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Books > Religion & Spirituality > Alternative belief systems > Contemporary non-Christian & para-Christian cults & sects > Spiritualism
America's Civil War took a dreadful toll on human lives, and the
emotional repercussions were exacerbated by tales of battlefield
atrocities, improper burials and by the lack of news that many
received about the fate of their loved ones. Amidst widespread
religious doubt and social skepticism, spiritualism--the belief
that the spirits of the dead existed and could communicate with the
living--filled a psychological void by providing a pathway towards
closure during a time of mourning, and by promising an eternal
reunion in the afterlife regardless of earthly sins. Primary
research, including 55 months of the weekly spiritual newspaper,
The Banner of Light and records of hundreds of soldiers' and family
members' spirit messages, reveals unique insights into battlefield
deaths, the transition to spirit life, and the motivations
prompting ethereal communications. This book focuses extensively on
spiritualism's religious, political, and commercial activities
during the war years, as well as the controversies surrounding the
faith, strengthening the connection between ante- and postbellum
studies of spiritualism.
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