The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-02-27
DR.. Lyman Abbott
Believes in Them.
SAYS THEY RETURN,
His Startling Idea Accept
ed By Other Divines.
New York Herald, Feb. 25.)

| DR.. Lyman Abbott made profound
| impression upon those who were pres
ent at the prayer meeting III Plymouth
Church last night by his views rela-
tive to possible communion with the
spirits of those who have died. 1t was
his last prayer meeting in the church,
| and consequently there were few of
| the members absent.
He spoke of the last supper and OF
Christ's great desire to be with the
twelve apostles at that time.
He wanted Last quiet, conference
with his personal friends" said DR..
Abbott. He wanted 80 gtye his last
utterances not to the world, but to his
| friends"
Referring to the fourteenth, fifteenth
and sixteenth chapters of st. John, he
pointed out that they contained prac-
| tioally no reference to the past, no APP
peal to emotionalism, NO reference TO
| the impending tragedy OF the cross.
HE throws them from the past into
| the future continued DIR. Abbott.
THE gist of his message Isl am going
| away from you, and yet / am not go
| ing away from you. L Will be more with
you than before.
I'VE are beginning to get some little
| hint in modern studies that the spirit
| transcends the body--that Ii runs be-
| yond this present life, and rises above
| the horizon of its corpofeal limits. How
| far we can trust psychic science 10
not know-certainly enough TO Know
| that the spirit Of man exercises an M
| fiuence beyond the reach Of his hand
or the sound of his voice, even while
on earth.
II don't know-yho dceS?--what |
can do outside the realms OF eorporeal
presence l know that / can pray FOR
| help, strength or guidance for another,
and by some spiritual reality reach an
other with a wisdom better than my
own. There is a spiritual presence
! which runs beyond the physical. l be-
lieve there is spirit which death does
not quench; but releases ana makes
| efflcacious.
| Il derive my belief partly from the
Bible, partly from the testimony OF
others and partly from my own expe-
| rience.
| Il do not believe that those who have
died have gone far away from US. They
have passed beyond our ken, but we
are not beyond theirs il our eyes
were open, who knows but that we
could see those who have gone from us
and yet have not gone from us?
1.-THE more this faith comes to me,
the less [ believe in what men call
Ispiritualism, the less satisfied am with
Irappings and physical demonstrations
III love to think my mother follows me
/ with her eyes as she did when l was
| q boy. [ love to believe that the
strange, subtle, inexplicable and indefi-
mite influence that sometimes comes
into my life is from her.
II would not substitute for that Ia
BILE tipping or table rapping. Men may
ask me ii I am not afraid I aid spirit
ualism, but think it Is just the other
way. Those who ARE gone are minis
tering angels; for that very reason,
decline to go back to the inadequate
physical manifestations.
"All this may be the result of imag-
nation. am not certain. / do not
know, but OF one thing am sure-there
is a real presence in the Christ. He
lis not departed, although the world does
not see him.
IT may know himi may expect tc
see him How many times / have
IIonged to clasp his hand, to look up in
his face, to have him sit down beside
me! At other times / am glad he is
not on earth, not to be seen or heard OIL
handled
''Where there is a community OF
spirits it transcends all community OF
words. There is no husband or wife
child or mother, who does not know
the experience Of being closer to a sou
in silence than In talk.
Christ is present certainly, as
a wonderfully increasing memory
| America is fuller of Christ
today than Palestine ever was
There is more of Christ's influence in
| the church and state and home than
when he walked on earth and was cast
out.
| Through all these eighteen centuries
| Christ has been growing in the world
We are all branches dwelling in him.
The one transcendent doctrine Of Chris
| tianity Is, Christ is in u.s."
| In closing his talk, DR.. Abbott spoke
of the Protestant misconception of two
doctrines of the Roman Catholic
| Church. He denied any belief In the
real bodily presence In the eucharist
| but affirmed that in the mass Christ
was really present in spirit. He said:
| There is the real spiritual presence
| Of q living Christ on the altar. I be-
| lieve profoundly that the Lords table
lis sacred memorial service. 1 believe
there is communion with the dead. j
believe that next Sunday morning some
perhaps many, of those who have de-
parted will be there to share that holy
communion with the living church.
Part of this Is my faith, part my
hope. In time to come, when can
not sit here, ] hope to be here in
thought, at least, perhaps in some liv-
ing incorporeal presence, and when the
time comes that I bid farewell to the
earthly church, ! hope to come back
with the Fathers permission and in in
corporal presence commune with
l