This discourse eloquently makes the case for the wisdom of the presence of the shadow in human life. It was originally published as a pamphlet and is included in The Life Works of Cora L. V. Richmond.
“The side of heaven that is turned toward man is the shadowy side; it is needed; with your eyes of earth you cannot see the perfect light of truth, it would blind your vision; you would be dazzled by its perfect power.”
The Shadow of a Great Rock in a Weary Land
This 1887 sermon uses the metaphor of “the shadow of a great rock in a weary land” to illustrate the spiritual necessity of adversity. The speaker argues that while prosperity and material success are initially desirable, they ultimately lead to emptiness and a lack of spiritual growth, likened to the scorching sun of a desert. Conversely, hardship, grief, and even the “shadow” of death, are presented as essential for spiritual development, enabling the growth of faith, fortitude, and ultimately, a deeper understanding of God’s love. The sermon’s structure progresses from explaining the metaphor through examples of civilizations overcome by unchecked success to emphasizing the importance of embracing the shadow as a crucial step toward spiritual enlightenment, ultimately concluding that the “shadow” is a necessary stage in the path towards spiritual fulfillment.
This transcendent talk by Emmanuel Swedenborg emphasizes the contrast between the limitations of earthly existence and the grandeur of the spiritual realm. Swedenborg argues that humanity’s understanding of life on earth is constrained by its dependence on the physical senses and scientific knowledge, which provide only a limited and superficial understanding of the universe’s true nature. He posits that every planet and star system is not just a material entity but also possesses a spiritual dimension, suggesting a universe teeming with sentient life and interconnected by a web of spiritual energy. Swedenborg challenges the reader to consider that earthly life, often perceived as the entirety of existence, is merely a brief interlude in the soul’s eternal journey. He uses the analogy of a diver, clad in protective gear to explore the ocean depths for treasure, to illustrate this point. The diver’s focus is on acquiring the treasures of the deep, and similarly, humanity should use its time on earth to acquire the true treasures of spiritual knowledge and experience.
“…every hour is freighted with an eternal promise, and every moment is filled to overflowing with the golden drop of eternal life that falls like beaded dew upon the flower of human life.”
This little pamphlet features two trance lectures delivered at Dodworth’s Hall, on the morning and evening of Sunday, Dec. 16 , 1860. The spirit of Theodore Parker spoke in the morning arguing for the end of slavery, despite the risk of a civil war. The spirit of Henry Clay spoke in the evening against Parker’s argument, stressing the importance of preserving the union at all costs.
“If, then, America is builded upon slavery, the sooner America is no longer a Union the better.”
Theodore Parker
“Bloodshed is the last attempt of the desperado, or of nations who seek to settle their difficulties when compromise is no longer possible.”
Here are a few excerpts from a talk given via the mediumship of Cora L. V. Richmond in Chicago on March 4, 1888. This was a time of great financial disparity similar to what we find in America today.
If into this hall, Spiritualists though many of you are, there should suddenly appear a millionaire, there would be more of a flutter than if an angel of light should appear in bodily form; the millionaire would have worldly influence, the angel of light might find out some of your shadows.
If intelligence, or love, or truth, or justice, by some possible miracle should be the mortal standard controlling mankind does anyone suppose that there would be any jealousy because of too great intelligence, any danger of too much justice, any absolute crying out against too much goodness and truth?
This much is certain; under whatever name you choose to call the ruling power in the world, when it is analyzed it is Mammon. Mammon is the god of riches, and at the present time is the most potent power; that which opens all doors, that which gains access to all courts, that which makes favor with kings, potentates and powers, that which encircles the world, that which holds nations in its thrall; that which all the world is pursuing, or if not being able to pursue is sighing to pursue, is mammon.
The need in the world is to choose which the world shall worship: God or Mammon. Not the God afar off, not the God referred to as angry and revengeful, but the God of right and truth, of love and justice, who has stamped His image upon the human heart, and made there the revelation of His love.
