Church for Today, Fresno, CA

New Thought is a spiritually motivated way of life that embraces the ancient wisdom traditions of east and west. We embody the belief that consciousness is elementally creative, reciprocates thought, and thereby shapes all manifestation. Our principles reflect a universal conviction that the community of life is sacred; our practices of meditation and prayer enhance a worldview promoting reverence for, and service to humanity and planet earth. New Thought is committed to global healing through personal
transformation, community-building, interfaith, intercultural, and interdisciplinary understanding, and compassionate activism.

The following is an excerpt from the book, "New Thought - A Practical American Spirituality" by C. Alan Anderson and Deborah G. Whitehouse.

What are the principles of New Thought, this peculiarly American philosophico-religious way of life? In a nutshell, New Thought is expressed in Romans 12:2, "Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind." New Thoughters seek nothing less than total life transformation, empowerment through changing their thoughts and keeping them changed. The linchpin of New Thought is the Law of Mind Action: thoughts held in mind produce after their kind. There are many ways to express this: like attracts like; as in mind, so in manifestation; as in heaven, so on earth; "them that has, gets." This goes along with what philosophers refer to as idealism, belief that the world is really made up of thoughts or mind or spirit. Its opposite is materialism, belief that the world is made up of material "stuff" that one can measure.

In the longstanding battle between science and religion, idealists generally represented religion and materialists represented science. Ironically, physics, the king of sciences, the yardstick by which other sciences are measured, has now moved toward idealism with the discoveries of quantum physics. British scientist Sir James Jeans remarked that the universe looked like nothing so much as a giant thought. New Thought from its infancy has sought to bridge the gap between science and religion, and its branches have been given names such as Religious Science and Divine Science. Quimby studied mesmerism, or hypnotism, as did Freud, because it was the latest scientific wrinkle of the day.

If this is a universe of thought, then changing one's thought changes the universe, at least a smidgin. Current physics teaches that the act of observing changes what is observed.

At the heart of New Thought is a minimalist creed, a simple system of beliefs that make optimistic idealism credible. As stated in the Declaration of Principles of the International New Thought Alliance, an umbrella organization for New Thought:

We affirm the inseparable oneness of God and humankind, the realization of which comes through spiritual intuition, the implications of which are that we can reproduce the Divine perfection in our bodies, emotions and all our external affairs.

We affirm the freedom of each person in matters of belief.

We affirm the Good to be supreme, universal and eternal.

We affirm that the kingdom of God is within us, that we are one with the Father, that we should love one another and return good for evil.

We affirm that we should heal the sick through prayer and that we should endeavor to manifest perfection "even as our Father in heaven is perfect."

We affirm our belief in God as the Universal Wisdom, Love, Life, Truth, Power, Peace, Beauty and Joy, "In whom we live and move and have our being."

We affirm that our mental states are carried forward into manifestation and become our experience through the Creative Law of Cause and Effect.

We affirm that the Divine Nature expressing Itself through us manifests Itself as health, supply, wisdom, love, life, truth, power, peace, beauty and joy.

We affirm that we are invisible spiritual dwellers within human bodies continuing and unfolding as spiritual beings beyond the change called physical death.

We affirm that the universe is the body of God, spiritual in essence, governed by God through laws which are spiritual in reality even when material in appearance.

Most mainstream churches would have little difficulty with these principles. New Thought believes that there is only one Power in the universe and that Power is good. New Thought at its most mature stage is panentheistic, meaning that all is in God, rather than pantheistic, meaning total identification of world and God, often with the idea that the world is illusion. One of us (Alan) likes to say, "God is all there is and then some." New Thoughters often state that there is no place where God is not. In God "we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28). This means that we are all parts of God, more specifically, God's body, and there is God, the Solution, at the heart of every problem.

Whither shall I go from thy Spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee. (Psalm 139, 7-12)

No wonder New Thought is optimistic and upbeat!

Fundamentalists might have difficulty with the idea that the only Power in the universe is good. New Thought teaches that evil is insubstantial, that it is only immature or misused good. The Devil is the invention of our minds, and goes as fast as he comes. When you walk into a dark room and turn on the light, the darkness vanishes; you don't have to chase it away. The Bible was written by Oriental minds for Oriental minds, and most of it was never intended to be taken literally. Jesus cast out demons, which is to say in the language of today, that he straightened out people's thinking; and our fear thoughts are demonic indeed.

One special feature of New Thought, emphasized more in some branches than in others, is known as the metaphysical interpretation of the Bible. This misuse of the term metaphysical raises a few philosophical eyebrows, but what it really means is treating Scripture metaphorically, seeking a deeper meaning beyond the literal. Jesus frequently taught in parables, which he later interpreted for his disciples. From the days of Philo Judaeus and of the early church in Alexandria, scholars have interpreted names in the Bible to arrive at deeper meanings. Unity co-founder Charles Fillmore compiled his Metaphysical Bible Dictionary of these interpretations.

Some metaphorical interpretations are consistent throughout the Bible. This is truly remarkable when you consider that it was written at "divers times and in sundry places" by many different individuals. For example, man and woman symbolize either body and soul or intellect and emotion. For this reason, well-meaning attempts to eliminate sexism in the Bible obscure deeper meanings. Unity minister Catherine Ponder and the late Divine Science minister Emmet Fox both have written extensively about metaphysical interpretation of the Bible.

Direct experience of God is sometimes called mysticism. It is a right-hemisphere function, frequently distrusted by logical thinkers, who are left-hemisphere dominant. But using only half a brain makes you a half-wit! We need mysticism balanced and corrected by reason, with both firmly and practically anchored in the real world of daily life. This is not a book on how to become a mystic, but it will acquaint you with one form of mysticism as a significant aspect of American spirituality. It will help you become more aware of what is going on around you, and<thorn>if you choose to put the information to work<thorn>will help you live life more effectively, with improved health, wealth, human relationships, and abundant, happy living. Success can be defined as reaching reasonably challenging goals that you set for yourself. On that basis, New Thought is the royal road to success in life.

This book cannot tell you how to experience God directly<thorn>that is up to you and God<thorn>but it can give you a philosophical background for doing so, coupled with support based on scientific research to justify these beliefs. This is a thoroughly Western, American approach to spirituality, yet it is blessed and enriched with Eastern influence. Its roots are ancient, but its outlook is as new as tomorrow.

"One of the most significant findings in psychology in the last 20 years is that individuals can choose the way they think," writes experimental psychologist Martin Seligman. He was echoing philosopher and father of psychology William James, who wrote, "The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitude and mind." "As [a man] thinketh in his heart, so is he," wrote Solomon (Proverbs 23:7). And Jesus said to the Roman centurion, "As thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee (Matthew 8:13)." It's aptly named--New Thought.