Spiritual Disenchantment Part II: Stage Mediums & New Age Frauds

Duality of beliefs
I am at an interesting crossroads where I have beliefs in and practice things like energy healing, psychic abilities, mediumship, Light Language and so on. Yet, I don’t believe in some popular people in the world practicing these things. Most seem like out-right frauds...

 I mention in my about me, that my spirituality and more “new age” beliefs were sprouted in my mid teens watching Sylvia Browne on The Montell Williams Show. Later when she was said to be a fraud, it hurt. Was everything a lie? I tried to move on, taking with me what still felt true. A lot of what she said in her books had shaped my life in the years after. I had something to believe in. ​​
​I have recently been listening to the OH NO ROSS AND CARRIE (ONRC) podcast- where they dive into all things new age with skepticism. They went to see Theresa Caputo years ago, more recently went to 2 Cindy Kaza Shows, interviewed someone who is exposing Seatbelt Psychic Thomas John and also interviewed the Medical Medium Kimberly Meredith. ( I actually haven’t heard of any of these people except maybe Theresa until this week). The podcasts’ descriptions of the cringe-worthy medium performances, and exposing lies of people saying they can cure cancer are shocking. Those podcasts combined with articles like this Abraham Hicks one on gurumag.com and coming upon obvious Twilight Masters like Bentinho Massaro on youtube, I feel sick. Heck, I don’t even believe in the Dalai Lama is real after seeing him years ago in Orange county, Ca. Some know they are lying, others are lying to themselves, and a lot of innocent people might be getting hurt.


Thinking of infinity
I wonder if I have wasted my whole life with beliefs based off of Sylvia Browne’s books combined with a myriad of others. Some fake teachers/gurus simply mash together other’s teachings and are good actors. But if the info they are copying is from another fake guru that they think is real, combined with their real ability to channel tricksters and dark energies…a lot of information could be getting out to the people that will actually stray them from their authentic path.


Stage Performing Mediums/Psychics
After taking psychic and mediumship courses over the past 12 years, I don’t understand how the stage medium’s methods could ever work. People like Teresa, Caputo, Cindy Kaza, John Edwards, etc. I think it’s possible that people like them can be and are psychic, but from what I have learned, the way they conduct their “show” would be hard for any psychic medium. They start to get “in contact” with departed loved ones, then repeatedly ask the audience if they know a John or a Mary (insert popular name) or ask if vague statements resonate with the audience. They seem to just shout random things and grasp for someone to connect. Instead, they should have a blind drawing when the audience arrives, and if their name gets pulled, that person will get a reading, if the medium is real…


What I learned in Psychic classes:
From what I know, receiving names of dearly departed ones, is really hard to get. It’s something we were taught to not even focus on. We were taught that psychic impressions will come to us in ways that we can translate them. For example If I see a tree, it might mean you need to go into nature because that’s what trees mean to ME, but if another psychic see’s a tree, for her it might mean you need to ground yourself. Messages are pretty vague and up for interpretation. However, spirit knows us, the readers.


I was told throughout my life, everyone can be a psychic medium and I can tell you that’s not true. Not true in the way that with 10 years of practice you too can see your neighbors dead Aunt Bertha standing in the hall saying hi. No. As I have always suspected, you are either born with that gift or not (if its actually a real thing). I gave up on trying to be medium. I got some hits at times, but it just wasn’t happening. Everyone can however heighten their intuition muscle and learn to read energy. Where I did seem to excel was whenever we would practice partnering with someone; they would think of a person and I would then describe the person (mostly a sense of who they are, what they do, not looks). I don’t think that is mediumship, I am not sure what that is.. mind reading? Again it is in my opinion valuable to strengthen your intuitive skills to help navigate through your own life.


Back to the stage mediums.. after reading and listening to more skeptic podcasts it was disgusting to hear how some people are lying. It was especially awful to hear the investigation on Thomas John who was clearly reading people’s Facebook pages in order to give them a reading. There are other tactics like sending “spies” into the audience before the show starts, and microphoning the audience. Is everyone just trying to get rich and famous? This world gets more sad everyday. These frauds are emotionally damaging people.


