Hanegraaff Wouter J. New Age religion and Western culture: esotericism in the mirror of secular thought

Leiden; New York; Koln: Brill, 1996. — 594 p. — ISBN: 9004106952.Presents the first systematic analysis of the structure and beliefs of the New Age movement, and the historical emergence of "New Age" as a secularized version of Western esoteric traditions.
Recent years have seen a spectacular rise of the New Age movement and an ever-increasing interest in its beliefs and manifestations. This fascinating work presents the first comprehensive analysis of New Age Religion and its historical backgrounds, thus providing a means of orientation in the bewildering variety of the movement. Making extensive use of primary sources, the author thematically analyses New Age beliefs from the perspective of the study of religions. While looking at the historical backgrounds of the movement, he convincingly argues that its foundations were laid by so-called western esoteric traditions during the Renaissance. Hanegraaff finally shows how the modern New Age movement emerged from the increasing secularization of those esoteric traditions during the nineteenth century.Orientation: major trends in new age religion
Channeling
Healing and Personal Growth
New Age Science
Neopaganism
New Age in a Restricted and in a General Sense
Exposition: the varieties of new age experience
The Nature of Reality
Meta-Empirical and Human Beings
Matters of the Mind
Death and Survival
Good and Evil
Visions of the Past
The New Age
Interpretation: new age religion and traditional esotericism
Towards a Historical Perspective on New Age Religion
A historical Framework
The Mirror of Secular Thought
Conclusions: The New Age Movement and the Nature of New Age Religion