Quotes and Excerpts

Cognitive Psychology: "Our goal is nothing less than to characterize the mechanisms underlying human cognition in domains that range from visual, haptic and auditory perception to problem solving, and that include imagery, language processing, mathematical reasoning, learning and memory. Cognitive research draws on a variety of empirical methods, including protocol analysis and eye movement monitoring, in addition to traditional behavioral methods. The studies involve a variety of populations, including experts and novices in particular content domains, bilinguals, and neuropsychological patients, such as those with visual neglect or aphasia. The theoretical work often involves computer simulation, drawing on both symbolic and connectionist computational approaches." http://www.psy.cmu.edu/home/research/index.html

Stretching the Imagination Representation and Transformation in Mental Imagery: "This text examines one of the most lively areas of debate in psychology today, the relationship between perception and mental imagery. A variety of recent studies have pointed to the existence of a strong relationship between memory and mental representation, while others have shown that images are open to reinterpretation and manipulation, and are therefore not merely static impressions or mental representations of memories." http://www.oup-usa.org/isbn/0195099486.html

Are Theories of Imagery Theories of Imagination? An Active Perception Approach to Conscious Mental Content. ABSTRACT: "Imagery and Theories of Imagery in Cognitive Science. Let us provisionally define mental imagery as quasi-perceptual experience, experience that significantly resembles perceptual experience (in any sense mode), but which occurs in the absence of appropriate external stimuli for the relevant perception (for discussion and defence of this definition see Thomas, 1999b)."  

Guiding the Imagination through Edutainment A Global Strategy for Social Change : “The world of imagination and fantasy can help pass on to the child cultural and social messages [and] function as a way to experience vicariously things an individual could not do first-hand.” Aminadav, C. "Fantasies and imagination in mildly and moderately retarded young people." International Journal of Adolescent Medicine & Health. 1995 Apr-Jun. 8: p.103-106 "Virtual reality will make learning more fun and much easier. You will be able to experience things you could only read about before, such as living in a medieval village, flying down a volcano, designing your own car and driving it.... The jargon for this entertaining way of learning is edutainment." Chris Oxlade, Virtual Reality, . 89 .... Manipulating the Imagination. The suggestions that inspire our imaginations also guide our behavior. Just look at contemporary television ads. Entertaining stories that prompt us to identify with mass experiences have proven to be far more powerful tools for manipulating behavior than mere facts and data. That's why most television ads show entertaining glimpses of the product rather than the facts that show the effectiveness of a product. The multi-billion dollar marketing industry has realized that truth and facts are far less effective than laughter and fantasy in changing behavior and prompting a purchase. Using the imagination, the latter implants all kinds of false memories and unwanted desires into our passive minds. Those who are not grounded in Biblical truth have little resistance to today's flood of spiritual alternatives. Marketed to sound good and appeal to noble ideals as well as personal wants, they leave mental suggestions that prompt "christians" as well as the world to re-define words, re-interpret the Bible in the light of popular fantasies, and trade the Biblical God for a permissive substitute. The growing influence of feminist spirituality has already caused some women in all the mainline denominations to "re-imagine" God, self, and the world. Trained by an army of mentors and facilitators, these aspiring visionaries "see" gods and goddesses, angels and helpers that transform their understanding. Their memories of imagined experiences become the anchor for new belief systems that immunize them against the God of the Bible and His followers. Educators, calling themselves "change agents", use the imagination and storytelling to replace old values with new ones that fit their vision for the global society. In a short time, old heroes such as pastors and parents can become enemies that hinder freedom, and the lessons of history are turned upside-down. A page from a little book titled Virtual Reality illustrates how history can be re-molded by teachers who guide their students' imagination in the "right" direction: See ARTICLE

