wei'iz'pwr'iw 
 
 *A 'NT <a 
 
Safe View of Spiritism 
 For Catholics 
 
 By REV. JOSEPH C. SASIA, S. J. 
 
 Published with Approval of Ecclesiastical Authority. 
 
 FOR FREE DISTRIBUTION 
 
x 
 
 SANTA CLARA, CAL. 
 
A. M. D. G. 
 
 A Safe View of Spiritism 
 for Catholics 
 
 BY 
 
 REV. JOSEPH C. SASIA, S. J. 
 
 Published with Approval of Ecclesiastical Authority. 
 
 FOR FREE DISTRIBUTION. 
 
 1920 
 
 POPP & HOGAN, PRINTERS 
 San Jose, California. 
 
Office of the ARCHBISHOP, San Francisco, California. 
 Nihil Obstat, J. M. BYRNE, Censor Deputatus. 
 Imprimi Potest, MSGR. PATRICK I,. RYAN, Vicar General, 
 April 28, 1920. 
 
FOREWORD 
 
 The timeliness of this little pamphlet is due to the fact that 
 Spiritism is of late displaying an increased activity, a menace 
 to the religion, mental sanity, and moral character of Christian 
 believers. Its title shows that the appeal is chiefly directed to 
 Catholics ; but we feel inclined to think that non-Catholics also 
 may read it with profit. The Imprimatur kindly granted by 
 the Church Authority of this Archdiocese affords to the readers 
 a sure guarantee of the soundness of the views expressed in 
 its pages. To facilitate its diffusion among our people, a gen- 
 erous Catholic Lady of San Jose has kindly volunteered to 
 defray the expenses of its publication; hence it is intended to 
 be distributed free. Should this small brochure prove bene- 
 ficial, as we earnestly hope, to those that will peruse it, the 
 author will deem himself to be thus amply compensated for 
 the labor spent in writing it. 
 
 JOSEPH C. SASIA, S. J. 
 Librarian 
 
 Santa Clara University 
 June, 1920. 
 
 444162 
 
"Put you on the armor of God, that you may be 
 able to stand against the deceits of the devil. For 
 our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but 
 against principalities and powers, against the 
 rulers of the world of this darkness, against the 
 spirits of wickedness in the high places." 
 
 Kphesians VI, 11-12. 
 
A Safe View of Spiritism for Catholics. 
 
 FIRST ARTICLE 
 
 Introduction. 
 On the Paramount Importance of the Subject Treated. 
 
 I. 
 
 Spiritism is the name properly given to the belief that the 
 living can and do communicate with the spirits or souls of the 
 departed. Its main purpose is to ascertain what is their experi- 
 ence beyond the grave, and to find out whether it corresponds 
 with the teachings of Christianity both as regards this life and 
 the next. Another object is also to satisfy the curiosity of 
 inquirers concerning the knowledge of other secret things. 
 
 This practice of consulting the dead is generally carried out 
 through the intervention of the so-called mediums, living per- 
 sons, who are said to be more or less susceptible to the influ- 
 ence of the supposed spirits of the dead, and they act as inter- 
 mediaries in receiving and transmitting their communications. 
 We advisedly say generally, for, as will be shown in the sequel, 
 the presence of a medium is not absolutely necessary for the 
 evocation of spiritistic manifestations. 
 
 Though such performances are also designated by the word 
 spiritualism, yet, to avoid confusion, it is better to reserve said 
 term to signify the philosophical doctrine, which holds that 
 there exists a spiritual order of beings no less real than the 
 material, and in particular that the human soul is a spiritual 
 and therefore intelligent and immortal substance. 
 
 Modern spiritism within a generation has passed beyond the 
 limits of a merely popular movement, mainly prompted by 
 sentimental curiosity,, to serious inquiry, and as such has chal- 
 lenged the attention of the upholders of Christianity, and of 
 the scientific world. On this account it is becoming every day 
 unceasingly impossible for any educated person to dismiss the 
 subject of spiritism with mere contempt. Owing to these and 
 other considerations, a few articles have been prepared by the 
 writer for the readers of the Mercury Herald, which its able 
 editor has kindly consented to publish in four successive 
 issues. 
 
 The present introductory essay is intended to answer the 
 following preliminary questions: 
 
6 
 
 1 What are the chief spiritistic phenomena? 
 
 2 Should \v- accept many of them as true, genuine facts? 
 
 3 How can they be rationally accounted for? 
 
 Some belong to the physical or material order of things 
 while others must be ascribed to intellectual agencies, whatever 
 they may be. 
 
 1. Physical Facts. Objects, which could hardly be moved by 
 several men, are easily lifted and transported instantaneously 
 from remote distances by the medium. Musical instruments are 
 played without being touched by any one. Heavy bodies are 
 seen suspended and floating in the air without any visible sup- 
 port. The alteration of weight of bodies from eight pounds to 
 forty pounds, a fact testified by an eminent scientist, the late 
 Sir William Crookes, who wrote: "I had the entire manage- 
 ment of this experimental trial, employed an instrument of 
 great accuracy and took every care to exclude the possibility 
 of trickery." Dr. H. Carrington bears testimony to the oppo- 
 site phenomenon, the loss of weight. He writes: "During the 
 experiments in Milan it was found that the medium in about 
 twenty seconds had lost no less than seventeen pounds." 
 
 But what is considered the triumph of. spiritism is the won- 
 der of materialization, which consists in the actual appearance 
 in its full bodily form of a supposed discarnate soul, that moves 
 about clothed in a kind of silk drapery, speaks to the sitters in 
 audible whispers, and, after a time, gradually melts away 
 before their eyes. 
 
 The mediums give answers, which absolutely exceed the 
 well-known limits of their culture, they speak ancient and mod- 
 ern languages at the bidding of the experimenters, solve intri- 
 cate mathematical problems and perform other feats which 
 only a superior intelligence could accomplish. The following 
 is a case in point : 
 
 The great English astronomer, the late John F. Herschel, 
 at first called spiritism sheer quackery. A friend of his invited 
 him to a seance to be held in clear daylight so as to exclude 
 any attempt at trickery or jugglery of any kind. The medium 
 purposely chosen was a country woman utterly destitute of 
 education. As soon as she had fallen into the usual trance, 
 the astronomer, bent on unmasking her, questioned her con- 
 cerning certain intricate mathematical problems, which he him- 
 self had solved. She answered that the calculations of Her- 
 schel were wrong, and stated what corrections should be made. 
 
The astronomer laughed as an unbeliever. But what hap- 
 pened ? Some time after, going over his figures, he found that 
 the medium was right, and he was honest enough to acknowl- 
 edge his mistake in the public press. 
 
 But the wonderful feats of spiritism described above are 
 not the exclusive doings of the educated white race. The far 
 more marvelous achievements of the Fakirs of India prove 
 that the whites are mere beginners and are outdone by their 
 dusky brothers. For proof of this statement see the book enti- 
 tled ""Spiritism Unveiled", by D. I. Lanslot, 0. S. B., Vicar 
 Apostolic of Northern Transvaal. B. Herder, St. Louis, Mo. 
 
 If space permitted it, other similar instances might be 
 alleged; but the preceding ones will suffice for our purpose. 
 Are many such phenomena real facts? 
 
 2. As medicine has its quacks, science its impostors, com- 
 mercial trade its frauds, so spiritism may, at times, have been 
 found guilty of jugglery, and palmed off its trickery as genu- 
 ine wonders, thus deceiving unwary and gullible folks. But 
 this fact does not warrant sweeping denial of all the doings of 
 spiritism. Such a conclusion would be both illogical and 
 unfair, and would moreover brand as dishonest, mean impostors 
 a large multitude of fair-minded witnesses of spiritistic won- 
 ders. In spite of occasional exposure, there occur phenomena, 
 which cannot be ascribed to fraud of any sort. 
 
