Editing New Age (section)

==Reception==
===Popular media===

Mainstream periodicals tended to be less than sympathetic; sociologist Paul Ray and psychologist Sherry Anderson discussed in their 2000 book ''[[The Cultural Creatives]]'', what they called the media's "zest for attacking" New Age ideas, and offered the example of a 1996 [[Lance Morrow]] essay in ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine.{{sfnp|Ray|Anderson|2000|pp=188–189}} Nearly a decade earlier, ''Time'' had run a long cover story critical of New Age culture; the cover featured a headshot of a famous actress beside the headline, "'''Om....''' THE NEW AGE starring Shirley MacLaine, faith healers, channelers, space travelers, and crystals galore".<ref>''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine (7 December 1987), vol. 130, issue no. 23, front cover.</ref>  The story itself, by former ''[[The Saturday Evening Post|Saturday Evening Post]]'' editor [[Otto Friedrich]], was sub-titled, "A Strange Mix of Spirituality and Superstition Is Sweeping Across the Country".<ref>Friedrich, Otto (7 December 1987).  "New Age Harmonies".  ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine, vol. 130, issue no. 23, pp.&nbsp;62–66.</ref>  In 1988, the magazine ''[[The New Republic]]'' ran a four-page critique of New Age culture and politics by a journalist [[Richard Bradley (writer)|Richard Blow]] entitled simply, "Moronic Convergence".<ref>Blow, Richard (25 January 1988).  "Moronic Convergence".  ''[[The New Republic]]'', pp.&nbsp;24–27.</ref>

Some New Agers and New Age sympathizers responded to such criticisms.  For example, sympathizers Ray and Anderson said that much of it was an attempt to "stereotype" the movement for idealistic and spiritual change, and to cut back on its popularity.{{sfnp|Ray|Anderson|2000|pp=188–189}} New Age theoretician David Spangler tried to distance himself from what he called the "New Age glamour" of crystals, talk-show channelers, and other easily commercialized phenomena, and sought to underscore his commitment to the New Age as a vision of genuine social transformation.{{sfnp|Hanegraaff|1996|pp=104–105}}

===Academia===
[[File:Wouter Hanegraaff 2006 Alchemy Conference.jpg|thumb|upright|right|One of the first academics to study the New Age was Wouter Hanegraaff.]]

Initially, academic interest in the New Age was minimal.{{sfn|Hammer|2001|p=20}} The earliest academic studies of the New Age phenomenon were performed by specialists in the study of new religious movements such as [[Robert Ellwood]].{{sfnm|1a1=Lewis|1y=1992|1p=6|2a1=Hanegraaff|2y=1996|2p=3}} This research was often scanty because many scholars regarded the New Age as an insignificant cultural fad.{{sfn|Lewis|Melton|1992|p=x}} Having been influenced by the U.S. [[anti-cult movement]], much of it was also largely negative and critical of New Age groups.{{sfn|Melton|1992|p=15}} The "first truly scholarly study" of the phenomenon was an [[edited volume]] put together by James R. Lewis and J. Gordon Melton in 1992.{{sfn|Hammer|2001|p=20}} From that point on, the number of published academic studies steadily increased.{{sfn|Hammer|2001|p=20}}

In 1994, Christoph Bochinger published his study of the New Age in Germany, ''"New Age" und moderne Religion''.{{sfn|Hammer|2001|p=20}} This was followed by Michael York's sociological study in 1995 and Richard Kyle's U.S.-focused work in 1995.{{sfn|Hammer|2001|p=21}} In 1996, Paul Heelas published a sociological study of the movement in Britain, being the first to discuss its relationship with business.{{sfnm|1a1=Heelas|1y=1996|1p=5|2a1=Hammer|2y=2001|2pp=21–22}} That same year, Wouter Hanegraaff published ''New Age Religion and Western Culture'', a historical analysis of New Age texts;{{sfn|Hanegraaff|1996|pp=4–6}} Hammer later described it as having "a well-deserved reputation as the standard reference work on the New Age".{{sfn|Hammer|2001|p=22}} Most of these early studies were based on a textual analysis of New Age publications, rather than on an [[ethnography|ethnographic]] analysis of its practitioners.{{sfn|Sutcliffe|2003a|p=13}}

