Life in Spirit 2.18: Working with dark spirits
Hi, David here, and welcome back to my series of articles looking at life in spirit through the automatic writings of early twentieth-century medium James Padgett.
What follows is the transcript for my latest YouTube video, which is available here: https://youtu.be/B7ihy6Lm8z4
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Today’s video is one I intended to post midweek but it’s been a busy week with work. Hopefully the video that was intended for today will also be uploaded in a day or two.
In this second series of videos, beginning with 2.1, we’re looking at communications received by James Padgett from friends and acquaintances in spirit, so these messages are from a range of people James knew, such as childhood friends, work colleagues from his legal career, and other people he knew only slightly or knew by reputation.
In today’s video, we’re going to look at a message James received from a former Judge, Frank D. Syrick. We’ve heard from Judge Syrick once already, back in video 2.6, where we looked at a message he gave James on May 6, 1915. The message we’re looking at today was given on May 13, 1917, so almost exactly two years later, which lets us see how much progress Frank Syrick has made in that time.
In video 2.6, Frank gave a very detailed account of his process of falling ill and passing to spirit, and a description of what it was like for him at first in spirit. So, he tells us of the process of reckoning that every soul must go through, but he also told James Padgett how valuable was the knowledge that he gained through his friendship with James before passing to spirit, and how it made a real difference to his ability to understand what was happening.
Today’s message, from May 1917, was one of five messages he received that evening, and in it, Syrick refers to one given earlier by Jesus. I’m not going to go through the whole of that message from Jesus now — hopefully we’ll get to it in one of the regular Sunday videos — but it’s worth summarizing what was said, so we know what Syrick is referring to.
The earlier message from Jesus appears to be one given on May 8, 1917, a few evenings before. It’s quite conversational, and one of the points discussed came up because Padgett questioned why Jesus comes forward in such a familiar manner.
The reply is simply that Jesus wants as close a rapport with James Padgett as possible in order to convey what he wants to say as accurately as possible. Jesus makes the point that he could come through with a highly elevated tone that Padgett might think appropriate to a highly developed spirit but that might create a sense of distance between him and Padgett, which would get in the way of making full use of Padgett’s mediumship.
In order to create as full a rapport as possible between himself and Padgett, for Padgett to feel as close as possible to Jesus, Jesus is perfectly willing to present himself as familiarly and as human as possible, because this makes him relatable.
Jesus also illustrates this with reference to Padgett’s own work with so-called ‘dark spirits’. The backstory to this is that there was a long period during which Padgett, with the consent and cooperation of his spirit band, put time aside one evening a week to allow spirits in the first sphere, the earth planes of spirit, to communicate through him.
Generally, these people in spirit are keen, sometimes desperate, to express their regrets and sufferings, and to try to find a way forward to a spiritual condition and environment that is brighter than where they are now. Padgett then used these conversations to explain about Divine Love, often helping the communicator to perceive a member of Padgett’s spirit band, who would then pick up the conversation with the communicator, so as to explain and show to them as much as they were capable of understanding.
In his message of May 8, 1917, Jesus explains to Padgett that these sessions are important because there are many in spirit who will perceive Padgett, upon the earth, as being of a similar level of development as themselves, and will often listen to him more readily, or at least with less suspicion, than they will to more advanced spirits, whose light they cannot always perceive fully.
So Jesus is making the point to James Padgett that our willingness to listen to someone very much depends upon our ability to relate to them. He explains this to James as follows:
“So you may realize from this to some degree the importance of the work that you are doing among the dark spirits. They, being in the condition of darkness and want of soul development, cannot see any such development that you may have; and to them you are merely a mortal, as they themselves were a short time ago in many cases. And finding that they can communicate with you, they come to you just as one man would to another for the purposes of conversation; and outside of the phenomenon of spirits and mortals conversing, you do not seem to them any different from what men seemed to them when they were on earth.
They are all very human, and to them your conversation is very natural, and, hence, they listen to you with the same feelings of confidence, or rather not of distrust, that they would to another spirit of their own kind. You are all humans together, and your opinions or ideas to them, are just the same as they might expect if they were in the flesh, or you were a spirit like themselves.”
So, Jesus is making the point that, the closer the rapport, the perceived similarity, between people, the more likely they are to listen to each other. Padgett’s time spent allowing dark spirits to come forward engages them, and creates openings for them to be told things they might simply not believe or even entertain otherwise. What Jesus does with Padgett, coming forward in a way that creates as full a feeling of ease between them as possible, is akin to what Padgett is doing with the dark spirits who communicate through him.
The full message from Jesus is quite long but it is all about the importance of rapport in enabling communication, encouraging people to listen to each other, so that knowledge is shared and benefitted from without ever interfering with anyone’s free will.
When Frank Syrick communicates a few nights later, on May 13, 1917, it is obvious that James and his friend Dr. Leslie Stone have been discussing the message from Jesus, and working through its implications. Judge Syrick begins by saying:
“I am here, Judge Syrick. But you must not pay any attention to the Judge part. I merely used the term to let you know that I feel a good deal like yourselves tonight in that I am a man with you.
