People, Ideas, and Movements That Shaped New Thought
Chronological development and evolution of the New Thought movement.
The New Thought movement, known for its emphasis on the power of the mind, traces its lineage back to Franz Anton Mesmer’s 18th-century theory of animal magnetism. This article explores how a discredited medical theory about an invisible universal fluid evolved into the metaphysical principles that shaped New Thought, from Phineas Quimby’s mental healing to modern law of attraction teachings.
Explore the intertwined yet distinct histories of New Thought and Christian Science, from shared roots in 19th-century idealism and mental healing to their divergent paths, key figures, and lasting impact on American metaphysical religion.
This article explores how homeopathy and other alternative medical practices shaped the New Thought movement, from Phineas Quimby’s mental healing to Warren Felt Evans’s published works, and traces the evolution of the movement’s core belief in the mind’s power to heal.
Phineas Parkhurst Quimby (1802–1866) developed a system of mental healing that, though he never published or founded a church, was carried forward by his patients and students—including Warren Felt Evans, the Dresser family, and Mary Baker Eddy—into the New Thought and Christian Science movements. This article traces the network that spread Quimby’s ideas and shaped the mind-cure tradition.
An examination of the foundational texts—from Mary Baker Eddy’s Science and Health to Ella Wheeler Wilcox’s The Heart of the New Thought—that defined the New Thought movement’s spiritual philosophy, distinguished it from scientific claims, and influenced modern self-help culture.
Religious Science, also known as Science of Mind, is a New Thought spiritual movement founded by Ernest Holmes in the 1920s. It emphasizes the power of the mind to shape reality and achieve healing, blending metaphysical principles with religious teachings. The movement has grown into a global network of centers and churches, influencing modern self-help culture.
Divine Science is a New Thought religious movement formalized in the 1880s by Malinda Cramer and Nona Brooks, emphasizing the omnipresence of God and the power of affirmative prayer. This article traces its origins, key figures, doctrinal evolution, and lasting influence on modern metaphysical spirituality.
Unity is a New Thought spiritual movement founded in 1889 by Charles and Myrtle Fillmore in Kansas City, Missouri, emphasizing prayer, mind-over-body healing, and practical Christianity. Rooted in the teachings of Emma Curtis Hopkins and Ralph Waldo Emerson, it grew from a prayer group into an international organization with Silent Unity, publications, and educational programs.
The New Thought movement, a late 19th-century spiritual and metaphysical movement, was largely led by and for women. This article explores how women shaped its teachings, institutions, and legacy, and how it intersected with feminism and ideas of sexual purity.
Emma Curtis Hopkins (1849–1925) was an American spiritual teacher and founder of the New Thought movement. Known as the ‘teacher of teachers,’ she ordained and mentored many leaders who established major metaphysical denominations, including Unity Church and the Church of Religious Science.
