New Age

New Age describes a broad movement of late twentieth century and contemporary Western culture characterised by an individual eclectic approach to spiritual exploration. It has some attributes of a new, emerging religion but is currently a loose network of spiritual seekers, teachers, healers and other participants. The name "New Age" also refers to the market segment in which goods and services are sold to people in the movement.

Critiques of the New Age

Major critiques of the New Age have emerged from rational philosophical and scientific views that seek to understand the nature of New Age notions. These often highlight the discrepancies between New Age's seemingly irreconcilable mix of occultism and acceptance of the laws of physics. Rather more extreme views have emerged from evangelical Christians who reject all forms of occultism; from skeptics suspicious of paranormal claims and woolly beliefs in general; and from New Agers themselves. Some, including neo-pagans, who are frequently labeled as New Age, might find the term inappropriate since it appears to link them with beliefs and practices they do not espouse. Others think that the classification of beliefs and movements under New Age has little added value due to the vagueness of the term. Instead, they prefer to refer directly to the individual beliefs and movements. Indeed, use by religious conservatives, scientists and others has caused the term "New Age" to sometimes have a derogatory connotation.

Related Topics:
Evangelical - Occultism - Skeptics - Paranormal - Neo-pagans

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Many adherents of traditional disciplines from cultures such as India, China, and elsewhere; a number of orthodox schools of Yoga, Qigong, Chinese Medicine, and martial arts (the traditional Taijiquan families, for example), groups with histories reaching back many centuries in some cases, eschew the Western label New Age, seeing the movement it represents as either not fully understanding or deliberately trivializing their disciplines.

Related Topics:
India - China - Orthodox - Yoga - Qigong - Chinese Medicine - Martial arts - Taijiquan

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

New Age detractors also say that a true understanding of reason and empiricism produces just as rich an experience as the New Agers claim for themselves, but with emotions and feelings based on thinking and logic instead of the other way around. They also point out that the definition of empiricism is: "the view that experience, especially of the senses, is the only source of knowledge."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Much of the strongest criticism of New Age eclecticism has come from Native American writers and communities. The Declaration of War Against Exploiters of Lakota Spirituality http://puffin.creighton.edu/lakota/war.html is one of the strongest statements of disapprobrium from traditional tribal religious leaders. Other Natives who have issued statements against "white shamanism" include Wendy Rose, Leslie Marmon Silko and Geary Hobson. The Native argument is that New Age shamans profit from tribal beliefs in a way that is fundamentally inconsistent with those beliefs, while ignoring the communal aspects of tribal religious belief and practise.

Related Topics:
Native American - Declaration of War Against Exploiters of Lakota Spirituality - Wendy Rose - Leslie Marmon Silko - Shaman - Communal

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~