I cannot tell you how pleased I am to be able to write to you tonight, as it has been a long time since I wrote you; as you know, I always enjoy being with you, even more so than when on earth, for you are both very dear to me, and I want you to feel that throwing aside my covering of flesh did not change me in any particular as regards my feelings for you, except to cause me to realize how much more you are my brothers and friends.
Well, I have been present all evening and heard you read the message of Jesus, and your comments on the same, and I cannot express my joy in hearing the message and realizing how it appealed to you both, for it was a wonderful message and one that will open up a world of truth to men if they will only understand and believe.
I have made much progress in my soul development and in the acquirement of the knowledge of these spiritual truths, so that even I know that what was written you in that message is true.”
So, the first things that Frank Syrick wants to say to James Padgett and Dr. Stone are how close he continues to feel towards them, and that he has made enough progress in his soul development to be able to tell them that he knows the truth of what Jesus wrote in the message they have been discussing. Syrick goes on to say that:
“I am progressing all the time, and the Love that has come into my soul has transformed me to a large degree into something more than the mere image of God. Oh, I tell you, this Love is wonderful, and we who have it are happy beyond all conception, and the best thing about it is that the more of it we receive the greater knowledge comes to us that there is more waiting for us to receive.
I am in the fifth sphere, and I have with me one whom you have heard me speak of, I mean, of course, my Rose. What a blessing to have such a soulmate, and if I could only find words to tell you of the happiness that comes with such a possession I would do so, if only to give you some idea of what you may expect when you come to the spirit world, and especially when you remember that both your soulmates are in a higher sphere than we are, and of course have more love and happiness.”
So, Syrick tells James and Leslie that he is now in the fifth of the seven spiritual heavens, and that he has his soulmate, Rose, with him. The reason he mentions this is because James and Leslie both know who Rose is. We saw in an earlier video (Video 1.9), that James’ wife, Helen, enjoys the task of telling people in spirit who their soulmates are, and she is the one who introduced Frank and Rose.
Syrick’s gratitude to James Padgett is very real because it is very much down to James Padgett and those working with him that Frank Syrick has made as much progress as he has, and has developed sufficiently to be introduced to his soulmate so soon — and he wants James and Leslie to know just how much more is waiting for them in spirit, given that their soulmates are already in higher spheres.
With this, Frank Syrick tries to conclude his communication, saying:
“Well, I would like to write a longer letter, but am advised that I have written enough for tonight, and so I must stop.”
However, James asks Frank Syrick if he was present at a Spiritualist meeting that James attended recently; he replies:
“Yes, I was there and spoke to you, but did not try to talk much as there were so many other spirits, all anxious to speak to their friends and who haven’t the blessed opportunity that I have to communicate. The room was filled with spirits, and if you could have seen the condition of some of them, I know that you would have had a longing desire to help them.”
I know from when I was doing platform demonstrations in Spiritualist churches, it can sometimes feel like a bit of a rugby scrum with so many people in spirit trying to come through, and you rely heavily on your guides to maintain order and manage who gets to connect with you, so that the communications you pass on can be coherent and evidential.
If you think of the number of people in spirit who connect with each of us, whether it’s parents, grandparents, other family members, friends, neighbours, work colleagues who have gone before us, and you then look at the number of mortals physically sitting in the meeting and multiply that with all those people in spirit who connect with each one, you start to get an idea of how many people are truly attending a meeting where a demonstration of mediumship is being given.
It’s also easy to forget that the ability to make contact benefits the hopeful souls in spirit who succeed, just as much as the mortals who receive the message. This is why Frank Syrick goes on to say to James:
“So do not let any doubt come to you as to the great work that is yours to help these spirits, and also that many of them are helped, as a truth. Was I not one who was thus helped, and do I not know that you have given to you this power? So thank God and work.
Tell the Doctor [meaning Leslie Stone] that he is also doing a great work and must persevere; and when he comes over, as my old mother said when I was a mere child, there will be crowns of glory waiting for him.”
As you will know if you have watched some of the previous videos, Dr. Stone took on the task of preserving and publishing the messages that James Padgett received.
Finally, Judge Syrick gets a chance to wrap up his message, saying:
“Well, I must stop now, and in doing so want to assure you both that you have my love and gratitude to the extent that an appreciative soul can give. Rose sends her love and says that she is so very happy and is praying for you both.
Good night, my dear brothers.
Your old friend,
Frank D. Syrick”
So, a message that, on the face of it was quite simple, but with a lot lying in the background that I think was worth bringing out. In the next video in this series, hopefully midweek, I’ll take you through a message to James from a man in spirit who wrote through him in May 1918. The communicator was a gentleman by the name of Charles Wilson, who was a patient of Dr. Stone, and comes forward still seeking his help.
The next video in the Divine Love series will be video 10.18, which I am hoping to complete and upload tomorrow, where we’ll be looking at two messages, from the apostles Paul and Peter, both given on October 26, 1915.
So I hope you’ll find time to join me for one or other of those. As always, if you’ve enjoyed this video, please do take a moment to ‘like’ and subscribe, if you haven’t already, as it does help to introduce the material to others.
Thank you for watching, and I’ll see you next time.
Take care until then.