 This view is shared by men, whose knowledge and integrity 
 is altogether above suspicion. The experiments they relate as 
 eye witnesses, the severe tests, to which they have been put, 
 the many precautions taken to avoid all possible deception, 
 vouch with absolute certainity for the undeniable reality of 
 spiritistic marvels. Hence we fully endorse the view of Rev. 
 Herbert Thurston, S. J., expressed in his recent article on the 
 peril of spiritism, published in the London Weekly Universe : 
 
 "I believe that, in spite of much trickery, astounding man- 
 ifestations, which cannot be other than preternatural, casually 
 occur. It seems to me that no human testimony can avail to 
 establish any historical fact at all, if we are to set aside the 
 evidence for these happenings." 
 
 Instead, therefore, of cutting off the vexatious problem by 
 a sweeping, irrational denial, we deem it a wiser and braver 
 course to grapple with it, and endeavor to reach a reasonable 
 and satisfactory solution. Hence we cannot approve the con- 
 duct of certain modern scientists, who either deny the facts. 
 
8 
 
 which are shown to be true, or thrust them aside as unworthy 
 of serious investigation. 
 
 The Spiritists will admit, with all level-headed men, that 
 nobody can give what he has not, and that a reasonable cause 
 must be assigned of Spiritism, for to resort continually to 
 unknown causes as a justification of our ignorance, does not 
 offer a rational explanation accounting satisfactorily for facts, 
 the reality of which cannot be denied except by obstinate 
 skeptics. 
 
 3. In accordance with the claims of reason and common 
 sense, every event must have a cause ; every effect calls for an 
 efficient cause, force, or agent able to produce it. On this all 
 are agreed, the only practical difference in the various explana- 
 tions of the facts of spiritism consists in the nature of that 
 cause. 
 
 Among the possible causes, fairly covering the whole 
 ground, the following have been advocated by different writers, 
 and the disciples of several spiritistic schools : 
 
 1. Almighty God Himself through the ministry of the good 
 angels. 
 
 2. The extraordinary achievements of the medium when in 
 a trance. 
 
 3. Some mysterious natural agent or force, the theory of 
 some modern scientists. 
 
 4. The so-called discarnate souls of the dead as held by the 
 upholders of spiritism. 
 
 5. The evil spirits, Satan and the fallen angels called de- 
 mons, the firm belief, as will be proved, of all conservative 
 Christians, and of all the defenders of sacred Scripture. 
 
 For clearness sake we shall adopt in this discussion in our 
 next article the process of elimination and allege several co- 
 gent reasons why, after rejecting as unsatisfactory all other 
 causes, the spiritistic phenomena must be attributed only, and 
 exclusively to devilish intervention. This view fully justifies 
 the saying of St. Peter Chrysologus: "Qui jocatur cum diabolo, 
 non gaudebit cum Christo. " "He who meddles with the devil 
 will not rejoice with Christ." 
 
 It shall be our object to draw from reliable sources any such 
 material as will be deemed necessary to our purpose, and also 
 to take into consideration the current various systems of inter- 
 pretation, which have been devised with a view to an explana- 
 tion of the phenomena in question. The facts shown to be tak- 
 
9 
 
 ing place in connection with recent experimental research are 
 many and wonderful, and they present problems of the greatest 
 importance and significance. It is only the earnest r unpre- 
 judiced study of them, in the light of divine revelation and 
 sound reason, that can lead the inquiring mind to a discovery 
 of the real agents responsible for the production of the spirit- 
 istic marvels, and thus enable it to determine the question as 
 to the lawfulness and morality of the practice of spiritism. 
 
 SECOND ARTICLE 
 
 The True, Real Cause of Certain Spiritistic Phenomena. 
 
 II. 
 
 The purpose I have in view in penning these articles is to 
 set forth as clearly and concisely as possible the orthodox doc- 
 trine on Spiritism; a doctrine held not only by Catholics, but 
 also by all consistent believers in historic Christianity, where 
 alone we find the true standard, by which the momentous 
 problems presented by that so-called new religion can be fairly 
 and adequately solved, and the inquiring mind led to the detec- 
 tion of the real agents responsible for the spiritistic marvels. 
 
 Correct View. 
 
 Such a knowledge, practically necessary in our days, will 
 enable the reader to pronounce a correct judgment on the mat- 
 ter at issue, and on the teachings of the two leading spiritistic 
 lights, Sir Oliver Lodge and Conan Doyle, a prominent English 
 physician. The latter, in a recent public lecture, was bold 
 enough to give to his audience the horrible advice that all 
 should become spiritistic mediums ; an advice, which the medi- 
 cal profession, that respects itself, will, no doubt, indignantly 
 repudiate in the interest of health, religion and morality, men- 
 aced by Spiritism, as shown later on. 
 
 The severe tests, to which many spiritistic facts have been 
 put and the absolute trustworthiness of the experimenters 
 vouch with certainty for their undeniable reality. It is now 
 my task to pass in review each of the different causes pro- 
 posed as explanatory of the doings of Spiritism, so as to ascer- 
 tain to which of them they should be ascribed. 
 
 Some people, struck by the astounding wonders they wit- 
 nessed at the seances, thought that they were the work of the 
 Deity. Hence the need of the inquiry: 
 
10 
 
 (1) Are the phenomena of Spiritism to be attributed to 
 God? 
 
 The simple proposal of the question suggests the answer, 
 which is an emphatic negative. They cannot be ascribed to 
 God's immediate agency, who certainly is not to be supposed 
 acting as a mere tool in the hands of His creatures, to obey 
 their summons and operate wonders at their bidding to gratify 
 their morbid curiosity. 
 
 Moreover, has not Almighty God forbidden, under the sever- 
 est penalties both temporal and eternal, the superstitious prac- 
 tice of consulting the dead? The Lord thus spoke to the Israel- 
 ites through the prophet Moses: " Neither let it be found 
 among you any one that consulteth pythonic spirits, or that 
 seeketh the truth from the dead. For the Lord abhorreth these 
 things." Deuteronomy, xviii, 11-12. 
 
 Protestant Testimony. 
 
 It is gratifying to see the orthodox doctrine fully endorsed 
 by the following Protestant testimony : More than thirty years 
 ago, when modern Spiritism was in its infancy, the eminent 
 Presbyterian divine, De Witt Talmage, inveighed against it 
 with all the force of his eloquence: "What does God think of 
 all these delusions? He thinks so severely that He never speaks 
 of them but with livid thunders of indignation ; for all that do 
 these things are an abomination unto the Lord. After that be 
 a Spiritist, if you dare. ' ' 
 
 The attitude of the Catholic Church towards the practice of 
 Spiritism is uncompromising and unmistakable, as it appears 
 from the two following decrees of the Holy Office : " To call up 
 the souls of the dead is a deception absolutely unlawful, heret- 
 ical, and scandalous. " Approved by Pius IX in 1858. To the 
 question whether it is lawful to be present at any Spiritistic 
 communication, even with no intention of dealing with wicked 
 spirits, the answer was an emphatic negative and bears the 
 sanction of the reigning Pontiff, Benedict XV, April 27, 1917. 
 
 Some wiseacres, who know as much about Spiritism as the 
 average American about Oriental languages, think that the 
 best solution of the vexed problem is simply to ridicule it. 
 Our answer is that such an offhand explanation, to say nothing 
 at present of its glaring absurdity, throws an impertinent 
 reflection on the policy of the Catholic Church, who, instead of 
 merely ridiculing Spiritism, thought it wise to denounce it, and 
 
1 1 
 
 assign the reasons for its condemnation. 
 
 (2) Are the facts of Spiritism to be assigned to good 
 angels ? 
 
