John D. Rogers Was Attracted to Mr. Padgett at the Seance He Attended and Seeks Help Out of Darkness

March 23, 1919
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

Let me write a line, John D. Rogers.

I was with you at the meeting and saw that you are mediumistic, and I felt that I should like to communicate with you for a short time.

I am one of the spirits who frequently attend the meetings of the medium (Mrs. Kates) whom you heard speak tonight and give to some of the people the messages from their loved ones, and I was very anxious to communicate also, but had not the opportunity. I am a man who was known to several of the persons present and would have been recognized had my name been mentioned and would have been gladly received.

I am very unhappy in my present condition and surroundings and want to learn the way to get out of darkness and unhappiness. I know that the friends of mine who were present think that I am a happy spirit and can come to them and help them in their worldly affairs, when the fact is, that I cannot, and that they can help me more than I can help them; and I wish that they would do so. It is terrible to be left in the condition in which I am, with no light, or the way to get into the light left open to me.

I never know when to ask for help, for something always comes forward to interfere with my efforts, and I am relegated to my awful condition of darkness in which I have been since I came to spirit life. It is a mistake for mediums to believe or teach that we all are in a happy condition when we come to the spirit world, for such is not the case and many a spirit comes to his relatives and for the purpose of relieving them of any fear as to his condition, tells them that he is happy, when he is not.

Well, I came with you hoping that you might help me some, if only by your sympathy and kind thoughts, which do so much good to spirits situated as I am; and I believe that you would probably send up a prayer for my relief. I was not a very good man when on earth and am now paying the penalty for my evil thoughts and deeds.

My friends thought that I was good, but in this they were mistaken, and many a man who considers himself good, as men generally go, will find that in the storehouse of his memory are the records of many thoughts and deeds that he had forgotten, but which when he comes to spirit life will come upon him in all their nakedness and horror to be atoned for in the way that the laws of God require. I am not a Christian, though when on earth I believed in the creeds of my church and considered myself a very good church member, and was certain that I would be among the redeemed when I should come to meet the great revealer of things as they are, I mean death.

No, the truth cannot be hidden by belief, or anything but truth itself. We must all face the great revelation, and when it comes, it will not show us to be free from sin and defilement, as I thought when on earth. I must pay the penalty, and the great law will work in my case as certainly as that the sun will rise on your world tomorrow morning.

I have seen such spirits, but only as you see ghosts as you believe. I have never had any conversation with them and do not know that they can do me any good, or that they desire to help me. But why do you ask?

Well, I see a spirit, and he is exceeding bright and beautiful and comes to me and tells me that he will help me if I will only believe what he tells me and follow his advice. I am going with him and do my best to do as he advises. He says that I will find relief and light. I must go, so good night.

Your friend,
John D. Rogers

Helen Writes the Epistles in the Bible are Not the Same that the Apostles Wrote

October 29, 1918
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, your own true and loving Helen.

Well dear, I see that you have been reading portions of the Bible tonight and that you have not found in the same any mention of the Divine Love in the sense that it has been explained to you or any evidence that the writers had any knowledge of the Love in the way of being Born Again. Of course, they used the expression, but the meaning that they gave to it is altogether different from the one that Jesus gave the other night.

Now you have been told that he taught the Apostles this true meaning and that they to a more or less extent understood it, and especially John, and as a truth, being the very foundation of the truth of salvation. It may be surprising to you that if John wrote the epistles which are ascribed to him, he did not speak of or attempt to explain the meaning of this New Existence. But the epistles do not mention the New Birth in the light of the explanation that has been given to you, and you may very reasonably infer that these epistles were not written by any of the Apostles to whom they are accredited, but by some writers who had some knowledge of the moral truths of Jesus' teachings and of the great one expressed as that: "They should love their brethren as themselves."

You will find very little in any portion of the Bible that will show you that the great truth of the New Birth was understood by the writers thereof; and all that you will find is that love between man and God, and man and man, with all that flows from it, such as patience and kindness and charity, etc., is the fulfilling of the Christian doctrines. No distinction is made between the natural love of man and the Love of God bestowed upon him at his creation and the great Divine Love, which man never possessed until the coming of the Master.

It may seem strange that this knowledge that the Apostles and many others had in the time of the Master when on earth should have been lost to the world, but it is a fact and, as a consequence, the teachings of Jesus as to this great truth have for all these long years failed to work out his mission. Well, I could write for a long time on this matter but it is not necessary, as you already know of these things. Good night.

Your own true and loving,
Helen

Cornelius, the Centurion, Writes of the Importance that the Truths of the Way to Salvation be Revealed

February 7, 1917
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, Cornelius.

I want to write merely a few lines tonight. I am so very much interested in you and your work, that I feel that I should give you some encouragement in the way of letting you know that there are many spirits present here tonight who love you very much and desire that you should receive their messages of love and truth.

As I have told you, I am in the Celestial Spheres and know what the Love of the Father is and what immortality means, as I am the possessor of the Love, and the conscious owner of that immortality. The world is now so anxious to know the truths that pertain to God and to man's relationship to Him, and the messages that you are receiving will give to the world what it so much longs for.

I know that the Christian doctrines as contained in the Bible and taught by many preachers and priests are the only doctrines that the Christians have any knowledge of and, consequently, are accepted by them as being the inspired revelations of God, and the truth of what He is, and what man must do in order to obtain salvation. And these people rest securely in these beliefs, and in the assurance that the Bible way is the only way to salvation; and resting in these beliefs, the world does not see the necessity for obtaining the only thing that will make them in at-onement with God, and make them inhabitants of His Heavens.

I merely write this to show you that it is of the greatest importance that the truths of the way to salvation be revealed to all mankind. I do not think that I have anything more to say tonight, and so will leave you. With all my love, I am

Your brother in Christ
Cornelius

Elias Writes on "The hope that all mortals have in a future destiny of freedom from care and unhappiness"

December 13, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, Elias.

I desire tonight to write a few lines upon a matter that I have been thinking might be of some interest to you, and that is: "The hope that all mortals have in a future destiny of freedom from care and unhappiness."

I know that a large majority of mortals, who believe in the Christian doctrines, believe that for a very considerable number of mankind, there is awaiting an eternity in the Hells of continuous torture and torment, and that in order to avoid such a destiny or future state, men, while on earth, must believe in certain doctrines and conform themselves to such beliefs, for after death there can be no possible opportunity for being saved from such a fate.

Of course, these beliefs are the results of the teachings of those who claim to have the ability to interpret the Bible, mixed with a little of divine inspiration and mysterious power and wisdom that are conferred upon those who have the careers of ministers of the Gospel; and men, because of long years of training or of inheritance from those who for long years believed in these teachings, naturally exercise very little independent thought and accept the declarations of these ministers as being almost the divine expressions of God Himself.

