– Second Edition –

THE GOSPEL
ACCORDING TO SPIRITISM
 THE GOSPEL
ACCORDING TO SPIRITISM
with
THE EXPLANATION OF THE MORAL MAXIMS OF CHRIST IN CONCORDANCE WITH
SPIRITISM AND THEIR APPLICATIONS TO THE DIFFERENT CIRCUMSTANCES OF LIFE

by
Allan Kardec

UNSHAKABLE FAITH IS ONLY THE KIND THAT CAN STAND FACE TO

FACE WITH REASON IN ALL HUMAN EPOCHS.

Translated by Darrel W. Kimble and Ily Reis

Copyright © 2008 by
INTERNATIONAL SPIRITIST COUNCIL
SGAN Q. 909 – Conjunto F
70790-090 – Brasilia (DF) – Brazil
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical,
photographic, or electronic process, or in the form of a phonographic recording; nor may
it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted, or otherwise be copied for public or private
use without prior written permission of the publisher
ISBN 978-85-98161-70-9
Original French:
L’ÉVANGILE SELON LE SPIRITISME
(Paris, 1864)
Translated by Darrel W. Kimble and Ily Reis
Cover design by: Luciano Carneiro Holanda
Layout: Rones José Silvano de Lima
INTERNATIONAL SPIRITIST COUNCIL
SGAN Q. 909 – Conjunto F
70790-090 – Brasilia (DF) – Brazil
www.edicei.com
[email protected]
+55 61 3038-8400
Sales: + 55 61 3038-8425
Second Edition 10/2011

INTERNATIONAL DATA FOR CATALOGING IN PUBLICATION (ICP)

K27g Kardec, Allan, 1804-1869.

The Gospel according to Spiritism: with the explanation of the moral
maxims of Christ in concordance with Spiritism and their applications
to the different circumstances of life / by Allan Kardec; [translated by
Darrel W. Kimble and Ily Reis]. – Brasilia, DF (Brazil): International
Spiritist Council, 2011.
466 p. ; 21 cm
Translated from: L’Évangile selon le Spiritisme
ISBN 978-85-98161-70-9
1. Jesus Christ – Spiritist Interpretations. 2. Spiritism. I. International
Spiritist Council. II. Title.
CDD: 133.9
CDU: 133.7
 Contents
Preface....................................................................................15
Introduction............................................................................17
I – The Objective of this Work....................................................17
II – The Authority of the Spiritist Doctrine. Universal Test of
the Spirits’ Teachings...................................................................20
III – Historical Facts...................................................................29
IV – Socrates and Plato: Precursors of the Christian Idea and
Spiritism.....................................................................................35
Chapter I – I have not come to destroy the law.......................47
The Three Revelations: Moses; Christ; Spiritism (1-7)................48
The Alliance between Science and Religion (8)...........................51
The Spirits’ Teachings
The New Era (9-11)...............................................................53
Chapter II – My kingdom is not of this world........................59
The Future Life (1-3)..................................................................59
The Kingship of Jesus (4)............................................................61
The Point of View (5-7)..............................................................62
The Spirits’ Teachings
An Earthly Kingship (8)..........................................................65
Chapter III – There are many dwellings in my
Father’s house. . ............................................................67
The Different States of the Soul in the Errant State (1 and 2).....68
The Different Categories of Inhabited Worlds (3-5)....................68
Earth’s Destiny. The Cause of Earthly Miseries (6 and 7)............70
The Spirits’ Teachings
Highly Evolved and Less Evolved Worlds (8-12)........................71
Worlds of Trial and Expiation (13-15).....................................74

5
 Regenerative Worlds (16-18)....................................................75
The Progression of Worlds (19).................................................77
Chapter IV – No one can see the kingdom of God unless
he is born again.......................................................................79
Resurrection and Reincarnation (1-17).......................................80
Family Ties Strengthened by Reincarnation, but Severed by a
Single Existence (18-23)..............................................................86
The Spirits’ Teachings
The Limits on Incarnation (24)...............................................90
Need for Incarnation (25 and 26)............................................91
Chapter V – Blessed are the afflicted.......................................95
The Justice of Afflictions (1-3)....................................................95
Current Causes of Afflictions (4 and 5).......................................96
Prior Causes of Afflictions (6-10)................................................99
Forgetfulness of the Past (11)....................................................103
Reasons for Resigning Oneself (12 and 13)...............................104
Suicide and Insanity (14-17).....................................................106
The Spirits’ Teachings
To Suffer Well or Badly (18)...................................................109
Evil and Its Remedy (19).......................................................110
Happiness Is Not of This World (20).......................................112
The Loss of Loved Ones; Premature Deaths (21)......................114
If He Had Been a Good Man, He Would Have Died (22).......115
Voluntary Suffering (23)........................................................116
True Misfortune (24).............................................................118
Melancholy (25)....................................................................119
Voluntary Trials. True Sackcloth (26).....................................120
Should We Put an End to Our Neighbor’s Trials? (27).............122
Is It Permissible to Shorten the Life of a Patient Who Is
Suffering With no Hope of a Cure? (28)..................................124
Sacrificing One’s Own Life (30).............................................125
Making One’s Own Suffering Profitable for Others (31)..........126
Chapter VI – The Consoling Christ......................................127
The Easy Yoke (1 and 2)...........................................................127
The Promised Consoler (3 and 4).............................................128

6
 The Spirits’ Teachings
The Coming of the Spirit of Truth (5-8).................................129
Chapter VII – Blessed are the poor in spirit..........................133
What Should Be Understood by ‘Poor in spirit’ (1 and 2).........133
Whoever Exalts Himself Shall Be Humbled (3-6).....................135
Mysteries Hidden from the Learned and Wise (7-10)................137
The Spirits’ Teachings
Pride and Humility (11 and 12)............................................139
The Mission of the Intelligent Person on the Earth (13)...........145
Chapter VIII – Blessed are the pure of heart.........................147
Let the Children Come to Me (1-4)..........................................147
Sinning in Thought; Adultery (5-7)..........................................149
True Purity. Unclean Hands (8-10)...........................................150
Scandals. If your hand is a cause for scandal, cut it off (11-17).... 153
The Spirits’ Teachings
Let the children come to me (18 and 19)................................155
Blessed Are They Whose Eyes Are Closed (20 and 21)...............157
Chapter IX – Blessed are the meek and peace-loving.............161
Insults and Violence (1-5).........................................................161
The Spirits’ Teachings
Affability and Meekness (6)....................................................163
Patience (7)..........................................................................164
Obedience and Resignation (8)...............................................164
Anger (9 and 10)..................................................................165
Chapter X – Blessed are the merciful.....................................169
Forgive so that God Will Forgive You (1-4)...............................169
Reconciliation with One’s Adversaries (5 and 6)........................171
The Sacrifice Most Pleasing to God (7 and 8)...........................172
The Speck and the Plank in One’s Eye (9 and 10).....................173
Do not judge so that you yourself might not be judged; Let
him who is without sin cast the first stone (11-13)....................174
The Spirits’ Teachings
Forgiveness of Offenses (14 and 15)........................................175
Indulgence (16-18)................................................................178

7
Chapter XI – Loving One’s Neighbor as Oneself...................185
The Greatest Commandment (1-4)...........................................185
Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s (5-7).................................187
The Spirits’ Teachings
The Law of Love (8-10)........................................................188
Selfishness (11 and 12)..........................................................193
Faith and Charity (13)..........................................................195
Charity toward Criminals (14)..............................................196
Should One Risk One’s Own Life for a Criminal? (15)............198
Chapter XII – Love your enemies..........................................199
Render good for evil (1-3).........................................................199
Discarnate Enemies (4).............................................................202
If someone strikes your right cheek, offer him the other
also (7 and 8)..................................................................... 204
The Spirits’ Teachings
Vengeance (9)........................................................................205
Hatred (10)..........................................................................207
Dueling (11-16)...................................................................208
Chapter XIII – Do not let your left hand know what your
right hand is doing................................................................215
Do Good without Ostentation (1-3).........................................215
Hidden Misfortunes (4)............................................................218
The Widow’s Mite (5 and 6).....................................................220
Invite the Poor and the Lame. Give without Expecting
Recompense (7 and 8)...............................................................221
The Spirits’ Teachings
Material Charity and Moral Charity (9 and 10)....................223
Beneficence (11-16)...............................................................226
Compassion (17)...................................................................234
Orphans (18)........................................................................236
Benefits Repaid with Ingratitude (19).....................................237
Exclusive Beneficence (20)......................................................238
Chapter XIV – Honor your father and mother......................239
Filial Devotion (1-4).................................................................239
Who is my mother and who are my brothers? (5-7)..................242

8
 Corporeal Kinship and Spirit Kinship (8).................................244
The Spirits’ Teachings
Children’s Ingratitude and Family Ties (9)..............................245
Chapter XV – Without Charity there is no Salvation............251
What Is Needed in order to Be Saved. Parable of the Good
Samaritan (1-3).........................................................................251
The Greatest Commandment (4 and 5)....................................255
The Need for Charity according to Paul (6 and 7)....................255
Without the Church there is no Salvation. Without the
Truth there is no Salvation (8 and 9).........................................257
The Spirits’ Teachings
Without charity There is no salvation (10)..............................258
Chapter XVI – You cannot serve both God and mammon.....261
The Salvation of the Rich (1 and 2)..........................................261
Guard Yourselves against Avarice (3).........................................262
Jesus at Zacchaeus’ House (4)....................................................263
Parable of the Evil Rich Man (5)...............................................263
Parable of the Talents (6)...........................................................264
The Providential Usefulness of Riches. The Trials of Riches
and Poverty (7).........................................................................265
The Inequality of Riches (8)......................................................268
The Spirits’ Teachings
True Ownership (9 and 10)...................................................270
The Use of Riches (11-13).....................................................272
Detachment from Earthly Possessions (14)...............................275
The Transmission of Wealth (15)............................................280
Chapter XVII – Be perfect....................................................281
The Characteristics of Perfection (1 and 2)...............................281
Moral Persons (3)......................................................................282
Good Spiritists (4)....................................................................285
Parable of the Sower (5 and 6)...................................................287
The Spirits’ Teachings
Duty (7)...............................................................................289
Virtue (8).............................................................................290
Superiors and Subordinates (9)..............................................291

9
 The Individual in the World (10)...........................................293
Caring for the Body and the Spirit (11)..................................295
Chapter XVIII – Many are called but few are chosen............297
Parable of the Wedding Feast (1 and 2).....................................297
The Narrow Door (3-5)............................................................300
Not all those who say “Lord! Lord!” will enter the Kingdom
of Heaven (6-9).........................................................................302
Much will be asked of him who has received much (10-12)......304
The Spirits’ Teachings
To him who already has, more will be given (13-15)...............304
Christians Shall be Recognized by Their Deeds (16).................308
Chapter XIX – Faith Moves Mountains................................311
The Power of Faith (1-5)...........................................................311
Religious Faith. The State of Unshakable Faith (6 and 7)..........313
Parable of the Withered Fig Tree (8-10).....................................315
The Spirits’ Teachings
Faith: the Mother of Hope and Charity (11)...........................315
Divine Faith and Human Faith (12).....................................318
Chapter XX – Workers of the Last Hour...............................321
The Spirits’ Teachings
The last shall be first (1-3).....................................................322
The Mission of Spiritists (4)...................................................325
Workers of the Lord (5)..........................................................327
Chapter XXI – There will be false christs and false
prophets. . .................................................................. 329
The tree is known by its fruit (1-3)...........................................329
The Mission of Prophets (4)......................................................330
Prodigies Performed by False Prophets (5).................................331
Do not believe all spirits (6 and 7)............................................332
The Spirits’ Teachings
False Prophets (8)..................................................................334
Characteristics of the True Prophet (9)....................................335
False Prophets in the Spirit World (10)...................................337
Jeremiah and the False Prophets (11)......................................340

10
Chapter XXII – Do not separate what God has joined..........343
The Indissolubility of Marriage (1-4)........................................343
Divorce (5)...............................................................................346
Chapter XXIII – Strange Morals...........................................349
Whoever does not hate his father and mother (1-3)..................349
Forsaking Father, Mother and Children (4-6)............................351
Leave to the dead the care of burying their dead (7 and 8)........353
I have not come to bring peace, but division (9-18)..................354
Chapter XXIV – Do not hide your lamp under a bushel.......361
A Lamp under a Bushel. Why Jesus Speaks in Parables (1-7).....361
Do not go to the Gentiles (8-10)...............................................364
The healthy do not need a doctor (11 and 12)..........................366
The Courage of Faith (13-16)...................................................368
Bear Your Cross. Whoever wants to save his life will lose
it (17-19)........................................................................ 369
Chapter XXV – Seek and you shall find................................371
Help Yourself and Heaven Will Help You (1-5).........................371
Observe the birds in the sky (6-8).............................................374
Do not wear yourself out for the possession of gold (9-11)........376
Chapter XXVI – Give freely what you have received freely....379
The Gift of Healing (1 and 2)...................................................379
Paid Prayers (3 and 4)...............................................................380
The Merchants Expelled from the Temple (5 and 6).................381
Mediumship Free of Charge (7-10)...........................................382
Chapter XXVII – Ask and you shall receive...........................385
The Characteristics of Prayer (1-4)............................................385
The Effectiveness of Prayer (5-8)...............................................386
The Action of Prayer; Transmission of Thought (9-15).............389
Intelligible Prayers (16 and 17).................................................393
Prayers for the Dead and for Suffering Spirits (18-21)...............394
The Spirits’ Teachings
How to Pray (22)..................................................................397
The Joy of Prayer (23) ...........................................................399

11
Chapter XXVIII – A Collection of Spiritist Prayers...............401
Preamble (1).............................................................................401
I – General Prayers
The Lord’s Prayer (2 and 3)...................................................403
Spiritist Meetings (4-7)..........................................................410
For Mediums (8-10)..............................................................412
II – Prayers for Oneself
To One’s Guardian Angels and Protector Spirits (11-14)..........415
To Keep Evil Spirits Away (15-17).........................................418
To Ask for a Fault to Be Corrected (18 and 19).......................419
To Ask for Strength to Resist a Temptation (20 and 21)...........420
Thanksgiving for Victory Over a Temptation: To Ask for
Counsel (24 and 25).............................................................421
During Life’s Afflictions (26)..................................................422
Thanksgiving for a Favor Received (25 and 29)......................423
The Act of Submission and Resignation (30-33)......................424
At a Moment of Imminent Danger (34 and 35)......................426
Thanksgiving after Having Escaped a Danger (36 and 37)......426
At the Time of Sleep (38 and 39)...........................................427
Upon Sensing the Approach of Death (40 and 41)...................427
III – Prayers for Others
For Someone in Affliction (42 and 43)...................................430
Thanksgiving for a Benefit Granted to Someone Else (44 and 45)...431
For Our Enemies and Those Who Wish Us Ill (46 and 47)......431
Thanksgiving for a Benefit Granted to Our Enemies (48 and 49)... 432
For the Enemies of Spiritism (50-52)......................................433
Prayer for a Newborn Child (53-56)......................................435
For a Dying Person (57 and 58)............................................437
IV – Prayers for Those Who Are no longer on the Earth
For Someone Who Has Just Died (59-61)...............................438
For Persons for Whom We Have Held Affection (62-63)...........441
For Suffering Souls Who Ask for Prayers (64-66).....................442
For a Deceased Enemy (67-68)..............................................444
For a Criminal (69 and 70)..................................................444
For a Suicide (71 and 72).....................................................445
For Repentant Spirits (73 and 74)..........................................446

12
 For Hardened Spirits (75 and 76)..........................................447
V – Prayers for the Sick and the Obsessed
For the Sick (77-80)..............................................................450
For the Obsessed (81-84).......................................................452

Explanatory Note ................................................................459

13
 PREFACE

Like an immense army setting out upon receiving its orders, the
Spirits of the Lord – who are the powers of heaven – have fanned out
over the entire face of the earth. Like falling stars, they have come to
illumine the way and open the eyes of the blind.
Verily I tell you that the time has come in which all things must
be reestablished according to their true meaning in order to dissipate
the darkness, to confound the proud and to glorify the righteous.
The great voices of heaven resound like trumpets, and the choirs
of angels have assembled together. Men and women, we invite you to
the divine concert; may your hands take up the lyre; may your voices
be as one, and like a sacred hymn expand and vibrate from one end of
the universe to the other.
Men and women, brothers and sisters whom we love, we are
here beside you; love one another also and say from the bottom of your
hearts in obedience to the will of your Father who is in heaven: “Lord!
Lord!” and you shall enter the kingdom of heaven.

The Spirit of Truth

Note:
The above instruction, communicated through mediumistic means, summarizes both the
true character of Spiritism and the objective of this work; thus, it has been placed here as
the preface. – Auth.

15
 INTRODUCTION

I – The Objective of this Work

The subject matter contained in the Gospels may be divided
into five parts: the ordinary events in the life of Christ, the miracles,
the prophecies, the words that served for establishing the dogmas of
the Church, and the moral teachings. Although the first four have
been the object of controversy, the last has remained unassailable.
Before this divine code, disbelief itself bows down; it is the ground
upon which all sects can meet; the banner under which all may
take shelter, whatever their beliefs may be, for it has never been
the object of religious dispute, which has always and in all places
originated from matters of dogma; moreover, in arguing over
such matters, sects would find in the moral teachings their own
condemnation, because most of them are more attached to the
mystical aspect than to the moral, which demands the reform of
the self. For humankind in particular, this code is a rule of conduct
embracing all circumstances of private and public life, the principle
for all social relations founded on strictest justice. It is, finally and
above all, the infallible path to the happiness to come, a corner of
the veil lifted regarding the future life. It is this part that is the sole
object of this endeavor.
Everyone admires Gospel morality; everyone proclaims
its sublimity and necessity, but many do so based trustingly on
what they have heard said about it, or on the faith originating
from a few maxims that have become proverbial; however, few

17
 Introduction

know it in depth, and even fewer understand it and know how

to deduce its consequences. In many cases, the reason for this lies
in the difficulty that reading the Gospel presents, which for most
is quite unintelligible. The allegorical form and the intentional
mysticism of the language make it something that most read to
quiet their conscience and to fulfill a sense of duty, just as they
read prayers without understanding them, that is, unfruitfully.
The moral precepts scattered here and there throughout, mixed in
with the throng of other narratives, go unnoticed, thus making it
impossible to understand them as a whole, or rendering them the
object of separate reading and meditation.
It is true that treatises have been written on Gospel morality,
but adaptation to the modern literary style has robbed the moral
precepts of their initial simplicity, which at the same time lends
them their appeal and authenticity. The same has happened with
the isolated maxims reduced to their simplest proverbial expression;
they are no more than aphorisms, which in this case, have lost part
of their value and interest due to the lack of the incidents and
circumstances in which they were given.
In order to avert such incongruity, we have gathered together
in this work the passages that may comprise a universal moral code
per se, apart from sectarian distinction. In the Gospel citations, we
have preserved everything that has been useful for the development
of the thought, eliminating only matters that are irrelevant to the
matter at hand. Furthermore, we have scrupulously respected
the original translation by Sacy, as well as his divisions by verse.
However, instead of holding to an impossible chronological order,
which would have had no real advantage for such subject matter, the
maxims have been methodically grouped and classified according to
their nature so that they follow from one another as far as possible.
The indication of the chapter and verse numbers permits reference
to the common classification whenever deemed proper.

18
 Introduction

This was not to be only a material endeavor, which in and of

itself would have been of only secondary usefulness; the essential
objective was to put it within reach of everyone by explaining
obscure passages and developing all their consequences with a
view to applying them to the various situations of life. This is
what we have attempted to do with the help of the good Spirits1
who assist us.
Many points of the Gospel, the Bible and the sacred authors
in general are unintelligible, and many even seem absurd for lack of
a key to comprehending their true meaning; this key is to be found
entirely within Spiritism – as those who have seriously studied it
have become convinced, and as they will realize even more so later
on. Spiritism may be found everywhere in antiquity and in every
epoch of humankind; its vestiges may be found far and wide in
writings, in creeds and on monuments. It is for this reason that, if
it has opened up new horizons for the future, it has shed a no less
vivid light on the mysteries of the past.
As a supplement to each precept, we have added certain
teachings chosen from among those that were dictated by the Spirits
in various countries through different mediums. If these teachings
had originated from only one source, they might have suffered a
personal or environmental influence, whereas the diversity of their
origins proves that the Spirits deliver their teachings everywhere,
and that no one is privileged in this respect.2
1
As in the other works of the Codification, when we use the term “the Spirits” with a capital
“S”, the text is referring to the group of high order spirits who were involved in revealing
the Spiritist Doctrine. – Tr.
2
On each topic, we certainly could have provided a larger number of communications
obtained in a multitude of other cities and Spiritist centers besides those we cite; however,
before anything else, we wished to avoid the monotony of needless repetitions and to limit
our choice to those which, because of their depth and form, most specifically fell within the
framework of this book, reserving for later publication those that could not find a place herein.
As for the mediums, we have abstained from naming them; for the most part, they have
not been acknowledged at their own request, and consequently, it would not be proper
to make exceptions. Moreover, the mediums’ names would not have added any value to

19
 Introduction

This work is for everyone’s use; all may find in it the means
to conform their conduct to the morals of Christ. Moreover,
Spiritists will find in it applications that concern them specifically.
Thanks to the communications that have been permanently
established between humans and the invisible world, the law of
the Gospel – taught to all nations by the Spirits themselves – will
no longer be a dead letter, for all persons will understand it and
will be incessantly encouraged to put it into practice through the
counsels of their spirit guides. The Spirits’ teachings are truly voices
from heaven that have come to enlighten humans and invite them
to practice the Gospel.

II – The Authority of the Spiritist Doctrine.

Universal Test of the Spirits’ Teachings
If the Spiritist Doctrine were a purely human concept, it
would have as a guarantee only the enlightenment of the one who
had conceived it; now, no one in this world would make the ill-
founded claim of possessing the absolute truth by him or herself. If
the Spirits who have revealed it had manifested to only one person,
nothing would guarantee its origin, for it would be necessary to
believe the word of whoever stated that he or she had received their
teachings. Admitting perfect sincerity on his or her part would
at most convince a circle of acquaintances; he or she might have
followers but would never succeed in rallying everyone.
God willed for the New Revelation to reach humankind
through the quickest and most authentic way possible; that is
why God has entrusted the Spirits with taking it from one pole to
the other and manifesting themselves everywhere without giving

the Spirits’ work; it would be only a satisfaction of vanity, which is of no interest to truly
authentic mediums. They understand that because their role is purely passive, the value
of the communications in no way enhances their personal merit, and that it would be
puerile to flatter themselves for an intellectual endeavor to which they loaned only their
mechanical concourse. – Auth.

20
 Introduction

anyone the exclusive privilege of hearing their word. One person

may be deceived or may even deceive him or herself, but that will
not happen when millions see and hear the same thing: it is a
guarantee for each and for all. Furthermore, one individual can be
made to disappear, but multitudes cannot be; books can be burned,
but the Spirits cannot be; hence, if all the books were burned, the
source of the Doctrine would not be any less inexhaustible for the
very reason that it is not of the earth; it has appeared everywhere
and thus everyone can partake of it. In the absence of individuals
to spread it, there will always be the Spirits, who reach everyone
and whom no one can reach.
Thus, in reality, the Spirits themselves are the ones who do
the disseminating with the help of innumerable mediums, whom
they are arousing everywhere. If there were but one interpreter,
no matter how favored he or she might be, Spiritism would
barely be known; such an interpreter, whatever social class he or
she belonged to, would have been the object of prejudice on the
part of many; not every nation would have accepted him or her,
whereas the Spirits, communicating everywhere to all peoples, to
all sects and to all parties, have been accepted by all. Spiritism
has no nationality; it lies outside all particular creeds, and has not
been imposed by any class of society, since any person may receive
instruction from his or her relatives and friends from beyond the
grave. It had to be this way so that it could call all humankind to
fraternity; if it had not placed itself on neutral ground, it would
have maintained dissensions instead of placating them.
This universality in the Spirits’ teaching is what comprises
Spiritism’s power, and it is also the cause of its rapid spread. While
the voice of one single individual, even with the help of the press,
would require centuries to reach everyone, thousands of voices are
making themselves heard simultaneously at all points of the earth,
proclaiming the same principles and transmitting them to both

21
 Introduction

the most unlearned and the most learned so that no one may be
disinherited. This is an advantage that none of the doctrines that
have appeared until today have enjoyed. If, therefore, Spiritism is a
truth, it will fear neither the ill will of humans, moral revolutions
nor the physical disturbances of the globe, because none of these
things can affect the Spirits.
However, this is not the sole advantage resulting from such
an exceptional position; Spiritism finds in it a powerful guarantee
against all schisms that might arise, whether from the ambition of
a few or whether from the contradiction of certain spirits. Such
contradictions are surely an obstacle, but one that carries the
medication alongside the malady.
It is known that, as a consequence of the differences that
exist in their capabilities, spirits are far from being in possession
of the whole truth individually; that it is not given to all to grasp
certain mysteries; that their knowledge is proportional to their
purification; that ordinary spirits do not know any more than
humans and even less than some; that amongst them, as amongst
the latter, there are presumptuous and pseudo-learned spirits who
think they know what they in fact do not, and theorizers who
take their own ideas for the truth; in short, that spirits of the
highest order – those who are completely dematerialized – are
the only ones divested of earthly ideas and prejudices. However,
it is also known that deceitful spirits have no scruples in cloaking
themselves with names they have borrowed in order to render
their utopian ideas acceptable. The result is that, for everything
that is outside the exclusively moral teaching, the revelations that
each one may obtain will have an individual character lacking
authenticity; that such revelations must be considered as the
personal opinions of this or that spirit, and that it would be
imprudent to accept them or thoughtlessly promulgate them as
absolute truths.

22
 Introduction

The first test is undoubtedly that of reason, to which it is

necessary to submit, without exception, everything that comes
from spirits; any theory in obvious contradiction to common
sense, strict logic and the hard evidence that one possesses in spite
of any respectable name that may have signed the communication,
must be rejected. However, this test is incomplete in many cases
due to the insufficiency of the knowledge of certain persons and
the tendency of many to take their own judgment to be the sole
arbiter of the truth. In such a case, what do those who do not
have absolute faith in themselves do? They take the advice of the
greatest number and the opinion of the majority as their guide.
Thus it should be with respect to the teachings of spirits, who
themselves furnish us the means.
Concordance among spirits’ teachings is therefore the best
test, but it is further necessary for such concordance to occur under
certain conditions. The least secure of all is when the medium
him or herself questions several spirits about a point in doubt.
It is quite obvious that if the medium is under the control of an
obsession or is dealing with a deceitful spirit, then this spirit may
tell the medium the same thing using different names; nor is there
any sufficient guarantee in the conformity that may be obtained
through mediums of one particular Spiritist center, because they
may be suffering the same influence.
The only true guarantee for spirits’ teachings is in the overall
agreement amongst revelations made spontaneously through a large
number of mediums unknown to one other and in several places.
One must understand that we are not here dealing with
communications of secondary interest, but with those related to
the very principles of the Doctrine. Experience has shown that,
when a new principle is to be revealed, it is taught spontaneously
in different places at the same time in an identical manner, if
not as to form at least as to essence. Thus, if it pleases a spirit

23
 Introduction

to formulate an eccentric theory based on its own ideas and

outside the truth, one may be sure that such a theory will remain
circumscribed and will fall before the unanimity of instructions
given everywhere else. We have already had many examples of
this. It is this unanimity that has caused the fall of all the partial
theories that appeared at the beginning of Spiritism, when each
person explained the phenomena in his or her own way, and
before the laws that govern the relations between the visible and
invisible worlds were understood.
Such is the basis upon which we support ourselves when
formulating a principle of the Doctrine; it is not because it is
in agreement with our own ideas that we present it as true; we
in no way set ourselves up as the supreme arbiter of the truth,
nor do we say to anyone: “Believe in such a matter because we
tell you to.” Our opinion is nothing in our own eyes except a
personal one that might be correct or erroneous, for we are no
more infallible than anyone else. It is not because a principle has
been taught to us that it is the truth, but because it has received
the sanction of concordance.
In our position of having received communications from
close to a thousand authentic Spiritist centers scattered over
diverse points of the globe, we are also in a position to observe the
principles upon which this concordance is established; it is this
observation that has guided us up to this day, and it is also that
which will guide us in the new areas that Spiritism has been called
to explore. It is thus that, carefully studying the communications
received from various places – both from France and abroad – we
have recognized by the very special nature of the revelations that
there has been a tendency to enter upon a new path and that the
time has come to take a step forward. These revelations – at times
made with veiled words – have frequently gone unperceived by
many of those who have received them; many others believe they

24
 Introduction

are the only ones to have received them. Taken in isolation, they
would have no value to us – only coincidence confers authenticity
upon them; later, when the time comes to give them to the light of
publicity, each person will then remember having received teachings
with the same meaning. This is the general movement which we
have observed, which we have studied with the assistance of our
spirit guides, and which has helped to judge the appropriateness of
doing something or abstaining from it.
This universal test is a guarantee for the future unity of
Spiritism and will annul all contradictory theories. It is in this
universal test that in the future the criterion for truth will be
sought. What determined the success of the Doctrine formulated
in The Spirits’ Book and in The Mediums’ Book was that everywhere
individuals were able to receive confirmation directly from the
Spirits as to what those books contain. If the Spirits were to come
from all sides to contradict them, then after some time these two
books would have suffered the same fate as all other delusional
conceptions. The support of the press itself would not have saved
them from shipwreck, whereas, deprived of such support, they
have spread rapidly nonetheless because they have had the support
of the Spirits, whose goodwill has greatly compensated for the ill
will of men and women. Thus it will be with all ideas that emanate
from spirits or humans, and which cannot bear up under this test,
whose power is incontestable.
Therefore, let us suppose that it pleased certain spirits to
dictate a book under some title, a book with a contrary meaning;
let us further suppose that with hostile intent and the purpose
of discrediting the Doctrine, apocryphal communications were
malevolently instigated. What influence could these writings
have if they were disproved at every point by the Spirits? It is the
acquiescence of the latter that one would need to be assured of
before publishing a theory in their name. From the theory of one

25
 Introduction

sole individual to a theory of many there is the distance from a

single unit to the infinite. What influence could all the arguments
of detractors have on the opinion of the masses, when millions
of friendly voices from space have come into every corner of the
world – even into family homes – to forcefully rebuff them? From
this aspect, has not experience already confirmed the theory?
What has become of all those publications that supposedly should
have wiped out Spiritism? Which of them has been able so far to
restrain its forward progress? Until now, the matter has not been
considered from this point of view – unquestionably one of the
most serious; each person has counted on him or herself alone,
without counting on the Spirits.
The principle of concordance is, moreover, a guarantee
against any alterations that may be inflicted on Spiritism by sects
that would like to appropriate it to their own advantage and
accommodate it to their own means. Anyone who might try to
divert it from its providential objective would fail for the simple
reason that the Spirits, through the universality of their teachings,
will cause any modification that departs from the truth to fall.
From all this a crucial truth results: it is that whoever might
want to set him or herself against the current of established and
sanctioned ideas might cause a small localized and momentary
disturbance, but would never dominate the whole in the present,
and even less in the future.
Moreover, the teachings given by spirits on as-yet unclarified
points of the Doctrine would not be law as long as such teachings
remain isolated; they must not, therefore, be accepted except with
all reserve and for information purposes.
Hence the need for the greatest prudence in their publication,
and in the case in which it is deemed necessary to publish them,
it would be important not to present them except as more or less
probable individual opinions, but having in all cases the need for

26
 Introduction

confirmation. It is this confirmation that must be obtained before

a principle is presented as absolute truth unless one wants to be
accused of frivolousness or thoughtless credulity.
Highly evolved spirits proceed with extreme wisdom in their
revelations; they do not address the great issues of the Doctrine
except gradually, to the degree that our intelligence is capable of
comprehending truths of a higher order and when circumstances
are propitious for the release of a new idea. That is why that at the
beginning they did not say everything and why they still have not
said everything today, nor have they given in to the impatience of
hasty individuals who would like to harvest the fruit before it is
ripe. Thus, it would be futile for them to rush the time assigned to
each thing by Providence, because then truly serious Spirits would
positively refuse to offer their assistance. However, frivolous spirits
concern themselves little with the truth and respond to anything.
It is for this reason that, on the issue of premature questions, there
are always contradictory answers.
The above-stated principles are not the result of any personal
theory, but are the unavoidable consequences of the conditions in
which spirits manifest themselves. It is obvious that if one spirit
says one thing somewhere, while millions of spirits say the opposite
everywhere else, the presumption of the truth cannot lie with the
one who is alone or nearly alone in its opinion; hence, to claim to
be right against all others would be as illogical on the part of one
spirit as it would be on the part of one human. Truly wise spirits,
if they do not feel sufficiently knowledgeable about an issue, never
resolve it in an absolute manner; they state that they are addressing
it only from their own point of view and that they themselves
advise waiting for its confirmation.
However great, beautiful or just an idea may be, it is
impossible for it to unite all opinions at the start. The conflicts that
result from it are the unavoidable consequence of the movement

27
 Introduction

that is taking place; conflicts are even necessary to enable the

truth to stand out more, and it is useful for them to occur at the
beginning so that any erroneous ideas may be more quickly flushed
out. Spiritists who harbor any fear in this regard should therefore
be perfectly reassured. All isolated claims will fall due to the force of
things before the great and powerful criterion of the universal test.
It is not around the opinion of any one individual that others
will rally, but around the unanimous voice of the Spirits; it
is not one individual – and no more us than anyone else – who
will found Spiritist orthodoxy; neither is it one spirit coming to
impose itself upon whomever it wishes; it is the universality of
the Spirits, communicating throughout the earth at God’s orders;
this is the essential character of the Spiritist Doctrine – its power
and authority. God has willed for the divine law to be seated upon
an unshakable base and that is why God did not rest it upon the
fragile head of only one person.
It is before that powerful Areopagus3, which knows no
conspiracies, jealous rivalries, sects or nations, that all opposition,
all ambition and all claims of individual supremacy will be crushed.
We ourselves would be shattered if we wished to replace those sovereign
decrees with our own ideas. Only God will decide all contentious
matters, silence dissidence and give reason – or not – to whomever
it may concern. Faced with this imposing accord of all the voices of
heaven, what is the opinion of one individual or spirit? Less than a
drop of water that loses itself in the ocean; less than a child’s voice
drowned out by a storm.
Universal opinion – the supreme judge – is what pronounces
the last word; it is formed from all individual opinions; if one
of them is true, it only has relative weight on the scales; if it is
erroneous, it cannot prevail over all the others. In this generalized

3
The supreme tribunal of ancient Athens that met on this hill. (Random House Webster’s
College Dictionary, 1991). – Tr.

28
 Introduction

process, individualities are nil, and that ends up being a new defeat
for human pride.
The harmonious course has already been outlined; hence,
this century will not pass away before it shines in all its splendor in
such a way as to settle all uncertainty, because from now onward
powerful voices will have received the mission of making themselves
heard in order to unite all humankind under the same banner,
once the field has been sufficiently plowed. In the meantime, those
who waver between two opposing theories can observe in which
direction general opinion is forming. This is the sure indication of
the position in which the majority of spirits state themselves to be
on the various points upon which they communicate; it is a no less
certain sign as to which of the two theories will prevail.

III – Historical Facts

In order to understand certain passages in the Gospels, it
is necessary to know the significance of several words that are
frequently used in them, and which characterize the state of
the customs and the Jewish society of the time. Since they do
not have the same meaning for us, these words have frequently
been misinterpreted, and for that reason have led to a sort of
uncertainty. The understanding of their significance, on the other
hand, explains the true meaning of certain maxims that at first
sight might appear strange.
Samaritans. After the split-up of the ten tribes, Samaria
became the capital of the dissident kingdom of Israel. Destroyed and
rebuilt several times, it was, under Roman rule, the administrative
seat of Samaria, one of the four divisions of Palestine. Herod,
called the Great, adorned Samaria with opulent monuments, and
to please Augustus, gave it the name Augusta, in Greek ‘Sebaste’.
The Samaritans were almost always at war with the kings
of Judah. A profound aversion, dating back to the separation, was

29
 Introduction

perpetuated between the two peoples, who shunned all mutual

relations. In order to make the schism deeper and to avoid having to
go to Jerusalem to celebrate religious festivals, the Samaritans built
their own temple and adopted certain reforms. They accepted only
the Pentateuch, which contained the Law of Moses, but rejected all
the other books that were added afterward. Their sacred writings
were written in Hebrew characters of highest antiquity. In the
eyes of orthodox Jews, they were heretics and were consequently
despised, anathematized and persecuted. The antagonism between
the two peoples thus had as its sole principle the divergence of
religious opinions, although their beliefs had the same origin. The
Samaritans were the Protestants of their time.
Even today, Samaritans may be found in a few regions of
the Middle East, particularly in Nablus and Jaffa. They observe
the Law of Moses more strictly than other Jews and only marry
amongst themselves.
Nazarites. Name given to Jews who took vows under ancient
law, whether for life or whether for a time, to keep themselves
perfectly pure. They were committed to chastity, abstinence from
alcohol and the preservation of their hair. Samson, Samuel and
John the Baptist were Nazarites.
The Jews gave this name to the first Christians4, alluding to
Jesus of Nazareth.
This was also the name of a heretical sect of the first
centuries of the Christian era, and which, in the same manner as
the Ebionites, from whom it adopted certain principles, mixed
Mosaic practices with Christian dogmas. The sect disappeared in
the fourth century.
Publicans. In ancient Rome, this was the name given to
those who were lease holders of public taxes. They were in charge
of collecting taxes and income of every sort, whether in Rome
4
The first Christians were actually called Nazarenes. – Tr.

30
 Introduction

itself or in other parts of the Empire. They were analogous to the

“fermiers généraux et traitants” in the old system in France, which
still exists in certain regions. The risks they ran made most others
close their eyes to the wealth they frequently acquired and which
for many was the product of levies and scandalous profits. The
name publican was later extended to all who were in charge of
administering public monies, and also to their subaltern agents.
Today, the term has taken on a pejorative meaning to denote
financiers and agents with few business scruples. It is sometimes
stated, “Greedy as a publican” or “Rich as a publican,” referring to
a fortune of a dishonest origin.
Under Roman rule, taxation was what the Jews found
hardest to accept and it caused them the greatest aggravation,
giving rise to several revolts and turning into a religious issue, since
it was regarded as contrary to the Law. A powerful party was even
formed, headed by a certain Judas the Gaulonite, having as its
principle the refusal of paying taxes. Thus, the Jews despised taxes
and consequently all those who were in charge of collecting them.
Hence their aversion toward publicans of all categories, amongst
whom could be found many decent individuals, but who, due to
their occupation, were despised along with all who associated with
them. Distinguished Jews believed they jeopardized themselves by
having any close relations with them.
Tax Collectors. These were lower-class tax collectors, who
were mainly in charge of collecting duties at the city gates. Their
functions corresponded approximately to those of customs officials
or toll collectors. They endured the same loathing extended to
publicans in general. This is why in the Gospel we frequently find
the name publican connected to sinners. This label did not imply
only dissolute or disreputable individuals. It was a term of scorn,
synonymous with bad company, individuals unworthy of mixing
with decent people.

31
 Introduction

Pharisees (from the Hebrew parasch, meaning division,

separation). Tradition formed an important part of Jewish
theology. It consisted in the compilation of the successive
interpretations given to the meaning of the Scriptures, and
which became articles of dogma. Amongst scholars, tradition
was the object of unending arguments, most frequently
concerning simple issues as to words or form, similar to the
theological disputes and subtleties of scholasticism during the
Middle Ages. Different sects resulted from all this, with each
claiming to have a monopoly on the truth, and as almost always
happens, cordially detesting one another.
Among these sects, the most influential was that of the
Pharisees, whose head was Hillel, a Jewish scholar born in
Babylonia and founder of a famous school where it was taught
that faith arouse only from the Scriptures. The Pharisees’ origin
dated back to 180 to 200 BC. The Pharisees were persecuted at
various times, notably under Hyrcanus, high priest and king of
the Jews, Aristobulus5, and Alexander, king of Syria. However,
after Alexander restored their honors and their assets, they
reacquired their power, which they retained until the downfall
of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., at which time their name disappeared
as a result of the Diaspora.
The Pharisees took an active part in religious controversies.
Servile observers of outward worship practices and ceremonies,
ardent zealots for proselytism and enemies of anybody with new
ideas, they feigned great strictness of principles. However, behind
the appearances of meticulous devotion, they hid dissolute habits,
much pride and, above all, an excessive passion for control. Religion
for them was more of a means to rise through the ranks than an
object of authentic faith. They possessed only the appearances and
ostentation of virtue. Nevertheless, they exerted a great influence
1
The eldest of the five sons of king John Hyrcanus of the Hebrew Hasmonean Dynasty. – Tr.

32
 Introduction

on the people, in whose eyes they were regarded as holy. That is

why they were so powerful in Jerusalem.
They believed – or at least professed to believe – in
Providence, the immortality of the soul, eternal punishment and
the resurrection of the dead (see chap. IV, no. 4.). Jesus, who above
all else valued simplicity and the qualities of the heart, and who
preferred in the law the spirit, which gives life, to the letter, which
kills, strove throughout his mission to unmask their hypocrisy, and
as a result made them his fierce enemies. This is the reason why
they allied themselves with the chief priests in order to incite the
people against him and put him to death.
Scribes. The name at first given to the secretaries of the
Judean kings and to certain superintendents of the Jewish army.
Later, the designation was applied specifically to the scholars who
taught the Law of Moses and interpreted it for the people. They
had a cause in common with the Pharisees, with whom they shared
their principles and their antipathy toward free thinkers. This is
why Jesus included them in the same reproach.
Synagogue (from the Greek Synagoguê meaning assembly,
congregation). In Judea, there was only one temple, that of
Solomon, in Jerusalem, where the great ceremonies of Jewish
worship were celebrated. Every year, the Jews would go there on a
pilgrimage for the principal festivals such as Passover, the Feast of
Dedication and the Feast of Tabernacles. It was on such occasions
that Jesus made a number of journeys to Jerusalem. The other
cities did not have temples, but only synagogues: buildings where
the Jews would gather on the Sabbath to offer public prayers
under the leadership of the elders, the scribes, or the doctors of the
Law. There were also readings taken from the sacred books, which
were explained and commented on; everybody could take part in
them, and that is why Jesus, although not a priest, taught in the
synagogues on Sabbath days.

33
 Introduction

After the downfall of Jerusalem and the Diaspora, the

synagogues in the cities they inhabited served as temples for the
celebration of the cult.
Sadducees. A Jewish sect that was formed around 248
B.C., named after Saddoc, its founder. The Sadducees did not
believe in the immortality of the soul, the resurrection, or
good and evil angels. Nonetheless, they believed in God; but
expecting nothing after death, they served God only with the
objective of temporal recompense, to which, according to them,
divine providence was limited. Furthermore, the satisfaction of
the senses was, in their view, the essential objective of life. As
for the Scriptures, they held to the text of the ancient Torah,
accepting neither tradition nor any interpretation. They placed
good deeds and the pure and simple observance of the Law
above outward worship practices. They were the materialists, the
deists, the sensualists of the time. This sect was few in number,
but it entailed important persons and became a political party
constantly opposed to the Pharisees.
Essenes. A Jewish sect founded around 150 B.C. during the
time of the Maccabees. Its members lived in a type of monastery
and formed amongst themselves a sort of moral and religious
association. They were distinguished by their pacifist customs and
austere virtues; they taught the love of God and one’s neighbor,
the immortality of the soul, and they believed in the resurrection.
They lived in celibacy, condemned slavery and war, held all their
assets in common, and devoted themselves to agriculture. Unlike
the sensual Sadducees, who denied immortality, and the Pharisees,
who were rigid in their outward practices and in whom virtue was
only apparent, the Essenes took no part in the quarrels dividing
the other two sects. Their genre of life approached that of the first
Christians, and the moral principles they professed have led some
people to believe that Jesus had belonged to this sect before the

34
 Introduction

beginning of his public mission. What is certain is that he must

have known about it, but nothing proves that he was affiliated with
it, and all that has been written in this respect is hypothetical.6
Therapeuts (from the Greek thérapeutaï, thérapeueïn, to serve,
to care for, meaning, servants of God or healers). Jewish sectarians
and contemporaries of Christ, established principally in Alexandria,
Egypt. They had great relations with the Essenes, whose principles
they professed; like the Essenes, they devoted themselves to practicing
all the virtues. Their nourishment was of extreme frugality. Devoted
to celibacy, contemplation and the solitary life, they comprised a
true religious order. Philon, a platonic Jewish philosopher from
Alexandria, was the first to refer to the Therapeuts, considering
them a sect of Judaism. Eusebius, St. Jerome and other Church
Fathers thought they were Christians. Whether they were Jews or
Christians, it is obvious that, like the Essenes, they formed a link of
union between Judaism and Christianity.

IV – Socrates and Plato: Precursors of

the Christian Idea and Spiritism
Even though Jesus must have been familiar with the sect of
the Essenes, it would be erroneous to conclude that he drew his
doctrine from it, and that if he had lived in another environment,
he would have professed other principles. Great ideas never
appear suddenly. Those that have the truth as their basis always
have precursors who partially prepare the way for them. Later,
when the time has come, God sends someone with the mission of
summarizing, coordinating and completing the scattered elements
to form them into a body. In this way, the idea, not having arrived
abruptly, finds minds fully disposed to accept it. Such occurred
with the Christian idea, which was foreseen several centuries
6
The Death of Jesus, supposedly written by an Essene brother, is a completely apocryphal
book, written with the objective of serving an opinion, and which contains in itself proof
of its modern origin. – Auth.

35
 Introduction

before either Jesus or the Essenes, and of which Socrates and Plato
were the principle precursors.
Socrates, like Christ, wrote nothing himself, or at least left
nothing written. Like Christ, he died the death of criminals, a
victim of fanaticism, for having attacked established beliefs and for
having placed true virtue above hypocrisy and the illusion of forms;
in other words, for having combated religious prejudices. Like Jesus,
who was accused by the Pharisees of corrupting the people with his
teachings, Socrates was also accused by the Pharisees of his time –
since they have always existed in all epochs – for corrupting the youth
by proclaiming the dogma of the unity of God, the immortality of
the soul and the future life. Just as we know about the doctrine of
Jesus only through the writings of his disciples, we know about the
doctrine of Socrates only through the writings of his disciple Plato.
We believe it useful to summarize here the most prominent points in
order to show their concordance with the principles of Christianity.
To those who will consider this parallel to be a profanation
and claim there could be no parity between the doctrine of a pagan
and that of Christ, we will respond that Socrates’ doctrine was
not pagan since its objective was to combat paganism; that Jesus’
doctrine, purer and more complete than Socrates’, has nothing
to lose with the comparison; that the grandeur of Christ’s divine
mission would not be diminished because of it; that, furthermore,
it is a historical fact which cannot be denied. Humankind has
reached a point in which the light radiates by itself from under the
bushel; it is mature enough to face it – so much the worse for those
who do not dare open their eyes. The time has come to examine
matters broadly and from a higher level, and no longer from the
trivial and narrow point of view of the interests of sects and castes.
Moreover, these citations will prove that if Socrates and
Plato foresaw the Christian idea, the fundamental principles of
Spiritism may also be found in their doctrine.

36
 Introduction

A Summary of the Doctrine of Socrates and Plato

I. The human being is an incarnate soul. Before its incarnation, it
existed in union with the primordial types, the ideas of the true, the
good and the beautiful. Upon incarnating, it separates from them, and
remembering its past, it is tormented to various degrees by the desire to
return to it.

One could not more clearly enunciate the distinction and

independence between the intelligent principle and the material
principle. Furthermore, this represents the doctrine of the
preexistence of the soul, the vague intuition it retains of another
world to which it aspires, its survival after the body, its exit from
the spirit world in order to incarnate, and its reentry into that world
after death; in short, it is the seed for the doctrine of the fallen angels.
II. The soul wanders and becomes confused when it uses the body in
order to consider any object. It feels giddy, as if it were intoxicated,
because it is connected to things that are by their very nature subject to
change. On the other hand, whenever it contemplates its own essence,
it turns toward that which is pure, eternal and immortal, and being of
the same nature, it remains connected there for as long as possible. Its
erroneous ways then cease, for it is united to that which is immutable,
and this state of the soul is what is called wisdom.

Hence, humans who consider things from below, in a

mundane fashion and from a materialistic point of view delude
themselves. In order to evaluate them correctly, it is necessary to
see them from above, i.e., from the point of view of the spirit.
The truly wise must therefore in some way isolate the soul from
the body in order to see with the eyes of the spirit. This is what
Spiritism teaches. (See chap. II, no. 5)
III. While we have our body, and as long as our soul is immersed in this
corruption, we will never possess the object of our desires: the truth. In

37
 Introduction

fact, the body brings forth in us a thousand obstacles due to our need to
care for it. Moreover, it fills us with desires, appetites, fears, a thousand
chimeras and a thousand follies, so that, while in it, it is impossible to
be wise, even for an instant. However, since it is not possible to know
anything purely while the soul is united to the body, one of two things
will happen: either we will never know the truth, or we will only come
to know it after death. Freed from the insanity of the body, we then will
converse – hopefully – with individuals likewise freed, and we will know
for ourselves the essence of things. That is why true philosophers prepare
themselves to die, and why death in no way seems fearsome to them.
(See Heaven and Hell, pt. 1, chap. II; pt. 2, chap. I)

Here, we have the principle of soul’s faculties being obscured

by means of the corporeal organs and the expansion of its faculties
after death. However, this applies only to the souls of the already-
purified elect; the same does not occur with impure souls.
IV. The impure soul in this state is weighed down and is once again pulled
to the visible world through the horror of that which is invisible and
immaterial. It then wanders – it is said – around mausoleums and graves,
near which at times terrible ghosts have been seen, which must be the
images of souls who have left the body without being completely pure,
and who have retained something of the material form, making the eye
able to perceive them. These are not the souls of the good but rather of the
wretched, who are forced to wander around such places, where they bear
the punishment of their former life and where they continue to roam until
the appetites inherent to the material form they were given lead them to
another body. And then, of course, they return to the same habits which
during their former life were the object of their predilections.

Not only is the principle of reincarnation clearly expounded

here, but the state of souls who are still under the control of matter
is described just as Spiritism demonstrates during evocations.
Moreover, it is stated that reincarnation in a material body is a

38
 Introduction

consequence of the soul’s impurity, whereas purified souls are free

of it. Spiritism says nothing else; it only adds that the soul who has
made good resolutions during the errant state, and who possesses
acquired knowledge, brings fewer defects, more virtues and more
intuitive ideas on being reborn than it had possessed in its preceding
existence. Hence, each existence represents for it both intellectual
and moral progress. (See Heaven and Hell, pt. 2, Examples)
V. After our death, the spirit (daïmon) who had been assigned to us
during life leads us to a place where all those who must be taken to
Hades are gathered in order to be judged. After having remained in
Hades for the time required, souls are re-conducted to this life for
numerous and long periods.

This is the doctrine of guardian angels or protector spirits,

and of successive reincarnations after intervals of varying lengths
in the errant state.
VI. Daimons fill the space that separates the sky from the earth; they
are the link that unites the Great Whole with itself. Since divinity never
enters into direct communication with human beings, it is by means of
daimons that the gods relate to and converse with them, whether during
the waking state or during sleep.

The word daïmon, which gave origin to demon, was not

taken in the evil sense during antiquity, as it is amongst moderns.
It did not mean evil beings exclusively, but all spirits in general,
among whom were highly evolved spirits called gods, and less
evolved spirits – demons per se – who communicated directly with
humans. Spiritism also states that spirits populate space; that God
only communicates with human beings through the intermediary
of pure spirits entrusted with transmitting the divine will; and that
spirits communicate with humans during the waking state and
during sleep. Replace the word daimon with the word spirit, and

39
 Introduction

you have the Spiritist Doctrine; replace it with the word angel and
you have the Christian Doctrine.
VII. The constant preoccupation of philosophers (as understood by
Socrates and Plato) is to take greater care of the soul and less care of this
life, which is only an instant from the perspective of eternity. If the soul
is immortal, would it not be wise to live with a view to eternity?

Both Christianity and Spiritism teach the same thing.

VIII. If the soul is immaterial, then after this life it must go to a world
that is equally invisible and immaterial, the same way that the body
upon its decomposition returns to matter. It is important only to clearly
distinguish the pure, truly immaterial soul – which, like God, nourishes
itself with knowledge and thought – from the soul that is to various
degrees tainted by material impurities that hinder its ascendancy toward
the divine, retaining it in places of its earthly journey.

Socrates and Plato, as one can see, understood perfectly the

different degrees of the soul’s dematerialization. They insist on
the varieties of situations that result in its greater or lesser purity.
What they said through intuition, Spiritism proves through the
numerous examples it sets before us. (See Heaven and Hell, pt. 2)
IX. If death were the complete dissolution of a person, it would be a
great gain for evil ones, because after their death they would all at once
be free from their bodies, souls and vices. Only those who have adorned
their soul, not with an improper ornament but with a proper one, may
peacefully await the hour of their departure to the other world.

In other words, this means that materialism, which proclaims

nothingness after death, would be the annulment of all final moral
responsibility, and consequently, an incentive to evil; that such evil
has everything to gain from nothingness; that only individuals who
have rid themselves of their vices and have enriched themselves
with virtues can peacefully await the awakening in the other life.

40
 Introduction

By the examples it sets before us daily, Spiritism shows us how

painful the passage from one life to the other and the entrance into
the future life is for evil souls. (See Heaven and Hell, pt. 2, chap. I)
X. The body retains the well-marked vestiges of the care it has received or
of the accidents it has experienced; the same occurs with the soul. When it
is delivered from the body, it carries the obvious traces of its character, its
sentiments, and the marks that each action of its life has left on it. Thus, the
greatest misfortune that can occur to a person is to go to the other world
with a soul loaded with crimes. You see, Calicles, that neither you, Pollux nor
Gorgias could prove that we must lead another life that will be useful when we
find ourselves on the other side. From so many diverse opinions, the only one
that remains unshakeable is that it is better to receive than to commit an injustice,
and that before anything else we must apply ourselves not to seem virtuous
but to be so. (Dialogues of Socrates with his disciples when he was in prison).

