It is a sign of the times that interest in New Age religions is booming. What these religions have to offer reads like a do-it-yourself therapeutic workshop. One New Age website that we tapped into says that it offers “a new perspective in the evolution of spiritual concepts.” That it does.
“Spiritual Persistence,” the website says, “forges new ground by looking beyond conventional thought and symbol patterns. Its basic message is connection: not connection to a far-off or far-out impersonal being or universe, but to ourselves and others around us.” In other words, those who incline toward self-worship will love it. So will fruitcakes.
What do New Agers do? They’re big into “channeling,” a meditation process that allows “angels” to communicate with them (it is not uncommon for the so-called angels to literally strike up a conversation!). Being non-judgmental is seen as a plus and indulging one’s feelings is a must. There are no rules or regulations in this world of bliss, just a free-floating sense that life is a journey without end.
To demonstrate how popular this fad is, just tap into any search engine on the internet and see how many pages of information there is on the major religions in the U.S. and then see how this stacks up against New Age religions. Here’s what we found:
| Catholicism | 60,070 |
| Protestantism | 12,362 |
| Judaism | 170,910 |
| New Age | 50,190,196 |
This is striking when one considers that Protestants comprise almost 60% of the population, Catholics make up around 25% and 2% of Americans are Jewish. There is no specific No Age category, but there certainly are millions of men and women (especially women) who nominally belong to an established religion while actually functioning as a New Age being.
“Come walk with me,” is a common expression in the vocabulary of New Age psychobabblers. We say, “Take a walk.” Solo, that is.
