Spiritualist Church
Encyclopedia
A Spiritualist church is a church affiliated with the informal Spiritualist movement
which began in the United States of America in the 1840s. Spiritualist churches are now found around the world, but are most common in English-speaking countries, while in Latin America, where a form of Spiritualism called Spiritism
is more popular, meetings are held in Spiritist centre
s, most of which are non-profit organizations rather than ecclesiastical bodies.
at Hydesville, Arcadia, New York
in 1848, but some believers date the unofficial beginning of modern American Spiritualism
to the Shakers
and similar religious groups. By 1853 the movement had reached San Francisco and London, and by 1860 was worldwide. The Fox family remained very active in Spiritualism for many years. Other notable Spiritualists of that era were Mercy Cadwallader, who became a sort of missionary for the movement, and Emma Hardinge Britten
, who wrote for the first Spiritualist newspaper in Britain, The Yorkshire Spiritual Telegraph.
(SNU) in 1902. British spiritualists of this time were often adherents of the temperance and anti-capital punishment lobbies, often held radical political views and were frequently vegetarians. Some were active in the advocacy of women's rights and female suffrage, and a minority espoused Free Love: the popular perception of Spiritualists was often of radicals in the Victorian period.
Two Worlds was the major British magazine of spiritualism and had a fairly large circulation, and it advertised the existence of local circles. D.D. Home
one of the most renowned mediums of his era, did much to make spiritualism fashionable among the aristocracy on down by his high-profile activities. Trance mediumship flourished and table turning was a popular craze, reputedly even reaching Buckingham Palace
.
By 1924 there were 309 Spiritualist churches affiliated to the SNU or one of the many other organisations. In 1932, a new magazine, Psychic News
, joined Two Worlds on the newsstands of Britain and carried news of the doings in local Spiritualist churches.
From 1920 to 1938 there was the British College of Psychic Studies (1920 to 1947) led by Mr. and Mrs. Mackenzie in London, but more successful was the Arthur Findlay College
at Stansted which continues to today.
In 1957 Spiritualist churches in Britain divided between the Spiritualists' National Union, influenced by Arthur Findlay
's beliefs and holding spiritualism to be a religion, and the circles of Christian Spiritualism, who hold Spiritualism to be a denomination of Christianity. Spiritualists National Union churches form the large majority and are affiliated to Spiritualist Association of Great Britain
(SAGB), which is not a church per se, but rather an organization for mediums. The SNU also has some member churches in other English speaking countries. Christian Spiritualist churches are mainly affiliated to The Greater World Christian Spiritualist Association (GWCSA).
Other Spiritualist groups in the UK include the White Eagle Lodge
, founded by the medium Grace Cooke, the Institute of Spiritualist Mediums and the Noah's Ark Society, that focuses on physical phenomena only.
(ISF) which was founded in Belgium in 1923 and is an umbrella organization for all spiritualists. The ISF holds congresses every two years in different parts of the world.
In Australia, the Associated Christian Spiritual Churches of Australia (ACSCOA) and the Victorian Spiritualists' Union (VSU) co-exist alongside independent churches, and Canada has the International Spiritualist Alliance (ISA) along with its own complements of indendendent churches.
(NSAC), the National Spiritual Alliance (NSA), or the United Spiritualist Church Association (USCA), but almost as many are independent churches with no national affiliation.
Spiritualist churches generally have, in addition to the church proper, an educational wing called a lyceum (the Greek word for "place of conversation"). These Spiritualist lyceums function as a support system for the teaching of Spiritualist history and doctrine outside of the liturgical services, and enable the booking of guest lecturers and visiting mediums.
A unique aspect of American Spiritualism, which sets it apart from British church tradition, was the nineteenth century development and institutionalization of Spiritualist Camps, organized by urban Spiritualist churches. These rural retreats, located in picturesque natural settings throughout the United States, allow Spiritualist families to spend their summer vacations boating, hiking, attending Spiritualist lectures, taking development classes in mediumship, and receiving messages from guest mediums. Among the best-known of the Spiritualist camps are Lily Dale Assembly in New York state, Camp Cassadaga
in Florida
, On-I-Set-Wigwam Spiritualist Camp in Massachusetts, Camp Chesterfield
in Indiana
, Sunset Spiritualist Camp in Kansas, and Wonewoc Spiritualist Camp
in Wisconsin
.
