Disclaimer

General Information

The information published on NewThoughtHistory.org is provided for educational, historical, and informational purposes.

NewThoughtHistory.org is an independent historical reference project dedicated to researching and documenting the history of the New Thought movement, including its people, organizations, books, publications, ideas, practices, controversies, and related historical movements.

While reasonable efforts are made to research and present information accurately, no historical resource can guarantee that every statement is complete, current, or free from error.

Historical evidence can be incomplete, contradictory, misidentified, or subject to different interpretations.

By using this website, you acknowledge the limitations described in this Disclaimer.

Independent Historical Project

NewThoughtHistory.org is an independent project.

Unless explicitly stated otherwise, the website is not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, or officially connected with any church, denomination, religious movement, archive, publisher, association, historical figure, estate, or organization discussed on the site.

This includes, without limitation, organizations associated with:

  • Unity;
  • Divine Science;
  • Religious Science or Science of Mind;
  • the International New Thought Alliance;
  • and other historical or contemporary New Thought organizations.

References to these organizations are made for historical, educational, and research purposes.

Any trademarks, organization names, publication titles, and related identifiers belong to their respective owners where applicable.

Historical Information

History is reconstructed from surviving evidence.

Articles on NewThoughtHistory.org may draw upon:

  • historical books;
  • newspapers;
  • periodicals;
  • letters;
  • manuscripts;
  • organizational records;
  • photographs;
  • archival collections;
  • scholarly research;
  • institutional histories;
  • and other primary and secondary sources.

These sources do not always agree.

Dates, relationships, quotations, organizational histories, and interpretations can differ between sources.

Where significant uncertainty exists, NewThoughtHistory.org aims to identify it.

However, the absence of a qualification should not be interpreted as a guarantee that no alternative evidence or interpretation exists.

Historical research remains subject to revision as additional evidence becomes available.

Religious and Spiritual Content

NewThoughtHistory.org documents religious, spiritual, philosophical, and metaphysical ideas as subjects of historical study.

Articles may discuss concepts including:

  • Divine Mind;
  • mental healing;
  • spiritual healing;
  • affirmative prayer;
  • affirmations;
  • consciousness;
  • prosperity;
  • manifestation;
  • metaphysical interpretations of Christianity;
  • spiritual law;
  • and the relationship between thought and experience.

The inclusion or explanation of a teaching does not constitute endorsement of that teaching.

Statements such as:

“Quimby believed…”

“Hopkins taught…”

“According to Unity tradition…”

or

“Practitioners reported…”

describe historical beliefs, teachings, traditions, or testimony.

They should not be interpreted as statements that NewThoughtHistory.org independently verifies the underlying religious or metaphysical claim.

Readers are free to reach their own conclusions about religious and philosophical questions.

Historical Healing Accounts

Healing is an important subject in the history of New Thought.

Historical sources contain numerous accounts in which individuals attributed changes in health to:

  • prayer;
  • mental treatment;
  • changes in thought;
  • affirmation;
  • spiritual realization;
  • metaphysical practices;
  • or other religious experiences.

NewThoughtHistory.org may document these accounts because they are historically significant.

Their inclusion does not establish that the reported practice medically caused the outcome described.

For example, stating that a historical person attributed a recovery to prayer documents that person’s interpretation of the experience.

It is not equivalent to stating that prayer has been independently demonstrated to have cured a particular disease.

Where possible, articles distinguish between:

historical testimony,

religious interpretation,

documented medical information,

and

scientific evidence.

Not Medical Advice

Nothing on NewThoughtHistory.org constitutes medical or health advice.

Content discussing mental healing, spiritual healing, prayer, meditation, consciousness, historical medical practices, or related subjects is provided for historical and educational purposes.

It should not be used to:

  • diagnose a medical condition;
  • determine treatment;
  • replace professional medical care;
  • discontinue medication;
  • change prescribed treatment;
  • postpone seeking medical attention;
  • or make decisions about a medical emergency.

Historical practices described on this website may reflect the knowledge and beliefs of earlier periods and may not meet modern standards of medical evidence or safety.

For questions concerning your health, diagnosis, medication, or treatment, consult an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.

Historical Practices Are Not Recommendations

The fact that a historical person practiced or recommended something does not mean NewThoughtHistory.org recommends that practice today.

Historical articles may describe treatments, diets, remedies, fasting, mental practices, spiritual exercises, or other methods advocated by people in earlier periods.

Such information is included because it helps explain history.

It should not be interpreted as a modern instruction or recommendation.

Historical description and present-day advice are different things.

No Mental Health Advice

Discussions involving thought, consciousness, emotions, belief, spiritual experience, or historical ideas about the mind are not psychological or psychiatric advice.

