What's Bothering Oprah, Eckhart Tolle and Today’s New Age Thinkers

My points are continued here from my previous post:

11. Karma is misunderstood. I would like to answer the questions posed by the author here:

Who started karma and reincarnation and why?
- Nobody did. Karma is a law just as gravity is.

Who decides what behavior gets rewarded and what gets punished, especially since there are no moral categories?

- Nobody decides. When you swing a pendulum to one side, it automatically returns by the law of gravity. The nature of the thought (which is behind the action) will determine the consequence.

How can there be a “who” to all this when God is a “what,” an impersonal force like gravity?

- God is neither a "who" nor a "what". God simply is. "I am that great I am."

13. Is there life after death?

- I think the intended question is "Is there birth after death". Because according to Eastern thought, life is eternal.

I am not an NA, but I believe that this article points out a few misconceptions about the ancient eastern belief. I say Eastern because even though the author has done the comparison with New Age, almost all of the concepts (such as Karma) are from ancient eastern religions.

1. The Big Bang theory only describes how and when the world "started" but does not say what it was before the "bang"--it does not necessarily negate the existence of a universe prior to the big bang.

2. Eastern religions also believe in the Trinity, that God is 3 persons. I believe the Bible also points out that "ye are all gods..."

4. According to Eastern thought, yes we are here by the law of Karma, but that is only the "how", not the "why". Why we are here is captured by this statement from the Eastern Wisdom: "I separated myself from myself so that I may love myself."

6. The meaning of life is not enlightenment--that's the goal.

7. God is true, good and beautiful--even according to Eastern thought.

1. If its not Eternal then how do we have eternal life? The world was created, all forms, but before this there was space and after this world there will still be space. There is more space in you then there is matter.

2. What can be more personal than self?


3. More so, we are not a creation of God, we are people "cut-off" from God. From self.

4. to be continued for time constraints (ironically)

I want to tell my personal experience w/this book.1st, I don't watch Oprah & knew nothing about the book. I bought it because of its cover description & I liked the idea of finding my purpose in life.I read about 180pgs,skipped my nightly Bible readings& thought this guy was hitting on something profound.It had a lot of Eastern religious threads interweaved despite his quotes of the NT. I recognized this &discarded the ideas I knew were wrong but still thought I could gain something from this while worshipping Jesus.

I read my Bible on night 4. God spoke to me TWICE against worshipping other gods &the doom that would ensue.I flipped through the 1st scripture,decided I didn't need that &RANDOMLY selected another page w/a VERY similar message. I knew God was speaking to me at that point. He wanted me to stop reading & TRASH the book. Don't give it away, don't sell just trash it! I have no doubt there is something very evil here for God to speak so strongly. My testimony-God is good

I am saddened that Oprah is misleading so many people. A co-worker brought the book into my office a couple days after asking me about God and my faith. She said to me "he even talks about Jesus in here. You should get this book." Immediately I knew with every fiber in my being that NOTHING good was going to come of this book. People are looking so hard for something to fill all the empty places in their spirit's. yet they never seem to see that He is waiting right in front of them with His arms wide open. An intimate relationship with Jesus Christ will fill every void within them if only they would choose to believe. I did not come to Christ until I was 30 yrs. old. I was blinded by things just like this and it breaks my heart to see it happen to others.

well, right from the start, it does not appear you read Tolle's book. this is disconcerting only because it is false and most people make decisions based not on fact, but on emotion. christians especially will not "give up the security blanket" and invite any thought or philosophy that breaks up their belief system. to do so would be tragic. anyways, you started off by condemming Oprah for declaring herself a Christian, obviously because you can't be a Christian and embrace new age ideas (going back to the belief system statement). Christians need to realize that the world has many other religions with the same basic beliefs. do they condemn others for their beliefs? doing so would be hypocritical. it is one of the key concepts that Tolle speaks of when he addressed the "I'm right, you are wrong" part of the egoic self. you ended the article by saying new age is bankrupt. hypocritical? some of your answers are wrong, especially concerning Karma and reincarnation. Read the books again

I think Oprah never really forgave God for what ever happened to her in her childhood. She was traumatized by evil relatives and rather then seek forgiveness she never let go of the evil pain in her mind. Iventually she found comfort in twisted lie. Although Oprah talked about suppresing ego she is the biggest egoist herself. Nobody can tell her that for the fear of being rejected by her. So she goes through life without knowing what people really think of her and her insanity.

Watch this on Oprah http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW4LLwkgmqA It is scary to think she is misleading masses with New Age thinking.

Great article I have always questioned what Oprah truly believes. Today's show really showed my she is into New Age. Whether she realizes or not, New Age can be very deceptive especially to "Christians". You can't be everything to everyone without offending them. Oprah never does offend....On Todays show she was interviewing many people who read the "New Earth" book, from housewives to Captains in the Army...Sorry to say this Oprah but you appear to be a wolf in sheeps clothing, or better yet maybe even the Antichrist, not really but that was the first impression that came to my mind when I saw a few moments of the show...I hope Oprah has a wake up call....

Great article! Oprah has long been a proponent of New Age teaching (I remember her having shows with Marianne Williamson, Deepak Chopra and others as far back as '94 and '95). Believers need to go back to the foundation of the faith so that we can correctly determine what is true and what is false.

Eckhart Tolle's book, A New Earth, should be avoided by all who want to retain their moral and spiritual integrity.
The book's teaching contains many hazardous elements that may actually create a "climate" that would foster less than humane behavior in all who embrace it.
Two examples: the idea that we are NOT really seperate, unique individuals, but rather just one big cosmic "oneness", is a subtle form of "de-individualization" that actually makes it easier for one person to practice violence towards another.
Also, the idea that in reality, we are really the "inner space", the state of "Being" uncluttered and unconditioned by any "thought"-- that is a form of "de-humanization" that, again, makes it easier for one person to harm another. Dr. Philip Zimbardo is a social scientist who has compiled lists of other such destructive elements that can potentially destroy a person's integrity-- and Tolle's teachings along with A Course in Miracles are saturated with them. I'd pass.