Two posts in one!

This post consists of two unrelated topics. I don't have a lot to say about either of them, but together they add up to one barely adequate post.

First, I was interested in an article that a commenter named Ingrid pointed out in a previous thread. The article, "How Understanding Randomness Will Give You Mind-Reading Powers," talks about how people are better than expected at predicting some random patterns. People, it seems, have an innate sense of what a well-shuffled sequence would look like: OOXOX seems more likely than XXXXO, for instance. Since they are more likely to guess the first sequence than the second, their guesses can exceed expectations in many cases.

It's an interesting point, but I'm not sure how relevant it is to psi research. The article points to experiments done by J.B. Rhine in which test subjects guessed the sequence of Zener cards, and to tests performed on a radio show in which the national audience participated. As best I can tell, the radio tests involved only Xs and Os, and these sequences are, as mentioned, sometimes easy to guess. But the Zener card experiments involved five different cards, each imprinted with a different shape. It's not clear to me that people can guess better than chance when such a complex sequence is involved.

The article's implicit bias against psi also gives me pause. We're told that Rhine was gaining "notoriety" for his work, a loaded term; would we hear that Einstein gained "notoriety" for his theories? We're also told that the ability of humans to predict some random sequences is "far more interesting" than telepathy, which would be true only if telepathy is silly nonsense, as the writer evidently assumes. The article is also notable in what it neglects to say: that the Zener card experiments involved more than two options, and that more recent parapsychology experiments use random number generators to produce lengthy, complex, and presumably unguessable sequences.

Now on to the other topic. Last night I watched Steven Spielberg's Lincoln (2012). It's a well-made film dominated by Daniel Day-Lewis's spellbinding performance. I liked it, but I noticed a certain choice of emphasis that I found interesting—namely, that the religious and spiritual dimensions of the subject were almost totally ignored.

The casual viewer would never guess that abolitionism was largely a religious movement, born in Protestant churches and seen by its proselytes as a holy mission. Though abolitionists figure in the film, and though they occasionally make reference to moral concerns and to natural law, they seldom if ever ground their arguments in Christian beliefs, as the real abolitionists did. In fact, religion is mostly absent from the film, even though that era was much more religious than our own. I assume that the filmmakers, as secular humanists, were simply uncomfortable with religious sentiments and chose to exclude them from the story. (I've read that a similarly secularist approach was taken toward the abolitionists in Spielberg's Amistad, thoigh I haven't seen the film.)

Of more relevance to this blog is the treatment of Mr. Lincoln's personal spirituality. There is one scene where Lincoln asks if a man can choose the circumstances of his birth, which could be taken as a religious or spiritual question, and we do see Lincoln making reference to God's plan in his famous second inaugural address, but that's about it. Lincoln is shown as having a deep antipathy to slavery (even though, historically, he moved cautiously in the direction of abolitionism throughout his career, and may have been primarily concerned with saving the Union), but his antipathy is not based on any religious or spiritual doctrine.

Now, in real life, Lincoln seems to have been ill-disposed toward traditional religion; he did not attend church, is said to have written (but never published) an atheistic tract in his younger days, and probably had a somewhat pragmatic or even cynical attitude toward religious doctrines when he became president. However, all indications are that his attitude changed over the next four years, in part because of the strain of overseeing the war with its tremendous loss of life, and in part because of the death of his young son Willie. Lincoln's speeches became progressively more steeped in religious language and imagery as his presidency wore on.

After Willie's death, Mrs. Lincoln became attracted to spiritualism, even inviting mediums to the White House (then known as the Executive Mansion) to perform seances. It is known that Lincoln attended some of these seances. Mainstream historians like Doris Kearns Goodwin, whose book Team of Rivals inspired the movie, downplay the idea that Lincoln took such affairs seriously, stressing that he was only humoring his wife or amusing himself. And yet we do have the testimony of Nettie Colburn Maynard, a trance medium who wrote a memoir describing her encounter with Lincoln. The book's publisher tracked down several contemporaries who endorsed Maynard's claim that Lincoln was sincerely interested in spiritualism.

