Keeping in Touch: An Anthology of the Victorian SeanceMain MenuIntroductionFurther ReadingI - Spiritualism and Its BelieversII - Ambivalent SkepticsIII - Scoffers and FraudsIV - The Private SeanceV - The Public SeanceWork CitedMegan Brueningb3bbdc9bd1941527cc9ff27849ef1a643abdd7d3
The Facts and Hypotheses of Spiritualism
12016-11-23T12:26:05-05:00Megan Brueningb3bbdc9bd1941527cc9ff27849ef1a643abdd7d3714plain2016-12-16T21:01:41-05:00Megan Brueningb3bbdc9bd1941527cc9ff27849ef1a643abdd7d3H.A. Smith’s piece, “The Facts and Hypotheses of Spiritualism” was published in 1895 in a religious series, The Wesleyan-Methodist Magazine. The religious context of the magazine may perhaps make it surprising that Smith should so respectfully conclude that the tenants of spiritualism are plausible but impossible to prove. However certain Protestant denominations (like the Wesleyans) were clearly more tolerant of spiritualism and séance practice than other Christian institutions (such as the Catholic Church – see “Is Spiritualism of the Devil”). This text reveals then how criticism was tempered by the religious beliefs of the critic and the publisher.