DOODLING WITH SYBIL MACBETH:
"DRAWING A NEW PATH TO GOD"IS HERESY;
BASED ON UNIVERSALIST EASTERN MYSTICISM
APOSTATE CHURCHES & CHRISTIANS FERTILE GROUND
FOR NEW AGE MYSTICISM;
LEARNING CATHOLIC LECTIO DIVINA, BREATH & CENTERING PRAYER
FROM LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS RESEARCH:
To Lighthouse Trails:
I’ve been noticing a new trend – adult coloring books. The little research I have done links these books with Buddhism. Do you have any information on this new trend?
I just stay away from things like this, but the reason I’m asking is because my 13 year old daughter was introduced to them at Sunday School today. Thankfully I had already warned her about these books, so she knew enough to bring it to my attention. I would like to warn this Sunday School teacher . . . who is already using these books at her school to calm the “bad” kids down.
As far as I’m concerned it’s just another way for the evil one to come into the church. I am really afraid for people; no one seems to question anything these days.
Thanks for any insight that you can give.
S.S.
Our Comments:
Much of this idea has been propagated by Sybil MacBeth’s Praying in Color book series.While there is certainly nothing harmful about adults coloring, in and of itself, the idea behind MacBeth’s praying through coloring does have a contemplative spirituality premise. On MacBeth’s website, she gives 8 reasons to color while praying:
In a 2015 Religious News Service article titled “Coloring books for grown-ups: Calming — but a spiritual practice?,” it states:
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Sybil MacBeth is a dancer, a doodler, and a former community college mathematics professor. When she moved to Memphis in 2004, author Phyllis Tickle nudged Sybil to write about her prayer frustrations and the visual and active prayer practice she developed as the result of them. She now combines her experience in the mathematics classroom with her lifelong love of prayer to offer workshops that engage differing learning styles. As the author of Praying in Color Drawing a New Path to God, she has lead over 100 workshops and retreats. 
Sybil is also the author of Praying in Color Kids’ Edition. Her latest book is a Praying in Black and White: A Hands-On Practice for Men, a collaborative effort with her Episcopal priest husband, Andy MacBeth.Praying in Color has been translated into Korean, Spanish, and Italian.
I’ve been noticing a new trend – adult coloring books. The little research I have done links these books with Buddhism. Do you have any information on this new trend?
I just stay away from things like this, but the reason I’m asking is because my 13 year old daughter was introduced to them at Sunday School today. Thankfully I had already warned her about these books, so she knew enough to bring it to my attention. I would like to warn this Sunday School teacher . . . who is already using these books at her school to calm the “bad” kids down.
As far as I’m concerned it’s just another way for the evil one to come into the church. I am really afraid for people; no one seems to question anything these days.
Thanks for any insight that you can give.
S.S.
Our Comments:
Much of this idea has been propagated by Sybil MacBeth’s Praying in Color book series.While there is certainly nothing harmful about adults coloring, in and of itself, the idea behind MacBeth’s praying through coloring does have a contemplative spirituality premise. On MacBeth’s website, she gives 8 reasons to color while praying:
1) You want to pray but words escape you.In Sybil MacBeth’s book, Praying in Color: Drawing a New Path to God, the book is endorsed on the back cover by emergent writer Phyllis Tickle (a colleague of Brian McLaren). In that book, MacBeth speaks frequently about the contemplative practice called lectio divina, a meditative practice. With Tickle’s endorsement and the promotion of contemplative practices, we must question what MacBeth’s “new path” to God is. A look at the endnotes in the book may provide an answer to that question. She cites Thomas Merton (panentheistic contemplative Catholic monk), Parker Palmer (New Age sympathizer), and Tony Jones (contemplative emergent leader).
2) Sitting still and staying focused in prayer are a challenge.
3) Your body wants to be part of your prayer.
4) You want to just hang out with God but don’t know how.
5) Listening to God feels like an impossible task .
6) Your mind wanders and your body complains.
7) You want a visual, concrete way to pray.
8) You Need a new way to pray.
In a 2015 Religious News Service article titled “Coloring books for grown-ups: Calming — but a spiritual practice?,” it states:
Alison Gary used to go to church on Sunday mornings, but lately she’s embraced a different ritual: staying home and coloring with her 6-year-old daughter, Emerson. . . . “Emerson and I color almost every Sunday morning,” Gary said, while her husband, a yoga teacher, cooks and listens to music. “I let my mind let go, and I feel more connected to the world, more centered. . . . Gary is not the only grown-up rediscovering the contemplative joys of what once was considered a childish pastime. . . . Many books feature circular mandalas and Zen patterns, as well as mystical peacocks. . . . While adult coloring is mostly being marketed as a balm for the stress of modern life, many fans, like Gary, also describe it in spiritual terms.Praying in color or adult coloring books is another deceptive scheme of the enemy to get people to enter the dangerous contemplative silence that is rooted in New Age style meditation.
