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Spiritualism is a new religious movement based on the belief that the spirits of the dead exist and have the ability and the necessary means to communicate with the living. The afterlife, or the "spirit world", is seen by spiritualists, not as a static place, but as one in which spirits continue to evolve. These two beliefs—that contact with spirits is possible, and that spirits are more advanced than humans—lead spiritualists to a third belief: that spirits are capable of providing useful knowledge about moral and ethical issues, as well as about the nature of God. Some spiritualists will speak of a concept which they refer to as "spirit guides"—specific spirits, often contacted, who are relied upon for spiritual guidance. Emanuel Swedenborg has some claim to be the father of Spiritualism. Spiritism, a branch of spiritualism developed by Allan Kardec and today practiced mostly in Continental Europe and Latin America, especially in Brazil, emphasizes reincarnation.
A séance or seance is an attempt to communicate with spirits. The word séance comes from the French word for "session", from the Old French seoir, "to sit". In French, the word's meaning is quite general: one may, for example, speak of "une séance de cinéma". In English, however, the word came to be used specifically for a meeting of people who are gathered to receive messages from ghosts or to listen to a spirit medium discourse with or relay messages from spirits. In modern English usage, participants need not be seated while engaged in a séance.
In spiritualism, paranormal literature and some religions, materialization is the creation or appearance of matter from unknown sources. The existence of materialization has not been confirmed by laboratory experiments. Numerous cases of fraudulent materialization demonstrations by mediums have been exposed.
The Eddy Brothers were William and Horatio Eddy, two American mediums best known in the 1870s for their alleged psychic powers. Magicians and skeptics dismissed the Eddy brothers "spirit" materializations as blatant frauds.
Mediumship is the practice of purportedly mediating communication between spirits of the dead and living human beings. Practitioners are known as "mediums" or "spirit mediums". There are different types of mediumship or spirit channelling, including seánce tables, trance, and ouija.
Ectoplasm is a term used in spiritualism to denote a substance or spiritual energy "exteriorized" by physical mediums. It was coined in 1894 by psychical researcher Charles Richet. Although the term is widespread in popular culture, there is no scientific evidence that ectoplasm exists and many purported examples were exposed as hoaxes fashioned from cheesecloth, gauze or other natural substances.
Eva Carrière, also known as Eva C, was a materialization medium in the early 20th century.
Franek Kluski, real name Teofil Modrzejewski (1873-1943), was a Polish physical medium criticized by trained magicians and skeptics as a fraud. Kluski was best known for his séances in which alleged "spirit" molds of hands materialized. It was later demonstrated by Massimo Polidoro and chemist Luigi Garlaschelli that these molds could have easily been made by fraudulent methods.
Major-General Sir Alfred Edward Turner, was a British Army officer of the late nineteenth century, who served in administrative posts in Ireland.
Etta Wriedt (1859-1942) was an American direct voice medium.
Jan Guzyk (1875–1928), also known as Jan Guzik, was a Polish spiritualist medium.
William Eglinton (1857–1933), also known as William Eglington was a British spiritualist medium who was exposed as a fraud.
Einer Nielsen (1894–1965) was a Danish physical medium and spiritualist.
Frank Decker was a 20th-century American spiritualist medium who was discovered to be a fraud.
Francis Ward Monck was a British clergyman and spiritualist medium who was exposed as a fraud.
Kathleen Goligher was an Irish spiritualist medium. Goligher was endorsed by engineer William Jackson Crawford who wrote three books about her mediumship, but was exposed as a fraud by physicist Edmund Edward Fournier d'Albe in 1921.
Ada Maud Besinnet Roche (1890–1936) also known as Ada Bessinet was an American spiritualist medium.
Annie Fairlamb Mellon (1850–1938) also known as Mrs. J. B. Mellon was a British materialization medium.
Pierre Louis Ormond Augustus Keeler (1855-1942), best known as Pierre L. O. A. Keeler, was an American spiritualist medium.
Vice admiral William Usborne Moore also known as W. Usborne Moore was a British naval commander, psychical researcher and spiritualist.
References
- ↑ Spence, Lewis. (2003). Encyclopedia of Occultism & Parapsychology. Kessinger Publishing. p. 445. ISBN 978-1161361827
- ↑ Anderson, Rodger (2006). Psychics, Sensitives and Somnambules. McFarland & Company. p. 90. ISBN 978-0786427703
- ↑ Price, Harry. (1939). Fifty Years of Psychical Research. Kessinger Publishing. p. 203. ISBN 978-0766142428
- ↑ Anonymous. (December 15, 1913). Spirits Appear at Seance in London. The Salt Lake Tribune.
- ↑ Anonymous. (December 15, 1913). Stead's Ghost Floating Around. The Daily Gate City.
- ↑ Goldston, Will. (1942). Tricks Of The Masters. G. Routledge & Sons, Ltd. p. 4