Archives for January 2019

The following memoir was written by Eric Hatton who became SNU President following Gordon’s passing on 18th January 1993.  At the time, Eric was Gordon’s closest friend.  His memoir recalls how Gordon came into his life as well as their friendship for 46 years.  It was circulated by the SNU a few months after Gordon’s passing.

 

 

GORDON HIGGINSON MEMOIR by ERIC HATTON

There will be few (if any) who truly knew Gordon Higginson and witnessed his mediumship who do not mourn his passing.  For so many years we have become accustomed to him being there at the helm and, even before his Presidency, as being prominent on the Spiritualist scene, and therefore his physical loss leaves a great void.

 

No one article can encompass his life or, indeed, his achievements, so where does one commence?

 

He was already 28 when I first met him, which was at a meeting in Stourbridge Church: the dramatic impact of the evidence he relayed to people was bordering on amazing.

 

Over the first year of hearing and meeting him, I could not help but be convinced by his accurate relay of contacts from spirit beings, for in spite of my sceptical approach and determination to accept only those things which were provable or corroborative, I could not help being astounded.

 

My own family, who were in dreadful, shock and mourning as a result of my brother’s sudden, unexpected death in a Sunderland flying-boat in Singapore, were reunited on many an occasion by the brilliant mediumship of Gordon.  Details which were known only to ourselves and could not be gleaned from any source other than my brother in spirit were instrumental in changing our lives from despair to realisation.

 

In recent days, since Gordon’s passing, my sister and I have conversed upon those early incidents which have determined our beliefs that, come what may, these evidences have made us Spiritualists for all time!

 

However, there are thousands upon thousands who have been influenced by this man’s amazing demonstrations.  Indeed, the number who have spoken of their reunion with loved ones through Gordon’s unique mediumship are almost too numerous to calculate, but lives have been changed and enhanced by his uniting the living with the so-called dead.

 

In the mid to late 50s, operating in Longton Church, was a circle group, at which physical phenomena and psychokinesis were being witnessed week-upon-week.  I was allowed into some of these and saw clearly the movement of objects, together with materialisation of a high quality.

 

This was at a time when I was particularly sceptical, of this form of mediumship and Gordon was no exception to my critical analysis, but when one witnesses the breaking down and reassembly of structures – independent; of the medium – and in discernible light, a new evaluation has to be reckoned with.

 

Throughout the 46 years I have known Gordon, I have been present at literally countless numbers of his meetings, both large and small.  He became, after Estelle Roberts, Helen Hughes, Lillian Bailey and Bertha Harris, our foremost demonstrator at large public meetings.  I recall one such occasion when I sat next, to Lord Dowding in Solihull Town Hall.  This critical but kindly man said, after one piece of relayed evidence, “That is quite astonishing!”  At meetings such as this, there would always be those who looked for flaws and other explanations for the almost unbelievable, detailed relay of facts: consequently, Gordon would from time to time come under great scrutiny and challenge.

 

After one such period and episode, he was invited to a secular society of which I was chairman.  We imposed strict conditions, together with careful, monitored isolation, to ensure that he could not be aware of the nature of our test or our audience.  Needless to say, he came out with flying colours, as he did when we tested him in billet-reading, as well as on reading a page of a book by psychometric methods.

 

When he, together with Mary Duffy and Stephen O’Brien, demonstrated to empty chairs in Stansted Hall some years ago, this pinpoint accuracy with its attendant minute details astounded us all when, a few hours later, people occupied the chairs.

 

In more recent years, Gordon’s resolve to train and help younger mediums and his desire to teach at the Arthur Findlay College, which in effect opened up a new dimension to his mediumship, has perhaps had a closer and more lasting impact on many people’s lives.

 

His love of music, his tremendous sense of humour, his kindly disposition, his concern for others’ welfare and his work as the longest-serving President for 22 years all leave us with an unfillable chasm.

 

Would that we could change the course of events!  However, as the days roll by and snippets of his recent utterances come to my attention, I venture to suggest that his greatest adventure was made known to him in an oblique sort of way.

