Spiritualism

Notes

1. Spiritualism is defined as follows:—

"The belief that the spirits of the dead in various ways communicate with and manifest their presence to men, usually through the agency of a person called a medium."—Standard Dictionary.

"The very central truth of Spiritualism is the power and possibility of spirit return, under certain conditions, to communicate with those in the material form."—N. F. Ravlin, Spiritualist lecturer.

2. The Lord told Adam that the penalty for eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was death. Gen. 2:17. Satan contradicted this statement, and said, "Ye shall not surely die." Chap. 3:4. But as a consequence of man's transgression, death entered into the world (Rom. 5:12), and Satan's lie was unmasked. But Satan, to make appear true his falsehood uttered in Eden, instilled into the mind of man the idea of inherent immortality and consciousness in death. Through a belief in his statement, he has caused it to be taught that what seems to be death is not death, but merely transition; that the soul—the real thinking man—lives right on. Then, in the Spiritualistic seance, fallen angels, transformed into angels of light, appear, and claim to be the spirits of the dead from the world of light, and thus aid on the great deception.

3. When Moses and Aaron appeared before Pharaoh by direction of the Lord, and with a special message, a miracle-working agency was brought forward to resist their work. The sorcerers and magicians (the spiritual mediums of that time), two of whom were Jannes and Jambres, were called in, and by satanic agency wrought an apparent miracle. This same miracle-working agency will appear in the earth in the last days to hinder the message of God. Error ever seeks to entrench itself behind forms, and produces, as proof that it is right, some supernatural manifestation. Truth sets forth as the credentials of its divine origin the plain statements of the Bible, and is ever willing to trust alone in these.

4. Samuel was dead and buried at Ramah (1 Sam. 28:3), and, consequently, could not be present on this occasion. That no heavenly being was present is clear from the fact that, because of his rebellious course, the Lord had refused to answer Saul (verse 6), and with this dark seance of Satan he could have nothing to do. One of the fallen angels, transformed into an angel of light, appeared, personating the aged prophet. In modern seances the same scenes are again enacted.

5. "I saw the rapidity with which this delusion was spreading. A train of cars was shown me, going with the speed of lightning. The angel bade me look carefully. I fixed my eyes on the train. It seemed that the whole world was on board; that there could be none left. Said the angel, 'They are binding in bundles ready to burn.' Then he showed me the conductor, who looked like a stately, fair person, whom all the passengers looked up to and reverenced. I was perplexed, and asked my attending angel who it was. Said he, 'It is Satan. He is the conductor, in the form of an angel of light. He has taken the world captive. They are given over to strong delusions, to believe a lie, that they may be damned. This agent, the next highest in order to him, is the engineer; the other of his agents are employed in different offices as he may need them, and they are all going with lightning speed to perdition.'"—Early Writings, page 4 (supplement).