of one's Christhood.(72)
The interpretation of Christ proposed by New Age adherents Peter Liefhebber and Hilton Hotema goes much further. In the discourse on Christ, they introduced the mystic-legendary figures of Appolonius and Maitreya, which have embodied the Christ principle, and will personify Christ in his second coming.(73)
Famous New Age writer Benjamin Cr╴e expands the theories about Maitreya in a most unique fashion. Maitreya, originally a Buddha figure, is believed to be the one expected by all religions. Christians expect him as Christ in his imminent return; Jews await him as the Messiah; Hindus look for the coming of Krishna; Buddhists expect him as Maitreya Buddha; and Muslims anticipate the Imam Mahdi or Messiah. He is everything to everyone.(74)
In conclusion, in New Age Christology the distinction between Jesus (a mere human vessel) and the Christ (a divine, cosmic and impersonal entity) is fundamental. Jesus embodied the Christ-principle, fully realizing his Christ-nature.
45. Shirley MacLaine, Out on a Limb. Bantam Books, New York, 1984, pp. 233-234.
46. Max Muller, The Alleged Sojourn of Christ in India, The Nineteenth Century, No. 36, October, 1894, pp. 515 ff. Among other arguments, Muller asserted that an old document, like the one allegedly found, would have been included in the Kandjur and Tandjur catalogues in which all Tibetan literature is listed. Muller also cites a visitor to the monastery of Himis in 1894, who inquired about Notovitch, and said that no Russian had ever visited there, and the whole story was nothing but a fabrication.
47. J. Archibald Douglas, The Chief Lama of Himis on the Alleged Unknown Life of Christ, The Nineteenth Century, No. 39, April 1896, pp. 667-678.
48. Edgar J. Goodspeed, Strange New Gospels. The University Of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1931; Modern Apocrypha. Beacon Press, Boston, 1956.
49. Per Beskow, Strange Tales About Jesus: A Survey of Unfamiliar Gospels. Fortress, Philadelphia, 1983.
50. Joseph Gaer, The Lore of the New Testament. Little Brown and Co., Boston, 1952.
51. Philip J. Swihart, Reincarnation, Edgar Cayce, and the Bible. InterVarsity Press, Downers Groves, IL, 1978.
52. Anne Read, Edgar Cayce: On Jesus and His Church. Warner Books, New York, 1970.
53. Tal Brooke, When the World Will Be as One. Harvest House Publishers, Eugene, OR, 1989.
54. Elizabeth Clare Prophet, The Lost Years of Jesus. Summit University Press, Livingston, MT, 1984; Mark L. Prophet and Elizabeth Clare Prophet, The Lost Teachings of Jesus. Summit University Press, Livingston, MT, 1988.
55. Nicholas Roerich, Himalaya. Brentano's, New York, 1926.
56. Holger Kersten, Jesus Lived in India. Element Book, Longmead, England, 1986.
57. David Spangler, The Laws of Manifestation. Findhorn Publications, Forres, Scotland, 1983; Reflections on the Christ. Findhorn Publications, Forres, Scotland, 1981.
58. Janet Block, The Jesus Mystery: Of Lost Years and Unknown Travels. Aura Books, Los Angeles, 1980.
59. Levi Dowling, The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ. L. N. Fowler & Co., London 1947, (first edition in 1911).
60. For the summary of the various authors of New Age Christology, I am indebted to Ron Rhodes The Christ of the New Age Movement. See also Alessandro Olivieri Pennesi, Il Cristo del New Age. Indagine Critica. Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Vatican City, 1999. On the New Age Christ, besides the texts mentioned above, see Elizabeth Sand Turner, What Unity Teaches. Unity School of Christianity, Lee's Summit, MO, n.d.; Ernest Holmes, What Religious Science Teaches. Science of Mind Publications, Los Angeles, 1975.
61. Phineas P. Quimby, The Quimby Manuscripts, (ed. by Horatio W. Dresser), University Books, New Hyde Park, NY, 1961.
62. Rosicrucianism is a mystical cult that supposedly originated in the 'Mystery Schools' of Egypt.
63. Helena P. Blavatsky, The Secret Doctrine. Theosophical Publishing House, Wheaton, IL, 1966.
64. Annie Besant, Esoteric Christianity. Theosophical Publishing House, Wheaton, IL, 1953.
65. Rudolf Steiner, The Reappearance of the Christ in the Etheric. Anthroposophic Press, Spring Valley, NY, 1983; Jesus and Christ. Anthroposophic Press, Spring Valley, NY, 1976; The Four Sacrifices of Christ. Anthroposophic Press, Spring Valley, NY, 1944.