 We take here for granted what Catholics and the generality 
 of Christians hold concerning the holy angels, who, at their 
 trial, remained faithful and loyal to their Sovereign Creator, 
 and are now partakers of heavenly happiness. Being perfectly 
 united with their Lord, and entirely submissive to His holy will, 
 they never use their power in doing what God hates and abso- 
 lutely forbids. They fight with us against the common ene- 
 mies, Satan and the rebel angels, the battles of the Lord, Whose 
 design they accomplish in our behalf. Hence it is certain that 
 they have nothing to do with the abominable performances of 
 the Spiritistic seances. 
 
 (3) Shall we say that the mediums themselves are the 
 authors of the astounding feats of Spiritism ? 
 
 Unscientific Explanations. 
 
 A number of scientists, particularly if materialists, deter- 
 mined to exclude anything preternatural, and much more the 
 supernatural, confronted with the undeniable facts of Spiritism 
 have devised explanations highly discreditable to science itself, 
 because both silly and absurd. Hence they need only be stated 
 to be refuted by any man of elementary knowledge and sound 
 common sense. Their opinions differ so widely, and are at 
 times so contradictory that it seems quite useless to examine 
 them. A few specimens will suffice. 
 
 Dr. William Crookes speaks thus : "In some individuals 
 acting as mediums there is an organism that enables them to 
 work all the spiritistic wonders. It is called the Psychic force/' 
 
 Dr. Rickert writes: "The intellectual marvels witnessed at 
 seances are the result of the astounding knowledge hidden in 
 the mind of mediums, and exhibited by them when in a trance." 
 
 Others, especially the materialists of the medical fraternity, 
 attribute all those phenomena to fits of hysteria and neurasthe- 
 nia or to a mysterious fluid emanating from the entranced 
 medium. All such and similar theories are shown to be false 
 by the fact admitted by the Spiritists themselves that all 
 mediums, even the most clever, are simply instrumental chan- 
 nels of communication, entirely subject to the control and 
 caprice of the real, though invisible authors of the phenomena 
 in question. It is well known that, at times, such communiea- 
 
12 
 
 tions are suddenly interrupted; what becomes then of the 
 psychic force, the latent knowledge and the mysterious fluid of 
 the medium? 
 
 According to some theorists the action alone of the medium 
 suffices to account for all spiritistic phenomena. There exists 
 in man, they say, an astral substance of a nature between mat- 
 ter and spirit, which, if detached from the body of the medium 
 affords a means of communication with the spirits. Medium- 
 ship therefore consists in the ability of a person to detach from 
 his body this astral substance. Of the existence of this strange 
 being as well as of the sublimal self, and automatism, the so- 
 called natural causes of spiritistic phenomena, not a shred of 
 proof is adduced. As to the astral substance suffice it to say 
 that a being, which is neither spirit nor matter, is simply a non- 
 entity. 
 
 (4) Are the phenomena of Spiritism the work of some 
 natural force or agency hitherto unknown to science ? 
 
 A Theory Upset. 
 
 The advocates of such view reason thus: "We do not know 
 all the forces of organic and inorganic beings. Now, since 
 science, always progressive, may discover in the course of time 
 as a stern reality what we at present ignore, who knows but 
 in the near future, a hidden natural agent may be discovered 
 and the now mysterious phenomena fully explained?" 
 
 We freely grant that the future may have wonderful sur- 
 prises in store for us. In fact, what was considered an impos- 
 sibility a century ago, is now a reality, wireless telegraphy. 
 There is, however, at hand a principle to guide us, which is 
 admitted by all, namely, that no effect can be superior to the 
 cause producing it. The unbiased inquirer cannot fail to see 
 that blind natural forces are utterly unable to give rise to 
 effects superior to themselves such as all the spiritistic marvels, 
 the work not of blind, necessary agents, but of intelligent and 
 free causes. 
 
 Common sense tells us that to speak different languages, 
 both ancient and modern, to solve correctly intricate mathemat- 
 ical problems, to diagnose successfully complicated diseases 
 cannot be the work of any natural forces however powerful 
 they may be. 
 
 As recourse to as yet unknown physical or natural agents 
 is the chief argument of our opponents, we deem it advisable 
 
13 
 
 to demonstrate at greater length its absolute worthlessness 
 from a philosophical point of view. The answer is derived 
 from the Civilta Cattolica, a roman semi-monthly production 
 designated by Mr. E. Preuss as the leading Catholic review of 
 the world. The writer in an article on Spiritism reasons thus : 
 According to the present order of Providence, manifested by 
 experience and observation, whatever force or agent acts within 
 the limits of physical nature possesses the following fixed and 
 unchangeable characters: 
 
 First. It is determined to one only particular effect Thus 
 heat expands, and cold contracts, and the opposite can never 
 occur. 
 
 Secondly. It is constant and uniform in its operations, for 
 every natural force is governed by fixed, invariable laws. 
 
 Thirdly. When the conditions required for its activity are 
 present, it necessarily acts. Apply a flame to powder and the 
 explosion is inevitable. 
 
 Fourthly. In its operations it is entirely destitute of liberty 
 or choice. Can we say that a lighted candle is free to burn or 
 extinguish itself? 
 
 As none of these conditions are verified in the spiritistic 
 phenomena, the observer is logically drawn to the conclusion 
 that they cannot be abscribed to any known or unknown purely 
 natural agency or force. 
 
 In fact, first, in the spiritistic seances are seen substantially 
 different effects such as the physical, psychical, physiological 
 and psychological wonders. 
 
 Secondly, there is no uniformity of action witnessed, for 
 every operation has its own peculiar method, every method its 
 varieties, and every variety its exceptions, all effects, which 
 obey no constant, fixed law. 
 
 Third, when everything is ready for a spiritistic seance, are 
 the expected manifestations always forthcoming at the bidding 
 of the experimenter, or at the choice of the medium? By no 
 means, for, at times, the performance must be either prolonged, 
 or interrupted, or indefinitely postponed, on account of the 
 caprice of the agents at work, whoever they be. 
 
 Fourthly, from what has just been said, the intellectual free 
 action of the invisible agents is patent to all. Therefore as all 
 the characters of the spiritistic phenomena are essentially dif- 
 ferent from those of the physical, natural forces, it stands to 
 
14 
 
 reason to conclude that they cannot be attributed to any nat- 
 ural agent. 
 
 (5) Should we then agree with the Spiritists and ascribe 
 the facts in question to the souls of the dead ? 
 
 Here also we must answer in the negative. The principal 
 reason is because such souls are utterly unable to perform 
 either the physical or the intellectual deeds witnessed at the 
 seances. In fact, all physical or mechanical performances 
 require action on matter, which is naturally impossible to dis- 
 carnate souls. As St. Thomas and many Catholic philosophers 
 hold, pure spirits, whether angels or demons, not being determ- 
 ined to animate any particular bodily organism, have full 
 power, though under God's control, to act on matter and work 
 the material feats of Spiritism. 
 
 Human souls, on the contrary, when once separated from 
 their body by death, retain no further power of action on mat- 
 ter. Neither can the souls of the dead operate any of the intel- 
 lectual wonders; for the astounding answers given entirely 
 exceed the well known limits of the mental capacity, which 
 they possessed when living. 
 
 Have the Spiritists ever proved that the mere fact of death 
 transforms persons of average intelligence into prodigies of 
 learning? Or shall we suppose that God Himself will infuse 
 into departed souls the extraordinary knowledge displayed at 
 the seances, and thus enable men to consult the dead and to do 
 the very thing which He Himself so rigorously condemns? 
 
 Moreover, the trivialities, obscenities, blasphemies, and, at 
 times, the expressions of hatred against the sitters are notorious 
 and the spiritists themselves deplore their occurrence. Can 
 these abominal things be said to be the work of departed souls, 
 whose moral integrity in life, in some cases well known to the 
 audience, makes them utterly incredible and absurd? That the 
 astounding communications received at the seances do not 
 come from the dead, but, from the fallen spirits, the demons, we 
 learn from the spiritists themselves. Allan Kardec formerly 
 M. Rivail, the French standard bearer of the new cult, in his 
 book on mediums, writes that "any question may be asked at 
 the seance. If it is beneath the superior dignity of a superior 
 spirit to answer, an inferior spirit will always be at hand to 
 satisfy the curiosity of the inquirer," although, he naively re- 
 marks, they are not conspicuous for truthfulness. 
 