In 1922, during a time of rising Jim Crow laws and segregationism, the NSAC expelled its African American members. The Black Spiritualists then formed a national organization called the Colored Spiritualist Association of Churches (CSAC), which included churches in Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia, New York City, and elsewhere. The CSAC eventually fractured over leadership and doctrinal issues, and the historically African American
Spiritualist churches, now loosely referred to as the spiritual church movement
, currently includes a variety of denominations such as the African Cultural Nationalist Universal Hagar's Spiritual Church and the Protestant-Christian-oriented Pentecostal Spiritual Assemblies of Christ - International and Metropolitan Spiritual Churches of Christ. The Spiritual Churches of New Orleans are a diverse group of denominations that have schismed from the denomination founded by the Wisconsin
-born Mother Leafy Anderson
in the early twentieth century.
Most spiritual church movement churches incorporate theological Spiritualism, including the utilization of traditional "Spirit Guides" in worship services, with a mixture of Protestant and Catholic iconography. The names of individual churches in these diverse denominations tend to indicate the denominational Christian orientation of their founders or their congregations. Some, such as Divine Israel Spiritual Church (in New Orleans), recall typical Black Baptist
churches, others, like Divine Harmony Spiritual Church (in Miami), have names evocative of the early twentieth century New Thought
movement, and some, such as Infant of Prague Spiritual Church (in New Orleans), feature Catholic names and include statuary of Catholic saints on their altars. Unlike the NSAC Spiritualist churches, the denominations of the spiritual church movement generally do not maintain Spiritualist Camps or a Lyceum system of extra-liturgical education.
Other Spiritualist churches draw inspiration from Christianity
. African American Spiritualist churches tend to encourage ecstatic worship styles derived from African-American Protestant Baptist
and Pentecostal practices. The churches that directly descend from the teachings of Leafy Anderson
are also distinguished by special services and hymns that honor the spirit of the Native American
war chief Black Hawk
, who lived in Illinois and Wisconsin (Anderson's home state).
A third group pf Spiritualist churches propose the idea of the Universe
as the creator, and does not necessarily follow any specific religious doctrine or dogma.
. Spiritualists use the word Spirit as a plural which describes all minds and entities who have entered into the spirit world. The purpose of the medium is to provide some evidence that a human has survived by describing the person to their surviving relatives. The degree of accuracy with which the deceased are described goes some way to convincing the living relatives and friends that the medium has some contact with the spirit.
Spiritualists describe this as "survival evidence'".
There have been a number of famous practitioners of spirit communication connected to Spiritualist churches. One of the principal advocates of Spiritualism was the 20th century British writer Arthur Findlay
. Findlay was a magistrate, farmer and businessman who left his mansion house as place for the study and advancement of psychic science. This has now become a psychic college in Stansted, England and is run by the SNU.
Mediums develop their ability by sitting regularly in development circles with other student psychics. Meditation
usually plays a large role in Spiritualist practice. Meditation is used to calm the "voices" of modern, hectic life so that the practitioner can better hear his or her guide. Meditation often includes the breathing practices of Buddhist meditation (ānāpānasati) and may also include the idea of chakra
s. The Spiritualist may also focus on the tenets of their chosen religion to help them attain a higher existence. These may include standard prayers (Hail Mary
, Shema Yisrael
or Salah etc.), focusing on the name of God (Jesus
, YHWH or Allah
etc.) or other aspects of a holy nature. Like most meditation techniques, imaging (intensely imagining a place or situation) is common. There are specific imagings used to "meet" one's guide, connect with those who have died, receive protection or support from God or simply calming the mind.
Through engaging their intuition, they attempt to contact with the spirits of the dead. This is known as opening up. In Britain especially, such mediums are trained to produce clear evidence that the spirit contacted is the person they claim it to be before going on to give any "message" from the spirit. Such evidence can be details of where they lived, including addresses sometimes, particulars of illnesses suffered and notable events in their lives, often known only to the person in the congregation being given the information.
