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See Jesus Christ the Bearer of
the Water of Life
Also Presentations by Archbishop Michael
Fitzgerald
and Rev. Bernard Ardura
New Age is a pressing religious, cultural challenge
Three main reasons explain the shift from traditional
forms of religion to these forms of spirituality
1. Much has already been said about the New Age Movement,
and much more will be said. I had asked the specialist, Jean Vernette, to
dedicate a subheading to "Movements of the New Age" in the third
edition of my Italian work, Grande Dizionario delle Religioni
(The Comprehensive Dictionary of Religions), which describes them in the
following words: "The New Age Movements, like a huge running river
with its numerous off shoots, represent a typical form of the modern
religious awareness as a new religiosity that assumes many traits of the
'Eternal Gnosis'" (Piemme, 2000, p. 1497-1498). Recently an Italian
journal on religious culture entitled: Religioni e sette nel mondo
(Religions and Sects in the World, 1996, 1-2) published three times a
year, devoted two special issues to the New Age Movement. In my
editorial column, I presented this phenomenon in this way: "The
phenomenon of the New Age Movement, together with other new
religious movements, is one of the most pressing challenges to the
Christian Faith. It is a religious challenge, which is at the same time a
cultural one; the New Age Movement sets forth
theories and doctrines about God, man and the world, which are
incompatible with the Christian Faith. Furthermore, the New Age Movement
is both the symptom of a culture in deep crisis and the wrong answer to
this situation of cultural crisis, its worries, questions, aspirations and
hopes" (Religioni e sette nel mondo; Religions and Sects in
the World, 6, 1996, p. 7).
Present document on New Age
Today, together with Archbishop Fitzgerald, I have the
honour of presenting a Document on the phenomenon, which was drafted by
Rev. Peter Fleetwood, at that time an official of the Pontifical Council
for Culture, and by Dr Teresa Osório Gonçalves of the Pontifical Council
for Interreligious Dialogue. It is the fruit, therefore, of a long and
authentic collaboration between offices [of the Holy See] in order to help
provide an answer, with "gentleness and respect", as the Apostle
Peter once recommended (1 Pt 3,15) to this religious and cultural
challenge.
2. Today, Western culture, now followed by many others,
has passed from an almost instinctive awareness of God's presence to what
is often called a more "scientific" view of reality. Everything
must be explained in terms of our daily experience. Whatever makes one
think of miracles immediately becomes grounds for suspicion. As a result,
all symbolic actions and objects, known as sacramentals, once part of the
daily religious practice of every Catholic, are today far less evident in
the religious panorama than they once were.
3. The reasons for such a change are numerous and diverse,
but they all come down to the noticeable cultural shift from traditional
forms of religion to more personal and individualistic expressions of what
is now being called "spirituality". It seems that there are
three specific reasons at the heart of such a change.
Loss of sense of personal God
The first lies in the feeling that traditional
religions or institutions no longer give what they once claimed they could
provide. Some people in their view of the world are really unable to find
any room for believing in a transcendent, personal God, and the experience
for many has driven them to ask whether this God has the power to bring
about change in this world, or if He really even exists at all. The
dreadful experiences that have convulsed the world have made some people
very cynical towards religion. I have in mind terrible events like the
Holocaust and the repercussions of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima
and Nagasaki at the end of the Second World War. I came to realize it
personally during the course of my recent visit to Nagasaki when I had the
privilege of praying (but utterly unable to find the words) before a
monument dedicated to the memory of those whose lives were cut short or
compromised forever on that August day of 1945. Today the threat of a war
in the Middle East reminds me of my father's reminiscences as a stretcher
bearer, during the Second World War. The things he told me about the
horrors of war makes it easier for me to understand the doubts that people
have about God and religion. The bewilderment of so many people before the
suffering of the innocent, which is also exploited by certain movements,
explains in part why some believers go over to them.
