New Age
New Age An umbrella term for a wide range of personal and individual beliefs and practices influenced primarily by eastern religions, paganism, spiritism.
Belief in Deity: God is the impersonal life force, consciousness, ultimate truth and reality, the incorporeal, formless cosmic order personified within all people and matter - God is all and all are God.
Incarnations: Most believe there are no particular incarnations to worship as all in the universe are embodiments of God. Many of the world's prophets, including Jesus, are viewed as reincarnations of the Christ.
Origins of universe/life: The universe, life, and matter were not created by God but "are" God. The universe and life emerged out of the creative power of the eternal universal life force.
After death: Some believe in continual rebirth - no death, as life is spirit. Some believe that our souls rest for a time before deciding on a new body (or bodies). Heaven and hell are states of consciousness, self-imposed, due to ignorance of God as all. Why evil? No original sin and no Satan and no evil. Most believe people make "mistakes" when they are ignorant of the power of goodness, which is God, within themselves and others. Some believe evil is perpetuated through accumulation of past-life wrongs and spiritual ignorance.
Salvation: Salvation lies in the realization of oneness with the impersonal life force, thus unlocking one's healing potential. Awareness can be heightened through methods that induce altered states of consciousness, e.g. hypnosis, meditation, music, drugs; and through intercession, e.g. crystals, tarot cards, amulets, fortunetellers and psychics, channeling. Some believe the salvation of humanity will occur when critical mass is reached as more and more people converge in celebrating their oneness with God and with each other, which will bring a New World Order or new Planetary Order, resulting in oneness of civilization and one world government, peace and harmony.
Undeserved suffering: Suffering is the result of greed, hatred, and spiritual ignorance in a person's, or humanity's, past lifetimes, which returns as suffering (karma). Suffering is sometimes viewed as occurring for a specific purpose, to further spiritual growth and learn a life lesson, e.g. the death of a young child may occur because the parents need to learn not to take life for granted. Suffering is also seen as illusory in that it results from attachment to bodily pleasure and pain, and only the universal life force within, God, truly exists.
Contemporary Issues: Abortion is not condemned, as there is no official doctrine. Generally adherents are supportive of a woman's right to choose abortion.