 We here fully endorse the words of J. Godfrey Raupert : 
 
15 
 
 "Many of the best informed Catholic Theologians maintain 
 that, when all natural explanations of the phenomena in ques- 
 tion, such as fraud, nerves, the possibilities of telepathy, etc., 
 have been allowed for, there are phenomena, which must be 
 ascribed to the action of evil spirits fallen angels masquer- 
 ading as the souls of the dead. ' ' The Fortnightly Review, May 
 1, 1920. 
 
 Among the many authorities that could be alleged to main- 
 tain the Catholic view the following will suffice for the 
 present : 
 
 Authorities for Catholic View 
 
 The famous French astronomer, Flammarion, thus replies 
 to the Spiritists: "Their doctrine is far from being demon- 
 strated. The innumerable observations, which I have collected 
 during more than forty years, all prove to me the contrary. 
 No satisfactory identification has ever been made. That human 
 souls survive the destruction of the body by death, I have not 
 a shadow of doubt. But that they manifest themselves by the 
 processes employed in Spiritistic seances, there has been no 
 absolute proof." 
 
 (6) Are the doings of Spiritism the work of Satan and of 
 his companions, the fallen angels? 
 
 After excluding all the preceding explanations as altogether 
 unsatisfactory there remains but one cause that fully accounts 
 for the many spiritistic phenomena, that cannot be ascribed 
 to mere jugglery, and that is the presence and action of wicked 
 angels, the demons. 
 
 But here I am confronted with an apparently unsurmount- 
 able difficulty and it is this : Certain men, who are supposed to 
 be taken seriously, do not believe at all in the existence of 
 wicked angels. Speaking from the editorial pulpit they told 
 us, some time ago, that Satan is a myth, and that it is impossi- 
 ble for believers in God to admit the existence of any so-called 
 demons. We must be quite sure that there exist no such beings 
 in creation, for they said it themselves. In fact they advised 
 Mr. Stainton Moses, a famous medium "to cease to be per- 
 plexed about thoughts of imagined devils, for there is no devil 
 or prince of devils such as theology has feigned." 
 
 But as this was said by lying spirits, we shall have to admit 
 the contrary as true and still believe with all Christians worthy 
 of the name in the existence and the wicked doings of demons. 
 
16 
 
 Glancing over the Bible's contents, from Genesis to the 
 Apocalypse, we find not less than fifty references to Satan and 
 the rebel angels. 
 
 Christ's Miracle 
 
 Jesus Christ gave evidence of His Divine power by the 
 expulsion of demons from hundreds of possessed and obsessed 
 persons. On the theory of the non-existence of such creatures, 
 Christ's miracles just mentioned were a huge fraud, and He 
 actually played the hypocrite by pretending to expel devils 
 that did not exist. No believer in the Bible can deny the 
 existence of the wicked spirits, the devils, without stultifying 
 himself. 
 
 In the days of the first Reformers (1600), when so many 
 traditional doctrines were rudely called in question, the belief 
 in the existence of fallen angels was found so deeply rooted in 
 the Christian conscience of the Faithful that no attempt was 
 made to deny that truth. 
 
 Dr. H. Carrington has this to say on the subject: "If any- 
 thing could make me believe in the doctrine of evil, lying 
 spirits, it would be the sittings I had, when Mrs. Piper acted as 
 a medium. I then gained the distinct impression that, instead 
 of the souls of the personages she claimed to be present, I was 
 dealing with exceedingly deceitful intelligences." 
 
 Stainton Moses, quoted above, giving his own experience, 
 said of the agent at work in a seance : * * It bespeaks a deeply 
 evil nature. Such an impostor acting with an air of sincerity 
 must be Satan clothed in light.'* 
 
 Catholics can have no hesitation in their belief in the exist- 
 ence and nefarious activities of demons. After Holy Mass, 
 celebrated daily in countless churches throughout the world, 
 by order of the Vicar of Christ, a public prayer is recited to 
 implore the divine protection, and the special assistance of the 
 Archangel, St. Michael, against the malice and the snares of 
 Satan and the other evil spirits who prowl about the world 
 seeking the ruin of souls. 
 
 Several other reasons will be adduced in our next article, 
 in which we shall speak of the many fatal dangers of Spiritism 
 to Religion, health and morality. 
 
 It has then been shown that devilish intervention is the only 
 true cause of all real Spiritistic phenomena. 
 
 This conclusion is based on the teaching of all the leading 
 Catholic theologians and moralists of the day. Their doctrine. 
 
1 >J 
 
 both dogmatic and moral, constitutes the sacred science, whose 
 principles, founded on God's own Revelation, are unchangeable 
 and form the supreme standard of truth and morality. Hence 
 we cannot accept the view of a recent Catholic writer who says 
 that "the theological verdict on Spiritism should be adjusted to 
 the new order of things." We rather think that the opposite 
 course is far safer. Therefore modern scientific investigators, 
 if they wish to steer clear of erroneous views, should be careful 
 not to advance any statement that runs counter to revealed 
 truth. 
 
 THIRD ARTICLE 
 
 The Serious Dangers of Spiritism. 
 
 Among the wise maxims taught mankind by. their divine 
 Master, Jesus Christ, is that which enables them to distinguish 
 at once truth from error, right from wrong, and good from evil. 
 It is the gospel test: "By their fruits you shall know them." 
 Matthew vii, 16. We have the best possible authorities for 
 resorting on occasion to this unerring principle, viz. : the dictate 
 of reason, the unanimous consent of men, and the living voice 
 of God's incarnate Son. By applying this infallible rule to 
 the system of Spiritism and its agents we shall be able to know 
 what we should think of them, and to determine what ought to 
 be our attitude in their regard. 
 
 There are three most precious gifts placed by the beneficent 
 Creator within the possession and reach of man. First, his 
 just and correct relation to his Sovereign Maker and Lord 
 through the knowledge and practice of religious, Christian 
 faith. Secondly, the normal condition and operation of his 
 mental faculties, intellect and free will, through which he can 
 attend to and reach the end of his earthly existence, his heav- 
 enly appointed destiny, the fulfillment of God's holy will in this 
 world, and the attainment of eternal happiness in the next. 
 Thirdly, the healthy, faultless state of his moral conduct. 
 
 Here we pertinently ask : What is the influence of spiritistic 
 communications on the three above mentioned gifts? God's 
 authority, the verdict of reason and the sad lesson of experi- 
 ence compel us to say that it is fatal in the extreme to them all. 
 In fact, Spiritism perverts in the individual experimenters and 
 the mediums the teachings of Christian faith ; it is a menace to 
 the mental faculties, whose untrammeled exercise is needed to 
 
18 
 
 out and secure our eternal salvation, it is utterly destruct- 
 ive of man's moral life. 
 
 The proofs we are about to allege will fully justify us in 
 concluding that the complete wreck of men's highest gifts both 
 natural and supernatural is the inevitable result of the prac- 
 tices of Spiritism in its worst phase. From their fruits then we 
 shall learn what judgment we ought to form of the agents that 
 produce them. 
 
 1. To begin with, what do the advocates of Spiritism teach 
 us concerning Christianity and its Founder? 
 
 Let the Spiritists tell it themselves. 
 
 Sir Oliver Lodge : ' ' The traditional teaching of Christianity 
 will have to undergo a radical transformation." 
 
 Dr. Conan Doyle : ' ' Christianity as a moral system I hold 
 to be as pernicious as it is absurd. ' ' 
 
 Stainton-Moses : ' ' Christ was a mere man. Through the reve- 
 lation of the spirits we have lost a God-man; but we have 
 gained a model man, all but divine." 
 