Sutcliffe and Gilhus argued that 'New Age studies' could be seen as having experienced two waves; in the first, scholars focused on "macro-level analyses of the content and boundaries" of the "movement", while the second wave featured "more variegated and contextualized studies of particular beliefs and practices".{{sfn|Sutcliffe|Gilhus|2013|p=6}} Sutcliffe and Gilhus have also expressed concern that, as of 2013, 'New Age studies' has yet to formulate a set of research questions scholars can pursue.{{sfn|Sutcliffe|Gilhus|2013|p=6}}
The New Age has proved a challenge for scholars of religion operating under more formative models of what "religion" is.{{sfn|Sutcliffe|Gilhus|2013|p=5}} By 2006, Heelas noted that the New Age was so vast and diverse that no scholar of the subject could hope to keep up with all of it.{{sfn|Heelas|2006|p=15}}

===Christian perspectives===
Mainstream Christianity has typically rejected the ideas of the New Age;{{sfn|Chryssides|2007|p=21}} Christian critiques often emphasise that the New Age places the human individual before God.{{sfn|Heelas|Woodhead|2005|pp=61–62}} Most published criticism of the New Age has been produced by Christians, particularly those on the religion's [[Fundamentalist Christianity|fundamentalist wing]].{{sfn|Heelas|1996|p=201}} In the United States, the New Age became a major concern of [[Evangelicalism|evangelical]] Christian groups in the 1980s, an attitude that influenced British evangelical groups.{{sfn|Hexham|1992|p=152}} During that decade, evangelical writers such as [[Constance Cumbey]], [[Dave Hunt (Christian apologist)|Dave Hunt]], [[Gary North (economist)|Gary North]], and [[Douglas Groothuis]] published books criticising the New Age; a number propagated [[conspiracy theories]] regarding its origin and purpose.{{sfn|Hexham|1992|p=154}} The most successful such publication was [[Frank E. Peretti]]'s 1986 novel ''[[This Present Darkness]]'', which sold over a million copies; it depicted the New Age as being in league with [[feminism]] and secular education as part of a conspiracy to overthrow Christianity.{{sfn|Hexham|1992|p=156}} Modern Christian critics of the New Age include [[Doreen Virtue]], a former New Age writer from California who converted to fundamentalist Christianity in 2017.<ref name="Wild Hunt">{{cite news |last1=Aldrich |first1=Renu |date=September 5, 2017 |title=Doreen Virtue's conversion to Christianity sparks debate |url=https://wildhunt.org/2017/09/doreen-virtues-conversion-to-christianity-sparks-debate.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231027044927/https://wildhunt.org/2017/09/doreen-virtues-conversion-to-christianity-sparks-debate.html |archive-date=27 October 2023 |access-date=October 8, 2023 |work=The Wild Hunt}}</ref>

Official responses to the New Age have been produced by major Christian organisations like the [[Roman Catholic Church]], the [[Church of England]], and the [[Methodist Church]].{{sfn|Chryssides|2007|p=21}} The Roman Catholic Church published ''[[A Christian reflection on the New Age]]'' in 2003, following a six-year study; the 90-page document criticizes New Age practices such as yoga, meditation, [[feng shui]], and crystal healing.<ref name="BBC News-2003">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2722743.stm|title=Vatican sounds New Age alert|date=2003-02-04|work=BBC News|access-date=2010-10-27|archive-date=2019-10-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191025115902/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2722743.stm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>''Handbook of vocational psychology'' by W. Bruce Walsh, Mark Savickas. 2005. p. 358. {{ISBN|978-0805845174}}.</ref> According to the Vatican, euphoric states attained through New Age practices should not be confused with prayer or viewed as signs of God's presence.<ref>{{Citation|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE1D61531F934A35752C0A966958260&sec=&spon=|title=Trying to Reconcile the Ways of the Vatican and the East |last=Steinfels|first=Peter|date=1990-01-07|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=2008-12-05}}</ref> Cardinal [[Paul Poupard]], then-president of the [[Pontifical Council for Culture]], said the New Age is "a misleading answer to the oldest hopes of man".<ref name="BBC News-2003" /> Monsignor [[Michael L. Fitzgerald|Michael Fitzgerald]], then-president of the [[Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue]], stated at the Vatican conference on the document: the "Church avoids any concept that is close to those of the New Age".<ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/interelg/documents/rc_pc_interelg_doc_20030203_press-conf-new-age_en.html |title=Presentations of Holy See's Document on "New Age" |last1=Fitzgerald |first1=Michael L. |last2=Poupard |first2=Paul |year=2003 |work=Jesus Christ the Bearer of the Water of Life: a Christian Reflection on the "New Age" |publisher=Roman Catholic Church |access-date=2010-11-06 |location=Vatican City |archive-date=2007-08-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070809113335/https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/interelg/documents/rc_pc_interelg_doc_20030203_press-conf-new-age_en.html |url-status=live }}</ref> On the contrary, some fringe Christian groups have adopted a more positive view of the New Age, among them the Christaquarians, and Christians Awakening to a New Awareness, all of which believe that New Age ideas can enhance a person's Christian faith.{{sfn|Chryssides|2007|pp=21–22}}

