The Work of Spiritualism.
The following is from the Pacific Baptist of June 17, 1897:— ‘Spiritualism has done nothing for the world in its half century of history which entitles it to anything other than the contempt and scorn of intelligent Christian people. It has fathered an amount of humbuggery not to be found outside of heathendom. It has ruined thousands of men and women by its wicked teachings concerning spiritual affinities, and its contempt for the marriage ties. It has given the world no knowledge of any value, either as concerns this world or the world to come. Not a fact of science has been revealed in the stupid gibberish of all its army of priests and prophets. No truth of revelation has been made more plain than it is made in Scripture. On the contrary, thousands have been led to be incredulous of the Word of God and profoundly credulous of everything else. Missionaries of high standing have shown that Spiritualism is through and through a heathen system, permeated with the evil spirit of idolatry and ungodliness, and proven by its fruits to be the offspring of the wicked one. It is little less than wicked for young people, or any people who profess the name of Christ, to touch this nasty superstition. The Bible is thoroughly against witchcraft, of which Spiritualism is the legitimate and characteristic child. There is not a word in the Bible to support the contention that the spirits of the dead are granted to have communication with the living. The story of the witch of Endor, so often used in defense of Spiritualism, is a true exhibit of its lying character and its unhallowed place. There is nothing to prove that the witch of Endor saw Samuel. She simply lied about it. It is incredible that after God had refused to speak to Saul he would make the medium of his communication with him an outlawed witch, who ought not to have been living if Saul had kept the Word of God. The story may be easily explained without such a violation of the probabilities of divine communication. And the fact that this solitary instance of seeming communication, through a medium, with the spirits of the dead, is associated with the wicked end of a disobedient and half-crazy king, indicates pretty plainly what is God’s opinion of Spiritualism. Saul was a fit subject to be humbugged by it, and a fair indication of the sort of people to whom this religion of right belongs. By their fruits ye shall know them. Go through the encyclopedias and sift out, if you can, knowledge contained therein which has come to us through Spiritualism. What have the spirits told us as to the vexed questions of history except a pack of irreconcilable lies? What have they added to our knowledge of the unexplored domains of earth? What laws have they revealed to us, by which our moral or material civilization has been advanced? Where are the discoveries which have come to us through their communications? What good of any kind have they done? And what evil is there they have not taught? Read this testimony:— Dr. B. F. Hatch, husband of the notorious Mrs. Cora V. Hatch, makes the following statement: “I have known many whose integrity of character and uprightness of purpose rendered them worthy examples to all around, who, on becoming mediums, and giving up their individuality, also gave up every sense of decency and honor. . . . Iniquities8which have justly received the condemnation of centuries are openly upheld; vices which would destroy every wholesome regulation of society are crowned as virtues; prostitution is believed to be fidelity to self; marriage, an outrage on freedom; love, evanescent, and, like the bee, should sip the sweets wherever found, and bastards are claimed to be spiritually begotten.” And he continues: “I do most solemnly affirm that I do not believe that there has, during the last 500 years, arisen any class of people who were guilty of so great a variety of crimes and indecencies as the Spiritualists of America.” This testimony is strong, but we believe that it is none too strong. The best and brightest Spiritualist whom we ever knew was a man who was ruined by it, and at length took his own life. We have examined its fruit in many instances, and to us the whole system is so foul and loathsome that we shrink from the slightest contact with it. If other testimony is needed, we can give it in plenty, but we have only this word to add at present: Touch not the unclean thing. Let it utterly and resolutely alone. The truth of the above we will not question. The system is evil and only evil. It is all based on the first falsehood in Eden, “Thou shalt not surely die.” And that very falsehood is indorsed and fostered by “orthodoxy” to-day in its immortal soul and consciousness-in-death theory. Many honest souls are led to build on the false foundation laid by Satan, and garnished by so-called “orthodoxy.”