(in order of appearance on the program or alphabetically when a joint appearance)
Dawn L. Hutchinson has a Bachelor of Music with a concentration in Music Composition from Christopher Newport University and a Master of Arts with a concentration in Religious Studies from the University of South Florida. She has served in the position of Assistant Dean at the Emma Curtis Hopkins College and Theological Seminary in Clearwater, Florida, and has assisted with the Journal for the Society for the Study of Metaphysical Religions. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Religious Studies at the Florida State University, and holds a graduate assistant position there. Her areas of interests are in New Religious Movements in America and contemporary Gnosticism. She has given papers at the 1999 and 2000 conferences of the Society for the Study of Metaphysical Religion, and is scheduled to give a paper with Dell deChant at the American Academy of Religion meeting this year.
Gail M. Harley teaches for the University of South Florida Religious Studies Department. She has taught Religions of India, Buddhism, Life After Death, Introduction to World Religions, and other popular courses. She has designed the course, World Goddess Traditions, in response to the revivification of academic interest in the history of the Goddess. She earned her Ph.D. in the History of Religion and Humanities from Florida State University. Her recently published book, Emma Curtis Hopkins: Forgotten Founder Of New Thought is the premier offering in the new series from Syracuse University Press, New Religions in America, edited by J. Gordon Melton. She is the author of "Unity and the Harmonial Family" in America's Alternative Religions, edited by Timothy Miller (SUNY Press, 1995). She researches new religious movements, particularly those that have roots in Asian religious philosophy and has conducted field research in Turkey and Russia. Human Rights issues are a current area of research for her. Gordon Melton.
Jerry Hejka-Ekins received his B.A. degree at California State University Stanislaus, and is completing his M.A. degree in English literature at the same institution. He is currently President of Alexandria West and an Associate Editor of Theosophical History.
Shinichi Yoshinaga holds a B.A. in the Study of Religion, a B.S. in Biology, and an M.A. in Literature; all from the University of Kyoto. His Master's Thesis was "History and the Sacred-The ambiguity of 'History' in Eliade's Religious Thoughts." He is currently a lecturer at Maizuru National College of Technology. Among his publications are "William James and the Psychology of Religion" in
Pursuit of the Psychology of Religion, ed. Nishihira and Shimazono (Tokyo: University of Tokyo Press, 2001); "Theosophy and Japanese Religions in the Modern Ages" in Reports of the Information and Computer Science Center of Maizuru National College of Technology 29 (2001); "Breathing Exercises and Aura" in Cities Where Gods Reside, ed. Syukyo-Syakaigaku-no-kai (Osaka: Sobunsya, 1999); "Saucers and the Millenium- An Essay on Heaven's Gate"in Reports of the Information and Computer Science Center of MNCT 26 (1998); "Psychology and Theism" in The Study of the Philosophy of Religion 10 (1993); and "Psychical Research of William James" in The Study of the Philosophy of Religion 7 (1990).
Brett Forray graduated from Iowa State University in 1985 in Communications, specializing in film studies. He has produced and directed numerous documentary and educational programs. Mr. Forray has been involved with Theosophy for 26 years and has been a member of three Theosophical organizations for the past 15 years. Since 1996, he has been independently researching the separation of the American Section from the worldwide organization that occurred in 1895.
James Santucci received his M.A. degree in Asian Studies at the University of Hawaii (Manoa campus) and his Ph.D. degree in the Department of Asian Civilizations at the Australian National University (Canberra,Australia) in Asian Civilization (with emphasis on the Vedas). He was a member of both the Religious Studies and Linguistics Departments from 1970 to 1993 and is currently a member of the Department of Comparative Religion. Professor Santucci is the author of La societteosofica, Hindu Art in South and Southeast Asia, An Outline of Vedic Literature, The Cave Temples of India: A Photographic Exhibit: September 4 - November 4, 1990, and co-author of America's Religions. He has written numerous articles for journals and encyclopedias and is currently editor of Theosophical History, a quarterly journal.