Which raises the obvious question: Can coloring seriously be considered a spiritual practice? Some may scoff, but “it can become more than just coloring, if you want it to,” said Sybil MacBeth, author of the 2007 book “Praying in Color.” . . . MacBeth shares techniques to “incorporate the intention of prayer into coloring,” by doodling names of people or events, and intercessory requests such as healing and peace. MacBeth, a “dancer, doodler and former community college math professor” married to a retired Episcopal priest, believes coloring and doodling can be powerful prayer practices — a revelation she stumbled upon by accident. (source)
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Sybil MacBeth: I Get Still By Moving
republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, and research purposes:
Sybil MacBeth is a dancer, a doodler, and a former community college mathematics professor. When she moved to Memphis in 2004, author Phyllis Tickle nudged Sybil to write about her prayer frustrations and the visual and active prayer practice she developed as the result of them. She now combines her experience in the mathematics classroom with her lifelong love of prayer to offer workshops that engage differing learning styles. As the author of Praying in Color Drawing a New Path to God, she has lead over 100 workshops and retreats. 
“I use this prayer involving art as a form of meditation to get still. I write the word ‘God’ or ‘Holy Spirit’ on a piece of paper. I start drawing and it invites my body into the prayer. I like to move and I’ve discovered that I get still by moving … even if it’s just moving my hand along the paper. It helps me get still on the inside because the body is no longer a distraction.” ~Sybil MacBeth
Sybil is also the author of Praying in Color Kids’ Edition. Her latest book is a Praying in Black and White: A Hands-On Practice for Men, a collaborative effort with her Episcopal priest husband, Andy MacBeth.Praying in Color has been translated into Korean, Spanish, and Italian.
She encourages others to embrace their creativity by saying, “Sometimes your boundaries are your freedom. Use the boundary as a starting off point. Choose to only draw circles. Or restrict your doodle to circles and lines and see what happens. That way you don’t have this whole big paper staring at you — those restrictions can allow you to be free.”
Sybil uses the arts as a pathway for building community and deepening her relationship with God. She is a life-long dancer. Sybil studied ballet and modern dance and performed with various regional dance groups. She currently dances with an improv dance group.
She commented, “Sometimes you become an expert by being a chronic novice — always willing to learn and willing to continue to grow.”
Sybil’s experience includes:
- Artist-in-Residence Memphis Theological Seminary 2010-2011.
- Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Tidewater Community College in Virginia Beach from 1991 to 2004.
- Graduated from Randolph-Macon College with a B.S. in Mathematics and College of William and Mary with an. M.S. in Mathematics.
She lives in Memphis, TN with her husband, Andy, an Episcopal priest. Sybil is the mother of two adult sons.
Find out more about Sybil, her books and workshops at www.prayingincolor.com.
Listen each Wednesday at 9am Eastern on Empower Radio to hear another artist’s story. Share your art and your comments on the Art as Worship Facebook page. Namaste!
CLAIMS THAT DOODLING WILL HELP YOU HEAR FROM GOD
Religion Book Review: Praying in Color:
"Drawing a New Path to God"
AT A JEWISH HOMESCHOOL:
APPLICABLE TO "WHOEVER YOU'RE GOD MAY BE"?
ADULTS ALSO DRAWN INTO MYSTICAL CHANTS WHILE COLORING?
SINGING THE UNBIBLICAL "GATHERING CHANT"
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“I Could Tell You About Phyllis Tickle…But I Won’t.”
SEE: http://prayingincolor.com/i-could-tell-you-about-phyllis-tickle-but-i-wont; republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, and research purposes:
Phyllis Tickle–author, religionist, scholar, Christian, mother, wife, and friend– died on Tuesday, September 22. As one of Phyllis Tickle’s 1500 (or maybe even 15,000) best friends I have unique experiences and stories to share–as do all of her other 14,999 close friends. She loved both lavishly and deeply and personally. So here are a few teasers from my treasure chest of Phyllis stories. The format I’ll use is:
“I could tell you about ______________, but I won’t.” *
- I could tell you about emailing Phyllis to tell her about our potential move to Memphis in 2004 and her generous three-page response with the history of the city… but I won’t.
