Friday, January 25, 2008
FROM SWEDENBORG TO NEW THOUGHT AND BEYOND
Yesterday I demonstrated the transmission of thought from the Sabbateans to Emmanuel Swedenborg. Today I want to bring it forward to contemporary society.
An article at the Spirituality Information website discusses the history of New Thought. The article lists the names of those who "figured prominently in the history of the New Thought Movement". Emanuel Swedenborg is on the list.
New Thought churches include Divine Science, Religious Science, the Universal Foundation for Better Living, and "the largest of the new thought organizations is the Unity Church. One has been left off--the Swedenborgian Church.
The Bayside Swedenborgian Church in Bayside, New York offers the writings of Emmanuel Swedenborg on their website. For example, here is the title page of Swedenborg's "Amore Conjugiali".
Another article in the Bayside website titled "Warren F. Evans, Emanuel Swedenborg, and the Creation of New Thought" by Arlene M. Sanchez Walsh, tells us:
When Warren Felt Evans established his healing ministry and writing career in 1867 in Claremont, New Hampshire, the formalized exposition of New Thought began. For the next twenty years, Evans formulated a theology from the teachings of his healer, Phineas Quimby, and from the theology of Emanuel Swedenborg. This study explores Evans' creation of New Thought by his use of elements of mind-cure and Swedenborgianism. Under his direction, New Thought, which began as a therapeutic art, became an esoteric religion. The desire to escape the dogmatic and formalistic nature of Protestantism served as one of Evans's chief concerns in creating such an eclectic faith.
The article on "New Thought" linked above indicates the "Contemporary Leaders" of New Thought include Dr. Wayne Dyer, Deepak Chopra, Neal Donald Walsch, Terry Cole-Whittaker, and Rev. Dr. Michael Beckwith". It also tells us that "The Secret" "touches several core philosophies found in New Thought". The website of Kjos Ministries offers a page on "New Thought, Sweedenborg & Science of Mind" that mentions Oprah Winfrey, another contemporary promoter of New Thought. Notice the quote there, "Swedenborg expounded on many elements of the Bible....New Thought would also create new interpretations of the Bible based on their own metaphysical assumptions."
An article at the Bayside Church website titled "Under the Influence: The Long Shadow of Emanuel Swedenborg" tells us
at Catholic University in Washington, D.C., Gregory R. Johnson will defend a dissertation that claims Swedenborg as a seminal influence on the philosopher [Kant]. He sees his project as building on the work of intellectual historians Eric Voegelin and Frances Yates, who argued that gnosticism and the hermetic tradition lingered beneath the surface of early-modern thought.
A book titled NEW THOUGHT, ANCIENT WISDOM, by Glenn R. Mosley "chronicles the history of the movement, beginning with the influences of Emanuel Swedenborg, Franz Mesmer, and more directly of Phineas Parkhurst Quimby."...The book concludes with a review of the World Parliament of Religions in Barcelona, Spain, July 2004. The book is published by Templeton Press.
The speakers list for the July 2005 conference "Science & Religion: Global Perspectives" includes Joanna Hill. Her bio indicates she is Director of Templeton Foundation Press. Prior to this position "She ran her own book design firm for seven years before working in religious publishing at the Jewish Publication Society and the Swedenborg Foundation. She launched the Templeton Foundation Press in 1997". Also on the speakers list is John Templeton, Jr., President of the John Templeton Foundation.
According to Media Transparency, the John Templeton Foundation has been a contributor to the Association of Unity Churches, to the tune of $3,509,971.
Review of a book by Sir John Templeton titled WHY ARE WE CREATED includes Swedenborg among those who have helped "to shed light on the possible connection between spiritual principles and human concepts".
Sir John Marks Templeton, "founder of the Templeton Mutual Funds and creator of the $1 million plus Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion" shared wisdom from his book WISDOM FROM WORLD RELIGIONS: PATHWAYS TOWARD HEAVEN ON EARTH, at the Glencairn Museum in Bryn Athyn. "Glencairn, the 10-story former home of devout Swedenborgians Raymond and Mildred Pitcairn..."
Templeton's biography is given at counterbalance.net. There we can learn that
Although he has been a Presbyterian elder active in his denomination and on the boards of Princeton Theological Seminary and the American Bible Society, he espouses a "humble approach" to theology. Declaring that relatively little is known about God through scripture and present-day theology, Templeton once predicted that "scientific revelations may be a goldmine for revitalizing religion in the 21st Century."...
Typical of Templeton's wide-lens view of spirituality and ethics, the dedicated Presbyterian admits to additional influence from the New Thought movements of Christian Science, Unity and Religious Science. Those metaphysical churches espouse a non-literal view of heaven and hell, and suggest a shared divinity between God and humanity. "We realize that our own divinity arises from something more than merely being 'God's children' or being 'made in his image,'" Templeton wrote.
At Wikipedia he is quoted as saying:
We are trying to persuade people that no human has yet grasped 1% of what can be known about spiritual realities. So we are encouraging people to start using the same methods of science that have been so productive in other areas, in order to discover spiritual realities.
—Sir John Templeton, Interview with Financial Intelligence Report
The Aether website provides an article that first appeared in "Wired", Issue 7.06, June 1999 according to the notation at the end of the article. Here are more quotes from Templeton and one from Charles Fillmore: "It is a sin to be poor". From the website:
Templeton, who was knighted in 1987, has devoted the main portion of his philanthropy to his interfaith, or, as he prefers, "open-minded" campaign for religious progress. To advertise the great importance of diverse religious traditions, he created the Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion, and to stress that spiritual accomplishments are worth more than secular ones, he makes sure the cash value of the prize is always higher than that of the Nobel. The first prize was awarded to Mother Teresa, in 1973 - six years before she was recognized by the Nobel committee - ...
"I have no quarrel with what I learned in the Presbyterian Church," he says. "I am still an enthusiastic Christian. But why shouldn't I try to learn more? Why shouldn't I go to Hindu services? Why shouldn't I go to Muslim services? If you are not egotistical, you will welcome the opportunity to learn more." With the same tone of irrefutable common sense that he must have brought to the clients of his investment-counseling company, Sir John suggests that a patient, highly diversified approach to religious truth will produce the best results over the long term.
That is a prescription for syncretism. And did you get it? It is "egotistical" to adhere to one religion. The article says further:
"We hope that there will be nothing that conflicts with anybody's religion or faith," answers Sir John in the neutral tone of an expert poker player. "We would never say a person's religion is not effective. We say, 'Would you be interested in something more effective?' We always put things in an optimistic, progressive perspective. 'Do you want to make your prayers more effective? Not that they are not effective, but do you want to help them become more effective?'"...
Most of the great evangelists of practical Christianity, from Ben Franklin to Norman Vincent Peale, have identified prosperity as an outward sign of grace. "Effective" religion teaches us how to do well in life and relieves us of the taint of preterition.
The prosperity gospel. What would Templeton have thought of those who do not do well? Would he agree with Charles Fillmore that "It is a sin to be poor?" Is that what Christianity is about? Would Templeton expect that those institutions for which he provided funding would follow his line of thinking?
What institutions has he funded? More significantly, what institutions within the Catholic orbit has he funded? How about Fr. Sirico's Acton Institute. According to Media Transparency Templeton provided $128,850. Acton won its third Templeton Freedom Award in 2007 which adds another $30,000 to the pot. Not a great amount, but not insignificant either.
