Anna Blackwell: The English Spiritist

Anna Blackwell was born in 1816 Bristol, England and was the eldest of eight children, five girls and three boys. Her family moved to the United States when Anna was 16, first to New York state, and then moving Ohio shortly before her father's death in 1839.

 Anna claimed that from an early age she experienced psychic experiences: seeing spirits of the departed, and receiving visions and premonitions. While she was young she was largely uncomfortable with these experiences, and mostly tried to ignore them. These experiences however lead her to have a life long interest in the subjects of metaphysics and spirituality.

 Anna and her sisters were incredibly educated. Anna was fluent in both French and German, and often worked as a translator for several books in to English. Her two sisters Elizabeth and Emily Blackwell were two of the first women to earn Medical Degrees in the United States (Elizabeth being the first, and Emily being the third).

 In the 1840s Anna returned to England, and established herself in popular social circles of the time; a few years later with the emergence of the Spiritualist Movement she became involved with some of the earliest Spiritualist circles in London. During this time, Anna regularly traveled back and forth between London and Paris, continuing to regularly attend Spiritualist circles.

While living in Paris she became introduced to the Spiritist Society of Paris, lead by Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail, popularly known by his pen name of Allan Kardec. Anna immediately became drawn to this style of Spiritualism, known as Spiritism.

Spiritualism in the English speaking world at the time was largely unorganized, with most Spiritualist Societies mainly focused on scientific research of psychic phenomena, and demonstrations of physical mediumship. Spiritism, by contrast, attempted to organize and develop a philosophy of Spiritualism based on moral principles, charity, and self cultivation, with the research of Allan Kardec as it's standard set of writings, known as the Spiritist Codification.

 As the Spiritualist Movement continued to spread, Spiritualism practiced in English speaking countries generally became known as Modern Spiritualism. Modern Spiritualism made some inroads into continental Europe, but Spiritism quickly became the dominant representation of the Spiritualist Movement in Continental Europe, and eventually spread to South America, the Carribean, and Asia. 

This success of the Spiritist movement was largely due to the high level of organization promoted by Spiritists, and the publication and translation of Spiritist texts into several different languages.

Anna Blackwell's rose to the task of translating the works of Kardec into English, and trying to convince English speaking Spiritualists of the merits of Spiritist philosophy. Her translations of The Spirits Book and The Mediums Book into English became the standard editions of Kardec's works into English until fairly recently. (Although her English is an older style, they are in the public domain and may be reprinted freely, so they are very widely available)

English speaking Spiritualists as a whole did not embrace the teachings of Spiritism largely due to Spiritism's doctrine of reincarnation. Anna Blackwell argued that most Spiritualists were far to quick to dismiss reincarnation without actually studying the phenomena. She also argued that the prime reason that most Americans and British Spiritualists were quick to dismiss reincarnation was that it contradicted their ignorant understanding of race.

In her work, The Law of Reincarnation, Anna explained that according to the teachings of Kardec there is an absolute natural equality of all persons and races; that all were equal brothers and sisters, and children of the same God, differing only in their personal level of Spiritual development and progress. Anna believed that this simple teaching promoted by Spiritism could help reform and enlighten society.

Anna Blackwell continued to publicly lecture and write on Spiritism up to her passing in 1900. Her translations are still widely available and remain as the standard English translations of The Spirits Book and The Mediums' Book.

Today Spiritism, both due to the work and influence of Brazilian and Caribbean Spiritists, is becoming widely popular in the United States. Times have also changed from the early days of the Spiritualist movement, where the majority of Spiritualists very much embrace the concept of reincarnation, and many are beginning to study the works of Kardec.

Felicie O. Crossley: Hollywood Spiritualist

I came across Felicie O. Crossley  in researching the history of Spiritualism in Rochester. I found a short article discussing her visit to Rochester to lecture and give messages. I did some research into her life and found out some really interesting things I thought I'd share.

Felicie was a celebrity Medium of her time. She was also an award winning Journalist, and a member of the Southern California Women's Press Club. She ran a Psychic Center in Los Angeles, California, called the Institute of Metaphysical and Psychic Sciences located on Hollywood Boulevard.

