Mary and religion

[Donna McCreary]

Yesterday, I typed the notes from my last research visit to Springfield including notes from a letter written to Charles Reeves after the death of his wife Hester in 1862. Mary's language was filled with words of comfort, grief, God, and the life hereafter. In a different thread, I mentioned Mary's religious teachings in the Presbyterian church.
What do we really know about Mary's faith and how did it influence her thoughts on spiritualism?
I have always thought that the Civil War era in general was a time of religious awakening and that spiritualism was popular because of a strong belief in life after death. Today, some Christian faiths teach not to communication with the death. Does anyone know the religious thought on spiritualism during the 19th century? Did churchs support it, or condem it?