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106-579: Antiquity Medieval Early modern Modern Iran India East-Asia The New Thought movement (also Higher Thought ) is a new religious movement that coalesced in the United States in the early 19th century. New Thought was seen by its adherents as succeeding "ancient thought", accumulated wisdom and philosophy from a variety of origins, such as Ancient Greek , Roman , Egyptian , Chinese , Taoist , Hindu , and Buddhist cultures and their related belief systems, primarily regarding

212-455: A Swedenborgian minister. Mary Baker Eddy , the founder of Christian Science , has sometimes been cited as having used Quimby as inspiration for theology. Eddy was a patient of Quimby's and shared his view that disease is rooted in a mental cause. Because of its theism, Christian Science differs from the teachings of Quimby. In the late 19th century, New Thought was propelled by a number of spiritual thinkers and philosophers and emerged through

318-406: A forensic psychologist noted for his writings on the brainwashing controversy, has defended NRMs, and in 1988 argued that involvement in such movements may often be beneficial: "There's a large research literature published in mainstream journals on the mental health effects of new religions. For the most part, the effects seem to be positive in any way that's measurable." Those who convert to

424-537: A " get-rich-quick scheme " as much of its literature contains esoteric advice to make money. Although the movement began with roots in feminism and socialism, it increasingly attached itself to far right and racist ideology, arguing that poverty was a sign of spiritual weakness, and that "for the sake of race improvement... poverty and suffering must not be alleviated by the state." New Thought publishing and educational activities reach approximately 2.5 million people annually. The largest New Thought-oriented denomination

530-504: A "new religious movement". Debate continues as to how the term "new" should be interpreted in this context. One perspective is that it should designate a religion that is more recent in its origins than large, well-established religions like Hinduism , Judaism , Buddhism , Christianity , and Islam . Some scholars view the 1950s or the end of the Second World War in 1945 as the defining time, while others look as far back as

636-472: A NRM can pose a number of difficulties. It may result in their having to abandon a daily framework that they had previously adhered to. It may also generate mixed emotions as ex-members lose the feelings of absolute certainty, which they may have held while in the group. Three basic questions have been paramount in orienting theory and research on NRMs: what are the identifying markers of NRMs that distinguish them from other types of religious groups?; what are

742-400: A NRM typically believe that in doing so they are gaining some benefit in their life. This can come in many forms, from an increasing sense of freedom to a release from drug dependency, and a feeling of self-respect and direction. Many of those who have left NRMs report that they have gained from their experience. There are various reasons as to why an individual would join and then remain part of

848-452: A NRM, including both push and pull factors. According to Marc Galanter , professor of psychiatry at NYU, typical reasons why people join NRMs include a search for community and a spiritual quest. Sociologists Stark and Bainbridge , in discussing the process by which people join new religious groups, have questioned the utility of the concept of conversion , suggesting that affiliation is

954-407: A belief system that included the tenet that illness originated in the mind as a consequence of erroneous beliefs and that a mind open to God's wisdom could overcome any illness. His basic premise was: The trouble is in the mind, for the body is only the house for the mind to dwell in [...] Therefore, if your mind had been deceived by some invisible enemy into a belief, you have put it into the form of

1060-425: A convert to witch craft, nor had even had any personal interviews[?] with ghosts or hobgoblins & therefore considered all stories bordering on the marvelous as delusive—". Instead it appears that it was Robert Hanham Collyer , another practitioner of animal magnetism, who visited Belfast in 1841, who attracted Quimby's interest: "Next came Dr Collyer, who perhaps did more to excite a spirit of enquirey throughout

1166-496: A crucial place in time and space. Some NRMs venerate unique scriptures , while others reinterpret existing texts, utilizing a range of older elements. They frequently claim that these are not new but rather forgotten truths that are being revived. NRM scriptures often incorporate modern scientific knowledge, sometimes with the claim that they are bringing unity to science and religion. Some NRMs believe that their scriptures are received through mediums . The Urantia Book ,

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1272-464: A disease, with or without your knowledge. By my theory or truth, I come in contact with your enemy, and restore you to health and happiness. This I do partly mentally, and partly by talking till I correct the wrong impression and establish the Truth, and the Truth is the cure. During the late 19th century, the metaphysical healing practices of Quimby mingled with the "Mental Science" of Warren Felt Evans ,

1378-543: A distinct phenomenon, the " Satanic Panic ". Consequently, scholars such as Eileen Barker, James T. Richardson , Timothy Miller and Catherine Wessinger argued that the term "cult" had become too laden with negative connotations, and "advocated dropping its use in academia". A number of alternatives to the term "new religious movement" are used by some scholars. These include "alternative religious movements" (Miller), "emergent religions" (Ellwood) and "marginal religious movements" (Harper and Le Beau). The 1960s and 1970s saw