Hegel and the Hermetic Tradition : "Salvation for the Hermeticists was... through gnosis, through understanding.... One must not only know doctrine, but have the real-life experience of the truth of the doctrine. One must be lead up to illumination carefully...." 11 "Using a kind of 'active imagination' to recollect these latent symbols, Bohme worked out his theosophy.... "Faivre ranks 'imagination' as 'the essential component of esoterism.' The idea of occult correspondences that figures so largely in Hermeticism depends on 'a form of imagination inclined to reveal and use mediations of all kinds, such as rituals, symbolic images, mandalas, intermediary spirits.' but this imagination does not create from nothing, rather it 'recalls' images and associations from the collective unconscious of the race. Imagination depends on memory.... "The occult philosophy of Bruno depended on the relationship of imagination to memory. Bohme continues this tradition by developing his theosophy entirely in terms of images that carry both a literal (often alchemical) and figurative sense." 46 ..... "The Rosicrucian manifesto captured the imagination of scores of intellectuals throughout Europe, many of whom desperately tried to made contact with the "order" and to join their ranks. Descartes and Bacon were two such seekers." 53 "In 1619, Andreae published Christianapolis, which called for a 'new reformation.' ... Christianapolis preached a mysterious doctrine of 'theosophy,' which involved a theory of 'mystical architecture.'" 53 "It is uncertain when Freemasonry was founded... It nevertheless became a repository for Hermetic philosophy, even employing the symbolic figure of Hermes Trismegistus in some of its rituals.. The freemasons numbered among their members some of the most prominent minds in Europe, and flourished in Germany." 53 "Like the Rosicrucians, the Masons believed in the fundamental identity of all religions. Beneath he superficial differences of regions was supposed to lie a prisca theologia. ... 'The aim of the lodges was the creation of a new man [the aim of Soviet brainwashing] through membership in a communion mirroring a rational universe of freedom and love, just as primitive Christianity had once sought to call into being children of God for the Kingdom of God.' Indeed the conception of an invisible church.... was one of the precepts of Masonry. [Including a counterfeit form of God's truth has always been an effective means of deception] Indeed, Masonry would come to 'incorporate' Rosicrucianism, inventing its higher degrees with Rosicrucian imagery." 54 .... "According to Heinrich Schneider, the German Masonic lodges were 'teeming with magical, theosophical, mystical notions'... much of their lore was Kabbalistic.... About 1770, the year of Hegel's birth, a 'Hermetic Rite' was established..... In general, the higher degrees of Masonry were (and are) strongly mystical.... "... the mystics in the secret societies... had made possible the later merging of German idealism and mysticism.... "The Illuminati were founded in 1776 as a means to advance the ideals of the Enlightenment: opposition to traditional religion, superstition, and feudalism, and advocacy for scientific rationalism and the rights of man. Initially they were led by their founder, Adam Weishaupt, a law professor a the Bavarian university of Ingolstadt.... Weishaupt appears to endowed the order with Hermetic trappings... to entice members...." 56 .... "The conception of a unity of the world's religions is joined in Goethe's through, as it is in Rosicrucianism and Freemasonry, to a quasi-pantheistic nature mysticism." 59 ... ""Hegel holds the traditional, Hermetic conception of philosphia perennis: all previous systems of thought -- religious, mythological philosophical-- aim a and partially unveil the same doctrine..... Hegel writes: ' From the true knowledge of [the principle of all philosophy], there will arise the conviction that at all times there has been only one and the same philosophy.'" 86 "In System-Program" Hegel writes, "in the end enlightened and unenlightened must clasp hands, mythology must become philosophical in order to make the people rational, and philosophy must become mythological in order to make the philosophers sensible. Then reigns eternal unity among us. ... No more the look of scorn... no more the blind trembling of the people before its wise men and priests. 87 [In other words, Hegel's synthesis will have led to unity and equality] ... "Hegel is advocating a 'third position'; a completely new form of thought in which the truth is laid bare by transcending and synthesizing the inadequate form of the pure image and the abstract concept. In the 'System-Program' this new form elevates poetic thought to a higher level; 'Poetry gains thereby a higher dignity,' he writes." 91 See ARTICLE

Books and Magazines that Corrupt Young Minds : ....Step Three. Be Alert to Deception in Books · A crossless version of Christianity fits the New Age lie that all can be one - with or without Jesus. It denies man's need for redemption and, in effect, makes man his own savior. "For the message of the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are saved it is the power of God" (1 Corinthians 1:18). · Examine gift books for children. Discuss your observations with your child. Some of Audrey and Don Wood's attractive books are filled with enticing New Age magic. Other picture books, like The Witches Handbook by Malcolm Bird, treat witchcraft as a game for all to enjoy. · Check contemporary children's poetry. While some poems are superb, others are grotesque and macabre. · Check fantasy game books. They make you the hero - but what beliefs do you follow? What mental pictures will your imagination create? As you make decisions appropriate to the story, will occult forces become part of your thinking? Some titles will warn you - like Seas of Blood and Castle Death - but I many others sound innocuous. · Be alert to what peers read. Discuss their influence with your child. During the winter of 1989, many of David's eighth-grade peers read Cycle of the Werewolf by Stephen King, master of occult horror. · A new kind of joke book has captivated readers. The object of the humor may be sex, marriage, parents, or God. Some of the illustrations may be pornographic. While we desperately need a sense of humor, we don’t need to laugh at corruption and delight in immorality. God wants us to love, accept, and forgive each other. But He also tells us to discipline and control our own human nature. Discuss these Scriptures with your child: Leviticus 11:44, 20:26; and Matthew 5:6, 8. Review Romans 12:1-2, 9, and 13:14. See ARTICLE

