Spiritualism combines Philosopy, Science and Religion. It covers a very wide intellectual field, and attracts those seeking Knowledge of Spirit.
The Primary Purpose of Spiritualism is to demonstrate the survival of
human personality after death. Death is the doorway to a new and greater life. From the day of our birth we each have two bodies, a physical or
earthly body, which can be seen, and a spiritual body, which is unseen.
During earthly life, both are counterparts of our human organism. These two
bodies are linked by a cord. In similar fashion, before birth, a baby is
joined to its mother by an umbilical cord. When the baby is born, the cord must
be cut. When we die, the cord linking our two bodies is severed. The physical body returns to earth whence it came, and the spiritual body becomes the vehicle of our Spirit.
We don' t have to wait until death to become Spirit. Death, as a rule, arrives like sleep and there is no pain. When we awake, conditions seem much
the same to us as before we died. We take with us into the Beyond, no
material possessions, such as clothes or money for they are no longer
needed. But we do take our character and our individuality. In every way, we are the same individuals immediately after death as before, with all
our faults and virtues.
The home that awaits us in the Spirit world
depends on the life we have led on earth. If we have honestly tried to
do the best we can, then we need have no fear of death. We have fitted
ourselves for the result which is automatic, a better, happier life
where we are reunited with our loved ones and friends.
If there has been selfishness rather than goodness
and service in our lives, we will have to pay a price.
This is part of the Law of Sowing and Reaping, which is another way of
saying that Effect must follow Cause. This is perfectly summarized in the Sixth Principle of Spiritualism which says; "hereafter there are compensation and
retribution for all good and evil done on earth."
Acts of service that we
have performed will naturally increase our spiritual status. Sins commited, or of omission, will just as equally retard our spiritual progress. There is
however, no hell to which its inhabitants are condemned for eternity.
Once self-realization dawns and we are ready for spiritual growth, there are
enlightened Spiritual beings who will show the way to progress. The
practical application of Spiritualism is the Supreme Necessity for all
of us to lead the best kind of life we can on Earth, to practice
qualities of compassion and kindness and to give service wherever we
can.
Heaven and Hell are really states of mind, not geographical
locations. Even here, we can live a life of heaven or hell - the choice is entirely ours.
The world we inhabit after death is not far away up in the sky. The Afterlife surrounds our Earthly dimension, interpenetrating this world in which we live. Those we have loved and lost are not in some far-off,
inaccessible place, seated on pink clouds at the right hand of God and
playing golden harps. Very often, they are close by our side, striving
to help and guide us, and loving us just as they did before passing.
The
evidence reveals that Love, like life, is stronger than death. It is Love that proves to be the compelling Universal Force, striving to break down the
barriers, which man in his ignorance creates, between this world and the Afterlife. Our loved ones strive to reach us through their efforts with Spirit communication.
Often there is grief on both sides of the Veil. We shed tears over loved ones who have died, and they experience grief when they
try to reach out to us, but fail to make their presence known to us here on Earth. There are many
spheres of existence that are invisible to us because they function in a
different manner from Earth. Millions of vibrations of sound are lost
to us because they are beyond the range of our hearing. And millions of
vibrations of light are unseen because they are beyond range of human eyesight.
Microphones and radio receivers enable us to hear
what is normally beyond the range of our ears. The microphone, telescope
and television brings into focus what is beyond our human perception. In similar manner, the
inhabitants of the Spirit world are very real even though we cannot see
or hear them.
Highly sensitive, gifted individuals and those who have developed
their innate natural psychic faculties can
tune into the Spirit world and its denizens. Spiritualist Mediums are like human television and
radio receivers. They become the agents through which Spirit
communication can occur. There is nothing supernatural about this
happening, though it is supernormal.
Everything in the universe is in
accordance with Natural Law. These laws were devised by God and God is
perfect. If it was God's will for us to be ignorant about
divinely-ordained natural laws then we would know nothing about them.
God is not only perfect but all-powerful. God is Spirit. God is not an
old man with a long white beard who sits on a throne in heaven. To
picture God as a human being is to impose human limitations. God, if human,
could not be in all places at once, nor hear every prayer. God is not a
person, but is the Creative Universal Spirit.
Wherever there is Life, there
is Spirit; and wherever there is Spirit, there is Life. We exist because a Spark of Divinity is within each one of us. This is a divine
relationship in which God is our Father and we are the Creator's Children.
We can, by our life choices, fan the Spark of Divinity into a Flame so that a
greater expression of Divinity is made known through us. The result sustains, uplifts and helps us in our spiritual development.
We also have the free will to reject and ignore the Spark of Divinity. But then we fail to make spiritual progress and we deny
ourselves all the beauty that life has to offer.
Spiritualists do not believe in a vicarious atonement as preached in some orthodox
religions. Spiritualists look towards Jesus as an Exemplar, for Man has no
saviour but himself.
We are each personally responsible for our sins and
must atone for them here or in the Afterlife. It is far more moral to
acknowledge our sins and try to make amends than to try to place blame on
the shoulders of another.
Spiritualists believe that Jesus is Divine, but only in
the sense that we are all Divine. There is a difference of degree but
not of kind. Spiritualists also believe, as the Bible states, that Jesus used his psychic faculties and was a Supreme Master of Spiritual Law.
While on Earth, Jesus was in close contact with the Spirit world and he demonstrated his survival after death. His teaching of Brotherhood, Love, Humility and Service is the basis of Spiritualism we practice today.
Spiritualists do not claim to know everything, for no human has all knowledge. Knowledge is infinite
and we shall always be learning. What Spiritualists do maintain is that we can experience a glimmer of Truth.
This inspires us to search for more Truth,
rejecting anything that does not resonate with our God-given reason. Spiritualists accept that which is logical and uplifting.
What makes Spiritualism
unique, is the evidence of survival after death that is obtainable
through Spiritualist Mediumship. Whereas most religions preach the Afterlife as a
hope, faith or belief, Spiritualists maintain that rational people can have personal experience with the Afterlife for themselves.
We encourage you to take a study of the literature
and make your own inquiry.
A. L.