Here, another crucial point is encountered, confirmed today

by experience, according to which the unpurified soul retains the
ideas, tendencies, character and passions that it had while on the
earth. This maxim: It is better to receive than to commit an injustice, is
it not entirely Christian? It is the same thought that Jesus expresses
by this illustration: “If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to
him the other as well.” (See chap. XII, nos.7, 8)
XI. One of two things applies: either death is absolute destruction or it is
the passage of a soul to another place. If everything is to be extinguished,
then death is like one of those rare nights that we have without dreaming
and without any self-awareness. However, if death is only a change of
habitation, the passage to a place where the dead must meet, what
happiness at reencountering those whom we have known! My greatest
pleasure would be to examine up close the dwellers of that habitation
and to distinguish there, as here, between those who are wise and those
who believe they are, but are not. It is time, however, for us to part: I to
die, you to live. (Socrates to his judges)

41
 Introduction

According to Socrates, those who have lived upon the earth

meet again after death and recognize one another. Spiritism shows
us the continuation of the relationships they had, in such a way
that death is neither an interruption nor a cessation of life with no
solution of continuity, but a transformation.
Had Socrates and Plato known the teachings that Christ
would give five hundred years later, and those which the Spirits
provide nowadays, they would not have spoken in any other
manner. There is nothing surprising about this if one remembers
that great truths are eternal and that advanced spirits had to have
known them before coming to earth, to which they brought them;
that Socrates, Plato and the other great philosophers of their time
could have later been among those who aided Christ on his divine
mission, and who were chosen precisely because, more than anyone
else, they were capable of comprehending his sublime teachings;
that, in short, today they may be part of the great host of spirits
charged with coming to teach these same truths to humankind.
XII. One should never return injustice for injustice, nor do evil to anyone,
whatever may be the evil they have done to us. Few, however, will accept this
principle and those who are divided on this can only despise one another.

Is this not the principle of charity, which teaches us not to

return evil for evil and to forgive our enemies?
XIII. It is by its fruit that the tree is known. It is necessary to qualify every
action according to what it produces: to call it evil when evil comes from
it; good when the good is born from it.

The maxim: “The tree is known by its fruit” is textually

repeated many times in the Gospel.
XIV. Wealth is a great danger. All who love wealth love neither themselves
nor what they are, but something that is even more foreign to them than that
what they are. (See chap. XVI)

42
 Introduction

XV. The most beautiful prayers and the most beautiful sacrifices please the
Divinity less than a virtuous soul who puts forth the effort to resemble it. It would
be a grave thing if the gods were to have more consideration for our offerings than
for our soul. This way, even the guiltiest could render themselves favorable. But
no, there are no truly just and wise except those who through their words and
deeds redeem what they owe to the gods and men. (See chap. X, nos. 7, 8)

XVI. I call depraved that commonplace lover who loves the body more
than the soul. Love is everywhere in nature, which invites us to exercise
our intelligence; it is found even in the movements of the heavenly
bodies. It is love that adorns nature with its rich cover; it puts on its
finery and sets its dwelling where it finds flowers and fragrances. It is
also love that gives peace to humans, tranquility to the sea, silence to the
winds and sleep to pain.

Love, which must unite humankind through a fraternal tie,

is a consequence of Plato’s theory on universal love as a law of
nature. Socrates’ affirmation that, “Love is neither a god nor a
mortal, but a great daimon,” that is, a great spirit presiding over
universal love, was imputed to him as a crime above all else.
XVII. Virtue cannot be taught; it comes as a gift from God to those
who possess it.

This is approximately the Christian doctrine regarding

grace; however, if virtue is a gift from God, then it is a favor,
and we may ask why it is not granted to everyone; on the other
hand, if it is a gift, then there is no merit on the part of those
who possess it. Spiritism is more explicit. It states that those who
possess virtue have acquired it through their own efforts during
successive existences by gradually ridding themselves of their
imperfections. Grace is the power that God bestows on all men
and women of goodwill so that they may rid themselves of evil
and practice the good.

43
 Introduction

XVIII. It is a natural disposition in each of us to perceive our own defects

much less than those of others.

The Gospel states, “You see the speck that is in your

neighbor’s eye, but you do not see the plank that is in your own.”
(See chap. X, nos. 9, 10)
XIX. If physicians fail in treating most ailments, it is because they treat the
body without treating the soul, and since the whole is not in a good state,
it is impossible for any one part of it to be well.

Spiritism provides the key to the relationship between the

soul and the body, and proves that there is a constant reaction of
one upon the other. Thus, it opens up a new pathway to science,
and by showing it the true cause of certain illnesses, it provides it
with the means of combating them. Once science begins taking
into account the spiritual element in the body’s economy, it will
fail less frequently.
XX. All humans, starting from infancy, do much more evil than good.

These words by Socrates touch on the serious issue of the

predominance of evil on the earth, an issue that is unsolvable
without the knowledge of the plurality of worlds and the destiny
of the earth, upon which only a small fraction of humanity dwells.
Only Spiritism provides it with a solution, which is developed
below in chapters II, III and V.
XXI. There is wisdom in not believing that you know what you do not know.

This is addressed to those persons who frequently criticize

that about which they do not know the first word. Plato completes
this thought of Socrates by saying, “Let us first try to render them
more honest in words, if possible; if not, let us not concern ourselves
with them; let us seek nothing but the truth. Let us endeavor to
educate ourselves, but not offend each other.” This is how Spiritists

44
 Introduction

should act regarding their detractors of good or bad faith. If Plato

were alive today, he would find things almost as they were in his
time and would be able to use the same language. Socrates too
would encounter individuals who would mock his belief in spirits
and would judge both him and his disciple Plato insane.
It was for having professed these principles that Socrates was
first ridiculed, then later accused of sacrilege and condemned to
drink hemlock. All this renders it certain that great new truths,
arising against the personal interests and prejudices they upset,
cannot be established without a struggle or without making martyrs.

45
 CHAPTER I

I have not come to

destroy the law
• The Three Revelations: Moses; Christ; Spiritism
• The Alliance between Science and Religion
• The Spirits’ Teaching: – The New Era

1. “Do not think that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets;
I have not come to destroy them but to fulfill them; for I say to you in
truth that heaven and earth shall not pass away before everything in
the law is perfectly fulfilled up to one single iota and one single dot.”
(Mt. 5:17, 18)7

7
We have translated the biblical texts directly from Kardec’s text – which employed Sacy’s
French translation – rather than use the King James Version, whose older English style
makes it difficult to understand at times, or a more modern translation, which might
involve copyright issues. Moreover, it will ensure consistency between the scripture
passages and Kardec’s text when he refers back to them. Finally, in translating the scripture
texts we have opted to retain the non-inclusive language of Sacy. – Tr.

47
 Chapter I

The Three Revelations

Moses
2. There are two distinct parts to the Mosaic Law: the Law of
God, promulgated on Mount Sinai, and the civil or disciplinary law,
established by Moses. One is invariable; the other, appropriate for the
customs and character of the people, changes with the times.
The Law of God is formulated in the ten following
commandments:
I. I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the house
of bondage. You shall have no other, foreign gods before me. You shall
make neither a graven image nor any figure of anything that is above in
the heavens or below on earth, nor of anything that is in the waters under
the earth. You shall not bow down to them nor shall you render them
supreme worship.

II. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.

III. You shall remember to sanctify the Sabbath Day.

IV. You shall honor your father and your mother so that you may live
long in the land that the Lord your God will give you.

V. You shall not kill.

VI. You shall not commit adultery.

VII. You shall not steal.

VIII. You shall not covet false testimony against your neighbor.

IX. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife.

X. You shall covet neither your neighbor’s house, nor his servant, nor his
ox, nor his ass, nor any of the things that belong to him.

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 I have not come to destroy the law

This law is for all times and all nations, and therefore has
a divine character. All the others were laws established by Moses,
who had to use fear in order to restrain a naturally troublesome
and undisciplined people, among whom he had to combat the
deep-rooted abuses and prejudices acquired during their slavery in
Egypt. In order to give authority to his laws, he had to attribute
to them a divine origin, as did other lawgivers of early peoples.
Human authority had to be based on God’s authority, but only
the idea of a terrible God could impress ignorant men and women
in whom moral sense and the sentiment of a refined justice
were still little developed. It is quite obvious that the One who
prescribed the commandments, “You shall not kill; you shall not
cause harm to your neighbor,” could not be self-contradictory by
making extermination a duty. The Mosaic Laws per se thus had an
essentially transitory character.
Christ
3. Jesus did not come to destroy the law, that is, God’s law.
He came to fulfill it, that is, to develop it, to give it its true meaning
and to adapt it to the degree of humankind’s advancement. That
is why that in this law may be found the principle of duty to God
and one’s neighbor, which comprises the basis of his doctrine. On
the contrary, as for the laws of Moses per se, Jesus modified them
profoundly either in form or in substance. He constantly combated
the abuse of outward practices and erroneous interpretations, and
he could not make them undergo a more radical reform than that
of reducing them to these words: “Love God above all things and
your neighbor as yourself,” and in stating, “This is the whole of the
law and the prophets.”
By these words, “Heaven and earth shall not pass away
before everything is fulfilled up to one single iota,” Jesus meant
that it would be necessary for God’s Law to receive its fulfillment,

49
 Chapter I

that is, to be practiced all over the earth, in all of its purity, with
all of its development and all of its consequences, for what good
would it have done to have established this law if it were to have
remained the privilege of only a few people or even of one sole
nation? As children of God, all humans are, without distinction,
the object of the same solicitude.
4. Jesus’ role, however, was not simply that of a moralistic
lawgiver with no other authority than his own word. He came
to fulfill the prophecies that had announced his coming; his
authority derived from the exceptional nature of his spirit and his
divine mission. He came to teach humans that true life is to be
found not on the earth but in the kingdom of heaven; to teach
them the way that leads there, the means of reconciling themselves
to God and to forewarn them regarding the progress of future
things for the fulfillment of human destiny. Nonetheless, he did
not say everything, and on many points he limited himself to
sowing the seed of truths that he himself declared could not yet
be comprehended. He spoke of all things, but in terms explicit in
varying degrees. In order to understand the hidden meaning of
certain words it would be necessary for new ideas and knowledge
to come to provide humans the key, and such ideas could not come
before the human mind had acquired a certain degree of maturity.
Science would have to contribute strongly toward the emergence
and development of these ideas; therefore, it would be necessary to
give science time to progress.
Spiritism
5. Spiritism is the new science that has come to reveal to
humans, by means of irrefutable proofs, the existence and nature of
the spirit world and its relations with the corporeal world. It shows
us that world no longer as something supernatural, but instead
as one of the living and incessantly active forces of nature, as the

50
 I have not come to destroy the law

source of a multitude of phenomena hitherto incomprehensible,

and for that reason, relegated to the domain of the fantastic and
extraordinary. It is to such relations that Christ alludes on several
occasions, and that is why many things that he said have remained
unintelligible or wrongly interpreted. Spiritism is the key that
enables everything to be easily explained.
6. The law of the Old Testament is personified in Moses;
that of the New Testament is personified in Christ. Spiritism is
the third revelation of God’s Law, but it is not personified in any
particular individual; rather, it is the product of a teaching given
not by one person but by the Spirits – who are the voices of heaven –
at all points of the earth and through a countless multitude of
intermediaries. It is a sort of collective being entailing a group of
beings from the spirit world, each one coming to bring to humans
the tribute of its knowledge in order to enable them to know about
that world and the fate that awaits them in it.
7. In the same way that Christ said, “I have not come to
destroy the law but to fulfill it,” Spiritism says, “I have not come
to destroy the Christian law but to fulfill it.” It teaches nothing
contrary to what Christ taught, but develops, completes and
explains in clear terms for everybody what he stated only in
allegorical form. Spiritism has come to fulfill at the foretold
time what Christ announced and to prepare the fulfillment of
future things. It is therefore the work of Christ, who himself is
presiding – as he also announced – over the regeneration that
is occurring, and who is preparing the reign of the kingdom of
God on earth.

The Alliance between Science and Religion

8. Science and religion are the two levers of human
intelligence: one reveals the laws of the material world, and

51
 Chapter I

the other the laws of the moral world. But neither, having the
same principle, which is God, can contradict the other. If they
were to negate each other, one would necessarily be wrong and
the other right, because God could not possibly be willing to
destroy God’s own work.8 The incompatibility that is thought to
exist between these two orders of ideas arises from an erroneous
observation and an excess of exclusivity on one side and the
other. This has resulted in a conflict from which both disbelief
and intolerance have emerged.
The time has come in which Christ’s teachings must receive
their completion; in which the veil, cast intentionally over some
parts of these teachings, must be lifted; in which science ceases to
be exclusively materialistic and takes into account the spiritual
element; and in which religion ceases to misinterpret the organic and
immutable laws of matter. These two forces, supporting each other
and advancing together, will lend each other mutual support. Then
religion, no longer having to endure the discredit of science, will
acquire unshakable power because it will be in accord with reason
and will no longer be able to oppose the irresistible logic of the facts.
Science and religion were unable to understand each other
until today, because, each examining matters from its own exclusive
point of view, they mutually rejected each other. Something was
needed to fill the gap that separated them, a mark of union that
would bring them close to each other. This mark of union resided
in the knowledge of the laws that govern the spirit world and its
relations with the corporeal, laws as immutable as those governing
the movement of the heavenly bodies and the existence of beings.
Once they were proven by experience, these relations caused a new
light to dawn: faith turned toward reason, reason found nothing
illogical in faith and materialism was defeated. But in this, as in
everything else, there are persons who remain behind until they are
8
See footnote, p. 62. – Tr.

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 I have not come to destroy the law

swept along by the movement of the whole, which crushes them if

they try to resist it instead of surrendering to it. It is a whole moral
revolution that is occurring at this time and is molding people’s
spirits. After being prepared for over more than eighteen centuries,
this revolution is nearing its fulfillment, and it will mark a new era
for humankind. The consequences of this revolution are easy to
foresee; as for social relations, it must bring inevitable changes that
no person has the power to oppose because they are in the designs
of God and result from the law of progress, which is a law of God.

The Spirits’ Teachings

The New Era
9. God is one, and Moses is the spirit whom he sent on
a mission to make him9 known not only to the Hebrews but to
pagan peoples as well. The Hebrew people were the instrument
that God used to deliver the divine revelation through Moses and
the prophets, and the vicissitudes of these people were meant to
impress the eyes and bring down the veil that had hidden the
Divinity from humankind.
God’s commandments given through Moses contained
the seed of the broadest Christian morality. However, biblical
commentaries have restricted their meaning, because, put into
practice in all their purity, they would not have been understood;
nevertheless, the Ten Commandments remained the shining
frontispiece, the beacon that should have illumined humankind
on the road it was to travel.
9
In the sections containing the Spirits’ teachings, we have opted to retain the masculine
pronouns referring to God because the Spirits frequently mention God, the Father and
the Lord in the same paragraph or sentence and in reference to the same subject. Thus,
it would have made it impossible to use only the noun God in place of the masculine
pronoun, as we will continue to do in the text sections by Kardec and as we have done in
the other books of the Codification except where noted. – Tr.

53
 Chapter I

The morality taught by Moses was appropriate for the state

of advancement of the people it was called to regenerate, and these
people, semi-primitive with regard to the perfection of their soul,
would not have understood that it was possible to worship God by
means other than burnt offerings, or that they should forgive an
enemy. Their intelligence, noteworthy from the materialistic point
of view and even from that of the arts and sciences, was morally
quite backward, and they would never have been converted under
the rule of an entirely spiritual religion; they needed a semi-
material representation, like the one the Hebrew religion offered
them. Hence, burnt offerings spoke to their senses, whereas the
idea of God spoke to their spirit.
Christ was the initiator of the purest and most sublime
morality: the evangelical Christian morality that is to renew the
world, bring men and women together and make them brothers
and sisters; that is to enable charity and love for one’s neighbor
to blossom forth in all human hearts and create a common
solidarity amongst all humans; a morality, in short, that is to
transform the earth and make it a dwelling place for spirits
more highly evolved than those inhabiting it today. It is the
law of progress, to which nature is subject and which is self-
fulfilling, and Spiritism is the lever that God is employing to
enable humankind to advance.
The time has come in which moral ideas must be developed
so that the progress contained in the designs of God may be
realized. These ideas must follow the same route that the ideas of
liberty – their forerunners – traveled. However, one should not
believe that this development will occur without struggle. No.
In order to reach maturity, these ideas need to be discussed and
argued over so that they may attract the attention of the masses.
Once attention is fixed on them, the beauty and sanctity of
Christ’s morality will touch people’s minds, and they will become

54
 I have not come to destroy the law

interested in a science that provides them with the key to the

future life and opens to them the doors to eternal happiness.
It was Moses who opened the way; Jesus continued the work;
Spiritism shall finish it.
An Israelite Spirit (Mulhouse, 1861)

10. One day, God, out of his inexhaustible charity, allowed

humankind to see the truth dissipate the darkness. That day was the
advent of Christ. After that living light, the darkness returned. The
world, after the alternatives of truth and obscurity, became lost once
again. Then, just like the prophets of the Old Testament, the Spirits
began to speak and to warn you: The world is being shaken on its
very foundations; the thunder shall resound; stand firm!
Spiritism is of a divine order since it rests upon the very
laws of nature, and you can be certain that everything of a divine
order has a great and useful purpose. Your world has lost its way,
and science, developing at the cost of moral order and leading
you only to material well-being, has reverted to profiting the spirit
of darkness. Christians, you know that the heart and love must
walk hand in hand with science. The reign of Christ, alas! After
eighteen centuries, and in spite of the blood of so many martyrs,
that reign has not yet come. Christians, turn toward the Master,
who wishes to save you. Everything is easy for those who believe
and love. Love fills them with ineffable joy. Yes, my children, the
world is being shaken; the good Spirits have told you this more
than enough times. Bend under the foretelling breeze of the storm
so that you are not knocked over; that is, prepare yourselves and
do not be like the foolish virgins who were taken by surprise at the
arrival of the bridegroom.
This revolution that is being prepared is more moral than
material. The great Spirits, the divine messengers, inspire faith so
that all of you, enlightened and fervent workers, may make your

55
 Chapter I

humble voices heard, for you are only a grain of sand; but without
grains of sand there would be no mountains. Hence the words
“We are so small” hold no meaning for you. To each his or her
mission, to each his or her labor. Do not ants build their republic,
and do not imperceptible animalcules10 raise continents? The new
crusade has begun. Apostles of universal peace and not of war,
modern Saint Bernards, look and march ahead. The law of worlds
is the law of progress.
Fenelon (Poitiers, 1861)

11. Saint Augustine is one of the greatest divulgers of

Spiritism. He manifests himself almost everywhere. We find the
reason for this in the life of this great Christian philosopher, who
belongs to the mighty phalanx of the Church Fathers, to whom
Christianity owes its most solid bases. Like many others, he was
uprooted from paganism, or rather, from the most profound
impiety, by the splendor of the truth. When, in the midst of
his excesses, he felt in his soul that strange vibration calling him
back to himself, enabling him to understand that happiness lay
elsewhere than in debilitating and fleeting pleasures; when, finally,
on his own way to Damascus he too heard the holy voice exclaim,
“Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” he exclaimed, “My God!
My God! Forgive me! I believe; I am a Christian!” And from then
on he became one of the firmest supporters of the Gospel. In the
famous Confessions that this eminent spirit left us, one may read
the simultaneously characteristic and prophetic words he uttered
after having lost St. Monica: “I am convinced that my mother will
return to visit me and give me counsel, revealing to me what awaits
us in the future life.” What a lesson in these words, and what a
brilliant foresight of the future doctrine! This is why today, seeing
that the hour has come to divulge the truth that he had predicted,
10
A minute or microscopic animal. (Webster’s, op.cit.) – Tr.

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 I have not come to destroy the law

he has become its ardent propagator and has multiplied himself, so

to speak, in order to answer all who call upon him.
Erastus, disciple of St. Paul (Paris 1863)

Comment: Has St. Augustine therefore come to destroy

what he himself built? Certainly not, but like so many others, he
sees with the eyes of the spirit what he could not see as a man.
His unconstrained soul sees a new light and understands what it
could not understand before. New ideas have revealed to him the
true meaning of certain words. While on earth, he judged matters
according to the knowledge he possessed, but when a new light
shone upon him, he was able to judge things more wholesomely.
It was thus that he had to change his mind regarding incubus and
succubus11 spirits, as well as the anathema that he had launched
against the theory of the antipodes12. Now that Christianity has
appeared to him in all its purity, he can think differently about
certain points than when he was alive, but without ceasing to
be a Christian disciple. Without renouncing his faith, he can
make himself the propagator of Spiritism, because he sees in it
the fulfillment of things foreseen. As a herald of Spiritism today,
he leads us to a more careful and logical interpretation of the
texts. The same is occurring with other spirits who have found
themselves in a similar position.

11
Incubus and Succubus: evil spirits, male and female respectively, who lie with persons in
their sleep to have intercourse. – Tr.
12
Theory of the Antipodes: St. Augustine thought there was no reason to believe that
humans lived on the opposite side of the earth, walking with their feet opposite ours. Due
to the lack of knowledge of the spherical form of the earth, St. Augustine’s opinion was
commonly held before science proved it otherwise. – Tr.

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 CHAPTER II

My kingdom is not
of this world
• The Future Life • The Kingship of Jesus • The Point of
View • The Spirits’ Teachings: – An Earthly Kingship

1. Then Pilate, returning to enter the palace, and having made Jesus come to
him, asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus responded to him, “My
kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my people
would have fought to prevent my falling into the hands of the Jews. But my
kingdom is not here.”

Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?” Jesus replied, “You have said
it; I am a king. I was not born, nor did I come into this world except to
bear witness to the truth. Whoever belongs to the truth hears my voice.”
(Jn. 18:33, 36, 37)

The Future Life

2. With these words, Jesus clearly refers to the future life,
which he presents, in every circumstance, as the end where

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 Chapter II

humankind will end up and as the object of people’s principal

concerns while on earth. All of his maxims refer to this great
principle. Indeed, without the future life, the greater part of
his moral precepts would have no reason for being. That is why
those who do not believe in the future life, imagining that he is
speaking only of the present life, either do not understand them
or find them puerile.
This doctrine, therefore, can be considered as the focal point
of Christ’s teaching and it is placed toward the beginning of this
book because it must be the goal of all persons. Only this doctrine
can justify the anomalies of earthly life and harmonize them with
the justice of God.
3. The Jews had only very imprecise ideas regarding the future
life. They believed in angels, whom they regarded as the privileged
beings of creation, but they did not know that human beings could
someday become angels and share in their bliss. According to them,
observing God’s laws was rewarded with earthly possessions, the
supremacy of their nation and victory over their enemies. Public
calamities and defeats were punishment for their disobedience.
Moses could not have said more than he did to an uneducated people
comprised mostly of shepherds, and who needed to be touched,
before anything else, by the things of this world. Later, Jesus came to
reveal to them that there is another world, where God’s justice follows
its course. It is this world that he promises to those who observe God’s
commandments and where the good ones will find their recompense.
That world is his kingdom; it is there that he is to be found in all his
glory and to where he will return upon leaving the earth.
However, adapting his teaching to the state of people at
that time, Jesus did not believe he should give them complete
enlightenment, which would dazzle them without edifying them,
for they would not comprehend it. Thus, he limited himself to
presenting the future life in principle, as a law of nature from

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which no one could escape. Therefore, every Christian strongly

believes in the future life, but the idea that many hold about it is
vague and incomplete, and therefore erroneous on various points.
For a great many, it is only a belief without absolute certainty;
hence doubt and even disbelief.
Spiritism has come to complete, on this point as well
as many others, the teaching of Christ now that humans have
matured enough to comprehend the truth. With Spiritism, the
future life is no longer a simple article of faith, a hypothesis. It
is a material reality demonstrated by the facts; eye-witnesses
have come to describe this reality in all its phases and in all its
peripeties in such a way that not only is doubt no longer possible,
but the most commonplace intelligence can depict it in its true
appearance just as one could depict a country about which one
had read a detailed description. And this description of the future
life is so circumstantiated, the conditions of the happy or unhappy
existence of those who are there are so logical, that one must state
in spite of oneself that it could not be otherwise, and that the true
justice of God is contained therein.

The Kingship of Jesus

4. Everyone understands that Jesus’ kingdom is not of
this world, but might he not also have a kingship on the earth?
The title of king does not always imply the exercise of temporal
power; it is given by unanimous consensus to those whose
genius places them on the forefront of any order of idea, who
dominate the times in which they live and influence the progress
of humankind. It is in this sense that it is stated, “The king or
prince of philosophers, artists, poets, writers, etc.” Does not this
royalty, born of personal merit and consecrated by posterity,
often display an ascendancy that is greater than that held by the

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crown? This ascendancy is imperishable, whereas the other is

the plaything of vicissitudes. This ascendancy is always blessed
by future generations, whereas the other is sometimes cursed.
Earthly sovereignty ends with life; moral sovereignty continues
to govern, especially after death. From this aspect, is Jesus not a
more powerful king than many sovereigns of earth? It was with
good reason therefore that he said to Pilate, “I am a king, but my
kingdom is not of this world.”

The Point of View

5. The clear and precise idea that one holds of the future
life provides an unshakable faith in the future. This faith carries
enormous consequences for the moralization of human beings,
because it completely changes the point of view from which
they consider earthly life. For those who through their thought
place themselves in the spirit life, which is limitless, corporeal
life is no more than a passage, a brief stay in an ungrateful
country. The vicissitudes and tribulations of life are no more
than incidents which they bear with patience because they
know that they are only of short duration, and that they must
be followed by a happier state. Death no longer has anything
terrifying about it and it is no longer a door to nothingness, but
rather the deliverance that opens to the exile the entryway to
a dwelling place of happiness and peace. Knowing they are in
a temporary, not final situation, they accept the worries of life
with more indifference, which results in a composure of spirit
that mitigates their afflictions.
Due to the mere doubt regarding the future life, people
direct all their thoughts toward the earthly life. Uncertain of the
future, they give everything to the present. By not foreseeing
possessions that are more precious than those of earth, they are

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like children who can see nothing beyond their toys; there is
nothing they will not do to obtain them. The loss of even the
least of their possessions causes pungent hurt. A disappointment,
a frustrated hope, an unsatisfied ambition, an injustice of which
they are the victim, wounded pride or vanity are also torments
that make their life a perennial agony, and in this way they
intentionally cause themselves true torment at every moment. Taking
their point of view from earthly life, at whose center they place
themselves, everything around them assumes vast proportions.
The evil that reaches them, as well as the good that falls on
others – everything takes on a great importance in their eyes. The
same occurs with those who are inside a city, where everything
seems big; the individuals who occupy high positions seem like
monuments. However, upon ascending a mountain, individuals
and things both seem quite small.
This is what happens with those who contemplate
earthly life from the point of view of the future life: like the
stars in the firmament, humankind is lost in the immensity.
They then perceive that great and small things are all mixed
together like ants atop a mound of earth; that proletarians
and potentates are of the same stature, and they lament those
ephemeral individuals who hand themselves over to such
worry in order to win a place which will elevate them so little,
and which they must occupy for such a short time. It is thus
that the importance attributed to earthly things is always in
reverse proportion to faith in the future life.
6. If everybody thought in this manner, one might say that,
with no one being any longer concerned with the things of the
earth, everything would be endangered. No; people instinctively
look after their own well being, and although certain that they
will remain for only a short time in a place, they still want to feel
as good or as comfortable as possible. There is no one who, upon

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finding a thorn under his or her hand, will not remove it in order
not to get pricked. Well then, the search for well-being forces
people to improve everything, possessed as they are of the instinct
for progress and self-preservation, both being contained in the
laws of nature. Therefore, they labor out of necessity, enjoyment
and duty, thereby fulfilling the designs of Providence, which has
placed them on the earth for such a purpose. Only those who
consider the future attribute a relative importance to the present,
and they are easily consoled in their failings by thinking of the
destination that awaits them.
Accordingly, God does not condemn earthly pleasures but
rather their abuse at the expense of matters of the soul. Moreover,
it is against such abuse that those who apply Jesus’ words, “My
kingdom is not of this world,” are protected.
Those who identify themselves with the future life are like
a rich person who loses a small sum without being disturbed
by it; those who concentrate their thoughts on the earthly life
are like a poor person who loses everything he or she owns and
becomes desperate.
7. Spiritism broadens one’s thought and opens up new
horizons. Instead of this narrow and small-minded view that
concentrates on the present life, which makes the instant that
one passes on the earth the unique and fragile pivot of the
eternal future, Spiritism shows that this life is only one link in
the harmonious and magnificent whole of the Creator’s work.
Spiritism also demonstrates the solidarity that interconnects all
the existences of one being, all beings of the same world, and
all beings of all worlds. It thus provides a basis and a reason
for universal fraternity, whereas the doctrine of the creation of
the soul at the moment of the birth of each body renders all
beings strangers to one another. This solidarity among the parts
of the same whole explains what is inexplicable if only one part

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is considered. It is this whole that at the time of Christ people

would not have comprehended, and that is why he reserved such
knowledge for another time.

The Spirits’ Teachings

An Earthly Kingship
8. Who better than I can understand the truth of these
words of our Lord, “My kingdom is not of this world?”
I lost myself in pride while on the earth. Who, then, could
understand the insignificance of earth’s kingdoms if not I?
What of my earthly kingdom did I bring back here with me?
Nothing; absolutely nothing. And as if to make my lesson more
terrible, it did not even accompany me to the tomb! I was a
queen amongst men; as a queen I thought I would enter the
kingdom of heaven. Such delusion! Such humiliation, when,
instead of being received as a sovereign, I saw above me – far
above me – beings whom I had deemed quite small and whom
I had despised because they were not of noble blood! Oh! How
I then understood the barrenness of the honors and grandeurs
that I so eagerly sought on earth!
In order to prepare oneself for a place in this kingdom, self-
denial, humility, charity in all its heavenly forms, and benevolence
toward all are required. You are not asked who you were or what
position you occupied, but what good you did, the tears you
wiped away.
O Jesus! You said that your kingdom is not of this world
because one must suffer in order to reach heaven, and the steps of
a throne cannot lead us to it; only the most trying paths of life do.
Therefore, seek your path through the briars and thorns and not
amongst the flowers.

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People run after earthly things as if they were able to keep

them forever, but here there are no more illusions. They soon
perceive that they had only been chasing a shadow and that they
had neglected the only possessions that were solid and durable, the
only ones they could use in the heavenly home, the only ones that
give them access to it.
Have pity on those who have not gained the kingdom of
heaven. Help them with your prayers, for prayer brings people
closer to the Most High; it is the link of union between heaven
and earth. Do not forget that!
A queen of France (Havre, 1863)

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There are many dwellings

in my Father’s house
• The Different States of the Soul in the Errant State13 • The
Different Categories of Inhabited Worlds • Earth’s Destiny.
The Cause of Earthly Miseries • The Spirits’ Teachings: – Highly
Evolved and Less Evolved Worlds. – Worlds of Trial and
Expiation. – Regenerative Worlds. – The Progression of Worlds

1. “Let not your hearts be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me.
There are many dwellings in my Father’s house; if it were not so I would
have told you, for I am going to prepare the place, and after I have gone and
have prepared the place for you, I will return and will take you with me, so
that there where I am you may be also.” (Jn. 14:1-3)

13
Or erraticity: Intervals between reincarnations while the spirit is in the spirit world awaiting
a new destiny. See The Spirits’ Book, questions 223-233. – Tr.

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The Different States of the

Soul in the Errant State
2. The Father’s house is the universe; the different dwellings
are the worlds that revolve in infinite space, offering to incarnate
spirits stations appropriate to their advancement.
Regardless of the diversity of worlds, these words may also
be understood as referring to the happy or unhappy situation
of the spirit in the errant state. The spirit’s environment, its
point of view regarding things, the sensations it experiences and
its perceptions will vary infinitely, depending on its degree of
purification and how detached it is from material ties. While some
spirits cannot leave the sphere in which they live, others can travel
through space and go to other worlds. While certain guilty spirits
wander in darkness, the blessed ones enjoy a resplendent light and
the sublime spectacle of the infinite. Finally, while the evil spirit,
tormented by remorse and lamentation, frequently alone, without
consolation and separated from the objects of its affection, groans
under the duress of mental suffering, the righteous spirit, reunited
with those whom it loves, enjoys the delights of an indescribable
bliss. There are therefore many mansions, although they are neither
circumscribed nor localized.

The Different Categories

of Inhabited Worlds
3. From the teaching given by the Spirits, one comes to
understand that the various worlds are in conditions very different
from one another as to the degree of advancement or the lower
order status of their inhabitants. Among them are those whose
inhabitants are physically and morally even less evolved than
those of earth; others’ inhabitants are of the same level, whereas

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others’ are more highly evolved to differing degrees in every

respect. On lower order worlds, existence is completely material,
the passions reign supreme and moral life is almost non existent.
To the degree that moral life is developed, the influence of matter
diminishes in such a way that, on more advanced worlds, life is
entirely spiritual, so to speak.
4. On intermediate worlds, there is a mixture of good and
evil, with the predominance of one or the other, according to the
degree of advancement. Although it is not possible to make an
absolute classification of the various worlds, one can, nevertheless,
due to their status and destiny, and based on the more accentuated
differences, divide them in a general way as follows: primitive
worlds, intended for the first incarnations of the human soul;
worlds of trial and expiation, where evil dominates; regenerative
worlds, where souls who still have something to expiate may
absorb new strength by resting from the fatigue of struggle; happy
worlds, where the good outweighs evil; and heavenly or divine
worlds, the habitations of purified spirits, where the good reigns
completely. Earth belongs to the trial and expiation category, and
that is why humans on it are the target of so many miseries.
5. Spirits who incarnate on any one world are not connected
to it forever, nor do they complete on it all the progressive phases
they must traverse in order to attain to perfection. When on one
particular world they have reached the degree of advancement it
offers, they go to a more advanced one, and so on until they have
reached the state of pure spirits. These various worlds are the
stations on which they find elements of progress proportional to
their advancement. It is a recompense for them to go to a world
of a higher order, just as it is a punishment to prolong their
stay on an unhappy world or to be relegated to one that is even
unhappier than the one they are forced to leave if they have been
obstinate in evil.

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Earth’s Destiny. The Cause of Earthly Miseries

6. Surprised at finding on earth so much wickedness and
evil passion, so many miseries and infirmities of every sort, one
might come to the conclusion that the human species is a very
sad thing indeed. This judgment arises from the limited point
of view of those who hold it, and it gives an erroneous idea of
the whole. One must remember that not all of humankind is to
be found on the earth, but only a tiny fraction of it. Actually,
the human species entails all beings endowed with reason, who
populate the innumerable worlds of the universe; hence, what is
earth’s population when compared to the total population of all
those worlds? Much less than that of a tiny village when compared
to a great empire. The material and moral situation of earth’s
humankind is nothing surprising considering earth’s destination
and the nature of those who inhabit it.
7. One would form a very erroneous idea of the inhabitants
of a large city if they were judged by the populace of its infamous
and sordid quarters. In a hospital, one sees only the sick or maimed;
in a penitentiary, one sees all sorts of turpitudes and vices in one
place; in unhealthy regions, most of the inhabitants are pale, weak
and sickly. Well then, imagine the earth as being a sordid district,
a hospital, a penitentiary and an unhealthy region – because it
is all of these at once – and you will understand why afflictions
outweigh joys. This happens because one does not send healthy
persons to a hospital, or those who have practiced no evil to
houses of correction; nor can hospitals or houses of correction be
places of delight.
Hence, in the same way that in a city the whole population
is not in hospitals or prisons, the whole of humankind is not on
the earth. And just as one leaves the hospital when one has been
cured and the prison when one has served one’s time, humans

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leave the earth for happier worlds when they have been healed of
their moral infirmities.

The Spirits’ Teachings

Highly Evolved and Less Evolved Worlds
8. The catagorizing of worlds as either less evolved or highly
evolved is more relative than absolute. A world is less evolved or
highly evolved in relation to those that are above or below it on the
scale of progression.
Taking the earth as a point of comparison, one can form
an idea of the state of a less evolved world by supposing its
inhabitants to be at the degree of the primitive or barbaric14
cultures that may still be found on earth’s surface, and which are
remnants of earth’s primitive state. On the least evolved worlds,
the beings that inhabit them are, to a certain extent, rudimentary.
They have the human form but are devoid of any beauty. Their
instincts are not tempered by any sentiment of refinement or
benevolence, or by any notions of right or wrong. Brute force is
the only law. With no industry or inventions, they spend life in
conquest of food. Nevertheless, God does not abandon any of
his creatures; in the darkest depths of their mind lies the latent,
sometimes more, sometimes less developed, vague intuition of
a Supreme Being. This instinct is enough to render some more
advanced than others and to prepare their ascension to a more
complete life, for they are not degraded beings but children who
are growing up.
In between the lowest and highest degrees there are
innumerable levels, and in the pure, dematerialized spirits shining
in glory it is difficult to recognize those who used to animate such

14
See “Explanatory Note” p. 567 – Pub.

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primitive beings, in the same way that in the adult person it is

difficult to recognize the embryo.
9. In worlds that have reached a highly evolved degree, the
conditions of moral and material life are very different from those
on earth. The corporeal form, as everywhere else, is always the
human form, but embellished, perfected and, above all, purified.
The body possesses nothing of earthly materiality, and consequently
is subject neither to the needs, the diseases, nor the deteriorations
that the predominance of matter engenders. The senses, more
refined, have perceptions that the denseness of the organs stifle
on this world. The specific lightness of the body enables rapid and
easy locomotion; instead of dragging itself laboriously over the
ground, it glides – so to speak – over the surface or sails through
the air with no other effort than that of the will, in the way in
which angels are portrayed, or in which the ancients imagined
the manes15 on the Elysian Fields. Depending on their wishes,
humans retain the features of their past migrations and appear to
their friends as they were known to them, but illuminated by a
divine light and transfigured by inner impressions that are always
of an elevated nature. Instead of pallid faces stricken by suffering
and passion, intelligence and life radiate from that splendor, which
painters have portrayed by the halo or aureole of the saints.
The little resistance that matter poses to highly advanced
spirits renders the development of bodies more rapid and infancy
short or almost non-existent. In the absence of worries and
troubles, life is proportionally much longer than on earth. In
principle, longevity is proportional to the degree of advancement
of each world. Death holds none of the horrors of decomposition.
Far from being an object of dread, it is regarded as a happy
transformation, because on such worlds the doubt as to the future
does not exist. During life, the soul, not being enclosed within
15
The spirits of the dead in ancient Greco-Roman belief (Webster’s, op. cit). – Tr.

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compact matter, radiates and enjoys a lucidity that places it in an

almost permanent state of emancipation and allows for the free
transmission of thought.
10. On such blissful worlds, relationships between nations
are always friendly and are never disturbed by the ambition of
dominating their neighbor, or by war, which is its consequence.
There are no masters, slaves or privileges of birth; only moral and
intellectual ascendancy establish the differences of conditions and
confer supremacy. Authority is always respected, for it is conferred
only on those who have merit and it is always exercised with justice.
Humans do not try to raise themselves above others, but only above
themselves by striving for perfection. Their objective is to reach the
class of the pure spirits, and this unceasing desire is not a torment
but a noble ambition that makes them study ardently in order
to become like them. All the tender and elevated sentiments of
human nature are found there, augmented and purified. Hatred,
petty jealousies and the menial covetousness of envy are unknown.
A bond of love and fraternity unites all humans; the strongest
help the weakest. Their possessions vary to a greater or lesser
degree according to what they have acquired by means of their
intelligence, but no one suffers for lack of necessities, since no one
is undergoing expiation. In other words, evil does not exist.
11. On your world, you need evil in order to sense the good;
night to admire the light; sickness to appreciate health. On highly
evolved worlds such contrasts are not necessary. Eternal light,
eternal beauty and eternal serenity of the soul provide an eternal
joy that is disturbed neither by the anxieties of material life nor
contact with evil persons, who have no access there. This is what
the human spirit finds most difficult to comprehend; ingenious at
painting the torments of hell, it could never represent the delights
of heaven. Why not? Because, being little-evolved, it has borne only
pain and misery, and not having glimpsed the heavenly splendor,

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it can only speak of what it knows. As the human spirit evolves

and purifies itself, however, the horizon becomes resplendent and
it comprehends the good that lies ahead as well as the evil that has
been left behind.
12. Nevertheless, such fortunate worlds are not privileged, for
God is not partial toward any of his children. He gives to all the same
rights and faculties to ascend to such worlds. God makes all start from
the same point and endows no one with more than the others. The
highest positions are accessible to all, and it is their responsibility to
win them through labor, to reach them as soon as possible or to linger
through centuries and centuries in the underworlds of humankind.
(Summary of the teaching of all the Spirits.)
Worlds of Trial and Expiation
13. What more can I tell you about worlds of expiation than
what you already know, since all you have to do is consider the
earth that you inhabit? The superior intelligence of a large number
of its inhabitants indicates that it is not a primitive world meant
for the incarnation of spirits who have just left the hands of the
Creator. The innate qualities they bring with them are proof that
they have already lived and achieved a certain amount of progress.
However, the numerous vices to which they are inclined are also
an indication of great moral imperfection. This is why God has
placed them on an ungrateful earth: so that they may expiate on it
their wrongs through pain-filled labor and the miseries of life until
they have merited going to a happier world.
14. Nevertheless, not all the spirits that incarnate on the
earth are sent there in expiation. The so-called primitive16 peoples
are spirits who have just left infancy, and who are there for an
education, so to speak, and to develop themselves through contact
with more-advanced spirits. Next come the semi-civilized peoples,

16
See “Explanatory Note” p. 567 – Pub.

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comprised of the same spirits in more advanced stages of progress.

Generally speaking, these are the indigenous peoples of earth, who
have evolved little by little through long centennial periods. Some
of them have been able to reach the intellectual advancement of
more enlightened peoples.
Spirits undergoing expiation are foreigners there, if we may
so express ourselves. They have already lived on other worlds, from
which they were banished because they persisted in evil, and because
they were a cause of disturbance to the good inhabitants. They have
been relegated to living for a time among less advanced spirits, and
since they carry with them their developed intelligence and the
seed of acquired knowledge, they have the mission of helping them
advance. That is why punished spirits are found in the midst of the
most intelligent peoples. Having more sensitivity, the miseries of life
are bitterer to them because sufferings bruise them more deeply than
they bruise the primitive peoples, whose moral sense is more obtuse.17
15. Consequently, the earth portrays one of the types of
expiatory worlds, whose variety is infinite, although they all
possess the common characteristic of serving as a place of exile for
spirits who rebel against the law of God. There, such spirits must
struggle simultaneously against the wickedness of humankind
and the inclemency of nature, a two-fold and arduous endeavor
that at the same time develops the qualities of both heart and
intelligence. It is thus that God, in his divine goodness, enables
punishment itself to revert to the advantage of the spirit’s progress.
St. Augustine (Paris, 1862)
Regenerative Worlds
16. Among the stars that twinkle in the blue canopy of the
firmament, how many worlds there are like yours, designated by
the Lord for trial and expiation! But there are also some that are

17
See “Explanatory Note” p. 567 – Pub.

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more miserable and some that are better; and there are those of
transition, which may be called regenerative. Each planetary vortex,
moving in space around a common center, draws along with it its
own worlds: primitive, exile, trial, regenerative and blissful. We
have already spoken to you of those worlds where the newborn
soul is placed, when, still ignorant of good and evil, it can progress
toward God, lord of itself, in possession of its free will. You have
already been informed regarding the ample faculties given to the
soul so that it may practice the good. But alas! There are those who
succumb, and God, not desiring their annihilation, permits them
to go to those worlds where, from incarnation to incarnation, they
purify and regenerate themselves, and return worthy of the glory
that has been reserved for them.
17. Regenerative worlds serve as a transition between worlds
of expiation and worlds of bliss. The repentant soul finds peace
and repose on them, and ends up purifying itself. Of course, on
such worlds humans are still subject to the laws that govern matter;
their humanity still experiences your sensations and desires but
is free of the muddled passions that enslave you; on regenerative
worlds there is no longer the pride that renders your heart silent,
the envy that tortures it and the hatred that suffocates it. The
word love is written on every brow, a perfect equity governs social
relationships, and all acknowledge God, endeavoring to evolve
toward him by following his laws.
Nonetheless, on them there is still not perfect bliss, but the
dawning of happiness. Human beings there are still of flesh, and
therefore subject to the vicissitudes from which only completely
dematerialized beings are freed. There are still trials to endure, but
they do not have the pungent anguish of expiation. Compared to
the earth, these worlds are very happy, and many of you would be
satisfied to settle on them, for they are the calm after the storm,
the convalescence after a cruel disease. Since humans there are less

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absorbed by material things, they foresee the future better than

you do. They comprehend the joys that the Lord promises to those
who render themselves worthy, when death has once again reaped
their bodies in order to bestow upon them true life. It is then that
the delivered soul hovers above all horizons; there are no longer the
material and coarse senses, but the senses of a pure and celestial
perispirit breathing emanations from God, in aromas of love and
charity that emanate from his heart.
18. But alas! On those worlds humans are still fallible and
the spirit of evil has not completely lost its empire. Not to advance
is to retreat, and if individuals are not firm on the pathway of the
good, they may fall back to worlds of expiation where new and
more fearsome trials await them.
So at night, at the time of repose and prayer, contemplate
that blue canopy and the innumerable spheres that shine above
your heads, and ask yourselves which ones lead to God. Ask him
for a regenerative world to open up to receive you after your
expiation on the earth.
St. Augustine (Paris, 1862)
The Progression of Worlds
19. Progress is one of the laws of nature. All animate and
inanimate beings of creation are submitted to it by the goodness of
God, who wills for everything to grow and prosper. Death, which to
humans appears to be the end of things, is only a means of reaching
a more perfect state through transformation, since everything dies
in order to be reborn, and nothing suffers annihilation.
At the same time that living beings progress morally, the
worlds they inhabit progress materially. Whoever could follow a
world in its different phases, from the instant in which the first
atoms destined to constitute it began to agglomerate, would
see it traveling an incessantly progressive scale, but by degrees

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imperceptible to each generation, and offering its inhabitants a

dwelling more agreeable as they themselves advance on the path
of progress. Thus, the progress of human beings, animals (their
helpers), plants and the forms of habitations progress in parallel;
nothing in nature remains stationary. How grand this idea is and
how worthy of the magnificence of the Creator! On the other
hand, how small and unworthy of the Creator’s power is the idea
that focuses his kindness and providence on the imperceptible
grain of sand that is the earth and restricts humankind to the few
humans who inhabit it!
The earth, according to that law, was once materially and
morally in a state inferior to today, and under this dual aspect it
will reach a more elevated degree. It has arrived at one of its periods
of transformation, in which, from being an expiatory world, it will
become a regenerative one; then humans will be happy because
God’s law will reign on it.
St. Augustine (Paris, 1862)

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No one can see the

kingdom of God unless
he is born again
• Resurrection and Reincarnation • Family Ties
Strengthened by Reincarnation, but Severed by
a Single Existence • The Spirits’ Teachings

1. Jesus, having come to the outskirts of Caesarea Philippi, asked his disciples
and said to them, “What do men say regarding the Son of Man? Who do they
say I am?” They answered him, “Some say you are John the Baptist; others,
Elijah, others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” Jesus said to them, “And you,
who do you say I am?” Simon Peter said to him, “You are the Christ, the Son
of the living God.” Jesus responded to him, “You are blessed, Simon, son of
Jonah, because it was neither flesh nor blood that has revealed this to you,
but my Father who is in heaven.” (Mt. 16:13-17; Mk. 8:27-30)

2. Meanwhile, when Herod the Tetrarch heard about everything that Jesus
was doing, his spirit was perplexed, because some were saying that John had
come back to life from among the dead; others that Elijah had appeared, and

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others that one of the ancient prophets had come back to life. Herod then
said, “I had John beheaded, so who is this of whom I have heard such great
things?” And he desired to see him. (Mk. 6:14-15; Lk. 9:7-9)

3. (After the transfiguration) His disciples asked him, saying “Why, then, do
the scribes say that it is necessary for Elijah to come first?” But Jesus answered
them, “It is true that Elijah must come and reestablish all things. But I
declare to you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him,
but treated him as they wished. It is likewise that they shall cause the Son
of Man to suffer.” Then his disciples understood that it was John the Baptist
about whom he had spoken to them. (Mt. 17:10-13; Mk. 9:10-12)

Resurrection and Reincarnation

4. Reincarnation was part of the Jewish dogmas under the
name resurrection. Only the Sadducees, who thought that everything
ended with death, did not believe in it. Jewish ideas on this point,
like many others, were not clearly defined because they had only
vague and incomplete notions regarding the soul and its connection
with the body. They believed that a person who had lived could live
again, without comprehending the exact manner in which it could
happen. They designated by the word resurrection what Spiritism
more correctly calls reincarnation. Actually, resurrection supposes the
return to life of the body that died, which science has demonstrated
to be materially impossible, especially when the elements of that
body were dispersed and absorbed long ago. Reincarnation is the
return of a soul, or spirit, to corporeal life, but in another body
newly formed for it and having nothing in common with the old
one. The word resurrection might thus be applied to Lazarus but not
to Elijah or the other prophets. Hence, if, according to their belief,
John the Baptist was Elijah, John’s body could not have been Elijah’s,
since John had been seen as a child and his mother and father were
known. John, then, could be Elijah reincarnated but not resuscitated.

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 No one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again

5. Now, there was a man among the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a senator
of the Jews, who went at night to meet Jesus and said to him, “Rabbi, we
know you have come from God to instruct us as a doctor; for no one could
perform the miracles you are doing if God were not with him.”

Jesus answered him, “Verily, verily I say to you: no one can see the Kingdom
of God unless he is born again.”

Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man who is already old be born? Can
he enter his mother’s womb in order to be born a second time?”

Jesus responded, “Verily, verily I say to you: If a man is not born again of water
and the spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God. Whatever is born from flesh is
flesh, and whatever is born from the spirit is spirit. Do not be surprised that I have
said to you that it is necessary for you to be born again. The spirit blows wherever it
wishes and you hear its voice, but you do not know where it comes from or where it
is going. The same occurs with every man who is born of the spirit.”

Nicodemus responded to him, “How can this be?” Jesus said to him, “You are
a teacher in Israel and yet you are unaware of these things! Verily, verily I say
to you that we say only what we know and that we testify only to what we
have seen; yet you have not accepted our testimony. But if you do not believe
me when I speak about things of the earth, how will you believe me when I
speak to you about the things of heaven?” (Jn. 3:1-12)

6. The thought that John the Baptist was Elijah and that the
prophets could live again on the earth may be found in many passages
of the Gospels, especially in those indicated above (nos. 1-3). If this
belief had been in error, Jesus would not have failed to combat it just
as he combated so many others; far from it – he sanctioned it with
all his authority and set it as a principle and necessary condition
when he said: “No one can see the Kingdom of Heaven if he is not
born again.” And he insisted, adding, “Do not be surprised that I have
said that IT IS NECESSARY for you to be born again.”

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7. The words “If a man is not born again of water and of the
spirit” have been interpreted in the sense of regeneration through
the waters of baptism, but the original text simply stated “Not born
again of water and of the spirit,” whereas in some translations the
words of the spirit have been replaced by of the Holy Spirit, which
no longer implies the same thought. This crucial point stands out
in the first commentaries written on the Gospels and will someday
be confirmed beyond a doubt.18
8. In order to understand the real meaning of these words,
one must also pay attention to the significance of the word water,
which has not been employed in its proper acceptation.
The ancients’ knowledge regarding the physical sciences was
highly imperfect, because they believed that the earth had arisen
from the waters, and that is the reason they regarded water as the
absolute generative element. That is why it is stated in Genesis
that, “The Spirit of God hovered over the waters; it hovered over
the surface of the waters; ... Let there be a firmament in the midst
of the waters; ... Let the waters that are under the heavens be
gathered together into one place, and let the dry element appear;
... Let the waters produce living animals that swim in the water and
birds that fly above the earth and under the firmament.”

1
Osterwald’s translation is in accordance with the original text. It reads: “Not born again of
water and of the spirit.” That of Sacy reads: “of the Holy Spirit”; that of Lamennais: “of the
Holy Spirit.” – Auth.
To Kardec’s footnote we today can add that modern translations have restored the original
text by rendering the phrase “spirit” instead of “Holy Spirit”. We have also examined
Brazilian, English, and Ferreira de Almeida’s Esperanto translations and they all read only
“the spirit.”
Besides these modern translations, we found confirmation in a Latin one by Theodoro de
Beze from 1642, which reads, “… genitus ex aqua et Spiritu…” “… et quod genitum est ex
Spiritu, spiritus est.”
It is beyond a doubt that the word “Holy” is an interpolation, as stated by Kardec. –
Publisher’s note.
The biblical text in Kardec’s version, despite being that of Sacy, does not render the term
as “Saint-Esprit” (Holy Spirit) and we have held to Kardec’s rendition. – Tr.

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 No one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again

According to this belief, water became the symbol of the

material nature, just as spirit was the symbol of the intelligent
nature. The words, “If a man is not born again of water and of the
spirit,” or “in water and in the spirit,” thus mean, “If humans are
not born again with their body and their soul.” This is the sense in
which these words were originally understood.
Moreover, such an interpretation is justified by these words:
“Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh and whatever is born of the spirit
is spirit.” Here, Jesus makes a positive distinction between spirit and
body. “Whatever is born of the flesh clearly indicates that only the
body proceeds from the body and that the spirit is independent of it.
9. “The spirit blows wherever it wishes and you hear its voice
but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going” may be
understood either as the Spirit of God, who gives life to whomever
God wishes, or the human soul. In this latter acceptation, “you
do not know where it comes from or where it is going” means
that no one knows what the spirit had been or what it will be.
If the spirit or soul were created at the same time as the body,
one would know where it came from because one would know
its beginning. In any case, this passage is the consecration of the
principle of the pre-existence of the soul, and consequently, the
plurality of existences.
10. Now, since the time of John the Baptist until the present, the kingdom of
heaven has been taken by violence, and violent are those who obtain it, for
up until John, all the prophets and the law thus prophesied. And if you wish
to understand what I have said, he himself is Elijah who must come. Let
him hear who has ears to hear. (Mt. 11:12-15.)

11. If the principle of reincarnation as expressed in John

could be strictly interpreted in a purely mystical sense, the
same could not apply to this passage from Matthew, which is
unmistakable: “HE HIMSELF is Elijah, who must come.” Here

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there is neither symbol nor allegory – it is a positive affirmation.

