Draft:Positive Thinking

Applied Christianity
Peale Foundation
Type	Christian new religious movement
Classification	Protestant
Orientation	Non-denominational
Scripture	Power of Positive Thinking Bible
Theology	Liberal Wesleyan
Polity	Congregational
President	Shari K. Brink
Headquarters	665 Old Quaker Hill Rd, Pawling, New York, United States
Founder	Norman Vincent Peale
Origin	October 1952
Branched from	Reformed Church in America
Number of followers	2 million (2018)
Aid organization	Blanton-Peale Institute and Counseling Center Pittsburgh Experiment
Other name(s)	Positive Thinking
Publications	Guideposts
Official website	https://www.pealefoundation.org/
Slogan	Ever Positive

Positive Thought, termed by is founder as Applied Christianity, is a contemporary Christian new religious movement articulated and popularized by Norman Vincent Peale in his 1952 book, The Power of Positive Thinking. This philosophy posits that positive thinking, when approached from a biblical perspective and coupled with practical guidance, can aid individuals in achieving a consistently optimistic outlook. Central to these techniques are affirmations and visualizations. Peale asserted that these methods could enhance overall life satisfaction and quality. However, Peale's works have faced criticism from several mental health professionals and theologians, who have labeled his writings as psychologically harmful and unbiblical.

The movement has experienced a resurgence in public attention since 2016, largely due to its influence on Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th President of the United States, which has been characterized by various media outlets and journalists as a manifestation of his personal faith.

History

In the aftermath of World War II, Norman Vincent Peale emerged as a prominent figure among various Christian revivalists who posited that personal faith in oneself, one’s country, and God were inherently interconnected. His widespread popularity contributed to his effectiveness as a preacher. He encouraged fellow pastors to adopt modern communication methods such as radio, television, and film to maintain the relevance of religious institutions within American society. Peale argued that religious devotion ought to be a core value in this context. To advance this agenda, he emphasized the relationship between religious devotion, physical health, and material success in his sermons, articles, and books, including works titled "Formula for Efficiency" and "Science for a Satisfying Life."

By 1954, Peale's book, "The Power of Positive Thinking," achieved national best-seller status, selling over one million copies by the following year. Biographer Carol V.R. George assessed Peale's teachings as influential in shaping the values of contemporary religious revival in America. In this seminal work, Peale contended that faith should possess a religious character, sustained through the practice of prayer, visualization, and actualization. His assertions helped establish an association between religious devotion and improved mental health within American society. He correlated such devotion with the overall health and economic growth of the United States, portraying faith as a countermeasure to the rising influence of communism. In this framework, religious faith was seen as instrumental in promoting mental well-being and rejuvenating American society, with "Positive Thinking" regarded as a pathway to personal redemption and a means to "effect a merger with God."

As a testament to the book’s success, Peale was recognized as one of the United States’ Twelve Best Salesmen in 1954. His Sunday services attracted around 2,400 attendees. Beyond these services, he presided over the American Foundation of Religion and Psychiatry and the Peale Foundation for Christian Living. The Peale Foundation became the primary focus of his ministry, aiming to enhance individual mental health through the fostering or renewal of faith in God. By the late 1950s, the Peale Foundation's mailing list included 325,000 subscribers, and Peale claimed that the number had reached one million by 1991.

Peale’s integration of religious devotion with improved welfare and ultimate salvation has informed the ministries of contemporary mega-church leaders in America, including Joel Osteen, who is a notable advocate of prosperity theology and affiliated with the Word of Faith movement.

Beliefs

Despite claiming to be Biblically based, the beliefs and theological framework of Positive Thinking largely align with the New Age and New Thought movements. Various theologians have criticized Peale’s doctrines for being cult-like, heretical, blasphemous, and misinterpretative of Christian teachings.

Peale characterized God as a person—a natural, vital, and creative force that is both omnipotent and omnipresent, involved in the creation and ongoing “recreation” of individuals who maintain a connection with Him. He described the human soul as an existing entity with potential, capable of realizing its inherent goodness through lived experiences that are influenced by thoughts and ideas, which are dynamic and possess inherent power. He posited that entertaining negative thoughts could result in sin, while focusing on positive thoughts would lead to righteousness.

Nonetheless, Peale also conveyed a belief that individuals are inherently unfit for corporeal existence. He explicated that because individuals inhabit a world for which they are ill-suited, they experience what he termed “cosmic restlessness.” He proposed that creation follows a discernible rhythm, with both the living and deceased existing at different frequencies; occasional interactions between these states occur. Peale rationalized God as a matrix that creates human experience, necessitating a transference principle that likely relates to the concept of goodness. He emphasized the soul's eternal nature and maintained that, due to humanity's innate goodness, individuals would ascend to heaven upon death.

Regarding the topic of sin, Peale defined it as a mental affliction that manifests as guilt and, more broadly, prevents individuals from achieving their fullest potential. In alignment with psychiatric theory, he argued that guilt inhibits one's ability to realize their potential or innovate within entrepreneurship. Thus, Peale equated successful living, in part, with financial success or recognition. He identified five sources for attaining righteous knowledge: lex naturae, conscience, success as righteousness, lex naturalis, and the teachings of Christ.

Furthermore, Peale taught that faith in God—understood as trust in God and personal self-confidence—is essential for healing from sin. This faith is cultivated through positive thinking to overcome adversities, with reading the Bible or engaging in church attendance being optimal sources for fostering positivity. Additionally, Peale advocated for achieving connection with God through meditative silence, with reverence being the only prerequisite. He posited that feeling positive is indicative of faith, while negative thoughts and feelings denote its absence. His conception of faith however did not only pertain to theology, arguing that it was a means of personal and political motivation that should be utilized.

Unlike many mainstream Christian traditions, Peale seldom emphasized the significance of Christ in the discussion of faith and psychology. When it did concern the nature of Christ, Peale denied the former’s divinity, instead referring to him as the preeminent teacher and perfect practitioner of the “Art of Living.” Peale explained that Christ’s faith was so pronounced, his mind was entirely receptive to God’s powers, with his conduct being written in to the New Testament by his disciples. It was the goal of Christians to live according to the idealism that was taught by Christ.