notice on account of its frequency. I refer to hallucinatory or
pseudo-hallucinatory luminous phenomena, photisms, to use the term of
the psychologists. Saint Paul's blinding heavenly vision seems to have
been a phenomenon of this sort; so does Constantine's cross in the sky.
The last case but one which I quoted mentions floods of light and
glory. Henry Alline mentions a light, about whose externality he seems
uncertain. Colonel Gardiner sees a blazing light. President Finney
writes:--

"All at once the glory of God shone upon and round about me in a manner
almost marvelous.... A light perfectly ineffable shone in my soul, that
almost prostrated me on the ground.... This light seemed like the
brightness of the sun in every direction. It was too intense for the
eyes.... I think I knew something then, by actual experience, of that
light that prostrated Paul on the way to Damascus. It was surely a
light such as I could not have endured long."[139]

[139] Memoirs, p. 34

Such reports of photisms are indeed far from uncommon. Here is another
from Starbuck's collection, where the light appeared evidently
external:--

"I had attended a series of revival services for about two weeks off
and on. Had been invited to the altar several times, all the time
becoming more deeply impressed, when finally I decided I must do this,
or I should be lost. Realization of conversion was very vivid, like a
ton's weight being lifted from my heart; a strange light which seemed
to light up the whole room (for it was dark); a conscious supreme bliss
which caused me to repeat 'Glory to God' for a long time. Decided to
be God's child for life, and to give up my pet ambition, wealth and
social position. My former habits of life hindered my growth somewhat,
but I set about overcoming these systematically, and in one year my
whole nature was changed, i. e., my ambitions were of a different
order."

Here is another one of Starbuck's cases, involving a luminous element:--

"I had been clearly converted twenty-three years before, or rather
reclaimed. My experience in regeneration was then clear and spiritual,
and I had not backslidden. But I experienced entire sanctification on
the 15th day of March, 1893, about eleven o'clock in the morning. The
particular accompaniments of the experience were entirely unexpected.
I was quietly sitting at home singing selections out of Pentecostal
Hymns. Suddenly there seemed to be a something sw