“Since the time of John the Baptist until the present, the kingdom of
heaven has been taken by violence.” What do these words mean,
since John the Baptist was still alive at that time? Jesus explains
them, saying, “If you want to understand what I have told you, he
himself is Elijah, who must come.” Hence, since John was none
other than Elijah himself, Jesus was alluding to the time when
John was living under the name of Elijah. “Until the present,
the kingdom has been taken by violence” is another allusion to
the violence of the Mosaic Law, which ordered the extermination
of the infidels to win the Promised Land, the Paradise of the
Hebrews, whereas according to the new law, heaven is won by
charity and kindness.
Then he added, “Let him hear who has ears to hear.” These
words, so frequently repeated by Jesus, clearly state that not
everyone was in a condition to understand certain truths.
12. “Those of your people who have been made to die shall live again. Those
who have been slain around me shall live again. Awaken from your sleep
and sing the praises of God, you who dwell in the dust, because the dew that
falls upon you is a dew of light, and because you shall destroy the earth and
the kingdom of the giants.”(Is. 26:19)

13. This passage from Isaiah is also quite explicit: “Those

of your people who have been made to die shall live again.” If the
prophet had intended to speak of the spirit life, if he had wanted
to say that those who had been made to die were not dead in spirit,
he would have said: “live still,” and not “will live again.” In the
sense of the spirit, these words would be a contradiction since they
would imply an interruption in the life of the soul. In the sense of
moral regeneration, however, they would be the negation of eternal
punishment, since in principle they establish that all those who are
dead will live again.

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 No one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again

14.“But when a man has died once, when his body, separated from his spirit,
has been consumed, what does he become? Having died once, can he live
again? In this war in which I find myself every day of my life, I wait for my
transformation to come.” (Job 14:10, 14. Translation by Le Maistre de Sacy)

When a man dies, he loses all his strength and expires; afterward, where
is he? If a man dies, will he live again? Will I wait all the days of my
struggle until that one in which some kind of transformation comes to me?
(id. Protestant translation by Osterwald)

When a man has died, he lives forever; the days of my earthly existence ending,
I will wait, because to it I shall return. (id. Version of the Greek Church)19

15. The principle of the plurality of existences is clearly

expressed in these three versions. It cannot be assumed that Job
wanted to speak of regeneration through the waters of baptism,
which he of course did not know about. “But when a man has died
once, could he live again?” The idea of dying once and living again
implies dying and living again several times. The Greek Church
version is even more explicit, if that is possible. “The days of my
earthly existence ending, I will wait, because to it I shall return,”
which means, I shall return to earthly existence. This is as clear as if
someone were to say: “I’m leaving my house, but I shall return to it.”
“In this war in which I find myself every day of my life, I wait
for my transformation to come.” Job obviously wanted to speak
of the struggle he bore against the miseries of life. He awaits his
transformation; meaning, he had resigned himself. In the Greek
version, I will wait seems especially to apply to a new existence,
“the days of my earthly existence ending, I will wait, because to it I
shall return.” Job seems to place himself after death in the interval
that separates one existence from another and says that there he
will await his return.

1
Since Kardec is quoting from three historic translations, we have rendered them as closely
as possible according to their original form. – Tr.

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16. Hence, there is no doubt that under the name resurrection,

the principle of reincarnation was one of the fundamental beliefs of
the Jews; that it was confirmed by Jesus and the prophets formally,
from which it follows that to deny reincarnation is to deny the
words of Christ himself. Someday, his words will comprise an
authority regarding this point – like many others – when they are
meditated upon without preconceived ideas.
17. However, to this authority that arises from the religious
point of view is added the philosophical point of view of the proofs
that result from observing the facts. When one wants to go from the
effects to the cause, reincarnation emerges as an absolute necessity, a
condition inherent to humanity; in other words, as a law of nature. It
reveals itself by its results in a way that is material – so to speak – like
a hidden motor reveals itself by the movement. Only the doctrine of
reincarnation can tell human beings where they came from, where they
are going and why they are on the earth, and justify all the anomalies
and all the apparent injustices that life presents.20
Without the principle of the pre-existence of the soul and
the plurality of existences, most of the maxims in the Gospel
are unintelligible, and that is why they have given way to such
contradictory interpretations. This principle is the key that must
restore them to their true meaning.

Family Ties Strengthened by Reincarnation,

but Severed by a Single Existence
18. Family ties are not destroyed by reincarnation, as certain
persons believe; on the contrary, they are strengthened and become
tighter. It is the opposite principle that does destroy them.

20
For the development of the doctrine of reincarnation, see The Spirits’ Book, chaps. IV and V;
What is Spiritism? chap. II, by Allan Kardec, and also La Pluralité des Existences by Pezzani –
French publisher’s note.

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 No one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again

In the spirit world, spirits form groups or families united by

affection, sympathy and similar inclinations. These spirits, happy
at being together, seek out one another. Incarnation separates them
only momentarily, because after their reentry into the errant state
they meet again like friends who have returned from a journey.
Frequently, they even follow one another into incarnation, wherein
they are reunited in the same family or the same circle, working
together for their mutual advancement. If some are incarnate while
others are not, they are nevertheless united by thought. Those who
are free watch over those who are captive; the more advanced try
to help the less advanced to progress. After each existence, they
will have taken a step on the path toward perfection. Less and less
attached to matter, their affection is more alive due to the fact that
since their spirit has become more purified, it is no longer troubled
by selfishness or the clouds of the passions. They can therefore pass
through an unlimited number of corporeal existences without any
harm affecting their mutual affection.
It is to be understood that we are here referring to real affection
from soul to soul, the only affection that survives the destruction
of the body, because beings of this world who are united to one
another only through the senses have no reason to look for each
other in the world of spirits. There are no lasting affections except
spiritual ones; physical affections die out with the cause that gave
rise to them; but that cause no longer exists in the world of spirits,
whereas the soul exists forever. As for persons united by the sole
reason of self-interest, they really do not mean anything to each
other – death separates them both in heaven and on earth.
19. The union and affection that exist between family
members are an indication of a former sympathy21 that has
brought them together. One also says of someone whose character,
21
Sympathy: “Harmony of or agreement in feeling, as between persons or on the part of one
person with respect to another. The harmony of feeling existing between persons of like
tastes or opinion, or of congenial dispositions.” (Webster’s, op. cit.) – Tr.

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tastes, and inclinations have no similarity to those of their

closest relatives, that he or she is not of that family. Saying this
declares a greater truth than one might suppose. God allows such
incarnations of antipathetic or foreign spirits within families with
the dual objective of serving as a trial for some and as a means
of advancement for others. The evil ones better themselves little
by little through contact with the good ones and the care they
receive from them. Their character becomes milder, their habits
more purified and antipathies are erased. It is thus that the fusion
amongst different categories of spirits is established, as occurs on
the earth amongst ethnicities and cultures.
20. The fear of the unending increasing of kinship as a
consequence of reincarnation is a selfish fear, which demonstrates
that one does not feel a sufficiently broad love to carry it over
to a large number of individuals. Does a father who has many
children love them all any less than he would if he had only one?
But selfish people may rest at ease because such fear is without
foundation. From the fact that one man has had ten incarnations
it does not follow that in the spirit world he will encounter ten
fathers, ten mothers, ten wives and a proportional number of
children and new relatives. There he will always re-encounter
only the same objects of his affection, those who had been
connected with him while on earth under various relationships,
or perhaps even the same ones.
21. Let us now look at the consequences of the “non-
reincarnation” doctrine. This doctrine necessarily annuls the
pre-existence of the soul. Since souls are created at the same time
as the body, there are no previous links between them. They are
complete strangers to one another. The father is a stranger to
his child. The kinship between families is thus reduced solely to
corporeal kinship without any spiritual link. There is therefore
no reason to glorify oneself for having had such and such famous

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personages as ancestors. With reincarnation, ancestors and

descendants may have known each other, lived together, loved
each other, and find themselves reunited later on in order to
tighten their bonds of sympathy.
22. All this has to do with the past. As for the future,
according to one of the fundamental dogmas resulting from non-
reincarnation, the destiny of souls is irrevocably set after one
sole existence. This definitive fixing of their destiny implies the
cessation of all progress, because if there is any progress at all, there
is no longer a definitive destiny. Depending on whether they have
lived well or badly, they go immediately either to the dwelling
place of the blessed or to eternal hell. Hence, they are immediately
separated forever, without hope of ever being united again, so that
fathers, mothers and children, husbands and wives, brothers,
sisters and friends are never certain of seeing each other again. It is
the most complete rupture of family ties.
With reincarnation and the progress that results from it,
all those who have loved one another meet again on earth and in
space, gravitating together to reach God. Those who fail along
the way delay their advancement and happiness, but all hope
is not lost. Helped, encouraged and upheld by those who love
them, they will one day exit the quagmire in which they have
been immersed. In short, with reincarnation there is ongoing
solidarity between incarnates and discarnates, and hence the
tightening of the bonds of affection.
23. In summary, four alternatives are presented to humans for
their future beyond the grave: first, nothingness, according to the
materialist doctrine; second, absorption into the universal whole,
according to the pantheistic doctrine; third, individuality with a
definitive fixed fate, according to the Church’s doctrine; fourth,
individuality with unending progress, according to the Spiritist
doctrine. According to the first two, family ties are broken after

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death, and there is no hope of meeting again; with the third, there
is a chance family members will see each other again, provided
they are in the same environment, and this environment might
be hell as well as heaven; with the plurality of existences, which is
inseparable from gradual progression, there is certainty about the
continuity of relationships between those who love one another,
and this is what comprises the true family.

The Spirits’ Teachings

The Limits on Incarnation
24. What are the limits of incarnation?
“Incarnation per se does not have precisely traced limits if
the term is understood as referring to the envelope that comprises
the body of the spirit, considering the fact that the materiality of
this envelope diminishes as the spirit purifies itself. On certain
worlds more advanced than earth, the body is less compact, less
heavy and less course, and consequently, less subject to vicissitudes.
At a higher degree, it is diaphanous and almost fluidic. Degree by
degree it is dematerialized and ends up melding with the perispirit.
Depending on the world on which the spirit is called to live, the
spirit takes on the envelope appropriate to the nature of that world.
The perispirit itself endures successive transformations. It
becomes more and more etherealized each time up to complete
purification, which characterizes pure spirits. If special worlds
are meant as stations for highly advanced spirits, such spirits are
not connected there as on lower worlds. The state of detachment
in which they find themselves enables them to go anywhere the
missions entrusted to them may call them.
If incarnation is considered from the material point of
view – as is the case here on earth – it could be stated that it is

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limited to less evolved worlds. It therefore depends on the spirit

to free itself quickly or less quickly by working for its purification.
One must also consider the fact that in the errant state, that
is, in the intervals between corporeal existences, the situation of
the spirit is in keeping with the nature of the world to which it
is connected according to its degree of advancement; that in the
errant state it is more or less happy, free and enlightened according
to the degree of its dematerialization.
St. Louis (Paris, 1859)
Need for Incarnation
25. Is incarnation a punishment and are only guilty spirits
subject to it?
The passage of spirits through corporeal life is necessary
so that they may accomplish, with the help of physical action,
the designs whose execution God has entrusted to them. This is
necessary for them because the activity they are obliged to perform
helps the development of their intelligence. God, being supremely
just, must regard all his children equally; that is why he gives
all of them the same starting point, the same aptitude, the same
obligations to fulfill and the same freedom to act. Any privilege would
be a preference and any preference an injustice. But incarnation is
nothing for all spirits but a transitory state. It is a task that God
imposes on them upon their entry into life as the first test of the
use they will make of their free will. Those who eagerly fulfill this
task quickly and less painfully clear their first degree of initiation
and enjoy the fruits of their labor sooner. On the other hand, those
who make bad use of the freedom that God has granted them
delay their advancement; it is thus that by their obstinacy they
may prolong indefinitely the need to reincarnate, and it is at that
point that incarnation becomes a punishment.
St. Louis (Paris, 1859)

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26. Comment: A rough comparison will make this difference

more understandable. Students can reach degrees of knowledge
only after having passed through the series of classes leading to
it. These classes, whatever the work they require, are a means for
reaching the objective and not a punishment. Diligent students
shorten the way and encounter fewer thorns along it. It is otherwise
for those whose negligence and laziness obligate them to repeat
certain classes. It is not the class work that is a punishment, but the
obligation to recommence the same work.
The same applies to humankind on the earth. For the
spirits of primitives, who are nearly at the beginning of their spirit
lives, incarnation is a means for developing their intelligence.
However, for educated individuals in whom the moral sense is
broadly developed and who are obligated to recommence the steps
of a corporeal life full of anguish, when they could have already
reached the objective, it is a punishment because of their need to
prolong their stay on lower and unfortunate worlds. On the other
hand, those who work actively for their moral progress not only
shorten the duration of physical incarnation, but they may all at
once transcend the intermediate degrees that separate them from
the more highly evolved worlds.
Might spirits incarnate only once on the same globe and
fulfill their many existences on different spheres? This opinion
would be acceptable only if all the humans on earth were at the
same intellectual and moral level. The differences among them,
from primitives to civilized individuals, show the many degrees
that they are called to ascend. Moreover, an incarnation must have
a useful purpose. But what would be the useful purpose of the
ephemeral incarnations of children who die very young? They
would have suffered without profiting either themselves or others.
God, whose laws are all supremely wise, does nothing useless.
Through reincarnation on the same globe, God has willed that

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the same spirits come into contact with one another again for the
chance to repair their mutual offenses. Because of their previous
relationships, God wishes furthermore to establish family ties on a
spiritual basis and to support the principles of solidarity, fraternity
and equality as a natural law.

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Blessed are the afflicted

• The Justice of Afflictions • Current Causes of Afflictions
• Prior causes of afflictions • Forgetfulness of the Past •
Reasons for Resigning Oneself • Suicide and Insanity • The
Spirits’ Teachings: To Suffer Well or Badly. – Evil and Its
Remedy. – Happiness Is Not of This World. – The Loss of
Loved Ones; Premature Deaths. – If He Had Been a Good
Man, He Would Have Died. – Voluntary Suffering. – True
Misfortune. – Melancholy. – Voluntary Trials. True Sackcloth. –
Should We Put an End to Our Neighbor’s Trials? – Is It
Permissible to Shorten the Life of a Patient Who Is Suffering
With no Hope of a Cure? – Sacrificing One’s Own Life. –
Making One’s Own Suffering Profitable for Others

1. “Blessed are they who weep, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are they
who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. Blessed are
they who suffer persecution because of righteousness, for the kingdom of
heaven is theirs.” (Mt. 5:4, 6, 10)

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2. “You are blessed, you who are poor, for the kingdom of heaven is yours. You
are blessed, you who now hunger, for you shall be filled. You are fortunate,
you who now weep, for you shall laugh.” (Lk. 6:20, 21)

“But woe to you who are rich! For you have your consolation in this world.
Woe to you who are filled, for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who now
laugh, for you shall be reduced to mourning and tears.” (Lk. 6:24, 25)

The Justice of Afflictions

3. The compensations that Jesus promises to the afflicted of
the earth cannot occur except in the future life. Without certainty
about the future, these maxims would be nonsense; even more,
they would be a falsehood. But even with this certainty, it is
difficult to understand the usefulness of suffering in order to be
happy. It is said that it is in order to have greater merit. But then
one must ask: Why do some suffer more than others? Why are
some born into poverty and others into opulence, without having
done anything to justify such a position? Why does nothing ever
work out for some, while everything seems to smile on others?
But what is even harder to grasp is seeing benefits and misfortunes
so unequally divided between vice and virtue; seeing virtuous
people suffer alongside the wicked ones who prosper. Faith in the
future might offer consolation and lead to patience, but it does
not explain these anomalies, which appear to belie God’s justice.
However, if one believes in God, one cannot conceive of
God apart from infinite perfection. God must be all powerful,
wholly just and wholly good; otherwise, God would not be God.
If God is supremely good and just, then God can neither act
capriciously nor with partiality. Therefore, the vicissitudes of life
have a cause, and since God is just, that cause must also be just. This
is what everyone must understand very well. By means of Jesus’
teachings, God has placed humans on the path toward that cause,

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and today, having deemed them sufficiently mature to understand

it, God has revealed it entirely through Spiritism, i.e., through the
voice of the Spirits.

Current Causes of Afflictions

4. The vicissitudes of life are of two types, or if one prefers, they
have two very different sources that are important to differentiate:
some have their cause in the present life; others outside of it.
On searching for the source of earthly misfortunes, it will
be realized that many are the natural consequence of the character
and behavior of those who bear them.
How many fail due to their own fault! How many are the
victims of their own imprudence, pride and ambition!
How many ruin themselves for lack of discipline or perseverance,
for wrong conduct, or for not having limited their desires!
How many unfortunate marriages there are because they
result from calculated self-interest or vanity, and because the heart
has played no part!
How many disagreements and disastrous quarrels could
have been avoided with more moderation and less susceptibility!
How many ills and infirmities are the consequence of
intemperance and excesses of all kinds!
How many parents are unhappy with their children because
they did not combat their bad inclinations right from the start!
Whether from weakness or indifference, they allowed the seeds of
pride, selfishness and foolish vanity to develop in them, withering
their hearts. Afterward – much later – in reaping what they have
sown, they are surprised and afflicted by their children’s lack of
respect and gratitude.
Let all those who are stricken in their hearts by life’s
vicissitudes and disappointments calmly examine their conscience.

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Let them go back step by step to the source of the misfortunes that
afflict them and see whether they would not often say, “If only I had
or had not done this or that, I would not be in such a conundrum.”
Who then can they blame for all their afflictions but
themselves? Humans are thus in the majority of cases the artisans
of their own misfortunes. But instead of acknowledging this fact,
they find it simpler and less humiliating to their vanity to accuse
fate, Providence, bad luck or their unlucky star, whereas their
unlucky star lies in their own carelessness.
Misfortunes of this nature assuredly comprise a noteworthy
contingent in life’s vicissitudes, and humans will avoid them only
by working for their moral as well as their intellectual improvement.
5. Human law reaches certain wrongs and punishes them;
condemned persons can thus be said to bear the consequences of
what they have done. However, the law does not and cannot reach
every wrong; it touches mainly the wrongs that harm society and
not the ones that harm those who commit them. God, however,
wills the progress of all creatures, which is why God does not fail to
punish any departure from the moral path. There is no wrong, no
matter how small, or any infraction of the divine law that does not
have powerful and unavoidable consequences that may be more
regrettable or less so. Hence it follows that in both small and great
matters, humans are always punished for that in which they have
sinned. The suffering that is the sin’s consequence is a warning that
they have erred. It gives them experience, enabling them to sense
the difference between good and evil and the need to improve
themselves so that in the future they may avoid what has been for
them a source of bitterness; otherwise, there would be no motive
for mending their ways, and trusting in their impunity they would
delay their advancement and, consequently, their future happiness.
Experience, however, sometimes arrives a bit late, after life
has already been wasted and troubled, after strength has already

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been spent and after evil no longer has a remedy. Then the person
will say, “If only at the beginning of my life I had known what I
know today, how many wrongs I would have avoided! If I had it to
do all over again, I would do everything differently. But there is no
more time left!” Like the lazy worker who says, “I have wasted my
day,” he or she likewise says, “I have wasted my life!” Nonetheless,
just as the sun rises the next day for the worker and a new day
begins that allows him or her to make up for lost time, so also after
the night of the grave, the sun will shine with a new life, making it
possible to take advantage of the experiences of the past and make
good resolutions for the future.

Prior Causes of Afflictions

6. However, if there are misfortunes in this life of which
humans are the primary cause, there are others which, at least
in appearance, are completely foreign to them and which seem
to touch them fatalistically. Such is, for example, the loss of
loved ones and family breadwinners; such are, furthermore, the
accidents that no foresight could have prevented; the reversals of
fortune that frustrate all measures of prudence; natural disasters
and congenital infirmities, especially those that take from their
unfortunate victims the means of earning their livelihood through
labor, such as physical disabilities and mental impairment, etc.
Those who are born into such conditions have obviously
done nothing in their present life to deserve, without
compensation, such a sad fate, which they could not avoid,
which they are powerless to change by themselves, and which
puts them at the mercy of public commiseration. Why, then, are
there such unfortunate beings, while right beside them under the
same roof and in the same family there are others who have been
favored in every way?

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Finally, what can be said of those children who die at a

very young age, and who knew of life only suffering? These are
problems that no philosophy has yet been able to resolve, anomalies
that no religion has been able to justify, and which would be the
negation of God’s goodness, justice and providence according to
the hypothesis that the soul is created at the same time as the body
and that its fate is irrevocably set after a stay of but a few instants
upon the earth. What caused these souls, having just left the hands
of the Creator, to bear such miseries in this world, and to merit,
in the future, any sort of recompense or punishment, when they
could have done neither good nor evil?
Nevertheless, in virtue of the axiom that every effect has a cause,
these miseries are effects that must have a cause, and if one believes
in a just God, then that cause must also be just. Consequently, since
the cause always precedes the effect, and since the cause in this case
cannot be found in the present life, then it must be prior this life,
that is, it belongs to a previous existence. On the other hand, since
God can neither punish us for the good we have done nor for the
evil we have not done, then if we are being punished it is because we
have done evil. If we have not done evil in this life, then we did it in
another. This is an alternative that is impossible to escape and whose
logic shows on what side the justice of God lies.
Therefore, humans are not always or fully punished in their
current existence, but they can never escape the consequences of
their wrongs. The prosperity of evil persons is only momentary
and if they do not expiate their evil today, they will tomorrow;
likewise, those who suffer today are expiating their past. The
misfortune that at first seems to be undeserved thus has its reason
for being, and those who are suffering may always say, “Forgive me,
Lord, for I have sinned.”
7. Sufferings due to prior causes are frequently, like those
that arise from current wrongs, the natural consequence of wrongs

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that were committed previously; that is, through justice that is

strictly meted out, humans bear what they made others bear.
If they were hard and inhumane, they might in turn be treated
harshly and inhumanely; if they were proud, they might be born
into humiliating conditions; if they were miserly or selfish, or
if they made bad use of their wealth, they might be deprived of
necessities; if they were bad children, they might suffer from their
own children, etc.
Thus, through the plurality of existences and the function
of the earth as an expiatory world, one can explain the anomalies
displayed in the distribution of fortune and misfortune between
good and bad persons on this world. This anomaly exists in
appearance only because it is considered from the point of view
of the present life. However, if we elevate ourselves by means of
thought so as to embrace a series of existences, we will see that
everyone receives the share they deserve without harm to what
will be given to them in the spirit world, and that God’s justice is
never broken.
Humans must never lose sight of the fact that they are on a
less evolved world and that they are kept there solely because of their
imperfections. With each vicissitude, they must tell themselves
that if they belonged to a more advanced world, it would not be
happening, and that it depends on them alone – by working to
improve themselves – not to have to return to this world.
8. Life’s tribulations may be imposed on hardened spirits or
those too ignorant to make a choice knowingly, but they are freely
chosen and accepted by repentant spirits who want to repair the
evil they committed and to try to do better. So it is that, having
performed its task poorly, the spirit asks to start over so as not
to lose the benefit of its labor. Therefore, tribulations are at the
same time expiations that punish the past and trials for the future,
which they prepare. Let us render thanks to God, who, out of

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divine goodness, grants humans the possibility of reparation and

does not irrevocably condemn them for their first wrong.
9. One must not think, however, that every instance of
suffering endured on this world is necessarily the indication of
a specific wrong. They are often simply trials chosen by a spirit
to finish its purification and to accelerate its advancement.
Hence, expiation always serves as a trial, but a trial is not always
an expiation. Trials or expiations, however, are always signs of
a relatively low order spirit, because one who is perfect has no
more need of being tested. Consequently, a spirit may have
acquired a certain degree of elevation, but wanting to advance
further, it requests a mission, a task to complete. The more
trying the struggle, the more it will be recompensed if it emerges
victorious. Such are, more specifically, those persons of naturally
good instincts, of elevated spirit and noble innate sentiments,
who seem to have brought nothing evil from their previous
existence, and who endure the greatest afflictions with wholly
Christian resignation, asking God that they might bear them
without complaining. On the other hand, one may consider as
expiations those afflictions that provoke complaint and compel
humans to rebel against God.
Suffering that does not provoke complaint may undoubtedly
be an expiation, but this indicates it was voluntarily chosen
beforehand rather than imposed, and it is a test of a strong
resolution, which is a sign of progress.
10. Spirits cannot aspire to perfect happiness as long as
they are impure. Any kind of blemish prevents their entry onto
blissful worlds. They are like the passengers on a plague ship,
to whom entrance to a town is forbidden until they have been
purified. It is in their many corporeal existences that spirits
rid themselves little by little of their imperfections. The trials
of life enable advancement when well accepted. As expiations,

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they erase wrongs and purify. It is the medicine that cleanses the
sores and heals the patient. The graver the illness, the stronger
the medicine must be. Therefore, those who suffer greatly must
tell themselves that they have much to expiate, and should
rejoice at being healed sooner. It depends on them, through
resignation, to make such suffering profitable and not to waste
the fruit by complaining. Without resignation, they will have
to start all over again.

Forgetfulness of the Past

11. It is in vain that one objects that forgetfulness is an
obstacle to taking advantage of experiences from previous lives.
If God has deemed it appropriate to cast a veil over the past, it is
because it must be useful. In fact, such remembrance would entail
serious inconveniences. In certain cases, it could humiliate us
greatly or perhaps exalt our pride, and for that very reason interfere
with our free will. In any case, it would cause an unavoidable
disturbance in social relationships.
A spirit is frequently reborn into the same environment in
which it has already lived, and finds itself in relationships with
the same individuals in order to repair the evil it did to them. If it
were to recognize in them those whom it used to hate, perhaps its
hatred would reawaken. In any case, it would feel humiliated in
the presence of those it offended.
God has given us for our advancement precisely what is
necessary and what will be enough for us: the voice of conscience
and our instinctive tendencies, taking from us what could harm us.
On being born, human beings bring with them whatever
they have acquired. They are born as they have made themselves;
each existence is for them a new starting point. It matters little for
them to know what they were. If they are punished, it is because

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they committed evil; their current evil tendencies are indicative

of what still remains within them to be corrected, and that is
what they should concentrate their attention on, for whatever has
been corrected completely leaves no remaining trace. The good
resolutions they have made are the voice of conscience that warns
them as to what is good or evil and provides them the strength to
resist their evil tendencies.
Furthermore, this forgetfulness occurs only during corporeal
life. Upon reentering the spirit life, the spirit reacquires its
memories of the past; hence, forgetfulness is only a momentary
interruption similar to what occurs in earthly life during sleep, but
which does not prevent our remembering on the next day what we
did the day before or on preceding ones.
It is not only after death that the spirit recovers the memories
of its past. It can be stated that it never loses them, because
experience proves that during incarnation, during the sleep of the
body and while it enjoys a certain amount of liberty, the spirit
is conscious of its previous acts. It knows why it is suffering and
that it is suffering justly. Remembrance is blotted out only during
the outward life of relationships. However, due to the absence
of a precise memory, which might be painful and harm its social
relations, it draws new strength in these moments of the soul’s
emancipation if it knows how to take advantage of them.

Reasons for Resigning Oneself

12. With the words, “Blessed are the afflicted, for they shall
be consoled,” Jesus indicates simultaneously the compensation that
awaits those who suffer and the resignation that leads one to bless
suffering as a prelude to healing.
These words could also be translated like this: You should
consider yourselves fortunate to suffer, because your pains in this

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world are the debt of your past wrongs. And these pains, if borne
patiently while you are on earth, will save you from centuries of
suffering in the future life. Hence, you should be happy because
God has reduced your debt by permitting you to repay it now,
which will guarantee you tranquility for the future.
The one who suffers is like a debtor who owes a large sum,
and to whom his creditor says, “If you will pay me today even a
hundredth part of your debt, I will release you from the rest and
you will be free. But if you don’t, then I will hound you until
you pay the very last cent.” Would that debtor not be happier
bearing all kinds of hardships in order to free himself by paying
only a hundredth of what he owes? Instead of complaining to his
creditor, would he not be thankful?
Such is the meaning of the words, “Blessed are the afflicted,
for they shall be consoled.” They are blessed because they are
releasing themselves from their debt, and after they have done
so they will be free. However, if upon being released on the one
hand, they go into debt on the other, they will never attain their
freedom. Consequently, each new wrong increases the debt, for
there is not even one, whatever it may be, that does not entail
its obligatory and unavoidable punishment – if not today, then
tomorrow; if not in this life, then in another. Among these
wrongs, one must put in first place the lack of submission to
God’s will; therefore, if we complain in our afflictions and do
not accept them with resignation and as something deserved, if
we accuse God as unjust, we contract a new debt that causes the
loss of the benefit that we could have gotten from suffering. That
is why it is necessary to start over, exactly as if you were to pay
a creditor who has been hounding you, but then asked for the
money back as a new loan.
Upon reentering the world of spirits, humans are like
laborers who show up on payday. To some the Lord will say, “Here

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is your pay for the days you worked”; to others, the fortunate ones
of earth, those who lived in idleness, who placed their happiness
in the satisfactions of self-centeredness and in worldly pleasures,
he will say, “Nothing is owed to you since you received your pay
while on earth. Go and begin your task again.”
13. Humans can either soften or increase the bitterness of
their trials according to the manner in which they view earthly
life. Their suffering is greater if they consider its duration to be
long. Consequently, those who look at things from the standpoint
of the spirit life understand corporeal existence at a glance.
They see it as a dot in the infinite; they grasp its brevity, and
they tell themselves that this painful moment will soon be over.
The certainty of a happier future that is not far off sustains and
encourages them, and instead of complaining, they thank heaven
for the pains that enable them to evolve. On the other hand, for
those who see only corporeal life, pain seems unending to them
and it presses on them with all its weight. The result of the former
way of looking at life is that it decreases the importance of the
things of this world, leading humans to moderate their desires
and to be content with their station in life without envying
others’, thereby attenuating the mental effect of the setbacks
and disappointments they experience. Thus, they derive from it
a calmness and resignation as useful to the health of the body
as to that of the soul, whereas with jealousy, envy and ambition
they willfully give in to torment and thus increase the misery and
anguish of their short existence.

Suicide and Insanity

14. The calm and resignation acquired in the manner of
looking at earthly life and in the faith in the future gives the
spirit a serenity that is the best preservative against insanity and

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suicide. In fact, it is certain that most cases of insanity are due to

the troubles produced by the vicissitudes that people do not have
the strength to bear. However, if due to the manner in which
Spiritism enables them to regard the things of this world they
end up accepting with indifference – even joy – the reversals
and disappointments that would render them desperate in other
circumstances, it is obvious that this strength, which puts them
above such events, protects their minds from the distresses that
would jolt them otherwise.
15. The same applies to suicide. Except for suicide
committed in a state of intoxication or insanity, and which we
might call unconscious, it is certain that whatever may be the
particular motive, it always has discontentment as the cause.
Hence, those who are sure that they will be unfortunate only for a
day and that better days will follow, easily have patience. They only
become desperate if they can see no end to their suffering. What
is a human lifetime, compared to eternity, if not less than one
day? For those who do not believe in eternity, however, for those
who believe that all is over when life ends, if they are oppressed by
trouble and misfortune, they see no end to them except in death.
Expecting nothing, they find it very natural and even logical to
shorten their miseries by suicide.
16. Disbelief, simple doubts about the future – materialistic
ideas, in other words – are the greatest incitements to suicide: they
cause moral cowardice. And when men and women of science rest
on the authority of their knowledge in order to try to prove to their
listening or reading audience that they have nothing to hope for
after death, are they not in fact leading them to the conclusion that
if they are unfortunate then there is nothing better for them to do
than to kill themselves? What could they possibly have to say that
would turn them away from this conclusion? What compensation
could they offer them? What hope could they give them? None

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at all, except nothingness. From this, one must conclude that if

nothingness is the only heroic remedy, the sole prospect, then it
would be more worthwhile to fall into it immediately rather than
later on, and thereby suffer for less time.
The propagation of materialistic ideas is therefore the poison
that injects the idea of suicide into a large number of individuals,
and those who become apostles of such ideas assume an awful
responsibility. With Spiritism, however, wherein doubt is no longer
allowed, one’s outlook on life changes. Believers know that life goes
on indefinitely beyond the grave, although in other conditions.
Hence the patience and resignation that quite naturally keep them
from any thought of suicide; and hence, in sum, moral courage.
17. From this point of view, Spiritism has yet another
equally positive and perhaps more decisive result. It shows us
suicides themselves who come to reveal their unhappy situation
and to demonstrate the fact that no one violates with impunity
God’s law, which forbids human beings to cut their own life
short. Among suicides, the suffering, although temporary
instead of eternal, is nonetheless terrible and of such a nature as
to induce to reflection those who might be tempted to leave here
before God has so ordained. Spiritists thus have several reasons
to counterbalance the idea of suicide: the certainty of a future life
in which they know that their happiness will be in proportion
to their unhappiness and the level of resignation they had while
on earth; the certainty that if they shorten their life, they will in
fact attain a result exactly opposite to what they were hoping for;
that they free themselves from one evil to incur one that is worse,
longer and more dreadful; that they are fooling themselves if they
believe that by killing themselves they will go to heaven more
quickly; that suicide is an obstacle to being reunited in the other
world with the objects of their affections and whom they had
hoped to meet there again; from whence follows the conclusion

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that suicide, bringing nothing but disappointment, is against

their best interests. Therefore, the number of suicides prevented
by Spiritism has been considerable, and one may conclude
from this fact that when everyone is a Spiritist there will be no
more conscious suicides. Thus, comparing the results between
materialist and Spiritist doctrines solely from the suicide point
of view, we find that the logic of the former leads to suicide,
whereas the logic of the latter deters it, which is a fact confirmed
by experience.

The Spirits’ Teachings

To Suffer Well or Badly
18. When Christ said, “Blessed are the afflicted, for theirs is
the kingdom of heaven,” he was not referring to those who suffer
in general, since everyone on the earth suffers, whether upon the
throne or upon straw. But alas! Few suffer well. Few understand
that only trials that are borne well can lead them to the Kingdom
of God. Discouragement is a fault. God refuses you consolation
because you lack courage. Prayer is a support for the soul, but it is
not enough. It must be based on a living faith in God’s goodness.
You have often been told that God does not put heavy burdens on
weak shoulders. The burden is proportional to the strength, just as
the reward will be proportional to the resignation and courage. The
reward will be greater than the affliction is painful. However, one
must merit that reward, and that is why life is full of tribulations.
The soldier who is not sent to the front is discontent, because
the repose of the barracks does not bring him a promotion. So then,
be like the soldier and do not desire a repose in which your body
would weaken and your soul would become numb. Be content
when God sends you into battle. This battle is not one of gunfire

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but the bitterness of life, where sometimes more courage is needed

than in bloody combat, since those who remain firm before the
enemy might weaken under the duress of mental pain. Humans
are not rewarded for this kind of courage, but God reserves victory
laurels and a glorious place for them. When a reason for trouble
or vexation touches you, try to lift yourselves above it, and when
you have managed to control the impulses of impatience, anger or
despair, say to yourselves with just satisfaction, “I was the stronger.”
“Blessed are the afflicted” may be translated thusly: blessed
are those who have the opportunity to test their faith, firmness,
perseverance and submission to God’s will, for they will receive a
hundred times the joy they lacked on earth; and after labor will
come repose.
Lacordaire (Havre, 1863)
Evil and Its Remedy
19. Is your earth, then, a place of joy, a paradise of delights?
Does not the voice of the prophet resound any longer in your ears?
Did he not proclaim that there would be weeping and gnashing of
teeth for those who are born into this valley of pain? You who have
gone to live there must therefore expect burning tears and bitter
suffering, but no matter how acute and deep your suffering may
be, look up to heaven and bless the Lord for having willed to test
you! ... O people! Do you acknowledge power of your Master only
when he has healed the sores of your body and crowned your days
with beatitude and joy? Do you acknowledge his love only when he
has adorned your body with all sorts of glories and has restored its
brilliance and purity? You must imitate the one who was given to
you as the example. Having reached the ultimate degree of abjection
and misery, and while laying upon the dung heap, he said to God,
“Lord, I have known all the joys of opulence and you have reduced
me to the most absolute misery; thank you, thank you, my God,

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for having willed to test your servant so!” How long will your gaze
remain fixed upon the horizons limited by death? When will your
soul finally desire to leap beyond the limits of the grave? Even if you
had to weep and suffer an entire lifetime, what would that be when
compared to the eternal glory reserved for those who have endured
their trials with faith, love and resignation? So seek consolation for
your ills in the future that God has prepared for you, and seek the
cause of your ills in the past. And you, who suffer the most, consider
yourselves the blessed of this earth.
In your state as discarnates, when you were gliding through
space, you yourselves chose your trial because you believed you were
strong enough to bear it. So why complain now? You who asked for
riches and glory, it was for bearing the struggle of temptation and
overcoming it. You who asked to struggle in body and soul against
moral and physical evil, it was because you knew that the harder
the trial the greater and more glorious the victory would be, and
that if you emerged triumphant, even if your body were thrown
onto a dung heap, at death it would release a soul with unblemished
radiance, made pure by the baptism of expiation and suffering.
What remedy, therefore, is recommended for those who
are attacked by cruel obsessions and excruciating ills? Only one is
infallible: faith, turning your gaze toward heaven. If in the turmoil
of your cruelest suffering your voice would sing to the Lord, the
angel at your bedside would show you the sign of salvation and
the place you will someday occupy ... Faith is the sure remedy for
suffering; it always points to the horizons of the infinite, before
which the few dark days of the present are erased. Therefore, do not
ask us what remedy should be employed to remedy this ulcer or that
sore, this temptation or that trial. Remember that those who believe
are strengthened by the remedy of faith, and those who doubt its
effectiveness even for one second are immediately punished, because
they experience in the same instant the pungent anguish of affliction.

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The Lord has set his seal upon all those who believe in him.
Christ told you that with faith you can move mountains, and I say
to you that those who suffer and have faith as a support will be
placed under his watch-care and will suffer no more. The moments
of greatest pain will be for them the first happy notes of eternal joy.
Their soul will disengage itself from the body in such a way that,
while the body is still writhing in convulsions, it will be gliding
through the heavenly regions, singing with the angels hymns of
thanksgiving and glory to the Lord.
Happy are they who suffer and weep! May their souls rejoice,
for God will fill them with blessing.
St. Augustine (Paris, 1863.)
Happiness Is Not of This World
20. “I’m not happy! Happiness wasn’t made for me!”
people of every social position generally exclaim. This, my dear
children, proves better than any possible reason the truth of
this maxim from Ecclesiastes: “Happiness is not of this world.”
Indeed, neither wealth, power nor even the flower of youth are
the essential conditions for happiness. I would say more: not even
the combining of these three much-desired conditions are, since
we constantly hear persons of all ages amongst the most privileged
classes bitterly complaining about their situation.
Faced with such a fact, it is inconceivable that the working
and militant classes envy with such avarice the position of those
whom fortune seems to have favored. No matter what they may
do in this world, all have their share of work and misery, their lot
of suffering and disappointment, from which it is easy to draw the
conclusion that the earth is a place of trial and expiation.
So then, those who preach that the earth is humans’ only
home and that it is only there and in only one lifetime that they
are permitted to reach the highest degree of happiness that their

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nature will allow are deluding themselves and are deceiving those
who listen to them, since it has been demonstrated through many
centuries of experience that this globe entails only in exceptional
cases the conditions needed for an individual’s complete happiness.
In general terms, one can affirm that happiness is a utopia,
the search for which successive generations have set out without
ever having been able to reach it, for if a wise individual is a rarity
in this world, an absolutely happy one is not any easier to find.
That in which happiness on earth consists is something
so ephemeral for those who do not act wisely that, despite
one year, one month or one week of complete contentment,
the rest of their lifetime slips away in a series of afflictions
and disappointments. And note, my dear children, that I am
speaking of those who are the fortunate ones of the earth, those
who are envied by the masses.
Consequently, if the earthly dwelling place is meant for
trial and expiation, one must accept the fact that there are more
favorable homes elsewhere, where the human spirit, although
still imprisoned in physical flesh, possesses the fullness of the joys
connected with human life. That is why God has planted in your
solar system those beautiful higher order planets, toward which
your efforts and tendencies will someday enable you to gravitate,
once you have become sufficiently purified and perfected.
Nevertheless, do not deduce from my words that the earth
is dedicated forever to the fate of being a penitentiary. Certainly
not! Because from the progress already accomplished you can
easily infer future progress, and from the social improvements that
have been gained, new and more fertile improvements. Such is the
immense task that must be accomplished by the new doctrine that
the Spirits have revealed to you.
So then, my dear children, may a saintly emulation animate
you, and may each one of you vigorously shed the old ways. You

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must all dedicate yourselves to spreading this Spiritism that has

already begun your own regeneration. It is your duty to enable
your brothers and sisters to share in the rays of the sacred light.
Therefore, get to work, my beloved children! Within this solemn
assembly, may all your hearts aspire to the great objective of
preparing for future generations a world on which happiness is no
longer a meaningless word.
François-Nicolas-Madeleine,
Cardinal Morlot (Paris, 1863)
The Loss of Loved Ones; Premature Deaths
21. When death comes to reap a harvest in your families,
indiscriminately taking the youngest before the oldest, you often
say, “God is not just since he sacrifices the one who is strong and has
a great future, while preserving those who have already lived many
years full of disappointment; taking those who are useful and leaving
behind those who no longer are, and breaking a mother’s heart by
depriving her of the innocent creature that was her whole joy.”
Humans, it is in this matter that you must lift yourselves
above the commonplace thoughts of life in order to understand
that the good is often where you believe you are beholding evil, and
providential wisdom is where you believe you are beholding the blind
fatalism of destiny. Why do you measure divine justice according
to your own? Do you think the Lord of worlds inflicts you with
cruel punishments out of mere caprice? Nothing is done without
an intelligent purpose, and no matter what happens, everything has
its reason for being. If you were to better scrutinize all the pains
that strike you, you would always find in them a divine reason, a
regenerating reason, and your miserable self-interests would be a
secondary consideration that you would relegate to last place.
Believe me, in the case of an incarnation of twenty years, death is
preferable to those shameful immoderations that desolate respectable

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families, break a mother’s heart and cause parents’ hair to gray before
its time. Premature death is frequently a great blessing that God grants
to those who depart, thus preserving them from the miseries of life or
the seductions that could have led them to their loss. Those who die
in the flower of youth are not victims of fatalism; rather, God deemed
it useful for them not to remain on earth any longer.
It is an awful misfortune, you say, for a life so full of hopes
to be cut short so soon! What hopes are you talking about? Those
of earth, where the one who departed could have shone, making
his or her way and fortune? This narrow way of looking at things is
always what renders you incapable of rising above matter. Do you
know what would have been the fate of that life which, according
to you, was so full of hopes? Who is to say that it would not have
been full of bitterness? Do you then count as nothing the hopes
of the future life? Are you saying that you would prefer those of
the ephemeral life that you trudge through on the earth? Do you
think a high position amongst other humans is worth more than
one amongst the blessed spirits?
Rejoice instead of complaining when it pleases God to
take one of his children from this valley of misery. Would it not
be selfish to wish for them to have remained in order to suffer
along with you? Ah! That is the grief conceived by those who
have no faith, who see in death an eternal separation. But you
Spiritists know that the soul lives better when disencumbered
from its corporeal envelope. Mothers, you know your beloved
children are close to you, yes, very close. Their fluidic bodies
envelop you, their thoughts watch over you and your memory
of them inebriates them with joy; but your unreasonable sorrow
afflicts them too, because it denotes a lack of faith and is a
revolt against God’s will.
You who understand the spirit life, listen to the beating of
your heart calling to those loved ones, and if you would ask God to

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bless them, you would feel within you those powerful consolations
that dry tears, those marvelous aspirations that show you the future
promised by the sovereign Lord.
Sanson, former member of the
Parisian Spiritist Society (1863)
If He Had Been a Good Man, He Would Have Died
22. When speaking of a bad person who has escaped some
peril, you often say, “If he had been a good man he would have
died.” Well then, in saying this you state a truth, because it just so
happens that God often gives to a spirit who is still budding on
the paths of progress a longer trial than to a good spirit who, as a
reward for its merit, will receive the grace of its trial being as short
as possible. Consequently, whenever you use that axiom have no
doubt that you commit a blasphemy.
If a good man dies, whose neighbor is a bad man, you rush
to say, “I would rather it had been him instead.” You are greatly
mistaken, because the one who has departed has completed his
task, whereas the one who remains perhaps has not even begun.
So why would you want the bad person not to have time to finish,
and the other to remain imprisoned on terrestrial soil? What
would you say about a prisoner who served his sentence but was
kept in prison, while another, who had no such right, was set free?
Understand, therefore, that true freedom consists in deliverance
from the bonds of the body, and that as long as you are on the
earth, you are in captivity.
Accustom yourselves not to criticize what you cannot
understand, and believe that God is just in all things; many times,
what appears to be an evil is really a blessing, but your faculties
are so limited that the great whole escapes your obtuse senses.
Through thought, strive to leave your limited sphere, and to the
measure that you ascend, the importance of the material life will

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diminish before your eyes, for it will show itself to you only as one
incident in the infinite duration of your existence as a spirit – the
only true existence.
Fenelon (Sens, 1861)
Voluntary Suffering
23. Human beings are constantly in search of the happiness
that incessantly escapes them, for spotless happiness does not exist
on the earth. Nevertheless, despite the vicissitudes that form an
unavoidable procession in this life, they might at least enjoy relative
happiness; however, they search for it in perishable things subject
to the same vicissitudes, that is, in material pleasures instead of
the pleasures of the soul, which are a foretaste of the imperishable
pleasures of heaven. Instead of seeking peace of mind – the only
real happiness in this world – they are avid for anything that can
agitate and upset them. And oddly enough, they seem to create on
purpose the torments that were up to them to avoid.
Are there any greater torments than those caused by envy
and jealousy? For the envious or jealous there is no rest; they are
in a constant fever. What they do not have and what others do
have causes them insomnia; the successes of their rivals make
them giddy; their emulation is exerted only to eclipse their
neighbors; all their joy consists in inciting in those as senseless
as themselves the raging jealousy they themselves possess.
Poor senseless beings, in effect, are those who do not imagine
that perhaps tomorrow they will have to leave behind all such
futilities, which, by coveting them, poison their lives! It is not to
them that these words apply “Blessed are the afflicted, for they
shall be comforted,” since their preoccupations are not those that
bring compensation in heaven.
On the other hand, how many torments will those who
know how to be content with what they have spare themselves,

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those who behold without envy what they do not have, and who
do not try to appear to be what they are not. These are always
wealthy, since, if they would look beneath themselves instead of
above, they would always see persons who have even less. They are
serene because they do not create imaginary needs for themselves.
And is not serenity in the midst of life’s storms real happiness?
Fenelon (Lyon, 1860)
True Misfortune
24. Everyone talks about misfortune, all have experienced it
and believe they know about its multiple character. I have come to
tell you that nearly everyone is mistaken and that true misfortune is
not everything that people, that is, those who are unfortunate, believe
it to be. They see it in poverty, the fireless chimney, the threatening
creditor, the cradle empty of that angel who used to smile; they see
it in tears, the coffin we walk behind with an uncovered head and
broken heart, the anguish of betrayal and the baring of the pride
which would like to be dressed in purple and which can barely hide
its nakedness beneath the ragged tatters of vanity. All this and much
more is called misfortune in human language. Yes, it is misfortune
for those who see nothing but the present; however, true misfortune
is found more in the consequences of a thing than in the thing itself.
Tell me if an event that is most happy for the moment, but which
leads to disastrous consequences, is not really more unfortunate than
the one that at first causes a great vexation but ends up resulting in
the good. Tell me if the storm that snaps your trees but purifies the
air, dissipating unhealthy miasmas that would cause death, is not a
blessing rather than a misfortune.
In order for one to judge something, one must look at
the consequences. That is why, in order to determine what is
really fortunate or unfortunate, one must be transported beyond
this life, because it is there that the consequences will be felt.

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Hence, everything that is called unhappiness according to your

shortsightedness ends with corporeal life and finds its compensation
in the future life.
I will reveal misfortune to you under a new form, under
a beautiful and colorful form that you will desire and welcome
with all the strength of your deluded souls. Misfortunes are the
joy, the pleasure, the turmoil, the empty agitation and the insane
satisfaction of vanity that silence the conscience, oppress the action
of thought and confuse people about their future. Misfortune is
the opium of the forgetfulness that you ardently desire.
Have hope, you who weep! Tremble, you who laugh because
your body is satiated! We do not fool God; we do not dodge our
destiny. And the trials, those creditors more pitiless than the wolf
pack let loose by misery, are watching your illusory repose to plunge
you suddenly into the agony of true misfortune, the kind that
surprises the soul indolent through indifference and selfishness.
May Spiritism enlighten you and reestablish truth and error
in their true light after having been so strangely deformed by
your blindness! Then you will act like brave soldiers who, instead
of running away from peril, prefer the battles of brave combat
to the peace that will bring them neither glory nor promotion!
What does it matter to the soldier to lose his weapons, equipment
and uniform in the fray as long as he emerges as the victor and
covered with glory! What does it matter to those who have faith
in the future to leave their riches and their mantle of flesh upon
the battlefield of life, provided their soul enters radiantly into the
heavenly kingdom?
Delphine de Girardin (Paris, 1861)
Melancholy
25. Do you know why a vague sadness sometimes weighs
upon your hearts and makes you find life so bitter? It is your spirit,

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which aspires to happiness and freedom, and which, bound to

the body that serves as its prison, exhausts itself in vain efforts
to escape. However, seeing that such efforts are useless, it falls
into despondency, and the body, bearing the spirit’s influence,
sluggishness, dejection and a kind of apathy, seizes you and you
find yourself unhappy.
Believe me and strongly resist these feelings that weaken your
willpower. The yearnings for a better life are innate in the spirit of
all humans, but do not seek them in this world. And nowadays,
as God is sending his Spirits to instruct you about the divine
happiness reserved for you, patiently await the angel of deliverance,
who will help you break the bonds that hold your spirit captive.
Remember that, during your trial on the earth, you have a mission
that you cannot doubt, whether in dedicating yourself to your
family or whether in fulfilling the various obligations that God
has entrusted to you. If during the course of this trial, and while
performing your task, you see worries, troubles and vexations fall
upon you, be strong and courageous in order to bear them. Face
them resolutely. They are of short duration and will lead you to
the friends for whom you weep. They will rejoice at your arrival
amongst them and will extend their arms to you to lead you to a
place where the afflictions of earth have no access.
François de Geneve (Bordeaux)
Voluntary Trials. True Sackcloth
26. You ask if it is permissible to mitigate your trials. This
question leads to these: is it permissible for those who are drowning
to save themselves? For those who have a thorn to remove it? For
those who are ill to call a doctor? Trials are meant to engender
intelligence as well as patience and resignation. Individuals may
be born into a painful and difficult situation precisely to make
them search for the means of overcoming it. The merit consists in

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bearing without complaint the consequences of the ills that cannot

be avoided, in persevering in the struggle and in not becoming
desperate if unsuccessful, but without giving into indifference,
which would be laziness more than virtue.
This question of course leads to another. Since Jesus
said, “Blessed are the afflicted,” is there any merit in seeking
afflictions, thereby increasing trials by means of voluntary
suffering? To this I will respond very clearly: yes, there is great
merit if such suffering and privations are meant for the good of
one’s neighbor, because it is charity through sacrifice; and no,
if they are meant only for the good of oneself, because it results
from selfishness through fanaticism.
A big distinction must be made here: as for you personally,
be content with the trials that God sends you and do not increase
their burden, which is often already so heavy. Accept them
faithfully without complaining; that is all God asks of you. Do
not weaken your body with useless privations and purposeless
mortifications, because you have need of all your strength in order
to fulfill your mission of labor on the earth. Intentionally torturing
and martyring your body is an infringement of the law of God,
who has given you the means of nourishing and strengthening it.
To needlessly weaken it is true suicide. Use it but do not abuse it;
such is the law. The abuse of the best things brings its punishment
in unavoidable consequences.
The suffering that one imposes on oneself for the relief of
one’s neighbor is something else. If you endure cold and hunger
in order to warm and feed someone who is in need, and if your
body suffers because of it, it is then a sacrifice that is blessed by
God. You who leave your fragrant homes to go to an infected
hovel to bring consolation; you who dirty your delicate hands to
treat wounds; you who lose sleep to watch over the bedstead of a
sick person, who is only your brother or sister in God; in short,

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you who use your health in the practice of good deeds: that is
your sackcloth, the true sackcloth of blessing, for the pleasures
of the world have not shriveled your heart. You have not slept
in the bosom of the voluptuous enervations of wealth, but have
made yourselves into consoling angels for the disinherited poor.
But you who retire from the world in order to avoid its
seductions and to live in isolation, what is your usefulness? Where
is your courage in trial, since you run from the struggle and desert
the fight? If you want sackcloth, apply it to your soul and not your
body. Mortify your spirit and not your flesh; whip your pride;
receive humiliation without complaint; flog your selfishness; and
harden yourselves against the pain of insult and slander, more
pungent than bodily pain. This is true sackcloth, whose wounds
will be taken into account because they will testify to your courage
and submission to God’s will.
A Guardian Angel (Paris, 1863)
Should We Put an End to Our Neighbor’s Trials?
27. Should we put an end to our neighbor’s trials if we can, or
should we, out of respect for God’s designs, let them take their course?
We have stated and repeated many times that you are on
this earth of expiation to conclude your trials, and that everything
that happens to you is a consequence of your previous existences,
an installment on the debt you owe. However, in some people this
thought provokes notions that must be deterred because they may
have disastrous consequences.
Some think that because one is put on the earth for expiation,
all trials must take their course. There are even those who want to
believe that not only must nothing be done to mitigate them, but
that, on the contrary, it is necessary to contribute to them to make
them more profitable, adding to their intensity. This is a great
error. Yes, your trials must take the course marked out by God,

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but do you know what that course is? Do you know how far they
must go, or if your merciful Father has not said to the suffering
of this or that brother or sister, “You shall go no farther?” Do you
know if God’s providence has chosen you not as an instrument
of punishment to intensify the suffering of the guilty, but as the
balm of consolation that must heal the wounds that God’s justice
had opened up? Therefore, when you see one of your brothers or
sisters being afflicted, do not say, “It is God’s justice and it must
take its course.” Instead, say to yourselves, “Let’s see what means
our merciful Father has put within my reach in order to ease the
suffering of my brother or sister. Let’s see if my moral consolation,
my material help or my counsels might not assist in overcoming
this trial with greater strength, patience and resignation. Let’s even
see if God has not placed in my hands the means of putting an end
to this suffering; if it has not been given to me also as a trial, an
expiation perhaps, in order to deter evil and replace it with peace.”
Therefore, always mutually help one another in your
respective trials and never regard yourselves as instruments of
torment. Such a thought should be revolting to every man and
woman of heart, especially to all Spiritists, because Spiritists,
better than anyone else, should understand the infinite extent
of God’s goodness. Spiritists ought to believe that their entire
life should be an act of love and devotion; that no matter what
they may do to oppose the Lord’s wishes, his justice will take
its course. Therefore, they can fearlessly make every effort to
mitigate the bitterness of expiation, but only God can shorten or
prolong it as he deems necessary.
Would there not be great pride on the part of humans in
believing themselves to have the right, so to speak, to twist the knife
in the wound? To increase the dose of poison in the heart of someone
who is suffering, under the pretext that it is his or her expiation? Oh!
Always regard yourselves as instruments chosen to make the suffering

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stop. To summarize: all of you are on the earth for expiation, but all of
you, without exception, must employ all your efforts to mitigate your
neighbor’s expiation according to the law of love and charity.
Bernardin, A Protector Spirit (Bordeaux, 1863)
Is It Permissible to Shorten the Life of a Patient
Who Is Suffering With no Hope of a Cure?
28. A man is dying, the victim of cruel suffering. His state
is known to be hopeless. Would it be permissible to save him a few
moments of anguish by hastening his end?
Who would give you the right to foresee God’s designs?
Could he not lead certain persons to the edge of the grave and then
bring them back in order to make them examine themselves and
lead them to other thoughts? No matter how extreme the condition
of a dying person, no one can say with certainty that his or her final
hour has arrived. Has science never been wrong in its predictions?
I know very well that there are cases, which with good
reason may be considered as desperate; however, even if there is no
basis for hope of a definite return to life and health, are there not
countless examples in which at the moment of taking their final
breath, patients rouse themselves and recover their faculties for a few
moments? Well then, this time of grace that has been granted them
may be of great importance to them because you may be unaware
of the thoughts that the spirit may have in the death throes, or how
much torment may be spared by the sudden flash of repentance.
The materialist, who sees the body only and does not consider
the soul, cannot comprehend these things, but the Spiritist, who
knows what happens beyond the grave, knows the value of one last
thought. So mitigate final suffering as much as you can, but guard
against shortening a life, even for only a minute, for that minute
might save many tears in the future.
St. Louis (Paris, 1860)

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Sacrificing One’s Own Life

29. Are persons who are disillusioned with life, but who do not
want to commit suicide, guilty for seeking death on the battlefield with
the intention of making their death useful?
Whether persons kill themselves or have someone else do
it, their purpose is always to shorten their life, and consequently
there is suicide by intent if not in fact. The thought that their
death will be useful for something is delusional; it is only a pretext
for coloring their act and rendering it excusable in their own eyes.
If they seriously wanted to serve their country, they would seek
to stay alive, defending it in everything and not seeking to die,
because once dead they can no longer serve it for anything. True
devotion consists in not fearing death when it might be useful, in
braving peril, and in sacrificing their lives beforehand and without
regret if that is necessary. However, premeditated intent in seeking
death by exposing oneself to danger, even if to render service,
annuls the merit of the act.
St. Louis (Paris, 1860)

30. A certain man exposes himself to imminent danger in order

to save the life of a fellow being, knowing beforehand that he himself
will die; would this be considered a suicide?
From the moment in which there is no intent to seek death,
there is no suicide, but devotion and self-denial despite the certainty
of dying. But who can be so certain? Who can say that Providence
has not reserved an unexpected means of salvation at the most
critical moment? Could not Providence save someone who is right
in front of the mouth of a cannon? On many occasions, Providence
wishes to prolong the trial of resignation to the ultimate limit,
when an unexpected circumstance diverts the fatal blow.
St. Louis (Paris, 1860)

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Making One’s Own Suffering Profitable for Others

31. Do not those who resignedly accept their suffering by
submitting to God’s will with an eye on their future happiness work only
for themselves, and can they render their suffering profitable for others?
This suffering might be materially and morally beneficial
to someone else: materially, if through labor the privations and
sacrifices they impose on themselves contribute to the material
welfare of their neighbor; morally, by the example they offer of
their submission to God’s will. This example of the power of the
Spiritist faith can encourage unfortunate people to resignation,
and save them from despair and its disastrous consequences for
the future.
St. Louis (Paris, 1860)

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The Consoling Christ

• The Easy Yoke • The Promised Consoler • The Spirits’
Teachings: – The Coming of the Spirit of Truth

The Easy Yoke

1. “Come unto me, all you who suffer and who are overburdened, and I
will comfort you. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me that I am
gentle and humble of heart, and you will find rest for your souls, for my
yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Mt. 11:28-30)

2. All types of suffering – misery, disappointment, physical

pain, loss of loved ones – find their consolation in faith in the
future and in trust in God’s justice, which Christ came to teach
humankind. On the other hand, upon those who expect nothing
after this life, or who simply doubt, afflictions bear down with all
their weight and no hope comes to soften their bitterness. This is
what led Jesus to say, “Come unto me, all you who are weary and
I will comfort you.”

