IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) k IS {./ '^A A f^^^i.. i ^J^ i/. ||=LL 11.25 ill U 11.6 Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. HS80 (716) 872-4503 "% V '^O^ ^ ^^ ^ V% m 6^ CIHM Microfiche Series (Monographs) ICI\/IH Collection de microfiches (monographies) Canadian Institute for Historical IVIicroreproductions / Institut Canadian de microreproductions historiques Technical and Bibliographic Notes / Notes techniques et bibliographiques The tot The Institute has attempted to obtain the best original copy available for filming. 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Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent dtre film6s d des taux de reduction diffdrents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul cliche, il est filmd d partir de Tangle supdrieur gauche, de gauche A droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mdthode. 1 2 3 4 5 6 A MESSAGE PURF'OKTING TO BE FROM ROBERT G. INGERSOLL THROUGH A PHILADELPHIA PSYCHIC REPUBLISHED BY REQUEST FROM ''THE SERMON'' TORONTO, CANADA THE AUSTIN PUBLISHING CO. ( i I r d «j s 1. fi g t( o w g f( p tl d. ta C( d( bi of til lo C at w til li^ G ar pi AfESSAGK FRO.\f /XGKRSOU I Message Purportinf to be from Robert Q. lagersoll Through a Philadelphia Psychic My shakiuji off of the worn and corrupt mortal covering to my true self was sudden and U!iex|)ected. No thought had entered my mind of what you term death placing me in touch with what God alone knew and made me experience with love, not malice as I am fully aware many mortals believed, so as to deny me the opportunity to repent of my evil words which they felt sure would send Ingersoll to the lowest hell, designed to punish in- fidels and unbelievers in a God too great and mighty for mortal mind to comprehend. My passing out was by this God's own desire, for my mortal clothing was no longer fit to hokl within its grasp the fully developed spiritual form sensing its natural work, re- penting of errors of judgment, thoughts and words, which was to oj)en my eyes and hearing to won- ders of God's love of which no mor- tal on earth to-day has the smallest conception. For the light of wis- dom is not clothed in the robes of bigotry, but in the simple raiment of truth, which enters the heart through love for all mankind, high, low, great and small, white, colored, Christian and heathen, educated atid uneducated, pure and impure, with the charity that sees through the darkness of evil deeds a ray of light that will some day give to all God's children their just reward and punishment, until all are purged and purified with his holy love. near fol- now like then My first sensation, after shaking off my mortal clothing, was one ot surprise so great that I remained .standnig in my spiritual form as one dazed by a blow, until I was aroused by a voice of such sweet- ness that I felt as if mv condition was simply a blissful dream and the voice I heard an angel calling me to heaven. If I had not seen my old, worn out rags lying me I would have inunediately lowed the light from which I saw the voice seemed to issue, purest musical sounds. I said : "I will come with you, but I must be dressed in my proper clothing," and stoojied to pick up what I suppo.sed was my luxiy when a feeling so repulsive entered my whole being that I hurried away from the filth my spiritual form could not touch. I was then led by my guide into the light above me and was soon surrounded by .so many dead men and women, whom I had known on earth and had seen jjut under the ground, and well covered to keep them from escaping, that I became .somewhat frightened until one man relieved me very much by .saying : '*Do not be alarmed, Ingersoll, you are in your heavenly home, a place you never expected to .see. ' ' Then one after another greeted me so kindly and lovingly that I began to feel happier than I had ever been in my life. And I had been happier than the majority of mortals while on eanh. In a short time the spirit forms of my dear earthly father and mother ^ere brought to me, and one after an- other until all I had ever known Af/':SS,IG/': FJ^OAf IXGERSOU. and loved seemed to lie around nie. But suddeidy as my ])assiii^; out almost, my thouKhts ilcw to my wife and children, and then 1 said: "I nuist go back to them." And my beautiful angel guide kindly brought me back to my family. And then I endured mi- told agony, for I was so close to them and they could not see me or hear me sj^eak to them. I remain- ed with them through the trial they had to endure at partitig from my remains which I loathed as somethijig so filthy that I did not rest until I saw it put out of sight. As I could not help them, and .soon became aware that in my efforts to speak to them I only awakened a sorrowful feeling at their loss, I called for my guide to take me where I