She traveled extensively around the United States visiting almost every Spiritualist Camp and speaking in several Spiritualist Churches; she served as a missionary with the California State Spiritualist Association. She was also close friends with Arthur Ford, a fellow celebrity Medium and Spiritualist Minister, and would regularly work platform together in giving messages and lectures.

From her writing it is very clear that Felicie was a highly educated woman; she wrote and lectured on subjects such as Metaphysics, Philosophy, Spiritualism, World Religions, English literature, and contemporary European and American politics of the day.

Felicie O. Crossly published a work called Guide to Mediumship; Or the Master Key to Psychic Unfoldment which was printed under the name Delta Samadhi. The work is a text book instructing Psychics and Mediums in lessons on self development and Spiritualist Philosophy.

In this time period Hinduism was was popularly understood by Americans to be a kind of Eastern version of New Thought and Spiritualist Philosophy. Hindu philosophical vocabulary was often used interchangeably with New Thought and Spiritualist terminology, and philosophical concepts such as karma and dharma were introduced into the popular western spiritual vocabulary.

Felicie was extremely concerned with the state of Spiritualist Churches in her time, although she was a member of the NSA through the California State Spiritualist Association, she was highly critical of the National organization's policies and leadership.

She published several articles critiquing what she felt was a deep lack of foresight on the behalf of National leadership in training younger Spiritualists, and a poor policy of diplomacy in dealing with other Spiritualist Associations. She also, along with Arthur Ford, strongly condemned the organization's then segregationist policies which had recently been adopted, which she felt was a a move away from the progressive heritage of Spiritualism.

You can read several of the articles she wrote and edited on here: http://iapsop.com/archive/materials/forum_of_psychic_and_scientific_research/

Our Watcher On The Wall

The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.



Oh Black Hawk, be our watchman on the wall 

I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.

Oh Black Hawk, be our watchman on the wall 

He sent out his arrows, and scattered them; he delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which hated me

Oh Black Hawk, be our watchman on the wall 

He brought me forth also into a large place; he delivered me, because he delighted in me; For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.

Oh Black Hawk, be our watchman on the wall 

For thou wilt save the afflicted people; thou wilt light my candle: the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness.

Oh Black Hawk, be our watchman on the wall 

Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy right hand hath holden me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great. For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle: thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me.

Oh Black Hawk, be our watchman on the wall 

The Lord liveth; and blessed be my rock; and let the God of my salvation be exalted. Therefore will I give thanks unto thee, O Lord, and sing praises unto thy name.

Amen

Thoughts for Lent

One of my favorite devotional books is Keep a True Lent by Charles Fillmore, it's a text from the Unity School of New Thought, which I really enjoy drawing inspiration from. In this particular book it gives a guided plan for study and prayer for the season of Lent, which teaches "that we can keep Lent best by denying ourselves not "things" but negative thoughts and feelings," and that through study and affirmative prayer individuals can participate in the divine through the imitation of Christ.

Their daily reading in this book for Ash Wednesday states, "I keep a true Lent by denying limiting beliefs of the past and by laying hold of positive ideas that are life-giving. Thus I spiritualize my thinking and transform my life."

This affirmation really sets out the entire series of spiritual exercises of the Lenten period, and I tend to agree with this and follow it in my own way.

First, the idea of "denial" is more metaphysical than how we generally understand it, and is more with the understanding that you actively work to not let negative thoughts and emotions to control you, you 'deny their power and being' which is a bit different from denying they exist. However, it's particularly the second aspect that I love the most, to actively take up positive ideas that are life-giving that will assist in spiritualizing one's life.

So rather than give up something material for Lent, I prefer the alternative to take up something positive and spiritual. In this case, I'm going to commit to reading from The Spirits Book by Kardec every day for this period of Lent. I've read the book before, but never really with a purpose of meditating and studying the messages and wisdom it offers. I've been slowly working my way through the book, bit by bit, but it hasn't been as consistent as I'd like it to be. So for Lent, I'm going to follow this plan of prayerfully reading The Spirits Book.

