Spiritualism

There seem to be celebration days for everything! Most of them are invented or embraced by marketers. The other day it was ‘National Cheese Day’. I received an email from Costa telling me the ideal way to celebrate was to have a cheese toastie at one of their coffee shops! Upsy-Daisy Day, observed every 8th […]

This was a question posed by Oolon Colluphid, a fictitious author depicted by Douglas Adams in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. It was the title of his third book in his trilogy of philosophical blockbusters. I am not sure I could write a whole book on the subject, but I’ll give my personal take

Good Friday, the day when Christians around the world commemorate the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ, is an anathema to Spiritualists. At the core of this issue lies the fundamental difference between Christian theology and Spiritualist philosophy, particularly when it comes to the concept of vicarious atonement. Vicarious atonement, in Christian theology, refers to

When I first sat down in Croydon Spiritualist Church, a little over 5 years ago, I looked up at the wooden board that listed the seven principles of spiritualism. It was the first time I had seen them. I knew that I could accept nearly everything. I say nearly because the third principle I didn’t

This extract from the poem “Paracelsus” by Robert Browning [1812-1889] is another example of the insight many of the “Romantic Poets” had into spiritual life. He married Elizabeth Barrett, also a poet, who was keenly interested in spiritualism. Truth is within ourselves; it takes no riseFrom outward things, whate’er you may believe.There is an inmost

This year we celebrate the 200th anniiversary of the death of Percy Bysshe Shelley, one of our gtreatest poets. In his poem “Adonais”, his tribute to John Keats, Shelley demonstrates his insight into life in the world of spirit compared wit that of earth. One stanza will do. He has outsoared the shadow of our

This is a reading given by Derek Pipe and written by Henry Thomas Hamblin The pianist, playing on a short keyboard, and looking for E flat, found it wasn’t there and said to himself, “Oh well, I’ll play it an octave lower!” How like our lives, when limited, restricted, and sometimes frustrated… How like our

Have you ever wondered why migrating geese fly in a V formation? As with most animal behaviour, God has a good reason for including this in their instincts. The swirl of air created by flying in a V formation produces more lift and a clearer view for each bird. In a V formation the whole

On Valentines’ Day we celebrate all types of love, not just romantic love. So what better time to ask, “What is Love?” The definition of love varies depending on who you ask or where you look. It takes on many different forms. This is why defining it is so complicated. Most of us are pretty

Photo By Duc (pixiduc) from Paris, France. You might be reading this because you’re a Spiritualist. Perhaps you’re reading it because you’re investigating different belief systems or religions. Maybe you’re curious about Spiritualism. It’s good to be curious and investigate. It enables us to expand our knowledge. Just going along with what our mothers, fathers