Historical terminology relating to mental states may also differ substantially from contemporary medical and psychological terminology.

Readers seeking assistance with mental-health concerns should consult an appropriately qualified professional.

No Professional Advice

Content on NewThoughtHistory.org is not intended to substitute for professional advice.

In addition to medical or mental-health matters, articles may touch on:

  • legal history;
  • financial history;
  • copyright;
  • genealogy;
  • archival research;
  • religious organizations;
  • or other specialized subjects.

Nothing on the website should be treated as individualized legal, financial, medical, psychological, or other professional advice.

Consult an appropriate professional when making decisions that require such expertise.

Historical Terminology

Historical sources sometimes contain language, classifications, medical terminology, racial terminology, gender terminology, religious descriptions, or other expressions that differ from contemporary usage.

When historically relevant, NewThoughtHistory.org may quote or reproduce such terminology.

Its inclusion does not necessarily indicate endorsement.

In some cases, preserving original terminology is necessary to represent a source accurately or explain the historical context in which it was produced.

Context may be added where useful.

Quotations

NewThoughtHistory.org makes reasonable efforts to trace quotations to reliable sources.

Nevertheless, quotations attributed to historical religious and philosophical figures are frequently misquoted, paraphrased, modernized, or incorrectly attributed.

Where a quotation cannot be verified confidently, it may be identified as:

commonly attributed,

unverified,

or

source not located.

If stronger evidence later demonstrates that an attribution is incorrect, the article may be corrected according to our Corrections Policy.

Historical Dates and Biographical Information

Dates and biographical details may differ among historical sources.

This is particularly common with:

  • birth dates;
  • organizational founding dates;
  • publication dates;
  • teacher-student relationships;
  • travel;
  • institutional affiliations;
  • and accounts written many years after an event.

Where the evidence permits, NewThoughtHistory.org attempts to distinguish exact dates from approximate dates and later recollections.

Expressions such as:

circa,

approximately,

by,

before,

and

according to

are used intentionally.

Scholarly Interpretation

Historical scholarship involves interpretation.

Researchers can examine the same evidence and reach different conclusions.

For example, scholars and institutional histories may differ over the relative importance of particular people, intellectual influences, organizations, or events in the development of New Thought.

NewThoughtHistory.org may describe multiple interpretations without adopting any one interpretation as unquestionably correct when the evidence remains disputed.

Readers should consult the cited scholarship and primary evidence when conducting academic or professional research.

Primary Sources

Primary sources are historical evidence, but they are not automatically objective.

A memoir can contain errors.

A newspaper can report inaccurate information.

An advertisement can exaggerate.

An organizational publication can reflect an institutional viewpoint.

A personal letter can contain speculation.

A religious testimony can describe an experience according to the writer’s beliefs.

NewThoughtHistory.org therefore does not guarantee the factual accuracy of every statement contained within a primary source that is quoted, reproduced, summarized, or linked.

When a historical document makes a claim, our reproduction of that claim should not be interpreted as independent verification of it.

NewThoughtHistory.org may link to third-party websites, including:

  • libraries;
  • archives;
  • museums;
  • universities;
  • digital collections;
  • government resources;
  • publishers;
  • religious organizations;
  • scholarly databases;
  • historical societies;
  • and other research resources.

These links are provided for convenience, verification, attribution, or further research.

NewThoughtHistory.org does not control third-party websites and cannot guarantee their:

  • accuracy;
  • availability;
  • security;
  • privacy practices;
  • content;
  • or continued existence.

A link does not constitute endorsement of all information, beliefs, products, services, or opinions found on the destination website.

Archived and Historical Websites

Some references may point to archived versions of websites or pages that are no longer actively maintained.

Archived content may be useful as historical evidence but can contain outdated information, broken links, or statements that no longer represent the current position of an organization.

Readers should distinguish between:

a historical snapshot

and

a current organizational statement.

Books and External Resources

References to books, journals, archives, documentaries, databases, websites, or other resources are provided for educational and research purposes.

Mentioning a resource does not necessarily constitute endorsement of every statement or interpretation it contains.

Similarly, disagreement with one part of a source does not necessarily make the entire source historically useless.

Sources are evaluated according to the claims for which they are used.

Images

NewThoughtHistory.org may display:

  • historical photographs;
  • portraits;
  • manuscripts;
  • book covers;
  • title pages;
  • newspaper clippings;
  • advertisements;
  • archival documents;
  • maps;
  • illustrations;
  • and other visual material.

Reasonable efforts are made to identify creators, sources, repositories, dates, and rights information when available.

However, historical image metadata can be incomplete or incorrect.