66. Spangler, Reflections on the Christ, p. 107.
67. David Spangler, Conversations with John. Lorian Press, Middleton, WI, 1983, p. 5. See also David Spangler, Revelation: The Birth of a New Age. Lorian Press, Middleton, WI, 1976.
68. Alice Bailey, The Reappearance of the Christ. Lucis Publishing Co., New York, 1979; The Externalization of the Hierarchy. Lucis Publishing Co., New York, 1957.
69. G. W. and Donald Ballard, Purpose of the Ascended Masters' "I AM" Activity. Saint Germain Press, Chicago, 1942.
70. Mark and Elizabeth Prophet, Climb the Highest Mountain. Summit University Press, Los Angeles, 1974.
71. Lola Davis's book entitled Toward a World Religion for a New Age is often mentioned in New Age Web pages, but I have not found any reference about the place or year of publication.
72. M.S. Princess, Step By Step We Climb. Quoted in The Christ of The New Age, in Let Us Reason, a Christian apologetic web page, www.letusreason.org/NAM17.htm; Helen Schucman, A Course in Miracles. Foundation for Inner Peace, Temecula, CA, 1976.
73. Peter Liefhebber, Jesus of Nazareth and Maitreya the Christ. Lucis Publishing Co, n.d.; Hilton Hotema, Mystery Man, Snowbowl, Missoula, MT, n.d.
74. Benjamin Creme, The Reappearance of the Christ and the Masters of Wisdom. Tara Center, North Hollywood, CA, 1980.
A Christian response to New Age
1. The New Age Jesus
Several Christian authors have already provided a detailed rebuttal of the New Age interpretation of Jesus Christ, from the story of "Jesus Goes East," to the sophisticated esoteric elaboration of Steiner, or to the absurd fantasies of Creme.(75) Here I will not critique all those theories: not only would it take up too much space, but it also seems quite unnecessary. What I consider illogical is the general "theological" approach to Christ, the disregard of the New Testament, and the unmotivated rejection of Christian tradition. One is also puzzled by the lack of concern for history, objectivity, rationality, science, the critical method and verifiability. In the esoteric interpretation of Christ nothing is stated by reasoning; therefore, it is impossible to apply basic concepts as right or wrong, because evidence presupposes rationality and objectivity. It is impossible to accept an esoteric system of interpreting the Bible, which seeks hidden, inner meanings in Bible verses, that ignores historicity and rejects standard hermeneutics. The Jesus of historical records is abandoned in favour of the Jesus of the Gnostic Gospels, or even of the esoteric Akashic Records and other quixotic, mystic documents. But the Gospels are still the only documents on Jesus able to stand up to critical and scientific analysis. The very same appropriation by New Age authors and their precursors, of the term Christ, while ignoring its original and specific biblical meaning, cannot be justified.
We have seen how New Age, though it has developed outside the mainstream of Christian theology, has often employed Christian terminology and concepts in a confused and confusing fashion. The overlapping of terminology and concepts between New Age and Christian theology occurs over and over again in the field of theological environmentalism, feminism, religious pluralism and inter-religious dialogue. Christian theologians should continue to employ concepts such as Mother Earth, the feminine in God, the spiritual treasures of religions, the Cosmic Christ etc., without being classified as New Age adherents. But they should be aware that there is contamination of the terminologies of the two camps, and consequently it might not be too difficult to pass from Christian to New Age interpretation.
2. The Jesus Avatar
In the history of mission in China, learned friends used to ask the missionaries questions which seem to anticipate the difficulties about the acceptance of the singularity of Jesus Christ. In Late Ming China, a friend of Jesuit Giulio Aleni (1582-1649), Zhou Xiaolian, made the following proposal: to unite the religion of the Lord of Heaven with the teaching of Buddha and Laozi.(76)
Another of Aleni's learned friends, Ye Xianggao, affirmed that Jesus might well be "only a great saint born in the world, the same as Kong of Confucianism, Lao of Taoism, and Sakyamuni of Buddhism, etc... and he might not be the true Lord of Heaven."(77) On another occasion, the same Ye Xianggao wrote: "The King of the upper region did incarnate several times here in the East in the person of Yao, Xun, Confucius, and many others... Therefore, he might just as well have incarnated in Europe, as the Fathers of the Society say he did in the person of Jesus. From this it is quite clearly that to the Chinese, Christ in Europe is no more than Confucius, or any other wise man in China."(78)
The syncretistic interpretating proposed by Zhou Xiaolin and Ye Xianggao of Jesus as one of the many possible avatars, anticipates the contemporary debate on religious pluralism and the uniqueness of Jesus Christ.