I was asked recently “why the interest in Cora?”, referring to the 19th century trance medium Cora L. V. Richmond. I am very interested in the “century of miracles” that constituted the heyday of Spiritualism beginning in 1847. Truth is a stable currency. Though its expression down through the ages is coined in language appropriate to period and circumstance, its value is undiminished despite the ravages of time. It is tempting to characterize interest in the dusty relics of past revelations as spiritual grave digging, but like the discovery of precious Egyptian artifacts rescued from the tombs of pharaohs, we can appreciate that our own desire to commune with the divine realm is something that we share in common with our ancestors.
From our “lofty” vantage point in this day and age, we can look down at the “Rochester Knockings”, the various other physical manifestations of Spiritualism, and the supposed proofs of the reality of the survival of death in times past with a skeptical eye. But those proofs of old were not intended for us. The parent who knew or knows beyond any question of a doubt that they have communicated with a “dead” child does not need our approval or sanction as confirmation of the reality of their experience. Likewise the evidence that is abundantly manifest in the records remaining of the century of miracles, was meant for those present as witnesses, and secondarily for their contemporaries who might hear of their experiences after the fact. We are simply observing through the telescope of time the experience of our predecessors and finding those glimmerings of that distant light that can touch our souls.
As for why Cora? The record of her remarkable mediumship is, I believe, worthy of resurrection. For sheer volume of output, some 5,000 public lectures delivered from the time of her tender youth and throughout her long life, she rates close consideration. It is one thing to channel in a carefully regulated private circle, as was the case with the outstanding medium William Stainton Moses, but to hold forth in a large lecture hall with a mixed amalgamation in the audience ranging from true believers to harsh skeptics, reporters and drunks who walk in off the street, church ladies, and professors, is a feat quite remarkable.
Besides her public work, she had countless private sessions and a series of classes that were recorded in the masterful volumes The Soul in Human Embodiments and Psychosophy. One of the charming aspects of her private sessions were the 10,000 “name poems” that were given to individuals.
Cora’s lectures, even when the topic was explicitly secular in nature, generally followed a three part pattern of invocation, discourse, and poem/benediction. It is readily apparent that in cold print there is a loss in transmission that fails in some degree to fully convey the religious rapture of her invocations and the lyrical beauty of the spontaneous poetry as spoken through Cora’s lips. The style of all three aspects of her speech no doubt registered authentically in the religious, intellectual, and artistic framework of the time, as evidenced by the enthusiastic reception that she received.
“In order to disprove the assertion that all crows are black, one white crow is sufficient.”
― William James
A potentially controversial feature of her discourses is the noteworthy persons who sometimes spoke through her. A slender volume was released on the eve of the American Civil War as the pamphlet “The Present Crisis”, consisting of two discourses, one delivered in the morning of Dec. 16, 1860 by the deceased abolitionist minister Theodore Parker and in the evening of that same day a speech given by the spirit of Kentucky politician Henry Clay. These discourses eloquently frame the debate between the abolition of slavery at any cost, versus retaining the integrity of the union and avoiding catastrophic bloodshed. This particular morning and evening in the winter of 1860 are my personal “white crow”, dispelling my doubt about the authors behind the speeches given. One must conclude, that either 20 year old Cora L. V. Hatch was a prodigy of the art of debate, able to adopt the style and opposing convictions of two deceased persons, or that those men, then discarnate, spoke through this remarkable young woman.
I’ve read many tales of the dying experience, but this luminous account is one of the most beautifully eloquent. These excerpts are from a talk given via the mediumship of Cora L. V. Richmond in Chicago on January 17, 1881. Below are quotations from the death experience of the writer and poet Epes Sargent, with a link to the full text.
To find oneself floating out from the fastnesses of time into the immeasurable space of eternity is such a matchless experience that only those who pass through the portal of death can understand.
One can not understand, unless one has passed to mountain heights and seen the glory of the sun rise far out upon the sea as the sun suddenly comes up, tipping for the moment, the waves with crimson and gold, and then rise in full glory, as though night had never been there.
The greatest wonder of all is that everything in material life remains the same, but transfigured; that all sensation and consciousness grows more and more palpable, until the very heartbeats of one’s friends are audible as the spirit is passing away.
Upon a thin and slender foundation of goodness we rear the matchless fabric of immortality, and eliminate all faults, of which we instantly become more aware than in material life.