Such doctrines have caused in their workings much harm to the mortal and much unhappiness to the spirits of men in the spirit world, because beliefs accompany the latter in their existence as spirits and keep them from learning the truth for a long time after they become spirits. It is a great pity that men can be bound by such false and damnable beliefs, and generation after generation continue to become servants to the teachings of misguided instructors. And I wish to say that all these beliefs are untrue and have no foundation in fact, and the sooner mankind knows this, the better it will be for their happiness on earth and their welfare in the world to come.

It is true that there are Hells and punishment, and that the majority of men when they become spirits will have to go into such Hells and suffer such punishment; but the element of eternal or everlasting does not enter into the duration of such state or condition, for there is no punishment inflicted on the spirits of men for the purpose of causing them to pay a penalty that can never be satisfied through all eternity. This punishment is only for the purpose of purification, and when it is accomplished, for the particular spirit who has suffered the same, the Hell ceases to exist and the punishment ceases to have any necessity for its existence; and, ultimately, the condition of every man will be that of a purified spirit, free from sin and defilement and the necessity for Hell or punishment.

I know that what I have written has in various forms been written before, but I felt that I must say just this much and in the way that I have done. I am glad that you are feeling better tonight, and I want to assure you that, if you will pray to the Father, you will continue to grow in your spiritual development and, as a consequence, feel better in every particular.

With my love I will say, good night.

Your brother in Christ,
Elias

Wm. E. Gladstone, a Former Premier of Great Britain, Writes that He is in the Earth Plane and Still Believes in Jesus

November 6, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, Gladstone.

Yes, I was the Premier of Great Britain and I merely want to say that I desire to come to you sometime and write a message containing some of my views on the war that is now scourging the countries that were supposed to be Christian. Oh, the horror of it all! And how blind the rulers are to the welfare of humanity!

But I must not write tonight, as I have not sufficient rapport with you and my comments and intense feeling on the subject are so great that I doubt if I could continue at this time. But if you are willing, I will come again soon and write you.

I am in the earth plane, but not in darkness. I was, as you may know, a churchman and defender of the faith and still am, and I believe in the doctrines of my church, but strange, as I sometimes think, that I am not more advanced in the progress to the higher spheres. But I suppose I must develop and that I am striving to do; and I attend to the duties of my church and worship as I did on earth and have the same hope in the sacrifice of Jesus and the efficacy of his atonement. I rest in his promises and am with many of my friends of earth who worshipped with me when a mortal. I still believe in Jesus, my Lord, and feel that in his good time I shall go to him in his Heaven of bliss.

I shall be glad to listen to you, for I have always found that something may be learned from others, no matter what their standing or condition is.

Well, I am glad that this way has been opened to me to communicate, for my country needs my advice, as I see that many errors of judgment have been made by those in authority. So thanking you, I will say good night.

Your friend,
Wm. E. Gladstone

Cornelius, the Centurion of the Bible and the First Gentile Christian, Writes that He is in the Celestial Spheres

September 12, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, Cornelius.

I will write only a few lines so that I may get in rapport with you and later write you at more length, if agreeable to you. I was the Centurion of the Bible who was the first Gentile Christian.

I have listened tonight to your reading of the messages and besides me many other spirits heard what you read, and all were interested, and some of them will no doubt derive some comfort, for these messages disclosed to some of the dark ones that there is hope for them and that there is a way by which they may find relief from their sufferings.

I have just recently heard of your work and have come to add my little mite to the truths, which you are receiving and hope that I may succeed in helping the cause of truth. I am in the Celestial Spheres and, of course, have the Divine Love in my soul and know that I am a redeemed son of the Father.

I must not write more now and with my love say good night.

Your brother in Christ,
Cornelius

Helen Writes About the Wonders, Benefits and Blessings Wrought by the Divine Love of God

June 8, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, your own Helen.

Tonight everything seems favorable to my writing you my promised message, and I will try. Of course, you must expect to find some expressions of love in it, for I could not write you if I did not tell you how much I love you, and how happy I am when you love me and want me to be with you.

Well, sweetheart, I am now in the Celestial Sphere with your grandmother, though not in as high a plane as she and have not so much of the Divine Love as has she; yet my happiness is so great that I can hardly realize myself what it means, and it is impossible to tell you of the beauties of my home and surroundings. I have tried when I was in a lower sphere to describe to you my home, and I did it very inadequately, giving you only a glimpse of what it really was. And now, if you could increase that description a hundredfold, you would have no conception of the beauty and glory of my present home and the wonders that surround it.

I so often wish that you had words in your language that could be used to fully describe what this new home means to me, or even the one that I just left; but as you have not, you will have to be content with knowing that if you should take all the imagery of the Revelation and add to it the sum total of all the beautiful descriptions of places and homes and scenery that the whole range of your English literature contains, you would have but a faint idea of what really exists. And besides, the great increase in the Love that I possess and enjoy and the beautiful and loving and holy spirits whom I have for my companions make this home of mine truly one of the mansions of the Kingdom of Heaven that Jesus referred to in the Bible; only the mansions that he there spoke of were not necessarily like the one that I have, for the mansions in the Celestial Heavens vary according to the soul development of their occupants.

I sometimes think that a very few years ago, I was on earth without much soul development and very little knowledge of the things of God; and now I have that development and knowledge of those things that fit me for these glorious mansions of the Celestial Spheres. How wonderful it all is, and how I thank the Father for His goodness and mercy and for having given to mankind such a loving and glorious saviour as Jesus.

And I do not forget that you had something to do with my starting on this great journey of progress, for I remember that when I first came to you, things of the material were very attractive to me, and my appetites of earth had not left me, and how when I displayed some of these desires for the material things, you rebuked me and tried to point the way to the higher things; although I know now that your advice came from your merely mental conceptions of what I should strive for, as at that time you had very little knowledge of the things of the soul and scarcely any soul development.

But your Christian training as a child, and the conceptions that had come to you from these instructions taught you that in the Spirit World there must be something higher and beyond the mere earthly conditions of men, where purer joy and happier lives might be found and lived; and your love for me was such that you desired that I should find and possess these things, if possible. I have never forgotten what you then said to me, although at the time I thought you were unkind and not so anxious for my happiness. But long ago I had come to me the knowledge of the motive that actuated your advice and much happiness has come to me from that knowledge and recollection. Only a little thought of love and an earnest desire on the part of the mortal for the spirit, when it is directed in the way of the soul's progress, sometimes work a greater result than the conquering of a city, for it means the salvation of a soul, which is of more value than all the cities of the earth combined.

And while I am writing in this strain, I wish to say that one of the greatest benefits or possessions that can come to a mortal is to have a mother or husband or wife in whose bosom glows the Divine Love of the Father, even though very faintly, for that little spark of Love, to its own degree, makes that soul a part of the Divine Essence of the Father's Love, and its influence upon the possessor causes an atmosphere of love and help to be felt by all who have the relationship to such possessor of a child or wife or husband. Christian instructions, though mixed with dogmas and creeds that may all be wrong, yet will benefit, as in them are some thoughts that may awaken the soul to a condition that will let in some portion of the higher Love, which will remain, though dormant, until the time comes when something will arouse the dormant Love to action and life.

