Talking to the Other Side: A History of Modern Spiritualism and Mediumship: A Study of the Religion, Science, Philosophy and Mediums that Encompass this American-Made Religion
Product Description
Since its birth in 1848, Spiritualism as a religion, science, and philosophy has experienced great highs and lows. At the center of this purely American-made modern-religious movement are “mediums”–the people who are able to communicate, in some way, with spirit entities that are no longer on the earth plane.
Based on three years of on-site investigation, and a plethora of data and research collected on the modern Spiritualist movement in America, Talking to the Other Side focuses upon the ethno-religious aspects of the religion, mediumship, and the mediums themselves.
The first four chapters offer an expansive review of the history of religion in America, mediumship, and the Spiritualist movement. Chapters 5-7 comprise the research and data that were compiled and analyzed based on fieldwork analysis, a comprehensive questionnaire, personal interviews, and published literature on the topic of Spiritualism and mediumship.
According to Spiritualist mediums, “people don’t die, bodies do.” Talking to the Other Side offers a contemporary look into the lives and backgrounds of the mediums who bridge this world and the Spirit world, connecting those who have passed over with those they left behind.
Tagged with: AmericanMade • Encompass • History • Mediums • Mediumship • Modern • Philosophy • Religion • Science • Side • Spiritualism • Study • Talking • This
Filed under: Recommended Books
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!
This book is poorly written and inadequately researched. Many of the author’s conclusions are highly questionable, based as they are on sloppy or erroenous scholarship. At best, this book could pass as a mediocre introduction to the subject of spiritualism. However, it should not be relied on for serious academic usage.
Rating: 2 / 5
A fascinating book! I have always been interested in Spiritualism so this book is right down my street. However I believe that any person of any religion would find this book interesting and thought provoking.
I have read several books on Spiritualism but most tend to go a bit overboard with their ideas and thus cause you to doubt what they are attempting to portray. Not so with this book.
I found Dr. Leonard’s book to be very informative especially the history of American made religions. As an Australian I had no knowledge about this fact.
Spiritualism has always been very popular in Australia so I would be interested to read a book about the history of Australian Spiritualism. Perhaps Dr. Leonard might consider this for a future book.
Rating: 5 / 5
I found Dr. Leonard’s book “Talking to the Other Side: A History of Modern Spiritualism and Mediumship” to be an interesting and dynamic introduction to the phenonemon of spiritualism in America. Dr. Leonard does not try to prove or disprove the validity of spiritualism. Instead, Dr. Leonard offers a historical and an experiential perspective on the development and practice of mediumship.
21st century popular television series include: “Ghost Whisperer,” “Touched By an Angel,” and “Medium.” In addition, popular television talk shows have medium guests like Sylvia Brown or John Edwards. While television emphasizes the sensationalization of mediumship, Dr. Leonard takes an academic stance regarding the spiritualist movement. By offering an objective history of the development of religion since ancient times, Dr. Leonard shows how the conditions of 19th century America made it possible for spiritualism to evolve.
Being a mathematics instructor at a college, I found Dr. Leonard’s approach to spiritualism to be refreshingly professional, factual and non-subjective. Given the controversial nature of mediumship, collecting and analyzing data on this subject area is at best difficult. In spite of such difficulties, Dr. Leonard managed to collect some interesting data regarding mediums’ religious backgrounds, motivations, training, and daily practices. “Talking to the Other Side” is the first time in the 21st century that an attempt to understand and view spiritualism has been taken so professionally, that I am aware of. It is my hope that Dr. Leonard’s book will encourage other scholars to pursue further studies in this fascinating subject area.
To me, some of the most interesting aspects in “Talking to the Other Side” include:
how spiritualism was (is) linked to the women’s movement, the philosophical aspects of spiritualim, that spiritualism is an uniquely American-made religion, how linking spiritualism with science in the 18th century may have had negative repercussions on the movement, interviews with “traditional” mediums,and why many modern people are attracted to the religion of spiritualism. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has an even minor interest in psychics, mediums, spiritualists, etc.
Rating: 5 / 5
Dr. Leonard’s work is a well-rounded history of modern Spiritualism. It fills the gap in a hole of religious history that is so often neglected. The work would be of interest to the professional scholar or casual student of Spiritualism or religious history. I highly recommend it.
Rating: 5 / 5
I must respond to this book! I was privileged to be one of the mediums interviewed for this book and Dr. Leonard has done a superb job of collecting data and telling the story. For those readers with no experience of Spiritualism and its beautiful philosophy of life, this is a great place to start. Dr. Leonard gives history, he quotes interviews with mediums, and gives this religion the solid basis it deserves as it continues to minister to the needs of people world-wide.Congratulations, Dr. Leonard on a job well done!!!
Rating: 5 / 5