 Allan Karder: "The third revelation of the Son of God is 
 that announced by the spirits who are the mouthpiece of 
 heaven." 
 
 As shown in other spiritistic works, scarcely a truth of the 
 Christian religion remains intact, for they reject the fall of 
 man, the fact of redemption, Christ's miracles, His resurrec- 
 tion, the sacraments of the Church, the doctrine of eternal 
 reward to the just, and everlasting punishment to the wicked, 
 the inspiration of the Bible and other fundamental truths too 
 numerous to mention. 
 
 Spiritism is a new Gospel superseding that of traditional 
 Christianity. It is professedly the religion of the laity as 
 opposed to sacerdotalism and the spiritual authority, which it 
 antagonizes. 
 
 S. George Stock: "Christianity has spent its force, and 
 Spiritism, another revelation, has succeeded it a revelation 
 suited to the needs of the time." 
 
 It would be a huge mistake to believe that the new religion, 
 destined to supplant Christianity, root and branch, forms a 
 consistent, coherent, harmonious system of doctrines, for noth- 
 ing is farther from the truth. All is contradiction, chaos and 
 confusion. It is often found that what one spirit emphatically 
 asserts, another just as emphatically denies. Nothing worse 
 could be expected from the inmates of the infernal region, 
 
19- 
 
 where, as the prophet Job tells us "no order but everlasting 
 horror dwelleth, ' ' x. 22. There is, however, one point on which 
 they all agree, their hatred of Christian truth. 
 
 After quoting the startling views of Spiritists on Christi- 
 anity and its Founder, shall we undertake the task of confut- 
 ing them ? No, by no means, and this for two weighty reasons. 
 First, because they are only copying from old and modern 
 unbelievers or infidels assertions and assumptions refuted by 
 both Catholic and Protestant apologists hundreds of times, as 
 shown by the controversial works that fill the libraries of the 
 civilized world. Secondly, because no one can be reasonably 
 expected to answer charges unsupported by any proof. The 
 ipse dixit of Sir Oliver Lodge and Dr. Conan Doyle, though 
 they both hail from proud Albion, produces no conviction on 
 the mind of the truth-seeking American people. When the 
 Spiritists will offer us better credentials than the contradictory 
 doctrines of their teachers, it will be time enough for us to sub- 
 mit them to a searching examination so as to ascertain what 
 they are worth. 
 
 Speaking at the beginning of this article of the destructive 
 character of the spiritistic religion, I said that it is calculated 
 to pervert the principles of Christian faith in individuals. This 
 is unhappily true of those who, in defiance of God's explicit 
 prohibition, indulge in practices forbidden under the severest 
 penalties. But as to historic Christianity, which, I maintain, 
 is identical with Catholicism, the new-fangled revelation of the 
 Spiritists, can no more affect it, than it can efface the sun from 
 the heavens. This is the Christianity that has stood the test of 
 the wise Jewish sage, Gamaliel who, nineteen hundred years 
 ago, in Jerusalem defended the Apostles arrayed before the 
 council, who were threatened with death for preaching the 
 Christian faith, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He spoke thus to 
 the assembled judges: "I say to you, refrain from these men 
 and let them alone ; for if this work be of men, it will come to 
 nought; but if it be of God, you cannot overthrow it." Acts, v. 
 38, 39. 
 
 Now after the lapse of nearly twenty centuries, which wit- 
 nessed its unceasing combats and its perpetual victories, we 
 may complete the argument and say: That work, the Christian 
 religion, has not been overthrown, therefore it is the work of 
 God. Applying the same test to the Spiritistic cult we do not 
 hesitate to predict its downfall ; it shall sooner or later come 
 
20 
 
 to nought, for it is the work not of God but of Satan. This 
 new relevation ushered in by spirit messages, through the 
 entranced mediums, is a gigantic delusion, a huge fraud 
 imposed upon a world which has become estranged from Christ, 
 and has lapsed into a new form of paganism. 
 
 All the truths of Christianity are so perfectly coherent, 
 harmonious and consistent as to form one complete whole. 
 None of them can be rejected without shaking the entire 
 structure. Divine Revelation, God's masterpiece, resembles an 
 arch so constructed that all the greater stones must be key- 
 stones. Displace one of them, and the whole fabric falls to 
 pieces, and crumbles into dust. Hence it is -a dangerous thing 
 to meddle and tinker with revealed truth. It has been said that 
 Christ is the solution of all difficulties. Deny his Divinity and 
 all the difficulties and mysteries of the present life remain 
 unsolved. Say, Jesus Christ is God, and all is intelligible. If 
 He is not God, then Christianity is a fraud, a mockery, and its 
 Founder the greatest impostor that ever appeared on the face 
 of the earth. There is no other alternative, no middle ground. 
 
 Mr. Farmer, a staunch spiritist, in his work entitled, "A 
 New Basis of Life", p. 36, is bold enough to assert that "Spir- 
 itualism (Spiritism) is a renewal of Christ's teachings, and a 
 reappearance of the signs and wonders, which, He promised, 
 should distinguish the true believer. ' ' Nothing is further from 
 the truth than this arrogant pretention. Not one of the many 
 miracles of Christ has ever been reproduced in any spiritistic 
 performance, that is a genuine miracle, surpassing the power of 
 all created agents, and requiring the intervention of God's 
 omnipotence. Only such prodigies can bear testimony to 
 heavenly revealed truth, and prove that religion to be divine in 
 whose behalf they have been performed. Miracle accredit the 
 miracle-worker and establish his credibility only when they 
 are such as can be performed only by the finger of God. If 
 they are such marvels as can be done by a created pOAver, or by 
 a lying spirit, they prove nothing as to the credibility of their 
 author. Prodigies, therefore, though superhuman, which do 
 not transcend the power of created intelligence, do not accredit 
 the agent who performs them, particularly when the agent can 
 and does lie and deceive. We entirely reject, therefore, the pre- 
 tended identity between the doings of Spiritism and the Gospel 
 miracles wrought by Christ as witnesses to his Divine Mission, 
 and the truth of His message. 
 
--21 
 
 2. Another evil fruit of Spiritism. 
 
 The mental dangers attending spiritistic practices are recog- 
 nized by men well qualified to speak with authority on the 
 present subject. Dr. L. S. Forbes Winslow in his work on 
 " Spritualistic Madness" (1877) wrote as follows: 
 
 ''Thousands of unfortunate people are at present confined 
 in lunatic asylums on account of having tampered with the 
 supernatural." And quoting an American journal he goes on 
 to say. "Not a week passes, in which we do not hear that some 
 of these unfortunates destroy themselves by suicide, or are 
 removed to a lunatic asylum. The mediums often manifest 
 signs of an abnormal condition of their mental faculties, and 
 among certain of them are found unequivocal indications of a 
 true demoniacal possession. The evil spreads rapidly and it 
 will produce in a few years frightful results." 
 
 But as all Christians must admit, by far the greatest danger 
 to which spiritistic practitioners expose themselves, is that of 
 incurring the eternal loss of their soul. For if insanity over- 
 takes them when guilty of some grievous offense deserving 
 endless punishment, and they were to depart from this life 
 before recovering the normal use of reason, whose exercise is 
 absolutely necessary for acts of worthy repentance, their doom 
 is sealed. 
 
 Among the other evil effects attributed to spiritistic per- 
 formances the following have been found to occur, particularly 
 in the case of mediums: shattering of the bodily constitution, 
 the impairing of the mental faculties, ever growing propensity 
 to unlawful acts, paralyzing the energy of the will, whose 
 power is gradually weakened, and is finally surrendered to the 
 control of invisible agencies. Persistent temptations to suicide 
 on the plea of joining the happy spirits in the great beyond, are 
 also noted. Here again we conclude : if a tree is known by its 
 fruit, what should we think of a system and of practices lead- 
 ing to such fatal consequences as are pointed out in hundreds 
 of volumes on this subject and are summarized in the present 
 article ? 
 