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Nevertheless, Jesus places one condition on the assistance

and happiness he promises to the afflicted. That condition is found
in the law that he teaches. His yoke is the observance of that law,
but this yoke is easy and the law is gentle, since it imposes love and
charity as a duty.

The Promised Consoler

3. “If you love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray to my
Father and he will send you another consoler so that he may remain
with you forever: the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive,
because it neither sees him nor knows him. But as for you, you will
know him because he will remain with you and will be among you.
But the consoler, who is the Holy Spirit, whom my Father will send in
my name, will teach you all things and will enable you to remember
everything that I have said to you.” (Jn. 14:15-17, 26)

4. Jesus promises another consoler: the Spirit of Truth, whom

the world does not yet know because it is not mature enough to
understand him, and whom the Father will send to teach all things
and bring to remembrance what Christ has said. Therefore, if the
Spirit of Truth must come later to teach all things, it is because
Christ has not said everything. If the Spirit comes to bring
to remembrance what Christ has said, it is because it has been
forgotten or poorly understood.
Spiritism has come at the stated time to fulfill Christ’s
promise: the Spirit of Truth presides over its establishment; it calls
humans to observe the law and teaches all things by enabling them
to understand what Christ said only in parables. Christ stated,
“Let those hear who have ears to hear.” Spiritism has come to
open eyes and ears because it speaks without figures or allegories.
It lifts the veil intentionally left over certain mysteries. It has

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come, finally, to bring supreme consolation to the disinherited

of the earth and all those who suffer, attributing a just cause and
useful purpose to all pain.
Christ said, “Blessed are the afflicted, for they shall be
comforted.” But how can we bless suffering if we do not know why
we suffer? Spiritism shows that the cause lies in previous existences
and in the destiny of the earth, where humans expiate their past.
It shows them the purpose of their sufferings as being salutary
crises which lead to healing and which are the purification that
ensures happiness in future existences. Humans understand that
they deserve to suffer and they find suffering to be just. They know
that this suffering aids their progress and they accept it without
complaining, just as workers accept the work that will ensure their
wages. Spiritism provides them an unshakable faith in the future,
and bitter doubt no longer falls upon their soul. It enables them to
see things from a higher point of view; the importance of earthly
vicissitudes is lost in the vast and splendid horizon that Spiritism
contemplates, and the perspective of happiness that awaits them
gives them the patience, resignation and courage needed to follow
their pathway to the end.
Thus, Spiritism accomplishes what Jesus said about the
promised consoler: the knowledge of things that enables humans
to know where they have come from, where they are going and
why they are on the earth. It is the call to the true principles of
God’s law and consolation through faith and hope.

The Spirits’ Teachings

The Coming of the Spirit of Truth
5. I have come, as I once came amongst the wayward children
of Israel, to bring the truth and dissipate the darkness. Listen to

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me. Spiritism, as my word of old, must remind disbelievers that

above them reigns the immutable truth: the good God, the great
God who makes the plant germinate and raises the tides. I have
revealed the divine Doctrine, and like a reaper, I have gathered
into sheaves the good scattered amid humankind and have said,
“Come unto me, all you who suffer!”
However, ungrateful men and women have strayed from
the straight and broad way that leads to the kingdom of my
Father, and have become lost on the bitter path of impiety. My
Father does not want to annihilate the human race; he wants
you, through the help you give one another – both the living
and the dead, that is, dead according to the flesh, since death
does not exist – to succor one another, and for the voice of the
prophets and apostles no longer to be heard, but instead, the
voice of those who have departed from the earth, proclaiming to
you, “Pray and believe! For death is resurrection and life is the
chosen trial during which your cultivated virtues must grow and
develop like the cedar.”
O frail humans, who are aware of the darkness of your minds,
do not stray from the beacon that divine clemency has placed in
your hands to light your way and lead you, as lost children, back
to the bosom of your Father.
I am too moved with compassion for your miseries, your great
frailty, not to extend a sure hand to those wayward unfortunates
who, seeing heaven, fall into the abysses of error. Believe, love and
meditate upon the things that are being revealed to you. Do not
mix tares with the good seed, utopias with the truth.
O Spiritists! Love one another; this is the first teaching.
Educate yourselves; this is the second. All truths are found in
Christianity. The errors that have become rooted within it are of
human origin; and here, beyond the grave – which you believed
was nothingness – voices cry out to you: “Brothers and sisters!

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Nothing perishes. Jesus Christ is the victor over evil; be victors

over impiety.”
The Spirit of Truth (Paris, 1860)

6. I have come to teach and console the disinherited poor. I

have come to tell them to raise their resignation to the level of their
trials; to weep, for sorrow was sacred in the Garden of Olives; but
also to hope, for consoling angels will come to wipe away their tears.
Workers, trace out your path. The next day, restart the
trying journey of the day before. The labor of your hands supplies
earthly bread for your bodies, but your souls are not forgotten. I,
the divine gardener, cultivate them in the silence of your thoughts.
When the hour for your repose sounds, when the thread of your
life slips through your fingers and when your eyes are closed to
the light, you will sense my precious seed emerge and germinate
within you. Nothing is lost in the kingdom of our Father, and your
sweat and miseries form a treasure that will make you wealthy in
the higher realms, where light replaces darkness, and where the
most unclothed among you will perhaps be the most resplendent.
Truly I say to you: those who bear their burdens and help their
brothers and sisters are my beloved. Instruct yourselves in the precious
Doctrine that dissipates the error of rebelliousness and teaches you
the sublime purpose of the human trial. Just as the wind sweeps the
dust away, may the breeze of the Spirits dissipate your jealousy toward
the wealthy of the world, who are often the most miserable because
their trials are more perilous than yours. I am with you and my
apostle teaches you. Drink from the living fount of love and prepare
yourselves, O captives of life, to someday freely and joyfully throw
yourselves into the bosom of the One who created you weak so that
you could become perfect, and who wills for you yourselves to knead
your pliable clay so that you may be the artisans of your immortality.
The Spirit of Truth (Paris, 1861)

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7. I am the great doctor of souls and I have come to bring

you the medicine that shall heal them. The frail, the suffering and
the infirm are my blessed children and I have come to save them.
Therefore, come to me, you who suffer and who are overburdened,
and you will be soothed and consoled. Do not look elsewhere for
strength and consolation, for the world is unable to provide them.
God makes a supreme appeal to your hearts through Spiritism:
listen to it. May impiety, deceit, error and disbelief be uprooted
from your aching souls. They are the monsters that suck your
purest blood, and which nearly always wound you mortally. In the
future, humble and submissive to your Creator, may you practice
his divine law. Love and pray. Be docile before the Spirits of the
Lord; invoke him from the depths of your heart, and then he will
send you his beloved Son to teach you and say these good words,
“I am here; I have come to you because you have called me.”
The Spirit of Truth (Bordeaux, 1861)

8. God consoles the humble and gives strength to the afflicted

who ask for it. God’s power covers the earth, and everywhere,
beside a tear he places a consoling balm. Devotion and self-denial
are a continual prayer and they contain a profound teaching.
Human wisdom resides in those two words. May all suffering
spirits understand this truth instead of complaining about their
pain, about the moral sufferings which in this world are your lot.
Take these two words as your motto: devotion and self-denial, and
you will be strong, for they summarize all the duties that charity
and humility impose on you. The sentiment of a duty fulfilled
will provide resignation and rest for your spirit. The heart beats
better, the soul becomes serene and the body is no longer feeble,
because the body suffers all the more depending on how deeply
the spirit is struck.
The Spirit of Truth (Havre, 1863)

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Blessed are the

poor in spirit
• What Should Be Understood by ‘Poor in spirit’ • Whoever
Exalts Himself Shall Be Humbled • Mysteries Hidden from
the Learned and Wise • The Spirits’ Teachings: Pride and
Humility. – The Mission of the Intelligent Person on the Earth

What Should Be Understood

by ‘Poor in spirit’
1. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
(Mt. 5:3)

2. Disbelief has made fun of the maxim, “Blessed are the poor
in spirit,” just as it has many other things without understanding
them. By ‘poor in spirit’ Jesus does not mean persons devoid of
intelligence, but the humble: he said the kingdom of heaven is for
them and not for the proud.

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Persons of knowledge and intellect – according to the

world – usually have such a high opinion of themselves and their
superiority that they consider divine things as unworthy of their
attention. Their gaze, focused on themselves, cannot lift itself up to
God. This inclination to believe themselves to be above anything
and everything quite often leads them to deny anything that might
be above them – even the Divinity itself – and which could humble
them. Or if they do consent to believing in the Divinity, they
contest one of its most beautiful attributes: its providential action
regarding matters of this world. They are persuaded that they are
good enough to govern it well enough by themselves. Taking their
own intelligence as the standard of universal intelligence, and
deeming themselves capable of comprehending everything, they
cannot believe in the possibility of what they do not comprehend.
Once they have passed sentence, their judgment is unappealable.
If they refuse to believe in the invisible world and an extra-
human power, it is not because it is beyond their ability, but because
their pride revolts against the idea of something above which they
cannot place themselves, and which would make them come down
from their pedestal. Thus, they have only smiles of disdain for
anything that is not of the visible and tangible world. They attribute
to themselves too much intelligence and knowledge to believe in
things which, according to them, are good for simple folk, and they
regard those who take such things seriously as poor in spirit.
Nonetheless, say what they may, like everyone else they will
have to enter that invisible world that they now deride, where their
eyes will be opened and they will realize their error. However, God
is just and cannot put in the same category those who scorned the
divine power and those who humbly submitted to the divinely
established laws, nor can they be equal to each other.
In stating that the kingdom of heaven is for the simple, Jesus
means that no one is admitted into it without simplicity of heart and

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humility of spirit; that ignorant persons who possess such qualities

will be preferred to the learned who believe more in themselves than
in God. In every instance, Jesus places humility in the category of
virtues that bring us closer to God, and pride among the vices that
distance us from God – and for a very obvious reason: humility is
an act of submission to God, whereas pride is revolt against God.
Therefore, it is more valuable for people’s happiness to be poor in
spirit – in the earthly sense – and rich in moral qualities.

Whoever Exalts Himself Shall Be Humbled

3. At that time, the disciples approached Jesus and asked, “Who is the
greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” Jesus, having called to a child, set
him in their midst and said to them, “Verily I say to you that if you do
not convert, and if you do not become like children, you will not enter
the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, everyone who humbles himself and
becomes small like this child will be the greatest in the kingdom of
heaven, and as I have stated, everyone who receives a child in my name
receives me likewise.” (Mt. 18:1-5)

4. Then, the mother of the sons of Zebadee approached him with her two sons
and kneeled before him, showing him that she wanted to ask him something.
He said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Command that my
two sons here may have a seat in your kingdom, one on your right and the
other on your left.” But Jesus answered her, “You do not know what you are
asking; can you drink from the cup that I will drink?” They said to him,
“We can.” Jesus answered them, “It is true that you will drink from the cup
that I will drink, but as for being seated on my right or on my left, it is
not for me to grant, but it will be for those for whom it has been prepared
by my Father.” Having heard this, the other ten disciples were filled with
indignation against the two brothers. Jesus called them to himself and said to
them, “You know that the princes of the nations rule over them and that the

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mighty treat them with authority. It shall not be the same among you; but
let him who wants to become the greatest be your servant, and let him
who wants to be the first among you be your slave; just as the Son of man
has not come to be served but to serve and to give his life for the redemption
of many. (Mt. 20:20-28)

5. On the day of the Sabbath, Jesus entered the home of one of the principal
Pharisees in order to have his meal, and those who were there were watching
him. Then, observing how the guests were choosing the best places, he proposed to
them this parable, saying, “Whenever you are invited to a wedding feast, do not
take the best seat, for fear that among the guests there might be a person who is
more distinguished than you, and so that the one who has invited you will not
have to say to you, ‘Give your seat to this one,’ and you will not be reduced to
taking the lowest seat in shame. But whenever you are invited, go and sit in the
lowest seat, so that when the one who has invited you comes he will say to you,
‘My friend, move up higher.’ And then this will be a reason for honor before those
who are at the table with you, for whoever exalts himself shall be humbled
and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted. (Lk. 14:1, 7-11)

6. These maxims are the consequence of the principle of

humility, which Jesus incessantly presents as the essential condition
for the happiness promised to the Lord’s elect, and which he
expressed with these words, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven.” He takes a child as a model of simplicity
of heart and says, “The greatest in the kingdom of heaven will be
the one who humbles himself and becomes small like a child”; that
is, the one who has no pretension of superiority or infallibility.
The same fundamental thought is found in this other maxim,
“Let the one who wants to become the greatest be your servant,” and
this, “Whoever humbles himself will be exalted and whoever exalts
himself will be humbled.”
Spiritism has come to sanction the theory by example,
showing us that those who are great in the spirit world are those

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who were small while on earth, and frequently, quite small are
those who were the greatest and most powerful while on earth.
This is because, upon dying, the former brought with them that
which makes them truly great in heaven, and which they will
never lose: their virtues; whereas the latter had to leave behind
that which made them great on earth, and which could not be
brought with them: wealth, titles, glory and birth. Not having
anything else, they arrive in the other world bereft of everything,
like shipwreck survivors who have lost it all, even their clothes.
They retain only their pride, which makes their new position all
the more humiliating because they see above them and resplendent
in glory those whom they used to belittle on earth.
Spiritism shows us another application of this principle in
successive incarnations, where those who were the most exalted
in one existence are humbled to the least position in a following
existence if they had been dominated by pride and ambition.
Therefore, do not seek the highest place while on earth or set
yourselves above others if you do not want to be obligated to go
to a lower place. On the contrary, seek the humblest and most
modest position, because God will know to give you a higher place
in heaven if you deserve it.

Mysteries Hidden from the

Learned and Wise
7. Then Jesus spoke these words: “I render you glory, my Father, Lord of
heaven and earth, for having hidden these things from the learned and wise,
and for having revealed them to the simple and small.” (Mt. 11:25)

8. It might seem peculiar that Jesus renders thanks to God

for having revealed such things to the simple – the poor in spirit –
and for having hidden them from the learned and wise, who would

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apparently be more capable of grasping them. It is because one

must understand the former as being the humble who humble
themselves before God and who do not believe themselves superior
to everyone else; and the latter as being the proud, conceited with
their worldly knowledge, who believe themselves to be wise
because they deny God, or treat God as an equal when they do not
repudiate God outright, despite the fact that in antiquity learned
was synonymous with wise. That is why God allows them to search
for the secrets of earth, whereas God reveals the secrets of heaven
to the simplest and to the humble who bow down before God.
9. The same occurs today with the great truths revealed by
Spiritism. Some disbelievers are surprised that spirits put forth
such little effort to convince them. This is because spirits concern
themselves only with those who search for the light in good faith
and with humility, rather than those who believe they possess all
the light, and who seem to think that God should be very happy
to lead them to God by proving to them that God exists.
God’s power shines in the smallest matters as much as in the
greatest. God does not put the light under a bushel, but scatters it
abundantly far and wide; thus, those who do not see it are blind.
God does not will to open their eyes forcefully, since it pleases them to
keep them shut. Their time will come, but first they must feel the
anguish of darkness and acknowledge God, and not mere chance, as
the one who hurts their pride. In order to overcome disbelief, God
employs the means most appropriate according to the individual.
It is not up to the disbeliever to prescribe to God what God must
do, and say to God, “If you want to convince me, you must choose
this or that manner at such and such a time because that time is
the most suitable.”
Disbelievers should not be surprised, therefore, if God and
the spirits, as agents of the divine will, do not submit to their
requirements. They should ask themselves what they would say

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if the least of their servants wanted to impose him or herself on

them. God imposes the conditions and does not submit to others.
God listens kindly to those who humbly address God and not to
those who deem themselves to be greater than God.
10. Some might ask: Could God not touch them personally
with manifest signs in whose presence the most hardened
disbelievers would bow down? Of course, but then where would
the merit be in that, and, moreover, what good would it do? Do
we not see individuals everyday who deny the evidence and say,
“Even if I saw it, I wouldn’t believe because I know it’s impossible?”
If they refuse to recognize the truth, it is because their spirit is not
yet mature enough to grasp it, nor their heart to feel it. Pride is
the veil that clouds their sight. What good would it do to present
the light to a blind person? Hence, it is necessary to heal the cause
of the ill first, and like a skillful doctor, God punishes their pride
first. God does not abandon any lost children; God knows that
sooner or later their eyes will open, but God wants this to be of
their own will when, overcome by the torments of disbelief, they
throw themselves into the divine arms, and like the prodigal son
ask for divine grace.

The Spirits’ Teachings

Pride and Humility
11. May the peace of the Lord be with you, my dear friends!
I have come to encourage you to follow the path of the good.
To the humble spirits who formerly used to inhabit the
earth, God has given the mission to come and enlighten you.
Blessed be God for the grace given to us of being able to help you
with your advancement. May the Holy Spirit illumine me, help
me render my word understandable and grant me the favor of

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putting it within the reach of all. All you who are incarnate, who
are suffering and searching for the light, may the will of God help
me to make it shine in your eyes!
Humility is a much-neglected virtue among you. The great
examples that have been given you are followed very little; however,
without humility can you be charitable toward your neighbor?
Oh! No, because this sentiment puts all men and women on the
same level; it tells them they are brothers and sisters and that they
must mutually help one another; and it leads them to the good.
Without humility, you adorn yourselves with virtues you do not
possess, as if wearing clothes to hide the deformities of your body.
Remember the One who saves us; remember his humility, which
made him so great and placed him above all the prophets.
Pride is the terrible adversary of humility. If Christ promises
the kingdom of heaven to those who are poorest, it is because
the mighty of the earth imagine that titles and riches are rewards
given for their merit, and that their essence is purer than that of
the poor. They believe that these are owed to them, and that is
why they accuse God of injustice whenever he takes them away.
Oh! Such mockery and blindness! Does God make distinctions
among you because of your bodies? Is the envelope of the poor not
the same as that of the rich? Did the Creator make two types of
human beings? Everything that God does is great and wise; never
attribute to him the ideas that are conceived in your proud minds.
O you rich! While you sleep under golden roofs and
sheltered from the cold, do you not know that thousands of your
brothers and sisters – who are just like you – are sleeping on
straw? Are not the wretches suffering from hunger your equal?
These words are revolting to your pride, I know full well. You
may agree to give them alms, but to fraternally shake hands with
them – never! “What!” you say, “I, a descendent of noble blood,
one of the great ones of the earth, equal to those wretches in rags?

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A vain utopia of the so-called philosophers! If we are equal, why

has God set them so low and me so high?” It is true that your
garments are scarcely the same; however, undress both of you,
and what difference would there be between you? “Nobility of
blood,” you will say. But chemistry has not found any difference
between the blood of the nobleman and that of the plebe, or
between that of the master and that of the slave. Who says that
you yourself were not also once impoverished and unfortunate
like them? That you did not beg for alms? That someday you will
not beg from those whom you despise today? Are riches eternal?
Do they not end with your body, the perishable envelope of
your spirit? Oh! Apply some humility to yourself! Set your eyes
upon the reality of the things of this world, upon what leads to
greatness on one hand and humiliation on the other. Remember
that death will not spare you any more than anyone else; that
titles will not save you from it; that it can strike you tomorrow,
today, in an hour. And if you shroud yourselves in your pride, oh!
Then I feel sorry for you because you are worthy of pity.
You proud! What were you before you were noble and
powerful? Perhaps you were lower than the least of your
servants. Therefore, bow your haughty brow, which God can
bring down at the moment in which you raise yourself the
highest. All humans are equal on the divine scales and only
their virtues distinguish them from one another in God’s eyes.
All spirits are of one and the same essence and all bodies are
made of the same substance; your titles and your names do not
change them in any way. They remain in the grave and they
do not give you the bliss promised to the elect. Charity and
humility are their titles of nobility.
Poor creature! You are a mother; your children are suffering.
They are cold and hungry; bent under the weight of your cross,
you go and humiliate yourself so that they might have a piece of

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bread! Oh! I bow down before you! How nobly holy and great
you are in my eyes! Hope and pray; happiness is not yet of this
world. To the poor and oppressed who trust in him, God gives the
kingdom of heaven.
And you, young maiden, poor child, given to work and
privation – why such sad thoughts? Why do you weep? Lift up
your gaze, pious and serene, to God, who provides food to the
little birds; trust in him and he will not abandon you. The noise
of parties, the pleasures of the world make your heart beat fast.
You would love to adorn your head with flowers and mingle
with the wealthy of this earth. You say to yourself that, like these
women who pass you by, nonchalant and laughing, you too
could be rich. Oh! Be still, child! If you knew how many tears
and nameless sorrows are hidden beneath those embroidered
dresses, how many sobs are muffled under the noise of that
joyous orchestra, you would prefer your humble solitude and
your poverty. Keep yourself pure in God’s eyes if you do not want
your guardian angel to return to him, hiding its face with its
white wings and leaving you to your remorse, without a guide,
without support in this world where you will be lost, waiting to
be punished in the next.
And all you who endure human injustice, be indulgent with
the wrongs of your brothers and sisters by remembering that you
yourselves are not exempt from reproach – to do so is charity,
but it is also humility. If you suffer slander, bow your head under
the trial. What does the world’s slander matter to you? If your
conduct is pure, cannot God compensate you? To courageously
bear humiliation from others is to be humble and to recognize that
only God is great and powerful.
O dear God! Must Christ come a second time to earth to
teach human beings your laws, which they have forgotten? Will
he once more have to expel the merchants from the temple as they

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defile your house, which is a place of prayer only? And who knows?
O humankind! If God were to grant you such grace, perhaps you
would reject it as before. You would call him a blasphemer, for
he would humiliate the pride of modern Pharisees. Perhaps you
would make him take up the road to Golgotha once again.
Left to themselves when Moses went up on Mt. Sinai to
receive God’s commandments, the people of Israel forsook the one
true God. Men and women gave their gold and jewels to make an
idol to worship. You civilized men and women, you do the same.
Christ left you his doctrine; he provided you with an example of
all the virtues, and you have forsaken his examples and precepts.
With your passions you have all made a God to your own liking:
according to some, terrifying and bloodthirsty; according to
others, uncaring about the concerns of the world. The God you
have made is still the golden calf that each of you adapts to his or
her own tastes and ideas.
Wake up, my brothers and sisters, my friends! May the
voice of the Spirits touch your hearts. Be generous and charitable
without ostentation; that is, do the good with humility. Let each
of you tear down little by little the altars you have erected to pride.
In a word, be true Christians and you will possess the kingdom
of truth. No longer doubt God’s goodness when he gives you
so many proofs of it. We have come to prepare the way for the
fulfillment of the prophecies. When the Lord comes to give you a
more resounding manifestation of his clemency, may the Heavenly
Messenger find you as one great family. May your gentle and
humble hearts be worthy of understanding the Divine Word that
he will bring you. May the Chosen One find on his path only the
palm branches laid there by your return to goodness, charity and
fraternity. Then your world will become a terrestrial paradise. But
if you remain insensitive to the voice of the Spirits sent to purify
and renew your civilized society, so rich in knowledge and yet so

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poor in good sentiments… alas! nothing will remain for us but to

weep and groan about your fate. But no, it will not be that way.
Return to God your Father, and then all of us who have served for
the fulfillment of his will shall sing the canticle of thanksgiving to
thank the Lord for his unbounded goodness and glorify him for
ever and ever. Amen.
Lacordaire (Constantine, 1863)

12. O humankind, why do you complain about the calamities

that you have heaped upon your own heads? You have despised the
holy and divine morals of Christ. Do not be surprised, therefore,
that the cup of iniquity has overflowed on all sides.
Troubles have become widespread. Who is to blame except
you yourselves, who incessantly seek to crush one another? You
cannot be happy without mutual benevolence, but how can
benevolence exist with pride? Pride is the fount of all your ills; so
devote yourselves to destroying it if you do not want to perpetuate
its devastating consequences. There is only one way offered to
you for this, but it is foolproof: take as your invariable rule of
conduct the law of Christ, the law you have rejected or falsified in
its interpretation.
Why do you hold such high regard for whatever shines and
enchants the eyes rather than what touches the heart? Why is the
vice found in opulence the object of your adulations, while you
have only a look of disdain for the true merit that lies in obscurity?
Let rich debauchees – lost in body and soul – appear anywhere
and all doors are opened to them and all eyes are on them, whereas
hardly anyone will concede a gesture of greeting to moral persons
who live by their labor! As long as the consideration granted to
persons is measured by the weight of the gold they possess or by
the name they bear, what interest could they possibly have in
correcting their defects?

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The opposite would occur if the defect of gold were criticized

by public opinion in the same way as the defect of tatters. Pride,
however, is indulgent toward anything that pleases it. “This is a
time of cupidity and money,” you say. No doubt about it; but why
have you let material needs encroach on good sense and reason?
Why does anyone want to rise above his or her brothers and sisters?
Society today is suffering the consequences of this fact.
Do not forget that such a state of things is always a sign of
moral decadence. When pride reaches extremes, it is an indication
that a downfall is close at hand, for God always punishes the
arrogant. If he sometimes allows them to ascend, it is to give them
time to reflect and mend their ways under the blows that he gives
to their pride from time to time in order to warn them. Instead of
humbling themselves, however, they rebel. Then, when their cup
is full, God brings them down suddenly, and their downfall is all
the more terrible the higher they have ascended.
Poor humankind, whose selfishness has corrupted every
pathway, take heart once again, nonetheless. In his infinite mercy,
God has sent you a powerful remedy for your ills, an unexpected aid
in your affliction. Open your eyes to the light: there are the souls
of those who are no longer on the earth and who have come to call
you to your real duties. With all the authority of their experience,
they will tell you how the vanities and grandeur of your temporary
existence are a small thing in comparison with eternity. They will
tell you that there the greatest is the one who was the humblest
among the small of your world; that those who loved their brothers
and sisters the most are also those who will be loved the most in
heaven; that the powerful of the earth, if they abused their authority,
will be reduced to obeying their servants; that, in short, charity and
humility, those two sisters who walk hand in hand, are the most
effective means for obtaining grace before the Eternal One.
Adolfo, Bishop of Argel (Marmande, 1862)

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The Mission of the Intelligent Person on the Earth

13. Do not pride yourself on what you know, because such
knowing has very narrow limits in the world on which you dwell. But
even supposing you were one of those distinguished personalities on
this globe, you would still have no right to flatter yourself. If in his
designs God has enabled you to be born into an environment where
you are able to develop your intelligence, it is because he wills for
you to employ it for the good of all. It is a mission he has given you,
putting in your hands the instrument that will help you, in your
turn, to develop the intelligences lagging behind and lead them to
God. Does not the nature of that instrument indicate the use to be
made of it? Does not the hoe that the gardener places in the hands
of his helper show the helper that he must till? What would you say
if this helper, instead of working, raised the hoe in order to strike
his master? You would say that it is horrible and that he deserves to
be dismissed. Well then, does not the same occur with those who
use their intelligence to destroy the idea of God and Providence
amongst their brothers and sisters? Do they not raise against their
Master the hoe that was given to them to till the soil? Do they have
a right to their wages, or do they deserve to be expelled from the
garden instead? Do not doubt that they will be expelled, and they
will trudge through miserable lives full of humiliation until they
bow before the One to whom they owe everything.
Intelligence is rich in merit for the future, but on the condition
that it is employed rightly. If all people who have been given it
used it according to God’s designs, the Spirits’ task of enabling
humankind to advance would be easy. Unfortunately, many make
of it an instrument of pride and perdition for themselves. Humans
abuse their intelligence like all their other faculties; nonetheless,
the lessons are not lacking to warn them that a powerful hand can
take back what it has given them.
Ferdinand, a Protector Spirit (Bordeaux, 1862)

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Blessed are the pure of heart

• Let the children come to Me • Sinning in Thought;
Adultery • rue Purity. Unclean Hands • Scandals.
If your hand is a cause for scandal, cut it off • The
Spirits’ Teachings: – Let the children come to me. –
Blessed Are They Whose Eyes Are Closed

Let the Children Come to Me

1. Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God. (Mt. 5:8)

2. Then, some children were presented to him so that he would touch them,
but as his disciples kept away with scolding words those who were being
presented, Jesus was displeased and said to them, “Let the children come to
me and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven is for those who are
like them. Verily, I say to you, anyone who does not receive the kingdom of
heaven like a child will not enter it.” And embracing them, he blessed them,
placing his hands upon them. (Mk. 10:13-16)

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3. Purity of heart is inseparable from simplicity and humility,

and excludes every thought of selfishness and pride. That is why
Jesus uses childhood as a symbol of such purity, just as he uses it as
a symbol for humility.
This comparison might not seem just, considering the
fact that the spirit of a child may be quite old, and that upon
being reborn to corporeal life it brings with it the imperfections
that it had not gotten rid of in its previous existences. Only a
spirit who has reached perfection could give us a model of true
purity. However, the comparison is precise from the present life
point of view, because, having not yet manifested any perverse
inclinations, little children offer us the picture of innocence and
candor. Furthermore, Jesus does not say that the kingdom of God
is for them literally, but for those who are like them.
4. Since the spirit of a child has already lived before, why
does it not show from birth what it really is? Everything is wise in
God’s works. Children have need of sensitive care, which only a
mother’s tenderness can give them, and this tenderness increases
with their frailty and innocence. To a mother, her child is always
an angel and it has to be that way in order to capture her concern.
She would not have the same care toward her child if, instead of
innocent charm, she found behind her child’s infantile features a
virile character and adult thoughts; and she would care even less if
she knew about the child’s past.
Furthermore, the activity of the intelligent principle would
have to be in proportion to the weakness of the body, which could
not endure a large amount of activity of the spirit such as that
which may be seen in highly precocious individuals. That is why,
as incarnation draws near, the spirit enters a state of confusion
and gradually loses its self-awareness; for some time it remains
in a sort of sleep, during which all its faculties remain latent.
This transitory state is necessary to give the spirit a new starting

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point, and to enable it to forget the things that might hinder it

in its new earthly existence. Nevertheless, its past acts upon it. It
is reborn to a greater life both morally and intellectually as it is
upheld and aided by the intuition it has retained of it previously-
acquired experience.
Beginning at birth, its thoughts gradually regain
momentum to the degree that its organs develop, so that it may
be said that during the first few years, the spirit is truly a child,
since the ideas that will form the basis of its character are still
dormant. During this time it is more malleable and therefore
more accessible to the impressions that can modify its nature and
enable it to progress, which in turn renders the task imposed on
the parents easier.
Thus, the spirit wears the tunic of innocence for a while, and
Jesus is correct when, notwithstanding the soul’s previous lives, he
uses the child as the symbol of purity and simplicity.

Sinning in Thought; Adultery

5. “You have learned that it was said to the ancients, ‘You shall not commit
adultery.’ But I say to you that he who looks at a woman with a wicked
desire for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Mt.
5:27,28)

6. The word adultery must in no way be understood here in

the exclusive sense of its normal meaning, but in a more generalized
sense. Jesus often employed it by extension to designate evil, sin
and every bad thought, as, for example, in this passage: “For if
anyone amongst this adulterous and sinful generation is ashamed
of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him also
when he comes accompanied by the holy angels in the glory of his
Father.” (Mk. 8:38)

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True purity is not only displayed in one’s actions; it is also

displayed in one’s thoughts, for those who have a pure heart do not
even think about evil. This is what Jesus meant. He condemns sin,
even in thought, because it is a sign of impurity.
7. This principle naturally leads to the following question:
Does one suffer the consequences of an evil thought if it is not followed
by an effect?
Here, there is an important distinction to be made. As the
soul caught up on the wrong path advances in its spiritual life, it
enlightens itself and rids itself little by little of its imperfections,
depending on the greater or lesser willingness it employs in virtue
of its free will. Every evil thought thus results from the soul’s
imperfection; however, depending on its desire to purify itself,
even an evil thought can become an opportunity for advancement
if it forcefully rejects it. This indicates an effort to wipe away a
stain. Hence, it will not yield if presented with an opportunity to
satisfy an evil desire, and after having resisted it, it will feel much
stronger and happier with its victory.
On the other hand, the soul that has not made good
resolutions seeks an opportunity for an evil act, and if it does not
actually commit one, it is not because of its will but because it
lacked the opportunity. Consequently, it is as guilty as if it had
actually committed it.
In sum, persons who do not even conceive the thought
of evil have already made progress; those to whom the thought
occurs but who reject it are on their way to making progress;
finally, those who have such a thought and take pleasure in it
are still indwelt by evil in all its strength. In one, the work is
finished; in the others, it remains yet to be done. God is just
and considers all such nuances in people’s responsibility for their
actions and thoughts.

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True Purity. Unclean Hands

8. Then the scribes and Pharisees who had come to Jerusalem approached
Jesus and said to him, “Why do your disciples violate the tradition of the
ancients, for they do not wash their hands when they eat their meals?”

But Jesus responded to them, “Why do you yourselves violate the

commandment of God in order to follow your tradition? Although
God gave this commandment: Honor your father and mother; and
this one: He who speaks outrageous words to his father or mother is
to be put to death, you have said: Anyone who has said to his father
or mother, ‘Every offering that I make to God is useful to you and
fulfills the law,’ even if afterward he neither honors nor helps his father
or mother. Thus, you have made God’s commandment useless for the
sake of your tradition.

“Hypocrites! Isaiah rightly prophesied about you when he said, ‘These

people honor me with their lips but their hearts remain far from me. And
it is in vain that they honor me by teaching maxims and ordinances that
come from men.’”

Then, having called the people, he said to them, “Hear and understand this
well: It is not what enters the mouth that defiles the man, but what comes
out of the mouth of the man. What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the
heart and is what makes the man unclean, for it is from the heart that evil
thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, robberies, perjuries, blasphemies
and slanders proceed. The things that make the man unclean are there; but
eating without having washed one’s hands does not make a man unclean.”

Then his disciples approached and said to him, “Did you know that when
the Pharisees heard what you just said, they were offended by it?” But he
answered them, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will
be uprooted. Leave them; they are the blind who lead the blind. If one blind
man leads another, both fall into the pit.” (Mt. 15:1-20)

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9. While he was speaking, a Pharisee asked him if he would dine with

him in his home. And Jesus went there and took his place at the table. The
Pharisee then began to say to himself, “Why did he not wash his hands before
dinner?” But the Lord said to him, “You Pharisees take great care in washing
the outside of the cup and plate. However, the inside of your heart is full of
greed and iniquity. How foolish you are! Did not he who made the outside
also make the inside?” (Lk. 11:37-40)

10. The Jews had neglected the true commandments of

God in order to hold to the practice of regulations established by
humans, and of which strict observers made matters of conscience.
The very simple basis had ended up disappearing beneath the
complexity of form. Since it was much easier to observe outward
acts than to reform oneself morally, by washing their hands instead
of cleansing their heart, people deluded themselves and believed
that they were square with God because they conformed to such
practices. Even though they remained as they were, they were
taught that God required nothing more. That is why the prophet
said, “In vain these people honor me with their lips, teaching human
maxims and ordinances.”
The same occurred with Christ’s moral doctrine, which
ended up being placed on a secondary level. Just like the Jews of
old, many Christians came to believe that their salvation was more
surely guaranteed by means of outward practices than by morality.
It is to such human additions to the law of God that Jesus makes
the allusion when he said, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has
not planted shall be uprooted.”
The purpose of religion is to lead people to God, but people
cannot reach God unless they are perfect. Consequently, any
religion that does not enable people to become better does not
meet its objective. Any religion on which people believe they can
support themselves for doing evil is either false per se or false in
principle. Such is the result of all religions in which form is more

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important than the foundation. Belief in the efficacy of outward

signs is nullified if it does not keep murders, adultery, robbery,
slander or evil against one’s neighbor from being committed,
whatever such signs may be. This sort of belief creates superstition,
hypocrisy and fanaticism – not moral men and women.
It is not enough, therefore, to put on the appearance of
purity; above all, one must be pure of heart.

Scandals22. If your hand is a

cause for scandal, cut it off
11. “Woe to the world because of scandals, for it is necessary that scandals
come; but woe to the person through whom the scandal comes.”

“If anyone causes a scandal to one of these little ones who believe in me, it
would be better for him if one of those millstones were hung around his neck
and that he were cast into the depths of the sea.”

“Be very careful not to despise any of these little ones. I declare to you that
their angels in heaven incessantly come before my Father in heaven, for the
Son of Man has come to save who was lost.”

“If your hand or your foot is a cause for scandal, cut it off and throw it away
from you. It is much better for you to enter life having only one foot or one
hand than to have two and be cast into eternal fire. And if your eye is a cause
for scandal, tear it out and throw it away from you. It is better for you to
enter life with only one eye than to have two and be thrown into the fire of
hell.” (Mt. 18:6-10)

12. In its ordinary meaning, scandal means every action

that shocks morality or decency in an ostensive way. The scandal
does not lie in the action per se, but in the repercussion it might

22
The French term is scandale, from the Latin scandalum and Greek skândalon (used in the
Gospel passage) meaning snare or cause of moral stumbling. – Tr.

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have. The word scandal always implies the idea of a certain

outburst. Many persons are happy to avoid a scandal because
their pride would suffer and their worth would diminish in
other people’s eyes. As long as their turpitudes are ignored, it is
enough for them and their conscience to be at ease. According
to Jesus’ words, they are “whitewashed tombs on the outside,
but full of rottenness on the inside; clean vessels on the outside
but dirty on the inside.”
In the evangelical sense, the meaning of the frequently used
word scandal is much more general, which is why its acceptation
is not understood in certain cases. It is not only what offends
someone else’s conscience, but is everything that results from
human vices and imperfections; all the wrongful actions of one
individual toward another, with or without repercussion. Scandal,
in this case, is the effective result of bad morals.
13. It is necessary for there to be scandals in the world, said
Jesus, because humans are imperfect while on the earth and are
thus inclined to do evil, just as bad trees bear bad fruit. Therefore,
one must understand by these words that evil is a consequence
of humans’ imperfections and not that there is an obligation for
them to commit it.
14. It is necessary that scandals come because, being in a state
of expiation while on the earth, humans are punished by means
of contact with their vices, of which they are the first victims,
and whose inappropriateness they end up understanding. Once
they are tired of suffering from evil, they seek the remedy in the
good. The reaction to these vices therefore serves at the same time
as punishment for some and trials for others. This is how God
enables the good to emerge from evil and humans themselves to
profit from bad and disagreeable things.
15. If such is the case, one might say that evil is necessary
and will last forever, because if it were to disappear, God would

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be deprived of a powerful means of punishing the guilty; hence,

it is pointless to try to improve humankind. However, if there
were no longer the wrongdoer, there would be no more need for
punishment. Let us imagine humankind transformed into moral
individuals: no one would try to do evil to his or her neighbor and
everybody would be happy because they would be good. Such is
the state of advanced worlds where evil is excluded; such will be the
state of the earth when it has progressed sufficiently. Nevertheless,
while some worlds evolve, others are formed, peopled by primitive
spirits. These worlds serve as habitations of exile and places of
expiation for imperfect, rebellious, persistently evil spirits who
have been barred from worlds that have become blissful.
16. But woe to him through whom scandal comes. This means
that since evil is always evil, those who unknowingly have served as
instruments for divine justice, those whose evil instincts have been
utilized, have committed evil nevertheless and must be punished.
Thus it is, for example, that an ungrateful child is a punishment or
trial for the parents who bear it because they themselves had perhaps
been bad children and now must suffer the penalty of talion. However,
the child is blameworthy nonetheless and must be punished in turn
in the persons of his or her own children or in some other way.
17. If your hand is a cause for scandal, cut it off. This is a powerful
image which would be absurd if taken literally, and which simply
means that one must destroy within oneself all cause of scandal, that
is, of evil; one must uproot from one’s heart every impure sentiment
and every immoral tendency. It also means that it would be more
praiseworthy to have one’s hand cut off than for that hand to have
been an instrument for an evil act; to be deprived of one’s sight
than one’s eyes having been an avenue for evil thoughts. Jesus never
said anything absurd to those who could understand the allegorical
and deeper meaning of his words. However, many things cannot be
understood without the key that Spiritism provides.

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The Spirits’ Teachings

Let the children come to me
18. Christ said, “Let the children come to me.” Profound in
their simplicity, these words do not imply the mere calling of children,
but of the souls that gravitate in the lower regions, where misfortune
knows no hope. Jesus called unto him the intellectual infancy of the
full-grown person: the weak, the enslaved and the wicked. He could
not teach anything to physical infancy, which is subject to matter and
the yoke of instinct, and does not yet belong to the higher order of
reason and will, which is exercised around them and for their benefit.
Jesus wanted people to come to him with the trust of those
little beings of wavering steps. His calling to them would win him
the hearts of women, who are all mothers. Thus, he could submit
souls to his tender and mysterious authority. He was the flame
that shone in the darkness, the morning light that awakens the
dawn. He was the initiator of Spiritism, which in turn must call
to itself not little children but mature individuals of goodwill. A
vigorous process has begun; it is no longer a question of believing
instinctively and obeying mechanically; it is necessary for humans
to follow the intelligent law that reveals its universality.
Dearly beloved, the time has come in which errors, once
explained, will become truths. We will teach you the precise meaning
of the parables and will show you the strong correlation linking
what was with what is. Truly, I say to you: spirit manifestations are
increasing on the horizon, and Spiritism is the messenger that will
shine like the sun on the mountaintops.
John the Evangelist (Paris, 1863)

19. Let the little children come to me, for I have the milk that
strengthens the weak. Let all come to me who are fearful and feeble,
and in need of support and consolation. Let the unlearned come to

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me so that I may enlighten them. Let all those who suffer come to
me – the multitudes of the afflicted and unfortunate. I will teach them
about the great remedy that softens the ills of life, and I will give them
the secret of healing for their wounds! My friends, what is this supreme
balm possessing virtue par excellence, this balm that may be applied
to all the wounds of the heart to heal them? It is love, it is charity! If
you possess this divine fire, what will you fear? Every moment of your
life you will say, “My Father, may your will be done and not mine.
If it pleases you to try me through pain and tribulation, may you be
blessed, for it is for my own good and I know that it is your hand that
is weighing on me. O Lord, if it pleases you to have mercy on your
weak creature, if you give my heart permissible joys, may you be more
blessed. But do not allow your divine love to sleep in my soul; may I
unceasingly lift up to your feet the voice of my thanksgiving!”
If you have love, you have everything there is to be desired
on the earth. You possess the most excellent pearl that neither
circumstances nor the evils of those who hate and persecute you
will be able to take away. If you have love, you will have put your
treasure where worms and rust cannot reach it, and you will see
everything that might stain its purity erased from your soul. You
will feel the weight of matter grow lighter day by day, and like a
bird soaring in the sky with no memory of earth, you will ascend
without ceasing, you will ascend forever until your exhilarated soul
satiates itself with life in the bosom of the Lord.
A Protector Spirit (Bordeaux, 1861)
Blessed Are They Whose Eyes Are Closed23
20. My good friends, why have you called me? Is it so that I
might place my hands upon this poor sufferer here and heal her?
23
This communication was given regarding a blind person, on whose behalf the spirit of J. B.
Vianney, a priest in Ars, was evoked – Auth. (St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney, 1786–1859, French
parish priest, popularly known as the Curé d’Ars, b. Dardilly, near Lyons. Canonized by the
Roman Church in 1925 and in 1929 made universal patron of parish priests. – (Columbia
Encyclopedia, sixth ed. Columbia University Press, 2001) – Tr.

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Ah! Such suffering, good God! She has lost her sight and darkness
has come upon her. Poor child! May she pray and hope. I do not
know how to perform miracles apart from the will of the good
God. All the healings I was able to receive, and which were pointed
out to you, may be attributed only to the One who is our Father
in everything.
In your afflictions, therefore, always look to heaven and
say from the bottom of your heart, “My Father, heal me, but
may my infirm soul be healed before the infirmities of my body;
may my flesh be chastised if need be so that my soul may ascend
to you with the whiteness it had when you created it.” After this
prayer, my good friends, which the good God will always hear,
strength and courage will be given to you, and perhaps also the
healing that you have only timidly asked for as recompense for
your self-denial.
Nevertheless, since I am here in a gathering that deals with
study more than anything else, I will tell you that those who
have been deprived of their sight should regard themselves as the
blessed ones of expiation. Remember that Christ said it is better
to pluck out your eye if it is evil and that it would be better if it
were cast into the fire than be the cause of your perdition. Alas!
How many there are on your earth, who someday in the darkness
will curse having seen the light! Oh! Yes, how happy are they who
in expiation have been struck in their sight! Their eyes will not
be a cause for scandal or downfall; they can fully live the life of
the soul; they can see more than you who see clearly... Whenever
God allows me to open the eyes of any of these poor sufferers and
restore their sight, I say to myself: Dear soul, why do you not
know about the delights of the spirit that lives in contemplation
and love? You would not be asking to see images that are less pure
and less sweet than those that have been given to you to behold
in your blindness.

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Oh! Yes, blessed are the blind who want to live with God.
They are happier than you who are here, for they feel happiness,
they touch it, they see souls and can soar with them in spirit
realms that the predestined of your earth do not see. The open
eye is always ready to cause the soul to fail; the shut eye, on the
other hand, is always ready to enable it to reach God. Believe me
well, my good and dear friends, blindness of the eyes is often the
true light of the heart, while sight is frequently the dark angel that
leads to death.
And now, a few words for you, my poor suffering woman:
wait and be of good cheer! If I were to tell you: My daughter, your
eyes shall be opened, how joyous you would be! But who knows if
such joy would not lead to your loss! Trust in the good God who
bestows happiness and allows sadness! I shall do everything for you
that is allowed, but you in turn must pray, and especially, meditate
on everything I have just said.
Before I leave, may all you gathered here receive my blessing.
Vianney, priest of Ars (Paris, 1863)

21. Comment: Whenever an affliction is not the result

of acts of the present life, one must search for their cause in a
previous one. Whatever is called a whim of chance is no more
than the effect of God’s justice. God does not inflict arbitrary
punishment; God always wills for a correlation to exist between
the wrong and the punishment. If in the divine goodness God has
cast a veil over our past acts, God nevertheless points the way to
us by saying: “Whoever has killed with the sword shall perish by
the sword,” words that may be translated as, “The punishment
is always according to the sin.” Therefore, if someone suffers the
torment of the loss of sight, it is because sight was for him or her
a cause of downfall. Also, it could be that the person was the cause
of the loss of someone else’s sight; perhaps someone had become

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blind as a result of excess work having been imposed or as a result

of mistreatment, lack of care, etc., and now the person is suffering
the penalty of talion. The person him or herself could have chosen
such expiation, applying these words of Jesus personally: “If your
eye is a cause for scandal, pluck it out.”

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Blessed are the meek

and peace-loving
• Insults and Violence • The Spirits’ Teachings: – Affability and
Meekness. – Patience. – Obedience and Resignation. – Anger

Insults and Violence

1. Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the earth. (Mt. 5:4)

2. Blessed are the peace-loving, for they shall be called children of God. (Mt. 5:9)

3. You have learned what was said to the ancients: You shall not kill, and
whoever kills shall deserve being condemned to judgment. But I say to you
that whoever shows anger against his brother shall deserve being condemned
to judgment; whoever says to his brother Raca shall deserve to be condemned
by the council; and whoever says to him: You fool, shall deserve being
condemned to the fire of hell. (Mt. 5:21-22)

4. By these maxims, Jesus makes meekness, moderation,

docility, affability and patience a law. Consequently, he

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condemns violence, anger and even any discourteous expression

regarding another person. Raca, to the Hebrews, was a term of
scorn that meant a worthless person, and it was said while spitting
and turning one’s head to the side. Jesus goes even further, since
he threatens with the fire of hell anyone who says to another
person: You fool.
It is obvious that here, as in every circumstance, the intent
either increases or attenuates the wrong; but how can a simple
word have enough gravity to deserve such a severe reproach? It
is because every offensive word expresses a sentiment contrary
to the law of love and charity, which should regulate human
relations and maintain harmony and unity in them; because
such a word is an insult to mutual benevolence and fraternity;
because it encourages hatred and animosity; finally, because after
humility toward God, charity toward one’s neighbor is the first
law for every Christian.
5. What did Jesus mean by these words: “Blessed are the
meek, for they shall possess the earth,” he who stated that one should
renounce the things of this world and promised those of heaven?
While waiting for the things of heaven, humans have need
of the things of the earth in order to live. He only advises them not
to attach more importance to the latter than to the former.
By these words Jesus means that up till now the things of the
earth have been monopolized by aggressive persons to the harm of
those who are meek and peace-loving; that the latter often lack the
necessities, while the former have the superfluous. He promises
that justice will be rendered to the meek and peace-loving on earth
as in heaven, for they shall be called children of God. When the
law of love and charity is finally the law of humankind, there will
be no more selfishness; the weak and peace-loving will no longer
be exploited or crushed by the strong and aggressive. Such will
be the state of the earth, when, according to the law of progress

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and the promise of Jesus, it becomes a blessed world through the

expulsion of evil individuals.

