'The Secret,' a phenomenon, is no mystery to many
Many say the book and DVD contain the key to unlimited happiness, health, money, and relationships. Others call the message misleading.
from the March 28, 2007 edition
Page 3 of 4
Turning thoughts into things
There are evangelical versions of this theme, Dr. McCloud adds, such as the "prosperity gospel" among Pentecostals and the Word of Faith movement, which includes pastors T.D. Jakes and Joel Osteen.
Eventually, "The Secret" touches on spiritual or religious themes, including the importance of gratitude, expectation of good, and love as the greatest power in the universe. It borrows from the New Testament to define the "powerful process" for employing the secret as "Ask, Believe, Receive." Yet it's not talking of Jesus' prayerful approach to God, but a personal process of visualization.
But even some New Thought advocates object to this approach. "We believe in the law of attraction but apply it differently," says Thomas Shepherd, chair of history and theological studies at Unity Institute. "It's not really about materialistic things, but about spiritual growth – the goal is to become one with God ... not demonstrate a Cadillac in the driveway or get personal power.
"For me," Professor Shepherd adds, "it gets too much into magic, the idea you can control the world by what you think as opposed to letting go and letting God work through you."
Visualization has been most associated with New Age religion and forms of healing, but it has long been used as a meditative technique in both Eastern and Western religions, says Christel Manning, associate professor of religion at Sacred Heart University, in Fairfield, Conn. "It can be part of religious practice, but most traditional Christian or Jewish perspectives would understand prayer to be opening yourself to the will of God."
In various forms, visualization is practiced in sports and business, as well as in alternative healing methods that focus on imagining changes taking place in the body, such as cells becoming healthy again.
Quantum physicists disagree
"The Secret" also claims to draw from quantum physics in its view of the operations of the universe. John Hagelin, a quantum physicist says in the book, "Quantum mechanics confirms it; Quantum cosmology confirms it: that the universe essentially emerges from thought and all of this matter around us is just precipitated thought. Ultimately we are the source of the universe...."
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