1484-448: A family of four children. One of his sons, George, was a follower and strong defender of him, working to differentiate his work from that of Mary Baker Eddy , a patient who later founded Christian Science. His son owned his father's writings, which were mostly not released until the 1920s, after the son's death. By trade Quimby was a watch and clockmaker . He also was a daguerreotypist , and he invented items and held several patents for

1590-412: A financial interest in promoting the "brainwashing" explanation. Academic research, however, has demonstrated that these brainwashing techniques "simply do not exist". Many members of NRMs leave these groups of their own free will. Some of those who do so retain friends within the movement. Some of those who leave a religious community are unhappy with the time that they spent as part of it. Leaving

1696-466: A healer steeped in Protestant theology and science. Later, claims were made that she was at least partially inspired by Quimby in her theology. However, both Quimby's son and Christian Scientists have pointed out major differences between Quimbyism and Christian Science. Biographer Gillian Gill and others agreed, pointing out that because of its theism , Christian Science differs considerably from

1802-412: A local youth who was particularly susceptible to hypnosis. Finding him useful to work with, Quimby and Burkmar developed a tour of their own. Quimby demonstrated mesmeric practice with Burkmar in front of large crowds. Later Quimby and Burkmar stopped touring. Quimby claimed to heal people of ailments which doctors could not cure. Quimby told his patients that disease was caused by false beliefs, and that

1908-463: A more useful concept. A popular explanation for why people join new religious movements is that they have been "brainwashed" or subject to "mind control" by the NRM itself. This explanation provides a rationale for "deprogramming", a process in which members of NRMs are illegally kidnapped by individuals who then attempt to convince them to reject their beliefs. Professional deprogrammers, therefore, have

2014-435: A pejorative manner, to refer to Spiritualism and Christian Science during the 1890s. As commonly used, for instance in sensationalist tabloid articles, the term "cult" continues to have pejorative associations. The term "new religions" is a calque of shinshūkyō ( 新宗教 ) , a Japanese term developed to describe the proliferation of Japanese new religions in the years following the Second World War. From Japan this term

2120-421: A quack: you not only lose your money, but your health. He gives no opinion, therefore you lose nothing. If patients feel pain they know it, and if he describes their pain he feels it, and in his explanation lies the cure. Patients, of course, have some opinion as to what causes pain—he has none, therefore the disagreement lies not in the pain, but in the cause of the pain. He has the advantage of patients, for it

2226-471: A relative of theirs joins a new religion. Although children break away from their parents for all manner of reasons, in cases where NRMs are involved, it is often the latter that are blamed for the break. Some anti-cultist groups emphasise the idea that "cults" use deceit and trickery to recruit members. The anti-cult movement adopted the term brainwashing, which had been developed by the journalist Edward Hunter and then used by Robert J. Lifton to apply to

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2332-419: A result, they are "not inherently different" from mainstream and established religious movements, with the differences between the two having been greatly exaggerated by the media and popular perceptions. Melton has stated that those NRMs that "were offshoots of older religious groups... tended to resemble their parent groups far more than they resembled each other." One question that faces scholars of religion

2438-496: A significant moment in its history. Over the months and years following its leader's death, the movement can die out, fragment into multiple groups, consolidate its position, or change its nature to become something quite different from what its founder intended. In some cases, a NRM moves closer to the religious mainstream after the death of its founder. A number of founders of new religions established plans for succession to prevent confusion after their deaths. Mary Baker Eddy ,

2544-538: A society's established traditional religions. Generally, Christian denominations are not seen as new religious movements; nevertheless, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Jehovah's Witnesses, Christian Science, and the Shakers have been studied as NRMs. The same situation with Jewish religious movements , when Reform Judaism and newer divisions have been named among NRM. There are also problems in

2650-546: A special "New Thought Day" at the fair and struck a commemorative bronze medal for the occasion, which was presented to the INTA delegates, led by Annie Rix Militz . By 1916, the International New Thought Alliance had encompassed many smaller groups around the world, adopting a creed known as the "Declaration of Principles". The Alliance is held together by one central teaching: that people, through

2756-626: A strong recruitment drive to survive. The Shakers established orphanages, hoping that the children would become members of their community. Violent incidents involving NRMs are very rare. In events having a large number of casualties, the new religion was led by a charismatic leader. Beginning in 1978, the deaths of 913 members of the Peoples Temple in Jonestown , Guyana, by both murder and suicide brought an image of "killer cults" to public attention. Several subsequent events contributed to

2862-518: A variety of religious denominations and churches, particularly the Unity Church and Church of Divine Science (established in 1889 and 1888, respectively), followed by Religious Science (the Institute of Religious Science and Philosophy was established in 1927). Many of its early teachers and students were women; notable among the founders of the movement were Emma Curtis Hopkins , known as