- I could tell you about how I showed my notebook of doodled prayers to Phyllis at our first lunch together in Memphis and she said, “You’re going to write a book.”
- I could tell you about not having had a mentor at age 15 or 25 or 35…or until 55 when Phyllis became one for me.
- I could tell you about how Phyllis mothered me through the process of writing Praying in Color.
- I could tell you about the instructions she gave me to get rid of the Imposter Syndrome when I felt like a loser and thought I had no business writing a book.
- I could tell you about my husband Andy and me going to the Farm at Lucy (her home) for 4:30pm dinners so she could be in bed by 7pm.
- I could tell you about how her husband Sam kicked her out of the kitchen when he retired saying, “I never liked your cooking anyway,” and cooked the meals from then on.
- I could tell you about eating Sam’s weird concoctions of squash and tomatoes and okra from their garden on the Farm.
- I could tell you about the hundreds of books on the shelves in Lucy that have dedications and acknowledgments to Phyllis Tickle written in them.
- I could tell you about how every time I look at my dining room table I picture Phyllis and Sam seated there for a dozen Christmas, Easter, and Birthday dinners.
- I could tell you about substituting portobello mushrooms for ground lamb in a classic moussaka recipe so vegetarian Phyllis could eat it.
- I could tell you about how she would read any manuscript sent to her and respond to every email and text.
- I could tell you about our visit with Phyllis in late April at the Farm and the strawberries, glasses of sparkling water and wine, and goodbye kisses that (unknown to us at the time) would be our last ones with her.
- I could tell you about how she emailed Andy and me the following day to say she hadn’t wanted to ruin our visit with the news that she had only four months to live.
- I could tell you about our shock at the news because she looked so vital and radiant when we saw her.
- I could tell you about a woman who was unafraid to die because she had done that in her 20’s and had seen the Light.
- I could tell you about the first ever unanswered text and prayer I sent to Phyllis on September 19.
- I could tell you about how infinitely grateful I am that she shared herself and her wisdom with so many of us in her four-score and one years.
- I could tell you about how different my life would be without Phyllis Tickle in it.
- I could tell you about how I am less afraid to die knowing that Sam and Phyllis have preceded me into the Kingdom of Heaven… but I won’t.
* For about 15 years I have been an InterPlayer. InterPlay, founded by Cynthia Winton-Henry and Phil Porter, is a set of playful practices and structures/forms that build community and reunite us with the wisdom of our bodies and our stories. One of those forms is called “I could tell you about…but I won’t.” It’s a great way to tell a story or relay information and not bore the listener with too many details.
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"The Great Emergence" by Phyllis Tickle
WHO THINKS THE REFORMATION IS OVER
WHO IS PHYLLIS TICKLE?
SEE: http://apprising.org/2008/09/30/who-is-phyllis-tickle/; republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, and research purposes:
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. (2 Timothy 4:3-4, NASB)
Phyllis, Will You Please Tickle Our Ears…
In “The Great Emergence: A Reformation Every 500 Years” Roger Oakland of Understanding the Timestells us, “Phyllis Tickle is a best-selling author and the founding editor of the religion department atPublishers Weekly. She is also a friend of the emerging church.” Ah, but these days who isn’t, eh.
From the Lighthouse… also points out:
In the fall of 2008, Baker Books (through their partnership with Emergent Village-Emersion Books) will release Tickle’s book called The Great Emergence. The following description of the book confirms Tickle’s allegiance to emerging spirituality:[I]ntended to provide a practical, positive vision of the church as it steps into the future. Tickle says the book will discuss the development of the emerging church, what she calls the “Great Emergence,” placing it among the other great phenomena in the history of Christianity, including the Great Schism and the Great Reformation. “Every 500 years,” Tickle said, “the empowered structures of institutionalized Christianity, whatever they may be, become an intolerable carapace that must be shattered so that renewal and growth may occur. Now is such a time.”2In a PBS interview, Tickle referred to this “[e]very 500 years” theory and said, “the church has a giant rummage sale.” She said, “Christianity is in the midst of a new reformation that will radically remake the faith.”3 At the Joint Annual Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL) where Tickle and McLaren shared a platform, one participant noted that, “[Tickle said] Brian McLaren is to this new reformation what Martin Luther was to the Protestant Reformation.”4 (source)
You know, as fast as evangelicalism is apostatizing before our eyes Tickle might just be right after all about the awful impact of Emergence Christianity Swami Brian McLaren; though what McLaren’s likely to bring about would be better stated in emergence-ese: De-reformation. But this would all seem to explain why at the Emergent Village website in a post called “Phyllis Tickle To Write Book For Baker/Emersion” we’re informed that:
Phyllis Tickle, founding editor of the religion department at Publishers Weekly, will write a book on emerging Christianity for Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing Group. The book, whose current working title is The Great Emergence, will be the seventh in Baker’s ēmersion series, a partnership between Baker Books and Emergent Village, intended to provide a practical, positive vision of the church as it steps into the future. (Online source)
And in that same post quasi-universalist Emergent Church pastor Doug Pagitt also lavishes his high praise for Tickle and her book The Great Emergence (TGE):
“Phyllis Tickle is the best friend the emergent movement could ever have,” said Doug Pagitt, series editor for ēmersion. “She’s a keen observer of the American church scene. She’s also gracious and wise. Her books, from The Divine Hours to her memoirs, are essential reading. We look forward to the release of The Great Emergence with much anticipation.” (ibid.)
