Hydesville Rappings in Spiritualism

The Hydesville Rappings is considered the birth of modern spiritualism. Changes in mass media made it accessible to a never-before-scene audience at a quick pace leading to a quick and larger following. It caught the public eye, challenged mainstream religion, and opened up scientific research in life after death. The Hydesville Rappings also contributed to the women’s rights movement. The importance of the Hydesville Rappings made a lasting mark in spiritualism and society. 

The events of the Hydesville Rappings were well documented. The Fox family moved to Hydesville, New York on March 31, 1848. The Fox children heard strange noises at night coming from the house. During one such occasion, the youngest of the sisters, Catherine made some noise with her fingers, which were echoed with tappings. She told her sisters and together they instructed the tappings in ways to communicate so that the sisters could understand it. They shared their experience with their parents and their neighbors who confirmed that a peddler had been murdered for his money and possessions in the same house by a former tenant; the rappings came from the peddler. The sisters were able to reproduce reciprocal communication by way of rappings for the neighbors and whomever showed interest. Soon, the Hydesville Rappings made the news. Despite the fact that the girls were forced to report that this was a hoax, it brought communication with the nonliving world to the public eye and thus sparked the growth of spiritualism and the collective conscious.  

The Hydesville Rappings was important to the spiritualist movement because it established the foundation for spiritualism as a religion. This phenomenon led to the philosophy that two-way communication with the non-living is possible, communication could be established and maintained through a variety of means between the living and nonliving, and there is a form of intelligence in the spirit world. Although there were people who communicated with the dead before this point in time, the Hydesville Rappings established the foundation of Spiritualist philosophy as it is known today.

The Hydesville Rappings gave spiritualism a doorway to popular culture. A succession of coincidence paved the path. It started with witnesses making an effort to document the occurrences, which made way for mass distribution by the burgeoning mass media of the time. Then, spiritualist ideas made way into culture spanning across movies, literature and art. For example, the Fox family recorded many communications and rappings. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote about it in “The History of Spiritualism”, Andrew Jackson Davis, and Eliab W. Capron in his book “Modern Spiritualism: Its Facts and Fanaticism, Its Consistencies, and Contradictions”, The Bostonians by Henry James and The Last Seance by Agatha Christy. Spiritualism became the topic of movies such as, The Others, What Dreams May Come, and The Ghostbusters. Many other contemporary writers and journalists brought spiritualism to the front page of news, kitchen tables, and televisions, reaching people of all ages and backgrounds. The Hydesville Rappings brought spiritualism to the masses. 

The fact that more people knew about the Hydesville Rappings, more people were able to benefit from spiritualism. The world was distraught by increased deaths secondary to the war, sickness, and infant mortality. Spiritualism gave survivors hope and a way to communicate with their loved ones who passed to the other side. The sick were able to benefit from healing. The survivors were able to gain peace of mind and the spirits were able to communicate messages to their living loved ones. As a result, there were more positive experiences that exponentially continued to spread Spiritualism in a manner unprecedented. The Hydesville Rappings made the positive effects of spiritualism benefit the people in a time when it was most needed. 

Spiritualism garnered scientific interest by prompting discussions about life after death and refining communication. While some attempted to use science to debunk these occurrences, others used scientific methods to explore tools and faculties. For example, exploration of the human senses, also known as clairvoyance, enriched the experience with the unseen world through the human senses. Spiritualists also used different techniques, such as psychometry, photography, spiritually guided art, aurograms, aurographs, and radios to communicate with the unseen world and also to document their communication. Spiritualists began exploring the use of the power groups of people to make contacts. Spiritualist communities explored using groups of people who have specialized skills to make connections. Bringing people together to discuss their research enriched the living´s perspective of the unseen world and provided more mediums for the unseen world through which to communicate. Scientific exploration facilitated a deeper understanding of life after death. Exploring different techniques made it easier to teach and distinguish between false and genuine communications. Applying a scientific eye to spiritualism defined experiences with language. Universal language and reproducibility created depth to spirit contact, which could have been delayed if it were not for the Hydesville Rappings. 

The Hydesville Rappings gave way to a different approach to religion. Spiritualism created a context outside of Judaism and Christianity that invited the belief in life after death. It also challenged the need for an intermediary. In order to have a relationship with God, one would have to use a priest or Rabbi in order to communicate with god. The spiritualist movement provided a personal relationship with God and hope that there was more beyond death. Additionally, it invited other forms of religious beliefs. The Hydesville Rappings opened up to new religious philosophies.

Another way to demonstrate the importance of the Hydesville Rappings is its influence on the women's rights movement. It provided a platform on which women could stand to speak, giving her a voice in a male dominated world. For example, the Fox sisters made it their profession to bring mediumship to the public. They were able to work independently and earn their own money. The Fox sisters set the stage for women to work as mediums for a wide reaching public. For example, Nettie Colburn Maynard was able to serve as medium for Abraham Lincoln. Estelle Roberts is known for working as a medium for over 40 years and collaborated with, but also worked independently. The Hysdesville Rappings contributed to the feminist movement. 

The importance of the Hydesville Rappings is evident in more ways than one. The Hydesville Rappings is the beginning of the spiritualist movement and due to mass media spiritualism became accessible to a large audience at a quick pace during a time it was needed. It brought the conversation of the afterlife to the kitchen table and it influenced popular culture. Furthermore, the Hydesville Rappings  gave way to scientific investigation in life after death and offered new exploration on religion. Additionally, the Hydesville Rappings contributed to the women's movement. The Hydesville Rappings made an important impact on the religion of spiritualism and popular culture. 

References

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