2968-564: A variety of unrelated, larger mechanical devices. Among the people who claimed to be cured by Quimby were Julius Dresser and his wife Annetta Dresser , from what sickness it is unclear. Their son, Horatio Dresser , wrote extensively on Quimby's theories. He edited and collected many of Quimby's papers in his book Health and the Inner Life: An Analytical and Historical Study of Spiritual Healing and Theories (1906). He also edited and published selected Quimby papers in

3074-530: A younger average membership than mainstream religious congregations. Some NRMs have been formed by groups who have split from a pre-existing religious group. As these members grow older, many have children who are then brought up within the NRM. In the Third World , NRMs most often appeal to the poor and oppressed sectors of society. Within Western countries, they are more likely to appeal to members of

3180-404: Is everywhere , spirit is the totality of real things , true human selfhood is divine, divine thought is a force for good, sickness originates in the mind , and "right thinking" has a healing effect. Although New Thought is neither monolithic nor doctrinaire , in general, modern-day adherents of New Thought share some core beliefs: William James used the term "New Thought" as synonymous with

3286-431: Is spiritism , with its messages of "law" and "progress" and "development"; another the optimistic popular science evolutionism of which I have recently spoken; and, finally, Hinduism has contributed a strain. But the most characteristic feature of the mind-cure movement is an inspiration much more direct. The leaders in this faith have had an intuitive belief in the all-saving power of healthy-minded attitudes as such, in

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3392-405: Is great enough for insincere stuff, mechanically produced for the market, to be to a certain extent supplied by publishers – a phenomenon never observed, I imagine, until a religion has got well past its earliest insecure beginnings. One of the doctrinal sources of Mind-cure is the four Gospels ; another is Emersonianism or New England transcendentalism ; another is Berkeleyan idealism ; another

3498-481: Is sometimes identified as the "founder of New Thought," but his actual influence is debated. Since Quimby's writings were not available until Dresser's The Quimby Manuscripts in 1921, they did not directly effect New Thought's development during its formative period. Barry Morton, a scholar of faith healing, has said that Quimby's constant practice of his mind cure method led him to make important discoveries related to curing psychosomatic illnesses, and in effect started

3604-706: Is the Japanese Seicho-no-Ie . Other belief systems within the New Thought movement include Jewish Science , Religious Science / Centers for Spiritual Living and Unity . Past denominations have included Psychiana and Father Divine . Religious Science operates under three main organizations: the Centers for Spiritual Living ; the Affiliated New Thought Network ; and Global Religious Science Ministries . Ernest Holmes ,

3710-457: Is the worst kind of robbery, tho' sanctioned by law. Now, if they will only look at the true secret of this description, they will find it is for their own selfish objects—to sell their medicines. Herein consists their shrewdness!—to impress patients with a wrong idea, namely—that they have some disease. This makes them nervous and creates in their minds a disease that otherwise would never have been thought of. Wherefore he says to such, never consult

3816-470: Is to deceive people by pretending to cure all diseases. The sick are anxious to get well, and they apply to these persons supposing them to be honest and friendly, whereas they are made to believe they are very sick and something must be done ere it is too late. Five or ten dollars is then paid, for the cure of some disease they never had, nor ever would have had but for the wrong impressions received from these quacks, or robbers, (as they might be called,) for it

3922-425: Is unified by its topic of interest rather than by its methodology , and is therefore interdisciplinary in nature. A sizeable body of scholarly literature on new religions has been published, most of it produced by social scientists . Among the disciplines that NRS utilises are anthropology, history, psychology, religious studies, and sociology. Of these approaches, sociology played a particularly prominent role in

4028-423: Is unlike all other medical practise, it is necessary to say that he gives no medicines and makes no outward applications, but simply sits down by the patients, tells them their feelings and what they think is their disease. If the patients admit that he tells them their feelings, &c., then his explanation is the cure; and, if he succeeds in correcting their error, he changes the fluids of the system and establishes

4134-557: Is used in reference to devotion or dedication to a particular person or place. For instance, within the Roman Catholic Church, devotion to Mary, mother of Jesus may be termed the " Cult of Mary ". It is also used in non-religious contexts to refer to fandoms devoted to television shows like The Prisoner , The X-Files , and Buffy the Vampire Slayer . In the United States, people began to use "cult" in

4240-422: Is very easy to convince them that he had no pain before he sat down by them. After this it becomes his duty to prove to them the cause of their trouble. This can only be explained to patients, for which explanation his charge is [blank space to be filled in] dollars. If necessary to see them more than once, [blank space to be filled in] dollars. This has been his mode of practice for the last seventeen years. For

4346-661: Is when a new religious movement ceases to be "new". As noted by Barker, "In the first century, Christianity was new, in the seventh century Islam was new, in the eighteenth century Methodism was new, in the nineteenth century the Seventh-day Adventists, Christadelphians, and Jehovah's Witnesses were new; in the twenty-first century the Unification Church, the ISKCON, and Scientology are beginning to look old." The Roman Catholic Church has observed that

