Tag: #NewAgeReligion

The conscience clause

The conscience clause

You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. (James 4:4)

In today’s world, we are consistently asked to be tolerant of the beliefs of others. Unfortunately, tolerance seldom extends to those who have strong Christian beliefs. Instead, we are often told that Christianity is bigoted, intolerant, unloving, and discriminatory. Worse yet, Christians are consistently pushed to co-exist with other faiths. Even Pope Francis recently told a group of students that “all religions are a path to God.” I couldn’t disagree more.

Jesus said, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'” (John 14:6) I don’t know about you, but I will always heed Christ’s words before following anyone else’s guidance – even the Pope’s.

Jesus further instructed us to “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate, and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14)

In my last post, I expressed my thoughts regarding how challenging it is for me to be pushed into New Age practices, including guided meditation, yoga, and spiritual banter, including talk of energy transference and “listening to the land.” If my faith was not so strong, perhaps I could go along with and participate in any of these activities or discussions without it meaning anything to me. It is, therefore, I can’t. Of additional consideration is the all-consuming, participatory expectation of this environment.

Throughout my career, I’ve grown accustomed to corporate offerings residing on a different level than the one in which my faith exists. Social activism, DEI initiatives, CRT training, and all things Pride and LGBTQ+ have become the norm in every environment I’ve ever worked in. These ideals regularly exist as part of the secular culture in today’s world. The one big difference between my former workplaces and where I am now is that no one ever made such activities and thoughts a mandatory part of my work.

This company is different. I’ve come to understand that embracing the spirituality of my new employment is the “mission” – which is not something I can ever do. In fact, my boss just told me to invite every on-site employee to a somatic yoga session she’s hosting while our CEO is in town. She balked when I suggested making some of our maintenance team members optional. “If you make them optional, they won’t come,” she told me. “I want everyone there. You’re the only exception since you won’t be in town.” It couldn’t be any plainer than that.

Fortunately, my Christian ideals will not allow me to fake acceptance of this culture. Instead, it has become oppressive to me. I use the word “fortunate” to describe my position, as there is a comfort in knowing that my faith is mightier than my workplace survival instincts.

I don’t think in terms of gray regarding faith and spirituality – nor does the Word of God. The Ten Commandments are unflinching rules given to humanity by our Creator. They are not suggestions.

Ephesians 6:16 tells us to “take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” I’ve been under significant spiritual attack since accepting this job. The devil has been shooting arrows at me since I first considered this role. While I initially believed God wanted me to walk through this door, I now think it was the devil who opened it. He knows he can’t steal my salvation, but he has tampered with my joy. I’m in a great time of testing to stay patient and focused on my Savior – despite the demonic attacks that are plaguing me.

Tolerance is one of the deadliest arrows in Satan’s arsenal. He uses it to water down the Gospel and confuse those not entrenched in His word. After all, what could sound more aspirational than tolerance? Isn’t it something we should all seek? Won’t tolerance bring more souls to Christ?

I’m afraid not. You see, God’s Word is incontrovertible. It’s also hard, at times, and we don’t always understand it.

But that’s okay. God is God. His power, dominion, and sovereignty are irrefutable. We shouldn’t want Him to be more acceptable to us. Instead, we should continually strive to do all we can to honor and revere His authority over us and all creation.

God is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. That thought gives me comfort. I want assurance in knowing that my Heavenly Father controls everything. I’ll say it again: God is in control of everything. That means that since He created us, He also knows what’s best for us and loves us with everlasting love. Nothing could ever be more significant or formidable than that.

I honor, respect, and serve my Creator. He loved me before I was born. How can I not give every portion of my existence back to Him – including how I spend my days working on this earth?

