Rev. Alice Wellstood Tindall — Founder, First Spiritual Science Church (Washington, DC)

Who She Was — Why Her Work Mattered

- Every movement has a beginning.
- But not every beginning is remembered accurately.

This month, the National Spiritual Science Center Historical Society is introducing a new permanent page honoring Rev. Alice Wellstood Tindall. She was a pioneer of the Spiritual Science movement and the individual who planted and established the First Spiritual Science Church in Washington, DC.

Alice Tindall Enhanced 1951 PO, Mother Alice Tindall

For decades, Rev. Tindall’s role has been referenced, abbreviated, or quietly absorbed into later narratives. Yet her work shaped the foundation of Spiritual Science in DC. She served as a minister, healer, teacher, mental medium, exorcism healing practitioner, spiritual counselor, and publisher.

Her leadership extended beyond the sanctuary. She held national organizational roles and worked in publishing. Through print, she distributed disciplined Spiritual Science education to a wider audience.

This newly published page restores Rev. Tindall’s work to the historical record as she represented herself publicly. It reflects her ministry, her healing practices, and her ownership and active publication of The Psychic Observer: Journal of Spiritual Science. She purchased the paper in 1968 and began publishing it from Washington, DC in 1969. Surviving issues confirm that she remained actively engaged in publishing through at least 1973, the year preceding her death.

This page now serves as the roots of the Spiritual Sciencece movement.

🔗 Read the full historical page:
Rev. Alice W. Tindall — Pioneer of the Spiritual Science Movement

May her work be remembered and preserved.

Spiritual Science Research from Rev. Starlene Joyner Burns — President & Founder, National Spiritual Science Center Historical Society

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December 4, 2025January 31, 2026

When the Departed Speak: Understanding True Spiritual Communication

A dimly lit spiritual altar arranged for mediumship, featuring candles, sacred objects, and symbolic items used for connecting with the spirit world and understanding energetic shells and true spiritual communication.

When the Departed Speak

Understanding True Spiritual Communication

Most people assume that if a loved one has crossed over, they should still be standing close by—showing signs, visiting dreams, or leaving messages. It’s comforting for some to think that way.

But the majority of spirits do not linger simply because we miss them.

Most souls continue their journey back to the Creator God. They don’t stay stuck in emotional traffic trying to comfort the living or live through them. When genuine communication happens, it’s because the contact is purposeful and aligned with both spirits involved.

Can mediums reach your departed? They will connect to what’s with you—a shell holding on to the essence of your loved one, infused with your memories of them. In most cases, that is what responds first because it sits closest to the living and is easiest to access.

Before continuing, it’s important to understand that there are three very different forms of spiritual presence that people often confuse with one another:

1. The energetic shell or imprint
2. The soul that has moved on
3. The soul that chooses not to leave the earth plane

Mediums often connect with the first because it remains within reach. The second continues on its spiritual path. And only a small minority fall into the third category.

As a spiritual healer, I originally understood the term lost soul to refer to spirits who linger. Over time, through direct healing experience and later through a vivid dream, I came to recognize a deeper truth: there are no lost souls.

There are souls who choose to remain in this dimension. The phrase lost soul implies confusion or aimless wandering, when in reality some simply do not wish to leave the earth plane entirely. Because of this, I could only assist in liberating the ones who were spiritually ready to move on.

Many assume these souls stay out of fear or attachment to the life they once lived. But in practice, the majority are willing—sometimes even eager—to return to the Creator God and continue their journey beyond this world.

Why Would the Departed Stay Behind?

This is an honest question.

A soul that has completed its earthly work moves on. What remains is not the soul itself, but the emotional tether created by those who are grieving.

Love, grief, and longing can hold energy in place, and that attachment must be released. Releasing a loved one is not forgetting them. It is letting go of the emotional cord, so healing can begin, allowing memories of love and joy to remain without being trapped in grief.

A Spiritual Science Reflection by Rev. Starlene Joyner Burns, President & Founder, National Spiritual Science Center Historical Society.