And this benefit passes with the mortal to the spirit life, and the influence of the teachings, or rather the accompanying impressions of the Christian mother, etc., to help such a spirit to realize its true condition and to start on its progress to the attainment of the higher things of the soul. No wealth or riches or position that a mortal may inherit can possibly equal the influence of that one little spark in the Christian mother who possesses some portion of the Divine Love; and there is none so poor as the spirit who comes into the spirit world without any recollection of having, at some time in its earth life, received in its soul the influence of that little spark.

So I say the man who has a Christian mother or wife who has, at some time in his earth career, taught him to turn his thoughts to God and to pray, even though that man in afterlife forsakes such thoughts and prayers, is a very fortunate being; for in the spirit life, he has with him the memories of his earth life and nothing is lost; and among these memories will be the influence of his mother's teachings and his own prayers. And while he will have to satisfy the Laws of Compensation, yet these recollections of these thoughts and prayers will come to him sooner or later and will help him in his progress to higher conditions. And you must remember, as has been often told you, that all souls will ultimately reach the planes of purification of their natural loves, or the glories of the spheres where only the Divine Love exists.

After I commenced to receive into my soul this Divine Love, I became very anxious to increase its possession and my progress was very rapid, as they tell me, and as I progressed from sphere to sphere, ever were there coming to me new wonders and great happiness and the disappearance of those things which belonged to my mortal life. No one, who has not experienced this progress, can understand what it means and how the happiness increases and also the longings for more; and yet the astonishing fact is that notwithstanding these longings, the contentment of the spirit is perfect and no unhappiness, because of longings yet to be fulfilled, exists.

As you know when I entered the spirit world, I was met by your mother and others and all fear or confusion that usually arises from the change which so-called death brings to the spirit left me and, in fact, never came to me, and I was as tenderly cared for as you can conceive of; and ever thereafter, while I could not go to the home of your mother, yet she and others were with me often enough to keep me from much darkness and suffering, though I did experience some darkness and suffering. But the influence of their love was with me, and they earnestly and lovingly told me of the Great Love of the Father, and how I might get it and become happy and start on my upward progression. And your father came to me also, with his cheer and help and showed me that upon myself, to a certain extent, depended my being able to get into the light. He was so good and kind to me that I loved him at once, although I had never seen him in earth life.

And from all this, can you wonder that I did not remain very long in the lower planes? I tell you that the love and tenderness and influence of the beautiful and loving spirits who have some of God's Love in their souls are things that can take away the terror of death and make a spirit who has just left his mortal home almost happy. And if men could only realize the fact that by attempting to get into their hearts good thoughts and longings of love so that these beautiful spirits could be attracted to them, their entrance and reception in the world of spirits would become one, even if not of happiness, yet of freedom from fear and loneliness. So I advise all mortals to so live as to attract friends on the spirit side of life that can come to them in the times of the great change and comfort and help them. Now, I do not mean by this that such spirits of mortals will not have to endure the darkness and suffering, which the conditions of their souls demand they should endure, but their entrance into the Spirit World will be as I say.

Well, sweetheart, I have written quite a long letter and you must be a little tired, but I must further write and tell you that all this happiness that I have spoken of may be yours and, as your soulmate, I believe and almost know that it will be; for while you are a mortal, no matter how long the years may be, you will have with you my love and longings for your coming, and my prayers to the Father for a great bestowal upon you of His Divine Love. And besides all this, you know that you have surrounding you the loves of those who are higher than I, and who possess so much more of this Divine Love. Oh, it will be a happy day for me when you do come, and I know that you will be happy, also. Just think, that as your eyes close in what the preachers call the last sleep, I will be with you, and when you awake, I will be with you, and the only thing that will greet your newly-awakened vision will be my eyes, so filled with love and joy that you will almost want to die over again just for the sake of having the awakening.

I remember that when on earth, you thought my arms were very beautiful, and loved to have them around you, and thought yourself happy; but when you come to me again, you will find arms so much more beautiful clasping you to a bosom that you cannot dream of, and eyes looking into your eyes with so much love and happiness that you will, for the first time in all your life, know what happiness means; and then when I tell you that I am all yours and that never again will cruel death, as it is called, separate us, and that only love, pure and unselfish and never-dying, will be ours without any lessening or disturbing by jealousy or tiresomeness, you will wonder if you have really awakened from that last sleep or are only dreaming. But then I will give you a long, sweet kiss of love that you will know that it is all real.

Oh, my Ned, I do love you and want you to love me with all your heart! The time will not be long now, until we shall be together in our spirit life, when your cares and worries of life will no longer trouble you. But, sweetheart, you must pray to the Father for a greater inflowing of His Divine Love and blessings, for upon the development of your soul depends our continuous living together, and progress.

I will be with you tonight while you sleep, and I am so filled with love that I know I shall call your spirit from your body and carry it with me to purer planes, where we can, for a few moments, enjoy the bliss of living together without the encumbrance of your body. You may not remember it when you awake, but I will know and will tell you of it when next I write. So, sweetheart, give me my good night kiss.

Your own true and loving,
Helen

Luke Writes on the Subject: "What is the use in believing in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross as salvation from sin."

June 4, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, St. Luke, writer of the third Gospel that was.

I desire tonight to write a short message on the question: "What is the use in believing in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross as a salvation from sin?"

I know that this belief is at the foundation of the so-called Christian religion and is the cornerstone of most of the churches as they now exist, but as such a belief is false and does not effectuate the object claimed for it, I must declare the utter uselessness of such a belief and the great harm it is doing to mankind.

A thing is just what its internal qualities make it. I mean by this, what the ingredients of its composition causes it to really be; and these ingredients cannot be supplied unless they have in themselves an existence of those qualities which are sufficient to make that composition just what is necessary and required to produce the thing in its genuine substance.

This applies to things of the soul, and unless the qualities of the soul are such as to eliminate the elements of sin and everything that prevents that soul from coming into harmony with the Laws of God, that soul will continue in sin and separation from the Divine Nature of the Father.

The soul is in each individual an entity, which is distinct and separate from the soul of every other man, and is dependent for its qualities, not in what that other man may do or not do, but upon that which will make those qualities like, or in substance the same as the qualities of that thing which is desired or sought for, as a necessary acquirement in making the substance of that possessed and that desired similar.

According to the belief of which I speak, the sacrifice mentioned causes the salvation of man by appeasing the wrath of God and lifting from man the condemnation under which he was suffering, and by accomplishing such an object, man became a new creature in his soul qualities and was given the qualities that are required to make him like unto the Father and, therefore, he has nothing further to be done for him in order to relieve him entirely from the possession of this sin and from the demands of God - the sacrifice is sufficient to bring about these results.

But as we have told you, and as even the followers or possessors of these beliefs assert, Love is the great necessity to effectuate the union between God and man, and this Love must dwell in the soul of man as well as in the bosom of the Father waiting its bestowal on man. It can be obtained only by sincere seeking on the part of man, and no other way is provided by which it can be obtained.

