Spiritualism is more than a religion for those that believe, many say that it is a way of life. The belief in the spirit world is interwoven into the fabric of their existence and daily lives, becoming a reassuring mechanism to those that are in mourning or looking for a deeper meaning to life and death.
And in love, light and truth documents the quiet occurrences of three Spiritualist churches, situated on the edges of London. The photographs were taken in places where people spoke in hushed tones, telling stories of evidence and proof, of energy and healing, of loss, and what it means to look forward to death.
Spiritualists believe in the continuation and survival of the soul after the death of the physical. It is thought that death is not the end, and the spirit of the deceased live on in the spirit world. Through a medium, an individual with the ability to communicate with those that have passed over, messages are sent from one world to the next.
Spiritualism and photography have interwoven beginnings. Spiritualism harnessed photography’s early relationship with scientific process and evidence. In 1861 the first spirit photograph was made by William H. Mumler and soon after spirit photography, which took the form of the traditional carte de visites, became a lucrative business. Spiritualists were able to use photography, presenting images as visual evidence of the existence of spirits, at a time when there was little question over the truth of the image.
It was understood that technically photography could capture elements of the natural world invisible to the eye, highlighting the world as only partially seen. It also made apparent to the viewer, the limits of first hand perception. Photographs showed us what we cannot see, bringing the realisation of how little we know, how much we have yet to understand.
It is within this context of thinking that Spiritualism grew. At a time when photographs were capturing the unseen and invisible for the first time and presenting them as evidence, believing in the spirit world did not seem so far-fetched.
During a service at a Spiritualist church, a medium will bring messages from the spirit world. The medium speaks to individuals directly, offering them a piece of evidence that will convince that person of the mediums clairvoyant capabilities. This piece of evidence includes information that they couldn’t know, unless ‘spirit’ had told them. After the piece of evidence has been accepted by the recipient (with a loud yes or no), the medium will give a message of upliftment, advice or guidance, which comes from the spirit of the deceased loved one.
The medium acts as a channel between here and there. Wherever there is. They offer evidence, some tiny glimpse of a fact or two that, if you’re looking for it, can be convincing. And then the message is relayed.
This message given by the medium acts as a trace, a glimpse of a connection, an attempt at finding your way back to someone lost.
"And the person or thing photographed is the target, the referent, a kind of little simulacrum, any eidolon emitted by the object, which I should like to call the Spectrum of the Photograph, because this word retains, through its root, a relation to “spectacle†and adds to it that rather terrible thing which is there in every photograph: the return of the dead."
- Camera Lucida, Roland Barthes
Democritus was the first to think on the concept of the universe as made up of atoms, varying in dimension, indivisible and invisible. Democritus believed that energy was constant and lasted infinitely. This scientific theory is woven into the Spiritualists belief system. They believe that the soul is made up of atoms and is therefore tangible and indestructible.
The belief that everything is connected weaves its way into healing practises.
It is accepted that spirits send healing energies through the hands of healers to people in need of relief from earthly ailments. Healers spend time connecting with an individual, providing guidance and support. The healers do not claim to have superpowers, instead they act as channels or conduits to the healing energies of the spirit world.
Some healers use touch to transfer these therapeutic energies, and others hover their hands a few inches above, or simply sit opposite. Those that receive healing testify to the healers ability to alleviate symptoms whilst creating a deepened sense of inner peacefulness.
Over time, this story became a study of loss, absence, and belief. It underlines our need for reassurance that life, as we perceive it, is not the totality of our existence. That there is something more. All that is intangible, invisible, unknown will one day become clear and present. We spend so much of our time trying to place meaning, searching for connections, explanations. But meaning is an ever illusive and transformative thing. We find it where we need to.
