New Thought promotes the ideas that "Infinite Intelligence" or "God" is ubiquitous, spirit is the totality of real things, true human selfhood is divine, divine thought is a force for good, sickness originates in the mind, and "right thinking" has a healing effect.

Although New Thought is neither monolithic nor doctrinaire, in general modern day adherents of New Thought believe that their interpretation of "God" or "Infinite Intelligence" is "supreme, universal, and everlasting", that divinity dwells within each person and that all people are spiritual beings, that "the highest spiritual principle [is] loving one another unconditionally ... and teaching and healing one another", and that "our mental states are carried forward into manifestation and become our experience in daily living".

The New Thought movement is a spiritually-focused or philosophical interpretation of New Thought beliefs. Started in the early 19th century, today the movement consists of a loosely allied group of religious denominations, secular membership organizations, authors, philosophers, and individuals who share a set of beliefs concerning metaphysics, positive thinking, the law of attraction, healing, life force, creative visualization, and personal power. The three major religious denominations within the New Thought movement are Religious Science, Unity Church and the Church of Divine Science. There are many other smaller churches within the New Thought movement, as well as schools and umbrella organizations.

Overview

William James, in ''The Varieties of Religious Experience'', described New Thought as follows:

History

Origins

The earliest identifiable proponent of what came to be known as New Thought was Phineas Parkhurst Quimby (1802–66), an American philosopher, mesmerist, healer, and inventor. Quimby developed a belief system that included the tenet that illness originated in the mind as a consequence of erroneous beliefs and that a mind open to God's wisdom could overcome any illness.

His basic premise was “The trouble is in the mind, for the body is only the house for the mind to dwell in…Therefore, if your mind had been deceived by some invisible enemy into a belief, you have out into it the form of a disease, with or without your knowledge. By my theory or truth, I come in contact with your enemy, and restore you to health and happiness. This I do partly mentally, and partly by talking till I correct the wrong impression and establish the Truth, and the Truth is the cure.”

During the late 19th century the metaphysical healing practices of Quimby mingled with the "Mental Science" of Warren Felt Evans, a Swedenborgian minister.

New Thought was propelled along by a number of spiritual thinkers and philosophers and emerged through a variety of religious denominations and churches, particularly the Unity Church, Religious Science, and Church of Divine Science. Many of its early teachers and students were women; notable among the founders of the movement were Emma Curtis Hopkins, known as the "teacher of teachers", Myrtle Fillmore, Malinda Cramer, and Nona L. Brooks; with many of its churches and community centers led by women, from the 1880s to today.

Growth

New Thought is also largely a movement of the printed word. The 1890s and the first decades of the 20th century saw many New Thought books published on the topics of self-help, financial success, and will-training books. New Thought authors such as of Napoleon Hill, Wallace Wattles, Perry Joseph Green‎, Frank Channing Haddock, and Thomas Troward were extremely popular.

In 1906, William Walker Atkinson (1862–1932) wrote and published ''Thought Vibration or the Law of Attraction in the Thought World''. Atkinson was the editor of ''New Thought'' magazine and the author of more than 100 books on an assortment of religious, spiritual, and occult topics. The following year, Elizabeth Towne, the editor of ''The Nautilus Magazine, a Journal of New Thought'', published Bruce MacLelland's book ''Prosperity Through Thought Force'', in which he summarized the "Law of Attraction" as a New Thought principle, stating "You are what you think, not what you think you are."

These magazines were used to reach a large audience then, as others are now. ''Nautilus'' magazine, for example, had 45,000 subscribers and a total circulation of 150,000. One Unity Church magazine, ''Wee Wisdom'', was the longest-lived children's magazine in the United States, published from 1893 until 1991. Today, New Thought magazines include the ''Daily Word'' published by Unity and the Religious Science magazine, ''Science of Mind'', published by the United Centers for Spiritual Living.

