# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1853 03 15_S91
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

91

the spirit world)" communicate the following.

The rapping devils talk much of God and often act as though they had an extraordinarily deep reverence for God. Yet by this they do not mean the only true God, whom the Bible reveals and in whom Christians believe, but another being, which exists only in the thoughts of the rapping devils. This God is the soul of the world, out of which everything has taken its origin and to which everything flows back again. This God is love, without righteousness and holiness; therefore he finally makes all the wicked blessed.

Especially, however, the rapping spirits rage against the Biblical doctrine of hell, devil, and the eternal damnation of the ungodly. Then they become extraordinarily eloquent; then they whimper most touchingly of the infinite love of God, on account of which He cannot punish and condemn anyone; then again they mock with genuine devilish scorn these most holy divine truths. And by this the rapping spirits prove only too plainly that they are accursed devils, who aim only at sinking men into the most secure unbelief, that they may the more surely hurl them into hell. Of them the holy Apostle Paul testifies, Gal. 1, 8.: But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.

On the other hand, the rapping spirits teach that besides the earth there are six spheres, which again are divided into various circles. These spheres form the dwelling of the departed souls. As soon as a man dies, his soul comes into a higher or lower sphere, according as it deserves by its greater or lesser piety. There it is then purified of its sins, attains step by step an ever greater perfection, until it has passed through all the spheres and at last passes over, wholly holy, to the beholding of God.

But with these abominable lies the rapping devils are not yet satisfied. Besides, they blaspheme impudently that the Bible is full of errors and no longer suffices for our advanced age, that men need new revelations, that therefore the spirits are now sent, in order by their disclosures to bring about a new glorious time, the thousand years' kingdom. And then they warm up again this old loathsome Jewish fable of the thousand years' kingdom and adorn it with the liveliest colors, so that men would then, freed from all misery, have heaven upon earth.

Also all sorts of miracles are told which the rapping spirits are said to have wrought, as well as all sorts of prophecies which have all been rightly fulfilled.

Moreover, the adherents of these rapping spirits themselves admit that there are malicious and quarrelsome spirits, which can be driven away only by formulas of exorcism. It is further an established fact that already often persons, through the fault of the spirit-rapping, have fallen into the greatest misfortune and into complete madness. Thus the Apologete, which has also declared itself against this nuisance, relates the following dreadful occurrence, No. 723.: "The Spirit-Rappers in Cape Cod. Sixteen to twenty persons have lately come into the lunatic asylum, who gave themselves out as mediums, and more are preparing for the same place. On this Cape the spirits announced, not very long ago, that a certain ship had gone down and the crew had gone to hell. The wives, mothers and daughters had almost become insane over it, when suddenly the ship was seen with all its crew in the best of health. The believers in the rapping explained this matter by saying that it had been a lying spirit which had deceived them! One of the greatest mediums told me that one must not trust the communications received from him, for he could not say whether they were true or false — whether they were from heaven or from hell or also from the departed."

You will perhaps ask, dear reader, how is it only possible that such a hideous hellish spook can find so many adherents in so short a time? I answer thereto, we are indeed to behold therein a judgment of God, as the holy Scripture testifies, John 3, 19.: And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. And 2 Thess. 2, 10. 11.: because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie. He who will not believe God and His Word must believe the devil and hold his most abominable lies for truth.

Hear now, dear reader, a clear proof from God's Word that these rapping spirits are by no means departed human souls, but devils. We take it from an excellent writing of our dear Löhe, which bears the title: Was ist es mit den Geistererscheinungen? It runs as follows:

In the first place, the holy Scripture says not a word to the effect that the souls of the deceased linger any longer on earth, but everywhere in the holy Scripture it is taught that they come forthwith to their eternal place. Of the souls of the righteous the Old Testament already uses the expression: "they are gathered to their people." This expression cannot be understood of their burial, as if the pious were gathered by burial to the bodies of their people. For the corpses in the grave are no people; also this manner of speech is used of such as find a lonely burial far from their fatherland, in a strange land. Thus it is said, e.g., Gen. 25, 8. of Abraham: "he was gathered to his people;" although in his grave there lay only Sarah, and only v. 9. is the account of his burial given. "To be gathered to his people" therefore refers to the souls, and the people of whom it speaks are "the spirits of just men made perfect," who according to Heb. 12, 22. are assembled in the heavenly Jerusalem. Thither the souls go after their departure from the life of the body. This we see also in Lazarus, of whom it is said, Luke 16. 22.: "he died" and immediately thereupon: "he was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom." (Compare Matt. 8, 11.) This we see in the malefactor, to whom the LORD on Good Friday, in the afternoon about three o'clock, thus about three hours before the end of that day, declared: "Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise." Luke 23, 43. This we see in the LORD Himself, who at the moment of departing prayed what is written Psalm 31, 6.: "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit." Luke 23, 46. This we see in Stephen, who, Acts 7, 58., in his death prayed: "LORD JESUS, receive my spirit!" Thus the souls of the pious go into the heavenly Jerusalem, to the people of God, to the eternal feast of joy, into the hand of the LORD. Therefore St. Paul also rejoices in the end of faith and the beginning of sight and cries 2 Cor. 5, 8.: "We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the LORD" — and Phil. 1, 23.: "Having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ." And rightly says the Book of Wisdom 3, 1.: "The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and there shall no torment touch them."

It is similar with the souls of the ungodly. The rich man dies — and forthwith he is in hell and in torment. Luke 16, 23. To another rich man, Luke 12, 16. ff., God said, intimating to him the night of his death: "Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee." The death of Judas Iscariot is described Acts 1, 25. with the words: "he went to his own place." — This place, however, is the same of which a witness competent in this matter says that it is a "place of torment." Luke 16, 28. The same witness also assures us that for the ungodly dying is nothing else than: "a coming to his place of torment." v. 28.

Meanwhile I grant that these passages — and many others, which an attentive reader of the holy Scripture will find for himself*) — prove only that the souls of the departed go forthwith to their place, namely either into paradise or into hell, — not

*) E.g. the passage on the death of the king of Babylon. Isa. 14, 4. ff.