The Spirits’ Teachings

Affability and Meekness
6. Benevolence toward one’s fellow beings, the fruit of
love toward one’s neighbor, produces the affability and meekness
that are its manifestation. However, one must not always trust in
appearances. Good manners and worldly skill can lend the veneer
of such qualities. How many there are whose feigned good nature
is no more than an outward mask, a garment whose premeditated
form covers up hidden deformities! The world is full of such
individuals, who have a smile on their lips and venom in their
hearts; who are meek as long as nothing angers them, but who bite
back at the least contrariety; whose silver tongue when they speak
to your face changes into a poisoned arrow when they speak
behind your back.
To this class belong also the men and women who seem
benign on the outside but who are really domestic tyrants, making
their families and subordinates suffer the weight of their pride and
despotism as though wanting to get even for the restraints imposed
on them elsewhere. Not daring to use their authority on strangers
who would put them in their place, they want to at least be feared
by those who cannot resist them. Their vanity rejoices at being
able to say, “Here, I command and am obeyed,” without thinking
that they could very well add, “and I am detested.”
It is not enough for lips to flow with milk and honey, because
if the heart does not do the same, it is hypocrisy. Those whose
affability and meekness are not feigned never belie themselves;
they are the same, both in the world and at home. Furthermore,

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it is said that even if we are able to fool others by appearances, we

do not fool God.
Lazare (Paris, 1861)
Patience
7. Pain is a blessing that God sends upon the elect; therefore,
do not become troubled when you suffer; instead, bless Almighty
God, who through the pain of this world has marked you out for
glory in heaven.
Be patient. Patience too is a form of charity and you must
practice the law of charity taught by Christ, the envoy of God.
The charity that consists in giving alms to the poor is the easiest
of all charities. There is another kind, however, that is much more
burdensome, and, consequently, more meritorious: forgiving those
whom God has placed on our path to be instruments of our suffering
and to put our patience to the test.
Life is difficult, I know. It is composed of a thousand
nothings, which are pinpricks that end up hurting us. But we
must consider the duties imposed on us, the consolations and
compensations we receive in return, and then we will see that the
blessings are more numerous than the sorrows. The burden seems
less heavy when we look to heaven than when our brow is bent
toward the ground.
Courage, my friends; Christ is your model. He suffered
more than any of you and had nothing for which to reproach
himself, whereas you have your past to expiate and to strengthen
you for the future. So be patient; be Christian – this word sums
up everything.
A Spirit Friend (Havre, 1862)
Obedience and Resignation
8. At all points Jesus’ doctrine teaches obedience and
resignation: two very active companion virtues of meekness,

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although people erroneously confuse them with the negation of

sentiment and will. Obedience is the consent of reason; resignation is
the consent of the heart; both are active forces because they carry the
burden of the trials that insensate rebellion lets drop. The coward
cannot be resigned, just as the proud and selfish person cannot
be obedient. Jesus was the incarnation of these virtues scorned by
materialistic antiquity. He came at a time in which Roman society
was perishing in the bankruptcy of corruption. He came to make
the triumphs of sacrifice and renunciation of the flesh shine in the
bosom of downcast humankind.
Every generation is thus marked with the stamp of either
virtue or vice, which must either save or ruin it. The virtue of your
generation is intellectual activity; its vice is moral indifference. I
say “activity” only, for a genius might suddenly arise and single-
handedly discover horizons that the multitudes will see only later,
whereas “activity” is the combining of everyone’s efforts to reach
a less-grandiose goal, but which nevertheless tests the intellectual
advancement of that generation. Submit yourselves to the thrust
we have come to give your spirits. Obey the great law of progress,
which is the catch-phrase of your generation. Woe to lazy spirits,
those who close off their understanding! Woe to them! For we
who are the guides of humankind on the march will apply the
whip to compel their rebellious wills through the two-fold effort
of brake and spur. All prideful resistance will yield sooner or later.
But blessed are they who are meek, for they will lend a willing ear
to our teachings.
Lazare (Paris, 1863)
Anger
9. Pride leads you to deem yourselves to be more than you
really are; you cannot endure any comparison that might belittle
you. On the contrary, pride makes you consider yourselves to be

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so far above your brothers and sisters – whether in spirit, social

position or personal advantage – that the least parallel irritates and
hurts you. And then what happens? You give in to anger.
Seek the origin of these outbursts of temporary insanity
that make you resemble brutes, causing you to lose your poise
and your reason. Seek and you will find that they are almost
always based on wounded pride. Is it not wounded pride at being
contradicted that makes you reject wise remarks and makes you
angrily reject the wisest counsels? Even impatience, which often
causes puerile annoyances, is connected to the importance that
one attributes to one’s person, before which one thinks everyone
else should bow down.
In their frenzy, angry persons attack everything from brute
nature to inanimate objects, which they crush because they do not
obey. Ah! If at such moments they could serenely see themselves,
they would either be afraid of themselves or they would discover
that they look ridiculous! Let them thereby deduce the impression
they must have on others. Even if it were for nothing else but self-
respect, they should make an effort to overcome a propensity that
makes them an object of pity.
If persons would realize that anger does not solve anything,
that it affects their health and compromises their life, they would
see that they themselves are its primary victim. However, another
consideration should especially restrain them: the thought that
they make everyone around them unhappy. If they have a heart,
should they not regret making those whom they love most
to suffer? What a deadly grief it would be if in a hot-headed
outburst they committed an act that they would deplore for the
rest of their lives!
In sum, anger does not exclude certain qualities of the
heart, but it keeps one from practicing much good and can lead
to practicing much evil. This fact should be enough to motivate

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efforts to control it. Moreover, Spiritists are encouraged for another

reason: anger is contrary to charity and Christian humility.
A Protector Spirit (Bordeaux, 1863)

10. According to the very wrong idea that one cannot

reform one’s own nature, humans think they are to be
excused from putting forth the effort to correct their defects,
in which they deliberately delight, or which would require
too much perseverance to emend. It is thus, for example, that
individuals inclined toward anger nearly always blame it on their
temperament. Before regarding themselves as blameworthy, they
blame their faults on their body, thus accusing God for their
misdeeds. This is a further consequence of the pride that may be
found mixed in with all their imperfections.
Of course, there are temperaments that lend themselves
more than others to violence, just as there are more flexible muscles
that lend themselves better to acts of strength. Nonetheless, do not
believe that the primary cause of anger is to be found there; rather,
be convinced that a peace-loving spirit, even in an ill-tempered
body, will always be peace-loving, whereas a violent spirit in a
lymphatic body will not thereby be meeker. Instead, the violence
will only take on a different character. By not having a suitable
organism to second its violence, anger will be more concentrated,
whereas in the former instance, it will be more expansive.
Thus, the body does not cause anger in persons who do not
already have it, just as it does not cause the other vices. All virtues
and all vices are inherent to the spirit. Otherwise, where would
the merit and responsibility be? A physically handicapped person
cannot make him or herself whole, because his or her spirit has
nothing to do with it; but this person can change what is of the
spirit if he or she has a firm will. My fellow Spiritists, does experience
not show you how far the power of the will can go in light of the

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truly miraculous transformations that you see happening? So tell

yourselves that humans do not remain vice-prone unless they want to
remain vice-prone; those who want to correct themselves always can.
Otherwise, there would be no law of progress for human beings.
Hahnemann (Paris, 1863)

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Blessed are the merciful

• Forgive so that God Will Forgive You • Reconciliation
with One’s Adversaries • The Sacrifice Most Pleasing
to God • The Speck and the Plank in One’s Eye • Do
not judge so that you yourself might not be judged; Let
him who is without sin cast the first stone • The Spirits’
Teachings: – Forgiveness of Offenses. – Indulgence

Forgive so that God Will Forgive You

1. Blessed are the merciful, for they themselves shall receive mercy. (Mt. 5:7)
2. If you forgive others for the wrongs they have committed against you, your
heavenly Father will forgive your sins also, but if you do not forgive others
when they have offended you, your heavenly Father will not forgive your sins
either. (Mt. 6:14-15)
3. If your brother has sinned against you, go to him and make his wrong
known in private, between you and him. If he listens to you, you will have
gained a brother. Then Peter approached him and said, “Lord, how many
times shall I forgive my brother when he has sinned against me? Up to seven

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times?” Jesus answered him, “I do not tell you up to seven times, but up to
seventy times seven times.” (Mt. 18:15, 21-22)

4. Mercy is the compliment of meekness, because

whoever is not merciful cannot be meek and peaceable.
Mercy consists in forgetting and forgiving offenses. Hatred
and rancor denote a soul that is neither advanced nor great.
Forgetting offenses is proper to the advanced soul, which is
above the insults that might be directed at it. One is always
anxious, darkly suspicious and full of bile; the other is calm,
full of gentleness and charity.
Woe to those who say, “I will never forgive,” because if they
are not condemned by other human beings, they certainly will be
by God. By what right will they beg forgiveness for their wrongs if
they themselves do not forgive the wrongs of others? When Jesus
says to forgive others not seven times but seventy times seven, he
teaches us that mercy should have no limits.
However, there are two quite different ways of forgiving:
one is great, noble, truly generous, without ulterior motives,
delicately sparing the self-esteem and susceptibility of one’s
opponent even when he or she is completely to blame; and the
second, by which the offended person – or the one who thinks
he or she has been offended – imposes humiliating conditions
on the other person and makes him or her feel the weight of a
forgiveness that angers instead of pacifies. If this person offers
his or her hand, it is not done benevolently but ostentatiously
in order to be able to tell the whole world, “See how generous
I am!” In such circumstances, it is impossible for there to be
a sincere reconciliation for either one. No, in this there is no
generosity, but a way of satisfying pride. In every dispute, the one
who shows that he or she is more conciliatory, who demonstrates
more disinterestedness, charity and true greatness of soul, will
always win the sympathy of impartial individuals.

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Reconciliation with One’s Adversaries

5. Be reconciled as quickly as possible with your adversary, while you are
with him on the way so that he does not hand you over to the judge, and so
that the judge does not hand your over to the Minister of Justice, so that you
may not be imprisoned. Verily, I say to you that you will not leave there as
long as you have not paid the last farthing. (Mt. 5:25-26)

6. In the practice of forgiveness and the good in general,

there is more than a moral effect: there is also a physical effect.
We know that death does not free us from our enemies. In their
hatred, vengeful spirits often pursue beyond the grave those
against whom they harbor rancor; thus the proverb that states,
“The beast dead, the venom is dead”24 is erroneous when applied
to human beings. An evil spirit awaits the one against whom it
wishes evil to be imprisoned in the body and less free in order
to more easily torment it, striking it in its interests or dearest
affections. In this fact, one can see the cause of most cases of
obsession, especially those that display a certain gravity such as
subjugation and possession. Obsessed and possessed persons are
therefore almost always victims of a prior revenge which they
probably caused by their conduct. God allows this in order to
punish them for the evil they committed, or if they did not commit
it, then for having lacked indulgence and charity by refusing to
forgive. Consequently, from the point of view of one’s future
peace-of-mind, it is important to repair as quickly as possible the
wrongs one has committed against one’s neighbor, and to forgive
one’s enemies in order to eliminate, before death, all motives of
dissention and all causes based on ulterior animosity. In this way,
one may make of an obstinate enemy in this world a friend in
the other – or at least put oneself on the side of the good – and

24
French proverbe “Morte la bête, mort le venin.” – Tr.

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God will not allow the one who has forgiven to be the target of
vengeance. When Jesus recommends being reconciled as quickly
as possible with one’s adversary, it is not only with a view to
mitigating discords in the course of one’s current existence, but
rather to keep them from continuing in future ones. “You will
not leave there,” he says, “as long as you have not paid the last
farthing,” meaning, as long as you have not completely satisfied
God’s justice.

The Sacrifice Most Pleasing to God

7. If, therefore, when you present your offering on the altar, you remember
that your brother has something against you, leave your gift at the foot of the
altar and go first to be reconciled with your brother, and afterward, return
to offer your gift. (Mt. 5:23-24)

8. When Jesus said, “Go first to be reconciled with

your brother before presenting your offering at the altar,” he
is teaching that the sacrifice most pleasing to the Lord is the
sacrificing of one’s resentment; that before presenting oneself to
God in order to be forgiven, it is necessary to have forgiven, and
that if a wrong has been committed against any brother or sister,
it is necessary to have repaired it. Only then will the offering be
pleasing, because it will come from a heart purified of every evil
thought. Jesus materializes this precept because the Jews were
used to offering material sacrifices. He had to adapt his words to
their customs. Christians do not offer material gifts; they offer a
spiritualized sacrifice, but the precept thereby takes on an even
greater import. They offer their soul to God and that soul must
be purified. Entering the temple of the Lord, they must leave behind
every sentiment of hatred and animosity, and every evil thought
against their brother or sister. Only then will their prayer be taken

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by the angels to the feet of the Eternal One. This is what Jesus
is teaching by these words: Leave your offering at the foot of the
altar and go first to be reconciled with your brother or sister if
you want to be pleasing to the Lord.

The Speck and the Plank in One’s Eye

9. How is it that you see a speck in your brother’s eye but you do not see
the plank in your own? Or, how is it that you say to your brother, “Let
me take a speck out of your eye,” while you have a plank in yours? You
hypocrites, first take the plank out of your own eye and then you will be
able to take the speck out of your brother’s eye. (Mt. 7:3-5)

10. One of humankind’s defects consists in seeing

someone else’s evil before seeing the evil that is within ourselves.
In order to judge oneself, it would be necessary to see oneself
in a mirror, stepping outside of oneself somehow and regarding
oneself as another person, asking: What would I think if I saw
someone else doing what I am doing? Most assuredly it is pride
that leads people to disguise their own defects, both moral and
physical. This fault is essentially contrary to charity because
true charity is modest, simple and non-judgmental. Prideful
charity is nonsense, since these two sentiments neutralize each
other. In fact, how can certain people who are vain enough
to believe in their own self-importance and the supremacy of
their own qualities possess at the same time enough self-denial
to point out in someone else the good that might eclipse their
own instead of the evil that might make them stand out? If
pride is the father of many vices, it is also the denial of many
virtues. Pride may be found to be the basis and the motive for
nearly all actions. That is why Jesus devoted himself to fighting
it as the main obstacle to progress.

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Do not judge so that you yourself

might not be judged; Let him who
is without sin cast the first stone
11. Do not judge so that you yourself might not be judged, for you will be
judged according to your having judged others, and the same measure will
be used on you that you have used on them. (Mt. 7:1-2)

12. Then, the scribes and Pharisees brought him a woman who had been
caught in adultery and stood her in the midst of the people, saying to
Jesus, “Master, this woman has just been caught in adultery. Now, the
law of Moses orders us to stone adulterers. What, then, is your opinion on
the matter?” They said this to test him in order to have a reason to accuse
him. However, Jesus kneeled down and began writing on the ground with
his finger. When they continued to question him, he stood up and said to
them, “Let him among you who is without sin cast the first stone at
her.” Then, he kneeled again and continued writing on the ground. But
hearing him speak in such a way, they began to leave one by one, the older
ones first. Thus, Jesus remained alone with the woman, who was in the
middle of the square.

Then, Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are your accusers?
Have not any of them condemned you?” She said to him, “No, Lord.” Jesus
responded to her, “Neither will I condemn you. Go, and in the future, sin
no more.” (Jn. 8:3-11)

13. “Let him among you who is without sin cast the first
stone at her,” said Jesus. This maxim makes indulgence a duty,
for there is no one who does not need indulgence in return.
Indulgence teaches us that we must not judge others more severely
than we would judge ourselves, or condemn others for what we
absolve in ourselves. Before blaming someone else’s wrong, let us
see if the same reproof might not fall upon us.

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Blame cast at another’s conduct can have two motives: to

reprimand evil or to discredit the person whose acts are being
criticized. The latter motive is never excusable, because it is
defamatory and malicious. The former may be praiseworthy, and
even become a duty in certain cases since some good might result
from it, and since without it, evil would never be restricted in
society. Moreover, is it not one’s duty to help with the progress
of one’s fellow humans? Thus, it would not be right to take the
principle, “Do not judge if you do not want to be judged” in the
absolute sense, because the letter kills but the spirit enlivens.
Jesus could not have prohibited the condemnation of what
is evil, since he himself did so and in no uncertain terms. What he
meant was that the authority to condemn is a result of the moral
authority of the one who does the condemning. To be guilty of
what one condemns in someone else is to belie such authority;
moreover, it removes the right to restrain. Furthermore, one’s inner
awareness denies any respect for and any voluntary submission to
those who, vested with any kind of power, violate the laws and
principles they are in charge of enforcing. There is no legitimate
authority in God’s eyes except that which is founded on the example
of the good it does. This too is what the words of Jesus emphasize.

The Spirits’ Teachings

Forgiveness of Offenses
14. How many times should I forgive my brother or sister?
Not seven times, but seventy times seven. This is one of Jesus’
teachings that should strike your mind the hardest and speak to
your heart the loudest. Compare these words of mercy with the
prayer so simple, so concise and so great in its aspirations which
Jesus gave to his disciples, and you will discover the same thought.

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Jesus – righteousness par excellence – responds to Peter: You shall

forgive without limit; you shall forgive every offense as many times
as it is committed against you; you shall teach your brothers and
sisters that forgetfulness of self, which makes them invulnerable
to attack, evil behavior and insult; you shall be meek and humble
of heart without ever measuring your kindness; in short, you shall
do for others what you would want your heavenly Father to do for
you. Has he not forgiven you often? Does he count the number
of times his forgiveness has descended to wipe away your wrongs?
So, listen to Jesus’ answer, and, like Peter, apply it to
yourselves. Forgive, be indulgent, charitable, generous – even
lavish – with your love. Give, because the Lord will repay you;
forgive, because the Lord will forgive you; abase yourselves, because
the Lord will lift you up; humble yourselves, because the Lord will
sit you at his right hand.
Dearly beloved, go study and comment on these words I am
addressing to you on behalf of the One who, from the heights of
the heavenly splendors, always watches over you, and continues
with love the ungrateful task that he began eighteen centuries
ago.25 Therefore, forgive your brothers and sisters, as you yourselves
have need of being forgiven. If their actions do you personal harm,
it is one more reason for you to be indulgent, for the merit of
forgiveness is proportional to the seriousness of the evil. There will
be no merit in forgiving the errors of your brothers and sisters if
they have done only little harm.
O Spiritists, never forget that in words as well as in actions
forgiveness of wrongs must not be an empty expression. If you say
you are Spiritists, then be so; forget the evil that has been done to
you and think of one thing only: the good you can do. Those who
enter upon this path must not wander from it even in thought,
because they are responsible for their thoughts, known by God.
25
This book was written in the late 1800s. – Tr.

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Therefore, empty your thoughts of any sentiment of rancor. God

knows what lies at the bottom of each one’s heart. So, happy are
they who can go to sleep every night, saying: I have nothing against
my neighbor.
Simeon (Bordeaux, 1862)

15. Forgiving one’s enemies is to ask forgiveness for oneself;

forgiving one’s friends is to give them proof of friendship; forgiving
offenses is to show that one has become better. Therefore, my
friends, forgive so that God may forgive you, for if you are hard,
demanding and inflexible, if you are severe toward even a minor
offense, how can you expect God to forget that every day you are
in ever greater need of indulgence? Oh! Woe to those who say, “I
shall never forgive,” because they speak their own condemnation.
Moreover, who knows if looking deep down inside you might not
discover that you yourself were the aggressor? Who knows if in
the fight that begins as a pinprick and ends up as a rupture you
did not throw the first punch? If an offensive word did not escape
you? If you used all the moderation necessary? Of course, your
adversary erred in demonstrating excessive susceptibility, but that
is a reason for you to be indulgent so that you do not deserve
the reproach directed at you. Let us assume that you truly were
offended in a particular instance. Who could say that you have not
poisoned the matter with reprisal and that you have not let what
could have been easily forgotten degenerate into a serious quarrel?
If it depended on you to prevent the outcome but you did not, you
are blameworthy. Finally, let us assume that you have absolutely
nothing to be blamed for; in that case, you will have even greater
merit if you show clemency.
However, there are two quite different manners of
forgiving: there is forgiveness from the lips and forgiveness from
the heart. Many say to their adversaries, “I forgive you,” while

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inwardly they feel a secret pleasure when ills befall them, and
they tell themselves that they got only what they deserved. How
many say, “I forgive,” and then add, “but I’ll never reconcile; I
never want to see that person again for the rest of my life.” Is
that forgiveness according to the Gospel? No. True forgiveness –
Christian forgiveness – is the kind that casts a veil over the past.
It is the only kind that will be credited to you, for God is not
satisfied with appearances. God probes the depths of the heart
and the most secret thoughts. No one deceives him with words
and futile façades. The complete and absolute forgetting of
offenses is proper of great souls; rancor is always a sign of low-
mindedness and inferiority. Do not forget that true forgiveness is
recognized by actions much more than by words.
Paul, Apostle (Lyon, 1861)
Indulgence26
16. Spiritists, today we would like to speak to you about
indulgence, that sentiment so sweet, so fraternal that all people
should have for their brothers and sisters, but which few put to
good use.
Indulgence does not see the defects of others, or if it does, it
avoids talking about them or publicizing them. On the contrary, it
hides them so that they do not become known, and if malevolence
uncovers them, indulgence always has an excuse to mitigate them,
that is, a plausible and genuine excuse, and not one of those that
has the appearance of mitigating the wrong but actually emphasizes
it with clever perfidy.
Indulgence is never concerned with the wrongs of others –
unless it can be of assistance – and furthermore, it takes care to
mitigate them as much as possible. It does not make shocking
26
The Spirits’ Book, questions 886: The true meaning of charity: “Benevolence toward
everyone, indulgence toward the imperfections of others and forgiveness for offenses.”
(Emphasis added). – Tr.

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remarks, nor does it have reproach on its lips; it counsels only and
usually in a quiet manner. Whenever you criticize, what conclusion
should one derive from your words? That you, who reproach, do
not practice what you condemn and that you are more worthy
than the guilty party. O People! When will you judge your own
hearts, your own thoughts, your own actions, without concerning
yourselves with what your brothers and sisters do? When will you
look upon yourselves with your stern eyes?
Therefore, be stern toward yourselves and indulgent toward
others. Remember God, who judges in the last instance, who
sees the secret thoughts of each heart, and who, consequently,
frequently forgives the wrongs that you condemn, or condemns
those that you excuse, for he knows the motives for every action;
and bear in mind that you, who proclaim loudly, “Anathema!”
might perhaps have committed even more serious wrongs.
Be indulgent, my friends, because indulgence appeals, calms
and uplifts, whereas sternness discourages, keeps away and angers.
Joseph, a Protector Spirit (Bordeaux, 1863)

17. Be indulgent toward the wrongs of others, whatever

they might be; do not judge with severity except where your own
actions are concerned. The Lord will show indulgence toward you
to the degree that you have shown indulgence toward others.
Uphold the strong: encourage them to persevere. Strengthen
the weak by showing them the goodness of God, who takes the
least repentance into consideration. Show to all the angel of
repentance stretching out its white wings over human wrongs and
veiling them from the eyes of the One who cannot look upon what
is impure. Understand the infinite mercy of your Father and never
forget to say to him through your thoughts and especially through
your actions, “Forgive our offenses as we forgive those who have
offended us.” Understand well the value of these sublime words;

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not only is their literal meaning praiseworthy, but also the teaching
they contain.
What are you asking of the Lord when you ask him to
forgive you? Are you asking him only to forget your offenses?
Forgetting them will leave you with nothing, for if God were to
limit himself to forgetting your wrongs, he would not punish you,
but neither would he reward you. Reward cannot be payment for
the good that is not done, much less for the evil that has been
done, even if the evil has been forgotten. By asking God to forgive
your transgressions, you are asking him the favor of his grace that
you may not fall into them again, and for the strength needed to
enter upon a new pathway, a way of submission and love upon
which you can add reparation to repentance.
Whenever you forgive your brothers and sisters, do not
content yourselves with casting the veil of forgetfulness over their
wrongs; that veil is frequently very transparent to your eyes. Bring
them love at the same time as forgiveness; do for them what you
would ask your heavenly Father to do for you. Replace the anger
that defiles with the love that purifies. Preach by example the active,
inexhaustible charity that Jesus has taught you; preach charity just
as he himself did while he lived upon the earth in full view of
corporeal eyes, and just as he has continued to do, even though
he is no longer visible except to the eyes of the spirit. Follow his
divine model; walk in his footsteps: they will lead you to the place
of refuge where you will find repose after struggle. Like him, bear
all your crosses and thoughtfully but courageously mount your
Calvary: on its top is glorification.
Jean, Bishop of Bordeaux (1862)

18. Dear friends, be strict with yourselves but indulgent

toward the weaknesses of others. Doing so is a further practice
of holy charity that few observe. All of you have evil tendencies

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to overcome, defects to correct and habits to change. All of you

have a burden that is heavier or less heavy, but which you must
get rid of in order to scale the peak of the mountain of progress.
Then why are you so all-seeing toward your neighbor, yet so blind
regarding yourselves? When will you stop noticing the speck in your
brother’s or sister’s eye while not noticing the plank that blinds you
and causes you to go from downfall to downfall? Believe in your
friends, the Spirits. All men and women proud enough to deem
themselves superior in virtue and merit to their incarnate brothers
and sisters are foolish and at fault, and God will punish them on
the day of his justice. The true character of charity is modesty and
humility, which consist in seeing the defects of others only on the
surface and in taking an interest in valuing whatever is good and
virtuous in them, for if the human heart is an abyss of corruption,
there is always in a few of its hidden-most corners the seed of a few
good sentiments and a live spark of spiritual essence.
O Spiritism, consoling and blessed doctrine, happy are
they who know you and take advantage of the salutary teachings
of the Spirits of the Lord! The way is illuminated for them, and
throughout their entire journey they can read these words that
point to the means for them to reach the end: practical charity,
charity of the heart, charity toward one’s neighbors and toward
oneself; in other words, charity toward all and love for God above
all things, because love for God summarizes all duties and it is
impossible to love him truly without practicing charity, which he
made into a law for all his creatures.
Dufetre, Bishop of Nevers (Bordeaux)

19. Since no one is perfect, does it follow that no one has the
right to reprehend one’s neighbor?
Of course not, since each of you must labor for the
progress of all, especially those whose tutelage has been entrusted

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to you. But you must reprehend others with moderation, with

a useful purpose, and not as is usually done: for the pleasure of
denigrating them. In this latter instance, criticism is wickedness;
in the former, it is a duty, which charity commands to be achieved
with all the care possible. Moreover, the criticism one casts at
others must at the same time be directed at oneself, asking if one
does not deserve it more.
St. Louis (Paris, 1860)

20. Would it be reprehensible to observe others’ imperfections

when it does not result in a benefit for them, and when one does not
divulge them?
Everything depends on the intent. Of course, no one is
forbidden from seeing evil where there is evil. Furthermore, it
would be unsuitable to see only the good everywhere: such an
illusion would be harmful to progress. The error is in making
the observation to the detriment of one’s neighbor, unnecessarily
discrediting him or her committing a public eye. It would also be
reprehensible to make such an observation only to take pleasure
in a sentiment of malice and for the satisfaction of catching others
committing a wrong. The opposite applies, when, casting a veil
over evil to hide it from the public, we limit ourselves to observing
it for our own evolution, that is, to study it in order to avoid
what we censure in others. Furthermore, is not this observation
useful to the moralist? How could the moralist paint the defects of
humankind without studying the models?
St. Louis (Paris, 1860)

21. Are there cases in which it is useful to disclose someone else’s evil?
This question is very delicate, and it is here that one must
appeal to charity rightly understood. If a person’s imperfections
are harmful to that person alone, it would never be useful to

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disclose them. However, if they might cause harm to others, it

is preferable to take into account the interests of the majority
against the interests of only one. Depending on the circumstances,
unmasking hypocrisy and falsehood may comprise an obligation
because it is better for one person to fall than for several to become
his or her victims. In such a case, one must weigh the sum of the
advantages and disadvantages.
St. Louis (Paris, 1860)

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Loving One’s Neighbor

as Oneself
• The Greatest Commandment • Render unto Caesar what
is Caesar’s • The Spirits’ Teachings: – The Law of Love. –
Selfishness. – Faith and Charity. – Charity toward Criminals. –
Should One Risk One’s Own Life For a Criminal?

The Greatest Commandment

1. The Pharisees, having learned that he had silenced the Sadducees, gathered
together. And one of them, a doctor of the law, came to him to ask him this
question in order to test him: “Master, which is the greatest commandment of
the law?” Jesus answered him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your
heart, with all your soul and with all your mind; this is the greatest and first
commandment. And this is the second, which is similar to it: You shall love your
neighbor as yourself. All the law and the prophets are contained in these two
commandments.” (Mt. 22:34-40)

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2. Do unto men everything you would want them to do unto you, for
such is the law and the prophets. (Mt. 7:12)

Treat all men just as you would want them to treat you. (Lk. 6:31)

3. The kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with
his servants. And having begun to do so, one who owed him ten thousand
talents was presented to him. But since he did not have the means to repay
them, his master ordered him, his wife, his children and everything he owned
to be sold in order to satisfy the debt. The servant, throwing himself at his
feet, begged him, saying, “Lord, have a little patience and I will repay you
the full sum.” Then the servant’s master, touched with compassion, allowed
him to go and forgave his debt. However, having barely left, the servant met
one of his fellow servants who owed him one hundred denarii, took him by
the throat, and nearly strangling him, said to him, “Pay me what you owe.”
His fellow servant threw himself at his feet and begged him, saying, “Have a
little patience and I will repay you the full sum.” But the other did not want
to listen to him, and upon leaving, had him put in prison to be kept there
until he paid him what he owed.

When his other fellow servants saw what had happened, they were extremely
upset and informed their master about everything that had occurred. Then,
the master had the first servant brought to him and said, “You evil servant,
I exempted you from all that you owed me because you begged me. Thus,
should not you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had
mercy on you?” And the master, enraged, handed him over to the jailers until
he paid everything he owed.

It is thus that my Father who is in heaven will treat you if from the bottom of
your heart you do not forgive your brother for the wrongs he has committed
against you. (Mt. 18:23-35)

4. Loving one’s neighbor as oneself; doing unto others what

we would want them to do unto us is the most complete expression
of charity there is, because it sums up all our duties toward our

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neighbor. One could not have a surer guide in this respect than
the commandment that one should do unto others what one
desires for oneself. By what right would one demand from one’s
fellow beings better behavior, more indulgence, benevolence and
dedication than what one shows toward them? The practice of
these two maxims leads to the destruction of selfishness. When
humans take them as a rule for their conduct and as a foundation
for their institutions, they will understand true fraternity and
will ensure that peace and justice reign among them. There will
be neither hatred nor dissention, but only unity, harmony and
mutual benevolence.

Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s

5. Then the Pharisees, having gone out, decided amongst themselves to
ensnare him in his own words. Thus, they sent to him their disciples with the
Herodians to say to him, “Master, we know that you are truthful and that
you teach the way of God through the truth, without regard for whomever one
might be, because you do not take into consideration men’s positions. So tell
us your opinion on this: is it permissible for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?

Jesus, however, knowing their malice, said to them, “You hypocrites, why are
you testing me? Show me the coin you use for the tax.” And having presented
him with a denarius, Jesus said to them, “Whose image and inscription is
this?” “Caesar’s,” they said to him. Then Jesus answered them, “Then render
unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.”

Having heard him speak like this, they marveled at his response, and leaving
him, they went away. (Mt. 22:15-22; Mk. 12:13-17)

6. The question posed to Jesus was motivated by the

circumstance in which the Jews dreaded the tax imposed on them
by the Romans and thus they made it a religious issue. A large
political party had been formed to repeal the tax. The payment of

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the tax was thus a current matter of outrage for them; otherwise,
the question they put to Jesus, “Is it permissible for us to pay taxes
to Caesar or not?” would not have made any sense. The question
was a trap, because, depending on his response, they hoped to
incite either the Roman authorities or the Jewish dissidents against
him. But “Jesus, knowing their malice,” eluded the problem and
gave them a lesson in justice by telling them to pay to each what
was owed. (See the Introduction, section on Publicans)
7. This maxim: “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s” should
not be understood in a restrictive ands absolute manner. Like all
Jesus’ teachings, it is a general principle summed up in a practical
and usual form and is deduced from a particular circumstance. This
principle is a consequence of the one that suggests acting toward
others as we would want them to act toward us. It condemns all
physical or moral harm caused to others and any violation of their
interests. It prescribes respect for others’ rights, just as each one
desires his or her own rights to be respected; it extends to the
fulfillment of duties toward family, society and authorities as well
as toward individuals.

The Spirits’ Teachings

The Law of Love
8. Love summarizes Jesus’ doctrine in its entirety because it
is the sentiment par excellence, and sentiments are instincts raised
to the height of the degree of progress accomplished. At their
origin, humans have only instincts; more advanced and corrupted,
they have only sensations; more educated and purified, they have
sentiments. The exquisite apex of sentiment is love, not love in
the ordinary sense of the term, but that inner sun that condenses
and joins at its ardent focal point all supra-human aspirations and

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revelations. The law of love replaces the personality with the union
of all beings and extinguishes societal misery. Happy are they
who, overcoming their human nature, love with a great love their
brothers and sisters in suffering! Happy are they who love, for they
know the anguish neither of the soul nor of the body. Their feet
are light and they live as though transported outside themselves.
When Jesus spoke the divine word love, it made people tremble,
and martyrs, filled with hope, descend into the arena.
Spiritism in turn has come to speak a second word of the
divine alphabet. Pay attention, for that word lifts the headstones
from the empty graves: triumphing over death, reincarnation
reveals to astonished humans their intellectual heritage. This word
no longer leads them to their deaths, but to the conquest of their
own being, elevated and transfigured. Blood redeemed the spirit,
and today the spirit must redeem humans from matter.
I stated that, at their origin, humans had only instincts;
therefore, those in whom the instincts dominate are closer to
their starting point than to their goal. In order to advance toward
the goal, they must overcome the instincts for the sake of the
sentiments, that is, perfect the sentiments while dominating the
latent seeds of matter. The instincts are the germination and the
embryos of sentiment; they bring with them progress, just as the
acorn contains the oak, and less advanced individuals are those
who, ridding themselves little by little of their cocoon, remain
enslaved to their instincts. The spirit must be cultivated like a
field. All future wealth depends on today’s labor, and much more
besides earthly goods, labor will bring you glorious elevation. It is
then that, comprehending the law of love that unites all beings,
you shall find in it the sweet joys of the soul, which are preludes to
the joys of heaven.
Lazare (Paris, 1862)

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9. Love is the divine essence, and from beginning to end

you possess in the depths of your soul the flame of that sacred fire.
It is a fact that you have been able to prove over and over again;
the vilest individual, the most abject, the most criminal, holds
for another person or some object a living and ardent affection
impervious to anything that could diminish it, often reaching
sublime proportions.
I said for “another person or some object,” because amongst
you there are individuals who spend the treasures of the abundant
love in their hearts on animals, plants and even physical objects:
misanthropes of sorts, who complain about humankind in general
and resist the natural inclinations of their soul as they search
outside themselves for affection and sympathy. They reduce the
law of love to the level of instinct. But no matter what they do,
they will be unable to repress the living seed that God planted in
their hearts at their creation. This seed develops and grows with
morality and intelligence, and although restrained by selfishness,
it is the source of the holy and kind virtues which generate sincere
and lasting affections, and which help you to travel the rugged and
arid course of human existence.
There are some to whom the trial of reincarnation is
repugnant because it implies that others take part in the affectionate
relationships of which they are jealous. Poor brothers and sisters!
It is your affection that has made you selfish; your love is confined
to a closed circle of family and friends, and nobody else matters
to you. Well! In order to practice the law of love as God intended
it, you must progressively arrive at loving all your brothers and
sisters indiscriminately. The task will be long and difficult, but
it shall be accomplished. God wills it, and the law of love is the
first and most important precept of your new doctrine because it
is what will someday kill selfishness under any form in which it
may appear, for besides personal selfishness, there is also family,

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caste and national selfishness. Jesus said, “Love your neighbor as

yourselves.” Now what is the extent of one’s neighbor? Family,
sect, nation? No. It is the whole of humankind. On more highly
evolved worlds, it is the mutual love that harmonizes and guides
the advanced spirits who inhabit them, and your planet, destined
for impending progress due to its social transformation, will see its
inhabitants practice this sublime law, the reflection of the Divinity.
The effects of the law of love are the moral betterment
of the human race and happiness during earthly life. The most
rebellious and the meanest shall reform themselves when they see
the benefits produced by practicing this: Do not do unto others
what you would not want them to do unto you; on the contrary,
do unto them all the good that is within your ability.
Do not believe in the sterility and hardness of the human
heart; in spite of itself, it yields to true love. Love is a magnet that it
cannot resist, and contact with love enlivens and fertilizes the seeds
of the virtue that lies latent within it. As a dwelling place of trial
and exile, the earth will then be purified by that sacred fire, and
will see the practice of charity, humility, patience, devotion, self-
denial, resignation and sacrifice – all virtues that are the offspring
of love. So, do not tire of hearing the words of John the Evangelist.
You know that when infirmity and old age suspended the course
of his preaching, he did nothing but repeat these sweet words: “My
little children, love one another.”
Dear brothers and sisters, take advantage of these lessons.
Their practice is difficult, but the soul will derive immense good
from them. Believe me; put forth the sublime effort that I ask
of you: “Love one another,” and you will see earth very soon
transformed and made into an Elysium, where the souls of the
righteous will go to enjoy repose.
Fenelon (Bordeaux, 1861)

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10. My dear co-disciples, the Spirits present here tell you

through my voice: “Love much so that you may be loved.” This
thought is so truthful that in it you will find everything that
consoles and assuages the hardships of each day. Better still, by
practicing this wise maxim you will rise so far above matter that
you will spiritualize yourselves before your earthly decease. Having
developed within you the understanding of the future, Spiritist
studies provide you with a certainty: your ascension toward God,
with all the promises that respond to your soul’s aspirations. You
must also uplift yourselves high enough to judge things without
the constraints of matter and not condemn your neighbor before
having directed your thought toward God.
In the deepest sense of the word, to love means being
loyal, honest, and conscientious in order to do unto others what
you would want done unto you. It means searching around
yourselves for the inner meaning of all the hardships that oppress
your brothers and sisters so that you may bring them relief. It
means regarding the great human family as one’s own, for you
will meet this family in a certain time on more advanced worlds,
and the spirits who compose it are, like yourselves, children of
God destined to evolve forever. That is why you must not refuse
your brothers and sisters what God has freely given you, because
you, on your part, will be very happy if your brothers and sisters
give you what you need. Therefore, always offer a word of hope
and support to all who suffer, so that you may be wholly loving
and righteous.
Believe that these wise words, “Love much so that you may
be loved,” will open the way for you; they are revolutionary and
follow a steady and invariable course. But you have already gained
much, you who are listening to me; you are infinitely better than
you were a hundred years ago. You have changed so much for your
own good that you have accepted without complaint a multitude

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of new ideas concerning liberty and fraternity, which you rejected

before. And in another hundred years you will easily accept ideas
that as yet have not been able to enter your minds.
Now that the Spiritist movement has taken such a big
step, you can see how quickly the ideas of justice and renewal
contained in the Spirits’ dictations are being accepted by the
average intellectual world. This is because such ideas respond to
everything divine within you; it is because you have been prepared
by a fertile seed: that of the past century27, which implanted
within society the great ideas of progress. And since everything
is linked together under the orders of the Most High, all lessons
received and accepted will be contained in that universal exchange
of love for one’s neighbor. Through it, incarnate spirits, judging
and sensing things better, will join hands throughout the confines
of your planet; they will join with each other to understand and
love one another, to destroy all injustices and all the causes of
misunderstanding among peoples.
The grand concept of renewal through Spiritism – described
so well in The Spirits’ Book – will produce the great miracle for
the century to come: the uniting of all humankind’s material and
spiritual interests through the full understanding of this maxim:
“Love much so that you may be loved.”
Sanson, former member of the
Parisian Spiritist Society (1863)
Selfishness

11. Selfishness – that plague on humankind – must

disappear from the earth, whose moral progress it hinders. To
Spiritism the task is reserved of enabling earth to ascend in the
hierarchy of worlds. Thus, selfishness is the target at which all

27
That is, the 18th century. – Tr.

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true believers must aim their weapons, their strength and their
courage. I say “their courage” because more courage is needed to
overcome oneself than to overcome other people. Let all of you,
therefore, make every effort to fight selfishness within you, for that
monster that devours all minds, that child of pride, is the source
of all the miseries of this world. It is the negation of charity, and
consequently, the greatest obstacle to human happiness.
Jesus has given you the example of charity; Pontius Pilate,
that of selfishness, for while the Righteous One was about to walk
the holy stations of his martyrdom, Pilate washed his hands, saying,
“What is this to me? This is a righteous man; why do you want to
crucify him?” Nonetheless, he let him be led to his execution.
It is to this antagonism between charity and selfishness; it is
to the invasion of the human heart by this leprosy that Christianity
owes the fact that it has not completed its entire mission. It is
upon you, new apostles of the faith and whom the high order
spirits enlighten, that the job and duty of uprooting that evil has
fallen so as to give Christianity all its power and to clear the way of
the obstacles that hinder its forward progress. Uproot selfishness
from the earth so that earth can ascend the scale of worlds, for the
time has come for humankind to don the toga of manhood28, and
to do so, you must first uproot selfishness from your hearts.
Emmanuel (Paris, 1861)

12. If people were to mutually love one another, charity

would be practiced more perfectly; however, for this to happen,
you would have to make an effort to free yourselves of that
breastplate covering your hearts so that you may be more sensitive
to those who suffer. Hardness kills good sentiments; Christ never
rebuffed anyone; all those who came to him, no matter who, were

28
At the age of 15, boys of ancient Rome were allowed to use the white toga symbolizing
manhood. The imagery used in this message symbolizes the maturity of the planet. – Tr.

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never rejected: the adulterous woman and the criminal were both
helped by him; he never feared that his own reputation would
suffer because of it. So, when will you take him as the model for
all your actions? If charity were to reign on earth, evil would no
longer have predominance; it would flee in shame; it would hide itself
because everywhere it would find itself out-of-place. That is when evil
would disappear – you can be sure of it.
Start by making an example of yourselves; be charitable
toward everybody indiscriminately; make an effort not to pay
any attention to those who regard you with disdain, and leave to
God the burden of all justice, because each day in his kingdom he
separates the wheat from the tares.
Selfishness is the negation of charity; now, without charity
there will be no peace for society; I would state further that there
will be no safety. With selfishness and pride – which walk hand in
hand – life will always be a pathway for the shrewdest, a conflict
of interests in which the holiest affections are trampled on, where
not even the sacred ties of family are respected.
Pascal (Sens, 1862)
Faith and Charity
13. My dear children, not long ago I told you that charity
without faith is not enough to maintain among people a social
order capable of making them happy. I should have said that
charity is impossible without faith. Actually, you can find generous
impulses even among persons without a religion, but that austere
charity that is practiced only through self-denial, through a
continual sacrifice of all selfish interest, can occur only if there is
faith to inspire it, for nothing except faith can enable us to bear the
cross of this life with courage and perseverance.
Yes, my children, it is in vain that, eager for gratification,
people delude themselves about their destiny in this world by

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pretending that it is permissible for them to concern themselves

solely with their own happiness. Of course, God has created
us to be happy in eternity; meanwhile, earthly life ought to be
used exclusively for our moral improvement, which is easier to
accomplish with the help of the physical organs and the material
world. Without taking into account the ordinary ups and downs
of life, the diversity of your tastes, your tendencies and your needs,
earthly life is also a way of perfecting yourselves by practicing
charity, for it is only through mutual concessions and sacrifices
that you can maintain harmony among such diverse elements.
You would be correct, however, in stating that people are
meant to be happy in this world if they would seek happiness not
in material pleasures but in the good. The history of Christianity
tells of martyrs who went joyfully to their deaths. In order to be
Christians in your society today, neither death by martyrdom nor
the sacrifice of your life is needed, but only and merely the sacrifice
of your selfishness, pride and vanity. You shall triumph if charity
inspires you and if faith upholds you.
A Protector Spirit (Krakow, 1861)
Charity toward Criminals
14. True charity is one of the most sublime teachings
that God has given to the world. Complete fraternity ought to
exist among the true disciples of his Doctrine. You must love
unfortunates and criminals as God’s creatures, to whom forgiveness
and mercy will be granted if they repent, as is the case with you
for the wrongs that you commit against his law. Regard yourselves
as more reprehensible and guilty than those to whom you refuse
forgiveness and commiseration, because quite often they do not
know God as you do, and less will be asked of them than of you.
Do not judge; oh! Do not judge, my dear friends, for the
judgment you render will be more severely applied to you, and you

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have need of indulgence for the sins you continually commit. Do

you not know that there are many acts that are crimes in the eyes
of the God of purity, but which the world does not even regard as
light offenses?
True charity does not consist only in the alms you give or
even in the consoling words that might accompany them. No, this
is not what God demands of you. The sublime charity taught by
Jesus also consists in the benevolence always granted in all things
toward your neighbor. You can even exercise this sublime virtue on
many individuals who do not need alms, but who words of love,
consolation and encouragement will lead to the Lord.
I will say once more that the times are near when widespread
fraternity will reign on this globe; the law of Christ is what will
govern humans, and that law alone will be the restraint and hope
that will lead souls to the blessed realms. Thus, love one another
as children of the same Father. Do not set up differences between
you and those who are unfortunate, for God wills for everyone to
be equal. Therefore, despise no one. God allows great criminals to
dwell amongst you to serve you as a lesson. Soon, when humans
have been led to the true laws of God, such lessons will no longer
be needed, and all impure and rebellious spirits will be relegated to
lower worlds according to their inclinations.
You owe to those of whom I speak the help of your prayers –
that is true charity. You do not have to say of criminals, “They are
wretched; they must be expunged from the earth; the death that is
inflicted on them is too kind for that type of individual.” No, you
must not speak like that. Look at your model Jesus. What would
he say if he saw such unfortunate persons next to him? He would
grieve for them; he would regard them as truly needy, sick persons
and would extend his hand to them. You cannot do this in reality,
but you can at least pray for them and assist their spirits in the
few moments they must yet spend on your earth. Repentance may

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touch their hearts if you pray with faith. They are your neighbors
just as the best individuals are; like yours, their wandering and
rebellious souls were created to become perfect. So help them out
of their quagmire and pray for them.
Elizabeth de France (Havre, 1862)

Should One Risk One’s Own Life for a Criminal?

15. A man is in danger of death; in order to save him, one must

risk one’s own life. However, it is known that he is a criminal, and that
if he escapes death, he will be able to commit more crimes. In spite of
this fact, should one risk one’s life to save him?
This is a very serious question, one that a spirit naturally
could face. I will respond in accordance with my moral
advancement, since the issue is whether or not one should risk
one’s life for a criminal. Devotion is blind; one lends aid to an
enemy; therefore, one must also lend aid to an enemy of society –
a criminal, in other words. Do you think that you will only tear
this criminal away from death? Perhaps, it will be from his entire
past life. Consider the possibility that, in those quick instants that
drag the final minutes of life from him, this lost man returns to his
past life, or rather, his past life arises before him. Death, perhaps, is
coming too soon for him; reincarnation could be terrible. So rush
to his aid! You, whom the Spiritist science has enlightened, rush
to him and snatch him from his condemnation, and then perhaps
the person who would have died cursing you will instead throw
himself into your arms. You should not ask yourselves, however,
if he is going to do so or not; just go to his aid, because in saving
him you obey that voice of the heart that tells you, “You can save
him, so save him!”
Lamennais (Paris, 1862)

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Love your enemies

• Render good for evil • Discarnate Enemies • If someone
strikes your right cheek, offer him the other also • The
Spirits’ Teachings: – Vengeance. – Hatred. – Dueling.

Render good for evil

1. You have learned that it was said: “You shall love your neighbor and
hate your enemies.” But I say to you: Love your enemies; do good to
those who hate you and pray for those who persecute and malign you
so that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven, who makes
the sun rise on the good and on the evil, and the rain fall on the just and
the unjust, for if you love only those who love you, what reward will you
receive from it? Do not the Publicans also do that? And if you greet only
your brothers, what are you doing that others do not? Do not the Publicans
do the same? I say to you that if your justice is not more abundant than
that of the scribes and the Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of
heaven. (Mt. 5:20, 43-47)

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2. If you love only those who love you, what reward will you have, since even
sinners also love those who love them? And if you do good only to those who
do good to you, what reward will you have, since even sinners do the same
thing? And if you lend only to those from whom you can expect the same
favor, what reward will you have, since even sinners lend to each another in
order to receive the same advantage? But as for you, love your enemies, do
good to all and lend without expecting anything, and then your reward
will be very great and you will be children of the Most High, who is good to
ingrates and even the wicked. Thus, be full of mercy just as your God is full
of mercy. (Lk. 6:32-36)

3. If love toward one’s neighbor is the principle of charity,

loving one’s enemies is its sublime application, for such a virtue is
one of the greatest victories attainable over selfishness and pride.
However, there is usually a misunderstanding as to the
meaning of the word love in this context. Jesus did not mean by
these words that one must have for one’s enemy the tenderness that
one would have for a brother, sister or friend. Love presupposes
trust, and we could not trust someone who we know means us
harm. We could not have the same effusion of friendship with
such a person, knowing that he or she is capable of abusing it.
Among persons who distrust one another, the bonds of affinity
cannot be the same as those that exist among those who are in
communion of thought. Finally, one cannot feel the same pleasure
upon meeting an enemy that one feels upon meeting a friend.
Furthermore, this sentiment results from a physical law: the
law of assimilation and repulsion of fluids. A malevolent thought
emits a fluidic current whose impression is painful; a benevolent
thought envelops you in a pleasant emanation. Hence the
difference in sensations one experiences when close to a friend or
an enemy. To love one’s enemies, therefore, cannot mean that one
should not make a difference between them and one’s friends. This
precept seems difficult, even impossible to practice, only because

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people have wrongly believed that it prescribes giving friends and

enemies the same place in their hearts. Since the poverty of the
human language forces us to use the same term to express the
various nuances of sentiments, reason calls us to differentiate them
according to each case.
To love one’s enemies, therefore, does not mean holding
for them an affection that is not natural, since contact with an
enemy makes the heart beat in a much different way than does
contact with a friend. It means holding neither hatred, rancor
nor desires for vengeance against them; it means forgiving them
unconditionally and without ulterior motives for the evil they have
caused us; it means not setting up any obstacles to reconciliation;
it means wanting the good for them instead of wishing them
evil; it means rejoicing instead of despairing for the good that
reaches them; it means extending to them a helping hand in
case of necessity; it means abstaining either in word or act from
anything that might harm them; finally, it means repaying their
evil with good in everything with no intention of humiliating them.
Whoever does this fulfills the conditions of the commandment:
Love your enemies.
4. Loving one’s enemies is absurd to disbelievers; those
for whom the present life is everything see in their enemies
only noxious beings who disturb their peace-of-mind, and from
whom they believe only death can free them. Hence the desire for
vengeance; they have no interest in forgiving unless it is to satisfy
their pride in the eyes of the world. In certain cases, forgiveness
even seems to them like a weakness unworthy of them. Even if
they do not seek outright revenge, they nevertheless harbor rancor
and a secret desire for evil.
For believers – and especially for Spiritists – the way of seeing
things is different because they consider both the past and the
future, between which their present life is only a dot. They know

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that, because of the very destiny of the earth, they must expect
to meet up with evil and perverse people; that the wickedness of
which they are the target makes up part of the trials they must
undergo, and their elevated point of view renders the vicissitudes
less bitter, whether they come from things or other people. If they
do not complain about their trials, they must not murmur against
those who serve as their instruments. If, instead of complaining,
they thank God for putting them to the test, they should thank the
hand that furnishes them the opportunity to prove their patience and
resignation. This thought naturally disposes them to forgiveness.
Moreover, they feel that the more generous they are, the more
uplifted they are in their own eyes, and they find themselves to be
beyond the reach of malevolent attacks from their enemies.
Persons who occupy elevated positions in the world do not
feel offended by the insults of those whom they regard as their
inferiors. The same applies in the moral world for those who
lift themselves above materialistic humanity. They understand
that hate and rancor degrade and debase them; therefore, to be
above their adversaries, they must have a bigger, nobler and more
generous soul.

Discarnate Enemies
5. Spiritists have yet other reasons for being tolerant of their
enemies. First of all, they know that wickedness is not a permanent
state for humans; that it is due to a momentary imperfection, and
that just as children correct themselves of their faults, evil people
will someday acknowledge their wrongs and become good.
They also know that death frees them only from the physical
presence of their enemies, and that their enemies can pursue them
with their hatred even after having left the earth behind; that
their vengeance thus fails in its objective, and, to the contrary,

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has the effect of causing a greater anger that can continue from
one existence to the next. It is Spiritism’s responsibility to show
through experience and the law that governs the relations between
the visible and invisible worlds that the expression, “extinguishing
hatred with blood” is radically erroneous, and that what is, in fact,
the truth is that blood preserves hatred even beyond the grave.
Consequently, Spiritism must present a positive reason and a
practical usefulness for forgiveness and Christ’s sublime maxim:
Love your enemies. There is no heart so perverse that it would not
be touched by good behavior, even without being conscious of it.
Through good conduct, one removes at the least any pretext for
reprisals, and can turn enemies into friends both before and after
his or her death. Through bad behavior we anger them, and it is
then that they serve as instruments of God’s justice for punishing those
who have not forgiven.
6. One can therefore have enemies among both incarnates
and discarnates. The enemies of the invisible world express their
malevolence through the obsessions and subjugations of which so
many persons are the target, and which are one variety of life’s
trials. Trials like these, just like other trials, help one to advance
and should be accepted with resignation and as the result of the
inferior nature of the terrestrial globe. If there were no evil people
on the earth, there would be no evil spirits around it. Consequently,
if one must have indulgence and benevolence for one’s incarnate
enemies, one must also have them for those who are discarnate.
In times past, blood victims were sacrificed to placate infernal
gods, who were none other than evil spirits. These infernal gods
were succeeded by demons, who are the same thing. Spiritism has
come to show that these demons are none other than the souls
of wicked humans who have not yet gotten rid of their material
instincts; that nothing can placate them except the sacrifice of one’s
hatred, that is, by showing them charity; that charity not only has

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the effect of stopping them from practicing evil, but it also can
lead them to the path of the good and contribute toward their
salvation. It is thus that the maxim, “Love your enemies” is not
limited to the narrow circle of the earth and the present life, but is
part of the great law of universal solidarity and fraternity.