The sacrifice or the shedding of blood does not cause the inflowing of this Love into the souls of men, and the mere fact even if it were true that an angry God had been appeased, or debt paid, or a mortal is redeemed would not cause this Love to become a part of the souls of men.

I know that it is asserted that these things, in some mysterious way, reconciles God to man, and thereby causes the acceptance of man by God, and when that is done all the sins and depravity of a man's soul immediately become no longer a part of his soul's qualities, and the soul is perfected and its condition is that which enables it to become of a nature like that of the Father.

But a difficulty with this conclusion is that only Jesus and God are the ones that are participating in this great work of redemption, and man is eliminated from the necessity of doing anything, except to believe that the sacrifice is sufficient to cause his full salvation and all that it means.

How this belief that the sacrifice or the flowing of the blood can make a sinful soul pure, or become a partaker of the Divine Nature of the Father, has never been explained by the teachers of the Christian doctrines in any way that is consonant with reason and cannot be so explained, for the one reason that is of itself sufficient and, that is, that the sacrifice does not work such a consummation. No one man, not even Jesus, can do the work of another, or for another, that will produce the results necessary to insure the reconciliation mentioned.

It is claimed that Jesus died to save all men from their sins, or that he that believeth on the name of Jesus shall be saved from their sins. But the question again arises: "How? In what way can it be argued that his death made the impure man clean, even though he believed it did? Can his blood shed on Calvary cleanse the soul of any man?" I know that it is claimed that in some mysterious way it does, but no one explains the how.

Can anyone of the great theological teachers tell you by what mysterious or other process this blood operates on the Mercy or Love of God, so that the sinner is saved from his sins or from the penalties which the violation of God's Laws entail? I know that they cannot, and for the same reason as before stated, that the blood does not accomplish these results.

Then what is the use in accepting such belief when it cannot be understood or explained and is the blindest of blind beliefs of mortals?

No, no sacrifice of Jesus, no shedding of his blood, and no vicarious atonement as it is called, can save a human soul from sin, or bring it into the Love of the Father, or cause it to become a partaker of the Divine Nature.We have already, in previous messages, declared and explained to you what and what only brings to men salvation, and I will not here repeat, but will say this, that: "Except a man be born again, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of Heaven." Nothing less is sufficient and nothing added to can in any way bring about man's salvation.

I will not write more tonight, as what I have said should cause men to think and understand upon what false and baseless foundation they stand when they rely upon the belief in Jesus' sacrifice to save them from their sin.

With all my love and blessings I will say, good night.

Your brother in Christ.
Luke

Joseph of Arimathea Writes That He Laid the Body of Jesus in the Tomb After His Crucifixion

March 16, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, Joseph of Arimathea.

I desire merely to write a few lines to let you know that I really did exist as a mortal, and that I am the same man who laid the body of Jesus in the tomb where never before had anybody been laid.

I was with him at his death, and I was with his body when it was laid in the tomb and sealed, and I know and testify that no man or men or society of men, as it has been said, stole his body from the tomb. His body was entombed as was the custom of my time, and he was wrapped in cerements and fitted for the long sleep in the tomb, as we supposed.

While I was not a full Christian, yet his doctrines appealed to me as containing the truth, having about them a living inspiration, which I did not find in the teachings of the Jewish theology, for I was a Pharisee. I never thought that his death was justifiable or approved it, but I was not able to prevent it; and feeling that a great crime had been committed by the people of whom I was one, I tried to make a small atonement for the great crime by giving him burial in my new tomb.

Of course, I did not believe that he would rise again in the way that he had made known to some of his disciples, and when we buried him, I only thought that that tomb would be his sepulchre until nature had destroyed the body as it had done in the cases of all others who had been entombed.

As you may realize, I was interested in the proceedings taken by the Jewish leaders in their efforts to prove that he, Jesus, would not arise from the tomb on the third day, and I kept watch as well as did the soldiers, and I can testify that no mortal ever removed the stones from the mouth of the tomb.

I was there when the angel came and the soldiers were put in the sleep that the Bible speaks of, and I Joseph say this, knowing that it may not be believed and the Bible makes no mention of it, that I saw the stones rolled away and the shining one standing guard at the entrance of the tomb. I was frightened and I left the place, and was so overcome that I did not return there until the early morning, and then I saw Mary and heard her inquiring for the whereabouts of her beloved Master, and more wonderful, I saw the man of whom she inquired suddenly reveal himself to her, and I can testify also, that it was the same Jesus whom I had helped lay his body in my tomb.

He was not of flesh and blood, as they say, for he suddenly appeared, and his appearance was not the same as that of the Jesus whose body had been entombed; but when he revealed himself to Mary, there was the same countenance and the same wonderful eyes of love that I was familiar with, and the same voice of love and affection. I know this and I want to tell the world that it is true.

Before Peter came, I went into the tomb, and it was empty and when Peter came I was with him in the tomb and saw his astonishment, and heard his words of wonder and amazement, for notwithstanding what the Master had told him prior to the crucifixion, he did not believe or comprehend, and he was astonished and bewildered as were all of us.

Jesus of Nazareth arose from that tomb, and his fleshly body was de-materialized. As to his disappearance, I could not then explain, as could none who saw him after he had arisen, but now I know that because of his great psychic powers, as you would call them, he caused the disintegration of that body into its elements, as can be done now by many spirits who have that power. Yes, Jesus arose from the tomb, but not from the dead, for he never died, as you will never die, only the physical vestment that enveloped his soul.

I am now in the Celestial Heaven and am with him a great deal, and know that he is the greatest and most wonderful of all the spirits in the Celestial Sphere, and the nearest to the fountainhead of God's Love. He is truly His best beloved Son.

I also want to say that he writes to you his messages of truth, and was with you tonight for a short time. Listen to him and know that you have in him a friend who is closer than a brother, or father or mother.

My brother, I will stop now, and in leaving, say that you have my love and blessings.

Your brother in Christ,
Joseph

John D. Parker and Josephus Write Short Notes to Confirm that James E. Padgett is Receiving Messages from the Higher Spirits

March 14, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, John D. Parker.

Let me say a word, for I am interested in you and your work to a very large extent. I have not written you before and I want merely to say that you are receiving these messages from the higher spirits, and you must believe that you are.

I am a spirit who once lived in a country far away from where you live and was not a Christian man in an orthodox sense, but was a believer in God, though not in the God of the Bible, as I never thought that a loving God could be the wrathful and vindictive God that the Jews believed Him to be.

I have been in the spirit world for many years and am a follower of Jesus in his truths and teachings and am an inhabitant of the Seventh Sphere where only the followers of him live.

I will not write more tonight as I see that you are tired, and others want to write a little. So with all my brotherly love, I will subscribe myself

Your brother in Christ,
John D. Parker of Liverpool, England

**********

Josephus assures Mr. Padgett that he is receiving communications from spirits living in the Celestial Spheres.

