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CONTENTS.
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CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTORY.
Bacon's Monument to Common Sense. - The First to recognize
the True Value of a Fact. - The Law of Correct Reasoning.
— Its Simplicity. - The Essentials of a Correct Hypothesis.
Inductive Reasoning. — The Copernican System. - Defec-
tive Methods of Reasoning employed by the Greek Philos-
ophers. - Speculative Philosophy subject to the Law of
Reaction. - The Inductive Sciences insure Permanent Prog-
ress. Natural Theology at a Standstill. The Conflict
between Religion and Science. · Voltaire and Paine. — Their
Assaults upon Dogma. — Their Religion.—The Triumph of
Science. The Doctrine of Evolution. A New Contro-
versy. Religion and Science not Antagonistic. - Immortal-
ity a Proper Question for Scientific Investigation.
it is Important. If Important, it can be Demonstrated
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CHAPTER II.
PAGE
If True,
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DEFECTIVENESS OF THE OLD ARGUMENTS.
The Four Leading Arguments: 1. Analogical Reasoning inhe-
rently Defective. Metamorphosis. - Butler's Analogy. —
Physical Laws not Identical with Spiritual Laws. - Illustra-
tion is not Proof. - Averroism. - Emanation and Absorp-
tion. 2. Prescriptive Authority. The Hiding-Place of
Power. The Priesthood and Divine Revelation.— Induc-
tive Arguments of the New Testament. 3. Philosophical
Speculation. Emerson's Belief. - His Despair of Proof.-
Plato's Phædo. - His Three Arguments for Immortality.—
The Doctrine of Contraries. Reminiscence. - Reincarna-
tion. The Capacity of Great Men for Minute Subdivision.
-The Soul a Simple Substance. - The Phædo a Promoter
of Suicide. 4. Instinctive Desire. - A Valid but not Con-
clusive Argument
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CHAPTER III.
SPIRITISM AND HYPNOTISM.
The Phenomena of Spiritism.
Scepticism of the Church.
The Present Attitude of Science. — Spiritistic Phenomena
Genuine. The Two Hypotheses. - The Spirit Medium Self-
Hypnotized. The Intelligence Manifested. Experimental
Hypnotism produces the same Phenomena. - The Power of
Telepathy. The Law of Suggestion. Suggestion controls
the Medium. - The Manufacture of Mediums by Hypnotism.
-The Hypothesis of Duality of Mind.. The Objective and
Subjective Minds. - The Condition of the Medium and the
Hypnotized Subject Identical. — They are governed by the
Same Laws. -Socrates as a Roman.- The Spirit of "Can-
tharides " Invoked. The Medium not necessarily Dishon-
est. The Laws of Telepathy .
CHAPTER IV.
are made
SPIRITISTIC PHENOMENA.
The Typical Séance. "Test" Cases. - The Way Proselytes
- The Telepathic Explanation. - What Telepathy
is. Views of Rev. Minot J. Savage and of Mr. F. W. H.
Myers. Their Test Cases Explained. — The Small Resid-
uum of Phenomena which they cannot account for. — The
Shipwreck. An Alleged Spirit Communication from a Vic-
tim. A Telepathic Explanation. - Telepathy vs. Clair-
voyance. - A Typical Case. "Stretching" the Theory of
Telepathy. Views of Mr. Podmore .
Experimental Telepathy. Deferred Percipience. Cases in
Point. Planchette. - Latency of Telepathic Impressions.·
Nebuchadnezzar's Dream. - Daniel's Telepathic Power. -
Final Explanation of Mr. Savage's Test Case. - The Mother's
Message to her Son. The Son's Message to the Psychic. -
The Last Resource of Spiritism. Mr. Savage's Crucial
Question. The Unscientific Attitude of Spiritists.—Thun-
der considered as the Voice of an Angry God. - The Sim-
plicity of Nature's Laws. — The Alleged “Simplicity" of the
Spiritistic Hypothesis. — It saves Thinking. — Reasoning in
a Circle. Why cannot Spirits communicate with the Liv-
ing? Not a Pertinent Question. - The Real Question is,
Do they so Communicate? - The Evidence is against the
Spiritistic Hypothesis. Spirits of Health and Goblins
Damned "
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CHAPTER VI.
ANCIENT PSYCHIC PHENOMENA.
The Higher
The Importance of Correct Classification of Phenomena.
The Science of the Soul. - The Phenomena of the Soul.
Old Testament Records. - The Pentateuch.-
Criticism. The Psychic History of the Children of Israel.
- Unreasoning Scepticism. -Aaron's Rod. - Moses as a
Psychic. His Methods and his Instrumentalities. The
God of Moses. - His Human Characteristics. - His Advice
to "spoil the Egyptians."- Moses' Interview with God on
Mount Sinai. The Molten Calf. - The Anger of God.