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4452-786: The Christian Reformed Church in North America , was especially influential. In the US, the Christian Research Institute was founded in 1960 by Walter Ralston Martin to counter opposition to evangelical Christianity and has come to focus on criticisms of NRMs. Presently the Christian countercult movement opposes most NRMs because of theological differences. It is closely associated with evangelical Christianity . In his book The Kingdom of

4558-562: The Holy Spirit Movement were killed as they approached gunfire because its leader, Alice Lakwena , told them that they would be protected from bullets by the oil of the shea tree . The history of the Latter Day Saint movement includes multiple cases of significant violence committed by or against Mormons . NRMs are typically founded and led by a charismatic leader. The death of any religion's founder represents

4664-637: The Law of Attraction . In 1906, William Walker Atkinson (1862–1932) wrote and published Thought Vibration or the Law of Attraction in the Thought World . Atkinson was the editor of New Thought magazine and the author of more than 100 books on an assortment of religious, spiritual , and occult topics. The following year, Elizabeth Towne , the editor of The Nautilus , published Bruce MacLelland's book Prosperity Through Thought Force , in which he summarized

4770-495: The Shakers and more recent NRMs, inspired by Hindu traditions, see it as a lifelong commitment. Others, including the Unification Church, as a stage in spiritual development. In some Buddhist NRMs, celibacy is practiced mostly by older women who become nuns . Some people join NRMs and practice celibacy as a rite of passage in order to move beyond previous sexual problems or bad experiences. Groups that promote celibacy require

4876-715: The Transcendental Meditation movement . In the late 1980s and 1990s, the decline of communism and the revolutions of 1989 opened up new opportunities for NRMs. Falun Gong was first taught publicly in Northeast China in 1992 by Li Hongzhi . At first, it was accepted by the Chinese government, and by 1999 there were 70 million practitioners in China. But in July 1999, the government started to view

4982-491: The persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses , the persecution of Baháʼís , and the persecution of Falun Gong . There are also instances in which violence has been directed at new religions. In the United States the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, Joseph Smith, was killed by a lynch mob in 1844. In India there have been mob killings of members of the Ananda Marga group. Such violence can also be administered by

5088-512: The "Law of Attraction" as a New Thought principle, stating "You are what you think, not what you think you are." These magazines were used to reach a large audience then, as others are now. Nautilus magazine, for example, had 45,000 subscribers and a total circulation of 150,000. One Unity Church magazine, Wee Wisdom , was the longest-lived children's magazine in the United States, published from 1893 until 1991. Today, New Thought magazines include Daily Word , published by Unity (Unity.org) and

5194-587: The "Mind cure movement", in which he included many sects with diverse origins, such as idealism and Hinduism. William James , in The Varieties of Religious Experience (1902), described New Thought: [F]or the sake of having a brief designation, I will give the title of the "Mind-cure movement." There are various sects of this "New Thought," to use another of the names by which it calls itself; but their agreements are so profound that their differences may be neglected for my present purpose, and I will treat

5300-495: The "newness" of "new religious movements" raises problems, for it is "the very fact that NRMs are new that explains many of the key characteristics they display". George Chryssides favors "simple" definition; for him, NRM is an organization founded within the past 150 or so years, which cannot be easily classified within one of the world's main religious traditions. Scholars of religion Olav Hammer and Mikael Rothstein argued that "new religions are just young religions" and as

5406-420: The "teacher of teachers", Myrtle Fillmore , Malinda Cramer , and Nona L. Brooks ; with many of its churches and community centers led by women, from the 1880s to today. New Thought is also largely a movement of the printed word. Prentice Mulford , through writing Your Forces and How to Use Them , a series of essays published during 1886–1892, was pivotal in the development of New Thought thinking, including

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5512-589: The 1940s, Gerald Gardner began to outline the modern pagan religion of Wicca . New religious movements expanded in many nations in the 1950s and 1960s at the height of the counterculture movements . Japanese new religions became very popular after the Shinto Directive (1945) forced the Japanese government to separate itself from Shinto , which had been the state religion of Japan, bringing about greater freedom of religion . In 1954, Scientology

5618-469: The 1970s and 1980s, some NRMs as well as some non-religious groups came under opposition by the newly organized anti-cult movement, which mainly charged them with psychological abuse of their own members. It actively seeks to discourage people from joining new religions (which it refers to as "cults"). It also encourages members of these groups to leave them, and at times seeking to restrict their freedom of movement. Family members are often distressed when

5724-668: The American founder of Christian Science, spent fifteen years working on her book The Manual of the Mother Church , which laid out how the group should be run by her successors. The leadership of the Baháʼí Faith passed through a succession of individuals until 1963, when it was assumed by the Universal House of Justice , members of which are elected by the worldwide congregation. A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ,

