It is only when one loves life and the world so much that without them everything would be gone,
    that one can believe in the resurrection and a new world.
        -Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Prisoner for God : Letters and Papers from Prison

Most Utopians, but particularly Environmentalist Utopians, share a rather curious characteristic, they tend to hate humans.  James Redfield is no exception to this rule.  The Utopia he imagines will have far less people, will worship old growth trees, and whoever is left over for this epoch will apparently spend the bulk of their time vibrating (perhaps having attained a state of pure energy?).   Basically, Heaven is a depopulated place, where we turn Nature into a fetish, and ditch our bodies.  This just is not the belief system of a person who's comfortable with himself or his own humanity.

Sadly, being antihuman is no bar to success, nor to being taken seriously--witness the continuing academic reputation of Paul Ehrlich--so this book has sold far too many copies and, in a turn of events that makes one hope that future archaeologists never find a copy of the book, actually made the Amazon.com list of the Top 100 Books of the Millennium.  In order to save you the agony of reading this drivel, here are the (first) nine Celestine Insights, as presented by Redfield at his website :

    A Critical Mass

            A new spiritual awakening is occurring in human
            culture, an awakening brought about by a critical mass of
            individuals who experience their lives as a spiritual
            unfolding, a journey in which we are led forward by
            mysterious coincidences.

    The Longer Now

            This awakening represents the creation of a new,
            more complete world view, which replaces a
            five-hundred-year-old preoccupation with secular survival
            and comfort. While this technological preoccupation was
            an important step, our awakening to life's coincidences is
            opening us up to the real purpose of human life on this
            planet, and the real nature of our universe.

    A Matter Of Energy

            We now experience that we live not in a material
            universe, but in a universe of dynamic energy. Everything
            extant is a field of sacred energy that we can sense and
            intuit. Moreover, we humans can project our energy by
            focusing our attention in the desired direction...where
            attention goes, energy flows...influencing other energy
            systems and increasing the pace of coincidences in our
            lives.

    The Struggle For Power

            Too often humans cut themselves off from the
            greater source of this energy and so feel weak and insecure.
            To gain energy we tend to manipulate or force others to
            give us attention and thus energy. When we successfully
            dominate others in this way, we feel more powerful, but
            they are left weakened and often fight back. Competition
            for scarce, human energy is the cause of all conflict
            between people.

    The Message Of The Mystics

            Insecurity and violence ends when we experience an
            inner connection with divine energy within, a connection
            described by mystics of all traditions. A sense of lightness -
            buoyancy - along with the constant sensation of love are
            measures of this connection. If these measures are present,
            the connection is real. If not, it is only pretended.

    Clearing The Past

            The more we stay connected, the more we are
            acutely aware of those times when we lose connection,
            usually when we are under stress. In these times, we can
            see our own particular way of stealing energy from others.
            Once our manipulations are brought to personal awareness,
            our connection becomes more constant and we can discover
            our own growth path in life, and our spiritual mission - the
            personal way we can contribute to the world.

    Engaging The Flow

            Knowing our personal mission further enhances the
            flow of mysterious coincidences as we are guided toward
            our destinies. First we have a question; then dreams,
            daydreams, and intuitions lead us towards the answers,
            which usually are synchronistically provided by the
            wisdom of another human being.

    The Interpersonal Ethic

            We can increase the frequency of guiding
            coincidences by uplifting every person that comes into our
            lives. Care must be taken not to lose our inner connection
            in romantic relationships. Uplifting others is especially
            effective in groups where each member can feel energy of
            all the others. With children it is extremely important for
            their early security and growth. By seeing the beauty in
            every face, we lift others into their wisest self, and increase
            the chances of hearing a synchronistic message.

    The Emerging Culture

            As we all evolve toward the best completion of our
            spiritual missions, the technological means of survival will
            be fully automated as humans focus instead on
            synchronistic growth. Such growth will move humans into
            higher energy states, ultimately transforming our bodies
            into spiritual form and uniting this dimension of existence
            with the after-life dimension, ending the cycle of birth and
            death.

If any of that has even a mild ring of truth to you, by all means read the book.  You and the rest of the Celestinians are certain to have a grand old time circling the redwoods, sharing your energy, and vibrating like tuning forks.  The rest of us actually have lives to get on with.

(Reviewed:)

Grade: (F) Orrin C. Judd

Tweet