His Determination to destroy the Children of Israel.
Moses argues the Question. He causes God to Repent.
Renewal of the Covenant. Objective Moses vs. Subjec-
tive Moses.
The Prophets of Israel. - Elisha's Methods. He saves the
Three Kings. - Human Characteristics of Elisha's God. -
The Evolution of the Monotheistic Idea through Psychic
Phenomena. The First Conception of the Idea of a Living
God. The Evolution of the Spiritual Man. The First
Great Step through Psychic Phenomena. - The Jewish Ori-
gin of Monotheism. The God of Abraham. The Dispen-
sation of Moses. The Second Great Step in the Evolution
of the Spiritual Man. - The Decalogue. · The Influence of
Egyptian Civilization. - The Wisdom of Moses. - Egyptian
Ethics and the Jewish Religion. The Progress of the
Prophets reflected in their Conception of the Character of
God. - Isaiah's God no longer the God of Israel alone.
CHAPTER VIII.
THE ADVENT OF JESUS.
The Third Great Step in the Evolution of the Spiritual Man. —
The God which Jesus Proclaimed. - Intellectual Prodigies.
- The Intuitional Powers of Jesus. · - His Psychical Powers.
- His Perfect Knowledge of the Laws of the Soul. - Mod-
ern Confirmations of the Truth of his Philosophy. — The
Psychic Methods of Jesus. — His Reason always in the As-
cendant. - His Perfect Moral and Religious Character.
Psychic Phenomena the Evidence of his Divine Mission.
Paley's Views. The Divine Heritage. The Vitality of the
Christian Religion .
CHAPTER IX.
THE INTUITIVE PERCEPTION OF TRUTH.
Books that thrill the Reader with Pleasurable Emotions. -The-
ories to account for it. Literary Style. Personal Mag-
netism. The Soul's Love of Truth.- Books Popular in
proportion to their Truth.—The Scriptures. — The Philoso-
phy of Jesus. — Intuitional Perception of its Truth. - Evo-
lution of Religion. Christianity the Final Goal. - The
Impossibility of improving upon True Christianity. — The
Absolute Religion .
CHAPTER X.
PSYCHIC PHENOMENA OF PRIMITIVE CHRISTIANS.
Testi-
Spiritistic Phenomena among the Early Christians.
mony of the Christian Fathers. - The Departure from Jesus'
Example. Paul's Explanation of Spiritistic Phenomena.
John's Tests. - Paul's Ecstatic. The Oriental Ecstatics.
Modern Occidental Ecstatics.. Alleged Perception of Divine
Truth in the Ecstatic Condition. Neither Jesus, Paul, nor
John believed in Spiritism. - Primitive Christianity pro-
moted by Psychic Phenomena. - Constantine. — The Priest-
hood. Prohibition of Psychic Manifestations among the
Laity. The Beneficence of the Inhibition
144
160
171
CHAPTER XI.
MODERN PSYCHIC PHENOMENA.
Mesmerism. Telepathy demonstrated by the Followers of
Mesmer. - Braid's Discovery. - Hypnotism. — Discovery of
the Law of Suggestion. - Clairvoyance. — The Rochester
Knockings. Mesmeric Subjects and Mediums. - Spiritism
as a Step in the Process of Evolution. Its Effect
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CHAPTER XII.
HAS MAN A SOUL?
Intuitive Perceptions of the Existence of a Soul in Man. -
Plato's Philosophy. — The Doctrine of Body, Soul, and
Spirit. The Doctrine of Jesus. - Modern Scientific Scep-
ticism. Requirements of Modern Science. The Dual
Hypothesis. The Phenomena of Dreams.- The Objective
and Subjective Mental States differentiated. — Limitations
of Powers of Reasoning in the Subjective Mind. — Its Per-
fect Power of Deduction. — Telepathy and Prevision
• 198
CHAPTER XIII.
HAS MAN A SOUL? (continued).
The Perfect Memory of the Subjective Mind. — Memory and
Recollection Differentiated. Sir William Hamilton's Views.
- Intuitional Powers of Perception of Nature's Laws. -
The Seat of the Emotions. - The Three Normal Functions
of the Subjective Mind. — The Infant's Development from
Savagery to Civilization. - Total Depravity. - Dangers of
Subjective Control. — Telepathy a purely Subjective Faculty.
– Abnormality of Psychic Manifestations. — Ill Health a
Condition precedent to their Production. - They grow
Stronger as the Body grows Weaker. - Strongest in the
Hour of Death. The Objective Mind perishes with the
Brain.
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