Major gatherings

The 1915 International New Thought Alliance (INTA) conference – held in conjunction with the Panama-Pacific International Exposition, a world's fair that took place in San Francisco – featured New Thought speakers from far and wide. The PPIE organizers were so favorably impressed by the INTA convention that they declared a special "New Thought Day" at the fair and struck a commemorative bronze medal for the occasion, which was presented to the INTA delegates, led by Annie Rix Militz. By 1916, the International New Thought Alliance had encompassed many smaller groups around the world, adopting a creed known as the "Declaration of Principles". The Alliance is held together by one central teaching: that people, through the constructive use of their minds, can attain freedom, power, health, prosperity, and all good, molding their bodies as well as the circumstances of their lives. The declaration was revised in 1957, with all references to Christianity removed, and a new statement based on the "inseparable oneness of God and Man".

There are regular conventions and conferences today, including those hosted by the major denominations, Agape International Spiritual Center, and others.

Belief systems

The chief tenets of New Thought are:

Infinite Intelligence or God is omnipotent and omnipresent.

Spirit is the ultimate reality.

True human self-hood is divine.

Divinely attuned thought is a positive force for good.

All disease is mental in origin.

Right thinking has a healing effect.

Evolution of thought

Adherents also generally believe that as humankind gains greater understanding of the world, New Thought itself will evolve to assimilate new knowledge. Alan Anderson and Deb Whitehouse have described New Thought as a "process" in which each individual and even the New Thought Movement itself is "new every moment". Thomas McFaul has hypothesized "continuous revelation", with new insights being received by individuals continuously over time. Jean Houston has spoken of the "possible human", or what we are capable of becoming.

Theological inclusionism

The Home of Truth, which, from its inception as the Pacific Coast Metaphysical Bureau in the 1880s, under the leadership of Annie Rix Militz, has disseminated the teachings of the Hindu teacher Swami Vivekananda, is one of the more outspokenly interfaith of New Thought organizations, stating adherence to "the principle that Truth is Truth where ever it is found and who ever is sharing it".

Therapeutic ideas

Divine Science, Unity Church, and Religious Science are organizations which developed from the New Thought movement, each of which teach that Infinite Intelligence or God is the sole reality, sickness is the result of the failure to realize this truth, and healing is accomplished by the affirmation of the oneness of the human race with the Infinite Intelligence or God. They tend to reject the medical science explanations for many diseases and promote their ideas as a sort of alternative medicine.

John Bovee Dods (1795–1862), an early practitioner of New Thought, wrote several books on the idea that disease originates in the electrical impulses of the nervous system and is therefore curable by a change of belief. Later New Thought teachers, such as the early 20th century author, editor, and publisher William Walker Atkinson, accepted this premise. He connected his idea of mental states of being with his understanding of the new scientific discoveries in electromagnetism and neural processes.

Denominations

As a movement, New Thought has two large denominations, Centers for Spiritual Living and Unity. According to the Association for Global New Thought, there are 800 to 900 Unity churches, 600 to 700 Religious Science venues, and 300 to 400 independent mininstries in the United States. A recent survey found that approximately 250,000 people attend at least one New Thought service a month. Publishing and educational activities reach approximately 2.5 million people annually. Other belief systems within the New Thought movement include Jewish Science, Religious Science, and Seicho-no-Ie. Past denominations have included Psychiana and Father Divine.

Religious Science operates under three main organizations: the United Centers for Spiritual Living; the Affiliated New Thought Network; and Global Religious Science Ministries. Ernest Holmes, the founder of Religious Science, stated that Religious Science is not based on any "authority" of established beliefs, but rather on "what it can accomplish" for the people who practice it. ''The Science of Mind'', authored by Ernest Holmes, while based on a philosophy of being "open at the top", focuses extensively on the teachings of Jesus Christ.

Unity, founded by Charles and Myrtle Fillmore, identifies itself as "Christian New Thought", focused on "Christian idealism", with the Bible as one of its main texts, although not interpreted literally. The other core text is ''Lessons in Truth'' by H. Emilie Cady.

