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Is there a canonical definition for the "New Age" movement? I remember a lot of conversation on the subject when I was younger and ran into someone mentioning it recently. As a term it is pretty amorphous; a lot of people use it as a blanket "bogeyman" for various beliefs from Shirly Maclaine to Gnosticism to eastern meditation practices.

t3rse
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    What canon are you referring to? The bible? The New Age Movement is less than 200 years old... – LCIII Aug 19 '14 at 19:11
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    This question appears to be off-topic because it is not about Christianity. The definitions and usage of the term "New Age" are not exclusive to Christianity nor inclusive of Christianity. –  Aug 19 '14 at 19:41
  • Sorry to offend the off-topic police. I got an answer though so feel free to delete. – t3rse Aug 19 '14 at 20:02
  • I understand what you mean though. Christians use it as a slur to discredit something or someone they don't like. Republican politicians likewise use the word Socialist and Democrats use the word Fascist, and they both use the word Racist. Rarely do any of these groups know what they are talking about when they use these words. –  Aug 19 '14 at 20:08
  • I believe it is important for Christians to understand what it means to be New Age for purposes of dialogue, but I suppose it is not Christianity per se. – Calvin Aug 19 '14 at 21:31
  • @fredsbend has my frame of mind: it is a term Christians use frequently but more as a blanket slur which is why I was trying to understand it in a more precise way. It's not too difficult a stretch for me to see it as a "Christian" topic but I also see where others may want to keep the discussion here as narrow as possible. Thanks Calvin for Googling it for me :) – t3rse Aug 20 '14 at 02:12
  • This is off topic. The "New Age Movement" is not a canonical term. Basically you're asking "what is the Christian definition of the New Age Movement" which is equally offtopic. Ask people in the "New Age Movement" what it means to be in the "movement" instead of asking another group to define them. Think of it like, "How do Catholics define Freemasons?" - But far worse since they do not co-mingle. – The Freemason Aug 20 '14 at 14:53

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New age

noun

a broad movement characterized by alternative approaches to traditional Western culture, with an interest in spirituality, mysticism, holism, and environmentalism. "the New Age movement"

(Thanks Google!)

I think that's about as canonical as you're going to get.

Calvin
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