5830-597: The Baháʼí Faith in the United States. Also attending were Soyen Shaku , the "First American Ancestor" of Zen , the Theravāda Buddhist preacher Anagarika Dharmapala , and the Jain preacher Virchand Gandhi . This conference gave Asian religious teachers their first wide American audience. In 1911, the Nazareth Baptist Church , the first and one of the largest modern African initiated churches ,

5936-519: The Bible as one of its main texts, although not interpreted literally. The other core text is Lessons in Truth by H. Emilie Cady . The Universal Foundation for Better Living , or UFBL , was founded in 1974 by Johnnie Colemon in Chicago, Illinois, after breaking away from the Unity Church for "blatant racism". New religious movement There is no single, agreed-upon criterion for defining

6042-746: The Cults (1965), Christian scholar Walter Ralston Martin examines a large number of new religious movements; included are major groups such as Christian Science, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Jehovah's Witnesses, Armstrongism , Theosophy , the Baháʼí Faith, Unitarian Universalism , Scientology, the Unity Church, as well as minor groups including various New Age groups and those based on Eastern religions . The beliefs of other world religions such as Islam and Buddhism are also discussed. He covers each group's history and teachings, and contrasts them with those of mainstream Christianity. In

6148-1077: The Internet. In 2006 J. Gordon Melton , executive director of the Institute for the Study of American Religions at the University of California, Santa Barbara, told The New York Times that 40 to 45 new religious movements emerge each year in the United States. In 2007, religious scholar Elijah Siegler said that, though no NRM had become the dominant faith in any country, many of the concepts they first introduced (often referred to as " New Age " ideas) have become part of worldwide mainstream culture. Eileen Barker has argued that NRMs should not be "lumped together," as they differ from one another on many issues. Virtually no generalisation can be made about NRMs that applies to every group, with David V. Barrett noting that "generalizations tend not to be very helpful" when studying NRMs. J. Gordon Melton expressed

6254-481: The New Thought movement. Each teaches that Infinite Intelligence, or God, is the sole reality. New Thought adherents believe that sickness is the result of the failure to realize this truth. In this line of thinking, healing is accomplished by the affirmation of oneness with the Infinite Intelligence or God. John Bovee Dods (1795–1862), an early practitioner of New Thought, wrote several books on

6360-679: The Pacific Coast Metaphysical Bureau in the 1880s, under the leadership of Annie Rix Militz , disseminated the teachings of the Hindu teacher Swami Vivekananda . It is one of the more outspokenly interfaith of New Thought organizations, stating adherence to "the principle that Truth is Truth where ever it is found and who ever is sharing it". Joel S. Goldsmith 's The Infinite Way incorporates teaching from Christian Science , as well. Divine Science, Unity Church, and Religious Science are organizations that developed from

6466-648: The Religious Science magazine; and Science of Mind , published by the Centers for Spiritual Living . The 1915 International New Thought Alliance (INTA) conference – held in conjunction with the Panama–Pacific International Exposition , a world's fair that took place in San Francisco – featured New Thought speakers from far and wide. The PPIE organizers were so favorably impressed by the INTA convention that they declared

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6572-406: The academic study of religion in the 1970s. There are several scholarly organisations and peer-reviewed journals devoted to the subject. Religious studies scholars contextualize the rise of NRMs in modernity as a product of, and answer to, modern processes of secularization, globalization, detraditionalization, fragmentation, reflexivity, and individualization. In 1830, the Latter Day Saint movement

6678-646: The belief in extraterrestrial life with traditional religious principles. In 1965, Paul Twitchell founded Eckankar , an NRM derived partially from Sant Mat . In 1966, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) was founded in the United States by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada , and Anton LaVey founded the atheist Church of Satan . In 1967, the Beatles visit to Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in India brought public attention to

6784-417: The book, The Quimby Manuscripts (1921). Warren Felt Evans was a Methodist minister who was moving over to Swedenborgianism about the time that he visited Quimby twice about 1863. While he was reputed to be a student of Quimby, modern scholarship has shown that he considered himself an equal of Quimby and not a student. Mary Baker Eddy , the founder of Christian Science , was a patient of Quimby's and

6890-528: The community than any who have succeeded." (Quimby's son George stated in New England Magazine, March, 1888, that "a gentleman visited Belfast, about the year 1838," but an extensive search of Belfast newspapers during that time period finds no visit by Poyen mentioned in 1838, even though Poyen was quite newsworthy. 1838 is too early for Robert Collyer. 1836 appears to be the correct year for Poyen.) About 1842 Quimby encountered Lucius Burkmar,

6996-793: The concept. In 1994, members of the Order of the Solar Temple committed suicide in Canada and Switzerland. In 1997, 39 members of the Heaven's Gate group committed suicide in the belief that their spirits would leave the Earth and join a passing comet. There have also been cases in which members of NRMs have been killed after they engaged in dangerous actions due to mistaken belief in their own invincibility. For example, in Uganda, several hundred members of