Over at his website Pagitt then encouraged us “to attend The Great Emergence Event December 5-6 in Memphis. It is going to be an excellent event”. As we follow the link to The Great Emergence Event(TGEE) we’re enlightened:
‘The Great Emergence’ refers to a monumental phenomenon in our world, and this book asks three questions about it. Or looked at the other way around, this book is about a monumental phenomenon considered from the perspective of three very basic questions: What is this thing? How did it come to be? Where is it going?”So begins Phyllis Tickle’s extraordinary new book, The Great Emergence: How Christianity Is Changing and Why. In this much-anticipated book, Tickle brings her encyclopedic knowledge of American religion to bear on the current shifts in the Christian landscape. Paired with her Southern wit and charm, The Great Emergence promises to be the bellwether book in emerging Christianity.The Great Emergence National Event is a unique and freshly designed event built on innovative adult learning techniques including interaction, participation, and inspiring content on the current state of and future possibilities for Christianity. Around the four main sessions with Phyllis Tickle, participants will also enjoy the daily office—thrice daily times of prayer—based on Phyllis Tickle’s bestselling book, The Divine Hours, in the majestic and historic Cathedral of St. Mary in Memphis, Tennessee, which will be bedecked with Advent greenery. (Online source)
So quite obviously there’s no little excitement around Emerging Church circles about Phyllis Tickle, as well as her aforementioned book, poised as they are to tell these fickle folk what they want to hear. Please keep in mind this piece is not designed to be exhaustive, but rather, is simply pointing you to some information in order to introduce you to Tickle. For more detailed coverage of Phyllis Tickle, who is essentially the Empress of Emergence, Apprising Ministries refers you to “See also” below.
But here you can see for yourselves that not a few of Tickle’s associations are, at best, rather questionable. We’ve already noted that Emerging Church Pastor Doug Pagitt lavishes his high praise for Tickle and her book TGE. In Christianity 21: Emerging Voices Of A Pseudo-Christian Faith you’ll see that Tickle is among the 21 women “voices” that Pagitt, and his “theologian in residence” Tony Jones excitedly inform us are going to be revealing “the way the Christianity will be changing in coming days”.
Then at her website we read the following endorsement from an apostate Episcopal “Bishop and Primate”:
“Phyllis Tickle offers a creative and provocative overview of multiple social and cultural changes in our era, their relation to previous major paradigm shifts, and their particular impact on North American Christianity. This is an immensely important contribution to the current conversation about new and emerging forms of Christianity in a post-modern environment—and a delight to read!”