Jane Williams-Hogan is a Professor of Sociology and Carpenter Chair in Church History at Bryn thyn College, Bryn Athyn, PA. She received her B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Her Ph.D. dissertation (1985) was "A New Church in a Disenchanted World: A Study of the Formation and Development of the General Conference of the New Church in Great Britain." She was Chair of the 1988 International Symposium on "Swedenborg and His Influence" and Local Chair of 1999 CESNUR Conference in Bryn Athyn, PA. Her publications include: "Swedenborg: A Biography" in Swedenborg and His Influence, ed. Erland J. Brock, et al (ANC, 1988); "The Place of Emanuel Swedenborg in Modern Western Esotericism," in Western Esotericism and the Science of Religion, ed. Antoine Faivre & Wouter J, Hanegraaff (Louven, Peeters Press, 1998); and "Discovering the Two Faces of Religious Charismatic ction-Traditional and Modern: A Methodology," in Approaching Religion, Part I, ed. Tore Ahlbck (Ibo, Finland, The Donner Institute, 1999). Her "Institutional and Communal Response to the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg," in Scribe of Heaven: Swedenborg's Life, Work, and Impact will be published by The Swedenborg Foundation in 2002.
James F. Lawrence is Acting Dean of the Swedenborgian House of Studies at Pacific School of Religion. He holds a B.A., economics, University of Texas; M.Div. equiv., Swedenborg School of Religion; and D.Min. Graduate Theological Foundation. For the past seventeen years has served in a dual capacity of minister to congregations and as editor and publisher for the General Convention of Swedenborgian Churches. Today he is Acting Dean of the Swedenborgian House of Studies at Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California and is in a new doctoral program for Christian Spirituality at the Graduate Theological Union (Berkeley).
J. Gordon Melton is the Director of the Institute for the Study of American Religion and a research specialist with the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California-Santa Barbara. He was one of the founders of the Society for the Study of Metaphysical Religion and served on its constituting board of directors. He is the author of more than thirty books in American religious history, including the Encyclopedia of American Religion (6th edition, 1999). Over the years he has assembled one of the largest collections of New Thought literature in existence, now an integral part of the American Religions Collection at the Davidson Library at the University of California-Santa Barbara.
Michael Gomes is regarded as the foremost historian of the the Theosophical movement. He is especially noted for uncovering and publishing archival material that has shed considerable light on the Theosophical subjects. Among his numerous books and articles are The Dawning of the Theosophical Movement (1987), the first book devoted to the origin of the Theosophical movement since H.S. Olcott's Old Diary Leaves; Theosophy in the Nineteenth Century: An Annotated Bibliography (1994), a massive bibliography that serves as the basis of all serious study on the subject, and an abridgement of Isis Unveiled, a work which reveals the genius of H.P. Blavatsky's first significant work devoted to eclectic Theosophy. His most r ecent work is the Blavatsky Lecture (2000) "Creating the New Age: Theosophy's Origins in the British Isles." Mr. Gomes is a Canadian citizen born on the Island of Trinidad.
"Time and Grammar: Two Keys to Two Mysteries in New Thought Philosophy"
"Issues in Classification: Christian Science and Scientology"
"The Sacred Process: Auditing in the Church of Scientology, International"
"Path to the Masters: Annie Besant's Esoteric School"
"Modern Occultism and Japanese Religions"
"An Occult Civil War: Conflict in the Theosophical Society Between East and East and West
After H.P. Blavatsky "
"Understanding The History of Theosophy"
"Swedenborg and 'Science' of Metaphysical Religion"
"The Relationship of Emanuel Swedenborg's Religious Vision to American Metaphysical Religions"
"Early Theosophy As Viewed by Divine Science Founder, Malinda E. Cramer"
Annual Lecture
Emma Curtis Hopkins College and Theological Seminary
Lola Mays Theological Seminary
The Society for the Study of Metaphysical Religion
The Unity Church of Clearwater
Unity-Progressive Council
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Arthur Smith - independent scholar
This paper explores the grammatical concept of time as tense, as opposed to the physicist's
concept of time as continuum, to unlock two paradoxes found in New Thought philosophy. The
first is the paradox of the two selves, the lesser self or ego and the Greater Self or
God-Self. This paper agues that the Greater Self is the self that exists in the Eternal Now,
and that the ego is an act of the Greater Self identifying with a singular series of past
experiences. It also identifies mental causation as causation in the act of creation, or
causation in the present. It is where all free will is exercised. Physical causation is
actually a relationship between past events-an antecedent cause and a subsequent effect, but
nonetheless between two or more events in the past, where there is no freedom.
