[1] The OCS shares beliefs with two very distinct movements, Christian Science and the New Thought denomination Unity, both of which developed in the mid-to-late 19th century.
The OCS asserted an apostolic succession through Mother Clare Watts stating that they received a transmission of teachings and spiritual authority from teacher to student, beginning with Jesus and passing down through the generations to their present-day leaders.
OCS doctrine holds that human beings are souls which are in a continuing process of perfecting through the cumulative experience of multiple lives on earth.
The OCS states that their leadership has since become more inclusive, egalitarian, ecumenical, accepting and embracing of individual choices and all religions and spiritual paths that are based in love and light.
In contrast to the Roman Catholic Church, OCS defines the problem of human tendency to separate from the Love, that is God, as being a developmental stage that all people will eventually pass beyond.
OCS doctrine stresses the importance of the development of inner work and spiritual experiences as the means by which negative patterns can be transformed.
They also affirm Jesus’ continuous role as a vehicle through which sin/karma is forgiven and the great blessings that can be obtained by means taking in his body and blood in the form of communion.
OCS doctrine asserts that due to the unhindered nature of free will, and the process of karma, human beings are completely responsible for the circumstances in which they live.
They teach that through the development of a focused mind, uncluttered desire, and connection with God, one can positively affect and change one’s financial, physical, emotional, relational and spiritual conditions.
Those who choose the higher levels of training attend classes and services on a regular basis and also tithe and strive for personal integrity.
The Poem of the Man-God is a series of five books based on Roman Catholic themes written by Maria Valtorta, an Italian nun, in the 1940s.
Sunday services consist of thirty minutes of silent meditation, singing, prayers, a scriptural reading, a sermon, and Communion.
"Priests" are empowered to baptize and illumine students and teach most of the classes, lead Sunday services, and act as directors of the Centers of Light.
As religious scholar James R Lewis writes, "women will probably continue to constitute a majority of the membership into the foreseeable future because of the women’s spirituality issues addressed by the Order, and because of the opportunities for females assuming ministerial leadership positions in the organization – opportunities not present in Roman Catholicism and other traditionalist Christian bodies.
"[5] The group first encountered opposition in 2001, when parents of some members became upset with the level of involvement of their adult children and began to suggest that OCS was a “dangerous cult”.
Families claimed that OCS had brainwashed its members and had caused sleep deprivation, health problems, emotional turmoil and unhealthy levels of allegiance to the group and its practices.
Fueled by families irate over the "loss" of their adult children to what they considered to be a cult, some online forums sprung up, criticizing the OCS and its leaders.
OCS members claim that the order was opened up to greater transparency, to more choices in levels of involvement, and became a more democratic, empowering and supportive organization.
[citation needed] Members are referred outside the organization for counseling, are encouraged to have good relationships with families and relatives and to interact with people within and outside of the group.
[citation needed] Watts claims that prior to the order splitting in 2012, too much control was exerted over members' personal lives and choices.
[citation needed] She accepts responsibility for her actions that contributed to some members feeling hurt and wronged by this excessive directing of their lives, and offers her remorse and apologies for those choices.
[11] The OCS is also briefly referenced, mainly in regard to its teachings on Mary, in John Plummer's 2005 PhD dissertation, published as The Many Paths of the Independent Sacramental Movement.