Definition of "spiritualism" [spir•it•u•al•ism]

• The belief that the dead communicate with the living, as through a medium. (noun)
• The practices or doctrines of those holding such a belief. (noun)
• A philosophy, doctrine, or religion emphasizing the spiritual aspect of being. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The term spiritualism has come to signify more than has usually been ascribed to it, for some recent authors are now using the term to denote"
• "Still, as I said, the only way for a homosexual to believe in spiritualism which accepts homosexuality, Buddhism is the only faith."
• "The Sherlock Homes stories certainly seem to endorse logic and science, and yet he was involved in spiritualism and in the Cottingley Fairies affair."