Lecture topic
New Age: Part II

last worked on: 11/29/95

NEW AGE:
Part II

Soc 257

New Religious Movements

Lecture Outline

• Introduction
• Toward Conceptualizing New Age
• Roots of New Age
• Health as the Integrating Core

Part IV
Health as the
Integrating Core of
New Age

Alternative Medicine Therapies

• Life-Style
• Botanical
• Manipulative/hands-on
• Mind over matter

Life-Style

• Macrobiotics
• Ayurvedic medicine
• Holistic medicine

Botanical

• Aromatherapy
• Medicanal herbalism
• Homeopathy

Manipulative/Hands-on

• Reflexology
• Rolfing
• Shiatsu
• Alexander technique
• Chiropractic
• Acupressure
• Aupuncture

Mind Over Matter

• Color healing
• Crystal healing
• Bioenergetic
• Guided imagery
• Hypnotherapy
• Biofeedback

Understanding Unconventional Healing Models

"One must seriously ask oneself whether superstition and myth, in the derogatory or non-scientific connotations of these words, are not due to our judging a given people from our conceptual standpoint, rather than theirs…When the trouple was taken to find their concepts, then it became evident that everything made sense and that their behavior and cultural norms followed as naturally and consistently from their particular categories of natural experience as ours do from our own."

F.S.C. Northrop

Russell Chandler on New Age Health:

• "Holistic health may be the mosty potent force to emerge from the New Age movement."
• I would go Chandler one step further and say that health is the central feature that ties everything in New Age together

Four models of healing

• Healing as miracle
• Modern Western medicine
• Holistic medicine
• Wholistic medicine

How does the mind/body relationship work?

natrual healing

Belief ---> "triggers" ---> powers within

the body

Belief ---> "triggers" ---> endorphins

Another look at impact of secularization

• The removal of culture and consciousness from domination by the sacred.
• The process necessarily has had the impact of eroding elements of the plausibility of traditional beliefs.
• A transfer of attention from other-worldly to this-worldly concerns has the impact of focusing attention on the self.
• My health and well-being becomes a central focus.

Health and faith in the 20th Century

• Much overlooked by historians of 20th century religion is a critical linkage between faith and health.
• In a profound sense, the project of faith has been the promotion of this-worldly well being.
• Every successful religion of the 20th century has promoted doctrines that fostered health (physical and/or mental)

Faith traditions and health

• Liberal Protestantism
• Christian Science
• Mormons
• Seventh Day Adventists
• Jehovah's Witnesses
• Fundamentalism
• Pentecostalism
• Scientology
• New Age

New Age salvation is this-worldly

• There are many paths to salvation
• All lead to this-worldly effects
  • Peace of mind
  • Positive self-image
  • Physical health
  • Personal empowerment
  • Enlightment/insight

Audio/video materials for use with lecture:

1. ET [last 17 mins]

2. UFOs - Joan Rivers [2:30] [89:10?]

3. Ophra & Shirley MacLaine [ ] Avanti 14

4. Biosphere [4 min]

5. Kundilina Yoga [ ] on Gods of the New Age tape

6. Aromatherapy [ ] 89:10

7. Motivational training [ ] w Ofshe/Drucker