Just do it
Since I have taken the psychic courses, and reflected on them I am awakening. I am awakening since I know how it works. I am not just a fan of all things new age, I went undercover, maybe without knowing it.  I think there are a lot of bad psychics out there because its on trend right now, and teachers are pumping them out of classes. Just like in my blog about reiki and yoga, someone hosting a class will say to you,  “you can do this, everyone is psychic”… wellllllllll…. Psychic to a degree. I have had years of classes and there is no way I am going to go out into the world and start giving psychic readings, but you know, my teacher told me to- Just start going to fairs and practicing. BUT.. I don’t want to mess with people’s lives and minds if I get something wrong! (but Jess, just believe in yourself!) Mmmm …nope sorry, not going to unintentionally but potentially harm someone!


Give it to me straight
One horrifying experience was when I gave pendulum readings at a mini psychic fair run by my teacher in more of a learning environment. It was terrifying. Not because I didn’t believe in myself or the divine speaking to me through the pendulum, but because people asked me life changing questions: “Will I finally have another child, I have had 3 miscarriages” “should I move to Ohio, and leave my husband” …Mind you, pendulum questions are yes or no. Its not like pulling cards where it might tell the person, IF you decide to that this may be outcome. My God…


I recently took a 6 month course with another teacher, and when all the classmates had different answers to something in question (using their pendulums) and the teacher said “when you have client, its ok if its not right, its what they need to hear right now, and it might change later” I knew that portion of the class was over for me. If we are all working with the divine spirit, wouldn’t we get all the same yes/no answers to a question? (A question like:  “is this specific person from this specific place?”). I spent months thinking my skills were awful and others had the same personal sentiment. But I then wondered if the teachers answers were even correct. There is no way I am going to tell someone something without being certain of it. I actually don’t think its ok to be wrong in this practice. Most people going to get spiritual readings are vulnerable and emotional. They are looking for life support.


To the point:
A lot of people are just OK psychics or even bad ones, but with a teachers encouragement, the student wanting to make back their $$ from all the classes they took, and putting mantra’s on their bathroom mirror that say “I believe I am a powerful psychic” they go out into world potentially giving you a reading that may change your life, or hold you back from living it.
But hey! Everything happens for a reason and you were meant to go to a lackluster psychic and learn this lesson, right?


And no, everyone is not a fraud or a bad person. There are some gems out there, and I know them.


It is the customers who are seeking mediums out, and paying them money- they had free will to do this. But the world is crazy, people desperately want to feel better, want to find love, want a cure. So yea, they will pay if you claim to have the answers, see the future or have a cure.  Just like in my Rythmia Blog where we see people giving up their psych meds to do Ayahuasca and then some become very depressed after, even some committing suicide. Sure it was their choice to drop the meds, but they were being sold a miracle (literally). ONRC Podcast also interviewed Medical Medium Kimberly Meredith and it was CRINGE- worthy. This woman is stating she was nurse (she was not), and is a self taught medical medium who can basically let you know if you have cancer and CoronaV. And it’s obvious that she is lying to herself and potentially harming others.


How do people become so delusional? Is anything real? Without faith and belief in SOMETHING is this world a miserable place? People like Bentinho Massaro scare me. He was an obvious fraud just after watching a few videos, but to others, they may be changing their lives for him. So many people also follow Abraham Hicks teachings as I did for a long time. She may be channeling.. something.. I am not so sure its from the Divine source. On a smaller scale, years ago I went to the Long Beach Hari Krishna temple to experience chanting meditations, and when the leader, Tukaram Prabhu, stepped and spoke, my heart stopped. I looked around the room in panic, I was terrified for everyone there. I instantly knew he was fake and wanted to flee so badly, but I stayed to be polite. He was rude, harsh, and just a former New York businessman who was now living with a group of women.
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We are all being led off our paths by these frauds. It has become so hard to find the authentic people out there. Everyone is trying to steal our souls.