Читать книгу Gay & Lesbian Ghost Stories - Antonio Garcez - Страница 4

Ghostly encounters are frequently described as mystical phenomena pertaining primarily to heterosexuals and rarely to gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender people; however, history proves otherwise. Anthropological research has referenced compelling scientific evidence that homosexuals have often been sources of counsel, wisdom, honor, intuitive power, guidance, social status, and spiritual strength throughout virtually all levels of human culture. Gays and lesbians have ruled prominently within Egyptian empires, Roman society, and Native American cultures.

Before Christianity became a major religion, both male and female psychics were regularly accepted and consulted in the ancient world. But as soon as Christianity gained prominence, spiritual mediums and psychics were condemned as “servants of the devil” and driven into hiding. Specifically, the Catholic Church perpetuated this persecution until the eighteenth century, with frequent tortures and executions. Gays and lesbians have even made their presence known from within the tepees of the great plains of North America to the grand royal stone temples of the Aztecs and Incas. Throughout this grand history, gays and lesbians have played prominent roles within their own cultures’ religious and spiritual sects.

Gays and lesbians have been both honored with wealth and burned at the stake for the spiritual power they possessed and harnessed. In my experience recording and researching ghost stories over 45 years, gays and lesbians, both in the past and in the present, are intrinsically gifted in their psychic abilities. This begs the question: are there higher percentages of gay and lesbian psychics serving today? My belief is that we, gays and lesbians, have been given a very unique and precious gift—a gift that, if developed, allows us to see, communicate, and experience the paranormal from childhood.

The sad fact is the AIDS epidemic has brought the gay community to intimately experience innumerable deaths within our communities. The afterlife encounters with those who have passed have only added to our firsthand knowledge of the paranormal. We have become uniquely aware of ourselves as exceptional spiritual beings experiencing a corporeal moment on earth.

Given the personal self-searching, societal hurdles, family struggles, sensitivity to creativity, health-related challenges, and for many, a deep spirituality, it’s no wonder that the universe is so easily accessed by such a “chosen” population. Within these pages, you’ll read of individuals, from Alaska to Florida, who have experienced direct contact from spirits either at home or at work. My partner and I traveled to these particular states as I personally interviewed gay men and women and a few straights for the firsthand accounts of their encounters. We were not disappointed.

These interviews cover paranormal subjects such as extrasensory perception (ESP), near-death experiences (NDE), and, most definitely, ghosts! Our investigations continue to expose the potential for further validations that encompass all the elements of such experiences. I am therefore thrilled to share with you these new, intimate collection of ghost stories as experienced by members of LGBT communities throughout the United States.

—Antonio—