7102-454: The conquering efficacy of courage, hope, and trust, and a correlative contempt for doubt, fear, worry, and all nervously precautionary states of mind. Their belief has in a general way been corroborated by the practical experience of their disciples; and this experience forms to-day a mass imposing in amount. The New Thought movement was based on the teachings of Phineas Quimby (1802–1866), an American mesmerist and healer. Quimby had developed

7208-439: The constructive use of their minds, can attain freedom, power, health, prosperity, and all good, molding their bodies as well as the circumstances of their lives. The declaration was revised in 1957, with all references to Christianity removed, and a new statement based on the "inseparable oneness of God and Man". The chief tenets of New Thought are: Adherents also generally believe that as humankind gains greater understanding of

7314-514: The core scripture of the Urantia Movement, was published in 1955 and is said to be the product of a continuous process of revelation from "celestial beings" which began in 1911. Some NRMs, particularly those that are forms of occultism , have a prescribed system of courses and grades through which members can progress. Some NRMs promote celibacy , the state of voluntarily being unmarried, sexually abstinent, or both. Some, including

7420-459: The cure was in the explanation of this. Quimby published a flyer, "TO THE SICK," that was used about late 1850s to early 1860s and read as follows. It is an important statement of his beliefs: DR. P. P. QUIMBY would respectfully announce to the citizens of [blank space to be filled in] and vicinity, that he will be at the [blank space to be filled in] where he will attend to those wishing to consult him in regard to their health, and, as his practise

7526-425: The development of the field, resulting in it being initially confined largely to a narrow array of sociological questions. This came to change in later scholarship, which began to apply theories and methods initially developed for examining more mainstream religions to the study of new ones. Most research has been directed toward those new religions that attract public controversy. Less controversial NRMs tend to be

7632-422: The difference between these groups and established or mainstream religious movements while at the same time evading the problem posed by groups that are not particularly new. The 1970s was the era of the so-called "cult wars", led by "cult-watching groups". The efforts of the anti-cult movement condensed a moral panic around the concept of cults. Public fears around Satanism , in particular, came to be known as

7738-412: The different types of NRMs and how do these different types relate to the established institutional order of the host society?; and what are the most important ways that NRMs respond to the sociocultural dislocation that leads to their formation? — Sociologist of religion David G. Bromley The academic study of new religious movements is known as 'new religions studies' (NRS). The study draws from

7844-458: The disciplines of anthropology , psychiatry , history , psychology , sociology , religious studies , and theology . Barker noted that there are five sources of information on NRMs: the information provided by such groups themselves, that provided by ex-members as well as the friends and relatives of members, organisations that collect information on NRMs, the mainstream media, and academics studying such phenomena. The study of new religions

7950-736: The emergence of a number of highly visible new religious movements... [These] seemed so outlandish that many people saw them as evil cults, fraudulent organizations or scams that recruited unaware people by means of mind-control techniques. Real or serious religions, it was felt, should appear in recognizable institutionalized forms, be suitably ancient, and – above all – advocate relatively familiar theological notions and modes of conduct. Most new religions failed to comply with such standards. — Religious studies scholars Olav Hammer and Mikael Rothstein There has been opposition to NRMs throughout their history. Some historical events have been: Anti-Mormonism ,

8056-489: The founder of Religious Science, stated that Religious Science is not based on any "authority" of established beliefs, but rather on "what it can accomplish" for the people who practice it. The Science of Mind , authored by Ernest Holmes, while based on a philosophy of being "open at the top", focuses extensively on the teachings of Jesus Christ . Unity, founded by Charles and Myrtle Fillmore , identifies itself as "Christian New Thought", focused on "Christian idealism", with

8162-534: The founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness , appointed 11 "Western Gurus" to act as initiating gurus and to continue to direct the organisation. However, according to British scholar of religion Gavin Flood , "many problems followed from their appointment and the movement has since veered away from investing absolute authority in a few, fallible, human teachers." NRMs typically consist largely of first-generation believers, and thus often have

8268-477: The founding of the Latter Day Saint movement in 1830 and of Tenrikyo in 1838. New religions have sometimes faced opposition from established religious organisations and secular institutions. In Western nations, a secular anti-cult movement and a Christian countercult movement emerged during the 1970s and 1980s to oppose emergent groups. A distinct field of new religion studies developed within

8374-465: The growth of sects and new religious movements is one of the "most noticeable" and "highly complex" developments in recent years, and in relation to the ecumenical movement , their "desire for peaceful relations with the Catholic Church may be weak or non-existent". Some NRMs are strongly counter-cultural and 'alternative' in the society where they appear, while others are far more similar to

8480-471: The idea that disease originates in the electrical impulses of the nervous system and is therefore curable by a change of belief. Later New Thought teachers, such as the early-20th-century author, editor, and publisher William Walker Atkinson , accepted this premise. He connected his idea of mental states of being with his understanding of the new scientific discoveries in electromagnetism and neural processes. The New Thought movement has been criticized as