===Contemporary Pagan perspectives===
{{Main|Modern paganism and New Age}}
{{Quote box|width=25em|align=right|quote=Neopagan practices highlight the centrality of the relationship between humans and nature and reinvent religions of the past, while New Agers are more interested in transforming individual consciousness and shaping the future.|source=— Religious studies scholar Sarah Pike.{{sfn|Pike|2004|p=18}} }}

There is academic debate about the connection between the New Age and [[Modern Paganism]], sometimes termed "Neo-paganism".{{sfnm|1a1=Kemp|1y=2004|1p=10|2a1=Partridge|2y=2004|2p=79}} The two phenomena have often been confused and conflated, particularly in Christian critiques.{{sfnm|1a1=Kemp|1y=2004|1p=8|2a1=Partridge|2y=2004|2p=79}} Religious studies scholar Sarah Pike asserted that there was a "significant overlap" between the two religious movements,{{sfn|Pike|2004|p=vii}} while [[Aidan A. Kelly]] stated that Paganism "parallels the New Age movement in some ways, differs sharply from it in others, and overlaps it in some minor ways".{{sfn|Kelly|1992|p=136}} Other scholars have identified them as distinct phenomena that share overlap and commonalities.{{sfnm|1a1=York|1y=2001|1pp=364–365|2a1=Doyle White|2y=2016|2p=9}} Hanegraaff suggested that whereas various forms of contemporary Paganism were not part of the New Age movement—particularly those that pre-dated the movement—other Pagan religions and practices could be identified as New Age.{{sfn|Hanegraaff|1996|p=78}} Partridge portrayed both Paganism and the New Age as different streams of [[occulture]] ([[occult]] culture) that merge at points.{{sfn|Partridge|2004|p=78}}

Various differences between the two movements have been highlighted; the New Age movement focuses on an improved future, whereas the focus of Paganism is on the pre-Christian past.{{sfn|Kelly|1992|p=138}} Similarly, the New Age movement typically propounds a [[Universalism|universalist]] message that sees all religions as fundamentally the same, whereas Paganism stresses the difference between [[Monotheism|monotheistic religions]] and those embracing a [[Polytheism|polytheistic]] or [[Animism|animistic]] theology.{{sfn|Kelly|1992|p=138}} While the New Age emphasises a light-centred image, Paganism acknowledges both light and dark, life and death, and recognises the savage side of the natural world.{{sfn|Partridge|2004|p=79}} Many Pagans have sought to distance themselves from the New Age movement, even using "New Age" as an insult within their community, while conversely many involved in the New Age have expressed criticism of Paganism for emphasizing the material world over the spiritual.{{sfn|Doyle White|2016|p=9}} Many Pagans have expressed criticism of the high fees charged by New Age teachers, something not typically present in the Pagan movement.{{sfnm|1a1=Kelly|1y=1992|1p=139|2a1=Partridge|2y=2004|2p=79}}