3. Religious pluralism in accordance with the New Age
The theology of Matthew Fox(79) has a marked mystical orientation, which leads him to overlook the historical Jesus and refocus attention on a quest for the cosmic Christ, "the pattern that connects."(80) Fox calls for a "deep ecumenism," by which he means a genuine coming together of all persons of all religions at a mystical level, following the Cosmic Christ, the forerunner. While Fox affirms that he does not belong to New Age, which he considers something for rich people, his description of the Cosmic Christ overlaps with New Age's Cosmic Christ.
Catholic priest Diarmuid author of Quantum Theology, invites his readers to do theology in the following fashion: "Bring all the reserves you can of imagination, intuition, creativity, and your capacity to marvel. And please bring along your wild (wo)man, your deep feminine part, your hurt child, your wounded parent, and, above all, your flamboyant artist."(81)
theology startlingly overlaps the New Age religious programme. In book God and the divine (terms used indifferently and sparingly because these are just human constructs) are described as creative energy. Each religion is a particular crystallization of divine revelation. Revelation is an ongoing process that cannot be subsumed under any religion. The doctrine of the Trinity is a human attempt to describe God's fundamental relational nature. Sin is a destructive collusion between people and systems. The greatest sin is the assumption that humans are the ultimate form of life under God and entitled to lord it over the rest of creation. We live in a world without beginning and end. Our dead ones are all around us, living within a different plane of existence. Resurrection and reincarnation are not facts, but mental/spiritual constructs.(82) description of the Cosmic Christ could wholeheartedly be endorsed by New Age's propagators. "Christian theologians tend to argue that the Cosmic Christ makes no sense apart from the particular, historical Jesus.... This is where quantum theology differs radically. It considers the Cosmic Christ ... to be the originating mystery from which we devise all our divine personages and images. All the god-figures of the different religions, including Christianity, emanate from this cosmic originating source."(83)
A clear cut distinction between the historical Jesus and the Cosmic Christ has been proposed by Raimundo Panikkar. After holding an inclusive approach to religious pluralism, in line with Karl Rahner's theory of the "anonymous Christians,"(84) Panikkar has progressively affirmed the non-correspondence between Jesus and Christ. "Christ" becomes a super-name, which includes many names, including the one of Jesus. The Christian can rightly continue to affirm that Jesus is the Christ, but not that the Christ is Jesus, or that only Jesus is the Christ. Panikkar affirms that, with such an interpretation, he wants to go beyond the Western way of understanding the Christ.(85)
4. The Cosmic Christ
The depersonalisation of Jesus Christ through expressions such as "Christ Consciousness" or an impersonal Cosmic Christ is the most serious problem I encounter in New Age Christology. Rather then being the Son of God incarnate, "the only name under heaven given" (Act 4:12), as Christians profess, Jesus is one of the many possible Avatars, one of many other Christs.
As mentioned above, the theology of religious pluralism also adopts the category of Cosmic Christ. Exponents of the theology of religious pluralism affirm the need of replacing traditional Christ-centred theology with God-centred or Salvation-centred theology, proposing a clear-cut distinction between the Jesus of History and the Cosmic Christ. The first is the founder of Christianity and, insofar as he was a historic personage, is just one of the many religious prophets, while the second is the ultimate fulfilment of religions, of humanity and of the cosmos. Inter-religious dialogue requires, according to some, that all religions give up the claim of being the only true religion. In particular Christianity should give up the presumption that Jesus is the only incarnation of God.
But such an interpretation of religious pluralism might lead to contamination, assimilation, relativism, lack of differentiation and syncretism. In this way there is "no respect for a genuine pluralism of co-existence between different religions."(86)
Such an interpretation of the Cosmic Christ appears to me to be a dramatic departure from the Christology of the New Testament. The Cosmic Christ is a legitimate and necessary theological category. However, this category cannot be isolated from the whole of the mystery of Christ and given meanings which depart from the content of the New Testament and the Christian faith.