I found a reading from today pretty nice to start off the season, "the sympathy which attracts one spirit to another is the result of the perfect concordance of their tendencies and instincts" If we follow Spiritism, if we cultivate lovingkindness and abide in Faith, Hope and Charity, we draw closer to the divine, become more balanced, and allow the actions of the Good Spirits to better flow through us and manifest our gifts to assist others.

The Madonna of Montevergine: Mamma Schiavona

For the past few years I've been pretty deep in exploring Italian and Italian American Spirituality. It's been pretty great because I've recovered a few devotions that were near the brink of becoming nonexistent in my own family, and I've also learned about some ancient traditions from Italy that are incredibly spiritually fulfilling, particularly devotion to the Madonna di Montevergine, or Mamma Schiavona.

Mamma Schiavona is Italian for "Slave Mother" and this is a term of endearment given by the mostly Neapolitan devotees to the Madonna di Montevergine, a Byzantine icon of the Virgin Mary in the style of a Black Madonna. The name comes the understanding that the Madonna in her compassion associated herself as one the of slaves, the poor, outcasts, and those on the lowest levels and fringes of society; and as we shall see, with the LGBT community.

The main feast day for her is celebrated on the feast of Candlemas on February 2nd, marking the beginning of the season of pilgrimage. Devotees will make a pilgrimage up the mountain, carrying images of her, singing hymns, playing the tambourine, dancing, and praying.  Other important days are September 12, the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, and May 22 the day specifically set aside for the Madonna of Montevirgine

She is considered the protector of LGBT people, going back to a legend where in the middle ages two men who were in love were caught kissing on the way to worship at her shrine. the local population driven hate, tied the two men to a tree in the forest near the shrine and left them to die of exposure in the cold and snow. The Madonna, however, was moved by how much the two men cared for each other, and caused the weather to suddenly warn, and the snow to melt, and freed them. The local population accepted this as divine intervention, and left the men alone from then on.

The devotion to the Madonna has its roots in the culture of the local countryside, where in ancient times different Pagan traditions were practiced for thousands of years before the coming of Christianity. The Mountain was said to have been sacred to the goddess Cybele, the Magna Mater or Great Mother, an ancient Earth Goddess believed to be the Mother of the Gods, that would inspire her devotees into ecstatic trances with music and dance; the church where the icon of the Madonna is housed is said to have been built on the ruins of a temple to Cybele.

In one legend, in ancient Italy, in the last years of the Second Punic War, many negative omens appeared, including a meteor shower, failed crops, and famine. After consultations with the Roman Augurs, Etruscan Seers, and Greek Oracles, it was understood that the Roman people were to ritually invite the Mother of the Gods, the Goddess Cybele, from her Mountain home in Asia Minor to come reside in Rome in order bring balance and ward off the negative omens.

When the ship arrived with the Sacred Stone of Cybele, it was declared that only the 'best men and women' of Rome were to ritually greet the Goddess at the harbor. As the the boat carrying the statue approached the harbor it became stuck on a sandbar in the River Tiber. Many people tried to pull the ship free, but it would not move, as if the Goddess herself had stopped the ship. It was then that Claudia Quinta, a woman had been accused of unchastity and was a target of gossip among the 'best men and women' of Rome knelt down in prayer to the Great Mother, beseeching her to come with her to Rome,  according to legend she then was miraculously granted the strength, with one hand, to free the boat from the sandbar and guide it herself into the harbor. When the sacred stone was brought to Rome, the negative omens stopped, the crops regained health, and the famine ended. Cybele it seems, like the Madonna, had a deep sense of compassion and respect for those who were shamed and ridiculed by society.

The Priests of Cybele in Italy were known as Galli. These priests, in order to serve the Goddess, would self castrate themselves in an ecstatic celebration as an act of permanent consecration to her service. They were from then on to live as women, wearing women's clothes, makeup, and jewelry. They celebrated and worshiped the Goddess through dance and song, performing public penances to achieve a state of ritual purity; they would walk through the streets singing praises to the Goddess while begging for charity, which they would in return offer oracles and blessings to those who gave to them. Although Roman citizens technically were forbidden from self castration, this was not limited to the bulk of the Italian population who were resident foreigners, slaves, or freed persons, as such many of the priests of the Great Mother tended to be from the lower classes of Italian society.

