The Major and Margaret

After a group past life regression in April 1999, Margaret said to the class, "I was 99% sure I was Major John Pelham in a previous life, but now I'm 100% positive." What Margaret did next shocked both the class and me. She held up a photograph of Major Pelham beside her face. The Civil War Soldier and Margaret's features looked exactly alike from the neck up. The Major and Margaret have grey eyes, dark blonde hair and nearly identical faces. Margaret and John both have the same body type, tall and slim. Later in a private session Margaret told me she is a female in this life because American women are not required to fight in wars. Margaret reincarnated not to destroy lives through military battles, but to save them through medicine. In this life, her profession is a nurse. Margaret is an example of how some of us follow both a conscious and unconscious path to discovering our past lives. Margaret was born in London, England. She immigrated to the United States in 1971 after meeting and marrying an American soldier who was stationed in Europe. Recently Margaret realized the significance of a modern American soldier bringing her to the United States to recall her past life as an American Civil War officer. Margaret never heard of the American Civil War until she came to the United States. She was baffled by her urge to read about our Civil War until she saw Major John Pelham's picture. When Margaret saw Pelham's photo, she said, "My blood ran absolutely cold. I could not tell you why." Margaret's choice of the words, "My blood ran absolutely cold," are quite revealing. John Pelham died when a canon shell exploded near the back of his head. A 1/4" piece of shrapnel lodge in the base of John's skull. Margaret suffers from severe daily migraines. In Sept. 2000 Margaret underwent brain surgery to relieve her headaches. The operation was unsuccessful. John Pelham's fatal injury is almost exactly what Margaret is suffering from now and what her surgery was intended to correct. Margaret did not know why her blood ran cold when she first saw Pelham's photograph, but she does now. Soon after people die their blood naturally turns cold. When Margaret saw the Major's photo, she spontaneously relived his unfortunate and untimely death; hence, the reason why she felt her blood turn cold while initially viewing Pelham's picture.

John Pelham was born in Alabama on Sept. 7, 1838. He was very close with his five brothers and one sister. As a child, John loved to play practical jokes on his brothers, classmates and teachers. He also read the bible daily and respected his parents. John attended West Point Academy where he trained to become a military officer. When the threat of war escalated between the North and South, John left West Point shortly before he was to graduate. As a Confederate officer, Pelham turned raw recruits into first class artillery soldiers. Pelham's bravery, skill and calmness in the heat of battle lead to his flattering nickname: "Gallant Pelham." John was revered both by the men who served under him and by the officers above him. General Lee said if he had 100 men like Pelham the war would be soon be over. John's good looks and reputation made him very popular with the ladies, but he always remained a true Southern gentleman. Therapeutic Value of Past Lives

For those of us who practice past life therapy, we know first-hand the value of it. We see our clients' aberrant behavior, pain and phobias diminish or disappear. We don't need scientific proof for us to believe past lives really happened; our intuition and personal experience is proof enough. One 52 year-old male client had two abdominal surgeries and was facing the possibility of a colostomy and having a bag attached to his body for the remainder of his life. Prior to his session, my patient had never heard of past-life regression. The client recalled a past life in which he suffered great abdominal pain before dying from food poisoning. He told his medical doctor about our session. The physician told our mutual client, "That guy (namely, me) is a quack." Over the next three months the client recalled four past lives in which he was either shot or stabbed in the stomach. Without any changes in his medical treatment, the client's stomach problems nearly completely healed. He is no longer on the verge of a colostomy. After the physician examined our mutual client three months after the past life therapy began, the doctor said, "Well, maybe your hypnotist isn't so bad after all." The medical doctor did not believe in reincarnation and past life therapy, but he was smart enough to realize how his patient benefited from it. Another client drove from Milwaukee to Chicago for an appointment with me. He reported he had tried everything to recover his mental health. Since 1979 the 45 year-old client was receiving social security for mental health disability. According to the patient, past life therapy was his last hope. During his regression, the client recalled his 18th century life in Italy. When he remembered the funeral of his daughter from his previous life, the patient began to cry. I asked the patient where he felt his pain. The client rubbed his hands in a circle around his eyes. As he was walking out the door, the patient asked, "Is this a good session?" I replied, "Yes." He asked, "How can you tell?" I said, "When you came to my office you had an unconscious tick. Every 30 to 40 seconds you contorted your face and squinted your eyes. Your tick and facial contortions stopped after you remembered your past life." Past life therapy benefits don't come any faster or more obvious than this. Three years later the patient scheduled a second appointment. Since his first session, the patient came into a small inheritance. He spent virtually all of his inheritance on his recovery. He was about out of money and wanted to spend the rest as wisely as he could. He said that I and past life regression helped him the most. When the patient walked into my office, I first noted his facial contortions and tick had not come back. I can't prove the patient lived in 18th century Italy, but I can definitely say the patient benefited from what he recalled three years prior. The patient had an excellent second session; hopefully, he fulfilled his therapeutic goal to work again. Past life therapy is an art. Over time we become better past life therapists as a result of learning through our clinical experiences, improved training and methods. Collectively the body of past life knowledge is growing thanks to some brave, pioneering teachers and writers. The mainstream acceptance of past lives has led to more people experiencing past life therapy and more past life therapists than ever before. Past life therapy is ready to try a bold, new step. Rather than just validating past life regression through its therapeutic benefits, why not try to scientifically prove a past life through DNA testing? Compare John Pelham and Margaret's DNA