===Non-Western and Indigenous criticism===
New Age often adopts spiritual ideas and practices from other, particularly non-Western cultures. According to York, these may include "Hawaiian [[Kahuna]] magic, [[Australian Aboriginal culture|Australian Aboriginal]] [[The Dreaming|dream-working]], South American [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Amerindian]] ''[[ayahuasca]]'' and ''San Pedro'' ceremonies, Hindu [[Ayurveda]] and yoga, Chinese Feng Shui, [[Qigong|Qi Gong]], and [[Tai chi|Tai Chi]]."{{sfn|York|2001|p=368}}

The New Age has been accused of [[cultural imperialism]], [[cultural appropriation|misappropriating]] sacred ceremonies, and exploitation of the intellectual and cultural property of Indigenous peoples.<ref name="Mesteth-1993">{{cite web |last=Mesteth |first=Wilmer |display-authors=etal |date=June 10, 1993 |url=http://www.thepeoplespaths.net/articles/ladecwar.htm |title=Declaration of War Against Exploiters of Lakota Spirituality |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160209203058/http://www.thepeoplespaths.net/articles/ladecwar.htm |archive-date=2016-02-09 |quote=At the Lakota Summit V, an international gathering of US and Canadian Lakota, Dakota and Nakota Nations, about 500 representatives from 40 different tribes and bands of the Lakota unanimously passed a 'Declaration of War Against Exploiters of Lakota Spirituality'. The following declaration was unanimously passed.}}</ref><ref name="Hobson-1978">{{cite book |last=Hobson |first=G. |chapter=The Rise of the White Shaman as a New Version of Cultural Imperialism |editor-last=Hobson |editor-first=Gary |title=The Remembered Earth |place=Albuquerque |publisher=Red Earth Press |year=1978 |pages=100–108}}</ref><ref name="Aldred-2000">{{cite journal |last=Aldred |first=Lisa |title=Plastic Shamans and Astroturf Sun Dances: New Age Commercialization of Native American Spirituality |journal=The American Indian Quarterly |volume=24 |issue=3 |year=2000 |pages=329–352 |place=Lincoln |publisher=University of Nebraska Press|doi=10.1353/aiq.2000.0001 |pmid=17086676 }}</ref>{{sfn|Heelas|1996|p=202}} Indigenous American spiritual leaders, such as Elders councils of the [[Lakota people|Lakota]], [[Cheyenne]], [[Navajo people|Navajo]], [[Muscogee|Creek]], [[Hopi]], [[Ojibwe|Chippewa]], and [[Iroquois|Haudenosaunee]] have denounced New Age misappropriation of their sacred ceremonies<ref name="Yellowtail-1980">{{cite web |last=Yellowtail |first=Tom |display-authors=etal |url=http://www.thepeoplespaths.net/history/elders.html |title=Resolution of the 5th Annual Meeting of the Traditional Elders Circle |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101011537/http://www.thepeoplespaths.net/history/elders.html |archive-date=2020-11-01 |publisher=Northern Cheyenne Nation |place=Two Moons' Camp, Rosebud Creek, Montana |date=October 5, 1980}}</ref> and other [[Indigenous intellectual property|intellectual property]],<ref>Working Group on Indigenous Populations, accepted by the UN General Assembly, ''[http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N06/512/07/PDF/N0651207.pdf?OpenElement Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626112013/http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N06/512/07/PDF/N0651207.pdf?OpenElement |date=2015-06-26 }}''; UN Headquarters; New York City (13 September 2007).</ref> stating that "[t]he value of these instructions and ceremonies [when led by unauthorized people] are questionable, maybe meaningless, and hurtful to the individual carrying false messages".<ref name="Yellowtail-1980" /> Traditional leaders of the Lakota, [[Dakota people|Dakota]], and [[Assiniboine|Nakota]] peoples have reached consensus<ref name="Mesteth-1993"/><ref name="Taliman-1993">{{cite web |last=Taliman |first=Valerie |year=1993 |url=http://www.thepeoplespaths.net/articles/warlakot.htm |title=Article On The 'Lakota Declaration of War' |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160209203101/http://www.thepeoplespaths.net/articles/warlakot.htm |archive-date=2016-02-09 }}</ref> to reject "the expropriation of [their] ceremonial ways by non-Indians". They see the New Age movement as either not fully understanding, deliberately trivializing, or distorting their way of life,<ref name="Fenelon-1998">{{Citation|last=Fenelon|first=James V.|title=Culturicide, resistance, and survival of the Lakota ("Sioux Nation")|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DYDeLzTyWQQC&pg=PA297 |access-date=2009-03-16|year=1998|publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]]|location=New York|isbn=978-0815331193|pages=295–297}}</ref> and strongly disapprove of all such "[[Plastic shaman|plastic medicine people]]" who are [[Cultural appropriation|appropriating]] their spiritual ways.<ref name="Mesteth-1993"/><ref name="Taliman-1993"/>