Dawn Hutchinson - Florida State University
Many scholars have classified various metaphysical religions as Gnostic. Of special interest
to this paper is the "Gnostic" classification of a nineteenth century group
(Christian Science) and a twentieth century group (Scientology). This paper addresses how the
term "Gnosticism" might be used methodologically to classify both groups. The paper initially
specifies problems posed by the use of the term ("Gnosticism") by scholars of New Religious
Movements. It then focuses on two specific problems relevant to its deployment: (1) the
indescriminant use of the term without effort to define it; and when an effort is made to
define the term, (2) the flawed and ambiguous nature of the definitions. As a solution to the
above problems of using the term Gnosticism as a classification, the use of a generative
mythology as a defining tool is suggested. A working definition of Gnosticism can be
determined from the generative myth to disclose the Gnostic worldview. How adherents of a
particular religion perceive their place in the world determines the worldview of the
religion. Once the Gnostic worldview is established, it can then be compared with that of
Christian Science and Scientology to determine if either can indeed be classified as Gnostic
using this particular methodology. This paper then demonstrates how the resulting working
definition can be used as a basis for the analysis of the two religions.
Gail M. Harley - University of South Florida
The Church of Scientology offers to their members and the community at large an innovative
process designed by their founder L. Ron Hubbard. The process of auditing erases the Reactive
mind where incidents and traumatic events are held in what Hubbard believed was a chaotic
fashion. The goal of auditing to what Scientologists call the Clear state of mind releases
these traumatic episodes and most importantly the postulations that were made at the time of
the incident. This allows the member to function with what Hubbard called the Rational mind.
This paper will focus on academic, field research and experiential data obtained through
personal commitment to the auditing process. This sacred journey is believed to be the
arterial highway to the Clear state of mind which will enable the practioner to cross the
Bridge to higher consciousness.
Jerry Hejka-Ekins - California State University, Stanislaus
For its general membership, the Theosophical Society is a fraternal organization dedicated to
brotherhood, the study of comparative religions and phenomena. On the other hand, members of
Annie Besant's Esoteric School understood that the Theosophical Society was actually founded
under the behest of an invisible world government of enlightened beings. The Theosophical
Society and its ancillary organizations were instruments designed to bring about a new age of
world spirituality and to assist in preparing for the immanent return of the Christ. The
Esoteric School was also a special training ground for the present and future leaders of these
efforts.
Shinichi Yoshinaga - Maizuru National College of Technology
Between the USA and Japan a relationship has existed during the process of their religious
modernization. The role in Japanese history played by the American Protestant Christianity, or
the influence of Japanese Buddhism on American spirituality after the beat generation are such
examples. But there also have been interrelationships and cultural exchanges in the field of
metaphysical and Theosophical thoughts which have been largely ignored. This paper tries to
depict and analyze the three historical cases concerning the course of the imported Western
metaphysical and occult thoughts.
Brett Forray - independent scholar
This article will examine a little discussed period in the Theosophical Society between 1891
to 1896. The two successors of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky in her Esoteric Section of Theosophy
soon became rivals to determine how to fulfill the ongoing mission of the Society after
Blavatsky's death. Both successors, William Quan Judge and Annie Besant, claimed to continue
receiving letters paranormally from Blavatsky's spiritual teachers, or Mahatmas. Judge,
however, was accused of forging his messages. This paper will examine the impact the
Mahatmas' messages had on the management of the Society, with an emphasis on how each
successor believed the Society should continue promulgating its teachings incorporating
either western or eastern modalities of occultism. The ensuing conflict led to Judge's
American Section breaking away to form a new Theosophical organization, as a necessary
means, he thought, to save the Society's mission.
