Fraudulent psychics and mediums
Be careful when choosing a medium. How could a psychic or medium mislead you? There are various ways spiritually this could be done, both knowingly by a psychic/medium or unwittingly by a psychic. It is important to make a distinction between a psychic and psychic/medium. There is also a moral question to unfold, the word ‘unscrupulous’ in the question leans towards a knowing deception by the psychic/medium.
Starting with the difference between a psychic and a medium. In the U.S the term ‘psychic medium’ is often used to describe what in the UK we generally just refer to as a ‘medium’. As many mediums will say, not all psychics are mediums, but all mediums are psychic. The distinction between the two is clear.
A psychic or psychism is when an individual connects to the energy/aura/auric field or other energetic fields of person or sitter. Though their sensitivity they are able to read the field for information. This can relate to all aspects of the sitter’s life. From current wellbeing and people close to the sitter, both dead and alive to the sitter’s future potential. A medium, through a different vibrational frequency connects to a loved one within the spirit world. This person is generally known by the sitter, the medium is able to give information understandable to the sitter to identify the spirit person. The two different abilities can become clouded as information about a spirit person, namely facts, dates and memories can be picked up in the energy field of the sitter.
In the introduction I mentioned, ‘unwittingly’ by the psychic. They may genuinely feel they are connecting with a sitters loved one in the spirit world as information given can be recognised. Only with further development by the psychic or the presence of a medium during the sitting can this distinction be clarified. It is also worth noting that psychism can be used to connect with any living entity on the earth plane to pick up information. Family pets, animals, or plant life. We could go a step further and psychism could be used to connect with different planes of existence within an individual or reality.
Regarding the moral aspects of misleading a sitter. The psychic/medium may not have a link with a spirit person but knowingly communicate to the sitter that they have even when they are connecting psychically. This could be for a number of reasons, but it is down to the morality of the psychic/medium. They could be having a bad day or could be trying to push something on the sitter for emotional retribution or monetary reward.
I believe it is not the fault of the psychic if they think they are working mediumistically, when in fact they are just picking up information psychically. Although, if working with the public who can sometimes be in an emotionally fragile state, it is the psychics responsibility as practitioners to be competent at their job and honest in who they say they are and what they can deliver.
When a psychic or psychic/medium misleads a sitter, they are causing emotional stress for the sitter. The sitter will generally know that something doesn’t feel right even if they are not spiritually aware. They will feel something is wrong, they will not find the peace and security that a genuine message from their loved one can bring. This will cause emotional unrest with the sitter which can spread to their family and wider into their community.
There are many fraudulent mediums working in the public domain, this is a huge problem for the Spiritualist community and Spiritualism as a religion. These people generally prey on vulnerable people and will take advantage wherever they can, usually for monetary reward or status. There are many cases of so-called mediums researching their sitters before readings. This is not even working psychically, it’s just fraud.
There is also an issue around tutors teaching spirit communication and mediumship. Some people choose to teach before they are fully aware of the subject or understand the energetic stability needed to run a workshop or development group. Badly prepared tutors will produce poor and emotionally unstable psychics or psychic/mediums.
I would like to praise the work of organisations such as the Spiritualists National Union (SNU) in striving to produce a high standard of mediumship. To help prevent people falling prey to fraudulent or poorly taught mediums they offer a robust teaching scheme so people with SNU qualifications are generally at a high standard of mediumship.
Written by Richard Stuttle
