Last summer, I started a casual research into the occult presence in our society. At first, I found a lot of material that was groundless, even laughable. But I soon discovered documentaries that presented a more thorough and sober study on the subject- and the New Age Movement kept popping up. I was more than astonished. I was horrified! What I learned was not something that an aware and understanding person could rightly dismiss. It was a wake-up call like nothing I had experienced in my life. I threw away all of my New Age and related books, and I repented of my actions. I got serious about my faith and became a fundamentalist Christian.
What is the true nature and agenda of the New Age Movement?
The familiar rhetoric of New Age is self-esteem, brotherhood and world peace. But just underneath the facade is a plan for the development of a New World Order that would abolish the social, economic and religious structures of our time. To implement this new way of life, deception will be at the root. I will make an effort to briefly present documented fact about what the New Age Movement is: what they believe, their origin, their true nature and how it is connected to a New World Order agenda, and lastly how all of this relates to Christianity and world religions. I will cite scripture from the Holy Bible to demonstrate prophetic relevance to my findings. The spiritual element of this study is valid and undeniable; one should not dismiss it so readily. The Movement has been fostered by men and women who participate in sorcery and spirit worship, which is the antithesis of what Christianity is. So to withdraw from the biblical viewpoint is to rely on a blissful conceitedness. This attitude begets a near-sighted lethargy that enables the brazen. To illustrate this last statement, here is a brazen quote from David Rockefeller who shares a suspiciously similar view with the New Age Movement, in his book, Memoirs (405):
“Some even believe we [the Rockefeller family] are part of a secret cabal working against the best interests of the United States, characterizing my family and me as ‘internationalists’ and of conspiring with others around the world to build a more integrated global, political and economic structure- one world, if you will. If that’s the charge, I stand guilty, and I’m proud of it.”
Mr. Rockefeller clearly announces himself with no fear of recrimination. This should serve notice to any initial scoffing of how large in scope the New World Order agenda truly is.
What is the New Age Movement?
The New Age Movement is more than just a self-help category at your bookstore. They are a worldwide network. Constance Cumbey is a lawyer and a Christian activist who wrote a book called, The Hidden Dangers of the Rainbow in an effort to expose the Movement. She has researched over a hundred books on the subject. She writes of the Movement, “According to New Age sources… it consists of tens of thousands of cooperating organizations. Their primary goal of the secret behind their ‘unity-in-diversity’ is the formation of a ‘New World Order.’ The Movement usually operates on the basis of a well-formulated body of underlying esoteric or occult teachings” (Cumbey 54). The esoteric refers to an exclusive knowledge that is shared only with people who are considered worthy of receiving it. The occult relates to different ways of making contact with the supernatural. Paul Heelas wrote a scholarly and objective book called, The New Age Movement: the celebration of the self and the sacralization of Modernity. He describes the Movement as expanding, “… with the counter-culture of the later 1960’s and earlier 1970’s – when the New Age was known as ‘the Age of Aquarius’… Much is on offer, people being provided the opportunity to meditate, use crystals, heed channels, commune with nature, practise [sic] spiritual healing… become involved in covens…(etc). One’s initial impression is of an eclectic hotch-potch of beliefs, practices and ways of life… an exceedingly wide range of practices – Zen meditations, Wiccan rituals, enlightenment intensive seminars… shamanic activities… forms of positive thinking – fall under the rubric” (Heelas 1). The New Age Movement is not really a New Religious Movement, but such do exist within the overall umbrella network. The network “… encompasses a number of groups and sub-movements, such as: the Holistic Movement, Humanistic Psychology, Transpersonal Psychology, Humanistic Movement, New Thought… the New Spirituality, the Human Potential Movement, Secular Humanism, etc. ” (Cumbey 55).
The defining belief system of the New Age Movement is in Self spirituality: “The ‘individual’ serves as his or her own source of guidance” (Heelas 23). Hence, their most pervasive teaching is that we are all “…Gods and Goddesses in Exile” (Heelas 19). The explanation for this is that we’re weighted down by the muck of our social traditions and hang-ups, and because of that we don’t know our highest inner potential. But one must go beyond the hindrances of ‘ego’ or ‘lower self’ to reach perfection and experience the ‘Self’ which is defined as ‘God’. In short, the highest authority is you. Everyone is right. No one is wrong. This is a very wishy-washy, but popular way of life, even today, that plainly absolves an individual of moral responsibility. It’s also interesting to note that Lucifer encouraged Eve to adopt the same position in the garden:
“...and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Satan -Genesis 3:5, King James Bible).
In becoming one’s own ultimate authority, New Agers prefer freedom from all traditions. This is sometimes contradicted by the fact that they do draw from different religions. They are Perennialists, and this suggests that they believe they are ever-lasting and ever-relevant. Heelas explains further, “…New Agers can ignore apparently significant differences between religious traditions, dismissing them… But they do have faith in that wisdom which is experienced as lying at the heart of the religious domain as a whole… what matters is the… ‘esoteric…’” (Heelas 27). Again, the esoteric conveys a secret type of knowledge and some of it is gleaned from different religious texts. There is a belief growing in popularity that all religions have hidden truths and that all roads lead to heaven. This is a dire contradiction to the infallible Word of God, which tells us that no man is saved by anything other than repentance of sins and an amiable surrender and belief in Jesus Christ.
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me” (John 14:6, New American Standard Bible).
Continued in part 2.
