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Answer
The term “New Age” emerged in the 1970s and 1980s, popularized through the New Age Journal and Mark Satin’s book, New Age Politics. Marilyn Ferguson’s widely read Aquarian Conspiracy presented the social and philosophical ideals of the New Age movement. Ferguson’s work became regarded as the unofficial doctrine of the movement. As Russell Chandler, a writer for the Los Angeles Times, noted in Understanding the New Age, “If Ferguson penned the New Age ‘Bible,’ Shirley MacLaine is its leading figure.”
In her book, Out on a Limb, Shirley MacLaine recounts her hesitant embrace of New Age beliefs. The book details her explorations and experiences, including encounters with otherworldly dimensions, out-of-body journeys, interactions with extraterrestrial entities, “trance channeling” (séances), and a guided exploration of the invisible realm. MacLaine’s subsequent book, Dancing in the Light, delves into her immersion in practices such as yoga, reincarnation, crystal energy, Hindu chants, and recollections of past lives facilitated by acupuncture. According to her spiritual guides, each person embodies divinity, and she imparts the belief that individuals possess boundless potential once they recognize it (Chandler, page 6-2).
The foundation of New Age philosophy lies in Eastern mysticism, which seeks to transcend the intellect. A new form of perception—the third eye—provides spiritual enlightenment. Attaining the “psychic self” involves training oneself to disregard mental messages or acknowledging that the mind can attain “cosmic consciousness.” The mind has the power to manifest reality.
Neil Anderson, in his book Walking Through the Darkness, states, “The New Age movement is not viewed as a religion but as a fresh approach to comprehending reality. It appeals to individuals disenchanted with organized religion and Western rationalism, who seek a spiritual path.”Al reality but doesn’t want to give up materialism, deal with his moral problems, or come under authority” (page 22). Anderson goes on to summarize New Age thinking (pages 22–24) as follows:
(1) It is monism. The belief that all is one and one is all. History is not the story of humanity’s fall into sin and its restoration by God’s saving grace. Rather, it is humanity’s fall into ignorance and the gradual ascent into enlightenment.
(2) All is God. If all is one, including God, then one must conclude that all is God. It is pantheism—trees, snails, books, and people are all of one divine essence. A personal God who has revealed Himself in the Bible and in Jesus Christ is completely rejected. Since God is impersonal, the New Ager doesn’t have to serve Him. God is an “it,” not a “He.”
(3) There is a change in consciousness. If we are God, we need to know we are God. We must become cosmically conscious, enlightened, or attuned to the cosmic consciousness. Some who reach this enlightened status will claim to be “born again”—a counterfeit of biblical conversion. The essential is not whether we believe or meditate, but whom we believe in and what we meditate upon. Christ is the true, personal, objective reality, as He said that He is the way, the truth and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him «Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. », (John 14:6).
(4) A cosmic evolutionary optimism is taught. There is a New Age coming. There will be a new world order, a new world government. New Age thinkers believe that there will eventually be a progressive unification of world consciousness. This, according to the Bible, is a counterfeit kingdom led by Satan himself. Christ has the true kingdom, and He will one day rule on earth with peace for all who accept Him as Savior and King «And every creature which is in h
Heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, “Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.” (Revelation 5:13).
(5) New Agers create their own reality. They believe they can create reality by what they believe, and by changing what they believe, they can change reality. All moral boundaries have been erased. There are no absolutes because there is no distinction between good and evil. Nothing has reality until one says that it is reality or says that it is truth. If finite man can create truth, we are in desperate trouble in our society. Unless there are eternal absolutes from the eternal God, man will eventually be his own destruction.
(6) New Agers make contact with the kingdom of darkness. Calling a medium a “channeler” and a demon a “spirit guide” has not changed the reality of what they are. This is the kingdom of darkness of which Satan is the head. Those involved in this kind of activity are in contact with a world that is totally opposed to the biblical God revealed to us in Jesus Christ, who defeated Satan (Matthew 4:1-11;Colossians 2:15;Hebrews 2:14-18).
The New Age movement is a counterfeit philosophy that appeals to the feelings of individuals, leading them to think that they are God and can enhance their lives through their own person. The reality is that we are born, grow up, live a while on planet Earth, and die. Humans are finite. We can never be God. We need someone greater than we who can provide us forgiveness and life eternal. Praise the Lord for the God-man, Jesus Christ. Through His death and bodily resurrection, He has won for us what we desperately need: forgiveness from God, a life of purpose and meaning in this life.
Life, and everlasting life beyond the grave. Do not overlook the identity of Jesus Christ and His actions for you. Study John chapter 3. Invite Christ to be your Redeemer. Your life will be changed, and you will understand your identity, purpose, and destination.
