Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-14
Quotes Bible to Show
Origin of Spiritualism


The writer who replied in The Star
of January that Christianity is against
Spiritualism and that spirit communica-
ton did not introduce Christianity to
the world IS simply making state
ment which the New Testament and the
Founder of Christianity disproved.
The writer says that Christianity is
not founded on vision, but on the per-
son. teachings and works of Jesus Christ
That is true, but not the whole truth.
Had not the angel or spirit appeared TO
Mary how would we have known Wnat
| it was all about? Had not the spirit
communication been given to Joseph,
explaining the conditions OF the COM
| ing of the Messiah, how do we know we
would have the teachings and works"
of the Master? Even after the coming
of the Christ, Joseph saved the life of
| the young Child by obeying a spirit
communication that babe him take
Jesus and His mother and flee into
| Egypt to avoid the wrath OF Herod;
there Joseph remained until another
spirit message told him what to do.
| Evidently Mary and Joseph believed IN
spirit communion.
Then the writer declares that COM
munication between the seen and the
unseen world belongs entirely to the for
mer dispensation'' and that with the
| coming of Jesus there was no more
need of these old methods; in fact. he
| says it was contrary to Jesus teach
| ings. Are we to suppose that Jesus
| Himself acted contrary to His own
teachings when He talked with the
| spirits of Moses and Elias in the pres
ence and to the conscious knowledge
| of Peter. James and John? If the writer
| will look this up in the New Testament
| his mind may become clarified on just
what a spirit communication is; I fear
. he mistakes fortune telling and the like
| for the real thing. Jesus followed this
same seance by charging His disciple:
| to tell no man of this vision until the
| Son Of Man were risen from the dead.
CIairvoyance Shown.
| Jesus also showed His perfect clair
| voyance on many occasions. Some may
| say that of course Jesus could see all
| things. but we moftals cannot hope to
reach such heights. 1 prefer to take
| the word of the Master, who claimed
| that all the things He did we should do,
and greater. Because those who claim
| to be Christians are not doing them Is
no reason to deny them.
I believe the foregoing shows why
| the Book of Hebrews did not dispose OF
| the visions and voices so successfully as
| the writer in opposition declares.
The writer's expression of surprise
| that a leading church of washington
| Endorsed the cause of Spiritual1sm ndl.
Gates a somewhat limited knowledge OF
| the advance of the times. On many
| occasions I have heard spirit communl-
cation commended from the pulpit, and
| in such leading churches as the Baptist
| Temple in Philadelphia, Henry Ward
| Beecher's Church in New York and
also in at least three prominent churches
| in the District of Columbia.
It was so astonishing" to the high
dignitaries of old that Galilieo dared to
teach the theory of the solar system
now taught in our common schools that
they compelled him on Bonded knees to
swear he would never more propagate
this theory by word or in writing, Then
|. because of this truth he was sentenced
to an indefinite term of imprisonment
But the truth went marching on!
United Fire and Water.
It was astonishing" to the religious
in the days of Robert Fulton that he
defied God by uniting fire and water
elements which they said the Creator
had made hostile to each other. AT
| general conference OF ministers IN SeS-
sion at Iowa less than 20 years ago, it
was again astonishing" that man at
tempted to fly; therefore they passed a
resolution condemning him. But the
science of aeronauticS is moving along.
There is no safety in cowardlce. Mer
do not hesitate to investigate scientific
hypothesis; why not this one?
Why speak of the imperfect condi'
| ton of mems spiritual grasp" in the
| past tense? Mems spiritual grasp j:
still very imperfect according to no less
| an authority than the Master. Did He
| not tell us how to distinguish the pc
said, "And these signs shall follow
them that believe. In My name shall
they cast out devils; they shall speak
| with new tongues; they shall take ur
serpents; and if they drink any deadly
| thing it shall not hurt them; they shall
| lay hands on the sick, and they shall
! recover" Where are the believers:
Lead me to them!
What the cult of Spiritism Is doing
T cannot say, since am not a member
of any cult, merely a student of Chris
| tianity. Nevertheless I do know that
| Spiritualism does not claim that the
spirits of departed people are mediators
| between this and the unseen world
Spiritism even in its lowest form claims
nothing further than friendly visits OF
the so-called dead bringing messages
and advice to be taken in the same
spirit in which We take any friendly
call. All Spiritualism is endeavoring to
do is to prove daily what the followers
of the Master claim, namely, immor-
tally.
do not feel at liberty to impose my
personal experiences upon public to
whom I am stranger, therefore omit
reply to the purely personal note.
FOREST HAGIN.