Conspirituality is a

neologism A neologism Greek νέο- ''néo''(="new") and λόγος /''lógos'' meaning "speech, utterance"] is a relatively recent or isolated term, word, or phrase that may be in the process of entering common use, but that has not been fully accepted int ...

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsconspiracy theories with

spirituality The meaning of ''spirituality'' has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape o ...

, typically of

New Age New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars conside ...

varieties. Contemporary conspirituality became common in the 1990s.

Characterization

The term was coined for the 2011 study "The Emergence of Conspirituality" by sociologists Charlotte Ward and David Voas published in the ''

Journal of Contemporary Religion The ''Journal of Contemporary Religion'' is a triannual peer-reviewed academic journal which covers anthropological, sociological, psychological and philosophical aspects of religion. History and format The journal was established in 1985 as ''R ...

''. They characterized the movement as follows:

"It offers a broad politico-spiritual philosophy based on two core convictions, the first traditional to conspiracy theory, the second rooted in the New Age: 1) a secret group covertly controls, or is trying to control, the political and social order, and 2) humanity is undergoing a 'paradigm shift' in consciousness. Proponents believe that the best strategy for dealing with the threat of a totalitarian ' new world order' is to act in accordance with an awakened '
new paradigm New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
' worldview."

A 2020 opinion piece in ''

ABC Australia The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owned ...

'' said that, as with other extremist movements, the conspirituality narrative portrayed its followers as more enlightened than mainstream society and prone to persecution due to their awareness of the "real truth". Ward and Voas considered the combination of optimistic, holistic New Age culture and pessimistic, conservative conspiracy culture to be paradoxical. Conspirituality includes the " dark occulture" of conspiracy culture. The uniting philosophy of conspirituality movements is a belief that society is under the covert control by a group of elites, and that it can be emancipated from that control by a "paradigm shift in consciousness that harnesses cosmic forces". The appeal of conspirituality is the narcissistic idea of being the one to unravel the true explanations for all that is wrong in the world. Alex McKeen, writing in ''The Toronto Star'', says: Asbjørn Dyrendal counters that combining conspiracy theory with New Age spirituality is not new, and that

Western esotericism Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas a ...

is inherently suspicious. Both conspiracy culture and esotericism emphasize secrecy and the revelation of higher knowledge. He identifies

Marta Steinsvik Marta Steinsvik (23 March 1877 – 27 July 1950) was a Norwegian author and translator. She was a champion of women's rights, a proponent of antisemitism and anti-Catholicism, and promoter of the use of Nynorsk. She was the first female to graduat ...

, Alf Larsen,

Bertram Dybwad Brochmann Bertram Dybwad Brochmann (1 January 1881 – 15 January 1956) was a Norwegian businessperson, writer and politician, founder of the Society Party. He was born in Grue as a son of Jørgen Henrik Hegermann Brochmann (1850–1921) and Sophi ...

, and neo-paganism as early examples of the promotion of alternate spirituality and conspiracy theory. Jules Evans, an honorary research fellow at the Center for the History of Emotions at Queen Mary University of London, identifies an overlap between alternative spirituality and far-right populism among traditionalists. Ward and Voas said that sometimes those with New Age beliefs are more prone to thinking like conspiracy theorists. The study describes

The Zeitgeist Movement The Zeitgeist Movement is an activist movement established in the United States in 2008 by Peter Joseph. The group is critical of market capitalism, describing it as structurally corrupt and wasteful of resources. The group dismisses historic ...

, an

activist group Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...

, as being a part of the conspirituality movement. Conspirituality has been linked to the

far-right Far-right politics, also referred to as the extreme right or right-wing extremism, are political beliefs and actions further to the right of the left–right political spectrum than the standard political right, particularly in terms of being ...

conspiracy theory QAnon and

COVID-19 conspiracy theories False information, including intentional disinformation and conspiracy theories, about the scale of the COVID-19 pandemic and the origin, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease has been spread through social media, text messaging ...

, as well as the Movement for Spiritual Integration into the Absolute (MISA) and the New Age religious movement

Love Has Won Love Has Won (LHW) is a new religious movement which was led by Amy Carlson (November 30, 1975 – April 2021), referred to within the group as "Mother God". The group has been described as a cult by ex-members and media outlets. The group had ...

. Online yoga and wellness communities have seen members posting conspiracies about

Covid-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, masks, and QAnon-related child exploitation claims. 9/11 conspiracy theories spread through new age communities such as "lightworkers" and "

indigo children Indigo children, according to a pseudoscientific New Age concept, are children who are believed to possess special, unusual, and sometimes supernatural traits or abilities. The idea is based on concepts developed in the 1970s by Nancy Ann Tappe, ...

". Anthropologist of religion Dr. Adam Klin-Oron says that in Israel, "we are seeing people who used to talk about 'love' and 'light' standing shoulder to shoulder with those who believe there is a ring of pedophiles that drink the blood of babies". In Norway, the online magazine (''The News Mirror'') has been described as the "flagship of conspirituality". Its goal for "triple awakening" focuses on consciousness and spirituality, extraterrestrial visitors, and New World Order conspiracy theories. The ''Conspirituality'' podcast updates listeners on the intersection between the "wellness" industry and conspiracy theories, referring to it as "disaster spirituality".

People described as members of the movement

Jake Angeli Jake Angeli (born Jacob Anthony Angeli Chansley; 1988), also known as the QAnon Shaman, Q Shaman, and Yellowstone Wolf, is an American conspiracy theorist and activist who participated in the January 6 attack on the Capitol, for which he was c ...

, an American conspiracy theorist also known as the "QAnon Shaman". *

Pete Evans Peter Daryl Evans (born 29 August 1973) is an Australian chef, and former television presenter, who was a former judge of the competitive cooking show ''My Kitchen Rules''. Evans has been heavily criticised for spreading misinformation about ...

, an Australian chef and conspiracy theorist. *

David Icke David Vaughan Icke (; born 29 April 1952) is an English conspiracy theorist and a former footballer and sports broadcaster. He has written over 20 books, self-published since the mid-1990s, and spoken in more than 25 countries. In 1990, Icke ...

, an English conspiracy theorist *

Russell Brand Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian and actor known for his flamboyant, loquacious style and manner. Brand has received three British Comedy Awards: Best Newcomer (2006), Best Live Stand-Up (2008), and the award for ...

, an English comedian and activist * Christiane Northrup, an obstetrician and

gynecologist Gynaecology or gynecology (see spelling differences) is the area of medicine that involves the treatment of women's diseases, especially those of the reproductive organs. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, forming the combined area ...

who promotes

pseudoscience Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that claim to be both scientific and factual but are incompatible with the scientific method. Pseudoscience is often characterized by contradictory, exaggerated or falsifiability, unfa ...

JP Sears JP Sears, known online as AwakenWithJP (born April 12, 1981), is an American conservative YouTuber and comedian. Sears is known for his satirical YouTube videos in which he promotes conservative political views and opposes COVID-19 face mask ...

, an American YouTuber and comedian

References

{{reflist Conspiracy theories New Age Far-right politics 2011 neologisms

Characterization

People described as members of the movement

See also

References