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The New Age Cult
From the founder and director of the Christian Research Institute. Know across the United States as radio's "The Bible Answer Man" and the bestselling author of The Kingdom of the Cults , Dr. Walter Martin is firmly established as a true apologist for the Christian faith. His authority in biblical research and knowledge of cults has been recognized for many years. Thirty-five years ago Dr. Martin began his investigation and warnings concerning the rise of a new religious movement with roots in Eastern mysticism. He published articles and lectured on the occult and the cults which were spearheads for the current New Age Movement. The impending threat to the Christian Church has now become a reality. Today almost 60 million people dabble in some practices or forms of New Age and occultic thinking. The New Age Cult is Dr. Martin's militant refutation of what has become a major controversy in Christendom. He defines and answers biblically the key teachings of the New Age, exposes the latent dangers of the movement, gives criteria for identifying New Age groups and leaders, and shows the effective steps for communication Christian truth to New Age adherents. What every Christian should know about the New Age Movement.
144 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1980
About the author
Walter Ralston Martin
49 books54 followersWalter R. Martin was an American Evangelical minister, author, and Christian apologist who founded the Christian Research Institute in 1960 as a para-church ministry specializing as a clearing-house of information in both general Christian apologetics and in countercult apologetics.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 27, 2026
THE ‘ANTI-CULT’ AUTHORITY LOOKS CRITICALLY AT THE ‘NEW AGE’
Walter Ralston Martin (1928-1989) was perhaps the originator of the modern evangelical "countercult" ministry, having founded the Christian Research Institute in 1960, and acting as host of the "Bible Answer Man" radio program.
He wrote in the Preface to this 1989 book, “This is a very difficult book to write… because so many people, Christian and non-Christian alike, know so little about the evils of New Age thinking. It is also difficult because almost 35 years ago I warned of the New Age movement and correctly predicted the growth of the occult. I wish I had been wrong! I wrote articles and chapters in books on the cults of Theosophy, the Unity School of Christianity, Christian Science, Spiritism, Bahaiism, and Rosicrucianism, all of which were spearheads of current New Age teachings…
“I urged Christian publishers to commission and distribute books, booklets, pamphlets, and tracts on these cults and the occult, which were even then a growing threat to the Church. I have delivered thousands of lectures, crisscrossing America and the world for 38 years trying to get the message across… which I’m sure sounded to many like a litany of impending disaster. But so has it proved to be. Today some 35 to 50 million people are involved in some form of cultic organization throughout America and on foreign mission fields. Almost 60 million dabble in some New Age practice or occultic thinking… This small volume is obviously not intended to replace a select number of good, in-depth studies of the New Age movement (see my recommended book list…), but it is theology in newspaper language, a popular layman’s overview and refutation of a militant and growing problem for Christians everywhere.”
He reports, “the Theosophical Society did fuel the emerging New Age movement, and through the activities of Madame [Helena Petrovna] Blavasky and Annie Besant, the society planned for the Lord Maitreya to appear in the person of Mrs. Besant’s protege, Krishnamurti. However, Krishnamurti declined the honor of Mrs. Besant’s anointing due largely to the death of his brother and his subsequent disillusionment with the claims of Theosophy. And so the search and the anticipation continued.” (Pg. 17)
He asserts, “Often New Age cultists will say that they reject the biblical concept of God and even the authority of the Scriptures, but their inconsistency surfaces because they persist in quoting scriptures to buttress their own position. Why quote for proof what you say is untrustworthy? The truth is they find it impossible to function without some foundational reference to the eternal God, and we should not hesitate to cite examples of their use of the Bible as proof of inconsistency and lack of spiritual and scholastic integrity.” (Pg. 38)
He warns, “There are genuine dangers in the New Age movement at all levels of society. Very few people are aware that Robert Kennedy’s assassin, Sirhan, was deeply involved with New Age thinking through the writings of the Theosophical Society. The first book he requested when he was imprisoned after killing Robert Kennedy was ‘The Secret Doctrine,’ by Helena Blavatsky, founder of Theosophy.” (Pg. 55)
