What's On The Other Side

June 2000

Visiting a medium doesn't have to be a series of spooky events. Members of the Spiritualist Church are turning heads - and no, not in the style of Linda Blair in the Exorcist - with their healing abilities.

As opposed to spiritual healing - where the Healing comes from the practitioner's faith - in spiritualist healing, a medium alters their state of consciousness to a semi-trance. They then get in touch with a spirit guide who directs the medium to pass on information, philosophy, or healing.

Spiritualism is a religion based on the belief that spirits survive natural death. It dates back to 1848, when 2 American sisters, Margaretta and Catherine Fox were said to have established contact with a spirit. The first British Spiritualist Church was founded in Keighley in 1853.

Graham Dare of the Battersea Spiritualist Church (020 783 19 387) says: 'The term medium is not coincidental. Mediumship is like channelling electricity through a cable. A medium does not use his/her own power; it is the guides who help, and many of us have several contacts in the spirit world.'

And if you are worried about hearing information you don't want to, Graham is quick to reassure: 'We contact the spirit necessary for the desired aim; some help to heal, others give clairvoyance. But we don't give out negative messages. If we did find something disturbing, we'd encrypt it, like the Oracle at Delphi. People can take what they want from a session.'

March 2006

Graham Dare, spiritual medium: 'Spiritual healing involves hands being placed on the body to transfer energy from the spiritual world to the patient. The hands vibrate in the same way as electric cables buzz with energy. Most illnesses are caused by negative emotion such as stress and resentment. Relaxing a patient helps to reverse these into positive emotions. The latest testimonial was a cat with suspected kidney failure. The creatine (a waste product filtered by the kidneys) in the cats blood count was abnormally high but after one 15 minute session it dropped from 410 to 340. The vet said a drop of ten would be the best medicine could do. The cat also had more energy and was less dehydrated.'

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