My understanding is that the universality of Christian revelation must be seen within a salvation-history perspective. The doctrine of creation reveals that the creative act is God's self-communication, i.e. revelation. Since the creative act constitutes history, the events of human history reflect such a revelation. All nations, therefore, somehow, have received from God. Moreover through his Incarnation, Jesus Christ has united himself to the world and to every person in the world (John Paul II, Redemptoris Hominis, n. 37); therefore, human history is indeed the place of God's revelation. The events of Incarnation, Passion and Resurrection express the irreducible historical and concrete character of Christianity. The meaning of these events is also universal. It transcends cultures and nations in order to embrace them all. As we exist only as persons in history, our experience of God is historical. The same universal revelation can only exist as told in a specific and singular historical event, which must necessarily have a meaning which is definitive and universal. This event is Jesus Christ, an event that cannot be overlooked or cancelled. God, the invisible One, is known only through what is visible, historical, and concrete. The "concreteness" of Christian revelation cannot be done away with.
Furthermore, the personal character of God as believed by Christians disappears in New Age thought. The Trinitarian nature of the Christian God fades with the cancellation of distinction and otherness. The affirmation that God exists only within humanity self is the denial of the possibility of communication and dialogue between God and humanity. The consequences for Christian faith are quite serious: New Age, somewhat quietly but effectively abolishes not only the concept of history and relationship with God, but also the doctrines of Creation, of Providence and of Redemption.(87)
75. James W. Sire, Scripture Twisting. InterVarsity Press, Downers Groves, IL, 1980; Newport, The New Age Movement; Van Vander Lugt, Kurt De Haan, What's the Appeal of the New Age Movement? RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI, 1990; Groothuis, Confronting the New Age; Goodspeed, Strange New Gospels; Romarheim, The Aquarian Christ; Beskow, Strange Tales About Jesus; Rhodes, The Counterfeit Christ.
76. Gianni Criveller, Dialogues on Jesus in China (13): Dialogue versus Syncretism, Tripod, No. 129, 2003, pp. 41-44.
77. Gianni Criveller, Dialogues on Jesus in China (11): Jesus, Buddha and Religious Pluralism, Tripod, No. 127, 2003, pp. 50-53.
78. Gianni Criveller, Dialogues on Jesus in China (10): Is Jesus a Sage like Confucius and Mencius and Other Chinese Sages? Tripod, No. 126, 2003, pp. 57-60.
79. Matthew Fox, The Coming of the Cosmic Christ. Harper & Row, San Francisco, 1988.
80. Ibid. pp.133-135.
81.Diarmuid O' Murch? Quantum Theology, Spiritual Implication of the New Physics. Crossroad, New York, 1998, p. 5.
82. Ibid. pp. 197-203.
83. Ibid. p. 178.
84. Raimon Panikkar, The Hidden Christ of Hinduism. (revised edition), Orbis Books, Maryknoll, NY, 1981.
85. Prologue of a later edition of his The Hidden Christ of Hinduism; I refer to the Italian edition, Il Cristo sconosciuto dell'Induismo. Vita e Pensiero, Milano 1976, pp. 19-32. In the prologue Panikkar affirms that he mercilessly criticizes the original version of his book.
86. Fuss, The New Age, p. 5.
87. See: Carlo Maccari, La 'mistica cosmica' del New Age, Religioni e Sette nel mondo, No. 6, pp. 16-36. The following Christian authours propose a dialogue with New Age: George A. Maloney, S. J., Mysticism and the New Age. Christic Consciousness in the New Creation. Alba House, New York, 1991; Paul Poupard, Editoriale, Religioni e Sette nel mondo, No. 5, pp. 7-13; Paul Poupard, Editoriale, Religioni e Sette nel mondo, No. 6, pp. 7-14; Carlo Maccari, La New Age di fronte alla fede cristiana. Elle Di Ci, Leumann (Torino), 1994; Godfried Danneels, Le Christ ou le Verseau. Malines-Bruxelles, 1990; Ronald Quillo, Companions in Consciouness: the Bible and the New Age Movement. Liguori Publications, Liguori, MO, 1994; Catholic Answers to Questions About the New Age Movement. Liguori Publications, Liguori, MO, 1995; Richard Bergeron, Il New Age nel Quebec, Religioni e Sette nel mondo, No. 6, pp. 71-93.
New Age missionary challenges
New Age has profound ramifications in the mentality and behaviour of many contemporaries all around the world, including people born in traditional Christian communities, although some of them might actually not consciously adhere to New Age as such.
