OCCULTISM, SPIRITISM & THE NEW AGE MOVEMENT

Alternative (New Age) Medical Therapies: Incompatible With Christianity.
Copyright © 1997-2002 Zenith Harris Merrill

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"The New Age is an old adage," as Bob Larson's New Book of Cults, informs us. "Like medieval metaphysicians and ancient Eastern mystics, the cult of the New Age hails man and his paramount powers as the center of the spiritual universe."

Just as Jesus foretold in Matthew 24:24-27: "For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect--if that were possible.

See, I have told you ahead of time. "So if anyone tells you, `There he is, out in the desert,' do not go out; or, `Here he is, in the inner rooms,' do not believe it.

For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man."

New Age cultist practitioners seek to find divinity within themselves - after they utilize any one of a multitude of methods of achieving an altered state of consciousness, they strive to be an integral, conscious element of the universe by convincing themselves the entire earth is a living entity of which they are a part... They parrot the oldest apostasy recorded of man, when Satan enticed Eve in the garden of Eden by promising - "You will be as God." In New Age theology, as in ancient Babylonian religion, in Hinduism and all other Eastern Mystical religions, God becomes the self, and the self becomes God, for in this belief, called "Monism" it is taught: "God is All, and All is God" - thus, in defiance of Jesus' warning, they receive the illusion that Man is God.

Today's Popular New Age does not recognize or believe in the personal intelligent Creator God of the Bible, and is comprised of ancient paganistic beliefs which formed the basis long ago, of all the "alternative medical" techniques, which are all based, to varying degrees, on the New Age and Eastern Mystical Religious belief in a "Subtle Life Energy Force," or "Universal Energy," known as Chi (Chinese), Ki (Japanese), or Prana (Hinduism).

The believed characteristics of "Universal Energy," or the "Subtle Life Energy Force," as defined by practitioners of "Holistic Medicine" are identified by Paul Reisser, M.D., in New Age Medicines:

• 1) Universal energy is the basic fabric of everything in the universe.
• 2) Disease results from a blockage or imbalance in the flow of energy in the body.
• 3) Universal energy can be activated or channeled by a healer; and may be used either constructively or destructively.
• 4) Alterations in universal energy are the basis for all events that have previously been called supernatural or miraculous.
• 5) "Universal energy" is what some nonChristian religions have called God.

To understand this concept of the "energies of the universe," or "subtle life energy force," which is said to "take form in the individual," according to both New Age Theology, and New Age Medical practitioners," they teach that "we must remember that we are all one with the universe, with the "Universal Energy." When this energy is highly concentrated, we call it matter. Our bodies are that matter. Therefore, our bodies are literally this Universal Energy in some of its various forms."

This is a clear example of idolatrous New Age philosophy within the form of alternative health care. New Age teaches that "the universe is all energy, we are all energy, thus, we are all one. This energy is the essence of God. Therefore, we are God."

In "The Hidden Agenda," by Christian Doctors David and Sharon Sneed, a New Age chiropractor, John Thie, is quoted from his book, Touch for Health, explaining the theoretical groundwork of New Age Medicine, "The innate intelligence that runs the body is connected to universal intelligence that runs the world, so each person is plugged into the universal intelligence through the system."

This claim of manipulated universal intellience, made popular by the apostate exJesuit priest, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, sometimes called the father of the "New Age Movement" is an obvious overlap into the religious beliefs of Eastern Religious Mysticism, including Hinduism, Biddhism, and Taoism, that "all is one, therefore all is God" commonly called "Monism."

The bible clearly teaches us that God, the Creator, is separate and apart from His creation, that He has individual sovereign will, and can not be manipulated to do the will of man, as though He were an impersonal "force," and one with all of nature.

Hank Hanegraff, Director of the Christian Research Institute has said, "The Creator is the Lord of the universe, not a cosmic 'gofer' at the beck and call of His creation."

