Link to the excerpt
Michael Cocks

Afterlife Teaching from Stephen the Martyr

This book records seven years of conversations with the spirit of St. Stephen the Martyr, between 1974-80, Thomas Ashman, being the channel. The experience began in Tunbridge Wells, in the UK when Ashman’s wife Olive heard him say, in his sleep, Sic Ecclesia Spiritus Sanctus, “Thus in the Church is the Holy Spirit”.

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US UK Japan Germany France Canada

Format

Retailers

Categories

Christianity
Life after death
Memoir
Non-fiction
Paranormal
Spiritualism
Spirituality

Details

Publisher: White Crow Books

Publication Date: October 2011

Extent: 322

Size: 229 x 152 mm

ISBN: 978-1-907661-92-1

eBook ISBN: 978-1-907661-93-8

Summary

This book records seven years of conversations with the spirit of St. Stephen the Martyr, between 1974-80, Thomas Ashman,  being the channel.  The experience began in Tunbridge Wells, in the UK when Ashman’s wife Olive heard him say, in his sleep, Sic Ecclesia Spiritus Sanctus, “Thus in the Church is the Holy Spirit”. Although he had not been a medium before, Ashman, was able to go into deep trance, and allow Stephen to communicate with Olive.

Almost on that same day,  the Rev Michael Cocks in Christchurch New Zealand, was handed a book of hand written prophecies from a stranger,  prophesying what was to come. Three months later the Ashmans moved to NZ, and almost immediately synchronicity had Michael meeting Thomas and Olive, and joining with others in a group questioning Stephen.

Stephen’s teaching is in line with that of the Gospel of St. John, the Sermon on the Mount,  the Perennial Philosophy, the Stoics, and with the thinking of some leading modern theoretical physicists. It is close to modern Franciscan teaching.

Stephen focuses so much on Christianity’s heart, that Evangelicals, Charismatics, Catholics, and Liberal Christians alike, could accept his spiritual guidance, and be led ever deeper in life in Christ.

This Christ, while revealed in organised religion, is in all, through all, and above all.

Many kinds of internal evidence, and the very spirituality have led linguists, scientists, theologians, and philosophers to affirm that the teaching is genuinely Stephen’s.

That he made himself known, and taught, in itself speaks volumes about the resurrection, and the reality of life in Spirit.

His teaching relates to the main themes of Christianity: the Fall, the Cross, the Atonement, Salvation, Life in Christ, the Communion of Saints, Grace, Holy Spirit, Guidance, and Love. He teaches from the point of view of Spirit. His theology is close to that of St John. Yet Christ is universal, and not confined to Christianity.

#afterlifeteachingfromstephenthemartyr

More information can be found at www.thegroundoffaith.net/stephen

About the Author

Number of books: 2

Michael Cocks

Michael Cocks (1929–2022) was an Anglican priest from Christchurch, New Zealand, known for his open-minded approach to spiritual exploration. Unlike many in his tradition who viewed mediumship with suspicion, Cocks was willing to investigate extraordinary experiences. In the 1970s, he became part of a small group that regularly met to witness the trance mediumship of Thomas Ashman. Through Ashman, a communicator identifying himself as Stephen the Martyr—the first Christian martyr—began speaking to the group, offering teachings on life, spirit, and the nature of existence. Initially skeptical, Cocks came to believe the communications were genuine, supported by profound synchronicities and the occasional use of ancient Greek unfamiliar to Ashman.

Cocks chronicled these remarkable experiences in his book Afterlife Teaching From Stephen the Martyr and in his memoir Into the Wider Dream. Educated at the University of New Zealand and Oxford University, he held master’s degrees in philosophy and theology. His work encouraged dialogue about spirituality beyond traditional religious boundaries and was furthered through his journal The Ground of Faith, which explored spiritual experience in conversation with science. Cocks’s life was deeply transformed by his encounters with Stephen, shaping his understanding of faith, spirit, and the continuity of life beyond death.