—The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori,
Presiding Bishop and Primate,
The Episcopal Church (Online source)
Scratching The Surface Of Tickle’s Quite Questionable Spiritual Associations
Next, in Tickle’s “About” section we’re informed that Phyllis Tickle is:
founding editor of the Religion Department of PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, the international journal of the book industry, is frequently quoted in sources like USA TODAY, CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR, NY TIMES, as well as in electronic media like PBS, NPR, THE HALLMARK CHANNEL, etc., Tickle is an authority on religion in America and a much sought after lecturer on the subject… Tickle is currently a Senior Fellow of Cathedral College of the Washington National Cathedral. A founding member of The Canterbury Roundtable, she serves now, as she has in the past, on a number of advisory and corporate boards. A lay eucharistic minister and lector in the Episcopal Church,… (Online source)
We note first that Tickle’s “currently a Senior Fellow of Cathedral College of the Washington National Cathedral” (WNC). The WNC website gives us some background concerning its “interfaith” message:
Washington National Cathedral is a church for national purposes called to embody God’s love and to welcome people of all faiths and perspectives. A unique blend of the spiritual and the civic, this Episcopal Cathedral is a voice for generous-spirited Christianity and a catalyst for reconciliation and interfaith dialogue to promote respect and understanding. We invite all people to share in our commitment to create a more hopeful and just world. (Online source)
Following the link to the Cathedral College (CC) we see that CC is indeed an extention of that spiritual blackhole of postliberal theology aka “Progressive Christianity” known as WNC:
For almost 80 years, the Cathedral College has served as the pre-eminent center of continuing education dedicated to strengthening and sustaining those called to ministries of proclamation. (Online source)
The what of this “proclamation” is our concern. The WNC website also gives us the lowdown on their sacred circles, labyrinth, and Center for Prayer and Pilgrimage; where, but of course, we can learn more about “Prayer and Contemplation,” which is referring to Contemplative/Centering Prayer:
The Center for Prayer and Pilgrimage invites you to explore its diverse offerings of spiritual growth through communities gathered in prayer, devotional practices, and reflection. Except as noted, gatherings meet in the center, located on the crypt level of the Cathedral and accessible through the Visitor’s Center or Resurrection Chapel.
Benedictine Life and Prayer
Mondays, 6 pm in the CCPP
Explore the principles of living a balanced life, and learn more about the ecumenical cathedral-based Community of Reconciliation. Each gathering concludes with Centering Prayer.Centering Prayer
Tuesdays, 6–7 pm; Wednesdays, 8–8:30 am
Open your entire being to God’s presence during this time of silent prayer as you move beyond thoughts, words and emotions into a quiet communion with the Divine. The Tuesday sessions include a time for teaching and discussion.Christian Meditation: Silence, Stillness, Simplicity
Fourth Saturdays, 10–11 am
Experience a rhythm of contemplative prayer that includes a reading from one of the great contemplatives, a period of silent meditation, and time for sharing and reflection.
(Online source)
Frankly, there’s just too much spiritual chicanery going on in the Cathedral of Compromise for me to even share here. Returning more specifically to Phyllis Tickle we find even more questionable associations under the “RELATED ACTIVITIES/CURRENT” of her resume. Not the least of which was her being part of “Board of Advisors, The Mary Baker Eddy Library, emerita”. For those who may not know Mary Baker Eddy was the founder of the non-Christian cult of Christian Science, which was neither Christian nor science striking out on both accounts.
As one trained in counter-cult evangelism I would have to say that this is certainly a rather odd association for a Christian and one which is certainly not in line with 2 Corinthians 6:14-15. So being charitable my guess is Tickle also, at least, adheres to the postliberal/progressive theology spewed at WNC. This would also seem to be further confirmed from one other thing found in the RELATED ACTIVITIES/CURRENT section of Tickle’s resume. Without a doubt her involvement on the “Editorial Board” at Explore Faith (EF) is a smoking gun of spurious spirituality.
From the “About Us” section website of EF we meet the rest of this Editorial Board and among them we see a champion of the postliberal “Progessive Christianity” scholar Marcus Borg, whom some tout as aLiving Spiritual Teacher. In the AM post Marcus Borg Vs. Jesus you’ll clearly see by his own words that he has about as much affinity with the genuine Christian faith as I do with Buddhism. And as we check out who’s listed among their “Saints, Prophets and Spiritual Guides” we have very serious reason to question just what kind of “faith” it is that we’re exploring here:
On the following pages, explorefaith.org offers a subjective look at some of the spiritual teachers who have shaped our lives. These essays are by no means comprehensive. Numerous Web Sites catalogue different saints and spiritual guides in great detail (and we will provide links to a few of the best).Our coverage is intended to show what these people can mean to us now, how they can help us envision new realties in which a relationship with God is the core from which all thoughts and actions spread. Here our explorefaith writers have mused about the spiritual teachers in their lives who continue to give them guidance and help them discover new avenues of devotion deep within. It is our hope that their essays may kindle thoughts of those spiritual teachers who have molded your life, and perhaps spur you to explore a few you might not have known. (Online source)
Men and women, the “spiritual teachers” listed there who supposedly “can help us envision new realities” literally reads like a who’s who of unregenerate pagans such as Guru Ram Dass, Buddhist Master Thich Nhat Hahn, the Sufi Muslim Rumi, and heretical so-called “Christian” mystics like Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Avila and Thomas Merton. This is in line with the following stupid statement from another darling of Emergence—Rob Bell—which we covered in Through Rob Bell “The Great Enlightened Ones” Tell Us Man Has Divine Greatness:
It’s interesting how many traditions (pause) When you read the great enlightened ones; meditation, centering prayer, reflection—in every tradition you can find the mystics—and what’s always at the heart of the spiritual lives, the everyday lives of the great ones was always a period of time.Whether it’s prayers, chanting, meditation, reflection, study—whatever you call it—what is it essentially; it’s taking time to breathe. Because when you’ve been breathing, (slight pause) in a proper sort of way, you’re far better equipped to handle what life throws your way. (I will say it again, and again, and again, 5:41-6:23)
So as we now think back to where we began with this article, we remember Doug Pagitt telling us that “Phyllis Tickle is the best friend the emergent movement could ever have”; and also, Tony Jones and his pastor Pagitt telling us Tickle is among those “most important voices for the future” that will supposedly “shape the future of our faith.” Well, I find myself wondering: Just what kind of faith is it that Phyllis Tickle has these folks and their Emergent/ing/ence Church (same spiritual sewer) so excited about; because it most certainly isn’t the historic orthodox Christian faith.