New Age has touched you. You've heard its ideas, listened to its music, viewed its artwork, watched its superstars, read its literature and bought its products. You may even have participated in its therapies, shared in its rituals and embraced its philosophies, all without knowing them as New Age.(88)
Furthermore, the phenomenon of globalisation favours a universal impact of New Age, which constitutes a great challenge particularly in Asia, which is spontaneously inclined to religious pluralism. In Asia in fact, people can readily accept a number of New Age ideas because they are partially consistent with and comparable to elements found in ancient religious doctrines, such as Hinduism, Taoism and Buddhism.
If people are espousing New Age ideas and shopping around for various religious option, because they are starving for something to fill their spiritual needs, one might admit that, humanly speaking, New Age provides some more suitable answer to the postmodern condition. In times of muddled thinking, when different beliefs are a matter of preference and not of truth, the proclamation of Jesus appears to many to make no sense. They see it as an outdated, arrogant and finally ignorant attitude, since the truth is inside oneself and needs only to be unveiled. Evangelizing in such a context is indeed a difficult challenge, and this may be one of the reasons that many, even missionaries, have given up the direct preaching of Christ.
In the last 30 years or so, particularly in the Catholic Church, inculturation and inter-religious dialogue have been considered the major challenges of doing mission in Asia. I would add that the person of Jesus, the Christological question, is an even greater challenge in our time.
New Age challenges Christians, but they should not be discouraged by the apparent success of this movement. Early Christianity found itself in a somewhat analogous situation in the early centuries. Gnosticism, enigmatic religions, various occult cults, rituals and teachings, a number of heresies that reduced either the humanity of Jesus Christ to a farce or the divinity of Christ to an excess of consciousness, dramatically challenged Christian faith. As mentioned above, in Late Ming China, Jesuit missionaries faced similar questions.
Just as at the beginning of the Christian era, faith in Jesus Christ, as the unique event of God become human, was a scandal and foolishness, so it is in the postmodern era. Jesus' question: 'Who do you say that I am?' continues to be a fundamental challenge to human beings, even at the beginning of the third millennium.
The early Church responded by formulating daring Christological definitions and with the genuine witness of faith, as illustrated by large numbers of generous missionaries and courageous martyrs. Christ's disciples are called today to bear the same witness as were the early Christians, "to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world.?Following Jesus may not result in daily exiting experiences, in alteration of consciousness. For the Christian, the mind, rather than altered, is transformed by God's grace. Christian faith is not simply a religious answer to the aspirations of the human mind. It is not (only and primarily) an answer to human needs. Human issues are not prior and above the gratuitous grace of God, who loved us and came to us on his own initiative and in a way contrary to human expectations.
Many people are open to New Age teaching because they are on a quest for meaning, fulfilment, spiritual experiences, stillness, and inner peace. There is a need to respond positively to this search, to rediscover the rich and often unknown tradition of Christian prayer, meditation, spiritual guidance and mysticism. The question of God and the experience of God should become central in the mission of the Church. Many postmodern people perceive the vastness of time and space as cold and impersonal, as if we are alone in the world and living an absurd existence. The New Age quest of spirit highlights the need for reassurance that death is not the complete extinction of life. Christians and missionaries are challenged to propose the oftenobsolete teaching of Christian hope in eternal life.
New Age has an accentuated individualistic character. To a certain extent, it is the religion of the successful, the glamorous and the rich. Its practice can cost a significant amount of money. Christians should rediscover the positive lesson of the Theology of Liberation, and adhere to the gospel of the Beatitudes and bring about a non-bourgeois approach to religion, especially in the so-called economically advanced countries. The church exists for the same mission of Jesus: the mission of evangelization of the poor.
New Age, which has won the sympathy of a lot of women, has a strong feminist outlook. Such a perspective contrasts with the Church's image of an all-male dominated society, which she projects especially in her hierarchy. In fact many sectors of the Church are still afflicted with a patriarchal mentality. The problem of the role of women in the Church cannot be reduced to a no to their ordination to the priesthood. The participation of women in the life and in the leadership of the church is too important and far from being resolved. Moreover, the preaching and the catechesis of the Church have to go beyond the traditional patriarchal and masculine image of God. The New Age feminist outlook genuinely and positively challenges the Church to move beyond the present masculine outlook and become, in all its aspects, a more gender inclusive community.
