Rev. James De Biasio was interviewed by News 7's Paul Berry as part of a News Series which aired on local station WJLA-TV in late April 1992 called "New Age."

Why do people come to the Institute for Spiritual Development?
   I think that people come here because they're looking for something beyond the social -- for guidance, for that self-exploration.  The difference between religion and spirituality is that religion is a set of dogmas which are supposedly pointing us to a spiritual pathway.  Spirituality is defining one's personal relationship with God. 

Do you think it's fair to call your church an alternative?
    For some it is; for others it's not an alternative, it's mainline.  A lot of people come and say "This is what I've believed all of my life ... you're saying exactly ... you're doing it exactly the way I've always thought it should be done."

What ARE you saying and doing?
   I think what we are saying is: it' is all right to explore.  It is all right to question.  It is all right to find your own spiritual pathway.  In the long run, you and me, and whomever else, has to do that anyway.  And nobody's going to stand there on any pulpit, any podium or any other context, and say "This is where it is.... you HAVE to do it this way."  I think that's one of the things ... one of the reasons that the New Age attracts a lot of very intelligent people ... truly intelligent people.

What am I going to find different in your church on Sunday?
    Surprisingly ... very little -- on the surface. I think you would find it much more positive, much more oriented towards self... self-fulfillment..

Explain the content.
   Instead of standing up on Sunday and saying "You must believe this, you must act in THIS way," myself or any other minister [from the Institute] would say "Consider ..what the Bhagavad Gita says about this; and you know, that's not too different from what the Bible has to say about this problem."  I think that's what would represent the difference.

Is there a book or a document or Bible?
   If there's a book, it's probably life.  And I say that seriously.  I think we tend to pull it from all the things we've been subjected to: the Bible, philosophers, all the reading and studies and novels and philosophies that we encounter in our growth and in our learning.

What are the parameters?
   I think a willingness to explore.  If you're inquiring as to the parameters of the kind of people, we run the gamut. from individuals who have experiences of indigence and homelessness [who are not here by the way, because it's a warm place, but because they're looking for something], to PhD's and doctors and lawyers and the whole nine yards.

Are people fed up with traditional religion?
    Probably in part, yes, I think if I had to isolate it, I think they come out of curiosity.  Because wherever they are coming from, it is leaving some emptiness, some void, something unfulfilled.  I think they STAY because they find a challenge, which I don't think you find in most traditional religions or belief systems..

Does traditional religion limit a person to learn and heal and grow?
   To a certain extent, I think it does.  It limits.  Again, religion is defined by a specific set of dogmas.  You come into this religion and this is what you believe, or else you are not a part of this "religion."

And the dogma here is?
    The dogma here is that there's no dogma.  I think that's what makes people feel comfortable about saying "Okay, this is where I'm coming from ... what opportunities do I have?  Let me explore them."  They'll begin to study other philosophies, other religions, begin to experiment within themselves and say "Hey, wait a minute, this is what I believe.  And because I believe it, it's okay, not because somebody's standing up there and saying 'This is good for you, you believe this.'"

There are those who say that religion without dogmas is spiritual chaos.
   That's okay.  That's okay!  Because ... we grow!  Out of chaos comes order.  I think that's fine.  I think a little bit of confusion goes a long way.  It forces us to question, it forces us to explore, it forces us to observe.  It can be a very positive thing.

The freedom you offer, the rules?
   The rules are rules of social conduct.  I think that if there's any rule that I'd like to personally see imposed, it would be {and I think its the experience most people have here) love one another as you want to be loved yourself.  And I think that in doing that, you create the nurturing environment for that exploration, for that growth.  I'm not saying that other churches don't do that, I'm saying that if there were a rule, that would be it.

If I apply that rule and I decide He is defined thusly, that's okay?
    That's fine.  That's fine.  Believe me, I don't have the answer to that.  Not for you, I don't.  I have the answer for me.  But not for you.  Explore that and grow with it and maybe help someone else grow with it.  One of the things that happens is that ... as you start that process of exploration, there is a wonderful sense of sharing that comes ... an excitement and you begin to want to share that with others..

A critic would say there's got to be more structure.
    I'd say thanks for visiting, but that's not our purpose.  There are any number of wonderful churches and institutions that can supply that.  Certainly myself or anyone else here would be more than willing to give any sort of spiritual guidance and counseling, love and attention that is required.  But if you're looking to me or to someone else here to say "Here, this is what you must believe, and this is the way you're going to accomplish your salvation," then I'm going to have to disappoint you.  Because l won't, can't say that.
    So fine.  Come in, join the companionship, have a cup of coffee and a donut, but perhaps this isn't the place for you.  I do not delude myself into thinking that the Institute or a place like it is for the majority of people.  Actually ... at this point, it's a place for a minority of people.

This seems to be one of several New Age churches catching on.  Why?
   First of all, let's look at what's happening in traditional situations.  The same kind of interest that we explore in a "New Age Church" ...healings, personal awareness..., all of these things I see creeping into traditional churches.  I think we're just a little closer to that cutting edge.  Hopefully, we'll stay there.  It's a very very difficult thing directing this type of situation ... to walk that line between going off the deep end and maintaining one's balance with one's perhaps more traditional values.  In the next five, ten years, I think we'll see this kind of thing whether it is in the context of a New Age Church such as the Institute, or whether it is a traditional church, I think we'll see that same kind of an approach expanding.