If someone strikes your right

cheek, offer him the other also
7. You have learned that it was said, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a
tooth.” I am telling you not to resist the evil that others might want to do to
you; but if someone strikes your right cheek, offer him the other also;
and if someone wants to sue you to take your tunic, leave him your cloak
also; and if someone wants to force you to go a thousand steps with him, go
two thousand. Give to him who asks and do not turn away someone who
wants to borrow from you. (Mt. 5:38-42)

8. The world’s prejudices concerning what has

conventionally been called the “point of honor” causes that
somber susceptibility that is born from pride and the exaltation
of the personality, leading people to payback injury for injury,
offense for offense, in what seems like justice to those whose
moral sense has not risen above the earthly passions. That is why
the Mosaic Law stated, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a
tooth,” a law that was in harmony with the time in which Moses
lived. Christ came and said, “Repay evil with goodness,” and
stated further, “Do not resist the evil that others might want
to do to you; if someone strikes your right cheek, offer him the
other also.” To the proud, this maxim seems like cowardice,
because they do not understand that there is more courage in
bearing an offense than in avenging oneself, and they always
base their actions on motives that keep them from seeing beyond

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the present. Must one take this maxim literally, however? No

more than the one that says to pluck out an eye if it is a cause
of scandal. Taken to the extreme, it would mean condoning all
repression – even when legal – and would leave the field free to
evil persons by removing all their fear. If a restraint were not
put on their aggressions, all good people would soon be their
victims. The very instinct for self-preservation, which is a law
of nature, states that one should not willingly hold one’s neck
out for a murderer. Thus, by these words Jesus did not interdict
self-defense, but condemned vengeance. By saying to offer one’s
cheek when the other has been struck, he is saying in another
way that one should not repay evil with evil; that people should
humbly accept everything that tends to lower their pride; that it
is more glorious for one to be wounded than to wound, to bear
patiently an injustice than to commit one; that it is worthier to
be deceived than to deceive, to be ruined than to ruin others. At
the same time, it is the condemnation of dueling29, which is no
more than a manifestation of pride. Only faith in the future life
and God’s justice – which never leaves injustice unpunished – can
provide the strength to bear patiently the blows directed against
our interests and self-centeredness. That is why we constantly
state: Focus your gaze on the future ahead; the more you lift
yourselves above the material life through thought, the less you
will be disheartened by things of the earth.

The Spirits’ Teachings

Vengeance
9. Vengeance is one of the last remnants arising from
barbaric customs that tend to be erased among human beings.

29
See footnote to Item 11 below. – Tr.

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Like dueling, it is one of the last vestiges of those primitive

customs under which humankind struggled at the beginning
of the Christian era. This is why vengeance is a sure indication
of the backwardness of the persons who indulge in it and of
the spirits who can still inspire it. Therefore, my friends, this
sentiment must never live within the heart of anyone who
claims to be a Spiritist. As you well know, vengeance is so
contrary to Christ’s prescription, “Forgive your enemies,” that
those who refuse to forgive not only are not Spiritists, but they
are not even Christians. Vengeance is all the more ruinous when
falsehood and wickedness are its assiduous companions. In
fact, those who indulge in this deadly and blind passion almost
never seek revenge openly. When such persons are the stronger,
they fall like ferocious beasts upon those whom they call their
enemies once the sight of them has inflamed their passion,
anger and hatred. However, more often than not, they put on
a hypocritical appearance, hiding in the depths of their heart
the evil sentiments that animate them. They secretly follow
their unsuspecting enemies in the darkness and wait for the
opportune moment to strike without endangering themselves.
Hiding from them, they incessantly watch them; they prepare
hateful traps for them and when the opportunity arises, they
pour the poison in the cup. When their hatred does not reach
such extremes, they attack their enemies’ honor and affections;
they do not recoil at slander, and their perfidious insinuations,
skillfully sown on the four winds, grow larger along the way.
Consequently, when those who are being persecuted appear in
places where their persecutor’s poisonous breath has passed,
they are astonished at encountering cold faces where they used
to find friendly and benevolent ones. They are stupefied when
hands previously extended now refuse to shake theirs. Finally,
they are shattered when their dearest friends and relatives avoid

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and run from them. Ah! Cowards who avenge themselves like
this are a hundred times guiltier than those who go straight to
their enemies and insult them to their face.
Thus, be gone with such primitive customs! Be gone with
the ways of days gone by! Any Spiritist who today still claims to
have the right to seek vengeance would be unworthy of being
counted any longer in the phalanx that has taken as its motto:
Without charity there is no salvation! But no, I will not hold on to
such an idea, the idea that a member of the great Spiritist family
could in the future ever yield to the impulse of vengeance instead
of forgiveness.
Jules Olivier (Paris, 1862)
Hatred
10. Love one another and you will be happy. Above all, assume
the duty of loving those who inspire you with indifference, hatred
or scorn. Christ, whom you should make your model, gave you an
example of such devotion; a missionary of love, he loved to the point
of giving his blood and his life. The sacrifice that obliges you to love
those who offend and persecute you is painful, but it is precisely this
type of sacrifice that will raise you above them. If you hate them as
they hate you, you are worth no more than they are. Such sacrifice
is the spotless host offered to God on the altar of your hearts, a
sweet-smelling host whose fragrance rises up to him. Even though
the law of love wants us to love our brothers and sisters without
distinction, it does not shield the heart against harmful conduct;
on the contrary, it is the most painful trial – I know it well, because
during my last earthly existence, I experienced such torment. But
God is ever present and punishes either in this life or in another all
those who disregard the law of love. My dear children, do not forget
that love brings us close to God, whereas hate keeps us from him.
Fenelon (Bordeaux, 1861)

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Dueling30
11. The truly great are only those who, regarding life as a
voyage that must lead them to an objective, make little ado about
the rough spots along the way, and never allow themselves for an
instant to detour from the upright path. With their eyes constantly
set on their objective, it matters little to them that the barbs and
thorns of the path threaten to cause them scratches; these graze
them without harming them, and they stay on course. To expose
their lives by avenging themselves for an offense is to recoil before
life’s trials; it is always a crime in God’s eyes and if you were not as
enthralled as you are by your prejudices, dueling would be deemed
a ridiculous and supreme folly to human eyes.
Death resulting from a duel is a crime of homicide – your
own legislation recognizes this fact. No one has the right in any
event to make an attempt on the life of his fellow man. It is a
crime in the eyes of God, who has traced out your line of conduct.
Here, more than anywhere else, you are judges of your own case.
Remember that you will be forgiven only according to how you
yourselves have forgiven; through forgiving, you draw nearer to
the Divine One, for clemency is the brother of power. As long
as one drop of human blood runs over the earth as the result of
human hands, the true kingdom of God will not have arrived:
that kingdom of peace and love, which must banish animosity,
discord and war from your globe forever. Then, the word duel
will no longer exist in your language except as a far-off, vague
memory of a past which once was; men will recognize among
themselves no other antagonism than the noble rivalry of doing
the good.
Adolphe, Bishop of Alger (Marmande, 1861)
30
Kardec addresses this topic in The Spirits Book (questions 757-759). Our footnote there
reads in part “… [an] obsolete 19th century male-oriented custom. Actually, we continue
to practice a more subtle form of dueling nowadays in our daily lives by using words and
other antagonistic attitudes that are just as destructive.” – Tr.

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12. In certain cases, dueling might, of course, be a proof

of physical courage and of disdain for life, but it is incontestably
a proof of moral cowardice, as is also the case with suicide. The
suicide does not have the courage to endure the vicissitudes of life;
the dueler does not have the courage to endure offenses. Did Christ
not tell you that there is more honor and courage in offering the
left cheek to someone who has struck your right one than to avenge
an offense? In the Garden of Olives, did Christ not tell Peter, “Put
your sword back in its sheath, because those who kill with the
sword shall die by the sword?” With these words, does Jesus not
condemn dueling forever? In fact, my children, what courage is
this, born of a violent, bloody and wrathful temperament that rants
and raves at the first offense? Where is the greatness-of-soul of him
who, at the least offense, wants to wash it with blood? Let him
tremble! because in the depths of his conscience a voice will always
cry out to him, “Cain! Cain! What have you done to your brother?”
He will tell this voice, “It was necessary to spill blood in order to
save my honor.” However, the voice will reply to him, “You wanted
to save your honor before men for the few moments that remain
for you to live on the earth, but you did not think about saving it
before God! Poor fool!” How much blood would Christ ask of you
for all the offenses he received? You not only wounded him with
thorns and the lance, you not only nailed him to the gibbet, but in
the midst of his agony, he could hear the mockery you heaped on
him. After such outrages, what reparation did he ask of you? The
last cry of the Lamb was a prayer for his executioners! Oh! Like
him, forgive and pray for those who offend you.
Friends, remember this precept: “Love one another,” and
then to the blow given out of hate, you will respond with a smile,
and to the offense, with forgiveness. Of course, the world will
rise up in fury and treat you as a coward; hold your head high
and show that – like Christ – you are not afraid to have your

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brow laden with thorns, and that your hand does not want to be
the accomplice in a homicide that supposedly authorizes a false
appearance of honor, but which actually amounts to nothing
more than pride and self-centeredness. In creating you, did God
give you the right of life and death over one another? No, he gave
such right only to nature for reforming and rebuilding itself. But
as for you, he did not permit you to dispose even of yourselves.
Like the suicide, the dueler will be marked with blood when he
appears before God, and the Sovereign Judge reserves a harsh and
long punishment for both. If God has threatened with his justice
him who says raca to his brother, how much more severe will the
punishment be for him who appears before him with hands red
with the blood of his brother!
St. Augustine (Paris, 1862)

13. Like the practice known in a former age as “the

judgment of God,” the duel is one of those barbaric institutions
that still govern society. However, what would you say if you saw
two adversaries being immersed in boiling water or submitted
to the contact of a red-hot iron in order to settle their quarrels,
with the one enduring the test better being considered the one
in the right? You would call such a custom ludicrous. The duel
is even worse. For the skillful dueler, it is murder committed in
cold blood with deliberate premeditation because he is sure of the
blow he will deliver. For his adversary, almost certain to succumb
due to his weakness and ineptitude, it is suicide committed with
the coldest reflection. I know that oftentimes one seeks to avoid
this alternative by relying on equally criminal chance; is not that,
however, a return in a different form to the “judgment of God” of
the Middle Ages? And yet, during that era, one would be infinitely
less guilty; the very name judgment of God implies faith, naive
certainly, but at least a faith in the justice of God who could not

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allow an innocent person to succumb, whereas in the duel one

relies on brute strength in such a way that quite often it is the
offended party who dies.
O stupid conceit, foolish vanity and insane pride, when will
you be replaced by Christian charity, love for one’s neighbor and
the humility that Christ exemplified and prescribed? Only then
will those monstrous prejudices that still govern humankind – and
which laws are powerless to repress – disappear, for it is not enough
to prohibit evil and prescribe the good; the good and the horror of
evil must dwell in the human heart.
A Protector Spirit (Bordeaux, 1861)

14. What will people think of me – you often say – if I

refuse the reparation asked of me, or if I do not demand it from
someone who has offended me? Those who are foolish like you,
i.e. backward persons, will find fault with you. But those who have
been enlightened by the beacon of mental and moral progress
will say that you are acting in accordance with true wisdom.
Reflect a bit: because of a word, many times said thoughtlessly or
inoffensively on the part of one of your brothers, your pride feels
bruised and you respond to him in a harsh manner. A confrontation
ensues. Before that critical moment arrives, do you ask yourself if
you are acting like a Christian? What will you owe society if you
deprive it of one of its members? Do you think of the remorse for
having deprived a wife of her husband, a mother of her son, and
children of their father and their support? Certainly, the one who
has offended you owes reparation; however, would it not be more
honorable for him to do so voluntarily in recognition of his wrongs
than to endanger the life of the one who has the right to complain?
As for the offended man, I concur that sometimes one might find
oneself gravely insulted, either personally or regarding those who
are dear to him. It is not only self-centeredness that comes into

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play; a heart is wounded and suffering. But besides being foolish

for risking his life in confrontation with a wretch capable of an
infamy, if this wretch dies, will the affront – whatever it was –
cease to exist? Does not spilt blood give more notoriety to a fact
which, if false, would fall by itself, and if true, should be buried
in silence? Thus, the only thing left would be that vengeance was
satisfied. Alas! A sad satisfaction that frequently even in this life
leaves bitter remorse. And if it is the offended party that dies, how
will reparation be made to him?
When charity becomes the rule of conduct for humans,
they will conform their words and actions to this maxim, “Do
not do unto others what you would not want them to do unto
you.” Then all causes of dissention will disappear, and with
them, the causes of duels and wars – which are actually duels
between peoples.
François-Xavier (Bordeaux, 1861)

15. The man of the world, the happy man, who because
of an offensive word or a slight matter throws away the life that
has come to him from God, or who throws away the life of his
fellow man, a life that belongs to God alone, is a hundred times
guiltier than the wretch who, compelled by greed or sometimes
by necessity, goes into someone’s home to steal what he covets
and kills those who stand in his way. The latter is almost always
an uneducated man with only imperfect notions of good and
evil, whereas the dueler almost always belongs to the more
educated class. One kills brutally, the other with method and
politeness, which makes society excuse him. I would even add
that the dueler is infinitely guiltier than the wretch who yields
to a sentiment of revenge and kills in a moment of exasperation.
The dueler cannot use a fit of passion as an excuse, because
between the offense and the reparation, there is always time to

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reflect. Hence, he acts coldly and with premeditation; everything

is calculated and studied in order to slay his adversary more
surely. It is true that he also endangers his own life, and this is
what justifies the duel in the eyes of the world, because it is seen
as an act of courage and a disdain for one’s own life; however,
is there true courage when one is sure of himself? The duel – a
remnant of barbaric times, in which “might makes right” was
the law – will disappear with a saner appreciation of the true
point of honor, and to the degree that people put a more ardent
faith in the future life.
Augustin (Bordeaux, 1861)

16. Comment: Duels are becoming rarer and rarer, and if

dolorous examples of them are still seen from time to time, their
number cannot be compared to what it used to be. Formerly, a
man could not leave his home without foreseeing an encounter,
thus he always took precautions. A characteristic sign of the
customs of those times and peoples was the habit of carrying
concealed or unconcealed offensive or defensive weapons. The
abolition of such usage demonstrates the softening of customs,
and it is interesting to follow this gradation, from the time in
which knights did not ride out except covered in armor and
clutching a lance to when men started carrying a simple sword
more as a decoration and a blazon than a weapon of aggression.
Another indication regarding customs is that, formerly, one-on-
one combat took place right in the street in front of a crowd that
stayed back in order to leave the area free, whereas nowadays all
is done in secret. Nowadays, the death of a man is an event that
causes a commotion and it is talked about; in the past no one
would have paid any attention to it. Spiritism will remove these
last vestiges of barbarity, instilling humankind with the spirit of
charity and fraternity.

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Do not let your left

hand know what your
right hand is doing
• Do Good without Ostentation • Hidden Misfortunes • The
Widow’s Mite • Invite the Poor and the Lame. Give without
Expecting Recompense • The Spirits’ Teachings – Material Charity
and Moral Charity. – Beneficence. – Compassion. – Orphans. –
Benefits Repaid with Ingratitude. – Exclusive Beneficence.

Do Good without Ostentation

1. Be careful not to do your good works before men in order to be seen
by them; otherwise, you will not receive recompense from your Father in
heaven. Thus, whenever you give alms, do not sound the trumpet before you
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and streets in order to be praised by
men. Verily, I say to you that they have received their reward. But whenever
you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is

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doing so that your alms will be in secret, and your Father, who sees in secret
what has happened, will reward you. (Mt. 6:1-4)

2. After Jesus had come down from the mountain, a large crowd of people
followed him. At the same time, a leper came to meet him and worshiped
him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can heal me.” Jesus reached out to him,
touched him and said, “I will it; be healed.” In that same instant, the leprosy
was healed. Then Jesus said to him, “Do not tell anyone about this, but go
and show yourself to the priests and offer the gift prescribed by Moses so that
it may serve as a testimony to them. (Mt. 8:1-4)

3. Doing good without ostentation holds great merit; hiding

the hand that gives is even more meritorious. It is an incontestable
sign of great moral elevation, for in order to view things from a
higher state than the ordinary, one must look past the present life
and identify with the future life; in other words, one must place
oneself above humanity in order to renounce the satisfaction that
seeks to be witnessed by others, and to wait for approval from God.
Those who prefer others’ approval to God’s approval show that
they have more faith in others than in God and that the present
life is worth more than the future life – or even that they do not
believe in the future life at all. If they say otherwise, they act as if
they do not believe in what they say.
How many there are who give only in the hopes that the
beneficiary will shout the benefit from the rooftops; who give large
sums in broad daylight, but would not give a cent in darkness!
This is why Jesus stated that those who do good ostentatiously
have already received their reward. In fact, those who seek their
own glorification on earth because of the good they do have
already been paid; God owes them nothing more; the only thing
that remains for them to receive is punishment for their pride.
Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing
is an image that wonderfully characterizes modest beneficence.

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However, if there is such a thing as true modesty, there is also such

a thing as feigned modesty – the simulation of modesty. There
are people who hide the hand that gives, letting a small portion
to be shown while looking to see if anyone is watching them hide
the rest of it. An unworthy parody on the maxims of Christ! If
prideful benefactors are despised by other people, how will they be
regarded by God? They have also received their reward on earth.
They have been seen and they are satisfied because of it. That is all
they will have.
And what will be the reward for those who make their
benefits weigh heavily on their beneficiaries, those who in some
way demand to be acknowledged by them, making them feel
their position by extolling the price of the sacrifices they have
imposed on themselves for their sake? Oh! There is not even an
earthly reward for these givers because they are deprived of the
sweet satisfaction of hearing their name blessed; and that is the
first punishment for their pride. Instead of rising up to heaven,
the tears they dry in the interest of their vanity fall back upon the
heart of the afflicted and ulcerate it. The good they do is without
profit to themselves, for it is deplored, and every deplored benefit
is a false and worthless coin.
Kindness without ostentation has a two-fold merit: besides
material charity, it portrays moral charity; it spares the susceptibility
of its beneficiaries and enables them to accept the benefit without
bruising their self-esteem, and it safeguards their human dignity,
because they will accept a service but not a handout. Now,
changing a service into a handout because of the way it is rendered
is to humiliate the one who receives it, and there is always pride
and malice involved in humiliating another person. True charity,
on the other hand, is sensitive and skillful in concealing the benefit
rendered and in avoiding the least harmful appearances, since any
moral offense adds to the suffering born from need. This sort of

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charity is able to find kind and affable words that put beneficiaries
at ease in the presence of their benefactors, whereas prideful charity
crushes them. The sublime aspect of true generosity is present
when benefactors switch roles and find a way for they themselves
to appear to be the actual beneficiaries of those to whom they
render their service. That is the meaning of the words, “Do not let
your left hand know what your right hand is doing.”

Hidden Misfortunes
4. Charity manifests during great calamities and one can see a
generous drive to repair the damage. However, alongside these general
disasters there are thousands of private ones that go unnoticed, of
people lying on beds of misery without complaining. These discreet
and hidden misfortunes are the ones that true generosity knows how
to find without waiting for their victims to come asking for assistance.
Who is this woman of distinction, dressed in a simple but
careful manner, accompanied by a girl also dressed modestly? She
enters a squalid-looking house where she is obviously well-known,
because she is greeted respectfully at the door. Where is she going?
She goes up to the garret: a mother is living there, surrounded by
little children. At the woman’s arrival, joy shines on those gaunt
faces. She has come to soothe all their pain; she has brought what
they need, along with gentle and consoling words that enable them
to accept the benefit without being ashamed, for these unfortunates
are not professional beggars. The father is in the hospital, and
during this time the mother cannot provide for their needs. Thanks
to this woman, these poor children will experience neither cold nor
hunger; they will go to school dressed warmly, and their mother’s
milk will not dry up for the littlest ones. If any of them are ill, no
material care will be denied. From there, this woman goes to the
hospital to bring a little comfort to the father and to put his mind

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at ease regarding his family’s state of affairs. On the street corner

waits a carriage, which is a veritable stockroom of everything she
takes to the many wards whom she visits one after the other. She
asks them neither about their beliefs nor their opinions, for to her
all people are brothers and sisters; all are children of God. When
she has finished her rounds, she tells herself: My day has begun very
well. What is her name? Where does she live? No one knows. For the
unfortunates, it is a name that reveals nothing; however, she is the
angel of consolation, and at night, a symphony of blessings rises to
the Father on her behalf: Catholics, Jews, Protestants – all bless her.
Why does she dress so simply? It is because she does not
wish to insult poverty with luxury. Why does her young daughter
accompany her? In order to learn how beneficence should be
practiced. The daughter also wants to practice charity, but her
mother asks her, “What could you give, my child, since you have
nothing of your own? If I give you something to pass on to others,
what merit will you have? In reality, I would be the one practicing
charity in that case; if you were to receive the merit, it would not
be just. When we visit the sick, you help me care for them, and
giving of oneself is to give something. Doesn’t that seem sufficient
to you? Well then, nothing could be simpler. Learn to make useful
articles and make clothes for the little ones. That way, you will be
giving something that has come from you yourself.” Thus, this truly
Christian mother is educating her daughter in the practice of the
virtues taught by Christ. Is she a Spiritist? What does it matter!?
At home, she is a woman of the world because her position
requires it. However, the world does not know what she does,
because she wants no other approval except from God and her own
conscience. However, one day an unforeseen turn of events brings one
of her wards to her home, selling hand-made articles. She recognizes
her benefactress and wants to bless her: “Hush!” says her benefactress.
“Do not tell anyone.” Jesus also spoke in such a manner.

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The Widow’s Mite

5. Jesus was seated opposite the offertory box, watching the way in which
people dropped their money into it, and noticing that many of the wealthy
were putting in large amounts. A poor widow also came and put in only two
small coins in the amount of a farthing31. Then, having called his disciples, he
said to them, “Verily I say to you that this poor widow has given more than
what all the others have put into the offertory box, for they have all given of
their abundance, whereas she has given of her poverty – everything she had
and everything that was left for her to live on.” (Mk. 12:41-44; Lk. 21:1-4)

6. Many people regret not being able to do as much good as

they would like because they lack sufficient resources; if they desire
wealth, they say it is so that they can put it to good use. Their
intention is of course praiseworthy and might be quite sincere
for some; however, could it be, without question, completely
disinterested? Might there not be those who, even though
desiring to do good to others, would be quite happy to start by
doing good to themselves, to give themselves a few more pleasures
and to obtain a few of the superfluities they now lack, saving the
leftovers to give to the poor? Such ulterior motives, which they
perhaps conceal but which they could find in the depths of their
heart – if they were willing to search there – annul the merit
of the intent, for true charity entails thinking of others before
thinking of oneself. The sublimity of charity in this case would be
to find within their own work, and by using their own strength,
intelligence and talents, the resources they lack to accomplish their
generous intentions; that would be the sacrifice most pleasing to
the Lord. Unfortunately, the majority dream about the easiest way
to become suddenly rich without having to make any sacrifice.
They run after chimeras such as hidden treasures, some favorable

31
Farthing is an old word meaning a fourth or a quarter. – Tr.

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 Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing

random chance, an unexpected inheritance, etc. What is to be

said of those who hope to find helpers among the spirits to assist
them in searches of such a nature? Obviously, they neither know
nor understand the sacred objective of Spiritism, and even less
the mission of the spirits whom God allows to communicate with
human beings; in this, they are also punished by deceit. (The
Mediums’ Book, nos. 294, 295)
Those whose intentions are pure of any personal interest
ought to console themselves with their powerlessness to do all
the good they would like to do; they should think of the mite
of the poor who give by depriving themselves, but which weighs
more on God’s scales than the gold of the rich who give without
denying themselves anything. The satisfaction would of course be
great in being able to alleviate poverty on a large scale, but if it is
not allowed, one must accept the fact and limit oneself to doing
what is possible. Moreover, is gold the only thing that can dry
tears and must one remain inactive by not possessing it? Those
who sincerely desire to be useful to their brothers and sisters will
find a thousand opportunities; let them seek and they will find
them, if not in one way then in another, for there are none who,
enjoying the full use of their faculties, cannot render some sort
of service, provide some consolation, mitigate physical or mental
suffering, or do something useful. In spite of a lack of money,
cannot everybody give a portion of the effort, time and repose they
have available? This is also the obol of the poor, the widow’s mite.

Invite the Poor and the Lame. Give

without Expecting Recompense
7. He also said to the one who had invited him, “Whenever you give a dinner or
a supper, do not invite your friends, your brothers, your relatives or your wealthy

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neighbors, so that they will invite you in their turn and thus repay what they
received from you. But whenever you give a banquet, invite the poor, the lame,
the maimed and the blind, and you will be happy because they have no means
of repaying you, for you will be rewarded at the resurrection of the righteous.”

Having heard these words, one of those who were at the table said to him,
“Happy is he who eats bread in the kingdom of God!” (Lk. 14:12-15)

8. Whenever you give a banquet, says Jesus, do not invite your

friends but the poor and lame instead. These words are absurd if
taken literally but are sublime if one searches for the spirit in them.
Jesus could not have meant to say that, instead of friends, one must
bring to his or her table beggars off the street. His language was
nearly always figurative, and for people incapable of grasping the
delicate nuances of thought, he used forceful imagery, producing
the effect of blaring colors. The foundation of his thought is
revealed in these words, “You will be blessed because they have
no means of repaying you,” which means that one should not do
good with recompense in mind, but for the sole pleasure of doing
it. In order to provide a lively comparison, he said to invite the
poor to your banquets because you know that they can do nothing
to repay you. By banquets one must understand not a repast per se,
but rather participation in the abundance that one enjoys.
These words may also be applied in a more literal sense,
however. How many persons invite to their tables only those who
can “do them the honor” – as they say – or who can invite them in
their turn! Others, on the other hand, find satisfaction in inviting
less fortunate relatives or friends. Well, who does not have such
persons in his or her own family? It is at times a way to render them
a great service without showing it. Without going out to bring in
the blind and the lame, they practice Jesus’ maxim if they do it out
of benevolence and without ostentation, and if they know how to
disguise the benefit with sincere cordiality.

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The Spirits’ Teachings

Material Charity and Moral Charity
9. “Let us love one another and do unto others what we
would want them to do unto us.” Every religion, every moral
possible is contained in these two precepts. If you were to abide by
them in this world, you would be perfect. There would be neither
hatred nor dissent. Furthermore, I will say that there would be
no more poverty, because, from the surplus of the table of each
rich person, many poor people would be fed, and in the dark
backstreets where I lived during my last incarnation you would
not see poor mothers dragging along their miserable children in
need of everything.
You who are rich! Think about this a bit: help unfortunates
as much as you can; give so that one day God will repay the good
you have done, and when you leave your earthly envelope, you
will find a cortege of thankful spirits who will receive you at the
threshold of a more blessed world.
If only you could know the joy I experienced in meeting on
the other side those whom I was able to help during my last life!
Therefore, love your neighbor. Love him or her as you love
yourself, because you now know that that unfortunate fellow you
are rejecting and keeping away is perhaps a brother, a father or a
friend; and then, what despair you will feel upon recognizing him
in the world of spirits!
I want you to understand fully what moral charity entails, the
type that everyone can exhibit and which costs nothing materially,
but which is nonetheless very difficult to put into practice.
Moral charity consists in giving support to one another,
and it is what you practice the least on the low order world
where you are incarnate for now. Believe me; there is great merit

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in knowing how to keep quiet and let a more ignorant person

speak; this is yet another kind of charity. Knowing how to turn
a deaf ear when a mocking word escapes the mouth accustomed
to scorn; not paying any attention to the smirk of disdain that
greets your entry amongst persons who often wrongly think
they are above you, whereas in the spirit life – the only true life –
they are sometimes far from it: these are meritorious acts, not of
humility but of charity, because not paying attention to someone
else’s wrongs portrays moral charity.
This sort of charity, however, must not hinder the other kind;
remember especially not to neglect your neighbor. Remember all
that I have told you. You must always remember that the poor
person whom you reject perhaps houses a spirit who used to be
dear to you, and who, for the time being, is in a position beneath
yours. I myself met again one of the poor of your earth, whom I
had fortunately been able to help a few times, and from whom I
must now, in turn, ask for help.
Remember that Jesus said that we are all brothers and
sisters; always think about that before rejecting the leper or beggar.
Goodbye. Think of those who suffer and pray for them.
Sister Rosalie (Paris, 1860)

10. My friends, I have heard many of you say to yourselves:

How can I practice charity? Often, I don’t even have enough
myself!
Charity, my friends, may be practiced in many ways. You
can practice charity in thought, word and deed: in thought by
praying for the forsaken poor who have died without having
even seen the light; a prayer from the heart will console them;
in words by providing your everyday companions some good
advice, by saying to people embittered through desperation
and deprivation, and who blaspheme the name of the Most

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High, “I was once as you are; I suffered and was unfortunate,

but I believed in Spiritism, and as you can see, I am fortunate
now.” To the elderly who say to you, “It’s useless; I’m at the end
of my journey; I will die as I have lived,” you can say, “God
holds out the same justice for all of us; remember the workers
of the last hour.” To youths who are already corrupted by the
company they keep and who wander along life’s pathways ready
to yield to evil temptations, say, “God is watching you, my dear
children.” And do not be afraid to repeat these gentle words
to them often; they will end up germinating in their young
minds, and instead of little thugs, you will have made men and
women of them. This is also a form of charity.
Many among you say, “Nonsense! There are so many of
us on the earth, God cannot possibly see all of us.” Listen well,
my friends: When you are on the top of the mountain, don’t
you see the billions of grains of sand covering that mountain?
Well then! God sees you in the same way. He allows you your
free will just as you let those grains of sand move about at the
whim of the wind that scatters them, except that God, in his
infinite mercy, has placed at the bottom of your heart a watchful
sentinel called conscience. Listen to it; it will offer you only good
counsel. Sometimes, you deaden it by opposing it with the
spirit of evil, and then it falls silent. Nonetheless, you can be
sure that your poor forsaken conscience will make itself heard as
soon as you allow it to perceive the shadow of remorse. Listen to
your conscience, question it and you will often find yourselves
comforted by its counsels.
My friends, a general furnishes a new banner for each new
regiment. I offer you this maxim of Christ: “Love one another.”
Practice this maxim; gather around its standard and you will
receive happiness and consolation.
A Protector Spirit (Lyons, 1860)

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Beneficence
11. In this world, my friends, beneficence will give you the
purest and sweetest joys, those joys of the heart that are disturbed
neither by remorse nor indifference. Oh! If you could but
comprehend all that is great and gentle in the generosity of beautiful
souls, that sentiment that makes people look at one another in
the same way that they look at themselves, joyfully shedding their
clothes in order to give their brother or sister something to wear!
My friends, if only you could have no sweeter occupation than that
of making others happy! What worldly festivities could compare
to those blissful moments, when, as representatives of the Divinity,
you deliver joy to families who have known only the vicissitudes
and bitterness of life; when you suddenly see these emaciated faces
brighten with hope because they had no bread; these unfortunates
and their children, who, not knowing that living means to suffer,
scream, cry and repeat these words that pierce their mother’s heart
like a sharp dagger: “I’m hungry!...” Oh! Understand well how
delightful are the feelings of those who see joy reborn where just
moments before they saw only desperation! Understand what your
obligations are toward your brothers and sisters! Go, go to meet
misfortune; go especially to help hidden miseries, for they are
the most heartbreaking. Go, my dear ones, and remember these
words of the Savior: “Whenever you clothe one of these little ones,
remember that you are doing it to me.”
Charity! O sublime word that summarizes all virtues, it is you
who must lead the peoples of the world to happiness. By practicing
you, they shall create infinite joys for themselves in the future, and
during their exile on the earth, you shall be their consolation, the
foretaste of the joys they shall delight in later when they are reunited
in the bosom of the loving God. It was you, O divine virtue, who
provided me with the only moments of happiness that I enjoyed on
the earth. May my incarnate brothers and sisters believe the voice of

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the friend who is speaking to them and tells them: It is in charity

that you must seek the peace of the heart, the contentment of the
soul, and the remedy for the afflictions of life. Oh! Whenever you
are at the point of accusing God, cast an eye beneath you; behold
how many miseries need relief, how many poor children have no
families, how many old people do not have one friendly hand to
help them or to close their eyes when death reclaims them! How
much good there is to do! Oh! Do not complain; on the contrary,
thank God and lavish handfuls of your sympathy, your love and your
money on all those who, bereft of the things of the world, languish
in suffering and loneliness! Then you shall reap in this world the
sweetest joys, and later… only God knows! ...
Adolphe, Bishop of Alger (Bordeaux, 1861)

12. Be good and charitable; that is the key to heaven you hold
in your hands. All the bliss of eternity is contained in this maxim:
Love one another. The soul cannot lift itself to higher spiritual
realms except by devotion to one’s neighbor; it does not find
happiness and consolation except in charitable impulses. Be good,
uphold your brothers and sisters, and root out the horrible scourge
of selfishness. In fulfilling this duty, you will open to yourselves
the way to eternal happiness. Besides, who among you has not felt
the heart beat, its inner joy expand at hearing an account of noble
self-sacrifice, of a truly charitable deed? If you would seek only the
happiness that a good deed brings, you would remain on the path
of spiritual progress. Examples are not lacking; what you lack is
goodwill, which is very rare. Behold the multitude of righteous
men and women, whose memory history has mercifully recorded.
Did Christ not tell you everything regarding the virtues
of charity and love? Why do you put aside his divine teachings?
Why do you close your ears to his divine words and your hearts
to all his gentle maxims? I wish more interest and faith would

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be displayed in the gospels. But you have forsaken this book

and have made it a hollow word, a closed letter; this marvelous
code is left in forgottenness; your ills have come only from
your intentional abandonment of this summary of the divine
laws. So, read these ardent pages about Jesus’ devotion, and
meditate on them.
Strong men and women, prepare yourselves; weak men
and women, make your meekness and your faith your weapons.
Be more persuasive, more constant in the spreading of your new
Doctrine. It is not only encouragement that we have come to give
you; it is not only to stimulate your eagerness and virtues that
God has allowed us to manifest ourselves to you. If you would
so desire, you would merely need God’s help and your own will;
spirit manifestations are produced only for those whose eyes are
shut and whose hearts are stubborn.
Charity is the fundamental virtue that must uphold the
entire edifice of earthly virtues. Without charity, none of the
others exist. Without charity, there is no hope for a better future,
no moral interest to guide us. Without charity there is no faith,
for faith is nothing more than a pure ray of light that makes a
charitable soul shine.
Charity is the eternal anchor of salvation on all worlds. It is
the purest emanation of the Creator himself. It is his own virtue
that he gives to his creatures. How can you fail to recognize such
supreme goodness? With this thought in mind, what heart could
be so wicked as to repress and expel this wholly divine sentiment?
What child could be so evil as to rebel against the sweet caress
that is charity?
I do not presume to speak of what I myself did, because the
Spirits too are modest about their deeds; nonetheless, I believe
that I began one of those works that shall contribute the most to
relieving your fellow humans. I have frequently seen other spirits

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ask for the mission of continuing my task. I have seen them, my

gentle and dear brothers and sisters, in their merciful and divine
ministry, practicing the virtue I recommend to you, with all the
joy that such a life of dedication and sacrifice entails. I feel great
happiness at seeing how much their character is honored, how
much their mission is loved and watched over. O righteous men
and women of good and strong will, come together as one in
order to broadly continue the work of spreading charity. In the
very practice of this virtue you will find your recompense. There is
no spiritual joy that will not be provided to you, starting in your
present life. Remain united; love one another according to Christ’s
precepts. Amen.
St. Vincent de Paul (Paris, 1858)

13. I am called Charity and I am the main road leading to

God. Follow me, for I am the goal toward which you all must strive.
This morning, I went on my usual rounds, and with an
afflicted heart I have come to tell you: Oh! My friends: such misery,
so many tears and so much you must do to dry them all! In vain,
I tried to console poor mothers, telling them: “Courage! There are
good hearts watching over you; you will not be forsaken. Patience!
God is there; you are his beloved; you are his elect.” They seemed
to hear me and turned toward me their big, worried eyes. I read on
their poor faces that their body – that tyrant over the spirit – was
hungry, and even though my words might have brought a little
peace to their heart, it did not fill their stomach. I told them again:
“Courage! Courage!” Then a very young, poor mother, who was
nursing a baby, took it in her arms and held it out into empty space
as if to ask me to watch over that little being who had received only
insufficient nourishment from barren breasts.
Elsewhere, my friends, I saw poor elderly people out of
work, and, consequently, homeless, tormented by all sorts of

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suffering arising from necessity, and, ashamed of their poverty

and having never begged, they did not dare implore the mercy of
passers-by. With a heart full of compassion, I, who have nothing,
have made myself a beggar for them, and I go everywhere,
encouraging beneficence and inspiring good thoughts in generous
and compassionate souls. That is why I have come here, my
friends, and I say to you: Everywhere abound unfortunates, whose
cupboards are without bread, whose hearths are without fire and
whose beds are without blankets. I do not tell you what you should
do; I leave the initiative to your good hearts. If I were to tell you
how to proceed, you would derive no merit from your good deed.
I will tell you only: I am Charity, and I hold out my hand to you
on behalf of your suffering brothers and sisters.
But if I ask, I also give and I give much. I invite you to a great
banquet and I furnish you with the tree from which you will all be
filled! Behold how beautiful it is, how it is loaded with blossoms
and fruit! Go; go, pick and take all the fruit off that lovely tree
called beneficence. In place of the branches you have left bare I
will attach all the good deeds you have done and will take this
tree to God so that he may load it up again, for beneficence is
inexhaustible. So, follow me, my friends, so that I may count you
among those who rally around my banner. Fear not; I will lead you
along the way of salvation, for I am Charity.
Caritas, martyred in Rome (Lyons, 1861)

14. There are many ways to practice charity, which many of

you confuse with alms-giving; there is a big difference, however.
Alms-giving, my friends, is useful sometimes because it brings
relief to the poor; but it is nearly always humiliating both for the
one who gives and the one who receives. Charity, on the other
hand, links the benefactor to the beneficiary and can be disguised
in many ways! One can be charitable even toward one’s family

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and friends by being indulgent toward them, forgiving their

weaknesses, and taking care not to wound their self-esteem. And
you, Spiritists, can practice charity in the way you act toward those
who do not think as you do; by leading the less-enlightened to
believe but without shocking them and without attacking their
convictions, but instead, by gently inviting them to our meetings,
where they can listen to us, and where we will be able to find the
way to their hearts. That is one aspect of charity.
Now, listen to what charity means for the poor, those
disinherited by the world but recompensed by God if they can
accept their poverty without complaining; and this will depend on
you. I will make myself understood by using an example.
Several times each week, I see a meeting of ladies of all ages.
To us, as you know, they are all sisters. What do they do? They
work quickly, very quickly with their agile fingers. You can also see
how radiant their faces are and how their hearts all beat as one! But
what is their objective? They have seen that winter is approaching
and that it will be hard on the homes of the poor. These “ants” have
not been able to gather enough provisions during the summer and
they have pawned most of their belongings. The poor mothers
are upset and weeping, thinking about their little ones, who will
be cold and hungry this winter! Be patient, poor mothers. God
has inspired others who are more fortunate than you. They have
joined together and are sewing small garments, and one of these
days, when snow has covered the earth and you complain by saying
“God is not just” – which is what those who suffer normally say –
one of the children of these good workers turned into servants of
the poor will arrive at your doorstep. Yes, it is you for whom they
are working, and your complaining will be turned into blessings,
for love follows close behind hate in the hearts of the unfortunate.
Since all these workers need encouragement, I see
communications from good spirits coming to them from far and

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wide. The men who take part in this group also provide their
support in the form of readings that are so pleasing to all. And
in order to reward the zeal of all and each one in particular, we
ourselves promise these industrious workers a good clientele that
will pay them with blessings, the only currency used in heaven. We
further assure them, without fearing to do so, that this currency
will not be lacking for them.
Caritas (Lyon, 1861)

15. My dear friends, every day I hear you say to one another,
“I’m poor; I can’t practice charity,” and every day I see you lacking
indulgence toward your fellow beings. You do not forgive them
for anything and you turn yourselves into judges who are at times
quite severe, without asking yourselves if you would be happy if
they acted the same way toward you. Is not indulgence also charity?
You who can only practice charity by being indulgent – do that, at
least, but do it extensively. Regarding material charity, I would like
to tell you a story from the other world.
Two men had just died. God had said previously, “While
these two men are alive, all their good deeds are to be placed in
a bag, and at their death the bags will be weighed.” When both
came to their final hour, God ordered the two bags to be brought
to him. One was fat, voluminous and stuffed, resounding with the
coins that filled it; the other was so small and thin that through
the cloth one could see the few coins it contained. Each man
recognized which bag was his. “That one is mine,” said the first.
“I recognize it; I was rich and gave a lot.” “That one is mine,”
said the other. “I was always poor; alas! I had almost nothing to
share.” But oh, what a surprise! When the two bags were set on
the scale, the fat one became light, whereas the small one became
heavy so that it outweighed the one on the other side of the scale.
Then God said to the rich man, “You have given much, it is true,

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but you gave to be ostentatious and to see your name displayed

in all the temples of pride; moreover, while giving, you deprived
yourself of nothing. Go to the left and be happy that your alms
have counted for anything at all.” Then he said to the poor man,
“You have given very little, my friend, but each one of those coins
on the scale represents a privation for you. Even though you did
not give alms, you practiced charity, and what is better still, you
practiced it naturally, without thinking that it would be taken into
account. You were indulgent and you did not judge your fellow
beings; on the contrary, you offered excuses for all their actions.
Go to the right and receive your recompense.”
A Protector Spirit (Lyon, 1861)

16. Might not a rich, fortunate wife who does not have to
spend her time doing housework dedicate a few hours of useful
work to her fellow beings? With what she has left over from her
pleasures, she could purchase clothes for the unfortunates that
shiver in the cold. With her delicate hands, she could sew basic,
yet warm clothing, and help a mother cover her child about to be
born. If her own child has to do with a little less lace, the child of
the poor woman will be a little warmer. To work for the poor is to
work in the Lord’s vineyard.
And you, poor laborer, who have nothing superfluous, but
who, full of love toward you brothers and sisters, also want to
give a little of what you have, give a few hours of your workday,
your time, which is your only treasure. Make some of those fancy
handicrafts that tempt the wealthy. Sell these products of your
evening time and you too will be able to provide your brothers and
sisters with your share of aid. Perhaps you will have fewer ribbons,
but you will have put shoes on someone who is barefoot.
And you, women devoted to God, you too work in his
service; may your delicate and lavish creations not be solely for

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decorating your chapels or for calling attention to your skill and

patience. Work, my daughters, and let the compensation of your
undertakings be consecrated to helping your brothers and sisters
in God. The poor are his beloved children; to work for them is to
glorify him. Be unto them the Providence that says, “God gives
nourishment to the birds of the sky.” May the gold and silver
threads that are woven by your hands be transformed into clothing
and food for those who do not have them. Do these things and
your work will be blessed.
All of you who can produce something, give; give of your
talents, give of your inspirations, give of your hearts, which God
will bless. Poets and authors, you who are read solely by the
upper crust of society, go ahead and fill up their leisure time,
but let the profit of some of your works be consecrated to the
relief of the poor. Painters, sculptors and artists of all genres!
May your intelligence also come to aid your brothers and sisters.
You will have no less glory, and through your help there will be
a little less suffering.
All of you can give. Whatever may be your social status, you
have something you can share. Whatever God may have given
you, you owe part of it to those who lack what is necessary, for
if you were in their stead, you would be very happy if someone
else were to share with you. Your earthly treasures will be a little
less, but your heavenly treasures will be more abundant. There,
you will reap a hundredfold what you have sown in good deeds
on the earth.
Jean (Bordeaux, 1861)
Compassion
17. Compassion is the virtue that brings you closer to the
angels; it is the sister of charity, which leads you to God. Ah! Allow
your heart to be moved with compassion before the miseries and

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sufferings of your fellow beings. Your tears are a balm which you
pour out on their wounds, and when, out of kind sympathy, you
manage to restore their hope and resignation, what delight you will
feel! Such delight will of course contain a certain bitterness, because
it is born alongside misfortune; however, since it does not have the
acrid taste of worldly delights, neither does it have the pungent
disappointments of emptiness that worldly pleasures leave in their
wake; there is a penetrating gentleness that fills the soul with joy.
Compassion, deeply felt, is love; love is devotion; devotion is
forgetting oneself. And this forgetfulness, this self-denial on behalf
of unfortunates, is virtue par excellence, the kind that the Divine
Messiah practiced throughout his life and taught in his holy and
sublime doctrine. Once this doctrine is returned to its primitive
purity, when all peoples have accepted it, it will bring happiness to
the earth, enabling harmony, peace and love to finally reign.
The most appropriate sentiment for enabling you to progress
by subduing your selfishness and pride, the one that predisposes
your soul to humility, beneficence and love for your neighbor, is
compassion! That compassion which expresses itself within you at
the sight of your brothers’ and sisters’ suffering, which impels you
to reach out to them with a helping hand, and which moves you to
tears of sympathy. Therefore, never smother this heavenly emotion
in your hearts. Do not do like those hardened, selfish people who
avoid the afflicted because the sight of their misery would upset
them for a few moments of their carefree lives. Fear remaining
indifferent when you could be useful. Peace of mind bought at the
price of culpable indifference is the peace of mind of the Dead Sea,
which hides fetid slime and decay in its depths.
However, how far compassion is from causing the trouble
and annoyance the selfish person is so afraid of! Without a doubt,
on contact with another’s misfortune, the soul rebounds upon
itself and experiences a natural and profound ache that makes its

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entire being vibrate and affects it so painfully. But great will be

the compensation when you manage to restore courage and hope
to an unfortunate brother or sister who is moved by the contact
of a friendly hand, and whose eyes, moist with emotion and
acknowledgement, turn to you kindly before gazing into heaven
in thankfulness for having sent a consoler, a support. Compassion
is the melancholic but celestial precursor of charity, the first of
all virtues. Compassion is the sister of charity, whose benefits she
prepares and ennobles.
Michel (Bordeaux, 1862)
Orphans
18. My brothers and sisters, love all orphans. If you only knew
how sad it is to be abandoned, especially in infancy! God allows
there to be orphans in order to engage us to serve as their parents.
What divine charity it is to help a poor abandoned child, to keep
it from suffering hunger and cold, and to guide its soul so that it
does not lose itself to vice! Those who reach out to an abandoned
child are agreeable to God, for they understand and practice his
law. Moreover, consider that many times the child you help may
have been dear to you in another incarnation, and if he or she could
remember you, it would no longer be charity but an obligation.
Thus, my friends, every sufferer is your brother or sister and has a
right to your charity; but not the charity that wounds the heart or the
alms that burn the hand in which they are deposited, for your alms
are frequently quite bitter! How often these sufferers would refuse
them if sickness and misery were not waiting for them at home! So,
give delicately; add to your beneficent act the most precious of all
acts: a good word, a pat, a friendly smile. Avoid the patronizing tone
that twists the knife in a heart that is bleeding, and remember that
in doing good you are working for yourself and your loved ones.
A Familiar Spirit (Paris, 1860)

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Benefits Repaid with Ingratitude

19. What should be thought of persons whose beneficence has
been repaid with ingratitude and who therefore no longer practice the
good out of fear of meeting more ungrateful people?
These persons are much more selfish than charitable, since
practicing the good only to receive signs of recognition is not to practice
it disinterestedly, and disinterested beneficence is the only kind that is
agreeable to God. The same applies to their pride, since they derive
pleasure in the humility of the recipients who place their recognition at
their feet. Those who seek recompense on the earth for the good they
do will not receive recompense in heaven. However, God will take into
account those who do not seek recompense on the earth.
You must always help the weak, even though you know
beforehand that the recipients of the good you do will not be
grateful. You can be certain that if those to whom you render
a service forget about the benefit, God will take it more into
account than if you had been recompensed by their gratitude. God
sometimes allows you to be repaid with ingratitude in order to test your
perseverance in practicing the good.
And moreover, how do you know if the momentarily forgotten
act of beneficence might not produce good fruit later on? On the
contrary, you can be certain that it is a seed that will germinate
in time. Unfortunately, you always see only the present; you work
for yourselves, and not with others in mind. Most assuredly, acts
of beneficence end up softening the hardest hearts. They may be
unappreciated in this world, but once the recipient’s spirit is rid
of its corporeal envelope, it will remember, and that remembrance
will be its punishment. Then, it will regret its ingratitude and will
want to repair its wrong and pay its debt in another existence, often
accepting a life of dedication toward its benefactor. Thus, without
suspecting it, you will have contributed to that spirit’s moral
advancement, and you will recognize later the truth of the maxim,

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“A benefit is never lost.” Moreover, you will have worked for

yourselves, because you will have the merit of having done the good
disinterestedly and without being discouraged by disillusionment.
Ah! My friends, if you knew all the ties that in your present
life bind you to previous ones; if you could grasp the multitude of
relationships that connect people to one another for their mutual
progress, you would admire even more the wisdom and goodness of the
Creator, who allows you to live again and again to reach him in the end.
A Protector Guide (Sens, 1862)
Exclusive Beneficence
20. Is beneficence rightly understood when practiced exclusively among
persons of the same opinion, the same belief or the same political party?
No, because it is specially the spirit of sectarianism and
political parties that must be abolished, for all humans are brothers
and sisters. True Christians see only brothers and sisters in their
fellow beings, and before helping those who are in need, they do
not ask them about what their beliefs or opinions might be. Would
Christians be obeying Jesus Christ’s precept that says to love even
one’s enemies if they sent unfortunate individuals away because
they profess a different belief system?
Therefore, help them without asking them to give an
account of their conscience, for if they are an enemy of religion,
it will be a way to lead them to love it; sending them away would
cause them to hate it.
St. Louis (Paris, 1860)

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Honor your father

and mother
• Filial Devotion • Who is my mother and who are my
brothers? • Corporeal Kinship and Spirit Kinship • The
Spirits’ Teachings Children’s Ingratitude and Family Ties

1. You know the commandments: Do not commit adultery; do not kill; do

not steal; do not render false testimony; do not speak ill of anyone; honor
your father and your mother. (Mk. 10:19; Lk. 18:20; Mt. 19:19)

2. Honor your father and your mother so that you may live long in the land
which the Lord your God shall give you. (Decalogue, Ex: 20:12)

Filial Devotion

3. The commandment, “Honor your father and your

mother” is a consequence of the general law of charity and love for
one’s neighbor, for one cannot love one’s neighbor without loving

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one’s father and mother; however, the term honor includes an added
duty in this regard: filial devotion. In this way, God wanted to show
that to love, one must add respect, consideration, submission and
acquiescence, which implies the obligation to fulfill toward them
in an even stricter manner all that charity requires us to do for our
neighbor. This duty naturally extends to the individuals who take
the place of one’s father and mother, and who have even more
merit because their devotion is less obligatory. God always severely
punishes all violations of this commandment.
Honoring our father and mother does not only entail
respecting them; it also means assisting them in their need,
providing for their rest in old age, and surrounding them with the
care they took of us in our childhood.
True filial devotion is displayed especially when parents are
lacking in resources. Do persons really fulfill this commandment
if they think they have done a great thing for having given their
parents only what is necessary for them not to die of hunger,
while they deprive themselves of nothing? Or if they relegate
them to the worst rooms in the house so that they are not left out
on the street, while reserving for their own use what is best and
most comfortable? Such parents can even consider themselves
fortunate when this is not done out of ill will and if they are
not made to pay for it for the rest of their lives by being put in
charge of the housework! Is this the time of their lives when old
and weak parents are to be servants of their younger and stronger
children? Did their mother make them pay for her milk when
they were in the cradle? Did she count the times she watched
over them when they were ill or the steps she took to provide
them with what they needed? No, children do not owe their poor
parents only what is strictly necessary, but also all the sweet little
extras possible, in token of the thoughtfulness and the loving care
that represent the interest on what they themselves have received

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from them, the payment of a sacred debt. This is the only filial
devotion accepted by God.
Woe, therefore, to those who forget what they owe to the
ones who supported them in their weakness, who, besides their
physical life gave them moral life also, and who often imposed
harsh privations on themselves in order to ensure their well-being.
Woe to such ingrates, for they themselves will be punished with
ingratitude and abandonment; they will be struck in their dearest
affections, sometimes in their current life, but certainly in another,
when they themselves will bear what they made others bear.
It is true that some parents do not recognize their duties and
are not what they should be for their children; however, it is for
God to punish them and not their children. It is not the children’s
place to reproach their parents, because they themselves perhaps
deserve it to be this way. If charity establishes as a law repaying evil
with good, being indulgent toward the imperfections of others, not
speaking ill of one’s neighbor, forgetting and forgiving wrongs and
even loving one’s enemies, how much more do these obligations
apply regarding one’s parents! Hence, children must take as their
rule of conduct toward their parents all Jesus’ precepts concerning
one’s neighbor, and tell themselves that every behavior that would
be reprehensible toward strangers would be even more so toward
their parents, and that what may be merely a wrong in the former
instance may become a crime in the latter, because to the lack of
charity one adds ingratitude.
4. God said, “Honor your father and your mother so that
you may live long in the land that the Lord your God shall give
you.” But why does he promise earthly life as a reward and not
heavenly life? The explanation is in these words, “that God shall
give you,” which, omitted from the modern form of the Decalogue,
denatures its meaning. In order to understand these words, one
must recall the situation and ideas of the Hebrews at the time in

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which they were spoken. They did not yet understand the future
life; their sight did not extend beyond the corporeal one. Thus,
they had to be more strongly impressed by what they could see
than by what they could not; that is why God spoke to them in a
language appropriate for them, and as if speaking to children, did
it in a manner that could satisfy them. At the time, they were in
the desert, and the land that God shall give them was the Promised
Land, the goal of their aspirations. They wanted nothing more
than that, and God told them that they would live a long time
in it, meaning that they would possess it for a long time if they
observed the divine commandments.
However, when Jesus came, their ideas had become more
developed. The time having arrived to give them a less material
nourishment, Jesus initiates them into the spirit life by telling them,
“My kingdom is not of this world; it is there, and not on the earth,
that you will receive recompense for your good deeds.” With these
words, the physical Promised Land became a heavenly homeland.
Furthermore, when he calls them to observe the commandment,
“Honor your father and your mother,” it is no longer the earth
that he promises them, but heaven. (See chaps. II and III)

Who is my mother and who

are my brothers?
5. And arriving at the house, they found such a large crowd of people
gathered there that they could not even eat their meal. When his family
learned of this, they came to take charge of him because they said that he
had lost his mind.