See also:
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ALSO SEE ALL OUR POSTS WHICH REFERENCE PHYLLIS TICKLE BY USING THE SEARCH TOOL.
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CATHOLIC/ANGLICAN ADELYNROOD RETREAT IN JUNE
(LABYRINTH ECSTASY ABOVE)
http://www.adelynrood.org/labyrinth-2/
http://prayingincolor.com/adelynrood-retreat-in-june
Adelynrood is a conference and retreat center in the woods of Byfield, MA north of Boston. It was started about a hundred years ago by the Society of the Companions of the Holy Cross. The “companions” are a group of women all around the world who commit their individual lives (wherever they live) to a Rule of Intercessory Prayer, Thanksgiving and Simplicity of Life. Their prayer goals include “the Unity of all God’s People, God’s Mission in the World, and Social Justice.”
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Our Children – The Primary Target
of the New Age One-World Religion
FROM LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS RESEARCH:
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/newsletters/2015/newsletter20151019.htm; republished below in full unedited for informational, educational,
and research purposes:
By Berit Kjos
(From her new release, How to Protect Your Child From the New Age & Spiritual Deception)
(From her new release, How to Protect Your Child From the New Age & Spiritual Deception)
He alone, who owns the youth, gains the Future!1—Adolph Hitler
The traditional Christian family has been a continual obstacle to the globalist vision of solidarity. . . . the United Nations and its mental health gurus have fought hard to eradicate those old “poisonous certainties” that stood in their way. . . . The results can be disastrous. Students trained to scorn God’s guidelines and conform to the crowd are . . . soon driven by evolving new notions that undermine all truth and certainty. 2—Carl Teichrib (research journalist)
A counterfeit hope surges through our society today: We can do it! We can re-create the earth and complete the evolutionary process. When we eliminate national and spiritual barriers, we will be one. By becoming a part of the “cosmic” stream of consciousness around the world, we can become a superrace, the true global family of God.
The seeds of this utopian dream were sown by John Dewey. Nurtured by the warm friendship between humanist NEA and UNESCO, one-worldism sank its roots deep into every level of public education. The late Dr. Robert Muller, former Under-Secretary of the United Nation’s Economic and Social Council, unmasked the movement’s spiritual nature in his book on global education, New Genesis: Shaping a Global Spirituality:
On a universal scale, humankind is seeking no less than its reunion with the “divine,” its transcendence into ever higher forms of life. Hindus call our earth Brahma, or God, for they rightly see no difference between our earth and the divine. This ancient simple truth is slowly dawning again upon humanity . . . as we are about to enter our cosmic age and to become what we were always meant to be: the planet of God.3
To “evolving” New Agers, the end goal of global oneness justifies any questionable ways or means. It is not surprising then to find classrooms teaching steps and carrying out curricula that work toward fulfilling this lofty vision. The formula that substitutes counterfeit values for God’s wisdom can also change the world: crush the old; then out of the ashes will rise a new earth—a world free from guilt, fear, oppression, and poverty. The time is ripe to buy the lie.
This transformation has vastly accelerated as millions around the globe await the New Age/New Spirituality world of harmony, love, and oneness—a world of evolved god-men all following the wisdom of Self. Discernment Research Group at the Herescope blog explains the crucial role that education (the transformation of it) plays in bringing this new world to the forefront:
Education is a key vehicle to implement Robert Muller’s “vision” for a New Age. . . . [Muller’s] education curriculum served as a spiritual and political model, based on the metaphysical beliefs of Theosophy, for education reform in the United States and around the world. Muller’s spiritual framework was particularly appealing to globalists and futurists, many of whom were the architects of the transformation of education.4
A New World Religion
To inspire a consciousness explosion, many New Age leaders are determined to win a critical mass of minds. Children will be the prime target of the “missionary” efforts, and schools their greatest battlefield.
