New thought, a distinctly American movement that began in the mid-nineteenth century, focuses on healing and creating one's own reality through the power of mind and spirit. The founders of New Thought were profoundly practical. They all shared a similar understanding of spiritual reality and a passion for using it practically to create health, wealth, happiness, and most recently, by acquiring a global vision, to assist those in need around the world.

New Thought's long line of predecessors include Ralph Waldo Emerson; Phineas Quimby; Mary Baker Eddy, founder of Christian Science; Emma Curtis Hopkins, founder of Divine Science; Charles and Myrtle Fillmore, founder of Unity School of Christianity; and Ernest Holmes, founder of Religious Science.

Getting our Bearings: New Thought

NATURE OF THE DEITY. Referred to as God, the One, Love, and Presence; God is all-knowing, present everywhere, and all-powerful. This spiritual reality exists in, around, and through each individual.

RELATIONSHIP OF INDIVIDUAL TO THE DIVINE. Each individual can have a personal relationship with God without an intermediary. The individual is to God as the wave is to the ocean. It is believed that we are one with God.

HOW TO WORSHIP. Individuals worship in churches. Affirmative prayer, meditation, and visioning are common modalities of communicating with God. Worship also takes the form of applying spiritual principles in one's everyday life. Developing a consciousness in alignment with attributes of God is a primary focus.

ETHICAL BELIEFS. There is one power in the universe, God, and it is good. Ignorance of the true nature of God is the only sin. Thoughts create reality according to spiritual laws. Individuals can consciously use their thoughts to create the lives they desire. All people have the power to heal and transform their lives as well as conditions in the world at large. Individual lives are instruments of the divine.

THE SOUL AND BELIEFS ABOUT DEATH. Death is a continuation of life on another plane. The soul is eternal and never dies, but ever spirals upward in its evolution and expansion. Death is a transition to another plane of existence and is a time to commemorate and celebrate the life of the deceased.

The above is an excerpt from the book Wisdom Walk: Nine Practices for Creating Peace and Balance from the World's Spiritual Traditions, copyright 2007 by Sage Bennet, Ph.D. It is printed here with the permission of the publisher, New World Library, Novato, CA, 1-800-972-6657 ext. 52. For more information on Dr. Bennet's work, please visit her website, www.sagebennet.com.