I want my life to be pleasing to my Savior. God hates sin – with a passion. He told us that we should do the same. Here are just a few passages regarding this reality:

  • You must not live according to the customs of the nations I am going to drive out before you. Because they did all these things, I abhorred them. (Leviticus 20:23)
  • For you are not a God who is pleased with wickedness; with you, evil people are not welcome. (Psalm 5:4)
  • I abhor the assembly of evildoers and refuse to sit with the wicked. (Psalm 26:5)
  • Let those who love the Lord hate evil, for He guards the lives of His faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. (Psalm 97:10)
  • I will not look with approval on anything that is vile. I hate what faithless people do; I will have no part in it. (Psalm 101:3)
  • If we claim to have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. (1 John 1:6)
  • Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. (Ephesians 5:11)

That last verse has become one of my life verses. I’ve always been careful about who I associate with.1 Corinthians15:33 says, “Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company ruins good morals.'”  Shouldn’t this standard also apply to those I spend my workday with? Should the work I support be any different than the company I choose to spend my time after work with? I don’t believe so. Not if I can help it.

A week ago Sunday, our director of energetic net offerings shared photos of a place he frequently visits in the mountains called Amadell. The location is about an hour away from our organization’s land. Following his photo-send, the director shared two pages in a book called The Spiritual Reawakening of the Great Smoky Mountains by Page Bryant. In his message, my team member called the location a “place for deep rejuvenation and meditation,” claiming that “the energetic clarity of that place is world-class.”

The Great Smoky Mountains as seen from the trails of Amadell, NC.

He also offered to take our team on a “pilgrimage” to Amadell, remarking that “this sacred site is not to be missed.”

Bryant, Page. The Spiritual Reawakening of the Great Smoky Mountains. Mystic Mountain Center, 1994. P. 93.

Following the photos were two pages taken from this book – one of this director’s new “favorites.” Ironically, these passages provide a more accurate portrayal of how my coworkers think and talk than anything I could ever describe on my own.

Per Bryant, “When I viewed Shining Rock Mountain clairvoyantly, I ‘saw’ that the peak has an indwelling spirit force unlike any I have ever seen. This great Mountain Deva appears to have a sheer, transparent form with great white wings and a pale complexion. Its crystal-like eyes radiate pure light like prisms. I felt a powerful and ancient energy being emitted by this Deva, a sound that is similar to a shrill, high-pitched whistle.

“I also sensed a ‘presence’ at Cold Mountain. It was a Being who appeared wrapped in a silvery cocoon-like aura that glimmers in the light of the sun and moon. I also sensed the mountain sending out an audible vibration that sounded like the howling of wind and I felt very strongly that the wind spirits frequently center themselves around the area. Both Shining Rock Mountain and Cold Mountain are wonderful places for recharging yourself on every level: physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Crystal from Shining Rock (and the area surrounding it) would serve as a wonderful energy-giving sacred object when worn on the person, or when carried in a medicine bag, or held in the hand during ceremony. Physically, it would charge the body when one is experiencing low vitality. However, should you decide to take a small piece, remember to ask permission from the mountain first and leave an appropriate offering in its place.” (p. 94)[1]

Bryant, Page. The Spiritual Reawakening of the Great Smoky Mountains. Mystic Mountain Center, 1994. P. 94.

Before I go further, let me point out all the pagan references in the above passages.

  1. The author speaks of viewing the mountain “clairvoyantly “– meaning he was having an out-of-body experience at the time, or one in which he viewed things beyond his normal sensory perception.
  2. When Bryant refers to Cold Mountain as a “Deva,” he does not mean a prima donna or someone who thinks highly of themself. Per Symbolsage, “Devas are celestial beings that appear in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Zoroastrianism. They are described as “complex beings, with varied powers and roles.”
  3. The crystal structure of Shining Rock Mountain is considered a “sacred object” by Bryant, with special powers that can be captured, if allowed by the mountain itself and retained by whoever is fortunate to obtain a piece of it.

