This is the definition of channeling given by Harper’s Encyclopedia of Mystical and Paranormal Experience:
A form of mediumship in which information is communicated from a source perceived to be different from the conscious self. Sources are identified variously as non-physical beings, angels, nature spirits, totem or guardian spirits, deities, demons, extraterrestrials, spirits of the dead, and the Higher Self. Channeling is done in a dissociated or altered state of consciousness.
Of course, as Christians, we don’t endorse everything in this definition. It does, however, give us an idea of how secular people view “channeling.” To Christians, “channeling” is nothing new. It is just a contemporary form of Spiritism (mediumship) in which a “channel” claims to serve as the “medium” for the spirit of a dead person (or some other spirit, as mentioned in the definition above) to communicate with the living.
