CHAPTER 10: Fundamentals of the New Age

• cultural expansiono New Age

• cultural contractiono fundamentalism & evangelicalism

• Softening the Boundaries--New Spirituality and the Emerging Church

New Age Movement since the 60s

• energy healingo chakras & crystals

• channelingo Helen Schucman – A Course In Miracles

• UFOs & otherworldly visitorso Shirley MacLaine – Out on a Limb

Religious Roots of the New Age

• Transcendentalists

• New Thought

• Theosophistso “I AM” Movement – Guy Ballardo Arcane School – Alice Bailey

• Asian & Native American teachers

Cultural Roots of the New Age

• quantum physics

• humanistic psychology

• parapsychology

• holistic healers

• astrologers

• ecological movement

New Age Beliefs

• expectation of a new age

• desire to find God/Self within

• correspondence

• power of Mind

• combination

New Age Rhetoric

• “energy”

• “healing”

• “harmony”

• “universe”

• “planet” o earth as a living being

Types of New Age Ritual Work

1) harmony with the material worldo Reiki

2) mental journey to nonmaterial worldso New Age shamanism

Conservative Protestantism in the 1940s

• Fundamentalistso American Council of Christian Churches

• Evangelicalso National Association of Evangelicalso Christianity Todayo Billy Graham

Search for Conservative Identity

• premillennial dispensationalismo raptureo Left Behind series

• literal belief in the Bible

• separatist tendency

Trends in Conservative Christianity

• regional religion

• megachurches

• dominion theology

• charismatic experience

Conservative Evangelism

• electronic churcho Christian radio

o televangelism

o internet ministries

• Christian booksellers

Christian Right

• Jerry Falwell’s Moral Majority

• Pat Robertson’s Christian Coalition

• Condemnation of secular humanism

• creationism

• countertrend: Sojourners

Conservative Religion

• centrality of Jesus

• “born again” rhetoric

• missions & revivals

• Bible study & prayer

• Personal holiness

New Spirituality and the Emerging Church

• Changing patterns in American religion

• Softening boundaries and moving away from poles

• Incorporating culture

New Spirituality

• New Age dissolving into new spirituality

• “Sheilaism”

• generation of seekers

• widespread beliefso self-helpo energy o holistic healing

Emerging Church• Evangelicals and postmodernism

o Salvation from postmodernismo Learning from postmodernismo Being both evangelical and postmodern

• Prophetic impulseo Restoring early church practiceso "Candles and incense"

• Being missional• Postevangelicalism and (liberal) politics

Similarities of Conservative Christians & New Agers

• millennial themes

• direct experience

• personal transformation

• ongoing revelation

• language of healing

OVERVIEW

ExpansionNew Age

new spirituality

channeling

energy & healing

self-help

ContractionFundamentalism

Evangelicalism

Christian Right

Bible & Jesus

millennial themes

•Combination and loosening boundaries•New Spirituality•Emerging Church