See also

New religious movement

Panentheism

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Universalism

References

Bibliography

Albanese, Catherine. ''A Republic of Mind and Spirit''. Yale University Press, 2007.

Anderson, Alan and Deb Whitehouse. ''New Thought: A Practical American Spirituality''. 2003.

Braden, Charles. ''Spirits in Rebellion''

Judah, J. Stillson. ''The History and Philosophy of the Metaphysical Movements in America''. Philadelphia: The Westminster Press. 1967. Review by Neil Duddy.

McFaul, Thomas R. ''Religion in the Future Global Civilization'' printed in ''The Futurist'' magazine. September–October 2006.

Mosley, Glenn R. ''The History and Future NEW THOUGHT, ANCIENT WISDOM of the New Thought Movement''. Templeton Foundation Press. 2006, ISBN 0-59947-089-6

White, Ronald M. ''New Thought Influences on Father Divine'' (Masters Thesis, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio. 1980. Abstract

External links

INTA New Thought History Chart

Association For Global New Thought

New Thought Unity and Divine Science Writings

NewThought.info Global Outreach

New Thought Library

New Thought History

Category:Feminist theology Category:Panentheism

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{{infobox writer | name	Louise L. Hay | image LouiseHay.JPG | imagesize 150px | caption Louise L. Hay | pseudonym | birth_date October 08, 1926 | birth_place Los Angeles, California USA | death_date | death_place | occupation Author, Professional speaker, | nationality American | period | genre Self-help, Motivational | subject
movement	| debut_works You can Heal your Life (1984) | influences | influenced | signature
website	http://www.louisehay.com | footnotes }}

Louise Hay (born October 8, 1926) is an American motivational author, and the founder of Hay House, a publishing company. She has authored several New Thought self-help books, and is best known for her 1984 book, ''You Can Heal Your Life''.

Biography

Hay recounted her life story in an interview with Mark Oppenheimer of the New York Times in May 2008. In it Hay stated that she was born in Los Angeles to a poor mother who remarried Louise’s violent stepfather. She recounted that when she was about 5, she was raped by a neighbor. At 15 she dropped out of high school without a diploma, became pregnant and, on her 16th birthday, gave up her newborn baby girl to be adopted. She then recalled she moved to Chicago, where she worked in low paying jobs. In 1950 she moved on again to New York. She explained, that at this point she changed her name and began a career as a fashion model. She was successful at this, working for Bill Blass, Oleg Cassini and Pauline Trigère. In 1954 she married the English businessman Andrew Hay, but went on to tell how, after 14 years of marriage, she was devastated when he left her for another woman.

Hay said that about this time she found the First Church of Religious Science on 48th Street, that taught her the transformative power of thought. Hay revealed that here she studied the New Thought works of authors like Florence Scovel Shinn, who claimed that positive thinking could change people’s material circumstances, and the Religious Science founder Ernest Holmes, who taught that the body could be healed through positive thinking.

By Hay's account in the early 1970s she became a Religious Science practitioner. In this role she led people in spoken affirmations, which she believes will cure their illnesses, and became popular as a workshop leader. She also recalled how she had studied Transcendental Meditation with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi at the Maharishi International University in Fairfield, Iowa.

Hay described how in 1977 or 1978 she found she had cervical cancer, and how she came to the conclusion that by holding on to her resentment for her childhood abuse and rape she had contributed to its onset. She reported how she had refused conventional medical treatment, and began a regime of forgiveness, coupled with therapy, nutrition, reflexology and occasional enemas. She claimed in the interview that she rid herself of the cancer by this method, but declared that there is no doctor left alive who can confirm this story, while swearing to its truth.

