Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future

Publication Data: Platina, CA: Saint Herman of Alaska Brotherhood, 2004
Format: softcover
Number of Pages: xxxvi + 254
Dimensions (l × w × h): 21.0 cm × 13.4 cm × 1.6 cm
ISBN: 0‒887904‒00‒X

   
Fifth Edition

by Fr. Seraphim Rose

“The present book is about the ‘spirituality’ of Ecumenism, the chief heresy of the 20th century. Until recently it appeared that Ecumenism was something so artificial, so syncretic, that it had no spirituality of its own; the ‘liturgical’ agenda of Ecumenical gatherings both great and small appeared to be no more than an elaborate Protestant Sunday service. But the very nature of the Ecumenist heresy—the belief that there is no one visible Church of Christ, that it is only now being formed—is such that it disposes the soul under its influence to certain spiritual attitudes which, in time, should produce a typical Ecumenist ‘piety’ and ‘spirituality.’ In our day this seems to be happening at last, as the Ecumenical attitude of religious ‘expectancy’ and ‘searching’ begins to be rewarded by the activity of a certain ‘spirit’ which gives religious satisfaction to the barren souls of the Ecumenist wasteland and results in a characteristic ‘piety’ which is no longer merely Protestant in tone.”
—“Preface”

CONTENTS

Preface to the Fifth Edition
Preface
Introduction
      1. The “Dialogue with Non-Christian Religions”
      2. “Christian” and Non-Christian Ecumenism
      3. “The New Age of the Holy Spirit”
      4. The Present Book
   I. The “Monotheistic” Religions: Do We Have the Same God that Non-Christians Have?
   II. The Power of the Pagan Gods: The Assault Upon Christianity
      1. The Attractions of Hinduism
      2. A War of Dogma
      3. Hindu Places and Practices
      4. Evangelizing the West
      5. The Goal of Hinduism: The Universal Religion
   III. A Fakir’s “Miracle” and the Prayer of Jesus
   IV. Eastern Meditation Invades Christianity
      1. “Christian Yoga”
      2. “Christian Zen”
      3. Transcendental Meditation
   V. The “New Religious Consciousness”: The Spirit of the Eastern Cults in the 1970s
      1. Hare Krishna in San Francisco
      2. Guru Maharaj-ji at the Houston Astrodome
      3. Tantric Yoga in the Mountains of New Mexico
      4. Zen Training in Northern California
      5. The New “Spirituality” vs. Christianity
   VI. “Signs from Heaven”: An Orthodox Christian Understanding of Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs)
      1. The Spirit of Science Fiction
      2. UFO Sightings and the Scientific Investigation of Them
      3. The Six Kinds of UFO Encounters
      4. Explanation of the UFO Phenomena
      5. The Meaning of UFOs
   VII. The “Charismatic Revival” as a Sign of the Times
      1. The 20th-century Pentecostal Movement
      2. The Ecumenical Spirit of the “Charismatic Revival”
      3. “Speaking in Tongues”
      4. “Christian” Mediumism
      5. Spiritual Deception
         A. Attitude toward “Spiritual” Experiences
         B. Physical Accompaniments of“Charismatic” Experiences
         C. “Spiritual Gifts” Accompanying “Charismatic” Experiences
         D. The New “Outpouring of the Holy Spirit”
   VIII. Conclusion: The Spirit of the Last Times
      1. The “Charismatic Revival” as a Sign of the Times
         A. A “Pentecost without Christ”
         B. The “New Christianity”
         C. “Jesus Is Coming Soon”
         D. Must Orthodoxy Join the Apostasy?
         E. “Little Children, It is the Last Hour” (I John 2:18)
      2. The Religion of the Future
Epilogue: Jonestown and the 1980s
Epilogue to the Fifth Edition: Further Developments in the Formation of the Religion of the Future
      1. The New Age Movement
      2. The Revival of Paganism
      3. The Rise of Witchcraft
      4. The Leaven of New Age Spirituality
      5. The Toronto Blessing
      6. UFOs in the Contemporary Mind
      7. The Plan for the New Age
      8. Globalism
      9. Denatured Christianity
      10. The Vague Expectancy of the “New Man”
      11. Conclusion
General Index
Scripture Index