Neo-pagan religions
4. There is another reason to explain a certain anxiety
and a certain rejection of the traditional Church. Let us not forget that
in ancient Europe, pre-Christian, pagan religions were very strong, and
often, unseemly conflicts took place linked to political change that have
been inevitably labelled as Christian oppression of ancient religions. One
of the most significant developments in what may roughly be called the
"spiritual" sphere in the last century was a return to
pre-Christian forms of religion. The pagan religions have had a
considerable role in supporting some of Europe's most violent and racist
ideologies, thus reinforcing the conviction according to which certain
nations have an historic role of world-wide importance in such a way as to
have the right to subject other peoples, and that has almost inevitably
brought with it a hatred for the Christian religion, which is seen as a
new arrival on the religious scene. The complex series of phenomena, known
by the term of "neo-pagan" religions, reveal the need felt by
some to invent new ways to "counter-attack" Christianity and
return to a more authentic form of religion, a religion more closely bound
to nature and the earth. For this reason, one has to recognize that there
is no place for Christianity in the neo-pagan religions. Like it or not, a
struggle is taking place to win the hearts and minds of people in the
interrelations between Christianity, ancient, pre-Christian religions, and
their more recently developed "cousins".
Rise of Eastern spiritualities
5. The third reason, at the origin of the rather
wide-spread disillusionment with institutional religion, derives from a
growing obsession in Western culture with Oriental religions and the paths
of wisdom. When it became easier to travel outside of their own continent,
adventurous Europeans began exploring places that they had previously
known only by consulting the pages of ancient texts. The lure of the
exotic put them into a closer contact with the religions and esoteric
practices of various Oriental cultures from Ancient Egypt to India and
Tibet. The growing conviction that there exists a deep-down truth, an
essence of truth in the heart of every religious experience has led to the
idea that they can and must gather the various elements from different
religions in order to reach a universal form of religion. Once again, in
such an enterprise there is little room for institutionalized religions,
especially for Judaism and Christianity. That is worth remembering the
next time you come across a public advertisement for Tibetan Buddhism or
some sort of gathering with a guru; these are all things you will often
have the opportunity of seeing in any European capital. My concern is the
fact that many people, involved in such types of Eastern or
"indigenous" spirituality, are really not in a position of being
fully aware of the implications behind the first invitation to observe
these gatherings. Furthermore, it is also worth noting the fact that for a
long time now one finds a vibrant interest for esoteric religion amongst
certain Masonic circles that aspire to a universal religion. The
Enlightenment used to push the idea that it was unacceptable that there be
so many conflicts and that war be waged in the name of religion. On this
point I cannot but be in agreement. However, it would be dishonest to fail
to recognize that a wide-spread anti-religious attitude developed from the
original concern for guaranteeing the well being of mankind. Even in such
a scenario it is not uncommon that what gets classified as a religious
conflict, in reality is nothing more than a conflict of a political,
economic, or social nature.
Age of Aquarius
6. The spirit of this new universal religion was explained
more clearly in a very popular way in the 1960 musical entitled Hair, when
it was proclaimed to the public of the whole world that "This is the
dawn of the Age of Aquarius", an age based upon harmony,
understanding and love. In astrological terms, the Age of Pisces was
identified with the time in which Christianity ruled; but it appears that
this age should come to an end soon in order to make room for the Age of
Aquarius when Christianity will lose its influence and leave the way open
for a universal, more humane religion. A large part of traditional morals
would no longer have any place in the New Age of Aquarius. People's way of
thinking should be completely changed and there should no longer be the
ancient separation of male and female. Human beings should be
systematically called to take on an androgynous form of life in which each
of the two sides of the brain gets used in harmony at the right time, and
they should not be disconnected as they are today.