James Santucci - California State University, Fullerton
"Understanding the history of Theosophy" is admittedly an ambiguous title for those who are
familiar with the use of the term. For one, theosophy refers to different movements and ideas
dating from the early Christian era down to modern times. Furthermore, according to Antoine
Faivre, theosophy refers to two discrete concepts that date from the early modern period: the
theosophical current and the Theosophical Society. Are the two completely different as
Professor Faivre suggests? Or are there resemblances that indicate more of a complementarity
in understanding? Finally, regarding the use of the term "Theosophy" as a label for the
Theosophical Societies or the Theosophical Movement in general, there are some unique problems
that theacademic historian must confront when writing an "objective" account of the
organization. This paper will summarize the issues confronting the historian.
James F. Lawrence-Swedenborgian House of Studies at Pacific School of Religion
Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772) holds a distinctive place in the history of Western thought as
one of a very few thinkers recognized for historically significant contributions to both
science and theology. His re-tooling of orthodox Christianity is partially characterized by
principles of science, and the resulting blend of insights drew its greatest interest from
metaphysical thinkers outside of mainline Christian streams, many of whom comprised the advent
of the American metaphysical movements between 1830-1930. They held in common a view that healing,
well-being, and spiritual vitality manifest through orderly channels; that is, there is a
science to salvation. Orthodox claims of spiritual authority based on apostolic succession or
on a faith separated from a logical and lawful spirituality were considered wrong-headed. Many
movements appropriated the term science into their very names of definition and identity
(e.g., Christian Science, Religious Science, Divine Science). Swedenborg was a principal
ource for those and related American metaphysical movements of the 19th and early 20th
century. His blend of science and theosophy laid a the foundation for scientific spiritual
practice, and his ideas of "correspondence," "influx," and "degrees" were widely accessed.
This paper will make clear these connections and focus on the common category of activity
among metaphysical movements: healing - and look at popular Mind-Cure authors of the era,
Horatio Dresser and Warren Felt Evans, who were primarily Swedenborg interpreters, as well
as two influential homeopathists, Kent and Boericke; also Swedenborg advocates.
Jane Williams-Hogan -Bryn Athyn College
The religious thought of Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772) has long been associated with a
variety of different religious and philosophical traditions. This presentation will explore
the relationship of Swedenborgianism to American Metaphysical Religions, particularly
ariations of New Thought and Theosophy. Because the Swedenborgian perspective is little known,
it is often misunderstood and its attraction to a diversity of innovative religious thinkers
is not clearly understood. In this presentation, therefore, the fundamentals of
Swedenborgianism will be reviewed, in order to open a discussion of its attraction to
nineteenth-century American religious innovators examining,in particular, its relationship to
the attainment of health, wealth and happiness.
Robert Winterhalter - Emma Curtis Hopkins College & Theo. Seminary
This paper will present the views on Theosophy of a major New Thought founder, Malinda E.
Cramer, in an era when both Theosophy and New Thought were at an early state of their history
and development. Malinda E. Cramer founded the Divine Science movement in San Francisco in
1888. This was thirteen years after Helena P. Blavatsky and Henry S. Olcott founded the
Theosophical Society in New York in 1875. Most of the information in this paper will be based
on material from Harmony magazine, which Mrs. Cramer published monthly between October 1888
and April 1906. This includes, but is not limited to, a review of Madame Blavatsky's book,
The Secret Doctrine, which appeared in two installments in the February and March, 1889
editions of Harmony. Cramer's review discusses Blavatksy's statements on the nature of God,
matter, sources of knowledge, mankind, and mind. A significant article, "Is Divine Science
Theosophy or Christian Science?", appeared in the July 1898 edition of Harmony. Another
literary source for the paper will be Cramer's booklet, "God Incarnation Versus Personal
Re-incarnation, Evolution and Karma."
"The Changing Face of Madame Blavatsky"
Michael Gomes - independent scholar
This lecture will offer a review of the differing perceptions and interpretations of H.P.
Blavatsky and her work over the last 100 years.
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