I am here, Josephus.

I am Josephus. Yes, Josephus, the Jewish Historian who has written you before.

I merely want to say that I am interested in your work and that you are receiving messages from the high spirits whose homes are in the Celestial Spheres, and you must believe what they write you, for they write only the truth.

I see that you are sleepy tonight and that I must not write more, though, I would like to write you a long letter at this time; but I will come again and give you my views on certain matters in which you are interested.

Your brother in Christ,
Josephus

Frank Davis, a Old Friend of James E. Padgett, Writes His Testimony and Reveals that He is in the Third Sphere

March 7, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am your old friend and chum, Frank Davis.

Well, I am glad to be able to write you - a thing when on earth, I never expected anybody could do; and it is only recently that I learned that such a method of communication could be used.

I am quite happy now, but when I first came to the spirit world, I was in considerable darkness and suffered some. As you may know I was an ordinarily good man when on earth, by that I mean I never had any really bad or vicious habits which a great many men have, and I loved my wife and children very much and died loving them.

You also know that I was not what was called an orthodox Christian having imbibed my beliefs from my father, but I believed in God and, also, that He would not be severe on me for my short comings when I should come to stand in His presence. But I now know that there were other things that I should have believed and experienced in order to fit me for a condition of happiness which I firmly expected would be mine.

I have found that belief is a very important thing, both on earth and in the spirit world, and that these creations of the mind have a wonderful influence in determining the happiness or the contrary of a spirit in this life.

I never had any of the Love of God in my heart, except in a general way, which was, I suppose, of the same nature as the love for my family but, I am afraid, not to the extent that I loved them. And also, I rather prided myself on my own moral excellence and supposed such qualities would be sufficient to make me a pretty happy spirit, but I soon found my mistake. When we come to offset our moral qualities against the evil thoughts and deeds of our earth life, they are largely in the minority and don't count for very much while these evil thoughts and deeds, or rather the recollection of them exist in our minds and memories.

Well, it will do no good to rehearse the experience of my earth life now, but I found myself in darkness and suffering and realized that I was paying the penalties for the sins that I had committed.

But after awhile these recollections commenced to leave me and I found that I was getting into more light and less suffering, but the movement was very slow and, at times, hardly perceptible. After a while I met some beautiful and loving spirits who seemed to take an interest in me, and told me of the way to get rid of my sufferings and to reach the planes of light where happiness was, and I had to listen to them, for I saw that they were so superior to me, and they told me that they had been mortals like myself and had come up out of darkness and suffering such as I was then undergoing.

Well, to make a long story short, I finally acted on their advice and found that way, and you will not be surprised when I tell you that the way was through and by the Divine Love of the Father. I tell you this because I know, and all the speculations of philosophers and religionists cannot bear a feather's weight in the argument against my "know." Yes, I found this Love, or rather, it found me and now I am very happy.

I am in the Third Sphere and am trying my very hard for more faith and more Love, and I know that I will get it, because I have before me every moment living examples in those who have received it to a wonderful degree and are still receiving it and progressing.

As we, in the long ago, were old chums and thought a great deal of each other, I thought that you would be interested in knowing that I am happy and a redeemed child of the Father and on my way to spheres celestial.

Well, I will not write more tonight, but sometimes I should like to come and have a real heart-to-heart chat about old times, for though those are things of the past and not to be compared with what I have now in the way of experience, yet as you are on earth, I feel that we might both enjoy talking over old times, because we used to have some happy times together.

So with all the old time friendship and love, and with a new love, too, I will say good night.

Frank Davis

**********

Helen Writes that Earth Ties of Friendship Still Survive for a While in the Spirit World
   
I am here, Helen.

I come and am glad to do so, as I have been waiting sometime for some of your old earth friends to finish their writings.

I rather enjoyed the last letter for it showed me that earth ties of friendship still survive for a while anyhow, in this world and that a meeting of long parted friends brings happiness. I see Mr. Davis quite often and we talk of you and of the times of your earth life.

I also try to help him and he is progressing and is in the right road to the high spheres.

Well, sweetheart, I see that you are very tired and must stop so I will not write longer though I should like to very much. So give me a hug and a kiss and say good night.

Your own true and loving,
Helen

St. Stephen Writes About the Invisible Church, Which is Composed of the Soul Worship of Men and Women Who Have Received Divine Love in Their Souls

January 17, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, St. Stephen.

I merely want to say a word on the importance of the subject which Paul has written on the resurrection. This is one of the most vital truths in all the plan of God for the redemption of mankind, and for the preservation and existence of the church; and when I say church, I do not mean any church which claims to be the only Church of Christ, but that invisible church which is composed of the soul worship of men and women, who have received the Divine Love in their souls. It is not necessary that there be any formation of congregations and ceremonies of church worship as men understand it, but the true, sincere worship of men founded on a knowledge of the Divine Love and its possession in their souls.

While men on earth may never form large congregations and erect magnificent churches in which to worship the Father with the true soul worship and aspirations, yet when they come into the spirit world, they will find that the Master has established his church in the eternal Heavens, where none but the truly Christian can enter and partake of its glories and happiness.

Jesus is the head of that church here in our Celestial Heavens, as he should be of the church on earth. And as he must be when that church has for its members only those who have had the resurrection from sin and error and death of the soul into the knowledge of the Divine Love and the life everlasting. Jesus referred to this resurrection when he said: "I am the resurrection and the life," and not the resurrection of the body either physical or spiritual.

I see that you are anxious to have these truths come and I am also anxious and a coworker. I will now say good night and in doing so say with all my love, God Bless you and keep you in His care now and always.

Your brother in Christ,
St. Stephen

Luke Writes on the Truth of the Atonement, Part One

December 30, 1915
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, St. Luke.

I come tonight to tell you of a truth that is of very great importance to you and to mankind, and desire that you shall be very careful in receiving what I may say. I am in a condition of Love that enables me to know whereof I write and to cause what I may say to be accepted by you as true.

I want to tell you that the Love - of which we have been writing - is the only Love that can make a spirit or man at-one with the Father, and this my theme: The Atonement.

This word, as used in the Bible and as interpreted by the churches and the commentators on the Bible, carries with it a meaning of some price being paid by Jesus for the redemption of mankind from their sins and from the punishment that they will have to undergo because of having committed sin; and, also, the idea that God, as an angry and insatiable God, was waiting for the price to be paid in order for His wrath to become satisfied and for man to stand before Him acquitted of sin and the consequences of disobedience.

This price, according to the teachings of the churches and the persons named, must have been paid by one who in his goodness and purity was capable of paying this price; that is, one who had in him such inherent qualities and, by his sacrifices, was of such inherent worth as to satisfy the requirements of the demands of this angry God whose laws had been disobeyed. And they also teach that the only way by which such price could have been paid was by the death on the cross of Jesus, who was the only person in all creation that possessed these qualities sufficiently to meet these requirements; and that by his death and the shedding of his blood, the sins were atoned for and God was satisfied. This is the orthodox belief of the atonement and plan of salvation.

