SEDUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY

                                SIXBERTY MANSON

        CONTENTS

Introduction 1 Success and Sorcery 2 Paganism in Modern Dress 3 Signs of the Times? 4 An Official World Religion? 5 The Coming Apostasy 6 Roots of Seduction 7 Sorcery, Scientism, and Christianity 8 The Temptation to Power 9 Shamanism Revived 10 Mental Alchemy 11 Christianized Idolatry? 12 Psychological Salvation 13 Self-Idolatry 14 Tomorrow the World! Notes

INTRODUCTION We have written this book reluctantly, yet knowing it had to be done. We have no desire to cause controversy or division; our sole purpose is to expose a seduction that is gathering momentum and is no respecter of persons. All of us are being affected, from the average Christian to mature and respected leaders. It is our desire to rescue rather than to condemn. Most Christians are now in agreement that something was terribly wrong with Jim Jones; yet until the mass suicide in Jonestown almost no one recognized that fact. Even those who had suspicions were unwilling to probe deeply enough to be certain. We now know that this attitude was an unfortunate mistake. It took the deaths of nearly a thousand well-meaning people to awaken consciences to the dangers of cults and cult leaders. There is now general agreement that "cultism" is dangerous, though definitions still differ. We are in danger of making "cultism" the measure of evil and being blind to anything else that doesn't fit a particular definition of "cultism." The church needs to recognize that cults are only part of a much larger and more seductive deception known as the New Age movement. This is a broad coalition of networking groups all working for world unity based upon religious experiences and beliefs that have their roots in Eastern mysticism. Yet many Christian leaders have expressed the same reluctance about becoming "overly negative" toward the New Age movement as they once did about the cults. In the following pages, whenever we use the term "New Age" we are referring to the "great delusion" that the Bible warns will sweep the world in the "last days" and cause humanity to worship the Antichrist. We are also warned in Scripture that many people who call themselves Christians will succumb to this deception and that a great apostasy will occur prior to the return of Jesus Christ; the delusion will sweep through the professing church as well as secular society. So it should be no surprise to find increasing controversy within the church concerning the New Age movement. This has already begun, and the reason is fairly obvious: Christians are quite comfortable in discussing cults existing outside the traditional church, such as the Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, Christian Science, or Hare Krishnas. The New Age movement, however, involves things that are firmly entrenched within the church, such as psychotherapy, visualization, meditation, biofeedback, Positive Confession, Positive or Possibility Thinking, hypnosis, Holistic medicine, and a whole spectrum of self-improvement and success/motivation

techniques. To criticize any of these supposedly "scientific" methodologies is to offend large numbers of Christians, including many church leaders who sincerely practice and promote these techniques. It is a tragedy of our time that the average Christian is either too easily persuaded or cannot be persuaded at all. Too few seem willing to take the time to think the issues through and check the Scriptures for themselves. Those who would escape the growing seduction must get back to the Bible and know what they believe and why, rather than succumbing to the temptation of accepting facile answers provided by "experts." During the prophesied apostasy, even church leaders will be led astray (Matthew 7:22,23), and those who follow their teachings will suffer the same tragedy. We must be certain that we are following the Lord and not men. Jesus said: I am the good shepherd; and I know My own, and My own know Me. . . . And a stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers. . . . My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand (John 10:14,5,27,28). To avoid the seduction that is at the heart of apostasy, we must be able to distinguish the voice of Christ through His Word from the confusing mixture of truth and error that is spoken in His name. To help make that distinction, we have conducted an extensive investigation of today's popular teachings. Some readers will find it difficult to accept the evidence because it may implicate some prominent Christian leaders. Yet the evidence will speak for itself. In the following pages we quote from the books and sermons as well as the radio, television, and seminar talks of a number of influential Christian leaders, both men and women, past and present. Many are sincere and dedicated servants of the Lord whose lives and ministries influence millions. We cannot state too emphatically that we consider even the leaders referred to in the following pages to be among the victims, which we all are to some extent. It should be clearly understood that we are not making a blanket condemnation of anyone, nor are we questioning motives. Only God can judge men's hearts, and we must leave that to Him. It is every Christian's responsibility, however, to judge teachings and fruit and to accept and follow only that which is clearly according to the Word of God. That is as true of this book as it is of any other. It should also be understood that those whom we name are not always the worst offenders, nor are they the only examples that could be given. Even those named are mentioned only to provide documentation and to show the

extensiveness of the seduction. We would caution readers not to judge specific individuals, but rather the teachings and practices that are being pointed out. This is not a hairsplitting theological treatise but a handbook for spiritual survival. It is our deep conviction, based upon years of research and mountains of evidence, that the secular world is in the late stages of succumbing to the very deception that Jesus and the apostles predicted would immediately precede the Second Coming. We are gravely concerned that millions of Christians are falling victim to the same delusion.