8586-508: The interaction among thought, belief, consciousness in the human mind, and the effects of these within and beyond the human mind. Though no direct line of transmission is traceable, many adherents to New Thought in the 19th and 20th centuries claimed to be direct descendants of those systems. Although there have been many leaders and various offshoots of the New Thought philosophy, the origins of New Thought have often been traced back to Phineas Quimby , or even as far back as Franz Mesmer , who

8692-520: The methods employed by Chinese to convert captured US soldiers to their cause in the Korean War . Lifton himself had doubts about the applicability of his brainwashing hypothesis to the techniques used by NRMs to convert recruits. A number of ex-members of various new religions have made false allegations about their experiences in such groups. For instance, in the late 1980s a man in Dublin, Ireland,

8798-629: The middle and upper-middle classes, with Barrett stating that new religions in the UK and US largely attract "white, middle-class late teens and twenties". There are exceptions, such as the Rastafari movement and the Nation of Islam, which have primarily attracted Black members. A popular conception, unsupported by evidence, holds that those who convert to new religions are either mentally ill or become so through their involvement with them. Dick Anthony ,

8904-438: The movement as a threat and began attempts to eradicate it . In the 21st century, many NRMs are using the Internet to give out information, recruit members, and sometimes to hold online meetings and rituals. That is sometimes referred to as cybersectarianism . Sabina Magliocco , professor of Anthropology and Folklore at California State University, Northridge, has discussed the growing popularity of new religious movements on

9010-409: The movement, without apology, as if it were a simple thing. It is an optimistic scheme of life, with both a speculative and a practical side. In its gradual development during the last quarter of a century, it has taken up into itself a number of contributory elements, and it must now be reckoned with as a genuine religious power. It has reached the stage, for example, when the demand for its literature

9116-408: The past eight years he has given no medicines, nor made any outward applications. There are many who pretend to practice as he does, but when a person while in "a trance," claims any power from the spirits of the departed, and recommends any kind of medicine to be taken internally or applied externally beware! believe them not, "for by their fruits ye shall know them. Quimby married in 1827 and had

9222-553: The pejorative undertones of terms like " cult " and " sect ". These are words that have been used in different ways by different groups. For instance, from the nineteenth century onward a number of sociologists used the terms "cult" and "sect" in very specific ways. The sociologist Ernst Troeltsch for instance differentiated "churches" from "sect" by claiming that the former term should apply to groups that stretch across social strata while "sects" typically contain converts from socially disadvantaged sectors of society. The term "cult"

9328-404: The small town of Lebanon, New Hampshire , Quimby was one of seven children and the son of a blacksmith and his wife. As was customary for his social and economic class at that time, Quimby received little formal education. He later wrote that he suffered from consumption (now called tuberculosis ) in his youth, a disease that then had no cure, and was prescribed calomel by his doctor. The calomel

9434-647: The state. In Iran, followers of the Baháʼí Faith have faced persecution, while the Ahmadiyya have faced similar violence in Pakistan. Since 1999, the persecution of Falun Gong in China has been severe. Ethan Gutmann interviewed over 100 witnesses and estimated that 65,000 Falun Gong practitioners were killed for their organs from 2000 to 2008. In the 1930s, Christian critics of NRMs began referring to them as "cults". The 1938 book The Chaos of Cults by Jan Karel van Baalen (1890–1968), an ordained minister in

9540-492: The subject of less scholarly research. It has also been noted that scholars of new religions often avoid researching certain movements that scholars from other backgrounds study. The feminist spirituality movement is usually examined by scholars of women's studies , African-American new religions by scholars of Africana studies , and Native American new religions by scholars of Native American studies . J. Gordon Melton argued that "new religious movements" should be defined by

9646-571: The teachings of Quimby, who did not base his work in religion. Quimby has sometimes been connected with Transcendentalism , especially by historians relying on the Dresser version of his writings, however his knowledge of Emerson and the Transcendentalists "was no doubt tenuous and secondhand at best" according to Albanese, and it was really only "Dresser's spiritualized Quimby that fit this classification" according to Hazen. Quimby

9752-452: The truth, or health. The Truth is the Cure. This mode of practise applies to all cases. If no explanation is given, no charge is made, for no effect is produced. His opinion without an explanation is useless, for it contains no knowledge, and would be like other medical opinions, worse than none. This error gives rise to all kinds of quackery, not only among regular physicians, but those whose aim

9858-483: The use of "religion" within the term "new religious movements". This is because various groups, particularly active within the New Age milieu, have many traits in common with different NRMs but emphasise personal development and humanistic psychology , and are not clearly "religious" in nature. Since at least the early 2000s, most sociologists of religion have used the term "new religious movement" in order to avoid