belonged, as death placed a barrier between my living loved ones and myself which I could not overcome. She weetly answered: "This barrier you will remos'e in time sufficiently to return to your loved ones without the .sorrowful sen- sations you now endure. Time will wipe away their tears and you will be able to enjoy their company and even be able to comfort them in their thoughts, through the spiritual laws, in which you will now be instructed by the higher spirits." My guide then led me to the most beautiful resting place. No mortal tongue can find language to expre.ss the construction or ma- terial forming my couch, or re- clining .seat. Its blissful comfort no mansion on earth, or even the mortal idea of heavenly comfort, has ever' been able to equal in its restful purity from all evil sur- roundings. Left alone by my angel guide I became aware of a sensation I had not exi)erieiiced before and that was the feeling of regret over my mistakes in being ignorant of this beautiful world. i\nd then my whole life seemed to pass Ix-fore my mental vision just as ])lainly as though every thought, word and deed of my whole earthly existence had been written down. Many eyei'ts I had forgotten all about came sailing along in the bright light of i)urit>' and lo\e, or darkened and sorrowful, when the event contained an error of juflg- nient or an unkind thought, word or deed to\Vards any one I had ever known. Many times during this trying ordeal 1 called m>- angel guide and begged her to take me back to earth and give me an opportunity to purge my work of the mistakes I knew I had made in my efforts to enlighten mankind. "No," she sweetly replied, "you must now remain until you are ftdly satisfied with your surround- ings, and purit\- and virtue will make you free." "1 do not understand this," I replied. "Vou will later," she answered. "You are now repenting of your errors. When you have balanced your errors against your true lights in spirituality you will find, I be- lieve, that purity and virtue will show a balance over your errors of judgment that will open the .spirit- ual mind you pos,sess to the know- ledge awaiting all pure spirits, and this knowledge will make you free to go all over the earth plane with the swiftness of light. Repent now and enjoy the blessings await- ing you for trying to overcome all MICSSAGK FmUf IXGKRSOf.L 3 \ ' errors, and yon will he lu-lptd in every way yon desire. " When she had finished s]>eakin^ I thanked her and rested for a lon^ time, having no desire to lea\e ni>' blissfnl resting plaee. When my thonKlu-^ reverted to anything which I regretted very nuich i thanked the conditions which placed ine off from the other spirits. vSonietimes I felt just as hap])\' as I possihly could when I recollected some good I had done. In time I hegan to feel better satisfied and wondered why I re- mained in the same spot so long, aad was then t(jld I could receive instructions in the spiritual laws, but was to call oidy higher intelli- gences than my own. "I am not comjK'tent to judge of this," I replied. "I will call an instructor," my angel friend kindly rei)lied. And my own mother's dear spirit form was brought to me, and from her sweet, heavenl\- lips 1 re- ceived the first le.sson in the great- est, grandest and most wonderful philosophy in the universe — the truth bared of allshams, deceptions and wrong ideas of God Almighty, the father of every being born into the world without regard to race or condition, and whose love for all his children is so great that not one soul will be lost. But all nuist obey his laws before they can enter the almost incomprehensil)le life beyond the spheres, intended as preparatory stations, or degrees of spirituality for fitness to enter a mansion too pure and holy for even the higher intelligences to fully un- derstand. The in.struction given me by my mother helped me tu move from place to place, and I was soon de- veloi)e(l enough to return to earth without a guide. And then I \isited in\ own dear ones very often, but could never make them understand me when I siK)ke to them. After I had learned to jjiopel my bo(ly properly I was ])ermitted to visit all my old friends and relatives, even ones higher than myself. .And I will now tr> and gixc you a faint idea of the beautiful places I \isited. W(mderfully beautiful are all the spheres but the higher one ascends in the realms of blissful light, the greater the {uirity .shining on the brows of the angels and spirits, whose works of loving-kindness place them in the higher spheres. My own work placed me only in the third sphere, and I will com- mence with my own spiritual home. In location I would say it was far above the skies which mortals sometimes believe is I Tven, but which we know is only a i isty part of the atmosphere aroinid you. The formation of the sphere of which I am now