William Bennett exposes this ominous blend of public school curriculum, New Age spirituality, and cosmic dreams:
Another legacy from the Age of Aquarius that has been enshrined in too many of our social studies curricula is a disturbing anti-rational bias. Curriculum guides for . . . global education are shot through with calls for “raised consciousness,” for students and teachers to view themselves “as passengers on a small cosmic spaceship,” for classroom activities involving “intuiting,” “imaging,” or “visioning” a “preferred future.”
Two proponents of such curricula have offered a candid caution: “These exercises may seem dangerous to your logical thought patterns. For best results, suspend your judging skills and prepare to accept ideas that seem silly and/or impractical.” Well, if we’re going to give up critical judgment, we’d better give up the game of education altogether.5
While “raised consciousness” and “visioning” sound too mystical for admission into many schools, a new form of religious education does not. Teaching about the major world religions such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity, the curricula emphasize the universal “truths” and historical values of each. That sounds fair and innocuous, until we remember that New Age globalism calls for a one-world religion—a persuasive union of all supposed paths to eternal life. Since biblical Christianity doesn’t fit the formula, some of these courses have—in the hands of “progressive” teachers—become a platform for criticizing Christian exclusiveness and promoting Eastern meditation. Speaking to many of the world’s religious and political leaders, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie, articulated this New Age formula for spiritual oneness in a global community. Notice the apologetic and compromising version of “Christianity”:
Behind [this resurgence of religions] lies a widespread pessimism about the future of humankind, and unsatisfied longing for alternative paths to salvation.
All the centuries that the Spirit of God had been working in Christians, He must also have been working in Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, and all the others. . . . This will mean that some claims about the exclusiveness of the Church will have to be renounced.6
In April of 1988, representatives of Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism met with political leaders from over forty nations to “solve” the world’s problems. This Global Conference of Spiritual and Parliamentary Leaders on Human Survival was sponsored by the Temple of Understanding, a global interfaith organization, which was founded with the support of such dignitaries as the Dalai Lama, Indian Prime Minister Nehru, Eleanor Roosevelt, Popes John XXIII and Paul VI. The Temple is an inveritable “hotbed of international dialogue and outright promotion of Eastern mysticism,” working in a “consultive status” with the United Nations and offering interfaith programs for youth. Guest speakers have included such New Age advocates as Donald Keys, David Spangler, and Benjamin Creme (who has heralded the coming of Lord Maitreya, “The Christ,” for many years).7
For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. (Matthew 24:24)
Just to show you what really lies behind the New Age plan for a coming “Christ,” listen to Benjamin Creme describe this “Messiah”:
In the esoteric tradition, the Christ is not the name of an individual but of an Office in the Hierarchy. The present holder of that Office, the Lord Maitreya, has held it for 2,600 years, and manifested in Palestine through His Disciple, Jesus, by the occult method of overshadowing, the most frequent form used for the manifestation of Avatars. He has never left the world, but for 2,000 years has waited and planned for this immediate future time, training His Disciples, and preparing Himself for the awesome task which awaits Him. He has made it known that this time, He Himself will come.8
The Bible tells us that one day, a man will come on the scene who will proclaim himself to be God and will demand that all of humanity worship him. Children throughout the world are being conditioned to accept him even now.
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4)
The “Sin of Separateness”
Because unity is essential for creating a critical mass, many New Age leaders join in condemning the hindering influence of the church. Their objection? Its “negative energy” blocks the envisioned, long-anticipated evolutionary breakthrough. As you have seen, this belief has filtered into the classroom.