Under the Spell of Mother Earth Chapter 2 Calling the Spirit of Gaia : SOFT, HYPNOTIC MUSIC greeted the parents streaming into the kindergarten classroom for a back-to-school orientation. The teacher was preparing a special journey via guided imagery. She focused everyone's attention on a poster which showed doors of every size, shape, and color. As she began the visualization, her voice turned meditative and mysterious: Imagine that you are standing at one of the doors. In just a moment the door will open and you will walk in. (Pause) The door has opened and you are standing at the top of a stairway. Now, as I count, picture yourself walking down the stairs - ten, nine, eight, seven.... You are at the bottom of the stairs, standing in a beautiful valley. It is green, lush, and you are walking along a path. Along the side of the path you notice a milkweed plant, and as you look closer you see a caterpillar... Now you become the caterpillar. You keep eating and eating... You get very tired. You spin a cocoon around yourself and rest... Now you have become a wonderful monarch butterfly. You are flying around ... through a rainbow....3 That visualization may seem innocent enough. But was it? After the exercise, only one couple expressed concern. This relatively mild hypnotic exercise encouraged the rest of the parents to relax, feel their supposed connectedness with related animal species - and build resistance against future concern over similar or more occult visualizations. I am not suggesting we starve our imaginations or quench our tendencies to visualize. We couldn’t if we tried. The imagination forms mental images all day long - whenever we hear a story, remember an event, or read a book. God uses it to reveal Himself to us when we study His Word. But who or what guides our imagination? There are four possibilities: God, self, another person, or demonic spirit guides. Few realize that human guides, manipulating the imagination through hypnotic visualizations, can produce an altered state of consciousness that opens the mind to occult suggestions. Satan never tires of twisting God’s good gifts to fit his schemes. .... "The practice of visualization, or "directed imagination," is part of all forms of occultism, ancient as well as modern.... The ability to form clear, detailed, mental images is the key to unlocking occult powers, and visualization is the basis for invoking any deity or spiritual being.4 ....The Sierra Club Environmental Health Sourcebook, Well Body, Well Earth by Mike Samuels and Hal Zina Bennett, shows us how. It tells us to "turn to the traditions of ancient cultures" such as Buddhist meditations and Native Ameri­can Hopi rituals in order to "reaffirm our bond with the spirit of the living earth": The practice of visualization, that is, deliberately using your imagination to focus your attention on a particular goal, is an important mental tool for change ...[and] probably dates back to human beginnings… In Greece, for example, when people wanted help in solving difficult problems, they consulted the Oracle at Delphi. [There] the priests acknowledged a spirit of the living Earth for which the Greek name was Gaea. Priestesses of Gaea were trained in the art of visualization and had dedicated their lives to a study of the spirit of the living Earth. When asked to help a person solve a problem - such as when to plant their fields or how to influence the conception of children - the priestess ... imagined herself consulting with Gaea. The answer coming from the visualization of Gaea was the answer the priestess gave.... The visualization exercises we describe here are intended to help people focus on the concept of the living Earth. Because most people who live in an urban or suburban setting have little or no daily contact with the Earth, we require something like visualization to help us get in touch with our planet...6  

Narnia - Part 1 Blending Truth and Myth: "'The book is about imagination,' says Roger Ford, the production designer of Disney's version of Narnia. 'So the imagery is provided by the child's and the reader's imagination.' But, unlike books, movies implant ready-made images. 'The challenge of a film-maker is to live up to and exceed the people's imagination,' continues Ford, 'and really transport them to another time and place.'[4]

Today's digital magic fulfills that function all too well! But where does this movie transport the minds of our children? What kinds of enticements does it feed to their human nature and emotional appetites? What suggestions will leave lasting imprints in their memory?...  And a single phrase answers all three: the world of the occult.

