Editorial November 9, 1918 Issue

Handling Sympathetic Mesmerism

William D. McCrackan

Lessons learned are milestones passed. Though the world war reaches a military halt, the carnal mind brings forth problem after problem, and to guard against a recurrence of the same evils, mankind must learn to handle sympathetic mesmerism.

When the "Lusitania" sank, it disappeared into a gulf which can never be bridged. The state of mind which planned this crime and that mind which has always maintained the tradition at sea of "Women and children first" have no common meeting ground. There can be no discussion, no agreement or arrangement, no adjudication of such a premeditated act, and diplomacy has found none. From the standpoint of the conspirators against the rights of man it was only an incident in the struggle for the control of the sea; from the standpoint of the defenders of liberty it was a deed so dark as to be unbelievable. The victors in the world war need to protect themselves against sympathetic mesmerism, against the danger of trusting the evil planner and mistaking his temporary abasement for genuine repentance.

After Saul had long sought in vain to slay David and David had spared Saul's life, the defeated king broke down in momentary contrition and wept. "Is this thy voice, my son David?" he cried, "Thou art more righteous than I: for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil." At the close of the chapter recording this incident are the significant words, "And Saul went home; but David and his men gat them up unto the hold." Spiritual intuition prevented David from yielding to sympathetic mesmerism and trusting to Saul's mock repentance. The near future proved the correctness of David's intuition, for we read that soon after, Saul once more sought to slay David and was once more saved by David's mercy. On this second occasion Saul again repeated his profession of repentance, but it is recorded that "David went on his way," untouched by sympathetic mesmerism. The Bible story shows that after this second experience Saul desisted from pursuing David and within a short time lost his own life in battle through the self-destruction of error.

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