One question I do have is that my sister in law (also a firm believer) lost someone close and went to a medium who told her things nobody could have known. She even mentioned the person she had lost by name and I thought about the obituaries, but the surnames were different - how could this happen?
Occams razor:"All things being equal, the simplest solution tends to be the best one. In other words, when multiple competing theories are equal in other respects, the principle recommends selecting the theory that introduces the fewest assumptions and postulates the fewest hypothetical entities."
In your sisters case we have at least two competing theories for how the medium knew certain information.
1) The medium knew the name of the person your sister in law lost by contacting spirits of the dead.
2) The medium knew the name of the person your sister in law lost by obtaining information through conventional means.
On the face of it, both seem unlikely but which possible explanation depends on the fewest assumptions?
In the case of 1) we have to assume that contact with spirits is possible. We also have to assume that they can give specific, reliable information to the living.
Can we test these assumptions? Well, we can look into the scientific evidence of contact with the dead. In spite of decades of research by dedicated people who truly
wanted to believe in survival after death (and who wouldnt?) there simply isnt any. No murder victim has ever named their killer when that information was not public. No spirit of a kidnap victim has ever directed searchers to their body. Shakespeare will show up for a seance but not give any information about those aspects of his life that are lost to history. Famous authors whose works have been lost do not dictate them from beyonfd the grave. In response to a JREF members query every police force in Britain recently issued statements that "psychic" abilities had
never assisted in the solving of a criminal case. We can note that the Ministry of Defence recently carried out it's own research into whether psychic abilities could be used to help defend the nation. No such abilities could be
detected, let alone harnessed. Interestingly,
all of the professional psychics (who were advertising their services online) contacted by the MOD refused to take part in the research, just as all high profile mediums steadfastly refuse to have their abilities tested under controlled conditions. The JREF million is still unclaimed.
We can look into the history of the mediums and the spiritualist movement. We can note that it was invented out of whole cloth by two
sisters who admitted that what they were doing was fraud and demonstrated their ability to reproduce "supernatural" phenomena at will - but not before spiritualism became a fad that swept the Western world in the late 19th century. We can note that the famous mediums of the heyday of spiritualism in the 1920s could produce spectacular effects that psychics today cant emulate - musical instruments appearing in thin air, levitation, ectoplasm emerging from a mediums body and assuming human forms - until they were all caught red handed in blatant fraud.
We can examine the methods of modern charlatans who have been caught in trickery, from the unsophisticated lies of Derek Acorah to the hot readings via concealed radio earpiece of faith healer Peter Popoff.
Clearly there is little on which to base an assumption of psychic ability and accuracy, and much to be suspicious of.
In the case of 2) We have to assume that someone can obtain and be in possession of information about someone without their knowledge through non supernatural means.
In this case it is easy to find examples from our everyday lives. A simple google search will reveal biographical details of nearly anyone who has been in the public eye. Your bank will advise you to shred personal documents before binning them because of the danger of identity theft. Family gossip. You will probably know some personal details of people you have never met, relatives of friends for instance. If I ever happen to meet the parents of one of my coworkers I could amaze them with my psychic powers, giving them chapter and verse of their medical history and problems with fitted kitchens.
In the case of your sister in law it is impossible for us to know specifically how the medium gained that information - we only have a very small part of the picture. Was the medium a complete stranger? What was the information flow between your sister in law and the medium? Did your sister in law visit the medium on the recommendation of someone else? Is it possible the medium and your sister in law have mutual acquaintances? How private was the information given?
The very fact that your sister in law was given such specific information sends up a red flag for me. Vague generalities are very much the rule when dealing with mediums - often spirits dont seem too sure what their name is. If the spirit is capable of providing very exact information it should be able to do so consistently. If this was just one piece of bang on personal information amid a sea of fishing for further details I would be
extremely suspicious.
If this is a professional medium who advertises their services would you consider identifying them so that others might evaluate them for themselves? It may be someone who somebody here has run into before, or has some knowledge of their methods.