Spiritualism
Spiritualism is a belief system or religion, postulating the belief that spirits of the dead residing in the spirit world have both the ability and the inclination to communicate with the living...
which began in the United States of America in the 1840s. Spiritualist churches are now found around the world, but are most common in English-speaking countries, while in Latin America, where a form of Spiritualism called Spiritism
Spiritism
Spiritism is a loose corpus of religious faiths having in common the general belief in the survival of a spirit after death. In a stricter sense, it is the religion, beliefs and practices of the people affiliated to the International Spiritist Union, based on the works of Allan Kardec and others...
is more popular, meetings are held in Spiritist centre
Spiritist centre
A Spiritist Centre, also called Spiritist Society or Spiritist House, is the basic unit of organisation of Spiritism, which is a doctrinally and distinct form of Spiritualism....
s, most of which are non-profit organizations rather than ecclesiastical bodies.
History
The origin of mediumship is usually linked to the Fox sistersFox sisters
The Fox sisters were three sisters from New York who played an important role in the creation of Spiritualism. The three sisters were Leah Fox , Margaret Fox and Kate Fox . The two younger sisters used "rappings" to convince their much older sister and others that they were communicating with...
at Hydesville, Arcadia, New York
Arcadia, New York
Arcadia is a town in Wayne County, New York, United States. The population was 14,889 at the 2000 census.The Town of Arcadia is on the south border of the county and is east of Rochester NY.- History :The town was first settled around 1791....
in 1848, but some believers date the unofficial beginning of modern American Spiritualism
Spiritualism
Spiritualism is a belief system or religion, postulating the belief that spirits of the dead residing in the spirit world have both the ability and the inclination to communicate with the living...
to the Shakers
Shakers
The United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, known as the Shakers, is a religious sect originally thought to be a development of the Religious Society of Friends...
and similar religious groups. By 1853 the movement had reached San Francisco and London, and by 1860 was worldwide. The Fox family remained very active in Spiritualism for many years. Other notable Spiritualists of that era were Mercy Cadwallader, who became a sort of missionary for the movement, and Emma Hardinge Britten
Emma Hardinge Britten
Emma Hardinge Britten is known for her work as an advocate for the early Modern Spiritualist Movement. Due to the publication of her speeches and writing on the spiritual movement, and an incomplete autobiography which was edited by her sister, much of Emma’s life and work is publicly recorded....
, who wrote for the first Spiritualist newspaper in Britain, The Yorkshire Spiritual Telegraph.
Great Britain
By the 1870s there were numerous Spiritualist societies and churches throughout the US and Britain, but there was little in the way of national organization of mediums in Britain or the USA although some regions of Britain had organized Federations that might have up to thirty circles of similar beliefs. In 1891 the National Federation of Spiritualists (NFS) came into existence and grew quite large before its name change to the Spiritualists' National UnionSpiritualists' National Union
The Spiritualists' National Union is a Spiritualist organisation, founded in the United Kingdom in 1901, and is one of the largest spiritualist groups in the world. Its motto is Light, Nature, Truth....
(SNU) in 1902. British spiritualists of this time were often adherents of the temperance and anti-capital punishment lobbies, often held radical political views and were frequently vegetarians. Some were active in the advocacy of women's rights and female suffrage, and a minority espoused Free Love: the popular perception of Spiritualists was often of radicals in the Victorian period.
Two Worlds was the major British magazine of spiritualism and had a fairly large circulation, and it advertised the existence of local circles. D.D. Home
Daniel Dunglas Home
Daniel Dunglas Home was a Scottish physical medium with the reported ability to levitate to a variety of heights, speak with the dead, and to produce rapping and knocks in houses at will. His biographer Peter Lamont opines that he was one of the most famous men of his era...
one of the most renowned mediums of his era, did much to make spiritualism fashionable among the aristocracy on down by his high-profile activities. Trance mediumship flourished and table turning was a popular craze, reputedly even reaching Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
.
By 1924 there were 309 Spiritualist churches affiliated to the SNU or one of the many other organisations. In 1932, a new magazine, Psychic News
Psychic News
Psychic News was a weekly British Spiritualist newspaper that was in publication from 1932 to 2010.-History, 1932-2010:The first issue of the paper was published on 28 May 1932. The name of the paper was devised by one of its founding editors, Maurice Barbanell, who said that he was told to use it...
, joined Two Worlds on the newsstands of Britain and carried news of the doings in local Spiritualist churches.