In short, a perfect human being free from all sin, a death on the cross and a shedding of blood, which was necessary that the sins of mortals might be washed away and their souls made clean and fitted to become a part of the great family of God.

But all this conception of the atonement is wrong and not justified by any teaching of the Master, or by any of the true teachings of the disciples to whom he had explained the plan of salvation and what the atonement means.

I know that in various parts of the New Testament, it is said that the blood of Jesus washes away all sin, and that his death on the cross satisfies the Father's demand for justice; and therein, there are many similar expressions conveying the same idea. But these sayings of the Bible were never written by the persons to whom they are ascribed, but by writers who, in their various translations and alleged reproductions of these writings, added to and eliminated from the writings of the original writers until the Bible became filled with these false doctrines and teachings.

The writers of the Bible, as it now stands, were persons who belonged to the church which was nationalized about the time of Constantine and, as such, had imposed upon them the duty of writing such ideas as the rulers or governors of this church conceived should be incorporated in the Bible for the purpose of carrying out their ideas in order to subserve the interests of the church and to give it such temporal power as it never could have had under the teachings and guidance of the pure doctrines of the Master.

For nearly two thousand years, this false doctrine of the atonement has been believed in and accepted by the so-called Christian churches and has been promulgated by these churches as the true doctrine of Jesus and the one upon which the salvation of man depends; and the consequences have been that men have believed that the only things necessary to their salvation and reconciliation to God were the death of Jesus and the washing away of their sins by the blood shed on Calvary.

If men only knew how futile his death was and how inefficacious his blood is to wash away sin and pay the debt to the Father, they would not rest in the assurance that all they have to do is to believe in this sacrifice and this blood, but would learn the true plan of salvation and make every effort in their power to follow that plan and, as a consequence, have their souls developed so that they would come into harmony with the Father's Love and Laws.

Atonement, in its true meaning, never meant the payment of a debt or the appeasing of the wrath of God, but simply the becoming at-one with Him in those qualities that will insure to men the possession of His Love and the Immortality that Jesus brought to light. The sacrifice of Jesus could have no possible effect upon the condition of man's soul qualities, and neither could the blood shedding make a vile and sinful soul pure and free from sin.

God's universe is governed by laws as immutable as they are perfect in their workings, and the great thing to be accomplished by the plan, which He provided for the redemption of men, is to have every man come into harmony with these laws, because just as soon as that harmony exists there, will be no more discord and sin will not be known to humanity. And so only that which will bring man into this harmony can possibly save him from his sins and bring about the atonement that Jesus and his disciples taught.

Man, when created, was endowed with what may be called a natural love, and that love, to the extent of the quality that it possessed, was in perfect harmony with God's universe, and so long as it was permitted to exist in its pure state was a part of the harmony of the universe; but when it became defiled or impregnated with sin or anything not in accord with God's Laws, it became inharmonious and not at-one with God, and the only redemption required was the removing of those things that caused the in-harmony.

Now, the only way in which this in-harmony could be removed was by the natural love becoming again pure and free from that which defiled it. The sacrifice on the cross could not furnish this remedy and neither could the blood atonement accomplish it, because the sacrifice and the blood had no relation to the evil to be remedied. So I assert, if these things paid the penalty and satisfied God and thereby He had no further claim upon man for any debt supposed to be due Him from man, it necessarily implies that He kept the souls of men in this condition of in-harmony and would not permit the same to be removed until His demands for satisfaction and blood had been met; and that then, when He should be appeased, He would permit men by His mere ipse dixit to again come in harmony with His Laws and the workings of His universe. In other words, He would be willing to let men remain out of harmony with His universe and the workings of His laws, until He had His demands for sacrifice and blood satisfied.

This, as is apparent to any reasonable man, would be a thing so foolish that no mere man in matters pertaining to his earthly affairs would adopt as a plan for the redemption of those sons of his who had been disobedient.

I see you have a caller and will continue later.

Jesus Writes That He Visited the Preacher of a Unitarian Church and Believes He Will Accept the Truths in the Messages

December 28, 1915
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, Jesus.

I came tonight to tell you that you did the right thing by sending the message to the person who wrote the article upon the subject of Christianizing the Bible, for I now believe that he will appreciate it to a very great extent.

He is not an orthodox Christian as I have learned, but is the preacher of a Unitarian Church in the little town in which he lives and is a very broad minded man. I have learned this by visiting him and saw the condition of his mind and beliefs upon subjects related to what you have written him.

He may have some doubts as to the source of the message and may not feel inclined to accept your statements as to how you received it as true, but yet his doubts will not be altogether of such a nature that he may not have some hesitation on saying that such a thing as your receiving my message could not be true.

At any rate he will become interested in the subject matter of the message and will find some thoughts that he never before had.

And I fully realize that when you shall publish my messages, the great difficulty in their being accepted will be the doubts of the people as to their source, but you will have to compile the book in such a way that the testimony of the numerous writers will be so strong that the doubts will not be able to withstand the evidence of my being the writer of the messages. And when men read the same, they will realize that the truths which they contain could only come from a higher source than mortal mind and that the hand of the Father is in them.

I merely write this tonight to show you that we will have a great difficulty to have people believe that I wrote the messages and that we will have to do everything possible to convince them of the truth of the source of the writings. But if this difficulty should appear almost insurmountable in the beginning, yet after a while when men come to appreciate the inherent truth and importance of the messages, they will easily believe that I wrote them, and especially will this be the case with those men who are not orthodox in this belief.

So I will continue to write and you to receive the messages and when the time comes to publish them, I do not fear that they will not be gladly received.

Very soon I will write you another, which will be very important to mankind.

I will only say further that I am with you trying to influence you to do the right thing in your life and to believe with all your heart in the Divine Love of the Father and in my mission and your work.

I will not write more but will say with all my love that I am,

Your brother and friend,
Jesus

St. Paul Writes on the "The Drama of St Paul" Sermon and Corrects the Inaccuracies

December 5, 1915
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, St. Paul.

Well, my brother, I was with you at the discourse on the "Drama of St. Paul," and was much interested in the subject matter, and also in the manner in which the speaker delivered his discourse. He was somewhat dramatic himself, and his elocution and intonation of the dialogues between several of the prominent personages in the drama and myself were very effective; but really they, the intonations, did not sound very familiar, because to me they possessed too much artificiality to represent correctly the real tones of voice and the feelings that possessed these persons and myself on those occasions. But, nevertheless, they were very effective and I have, no doubt, produced on the hearers the effect intended.

Some of the scenes depicted were very real, and some of them were not, for they never occurred. I well remember my experience on the way to Damascus, and the great change that it caused to my whole existence on earth. The brightness and the voice of Jesus were actualities, but the statement that I went blind is not true, for I was not blind but only affected for the time by the unusual light and, also, the shock that the voice of Jesus caused.