Can mankind find answers to problems within, without so much structure?
   I think it makes it very difficult if you don't go within to resolve the real issues and the real questions.  They still have to be resolved on the outside ... if there is a question involving a relationship, just going inside of yourself isn't going to resolve the issues in the relationship.  You've got to bring it to that other person.  SO, it starts in here, you find something, you find the level of understanding, then you find a spark of insight, you take that, its deep within yourself, parts of yourself that you suddenly realize is there.  Then, you can begin to apply that healing to yourself ...then to the other.

You seem to be saying medical technology is fine, but don't forget about yourself.
   That's right.  You can go to the finest physician in the world, [but] if he doesn't instill within you the sense that you can be healed ... and that has to come from within you ... no technology, no physician, no procedure is going to heal you.  If you look at the healing arts, from the most ancient times to modern technology, I think they all say the same thing: that the healer lies within, that you have to find that first, before you can heal the body, the mind, the emotions, whatever.

[Question regarding reincarnation]
   Most of the world believes in these things.  Most of the world believes in past life experience.  Most of the world believes ... most of the world's peoples belong to religious cultures in which reincarnation is an accepted fact.  Now I stand here and whether I believe it or not is a whole other question.  The important thing is that I'm not imposing that belief on you.  You're free to explore that or you're free to reject that.  Part of the exploration ... of one's awareness is to tap into that "soul' ability, that "psychic" ability ... where you can enter into ... you're able to, through sensitizing yourself, to enter into the energy the vibration of another person.

[Question regarding AFFIRMATION OF SPIRIT given during Sunday Morning services.]
   What we do is we touch on the energies that are around us, so we get a feeling, we tune into what somebody is going through, something they need to hear or a word of encouragement, something we're feeling about them.  And, we accept that its all right.  It's all right to do that. People that are sitting here, give an implicit permission to enter into their [energies]. 

What do you call this?
   I don't know what you want to call it.  You want to call it a psychic experience?  A psychic demonstration?  [The] name doesn't make any difference.  The experience is one of atunement, of one individual to another individual for the purpose of guidance, of counseling, support, encouragement.  

And it's done through touching?
   No.  Really, it's done by word ... it's done by sound of voice.  If this were Sunday Morning and I was doing the Affirmation of Spirit I would come and say "Good Morning, Paul," and you would say good morning back to me and on that basis I would give you what energy I was feeling.

By looking? By feeling? By just...?
   It's looking but its looking with the inner self. With the Soul.

And I to you?
   Sure. It's a two way street.  You open yourself to that.  I would say  [I would never impose on you]  "Paul can I come to you?  May I speak to you?" and the sound of your voice and your permission then opens the door.  And again, what is the purpose of that?  The purpose ... is to be supportive, to be encouraging, to serve, to guide, to protect.  It's going to vary from individual to individual.  

[And I could learn to do that?]
   We all do that, we all have that [ability].  I think it's part of human nature.

What you're saying is it's okay to do that?
   It's okay to do that. I think it's a very natural thing to do.  It's a very normal thing to do.  I think we all have experiences throughout the course of the day …  I don't care who we are, we pick up somebody else's energy.  You walk into the office in the morning and you're in a great mood and all of a sudden you encounter someone who has had a bad night or had a headache or whatever and YOUR mood changes.  You've picked up somebody else's vibration.  Okay?  The only difference is that we are saying to one another HERE, be aware of that.  Be attuned to that.  Be attentive to that.  Its part of your sensitivity and you can use that as an aspect of service to others.  If you can refine that.  And how do you refine that?  You refine that by being conscious of it, accepting it and practicing with it.

Are you psychic?
   Again, the word "psychic" is derived from the greek word "psyche" which means soul.  A psychic is a soul reader ... someone who has developed their sensitive, innate human sense... the sixth sense, if you want, to a point where they can tap into the energy and the vibrations via their soul to the soul of another.  One of the little things I do with myself as I prepare myself. .. if I'm going to come to somebody or give them "psychic advice" is I go through a little prayer in my head that says "I am One, You are One, We are One."  I accept that fact that in the broad spectrum of the universe, there is nothing that separates the two of us.  That's the illusion, it's the illusion of separateness.  I think what I've done in the course of 25 years is to kind of train myself to step beyond that mask of illusion, that mask of separateness and tap into your vibration or someone else's energy and by doing that perhaps I can give you an objective word of advice and objective suggestion.

A word or a feeling?
   It could be a feeling, it could be a word ... it runs the gamut of human communication.

You're saying we can all do this?
   I think we all DO do it.  I think it is innate to the human condition.  Anyone who wants to be trained to do it, can be trained to do it.  I've never seen anyone who was conscientious about wanting to develop that that who was not able to do it.

What do you want someone to walk away with?
   I hope that whether they're here for one experience or a dozen experiences, I would hope that they would walk away with a deeper understanding of themselves, a better appreciation of and simply feel better about themselves, that they've touched on something ... within themselves via, perhaps what's going on here.