Los Angeles herald., 1910-03-07
CRITICISES VIEW
ON SPIRITUALISM
DR.. J. M. PEBBLES DISCUSSES
METHODISTS SERMON
DIR. c. E. LocKE's DISCOURSE
BRINGS REPLY
Contention Is Made That Biblical
as Well as other History
Abounds in Reference to
Phenomena
BY DIR. j. NJ. PEBBLES

Locke'S sermon on Sunday morning,
February q, hearing him speak in
such praiseworthy terms of Alfred r..
Wallace and Victor Hugo, both
when reading a report Of his even
ing discourse appearing in The Herald
Monday morning. And the more so
when connecting Spiritualism with
biblical denunciations and oriental
superstitions, pronouncing the wo-
man of Endor "a witch, an old hag.
Though voluntarily leaving the
the dissemination of the demonstra-
tions and beautiful teachings of
Spiritualism-not Spiritism, as be-
lieved and promulgated by Chinese,
the early Mormons and the Pacific
Island tribes for the purpose of ex-
citing fear and mercenary results,
without any desire for journalistic
controversy, l hope to set the able
and eloquent DR.. Locke right.
Professor Hare of the Pennsylvania
university, Judge Edmonds, gracing
the supreme bench in New York;
Robert Dale owen and thousands of
others, wallowing in the quagmires
of a dreary materialsm, have been
brought to a knowledge OF a future
life, an uplifting faith in God and
the Christ, the living Christ of God,
through the phenomena of Spiritual
ism.
What is spiritualism? 1t is the
direct antithesis of materialism. It's
basic foundation relates to and CEN
ters in God. Men are biblically called
the offspring of God. made in the
image of God, and sons of God.
Therefore, it is just as natural for
spirits, offsprings of God. fleshed or
unfleshed to respond and converse
together. as it is for music to respond
to music or love 20 vibrate to love.
Death does not destroy identity. Pure
love extends beyond the grave. Spir-
itual communications are natural to
spirit life, but supernatural to those
immersed in the darkness of ma
terialism. Our Bible as we'll as the
Avesta, the Vedas and other bibles,
abounds in communications with spir-
its-abounds in frances, healings, gift
of tongues, the discerning of spirits,
visions. "Where there is no vision"
say the scriptures, ''the people per-
ish."
Praises Medium of Endor
Now, as of old thinking people are
calling for messages from their de-
parted friends. And ii morally sur
prised me to read that DR.. Locke
pronounced the medium of T1ndor ian
old hag," while John Wesley spoke
kindly oe her. while Josephus, the
Jewish historian, not only praised
this woman's benevolences. but de-
clared that Samuel was there, and
the woman saw him." And DR.. Adam
Clarke, the distinguished Methodist
commentator, states emphatically his
belief that Samuel did actually appear
to Saul. and that he was sent by the
special mercy of God, etc. In my
opinion, that woman of Endor was
much better, morally and spiritually
than even Saul or Samuel.
Surely Moses and Isaiah, as DIR. Locke
said, "thundered against familiar spir-
its and their deceptions." Granted: but
surely these inspired men were not
foolish enough to thunder against and
denounce communicating with "famil-
lar spirits when neither such spirits
nor communications existed. There
were things that Moses did well to
thunder against such as eating swine's
flesh, of mixing linen and woolen as ap-
parel as "marring the corners of
their boards and as "eating oysters"
for these have neither fins nor scales.
Very little regard is paid nowadays to
those stale commands of the Lord
through Moses about wizards and IA
miliar spirits. Neither Christians nor
non- Christians take any notice of
them. They are stale. They are back
chapters in this world of progress. No
one would venture today to cross the
Atlantic on Noah's ark.
The following statement of DR.. Locke
astonished me: "There is positively no
proof of any communication being
received from the departed" If this
pastor had rounded up this sentence
with the words $50 far as my limited
knowledge extends would not have
been SO insufferaby incorrect. But
let us see: And Jesus took Peter,
James and John onto high mountain
and there appeared Moses and Elias
talking with him." Mark well as our
Masonic fraternity says, Moses long
dead and buried, and yet he with Elias,
not only appeared" but talked with
Jesus.
Knew Fox Sisters
Dr. Locke further stated that "the
Fox sisters confessed that they pro-
duced their phenomena by mechanical
means" These sisters made no such
statement. They belonged to a Meth
odist family; personally, L knew them
well.
The Wesleys, founders of Methodism,
had rappings and mysterious noises in
their Epworth home, noises similar to
the Fox sisters The Rev. Mr.. Hoole
of Haxey, visiting the Wesleys, Sam
uel and John, wrote: "After supper and
prayers we went upstairs, when some
thing began knocking. Presently the
knockings were under our feet, and
upon going downstairs the sounds were
in the Kitchen" etc. Concerning this
grave matter the learned Methodist
commentator, DR.. Adam Clarke, thus
testified "For a considerable time all
the family believed this to be a trick,
but at last they were all satisfied that
it was something supernatural"
sincerely believing that MethodistS
have largely fallen from grace l
pray DR., Locke and Methodists gener-
allv to look to the crock from whence
they were hewn," to go back to the
Wesleys, who had in their Epworth
home spiritual manifestations. / pray
you to go back to DR.. Adam Clarke,
that distinguished Methodist expositor,
who in Volume III, page 209, writes: I
believe there is supernatural and
spiritual world in which human spir-
it's, both good and bad, live in state
of consciousness.
"I believe that any of these spirits
may, according to the order of God,
in the laws of their place of residence,
have intercourse with this world and
become visible to mortals."
[ pray DR. Locke and Methodists
to go back still further to Jesus Christ,
who declared in the most positive
terms that such signs as these, speak
ing with new tongues. healing the sick
by the laying on of hands, making the
lame to walk and the blind to see, etc
1t excites both my pity and my sym
pathy to see sectarists of any denom-
ination to wall against spiritualism
when it's grand purpose is to demon
strate a future life, insisting upon its
great truth that the conduct of this life