I can see why today's filmmakers would not want to associate the revered Abe Lincoln with something seemingly as tawdry and discredited as spiritualism. But to leave out almost any indication of Lincoln's personal quest for religious and spiritual meaning is unfortunate. I suppose it may make him more "relatable" to the modern audience, but it also makes him just a bit less interesting, I think.

It's still a good movie, though.

Comments

[James Oeming]

Throwing this out there, for what it's worth.

Paramahansa Yogananda, author of the spiritual classic "Autobiograhy of a Yogi" reportedly said that Lincoln had been a developed spiritual ascetic in a past life, who died with the desire to bring about racial equality. In his life as Lincoln, Yogananda reportedly said, Lincoln gave expression to that desire with concrete action. This was mentioned in a book written by the former head of Yogananada's USA-based monastery.

I cannot personally verify whether this true about Lincoln or not. Just passing it on for Yogananda fans.

True or not, it makes me reflect on how the "punchline" or primary purpose of an incarnation might often be cloaked in an unfolding "plotline" of one's life, and may not be evident until that plotline has progressed considerably. This reminds me of how a flower does not appear in the growth cycle of many plants until the plant has been developing for quite some time. There often seems to be no indication that a flower is coming until - bang! - it appears.

Just thinking out loud.

[Kathleen]

I saw the movie a while ago, and I do agree there wasn't much about religion. I've done a fair amount of reading on the Civil War, and, both sides were pretty adamant that God was on THEIR side. But I suppose God is always on everyone's side, except when it's Soviets or Chinese.

I don't know if I agree that modern U.S. audiences aren't inclined toward religion. It seems certain people, usually politicians and conservative pundits are always shoveling it (before they get caught doing things they themselves get condemn, and even after). I am religious, but strongly believe in secular government. Because what's the point of faith if your government has to force it on you? You have to come willingly to it.

The movie spent a lot of time showing the real politicking that went on, which I think was extremely accurate. I think they meant to show what Lincoln had to go through and navigate, and the huge risks he constantly had to take.

[Art]

My favorite part of the Abraham Lincoln story is the one about him dreaming of his own death. Asking the soldier who is in the coffin and the soldier answers "it's the President." I have this theory that we have precognitive dreams of things that we are going to be experiencing ourselves, so somehow the Abraham Lincoln in the future was going to be witness to his own funeral. Perhaps as a spirit? I have dreamed some big things but I'm pretty sure what I was actually dreaming was the emotional impact it had on me, like the Columbia shuttle disaster and the collapse of a bridge on I-40 where some people died. A week before the Shuttle tore up in the atmosphere I dreamed that parts of it landed in our back yard and I tried to get pictures of it but the Feds came and cleaned it up before I got a chance to get pictures. Of course this was all in a dream but it was a week before it actually happened!

[Julie Baxter]

"True or not, it makes me reflect on how the "punchline" or primary purpose of an incarnation might often be cloaked in an unfolding "plotline" of one's life, and may not be evident until that plotline has progressed considerably. This reminds me of how a flower does not appear in the growth cycle of many plants until the plant has been developing for quite some time. There often seems to be no indication that a flower is coming until - bang! - it appears." - James

That made me sit up and take notice! Only last weekend my husband and I were commenting upon how life seems to start coming together when one reaches late middle-age. It's as if a pattern emerges and all the pieces of the jigsaw come together to provide a clear understanding of what life's all about - for want of a less cliched and prosaic description.

[Kathleen]

Yes, Julie, it's weird, I don't know what you'd call it. I'm dealing with something very difficult now and it was just totally random that I found this person to help me. Even the person helping me commented on it, how this came to be, it seems so "random," but as if it was meant to be.

Getting back to Lincoln, it always seemed to me that he was meant to be at that time and place, it was like he was born for it - and gave his life for it.

[Julie Baxter]

Hi Kathleen. I kid you not that when I need something, anything, it turns up out of the blue - but only as long as I resist the temptation to take control. Ditto people. I don't know how or why this process works either, but it does.