He points out that C.S. Lovett [author of popular evangelistic books such as ‘Soul-Winning Made Easy’] confirms that the visualization he refers to is the same as that used by cults: ‘Would it shock you to learn that God’s healing power is available through your own mind and you can trigger it by faith!… You could command ANY DISEASE to be healed in a flash… SOUNDS LIKE MIND SCIENCE? I admit that. It’s true that the cults have discovered certain of God’s healing laws… But let me ask, should born-again believers be denied healing simply because certain cults exploit these laws?’” (Pg. 77)
He cautions, “There is a danger that New Age thought could lead some to make God female, to totally abandon the biblical image of God. The Bible presents God with both feminine and masculine characteristics, but the male imagery is much stronger than the female. Losing sight of this truth would make Him less than He really is, reducing His power and authority and making Him synonymous with the sex goddesses that the Old Testament condemned.” (Pg. 79)
On reincarnation, he states, “Reincarnationists [citing Mt 11:7-14] claim Jesus was clearly stating that John the Baptist was the reincarnation of the prophet Elijah. The argument … can be diffused by simply pointing out that the role or ministry of John the Baptist was ‘in the spirit and power’ of Elijah’s ministry (Lk 1:17)… John the Baptist, when asked whether he was Elijah, denied it (Jn 1:21). Jesus was simply stating that John the Baptist was fulfilling FUNCTIONALLY and PROPHETICALLY the ministry of the prophet Elijah as the ‘voice of one crying in the wilderness.’ … While it is true that others were mistaken concerning Jesus’ identity [e.g., Mk 8:27-30], the disciples (specifically Peter) correctly identified Him as the Christ, the Messiah… Therefore, far from inferring reincarnation, both Peter and Jesus agree: He (Jesus) was the Messiah of Jewish hope.” (Pg. 88-89)
He also suggests that Christians should “Praise the zeal, dedication, and (wherever possible) the goals of the New Age movement, because its basic nature is both messianic and millennial. The New Age cult is seeking the right things, but with the wrong methods and with wrong reasons, sometimes merely because their quest for an end to poverty, disease, suffering, racial discrimination, inequalities, and economic and political tyranny are things with which Christians have been concerned for almost two millennia. Many New Agers are genuinely seeking millennial conditions on the earth. But there will be no kingdom without the King… Take time to laud them for their efforts in the area of conservation and concern for the well-being of the planet as well as the creatures that live on it… New Agers are sometimes disarmed by commendations because they have been taught to believe that Christianity is so heavenly minded that it is of no earthy good and that the God of the Bible doesn’t care about His creation.” (Pg. 102)
He concludes, “In dealing with the New Age cult, we are in reality dealing with spiritual warfare against the forces fo darkness, and we are told by God to put on the whole armor of heaven so that we will be able to withstand the forces of Satan (Eph 6:11)… Prepare yourself for spiritual combat, study and show yourself approved by God…” (Pg. 108)
This book will appeal to Christians seeking critiques of the New Age movement, as well as earlier groups such as Theosophy.
Walter Ralston Martin (1928-1989) was perhaps the originator of the modern evangelical "countercult" ministry, having founded the Christian Research Institute in 1960, and acting as host of the "Bible Answer Man" radio program.
He wrote in the Preface to this 1989 book, “This is a very difficult book to write… because so many people, Christian and non-Christian alike, know so little about the evils of New Age thinking. It is also difficult because almost 35 years ago I warned of the New Age movement and correctly predicted the growth of the occult. I wish I had been wrong! I wrote articles and chapters in books on the cults of Theosophy, the Unity School of Christianity, Christian Science, Spiritism, Bahaiism, and Rosicrucianism, all of which were spearheads of current New Age teachings…
“I urged Christian publishers to commission and distribute books, booklets, pamphlets, and tracts on these cults and the occult, which were even then a growing threat to the Church. I have delivered thousands of lectures, crisscrossing America and the world for 38 years trying to get the message across… which I’m sure sounded to many like a litany of impending disaster. But so has it proved to be. Today some 35 to 50 million people are involved in some form of cultic organization throughout America and on foreign mission fields. Almost 60 million dabble in some New Age practice or occultic thinking… This small volume is obviously not intended to replace a select number of good, in-depth studies of the New Age movement (see my recommended book list…), but it is theology in newspaper language, a popular layman’s overview and refutation of a militant and growing problem for Christians everywhere.”