1

Success and Sorcery

See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world rather than according to Christ. Colossians 2:8 When the Son of Man comes, will He find the faith on the earth? Luke 18:8 Christianity may well be facing the greatest challenge in its history: a series of powerful and growing seductions that are subtly changing biblical interpretations and undermining the faith of millions of people. Most Christians are scarcely aware of what is happening, and much less do they understand the issues involved. The seduction is surprisingly easy. It does not take place as an obvious frontal assault from rival religious beliefs. That would be vigorously resisted. Instead, it comes to some Christians in the guise of faith-producing techniques for gaining spiritual power and experiencing miracles and to others as self-improvement psychologies for fully realizing human potential that are seen as scientific aids to successful Christian living. Or it may take other forms. Charles Colson has written: I have spoken of the frontal assaults and the sneak attacks. There is something worse....The enemy is in our midst. He has so infiltrated our camp 1 that many simply no longer can tell an enemy from a friend, truth from heresy. A Trojan Horse Inside the Church? Even the leading cult-watchers have generally failed to recognize the Trojan horse that has penetrated both the church and their own ranks and is seducing from within. Strangely enough, most of today's Christian leaders who rightly cry so mightily against so many evils are saying little if anything about the revival of sorcery that is sweeping both the secular world and the church. In many cases it reflects a lack of awareness or naivete, and in some cases an unwillingness to admit their own involvement. Why is this? It is because most Christians are so uninformed about occultism that they wouldn't recognize it except in its most blatant forms. Nor do very many Christians seem to understand the passages in

the Bible forbidding occult practices, so they cannot recognize sorcery on that basis either. In the following pages we will document the sobering fact that not only liberals but conservatives as well are being seduced in overwhelming numbers. The extent to which antiChristian and even occult beliefs and methodologies have been integrated into Christianity within the last few years is staggering, and this trend is now accelerating at an alarming rate. The bait on the pagan hook has always been the promise of godhood that the Serpent offered to Eve. The attempt to realize this godhood has involved the human race in numerous forms of occultism throughout its history. One word that is often used to encompass all pagan/occult practices is "sorcery." In the following pages, when we use that word our intended meaning will be: any attempt to manipulate reality (internal, external, past, present, or future) by various mind-over-matter techniques that run the gamut from alchemy and astrology to positive/possibility thinking. Sorcery: The Unrecognized Enemy Ancient sorcery's mind-over-matter techniques often seem to work and are radically changing our world—from science and medicine to psychology and education. Nobel laureate Roger Sperry recently said, "Current concepts of the mind-brain relation involve a direct break with the long-established materialist 2 and behaviorist doctrine that has dominated neuroscience for many decades." Physicist George Stanciu, coauthor of The New Story of Science, states: "Physics, neuroscience and now psychology are throwing off 19th century 3 materialism." Physics is becoming metaphysics once again as science turns to mysticism. Developed behind the Iron Curtain by Bulgarian Georgi Lozanov and catching on rapidly in the West, "Superlearning" is one example: Drawing from yoga, music, hypnosis, autogenics, parapsychology, and drama, Lozanov put together what he called suggestology, which applied altered 4 states of consciousness to learning, healing and development. What the secular world calls "mind power" many Christians confuse for "faith." Likewise, the impersonal "Force" that occultists also refer to as Universal Mind or Nature is naively accepted by large numbers of both Christians and non-Christians as just another way of referring to God, when in fact it is a substitute for Him. Consequently, what often passes for "the power of the Spirit" in the church can scarcely be distinguished from the alleged "mind- powers" of psychics. Parapsychologists have been conducting scientific experiments with psychics for years, and the idea of "psychic power" is gaining credibility. Professional psychics are no longer as unique as they were only a few years

ago, but now number in the hundreds and are being taken seriously by a large segment of society. Moreover, similar "mind powers" are being developed by the general populace through a smorgasbord of psychological methodologies. These are not only taught by well-known mind-over-matter cults such as Scientology, the Forum (formerly est— Erhard Seminars Training), Lifespring, and Silva Mind Control, but are the standard fare at today's PMA (Positive Mental Attitude) motivational and success seminars. The ability to exert "mind over matter" is no longer considered to be something weird or occult, but is now thought to be part of a natural, normal, yet infinite human potential that can be experienced by anyone who follows certain alleged "laws of success." These New Age techniques are not new at all, however, but are the same old sorcery under new labels. Many modern practitioners, including leading Christians, seem unaware of the true nature of the dangerous mind-game they are playing. Sorcery called by any other name is still sorcery, and it is everywhere in today's space-age society, seeking to hide its true identity behind scientific or psychological terminology and success/motivation and self- development labels. An occultist himself and one of the world's leading occult authorities and historians, Manly P. Hall has declared: . . .there is abundant evidence that in many forms of modern thought— especially the so-called "prosperity" psychology, "will-power building" metaphysics and systems of "high-pressure" salesmanship—black magic has merely passed through a metamorphosis, and although its name may be changed, 5 its nature remains the same. Success Is the Name of the Game Success is the name of the game today, not only out there in the world, but inside the church as well. Humility is out and selfesteem is in, even though we are urged in Scripture, "Let each esteem others better than themselves" (Philippians 2:3 KJV). It used to be common knowledge that the besetting sin of the human race was pride. Now, however, we are being told that our problem is not that we think too highly of ourselves, but too lowly, that we all have a bad self-image, and that our greatest need is to build up our selfesteem. Though Peter wrote, "Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time" (1 Peter 5:6), we are being urged to "visualize" ourselves into success. Paul's inspired declaration that Christ "emptied Himself, taking the form of a bondservant... [and] humbled Himself by becoming obedient to.. . death on a cross" (Philippians 2:7,8) is now explained by Robert Schuller, in the context of today's success-oriented world, to mean: Jesus knew his worth, his success fed his selfesteem. ... He suffered the cross

