Christianity -vs- The Secret

In 2006, the world was taken by storm by Rhonda Byrne and her movie The Secret. The movie was designed to unveil a secret to the world that has, for the most part, been held only in the hands of the elite throughout the ages, and, has been withheld from the masses. I defined “the secret” (for those of you who don’t know) in another post.

Since it’s release, the success stories have been pouring in by the tens of thousands. People who learned The Secret and have used it, have reported near mirculous results. Some have finally found the love of their lives after looking for decades. Some have experienced health benefits, such as massive weight loss, reshaping of their bodies, and some have even been healed from cancers and other maladies. And, some of them have even gotten filthy, stinkin’ hog nasty riiich! And all of them claim, there success came as a direct result of what they learned in The Secret.

The movie and subsequent book and audio created quite the stir in the personal development world, with varied responses. Though many are claiming better quality lives using this newly revealed knowledge, there are others who are not so interested in The Secret and it’s alleged promises. Some Christians across the world have been warned by their ministers and preachers to stay away from The Secret, claiming it’s message is anti-Christian. Some have gone on to say that The Secret’s creator, Rhonda Byrne, is “evil” and “possessed of the devil.” And, she has even been called by some Christian extremest, “the anti-Christ.” Wow, those are some serious allegations.

Well, as someone who is a follower and disciple of Jesus Christ and one who believes that He is the very Son of God, I would like to chime in on this subject.

One of the major complaints about the movie from ultra-conservative Christians is that the “credit” for attaining the good life is given to “the universe,” not God. This one is easy. I simply ask; “Who made the universe?” They can use what ever word they want to use, but those who know, know from which all good gifts come. I happen to believe that this is an intelligent universe. That it was designed to be a blessing to those who, through study, fasting, prayer and meditation, can learn the mysteries of the God and can harness those truths to more fully enjoy this life, and the one that is to follow.

When anyone is preaching religion, or is treading through topics of spirituality, if we keep our minds open, rather than closed, we can filter what is being said, and have it rest upon our own belief system, even if through the filtering process, we have to alter a word or two to make it feel right. If your mind is open, but what you are hearing is not right, or if the doctrine is evil, it won’t feel right no matter what words you rearrange. But if your mind is open and the message is at it’s core, good… (notice I didn’t say perfect), it can serve you immensely, even if a word or two is not to your liking.

I’ve found that many of my favorite personal development authors use several terms in the place of God. The universe, intelligent design, innate intelligence, spirit, the Source, the Light and many more. I don’t cut them off because they are using a different word than I am used to. I hear them out in attempt to extract their knowledge. Because when I hear or read those politically correct words, or words more generally accepted by the worlds population, in my own mind, I simply replace them with God. And it all works.

It’s important for all of us to know that the video, The Secret, is NOT a Sunday School video. Nor is it a video created for The Church. It was created for people all over the world, in every country, with every belief system. If some of the people who were on the video, who do acknowledge the divinity of Jesus Christ, were to be quoting him on every turn, the message would have become irrelevant to 70% of the worlds population who are not Christian. This would have defeated the purpose of the video. It’s intent was not to bring people to Christ. It’s sole intent was to introduce the world to to a power, a law, that is as real and as relevant to all of us as is the law of gravity. That’s it. Nothing less. Nothing more.

Next, it’s important to consider this. Who are the people in the video? Are they your God’s prophets? Do they claim to be deity or to be His divinely appointed messengers? If not, why would anyone take more heed to their message than they would some cracked out, street walker? Just because they said it, doesn’t mean it’s wholly true or even true at all. Right?

Now having said that, I happened to really, really enjoy the movie, even though I didn’t agree with all that was said. I have friends who I disagree with on lots of points, but that doesnt make them or me evil. Overall, I felt the movie’s fruit was good. As Matthew taught, you can know the heart of a man by his fruits. I have referred a lot of people to the movie and have even used it as a teaching tool for some of the people I do coaching with. However, any time I recommend it, I do so with a disclaimer; “These dudes aint prophets, so take the spiritual stuff with a grain of salt.”

I use a biblical philosophy to guide my life, including any time I am reading a new book or learning something new. That philosophy is simply this; “Prove all things, and hold fast that which is good.” In other words, hear them out, and if there is value in what is being said, hang on to it, embrace it and assimilate. If there is no value in what has been said, relinquish it and move on.

As I watched The Secret, I did so with that philosophy intertwined in my discernment. There was one part that I (as well as many others) immediately rejected. Neale Donald Walsch stated that there is no magic chalkboard in the sky were upon God writes his will for you. Being that I believe at my core that I was foreordained to do certain things, and that I have a specific purpose on this earth, this was one of those things I simply threw out. However, if his point was that we can be anything we want to be, I certainly concur with that. We are not pawns in someone elses game. We are unique spiritual creations, endowed with the ability to dream and aspire and to think. I have no doubt that we can pursue the righteous desires of our hearts while simultaneously fulfilling our foreknown purposes.

Though the video was far from perfect, I don’t agree with the haters. I think it’s closed minded at best to be so violently opposed to something that has it’s roots in Christian doctrine. The Secret, put another way is this; What we think about, and what we feel about, comes about. Think it, feel it, experience it. I believe that was said first and best by King Solomon; “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” As a man thinketh (what you think about) in his heart (what you feel about), so is he (will come about). Because my mind was open, I discerned the Christian message in the film. The Secret crammed into an hour an half what it took me reading hundreds of books and articles and many, many years to learn. And for that reason, it is an extremely valuable asset to the people of this planet, regardless of religious affiliation.

If it were me, I would have done the movie a bit different. There are several of the “Secret Teachers” I would not have used. And there are others who I would have given more camera time. I think I would have had the spiritualists riding the bench on the sidelines. Or, if I left them in the game, I would have brought in leaders from several different religions, as well as scientists, psychologists, politicians, actors, doctors, metaphysicians and others. How powerful could that have been to have such a mix bag of philosophers, from all around the world, all preaching the same truth. Wow!

The bottom line for me is this…whether someone likes Rhonda Byrne and her film The Secret, or not, doesn’t change the fact that The Secret, otherwise known as The Law of Attraction, is indeed a real, true universal law, the ignorance of which does not negate it’s power. I simply say, prove all things, and hang on to those things that resonate with you. Discard the rest. And if you’re gonna hate, hate pornography. Hate child abuse. Hate senseless deaths. Hate evil. But don’t hate what may be your exit strategy from a life of mediocrity and despair. This movie, though far from perfect, is far also from any of the things aforementioned. There are bigger fish to fry. Lets eat.

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Regards,





C.S. Hughes
Chief Visionary Officer
Personal Development for Free
http://www.PD4Free.com
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