Writer Kate Orson explores Eat, Pray, Love author, Elizabeth Gilbert’s spiritual journey, highlighting her use of “Love” as a god-like presence. While it sounds appealing, Orson warns it can lead seekers away from the true God in Christ.
Author, Elizabeth Gilbert, has a new book out – All the Way to the River, released this month. As a result, she has had some media and podcast interviews. When asked about her spiritual practises, she talks a lot about ‘god’. Ever since she began a 12 step programme to deal with romantic love addiction she’s been writing and receiving daily letters to a spiritual presence, which she calls ‘Love,’ but also refers to as ‘god.’
The bestselling author once travelled the world looking for love and spiritual peace. Now she writes a Substack; ‘Letters From Love,’ which teaches an audience of nearly 200,000 subscribers, to write letters to ‘Love’ as well.
READ MORE: Should Christians ‘manifest’ things? Or is it a dangerous new age practice?
Her 12 step mentor introduced the idea of calling on a ‘higher power,’ that is interchangeable with others words. Those could be ‘source,’ energy,’ or ‘the universe.’
In an episode of the ‘We Can Do Hard Things’ podcast Elizabeth describes how this ‘Love entity’ has filled the ‘God-shaped hole’ in her life that she used to fill with romantic attachments.
In an episode of the ‘We Can Do Hard Things’ podcast Elizabeth describes how this ‘Love entity’ has filled the ‘God-shaped hole’ in her life that she used to fill with romantic attachments.
At first glance, ‘Love’ does sound a lot like our Christian God. ‘Love’ offers Elizabeth unconditional kindness and support. Love does not guilt or shame her. Elizabeth talks about the relief of relying on a greater wisdom than herself to make decisions. Elizabeth mentions Jesus, and even quotes from the Bible. But is she actually in touch with God?
READ MORE: I experienced ‘post-book grief’ after reading books on the occult but it led me back to the Bible
One thing that is absent from Elizabeth’s conversations with Love, is any mention of sin. Elizabeth might mess up sometimes, but there’s no judgment from ‘Love’ or need to repent.
Like Elizabeth, I spent years spiritually seeking. God was a word I thought could be used interchangeably for the spiritual ‘energy’ I felt whenever I did yoga, meditation, or breathwork etc. Then one day in 2021 I said the Lord’s prayer. I was stunned to experience the presence of God. What struck me was how different it felt to any other spiritual feeling I’d had before. I instantly knew the God of the Bible was real. The more I got to know him, the more I’d realised that in my previous life I had fallen for a counterfeit.
The 12 step programme uses the concept of a ‘god of your own understanding,’ so members get to choose their god. Elizabeth thought to herself, ‘I can’t have a punishing god.’ In the new age, we think we can make up our reality, that we can believe, have and create whatever we want. In reality though it’s a fiction that we think is true, just because we believe it.
READ MORE: I was a cocaine-snorting model and singer who loved the occult until God gave me a Christmas miracle
Just as water is wet, in the physical realm, no matter how much we pretend to believe otherwise, there is an objective truth to our spiritual realm. I do believe that Elizabeth’s letters are not just her imagination. She calls what she does channelling and it does seem like she is talking to a channelled entity. It’s not God though, but a demon.
In 2 Corinthians 11.14, the apostle Paul tells us that ‘Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.’ This ‘father of lies,’ and his minions will go along with whatever lovely sounding fiction we choose to believe, while adding in lies of their own to send us into an endless labyrinth. In the new age I experienced many highs, but what I didn’t realise at the time is that my practises caused lows too. Spiritual drugs are deceptive, because we don’t realise they have side effects. When we experience anxiety, sleeplessness, or struggle with health, and romantic relationships we don’t realise that our challenges are a side effect of our spirituality.
Demons are so clever at flattery, at telling us exactly what we want to hear. But now when I listen to Elizabeth talk, it doesn’t sound like love and light to me anymore, but darkness. Elizabeth talks about the other voice that haunts her, the one that shames and blames. She wants to dismiss it but can’t quite manage to. The only thing that ever took that voice away for me, was believing in Jesus and repenting from my sin. Jesus took that burden away for me now.
Elizabeth sees two choices; either be forced into believing in the punishing, judgemental god or the god we choose. I pray that she will learn there is a third way; the objective truth of who Jesus really is; the true Jesus of the Bible who loves us more than his own earthly life, and asks us to repent from sin. But once we are believers in Christ there is no condemnation. We can be freed from that heavy burden of guilt.
As Christians we must be discerning and wise as serpents when listening to speakers like Elizabeth. They talk about God, they sometimes mention Jesus, and even use Bible quotes, while also referring to Buddha in the same breath. Elizabeth promotes a universalistic faith where all faiths are equal paths. I pray Elizabeth will come to know that Jesus is the only way.
No comments yet