British-born medium David Thompson, now based in Australia but travelling the world to demonstrate his physical mediumship, took exception to my report on one of his seances which I attended in the UK. He gave his own verdict on my report on his website, but refused to publish my response to the points he made or answer seven questions I put to him. But we now have the answers.
My original report resulted in 70 comments, for and against the evidential nature of Thompson’s mediumship, on www.ParanormalReview.com, and my follow-up account of Thompson’s response led to 17 more, though technical problems (now resolved) made it impossible for many people to post their views.
At the same time, SpiritofPN website, run by Susan Farrow, reported on my experiences at the Thompson séance, giving a link to this website. It also published an incredible 366 comments, showing just how much interest there is in physical mediumship and also how varied the views are about its value and the quality of the phenomena produced.
Thompson even joined in those comments, saying in response to a contribution from me which set out the seven questions I had posed but which he had refused to answer:
“Dear Mr Stemman. You are quiet correct, I have chosen not to answer your questions, why should I? I am only answerable to the spirit world, not you or any other person. I choose not to engage with you any longer to promote your website or your forthcoming ventures. Please feel free along with your few cohorts to slap each other on the back and believe that you have made a contribution to a subject you only have limited knowledge about. Along with your cohorts please hear this: I AM NOT IN THIS LIFE TO LIVE UP TO YOUR EXPECTATIONS OR TO MEET YOUR NEEDS. Best Regards – David Thompson”
I responded to that statement with these words:
“I am sorry that Thompson has decided not to enter into a dialogue about his mediumship, either on his own website or on others. I think now it is just a matter of time before the voice of reason forces him to change his mind and to be more open, and hopefully Spiritualist organisations will take an active role in putting pressure on him to do so. Needless to say, I will continue to take a keen interest in the claims that are made for his mediumship and the evidence that is produced, despite the snub.”
Well, the good news is that David Thompson has had a rethink and decided to give an exclusive interview about his mediumship, not to me but to Sue Farrow for Spirit of PN. You can read the full account here. And, though he doesn’t answer my seven questions directly, he says he has answered them all in the interview. So, at last, I can now provide you all with Thompson’s responses to my questions, extracted from his lengthy replies to other questions posed by Sue Farrow and paraphrased for brevity.
1. Is it the goal of yourself or your spirit helpers to ultimately produce materialisations or other physical phenomena in a red light?
Red light was used occasionally in the UK and more red light has since been used to show ectoplasm and other phenomena during his seances. But, he adds, “something more profound has been developing over the past year”. He says his spirit team is experimenting with “a form of natural or spirit-induced lighted conditions”. His circle has been told this will “hopefully allow more phenomena in natural spirit-lighted conditions with the séance room.
2. If so, when do you expect that to happen?
“Anyone with any understanding of the fragile nature of physical mediumship and the energies required to create phenomena in the séance room will understand such light could take years to properly develop.”
3. In the meantime, is it sensible to continue to demonstrate in total darkness, leaving some participants (as evidenced from responses to my Blog) unconvinced by the results?
“I have said before and will say again, our séance protocol forms clearly state, “All séances are held in complete darkness.” If someone doesn’t understand this they should not attend.”
4. Are your spirit helpers striving to provide more personal survival evidence in the future and less show business entertainment from the likes of Quentin Crisp and Louis Armstrong?
Thompson says many people have received personal proof in the séance room: “We have recordings and a wealth of personal testimonials from people who’ve communicated with passed loved ones speaking in their normal voice and displaying known personality traits. Many have spoken in their native tongues, including German, Swedish, Yiddish, Russian and Mandarin.”
5. Can your main spirit helper, William, explain why the materialised Gordon Higginson was unaware that his good friend Heather Hatton had passed over to spirit a year earlier when he communicated in Australia?
Thompson does not answer this question directly but has indicated to SpiritofPN anyone who understands any form of spirit communication should not even need to ask, because “it’s a little like asking a telephone operator why someone got facts wrong in someone else’s phone call! But I didn’t expect Thompson, as the medium, to know the answer. I specifically asked that his spirit helper, William, provided the answer – on the basis that, presumably, he is in constant contact with Higginson who has manifested a number of times at Thompson’s seances.
6. Have your spirit helpers been asked about the introduction of night vision goggles or infra-red light to view and even film the materialised entities?
Thompson explains that physical mediumship is “so sensitive that even if one person in the séance room is sceptical or has a strong expectation, the quality of communication can be seriously impaired”. He goes on to say that the effects of the introduction of “infrared and thermal cameras, probes, etc, and the expectation of the operators” have to be considered, adding: “Think for a moment the type of vibration this will create. Is it any wonder we leave the control of any testing to our sprit team?”
He adds that the spirit team has said repeatedly that the circle needs to focus on the harmonious vibrations needed to produce advanced phenomena and that, at this stage, “running formal tests and the controversy that publishing the results might create would not be helpful to that aim”.
7. Instead of being tied up during a séance, would you agree to being tested by SPR researchers using simple weighing devices that would monitor not only your presence in a chair throughout the séance proceedings, but also the independent existence (by weight) of any spirits that materialised? Such a method would be totally unobtrusive as far as light is concerned, if total darkness continues to be a necessary condition of your mediumship.
His response to this question is the same as given for question 6.
So, there we have it. Answers, at last, but I’m not sure they have taken us forward very far. Maybe his responses to Sue Farrow’s other questions will give readers more confidence that the Circle of the Silver Cord’s spirit helpers are working on a technological breakthrough that really will shed more light on David Thompson’s physical phenomena.
In the meantime, can we expect the Comments section on SpiritofPN to break the previous record of 366 contributions?
Er, no. In her introduction to the interview, Sue explains: “David Thompson has made it a condition of this interview that our Comments facility beneath it is disabled.”
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