In 1976, Hay wrote her first book ''Heal Your Body'', which began as a small pamphlet, containing a list of different bodily ailments and their “probable” metaphysical causes. This pamphlet was later enlarged and extended into her book ''You Can Heal Your Life'', published in 1984 As of February 2008, it was second on the New York Times miscellaneous paperback best sellers list.

Around the same time she began leading support groups for people living with H.I.V. or AIDS which she called ''"Hay Rides"''. These grew from a few people in her living room to hundreds of men in a large hall in West Hollywood. Her work with AIDS patients drew fame and she was invited to appear on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and “Donahue” in the same week, in March 1988. Following this, ''You Can Heal Your Life'' immediately landed on the New York Times best-seller list. More than 35 million copies are now in print around the world in over 30 languages and it also has been made into a movie. ''You Can Heal Your Life'' is also included in the book ''50 Self-Help Classics'' for being significant in its field. Some of these statistics are open to question however. Louise Hays writes on page 225 of her book (December 2000 printing) that the book has ". . . sold more than three million copies". Given this disparity, it is more likely that the 35 million copies named in the subsequent 2007 and 2008 newspaper interviews should be 3.5 million.

Publishing

In 1984, Louise Hay established Hay House Publishing, which is the primary publisher of books and audio books by Deepak Chopra and Doreen Virtue, as well as many books by Wayne Dyer. Hay House also publishes the teachings of Abraham, channeled through Esther Hicks. In addition to running her publishing company, Hay runs a charitable organization called 'Hay Foundation', which she founded in 1985.

In 2008, a movie about Louise Hay's life was released, titled ''You Can Heal Your Life''. In Louise's own words from the movie's official website: "This movie is the story of my life, my teachings, and how I've applied the principles of my teachings to my own life." The movie also features Gregg Braden, Wayne Dyer, Gay Hendricks, Esther & Jerry Hicks, Doreen Virtue, and was directed by Emmy Award winning Director Michael Goorjian

Bibliography

''You Can Heal Your Life''. Hay House Inc., 1984. ISBN 0937611018

''Heal Your Body: The Mental Causes for Physical Illness and the Metaphysical Way to Overcome Them''. Hay House Inc., 1984. ISBN 0937611352

''The Power Is Within You''. Hay House Inc., 1991

''Inner Wisdom: Meditations for the Heart and Soul'', 2000

''The Adventures of Lulu: Three Stories to Help Build Self-Esteem and Courage in Children'', 2005

See also

Raymond Charles Barker

Emmet Fox

Stuart Grayson

References

External links

Category:1926 births Category:Living people Category:Religious Science clergy Category:American motivational speakers Category:American motivational writers Category:American publishers (people) Category:American self-help writers Category:American spiritual writers Category:New Thought writers Category:Popular psychology

az:Luiza Hey de:Louise Hay es:Louise Hay fr:Louise Hay it:Louise Hay nl:Louise Hay pt:Louise Hay ru:Хей, Луиза uk:Луїза Хей

Name	Frank Ocean
background	solo_singer
birth name	Christopher Breaux
alias	Christopher Francis Ocean, Lonny Breaux
born	October 28, 1987New Orleans, Louisiana, US
origin	Los Angeles, California, US
genre	Contemporary R&B;, alternative hip hop, hip hop soul
occupation	Singer-songwriter, rapper
instrument	Vocals, keyboards, guitar
years active	2007–present
label	Odd Future Records, Def Jam
associated acts	OFWGKTA, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Kanye West, Pharrell Williams
website	}}

Christopher Francis Ocean (born Christopher Breaux; October 28, 1987), better known by his stage name Frank Ocean, is an American singer-songwriter and occasional rapper from New Orleans, Louisiana. Ocean made an early career as a ghost-writer for artists such as Bridget Kelly and John Legend. In early 2011 he became a member of OFWGKTA, though he is often mistaken for an affiliate because of his "different sound" from the rest of the collective. He made three appearances on the Tyler, the Creator album ''Goblin'', including the single "She" and two appearances on MellowHype's album ''BlackenedWhite'', both of which are Odd Future releases. In February 2011, he released his debut mixtape ''Nostalgia, Ultra'' to critical acclaim. He released two singles; "Novacane" and "Swim Good". Both singles achieved chart success. Ocean went on a 7 show tour through North America and Europe promoting the mixtape.