 

We who were privileged to know him, and some of us who worked with him, must now take up the torch he has passed into our hands and, in thankfulness for his life, strive to continue the heritage he has left behind!

 

Source: SNU Circular 1993

 

Gordon Higginson passed to the spirit world 26 years ago today on the 18th January 1993.   The following memoir was written by Jean Bassett and circulated to SNU members shortly after his passing.  Jean wrote Gordon’s biography ‘On the Side of Angels‘ which was published just a few days after his passing.  In this memoir, she summarises his life and achievements.

 

 

GORDON HIGGINSON MEMOIR – BY JEAN BASSETT

 

Gordon Higginson was a great man!  He gave the best part of his life to the Spiritualists National Union.  Born on 11th November 1918, he took his first service in Longton Spiritualist Church when he was only 12 years-old, and he had just returned from taking the Sunday service in Blackpool when he passed into spirit on Monday 18th January 1993, aged 74.

 

His birth and destiny were predicted to his mother, Fanny Higginson, by a medium, Annie Brittain, at Longton Church when she was only 14 years old.  The message was said to have come from her mother, whom the medium described: the description fitted but Fanny had only just left her mother, alive!

 

Returning home, Fanny found that her mother had died just after she had left the house.  All that Annie Brittain predicted that afternoon came true.  This was not the only time that seemingly impossible spirit advice and intervention played a [art in Gordon Higginson’s life.

 

He became the President of Longton Church when he was 26 and remained its President throughout his life; he was ordained a Minister of the Spiritualists’ National Union in 1956 and was appointed the Principal of the Arthur Findlay College in 1977.  His first role in administration was as the National Class B Representative, then in 1969 he was elected the Vice-President of the Union and since 1970 had been annually elected the leader and President of the SNU.  In Spiritualism he was the most acclaimed medium of this century.

 

As President he tackled the severe financial problems of the Union by organising a series of publicity meetings and by personally securing interest-free loans from many of the affiliated churches.  Without his hard work and energy, the Union might well have been forced into liquidation.

 

It was due to his mother’s rigorous training that Gordon developed a link with the spirit world, which was so accurate that he was known to the papers in the Potteries, where he lived and worked as the ‘Boy Wonder’.  He was an immediate success when he started working in London after the war: his style was different and the evidence which he gave was considered to be outstanding.

 

He was the first medium to be invited to work in Europe after the war.  Although he had never used interpreters before, he found no difficulties in adapting his style and no difficulty in giving many foreign names and addresses.  He worked with all the best mediums in this country and in many of the largest halls, including four Remembrance Day Services at the Albert Hall.

 

From the time Gordon was sixteen he had been facing audiences of a thousand or more.  When he came out; of the Forces and started working in London, his fame spread rapidly and he was asked to work in Scotland and Wales, as well as the length and breadth of England.  He was particularly well-known for his ability to give full names and addresses, descriptions of localities and even the names of shops in these localities, telephone numbers, identity card numbers , house numbers and car numbers.

 

There were many times during these years when Gordon faced controversy and was tempted to give up; however, he was given encouragement to continue through the support; of the members of the SNU, districts and churches, and also from one of the most respected ‘guides’ in Spiritualism, Silver Birch.

 

Gordon devoted his life to the promotion of Spiritualism in Britain and the preservation of the Arthur Findlay College of Psychic Studies at Stansted in Essex.  It was largely due to his vision and determination that this building has been retained for the use of Spiritualists and the promotion of Spiritualism.

 

Gordon Higginson is considered to have been one of the finest mediums of this century.  He was not just one of the best exponents of clairvoyance in this country, but he also spent much time and effort teaching the young mediums of tomorrow, seeing in them our future.  He always said that he wanted to die while still working actively for the promotion of Spiritualism: whenever possible he returned home after a meeting.  On Monday 18th January, he achieved both.

 

Truly a giant of a man, he will not be forgotten.  The organisation to which he gave so much of his life will honour him by continuing its work in strength and harmony.

 

Source: SNU Circular