Richard Smoley is one of the world's most respected authorities on the mystical and esoteric teachings of Western civilization. Educated at Harvard and Oxford, he has written six books and was editor for eight years of Gnosis, the award-winning journal of the Western spiritual traditions. Smoley is the current editor of Quest Books and of Quest: Journal of the Theosophical Society in America.
In this intriguing collection of essays written between 1997 and 2012, the erudite author maps out the end-of-the world predictions, the work of apocalyptic secret societies, and various supernatural options. While these sideshows took place in private rooms, in the public square, Christianity and scientific materialism trotted out their familiar slogans and old paradigms.
Smoley brings a keen curiosity and an openness to esoteric thought and activity to this study. Among the subjects he covers are looking into the future with Nostradamus, the secrets of the Da Vinci Code, the end of the Mayan Long Count, masonic civilization, a Course in Miracles, an analysis of some New Thought leaders, the demons among us, and the phenomenon of toxic prayer.
No one really knows what weird cults or strange religions will seize the consciousness of men and women, transforming them into true believers. One thing is for sure: we need and want Richard Smoley to continue covering the scene and trying to make sense of it all.