An image’s presence on NewThoughtHistory.org does not necessarily mean that NewThoughtHistory.org owns the copyright or has authority to grant reuse permission.

Consult our Image Credits information and the original source before reusing third-party material.

Some historical materials discussed or reproduced on the website may be in the public domain.

Others may remain protected by copyright or subject to licensing or repository restrictions.

The appearance of material on NewThoughtHistory.org should not be interpreted as legal advice concerning its copyright status.

Anyone wishing to reproduce historical material should conduct an independent rights assessment appropriate to their jurisdiction and intended use.

Trademarks and Organization Names

Names, logos, trademarks, service marks, publication names, and organizational identifiers mentioned on NewThoughtHistory.org remain the property of their respective owners where applicable.

Their use on this site is for identification, historical discussion, commentary, research, or educational purposes.

Such use does not imply affiliation, sponsorship, or endorsement.

AI-Assisted Editorial Tools

NewThoughtHistory.org may use digital tools, including artificial intelligence, to assist with tasks such as:

  • research organization;
  • drafting;
  • editing;
  • summarization;
  • formatting;
  • metadata preparation;
  • and identifying questions requiring further research.

Artificial intelligence is not treated as a historical source.

Historical claims should be supported by identifiable evidence appropriate to the subject.

AI systems can produce errors, including incorrect dates, invented quotations, nonexistent publications, inaccurate relationships, and fabricated citations.

Material intended for publication should therefore be reviewed and checked against sources according to our Research Standards.

Generated and Reconstructed Images

Some explanatory or decorative images may be digitally created, restored, reconstructed, colorized, or generated with artificial intelligence.

Such images should not be interpreted as authentic historical photographs unless they actually originate from the historical record.

Where a digital reconstruction or generated image could reasonably be confused with historical evidence, NewThoughtHistory.org aims to identify it appropriately.

The original historical document or photograph remains the preferred evidentiary source.

Accuracy and Completeness

NewThoughtHistory.org makes reasonable efforts to publish accurate information.

However, we do not warrant or guarantee that all information on the website is:

  • complete;
  • error-free;
  • exhaustive;
  • continuously current;
  • or suitable for every research purpose.

Historical knowledge can change as new evidence is discovered.

Articles may therefore be corrected, expanded, or revised.

Readers conducting academic, genealogical, legal, medical, or other consequential research should verify important information against the cited primary sources and appropriate professional or scholarly resources.

Corrections

We welcome evidence-based corrections.

If you believe that an article contains an incorrect date, misidentified person, inaccurate quotation, faulty citation, incorrectly attributed image, or another factual error, please contact us with:

  • the page concerned;
  • the statement or item believed to be incorrect;
  • the proposed correction;
  • and supporting evidence where available.

Correction requests are evaluated according to our Corrections Policy and Research Standards.

The existence of a disagreement does not automatically mean that an article is incorrect.

Where reliable sources genuinely conflict, we may explain the disagreement rather than select one version without sufficient evidence.

No Guarantee of Availability

NewThoughtHistory.org may modify, update, reorganize, remove, or discontinue content or features at any time.

We do not guarantee uninterrupted access to the website or continued availability of any particular article, image, external resource, tool, or feature.

Limitation of Responsibility

To the extent permitted by applicable law, NewThoughtHistory.org and its operators are not responsible for losses, damages, injuries, or other consequences arising from reliance on information published on this website or on third-party resources linked from it.

Users remain responsible for evaluating information and obtaining appropriate professional advice when necessary.

Nothing in this Disclaimer excludes or limits responsibilities that cannot legally be excluded or limited under applicable law.

Changes to This Disclaimer

This Disclaimer may be updated as NewThoughtHistory.org develops, new types of content are introduced, or editorial and legal requirements change.

The version published on this page represents the current Disclaimer for the website.

Contact

Questions about this Disclaimer, factual corrections, attribution issues, or concerns about material published on NewThoughtHistory.org may be submitted through our Contact Us page.

For historical corrections, providing a primary source, archival record, scholarly publication, or other verifiable evidence is especially helpful.

Final Note

NewThoughtHistory.org exists to document history, not to prescribe belief or treatment.

Descriptions of New Thought teachings explain what historical people and organizations believed, taught, practiced, published, or reported.

They do not require readers to accept those beliefs.

Historical accounts of healing document an important part of New Thought history, but they should not be interpreted as medical advice, proof of medical causation, or a recommendation to replace evidence-based healthcare.

The goal is to make the historical record easier to investigate while maintaining a clear distinction between:

historical evidence, religious belief, personal testimony, scholarly interpretation, and established scientific knowledge.