The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 13

Immortality the End of Existence

Immortality the End of Existence.

The third division of our subject leads us to a consideration of Man's Immortality. This we may term the end or destiny of existence.

There is a deep purpose running through the whole Creation—there is an object to be attained. During our consideration of the nature and sources of life, we arrived at the result, that as the human inmost is an epitome of eternal and self-existing principles, it is itself eternal and indestructible. Man is therefore, by nature, immortal, because herein consists the object of his existence. The human soul is an organised structure acquired and developed during earth life, and this probationary term might not have been if its fruits were to be ruthlessly squandered. Earth life may be com- pared to a period of gestation, and the transition to the spiritual life may be designated a birth into man's permanent, true, and normal state. It is to pourtray the conditions and realities of this sublime superstructure of human existence that Spiritualism is taught and fostered. Spiritualism is that greatest and most important branch of science which teaches us of man's eternal future. How many weary souls there are who would gladly know! How eager the mind is to comprehend these great and abiding truths, and how full of dark despair is many a radiant and intuitive soul because of the shadow that ignorance and superstition have cast over this subject. To the mass of our countrymen it might be said, "O ye of little faith," why do ye distrust the purposes and finished work of the Creator? It is this living faith which the religious nature of man demands, and not a blind credence of historical incident and the" dead phantoms of a buried past.

With a joyful faith, then, and overflowing gratitude we assert that when the earthly tabernacle is no longer a healthy and fitting abode for the precious germ within, the event called "death" is God's kindest provision for man. We believe that the soul passes on to a solid, substantial, natural world. (Please bear in mind that the term supernatural is not in our vocabulary, so perfect, sublime, and holy are natural arrangements that they cannot be superseded.) The summer land of eternal human existence is, therefore, perfectly natural, and filled with natural, thinking, loving, acting, desiring, aspiring, kind, neighbourly, real men, women, and children. No miracle, no mystery. The soul feels at home at once, and comes in contact with objects that gives exercise to its mental faculties. There is internal evidence in the nature of man to prove this. If man is immortal, all his parts and faculties must be. Though there may be considerable change in adaptation, man's faculties adapt him essentially to an objective state of existence inasmuch as he must be eternally an object himself, or be nothing. Therefore, man's existence in the future state must be objective corresponding with this. The great truth is—that God is God in the future even as now, and cannot contradict himself; man is man, and cannot be anything else; and God, man, and the material universe in all worlds, systems, and spheres, are parts and portions of the one great whole, animated by the same soul;—therefore, it follows that God's societary, intellectual, moral, and physical arrangements will be analagous under all circumstances, and adapted to the nature of man. True, there will be a difference—there will be an improvement. The mind will have many objects of contemplation and purposes of action that are more in harmony with it, and which the spiritually minded long for daily here.

But, you will ask, Will the good, bad, and indifferent enjoy equally and all alike? We answer, Do they enjoy equally and all alike here? Every creature in God's universe enjoys to the full extent of his capacity, and by enlarging that capacity he can enjoy wider, deeper, and higher. A holy and happy state, either in this sphere or the next, depends entirely on harmony of development and legitimacy of action of the inherent powers. These are the imps, devils, and angels of darkness that drive souls to misery. Each man's organic, parental, social, and educational circumstances regulate his present and mould his future, irrevocably beyond the anathemas and prayers of priests and moralists.