He reports, “the Theosophical Society did fuel the emerging New Age movement, and through the activities of Madame [Helena Petrovna] Blavasky and Annie Besant, the society planned for the Lord Maitreya to appear in the person of Mrs. Besant’s protege, Krishnamurti. However, Krishnamurti declined the honor of Mrs. Besant’s anointing due largely to the death of his brother and his subsequent disillusionment with the claims of Theosophy. And so the search and the anticipation continued.” (Pg. 17)
He asserts, “Often New Age cultists will say that they reject the biblical concept of God and even the authority of the Scriptures, but their inconsistency surfaces because they persist in quoting scriptures to buttress their own position. Why quote for proof what you say is untrustworthy? The truth is they find it impossible to function without some foundational reference to the eternal God, and we should not hesitate to cite examples of their use of the Bible as proof of inconsistency and lack of spiritual and scholastic integrity.” (Pg. 38)
He warns, “There are genuine dangers in the New Age movement at all levels of society. Very few people are aware that Robert Kennedy’s assassin, Sirhan, was deeply involved with New Age thinking through the writings of the Theosophical Society. The first book he requested when he was imprisoned after killing Robert Kennedy was ‘The Secret Doctrine,’ by Helena Blavatsky, founder of Theosophy.” (Pg. 55)
He points out that C.S. Lovett [author of popular evangelistic books such as ‘Soul-Winning Made Easy’] confirms that the visualization he refers to is the same as that used by cults: ‘Would it shock you to learn that God’s healing power is available through your own mind and you can trigger it by faith!… You could command ANY DISEASE to be healed in a flash… SOUNDS LIKE MIND SCIENCE? I admit that. It’s true that the cults have discovered certain of God’s healing laws… But let me ask, should born-again believers be denied healing simply because certain cults exploit these laws?’” (Pg. 77)
He cautions, “There is a danger that New Age thought could lead some to make God female, to totally abandon the biblical image of God. The Bible presents God with both feminine and masculine characteristics, but the male imagery is much stronger than the female. Losing sight of this truth would make Him less than He really is, reducing His power and authority and making Him synonymous with the sex goddesses that the Old Testament condemned.” (Pg. 79)
On reincarnation, he states, “Reincarnationists [citing Mt 11:7-14] claim Jesus was clearly stating that John the Baptist was the reincarnation of the prophet Elijah. The argument … can be diffused by simply pointing out that the role or ministry of John the Baptist was ‘in the spirit and power’ of Elijah’s ministry (Lk 1:17)… John the Baptist, when asked whether he was Elijah, denied it (Jn 1:21). Jesus was simply stating that John the Baptist was fulfilling FUNCTIONALLY and PROPHETICALLY the ministry of the prophet Elijah as the ‘voice of one crying in the wilderness.’ … While it is true that others were mistaken concerning Jesus’ identity [e.g., Mk 8:27-30], the disciples (specifically Peter) correctly identified Him as the Christ, the Messiah… Therefore, far from inferring reincarnation, both Peter and Jesus agree: He (Jesus) was the Messiah of Jewish hope.” (Pg. 88-89)
He also suggests that Christians should “Praise the zeal, dedication, and (wherever possible) the goals of the New Age movement, because its basic nature is both messianic and millennial. The New Age cult is seeking the right things, but with the wrong methods and with wrong reasons, sometimes merely because their quest for an end to poverty, disease, suffering, racial discrimination, inequalities, and economic and political tyranny are things with which Christians have been concerned for almost two millennia. Many New Agers are genuinely seeking millennial conditions on the earth. But there will be no kingdom without the King… Take time to laud them for their efforts in the area of conservation and concern for the well-being of the planet as well as the creatures that live on it… New Agers are sometimes disarmed by commendations because they have been taught to believe that Christianity is so heavenly minded that it is of no earthy good and that the God of the Bible doesn’t care about His creation.” (Pg. 102)
He concludes, “In dealing with the New Age cult, we are in reality dealing with spiritual warfare against the forces fo darkness, and we are told by God to put on the whole armor of heaven so that we will be able to withstand the forces of Satan (Eph 6:11)… Prepare yourself for spiritual combat, study and show yourself approved by God…” (Pg. 108)
This book will appeal to Christians seeking critiques of the New Age movement, as well as earlier groups such as Theosophy.
July 17, 2021
I don’t think I’ve ever read a worse book
January 1, 2022
It’s exactly what it says- imagine newspaper clippings for all things pertaining to the new age and their biblical rebuttals.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews