Skip to main content.
Religion News Blog is a non-profit service providing academics, religion professionals and other researchers with religion & cult news
ReligionNewsBlog

Religion news articles about religious cults, sects, world religions, and related issues

Navigation:
A Random Image


Related

More news articles & news archive on New Age


Translate



Advertisements *

What is a cult: Cult Definition
Simple steps to financial health and a good credit score


Elsewhere

Wicca knowns no central authority, and Wiccans do not all have the same views, beliefs or practices.


New Age:

Vatican Weighs in on New Age Movement


ReligionNewsBlog.com • Item 2229 • Posted: Tuesday February 4, 2003  

  • Google Bookmarks
  • Google Reader
  • Gmail
  • Yahoo Mail
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Digg
  • Delicious
  • Blogger Post
  • Evernote
  • Facebook
  • Share/Bookmark
Click here... More articles on this topic: New Age

Vatican Study on New Age Movement Says Some Aspects Positive, but Not Replacement for Religion
The Associated Press, Feb. 3, 2003
http://abcnews.go.com/

The Vatican weighed in Monday on the New Age movement, saying some aspects of the search for inner peace were positive but warning that they can’t replace true Christian religion.

In a 90-page booklet dotted with references to the “Magical Mystery Tour,” “Feng Shui” and the dawning of the “Age of Aquarius,” the Vatican addressed a topic usually reserved for the self-help sections of bookstores.

The Vatican said the book was the product of requests by bishops for guidance on determining whether practices embraced by New Agers, including yoga, channeling and healing by crystals, were compatible with Christianity.

The booklet doesn’t give a definitive answer. Rather, in setting out a study of the movement its terminology, history and cultural context the book stresses that the question comes down to one of individually discerning compatibility.

Monsignor Michael Fitzgerald, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, said at a news conference that many aspects of the New Age movement were viewed positively by the Church, including environmental preservation.

“But if one is brought to this by ascribing ‘divineness’ to the land, that’s another thing,” he said. “Music that relaxes you is good. But if this music empties prayer and prayer turns into just listening to music and falling asleep, it’s no longer prayer.”

The booklet said the popularity of the New Age movement, particularly in the Western world, was due to a “spiritual hunger of contemporary men and women” unsatisfied with existing religion, political institutions or science.

“If the Church is not to be accused of being deaf to people’s longings, her members need to do two things: to root themselves ever more firmly in the fundamentals of their faith, and to understand the often silent cry in people’s hearts, which leads them elsewhere if they are not satisfied by the Church,” the document said.

The booklet, “Jesus Christ the Bearer of the Water of Life: A Christian Reflection on the ‘New Age,’” was prepared by Fitzgerald’s council and the Pontifical Council for Culture, with help from the Vatican’s orthodoxy watchdog, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

It is not considered to be the Vatican’s final word on the New Age issue. A definitive document will be issued once the Vatican receives feedback from diocese to the provisional one issued Monday, papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said.

  • Google Bookmarks
  • Google Reader
  • Gmail
  • Yahoo Mail
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Digg
  • Delicious
  • Blogger Post
  • Evernote
  • Facebook
  • Share/Bookmark


What You Can Do From Here

Read More Articles On These Topics
more cult news articlemore religion news Categories: New Age
more religion news aboutmore Religion News Blog articles about
Share, Blog About, Bookmark, or Email This Article
Subscribe
Follow Religion News Blog on Twitter


Read Another Article
Find Related Information
cult research search enginecountercult information Use our custom search engines to find additional research resources on religions and cults
Find Related Books


Most Popular Today


Share This Article

To share this page simply copy and paste one of these URL's:





Counter Cult Search

Search for information about (religious) cults, cult-like organizations, -- as well as paranormal-, New Age, and pseudoscientific claims -- across 260+ websites, blogs and forums dedicated to cult research, spiritual abuse, ex-cult counseling & support.


Note: results are listed on another domain -- CounterCultSearch.com -- from which you can easily return here.


Apologetics Search

Search for apologetics articles, books, videos, and other research resources across 135 Christian apologetics websites and blogs.


Note: results are listed on another domain -- ApologeticsSearch.com -- from which you can easily return here.

About Religion News Blog
Religion News Blog (RNB), published by Apologetics Index, highlights news items and other resources on world religions, cults, religious sects, alternative religions and related issues. RNB's non-profit news clipping service is used by - among others - Christian apologists, countercult professionals, anticult organizations, cult experts, teachers, religion professionals, reporters and other researchers.

Home
Latest Headlines
RSS news feed [?]
Headlines by Email
News Trackers
Free content for your site
About RNB
Privacy Policy
Contact RNB
Link to RNB
Advertise on RNB
Apologetics Index
Cult FAQ
Apologetics Search Engine
CounterCult Search Engine