Modern spiritism; its science and religion - SpiritArchive.org

is quite
EXPLANATIONS OF PHENOMENA 93
clear it dislikes to make itself useful. It
readily performs feats of sleight-of-hand, provided
we can derive no profit from them. It always acts,
as it were, by accident, without (apparent) reason,
method, or object, in a deceitful, illogical, and
preposterous fashion."
Messages Come from Spirits
F. W. H. Myers, Sir Wm. Crookes, Sir Oliver Lodge,
Sir Wm. Barrett, Dr. R. Hodgson, Dr. A. R. Wallace,
Professor W. James, Sir A. Conan Doyle, indeed,
one might say all Modern Spiritists, are agreed
that communications from spirits do at times
occur.*
Of course, it is said that we believe what we desire
spirits or telepathy; nevertheless, it is in harmony
with all that Christians know and believe that there
is an unseen world, and beings with powers transcending
our own.
The President of the S.P.R. asked, in 1910, "Are
we entitled to say that Myers, being dead, yet
speaketh? Personally, I am not convinced."
Professor Hyslop, after the most exhaustive study,
adopts for the present the theory of spirit communication
as the only sane and reasonable solution
of some of the phenomena.
Professor Lombroso, in February, 1907, writes:
"Spiritist phenomena are attributable to the. agency
of extra-terrestrial existences."
*
To the Spiritist this proves "necromancy," for to him there
are no spirits but those of the dead; to the Christian there are
many others.