Therefore, when his mother and brothers arrived, they remained outside
and asked for him to be called. Now the people were seated around him and
someone said to him, “Your mother and brothers are outside calling for you.”

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But he answered them, “Who is my mother and who are my brothers?” And
looking at those who were seated around him, he said, “These are my mother
and my brothers, for whoever does God’s will is my brother, my sister and my
mother.” (Mk. 3:20,21, 31-35; Mt. 12:46-50)

6. Some of the words used by Jesus seem strange and appear

to belie his goodness and inalterable benevolence toward everyone.
Disbelievers never cease to use this as a weapon, stating that he
contradicted himself. The undeniable fact, however, is that his
doctrine has as its essential foundation and cornerstone the law of
love and charity. Thus, he could not destroy on one hand what he
established on the other, and we must therefore draw the unbending
conclusion that, if some of his maxims are in contradiction with that
basic principle, it is because the words attributed to him have been
either wrongly conveyed, wrongly understood or were not his at all.
7. It is understandably a cause for wonder that, in this
circumstance, Jesus displays such indifference toward his family
and in a certain way denies his own mother.
Regarding his brothers, it is said that they never held
him in much esteem; being little-advanced spirits, they did not
understand his mission; in their opinion, his behavior was bizarre
and his teachings did not touch them, since he did not have one
disciple from amongst them. It seems that to a certain extent they
might even have shared the prejudices of his enemies. The fact
of the matter is that they welcomed him more as a stranger than
as a brother whenever he met with his family, and John states
specifically that “they did not believe in him.” (Jn. 7:5)
As for his mother, no one could question her tenderness
toward her son. However, one must also agree that she too seemed
not to have had a very precise idea about Jesus’ mission, as she was
never known to follow his teachings or give testimony regarding
him as did John the Baptist; maternal solicitude was the sentiment
that predominated in her. As far as Jesus is concerned, to believe

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that he denied his mother would be to show ignorance of his

character: such an idea could not have animated the one who
said, “Honor your father and your mother.” Hence, it is necessary to
look for another meaning for his words, which were nearly always
shrouded in the veil of allegory.
Jesus never wasted an opportunity to give a lesson; therefore,
he took advantage of his family’s arrival to establish the difference
between corporeal kinship and spirit kinship.

Corporeal Kinship and Spirit Kinship

8. Blood ties do not necessarily establish ties among spirits.
The body proceeds from the body, but the spirit does not proceed
from the spirit, because the spirit already existed before the
formation of the body. Parents do not create the spirit of their
children; they do nothing except furnish them with their corporeal
envelope, but it is their duty to aid in their intellectual and moral
development in order to help them progress.
Spirits who incarnate in the same family – especially among
close relatives – are most often sympathetic spirits, connected
by previous relationships that are expressed by their mutual
affection during earthly life. Nevertheless, it may also happen
that such spirits are complete strangers to one another, divided
by past-life antipathies that are now expressed as animosity to
serve as a trial. True family ties are not therefore blood ties,
but ties of sympathy and similarity of ideas that connect spirits
before, during and after their incarnations. It thus follows that
two individuals born from different parents may be more like
brothers through their spirits than if they were brothers through
blood. They may attract each other, search for each other and
feel happy together, whereas two brothers related by blood
may repel each other – a fact attested to every day. This moral

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problem is one that only Spiritism can resolve by means of the

plurality of existences. (See chap. IV, no. 13)
Consequently, there are two types of families: families
through spirit ties and families through corporeal ties. The former
are permanent, are strengthened through purification and are
perpetuated in the spirit world through the many migrations of the
soul. The latter are fragile like matter itself, are extinguished over
time and often dissolve morally even in the current lifetime. This
is what Jesus wanted to make understood by saying to his disciples,
“Here are my mother and my brothers”; that is, my family through
the ties of the spirit, because “all who do the will of my Father who
is in heaven are my brother, my sister, and my mother.”
His brothers’ hostility is clearly expressed in Mark’s narrative,
which states that their purpose was to take charge of him under
the pretext that he had lost his mind. Upon being informed of their
arrival, and knowing their sentiments toward him, it was natural
that Jesus, speaking from a spiritual standpoint, would refer to his
disciples as “these are my true brothers.” His mother was with his
brothers and thus Jesus generalizes his lesson, which in no way
implies that he meant that his mother according to the body was
nothing to him according to the spirit, and that he felt nothing
but indifference toward her; his behavior on many other occasions
proved quite the contrary.

The Spirits’ Teachings

Children’s Ingratitude and Family Ties
9. Ingratitude is one of the most immediate fruits of
selfishness. It is always revolting to honest hearts. But the
ingratitude of children toward their parents has an even more
odious character. It is particularly from this point of view that we

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will look at ingratitude in order to analyze its causes and effects. In

this case, as in all others, Spiritism has come to shed light on one
of the problems of the human heart.
When the spirit leaves the earth behind, it takes with it
the passions or virtues inherent to its nature, and goes into the
spirit world either to perfect itself or to remain at a standstill until
it desires to see the light. Some, therefore, depart carrying with
them great hatred and insatiable desires for vengeance, but a few
of these, more advanced than the others, are allowed to glimpse a
bit of the truth. They realize the disastrous effects of their passions
and then resolve to do better. They understand that, in order to
reach God, there is one password only: charity. However, there can
be no charity without forgetting offenses and wrongs; neither can
there be charity with hatred in the heart and without forgiveness.
Next, through an unprecedented effort, these spirits look
at those they detested while on earth, but at such a sight, their
animosity reawakens; they rebel against the idea of forgiveness and
even more against self-denial, especially when it means loving those
who perhaps destroyed their fortune, honor or family. In spite of
this, however, the heart of these unfortunate spirits is shaken. They
hesitate and waiver, troubled by their conflicting sentiments. If the
resolution to do better wins, they pray to God and implore good
spirits to give them strength at the most decisive moment of trial.
Finally, after years of meditation and prayer, the spirit profits
from the use of a body that is to be born in the family of the one it
used to hate, and it asks the spirits designated to transmit the divine
orders to be allowed to fulfill on the earth the destiny of that body
that is about to be formed. So, how will it behave as a member of
this family? That will depend on the degree of persistence of its
resolution to do better. The constant contact with individuals it
used to hate is a terrible trial to which it succumbs sometimes if
its will is not sufficiently strong. Thus, depending on whether its

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good or bad resolution prevails, it will either be a friend or enemy

of those among whom it has been called upon to live. This is how
one can explain those hatreds, those instinctive repulsions that
may be observed in certain children and which no previous act
seems to justify. In fact, there is nothing in the present existence
that could have caused such antipathy. In order to understand it,
one must look to the past.
O Spiritists! You must understand humankind’s grand role;
you must understand that, when you produce a body, the soul who
incarnates in it has come from the spirit world in order to progress;
know your duties and put all your love in leading that soul to God.
This is the mission that has been entrusted to you and for which
you will receive recompense if you faithfully fulfill it. The care and
education you give it will help in its self-improvement and future
well-being. Remember that God will ask every father and every
mother, “What did you do for the children whom I entrusted into
your care?” If because of your fault they have remained behind,
your punishment will be to see them among the suffering spirits,
when it depended on you for them to be happy. Hence, you
yourselves, tormented by remorse, will ask to repair your wrong;
you will ask for yourselves and for them another incarnation, in
which you will surround them with more enlightened care, and,
full of gratitude, they will surround you with their love.
Therefore, do not rebuff the little child who spurns its
mother, nor the one who repays you with ingratitude. It was no
accident that made it that way and gave it to you. An imperfect
intuition about the past is being revealed, from which you may
deduce that one or the other of you has hated much or has been
greatly offended, and that one or the other has come to forgive
or to expiate. Mothers! Embrace, therefore, the child who causes
you trouble and say to yourself: One of us was blameworthy!
Make yourselves deserve the divine joys that God has bestowed

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upon motherhood by teaching your children that they are on the

earth to improve themselves, to love, and to bless. But alas! Many
of you, instead of using education to drive away the innate evil
tendencies brought over from previous lifetimes, maintain and
increase them because of a blameworthy weakness or because of
negligence, and later on, your heart, ulcerated by the ingratitude
of your children, will be for you, starting in this life, the beginning
of your expiation.
The task is not as difficult as you might think, however. It
does not require the wisdom of the world. The uneducated as well
as the learned can fulfill it, and Spiritism has come to facilitate it by
making known the cause of the imperfections of the human heart.
From infancy, children manifest the good or evil instincts
they have brought from their previous existence, and it is necessary
that we apply ourselves to studying them. All evils have their
origin in selfishness and pride, so watch out for the least signs
that reveal the seeds of these vices and take care to combat them
without waiting for them to put down deeper roots. Do as good
gardeners, who cut off the defective shoots as soon as they appear
on the tree. If selfishness and pride are allowed to develop, do
not be surprised if you are paid back later with ingratitude. When
parents have done everything they should for their children’s moral
advancement but are unsuccessful nonetheless, they have nothing
to reproach themselves for and their conscience can rest easy. But
as for the very natural heartache they feel from the failure of their
efforts, God reserves a great and immense consolation through the
certainty that it is only a delay and that it will be given to them to
achieve in another existence the work they began in this one, and
that some day their ungrateful children will repay them with love.
(See chap. XIII, no. 19)
God never imposes trials beyond the strength of those who
ask for them; he only allows trials that can be accomplished.

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Regarding those who do not succeed, it is not because they lack

the ability but because they lack the will, for there are many who,
instead of resisting their evil tendencies, take pleasure in them.
It is for these that tears and cries of anguish are reserved in later
existences. Therefore, admire the goodness of God, who never
shuts the door to repentance. A day will come when wrongdoers
tire of suffering, when their pride is finally controlled, and that is
when God opens his paternal arms to the prodigal son who throws
himself at his feet. Harsh trials – hear me well – almost always
indicate an end of suffering and of an improvement for the spirit when
they are accepted out of love for God. It is a supreme moment, during
which it is especially important not to fail by complaining if one
does not want to lose the fruits of such trial and have to start it all
over again. Instead of complaining, thank God for offering you
the opportunity to triumph in order to award you with the prize
of victory. Then, when you leave the whirlwind of the terrestrial
world and enter the spirit world, you will be acclaimed like the
soldier who has departed victorious from the midst of combat.
Of all trials, the hardest are those that affect the heart. Some
courageously bear misery and material privations but yield to the
weight of domestic bitterness, bruised by the ingratitude of their
loved ones. Oh! What pungent heartbreak that is! However, in
such circumstances, what can better display moral courage than an
understanding of the causes of evil and the certainty that even if there
are long afflictions, despair does not last forever, for God cannot
want one of his creatures to suffer eternally. What can be more
consoling, more encouraging than the thought that it depends on
your own efforts to shorten your suffering by destroying the causes
of evil within yourselves? To do so, however, you cannot keep your
gaze on the earth and see only one existence; lift yourselves up and
hover in the infinity of the past and the future. Then God’s great
justice will be revealed to you and you will wait patiently because

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you understand what seemed like monstrosities while on the earth,

and the wounds you received there will seem like nothing more
than scratches. In that glance cast over the whole, family ties will
appear in their true light. They are no longer the fragile ties of
matter connecting family members, but the lasting ties of the
spirit, which continue and consolidate as they purify themselves
instead of being broken through reincarnation.
Spirits whose similarity in tastes, identification in moral
progress and affection are led to gather together to form families.
During their earthly migrations, these same spirits seek one another
out in order to group together as they did in the spirit world, and
from this, united and homogenous families are born. And if during
their pilgrimages they are temporarily separated, they will find one
another later, happy for their latest progress. But since they must
not work only for themselves, God allows less-advanced spirits
to incarnate among them in order to receive counsel and good
examples in the interest of their own advancement. These spirits
sometimes cause trouble, but that is what comprises the trial, that
is where the task lies. Therefore, welcome them as brothers and
sisters. Come to their aid, and later, in the world of spirits, the
family will be happy for having saved castaways, who, in turn, will
be able to save others.
St. Augustine (Paris, 1862)

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Without32 charity
there is no salvation
• What Is Needed in order to Be Saved. Parable of the Good
Samaritan • The Greatest Commandment • The Need for
Charity according to Paul • Without the Church there is
no Salvation. Without the Truth there is no Salvation • The
Spirits’ Teachings: Without Charity There is no Salvation

What Is Needed in order to Be Saved.

Parable of the Good Samaritan
1. Now, when the Son of Man comes in his majesty, accompanied by all
the angels, he will sit on the throne of his glory; and all the peoples being
gathered before him, he will separate them from one another as a shepherd
32
As will be seen, this is a play on the motto, “Without the Church there is no salvation,”
(extra ecclesiam nulla salus) which is sometimes rendered as, “Apart from the Church…” or
“Outside the Church…” The term without thus implies more of a sense of locale rather than
possession, that is, without as opposed to within. – Tr.

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separates the sheep from the goats, and he will place the sheep on his right
and the goats on his left.

Then, the King will say to those who are on his right, “Come, you who are
blessed by my Father; take possession of the kingdom that has been prepared
for you since the beginning of the world, for I was hungry and you gave me
to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me to drink; I was in need of shelter and
you sheltered me; I was naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you visited
me; I was in prison and you came to see me.”

Then, the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you
hungry and gave you to eat, or thirsty and gave you to drink? When was it
that we saw you without a shelter and sheltered you, or without clothes and
clothed you? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and came to
visit you?” And the King will respond to them, “Verily I say to you, as often as
you did it on behalf of the least of my brothers, it was to me that you did it.”

Next, to those who are on his left he will say, “Away from me, you who are
accursed; go to the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his
angels, for I was hungry and you did not give me to eat; I was thirsty and
you did not give me to drink; I needed shelter and you did not shelter me; I
had no clothes and you did not clothe me; I was sick and in prison and you
did not visit me.”

Then, these too will reply, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry,
thirsty, or without shelter, or sick or in prison and we failed to help you?” But
he will respond to them, “Verily I say to you, as often as you failed to render
this assistance to one of the least of these, you failed to do it to me.”

And they will go to eternal punishment, and the righteous to eternal life.
(Mt. 25:31-46)

2. Then, a doctor of the law stood up and said to him in order to test him,
“Master, what must I do to possess eternal life?” Jesus answered him, “What is
it that is written in the Law? What have you read in it?” He responded to him,
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with

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all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus
said to him, “You have answered well; do so and you shall live.”

However, wanting to appear to be righteous, the man said to Jesus, “And who
is my neighbor?” And Jesus answering said to him:

“A certain man was coming down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the
hands of thieves, who stripped him of his clothes, covered him with wounds
and left him half-dead. Afterward, it just so happened that a priest was coming
down by the same way, and having noticed him, passed him by on the other
side. A Levite, who also came to the same spot, saw him but passed by on the
other side. But when a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came to where the
man was and saw him, he was touched with great compassion. He approached
him and poured oil and wine on his wounds and bandaged them. And putting
him on his own animal, took him to an inn and cared for him. The following
day, he took two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take good
care of this man and whatever more you spend I will repay you when I return.’

“Which of these three seems to you to have been the neighbor of the one who
fell into the hands of the thieves?” The doctor of the law responded to him,
“The one who showed compassion on him.” Jesus said to him “Go and do
likewise.” (Lk. 10:25-37)

3. All of Jesus’ morals are summed up in charity and humility,

that is, in the two virtues contrary to selfishness and pride. In all his
teachings, he points to these two virtues as being the way to eternal
happiness. Blessed are the poor in spirit, he said, meaning the humble,
for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven; blessed are the pure in heart;
blessed are the meek and the peace-loving; blessed are the merciful;
love your neighbor as yourself; do unto others what you want them
to do unto you; love your enemies; forgive offenses if you yourself
want to be forgiven; practice the good without ostentation; judge
yourselves before you judge others. Humility and charity are the
things Jesus never ceased to recommend, and for which he himself
gave the example. Pride and selfishness are the things he never ceased

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to combat. But he did more than recommend charity; he put it in

clear and explicit terms as an absolute condition for future happiness.
In the picture that Jesus portrays of the Final Judgment, it
is necessary – as in many other cases – to separate symbol from
allegory. To people such as the ones to whom he spoke, who
were still incapable of understanding purely spiritual matters, he
had to present physical imagery that was striking and capable of
impressing them. To be better accepted, he could not depart very
far from the form of current established ideas, always reserving
for the future the true interpretation of his words and the points
that he could not explain clearly at the time. However, alongside
the supplementary and figurative part of the picture, one idea
predominates: the happiness awaiting the righteous and the
unhappiness reserved for the unrighteous.
In that final judgment, what will be taken into consideration
in passing sentence? Upon what will the indictment be based? Will
the Judge ask if one has fulfilled this or that formality, or observed
such and such outward practice? No. He will ask about one thing
only: the practice of charity. And in passing sentence he will say:
You who assisted your brothers and sisters, go on the right; you
who were harsh toward them, go on the left. Will he inquire as to
the orthodoxy of their faith? Will he make a distinction between
those who believe in one manner and those who believe in another?
No, for Jesus places the Samaritan – regarded as a heretic, but
who showed love toward his neighbor – above orthodoxy that
lacks charity. Jesus thus did not make charity only one of the
conditions for salvation, but the sole condition. If there were
other conditions to fulfill, he would have mentioned them. If he
places charity on the first plane of the virtues, it is because charity
implicitly entails all the others: humility, kindness, benevolence,
indulgence, justice, etc., and because it is the complete negation
of pride and selfishness.

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The Greatest Commandment

4. But having found out that he had put the Sadducees to silence, the
Pharisees got together; and one of them, who was a doctor of the law, came
to ask this question of him in order to test him: “Master, what is the greatest
commandment of the Law?” Jesus replied, “You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind. That is the
greatest and first commandment. And here is the second, which is similar
to that one: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the
prophets are contained in these two commandments.” (Mt. 22:34-40)

5. Charity and humility: that is the sole path to salvation;

selfishness and pride: that is the sole path to perdition. This
principle is formulated in precise terms in these words: “You shall
love God with all your soul and your neighbor as yourself; all the
Law and the prophets are contained in these two commandments.”
And so that there may be no mistake about the interpretation of
loving God and one’s neighbor, Jesus adds, “And this is the second
commandment, which is similar to the first,” that is, one cannot
truly love God without loving one’s neighbor, nor can one love
one’s neighbor without loving God. Thus, everything that is
done against one’s neighbor is also done against God. And since
one cannot love God without practicing charity toward one’s
neighbor, all of humankind’s duties are summed up in the maxim:
WITHOUT CHARITY THERE IS NO SALVATION.

The Need for Charity according to Paul

6. Even if I were to speak all the languages of men and the language of the
angels themselves, if I did not have charity33, I would be only like a sounding

33
Sacy’s version (as well as older English versions) uses the word charity for the Greek term
agape, which in all other English versions is rendered as love. Charity derives from the Latin

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gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I were to have the gift of prophecy and
grasped all mysteries, and if I had a perfect knowledge of all things; and if I
had all the faith possible to the point of moving mountains, if I did not have
charity, I would be nothing. And if I were to distribute my belongings to
feed the poor and delivered my body to be burned, if I did not have charity,
none of this would be of any use to me.

Charity is patient; it is kind and benevolent; charity is not envious; it

is not rash or hurried; it is not full of pride; it is not scornful; it does
not look after its own interests. It does not take offense or become upset
by anything; it does not suspect evil; it does not rejoice in injustice, but
rejoices in the truth; it bears all things, believes all things, hopes for all
things, endures all things.

Now, these three virtues remain: faith, hope and charity, but among them,
the most excellent is charity. (I Cor. 13:1-7, 13)

7. St. Paul understood this great truth so profoundly that he said:

“Even if I were to speak the language of the angels themselves; if I were to
have the gift of prophecy and grasped all mysteries; if I had all the faith
possible to the point of moving mountains, but did not have charity, I
would be nothing. Among these virtues: faith, hope and charity, the most
excellent is charity.” Hence, without any doubt, he places charity above
faith itself, because charity is within everyone’s reach: the ignorant
and the learned, the rich and the poor, because it is independent
of any particular belief system. He does even more: he defines true
charity; he shows that it is not only displayed in beneficence, but
in the gathering of all the qualities of the heart, in goodness and
benevolence toward one’s neighbor.

caritas, which is the Latin equivalent of agape. Webster’s states as one of the definitions of
charity: Christian love; agape. – Tr.
Explanation of charity according to The Spirits’ Book in Question 886: “What is the true
meaning of the word charity, as Jesus understood it? “Benevolence towards everyone,
indulgence for the imperfections of others and forgiveness for offenses.” – Tr.

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Without the Church there is no Salvation.

Without the Truth there is no Salvation

8. While the maxim, “Without charity there is no salvation”

is based on a universal principle and gives all God’s children access
to supreme happiness, the dogma Without the Church there is no
salvation is based not upon a fundamental faith in God and the
immortality of the soul – a faith common to all religions – but
instead upon the special faith in particular dogmas; it is exclusive
and absolute. Instead of uniting God’s children, it divides them;
instead of stirring them to love their brothers and sisters, it
maintains and sanctions the strife among the sectarians of various
denominations, which mutually regard one another as damned for
all eternity, even though they might be relatives and friends in
this world. By misunderstanding the great law of equality before
the grave, it separates people from one another even in the realm
of repose. The maxim, “Without charity there is no salvation” is
consecrated to the principle of equality before God and freedom
of conscience. With this maxim as a rule, all men and women are
brothers and sisters, and whatever may be the way in which they
worship the Creator, they hold out their hands to one another and
pray for one another. With the dogma Without the Church there is
no salvation, they anathematize one other, persecute one another
and live as enemies. The father does not pray for the son, nor the
son for the father, nor the friend for a friend if they believe each
other to be condemned forever. Therefore, this dogma is essentially
contrary to the teachings of Christ and the law of the Gospel.
9. Without the truth there is no salvation would be the
equivalent of Without the Church there is no salvation, and would
be equally exclusive because there is not one single denomination
that does not claim to be privileged with the truth. What person

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could boast of possessing the whole truth, when the circle of

knowledge is increasing constantly, and ideas are being rectified
each and every day? The absolute truth is shared only among
spirits of the highest order, and earthly humankind could not
pretend to belong to that order, because it has not been given to
it to know everything. Humans can aspire only to a relative truth
proportional to their advancement. If God had made possessing
the whole truth as an express condition for future happiness, this
would be a sentence of general proscription, whereas charity, even
in its broadest definition, may be practiced by all. Spiritism, in
accordance with the Gospel, and believing that one can be saved
whatever one’s belief may be, provided one observes God’s laws,
does not state: Without Spiritism there is no salvation; and since it
does not claim as yet to teach the whole truth, neither does it state:
Without the truth there is no salvation,” a maxim that would divide
instead of unite, and would perpetuate antagonism.

The Spirits’ Teachings

Without Charity There is no Salvation
10. My children, in the maxim Without charity there is no
salvation are contained the destinies of men and women on earth
and in heaven; on earth, because in the shadow of this banner they
will live in peace; in heaven, because those who have practiced it
will find grace before the Lord. This motto is the heavenly light, the
luminous pillar that guides them through the desert of life in order
to lead them to the Promised Land. It shines in heaven like a saintly
halo around the brows of the elect, and on earth it is engraved on
the hearts of those to whom Jesus will say: Go to the right, you who
are blessed of my Father. You will recognize them by the fragrance
of charity that they spread around them. Nothing better expresses

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Jesus’ thought, nothing better sums up the duties of men and

women than this maxim of divine order. Spiritism could not prove
its origin in any better way than by providing it as a rule, because is
the reflection of the purest Christianity. With such a guide, people
will never become lost. So, my friends, apply yourselves to grasping
its profound meaning and consequences, and to discovering for
yourselves all its applications. Submit all your actions to the test of
charity and your conscience will respond to you. Not only will it
help you to avoid practicing evil, but it will lead you to practice the
good, for not to have a negative virtue is not enough; it is necessary
to have an active one. In order to practice the good, the action of
the will is always necessary, whereas in order not to practice evil,
idleness and negligence are often enough.
My friends, give thanks to God, who has allowed you to
enjoy the light of Spiritism, not because those who possess this
enlightenment are the only ones who will be saved, but because,
in helping you to understand Christ’s teachings more fully, it
makes you better Christians. So, make every effort so that when
others observe you, they can say that the true Spiritist and the
true Christian are one and the same thing, for all who practice
charity are Jesus’ disciples, whatever the denomination to which
they belong.
Paul, Apostle (Paris 1860)

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You cannot serve both

God and mammon
• The Salvation of the Rich • Guard Yourselves against
Avarice • Jesus at Zacchaeus’ House • Parable of the Evil
Rich Man • Parable of the Talents • The Providential
Usefulness of Riches. The Trials of Riches and Poverty •
The Inequality of Riches • The Spirits’ Teachings: – True
Ownership. – The Use of Riches. – Detachment from
Earthly Possessions. – The Transmission of Wealth.

The Salvation of the Rich

1. No one can serve two masters, for he will either hate one and love the
other, or he will become attached to one and despise the other. You cannot
serve both God and mammon at the same time. (Lk. 16:13)

2. Then a young man came to him and asked, “Good master, what must I
do to acquire eternal life?” Jesus answered him, “Why do you call me good?
Only God is good. If you want to enter that life, keep the commandments.”

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“Which commandments?” he asked. Jesus said to him, “You shall not kill;
you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false
witness. Honor your father and mother and love your neighbor as yourself.”

The young man answered him, “I have kept all those commandments since
my youth. What do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect,
go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor and you will have a
treasure in heaven. Then, come and follow me.”

Upon hearing these words, the young man went away very sad because he
had great wealth. And Jesus said to his disciples, “Verily I say to you, it is
very difficult for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. And I say this to
you once more: It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.34 (Mt. 19:16-24;
Lk. 18:18-25; Mk. 10:17-25)

Guard Yourselves against Avarice

3. Then, amidst the crowd, a man said to him, “Master, tell my brother to
divide with me the inheritance that will befall us.” But Jesus said to him, “Man!
Who made me to judge you or decide your allotment?” Jesus then said to them,
“Be careful to guard yourselves against all avarice, for no matter how much
abundance a man may have, his life does not depend on the riches he possesses.”

He then told them the following parable: There was a rich man whose lands
had produced extraordinarily; and so he thought to himself, “What shall I
do, because I do not have a place where I can put all that I have reaped? Here
is what I shall do: I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, into
which I can put my entire harvest and all my possessions. And I will say to
my soul: Soul, you have many possessions saved up for many years; rest, eat,

34
This keen image may appear a bit forced because one might not be able to see any relation
between a camel and a needle. However, in Hebrew, the same word serves to designate
both a camel and a rope. In [Sacy’s] translation, the former meaning has been used, but
Jesus probably meant to refer to the latter. That would at least be more natural. – Auth.

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drink and enjoy. However, at the same time, God said to the man, “How
foolish you are! Your soul shall be taken this very night, and then who will
possess what you have accumulated?”

“That is what happens to those who accumulate wealth for themselves but
who are not wealthy before God.” (Lk. 12:13-21)

Jesus at Zacchaeus’ House

4. Having entered Jericho, Jesus was walking through the city. And there
was a man named Zacchaeus, who was the chief of the publicans and very
wealthy, and who, wanting to see Jesus in order to get to know him, was not
able to because of the crowd, for he was quite small. Therefore, he ran ahead
and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see him, for he would have to pass
by there. Having come to that spot, Jesus looked up, and seeing Zacchaeus
said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for I must stay at your
house today.” Zacchaeus came down at once and welcomed him with joy.
Seeing this, everyone murmured, saying, “He has gone to stay at the house of
a sinner.” (See Introduction, Item Publicans)

Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said to him, “Lord, I shall
give half of what I own to the poor and if I have caused harm to anyone, no
matter who, I shall repay him fourfold.” Jesus said to him, “This house has
received salvation today, because this man too is a son of Abraham, for the
Son of Man has come to seek and to save those who were lost.” (Lk. 19:1-10)

Parable of the Evil Rich Man

5. There was once a rich man who dressed in purple and linen, and who
treated himself magnificently every day. There was also a poor man named
Lazarus, who lay at his gate completely covered with sores, and who hoped
to mitigate his hunger with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table.

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However, no one gave him any and the dogs came to lick his sores. It so
happened that the poor man died and was taken by the angels to the bosom of
Abraham. The rich man also died and had hell as his grave. While he was in
torment, he lifted his eyes on high and saw Abraham far off with Lazarus in
his bosom; and he cried out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send
me Lazarus so that he might wet the tip of his finger in water to bring a little
refreshment to my tongue, for I am suffering awful torment in these flames.”

But Abraham answered him, “My son, remember that you already received
your riches during your lifetime and that Lazarus had nothing but ills; that
is why he is now being consoled, whereas you are in torment.

“Moreover, there will forever be a large abyss between you and us, such that
those who would like to go from here to there cannot, just as one cannot come
here from where you are.”

The rich man said to him, “Then I beg you, Father Abraham, to send him
to my father’s house, where I have five brothers, in order to attest to them
about these things for fear that they too might come to this place of torment.”
Abraham replied to him, “They have Moses and the prophets; let them listen
to them.” “No, Father Abraham, said the rich man, “but if someone from the
dead were to go to them, they would repent.” Abraham responded to him, “If
they do not listen to Moses or the prophets, they will not believe anyone else,
even if someone from the dead were to come back to life.” (Lk. 16:19-31)

Parable of the Talents

6. The Lord acts like a man who, upon having to make a long journey
outside his country, called his servants and placed his property in their
hands. And having given five talents to one, two to another and one to
another, according to each one’s different abilities, he departed immediately.
Then, the one who had received the five talents went out, did business with
the money and gained five more. The one who had received two gained two

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more the same way. But the one who had received only one talent dug a hole
in the ground and hid his lord’s money therein. Some time later, the servants’
master returned and called them to give an accounting. The one who had
received five talents came and presented him with five more, saying, “Master,
you placed five talents in my hands; here are five more that I have gained.”
His master responded to him, “You good and faithful servant, since you have
been faithful in a small matter, I will entrust you with many others; share in
the joy of your master.” The one who had received two talents soon presented
himself, saying, “Master, you placed two talents in my hands; here are two
more that I have gained.” His master responded to him, “You good and
faithful servant, since you have been faithful in a small matter, I will entrust
you with many others; enter into the joy of your master.” Next, the one who
had received only one talent came and said to him, “Master, I knew that
you are a hard man, who reaps where you have not sown and gathers where
you have not scattered. Thus, since I was afraid of you, I hid your talent in
the ground. Here it is. I am returning what is yours.” The master, however,
answered him, “You evil and lazy servant; you knew that I reap where I
have not sown and gather where I have not scattered; thus, you should have
at least put my money in the hands of the bankers so that, upon my return,
I could have withdrawn with interest what was mine. Therefore, let his one
talent be taken from him and be given to the one who has ten, for to those
who already have more will be given and they shall have in abundance, but
for him who has nothing, even what he seems to have will be taken from
him. Let that useless servant be cast into outer darkness, where there will be
weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Mt. 25:14-30)

The Providential Usefulness of Riches.

The Trials of Riches and Poverty
7. If wealth were an insuperable obstacle to the salvation
of those who possess it, as might be inferred from certain words
of Jesus if interpreted literally and not according to their spirit,

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then God, who grants riches, would have put in the hands of
some an instrument of unavoidable perdition, a thought that
is repugnant to reason. Undoubtedly, wealth is a very slippery
trial, more dangerous than poverty because of its allure, the
temptations it creates and the fascination it exerts. It is the
supreme arouser of pride, selfishness and lust. It is the strongest
tie that keeps humans bound to the earth and diverts their
thoughts from heaven. It produces such giddiness that we often
see that those who go from poverty to wealth soon forget their
former condition, those who shared with them in it and those
who helped them in it, and they become insensitive, selfish and
vain. However, even though wealth makes the journey difficult,
it does not follow that it makes it impossible or that it cannot
become a means of salvation in the hands of those who know
how to use it, just as certain poisons can restore health if used
purposefully and carefully.
When Jesus told the young man who had asked him about
the means of inheriting eternal life, “Get rid of all you have and
follow me,” he did not intend to establish an absolute principle
that everyone must sell what they possess and that salvation can
be obtained only at such a price; rather, he meant to show that the
attachment to earthly riches is an obstacle to salvation. In fact, the
young man believed he was in accord with the law because he had
observed certain commandments, and he therefore recoiled from
the notion of abandoning his wealth. His desire for eternal life did
not go as far as making such a sacrifice.
What Jesus proposed to him was a decisive test meant to
uncover what was at the core of his thinking. From the world’s
point of view, he could undoubtedly have been a perfectly honest
man who did not harm anyone, did not slander his neighbor, was
neither vain nor proud, and who honored his mother and father.
However, he did not practice true charity, because his virtue did

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not extend as far as self-sacrifice. That is what Jesus wanted to

demonstrate. It was an application of the principle, “Without
charity there is no salvation.”
If these words were taken literally, the consequence would be
the abolition of wealth as detrimental to future happiness and as
the source of a multitude of ills on earth. Furthermore, it would be
the condemnation of the labor that could procure it. This would
be an absurd consequence that would take humankind back to its
primitive period and would in and of itself contradict the law of
progress, which is a law of God.
If riches are the source of many ills, if they arouse so many
evil passions, if they provoke so many crimes, riches per se are not to
blame, but the human beings who abuse them as they do all God’s
gifts. By this abuse, they render pernicious what would otherwise
be very useful to them; but this is the result of the inferior state
of the terrestrial world. If wealth could produce only evil, God
would not have put it on the earth. It is up to humans to make it
produce the good. If it is not a direct element for moral progress,
it is undeniably a powerful element for intellectual progress.
The truth of the matter is that humans have the mission of
laboring for the material improvement of the planet; they must
reclaim it, cleanse it and make it suitable to someday receive the
entire population that its range can bear. In order to feed this ever-
increasing population, production must be increased. If one country’s
production is insufficient, it will have to be sought elsewhere. For
this very reason, relations between nations become a necessity.
In order to facilitate such relations, it is necessary to destroy the
physical barriers that separate nations and to render communication
more rapid. For such endeavors – which are the work of centuries –
humans have had to extract materials from the bowels of the earth;
they have sought in science the means to execute their endeavors
more safely and rapidly. However, to accomplish them, resources

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are needed; necessity drove humans to create wealth, just as it drove

them to discover science. The activity required by these endeavors
has increased and developed their intelligence, and this intelligence,
which they have concentrated primarily on satisfying their material
needs, will help them later on to understand the great moral truths.
Since wealth is the primary means of executing these tasks, without
it there would be no more great endeavors, no more activity, no
stimulus and no research. It is with good reason therefore that
wealth is considered an element of progress.

The Inequality of Riches

8. The inequality of riches is one of those problems one
tries in vain to resolve if one considers only the present life. The
first question that presents itself is: Why are all humans not
equally wealthy? They are not equally wealthy for one very simple
reason: they are not equally intelligent, active and industrious enough
to acquire wealth, or moderate and foresightful enough to preserve
it. Furthermore, it is a mathematically demonstrated fact that if
wealth were divided equally, it would give each person a minimal
and insufficient portion; that if such division were carried out,
the equilibrium would soon be shattered due to the diversity in
character and aptitudes; that if the division were possible and
lasting, with each person having only enough to live on, it would
be the end of all the great endeavors that contribute to the progress
and well-being of humankind; that if it provided each person with
what is necessary, there would no longer be the stimulus that
compels humans to great discoveries and worthwhile enterprises.
If God concentrates wealth in certain areas, it is because from there
it expands in sufficient quantities, according to the necessities.
In accepting this fact, one might ask why God grants wealth
to persons who are incapable of making it fruitful for the good of

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all. This is yet another proof of God’s wisdom and goodness. By

giving humans free will, God wanted them to reach the point where,
through their own experience, they could distinguish between
good and evil, and that the practice of the good be the result of
their own efforts and will. Humans must not be fatalistically led
either to good or evil or they would be nothing more than passive
and irresponsible animal-like instruments. Wealth is a means of
testing them morally; but since it is simultaneously a powerful
means of inducing progress, God does not wish for it to remain
unproductive for long, and thus moves it around incessantly. All
persons will possess it at one time or another in order to try their
hand at it, and to test the use they make of it. However, since
it is physically impossible for all to possess it at the same time,
and, moreover, if all did possess it, no one would work and the
improvement of the planet would be compromised; each individual
possesses it in turn. The one who does not possess it today has either
had it already or will have it in a future life; and the one who
possess it now might not have it tomorrow. There are both the rich
and the poor, because, since God is just, each must work in turn.
Poverty is for some a test of patience and resignation; wealth is for
others a test of charity and self-denial.
The lamentable use that some persons make of their wealth
and the ignoble passions that greed provokes are rightly deplorable,
and one might ask if God is really just in giving it to such persons.
It is certain that if humans had only one life to live, nothing would
justify such a division of earthly wealth; however, if instead of
limiting our vision to the present life we would consider the whole
sequence of lives, we would see that everything balances out justly.
Hence, the poor no longer have reason to accuse Providence or to
envy the rich, and the rich no longer have any reason to gloat over
what they possess. If they abuse it, it is not with decrees or sumptuary
laws that wrongs will be righted. Laws can temporarily change one

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on the outside, but they cannot change one’s heart; that is why
these laws have a temporary duration and are always followed by
a reaction even more unrestrained. The source of the evil resides in
selfishness and pride. Abuses of every kind will cease by themselves
when humankind rules itself according to the law of charity.

The Spirits’ Teachings

True Ownership
9. Humans truly possess only what they can take with them
from this world. What they find upon arriving and what they
leave behind upon departing, they can only enjoy during their
stay. However, since they are forced to abandon it, they can only
enjoy it and not truly possess it. What, then, do they truly possess?
Nothing that is for the use of their body, but everything that is
for the use of their soul: intelligence, knowledge, moral qualities.
These are what they bring with them and what they take back;
what no one can take from them and what will be more useful
for them in the other world than in this one. It is up to them
to be wealthier upon departing than they were upon arriving, for
their future situation will depend on whatever good they have
acquired. Whenever people go to a far-off country, they place in
their luggage objects that will be useful in that country; they do
not carry anything that would be useless. Therefore, do likewise
regarding your future life, and provide yourselves with everything
that will be of use to you there.
Travelers who stop at an inn are given a nice room only if
they can pay for it; those who have scanty resources are given a less
agreeable one; as far as those who do not have any money at all,
they sleep on a pile of straw. The same applies to humans when they
arrive in the spirit world: their place there depends on their means;

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however, they will not pay with gold. They will not be asked, “How
much did you have on earth? What position did you occupy there?
Were you a prince or a laborer?” But they will be asked, “What have
you brought back with you?” The value of things or titles will not be
acknowledged, only the sum of their virtues. Thus, in this respect
the laborer may be wealthier than the prince. In vain will the prince
allege that, before his departure, he paid for his entry with gold. He
will receive the response, “Places here cannot be purchased; they are
earned by the good one has done.” With earthly money you were
able to purchase fields, houses, palaces; here, everything is paid for
with the qualities of the heart. Are you rich in such qualities? Then
you are welcome and may go to the highest place, where all kinds
of happiness await you; Are you poor in these qualities? Then you
must go to the lowest place, where you will be treated according to
what you possess.
Pascal (Geneva, 1860)

10. The goods of the earth belong to God, who distributes

them as he will, and humans are only their stewards, administrators
at various degrees of honesty and intelligence. They are so little the
individual property of humans that God often foils all foresight,
and wealth escapes those who believe they are most entitled to it.
You might say that this is understandable in regards to
inherited wealth, but the same does not apply to wealth acquired
through one’s labor. Undoubtedly, if it is legitimate wealth, then it
must have been honestly obtained, for property is only legitimately
acquired when, to possess it, one has not done harm to anyone. There
will be an accounting for every cent wrongly acquired in detriment
to someone else. However, just because certain individuals owe
their wealth to their own efforts, does that give them any power
over it upon dying? Are not the precautions they take to transmit
it to their descendants often useless? For if God does not want it

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to fall into their hands, nothing will prevail against his will. Can
people use and abuse their wealth while alive without having to
give an accounting? No. In allowing them to acquire it, God might
have wished to reward their efforts, courage and perseverance over
the course of their current life. However, if they use it only to satisfy
their senses or their pride, or if it becomes a cause of failure in their
hands, it would be better for them not to have possessed it at all;
they lose on one hand what they have gained on the other, thereby
annulling the merit of their labor. When they depart the earth,
God will tell them that they have already received their reward.
M., A Protector Spirit (Brussels, 1861)
The Use of Riches
11. You cannot serve both God and mammon. Remember
this well, you who are dominated by the love of gold, you who
would sell your soul to possess treasures because they can set
you above other people and provide you with the pleasures of
the passions. No, you cannot serve both God and mammon!
Therefore, if you feel your soul dominated by the covetousness of
the flesh, make haste to rid yourselves of the yoke that crushes you,
because the just and strict God will say to you, “What did you do
with the wealth I entrusted to you, you unfaithful steward? Only
to serve your personal satisfaction did you use that driving power
for doing good deeds.”
What then is the best use of wealth? Seek in the words “Love
one another” the solution to this problem. Therein lies the secret
for the good use of riches. Those who are animated by love for
their neighbor have their course of action all traced out. The use
of wealth that best pleases God involves charity; not that cold and
selfish charity that consists in scattering around oneself the surplus
of a golden existence, but rather the charity filled with love that
seeks out the unfortunate and lifts them up without humiliating

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them. You who are rich: give of your superfluity. Do more: give
something of what you consider necessary to you, because what is
necessary to you is still superfluous. However, give wisely. Do not
reject those who complain because you are afraid that you might
be deceived; go to the source of the ill. First, seek to alleviate; next,
gather information and see if work, counseling or even affability
might not be more effective than your charitable donations. In
addition to your wealth, spread all around you the love of God,
the love of labor and the love for one’s neighbor. Set your riches
upon a foundation which will never fail you and which will bring
you the big profits of good deeds. The riches of intelligence should
serve you just as the riches of gold. Spread the treasures of learning
all around you; scatter the treasures of your love over your brothers
and sisters and they will bear fruit.
Cheverus (Bordeaux, 1861)

12. Whenever I consider how short life is, I am grievously

impressed by your incessant preoccupation with your material
welfare, whereas you attach so little importance and devote so
little time to your moral improvement, which shall be counted to
you for eternity. In seeing your industriousness, one might believe
that it is connected with an issue of great interest for humankind,
whereas in most cases it is nothing more than an attempt to satisfy
exaggerated needs and vanity, or to give yourselves over to excesses.
How much grief, worry and torment you inflict upon yourselves;
how many sleepless nights to increase wealth that is often more than
sufficient already! At the height of such blindness, one often sees
those to whom an immoderate love for wealth and the pleasures
it provides subjected to pain-filled labor, priding themselves of a
life full of sacrifice and merit – as if they were actually working for
others and not for themselves! Fools! Do you then really believe
that the worries and efforts motivated by selfishness, greed or pride

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will be taken into account while you neglect the care for your
future, as well as the duties that fraternal solidarity imposes on
all those who enjoy the advantages of societal life? You have been
thinking only of your own bodies, whose well-being and pleasures
have been the sole object of your selfish solicitude. For your body,
which dies, you have neglected your spirit, which will live forever.
That master so cherished and cared for has become your tyrant.
It commands your spirit, which has become its slave. Is that the
purpose of the existence that God has given you?
A Protector Spirit (Krakow, 1861)

13. Since humans are the trustees and administrators of the

wealth that God places in their hands, a strict accounting will be
demanded of them regarding the use they have made of it in virtue
of their free will. A bad use consists in using it solely for their
personal satisfaction; a good use, on the other hand, consists in all
the times that it results in some good for someone else. The merit is
in proportion to the sacrifice one imposes on oneself. Beneficence
is only one way of employing wealth: it relieves misery, appeases
hunger, saves from the cold and provides shelter to those who
lack it. However, an equally pressing and meritorious obligation
consists in preventing misery from occurring in the first place. It
is there, principally, where the mission of the great fortunes lies, a
mission to assist in all sorts of projects which such fortunes can help
to execute. Were such projects to provide a legitimate profit, good
would come of it nonetheless because labor develops the mind and
exalts the dignity of people, who are always proud to be able to
say that they have earned the bread they eat, whereas the receiving
of alms humiliates and degrades them. Wealth concentrated in
only one hand should be like a fount of living water that spreads
fertility and well-being all around it. O you wealthy who employ
your riches according to the designs of the Lord, your heart will be

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the first to quench its thirst at that beneficent fount. In this very
lifetime you will enjoy the ineffable delights of the soul instead of
the material delights of selfishness, which leave a void in the heart.
Your name will be blessed on the earth, and when you depart it,
the sovereign Lord will say to you as in the parable of the talents,
“O good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Master.”
In this parable, is not the servant who buried in the ground the
money that had been entrusted to him the image of the greedy,
in whose hands wealth remains unproductive? If Jesus speaks
primarily of alms, it is because at the time and in the land in which
he was living, one did not know about the work that the arts and
industry would create later, and in which wealth could be usefully
employed for the overall good of society. To all those who can give
little or much I will say: Give alms when necessary, but as much as
possible, convert them into wages so that those who receive them
will not feel ashamed.
Fenelon (Alger, 1860)
Detachment from Earthly Possessions
14. Brothers and sisters, my friends, I have come to bring
my small contribution in order to help you advance fearlessly on
the path of improvement onto which you have entered. We are
indebted to one another; it is only through sincere and fraternal
unity between spirits and incarnates that regeneration is possible.
Your love for earthly possessions is one of the biggest
obstacles to your moral and spiritual advancement. Through this
attachment to possessions you shatter your affective faculties,
carrying them over to material things. Be honest with yourself: does
wealth provide an unmixed happiness? Even when your coffers are
full, is there not an emptiness in your heart? At the bottom of that
basket of flowers is there not always a hidden serpent? I understand
justifiable satisfaction not felt by a person who, through diligent

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and honorable labor, has gained a fortune; however, from this

satisfaction – very natural and approved by God – to an attachment
that absorbs all other sentiments and paralyzes the impulses of
the heart there is a great distance; the same great distance that
separates sordid miserliness and exaggerated wastefulness: two
vices betweenwhich God has placed charity, that holy and sound
virtue that teaches the rich to give without ostentation so that the
poor may receive without feeling debased.
Whether your fortune has come from your family or whether
you have earned it from your labor, there is one thing that you
must never forget: everything comes from God and returns to God.
Nothing on earth belongs to you, not even your poor body: death
will strip you of it, just as it will all other material possessions. You
are trustees, not proprietors – do not delude yourselves. God has
loaned them to you and you will have to return them; and God
loans them on the condition that the surplus, at least, should go to
those who lack what is necessary.
One of your friends lends you a certain sum. However
dishonest you might be, you will scrupulously pay off the loan
and will be grateful to him. Well then, that is the position of
all who are wealthy. God is the heavenly friend who has loaned
them their riches; he asks nothing for himself except love and
acknowledgment, but he demands that the wealthy in turn give to
the poor, who, like the rich, are just as much his children.
The possessions that God has entrusted to you arouse ardent
and frantic greed in your hearts. Have you never thought about
the fact that when you are immoderately attached to riches – as
perishable and transitory as you yourselves are – the day will come
when you will have to give an accounting to the Lord for what
has come from him? Have you forgotten that, through wealth,
you have been invested with the sacred character of ministers of
charity on earth in order to be its intelligent distributors? What

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are you, then, but unfaithful trustees when you use solely for your
own benefit what has been entrusted to you? What will result from
your intentional neglect of your duties? Death, unyielding and
unforgiving, will tear away the veil under which you hide, and will
force you to give an accounting to the Friend who helped you out
and who at that moment stands before you in the robe of a judge.
It is in vain that you try to delude yourselves while on earth,
coloring with the name “virtue” what is often nothing more than
selfishness; that you call “saving” and “foresight” what is only
cupidity and greed, or “generosity” what is nothing but prodigality
on your own behalf. For example, the father of a family abstains
from practicing charity; he saves and piles up the gold, declaring
that he is doing so in order to leave as much as possible to his
children so that they will not fall into poverty. That is very just and
fatherly, I agree, and one cannot blame him. But is that always the
sole motive that guides him? Is it not often just a compromise with
his conscience in order to justify in his own eyes and the world’s
his personal attachment to earthly possessions? Even so, admitting
that his fatherly love is his sole motive, is that any reason for him
to forget his brothers and sisters before God? When he already
has a surplus, will he leave his children in poverty because they
will have a little less of it? Instead, is it not really giving them a
lesson in selfishness and hardening their hearts? Instead, is it not
stifling in them the love for their neighbor? Fathers and mothers,
you are greatly mistaken if you believe that by such means you will
increase you children’s love for you. By teaching them to be selfish
toward others, you teach them to be selfish toward you also.
Those who have worked hard and accumulated wealth by
the sweat of their brow are commonly heard to say that when
money is earned one grasps its value more fully. Nothing could
be truer! Well then, may those who profess to fully grasp the value
of money practice charity according to their means, and they will

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have greater merit than those who, born in abundance, know

nothing about the hard fatigue of labor. But on the other hand,
if these same persons who remember their sufferings and efforts
are selfish and hard toward the poor, they are much guiltier than
the others, for the more one knows from personal experience
the hidden grief of poverty, the more one should be inclined to
relieve it in others.
Unfortunately, there is always in those who are wealthy a
sentiment as strong as their attachment to riches: the sentiment
of pride. When the poor implore their assistance, it is not rare
to see the newly rich wowing them with tales of their efforts and
know-how, instead of coming to their aid, and then finishing by
saying to them, “Do what I have done.” According to them, God’s
goodness has nothing to do with their wealth. All the merit falls
solely to them. Their pride casts a veil over their eyes and shuts
their ears. In spite of all their intelligence and skill, they do not
understand that God can undo them with a single word.
Squandering one’s wealth does not show a detachment
from earthly possessions, but rather carelessness and indifference.
As trustees of such possessions, humans have neither the right
to squander them nor to confiscate them for their own profit.
Prodigality is not generosity, but is often a form of selfishness.
Those who scatter their gold by the handfuls in order to satisfy a
fantasy will not give one cent to lend a helping hand. Detachment
from earthly possessions consists in appreciating wealth for its
true worth, in knowing how to use it for others and not only for
oneself, in not sacrificing one’s interests in the future life on its
behalf, and in losing it without complaining if it pleases God to
take it away. If due to unforeseen misfortune you become another
Job, say as he did, “Lord, you have given and you have taken
away. May your will be done.” That is true detachment. First, be
submissive; have faith in the One who, having given and taken

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it away, can restore it to you once again. Courageously resist the

discouragement and desperation that paralyze your strength. Never
forget that whenever God causes you to suffer a blow, he always
places consolation alongside the hardest trial. But remember, above
all, that there are possessions infinitely more valuable that earthly
ones, and this thought will help you detach from the latter. The
less value one attributes to a thing, the less sensitive one becomes
to its loss. People who become attached to earthly possessions are
like children who cannot see but the present moment. Those who
do not become attached are like adults who see the things that are
most important by understanding these prophetic words of the
Savior, “My kingdom is not of this world.”
The Lord orders none to get rid of what they possess and be
reduced to voluntary beggary, because then they would become
a burden on society. Proceeding in such a manner would be to
misunderstand detachment from earthly possessions; it would
be selfishness of another type, because it would imply exempting
oneself from the responsibility that wealth weighs on those
who possess it. God grants wealth to those who seem capable
of administering it for the benefit of all. Thus, the rich have a
mission, which they can render beautiful and advantageous for
themselves. To reject wealth when God has given it to you is to
renounce the benefits of the good you can do by administering it
wisely. To know how to do without it when one does not have it,
to know how to put it to good use when one does, and to know
how to sacrifice it when necessary, is to act in accord with the
Lord’s designs. May those who receive what one calls in the world
a good fortune say to themselves, “My God, you have sent me a
new responsibility; give me the strength to carry it out according
to your holy will.”
My friends, this is what I wanted to teach you regarding
detachment from earthly possessions. I will summarize it by

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saying: Know how to be content with little. If you are poor, do not
envy the rich, because wealth is not necessary for happiness. If you
are rich, do not forget that your possessions have been entrusted
to you, and that you must justify their use as if you were giving
an accounting of expenditures. Do not be an unfaithful trustee by
utilizing your possessions to satisfy your pride and sensuality. Do
not think that you have the right to dispose for your sole use what
is nothing but a loan, and not a gift. If you are unable to repay
it, you do not have the right to ask for it in the first place; and
remember that those who give to the poor are settling a debt they
have contracted with God.
Lacordaire (Constantine, 1863)
The Transmission of Wealth
15. Does the principle according to which humans are only
trustees of the wealth that God has allowed them to enjoy during their
lives take away their right to transfer it to their descendants?
After their death, people can rightly transfer what they
have enjoyed during their lives, because the effect of such right
is always dependent on the will of God, who can prevent their
descendants from enjoying it whenever he wants. That is why we
see apparently solidly established fortunes crumble. The will of
persons to keep their wealth in the hands of their descendants is
therefore powerless, although this fact does not take away their
right to transfer the loan they have received, since God will take it
from their descendants if he deems it appropriate.
St. Louis (Paris, 1860)

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Be perfect
• The Characteristics of Perfection • Moral Persons • Good
Spiritists • Parable of the Sower • The Spirits’ Teachings: –
Duty. – Virtue. – Superiors and Subordinates. – The Individual
in the World. – Caring for the Body and the Spirit.