All of this sounds eerily similar to my boss’s new belief we should also “ask permission before crossing the threshold” of the woods that fill our company’s land. While this New Age speech is something I’m becoming more accustomed to hearing, it never ceases to amaze me at its absurdity. Who am I asking permission from? The trees? The land? The spirits they believe exist in the space? Whatever they perceive, it’s all God – even if they can’t acknowledge His presence.

Last Wednesday, my boss emailed me and our general manager affirming her desire for our team to visit Amadell as part of the new monthly, all-day “practice” sessions she wants to begin – mirroring what our U.K. team does. I couldn’t even respond.

Today, I am covering all this with prayer – even as I’m actively working to escape from this environment.

In the meantime, if necessary, I will stand firm in my faith and enact a conscience clause over these directives. Like Jack Phillips, the Colorado baker who refused to bake a wedding cake for a same-sex couple years ago, or Kim Davis, the county clerk who denied marriage licenses for the same purpose, or Dr. Eithan Haim, the Texas whistleblower who is being sued for reporting that the Texas Children’s Hospital was still performing gender surgeries on minors despite his state’s new law prohibiting the same, I, too, can’t go against my conscience to do something at work that violates my faith. While my ordeal may not be as dramatic as theirs, my predicament is no less burdensome.

For now, I’m praying for a miracle: a true divine intervention, an act of God. I serve an all-powerful Creator who knows the trouble that fills my soul at every new workplace revelation. Every day, I learn more about the beliefs, ideals, and intentions of our Center. Trust me. It’s not good. There is much more to say, but it must wait until next time.

Proverbs 28:5 reminds us, “Evildoers do not understand what is right, but those who seek the Lord understand it fully.”  What my team members are doing may seem perfectly normal to them. To me, it can never be.

For you, my readers and friends, this may not seem like much of a dilemma, but for me and my conscience, it is. The bottom line is that this work feels as abhorrent to me as if I was working for a palm reader or a pimp. I can no more align myself with that type of environment than I can with this one.   

I will leave you with these verses that summarize my stand. “Do not let my heart incline to any evil, to busy myself with wicked deeds in company with men who work iniquity and let me not eat of their delicacies! Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness; let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head; let my head not refuse it. Yet my prayer is continually against their evil deeds.” (Psalm 141:4-5)

[1] Bryant, Page. The Spiritual Reawakening of the Great Smoky Mountains. Mystic Mountain Center, 1994.

The lost world of new age religion

The lost world of new age religion

Gather together and come; assemble, you fugitives from the nations. Ignorant are those who carry about idols of wood, who pray to gods that cannot save. (Isaiah 45:20) 

Over the past two weeks, I’ve lived, worked, and traveled the mountains of western North Carolina to support twelve visitors, eight staff, seven group dinners, eight lunches, an offsite team event, daily house cleanings, constant dishwashing, vacuuming, shopping, grocery and lunch pick-ups accounting to hundreds of miles on the road (not including an 8-hour round-trip drive to the site from VA Beach) – all detailed in a twelve-page, ever-changing itinerary. In week one, I worked 96 hours. In week two, I put in 58. To say I’m exhausted – mentally, physically, and spiritually – is an understatement.   

More challenging than the hours, though, is the struggle I’ve felt in realizing how deeply embedded my new org is in the lost world of New Age religion. While I was promised that my company is “non-denominational,” and even though they are incorporating themselves as an “educational network,” their spiritual components take center stage in everything they do.   

Over the past six weeks, I’ve learned that they are:  

  • Building a temple  
  • Walking barefoot in the woods to commune with nature and experience “her” energy  
  • Facilitating New Age practices – including sound baths, yoga, and guided meditation sessions  
  • Talking about the communal “Divine” and bringing one’s “divine self” into and out of one’s body  
  • Instituting pagan practices such as “requesting permission to cross the ‘threshold’ before entering the woods.”  
  • Placing giant (6-8 ton) amethyst and obsidian stones around the 100-acre campus to “protect” the land and provide energy to the Center  
  • Seeking to “create a new world” together (a direct quote by the CEO)  

While I do my job well in supporting the administrative components of their events, activities, and meals that welcome and care for guests visiting their land, I cannot embrace their culture. I’m walking a thin line in performing my job even as I strive behind the scenes to return to my former role or find a new one elsewhere.   

