A NEW PHASE OF SPIRITUALISM.
The Spirit of Truth, formerly The Kingdom of Heaven, edited by Thomas Cook as "the medium who shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, shall he speak," introduces a new revelation to the world. It says editorially that the question—
Is there a Messiah coming? is soon to become the all-absorbing question of all nations professing to believe in Jesus the Christ. The very spiritual elements surrounding this earth are becoming surcharged with this thought and its results, the establishing of the kingdom of God on earth, which will be the full answer to the question. This new dispensation or establishing of the kingdom of Christ upon earth shows the drift of modern Spiritualism. It no longer reveals itself to the world in the gross infidelity of the past, but professes to be not only Christian, but that which is truly Christian; and its talk of the establishment of the kingdom of God on earth sounds very much like that which is sought for and predicted by modern National Reformers. They are not looking for Christ to come in Christ's own way, as he himself has declared in his word, but in their way; and this new dispensation is ushered in by this Spirit of Truth of March, 1894. The coming of this new dispensation, says this paper, predicted in 1852 as being then "nigh at hand," is now by the great Spirit Congress of All Nations announced, and invitations have been sent to all parts of the spirit world to assist in this work and jubilee; and already a vast concourse, ten thousand times more than can ever be heard through this channel, have responded, and are here, at this our first seance, to encourage with their voice and presence this great, grand, and glorious heavenly cause. So states the spirit messenger which brings this news to the editor of the Spirit of Truth. This spirit signs himself "Robert Dale Owen," and then follow messages from "Charles Dickens," "Monroe Woods," "Louis XVI., king of France," "John Cook," "Pope Pious IX.," "Jennie Smith," "Bonaparte," "Adoniram Judson," "Shakespeare," "John C. Bundy," "Warren Chase," and "Patrick Henry." There is a good deal of the characteristic of our late Parliament of Religions manifested in this wondrous gathering of spirits. In closing this symposium, the spirit Robt. Dale Owen says:— It is doubtless well to call attention to the non-sectarian character of this great universal unity movement. It is not intended as a Spiritualists' movement by Spiritualists and for Spiritualists alone by any means, but is intended to embrace and enfold in its loving arms even its most bitter enemies, as well as the whole of the entire human race, of every clime or complexion. It does not come as a champion or advocate of any cult, creed, or particular ism, but embraces and appeals to the love of humanity in them all. As a divine order, therefore, we do not essentially come to contend for any plan or proposition, but rather to appeal to and plead with humanity to let their love of God and humanity rise up and predominate over their lower self or animal selfishness. We shall not even argue with anyone that we are spirits or angels, once dwellers with you in bodily form on earth, or that spirits can and do return and communicate; for we regard that as much of a settled question as that the world does move. He who reads God's word will see the drift of all this. The tendencies toward evil which we see in the material world among the nations of earth are but the reflex influence of the world of spirits, over which Satan himself presides. God has forewarned us of all these things. He has told us that evil spirits and354lying spirits will come to us. He has said of man that he shall surely die, but the first falsehood of Satan has been believed instead of the word of God, and now Satan's demon messengers come to mankind in the guise of the spirits of the dead, claiming to bring messages of peace and love from the kingdom of light. But he who knows God's word knows that the messages are false and the messengers are the messengers of darkness. "To the law and to the testimony, if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them."