Today, among the peoples of Naples there is a traditional class of people known as femminelli: these individuals are culturally accepted as a third gender, those who were born male but who are called to live as women. They are considered to be under the special protection of the Madonna, and play a regular part in the pilgrimage to Montevergine. On the feast of Candlemas the femminelli of Naples will make their ascent up the Mountain with all of the other pilgrims to sing and offer praise to Mamma Schiavona. They are seen as a cultural precursor to those who today identify as transwomen. They are viewed in traditional Neapolitan society, like the ancient Galli, to have an air of sacred otherness, where they may offer blessings to infants and interpret dreams.

With Italy as the seat of the Vatican, the shrine of the Madonna of Montevergine is an alternative queer positive sacred sight. A combination of deep Folk Catholic devotion among the people of Naples, and an ancient spirituality as old as the Mountain itself. The Magna Mater, the Madonna, the Mother of God, and the Mother of Gods become one in Mamma Schiavona's unlimited and boundless love and compassion for those who live their life as they are called to do so. Her infinite love acting as a living embodiment of the Gospel words, "the last shall be first."

Antonette Matteson: Clairvoyant Herbalist

Researching Antonette Matteson has been a very fun experience for me, because I can relate to her system of healing. For the most part, when one identifies as a 'Healer' in American Spiritualism, the understanding is that of someone that practices a form of Spiritual Healing involving a system of energy passes over the body (reiki, magnetic healing, etc). Mrs. Matteson's gift of healing was a bit different, she relied on the wisdom of her guides to impart their knowledge of herbal medicine to Heal.
Antonette Matteson (sometimes spelled Antoinette) was born July 12th, 1847 in Baden, Germany. Her obituary in the Evening Star Newspaper of North Tonowanda states:

Antoinette Wealthy was born in Baden, Germany, in 1847. Her parents came to the United States when Antoinette was five years old, and they located in Water Valley, where they lived for five years, removing to Buffalo in 1857. The daughter in 1867 married Judah H. R. Matteson, a musician, and lived in Dunkirk for two years. They then went to Buffalo to live.

Matteson was a member of the First Spiritualist Temple of East Aurora, as well as the New York State Association of Spiritualists (now known as the General Assembly of Spiritualists).

Matteson became quickly known for her gifts of Mediumship, specifically as a Trance Medium. She became known as a "Clairvoyant Doctor," in that she would go into a trance state and allow her guides to speak through her to prescribe herbal remedies and recipes to those who sought her advice.

Her obituary in the Buffalo Express states: For 40 years Mrs. Matteson was a clairvoyant doctor. Thousands and tens of thousands of people gladly bore witness to her healing and curing powers, which she exercised unselfishly and effectively until her last sickness.

A passage in the National Cyclopedia of American Biography by James Terry White further comments: Her control called itself a chief of the Mohican Indians, and its ability to discover diseased conditions of the system and to instruct in regard to normal and abnormal physiological states excited the astonishment of all who had an opportunity to note the phenomena. A large medical practice was built up as a result of these revelations and Mrs. Matteson employed the remedies particular to the Indian Tribe of which her controlling influence was chief, securing the various roots, herbs, and barks from the Seneca Indians of Western, New York.

The same text continues to comment: Several attempts were made to prosecute her for illegal practice, without avail. No greater eulogy upon her work can be pronounced than the statement of a leading jurist of Buffalo, who declared that it would be impossible to get a jury in Erie county to indict her, since nearly every family in the county had one or more members who had been successfully treated by her.

In 1894 Matteson published her only book known as The Occult Family Physician and Botanic Guide to Health. The work is still in print today, and can also be found online. The book starts off with a brief introduction to Matteson's spiritual unfoldment as a Medium, and touches upon the importance of Herbal Medicine.

The book then shifts to describe lists of various herbs and roots, and gives their medical and healing properties. In the last sections the work is divided into different sections organized by ailment which lists various herbal remedies she received from her guides that individuals could prepare themselves.

I picked out a few selections of her book to share. I'd like to comment though, that while the ones I chose are completely harmless, it's pretty important to be aware of what kinds of herbs you are taking and the dosage level, some of her remedies include herbs, roots, and minerals that could do some serious damage if taken incorrectly, so if you try anything from her book, do some research first.

