New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-12-10
sPIRlTUALIsa IN NEW ORLEANS.

| AVCrcO NotUcfVd fAall x/N0G SU000
NIorning. by Rev. J. M. PEBBLES, Cpo
the Origin and PROGRESS Of Spiritual
ism in this and Other Countries.
The lecture was attended by a select al
dience, convened for the purpose of lister
Spiritualism. Owing to the inclemency o
the weather, the audience was not large.
The speaker commenced by saying tina
this was remarkable age of the wOrld-a1
| age Of thought, of investigation. and pro
found scientific research. Mems mind
were reaching out like morning sunbeams
and the constant inquiry is, what il
truth ?" in regard to human progress ant
| human destiny in the future world. Ra
tiOnally speaking, there was no new trutl
under the sun: Only our conceptions of trutl
are new to us.
| Principles were discovered, not created
| This mo Sement in the world called Spirit
ualism is not new. Ancient history abounds
| IN spiritual cycles of manifestations. These
| religious waves recur at different intervals
| Studying them in connection with modern
| spiritual manifestations we find the key t.
mystery, magic and the angelic appearings
told Cyrus, king of Persia, that he, with TIE
Magi could disenthral themselves from
their bodies and converse with the immor
tai gods PythagOras and Plato taught
that celestial beings held the guardian care
of mortals. Jesus was very remarkable
Spiritualist Jesus selected the twelve
Apostles because they were mediums pos
sessed OF wonderful spiritual gifts Phe-
nOmena and signs followed, not only the
Apostles and first martyrs. but the early
Christian fathers. Constantine. who nation
allied Christianity. saw the form of the
cross in the heavens: SavOnarola prophesied;
Tasso heard spirit voices; Joan OF Arc had
visions Louis N\I. noblest of all the BOur-
bons, saw a female figure, clothed in white.
enter his dungeOn-a warning OF his sad
fate; the Wesley family had astounding
spiritual manifestations: Ann Lee had Wis
ions and the gift Of tongues: Baron Sweden
b re- held converse with spirits. angels and
.'the Lord twenty-seyen years of his life:
A }. Davis, clairvOyant!y, and the Shakers
in vision. foretold the coming of the present
spiritual wave that was to flow like "a
mighty river over the face of all the earth.
Coming events" says the poet. least
their shadows before 1t has been said
that Swendenborg, previous to his death in
E72, declared that in about eighty years
there would remarkable events of a spirit
ual nature occur on the earth. The Years
of tue vision ended in 1852 In 1886 youth
of Fredonia, New York, fell into deep. I'M
conscious trance. While in this state the
controlling intelligence referred to won
dertul book that would soon he published.
the origin of which would he quite as start
ling as the contents. The sequel proved
that the spirit referred to A. J. Davis
Natures Divine Revelations
In 1885. and few years following. Will
liam Miller became thoroughly impressed
that an impending change was rapidly APP
preaching IN regard to spiritual things. 1t
was denominated "Millerism," and among
its tenets was the enumeration that the
world would be destroyed in lS43. Some of
Milers prophecies were fulfilled. But he
mistook the world-husmos-tor the world
of theological creeds aud narrow churchal
dOgmas. In this same year the seer. A. j.
Davis. went into a trance or high clair
voyant condition, during which his future
spirtualistic course was largely Indicated
At this period hosts of immortalzed
spirits visited. as they had before done the
various Shaker communities in America
controlling the members of this order. giving
strange vet beautiful snir;tual communica
tons The Shakers have these communi-
cations and prophecies IN vOlumllOus
manuscript form. The spirits enhancing
the mediums in the Shaker communities
the elders and the ministry that
the seals were soon to he ioOsed and
these spiritual manifestations were to 90
ont into the world. enlightening all the
On December 8. 1916. and some
two or three years before. the word had
been breathed of what was atterward
known as the Rochester rappings." A j.
Davis stated. and it SO stands recorded in
his revelations. that spirits were about to
hold tangible communion with the in
habtants of earth. These were his words:
at is a truth that the spirits OF the higher
spheres commune with persons in the body
,tt1
the fact This truth will. ere long. present
itself in the form OF living deronstra-
ton. And the world will hail
with delight the ushering in of the era,
These were shadows, OF premonitons
and prophecies of the spiritual dispense
ton which from the invisible world. be-
came signallv visible and tangible in
Western New York. known as
the CHICHESTER knOckings.
When tie clergy. and ourself among the
rest. heard of these wierd spirit manifesto
tons. we laughed the thing to scorn: aye.
more, we wagged orr sanity heads as did |
The proud Pharisees at the crucltiXion of
Jesus. and said that the whole affair was
COLLISION and delusiOn-toe joints and |
rckery. psychology and magnetism-and |
he whole matter must be put down. For |
his contamination we devoutlv prayed.
But the work, whether demoniac or angelic.
moved on: neither prayers. pulpits nor
public opinion in anyway checked its
progress.
True, the beginning was minute. like
.ranklin's string and kite. u!timating III
hose magic cables that now girdle the
Globe, minute, like Arkwright's cog in the
Wheel. resulting in the screw steamers that
low whitcn oceans with their commercial
argoes; minute. like the Geographic tick
ngs that fash news to all lands: minute.
ike Newton's falling apple that revealed
he marvellous law of gravitatiOn: minute.
ike Jesus birth in that Judean manger,
the cross before which millions
ow in reverence. How true. that from the
malIest events frequently flow the grandest
esults. Scientists, without an hours in
pronounced the rappings "a
umbug." In doing this, however. they
ut themselves upon an equality with
arrots in their cages. 1t is admitted that
hese rapping sounds were but the alphabet
eading to the re-opening OF the ''bOok of
te.'' Alphabets, however. are necessary
1 Gods methods of education. Spirit is
otent. Wherever there was a motion.
here was mind or spirit force connected
as the motive power.
Consider the progress. 1t IL now only
)me twenty-three years since the dawn of
nose gentle tappngs that summoned secu-
,rism and sectarisms to judgment. 1t was
lie voice of God through angels and minis
ring spirits. Defining Spirituaism to
lean belief in the holding OF conscious in
recourse with the denizens of the spirit
ord, and Judge Elmond's estimate of
even millions was undoubtedly under
,ther than over the actual number as
CURES would show were an exact census
)sslblc
Spiritualism. said the speaker. was the
sing star of progress. Its banner toated
'-day beneath all skies. The movement
as not local. nor national. but decidedly ;
,Sm.pn1i%ap II -4nur;sbo1 no ,poS+