In a nutshell, the mission playing out in front of me is blasphemous. It hurts my spirit, and I can’t be a part of or support it. Apart from quitting outright, I now know that my time here is temporary, and I trust my Savior to show me where He wants me to go next. I can’t give up my mind, body, and spirit for this job – which is what I now see they want and need from me. Thank you for praying with me as I strive to move elsewhere.   

In the meantime, I’ve glimpsed more of what’s happening behind the curtain than I ever could have imagined. I now see that this world’s lost and hurting souls will seek anything and everything to find peace, contentment, and love.   

As one who has found the “peace that passes understanding,” it shocks me to see the absurdity of those who believe that their practices can ever provide the same. They can’t.   

Even worse, I know that “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end, it leads to death.” (Proverbs 13:12) What my new employer is promoting is not global love and understanding. It is, in fact, eternal damnation and separation from our Heavenly Father.   

Don’t get me wrong: my boss and everyone who works at my new company have beautiful hearts and loving spirits and are completely sincere in their ideals. After all, you can be a “good person” and still be completely lost.   

Before I accepted this role, I spoke to a former missionary, Mark, to better understand whether I could take such a position as a Christian. Mark told me he’s known the billionaire philanthrope for thirteen years. Mark’s current manufacturing work is now wholly supported by this same generosity. After learning that fact, I considered Mark’s sanction a sign from God that it was okay to move forward. I now wonder if his financial well-being may have prejudiced his endorsement.

While my eyes were open to the ideals of this org, I believed my boss’s assertion that I’d never have to participate in any of their events and could manage her schedule from afar. That all went out the window when she needed me to support their efforts on-site for the past two weeks. What I’ve seen and heard about now leads me to pray daily for everyone I work with.   

Last weekend, my boss joined our CEO/founder and another senior leadership team member to visit Indiana for a guided weekend with the Researchers of Truth (ROT) leadership team. When I first heard this group’s name, I began investigating it. I discovered that this religion is commonly referred to as a form of Christian mysticism – something I’d never heard of before but now believe to be a misnomer. A genuine Christian can never believe in mysticism.   

Per the ROT website, this group seeks to “free ourselves from illusions, to find our Real Self and express it, to remember who and what we are.” This ideology translates into an irreverent reinterpretation of Holy Scripture that blends the mystical, spiritual, and ethereal into a “Methodical Teaching System that will lead you to know more about Yourself, about Reality and about the Universal Intelligence we call ‘God.'”  

This statement alone discounts everything Christianity stands for. Our Heavenly Father is not a “Universal Intelligence” called God. God the Father, Jesus Christ His Son, and the Holy Spirit are our triune God. Any other description is heresy.   

When I first heard the group described as “followers of Daskalos,” I had no idea their founder believed in reincarnation. According to their website, Stylianos Atteshlis – also known as Daskalos, the Greek word for “teacher” – began their religion in 1919, at the age of 7 years of age. As the author of several books, Daskalos wrote about the life of Jesus, even quoting from the Gospels in his works. He also retold some of Christ’s parables in another of his books – further distorting Jesus’ ministry and blurring the lines between mysticism and truth.   

Daskalos believed he descended to earth “as an already spiritually developed person about 3,500 years ago from another world.” In his teachings, this guru, who didn’t like to be referred to as such, detailed three reincarnations during the life of Christ: one as a young boy named “Jason” who he claimed the Apostle John brought to Jesus; a second iteration at the age of 10, studying in a temple to become a rabbi; with a final claim of incarnation in Christ’s lifetime at age 17 – when Atteshlis claims to have encountered Jesus carrying His cross to Golgotha. Altogether, Daskalos detailed 12 separate lives he experienced over centuries.  

