What is "The Secret"?

Warning: This blog will reveal spoilers to the book, "The Secret." So, if you don't want to know the secret of "The Secret," I would suggest not reading any further. Otherwise, don't say I didn't warn you...

One of the books on the #1 best sellers list right now is "The Secret" by Rhonda Byrne, and it's companion DVD has sold over a million copies since its release in February 2007. "The Secret" is basically a self-help book that claims to have the ultimate key to achieving success and happiness. The book and DVD give off a Da Vinci Code feel and boast that this "secret" has been known and used by some of the greatest minds in history, but for eons, "the secret" has been hidden from the public... until now.

On the Watchman Fellowship website, there is a video clip of an interview on the Today Show with one of the teachers quoted in the book & DVD, James Arthur Ray, along with Dr. Gail Saltz, a psychiatrist and Today Show contributor.

What is the secret? It's three simple steps: Ask... Believe... Receive.

The author claims that based on the "Law of Attraction," if you think about something, your mind gives off energy and vibrations that are capable of bringing external objects to you or away from you. For instance, one woman says that when she found out she had cancer, she used the secret and imagined that the cancer was out of her body. Later, she found out she was healed. Others have claimed that they have become wealthy using the secret. However, with all these lofty claims, you have to ask yourself, "Doesn't this sound a bit too good to be true?" Even the TV show, Boston Legal, showed that "The Secret" may have "some kinks to iron out."

During the Today Show interview, Mr. Ray claimed that the secret is based on quantum physics, but this has yet to be proven by the scientific community. For something to be considered scientific, it must meet the following criteria.

1. Must be based on data.
   
2. Must be observable.


3. Must be able to be tested.
   
4. Must have reproducible results.

"The Secret" can claim none of those. Dr. Saltz stated that there is nothing wrong with thinking positively, but claiming that this "Ask... Believe... Receive" concept is a science, is both deceitful and potentially harmful. I also think that the statement made by Prof. Robert Thompson of Syracuse University is very revealing. He said, "It's amazing how we really are a nation of, at best, great optimists, and at worst, real suckers."

The concept behind "The Secret" is Gnosticism, which has been around for at least 2000 years, and the secret itself, the knowledge and power that is being promised, dates back to the first sin of Adam and Eve, the desire to be God. Basically the secret tries to convince you that you can control your own future by being your own god.

Sadly, this lie has been deceiving people for centuries, and it has caused countless disappointments and ruined lives. Jerry Adler, Senior Editor of Newsweek magazine wrote an article about the book and said, "The message isn't new; the packaging is what's new.... The book is potentially psychologically harmful, ethically deplorable, and scientifically nonsense."

Acts 17:11 reminds us that we shouldn't believe everything that we read. We should always compare "secret knowledge" to what the Bible says. If it's contradictory, then it is false. We should be as careful as Beareans... "Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." And when compared to Scripture, "the secret" doesn't hold water.

A good resource that will help you learn more about "The Secret," its origins, and dangers, is the new book, "The Truth Behind The Secret." Click here to read the press release.