New Age Guru Turns to Jesus

Western graduate Doreen Virtue is on mission to help others leave the movement she once embraced

Until five years ago, Doreen Virtue was a top-selling New Age author, speaking at seminars around the world and appearing on shows like Oprah and The View. She had her own brand of “angel cards” and published books about New Age practices like card reading, energy healing, hypnosis, and chakras. Virtue’s life took a dramatic turn in 2017, when she decided to read through the entire Bible for the first time. She read Deuteronomy 18:10-12 and was stunned by God’s warning to the Israelites not to follow the occult practices of the surrounding nations.

“I remember reading through the list of the things that the Canaanites did and realizing it was the same things that I was doing,” she recalls. “Then I got to the part where it says, ‘Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord.’”

Virtue was shocked. For most of her life she had believed she was a Christian. Her mother was a Christian Scientist and raised her as an “open-minded” Christian. In fact, she was somewhat unique among New Age teachers for the way she blended Christian vocabulary with New Age philosophy.

“New age seemed like it was the answer. I heard the gospel all the time, but I had a heart of stone.”

For much of her life, she believed she was following the “real Jesus”, focusing on the “loving parts” that appealed to her in the gospels. But like other New Agers, she also believed that all paths led to God and that concepts like sin and the devil were made up to control people.

Reading God’s Word opened her eyes to see that her New Age beliefs and practices were in fact a deception. 

“The veil was lifted by the Holy Spirit and I finally understood that I was a sinner,” she recalls.

At 59 years of age, the New Age guru fell to her knees and committed her life to Jesus as her Lord and Savior. 

We should expose the darkness. This is a salvific issue that can make the difference between heaven and hell.

Virtue later published a message on her Facebook page recounting her conversion experience and warning against the New Age practices she once embraced. She was subsequently fired by her publisher and criticized by many of her followers. Numerous videos began to emerge on YouTube with titles like “What Happened to Doreen Virtue?”

Her followers made wild speculations about why she had become a Christian. Some said she was the victim of government mind control, others that it was the effects of menopause. Some even argued that she was doing it for the money, a claim she attempted to refute by giving refunds for two years to anyone who previously bought her products.

Virtue wanted people to understand that the real reason she had left the New Age was her encounter with Jesus Christ. She began posting new videos sharing her testimony and warning people to stay away from her previous New Age teachings. As an outspoken but raw new believer, she soon realized that she needed a better grasp on theology and the Bible and decided to apply to Western Seminary, enrolling as a fulltime student in 2018.

“Going to Western was one of the best decisions I ever made,” she says. “At first I was so wobbly on my theological feet, but I learned how to rightly divide God’s Word and to see Jesus in every part of the Bible.”

Virtue appreciated all of her classes and professors, especially Carl Laney’s Bible survey courses. She was also grateful for a class that taught her how the Old Testament was used in the New Testament.

“Biblical theology was new to me,” she admits. “It was fascinating to see the whole Bible as God’s plan of redemption.”

Virtue graduated with her MA in Biblical and Theological Studies in 2021 with highest honors. Her success as a student was a confirmation to her that she was developing a biblical worldview and a new heart through Christ’s work on the cross.

Today, Virtue is passionate about discipling people who come out of the New Age. She works with many women, helping them get plugged into a local church and encouraging them to read the Bible. She continues to combat New Age philosophies both inside and outside the church, so that others won’t be blinded as she was. Because of continuing public persecution from New Agers, Virtue is hesitant to share where she lives or what church she attends. But she will not stop sharing her story as she attempts to reach more New Agers who are trapped in deception.

"We should expose the darkness. This is a salvific issue that can make the difference between heaven and hell."