It's pretty heady stuff. Which brings us, then, to questions — about the merits of suffering, and the merits of being other-focused rather than simply wanting more for ourselves, and the question of where God fits into a belief system that says we can create our own reality. Is it just another name for "faith"? Or is it simply "faith in faith" without "relational trust" in and commitment to a creator, as Salt Lake Theological Seminary academic dean Tom McClenahan suggests.

"If God has been reduced to just another finite player who can be influenced or manipulated by other finite players, that's a different perspective than the Christian world view," he says.

Robert Higginson, an attraction coach in Utah County and a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has no trouble reconciling his belief in his religion and his belief in the Law of Attraction. "God's will is for us to be happy," he says, and when the Law of Attraction works, "God's will and our will are the same thing." By "blessing us with an understanding of the Law of Attraction, God is simply teaching us how to become more like Him," he adds.

"The Secret" prefers the word "universe" to the word "God," but there are occasional mentions of a deity, as in this quote from James Ray, identified in the movie as a "philosopher." Every great tradition, he says, "has told you that you are created in the image and likeness of the creative source. That means that you have God potential and power to create your world."

It's a message that apparently resonates in a world trying hard to get ahead. Australian producer Rhonda Byrne is planning a sequel to "The Secret" later this year.

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E-mail: jarvik@desnews.com