The mixtape caught the interest of recording artists such as Kanye West, Beyoncé Knowles and Jay-Z, and he appeared on ''Watch the Throne''. He wrote the popular track "Thinking About You" for Bridget Kelly he is set to appear on future solo releases by Jay-Z and Nas. On January 5, 2012, the BBC announced that he had finished in second place in the BBC's Sound of 2012 poll. Ocean is currently working on his debut studio album, set to be released in the first half of 2012, and will appear at Coachella 2012.

Biography

2005-2010: Career beginnings

Ocean was with the producer duo The MIDI Mafia. Ocean joined Los Angeles based hip hop collective OFWGKTA, who he met through his connections, at the end of 2009. In late 2009, he met Tricky Stewart, who helped Ocean sign a contract with Def Jam Recordings as a solo artist, however, he was initially unable to build a relationship with the company. In 2010, he changed his name from Christopher Breaux to Christopher Francis William Ocean via a legal website.

2011-present

Ocean has written songs for John Legend, Brandy, and Beyoncé Knowles ("I Miss You" from the album ''4''), Ocean has also worked with Nas (on whose 10th studio album Ocean is expected to feature, along with fellow Odd Future members Tyler, the Creator and Hodgy Beats) and Pharrell Williams. On February 18, 2011, Ocean released his first mixtape, ''Nostalgia, Ultra'', to critical acclaim. His music mostly focuses on interpersonal relationships, personal reflection and social commentary. NPR's Andrew Noz calls Ocean's songwriting "smart and subtle...setting him apart from the pack." ''Rolling Stone'' magazine's Jonah Weiner calls Ocean a "gifted avant-R&B; smoothie". In an April 2011 interview, Ocean stated that his relationship with Def Jam has strengthened since the release of his mixtape.

Ocean appeared in Tyler, the Creator's music video for the single "She", from Tyler's 2011 studio album ''Goblin''. Ocean first performed with Odd Future at the Coachella Music & Arts Festival in April 2011, then later joined his OFWGKTA bandmates for the first time on tour from May 12 to May 19, 2011. They toured the eastern seaboard of the United States. On May 19, 2011 Ocean's record label Def Jam announced its plans to re-release ''Nostalgia, Ultra'' as an EP. The single "Novacane" was released to iTunes on May 31, 2011, and the EP originally was set to be released on July 26, 2011, but through his Tumblr blog on July 24, he stated that it would not be released on that date. In June 2011, Ocean revealed on his Tumblr that he would be working on the upcoming Kanye West and Jay-Z collaborative album, ''Watch the Throne''. Ocean was ultimately a writer and featured artist on the tracks "No Church in the Wild" and "Made in America". On July 28, 2011 a song titled "Thinking About You" was leaked on the internet. It was later revealed the song was a reference track and written for Roc Nation artist Bridget Kelly for her debut studio album. Kelly who has performed an acoustic version of the song, has renamed it "Thinking About Forever". However on September 15, 2011 a music video directed by High5Collective for Ocean's version was released, so it is currently unknown on which project the song will end up.

Discography

Mixtapes

''Nostalgia, Ultra'' (2011)

Awards and nominations

! Year	! Organisation	! Award	! Result
2012		Sound of 2012
2012	Grammis	International Album of the Year

References

Category:OFWGKTA members Category:Musicians from Louisiana Category:Musicians from New Orleans, Louisiana Category:African American singer-songwriters Category:Living people Category:1987 births

de:Frank Ocean fr:Frank Ocean pl:Frank Ocean ru:Фрэнк Оушен sv:Frank Ocean