2003 DPE Reports

April 2003 DPE Report

Article on Spiritualism.  The December 2002 Fate Magazine ran an article titled, Listening to the Dead, written by Janet Brennan.  The article was very positive toward Spiritualism.  The author wrote that she had gone to a spiritual development class envisioning herself exposing the would-be mediums as frauds learning the tricks of the trade.  Instead she wrote that the development class she attended at the Madison Spiritualist Camp, “Was a gathering of people sincerely interested in spiritual advancement.”  She was also very positive about the person teaching the classes, the Certified Medium the Reverend Gloria Nye, NST.  The article ends with the author writing, “My foray into Spiritualism has convinced me that those who love us are with us always—we need only open our eyes to see the signs of their presence.”

We never know who may be sitting in our church, message service or class.  It is wise for us to remember that a person like this author may be attending our services at any time.  It is commendable to know that Janet Brennan came away with a positive look on Spiritualism and its teachings due to the knowledge and professionalism of our church workers.  It was wonderful to see this favorable article in a popular magazine

The December issue of the ARPR Bulletin (Academy of Religion and Psychical Research) ran an article on the front page titled, The Mystery of Ectoplasm.  In it the editor, Michael E. Tymn, wrote that pseudo-skeptics say ectoplasm is nothing more than cheesecloth, “Indeed, some photographs of ectoplasm do show a substance that very much looks like cheesecloth.  However, it is difficult to believe that some of the most eminent men of science could have been so duped over and over again.  It also stretches the imagination to believe that as much ‘cheesecloth,’ as seen in many of the photographs, could be stored in an orifice of the body and so dramatically extruded.”

Tymn writes about research on the structure of Ectoplasm done in 1916, which found epithelium to be flat globules, mucus and other organic substances.  No inorganic substances were found that showed that the material was of an artificial product.  He quoted the researcher Schrenck-Notzing as saying, “For substances of this kind [artificial substance] can never decompose into cell detritus, or leave a residue of such.”

The accompanying photograph is from, The Mediumship of Jack Weber, by Harry Edwards, The healer Publishing Co., LTD., Guildford,  Surrey , 1962, Plate 33 (J. McCulloch, Photographer).

This study and many others have shown the “nocebo” phenomenon.  The placebo effect refers to health benefits from a treatment that should have no effect.  The nocebo effect is just the opposite.  Think the worst, health wise, and that is what you get.  It is a self-fulfilling prophecy.
From: www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A2709-2002Apr29.

Siyoh notes that science is unable to deal with inconsistencies.  The uncertainty principle, developed by German physicist, Werner Heisenberg, in 1927, allows for such inconsistent results in the world under the microscope, but not in our day to day world, even though such inconsistencies do occur.

Siyoh writes that those who do not believe can actually stop phenomena from happening around them without even knowing it, by using their subconscious power.  He references work done by a professor at Toohoku University. The professor had written a report and had done many experiments that proved his theory.  The results were sensational and attracted the attention of world scientists, many of whom believed the results were ridiculous and impossible.  They then tried to replicate the professors’ results and failed.  After many years the professor told an acquaintance of Siyoh, “What a malicious thing the collective thought is!  I conducted the experiment several hundred times before I announced it.  The results were always duplicated.  But now, somehow, I sometimes have difficulty reproducing them.”  You can read the report in it entirety at www.worlditc.org/newscience.htm.

Pet Psychics. Phyllis Galde is the editor and publisher of Fate magazine.  Galde does a monthly column in the magazine called, I See By the Papers.  In her column, published in the January 2003 issue, she writes about contacting a pet communicator.  Her cat, Jules, was diagnosed with glaucoma and the veterinarian said his eye had to be removed.  Galde contacted the pet psychic to be sure that her cat understood was going to happen.

The psychic explained to Jules what was going to happen and Jules communicated back that he wanted the vet to verbally explain everything that would be happening during the surgery, even though the cat would be anesthetized.  Galde felt a little strange asking the vet to do this, but the veterinarian agreed to the request.  When she picked up the cat after the surgery, the vet confirmed that he had talked to Jules during the surgery and said that it was peculiar but that he felt that the cat had understood.