THE SPIRIT WORLD

Hokitika Guardian, 17 November 1919, Page 3

THE SPIRIT WORLD

REMARKABLE CHURCH DISCUSSION.

LONDON, October 15.

The discussion on the growth of spiritualism especially since the war, ha? evoked an extraordinary outburst Of feeling, lAt the Anglican Church Congress the subject created what was probably the liveliest debate there has been

for years, disclosing interesting doubts, hesitancies,_and clashes of opinion. Following upon the opening attack by the Dean of Sb Pauls (Very Rev. W. R. Inge), the Dean of Durham, (Right Rev. J. E. C. Welldon) delivered a striking speech showing, with his customary downrightness, that he believed that spiritualism had come to | fill a void in church practice owing to the coldness of the services. It was too late, he said, to dismiss spiriualistic pheppmepa as a pauiipous fraud, sinpe assent had been given to it by trained •vestigators, like Crookes, Lodge, Mys, Hodgson, Flammarion, and Lombroso. “Personally,’'' said Bishop Welldon, «<j a m inclined to believe the tplepathic hypothesis, namely, that communications professing to emanate from spirits usually harmonise with the ideas of Die recipients.” Canon McClure (secretary for the S.P.C.K.) generally, ridiculed th e idea that spiritualistic messages were received He said that one medium described the spirits as being crowded together like travellers in a London tube, f and said that whiskies and sodas and cigars were need in the spirit world. The Rev. J. A- Magee said that after hearing the pitiful communications of another flfedium he came to the conclusion that he would personally prefer unfurnished lodgings in Gehenna. He challenged Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, to deny that spiritualism involved peril the menal, moral and physical health. Canon Pearce advised tho employment a flying column of church speakers to combat- spiritualism. . The Archbishop of Canterbury, m closing * the debate announced that the bishops would fully consider the question at the next Lambeth Conference.