" But who will judge them to determine their state? Will not the 'righteous Judge' of holy fable arrest them in his fierce anger?" &c. No. Every man is his own infallible judge, and as he sows he must expect to reap. There is no condemnation, except in so far as man breaks his head against the sharp and inflexible edges of natural law. God's commandments cannot be broken; they only cut the hands of him who would misapply them. We have nothing to fear, either in earth or heaven, but our misapplication of those divine institutions that regulate and maintain order in all things. God does not require the services of a legion of devils, with a prime minister that far out-generals the Deity, to tempt poor human beings to commit blunders, so that they may know there is a right and wrong way. These black arts and devilish devices are the inventions of priests, who make a respectable competency by retailing indulgences, atonements, prayers, bread crumbs, drops of water, and sips of alcoholic beverages, administered with a peculiarity of countenance, voice, gesture, and dress, as antidotes to this supposed evil influence. Any intelligent mind who follows out the line of investigation that has been presented above, will be ready to admit that all this is not only absurd and expensive, but also hurtful and degrading to both priests and people, as it keeps society in ignorance of the true cause of the evils that afflict it, and their true remedy, and therefore it is a crime against divine truth and human happiness. This is a deep and settled conviction in the souls of progressive spiritualists, and challenges their warmest efforts for the spread of truth and real knowledge on man's nature and future. No good can come of believing lies and practising falsehoods, but the worst results and the keenest sufferings, which we daily see visited on those whose moral faculties have been perverted by the dogmatisms of mythology.

As to life, enjoyments, and occupations in the "summer land," these are determined by individual attractions. The intellect will survey nature, the aspirations will seek holiness, the affections society, and benevolence to do good; each and all according to the influence which these departments of mind have upon them as individuals. But notwithstanding the false allegations of commentators and divines, man's natural affinities are to do good and be good, to gain the highest acme of development, and aid his brothers and sisters in the same direction. This, therefore, is the only legitimate employment of the human soul. All others are merely means to the end of existence, whilst this is the end of that existence. It is in connection with this thought that we as spiritualists base our distinctive teachings. We believe and know that the inhabitants from various globes, much more advanced than the inhabitants of ours, mingle in the innumerable societies of the summer land. Their whole aim is to develop man. This world receives a share of their services. No great reform manifests itself amongst men here, but has been discussed and projected from the missionary societies of the upper life. Some men are only instruments—unconscious instruments of the will and purposes of these high committees. Political, moral, religious, and scientific reforms are originated and aided by their influence and counsels. All of us are intended to take an individual and distinctive part in the history of our race. We, each and all, have a mission to mankind as well as to ourselves. This truth is lost sight of by the multitude; hut let this great and normal thought take possession of a human soul, and he is at once en rapport with the missionary bodies above. His work of love will prosper in his hands far beyond his expectations, and a fountain of original design will spring up within him that will add the purest pleasure to his existence and be an occasion of surprise to himself.

The eyes of love watch over us by day and night. Many of us are conscious of the watchful attendance of these loving guardians. Many families have the advice and warning of these bright bands. This is the true and legitimate function of mediumship. Every human being will yet be a medium to receive influx from higher spheres, and it is a question in how far they are not so now. Mediumship is not for public display, except in so far as it can be of use. Its chief purpose is to derive individual spiritual development from those exalted minds who vouchsafe instruction. In this light it is one of the most powerful elements of education, and enlarges the mind and exalts the feelings in a great degree.

Some one will be ready to ask if all spirits are thus good and humane. Our reason corroborates the statements of seers, that in the other world individuals are pretty much the same as they are here. The change called death does not transform people or alter their identity. "As the tree falls, it lies." The other life is a prolongation of this. There are vindictive spirits as there are vindictive men. Mediums and others who are susceptible to the approach of spirits are often assailed by rude undeveloped ones, and sometimes suffer much. But these dark spirits can be reclaimed and improved. They have frequently been instructed by conversation at circles, and higher spirits act as missionaries to them. These low spirits are undergoing privations, equivalent to the "hell" of theologians and "punishment" of moralists. Their want of capacity for high enjoyments is a great source of their misery, and their inharmonious conditions are the result of unfavourable circumstances in earth life. There is a great incentive to a righteous life in the fact that no sin is forgiven, that the conseqnences of every act adhere eternally to the actor, and that all such are only remedied by a proper course of motive and action. The great gain is to endeavour to attain on earth purity of motive, truthfulness of life, and that manly humility that is thankful for further light and instruction.