A personal, sincere witness, as Paul VI noted, is highly valued by contemporary postmodern people. Experience seems to have become the only "authoritative"authority in today's religious world. Christ's disciples and missionaries should propose a discourse on Christian faith which is rational, but which goes beyond rationality. They are called to experience fulfilment, purpose and joy through a personal relationship with Jesus. The communication and sharing of such a life inserted into the mystery of Christ would prove, by experience, that Jesus is neither substitutable nor replaceable.
88. Russell Chandler, Understanding the New Age. Word Publishing, Milton Keynes, (England), 1989, p. 19.
Addendum
1. New Age Books
New Age has its authors. The document of the Holy See (2003) mentions 13 books: William Bloom, The New Age. An Anthology of Essential Writings, London, Rider, 1991; two books by Fritjof Capra, who advocates a New Age science: The Tao of Physics: An Exploration of the Parallels between Modern Physics and Eastern Mysticism, Berkeley, Shambhala, 1975; and The Turning Point: Science, Society and the Rising Culture, Toronto (Bantam) 1983. The following authors developed the religious dimension of New Age: Benjamin Cremee, The Reappearance of Christ and the Masters of Wisdom, London, Tara Press, 1979; the very influential book by Marilyn Ferguson, The Aquarian Conspiracy. Personal and Social Transformation in Our Time, Los Angeles (Tarcher) 1980; Chris Griscom, Ecstasy is a New Frequency: Teachings of the Light Institute, New York, Simon & Schuster, 1987; Thomas Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 1970; five books by David Spangler: The New Age Vision, Forres, Findhorn Publications, 1980; Revelation: The Birth of a New Age, San Francisco, Rainbow Bridge, 1976; Towards a Planetary Vision, Forres, Findhorn Publications, 1977; The New Age, Issaquah, The Morningtown Press, 1988; The Rebirth of the Sacred, London, Gateway Books, 1988.
To the above list I would like to add the following: Baba Ram Dass (born Richard Alpert, a Harvard University Professor of Psychology) who has written various popular books, which in the 1970s effectively launched the New Age, as we know it now, the United States: Be Here Now, Hanuman Foundation Santa Fe, NM (1971); The Only Dance There Is, Bantam Books, Doubleday Dell, New York, NY (1973); Grist for the Mill, Unity Press, Santa Cruz, CA (1977); Journey of the Awakening, Bantam Books, New York, NY (1978); Miracle of Love, Hanuman Foundation, Santa Fe, NM (1979). Helen Schucman wrote the New Age textbook: A Course in Miracles, Foundation for Inner Peace, CA (1976). Shirley MacLaine, with her books Out of a Limb (1984, also a movie) and Dancing in the Light (1986), is one of the most visible propagators of New Age beliefs. Other New Age writers are George Leonard, Jean Houston, Barbara Marx Hubbard, Norman Shealy, Sam Keen and Timothy Leary.
Famous writers of the first half of the 20th century had anticipated themes and sensibilities dear to New Age literature: Hermann Hesse's renowned Siddhartha (1919), Narcissus and Goldmund (1930), and Journey to the East (1932). Richard Bach, who is a student of Silva Mind Control,(89) with his hugely successful Jonathan Livingstone Seagull (1970), has interpreted the myth of mental evolution. I would consider hugely successful Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho a New Age author of some sort, who has been instrumental in giving a literary and moral dignity to some main New Age ideas.(90) Among his books are: The Pilgrimage (1987), The Alchemist (1988), The Valkyries (1992), By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept (1994), Veronika Decides to Die (1998), Eleven Minutes (2003).
The Salem New Age Center (salemctr.com) gives a list of the top selling New Age books. A simple reading of the titles of the books gives a good idea of New Age's focus and interests. Interestingly, most of the authors are women. The titles are: Conversations With God; Cure For All Diseases; Love Is In The Earth; Cure For All Cancers; Seven Spiritual Laws of Success; The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever Need; Animal Energies; Awakening To Zero Point; Heal Your Body; Way Of The Wizard; Infinite Mind; Hands of Light; Sacred Space; Witches Almanac; Kryon Alchemy of The Human Spirit; You Can Heal Your Life; You Are Becoming A Galactic Human; Feng Shui: A Layman's Guide; Reiki: The Healing Touch; Complete Book of Oils and Aromatherapy; Psychic Healing With Spirit Guides and Angels; Celestine Prophecy: An Experiential Guide; Into A Timeless Realm; Relax: God Is In Charge; Wicca: A Guide For The Solitary Practitioner; All Women Are Healers; Way of the Peaceful Warrior; Many Lives, Many Masters; Open Your Mind to Prosperity; Embraced By The Light; Creative Visualization; The Complete Ascension Manual.