trying to give you a faint idea, is not composed of silver and gold, as my orthodox church friends .sometimes tell you, but is pure and unadulterated mor- ality (?) condensed into something indescribable, for no mortal could see it with his mortal vi.sion. I will describe its appearance as near as I can. Lights of .softness play all around and interpenetrate what seems to be the foundation or prin- cipal particles entering into the home not made by mortal hands, but on which no mortal hand could put one smallest particle of im- provement for its construction A/f:ssA(7/: I ROM ixai.:nsou. IS perfect, the mind of the originat- or understan.ling vnne thiiiK^s ot more importance than pnnislunent and that is providing al,ine ascends in the spheres the greater the wonders and sensations. Music and music- ians, denied the humble and unfor tunatel)' jxior while on earth, sre furnished in their greatest, grandest and most heart thrilling pleasures to all fitted by their own spiritual desire for the higher spheres. The Arts and Sciences too. are here enjoyed with the knowledge furnished by the higher intelli- gences. Ju.st imagine, if you can, minds so developed in every way that one thought of theirs reaches, in its vast knowledge and researches, hidden forces which put in opera- tion controlling powers that move endless chains of revolving light, to give to inhabitants of the world below power to evolve, and accom- plish, through strata after .strata th end.-j which these great and lofiv minds deem elevating enough to need their help. Men and women not .spiritually inclined will simply .say Inger.soll >s evidently dreaming when I tell them that the higher spheres poss- ess the appearance of worlds of light inhabited by beautiful forms of such heavenly sweetness that the presence of one of the.se lights of love would .so frighten an im- pure mortal that he would repent and fear evil far more than any sight of the orthodox devil could inspire. For the impure man or woman is not afraid of their own familiar spirit, which is the evil in them. But this evil spirit in them fears the pure minded inhabitant ot the realms above, for this purity IS the i>ower that rules, not by evil, but through k indues.,. The governing power compels the lower to obey the higlier intelli gences, and in time tin lower are brought into the fold of righteous- ness. Language understood by mortals cannot express what I witnessed and should I tell one-half the won' derful works I .saw, and hope .some day to enjoy, my mortal friends as well as enemies, would declare In ger.soll was the greatest liar who ever attempted to describe a heaven too grand and wonderful to be un- derstood by ignorant mankind, but which all will .sometime enter' and enjoy. I will now sa> a few words to my bigoted friends, materialists, deists infidels, broad and lii)eral minded Protestant and Catholic :-- Heaven is not ruled by forms and creeds, but by true love and Ood Almighty's laws. Could I reach you with my voice a thousand times more strong than human tongues can .speak, I would warn you, encourage you and put into your hearts peace, love and true religious ideas, the truth that over- comes ignorance and selfishness and opens the eyes to .see the lights of love, and the ears to hear the sweet. pure musical .sounds descend- ing at all times through the open doors of Heaven, (mlv partly closed but never barred nor locked against one repentant .soul, even if his earthly existence may have been somewhat spotted with questionable religious beliefs. My warning's are not for the wrong doer alone, but also for the AfhSSACl-: FROy /\(i/h\SOU. FMiarisai' .i! i.'liristian, wIid sotiie- tinit-. h;i^ more to rtpent of than the less rfli>{ious fd.- cvci y wioii^ judgment he ii guilty o» in ron demning others tor not belicv iiij< and (U^inK as he (lt»es, makes liiin see his own little, narrow mind which is not x'ven you to misjudge with, 't)Ut to elevate and lift you ahove piirely petty idolizing of some small god and bring you in closer touch with thf mighty mind of your heavetdy I'ather, Ivducation in the right lint- places you in touch with this mind and in this knowledge lies the light to work out your own salvation while on cartli. Prayers without deeds a\ail no thing. Sincere desires to do good, and efforts to work out these de- sires, are the- only prayers which reach beyond your own vain lips which open to express in words, too often, simply wli.it sounds very pious, but which is only outside gilding, the heart itself not being touched in the slightest degree. To the unfortunate men and wo- men whose circumstances and en- vironments give them nothing but sorrov and care from the beginning to the t'ld of eiirthly existence, my encouragt inent will be giveti. Life after shal ing o(T the mortal lx)dy gives you rlic most blissful feelings, only ( fVO