If I begin to panic and lose my sense of inner balance, then the process is disrupted. Experience has taught me that a trusting and calm outlook is all that's necessary.

I don't try to analyse this phenomenon any deeper; I don't think it's productive to do so. But I believe it's something that's available to everyone. State of mind is of the essence.

[Art]

LOL! Kathleen I'm deeply suspicious of free will and lean heavily towards fate and predestination. I don't automatically accept free will at all even though our brains try and convince us it's true.

It's like a really good teacher that has a detailed lesson plan with clearly stated objectives at the top of what the student will learn by the end of the lesson. The teacher knows what is in the lesson plan but the students don't.

Perhaps the soul's lessons are embedded in our everyday lives and it is holistically imprinted with what it needs to learn whether it wants to or not? This is what is meant by "learning holistically". It is the way that small children in primitive society learned before the advent of schools.

Another words the Creator of the Universe may be way smarter than what we give Him/Her/It credit for being. Everything may be happening exactly the way it was predestined to happen.

[Julie Baxter]

@Art: Yes, as time goes by I'm more and more inclined towards the notion of fate and predestination. Perhaps when we eventually see the pattern coming together it's a sign that we've lived our lives as planned in order to reap the benefits of the learning experience presented. As Alan Vaughn suggested his famous book, 'Patterns of Prophesy', we are born with a blueprint already in place. We can alter the details, but the overall pattern of our life is determined before birth. I seem to remember that he likes this to having the freedom/ability to alter the decor of our home but not the physical structure itself. Even so, I suspect some people have a wreaking ball. ;)

[James Oeming]

Regarding using free will vs. going with the flow of a higher consciousness (aka "God" or whatever), here is a useful prayer/affirmation:

"I will act, and I will will; but God guide my will and actions."

I've noticed that this relationship manifests itself both macro-cosmically and micro-cosmically.

For example, it reminds me of employees in a business.

When in managerial positions, I've preferred employees who will initiate actions -- even if they aren't always the best actions -- over employees who quietly wait to be told what to do.

The employee with initiative -- as long as he/she accepts corrective or collaborative input from management -- is the better choice, in my experience (ignoring explosively willful individuals with terrible judgement).

In other words, use your head, but keep in touch with big daddy :)

In that vein, I read that one of Lincoln's very favorite generals was Ulysses Grant, because, he said, "He fights!" Many of Lincoln's generals were too cautious or complacent.

This self-will-vs-higher-will question also makes me think of what General Eisenhower said when overseeing the D-Day deployment (paraphrased): "I don't care what religion you have, just as long as you have one."

His point was obvious: consciously try to align with a higher, wiser perspective while making gritty decisions on the battlefield. (Of course, Eisenhower would have all-but-certainly deplored evil in the name of religion.)

My take about free will is to consistently seek to tune in with the highest perspective while using one's best judgement about nuts-and-bolts actions and decisions.

Every indication was that Lincoln was willing to exert his own will in the service of a higher ideal or power. That is what made him a great president, IMHO.

[Sardondi]

The Lincoln filmmakers were not just "uncomfortable" with truthfully depicting the central part which both organized religion and spirituality played in mid-19th-century American life in general and in Abraham Lincoln' life in particular. They were flatly embarrassed by it. So they censored it to fit both their own preferences and those which they mistakenly believed to e their audience. Because Abe was a, you know, good guy and righteous dude, and not some Christianist Flying Spaghetti Monster rube.

It was contempt, both for religious faith and historical accuracy, which was behind Speilberg's desecration of fact. His censorship was designed to make Abe more palatable to him and the "progressive" socio-political meme which he holds so dear.

[Steve Echard Musgrave]

The noble Abe Lincoln is a primal American myth that has little to do with how he was.A power politician,a white supremacist(like most in his era) A close look at Lincoln character does not reveal Saint Abe, more like LBJ on steroids.
lIncoln was a great President in the same way Otto Von Bismarck was,her did not let ethics or the rules of war interfere with plans.