The New Age movement. We all have heard the term somewhere or other. And we all have a vague sense that we as Christians ought to steer clear of anything having to do with it. But do we really know what it is that we are to be wary of, and why? The “New Age movement” is a term that encompasses a great many diverse elements called by many different names. Rarely are the words “New Age” overtly attached to these different elements. In this series of articles I shall try to give an overview of the New Age movement, its basic principles, some of its more prominent elements, ways it is pervading all aspects of our culture and society, and some of the scriptures that show us why we should steer clear of it. The following section has been extracted from the book by Douglas R. Groothuis, Unmasking the New Age (copyright 1986 by InterVarsity Christian Fellowship of the USA; used by permission of InterVarsity Press, P.O. Box 1400, Downers Grove, IL 60515).
Six Distinctives of New Age Thinking
1. All Is One
The idea that “all is one” is foundational for the New Age; it permeates the movement in all its various manifestations…. Another name for this idea is monism…. Ultimately there is no difference between God, a person, a carrot, or a rock…. Monism… is radically at odds with a Christian view of reality. A Christian world view affirms that God’s creation is not an undivided unity but rather a created diversity of objects, events, and persons. Genesis 1 records God creating particular things. God separated the light from the darkness,… the dry ground from the seas. He then created plants and animals according to their various kinds. Finally, He created humans in His image. Creation is thus not a homogeneous soup of undifferentiated unity but a created plurality…. Even God Himself, according to the Bible, is not an undifferentiated unity but a tri-unity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—the Trinity.
2. All Is God
Once we admit that all is one, including god, then it is a short step to admitting that “all is god.” This is pantheism. All things—plants, snails, books, and so on— are said to partake of the one divine essence…. The idea of a personal God is abandoned in favor of an impersonal energy, force, or consciousness…. Yet the Bible affirms that all is not god. God the Creator stands transcendently distinct from His creation. While God is present in His creation,… He is not to be confused with the creation (see Eccl. 5:2; Rom. 1:25)….
3. Humanity Is God
This is one of the seductive claims of the New Age;… we are, in fact, gods.. .. Only ignorance keeps us from realizing our divine reality. Swami Muktananda … says: “Kneel to your own self. Honor and worship your own being. God dwells within you as You!” … Christianity affirms that though human beings are made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26), they are not in essence God. We reflect our Creator in that we, like Him, are personal—we think, feel, and act. But we are not infinite, all-powerful, all-knowing, or everywhere present. We are finite and personal, whereas God is infinite and personal. We are creatures; He is the Creator. Divinity must not be confused with humanity. The Bible repeatedly condemns human pretenders to the divine throne (Isa. 14:13-15; Ezek. 28:1,10; Acts 12:21-23).
4. A Change in Consciousness
All is one; all is god; we are god. Simple enough? Then why don’t we know ourselves as gods? What is our problem? The answer is simple: ignorance…. We need to be enlightened. We have forgotten our true identity. But there is hope. This metaphysical amnesia can be reversed by techniques designed to alter ordinary consciousness…. This change in consciousness, whatever the means, leads to an awareness of oneness and spiritual power. There are many ways we can achieve this enlightenment. … Mass training sessions such as est (Erhard Seminars Training; recently revised and renamed Forum) have been a popular method of triggering this change of awareness. … But est is only one of numerous means of experiencing a revolution in consciousness. Scores of people are chanting, dancing, or tripping their way into altered states of awareness. . . . Christianity also affirms that we need a change in consciousness, though it differs in seeing what this entails. Biblically, the dilemma of humanity is not ignorance of our true divinity, but the reality of our sin; we have rebelled against a holy God and His moral law. The problem, not the answer, is within. Jesus said that out of our hearts proceeds all evil (Mark 7:22,23)…. The apostle Paul says, “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). The New Age sees the answer to this dilemma in releasing human potential—the divine within. But Christianity claims that the only way out is through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ….
5. All Religions Are One
New Age gurus frequently claim that all religions are one…. Consequently, the distinctiveness of Christianity must be denied…. Jesus of Nazareth, then,… is merely one of many appearances or manifestations of God throughout the millenia…. But the Christ of the Bible is not merely one of the many manifestations of God. In fact, Christ is the only manifestation of God in the flesh. He claimed to be “the Way, the Truth, and the Life” and that no one could know God’s favor apart from Him (John 14:6; see also Acts 4:12)….
