Mysterious currents move in the United States, currents that swirl, that eddy, that break often into whitewater -- as volatile as the stock market. Eddies. Currents. Is there a whirlpool? Call it the "river of uncertainty."

They are spiritual currents that move every which way and in the great turbulence may join as a powerful force (or bifurcate into two rivers).

There is also the wind. No one is quite sure from whence it comes. On both sides, in the politicking, is charisma; where does it originate? On one side is a man who blends Islam with black-liberation Christianity and whose first name in Swahili means "blessed" and who has captured the attention of the world at a globalized time (who reads a book called The Post-American World) and on the other side a female candidate who also flashes onto the scene in startling fashion and was blessed by a Christian deliverance evangelist from Africa -- an "exorcist" -- who prayed for her protection and power.

Right now there is a strange hush, with the sound of rapids in the background (the feeling that something major has just ended and something entirely new, as yet vague, is about to begin).

Currents move every which unpredictable way and show the U.S. in a new light. Will it come together -- stronger than ever, newly united -- or will the river split before the delta, into republics, or enclaves? Right now, it heads for the latter. It will be one of five powerful future nations. Unsettlement. There is a spiritual unsettlement. On both sides, allowance of destruction of life at its earliest through abortion or embryonic stem-cell research brings an energy. Is it this "karma" -- and war -- that returns now to smite us?

There is unease in those regards and also in the eeriness of names at a time when -- despite September 11 -- Muslims rise (with an intent not seen since the Middle Ages).

There is the rise of Islam. There is the rise of white militancy. There are emotions in the political arena as there have not been emotions since John F. Kennedy. There is such economic unsettlement that there is a move to survivalism.

There is materialism. It is showing its true face. There is mass entertainment -- taking the final leap into pornography. There is truculence on the airwaves, which may soon be forced to change.

There is the "New Age."

Occultism flows, broadening, inundating. Will this in the end prove the most potent force -- a new kind of occult spirituality? Is this powering any of the "currents," and will it walk into power, absorbed by the public?

One player on the political scene this year has been Oprah Winfrey -- who, startlingly, has become the "leader" of esoteric spirituality.

That spirituality -- so infrequently mentioned in the press, and never as a factor in politics, though it may be -- has become pervasive, as evidenced in books that she promotes.

"Traditionally, the New Age category has catered to aficionados of the esoteric and the occult," Publisher's Weekly (the Bible of secular booksellers) said recently. "Today the genre gratifies a more mainstream consumer. Fading is the era of crystals and tarots. Nowadays, readers seek science-based titles that will help them become healthier and more spiritually aware. As New Age is continuing to expand into other categories, many titles that were once the provinces of health, psychology, self-help and spirituality (to name a few) have now assumed the New Age mantle."

Oprah, said one editor quoted in the article, "has been the key to the genre's recent accomplishments."

It has become pervasive, invading also Christianity, including Catholicism, where retreat houses teach reiki and yoga and labyrinths, where there is parapsychology.

There is also grace: God counteracts the evil and we can draw from those waters -- we survive anything with that nourishment. Nothing defeats that.

And so we see that the rivers join -- surface currents, then deeper ones, then deepest, unseen. Gyres! Watch the oceans rise.

Soon, we will find why there is such unease in this nation: whether it is fear of change ("transformation," in the words of one key official last weekend) or of an as-yet undefined spiritual element that will materialize in surprising ways.

[resources: True Knights and Onward Catholic Soldier]

[see also: Mayor apologizes for e-mail, Survivalist trend spreads as many fear times ahead, What about Alan Keyes? Bishop warns of 'extreme' freedom of choice act,  Horror audio and transcript: letting a live baby die, Gadhafi lauds Obama, Farrakhan: new rise for Nation of Islam, Joe the Plumber wants Alan Keyes, Palin: 'I'm sure Obama loves country', Obama's bond with his grandmother, Conservative talk radio on chopping block?, Catholics for Obama, Biden: Catholics can be pro-abortion, Video: one world worries, Domestic military deployments, Pastor creates interfaith church where Christians not in charge, McCain campaign office under fire for Hitler, Castro signs, Oprah offers help with Obama special, Blog: an Obama time-line, Buchanan: temporal punishment, Catholic event stirs complaint and Bishop: 'Remember vote will be recalled on judgment day']