Old Aged New Agers

It was a Thursday afternoon. In-between people calling at the chapel to see me, I was tending some of the plants outside. I heard a peculiar sound coming from the rear of the building. I discreetly looked around the corner and saw two older people, a man and a woman, arms aloft and repeating words in unison, with a hint of musicality, as though it were a chant. I recognised them, for they had been before. I put the kettle on and awaited their appearance. When their work was done, they came up to claim their drinks and reacquaint themselves with their host.

Their views would once have been described as 'New Age', though that term seems a little dated now, and I am not quite sure what has replaced it. Salem Chapel, they explained, is sited on a powerful ley line, which is a kind of invisible, linear channel of energy, much beloved by pagans, hippies and the esoterically-minded. I asked where the line went, and was informed, quite predictably, that it connected us to the power of that great, brooding bulk a few miles away, Pendle Hill. I patiently shared the gospel with them; she was inclined to agree with everything I said, while not believing it, while he understood some important differences between our two positions. They spoke of their admiration for ‘Master Jesus’ who brought the powers of love and kindness to humankind; I spoke of the Lord Jesus, the Saviour, who brought the forgiveness of sins and eternal life to all who would repent and believe His gospel. Our two Jesuses were quite different; one was an imposter, a figment of imagination, a demonic counterfeit; the other was able to bring men and women to a right relationship with God.

If invisible energy and powerful forces can be detected flowing in and out of Salem Chapel, they are not coming from Pendle Hill, stone circles or ancient monoliths. If there is something here which attracts the spiritually minded, it is not the pulsing vigour of magnetic fields or the secret messages of ancient aliens. Rather, it is the very power of God the Holy Spirit, attracting, convicting, drawing and regenerating fallen human beings. The power of the gospel is shared and preached in this place; lives are transformed, filled, anointed and released. Now that is power worth seeking, gaining and keeping.

For our Gospel was not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance, as ye know after what manner we were among you for your sakes. 1 Thessalonians 1:5, Geneva Bible.