Have you heard of the Law of Attraction?
It’s a “universal law” that states our thoughts become our reality, and our experiences in life are a result of our choices on an unconscious level
I see coaches, healers, and mentors all over the online space using the LOA (Law of Attraction) both as a way of “supporting” their clients and to attract more abundance into their lives.
But there’s a problem, and it’s a BIG one.
On the surface, LOA seems to be a philosophy based on personal accountability, positive thinking and creating a life of joy.
Behind the scenes, the LOA is victim blaming, spiritually bypassing trauma, and holding individuals accountable for the system that is causing harm on a collective level.
So who’s really behind the victim-blaming? The spiritual bypassing? And the trauma-inducing language?
The trail of harm leads to Esther Hicks and her followers.
Esther Hicks and her husband, Jerry Hicks are responsible for making the Law of Attraction mainstream. Using the sales strategies they learned through network marketing with Amway, they spread the message of Esther’s connection to the “Infinite Intelligence” as she calls it.
Since the late 80s, Esther has been channeling a collection of beings she calls “Abraham”. Disturbingly, she uses those channelings and the Law of Attraction to bypass trauma, violence and systematic oppression.
I came across Abraham + Esther Hicks right after I turned 18.
In the beginning, I found it to be supportive of my growth. But it only took a few months for me to realize how much pain Esther Hicks, and her devout LOA followers were inflicting.
And at that point, I was only scratching the surface. The more I researched this philosophy, the more I could see it’s disgusting ideals.
Grab your barf bag, because this shit is gross… (trigger warning; rape, violence, racism)
Esther Hicks, has gone on record saying slavery, rape, abuse, disease, and the holocaust can all been attributed to so called “negative thoughts.” The worst part is she’s so damn good at pulling zealot followers in to perpetuate this blatant hate-speech.
Here’s a direct quote from Esther Hicks making harmful assertions about rape victims:
“We believe that this subject [of rape] is really talking about the mixed intentions of the individual, in other words, she was wanting the attention, she was wanting the attraction, she was really wanting all of it and attracted more than she bargained for and then as it is occurring or even after feeling differently about it…” [Extracted from Be Scofield’s article “A Critique of Abraham Hicks”]
What in the ACTUAL fuck?!?!?
Let’s break a piece of this quote down for a moment:
“wanting the attention…”
Using phrases like “wanting the attention” is the very rhetoric that causes rape survivors to blame themselves, hide the details of their attack from law enforcement and avoid getting support.
“attracted more than she bargained for…”
This makes rape seem like some material exchange that didn’t go as planned. Or that somehow the sexual violence was a good deal gone wrong.
Both of these statements are suggesting that the survivor is to blame for the experience.
Conveniently, Esther Hicks and other LOA practitioners release themselves from responsibility because all the information has been channeled. Yeah, don’t worry about it, Esther. It wasn’t you who said those racist, sexist, oppressive remarks it was Abraham… (not funny sarcasm moment).
And moreover, they claim they’re just doing “divine work”. A.K.A, perpetuating systems of oppression and abusing people who come to them for help.
So what’s the problem with all of this hateful rhetoric?
This use of spiritual bypassing diminishes our collective moral responsibility to change systems of harm. And worse, it aims to make individuals personally responsible for the systemic harm, and trauma they have experienced.
Esther Hick’s Law of Attraction feeds its followers delusional and toxic positivity. It encourages us to repress, ignore, or deny painful and traumatic experiences… rather than addressing and healing them.
Sadly, this message is being touted as The Way to move forward in many personal + spiritual development spaces.
It’s dangerous. It’s irresponsible. And it excuses us from showing up to create systematic change.
So how can you be a part of the movement towards a more trauma-informed, justice-aligned personal + spiritual development space?
Here are some of the steps you can take to be a part of the solution.
First – Name your privileges.
As a business owner in the personal + spiritual development space, it’s important for you to acknowledge the privileges that have been given to by society. Naming your privilege provides context to your experience, and helps you be more accountable to less privileged communities.
Second – Examine your business practices to reduce harm.
No one expects you to be perfect, and it is normal for your biases to show up in your work. That being said, it’s important to set aside time to read your own content with a self-critical lense. Educate yourself on how your language might be harmful or exclusive, and make adjustments when needed.
Develop meaningful relationships with folks living at marginalized intersections, specifically those who hold different identities than you do. If you are white, connect with people of color and indigenous people. If you are able bodied, connect with people who have disabilities, If you are straight, get to know folks in the LGBTQ community, etc. Having relationships with people from diverse backgrounds will help you see past your own blind spots.
Third – Apologize like you mean it. Then do better.
It’s important to apologize to individuals and groups when you’ve made a mistake in your work, even when it’s unintentional. Then, after you apologize, you need to change your behavior.It’s okay to make mistakes, just make sure you are doing your part to make amends when you can.
Finally – Show up + take action instead of leaning on your privilege to manifest miracles.
The whole point of LOA and Esther Hicks’ philosophy is if you just think happy thoughts all the time, you’ll be able to manifest your dream life.
The problem is, the idea of “constant happy thoughts” makes no space for the communities who face daily systematic injustice and violence. So really what that philosophy is saying is this:
“Lean into your Privilege.. Think happy thoughts.. And everything will be great!”
Hell no! That just won’t cut it. You have to show up and take action if you want to see change in your own life and in the world.
Here’s the big takeaway:
We have to be really careful about the spiritual ideologies we subscribe to and the people that we put on a pedestal.
On the surface, Esther Hicks appears to be an empowerment advocate, but her philosophy leads to all kinds of harmful beliefs and spiritual bypassing.
And even though the harmful LOA message has seeped into the mainstream, we can still change that narrative. We can examine our own work. We can call our friends and our colleagues into conversation. And we can help create movements for healing, change + justice right in our own communities.
Love + Liberation
Lauren Elizabeth
Sources + Inspiration:
- Be Scofield – “A Critique of Abraham Hicks & the Law of Attraction” – www.gurumag.com
- That’s Not How That Works Podcast – “Byron Katie, the fairy godmother of Spiritual Bypassing”
- Jonathan Tonolio – Spiritual Bypassing : How Spirituality Sabotaged my Growth – www.highexistance.com