Mint. Peppermint: It is a garden plant, much like wild mint. The whole plant is used fresh or dried. It is good for flatulency, allays, nausea, and vomiting, and will often cure colic almost instantaneously, and drank freely is good against gravel.

Chamomile: they are very useful in weak stomachs, and if taken freely will remove a slight cold.

Mrs. Mattesons Composition Powder: Pleurisy Root, powdered 2 ounces. Bayberry powder, 2 ounces. Cinnamon Powder, .5 ounce. Ginger Powder, 1.5 ounces. Cayenne Pepper, .5 ounce. Cloves, powdered, .5 ounce. 

"This composition is intended for cold, chills, cramps, and in the less violent attacks of disease. It is a remedy of much value, and may be safely used in all complaints of male or female, as well as for children." This particular remedy goes on to explain how it should be taken after a foot soak in warm water, and prepared as a tea with one teaspoon of the mix, and one teaspoon of added sugar.

Matteson was also the President of the Women's Progressive Union of Buffalo. In an article published by the Buffalo Times some of the achievements of the society are mentioned:

The association, during the hard times of 1894, started a soup kitchen on North Division Street, where hundreds of people were fed daily, and distributed clothing among the poor, besides assisting and caring for the sick and exercising a general supervision over a large territory at that time when there was so much suffering through destitution in the lower city. For its noble work at that critical time, the Women's Progressive Union received the thanks, publicly expressed, of the Common Council and the Mayor of Buffalo. Mrs. J.H.R. Matteson is the president and leader of the Union. 

After a lifetime dedicated to healing others and public service, Antonette Matteson passed away in her family home at the age of 66 after a long battle with mental and physical health issues on October 11th, 1913.

In my own practice, healing is virtually always linked with herbalism, to quote Antonette Matteson "for such is our confidence in the benevolence of the Creator, that within the vegetable kingdom may be found remedies for all the maladies of mankind."

Paschal Beverly Randolph: The Timely Aid to Spiritualists

Paschal Beverly Randolph is a figure in Spiritualism that most people have heard of, but whose teachings very few people have actually taken the time to study. Mark Twain's quote, "A classic is something that everybody wants to have read and nobody wants to read." comes to mind."

Paschal Beverly Randolph was a free person of color* born in New York City in 1825. He was a famous Spiritualist Medium & Occultist; he was founder of the earliest known Rosicrucian Order in the United States. He was extremely well versed in Eastern Mystical Traditions, was a world traveler in an era where most people rarely left the town they were born in, and was well versed in traditions of folk magic, including African-American Rootwork.

[*Randolph's own perception of his racial identity seems to have been very fluid and complex at various times identifying as Creole, White, Mixed Race (claiming English, French, German, Native American and Malagasy ancestry), and later on, as African-American.]

While I'm not going to go too deeply into his life as this isn't the purpose of this particular post, he was a bit of an eccentric, and his life was filled with paradoxes.

A clearly brilliant thinker with a massive scope of knowledge, it's somewhat difficult to pin down any a clear opinion of his on anything, because he would often change opinions, or present different views depending on the audience or situation. He seemed to very much enjoy flustering social norms, and forcing others to confront their beliefs head on as brilliant minds often do. A Socrates or Diogenes comes to mind, a bit mad, but brilliant, and possibly inspired.

In his 1861 book Dealings with the Dead, Randolph presents what is essentially an alternative to the Harmonial Philosophy developed by Andrew Jackson Davis. Andrew Jackson Davis is considered the Father of Spiritualist Philosophy among American Spiritualists, and his works such as The Principles of Nature published in 1845, and his Great Harmonia published between 1850 and 1861, were almost immediately accepted as near divine revelation by most American Spiritualists, and quickly became the standard theological, and philosophical banner of Spiritualism; even if many did not credit Davis with their reliance on his texts, Spiritualists would generally still teach within the framework of his teachings. Although Spiritualism was still in it's early years, and open to Free Thought and open discussion, to critique these teachings put one outside the established status quo; to do so was a very bold claim at the time, if not slightly almost heretical.