9964-514: The view that there is "no single characteristic or set of characteristics" that all new religions share, "not even their newness." Bryan Wilson wrote, "Chief among the miss-directed assertions has been the tendency to speak of new religious movements as if they differed very little, if at all, one from another. The tendency has been to lump them together and indiscriminately attribute all of the characteristics which are, in fact, valid for only one or two." NRMs themselves often claim that they exist at

10070-455: The way dominant religious and secular forces within a given society treat them. According to him, NRMs constituted "those religious groups that have been found, from the perspective of the dominant religious community (and in the West that is almost always a form of Christianity), to be not just different, but unacceptably different." Barker cautioned against Melton's approach, arguing that negating

10176-565: The world, New Thought itself will evolve to assimilate new knowledge. Alan Anderson and Deb Whitehouse have described New Thought as a "process" in which each individual and even the New Thought Movement itself is "new every moment". Thomas McFaul has claimed "continuous revelation", with new insights being received by individuals continuously over time. Jean Houston has spoken of the "possible human", or what we are capable of becoming. The Home of Truth has, from its inception as

10282-529: Was a French mesmerist who followed in the tradition of Armand-Marie-Jacques de Chastenet, Marquis of Puységur . The McClure’s magazine 1907 biographical serial of Mary Baker Eddy written by Willa Cather & Georgine Milmine started the misunderstanding that Quimby was a follower of Poyen and followed him around—which is not supported by the Quimby family or Quimby's writings. In fact, Quimby wrote about seven years later about hearing Poyen lecture: "Mesmerism

10388-839: Was founded by Isaiah Shembe in South Africa. The early 20th century also saw a rise in interest in Asatru . The 1930s saw the rise of the Nation of Islam and the Jehovah's Witnesses in the United States; the rise of the Rastafari movement in Jamaica; the rise of Cao Đài and Hòa Hảo in Vietnam; the rise of Soka Gakkai in Japan; and the rise of Zailiism and Yiguandao in China. In

10494-698: Was founded by Joseph Smith . It is one of the largest new religious movements, with over 16 million members in 2019. In Japan, 1838 marks the beginning of Tenrikyo . In 1844, Bábism was established in Iran, from which the Baháʼí Faith was founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 1863. In 1860, Donghak , later Cheondoism , was founded by Choi Jae-Woo in Korea. It later ignited the Donghak Peasant Revolution in 1894. In 1889, Ahmadiyya , an Islamic branch,

10600-452: Was founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad . In 1891, the Unity Church , the first New Thought denomination, was founded in the United States. In 1893, the first Parliament of the World's Religions was held in Chicago. The conference included NRMs of the time such as spiritualism , Baháʼí Faith, and Christian Science . Henry Harris Jessup , who addressed the meeting, was the first to mention

10706-667: Was founded in the United States, by L. Ron Hubbard . It can be considered a psychotherapy oriented religion and has been consistently controversial among new religious movements in the country. In 1954 the Unification Church by Sun Myung Moon was founded, in South Korea. In 1955, the Aetherius Society was founded in England. It and some other NRMs have been called UFO religions because they combine

10812-463: Was given a three-year suspended sentence for falsely claiming that he had been drugged, kidnapped, and held captive by members of ISKCON. Phineas Parkhurst Quimby Phineas Parkhurst Quimby (February 16, 1802 – January 16, 1866) was an American folk healer , mentalist and mesmerist . His work is widely recognized as foundational to the New Thought spiritual movement. Born in

10918-510: Was introduced into the U[nited] State[s] by M. Charles Poyen, a French gentleman, who did not appear to be highly blest with the powers of magnetising to the satisfaction of his audience in his public lectures. I had the pleasure of listening to one of his lectures, & pronounced it a humbug as a matter of course. And that his remarkable experiments, which were related, were, in my belief, equally true with witch craft—I had never been

11024-556: Was no cure, and began to rot his teeth. Quimby began experimenting with his own ideas for a cure. He found that intense excitement (such as galloping on his horse) alleviated his pain for brief periods of time, and he became interested in the mind's ability to affect the body. He claimed to have cured himself of consumption by his methods. About 1836 Charles Poyen came to Maine from France on an extended lecture tour in New England about mesmerism, also widely known as hypnotism. He

11130-628: Was one of the first European thinkers to link one's mental state to physical condition. Many of these groups are incorporated into the International New Thought Alliance . The contemporary New Thought movement is a loosely allied group of religious denominations , authors, philosophers, and individuals who share a set of beliefs concerning metaphysics , positive thinking , the law of attraction , healing , life force , creative visualization , and personal power . New Thought holds that Infinite Intelligence , or God,

11236-584: Was translated and used by several American authors, including Jacob Needleman , to describe the range of groups that appeared in the San Francisco Bay Area during the 1960s. This term, amongst others, was adopted by Western scholars as an alternative to "cult". However, "new religious movements" has failed to gain widespread public usage in the manner that "cult" has. Other terms that have been employed for many NRMs are "alternative religion" and "alternative spirituality", something used to convey

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