Indigenous leaders have spoken out against individuals from within their own communities who may go out into the world to become a "white man's shaman", and any "who are prostituting our spiritual ways for their own selfish gain, with no regard for the spiritual well-being of the people as a whole".<ref name="Fenelon-1998"/> The terms "[[plastic shaman]]" and "plastic medicine person" have been used to describe an outsider who identifies or promotes themselves as a shaman, holy person, or other traditional spiritual leader, yet has no genuine connection to the traditions or cultures represented.<ref name="Hobson-1978"/><ref name="Aldred-2000"/><ref>"[http://www.com.washington.edu/nativevoices/film/Shamans.html White Shamans and Plastic Medicine Men] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190907153703/http://www.com.washington.edu/nativevoices/film/Shamans.html |date=2019-09-07 }}," Terry Macy and Daniel Hart, ''Native Voices'', Indigenous Documentary Film at the University of Washington</ref>

===Political writers and activists===
{{Quote box|width=40em|align=right|quote=New Age politics might be seen not as a wayward, pathological creature of the New Left's imagination, but as a political innocent in candid, questioning dialogue with the unclaimed mainstream territory of progressive, rather than atomistic, individualism.  Indeed, if we were to examine some of the social and political threads that run through the aery fabric of New Age thinking, we would find certain themes that resonate with the necessary conditions for a left version of progressive individualism.  Generally speaking, New Age addresses its adherents as active participants, with a measure of control over their everyday lives. ...  The New Age "person" is also in many respects an individual whose personal growth is indissociable from the environment; a link fleshed out in a variety of ecotopian stories and romances.  So, too, the small-scale imperative of New Age's cooperative communitarianism brings with it a host of potentially critical positions. ...|source=— Scholar of cultural studies [[Andrew Ross (sociologist)|Andrew Ross]], 1991{{sfn|Ross|1991|p=69}} }}

Toward the end of the 20th century, some social and political analysts and activists were arguing that the New Age political perspective had something to offer mainstream society.<ref>Gerzon, Mark (1996).  ''A House Divided: Six Belief Systems Struggling for America's Soul''.  A Jeremy P. Tarcher Putnam Book / G. P. Putnam's Sons, Chap. 5 ("Gaia: The Transformation State").  {{ISBN|978-0874778236}}</ref><ref>Mayne (1999), cited above, Chap. 11 ("Spiritual Politics").</ref><ref>Ray and Anderson (2000), cited above, Chap. 7 ("A Great Current of Change").</ref> In 1987, some political scientists launched the "Section on Ecological and Transformational Politics" of the [[American Political Science Association]],<ref>"Preface: Paths to Transformational Politics".  In Woolpert, Stephen; Slaton, Christa Daryl; and Schwerin, Edward W., eds. (1998).  ''Transformational Politics: Theory, Study, and Practice''.  State University of New York Press, pp.&nbsp;ix–xi.  {{ISBN|978-0791439456}}</ref> and an academic book prepared by three of them stated that the "transformational politics" concept was meant to subsume such terms as ''new age'' and ''new paradigm''.<ref>Slaton, Christa Daryl; Woolpert, Stephen; Schwerin, Ed.  "Introduction: What Is Transformational Politics?"   In Woolpert et al. (1998), cited above, p.&nbsp;xix</ref>  In 1991, scholar of cultural studies [[Andrew Ross (sociologist)|Andrew Ross]] suggested that New Age political ideas—however muddled and naïve—could help [[Progressivism in the United States#Progressivism in the 21st century|progressives]] construct an appealing alternative to both atomistic individualism and self-denying collectivism.{{Sfn|Ross|1991|pp=65–72 ("New Age politics" sub-chapter)}}  In 2005, British researcher Stuart Rose urged scholars of alternative religions to pay more attention to the New Age's interest in such topics as "new socio-political thinking" and "New Economics",{{sfn|Rose|2005b|p=165}} topics Rose discussed in his book ''Transforming the World: Bringing the New Age Into Focus'', issued by a European academic publisher.<ref>Rose, Stuart (2005).  ''Transforming the World: Bringing the New Age Into Focus''. [[Peter Lang (publisher)|Peter Lang]], Chap. 8 ("Community Activity").  {{ISBN|978-0820472416}}.</ref>

