The success of this item from Olivia Newton-John's discography reveals something about modern evangelicalism

British-born Australian singer and actress Olivia Newton-John, one of the most successful performing artists of the last 50 years, died on August 8, 2022 at the age of 73, after several battles with breast cancer. I was sorry to hear of her death, and I hope she came to faith in Jesus Christ before her passing. She supported various causes, including women's health, the environment, and animal welfare.

In 1994, following her first bout with breast cancer, Miss Newton-John released the album Gaia: One Woman's Journey. Gaia, in Greek mythology, is the personification of the Earth, and is regarded as the ancestral mother of all life. According to the Infogalactic entry on Miss Newton-John:

The following year, Newton-John released a healing CD, Grace and Gratitude. The album was sold exclusively by Walgreens also benefitting various charities including Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization. The CD was the "heart" of their Body – Heart – Spirit Wellness Collection which also featured a re-branded Liv-Kit and breast-health dietary supplements. Newton-John re-recorded some tracks from Grace and Gratitude in 2010 and re-released the album as Grace and Gratitude Renewed on the Green Hill music label. The Renewed CD includes a new track, "Help Me to Heal," not featured on the original album. The Renewed CD yielded Newton-John's first appearances on the Billboard Christian Albums (No. 36), Christian & Gospel Albums (No. 54) and New Age Albums (No. 2) charts.

The songs on Grace and Gratitude Renewed include Learn to Love Yourself; Grace and Gratitude; Let Go Let God; Help Me to Heal; and The Power of Now. I've listened to these five songs, and I've noticed a few things. Learn to Love Yourself contains the words "Trust the light that shines within," which is far more in keeping with New Age belief than Christian doctrine. Grace and Gratitude contains the words "A thousand names a thousand roads all lead to one simple truth," although the simple truth isn't clearly stated. The thanks expressed are apparently directed toward God, but it's not clear. Let Go Let God is a phrase common among Christians, but the instrumental arrangement sounds increasingly Indian as the song goes on. At about the 2:27 mark of the video for Help Me to Heal, Miss Newton-John is happily pointing to a chart of "The Chakra System," depicting the Hindu teaching that the human body contains nodes of psychic energy known as chakras. The Power of Now is also the title of the first book of New Age author Eckhardt Tolle. The full title of the book is The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment (1997); he also wrote the sequel, Practicing the Power of Now: Essential Teachings, Meditations, and Exercises from The Power of Now (2001).

The fact that Grace and Gratitude Renewed appeared on both Christian and New Age charts is an indication of the lack of discernment in modern evangelicalism. See and hear for yourself.