Spiritualism

Confession: I haven't been to church since the 4th grade. So it's safe to say I don't consider myself a very religious person. Before I dive into religion, and the different theories of afterlife, please do not think I am attempting to persuade or offend. I am simply researching and explaining various religious views of paranormal activity. 

spir·it·u·al·ism

–noun: the belief or doctrine that the spirits of the dead, surviving after the mortal life, can and do communicate with the living, especially through a person (a medium) particularly susceptible to their influence.

Spiritualism is a religion (an apparently unknown, since I have not heard of it before 20 minutes ago) in which followers believe in God, but put an emphases on the belief that spirits are able to communicate with the living. They believe that all people posses the power to communicate with the dead, through study and practice. Spiritualism was a religious fad during the 1840s to 1920s. At its peak, it is said that 8 million people were practicing Spiritualism. During this stage, there was no formal organization or texts. It was just mediums traveling and holding trance lectures or camp meetings. When people realized that half the leaders or mediums were compete BS, the religion began to lose followers and fade away. Today, Spiritualism is practiced across the world in a more formal matter. There are sectors of Spiritualism, just like any other religion, but they are each founded on certain common grounds. 

1. The belief in spirit communication

2. The belief that the soul continues to exist after the human body dies

3. After death a soul can still lean to improve itself -- this belief links to the belief that the afterlife includes many levels in which spirits can advance to as they evolve, and that morals in the afterlife do exist. 

4. A belief in God ( or what they call Infinite Intelligence) 

I think this religion is a beautiful view to afterlife. Portraying spirits as moral beings, continuously growing and leaning as humans do while looking for a chance to communicate with those who still live. Yet, in order to believe you would need to posses a strong belief in mediums, which is hard for many. Including myself. But I guess that's a part of what religion is, putting faith into the unknown. I mean hey, we have half the country going for the whole Eve taking one bite of an apple and ruining the world story. And Moses parting a whole ocean. After comparing with those beliefs, communicating with the dead is starting to sound pretty darn believable. 

Spiritualism in comparison to other religions:

Christianity: Both religions share the same basis of moral right and wrong, but Spiritualism does not include a belief in Heaven or Hell, but just various levels. As Christians believe that Jesus died on the cross to save our sins, Spiritualism says that each individual is responsible for their life actions as they enter into the afterlife. 

Judaism: The Jewish religion is not a fan of Spiritualism. It is even written to Moses from God: "I will set my face against the person who turns to Mediums and spiritists to prostitute himself by following them, and I will cut him off from his people." (Leviticus 20:6)

Islam: Islam and Spiritualism have intertwined views of afterlife, Islam believes the communication with spirits as possible and that "good spirits" would be on a higher plane. 

Hinduism: Like Spiritualism, Hinduism states that the spirit carries on after death. Although Hinduism's main focus is reincarnation, followers do believe ghosts to exist when a person has an untimely death. In this case, the person would take the form of a ghost until the time of their natural death, and then enter into reincarnation.