Although Atteshlis died in 1995 at age 83, the Researchers of Truth still feature him in the “Meet the Team” section of the ROT website – as if he is an actively participating board member.   

In their founder’s account, Daskalos is described as one with a profound ability to heal “so-called ‘incurable’ diseases, such as deadly cancers.” Their description of him continues by saying, “[Atteshlis’s extraordinary skills empowered by Spirit also enabled the ‘permanently’ lame and disabled to walk freely again. Stylianos not only treated physical illnesses but also those whose hearts carried deep and persistent emotional wounds found relief under his loving care. Those who walked in mental darkness, negativity, and confusion were led out of the shadows and back into the light by him. Of course, Daskalos never claimed he healed anyone and stated, ‘no person ever healed another person. The Holy Spirit does any healing that takes place.'”   

Assuredly, we, as Christians, know that to be true. The fact that this group attaches these supernatural healings to this mortal man further chronicles their cultic beliefs.   

After returning from her Indiana weekend with the ROT team leaders – Daniel and Aki – my boss gushed over her elucidations in a mailing she copied me on, inviting these leaders to visit the Center soon. “I’m delighted that we will be traveling this path of collaboration and co-creation,” she wrote them – ending with, “I’m excited to build on this beautiful energy and momentum!”   

In response, Daniel affirmed that he, too, is “very enthusiastic about the movement of our collaboration.” He further explained that he is “already getting inspirations about presentations at your amazing Center in North Carolina.”   

While their visit dates have not yet been determined, my boss assured Daniel and Aki, “We will most certainly make it happen in divine timing.”   

With God’s timing, I thought, I will no longer be present to be subjected to the same.   

Later that same evening, our CEO posted a group photo taken with the ROT team. Some team members claimed the photo was positively “beaming with light.” Our CEO also shared a picture of the “adorable [ROT] temple, all hand-built by Daniel Joseph.” I saw the same as a foreshadowing of things yet to come on the Center’s land. Again, I hope never to see such a thing.  

As further blasphemy, the ROT descriptions detail Daniel’s first encounter with Daskalos on Cypress. During that first meeting, he learned from Daskalos about the “spiritual pearl of the greatest value – Self Realization.”   

Conversely, God’s Word tells us about Christ’s parable of the pearl of great price. “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” (Matthew 13:45-46)  

Equating self-realization to the undeserved gift of eternal life bestowed on humanity by Jesus Christ is further evidence of the demonic reinterpretation of God’s amazing grace. Such an ideal is horrifying to me.   

In addition to Daniel, Akiko Toshimitsu (Aki) rounds out the current leadership team of the ROT.  Per her bio, Aki describes her “current incarnation” as a “highly advanced spiritual healer…who serves as creator and presenter of meditations.” Her description further entails another blasphemous reference to biblical theology. Aki delights in being “a pure fountain of the Living Water of Truth [as she shares] the beauty of the teachings of Daskalos and the Researchers of Truth with the world.”   

Lest anyone doubt, Christ Jesus is the only “Living Water” anyone can partake of. To proclaim anything else is sacrilegious.   

“Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’ By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.” (John 7: 37-39)  

In my presence last week, one of our guests referred to her boss as someone who showed her “the way, truth, and the life.” I immediately recoiled at this statement, knowing full well that the only one who can ever do so is Jesus – my Lord and Savior.  

Scripture tells us in John 14:6 that “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'”   

And so, my sorrow over these lost souls continues. I can only dispute their distortions once I’m prepared to walk out the door. Until that day comes, I will remain as far apart from them as possible. Their lost souls hurt my heart. I cannot and will never partake in their practices.  

If push comes to shove, I will end my journey on that note and walk away.   

I pray that God reopens the door with my former employer – or elsewhere. While I remain where I am, I will continue to shine God’s light in this place of spiritual darkness.  My greatest challenge is staying immune to the oppression these ideals and practices are attempting to impose upon me. 

Thank you for your prayers.