 3. Immorality is another pernicious evil traceable to spir- 
 itistic doing. Dr. B. F. Hatch, an eminent American physician, 
 former husband of the late Mrs. Cora V. Hatch, a once famous 
 medium operating in several cities of the United States, writes : 
 "The extensive opportunities, which I have had of studying 
 the nature and results of Spiritism justify me, I think, in laying 
 
22 
 
 just claims to being a competent witness on the matter in ques- 
 tion. I have known many, whose integrity of character ren- 
 dered them worthy examples to all around, but who on becom- 
 ing mediums and giving up their individuality, that is the con- 
 trol of their will, also gave up every sense of honor and 
 decency. There are thousands of high minded spiritists who 
 will agree with me that it is no slander to say that the incul- 
 cation of no doctrine has ever shown such disastrous moral 
 results as the practice of Spiritism, I stand appalled before the 
 revelation of its awful realities. In my inquiries I have been 
 able to count up over 70 mediums, most of whom have aban- 
 doned their conjugal relations." 
 
 Too much emphasis cannot be laid upon the wrecked homes, 
 the ruined lives, the unbalanced minds, the blasted careers, and 
 the lost peace and happiness of those who become involved in 
 this most insidious of all modern perils, when all moral respon- 
 sibility is deadened by indulgence in the lower passions and 
 the operations of the will are well nigh paralyzed. It is a sad 
 fact proved by experience that when the evil spirits take pos- 
 session of human individuals, they employ them almost at will 
 for their wicked purposes and compel them to write the foulest 
 things, against which their miserable victims rebel but in vain. 
 And yet we are expected to believe that it is by such disastrous 
 methods that we are made the recipients of a new revelation 
 superior to the Gospel of Christ. The answer to such hollow, 
 proud boast has been given nearly twenty centuries ago by St. 
 Paul when he thus wrote to the Galatians: "But though we, 
 or an angel from heaven preach a Gospel to you besides that 
 which we have preached to you, let him be anathema." Gal. 1. 8. 
 And what should we say of this new Spiritistic Gospel preached 
 not by an angel from heaven but by Satan and his rebel follow- 
 ers from the abyss of hell ? Of all such as lend countenance to 
 the satanic propaganda as mediums, experimenters and sitters 
 spoke the Divine Master when He said, as we read in His 
 Gospel: "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of 
 your father you will do." John viii, 44. 
 
 I purposely refrain from mentioning other unsavory details 
 lest I should offend the delicate sense of some readers. In this 
 connection it is hardly necessary for me to assure the perusers 
 of this paper that in alleging the above quotations no judgment 
 of individual Spiritists is intended on our part. To judge 
 men's secret actions belongs to God alone, and no man should 
 
23 
 
 dare to assume it. But the public systems or doctrinal teach- 
 ings, to which men give adherence, are no secrets of the heart, 
 and may therefore be examined and criticized. 
 
 We here recall the wise and charitable motto of St. Augus- 
 tine : "Love men, but kill their errors." "Diligite homines, sed 
 interficite errores." 
 
 In reliable works on the present subject I came across other 
 startling accounts of the Spiritistic communications. In Utah, 
 they defend polygamy. Where abortion and birth control are 
 common, they declare such practices lawful and an hygienic 
 obligation. At some sittings, in the presence of ladies, the 
 spirits utter villainous, indecent words suggestive of evil. At 
 times they have no other aim but to harm. As they themselves 
 suffer, even when, by God's permission, they are out of hell, so 
 they delight in tormenting men, whom they hate, and whose 
 lot they envy for their being destined to fill in heaven the 
 thrones left vacant by the rebel angels. 
 
 To prove once more that the invisible, free and intellectual 
 agencies at work in the spiritistic seances are not the souls of 
 the departed, but the wicked, fallen angels, the demons, I call 
 the reader's attention to the following remarks : Can we reason- 
 ably suppose that the spirits of the dead, once our dear com- 
 panions in life, take delight in deceiving the living? Is it con- 
 ceivable that the souls of the departed, our dear relatives and 
 friends will expose their surviving parents, their brothers and 
 sisters to the irreligious, immoral and physical dangers 
 described above? 
 
 Among the natural cravings of the human heart is the 
 desire to know something certain about the unseen world. As 
 Cardinal Gibbons w r ell remarks: "The only serene question- 
 ing about the thrilling existence of the Hereafter is that of the 
 man, whose Faith is sure, whose grasp of divine Revelation is 
 firm and steady. There is no barrier between him and his God, 
 no wall of mystery and uncertainty about his dear and noble 
 dead." The Communion of Saints has always been an essential 
 part of the Catholic Creed from the very dawn of Christianity. 
 The Church firmly believes in the possibility of communica- 
 tion with the departed that have died in the Lord, whether they 
 be already basking in the light of the beatific vision, or still 
 detained in the purifying region of Purgatory. But such com- 
 muning and interchange of spiritual benefits is carried on by 
 
24 
 
 the Faithful in a manner utterly at variance with the dangerous 
 and often fatal methods of Spiritism. 
 
 Hence desire for knowledge concerning the departed and of 
 the secrets of the great beyond does not at all disturb the 
 earnest, devout Christian, who knows with certainty that his 
 faith contains God's own Eevelation regarding the future life 
 and the immortality of his soul. But alas ! the unhappy multi- 
 tude that is destitute of the blessed, cheering hope founded on 
 the religion of Jesus Christ, yearn for knowledge of the next 
 world, for some means of bridging over the chasm that yawns 
 between the living and the dead. They foolishly imagine that 
 a satisfactory answer to their cravings is given by Spiritism. 
 Poor creatures! They are the victims of a huge illusion, the 
 sports of lying devils. They ask for the bread of truth, and 
 they receive the stone of error. Our earnest prayer is that 
 they may look elsewhere for reliable instruction and genuine 
 consolation, that before it is too late, they may thus escape 
 the fatal dangers of those, of whom St. Paul spoke in his first 
 letter to Timothy: "Some shall depart from the faith, giving 
 heed to spirits of error and doctrines of devils." T, IV, 1. 
 
 Authorities Cited 
 
 To assure the readers of my articles on Spiritism that 
 the views expressed therein are thoroughly sound, orthodox and 
 in full harmony with the teachings of modern Catholic philoso- 
 phers and theologians approved by the Catholic Church, I here 
 append the list of the authors T consulted. Several of them 
 taught in the Papal Gregorian university of Rome. Their text- 
 books on philosophy, moral theology and canon law are used 
 in the leading universities and seminaries of Europe and Amer- 
 ica. If the doctrine they teach on Spiritism, which I repro- 
 duced, is not orthodox and Catholic I should like to know what 
 it is. 
 
 Philosophers Schiffini, Palmieri, Urraburu, Ferretti. 
 
 Professors of Dogmatic Theology Petavius, Perrone, Car- 
 dinal Mazzella. 
 
 Canonist Ojetti. 
 
 Moral theologians Ballerini, Buceroni, Genicot, Noldin, 
 Lehmkuhl, Slater. 
 
 They are all members of the Society of Jesus, with whose 
 works I happen to be fairly acquainted. 
 
25 
 
 FOURTH ARTICLE 
 
 The Natural Endowments of the Fallen Angels. 
 
 These supplementary notes are published for the purpose 
 of strengthening the arguments advanced in the three previous 
 articles, issued in this journal, when the writer, not to trespass 
 on the space allowed, found it necessary to be brief and con- 
 cise. 
 
 Note 1. Necromancy and Spiritism Identical. 
 
