A look at the claims, predictions and behavior of a media "psychic".
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A look at the claims, predictions and behavior of a media "psychic".
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Sylvia Browne and ChristianityA brief look at Browne's version of Christianity. 
Cover art from "The Mystical Life of Jesus". BackgroundIn discussing Sylvia Browne with various friends and acquaintances, I have found that there are a number of people who are under the impression that Browne is a Christian, but who are amazed (and often angry) when they hear how different her views on Jesus are from that of mainstream Christianity. Browne does not hide these opinions. After all, they are expressed in some of her books. But she seemed to avoid mentioning them when discussing her book The Mystical Life of Jesus - An Uncommon Perspective on the Life of Christ on the Montel Williams show. I am an agnostic (meaning that I do not claim to know whether or not there is a god or gods), and so, for me, her views on religion have no bearing on what I think about her purported "psychic abilities." But it has been suggested to me that an article on the subject would be appropriate, since there may be those who would want to take this information into account when making up their minds about her. This article is the result. The DifferencesMany of the differences between Browne's views and those of mainstream Christianity can be found by reading through the web site of Novus Spiritus, the church that Browne founded in 1986. Finding others differences requires reading some of her books, such as the aforementioned The Mystical Life of Jesus. I will highlight some of the major differences here. Number of GodsMainstream Christianity: Monotheistic, believing in one god, although in three personages (the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit). Browne’s Novus Spiritus church: Polytheistic, believing in multiple gods. From their web site, on this page:
"One Way"Mainstream Christianity: Believes the only way to get to Heaven is through Christianity – specifically, through Jesus. Novus Spiritus: Believes that everyone goes to heaven, which they call "the other side". From their web site, on this page (emphasis mine):
Parentage of JesusMainstream Christianity: Believes Jesus was the son of God. Novus Spiritus: Believes that Jesus was the son of Joseph. In Browne's book The Mystical Life of Jesus, she shares what her "spirit guide" Francine has told her. From page 9 (hardcover edition):
Divinity of JesusMainstream Christianity: Believes that Jesus is divine, meaning that he is God. Novus Spiritus: It's hard to tell just what they believe here. Although Browne refers to Jesus' divinity (as in the passage quoted above), the Novus Spiritus site says, on this page (emphasis mine):
To further confuse things, they seem to also believe that we are all equal to god. From their tenets, listed on this page on their site:
The CrucifixionMainstream Christianity: Jesus died on the cross. Novus Spiritus: As stated in the above quote, Browne's church does not believe Jesus "died for our sins," but furthermore, they claim that he did not die on the cross at all. In fact, in her book The Mystical Life of Jesus, Browne goes into great detail about how Jesus went to great lengths to avoid dying on the cross. In the chapter "The Real Passion Story of Christ", Browne describes a secret meeting where Jesus, Judas Iscariot and Pontius Pilate all hatch a "plot" to fake Jesus’ death on the cross (from page 141, hardcover edition):
She goes on to describe how Jesus' death was faked by him being given a drug while on the cross. The drug put him into a "light coma" so the crowd would think him dead. The ResurrectionMainstream Christianity: Believes that Jesus rose from the dead. Novus Spiritus: Since they believe Jesus didn't die on the cross, they obviously can't believe in a resurrection. Instead, they believe that Pilate's physicians revived Jesus from his "light coma". Again from The Mystical Life of Jesus, in the chapter "The Resurrection - A Plan For Christ's Survival", Browne says, on pages 175-176 (hardcover edition):
I don't quite follow the logic there. If everyone supposedly thought Jesus was dead, they wouldn't be looking for him. So why fake a resurrection? But the mention of Jesus' "family" brings us to the next difference... Jesus - Married?Mainstream Christianity: Holds that Jesus was not married. Novus Spiritus: Holds that he was married to Mary Magdalene, who escaped to France along with Jesus - and their children - after the faked resurrection. Again from The Mystical Life of Jesus, Browne says, on page 191 (hardcover edition):
ConclusionNone of Browne's take on Christianity and Jesus is new. Much of it echoes theories in books such as Holy Blood, Holy Grail, which later was an inspiration for the book and film The DaVinci Code. But I think it is fair to say that many of Browne's views are distinctly different from those held by mainstream Christianity. Some Christian friends and acquaintances have also pointed out to me that the bible has many verses which prohibit talking with the dead. However, none of them could tell me if there were any such prohibitions against merely pretending to talk with the dead, which is what Browne appears to be doing. Added Apr 15, 2007: The previous comment was intended to be a little "tongue-in-cheek," but since this article went up on the site, several people have pointed out to me that "pretending to talk to the dead" would constitute lying, and so is prohibited in many places in the Bible such as Proverbs 12:19, Proverbs 12:22 and Proverbs 19:5. Related LinksClicking on any of these links will load a separate browser window for viewing the linked page. StopSylviaBrowne.com is not responsible for the content of any of these linked pages.
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