Distorted vision of Christ
7. When we see and hear the expression New Age Movement,
it is important to remember that originally this referred to the New
Age of Aquarius. The document that is being presented to you is a
response to the need felt by the Bishops and faithful in various parts of
the world. These people have repeatedly asked for help in understanding
the New Age Movement from the moment they became aware of the
number of people involved in such a movement in different ways and at
different levels. They have also asked for a guide to better respond to
this already omnipresent phenomenon. The title itself of the document,
from the outset, makes it clear that the age of Aquarius will never be
able to offer what Christ can offer. The encounter between Jesus and the
Samaritan woman at the well of Sychar (Jn 4,1-42), told in the Gospel of
John, is the key text that has guided the reflection during the drafting
of the preliminary report on the New Age Movement presented
to you today. As one can see, the Document is not intended to be a
definitive declaration on the issue. It is a pastoral reflection aimed at
helping Bishops, catechists, and as many as are devoted to the different
programmes of formation of the Church in order to point out the origins of
the New Age Movement, so that one may see in what way
it influences the lives of Christians and to work out means and active
methods to respond to the numerous and various challenges that the New Age
Movement poses to the Christian community in those parts of
the world where it is present. This can also be a challenge for
those Christians who are tempted by what the New Age Movement is
saying about Jesus Christ, in order to recognize that there are many
differences between the Cosmic Christ and the Historical Christ. In the
last analysis, this Document is another sign of the Church's attention
towards the world. This is born from the Church's obligation to remain
faithful to the Good News of the life, death and Resurrection of Jesus,
who truly offers living water to all those who draw near to Him
with an open mind and heart.
Collaborative product of different offices of the Holy See
8. The nature and the importance of the Document will be
better understood if I explain to you the way in which it was
written. There is an inter-departmental study Commission that deals with
sects and new religious movements. The Secretaries of the Pontifical
Councils for Culture for Interreligious Dialogue and for Promoting
Christian Unity as well as the Congregation for the Evangelization of
Peoples make up such a Commission. In order to prepare this Document, the
officials of the four aforementioned Vatican offices that were working on
the text, were helped by an official of the Congregation for the Doctrine
of the Faith. Thus, it is clear that the Holy See saw the project as an
opportunity to produce a sound, accurate Document. A long period of time
was necessary for such a Document to appear. I hope, above all, that this
Document inspires reflection among Bishops in the Catholic communities of
every sort. If it is to be replaced by a better text, and one that has a
more definitive character, it will mean that it has achieved its goal by
stimulating all those engaged in pastoral ministry and those who work with
them in order to reflect upon it in a theological manner.
Difference between ideology and by products, clients,
devotees, disciples
9. The Document encourages the readers to do their best to
understand correctly the phenomenon of the New Age Movement. That requires
an open attitude which Archbishop Fitzgerald will discuss with you later
in due detail. But I would like to say that there might be some criticism
on the part of Christians who, going through this Document, notice that
some current forms of spirituality in which they are engaged come under
criticism. The use of the term New Age to define the phenomenon is
already problematic. For this reason, some people prefer reverting to the
term the "Next Age", but with all due respect, I see it only as
shifting the problem and covering it over with hazy terminology. The fact
that the term New Age includes many things indicates that not
everyone who acquires New Age products or maintains that they are gaining
a benefit from a New Age therapy, has embraced the ideology of the New
Age Movement. A certain discernment, then, is necessary both for what
pertains to products labelled New Age and for what pertains to
those who, to a greater or lesser degree can be considered
"clients" of the New Age Movement. Clients, devotees and
disciples are not the same thing. Honesty and integrity require that we be
very prudent and not turn every blade of grass into a bundle, by using
labels with the greatest of ease.
Basic problem: new age is a false utopia
10. In conclusion, I would simply want to point out that
the New Age Movement presents itself as a false utopia in
order to respond to the human heart's deep thirst for happiness, which is
prey to the tragedy of existence and the discontentment of the deep
unhappiness of modern happiness. The New Age Movement presents
itself as a deceptive response to the most ancient hope of man: the hope
of a New Era of peace, harmony, reconciliation with himself, others
and nature. This hope, which is as ancient as humanity itself, is an
appeal that bursts from the heart of people especially in times of crisis.
The small document presented will help one to get a better understanding,
to discern between things proposed and to raise in the Christian community
a renewed commitment to proclaim Jesus Christ, the Bearer of Living Water.
I look forward to the debate which our document will certainly spark; in
the meantime, however, I sincerely thank the whole team of experts,
especially Rev. Peter Fleetwood and Dr Teresa Osório Gonçalves, who have
worked with energy and diligence in order to produce it.
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