From 1920 to 1938 there was the British College of Psychic Studies (1920 to 1947) led by Mr. and Mrs. Mackenzie in London, but more successful was the Arthur Findlay College
Arthur Findlay College
Arthur Findlay College is a college of Spiritualism and psychic sciences at Stansted Hall in Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex, England.Stansted Hall was built in 1871, and the college was founded there in 1964. In accordance with Arthur Findlay's wishes, the college building and grounds are...
at Stansted which continues to today.
In 1957 Spiritualist churches in Britain divided between the Spiritualists' National Union, influenced by Arthur Findlay
Arthur Findlay
Arthur Findlay MBE JP was a writer, accountant, stockbroker and Essex magistrate, as well as a significant figure in the history of the religion of Spiritualism, being a partial founder of the newspaper Psychic News and also a founder of the International Institute for Psychical Research...
's beliefs and holding spiritualism to be a religion, and the circles of Christian Spiritualism, who hold Spiritualism to be a denomination of Christianity. Spiritualists National Union churches form the large majority and are affiliated to Spiritualist Association of Great Britain
Spiritualist Association of Great Britain
The Spiritualist Association of Great Britain was established in 1872. From 1872 to 1955 the Association was located in rented or leased buildings at various spots in London...
(SAGB), which is not a church per se, but rather an organization for mediums. The SNU also has some member churches in other English speaking countries. Christian Spiritualist churches are mainly affiliated to The Greater World Christian Spiritualist Association (GWCSA).
Other Spiritualist groups in the UK include the White Eagle Lodge
The White Eagle Lodge
The White Eagle Lodge is a spiritual organisation based in England, founded by Grace and Ivan Cooke in 1936. The Lodge is a present day Mystery School, restating the ancient wisdom of the ages in a manner suited to the modern world...
, founded by the medium Grace Cooke, the Institute of Spiritualist Mediums and the Noah's Ark Society, that focuses on physical phenomena only.
International
There are Spiritualist churches in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, The Republic of South Africa, Sweden and groups in many countries including Japan, the Scandinavian countries, Korea, Italy, Germany, Austria, Hungary, The Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Portugal and Iceland. Many such groups and also individuals, are members of the International Spiritualist FederationInternational Spiritualist Federation
The International Spiritualist Federation is a society dedicated to supporting spiritualist churches around the globe, with particular emphasis on those based in countries which do not support spiritualism as a religion. The federation was first proposed at an 1888 conference held in Barcelona, but...
(ISF) which was founded in Belgium in 1923 and is an umbrella organization for all spiritualists. The ISF holds congresses every two years in different parts of the world.
In Australia, the Associated Christian Spiritual Churches of Australia (ACSCOA) and the Victorian Spiritualists' Union (VSU) co-exist alongside independent churches, and Canada has the International Spiritualist Alliance (ISA) along with its own complements of indendendent churches.
United States
American spiritualism has long been more individualistic than its British counterpart. Many North America Spiritualist churches are denominationally affiliated with the National Spiritualist Association of ChurchesNational Spiritualist Association of Churches
The National Spiritualist Association of Churches is one of the oldest and largest of the Spiritualist churches in the United States. It was formed in 1893 in Chicago, Illinois. Among its leaders were Harrison D. Barrett and James M. Peebles, both former Unitarian clergymen, and Cora L. Richmond,...
(NSAC), the National Spiritual Alliance (NSA), or the United Spiritualist Church Association (USCA), but almost as many are independent churches with no national affiliation.
Spiritualist churches generally have, in addition to the church proper, an educational wing called a lyceum (the Greek word for "place of conversation"). These Spiritualist lyceums function as a support system for the teaching of Spiritualist history and doctrine outside of the liturgical services, and enable the booking of guest lecturers and visiting mediums.