The ultimate flaw of so called " New Age Sacred Science," and all it encompasses is that it is based on occult principles and practices that are forbidden in Scripture (Deut. 18:9-12). It is a modern day attempt at sorcery, white magic, and wizardry. There is a need to distinquish between valid medical practice and the occultic world which the Bible specifically forbids. Listed are the historical roots of these practises:

• Acupuncture: a traditional form of Chinese medical practice. The philosophies behind it are the ancient religious tenents of Taoism, and it is claimed in The Tao of Leadership, by John Heider, "Tao is the single unifying principle underlying all creation." It is described as the "invisible, inaudible, unnameable, undiscussable, inexpressible." The principles of acupuncture are based upon intellectual quicksand; a textbook of Chinese medicine , the "Yellow Emperors Classic of Internal Medicine, written in 762 A.D., which states in its introduction: "Medicine is but a part of philosophy and religion, both of which propound oneness with nature." Chinese medicine is based on Taoism, which uses the concept of polarity, the yin (feminine) and yang (masculine), and classifies the hollow organs of the body as yang, and the solid organs as yin, believing when they are properly balanced the body is healthy.
  Dr. Charles A. Fager, chairman emeritus of the Department of Neurosurgery of the Lahey Clinic in Burlington, Massachusetts, says: "There is not the slightest shred of evidence to show that acupuncture produces any real physiological changes... There is no physiologic reason why if you stick a needle in somebody's ear, a pain in the small of the back will go away. The anesthesia is simply hypnosis. Acupunture is basically a form of deception and fraud and should be against the law."
  
• Applied Kinesiology: a system of diagnosis and treatment through muscle testing based on the concept of "universal energy," which has not been proven to have any scientific validity, although adopted by many chiropractors. It originated in the 1960s with a chiropractor named George Goodheart, who combined the Eastern Religious concept of "Universal Energy," specifically the Chinese concepts of energy flow, or "Chi" with a belief in an "innate intelligence" which permeates the entire universe. He wrote Applied Kinesiology Research Manuals, in which he described this intelligence as a "spiritual" intelligence" that runs through the body and is connected to the universal intelligence through the nervous system. It promotes the religious concept of God as impersonal "Universal Energy" and "Monism" - which claims that "God is all, and all is God."
  Dr. Sneed, in The Hidden Agenda: A Critical View of Alternative Medical Therapies relates how practitioners of Applied Kinesiology use a diagram of deficiency points, a picture of a man standing with multiple points indicated on him, a point on the cheek for potassium, on the center of the chest for iodine, etc. Two points around the naval have the same elements, magnesium and mangasese. For the body to be able to tell the difference, the practitioner announces verbally, "Now I'm testing for magnesium" touching the point and testing the muscle, informing the patient that "the brain will know the difference," which is, of course, completely ridiculous.
• Biofeedback: A technique for gaining some measure of control over certain bodily fuctions, headaches and blood pressure,for example, through the visual or auditory response of a mchine connected to that function, which is often misused by the alternative medicine movement to justify and lend credence to various "mind over matter" therapies.
• Crystal Healing: Mineral rocks said to have healing powers, which promotes the concept of "Universal Energy" and "Monism." There is no scientific evidence of benefit.
• Dream Therapy: A theory that analysis of one's dreams can lead to an understanding of the subconscious, which is strongly promoted by Carl Jung, who, it has been revealed, was deeply involved in ancient mystery religions, involving "initiation" through contact with spiritual entities, through meditation.
• Flower Therapy: Use of liquid preparations created by soaking flowers in water, i.e., holding drops of flower scented water under the tongue while opening oneself to the healing vibrations of the flowers, and visualizing the desired healing, or outcome.
• Guided Visualization: Ancient shamanism; induced trance like states, or altered states of consciousness, where one is led to visualize the desired goal; making contact with "spirit guide," or "demonic being," whose power is utilized to bring visualized healing into being.
• Herbal Healing: Medical treatment based entirely on the use of medicinal plants, with no evidence that herbal remedies offer improvement over modern medications. There are reports of contamination and poor quality control in an unregulated industry. There are some elements of nature worship and communication with plant "spirits" within the broad scope of herbalism.
• Homeopathic Medicine: A treatment based on the concept that a medicine becomes more potent, as it becomes more diluted. There is no conclusive evidence of any results, other than a placebo efffect from this treatment. Treatments are sometimes so diluted that they are only water.
• Hypnosis: The inducement of a trance like state of heightened suggestibility and compliance to the therapist. This method has been used as a means to enter occultic spirit contact. It is well documented in medical settings as anesthesia.
• Iridology: a new age "science" where the iris of the eye is examined to determine diagnosis and treatments of physical ailments, based essentially on the belief that there is power in all natural substances, as "all is one, therefore all is God."
• Macrobiotic Diets: A rigid diet based on an idiosyncratic version of the ancient religious Taoist concept of Yin (feminine) and Yang (masculine.) Cases of nutritional deficiency have occurred, and there is no evidence of cancer cures as claimed by promoters.
• Psychic Surgery: Removal of diseased organs or body parts through apparent supernatural means without sterilization, medical instruments, or anesthesia. Often performed by persons who are said to be "spirit possessed," and typically coupled with religious symbols. There is no scientific explanation, and there have been numerous cases of documented fraud and some deliberate deception.
• Reflexology: Also called zone therapy or compression massage, a "Universal Energy" manipulating practice commonly used in "alternative health" New Age circles, as a technique involving massaging a patient's feet at specific points, believed to produce relaxation, pain relief, or some physiologic change or healing in a distant part of the body. It is derived from Chinese medical treatment, based on theories that the "life force" can be manipulated and enhanced through touch.
• Rolfing: A care system which developed under the influence of "yoga," a Hindu philosophical and religious system literally meaning "union," developed to unite one with "deity," or spiritual entities. Rolfing is based on deep connective tissue manipulation, which may be painful, and is without scientific verification of benefit.
• Therapeutic Touch: A variant of the "Universal Energy" manipulating systems, typically promoted within the nursing profession. There is no consistent scientific evidence of actual medical benefit.
• Transcendental Meditation: Also known as TM, this is a religious pursuit of higher states of consciousness, via meditation, promoted by the followers of the founder, Maharishi Maheh Yogi. Decades ago, when outlawed from schools as a religous practice, TM was repackaged, and resold as "scientific," although it is basic Hinduism, promoting reincarnation, the working out of karma, and salvation based on personal effort through meditation and self-enlightenment.
• Yoga: A Sanskrit word meaning "Union" (with deity), this ancient practice, thousands of years old, has positions, and meditations developed by Hindu adepts, specifically designed to further one's path toward "Union with Brahma."

