Catholics and the New Age [Paperback]

Fr. Mitch Pacwa S.J. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1992

In Catholics and the New Age, Father Pacwa probes the reasons why many Catholics are dabbling in the New Age Movement. A Servant Book.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Fr. Mitch Pacwa, SJ, is a popular host on the EWTN Catholic television network and founder and president of Ignatius Productions, a Catholic media production apostolate. A respected biblical scholar and speaker, he serves as senior fellow at the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology. He is fluent in twelve languages and has led more than fifty pilgrimages to holy sites around the world. He resides in Irondale, Alabama.

Product Details

• Paperback: 233 pages
• Publisher: St. Anthony Messenger Press (February 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 089283756X
• ISBN-13: 978-0892837564
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.7 x 8.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #322,819 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

FATHER MITCH PACWA, S.J. is a respected Scripture Scholar, Author, and popular EWTN Television and Radio Host, as well as the founder and President of IGNATIUS PRODUCTIONS www.fathermitchpacwa.org - a teaching and media apostolate. He received his B.A. in Philosophy and Theology from the University of Detroit, summa cum laude. He was ordained a Jesuit Catholic priest in 1976 with the Society of Jesus and then continued his studies. He received his Master of Divinity and S.T.B. from the Jesuit School of Theology of Loyola University, magna cum laude. At Vanderbilt University, he received his Master of Arts, Ph.D. in Old Testament. Father Pacwa has taught at the high school, university, and seminary levels. He has lectured at hundreds of conferences and churches around the world and is best known for his appearances on EWTN - The Global Catholic Television Network www.ewtn.com. Father Pacwa is fluent in twelve languages and has a unique understanding of the peoples and cultures of the Middle East and is respected for his knowledge on Islam and the Qur'an. Father Pacwa serves as Senior Fellow of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology and has led thousands of pilgrims to holy sites around the world. He is also has the privilege of being bi-ritual, which means he can also celebrate the Maronite Mass of the Eastern Catholic Church. Father Pacwa is also the author of many books and can be found here on Amazon Author's Page.

Join Father Mitch Pacwa, S.J. on FACEBOOK! www.Facebook.com/FrMitchPacwaSJ

Learn more about Father Mitch Pacwa, S.J.'s Teaching Apostolate, IGNATIUS PRODUCTIONS, at: www.FatherMitchPacwa.org

WATCH/LISTEN TO Fr. Pacwa on EWTN - Global Catholic Television Network:
Threshold of Hope Tuesdays at 10:00pmET
OPEN LINE Radio Show Wednesdays 3:00pmET till 5:00pmET
EWTN Live Wednesdays 8:00pmET
Holy Rosary from the Holy Land Daily at 7:30amET
Find EWTN at www.EWTN.com/channelfinder

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

100 of 111 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Balanced and Objective View on the New Age August 10, 2000

By Anthony Tan

Format:Paperback

Pacwa, a Jesuit priest, gives a balanced and systematic treatment of the New Age movement. There are no emotional tirades and scathing attacks. This book is rigorous and scholarly (includes endnotes, a glossary and bibliography) yet very readable. He gives the history and logical arguments against these practices. This book is not just a good read. It's also good to give away to those who need it and good as a reference as well.

Pacwa exposes the roots of New Age infiltration into the Catholic Church. It's a controversial topic but he makes it pretty clear that using something like the Enneagram (a typology purporting that there are 9 types of characters) just doesn't square with being Catholic. Seen in the light of Tradition and Scripture, which Fr. Pacwa makes reference to, this and all New Age practices are dubious at best and diabolical at worst.

53 of 58 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Very important April 9, 2007

By bookscdsdvdsandcoolstuff VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is an incredibly important book for Catholics to read. For some reason I cannot explain, many Catholics, including my parents when I was growing up, were and are deeply interested in the occult and new age spirituality. It is VERY dangerous stuff.

My parents bought me my first set of runes, and my first Ouija board. I do not think they were being willfully evil. They were just VERY ignorant regarding Catholic truth, and also regarding the dangers of the New Age.

Luckily, when I was in my late 20s, I met a wonderful and faithful priest who also went though a period of experimentation with "crystals" and "runes" and other garbage when he was a teenager. He walked me through the dangers and pitfalls such approaches to "spirituality" present. The interesting thing was, in my heart of hearts, I always knew that my parents and I were offending Jesus with the actions we were taking. I just KNEW I was doing something wrong, despite my parents' tacit approval and even encouragement. All Father had to do was bring out of me the answers I already had on my heart. He gently led me to repentance, and then forgiveness in Christ Jesus.

Still, until recently, I had never known anyone whose life was ruined because the New Age. However, I can now say that the New Age is destroying people in my family. I have several family members hopelessly fascinated with this stuff. Some have had tragedies in their lives and are unable to really heal and deal with the ramifications of such deep personal loss because they are holding on to their loved ones with seances and other inappropriate forms of spiritualism and communication with the dead. Rather than find comfort in faith and prayer (the Catholic Church is a wonderful place to be, for we teach we can still pray for people, even though they are gone) they turned to psychics and the New Age. I see pain linger and grow in them. By contrast, faithfully Catholic and Christian friends who have experienced similar tragedies have fared much better.

If I were not a person of faith, I would conclude from my experience that the New Age is psychologically unhealthy and dangerous for mental health. As a person of faith I believe that this is certainly true, but, more importantly, I believe that dabbling in the New Age can cause real and spiritual trauma to the soul of the individual involved. It opens the door to the Devil and his minions.

This book is SO important. If it convinces one Catholic to flee sin, flee the New Age, flee Satan and his army of Demons and seek the rock of Jesus Christ, then it has had positive effects that will echo in eternity.

Thank God for faithful Catholics like Father Mitch Pacwa.

109 of 127 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars simple yet eloquent August 8, 2001

By Stephen Moser

Format:Paperback

I just finished this book and I have to say that I am amazed at the angry negative reviews I've read on this page. Folks, if crystals, horoscopes, tarot cards and contemplating one's navel are now considered (as was suggested in one review) modern, cutting edge psychology, then our society is in deep doo-doo. We should be furious that this mumbo jumbo has infiltrated the once respectable field of psychology, but the priest who wrote this book shows absolutely no anger towards the new age movement with which he experimented for a while. It seems clear to me that as he grew spiritually, he simply tired of the shallow, simplistic, ego-centric silliness of the new age - just as a boy becoming a young man tires of playing with the toys of his childhood.