A unique aspect of American Spiritualism, which sets it apart from British church tradition, was the nineteenth century development and institutionalization of Spiritualist Camps, organized by urban Spiritualist churches. These rural retreats, located in picturesque natural settings throughout the United States, allow Spiritualist families to spend their summer vacations boating, hiking, attending Spiritualist lectures, taking development classes in mediumship, and receiving messages from guest mediums. Among the best-known of the Spiritualist camps are Lily Dale Assembly in New York state, Camp Cassadaga
Cassadaga, Florida
Cassadaga is a small unincorporated community located in Volusia County, Florida, just north of Deltona...
in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, On-I-Set-Wigwam Spiritualist Camp in Massachusetts, Camp Chesterfield
Camp Chesterfield
Camp Chesterfield was founded in 1886 and is the home of the Indiana Association of Spiritualists, located in Chesterfield, Indiana. Camp Chesterfield offers Spiritualist Church services, seminary, and mediumship, faith healing, and spiritual development classes, as well as psychic readings for...
in Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, Sunset Spiritualist Camp in Kansas, and Wonewoc Spiritualist Camp
Wonewoc Spiritualist Camp
Wonewoc Spiritualist Camp is a Spiritualist Church community, of the Modern Spiritualist movement, located in Wonewoc, Wisconsin. The camp is open every summer.-External links:* *...
in Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
.
In 1922, during a time of rising Jim Crow laws and segregationism, the NSAC expelled its African American members. The Black Spiritualists then formed a national organization called the Colored Spiritualist Association of Churches (CSAC), which included churches in Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia, New York City, and elsewhere. The CSAC eventually fractured over leadership and doctrinal issues, and the historically African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
Spiritualist churches, now loosely referred to as the spiritual church movement
Spiritual church movement
The spiritual church movement is an informal name for a group of loosely allied and also independent Spiritualist churches and Spiritualist denominations that have in common the fact that they have been historically based in the African American community. Many of them owe their origin to the...
, currently includes a variety of denominations such as the African Cultural Nationalist Universal Hagar's Spiritual Church and the Protestant-Christian-oriented Pentecostal Spiritual Assemblies of Christ - International and Metropolitan Spiritual Churches of Christ. The Spiritual Churches of New Orleans are a diverse group of denominations that have schismed from the denomination founded by the Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
-born Mother Leafy Anderson
Leafy Anderson
Mother Leafy Anderson was born in Wisconsin in the 19th century. She was a Spiritualist, and her mediumship included contact with the spirit of the Native American war chief Black Hawk, who had lived in Illinois and Wisconsin, Anderson's home state.She was the founder of the Spiritual Church...
in the early twentieth century.
Most spiritual church movement churches incorporate theological Spiritualism, including the utilization of traditional "Spirit Guides" in worship services, with a mixture of Protestant and Catholic iconography. The names of individual churches in these diverse denominations tend to indicate the denominational Christian orientation of their founders or their congregations. Some, such as Divine Israel Spiritual Church (in New Orleans), recall typical Black Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
churches, others, like Divine Harmony Spiritual Church (in Miami), have names evocative of the early twentieth century New Thought
New Thought
New Thought promotes the ideas that "Infinite Intelligence" or "God" is ubiquitous, spirit is the totality of real things, true human selfhood is divine, divine thought is a force for good, sickness originates in the mind, and "right thinking" has a healing effect.Although New Thought is neither...
movement, and some, such as Infant of Prague Spiritual Church (in New Orleans), feature Catholic names and include statuary of Catholic saints on their altars. Unlike the NSAC Spiritualist churches, the denominations of the spiritual church movement generally do not maintain Spiritualist Camps or a Lyceum system of extra-liturgical education.
Styles of worship
Spiritualist churches are places of worship for the practitioners of Spiritualism. The Spiritualist service is usually conducted by a medium. Generally, there is an opening prayer, an address, the singing of hymns, and finally a demonstration of mediumship. Healing circles may also be part of the formal proceedings.Liturgical and iconographic variations
Some Spiritualist churches maintain that Spiritualism is a religion in its own right, and has no relationship to any other religion.Other Spiritualist churches draw inspiration from Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
. African American Spiritualist churches tend to encourage ecstatic worship styles derived from African-American Protestant Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
and Pentecostal practices. The churches that directly descend from the teachings of Leafy Anderson
Leafy Anderson
Mother Leafy Anderson was born in Wisconsin in the 19th century. She was a Spiritualist, and her mediumship included contact with the spirit of the Native American war chief Black Hawk, who had lived in Illinois and Wisconsin, Anderson's home state.She was the founder of the Spiritual Church...
are also distinguished by special services and hymns that honor the spirit of the Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
war chief Black Hawk
Black Hawk (chief)
Black Hawk was a leader and warrior of the Sauk American Indian tribe in what is now the United States. Although he had inherited an important historic medicine bundle, he was not one of the Sauk's hereditary civil chiefs...
