by Lewis Loflin
New Age isn’t religion—it’s a sloppy mash of ideas, from Alexander the Great’s East-West swap (see Alexander) to today’s internet goo. Christianity crushed it by 325 AD with dogma (see Plato), but it’s back—emotional, anti-reason, filling secular voids. Al Gore’s *Earth in the Balance* (1992) nails it: “Social justice is linked in Scriptures with ecology” (pp. 246-247)—Gaia worship, not science. He’s New Age royalty, a divinity school dabbler (1971-72) chasing “purification,” not truth.
It mimics Gnosticism—individual, mystic, ditching logic. Helena Blavatsky (1831-1891), Theosophy’s guru, mocked science with a baboon dressed as Darwin (see Blavatsky). Gore’s book—pantheism on steroids—pushes eco-spiritualism: “We lost our connectedness to nature” (pp. 1-2). It’s environmentalism’s core, a syncretism mess far from Deism’s reason (see Deism).
No text, clergy, or creed—just a free-for-all grafting onto whatever. Bookstores and gurus replace churches. John Naisbitt (Megatrends 2000) says: “In chaos, people swing to fundamentalism or spiritual fluff… New Age is everywhere—metaphysical hubs in every city.” Gore’s “new way of thinking” (pp. 354-355) fits—eco-faith over facts. Surveys (George Barnia, 1996) show 25% of U.S. adults buy some: 8% astrology, 7% crystals, 9% Tarot. God’s “higher consciousness” (11%), “human potential” (8%), or “us” (3%). New Agers hold steady at 20%—third behind Cultural and Conventional Christians.
Born in the 1970s—fed up with Christianity and humanism—it pulls from astrology, Hinduism, Gnosticism, Theosophy, Wicca. England’s 1960s groups (Findhorn, Wrekin Trust) kicked it off; North America got a 1971 “New Age Seminar” and East-West Journal. Shirley MacLaine’s a star, but Gore’s the prophet—his book’s failed eco-doom (p. 4) echoes Blavatsky’s anti-science vibe. The 1980s-90s mocked channeling and crystals, yet it’s entrenched, thriving on logic’s backlash.
Fundies botch it—Sufism’s no New Age cult, just Islam’s mystic wing. Some see a secret cabal—nonsense, it’s too sloppy. Others lump Occult, Satanism, Wicca as “Satanic”—wrong, they’re distinct. Carl Raschke calls it “spiritual AIDS” and “occult fascism”—overblown, but Gore’s “inner crisis” (pp. 10-11) fits the mush.
Pick your poison:
Gore fakes “Chief Seattle”: “Earth is our mother” (p. 259)—a 1971 script, not 1855 truth. Zodiac shifts (Aries to Pisces, 1st century CE) just time it, not prove it.
Grab bag:
Canada’s 1991 census pegged 0.005% “New Age,” but many Christians blend it—Gore’s ilk lead the creep.
New Age is syncretism gone wild—Blavatsky lit the fuse, Gore’s *Earth in the Balance* fans it. His “connectedness” and “goddess” worship (p. 260) ditch reason for eco-cult vibes—environmentalism’s rotten core (see Leftism). No structure, just feelings—perfect for dodging logic. Refs: Naisbitt, Megatrends 2000; Barnia, Spiritual Indicators; Kyle, Religious Fringe; Melton, America’s Alternative Religions. Source: religioustolerance.org. (Site down.)
