Editing New Message from God (section)

== Reception and Academic Analysis ==
Scholarship on the New Message from God is limited but growing within the field of [[New Religious Movements]] (NRM). Sociologist [[William Sims Bainbridge]] lists the group as a new religious movement established in the 1990s, questioning whether it constitutes a "significant movement" or a "mass media fad" driven by the publication of mystical books.<ref name="Bainbridge2017">{{cite book |last=Bainbridge |first=William Sims |title=Dynamic Secularization: Information Technology and the Tension Between Religion and Science |publisher=Springer International Publishing |year=2017 |isbn=9783319565026 |page=8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S66fDwAAQBAJ }}</ref>

The movement has also been categorized by scholars as a "contactee religion" within the broader context of UFO-related spiritual groups.<ref name="Tumminia">{{cite book |editor-last=Tumminia |editor-first=Diana G. |title=Alien Worlds: Social and Religious Dimensions of Extraterrestrial Contact |publisher=Syracuse University Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-8156-0858-5 |page=xxv |location=Syracuse, NY}}</ref>

In a 2019 master's thesis, scholar Celetia Ming Liang analyzed the movement as a case study of "lived religion."<ref name="Liang6">Liang, 2019, p. 6.</ref> Liang categorizes the group within the framework of American metaphysical religion, noting its focus on mental power and the correspondence between the material and spiritual worlds.<ref name="Liang6"/> Liang argues that the group's "metaphysical hallmarks of correspondence and noetic power" distinguish it from other UFO religions that may focus more on physical contact or worship.<ref name="Liang3"/>

The movement's texts have also been cited in educational research. A 2019 thesis from the [[:es:Universidad San Pedro|Universidad San Pedro]] in Peru referenced Summers' ''Greater Community Spirituality'' (''Espiritualidad de la Comunidad Mayor'') in a study regarding values and religious education in secondary schools.<ref name="Jamanca">{{cite thesis |last=Jamanca Gonsáles |first=Antonia Bacilia |date=2019 |title=Enseñanza religiosa y valores en educación secundaria, institución educativa "Micaela Bastidas" - Huamarín 2017 |type=Licentiate Thesis |publisher=Universidad San Pedro |location=Huaraz, Peru |language=Spanish |page=79 |url=https://repositorio.usanpedro.edu.pe/handle/20.500.129076/9837 |access-date=November 25, 2025}}</ref>

In the broader metaphysical community, author Carrie L'Esperance has discussed Summers' work in her book ''Soul Breathing'' (2016), referencing his teachings on the "Greater Community" and the spiritual implications of extraterrestrial contact.<ref name="SoulBreathing">{{cite book |last=L'Esperance |first=Carrie |title=Soul Breathing: Spiritual Light and the Art of Self-Mastery |publisher=Bear & Company |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-59143-249-4 |pages=Table of Contents}}</ref>

The movement has received coverage from media outlets focusing on its extraterrestrial claims. In 2015, ''[[Vice (magazine)|Vice]]'' published an interview with Reed Summers, the director of the movement, discussing the ''Allies of Humanity'' texts and the group's belief that an extraterrestrial "intervention" is currently taking place on Earth.<ref name="Vice2015">{{cite news |last=Gonzalez |first=Romain |title=Vous ne le savez peut-être pas, mais des aliens sont sur le point de nous réduire en esclavage |trans-title=You may not know it, but aliens are about to enslave us |url=https://www.vice.com/fr/article/allies-de-lhumanite-394/ |work=[[Vice (magazine)|Vice]] |date=January 14, 2015 |language=French |access-date=November 25, 2025}}</ref> The following year, Summers appeared on ''[[The David Pakman Show]]'' to discuss the movement's theology and its distinction from traditional Christianity.<ref name="Pakman"/>

In 2017, ''[[The Atlantic]]'' featured the movement in an article exploring the appeal of new religious movements. The article highlighted the experiences of adherents, such as David Drimmel, who described finding a "sense of connection" in the movement's teachings that they had not found elsewhere. The piece contextualized the New Message from God alongside other modern spiritual groups, examining the specific features that attract followers in the 21st century.<ref name="AtlanticSamuel">{{cite news |last=Samuel |first=Sigal |title=Why Are Some People Attracted to New Religions? |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/08/sankofa-urantia-new-message-from-god/622331/ |work=[[The Atlantic]] |date=August 30, 2017 |access-date=November 25, 2025}}</ref>

Later that year, the Denver-based publication ''[[Westword]]'' covered the group's release of the book ''The Greater Community'', discussing its claims regarding the spiritual significance of the [[Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017]].<ref name="Westword">{{cite news |last=Roberts |first=Michael |title=Solar Eclipse Bringing Message From God About Aliens |url=https://www.westword.com/news/solar-eclipse-bringing-message-from-god-about-aliens-9394141/ |work=Westword |date=August 21, 2017 |access-date=November 25, 2025}}</ref>