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November 5, 2025December 3, 2025

What Are Prophetic Dreams? Warnings – Messages – Protection

When Dreams Speak

Everyone dreams, but not everyone remembers or understands what’s happening. Dreams aren’t random stories the brain plays at night. They’re spiritual communications and insights.

Psychology may analyze dreams through symbols and theories, but those who walk with Spirit experience them as sacred communication. Dreams can teach, warn, reveal, and protect. They’re one of the oldest ways the Divine speaks when we’re still enough to listen.

How Psychology Explains Dreams

Psychology breaks dreams into categories like lucid, recurring, and nightmares, describing how they happen, and sometimes why.

It helps us understand the mind’s activity, but Spirit goes deeper.

Spirit Speaks Through Dreams

In my experience, dreams go far beyond psychology. They carry direct messages from the Divine and reveal truth through confirmation in waking life.

This list doesn’t apply to every dream — each one should be analyzed to discern its meaning.

- Divine Message Dreams – Spirit or the Higher Self speaks through symbols, visions, and direction.
- Guidance Dreams – Offer guidance, correction, or reassurance.
- Prophetic Dreams – Show future events before they occur.
- Warning Dreams – Alert you to danger, deception, or spiritual warfare.
- Energetic Defense Dreams – Occur during lucid dreaming when the conscious mind becomes aware of an enemy attack.
- Truth-Revealing Dreams – Expose hidden motives, witchcraft, and reveal enemies.
- Visitation Dreams – Bring messages of good fortune, truth, or comfort from ancestors and loved ones.

Each one is a message from Spirit. Some dreams are fleeting. They entertain or drift through the mind, leaving little trace by morning.

But the dreams that carry purpose or a message, you won’t forget. They linger because they require action to manifest.

Spirit makes sure those stay with you until you do something about them.Final Thought

Dreams bypass logic and ego to reach the conscious mind.
The moment you wake, pause and ask:

“What is Spirit showing me?”

Your dream might be the very message your soul has been waiting to deliver.

In my experience, I’ve learned that not every dream is meant to be shared with others, especially if it involves them. Dreams, like psychic readings, can change the moment someone learns about them. Just as in a lucid dream, awareness can alter the outcome.

In life, the same truth applies — we all have the power to change our outcomes.

If the dream is about you, honor the message, even when it reveals truth. If it concerns someone you know, keep it to yourself unless they give you permission to share.

Respecting someone’s privacy is important because that person may symbolize an aspect or attribute of yourself within a dream. If you don’t understand your dream, find someone who does.

A Spiritual Science Field Investigation by Rev. Starlene Joyner Burns, President & Founder, National Spiritual Science Center Historical Society.

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September 9, 2025January 24, 2026

What Is a Spiritual Minister?

Understanding the Role Beyond Religion

When You’re Called to Divine Service

Spiritual callings don’t always come through formal ordination, initiation, ancestral rites, or being told by a spiritual leader. They often arrive through a dream, a strong inner knowing, vision, or a profound moment of awakening — guided by the soul.

In 1997, my own calling came in a dream—one that left me in tears and full of questions. Not knowing where to turn, I reached out to a cousin I trusted — a devout Christian woman, passionate about her faith. She pointed me toward a church her godson pastored.

But what I experienced there didn’t align with the inner truth stirring within me.

The leaders practiced a form of “healing,” but something felt off. I wasn’t even a spiritual scientist at the time—I was still walking a Christian path. That experience, however, marked the beginning of my transition.

He preached, saying those seeking positions just wanted to be “superstars” — implying folks had to start at the bottom and earn their place. I truly believed the church would be welcoming, but I quickly learned that Christian churches often weren’t. What he said reflected how many churches operate — you don’t grow because you’re called, you grow by playing into hierarchy and favoritism. Perplexed, I didn’t know what my next move would be, so I left it to my inner God.

And that week, Spirit answered.