The same website also gives lists of top selling inspirational, health and healing, UFO, Wicca and New Paganism books.
2. New Age Music
New Age music was born some twenty years ago. It has quickly become immensely popular. It is one of the major tools of New Age propagation in contemporary society. There is no major music shop without a section devoted to New Age music.
New Age music derives elements from electronic music, "new acoustic" instrumental music, therapeutic music, selected sacred styles, Celtic music, and various other hybrids. New Age music is generally tranquil, dreamy, soft, evocative and somewhat spiritual and mysterious, intended for ambience and mood control. It is mainly bought by 'yuppies', young, successful single people.
There are a number of recognized artists who have also produced New Age-like music, among them: Brian Eno, Enigma, Paul Winter, Peter Gabriel and Secret Garden. Celtic New Age music has been particularly successful. It was born as a distinct genre with the 1988 solo debut of Irish singer Enya. Celtic New Age music is recognizable by its ethereal and haunting sounds from traditional Irish instruments. Clannad and Loreena McKennitt are also well-known artists of this genre.
In his performances David Arkenstone provides music of galactic voyages, while Yanni projects a sort of mystical sex appeal. Flutist R. Carlos Nakai creates relaxing music rooted in Native American culture, while George Winston works on compositions that are deeply poetic. Other New Age musicians are Philip Aaberg and Adiemus.
3. New Age movies and TV series
New Age concepts and practices are popular with famous pop and movie stars. Top stars often mention how good and negative energies affect their lives and careers. To neutralize the negativity and relieve the stress of being a mega-fame star, they secure guru guidance, practise meditation, delve in astrology, carry crystals and other energy and good fortune objects.
New Age has expanded especially in California, where many of its centres, leaders, sympathizers and supporters are located. As a consequence it has influenced not only the electronic-media industry, but also the world of entertainment. The movie industry, especially in Hollywood, has been producing an enormous quantity of movies based on themes connected with New Age beliefs although this is not always explicitly acknowledged. Movies that touch on the theme of reality and time in New Age fashion are, among others, Matrix, Waking Life, Sliding Doors, Back To The Future, Somewhere In Time, Frequency, and Groundhog Day. Favourite movies that feature experiences of visions are: The Never-ending Story, Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Splash, Mr. Peabody, The Muse, and The Mermaid. The subject of life after death such as in Sixth Sense, Ghost, Field of Dream, Meet Joe Black, and After Life is always popular. Also numerous are movies about extraterrestrial encounters and experiences: Independence Day, E.T., Close Encounters of The Third Kind, Contact, and Cocoon. The following movies play up enhanced abilities and sensibilities: Phenomenon, Stir of Echoes, Resurrection, Powder, The Shadow, Altered States and Brainstorm. Angels are the protagonists of City of Angels, Wings of Desire and Michael. Devil-related movies are produced in an increasing number.
Shirley MacLaine, probably the most famous current figure in the New Age movement, plays herself in Out of a Limb, the TV mini-series (1986) that describes her journey into New Age.
In 1994 Michael Tolkin directed a movie entitled The New Age, which describes the American New Age world somewhat critically and ironically.
New Age ideas and beliefs are ever more prominent in many TV programs, where the boundary between reality, fantasy, the fantastic, the magic and the paranormal is blurred. Among the most popular of these programs are Twin Peaks, Ally McBeal and The X Files.
In most television entertainment programmes in 'catholic' Italy, there is an astrologer who, with the seriousness of a scientist, reads horoscopes and tells fortunes. This is nothing new, certainly, but in the past astrology and magic were considered a somewhat decadent and reprehensible phenomenon, limited to a backward minority. Now it has been elevated to an all-time high dignity and popularity, involving the rich, the famous and the glamorous.
89. Silva Mind Control was founded in 1944 by a Mexican Catholic, who claimed to have received new revelations from Jesus. The method aimed at increasing consciousness to obtain psychological orientation in accordance with New Age thought. See Fuss, The New Age, pp. 11-12.
90. Ferdinando Castelli, L'Alchimista di Paulo Coelho cammina sui sentieri del New Age. La Civilta Cattolica, No. 1, 1997, pp. 227-238.