Margaret is an ideal first candidate for a DNA test to prove a past life. We know John Pelham is the first and last name of the person who Margaret says she was in a past life. She is an honest, believable, responsible and respected person. Her physical characteristics nearly match that of John's, except for gender, which is explained by the desire to avoid military service in this life. Many of Margaret's physical health problems, namely, headaches, spinal compression, hearing loss and insomnia, have been directly attributed to what had happened during John Pelham's life. For the acceptance of the DNA test, I suggest keeping the test administrator in a scientific double blind of who and why the test is being performed. Getting Margaret's DNA sample is easy; she wholeheartedly supports this experiment. For John Pelham's DNA, either a sample of his remains or one of Pelham's heirs must be tested. The next step is to compare Margaret and John's DNA to find out if the two match. A DNA test by itself is not enough proof. Margaret being a descendent of John Pelham is a remote possibility. To exclude any chance of Margaret being related to Pelham, an independent genealogist must produce a family tree of both Margaret and John's descendents. Again, for integrity of the experiment, I recommend the genealogist be unaware of the reason for researching the two family trees. The genealogist then compares the two family trees to see if Margaret and John are related. The final step is to combine both the DNA test with the genealogical research. If Margaret and John's DNA test matches, we expect to find the two people related in one family tree. However, we will have proof of a past life if both the genealogical research shows Margaret is not a descendant of John, and John and Margaret's DNA tests match. The DNA match shows presumably an impossible connection between John and Margaret that the genealogical history cannot explain. The only logical explanation for no geneological connection with a DNA match is Margaret was John Pelham in a previous life. John and Margaret's matching DNA will also be proof of how the spirit of one soul influenced the creation of a body. Conclusion

The inability to help relieve some of Margaret's pain as so many past life clients have done is my biggest disappointment. Her able team of medical doctors and I have been unable to free Margaret of her suffering. Powerful pain medications bring Margaret only temporary and limited pain relief while the drugs create a risk of addiction. I have never met a person like Margaret who suffers so much but complains so little. Margaret has told me several times she is very satisfied with what I have done for her, but I am definitely not. As her healer my first and foremost goal is to help Margaret feel physically better. Margaret and I agree her current suffering and John's past life is for a good cause and purpose. Her mission is at least threefold: 1. To popularize John Pelham's short and extraordinary life. 2. To attract people to past life therapy such as the main character in Brian Weiss's book Many Lives, Many Masters 3. To use DNA testing to prove she was John Pelham in another life. Whenever she can attend my past life regression classes, Margaret tells her incredible story. Past life students repeatedly tell me how fond they are of Margaret and how amazing she is. My rough estimate to perform the DNA test on Margaret and John Pelham's heir, and the genealogical research of the two families is $10,000 to $15,000. I have unsuccessfully tried to have TV shows underwrite the cost in return for the exclusive right to broadcast the results. If Shirley McLaine drew big ratings with her past lives, Margaret may draw bigger ratings because she can identify and possibly prove who she was in a past life. I have told Margaret my biggest fear is that she will become famous and turn into a spectacle like the "Elephant Man." Margaret doesn't flinch; she is as courageous and intrepid in this life as John Pelham was in his previous life. If you know a documentary film producer, television show director, or philanthropist who may financially support the advancement of past therapy, a DNA test and genealogical research for Margaret, then please call or write (773-665-4623, [email protected]). Update: Since this American Board of Hypnotherapy article came out in April 2002, I have corresponded with a family member of John Pelham. The Pelham heir offered genealogical data dating back to 1500s. The family is also willing to cooperate with any DNA tests. I spoke with a scientist at highly respected DNA lab. The DNA expert recommended testing John Pelham's remains and comparing the result to Margaret Barrett.