 The attempt to hold intercourse with the inhabitants of the 
 unseen world, is not, as some seem to imagine, a practice pecu- 
 liar to these modern times. History proves that it was resorted 
 to in all the epochs of antiquity, in civilized as well as in bar- 
 barous nations. It is only in the method of evoking those man- 
 ifestations, that any difference can be said to exist between 
 the practice of olden times and that of our days. The former 
 superstition was designated under the name of Necromancy. 
 This latter term, as defined in Standard dictionary (Funk & 
 Wagnalls) shows its perfect identity with spiritism " Necro- 
 mancy is the art of foretelling the future by means of pretended 
 communication with the dead. It is calling and invoking the 
 aid of the devil. An effort to obtain information from the 
 dead, or from demons. ' ' This superstitious practice was long 
 ago proscribed both by the Church and the civil authorities 
 of cultured nations. To establish the complete identity between 
 Necromancy and spiritism we have but to compare the preced- 
 ing definitions with the doctrine of the spiritists themselves, 
 who hold that those wonderful communications are due to the 
 souls of the dead, the departed human beings, that once inhab- 
 ited this planet. Though, under the guidance of right reason 
 and directed by the lessons of experience, the Spiritistic decep- 
 tion may be unmasked, yet it must be allowed that it is in his- 
 toric Christian faith alone that we find the true standard by 
 which the momentous problems presented by modern Spiritism 
 can be fairly and adequately judged. 
 
 Note 2. The extraordinary and superhuman knowledge and 
 power of angels. 
 
 To account for both the physical and intellectual feats 
 exhibited in the spiritistic performances, we must briefly recall 
 what orthodox theology teaches us regarding the endowment 
 of angels. 
 
26 
 
 As in men so in angels we must carefully distinguish the nat- 
 ural from the supernatural gifts bestowed on them by their 
 Sovereign Creator and Supreme Benefactor. The chief super- 
 natural gift conferred on the angelic multitude was sanctifying 
 grace, which elevated them to a most intimate union with their 
 Maker and fitted them for the heavenly happiness of the beat- 
 ific vision, attainable on condition of their loyalty and submis- 
 sion to the Lord's will, the test of their fidelity. The precious 
 gift of grace Lucifer and his followers forfeited forever by 
 their sin and rebellion. But as to the mere natural gifts, con- 
 stituting the very essence of pure spirits, they remained to them 
 full and unimpaired. They are principally two, extraordinary 
 knowledge and power far superior to those possessed by even 
 the most gifted men. As to knowledge, they possess such pen- 
 etration as to be able by a single glance to take in the whole 
 field of science both physical and rational along with its num- 
 erous branches. However vast may be the comprehension of 
 the angelic mind, it is restricted by two most important limits. 
 
 First, it cannot know with certainty future events that 
 depend on the free action of God or man. 
 
 Second, it can have no sure knowledge of man's inner 
 thoughts, called the secrets of the hearts. 
 
 Hence utterances on such matters, often heard in spiritistic 
 seances, are mere wild guesses or downright falsehoods intended 
 by the lying spirits to deceive the illuded experimenters and 
 the assembled sitters. 
 
 The Formidable Power of Angels 
 
 A very striking proof is the event related in Holy Scripture, 
 when one single angel slew in one night 185,000 soldiers of the 
 Assyrian army of the impious King Sennacherib, who had 
 defied the God of Israel to save Jerusalem from destruction. 
 IV Kings XIX, 35. Sincere Christian believers have nothing 
 to fear from the power of the good angels, our divinely 
 appointed guardians and protectors, of whom St. Paul writes : 
 "Are they not all ministering spirits sent to minister for them 
 who shall receive the inheritance of salvation?" Hebrew I, 
 14. We can have no surer guarantee of assistance against the 
 conspiracy of demons than the fear and love of God, of Him 
 whose tenderness for His loyal servants is infinite and whose 
 power is almighty. 
 
27 
 
 On the other hand, as Christian doctrine teaches us, the 
 wicked angels, the sworn enemies of mankind, impelled by their 
 hatred of God, and the envy of men, are ever ready to make use 
 of their astounding power against us. They are, however, sub- 
 ject to the full control of divine omnipotence for the mainten- 
 ance and preservation of the physical, moral, social and spirit- 
 ual order of the world. Hence the devil's power also has its 
 limitations, which have been providentially fixed by Almighty 
 God, and beyond which it is impossible for him to act. But if 
 men, in defiance of the peremptory divine prohibition, wilfully 
 and of their own accord place themselves within the reach of 
 the evil influence of Satan and his satellites, the wicked angels, 
 by meddling with spiritistic practices, all know who is to blame 
 if they fall victims to such dreadful calamities as have been 
 described in previous articles. When, therefore, we take into 
 account the prodigious knowledge and power naturally pos- 
 sessed by the fallen angels, the demons, we need not be sur- 
 prised at the astounding physical and intellectual wonders dis- 
 played in spiritistic meetings ; remarkable wonders indeed, 
 which can in no wise be attributed to the presence and action 
 of the dead for the all-sufficient reason that they possess 
 neither the knowledge nor the power needed to produce them. 
 
 Note 3. The several forms of Occultism. 
 
 Though designated by different names, yet they are more 
 or less superstitious practices, and as such they all fall under 
 the ban of condemnation. They are as follows : Mesmerism, 
 magnetism, hypnotism, the ouija board or the French planch- 
 ette and modern Spiritism. All their effects, which cannot be 
 accounted for by the action of natural forces, must be reckoned 
 as preternatural, and therefore due to the agencies of invisible, 
 free intelligent beings. These beings, it has been shown, are no 
 other than the wicked angels, the demons. This is precisely the 
 principle on which the Catholic Church bases the reason of the 
 several condemnations issued by its authority. In fact in a 
 decree published June 25, 1840, the cardinals of the Holy Office 
 speak thus: "The application of purely physical principles or 
 means to things or effects that are really supernatural, in order 
 to explain these on physical grounds, is nothing else than 
 unlawful and heretical deception. ' ' 
 
 Here we pertinetly ask : What are the effects that are really 
 supernatural, and which, according to the mind of the Catholic 
 
28 
 
 Church, cannot be accounted for naturally, and require there- 
 fore the intervention of preternatural agents for their produc- 
 tion? We find the answer in another decree of the Holy Office 
 issued July 30th, 1850. They are chiefly the following : 
 
 * ' To claim to see things naturally invisible ; to answer ques- 
 tions on religion ; to evoke and consult the souls of the dead ; to 
 detect things distant beyond the reach of human capacity; to 
 receive answers to things or questions naturally ignored." Are 
 not these the very things done in the spiritistic seances? There- 
 fore whoever holds that these and similar effects can be obtained 
 by the application of physical agencies or forces, that is by 
 purely natural means, cannot evade the condemnation of the 
 Holy Office, which in its decrees proscribes the above spiritistic 
 practices and phenomena as superstitious, diabolical, heretical, 
 and as a deception absolutely unlawful. See Tanquery, vol. 1, 
 p. 321. 
 
 The Second Council of Baltimore (1866) declares that some 
 at least of the manifestations of Spiritism are to be ascribed to 
 Satan's intervention. What the Church condemns in spiritism 
 is not the mere use of physical means for obtaining natural 
 effects, but what in it is superstitious with its evil conse- 
 quences, religious, mental and moral. 
 
 Note 4. Immortality and Spiritism. 
 
