Spiritualism as a Religion.

Unfortunately this is not a complete list of Spiritualist Churches in the UK. The first county I came to there was certainly two missing from the list with one that had been going for >60yrs. I'd take that list with a pinch of Siberia to be honest, but it does give you a rough idea even if it is a flawed one, as to how many there may be.

G

Originally Posted by mattie

Wikipedia notes that Spiritualism is a belief system that the dead physical body’s nonphysical spirit has the ability to communicate w/ the living. Spiritualism reached its peak from the 1840s - 1920s in English speaking countries. Spiritualism was popular for about 1/2 a century. By the late 1880s the movement, which supported social activism w/ women’s rights & slavery abolition, was weakened due to medium fraud accusations.

Spiritualism’s beliefs (Principles) are, in general, that the spirit exists after the physical body’s death, a belief in spirit contact, personal responsibility, the spirit continues to learn & grow, a belief in God, & the natural world being an expression ‘Infinite Intelligence’ (God).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiritualism

In this list of Spiritualist churches worldwide (Google search), they are only listed in the UK, US, Canada, Australia, & New Zealand.
http://www.spiritualist.tv/churches/

Spiritualism churches are present in 26 of 50 US states. Directory of US Spiritualist churches:
http://www.nsac.org/Churches.aspx?id=4.0

Some may find Wikipedia authoritative but others approach with caution what's written there.

My preference is to speak about only what I understand and to question others with a wider understanding.

[Pagandell]

Originally Posted by Left Behind

Probably the best way to differentiate Spiritualism from Spirituality is that Spirituality is the belief or practice of emphasizing the spiritual, as opposed to the material, aspects of man. Spiritualism is the belief that the soul or spirit of man survives the death of the body, that it is possible for those still on earth to contact those who have passed beyond earthly life, and the practice of attempting to do so.All Spiritualists are spiritual but not all spiritual people are Spiritualists. Jim

Hi.
I allways say to people im into spiritual stuff, meaning I dont follow eny particular religion.
I believe spirit is guiding me now as I write.
The connotation of the word religion to me suggests rules, a hierarchy system and a very staid situation.
Im not saying you dont get that in spiritualist churches either .......

[Sarian]

We were always cautioned about Wikipedia in college by most professors as it wasn't always accurate and told also that it could be 'manipulated' easily which causes a lot of inaccuracies. We weren't even allowed to use it as a reference source, which was fine with me, because I never liked it.

For latecomers to this thread, and anyone else unfamiliar with the subject, I've reproduced the following simple explanation. It relates mostly to the UK and other countries may show differences.



Spiritualism is an officially registered, legally recognised, religion in a number of countries. It's also been described as a philosophy and a science.

Adherents of its teachings and guidance will often refer to themselves as Spiritualists. Some will be regular members of a church or centre. Others will rarely, or never, be seen at one.

Spiritualism (or Modern Spiritualism to signify its most-recent appearance) asks no belief or faith. It teaches that we all survive physical death into continuing life elsewhere. Abundant evidence of that has been provided through mediumship for over a century.

A medium is someone who facilitates communication between those alive here in this dimension and others who are still alive but in the 'spirit' dimensions. Where evidence of identity is obtained by a medium - as for example from a deceased relative or friend - it may be termed evidential mediumship.

Other mediums have facilitated communications from spiritually-evolved teachers and guides. Their guidance has provided a framework of understanding about what happens after death.

Teachings have been widely recorded in books and some were recorded electronically at the time they were given.

Thank you,Mac.

Very thoroughly stated and true to the last word.

Deepsea

Originally Posted by deepsea

Thank you,Mac.

Very thoroughly stated and true to the last word.

Deepsea

I try my best....

Indeed you do.

I'm so sorry,Mac.

The National Spiritualist Association of Churches defines it as 'a science, a philosophy and a religion'.

Originally Posted by mac

Some may find Wikipedia authoritative but others approach with caution what's written there.

Excellent point. I tend to use Wikipedia as a kind of springboard into different areas. I think it's best to approach any piece of Wikipedia with a firm 'research' question in mind and to take from the article that information of most use to you before widening your search; as you state, there are those who (mistakenly, I think) treat the site as authoritative when it can be far from such. But nonetheless, it is a fantastic resource.