Thus, anyone who follows God becomes guilty of the only sins in the New Age: unbelief and separateness. Christians who refuse to share the global vision and join the evolutionary march will reap persecution as Scripture indicates (e.g., 2 Timothy 3:12). For Satan, the counterfeit angel of light, hates all who shine the true light of Christ into the world. The New Age book Spiritual Politics lays out the plan for the “Age of Aquarius” where all are united and all believe they are God. Unity among all humanity will be essential and non-negotiable, they believe, for this global unification and divinity realized to take place:
According to Ageless Wisdom, there really is only one sin—separateness. In the early years of World War II, Alice Bailey noted that we will achieve peace in the world only after we first create unity. . . . The persistence of war is more likely to spring from rampant nationalism, ethnocentrism, and intolerant religious fundamentalism–all extreme and separative attitudes.9
God is not surprised at this diabolical deception. Long ago, He warned us that the Antichrist would one day rule the world and persecute Christians:
And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. (Revelation 13:7-8)
Meanwhile, God calls us to remain separate. As His holy people, we cannot join the forces of the Antichrist:
Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? . . . And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate. (2 Corinthians 6:14-17)
Since our children belong to God, He takes care of them. If they have to share in some of the persecution, He will be with them to protect, shield, and render unto them spiritual compensations that far exceed their physical suffering. Let Him encourage your family with these words:
Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. . . . fear not, neither be dismayed. (Deuteronomy 31:6, 8)
While world leaders seek “helpful” religions that serve their purposes, our gracious, almighty, and omnipotent Lord watches over those who have wholly put their trust in Him. Refusing to compromise, they walk the narrow road—but never alone. Their Shepherd walks with them no matter how rocky the road or lonely the miles.
Like His faithful pilgrims through the ages, they know Whom to thank whether their days are filled with sunshine or rain, and freedom or restraints. Trusting His love and His faithfulness, they praise Him for His strength through life’s storms and for peace amidst problems. For He has promised never to leave them. So “in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us” (Romans 8:37).
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)
Our children are not immune to the world’s messages. They hear the same tempting voices, the same “positive affirmations” that others hear and follow. Concerned about their spiritual safety, our Shepherd reminds them:
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. (Romans 12:2-3)
Unless we help our children build a mental framework and filter based on biblical truth, the world’s philosophies will squeeze them into its mold. Therefore, it is essential that they see God as the only ultimate source of wisdom, power, and triumph.
The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. (Psalm 18:2-3)
(Extract from Berit Kjos’ new release, How to Protect Your Child From the New Age & Spiritual Deception – chapter 7.)
Notes:
1. Adolf Hitler speech at the Reichsparteitag, 1935 (can listen on www.youtube.com).
2. Carl Teichrib, “Education for a New World” (Kjos Ministries website, http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/forcing-change/12/8-education.htm).
3. Robert Muller, New Genesis: Shaping a Global Spirituality (New York, NY: Doubleday and Co., 1982), p. 49.
4. “Muller’s Plan for a World Spiritual Renaissance & Education” (Herescope Blog, Discernment Research Group, October 30, 2005, http://herescope.blogspot.com/2005/10/mullers-plan-for-world-spiritual.html).
5. Raymond English, Teaching International Politics in High School (University Press of America, 1989), p. 9, citing William Bennett.
6. “An Emerging Coalition: Political and Religious Leaders Come Together,” A Special Report (North Bay, ON: The Omega Letter, November 1988), p. 2, citing Robert Runcie.
7. Ibid., p. 3.
8. Warren B. Smith, False Christ Coming: Does Anybody Care? (Magalia, CA: Mountain Stream Press, 2011), p. 47, quoting Benjamin Creme in The Reappearance of the Christ and the Masters of Wisdom (North Hollywood, CA: The Tara Press, 1980), p. 30.
9. Corinne McLaughlin and Gordon Davidson, Spiritual Politics (New York, NY: Ballantine Books, 1994), p. 147.
1. Adolf Hitler speech at the Reichsparteitag, 1935 (can listen on www.youtube.com).
2. Carl Teichrib, “Education for a New World” (Kjos Ministries website, http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/forcing-change/12/8-education.htm).
3. Robert Muller, New Genesis: Shaping a Global Spirituality (New York, NY: Doubleday and Co., 1982), p. 49.
4. “Muller’s Plan for a World Spiritual Renaissance & Education” (Herescope Blog, Discernment Research Group, October 30, 2005, http://herescope.blogspot.com/2005/10/mullers-plan-for-world-spiritual.html).
5. Raymond English, Teaching International Politics in High School (University Press of America, 1989), p. 9, citing William Bennett.
6. “An Emerging Coalition: Political and Religious Leaders Come Together,” A Special Report (North Bay, ON: The Omega Letter, November 1988), p. 2, citing Robert Runcie.
7. Ibid., p. 3.
8. Warren B. Smith, False Christ Coming: Does Anybody Care? (Magalia, CA: Mountain Stream Press, 2011), p. 47, quoting Benjamin Creme in The Reappearance of the Christ and the Masters of Wisdom (North Hollywood, CA: The Tara Press, 1980), p. 30.
9. Corinne McLaughlin and Gordon Davidson, Spiritual Politics (New York, NY: Ballantine Books, 1994), p. 147.
