Having focused on some problems with mediumship and other afterlife evidence, and on the possibility that some of the evidence can be explained by sociological and psychological factors (such as mania) and by the influence of a collective unconscious constructing the desired phenomena, I now want to look at some of the strongest evidence, which seems to resist these explanations. A good place to find such evidence is The Survival Top 40, a website created by Miles Edward Allen, which lists many of the most compelling cases.
One of the better ones, currently #29 on the Top 40 list, is "The Rationalist Spirit." I'd suggest reading the detailed summary (PDF)* provided by Miles Edward Allen; like all his summaries, it's well-written, clear, and gets directly to the point. Below I'll provide a briefer synopsis.
[Update, 2023: Sadly, The Survival Top 40 is gone, along with associated PDFs. But the case description below should be sufficient.]
Alan Gauld, a longtime and highly respected parapsychological researcher, spent some time working with a home circle in Cambridgeshire, England, in 1959. While with the circle, he learned of a case from 1943 involving a drop-in communicator – someone with no known connection to anyone in the group. Fortunately, detailed records had been kept, including verbatim transcripts of the sessions, which were conducted with a "talking board" (a Ouija board or similar item).
The communicator in question identified himself as "Adolf Biedebmann," adding, "I always was known and called Gustav." In his first appearance, on January 4, 1943, he was hostile and insulting. The spirit control, "Peter," warned, "A little later I am going to let the eel through…. Humour him. Get to know him. We can then deal with him from here."
"Gustav" then took over the planchette, insinuating that he had impersonated "Raymond and a Doctor James" (presumably Raymond Lodge and William James) in an earlier session. When told that the group wanted to help him, he replied, "I do not want your help." The group said they were taught to help those who need it. "Wrong teaching," the spirit huffed. "I am not going to be bloody well pally [friendly] with you. Mind your own business. I did not come here to talk to you. Shut up."
He pretended to be a female spirit named Molly or Mollie – his spelling varied – but despite his insistence that they "mind [their] bloody business," the group quickly divined that he was male. "I was a man who always kept to himself," he added, inadvertently revealing his sex. "Damn," he commented when his slip was pointed out.
Religion was "bloody rot," he said. When asked to be reasonable, he replied, "Shut up. Buggar you…. Only Hitler can help. He is the master mind…. I knew Hitler." Claiming his nationality was German, he took credit for a sentence in German that was spelled out by the board in a previous sitting. He lived in London, at a house in Charnwood Lodge. By the end of the session, he seemed calmer and more friendly. "Peter" assured the group that "Gustav" was genuinely sorry for his rude behavior, adding, "And he is German."
Three days later, on January 7, an apologetic "Gustav" showed up, giving his "correct name" (a version of his name given in the earlier session was inaccurate). "I was a rationalist," he said. "A type of religion to follow only the reasoning of one's own mind. It puts a barrier around." That was partly why he had been lonely in the spirit realm. "I was turned seventy when I passed away," he said, going on to explain that his references to Hitler were intended "to hurt."
On February 4, he made another appearance. "I had my own business," he recalled. "In some remote way I am associated with the Lond[on] University." He said he'd passed over a year ago, and when asked if he was connected with publishing, made reference to the Rationalist Press.
Gauld, examining the case in 1959, discovered the existence of a Dr. Adolf Gustav Biedermann (only a slight variation on the name Biedebmann, which was presumably misspelled during the session). Miles Edward Allen summarizes:
[He] was a German-born, naturalized citizen of England who lived at Charnwood Lodge on the outskirts of London until he died at the age of 73. He was a fairly wealthy businessman who also worked in the Psychology Department at London University.
Those who knew Biedermann described him to Gauld as an arrogant, obstinate, and aggressive man who, nevertheless, could be a pleasant companion when one got to know him. He seemed to revel in his German heritage and never dropped his accent. One acquaintance portrayed him as "an out-and-out rationalist" who may well have been attached to the idea of Aryan superiority.
He was hostile to claims of telepathy, and to religion. In his will he left money to the Rationalist Press Association.
The case is strong for several reasons. First, the communicator matches up extremely well with the earthly Biedermann in terms of demeanor, beliefs, and personal history. Second, there was a clear progression from hostility to remorse and friendliness, suggesting the activity of a living mind, not a static bundle of memories. Third, no other communicator at this home circle ever behaved the way "Gustav" did; if the mental influence of the sitters or planchette operators had been responsible for the messages, we might expect to see other cases like this involving the same persons, but there were none. Fourth, the loneliness and confusion of "Gustav" dovetails with statements made through many channelers about the state of mind of spirits who hold a deep antipathy to spiritual values and a strong commitment to the ego.
The only question I would raise is whether either of the planchette operators could possibly have known of Biedermann during his lifetime and unconsciously recreated his personality, manipulating the planchette either through subtle, unintentional muscular movements or via PK. But this seems doubtful, given the absence of any motive on the part of the sitters to bring "Gustav" to the circle. And it is unlikely that a casual acquaintance could know such details as Biedermann's legacy to the Rationalist Press.