 Immortality, the cornerstone of religion and morality, has 
 been fiercely assailed and denied by many, not because it is not 
 solidly proved, but because its opponents, reckless in their pri- 
 vate conduct, dread the awful responsibility, which it entails 
 in the endless world to come. Its truth is indeed the joy of the 
 just and the terror of the wicked. Besides being divinely 
 revealed, it is the inevitable postulate of reason when fairly 
 consulted. It is, moreover, the universal belief of mankind a 
 belief all the more striking since it persists in spite of the vio- 
 lent opposition from the alluring passions of men. All accurate 
 thinkers in all times have admitted this rational tenet, and it is 
 for this reason that the schoolmen in their demonstration of 
 the soul's immortality never gave any prominence to the argu- 
 ment derived from the spiritistic phenomena observed in the 
 past. Modern spiritism pretends to furnish an incontestable 
 new proof of immortality and future life ; a claim to be by all 
 means rejected, for its validity rests, after all, upon their the- 
 ory that the communications come from disembodied spirits a 
 
theory which we proved to be absolutely untenable. Hence it is 
 not true to say that spiritism has dealt the deathblow to mater- 
 ialism, for if the doctrine of spiritism were the only argument 
 for the existence of future life, materialism, instead of being 
 crushed, would still triumph. As the history of philosophy tes- 
 tifies, the deathblow of materialism has been given long years 
 ago by the works of Catholic psychologists under the leadership 
 of the prince of philosophers and theologians, St. Thomas 
 Aquinas. As Dr. John Quackenbos well said: "The real proof 
 of immortality is not to be sought in the vaporings of spir- 
 itism." 
 
 Note 5. Authorities advocating the Catholic View of Spir- 
 itism. 
 
 Besides the Catholic philosophers, theologians, canonists 
 and moralists quoted in the third article, the following authors 
 are added. 
 
 1. Modern Spiritism and the New Black Magic, by J. God- 
 frey Raupert. 
 
 2. Sermons on Modern Spiritualism, by A. V. Muller. 
 
 3. Spiritism Unveiled, by Rt. Rev. B. L. Lanslot, 0. S. B. 
 
 4. The Unseen World, by A. M. Lepicier, 0. S. M. 
 
 5. Brownson's Review, The Spirit Rapper, Vol. IX. 
 
 6. The Homiletic Monthly, November, 1919. 
 
 7. The Ecclesiastical Review, June, 1918; January, 1920; 
 April, 1920. 
 
 8. The Irish Monthly, January, 1920. 
 
 9. Perils of Spiritualism, by Herbert Thurston in Studies, 
 an Irish Review. 
 
 10. Spiritualism, by Mgr. Benson. 
 
 11. Spiritism and Modern Satanism, by F. F. Cookley. 
 
 12. Abridgment of Moral Theology, by Cardinal D'Anni- 
 bale. 
 
 13. Synopsis of Dogmatic Theology, by A. Tanquery. S. S. 
 
 14. Moral Theology, by Scavini. 
 
 15. Civilta Cattolica, a fortnightly Roman review con- 
 ducted by the Jesuit Fathers, 1864-1865. 
 
 Note 6. 
 
 Men of scientific attainments and upright character, after 
 
---30 
 
 long and careful investigation, declare that certain physical 
 and psychical phenomena of spiritism witnessed by them can- 
 not be explained by any cause known to science. Hence they 
 freely admit that they surpass both nature's and man's powers 
 and are therefore preternatural, due to free, intellectual agen- 
 cies of a malignant character, as revealed by spiritistic results. 
 They therefore fully justify the attitude of the Catholic Church 
 in denouncing the pernicious influence of spiritistic practices, 
 and in warning men against the physical, religious and moral 
 dangers attending them. 
 
 Postscript 
 
 Mr. 0. P. Thornton, of Saratoga, referring to my articles, 
 thanks me for my admission of the truth of many of the phe- 
 nomena of modern Spiritism. I feel grateful for his courteous 
 acknowledgment and I take occasion to reiterate the statement 
 that, allowing for the exposure, at times, of trickery and jug- 
 glery, many of the marvels witnessed in the spiritistic per- 
 formances are real, genuine, authentic facts, which cannot be 
 called in question by any sensible man. But, on the other hand, 
 I cannot subscribe to his assertion that "it matters little to log- 
 ical investigators what cause they assign." 
 
 Old Virgil does not agree with him, for he said : 
 
 "Felix qui potuit rerum cognoscere causas." (Happy is he 
 who could know the causes of things.") Georgica II, 490. 
 
 The chief thing in spiritism is to know the cause, that is to 
 detect the real agents producing those marvelous feats. This 
 I have endeavored to find out in the course of my articles, 
 which led me logically to the conclusion that evil results must 
 be traced to an evil cause, and this is no other than devilish 
 intervention. 
 
 As a very fitting conclusion of our discussion we here quote 
 from the Monitor (April 3, 1920), Bishop Turner's warning on 
 Spiritism. Whoever has followed the trend of our articles will 
 be candid enough to admit that our views, however imperfectly 
 stated, are in full agreement with those of his Lordship who 
 formerly held with honor the chair of philosophy in the Cath- 
 olic University at Washington, D. C. 
 
31 
 The Human Soul's Immortality and Spiritism. 
 
 Buffalo, March 19, 1920. Bishop William Turner, of Buf- 
 falo, in a statement given out on Saturday, explained the atti- 
 tude of the Catholic Church toward the nefarious doctrine of 
 Spiritism which is spreading rapidly in the United States and 
 England. He cautioned the faithful against the tremendous 
 spiritistic propaganda which is now being carried out in this 
 country, as well as against the ouija board, or planchette, by 
 means of which a great many unsophisticated persons first get 
 interested in Spiritism and are gradually led astray. 
 
 Bishop Turner declared that the Church has forbidden com- 
 munication with evil spirits from apostolic times and has 
 always warned against false prophets. Referring to the evil 
 effects of "The New Revelation", the Bishop said the "mess- 
 ages" received by the exprimenter in Spiritism, though appar- 
 ently harmless at first, soon become sinister, and gradually 
 undermine his religious faith and destroy his moral character. 
 
 "These messages," Msgr. Turner declared, "at their best 
 are trivial, irrelevant, flippant ; at their worst, they are im- 
 moral, irreverent, atheistic or even blasphemous. They often 
 cause dissensions in families, undermine faith in God and tend 
 to subvert established moral standards. They are, apparently, 
 'the evil fruit of an evil tree.' They cannot come from any 
 good source." 
 
 Concerning the position of the Catholic Church toward 
 Spiritism, Bishop Turner said : 
 
 "Ever since apostolic times, the Church has forbidden com- 
 merce of all kinds with evil spirits, and has warned the faithful 
 against false prophets. As to the current practice of Spiritism, 
 the Church has forbidden Catholics to assist at spiritistic com- 
 munications or manifestations, even when these bear the 
 appearance of being honest and pious, even though one tacitly 
 or expressly excludes the intention of dealing with evil spirits. 
 And the effects that usually follow from the practice of Spirit- 
 ism amply justify this prohibition. Physicians can testify to 
 these effects, and quite recently, I believe, it was proposed in 
 California to forbid by law the use of the ouija board because 
 of the number of cases in which that practice led to insanity. 
 
 "The Church would welcome scientific proof of immortal- 
 ity, but she would be slow to accept proof that merely claims to 
 
32 
 
 be scientific. The immortality of the soul is a philosophical, 
 not a scientific truth. The proofs of it from reason, from con- 
 sciousness, from the existence of the moral order, and so forth, 
 are honored in the traditional philosophy of the Catholic 
 schools. But as these are technical proofs, they do not appeal 
 to the untrained mind with all their force. 
 
 ''The Church, therefore, in her preaching and practice, has 
 stressed the fact of immortality on Scriptural grounds, on the 
 strength of facts which are known to be true, and while she 
 would undoubtedly, like her Founder, wish * all men to come to 
 a knowledge of the truth,' she does not believe that mediums 
 are the divinely chosen means of bringing about a universal 
 belief in immortality." 
 
 Works by the Same Author: 
 
 CHRISTIAN APOLOGETICS [Two Vol.] $2 50 
 
 THE FUTURE LIFE $2 50 
 
 FOR SALE AT THE 
 
 O'CONNOR COMPANY 
 
 341 Stockton Street, San Francisco, California. 
 
 IN COURSE OF PREPARATION: 
 
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 NOVISSIMA HOMINIS ET NOVISSIMA MUNDI. 
 
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