As Jesus said, my only blindness was that which covered my spiritual eyes at the time, and when I went into the town, the only blindness that I recovered from, in a way, was that which had kept my soul in darkness and caused me to persecute the followers of Jesus under the belief that I was doing the work which God had called me to do. So you see, that while the description as a whole of my life after my call was very interesting, yet it was not altogether correct.

Jesus has told you what my condition of soul development was and how I lacked the Love, which I afterwards, to some degree, possessed. And as he says, I was in my early ministry more of an intellectual Christian, than a Christian possessing the Great Divine Love of the Father; yet thanks to him, I continued to preach and believed as best I could until finally I became a redeemed child of God filled with His Love. I knew many things connected with and taught in the theology of the Jews, and especially of the Pharisees. I see now that in my writings, my conceptions of the truths of God, were flavored to a considerable extent by this knowledge which are of the Jewish theology.

While many things that I taught are true as I now see them, yet many things that the Bible says I wrote are not true, and I am not surprised that men will not accept them at this time. How I wish that I could review and rewrite the Epistles ascribed to me. How many seeming contradictions and unreasonable things would be made plain; but I cannot, except as I may through you declare the truth as I now see it, and I hope that the opportunities may come that I may do so.

Well, I will not write more tonight as you have written considerable, and others wish to write. I will say good night.

Your brother in Christ,
Paul

Leekesi, an Assyrian Official Who Believed in Many Gods, Writes His Testimony

November 4, 1915
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, Leekesi.

I was a man who lived in the time of the destruction of Nineveh and was an Assyrian official; but I am not mentioned in history for my time was short, though in it occurred some of the most important acts of the whole history of that land.

I was not a believer in the God of the Hebrews, though in my time I had heard of that God, and many Jews lived in my domain; yet I would not let them worship that God or in any way teach my people the religion of the Jews.

Our gods were many and were worshiped by the inhabitants of the nation in accordance with what might be the desires of these people, and when the gods answered the prayers of the people, they were thought to be good and true, but when the answers did not come, the gods were false and new gods were made and worshiped according as they answered the people's prayers or not. So you see that our gods were the creatures of men and not men the creatures of the gods.

But notwithstanding this false idea, as I now see, of God, there were men of deep insight into the matters pertaining to the spiritual world, who did not make and worship the gods that I have spoken of, but who were able to look beyond these material things and discover that there was such a thing as a higher condition of the afterlife in which the souls of man could find happiness and knowledge of the existence of a real and mighty power that would bring them into a state of existence where men would realize the higher life of the soul's predominance.

These men were not numerous and did not associate with the inhabitants to any extent, but lived to themselves and evolved certain philosophies which satisfied them of truths which our common beliefs did not comprehend. These men also taught these truths, but not very generally, and only to those who might become their followers.

In my time, we had what you would call churches and priests and officials of high position in the religious organization and feasts and ceremonies and sacrifices, and these powerful ecclesiastics were very jealous and intolerant of anything which interfered with or in any manner controlled their religious teachings or the power which they exercised over the people and the government of the kingdom as well. And, consequently, these philosophers that I speak of were not permitted to disseminate their speculations or philosophies among the masses and were compelled to write their doctrines or teachings in a language which the common people could not understand.

This was the condition of the religious part of my kingdom at the time of its destruction, and many of my people who survived this destruction and who were scattered into other countries took with them these beliefs in the multiplicity of gods and worshiped as before their dispersion. In time these beliefs commenced to permeate the beliefs of the people among whom they lived until the belief in many gods became the general belief of many other nations. You will find in history that many nations which became great after the fall of my kingdom, such as Greece and Rome and others, continued the belief in a multiplicity of gods.

But not until the spreading and adoption of Christianity by them did the belief in the one true God become the established and universal belief of these nations and of the people thereof.

Man made the gods and worshiped them until the great Master came and proclaimed the truth of the one and only existing Father. Of course, an exception must be made in the statement in favor of the Jews, because they had only one God; but even they had different names for their God, which were applicable and used in accordance with the qualities that they ascribed to Him. It was only after Jesus came did that one God with many names of the Jews become our Father - the God of Love and Salvation.

From all of this you may suppose that I am a Christian. Well, I am, and I live in the Celestial Spheres; for I must tell you that I became converted to the truths of the teachings of Jesus many years ago and my progression in the development of my soul has been such that I am now in the Celestial Spheres.

I merely wanted to write this to show you that man has been a maker of gods for so many years that they cannot be numbered; and that it was only when the great truths came with the coming of Jesus that the real existing God and all His attributes were revealed to mankind.

Yes, I know, many of the people who lived in my time, and long since, have never learned the truth of the soul development and live in the happiness which has come to them with the progress of their intellects. But many of them have also been brought into the Light and Truth.

I will not write more, but will say good night,

Leekesi

Semiramis, a Pagan on Earth, Had an Awakening and Became a Christian

November 2, 1915
Received by James Padgett
Washington D.C.

I am here, Semiramis.

I was a Greek maiden, and I only wish to say that I desire to tell you that I am a Christian and live in the Celestial Heavens where the Master is forming his New Jerusalem.

I was on earth a pagan, as I was called, and believed in the philosophy of the Greeks and also of the Egyptians, who had written many works dealing with the soul and its destiny. I then believed in the immortality of the soul and the Elysian Fields for those spirits who should obey the gods and do those things which caused the soul to seek the higher planes of truth and happiness. But after I became a spirit and met some of the beautiful Christian spirits, I had an awakening and I became convinced of the truths of Christianity and the wonderful plans of God for the salvation of mankind.

So I merely wanted to say this and to write, and your band permitted me to do so. I will not detain you longer, but must stop, and will say that I am

Your sister in Christ,
Semiramis

Mother of Eugene Morgan Writes That Divine Love, Soulmate Love and a Mother's Love are the Three Greatest Things in All God's Universe

October 30, 1915
Received by James Padgett
Washington D.C.

I am here, Mother of Eugene Morgan.

I heard him express the desire today that I would write to him, and I then determined that I would come with him to your room tonight and gratify his wish. Your band consents that I should write and are helping me in the way of lending me their rapport and, hence, I write so easily, as you may see.

Tell him that I am so glad that he has commenced to awaken to the truths of spiritualism, and that if he will only continue his investigations, he will not only ultimately believe in its truths, but will find the greatest satisfaction and the longings of his soul will be realized.

Many and many times have I been with him hoping and praying that his mind would be opened to the truths which spiritualism teaches, and that as a result thereof, his soul faculties would be opened to the greatest truths which affect his eternal happiness in not only this life but in the great life to come. I, as his mother, have prayed for all this and now I thank God that I can see that my long-wished-for hope will likely be fulfilled.

I am very happy, and am a Christian, as he knows I was when on earth; but I am not exactly the same kind of Christian. Then I believed in the doctrines of the church as to the ceremonies and formalities that were imposed upon me to follow and abide by more than in the soul's real religion. Now I see that these formalities were nothing; that the true soul religion determines and brings to us the great happiness which the Father has provided for us.