6. Cosmic Evolutionary Optimism
As the New Age movement . . . gains ground and infiltrates all of life with the gospel of cosmic unity, it is predicted that humanity will be ready to take over the reins of evolution. Teilhard de Chardin, Jesuit philosopher and paleontologist, prophesied a progressive evolutionary harmonization and unification of world consciousness eventually reaching “the Omega Point” where all consciousness is fused and all become one with the One. Teilhard … is just one of many sages, scientists, and others who predict massive transformation. The evolutionary juices are flowing.. .. Christians can be both more optimistic and more pessimistic about the future than is the New Age. The Bible views history as moving according to the sovereign will of the Creator and Governor of the universe “who works all things after the counsel of His own will” (Eph. 1:11). Hope for the future does not lie in realizing the potential of collective humanity but in the promises of God. God promises to bless nations that obey Him and curse nations that disobey Him (Deut. 8,28; Jer. 18:5-10). The culmination of history will not be a great planetary consciousness but the return of Jesus Christ to separate the sheep from the goats for all eternity. For some the future will be much better than we could ever imagine—for others, much worse.
Let us now get a sampling of ways that the New Age movement is making incursions into our culture and society. The next section is extracted from Dark Secrets of the New Age by Texe Marrs (copyright 1987 by Texe Marrs; used by permission of Crossway Books, a division of Good News Publishers, Westchester, IL 60153).
The New Age Movement in Today’s Society
We are experiencing outbreaks of spiritual hostilities in our schools, within the media and entertainment industries, and even within our churches. The business world is not immune from the New Age onslaught either. Incredible though it may seem, the New York Times reported on September 28,1986 that the previous July, “Representatives of some of the nation’s largest corporations, including IBM, AT&T, and General Motors, met in New Mexico to discuss how metaphysics, the occult, and Hindu mysticism might help executives compete in the world marketplace.” At Stanford University’s renowned Graduate School of Business, a seminar called “Creativity in Business” includes such topics as chanting, meditation, the use of tarot cards, and the “New Age Capitalist.” Meanwhile, a recent survey of five hundred corporate presidents and company owners revealed that half had sponsored some type of New Age “consciousness raising technique” for their employees….
The world has been sold a bill of goods regarding meditation. Some eight million people in America alone have gone through the initiation process required by the Transcendental Meditation group; another six million have graduated from Silva Mind Control System’s meditation program, and millions more regularly practice some form of yoga meditation. . . . The New Age believes that through meditation man can become a god ….
New Age . . . influences permeate all of society. It is imbedded in the curricula of our public schools, infesting kid’s library and comic books; it has reared its hideous head on Saturday morning TV cartoon shows and turned many popular cinema productions into celebrations of sorcery, violence, and sadism…. For example, in “He-Man, Master of the Universe,” He-Man is a supernatural man-god. Children are indoctrinated into such New Age occultic symbols and practices as pyramid and crystal power, serpents, the Satanic ram’s head, the skull, witches’ charms and spells. (Marrs also describes “Thundercats,” “The Smurfs,” “Rainbow Brite,” and “She-Ra, Princess of Power” as cartoons that incorporate New Age symbolism.)…
The New Age has transformed America’s largest toy companies into purveyors of demonic terror. . . . Read the instructions that come with Skeletor, a toy connected with He-Man: “When you put on your Skeletor helmet and armored belt you become transformed into an agent of evil. Use your power sword shield to combat good. With your mystical ram’s head scepter you will be able to call forth the denizens of darkness to help conquer the forces of good.”… Even a brief look at New Age literature reveals the importance given to the spiritual seduction of children. . . . New Age authors are seeking to persuade the young that the religion of their elders is of no value, and that instead they must worship the demon gods of the New Age….
Carl A. Raschke, professor of religious studies at the University of Denver, describes the New Age as “the most powerful social force in the country today.”
In the next issue, Lord willing, we shall consider ways in which the New Age movement is making inroads in public education and in health practices and therapies. Readers who have had personal encounters with the New Age movement are encouraged to share their experiences with the editor of this publication.