A newsletter arrived from a metaphysical church I had previously visited. It listed a class: Platform Healing. I read the description and said to my inner God, “It’s a start.” That newsletter became my confirmation.

I enrolled, completed the course, and served in that church as a spiritual healer for 1+ years. Eventually, like all souls called to grow, it was time for me to walk my own path.

What Is a Spiritual Minister?

In spiritual science, a minister is not simply a title — it is a role of service grounded in universal principles, personal development, and conscious spiritual alignment.

A spiritual minister does not represent a single religious tradition. Instead, they serve from a place of inner attunement, metaphysical understanding, and respect for the God within each soul.

We recognize that people are gifted in many ways:

- Clairvoyance (clear seeing)
- Clairaudience (clear hearing)
- Clairsentience (clear feeling)
- Prophecy, spiritual healing, intuitive knowing, or divine wisdom

These gifts are sacred inheritances entrusted by God — carried through the bloodline and safeguarded by the Divine and ancestral angels.

When trained and developed consciously, these gifts are used with integrity, responsibility, accountability, and always harmlessly.

Why Traditional Religion Often Suppresses Spiritual Gifts

Religious institutions may preach about gifts of the spirit, but often limit them to what’s sanctioned by hierarchy. When spiritual gifts appear outside of that control — in independent healers, dreamers, seers, and intuitives — they are sometimes dismissed, demonized, or labeled “dangerous.”

But spiritual gifts are not meant to be contained by dogma.
They are assigned by the Divine before birth — and they require only discipline, humility, love, and discernment.

Why the World Needs Spiritual Ministers Now

As people walk away from traditional religion, many are not rejecting God — they are reclaiming their spiritual autonomy.

Spiritual ministers serve those who:

- Are spiritually gifted but misunderstood
- Seek metaphysical healing and growth
- Desire sacred rituals rooted in spiritual science
- Wish to walk their path without fear or guilt
- Want teachers and guides who see beyond doctrine

Spiritual ministers meet people where they are and help them connect with their higher self and inner God.

A Note on Labels

Though I’ve sometimes used the term “non-denominational” for familiarity, it doesn’t truly represent what I do. Spiritual ministry is a path of service, soul development, and conscious alignment — not a label for convenience.

Many Expressions, One Source

Spirituality has many expressions. The Science of the Spirit teaches that God is within all things, and that spiritual growth is personal, evolving, and eternal.

As spiritual ministers in the metaphysical tradition, we honor that diversity — and encourage each soul to develop its gifts with purpose, responsibility, and love.

Close Reflection

There are places the soul can visit that no plane, boat, or footpath can reach. The temple in Spiritland is one such place — existing in the unseen, reachable only through meditation, stillness, and divine alignment. It is not a physical sanctuary, but a sacred vision available to those who seek truth, knowledge, and wisdom on the astral plane.

🕊️ If you’ve ever felt called, gifted, or disconnected from traditional religion, you are not alone — and you are not lost. Your gifts are real. Your path is sacred. And your journey is valid.

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A Spiritual Science Reflection by Rev. Starlene Joyner Burns — President & Founder, National Spiritual Science Center Historical Society

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May 23, 2025October 2, 2025

Living Spiritual Science – Part 2

Spiritual Senses and Discernment

Understanding the Spiritual and Physical Connection Spiritual Scientists recognize that human beings have five physical senses and equivalent spiritual senses. Not all spiritual senses are active at once; they emerge as needed—offering insight, guidance, and sometimes challenge, depending on the situation or spiritual need. What I share here is not something I learned from books—this is based solely on my own personal experience. My sense of touch is constantly active—I can feel vibrations, both near and far. This would fall under clairsentience, the ability to feel spiritual impressions.