The enticing pagan worlds nurtured by C.S. Lewis and his myth-making friends were not inspired by God's Word or Spirit. Those stories grew out of a lifelong immersion in the beliefs, values, rituals, languages and lifestyles of former pagan cultures. C. S. Lewis himself -- even years after professing faith in Christ -- remained obsessed with those old myths. As in his famous 1931 "conversion" encounter with Tolkien, he continued to suggest that Christianity and paganism were, in some ways, mutually supportive. Ponder his description of a 1960 visit to Greece three years before his death:

The same book quotes Lewis' earlier statement of regret that he hadn't been taught the supposed link between Christianity and paganism during his school years: "No one ever attempted to show in what sense Christianity fulfilled paganism or paganism prefigured Christianity."[5]

Guiding the Imagination through Edutainment A Global Strategy for Social Change : A new mental "framework" is vital to this paradigm shift [see chart]. But to launch the new system, the old patterns must be blurred and broken. The educational establishment knows that children who are fed a daily diet of biblical truth will resist their plans for change. They also know that students bombarded with strategic suggestions and idealized pagan images will probably reject Christianity. If schools can build the "right" kind of framework or filter in the minds of children early enough, the new global beliefs will fit right in. In other words, the battle for the hearts and minds of America's children will be won by the side that first trains children to see reality from its point of view. This paradigm shift was no mystery to Aldous Huxley, author of Brave New World. He wrote that education must provide a mental "framework... within which any piece of information acquired in later life may find its proper and significant place." [6] In the old days, that mental framework was the biblical world view. But Huxley, like most of today's change agents, called for a New Age/global framework. Like a filter, it blocks facts and ideas that don't fit, but welcomes input that strengthens the framework -- especially when communicated through stories and images that stir the imagination and arouse strong feelings. .... More recently, at the 1989 Governor's Conference on Education in Kansas, Dr. Shirley McCune, then head of the Mid-Continent Regional Educational Laboratory, summarized the policy in her keynote speech: “The revolution… in curriculum is that we no longer are teaching facts to children…. We no longer see the teaching of facts and information as the primary outcome of education.”[7] "What will take the place of logic, fact and analysis in the coming age?" This rhetorical question was raised by Dr. Donald A. Cowan, president emeritus of the University of Dallas. His revealing answer exposes an important step toward the new consensus: "The central way of thought for this new era will be imagination.... Imagination will be the active, creative agent of culture, transforming brute materials to a higher, more knowable state." [8] It's easy to see why visionary change agents would prefer to inspire the imagination rather than teach facts and logic. Unlike facts and convictions, the imagination can easily be manipulated. Today's popular books, games and other forms of edutainment bring all kinds of suggestions and images that confuse the old ways of thinking and promote the new values. They twist facts, turn right and wrong upside down, stir the imagination with unthinkable suggestions, redefine words, and give new meanings to old images such as the Little Red Hen. (See Establishing a Global Spirituality) Eventually, most students become conditioned to see everything through the new politically correct mental filter. The sight of an old social symbol (i.e. flag) or the sound of an word they have learned to hate (pastor, evil, capitalism, etc.) can now trigger emotional reactions that cannot be resolved with facts and logic. ....A simple example of this process was exposed by a Christian teacher in Sunnyvale CA. During a public elementary school assembly, the students sang the words of the Peacemakers' Planetary Anthem to the tune of the Star Spangled Banner. This melody, which has symbolized freedom to those who have loved America, now became a tactical trigger used to turn hearts from the old ways to the new vision: O Say can you see by the one light in all A New Age to embrace at the call of the nations, Where our children can play in a world without war Where we stand hand in hand in the grace of creation, Where the rivers run clean through forests pristine.... Inspiring, isn't it? The mental images behind those words illustrate the "visioning" part of Outcome-Based Education (OBE) as well as Total Quality Management (TQM). Both use the consensus process to create the collective consciousness needed for the new communities and social organizations. In the classroom, this process of change often begins with planned "visions" that plant vivid but unrealistic goals into children's minds and emotions. Next, students must learn to visualize scary images of the current crisis. The crisis is vital to the process. It provides the justification for environmental activism, government control, and unthinkable changes. So, in stark contrast to the lofty ideal in the song above, the students must learn to feel the pain of a dying earth abused by the ruling generation. The colorful classroom manual on global change, Rescue Mission Planet Earth, fits the bill. It is full of scary, sensational pictures and misguided children's opinions that fire the imagination and fuel anger. ... See ARTICLE

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