It is generally understood that the spiritual manifestations are produced by spirits of a very low order, and that no spirit can communicate if more than a degree above the plane of the medium; hence superior intelligences have to use mediums in the spirit world as we do here to enable them to communicate. The messages usually received by undeveloped and bigoted circles are crude in thought, and narrow in conception, and by such circles are too often believed in with an absolute faith, and quoted as final authority, and even the spiritualist papers sometimes outrage common sense by printing them. Relatives often give messages to their friends on earth, all good wishes, religious admonitions, and affectionate regards. The sphere of thought in which the various spirits exist is thus wonderfully represented. Several mediums may be in the same room, and give communications in merits wide apart as the poles. Progressive circles where the love of truth and humanity finds an atmosphere, are visited by spirits of like nature, who aid them in their congenial efforts; whilst the blind and narrow sectarian finds confirmation in his vices by the teaching of his familiar spirits. Those who contend that truth is a matter of authority, find fault with Spiritualism because of the contradictions taught by the communications. But this shows their ignorance of the nature of truth and of the spirit world. Each spirit there as here defines truth according to his conception of it, and the great use of all teaching is to enable us to form an independent conception of our own, and not be led by authority. This will be a warning to all to judge for themselves, and not trust implicitly to the teaching of spirits further than they agree with experience and reason. Many give up a belief in church ceremonies to swallow each word of their favourite medium, than which nothing could be more reprehensible or stamped as superstition. This also explains why men of so many different shades of thought are embraced by the comprehensive term of "Spiritualism;" but this term, as used here, it will be perceived, means very little; and much more is needed along with it to make it avail much in human development., It has also been observed that believers in creeds and artificial forms of religion are oftenest deceived by spirits, and such individuals are always telling you confidentially how much they are troubled with bad and low spirits, and what fool's errands they send them on; but when the members of such circles get their minds opened up to the truths of nature these unpleasant results disappear. In fact, these ludicrous farces are oftentimes played by friendly spirits, to destroy the weak credulity which keeps the minds of their earth friends in bondage, and precludes all chance of progress.

We would like to speak of the conditions that induce mediumship, and of the mental developments that, phrenologically speaking, give a consciousness of spiritual existences. We have met with many individuals not spiritualists who had the most certain consciousness of the spirit world and its inhabitants, and we have at all times been able to tell them of it from their temperament and the form of their head. We, therefore, hold that intercourse with spiritual beings is a normal act, and natural function of the joint power of minds in this and the spirit world. We believe it to be a high function, the exercise of which, though yet in its infancy, is a great privilege. But though we attach great importance to Spiritualism as such, we believe that its advantages are a thousand times increased by the state of mind called "Progressive." We believe that man's state is eternally progressive, that each epoch in existence is a stage in a never-ending journey towards better things, in which every latent desire of the soul will be satisfied, and every power called into conscious exercise. There are radical minds, standstill minds, conservative minds, liberal minds, bigoted minds, enlightened minds, and advanced minds, and there are now and again in the world " Progressive Minds," and their number increases. This we consider to be the normal state of the human mind, and one that is in harmony with the purposes and destiny of his being. As progressive spiritualists, we incorporate two terms in our designation, and we attribute the preponderance of influence to the first term as the leading feature in all minds who have blessed humanity with the riches of their labours; and the associate of heaven-born Spiritualism, which twain, by a beautiful philosophy, shall yet lead all mankind to see the truth.

The subject is not exhausted, but time will permit of no more being said. We have not spoken authoritatively, nor perhaps in all points accurately, but we hope our remarks will lead to independent thought and investigation, and thus free the human mind from the thraldom of hereditary dogmas on these most important of all themes, and place them on a firmer and more intelligible footing.

When Mr Burns sat down, it was resolved that there should be no discussion on the many topics brought forward in his paper, but that it should be printed in full, and inserted in the report of proceedings. It being after the hour, the Convention then adjourned for dinner.