, who lived in Illinois and Wisconsin (Anderson's home state).
A third group pf Spiritualist churches propose the idea of the Universe
Universe
The Universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists, including all matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space. Definitions and usage vary and similar terms include the cosmos, the world and nature...
as the creator, and does not necessarily follow any specific religious doctrine or dogma.
Mediumship within the churches
Spiritualists believe that we all die physically and that some aspect of the personality or mind survives this and continues to exist on a spirit plane, sometimes referred to as the spirit worldSpirit world (spiritualism)
The spirit world, according to Spiritualism, is the world inhabited by spirits. Though a concept of a spirit world is in the constitution of most religions, it is not "itself the religion". Whereas religion regards an inner life, the spirit world is regarded as an external environment for spirits...
. Spiritualists use the word Spirit as a plural which describes all minds and entities who have entered into the spirit world. The purpose of the medium is to provide some evidence that a human has survived by describing the person to their surviving relatives. The degree of accuracy with which the deceased are described goes some way to convincing the living relatives and friends that the medium has some contact with the spirit.
Spiritualists describe this as "survival evidence'".
There have been a number of famous practitioners of spirit communication connected to Spiritualist churches. One of the principal advocates of Spiritualism was the 20th century British writer Arthur Findlay
Arthur Findlay
Arthur Findlay MBE JP was a writer, accountant, stockbroker and Essex magistrate, as well as a significant figure in the history of the religion of Spiritualism, being a partial founder of the newspaper Psychic News and also a founder of the International Institute for Psychical Research...
. Findlay was a magistrate, farmer and businessman who left his mansion house as place for the study and advancement of psychic science. This has now become a psychic college in Stansted, England and is run by the SNU.
Mediums develop their ability by sitting regularly in development circles with other student psychics. Meditation
Meditation
Meditation is any form of a family of practices in which practitioners train their minds or self-induce a mode of consciousness to realize some benefit....
usually plays a large role in Spiritualist practice. Meditation is used to calm the "voices" of modern, hectic life so that the practitioner can better hear his or her guide. Meditation often includes the breathing practices of Buddhist meditation (ānāpānasati) and may also include the idea of chakra
Chakra
Chakra is a concept originating in Hindu texts, featured in tantric and yogic traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism. Its name derives from the Sanskrit word for "wheel" or "turning" .Chakra is a concept referring to wheel-like vortices...
s. The Spiritualist may also focus on the tenets of their chosen religion to help them attain a higher existence. These may include standard prayers (Hail Mary
Hail Mary
The Angelic Salutation, Hail Mary, or Ave Maria is a traditional biblical Catholic prayer asking for the intercession of the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus. The Hail Mary is used within the Catholic Church, and it forms the basis of the Rosary...
, Shema Yisrael
Shema Yisrael
Shema Yisrael are the first two words of a section of the Torah that is a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewish prayer services...
or Salah etc.), focusing on the name of God (Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
, YHWH or Allah
Allah
Allah is a word for God used in the context of Islam. In Arabic, the word means simply "God". It is used primarily by Muslims and Bahá'ís, and often, albeit not exclusively, used by Arabic-speaking Eastern Catholic Christians, Maltese Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, Mizrahi Jews and...
etc.) or other aspects of a holy nature. Like most meditation techniques, imaging (intensely imagining a place or situation) is common. There are specific imagings used to "meet" one's guide, connect with those who have died, receive protection or support from God or simply calming the mind.
Through engaging their intuition, they attempt to contact with the spirits of the dead. This is known as opening up. In Britain especially, such mediums are trained to produce clear evidence that the spirit contacted is the person they claim it to be before going on to give any "message" from the spirit. Such evidence can be details of where they lived, including addresses sometimes, particulars of illnesses suffered and notable events in their lives, often known only to the person in the congregation being given the information.
Healing circles within the churches
Spiritualist healing, as practiced in some Spiritualist churches during formal liturgical services, is a form of mediumship which involves a technique of directing healing energy to the patient from a higher source. The healer uses his or her hands to effect repair of damaged or diseased tissue and it is claimed all or part of the patient's good health is sometimes restored.External links
- Spiritualist Churches, Spiritualist.tv
- Spiritualist Churches - United States, Sunset Spiritualist Church