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THE GREAT QUESTIONSince mankind came up out of savagery, the great problem has been: What is the ultimate end? What, if anything awaits on the other side of death's mysterious door? What happens when the hour strikes that closes man's earth career, when, leaving all the gathered wealth of lands and goods, he goes out into the dark alone? Is death the end--annihilation and repose? Or, does he wake in some other sphere or condition, retaining personality? Each must solve this great question for himself.Edward C. Randall. (1860-1935) - A prominent New York trial lawyer from Buffalo who served on the board of directors of a number of large corporations, Randall became interested in Spiritualism around 1890 following his attendance at a séance. Soon afterwards he established a 'Rescue Circle' in order to help 'earthbound' spirits progress. The circle comprising of Randall's wife and some close associates including a prominent judge Dean Stuart of Rochester, sat every week for over 20 years at the Randall family home. Soon after the sittings began Randall met Emily French, a 'direct voice' medium in her 60's, also from Buffalo. Emily was from a well-known family, and had a reputation in her community as a person of integrity; she sat with the Randall's circle for many years until she passed away in 1912. During the long and dedicated relationship she never charged a cent for her time.In 1905 Randall wrote to Isaac K. Funk, a prominent psychic researcher and co-owner of the publishing house Funk and Wagnalls of New York & London, asking him to arrange for Emily French to be scientifically tested.Dr Funk agreed on condition that Mrs. French would come to New York City and conduct sittings every day for two weeks in the homes of people she did not know surrounded by highly experienced and skeptical observers.Then 72 years old and not in good health, Emily sat with Dr Funk night after night with barely any time to rest after the journey from her home in Buffalo. Funk and his associates conducted tests that proved the voices did not originate in the vocal organs of the medium.Her Indian control "Red Jacket" had a loud masculine voice that would have easily filled a hall with a seating capacity of 2000 people. The medium at that time was a frail old woman with a weak heart and was deaf, yet the sitters could hear every remark of the communicators.Night after night she produced magnificent direct voice phenomena as spirits communicated and told of their experiences of the afterlife. Dr Funk published the full results of these detailed tests in his book, "The Psychic Riddle."Randall and French sat together more than 700 times and he stated, Hundreds, yea thousands [of spirits], have come and talked with me, and to many whom I have invited to participate in the work - thousands of different voices with different tones, different thoughts, different personalities, no two alike; and at times in different languages.Edward Randall's books documenting his experiences with Emily French include 'Frontiers of the Afterlife' and 'The Dead Have Never Died'

'The Spirits Book' (1857), written by Allan Kardec, is widely regarded as the most important piece of writing in the 'Spiritist' canon. It is the first in a series of five books that Kardec wrote that are collectively known as the 'Spiritist Codification'. Although the other four books; 'The Medium's Book', 'The Gospel According to Spiritism', 'Heaven and Hell' and 'The Genesis According to Spiritism' are of great importance to the Spiritist movement it is 'The Spirits Book' that lays out the doctrine of the belief system. The Spiritist movement was founded by Allen Kardec and although its roots lay in Spiritualism there are differences in belief. The most important of these differences is the Spiritist belief in reincarnation. Although some Spiritualists believe in reincarnation and some do not, all Spiritists consider it as a basic truth of their ideology. In the 1850's, whilst investigating the afterlife, Kardec communicated in séances with a collection of spirits named 'The Spirit of Truth' who discussed many important topics such as life after death, good and evil, the universe and the origin of spirits, amongst others. 'The Spirit of Truth' counted many of history's great thinkers amongst its number such as Thomas of Aquino, Voltaire and Augustine of Hippo. Over time and after several sessions with the group Kardec had gathered enough information to convince him of life after death and he was compelled to spread the teachings of 'The Spirit of Truth'. He 'codified' their comments and listed them as answers to questions and this is the content of 'The Spirits Book'. The subjects that Kardec discusses, via 'The Spirit of Truth', laid down the foundations for the Spiritist philosophy and all of the concepts that would become, and still are, key to the movement's thinking have their genesis in the book. The belief that there is one Supreme Being, God, who created everything in the universe, is postulated. According to the text the Devil does not exist and Jesus is a messenger of God. Although the book does not refer to Jesus as the son of God and no mention is made of the 'immaculate conception' he is considered God's perfect messenger and his teachings are to be adhered to. Reincarnation and the survival of the soul after death are vital beliefs and it is stated that it is through reincarnation that lessons are learnt that can be taken into the next life and that every life moves the soul closer to perfection. According to the book man is made up of three separate elements; the body, the spirit and the spiritual body. One's spirit also predates the matter of the universe and will outlast it. After the publication of 'The Spirits Book' Kardec's Spiritist doctrine began to take root, firstly in France from where it spread throughout Europe and found its way to North America. Most significant, however, was the reaction to Spiritism in South America. In Brazil the Spiritist movement swept across the nation and it is still one of the country's main religions to this day with millions of Kardec's followers from Brazil visiting his tombstone in Paris every year.