to sanctify his selfesteem. And he bore the cross to sanctify your selfesteem. 6 And the cross will sanctify the ego trip [emphasis in the original]! Success and selfesteem have become so important in the church that they seem to overshadow everything else. Robert Schuller states: "A person is in hell 7 8 when he has lost his selfesteem." As Christianity's "number one TV preacher," he is watched on nearly 200 TV stations each Sunday by an audience of nearly 3 9 million. A prolific author, his books are frequently on The New York Times best- seller list. According to Christianity Today, "Schuller is now reaching more non- 0 Christians than any other religious leader in America.'" Schuller's influence is 1 enormous, and his "Gospel of Success" is being accepted and preached by increasing numbers of Christian leaders. What does Schuller find wrong with the old gospel? Although Paul wrote that "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners" (1 Timothy 1:15), and Christ Himself said that He came to call "sinners to repentance" (Luke 5:32), Robert Schuller writes: will be honored and successful in this world." Not just individual Christians, but churches also now pursue success, and the larger the church the more successful it is considered to be. On that basis, by far the most successful pastor in the world is Paul Yonggi Cho, who heads the world's largest church, with about 400,000 members. Cho teaches that positive thinking, positive speaking, and positive visualizing are the keys to success. Anyone can literally "incubate" and give birth to physical reality by creating a vivid image in his or her mind and focusing upon it. In the foreword to Yonggi Cho's book, The Fourth Dimension, Robert Schuller writes: I discovered the reality of that dynamic dimension in prayer that comes through visualizing.... 13 Don't try to understand it. Just start to enjoy it! It's true. It works. I tried it. Christian colleges, seminaries, missions, and relief organizations are also in the success game, and most of them look to the techniques of big business for running their own affairs. If it works for the University of California, why not for a Christian college? If it works for General Motors, why not for a Christian relief organization? This is no doubt true when it comes to certain things such as accounting and management. However, sorcery is rampant in the business world and enters the church in the form of success/motivation and PMA techniques and the latest psycho-therapies baptized with Christian terminology. Think and Grow Rich Most of the masters of business success/motivation and PMA techniques have been seduced into sorcery, and are seducing millions of other people as well. Most of the basic ideas and techniques behind selfimprovement courses

that literally permeate society today can be traced back to one man, Napoleon Hill. Something of the scope of Hill's influence is indicated in the following remarks by Earl Nightingale, who is one of today's most popular and influential success/motivation leaders, in a Success Motivation Institute (SMI) tape. He is discussing only one of Hill's books, Think and Grow Rich, which Nightingale declares to be "one of the most amazing books ever written": Without question, this single book has had a greater influence on the lives, accomplishments and fortunes of more individuals than any other work of its kind. All over the free world there are literally thousands of successful men in all lines of work who are where they are today because they once. .. bought a copy of Think and Grow Rich, and they'll be quick to tell you so.... I've sat in richly-paneled, carpeted executive offices and listened to world- famous business leaders, some of them old enough to be my father, tell me that everything worked out fine after they had read Think and Grow Rich.... Why has this book out of all the thousands of selfhelp books remained the one towering giant?... When the last page of Think and Grow Rich was read, the hand which put the book down on the table was a different hand. The man who then stood and walked out into the world was a different, a changed man. . . . The man was now the possessor of the unique, unseen talent for turning dreams into reality, thoughts into things. . . he who had been the passenger was now 14 suddenly the captain. Supersalesman and top motivational speaker Og Mandino, whose books have sold more than 7 million copies, lists Think and Grow Rich as one of the twelve 15 greatest selfhelp books of all time. Napoleon Hill's books are offered at Christian bookstores across the country and recommended by numerous Christian leaders. In Making the Most of Your Mind, coauthors Stephen B. Douglass and Lee Roddy state: In recent years, a number of secular books have related success to the power of the mind. The authors of these books have begun to plumb the depths of the reservoir of potential God has placed in the human mind. Napoleon Hill was one such secular writer.... After 20 years of research he wrote an eight-volume omnibus called The Law of Success, parts of which are condensed in his best-selling book, Think and Grow Rich....[He] probably did 16 the most useful research in history.... The Subtle Deception The large following that Napoleon Hill has both among successful businessmen and Christian leaders is difficult to reconcile with his open