...My Diary....
19th January my first
booki1ng of the year at Perth Spiritualist Church (SNU). There was a good turnout as usual at the
friendly little church.
21st – Only a short journey
to ASK Neilston. As well as a Divine
Service at 7.30 on a Tuesday evening there is a development Circle at the same
time on a Wednesday evening. This would
interest anyone wanting to know more about their psychic abilities and Spiritualism. President and excellent medium in her own
right, Sheila Caruthers takes this circle and has a wealth of knowledge on both
subjects.
26th – I attended the Stirling
Spiritualist Church (SNU) Linda Buchanan
like Sheila above has spent many years in the movement and Linda is rightly
pleased at the moment as many from her development circles are setting foot on
the platform. Good reports have come
from other churches about these fledglings and soon they will be going far and
wide in their own right to churches throughout Scotland and even further afield.
...This
got me thinking...
“It is often said that the mediums of yesterday were much superior to
the mediums of today and we are totally in agreement with this, and we think we
know why... In the past mediums went into a quiet room at churches to
meditate and get their link with spirit.
Today they just walk in off the street and straight on to the platform,
or stand gabbing to all and sundry before stepping on the platform. They are taking Spirit for granted and that
shows up in their mediumship”.
That is a
very good point and there could be a lot of truth in it. I must admit to being one of the mediums who
walk in to a church and blether till it is time to go on the platform. Yet, a great many churches which I serve
regularly ask if I would like a little time on my own. . That
does not mean I walk in complacent and expect Spirit to jump to attention when
I ask them too. I do have my quiet time
before I leave the house and open up to Spirit. Many a time i also take a few
moments to blend with spirit before I leave the car and enter the church. So it
does not always mean that a medium not taking some ‘quiet time’ directly before
a service does not take time to link-in and give Spirit respect
I was
talking this over with a friend and they asked me“When did you stop sitting in
a little room by yourself? I stopped that a long time ago because sitting alone before
a service made me a nervous wreck – much more nervous than I if I had been
chatting to someone.
Interesting this
comment was made when it was, because a few days before I was honoured to share
the platform with Kilmarnock Spiritualist Church’s fledglings and we all went
to a quiet part of the church to meditate and ‘open-up’ before the service. I really enjoyed this time and thought of
changing back to this way...
I spoke this over with
another medium and she felt it looked more professional for the medium to take
time on their own before a service. I
have to admit I think she was right...
...My
hopes and fears for 2014....
It
may seem like my hopes – some may call it a rant – is the same as the past two
years.
A
comment from Stewart Alexander in PN; -
“When
the messenger becomes more important than the message”. (For far too long it has)
So
I am not alone in saying we must stop the slide towards celebratory status of
mediums and entertainment as far as our religion is concerned. This is by far the biggest threat to
Spiritualism these days and it comes from within, not from without. I have heard services and mediums judged on
the amount of laughter during the evening... omg. A Spiritual service is usually a happy
service with laughter but as long as the laughter emanates from Spirit and not
the medium trying to be a comedian.
In
the same edition of PN Aileen Davies comments; -
“Are
we failing Spirit? How many of us
ask/consider what Spirit thinks of new proposals connected to our
religion? Realise our healing and
philosophy is as important as our clairvoyance”
I
hope that in 2014 all connected to Spiritualism will ask Spirit before we act, and
that we promote our Healing and Philosophy as much as we do our clairvoyance.
That
in 2014 we must be more vocal in protecting our religion from the dross that
has gathered around it. Tarot cards and
so much more have nothing to do with Spiritualism but so many think they are
part and parcel of what we stand for.
Mediums should be
deterred from using our churches as agencies for their own personal
finances. If one wants to go into
business using their psychic abilities then our church platforms should not be
available to them. I feel that this
should be discussed by all of our church committees as soon as possible.
One church has found
difficulty in this area and has spoken up via facebook.
'Many Spiritualist
Churches are unfortunately experiencing last minute cancellations.
Some Mediums are busy organising workshops, parties and private readings.
By all means pursue your dreams but please do not abandon your roots.
Please remember these Churches supported you when you were developing your gift.
They need your continuing support to help and comfort those attending services.'
Some Mediums are busy organising workshops, parties and private readings.
By all means pursue your dreams but please do not abandon your roots.
Please remember these Churches supported you when you were developing your gift.
They need your continuing support to help and comfort those attending services.'
Our churches hold the key
to turning this around and now that one has spoken up it may be easier for the
rest to follow suite
We
must realise that there are who want to understand about their psychic
abilities and how it can affect their everyday lives, they have no interest in
platform work. Yet almost all our
workshops and classes are tailored for platform training. This is something that should have been
considered a long time ago and I hope that another year does not pass without
this being rectified. It is the same
with those interested in the philosophy of Spiritualism – where is the
opportunity for this? Something else we
neglect. When I stared out at ASK Stewarton over twenty-years-ago this was all
in place but seems to be non-existent these days...
We
should endeavour to keep our workshops in churches at the barest minimum of
cost.
And
for another year I say that ‘pastoral
care’ is sorely lacking in our religion and I suggest that all church
committees put this high on their agenda to be discussed and acted upon in
2014.
My
hopes and fears outside of Spiritualism...
That
the young in our society get work with a future and they can start building a
life for themselves. So many over the
past few years have become depressed and even thought of suicide as there
appeared to be no light at the end of the tunnel as far a work is concerned
We
stop conflict around the world before they escalate into horrendous situation
like we see in Syria and the Congo at the moment. Britain and the US are not trusted by many
around the world and it is maybe time for countries like the Scandinavian
countries, Nederland’s, Belgium New Zealand, Brazil etc to sit around the table
with opposing sides.
My
battle for the welfare of the racehorse will continue. This year I will be concentrating on horses
that collapse and die during a race. Yes
you could say that they are raced to death. Twelve horses have collapsed and
died on our race tracks in 2013.
The Ten Native American Commandments...
2. Remain close to the Great Spirit.
3. Show great respect to your fellow beings.
4. Work together for the benefit of all mankind.
3. Show great respect to your fellow beings.
4. Work together for the benefit of all mankind.
5. Give assistance and kindness wherever needed.
6. Do what you know to be right.
7. Look after the well-being of mind and body.
8. Dedicate a share of your efforts to the greater good.
9. Be truthful and honest at all times.
10. Take full responsibility for your actions