I went many years without having a word for what I experienced. In my study of Alice Bailey’s Esoteric Healing, vibrations were studied, but I kept using the phrase “feeling energy,” which led people to label me as an empath. That label didn’t match my experience—I wasn’t feeling others’ emotions; I was picking up on vibrations and thought patterns. Over time, I had to reframe how I described my sensitivity, because the common understanding of “feeling energy” pointed to emotional empathy, not the tactile experience I was actually having. It has always been about the direct awareness of vibrations.

a spiritual woman feeling vibrations and surrounded by energy—symbolizing clairsentience and spiritual awareness. Unbeknownst to me, the first time I felt vibrations was during a phone conversation with an aunt in 1987 or 1988. That was a sign of my gift that day, despite the conversation. Vibrations come in a range of densities—from suffocating, tingling, gentle, to light and airy. I can feel the energy in an aura, objects, thoughts (anger, hate, etc), or even places—it’s not emotional empathy; it’s vibrational sensitivity.

My sense of smell activates when required. This is often referred to as clairsalience—spiritual smell. I may smell fragrances, smoke, or other scents that are not physically present but carry spiritual meaning or connection to someone who has passed. When necessary, I also hear or see spirit. Hearing spirit is known as clairaudience, and spiritual sight is referred to as clairvoyance—both are forms of receiving messages beyond the physical senses. But I prefer to keep certain senses, like sight and hearing, dormant unless they’re truly needed.

One sense I’ve yet to experience is taste—and honestly, I don’t think I would want that gift, especially when it first bursts forth. Taste, like smell, is a physical sense. Spiritually, it is known as clairgustance—the ability to perceive taste without a physical source. If clairgustance ever activates for someone, the experience might include tasting something comforting, like peach pie their grandmother used to make, or something unpleasant or down right gross. Each taste represents something Spirit is communicating, and the individual must learn the meaning of each flavor. It’s not vibration or energy—it’s direct symbolic communication. And for now, that’s not a door I feel called to open.

What Happens When Emotions Take the Driver’s Seat

In the next part of this series, we’ll explore how emotional turbulence can lead to the creation of thought forms, how those forms attach, and what it takes to release what isn’t yours. This includes the subtle (and not-so-subtle) emotional patterns that can turn into energetic residue—and what a Spiritual Scientist must know to stay clear, grounded, and in alignment with truth.

Honoring the legacy of Living Spiritual Science.

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A Spiritual Science Reflection by Rev. Starlene Joyner Burns — President & Founder, National Spiritual Science Center Historical Society

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May 12, 2025October 2, 2025

Living Spiritual Science

A Journey of Transformation

Introduction

Living Spiritual Science means fully integrating spiritual principles into every aspect of daily life. It’s not just a belief system or a set of practices with rituals; it is a way of being, grounded in wisdom, personal growth, and the pursuit of higher truths. For me, it’s a lifelong commitment to embodying spiritual knowledge through consistent practice and inner reflection.

A Way of Life

Spiritual Science has also shaped how I perceive the world, interact with others, and maintain my personal boundaries—both spiritually and physically—for my spiritual well-being. As a lifelong student of spiritual growth, I practice what I have been taught, whether through foundational studies, personal experiences, inner teachers, the teachings of others, or life’s many spiritual surprises. Spiritual Science is not something I study to become a spiritual leader; it is how I choose to live my life, grow, and consistently align with higher truths and practices.

Rev. Starlene Joyner Burns sharing insights on living a Spiritual Science lifestyle and personal growth. Practicing Spiritual Science requires balance, discipline, and consistency. It’s not about constantly seeking higher spiritual experiences but about maintaining awareness, care, and growth through every phase of life’s lessons. Whether life feels aligned or chaotic, staying grounded in spiritual principles helps navigate challenges and stay true to one’s path.

Final Thoughts

This is just the beginning of exploring living Spiritual Science. In Part 2, we will dive deeper into the practical aspects of daily integration—how to maintain balance, practice awareness, and stay spiritually grounded. Stay tuned for more insights into living a Spiritual Science lifestyle.

Honoring the legacy of Living Spiritual Science.

A Spiritual Science Reflection by Rev. Starlene Joyner Burns — President & Founder, National Spiritual Science Center Historical Society

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