Emma was born in England and became a talented musician. She went to work in America for a theatrical company. She travelled with her mother on the steamship 'Pacific'. She became very friendly with the ship's officers and returned to the docks each time the 'Pacific' was due to arrive. In February 1856 she went to the docks to see the ship as she was also expecting a parcel. The ship was delayed by storms however. That night Emma felt a spirit presence and she told her mother, who had already become interested in Spiritualism having followed stories of the Fox sisters who had first heard the rappings in their family home in Hydesville, New York in 1848. She was also friendly with a medium, Mrs Kellogg. On her mother's instruction Emma laid out the letters of the alphabet on a table and her hand spelt out the following message, 'Philip Smith, Pacific. My dear Emma, I am come to tell you that I am dead. The ship 'Pacific' is lost, and all on board have perished; she and her crew will never be heard from anymore." She couldn't sleep that night, although she doubted what she had been given. In the morning she went to house of the medium, Mrs Kellogg. As she climbed the stairs to the apartment the medium came out in a trance and spoke exactly the same words as the message Emma had received. The news was later confirmed as true.
Emma was converted to Spiritualism and went on to meet Kate Fox who was giving sittings in a rented room in New York. She toured all over the United States and Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Britain giving trance lectures on Spiritualism. These meetings brought increasing hostility from the Church and sceptics and people who attended were the subject of verbal and physical abuse: in a southern state of America there was even a threat that anyone attending would be lynched. Emma, persuaded by her mother, eventually returned to England where Spiritualism had already become established.
1861 Spiritism
A French astronomer, Camille Flammarion started a study of Spiritualism having read Allan Kardec's, The Book of Spirits, which had a central belief that reincarnation was essential for spiritual progress, an idea which is not normally held by Spiritualists. 'Spiritism' became the French version of Spiritualism and was later to become firmly rooted in South America.
1868 Daniel Dunlas Home (1833-1886)
D. D. Home was born in Scotland and inherited psychic abilities from his mother and after her death had several visions of her. He went on to become the most famous physical medium of his day. He held joint sittings in London with Kate Fox. He is perhaps best remembered for his demonstrations of levitation. On the 13th December 1968 he went into a trance at a Spiritualist seance in London. He levitated and floated out of a top floor window. He was seen hovering over the street for a short time then returned to the house through another window.
The 7 Principles John will escort you if you want to see these now
Modern Spiritualism is based on 7 Principles. These principles were given to the medium, Emma Hardinge Britten in the 19th century, in a message from spirit. The message was from Robert Owen (1771-1858), who, when he was alive, had done considerable work for social reform. He was a Welshman born in Montgomeryshire, who became the manager and later owner of New Lanark cotton mills. He challenged the doctrine of Laissez-faire, and inaugurated socialism and the co-operative movement.
1873 British National Association of Spiritualists
The Association was established in 1873 and ten years later in 1883 became the Central Association of Spiritualists.
1882 Society for Psychical Research (SPR)
Sir William Barrett, a professor of physics in Dublin called a conference in January 1882 out of which was created the SPR with the aims of examining telepathy, hypnotism, apparitions and physical phenomena of Spiritualism.
1887 Two Worlds
Emma Hardinge Britten founded the magazine Two Worlds and was, for 5 years, its first editor.
1890 Spiritualist's National Union(originally called the Spiritualists' National Federation)
The SNU was set up by Emma Hardinge Britten to bring together the many different churches under one banner. It's main function is to "promote the advancement and diffusion of the religious philosophy of Spiritualism, on the basis of the Seven Principles."
1890~s Infighting between Spiritualist organisations
In the last few years of the 19th century there was great infighting between the various Spiritualist organisations. Some were opposed to the Christian idea of heaven and hell. Eventually, the Central Association of Spiritualists joined the SNU.
0's Growth of Spiritualism
After a period of infighting, from the latter part of the 19th century and the first decades of the 20th century were times for growth and consolidation. Famous Spiritualists and people interested in promoting spiritualism were Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sir Oliver Lodge, Sir William Barrett, Dr Alfred Russel Wallace, Lord Dowding
1 Greater World Christian Spiritualists Association (GWSCA)
Spiritualists, in general, accept that Jesus Christ existed and gave valuable doctrines and a code to live by. They do not however, place a great deal of importance on his divinity as the Son of God.
In the 1920's a series of trance addresses received through the mediumship of Winifred Moyes, expressed the belief that Jesus Christ was indeed the son of God and as such had a great part to play in the spiritualist movement. They also believed that communication with the spirit world was possible and that this was a lost aspect of the Christian Religion. By amalgamating Spiritualism and Christianity they achieved a halfway position between the two beliefs. The GWCSA was formed in 1931.
2 Psychic News
The Psychic News is a weekly newspaper was founded by Maurice Barbanell, a trance medium who gave some of Spiritualism's most inspirational works from his spirit guide, Silver Birch.
0's Mediums of the time
Apart from Maurice Barbanell, other famous mediums of the period were Hannen Swaffer, Estelle Roberts, Helen Duncan, Mrs Lyons, Ethel Post Parish, Frank Decker, Louisa Ashdown and Hester Dowding.
White Dove Lodge
The White Dove Lodge was founded by Mineseta and Brother Faithful and went on to have lodges worldwide. They redefined Spiritualism and do not place any importance on the actual communication of spirit, more on the importance of living a spiritualistic life.
1939 The Church of England Report on Spiritualism
The Church has, for a long time, denounced spiritualism as evil, saying that is forbidden in the Bible, the work of the Devil, and that it does not allow the dead to rest.
In 1937, as a result possibly of the growth of the Greater World Christian Spiritualist Association, a Committee was formed by the Church of England to carry out an investigation into Spiritualism. The Committee was led by Archbishop Lang, Archbishop Temple and comprised of ten others including a Bishop, a Dean, a professor, Psychologist and a Barrister.
The Committee produced it's report in 1939, which was favourable to Spiritualism. It concluded that,
"If Spiritualism, with all aberrations set aside and with every care taken to present it humbly and accurately, contains a truth. It is important to see that truth not as a new religion, but only as filling up certain gaps in our knowledge, so that where we already walked in faith, we may now have some measure of sight as well. It is, in our opinion, important that representatives of the Church should keep in touch with groups of intelligent persons who believe in Spiritualism. We must leave practical guidance in this matter to the Church itself."
The Report was published in the Psychic News and other newspapers throughout the world, and apart from one protest from the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Church of England preserved a stony silence and did nothing to incorporate the beliefs of Spiritualism into Christianity.
1944 Helen Duncan
Helen Duncan was probably the most prominent medium of her time. Though Her career was dogged by the authorities. This persecution often detracted from the true work Helen carried out for spirit. The London Psychical Laboratory, in 1931, claimed her mediumship was flawed, and Helen was also convicted of fraud in 1933. In 1944 she gave a series of seances in Portsmouth. A naval officer felt her information inaccurate; he left, returning with a policeman, who arrested Helen under the 1735 Witchcraft Act. After being released from prison, Helen continued her work.
In 1956, at one of her seances, Helen was conducting a materialisation.
Unfortunately, the police made a raid; the shock, and the possible
withdrawal of ectoplasm back into her body, may have accelerated her death, which happened five weeks later.
1951 Fraudulent Mediums Act
The 1735 Witchcraft Act was repealed and replaced by the Fraudulent Mediums Act.
1950~s Spiritualism
Spiritualism was accepted as a religion.
Today
Britain today has over 500 Spiritualist churches. Some affiliated to the Spiritualists National Union, others to the Christian Spiritualist Union or the Greater World Christian Spiritualists Association plus many independent churches.
