Many questons about ghosts!

From a visitor in PA 3/15/04

What are ghosts?
how does something become a ghost?
have you ever had any encounters with one?
how long is something a ghost?
are they evil? do they haunt?
is there any proof they are real?

RESPONSE:

A lot of questions here - some which have been answered on the site already but we will attempt to answer all your questions here:
What are ghosts?
Ghosts are believed to be the spiritual or soul of a physical being that once lived on this earthly plane.
There is also another form of ghost, which truly isn't a ghost per si but is a residue of an emotional event, and re-enacting that event. For example, the ghostly visions people have reported seeing on the battlefield at Gettysburg is likely a re-enactment of a highly emotionally charged event that is linked to this land. Many believe that all things absorb highly emotional events and will replay those events at various times. This type of ghost is called a residue energy ghost - meaning there is no spirit behind it and no intelligence behind it - but it is simply a re-enactment of an event that has already taken place.

How does something become a ghost?
First the simple answer: their physical dies.
This next answer is somewhat complex so please bear with me. Ghosts come about for several reason, it is believed. First and most common reason given is because the spirit has not completed something, or has unfinished business. The second reason is because the spirit is tied to a specific place, be it a house or business location or something such as that. The third reason generally given is that they can't find their way to the next plane of life and/or don't know they are dead. We don't happen to agree with this final statement - that a spirit doesn't know they are dead. Logic tells us that this probably isn't the case because the ghost soon discovers that they do not need to eat, sleep, or even open doors to move from one room to another.

Before going any further perhaps we should discuss what we believe is the truth about life. First, the human body is a vehicle, just like a car, to get you around on this plane of existence. The physical body is made up of the physical, the second element is the spiritual or soul and finally the third element is the consciousness that taps into the universal consciousness which is known as God. These three elements make up all living things - humans, cats, dogs, everything living, yes including trees, plants etc. The key to life is balance...balance between the three basic elements. When one element becomes more important than another there is no balance. So the spiritual requires attention, as does the physical and the consciousness. When that balance is thrown off by too much attention to the physical a spiritual being may become a ghostly presence simply because it isn't willing to give up the physical world. Additionally, life is about learning. We learn what our mistakes are and what things we have done wrong or how we have harmed others, etc. This being said we can now address the rest of your questions.

Have you ever had any encounters with a ghost?
Absolutely! Numerous times. Not only have we encountered ghosts but we have some photographs of what we believe are ghostly images on the site here.

How long is something a ghost?
This is difficult to answer. Some ghosts are said to stick around for a very long time. Some ghosts, as explained above, are not truly ghosts but are re-enactments of highly charged events.

Are ghosts evil?
Yes and no - just as there are good people in the physical form and bad people in the physical form - this is true of ghosts as well. A person who is a good, decent person in physical life will still be the same in a ghostly form. A person who is negative in physical life and does things that many consider evil will have the same personality in the spiritual form until they have crossed over to their next plane of existence and learn what mistakes they have made.

Do they haunt?
We call it haunting - but perhaps the more appropriate name should be misdirected beings. For one reason or another they are unable to cross over to the next plane of life. Not everyone who dies becomes a ghost that haunts.

Is there any proof they are real?
From a scientific point of view there is no proof - at least not enough to satisfy the scientific community. But if you ask anyone who has seen or experienced a ghost the answer is yes, they are real because I've seen them. That is not enough to prove anything. Even the photographs we've taken (that are on the site) is not valid proof either; at least not from a scientific point of view, because there have been people who have doctored photographs making the real photos suspect. However, there are certain factors that come into play when investigating a ghostly incident...such as the use of various equipment that is scientific that clearly shows a change in the surrounding atmosphere when a ghost is seen or felt in a specific area.

One must ask the question - if ghosts aren't real then why have there been reports and stories about ghosts since the dawn of time. Long before man believed in a single entity known as God - man has talked of ghosts. Is God real? It is impossible to prove! Some things are not scientifically provable and must simply be accepted on the bases of faith! Faith is that simple thing within you that allows you to accept things you can't explain but know, some place inside, that these things are real. But as one of our team members once wrote: The hidden beauty within a bud proves there is a God...this can also be said about ghosts.

Hope this answers your questions! Thanks for writing Eeeek!