Randolph wrote, "Not a human being, whom I ever saw, was fully satisfied with either Modern Spiritualism, or what is called Harmonial Philosophy; for the more a man bases his hopes of a life hereafter upon either of them, the more he stands on slippery ground."

He goes on to critique that the arguments presented by popular Spiritualists, and those more versed in Harmonial Philosophy. He claims that most Spiritualists are misguided by the current teachings of the day, and that they often lead to feelings of doubt, and cause many to either return to a Christian Church, or lead to atheism.

Paschal instead presents his own philosophy of Spiritualism: a deeply mystical path where one focuses on inner cultivation of the soul, where Mediumship and Psychic Phenomena are secondary, the true Clairvoyant is nearer to an individual that has worked towards enlightenment or a beatific vision. He did not dismiss Spiritualist phenomena, but felt they were only stages along the way of development, and that one would move beyond communing with the dead, to communing to higher orders of spirits, and eventually achieving a kind of mystical union with the the Spirit of God.

Both men, Davis and Randolph clearly drew from the same shared tradition that included the teachings of Swedenborg, Mesmerism, Christianity, and American Transcendentalism. They both were also trained doctors, and had several things to say on scientific theories of health, wellness, and human biology that are fairly antiquated and honestly come off today as being extremely bizarre, if not boarding on offensive.

Their doctrines aside, both men are remembered today for their brilliance, writing, and immense spiritual creativity that helped build early Spiritualism into a movement that accepted Free Thought and exploration of the Spiritual Worlds.

Although Randolph is not largely studied today, there was a period of time for the Spiritualists in Rochester, New York where Randolph's book Dealings with the Dead made an fairly large impact in the Spiritualist community. Randolph's work became considered a weapon for Spiritualist teachers and writers to use against their biggest competitor of the day, the Church of Christian Science.

In the early 1900s Christian Science was one of the fastest growing religions in the country. Founded by Mary Baker Eddy in the late 1800s, Christian Science offered a metaphysical Christianity, that promoted the concept that all illness was an illusion centered in incorrect thoughts, and offered spiritual healing through prayer, and the reading of scriptures along with their text book Science and Health.

Many of the outward practices such as spiritual healing, affirmative prayer, the conceptions of God as Spirit, and Jesus as a wise Teacher and Healer are incredibly similar to Spiritualist teachings, as such both religions tended to resent another as misguiding followers with incorrect teachings.

Educated Spiritualists who had studied both Eddy's work, Science and Health, and had been familiar with Randolph's book, Dealings with the Dead. Quickly discovered that many of the passages in Dealings with the Dead were incredibly similar to Eddy's work, to the point that many believed that she may have plagiarized parts of his work, as his book predated hers by several years. Dealings with the Dead  quickly became the defense of Spiritualists in Rochester against the arguments of Christian Science.

 The work was mentioned by Rev. Benjamin Austin, of Rochester, NY in an essay discussing Christian Science,

"Science and Health is a compilation from Berkeley and Swedenborg, from Dealings with the Dead, and from Dr. Quimby, and Evan's Mind Cure. There are original features, it is true, but they are not numerous or important."

The work is also sited immensely in the novel, Timely Aid by Mrs. Delia Horn. Delia Horn was a Rochester Spiritualist who according to a reference by Rev. Austin, was at one point a pubil of Mrs. Eddy. Timely Aid is a work of Spiritualist teachings and apologetics written in the format of a popular  novel. In the book Spiritualism, Protestantism, and Christian Science are weighed, with Spiritualism coming out as the victor. In this novel almost every argument given in favor of Christian Science is contrasted with a quote, or in some cases entire passages from Dealings with the Dead.

As happens, the fighting between the two denominations passed into history. But the memory of Paschal Beverly Randolph as a brilliant Spiritualist thinker persists.

To end with a passage from Timely Aid, which quotes from Paschal Beverly Randolph's Dealings with the Dead:

"Turning to my old book Dealings with the Dead, penned by Paschal Randolph, we find: "God who made us well knows that there is more of good than evil in our hearts, by virtue of our ancestry - Nature and Himself"