All of these unscientific "treatment"s allow one to say an affirmation, get a picture in their mind of the desired outcome, and, having been told that they are literally "God", to "create their own reality," or believe that they are doing so. The danger of many of these practices is the delay before patients ever receive genuine medical treatment. Because genuine disease requires authentic, sometimes immediate treatment, the postponement can be lethal.

Inside The New Age Nightmare, by Randall N. Baer, is the true story of Baer's life as a professional New Age teacher, holistic health practitioner, and holistic activist who became well known in "crystal power" and in New Age philosophy.

Entranced by the Eastern Mystical Religious concepts he saw on the television program, "Kong Fu," as a teenager, he read books on Eastern religion, and taught himself yoga and meditation. He used marijuana, expecting it to expand his mind into a state of "Higher consciousness." In college, he studied Native American culture, pantheistic religious views, and read books by Timothy Leary, Richard Albert (now Ram Dass), and Aldous Huxley. He became involved with gurus and Transcendental Meditation, receiving his own personal mantra, and studied Hinduism, Taoism, Buddhism, and Yoga.

Eventually, he and his wife ran a New Age center in New Mexico working in group channeling, acupuncture, past life incarnation, past life regression, UFO contact sessions, guided imagery for success and prosperity, stress management, and related New Age topics. His spirit guides gave him explicit instructions, while he was in trance states, on writing a book on crystals, transmitting their thoughts and influences.

The spirit-channeled book, Windows of Light: Quartz Crystals and Self Transformation, released in 1984, gave him a national New Age reputation. During 15 years of New Age involvement, he saw a wide variety of people drawn into the New Age movement, M.D.'s, Ph.D.s, dentists, chiropractors, teachers, and many other highly educated professional people.

An unforgettable experience, while in a trance state changed his life forever. One evening, while surrounded by an overwhelming luminous light, as if he were looking straight into the sun, feeling as if, "Rays of bliss radiated through his spirit, and totally captivated by the power," which he could feel; another force suddenly stepped in, taking him by complete surprise. In his own words, "In the twinkling of an eye, as if a supernatural hand had taken me behind the scene of the experience I was having, I was taken behind the luminous light. What I saw left me literally shaking for an entire week. Behind the glittering facade of beauty lay a massively powerful, wildly churning face of absolute hatred and unspeakable abominations, the face of demons filled with the power of Satan."

Baer became a Christian, and as he read Scripture, he realized that the practices in which he had been involved were wrong, and that the "Sacred Science" of New Age is based on ancient occultic principles utilizing modern day sorcery, shamanism, and magic forbidden in Scripture, in Deut. 18:9-12)

"When you enter the land which the LORD your God gives you, you shall not learn to imitate the detestable things of those nations.
"There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead.
"For whoever does these things is detestable to the LORD; and because of these detestable things the LORD your God will drive them out before you. "You shall be blameless before the LORD your God.
"For those nations, which you shall dispossess, listen to those who practice witchcraft and to diviners, but as for you, the LORD your God has not allowed you to do so."

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