I will not leave him until he shall come to the spirit world; and I don't mean to say that that will be very soon, but no matter how long he may remain on earth, I will stay with him and give him the great mother love which he never received in a very demonstrative way when I lived. But he is my boy and it seems to me that my love for him is without limit or extent. So he must believe that I am with him and in return think of me often and let his love for me flow to me sometimes and try to feel that the love of his mother is responding to him.

I am in the Fifth Sphere and am among the redeemed of the Father, with only the Divine Love in my soul; and if I could only tell him what this means, all his doubts would flee from him and he would thank God with all his heart that he had been awakened to some realization that there is such a thing as the future life, and a God, and a great overwhelming and all-pervading Love waiting for him to make him happy and to become one with the Father.

His father is here, too, but he is not so much developed as am I, for he was not on earth a very serious believer in the things of the soul; but now, thank God, he has had his awakening and is trying to obtain that Love and to progress to the higher spheres and so, ultimately, be with me; for I must tell my son, notwithstanding the fact that he doubts or cannot exactly realize the existence or meaning of soulmates that his father and I are soulmates and are more happy in our love than ever we were in earth life.

And there is another thing that I want to tell him, and that is that he has a soulmate, too, and she is here, and lives in the same sphere with me. She wrote him a few nights ago, and while I see that he may doubt the reality of her existence here, yet, I want to tell him with all the love and interest that his mother has in him, that she is a real existing being with all the substance and reality that he can imagine a human sweetheart to have, whom he had never seen. Yes, his Clara is here and is with him oftener than he can conceive of and is loving him with a love that even his mother's love cannot compare with.

Tell him that I will come again soon and write him, and more in detail, but tonight I am so full of love and so thankful that I can express it to him that I can scarcely think of anything else. Love, Love, Love is the burden of my message tonight and he must think and learn and know that his mother's love, his soulmate's love, and the Divine Love of the Father are the three greatest things in all God's universe, but in their reverse importance.

I must stop, though it is hard to do so. I want to thank you for your kindness in receiving my message and trust that you will continue to show my boy the way to a realization of the truth in this great and most important Truth of spiritualism.

I will again tell him that I love him and say goodnight.

Mother of Eugene Morgan

Sarah, the Wife of Abraham, Writes Her Testimony to Correct What is Written in the Bible About Her

October 23, 1915
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am the spirit of Sarah.

I was the wife of Abraham. I want to tell you that I am now a Christian and live in the Celestial Spheres.

Yes, but there are many things in the Bible that are not true. Well, when it says that I sent Hagar into the desert, or caused her to be sent into the desert, to starve and die - that story was a slander on me and did me great injustice, because I was not such a wicked woman.

Abraham did not send her there either, but she went of her own accord, because she had done that which condemned her in her own conscience. Well, she had taken my husband and had a child by him. I know that the Bible says that was commanded by God, or that I prevailed upon Abraham to have a child by her, but it is not true.

Yes, I am happy, and so is Abraham and our son Isaac, and his son Jacob but they were without this Divine Love for a great many years, as it only came to us when the Master came to earth.

I know that you think it strange that I should come to you and write, but as I was with Aaron in the earth plane and was attracted to you by the light, which fills the space around you, I followed Aaron and came to you and after he wrote, I wrote also.

Yes, I see a great number of beautiful spirits around you, and some of the apostles who are so very beautiful and bright. They seem to be so much interested in you, and say that you have been selected to do the work of the Master on earth in the way of revealing the truths which he shall write to you. I don't quite understand it all, but if the Master says it is what shall be done, you will do it.

I must stop now, but please believe that I am Sarah as I have told you. I will leave you now and say goodnight.

Your sister in Christ, Sarah, the wife of Abraham.

General William T. Sherman Writes That He is in Darkness and is Astonished to See His Old Friends Who Have Received the Great Love of God

October 19, 1915
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.

I am here, General S.

No, it seems not - how strange.

[White Eagle writes]: He says his name was General Sherman and that he wants to write a letter.

[General Sherman continues]: Well, I tried to write my name, but I could not. What do you think was the cause? Why, damn it. I have written my name more times than there are stars in the heavens and, yet, I was not able to write it here. Well, that is what I called war - hell. I don't mean to be profane, but the idea, that I could not write my name....

Well, as Grant and I are very close friends here, as we were on earth, I thought that as he wrote a letter, I would like to do so also. Just as he said about himself, I say, I am in some darkness and suffering - paying the penalties of my evil deeds on earth and for what I neglected to do in the way of performing my duties when I had so many to perform and so many opportunities.

I am in the same sphere with him, but he is in a higher plane and is not in such darkness as I am. I am not a Christian yet, but hope to be sometime, as I have some dear friends here who are, and they are trying to persuade me to become a Christian; but as you may not know, I never could be persuaded on earth, and it is difficult to be persuaded here.

I am enjoying this new experience in writing to you, and to me this is very surprising, but is very satisfactory. I wonder how such a thing can be. I have attended séances when my earth friends have attended and have tried to make myself known to them and to some extent have succeeded, but not in the way that I am doing now. I am afraid that if you are not careful, I shall steal on you and write many times so that you will wish that I had never come.

Well, my dear boy, I am certainly glad that you recalled these reminiscences. Of course, with all the people that I met in those days, I cannot remember you, as we only had a passing handshake, but I am certainly glad that you recalled those times and more glad that I can be with you now; and things will be reversed now, for I will be the one who will not forget, while you, considering the great number of spirits who come to you to write and the great number who are around you ready to write, I hardly expect that you will find time to give me much thought.

Well, I don't quite understand you, but if you can show me the way to obtaining such a condition of soul and such a degree of happiness, I will certainly accept your kind offer and will try my best to follow your advice; but really, I don't see how you can accomplish this.

Yes, I remember Riddle very well, and he was a very dear friend of mine, but why do you ask that question? Is he involved in the redemption of me? He was a very dear friend, but I doubt that he can do what you seem to imply.

I have done as you advised, and I must confess my surprise to see Riddle in the band that you speak of - and what a beautiful and bright spirit he is. How in the world did he get in that condition, when on earth he was somewhat like myself - a free thinker - and cussed sometimes. But I must speak to him and learn what it means.

Well, I have been introduced to your grandmother, and what a glorious spirit she is! I never before saw such spirits. They must live in spheres far above where I live.

Riddle says I am the same old rough wicked Sherman and wants me to go with him, and I will go, and I will not forget to request a few words with your grandmother.

I will ask him (R.G.Ingersoll) now, and he seems so beautiful and bright, too. What does it mean? Ingersoll says it means that he has become a believer in the Great Love of the Father and is a follower of Jesus Christ. What a surprise and what a change in Ingersoll.

My friend, I cannot write more as I am all upset by what I have seen and heard. So excuse me, I will say goodnight.

Your friend,
Wm. T. Sherman