Other political thinkers and activists saw New Age politics less positively.  On the political right, author [[George Weigel]] argued that New Age politics was just a retooled and pastel-colored version of leftism.<ref>Weigel, George (March 1989).  "No Options".  ''American Purpose'', vol. 3, no. 3, pp.&nbsp;21–22.</ref>  Conservative evangelical writer Douglas Groothuis, discussed by scholars Hexham{{sfn|Hexham|1992| p=54}} and Kemp,{{sfn|Kemp|2004| p=52}} warned that New Age politics could lead to an oppressive world government.<ref>Groothuis, Douglas (1987).  "Politics: Building an International Platform".  In Hoyt, Karen, ed., ''The New Age Rage''. Fleming H. Revell Company / Baker Publishing Group, pp.&nbsp;92–93, 103–105.  {{ISBN|978-0800752576}}</ref>  On the left, scholars argued that New Age politics was an oxymoron: that personal growth has little or nothing to do with political change.<ref>Jamison, Andrew (2001).  ''The Making of Green Knowledge: Environmental Politics and Cultural Transformation''.  Cambridge University Press, p.&nbsp;169.  {{ISBN|978-0521792523}}.</ref><ref>[[Slavoj Žižek|Žižek, Slavoj]] (2000).  ''The Ticklish Subject: The Absent Centre of Political Ontology''.  Verso Books, pp.&nbsp;1–2, 70.  {{ISBN|978-1844673018}}</ref>  One political scientist said New Age politics fails to recognize the reality of economic and political power.<ref>[[Carl Boggs|Boggs, Carl]] (2000).  ''The End of Politics: Corporate Power and the Decline of the Public Sphere''.  Guilford Press, pp.&nbsp;170–172.  {{ISBN|978-1572305045}}</ref>  Another academic, [[Dana L. Cloud]], wrote a lengthy critique of New Age politics as a political ideology;<ref>Cloud, Dana L. (1998). ''Control and Consolation in American Culture and Politics: Rhetorics of Therapy''. Sage Publications, Chap. 6 ("The New Age of Post-Marxism").  {{ISBN|978-0761905066}}.</ref> she faulted it for not being opposed to the [[capitalist system]], or to liberal individualism.<ref>Cloud (1998), cited above, pp.&nbsp;144, 147–148.</ref>

A criticism of New Age often made by leftists is that its focus on individualism deflects participants from engaging in socio-political activism.{{sfn|Heelas|2006|p=8}} This perspective regards New Age as a manifestation of consumerism that promotes [[elitism]] and indulgence by allowing wealthier people to affirm their socio-economic status through consuming New Age products and therapies.{{sfn|Heelas|2006|pp=6–7}} New Agers who do engage in socio-political activism have also been criticized. Journalist [[Harvey Wasserman]] suggested that New Age activists were too averse to social conflict to be effective politically.<ref>Wasserman, Harvey (31 August 1985). "The New Age Movement: The Politics of Transcendence". ''[[The Nation]]'', p.&nbsp;147 (discussing the ideas of activist Shelly Kellman).</ref> Melton et al. found that New Age activists' commitment to the often frustrating process of consensus decision-making led to "extended meetings and minimal results",{{sfn|Melton|Clark|Kelly|1990|p=324}} and a pair of futurists concluded that one once-promising New Age activist group had been both "too visionary and too vague" to last.<ref>Lipnack, Jessica; Stamps, Jeffrey (1982). ''Networking: The First Report and Directory'', Doubleday, p.&nbsp;106. {{ISBN|978-0385181211}}</ref>
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