The Characteristics of Perfection

1. Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you and pray for those who
persecute and slander you, for if you love only those who love you, what
reward will you have? Do not the publicans do the same? If you greet only
your brothers, what are you doing that is more than what others do? Do not
the pagans also do the same? Therefore, be perfect as your heavenly Father
is perfect. (Mt. 5:44, 46-48)

2. Since God possesses infinite perfection in all things, the

maxim, “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect,” if taken
literally, would presuppose the possibility of attaining absolute
perfection. If it were given to the creature to be as perfect as the
Creator, the former would become equal to the latter, which is

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inadmissible. However, the people to whom Jesus spoke would not

have understood this nuance; he limited himself to presenting them
with a model and told them to put forth the effort to emulate it.
One must therefore understand these words to mean a
relative perfection, which humanity is able to achieve and which
brings it closest to divinity. What does such perfection consist of?
Jesus said: “To love our enemies, to do good to those who hate
us, and to pray for those who persecute us.” In this way he shows
that the essence of perfection is charity in its broadest definition,
because it entails the practice of all other virtues.
In fact, by observing the results of all vices – and even the
simplest defects – one will realize that there is not one of them that
does not alter the sentiment of charity to some degree, because
they all have their origin in selfishness and pride, which are the
opposites of charity. This is because everything that overexcites the
sentiment of personality destroys or at least weakens the elements
of true charity: benevolence, indulgence, self-denial and devotion.
Taken so far as to loving one’s enemies, love for one’s neighbor
cannot ally itself with any defect contrary to charity, and therefore is
always an indication of a greater or lesser moral ascendancy. Hence
it follows that the degree of perfection is in direct proportion to
the range of such love. This is why Jesus, after having given his
disciples the guidelines of the most sublime charity, said to them,
“Therefore, be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

Moral Persons
3. Truly moral persons are those who practice the law of
justice, love and charity in its greatest purity. If they question their
conscience about their actions, they ask themselves if they have
violated this law; if they have done any evil; if they have done
all the good they could; if they have willingly disregarded any

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opportunity to be useful; if anyone might have a complaint about

them; and, finally, if they have done unto others everything they
would like to have done unto themselves.
They have faith in God, and in God’s goodness, justice
and wisdom. They know that nothing happens without God’s
permission, so they submit to the Divine Will in everything.
They have faith in the future; thus, they place spiritual
possessions above temporal ones.
They know that all the vicissitudes of life, all its sorrows
and all its disappointments are trials or expiations, and they accept
them without complaining.
Persons imbued with the sentiment of charity and love for
their neighbor do the good for its own sake without expecting
anything in return, and they repay evil with good, defend the weak
against the strong and always sacrifice their own interests to the
interests of justice.
They find their satisfaction in the benefits they spread around,
the service they render, the happiness they promote, the tears they
dry and the consolation they provide to the afflicted. Their first
impulse is to think of others before thinking of themselves and to
attend to the interests of others before their own. The selfish, on
the other hand, calculate the profits and losses entailed in every
generous act.
Moral persons are kind, humane and benevolent toward all
regardless of race or creed, because they regard all people as their
brothers and sisters.
They respect all sincere convictions that others might
hold to and they do not anathematize those who do not think
like they do.
In all circumstances charity is their guide; they tell
themselves that those who harm others with malevolent words,
who hurt others’ feelings with their pride and disdain, who do

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not recoil from the idea of causing suffering or difficulty, however

slight, when it could be avoided, fail in their duty of love for their
neighbor and do not deserve the Lord’s clemency.
They hold no hatred or rancor, or desire for vengeance.
Following Jesus’ example, they forgive and forget offenses, and
remember only good deeds, because they know that they will be
forgiven according to how they themselves have forgiven.
They are indulgent toward others’ weaknesses, for they
know that they themselves need indulgence, and they recall these
words of Christ, “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.”
They never take pleasure in searching for defects in others or
in calling attention to them. If necessity forces them to do so, they
always look for the good that might mitigate the evil.
They study their own imperfections and strive incessantly to
combat them. All their efforts are focused on being able to say to
themselves tomorrow that they are better than they were yesterday.
They do not seek to exalt their spirit or talents at the expense
of others; instead, they seize every opportunity to point out what
is praiseworthy in other people.
They do not gloat over their wealth or their personal
advantages, for they know that everything that has been given to
them can be taken away.
They use but do not abuse the possessions that have been
accorded to them, for they know that they are a trust for which
they will have to render an accounting, and that the worst use
of them in regard to themselves would be to use them to satisfy
their passions.
If the social order has placed others under their tutelage, they
treat them with kindness and benevolence, because they are their
equals before God. They use their authority to lift their morale
and not to squash them with their pride. They avoid anything that
could render their subordinates’ position more painful.

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Those who are subordinate, on the other hand, understand

the duties of their position and are scrupulous in consciously
fulfilling them. (See chap. XVII, no. 9)
Finally, moral persons respect in their fellow beings all the
rights arising from the laws of nature, in the same way they wish
their own to be respected.
This is not a list of all the qualities that define moral persons,
but whoever makes an effort to possess them is on the road that
leads to all the others.

Good Spiritists
4. Spiritism, when well-understood, but especially when
well-felt, inevitably leads to the results listed above, which
characterize the true Spiritist as well as the true Christian, for they
are one and the same. Spiritism does not create a new morality;
it only makes it easier for people to understand and practice the
morality of Christ by providing an unshakable and enlightened
faith to those who doubt or waver.
Nonetheless, many of those who believe in spirit
manifestations understand neither their consequences nor their
moral implications, or if they do understand them, they do not
apply them to themselves. To what may this be attributed? To
a lack of precision in the Doctrine? No, because the Doctrine
contains no allegories or symbols that could give way to erroneous
interpretations. Clarity is its essence and that is what makes
it powerful, for it goes directly to one’s intelligence. It contains
nothing mysterious and its adherents do not possess any secret
that is hidden from ordinary people.
Thus, is an exceptional intelligence needed to understand
it? No, since one sees individuals with notable capacities who
do not comprehend it, while average minds – even young

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people who have barely left adolescence – understand it in its

most delicate nuances with admirable precision. This derives
from the fact that the somewhat material aspect of the Spiritist
science requires only eyes that can observe, whereas the essential
aspect requires a certain degree of sensibility, which one might
call maturity of the moral sense, regardless of age and level of
education, because it is particularly inherent to the development
of the incarnate spirit.
In some, the material ties are still too tenacious to allow
the spirit to detach itself from the things of the world, because
the fog that envelops them obscures their vision of the infinite.
Consequently, they do not easily break with their tastes or their
habits, as they do not understand anything better than what
they have. The belief in spirits is for them a simple fact, but it
does nothing or very little to change their instinctive tendencies.
In other words, they see only a ray of light, insufficient to guide
them and endow them with a powerful aspiration capable of
overcoming their inclinations. These persons are much more
interested in the phenomena than the morality, which seems banal
and monotonous. They incessantly demand that spirits introduce
them to new mysteries, without asking if they are worthy of
grasping the secrets of the Creator. These individuals are imperfect
Spiritists, some remaining stationary or distancing themselves from
their brothers and sisters in the faith, recoiling at the obligation
of reforming themselves, or otherwise reserving their sympathies
for those who share their weaknesses or prejudices. Nevertheless,
acceptance of the principles of the Doctrine is a first step that will
make the second easier in a future existence.
Those who may rightfully be regarded as true and sincere
Spiritists are at a higher degree of moral advancement. Their spirit
dominates matter more completely, thus giving them a clearer
perception of the future. The principles of the Doctrine make fibers

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vibrate within them that remain dormant in the former. In short, their
heartstrings are touched; therefore, their faith is unshakable. Some are like
the musician who is moved by certain chords, when others hear only
the sounds. True Spiritists are recognized by their moral transformation
and the efforts they make to overcome their evil inclinations. While the
former are content with their limited horizon, the latter understand
that there is something better, they make the effort to free themselves
and they always reach their goal if they maintain a firm will.

Parable of the Sower

5. On that same day, Jesus, having left the house, sat down close to the sea;
and a large crowd of people gathered around him. Therefore, he climbed into
a boat and sat down, while the people remained on the shore. He then told
them many things in parables, speaking to them in this way:

“A sower went out to sow; and as he was sowing, some of the seed fell by the
wayside and the birds of the sky came and ate them.

Other seed fell upon stony places where there was not much earth; they soon
sprouted because the soil was not very deep. But when the sun came up, it
scorched them, and since they had no roots, they withered.

Still other seed fell among thorns, and when they began to grow, the thorns
choked them.

Finally, some seed fell on good ground and produced a crop, some rendering
a hundred to one, others sixty and others thirty.

He who has ears, let him hear.” (Mt. 13:1-9)

“Hear therefore the parable of the sower.

Whoever hears the word of the kingdom but does not heed it, the evil spirit
comes and takes away what had been sown in his heart. This is the one who
received the seed by the wayside.

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He who received the seed among the stones is the one who hears the word and
receives it joyously as soon as he hears it. But he has no roots in himself, and it
lasts only for a while. And when he is overcome by obstacles and persecutions
on account of the word, he soon regards it as an object of offense and ruin.

He who receives the seed among the thorns is the one who hears the word, but
then the cares of the times and the illusions of riches choke the word within
him, rendering it unfruitful.

But he who receives the seed on good soil is the one who hears the word, who
heeds it and who produces a crop, rendering a hundred or sixty or thirty to
one. (Mt. 13:18-23)

6. The parable of the sower represents perfectly the nuances

that exist in the ways one profits from the teachings of the Gospel.
How many people there are, in fact, for whom the Gospel teachings
are only a dead letter which, like the seed that has fallen on the
stony soil, produces no crop!
This parable finds a no less correct application in the
different categories of Spiritists. Is it not a symbol of those who
are interested only in the physical phenomena but derive nothing
of consequence from them because they see them as nothing more
than an object of curiosity? Of those who seek nothing but the
wonder in spirit communications, who are interested in them only
to the extent that they satisfy their imagination, but who, after
having received them, are as cold and indifferent as they were in
the first place? Of those who find the counsels to be very good and
admirable, yet apply them only to others and not to themselves?
And of those, finally, for whom the teachings are like the seed that
falls on good soil and yields a crop?

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The Spirits’ Teachings

Duty
7. Duty is an individual’s moral obligation, first toward him
or herself and toward others immediately thereafter. Duty is the
law of life; it is found in the smallest details as well as in the most
elevated acts. I want to speak here only about moral duty and not
the type imposed by the professions.
In the order of sentiments, duty is very difficult to fulfill
because it is contrary to the seductions of self-interest and the
heart. Its victories have no witnesses and its failures undergo no
repression. People’s inner duty is left to their free will. The sting of
conscience – that guardian of inner rectitude – warns and upholds
them, but it is held back, often powerless before the sophistry
of passion. When faithfully obeyed, the duty of the heart uplifts
people; but how is such a duty determined? Where does it begin?
Where does it end? Duty begins precisely at the point in which you
threaten your neighbor’s happiness or peace-of-mind; it ends at the
limit you would not want to see surpassed regarding yourselves.
God created all humans equal regarding pain. Small or
great, ignorant or educated, they all suffer for the same reasons
so that each may judiciously determine the evil he or she might
do. The same criterion, however, does not exist regarding the
good, which is infinitely more varied in its expressions. Equality
in the face of pain is a sublime provision by God, who wishes that all
his children, taught by common experience, would not commit evil
alleging ignorance of its effects.
Duty is the practical summary of all moral speculation; it is
the courage of the soul who confronts the distress of life’s struggles;
it is both strict and yielding; ready to adapt itself to diverse
complications; it remains unbending before temptation. Persons

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who fulfill their duty love God more than they love other individuals,
and they love others more than they love themselves; they are at the
same time judge and slave in their own cause.
Duty is the most beautiful laurel of reason, and depends on
it like a child depends on its mother. Humans should love duty, not
because it preserves them against life’s evils – humankind cannot
avoid those – but because it provides the soul with the strength it
needs for its development.
Duty grows and radiates under a more elevated form at each
of the higher stages of humanity. Individuals’ moral obligation
toward God never ceases; they should reflect the virtues of the
Eternal One, who does not accept an imperfect sketch, because he
wants the beauty of his work to be resplendent before him.
Lazare (Paris, 1863)
Virtue
8. In its highest expression, virtue encompasses all the
essential qualities that comprise the good person. To be good,
charitable, hard-working, reasonable and modest are the qualities
of a virtuous individual. Unfortunately, they are frequently
accompanied by small moral ills that tarnish and weaken them.
Those who parade their virtues are not virtuous, since they lack
the principal quality, which is modesty, and display the vice most
contrary to it, which is pride. A virtue truly worthy of its name
does not like to show itself off; one might divine it, but it hides
itself in obscurity and flees from the admiration of the masses. St.
Vincent de Paul was virtuous; the praiseworthy priest of Ars was
virtuous, and many others little known to the world but known to
God. All these individuals were unaware that they were virtuous;
they allowed themselves to be carried along by the stream of
their saintly inspirations and practiced the good with complete
disinterestedness and self-forgetfulness.

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It is to virtue thus understood and practiced that I invite you,

my children; it is to this truly Christian and truly Spiritist virtue
that I advise you to devote yourselves. But keep from your hearts
the thoughts of pride, vanity and self-centeredness, which always
tarnish the most beautiful qualities. Do not imitate those who set
themselves up as models, and who extol their own qualities before
all who are complacent enough to listen. This virtue of ostentation
often hides a multitude of small turpitudes and hateful weaknesses.
In principle, individuals who exalt themselves, who erect a
statue to their own virtue, annul by this very act any real merit they
might have. However, what can I say about those whose whole
worth is to appear to be what they are not? I want to believe that
individuals who practice the good feel an inner satisfaction at the
bottom of their heart, but whenever such satisfaction is exteriorized
in order to receive praise, it degenerates into self-centeredness.
O all of you whom the Spiritist faith has warmed with its rays,
and who know how far humans are from perfection, do not yield
to such folly! Virtue is a grace that I desire for all sincere Spiritists,
but I will say to them: Better to have less virtue with modesty than
more with pride, for it is through pride that successive humanities
have been lost, and it is through humility that they will some day
be redeemed.
François-Nicholas-Madeleine (Paris, 1863)
Superiors and Subordinates
9. Authority, as much as wealth, is a trust for which those
who have been vested with it will have to render an accounting.
Do not think that it is given to them to provide them with the
vain pleasure of command, nor should you be like most of the
power-holders of the earth who wrongly believe that it is a right, a
property. God, meanwhile, provides them with proof enough that
it is neither, for he takes it from them at will. If it were a privilege

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inherent to them, it would be inalienable. However, no one can

say that something belongs to them when it can be taken from
them without their consent. God gives authority either as a mission
or a trial when he deems it appropriate, and takes it away in the
same manner.
All those who are trustees of authority to whatever extent –
from masters over their servants to sovereigns over their people –
should not forget the fact that it is souls who are under their charge;
that they will answer for the good or bad guidance they have given
to their subordinates, and that the wrongs their subalterns might
commit and the vices to which they might yield as a result of such
guidance or bad examples will fall upon them, whereas they will
reap the fruits of their kindness for leading them to the good. All
people on earth have a mission, great or small; whatever it may be,
it is always given for the purpose of goodness; to deviate it from its
principle, therefore, is to fail in fulfilling it.
If God asks the wealthy, “What did you do with the wealth
that in your hands should have been a source for spreading
prosperity all around you?” he will ask of those who possessed
some degree of authority, “What did you do with that authority?
What evils did you prevent? What progress did you foster? If I gave
you subordinates, it was not so that you could make them slaves
to your will or tame instruments for your whims or your greed. I
made you strong and entrusted you with those who were weak in
order to uphold them and help them ascend to me.”
Superiors who conform to the words of Christ despise
none of those who are beneath them, for they know that social
distinctions mean nothing before God. Spiritism teaches them
that if their subordinates obey them today, they might have
commanded them in the past or might do so in the future, and
that they will then be treated according to how they have treated
their subalterns.

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If superiors have duties to fulfill, subordinates, on their part,

have theirs also, and they are no less sacred. If the latter are Spiritists,
their conscience will tell them even more strongly that they are not
exempted from their duties, even when their superiors fail to fulfill
theirs, because Spiritists know that one must not repay evil with evil
and that the wrongs of some do not authorize the wrongs of others.
If their position entails suffering, they tell themselves that they
most assuredly must have warranted it because they perhaps abused
their authority in the past and must in turn feel the improprieties
they made others suffer. If they are forced to endure such a position
because they cannot find a better one, Spiritism teaches them to
resign themselves to it as a trial for the humility needed for their
advancement. Their belief guides their conduct; they act as they
would want their subordinates to act toward them if they were
their boss. For this reason they are more scrupulous in fulfilling
their obligations, since they understand that any negligence in the
work that has been entrusted to them is harmful to those who pay
them and to whom they owe their time and efforts. In other words,
Spiritists are guided by the sentiment of duty that their faith gives
them, along with the certainty that any detour from the straight
and narrow will be a debt that will have to be paid sooner or later.
François-Nicholas-Madeleine,
Cardinal Morlot (Paris, 1863)
The Individual in the World
10. A sentiment of compassion must always animate the
hearts of those who gather under the Lord’s sight to implore the
assistance of good spirits. Therefore, purify your heart; do not let
any mundane or futile thought linger in it. Lift up your spirit to
those you are calling, so that, finding in you the proper dispositions,
they may profusely sow the seed that should germinate in your
soul and produce within it the fruit of charity and justice.

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Therefore, do not think that in incessantly exhorting you

to prayer and mental evocation we wish to advise you to live
a mystic life that keeps you outside the laws of the society in
which you have been condemned to live. No. Live with the
men and women of your time in the way that men and women
should live. Observe the social necessities – even the frivolities –
of the day, but do it with a sentiment of purity, which may
sanctify them.
You have been called to enter into contact with spirits of
different natures and opposite characters; do not clash with any of
those with whom you might find yourself. Be cheerful and happy,
but of the cheerfulness provided by a clear conscience, and the
happiness of the heirs of heaven counting the days that will draw
them nearer to their inheritance.
Virtue does not consist in assuming a stern and gloomy face,
or in rejecting the pleasures that your human conditions allow.
It is sufficient to report all the actions of your life to the Creator
who has given such life. It is sufficient when one begins or finishes
a deed to lift one’s thought to that Creator and to ask him, in an
impulse of the soul, to grant his watch-care for carrying it out, and
to grant his blessing for finishing it. In all that you do, look to the
Source of all things; do not do anything without the thought of
God purifying and sanctifying your acts.
As Christ said, perfection is found entirely in the practice
of absolute charity, but the duties of charity extend to all social
positions from the lowest to the highest. Those who live in isolation
would have no charity to practice. It is only through contact with
their fellow beings in the most arduous struggles that they find
an opportunity to practice it. Thus, those who isolate themselves
intentionally deprive themselves of the most powerful means of
perfection; since they have only themselves to think of, their lives
are those of a selfish person. (See chap. V, no. 26)

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Do not imagine, therefore, that in order to live in constant

communication with us, to live in the Lord’s sight, that you must
put on the cilice35 and cover yourselves with ashes. No, no, and once
more no! Be happy in accordance with the needs of humankind,
but may your happiness never hold a thought or commit an action
that might offend God, or anything that might cloud the face of
those who love and guide you. God is love, and he blesses all those
who love virtuously.
A Protector Spirit (Bordeaux, 1863)
Caring for the Body and the Spirit
11. Does moral perfection consist in the mortification of the
body? In order to resolve this question, I will rely on elementary
principles and will begin by demonstrating the need for caring
for the body, which, according to the alternatives of health and
infirmity, influences in a very important way the soul, which must
be regarded as a prisoner in the flesh. In order for this prisoner
to live, move about and even conceive of the illusion of freedom,
the body must be sound, of good disposition and vigorous. Let
us establish a comparison, supposing that body and soul are both
in a perfect state. What should they do to maintain the balance
between their aptitudes and needs so different in nature?
Here two systems confront each other: that of the ascetics,
who want to bring down the body, and that of the materialists, who
want to bring down the soul: two forms of violence, each almost as
foolish as the other. And alongside these two large groups swarm
the countless multitudes of the indifferent, who, with neither
conviction nor compassion, love with tepidness and are sparing
with their joys. Where then is wisdom? Where then is the science
of living? Nowhere. And this big problem would have remained
entirely unsolved if Spiritism had not come to assist those who

35
A garment or undergarment made of coarse cloth or animal hair (a hairshirt). – Tr.

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study the issue by showing them the relationship between the body
and the soul, and to tell them that since they are necessary for each
other, both must be cared for. So love your soul but care also for
your body, the soul’s instrument. Being heedless of the needs that
are indicated by nature itself means to be heedless of the law of
God. Do not punish your body for the wrongs that your free will
has made it commit and for which it is no more responsible than
a badly ridden horse for any accident it might cause. Hence, will
you be more perfect if you torture your body but remain no less
selfish and proud, nor more charitable toward your neighbor? No,
perfection does not lie in this; it lies entirely in the reforms to
which you submit your spirit. Discipline it, subjugate it, humiliate
it and mortify it: that is the way to make it docile before God’s will
and the only way that leads to perfection.
Georges, A Protector Spirit (Paris, 1863)

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Many are called but

few are chosen
• Parable of the Wedding Feast •The Narrow Door • Not
all those who say “Lord! Lord!” will enter the Kingdom of
Heaven • Much will be asked of him who has received much
• The Spirits’ Teachings: – To him who already has, more will
be given. – Christians Shall be Recognized by Their Deeds.

Parable of the Wedding Feast

1. Speaking further through parables, Jesus said to them, “The kingdom of
heaven is like a king, who, wanting to give his son a wedding feast, sent
his servants to call on those whom he had invited; however, they refused
to come. The king then sent other servants with orders to tell the invitees,
“I have prepared the feast; I have slaughtered my cattle and what I have
ordered to be fattened. Everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.”
However, they were not concerned and one went to his house in the country
and another to his business. The others seized his servants and killed them

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after having badly mistreated them. When the king found out, he was filled
with anger, and having sent his armies, he exterminated those murderers
and burned their city.

He then said to his servants, “The wedding feast has been fully prepared, but
those who had been invited were not worthy of it. So go to the crossroads and
call to the wedding feast all whom you meet.” His servants then went into
the streets and gathered all those whom they met, both good and bad. And
the wedding hall was filled with people who sat at the table.

The king then entered to see those who were at the table, and noticing a man
who was not wearing a wedding garment, he said to him, “My friend, why
have you come in without a wedding garment?” The man remained silent.
Then the king told his servants, “Bind his hands and feet and cast him into
outer darkness; there, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, for many
are called but few are chosen.” (Mt. 22:1-14)

2. Disbelievers smile at this seemingly childishly naïve

parable because they cannot understand why so many problems
could arise regarding a feast, and even less why the invitees would
extend their resistance to the point of massacring those sent by the
master of the house. “Parables,” they say, “are of course figurative,
but even so, they shouldn’t go beyond the limits of plausibility.”
The same can be said about all allegories as well as the
most ingenious fables if one does remove their outer covering in
order to find their hidden meaning. Jesus composed his with the
commonest habits of life and adapted them to the customs and
character of the people to whom he spoke. Most of his parables
were meant to instill in the masses the idea of the spiritual life;
their meaning often seems unintelligible only because they are not
regarded from this point of view.
In this particular parable, Jesus compares the kingdom of
heaven – where everything is joy and happiness – to a feast. In
speaking of the first invitees, he makes an allusion to the Hebrews,

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whom God called first to the knowledge of his Law. Those sent by
the master are the prophets, who came to exhort them to follow
the way of true happiness, but their words were listened to very
little; their warnings were scorned; many were even massacred
like the servants in the parable. The invitees who made excuses
under the pretext of looking after their fields and their businesses
symbolize persons of the world, who, absorbed by earthly matters,
are indifferent toward heavenly matters.
Among the Jews back then, it was a common belief that their
nation was to achieve supremacy over all others. Had not God, in
fact, promised Abraham that his progeny would cover the entire
earth? However, as always, taking the form for the substance, they
believed in an actual, material domination.
Before the coming of Christ, and except for the Hebrews,
all other peoples were idolatrous and polytheistic. If a few
extraordinary individuals conceived of the idea of divine oneness,
this idea remained in the state of a personal theory and was in
no way accepted as a fundamental truth, except by a few initiates
who hid their knowledge under a veil of mystery impenetrable
by the masses. The Hebrews were the first to publicly practice
monotheism. It was to them that God transmitted his divine
law, first through Moses, then through Jesus. From this tiny focal
point began the light that was to spread over the entire world,
triumph over paganism, and give Abraham a spiritual progeny
“as numerous as the stars in the firmament.” Although they had
rejected idolatry, the Jews had neglected the moral law, adhering
instead to the easier practice of outward forms. Evil had reached its
peak; the nation had been conquered and was split by factions and
divided by sects; disbelief itself had even entered the sanctuary.
It was then that Jesus appeared. He was sent to remind them to
observe the Law, and to open to them the new horizons of the
future life. The first to be invited to the great banquet of universal

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faith, they rejected the word of the heavenly Messiah and put him
to death. Thus, they lost the fruit they were to have reaped from
their own initiative.
It would be unjust, however, to accuse an entire people
for such a state of affairs. That responsibility fell mainly to the
Pharisees and Sadducees, who sacrificed their nation due to the
pride and fanaticism of the former and the disbelief of the latter.
They are the ones whom Jesus compares above all to the invitees
who refuse to come to the wedding feast. He then adds, “The
Master, upon seeing this, ordered all those who could be found
in the crossroads to be invited, both good and bad.” With this
he wanted to say that the word would be proclaimed to all other
peoples, both pagan and idolatrous, and that, upon believing,
they would be admitted to the feast in the place of those who had
been invited first.
Nevertheless, it is not enough simply to be invited; it is not
enough simply to take the name Christian, nor to sit at the table
to take part in the heavenly banquet. Before anything else and as
an express condition, it is necessary to be dressed in a wedding
garment, which means to have a pure heart and to practice the Law
according to its spirit. This law is contained in its entirety in these
words: Without charity there is no salvation. Among all those who
hear the divine word, however, how few there are who keep it and
practice it! How few make themselves worthy to enter the kingdom
of heaven! That is why Jesus said: Many will be called but few chosen.

The Narrow Door

3. Enter through the narrow door, for the door to perdition is wide and the
path leading to it is broad, and there are many who enter through it. How
small is the door to life! How narrow is the path that leads to it! And how
few there are who find it! (Mt. 7:13, 14)

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4. Someone asked him this question: “Lord, will only a few be saved?” He
responded, “Strive to enter through the narrow door, for I assure you that
many will try to enter through it but will not be able to. And once the father
of the family has entered and shut the door, and you, being outside, start
knocking, by saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ he will answer, ‘I do not know where
you have come from.’ Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you and you
taught us in our public squares,’ and he will respond, ‘I do not know where
you have come from; away from me, all you who have practiced iniquity.’”

“Then, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham,
Isaac, Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, while you yourselves
have been thrown out. Many will come from the east and the west, from the
north and the south, those who will have a place at the feast in the kingdom
of God. Hence, those who are last shall be first and those who are first shall
be last.” (Lk. 13:23-30)

5. The door to perdition is wide because the evil passions are

many, and the pathway to evil is frequented by most. The door to
salvation is narrow because those who want to go through it must
make a great effort to control themselves in order to overcome their
evil tendencies, and few resign themselves to doing so. It is the
complement to the maxim: Many are called but few are chosen.
Such is the current state of earth’s humankind, because,
since the earth is a world of expiation, evil predominates on it.
When it is transformed, the pathway to goodness will be the one
most frequented. These words, therefore, should be understood
in the relative sense and not in the absolute sense. If this were to
be the normal state of humankind, God would have intentionally
condemned the vast majority of individuals to perdition, an
unacceptable supposition if one acknowledges God as entirely
just and good.
But of what evil actions could humankind make itself
guilty to deserve such a sad fate in its present and in its future

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if it has been completely relegated to the earth and if the soul

has not had other existences? Why are there so many obstacles
sown along the way? Why such a narrow door that allows only
a small number to pass through if the soul’s fate is sealed forever
after death? In this way, with only one lifetime, humankind is in
constant conflict both with itself and the justice of God. With the
prior existence of the soul and the plurality of worlds, the horizon
is broadened; light is shed on the most obscure points of the faith;
the present and future are in solidarity with the past. Only then
can one understand all the depth, all the truth and all the wisdom
of Christ’s maxims.

Not all those who say “Lord! Lord!”

will enter the Kingdom of Heaven
6. Not all who say, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven. Only
those who have done the will of my Father who is in heaven will enter. Many
will say to me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name?
Did we not cast out demons in your name and did we not perform many
miracles in your name?” And I will tell them clearly: Away from me, you
who have done deeds of iniquity. (Mt. 7:21-23)

7. Therefore, everyone who hears my words and practices them may be

compared to a wise man who built his house upon a rock. When the rain
fell, the rivers flooded and the winds blew and battered the house, it did not
fall because it had been built upon the rock. But anyone who hears my words
and does not practice them is like a foolish man who built his house upon the
sand. When the rain fell, the rivers flooded and the winds blew and battered
it, it caved in, and great was its ruin. (Mt. 7:24-27; Lk. 6:46-49)

8. He who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches men
to break them will be regarded as last in the kingdom of heaven. But he who
abides by and teaches them will be great in the kingdom of heaven. (Mt. 5:19)

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9. All those who proclaim Jesus’ mission say, “Lord! Lord!”

But what use is it to call him Master or Lord if they do not
follow his precepts? Are Christians those who honor him with
outward acts of devotion, but who at the same time yield to pride,
selfishness, greed and all their passions? Are his disciples those
who spend their days in prayer, but who, as a result, are no better,
more charitable or more indulgent toward their fellow beings? No,
because just like the Pharisees, their prayer is on their lips but not
in their heart. They might impress others with their form, but not
God. In vain they will say to Jesus, “Lord, we prophesied; that is,
we taught in your name; we cast out demons in your name; we
ate and drank with you.” He will answer them, “I do not know
who you are. Away from me, you who committed iniquities, you
who belied your words with your actions, you who slandered your
neighbor, robbed widows and committed adultery. Away from me,
you whose hearts distilled hatred and bile, you who spilt the blood
of your brothers and sisters in my name, you who caused tears to
run instead of drying them. For you, there shall be weeping and
gnashing of teeth, for the kingdom of God is for those who are
kind, humble and charitable. Do not expect to bend the Lord’s
justice because of the multiplicity of your words and genuflections.
The only way open to you for finding grace before God is that of
sincerely practicing the law of love and charity.”
Jesus’ words are eternal because they are the truth. They
are not only a surety for life in heaven, but a pledge of peace,
tranquility and stability in matters regarding life on earth. That is
why all human political, social and religious institutions that are
based on his words will be as stable as the house built upon the
rock. People will keep them because they will find happiness in
them. However, those who are in violation of his words will be like
the house built upon the sand: the winds of transformation and
the river of progress will bring them down.

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Much will be asked of him

who has received much
10. The servant who knew his master’s will but who nevertheless neither
prepared himself nor did what was expected of him will be harshly punished.
But he who did not know his master’s will, but who did things worthy of
punishment, will be punished less. Much will be asked of him who received
much and a greater accounting will be required from those to whom many
things were entrusted. (Lk. 12:47-48)

11. I have come into this world to exercise judgment, so that those who do
not see may see and those who do see may become blind. Upon hearing these
words, certain Pharisees who were with him said to him, “Then are we
blind also?” Jesus answered them, “If you were blind, you would not have
sinned, but you now say that you see and that is why sin remains in you.”
(Jn. 9:39-41)

12. These maxims find their application especially in the

Spirits’ teachings. All those who know the precepts of Christ are
surely blameworthy if they do not practice them; but besides the
fact that the Gospel that contains them has spread only in the
Christian denominations, how many persons there are in them
who do not read it, and of those who do read it, how many there
are who do not understand it! The result is that Jesus’ own words
have been lost to the majority.
The Spirits’ teachings, which reproduce these maxims
under different forms, and which develop and comment on
them in order to put them within everyone’s reach, have the
particularity of not being at all circumscribed, and everyone,
literate or illiterate, believing or disbelieving, Christian or not,
can receive them because spirits communicate everywhere. None
who receive them either directly or through an intermediary
can claim ignorance of them. They cannot offer as an excuse

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either their lack of instruction or the obscurity of the teachings’

allegorical meaning. Thus, those who do not take advantage of
the teachings for their advancement, who admire them as being
interesting and curious, without their hearts being touched by
them, who are no less vain, no less proud, no less selfish, no less
attached to material possessions, or who are not better toward
their neighbor, are all the more guilty because they have a greater
means of knowing about the truth.
Mediums who receive good communications are even more
blameworthy for persisting in evil, for often they write their own
condemnation, and if they were not so blinded by pride, they
would realize that the Spirits are addressing them personally.
However, instead of applying to themselves the lessons they write,
or those they see written, their sole thought is to apply them to
others, thereby confirming these words of Jesus: “You see a speck
in your neighbor’s eye but you do not see the log in your own.”
(See chap. X, no. 9)
Through these words: “If you were blind, you would not
have sinned,” Jesus meant that blameworthiness is proportional to
one’s enlightenment. Thus, the Pharisees, who had the intention
of being – and actually were – the most enlightened individuals
of their people, were more reprehensible in God’s eyes than the
unlearned people. The same applies today.
Therefore, much will be asked of Spiritists because they have
received much; but also to those who have taken advantage of the
teachings much will be given.
The first thought of all sincere Spiritists should be to find
out if in the Spirits’ counsels there is not something that might
apply to themselves.
Spiritism has multiplied the number of those who are
called. Because of the faith provides, it will also multiply the
number of those who are chosen.

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The Spirits’ Teachings

To him who already has, more will be given
13. His disciples approached him and asked, “Why do you speak to them
in parables?” He responded, “Because to you it has been given to know the
mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For
to him who already has, more will be given and he will have in abundance;
but regarding him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.
That is why I speak to them in parables; for seeing, they see nothing, and
hearing, they neither hear nor understand. And the prophecy of Isaiah is
fulfilled in them when he said, ‘You will hear with your ears but will not
understand; you will see with your eyes but will not perceive anything.’”
(Mt. 13:10-14)

14. Pay close attention regarding what you hear, for the same measure will be
used on you that you have used to measure others, and you will be given even
more; for to him who already has, more will be given and regarding him who
does not have, even what he has will be taken away. (Mk. 4:24-25)

15. “It will be given to him who already has and it will be
taken away from him who does not have.” Meditate on these great
teachings, which have so often seemed paradoxical to you. Those
who have received are those who understand the meaning of the
divine word; they have received solely because they have tried to
become worthy, and the Lord, in his merciful love, encourages
efforts that lead to goodness. These firm and persevering efforts
attract the Lord’s blessings; they are a magnet that attracts
progressive advancement and the abundant blessings that render
you strong enough to climb the holy mountain, where at the
summit is repose after labor.
“From him who has nothing, or who has little, it shall be
taken away.” This should be understood as a figurative opposite.

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God does not take away from his creatures the good he has
consented to give them. O blind and deaf humanity! Open your
mind and your heart; see with your spirit; understand with your
soul and do not interpret in such a coarsely unjust manner the
words of him who has made God’s justice shine resplendently in
your sight. It is not God who takes from those who have received
little; it is their own spirit, which, wasteful and careless, does not
know how to preserve what it has, and by nurturing it, increase the
mite dropped in their heart.
Those who do not cultivate the field which their father’s
efforts earned for them, and which they have inherited, see
that field become covered with weeds. Is it their father who
takes away the harvest that they did not want to prepare? If
they allowed the seeds meant to grow in that field to wither
from lack of care, should they accuse their father if they
produce nothing? No, of course not. Instead of accusing the
one who had prepared everything for them of taking away his
endowment, let them accuse the true author of their miseries,
and let them then, repentant and industrious, courageously
get to work; let them break the thankless soil with the effort
of their will; let them plow deeply with the help of repentance
and hope; let them confidently sow the seed that they have
chosen as good from among the bad; and let them water it
with their love and charity. Then God, the God of love and
charity, will give to them who have already received. And then
they will see their efforts crowned with success, and one grain
will produce a hundred and another a thousand. Courage, O
workers! Take up your hoes and your plows; till your hearts;
pull up the weeds from it; sow there the good seed that the
Lord has entrusted to you, and the dew of love will enable it to
produce the fruits of charity.
A Spirit Friend (Bordeaux, 1862)

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Christians Shall be Recognized by Their Deeds

16. “Not all those who say to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the
kingdom of heaven, but only the one who has done the will of my
Father who is in heaven.”
Listen to these words of the Lord, all you who reject the
Spiritist Doctrine as a work of the Devil. Open your ears, for the
time to listen has come.
Is it enough to wear the uniform of the Lord to be a faithful
servant? Is it enough to say, “I am a Christian” to follow Christ?
Look for the true Christians and you will recognize them by their
deeds. “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear
good fruit.” “Any tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down
and cast into the fire.” These are the Master’s words; disciples of
Christ, understand them well! What are the fruits that the tree of
Christianity must bear, that mighty tree whose leafy branches cover
part of the world with its shade, but which as yet does not shelter
all those who should gather around it? The fruits of the tree of life
are the fruits of life, hope and faith. Christianity, as it has done
for many centuries, preaches these three divine virtues; it seeks to
spread these fruits, but how few pick them! The tree is always good,
but the gardeners are bad. They have wanted to fashion it according
to their own ideas; they have wanted to mold it in accordance with
their own needs; they have cut it, diminished it and mutilated it;
its barren branches do not bear bad fruit; they no longer bear any
at all. Thirsty travelers who stop in its shade to look for the fruit
of hope that ought to restore their strength and courage see only
dry twigs announcing the coming storm. In vain they look for the
fruit of life on the tree of life: its leaves fall dry; human hands have
tampered with them so much that they have withered them!
Therefore, open your ears and your hearts, dearly beloved!
Cultivate that tree of life, whose fruits give life eternal. The One
who planted it invites you to care for it with love, and you will see

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it once again bearing its divine fruit in abundance. Keep it just

as Christ gave it to you. Do not mutilate it; it wants to cast its
immense shade over the entire universe; do not cut off its branches.
Its beneficent fruit falls abundantly to nourish hungry travelers
who want to reach their objective. Do not pick this fruit in order
to hoard it and allow it to rot so that it is of no use to anyone.
“Many are called but few are chosen.” This is because there are
monopolizers of the bread of life just as often there are of material
bread. Do not align yourselves with them. The tree that bears good
fruit must give it to all. So go and seek out those who are hungry.
Lead them beneath the branches of the tree and share with them
the shelter it offers. “Grapes cannot be gathered from thorns.” My
brothers and sisters, distance yourselves therefore from those who
call you to show you the thorns along the way, and follow those
who lead you to the shade of the tree of life.
The divine Savior, the righteous one par excellence, spoke
and his words shall not pass away, “Not all those who say to me,
‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only those
who have done the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
May the Lord of blessings bless you; may the God of light
illumine you; may the tree of life abundantly shed its fruit over
you! Believe and pray.
Simeon (Bordeaux, 1863)

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Faith Moves Mountains

• The Power of Faith • Religious Faith. The State of
Unshakable Faith • Parable of the Withered Fig Tree
• The Spirits’ Teachings: – Faith: the Mother of Hope
and Charity. – Divine Faith and Human Faith.

The Power of Faith

1. When he came to meet the people, a man approached him, fell to his knees
at his feet and said to him, “Lord, have mercy on my son, who is insane and
suffers much because he often falls into the fire and often into the water. I
presented him to your disciples but they could not heal him.” Jesus answered,
saying, “O disbelieving and perverse generation, how long will I be with
you? How long must I endure you? Bring the child to me.” And when Jesus
threatened the demon, it came out of the child, who was healed the same
instant. Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and said to him, “Why
could we not expel the demon?” Jesus answered, “Because of your disbelief.
For verily I say to you: if you had faith as a mustard seed, you would say
to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it would move, and
nothing would be impossible for you.” (Mt. 17:14-20)

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2. In its proper acceptation, it is certain that confidence in

our own abilities renders us capable of accomplishing physical
things that we would not be able to do if we doubted ourselves.
However, here it is only in the moral sense that these words
should be understood. The mountains that faith moves are
difficulties, resistance and ill will; in other words, all the things
found among humans, even when it concerns the best of things.
Everyday prejudices, material interests, selfishness, the blindness
of fanaticism and prideful passions are other such mountains that
bar the way to all who are working for humankind’s progress.
Robust faith provides the perseverance, strength and resources
that enable us to overcome the obstacles in little as well as in big
matters. Faith that is faltering provides uncertainty and hesitation,
which strengthen the barriers we wish to overcome; this faith does
not choose the means to win, because it does not believe in the
possibility of victory.
3. In another acceptation, faith means the confidence one
has in accomplishing something, the certainty of achieving a
particular purpose. It provides a kind of lucidity that enables one
to see in thought the end which is intended and the means to
reach it, in such a way that the one who possesses it proceeds, in
a manner of speaking, with absolute certainty. In either case, faith
enables the accomplishment of great things.
Sincere and true faith is always calm. It provides the
patience that knows how to wait, because having its point of
support in the mind and in the understanding of things, it carries
the certainty of arriving at its objective. Hesitant faith senses
its own weakness. When it is stimulated by interest, it becomes
incensed and thinks it can supply the strength it lacks by means
of force. Calmness in the midst of struggle is always a sign of
strength and confidence; force, on the other hand, is proof of
weakness and self-doubt.

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4. One must guard against confusing faith with

presumptuousness. True faith allies itself with humility; those who
have it put their trust in God more than in themselves, because
they know that they are simple instruments of God’s will and can
do nothing without God. That is why good spirits come to their
aid. Presumptuousness is less faith than pride, and pride is always
punished sooner or later by the disappointment and failures
inflicted upon it.
5. The power of faith receives a direct and special application
in magnetic action. Through faith, humans act upon the fluid –
the universal agent – modifying its qualities and giving it an
impulse that is irresistible, so to speak. Thus, those who combine
a normally large fluidic power with an ardent faith can, solely
by their will directed toward the good, perform the remarkable
phenomena of healing and other phenomena formerly regarded as
miracles, but which are nothing more than the consequences of a
natural law. That is why Jesus told his apostles: If you could not
heal it was because you did not have faith.

Religious Faith. The State

of Unshakable Faith
6. From the religious point of view, faith is the belief in the
particular dogmas that comprise the different religions; all religions
have their articles of faith. From this aspect, faith may be either
rational or blind. Blind faith examines nothing, accepts both the
false as well as the true without verification, and clashes at every
step with evidence and reason. Taken to the extreme, it produces
fanaticism. Whenever faith rests upon error, it collapses sooner
or later. Faith that is based on the truth is the only kind assured
of the future, because it has nothing to fear from the progress of
enlightenment, since whatever is true in obscurity is also true in

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full light. Every religion claims to be in exclusive possession of

the truth; however, to profess blind faith on a point of belief is to
confess one’s inability to demonstrate that one is right.
7. It is commonly stated that faith cannot be prescribed,
from which many people declare that it is not their fault if they do
not have faith. Of course faith cannot be prescribed, and what is
even more correct is that faith cannot be imposed. No, it cannot be
prescribed but only acquired, and no one will be refused to possess
it, even amongst those who are most resistant. We are speaking
about fundamental spiritual truths and not this or that particular
belief. It is not faith that should seek out these individuals; rather,
they should seek out faith, and if they sincerely search for it, they
will find it. Hence, you can be certain that those who say, “We
would like nothing better than to believe, but we cannot,” say it
only with their lips and not with their heart, because by saying
it, they are plugging their ears. The proofs meanwhile multiply
around them; why do they refuse to see them? On the part of some,
it is indifference; for others, the fear of being forced to change
their habits; for the majority, their pride refuses to acknowledge a
higher power because they would have to bow before it.
For some individuals, faith almost seems to be innate; a spark
is enough to develop it. Such ease in assimilating spiritual truths is
an obvious sign of previous progress. For others, on the other hand,
spiritual truths are difficult to absorb: a no less evident sign of an
unevolved nature. The former have already believed and understood;
upon being reborn, they bring with them the intuition of what
they know: they have accomplished their education. The latter
must learn everything: they are yet to accomplish their education;
but they will do so, if not in this lifetime, then in another.
We must agree that the resistance of disbelievers often has less
to do with them per se than the way in which things are presented
to them. Faith requires a foundation, and such foundation is the

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perfect understanding of that which is to be believed; in order

to believe, it is not enough simply to see; it is essential above
all to understand. Blind faith is no longer appropriate for this
century, and it is precisely the dogma of blind faith that produces
the greatest number of disbelievers nowadays, because it wishes
to impose itself and requires the abdication of two of the most
precious prerogatives of human beings: reason and free will. It is
mainly against this type of faith that disbelievers rebel, and about
which it is true to say that faith cannot be prescribed. By not
accepting proof, it leaves a void in the mind that gives room to
doubt. Rational faith, that which is based on facts and logic, leaves
no darkness in its wake; one believes because one is sure, and no
one can be sure unless they have understood. That is why rational
faith does not collapse, for unshakable faith is the kind that can
stand face to face with reason in all human epochs.
Spiritism leads to such a result and it also triumphs over
disbelief as long as it does not encounter systematic and self-
serving opposition.

Parable of the Withered Fig Tree

8. When they left Bethany, he was hungry. And seeing a fig tree some way
off, he went to see if he could find something on it; and having come to it,
he only found leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then Jesus said to
the fig tree, “May no one eat any more fruit from you,” which his disciples
heard. On the following day, as they passed by the fig tree, they saw that
it had become withered down to its roots. And remembering Jesus’ words,
Peter said to him, “Master, look how the fig tree that you cursed has become
withered.” Jesus answered him, saying, “Have faith in God. Verily I say to
you that whoever says to that mountain: ‘Be uprooted and cast yourself into
the sea,’ without any doubt in his heart but firmly believing that what he
has said will happen, will see it actually happen.” (Mk. 11:12-14; 20-23)

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9. The withered fig tree symbolizes persons who have only

the appearances of goodness, but who in reality produce nothing
that is worthwhile: orators who are more flashy than substantial,
whose words display the varnish of superficiality; they please the
ears but upon close examination nothing substantial for the soul
is found in them. After hearing them, one asks what benefit was
derived from listening to them.
It is also the symbol of all persons who have the means to
be useful but are not; all the utopias, all the empty theories and
all the doctrines that lack a solid foundation. What is most often
lacking is true faith, productive faith, the faith that stirs the fibers
of the soul; in other words, the faith that moves mountains. They
are trees that have leaves but no fruit. That is why Jesus condemns
them to barrenness, for a day will come in which they will become
withered down to their roots, which means that all the theories, all
the doctrines that have not produced any good for humankind will
fall into nothingness; that all deliberately useless human beings,
for lack of having put into practice the resources they had in them,
will be treated like the withered fig tree.
10. Mediums are the interpreters of spirits, supplying the
physical organs that they lack to transmit their teachings to us;
that is the reason mediums have been endowed with faculties
to this effect. In these times of social renewal, they have a
particular mission: they are the trees that must provide spiritual
nourishment to their brothers and sisters. They are multiplying
in number in order for this nourishment to be abundant. They
are found everywhere, in all countries, among all social classes,
among the rich and the poor, the great and the small, so that none
are disinherited, and to prove to humankind that all are called.
However, if they divert from its providential purpose the priceless
faculty that was conceded to them, if they make it serve pointless
or harmful matters, if they put it in the service of worldly interests,

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if instead of healthy fruit they bear unhealthy fruit, if they refuse

to render it useful to others, if they derive from it no benefit for
improving themselves, they are like the barren fig tree. God will
take away a gift that has become useless in their hands: the seed
they have not been able to bring to fruition, and God will let them
become the prey of evil spirits.

The Spirits’ Teachings

Faith: the Mother of Hope and Charity
11. In order to be profitable, faith must be active. It must
not grow numb. Mother of all the virtues that lead to God, it must
watch carefully over the development of the children it generates.
Hope and charity are a consequence of faith; these three
virtues form an inseparable trinity. Is it not faith that provides the
hope of seeing the Lord’s promises fulfilled? Because, if you do not
have faith, what do you hope for? Is it not faith that provides love?
Because, if you do not have faith, what appreciation will you have,
and, consequently, what love?
Faith, divine inspiration from God, awakens all the noble
instincts that lead humans toward the good; it is the foundation of
regeneration. Thus, this foundation must be strong and durable,
for if the least doubt shakes it, what will become of the edifice
that you built upon it? Therefore, construct the building upon
unshakable foundations; let your faith be stronger than the
sophisms and ridicule of disbelievers, for faith that cannot stand
up to human ridicule is not true faith.
Sincere faith is alluring and contagious; it communicates
itself to those who did not have it, or even would not desire to have
it. It finds persuasive words that go to the soul, whereas apparent
faith uses only sonorous words that leave their listeners cold and

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indifferent. Preach through the example of your faith in order to

give it to others. Preach through the example of your deeds in order
to enable others to see the merit of faith. Preach through your
unshakeable hope in order to enable others to see the trust that
strengthens and encourages you to battle all the vicissitudes of life.
Therefore, have faith in all that it contains of beauty and
goodness, in its purity and in its reasoning. Do not accept faith that
cannot be substantiated, the blind daughter of blindness. Love God
but know why you do; believe in his promises but know why you
believe in them. Follow our counsels but be aware of the objective
we show you and the means we provide for you to reach it. Believe
and hope without losing heart; miracles are the deeds of faith.
Joseph, A Protector Spirit (Bordeaux, 1862)
Divine Faith and Human Faith
12. Faith is the innate sentiment in human beings of their
future destiny; it is the awareness they have of the immense faculties
whose seed was deposited in them, first in a latent state, and which
they now must make blossom and grow by their active will.
Until now, faith has not been understood except from the
religious aspect, because Christ extolled it as a powerful lever and
because he has been seen only as the head of a religion. But Christ,
who performed material miracles, has demonstrated through these
same miracles what humans can do when they have faith; that
is, the will to wish and the certainty that such will can obtain its
fulfillment. By following his example, did not the apostles also
perform miracles? Well, what were those miracles except natural
effects whose cause was unknown to humans back then, but
which today have been largely explained and which will be fully
understood through the study of Spiritism and magnetism?
Faith is either human or divine, depending on whether
people apply their faculties to their earthly needs or to their

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heavenly and future aspirations. Individuals of genius who pursue

the accomplishment of some great enterprise triumph if they have
faith, because they feel within them that they can and must reach
it, and this certainty provides them with immense power. Moral
persons, who believe in their heavenly future and who want to
fill their lives with noble and beautiful actions in the certainty of
the happiness that awaits them, draw from their faith the strength
they need, thereby accomplishing the miracles of charity, devotion
and selflessness. Finally, with faith there are no evil tendencies that
cannot be overcome.
Magnetism is one of the greatest proofs of faith put into
action. It is through faith that magnetism heals and produces the
remarkable phenomena that formerly were regarded as miracles.
I will repeat: faith is both human and divine. If all incarnates
were fully persuaded of the power they have within them, and if
they wanted to put their will in the service of that power, they
would be capable of accomplishing what until today have been
called prodigies, and which are actually nothing more than a
development of human faculties.
A Protector Spirit (Paris, 1863)

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Workers of the Last Hour

• The Spirits’ Teachings: – The last shall be first. – The
Mission of Spiritists. – Workers of the Lord.

1. The kingdom of heaven is like the father of a family, who went out at
daybreak in order to hire workers to work in his vineyard. Having agreed
with the workers that he would pay them one denarius per day, he sent them
to the vineyard. He went out again at the third hour of the day, and seeing
others who were in the square not doing anything, he said to them, “You go
also to my vineyard and I will give you what is reasonable.” And they went
there. Again, he went out at the sixth and ninth hours of the day and did the
same. And having gone out at the eleventh hour, he found others who were
without anything to do and said to them, “Why have you stood around all
day without working?” They told him that it was because no one had hired
them. He then said to them, “You too go to my vineyard.”

When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to the one who was
taking care of his business, “Call the workers and pay them, from the last
to the first.” Thus, those who had not come to the vineyard except when
the eleventh hour was near received one denarius each. Those who were
hired first came in their turn, believing they would be given more, but

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each one received no more than one denarius. Upon receiving it, they
complained against the father of the family, saying, “These last worked
only one hour and you have made them equal to us who bore the load
and heat of the day.”

But in response, he said to one of them, “My friend, I have done you no
wrong. Did you not agree with me on one denarius for your day’s work?
Take what belongs to you and go; as for me, I wish to give to the last as
much as to you. Is it not permitted to me to do what I want? And is your
eye evil because I am good?”

Thus, the last shall be first and the first shall be last, for many are called
but few are chosen. (Mt. 20:1-16. See also Parable of the Wedding Feast,
chap. XVIII, no. 1)

The Spirits’ Teachings

The last shall be first
2. The workers of the last hour have a right to their wages,
but their willingness has to have put them at the disposal of the
master who was to hire them, and their tardiness must not have
been the result of laziness or ill will. They have a right to their
wages because, since daybreak, they had been waiting impatiently
for someone who would finally call them to work: they were hard-
working; they only lacked work.
However, if they had refused work at each hour of the day;
if they had said, “Let us be patient; repose is pleasing; when the
last hour sounds, it will be time to think about today’s wages;
what need is there for us to inconvenience ourselves for a master
whom we neither know nor respect? The later the better!” These,
my friends, would not have received the wages of work, but that
of laziness.

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What would have become of these workers if, instead of

only remaining idle, they had used the hours of the day meant
for labor to commit blameworthy acts; if they had blasphemed
God by spilling the blood of their brothers and sisters, by causing
problems among families, by ruining those who trusted them,
by abusing the innocent, or by indulging in all the ignominies
of humanity? What would have become of them? Would it be
enough for them to have said at the last hour: “Sir, we have used
our time badly. Use us until the end of the day so that we may do
a little – although it will be very little of our part – but give us the
wages of a worker of good will? No, no! The master would have
said to them, “I do not have any work for you right now. You have
squandered your time. You have forgotten what you have learned
and you no longer know how to work in my vineyard. Therefore,
begin to learn once more, and when you are more willing, come to
me and I will open my vast field to you, where you will be able to
work at all hours of the day.”
Good Spiritists, my dearly beloved, you are all workers of
the last hour. The one who says, “I began work at daybreak and
I will finish only at nightfall” would be very proud. You all came
when you were called – some a little earlier, some a little later –
to the incarnation whose shackles you bear; however, for how
many centuries has the Lord been calling you to his vineyard,
without your wanting to enter it! Now is the time for you to
receive your wages; employ the time you have remaining well,
and never forget that your existence, no matter how long it may
seem to you, is only a fleeting instant in the immensity of time
comprising eternity for you.
Constantin, A Protector Spirit (Bordeaux, 1863)

3. Jesus loved the simplicity of symbols, and in his powerful

language the workers who came at the first hour were Moses, the

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prophets and all the initiators who marked the stages of progress
that has been continued down through the centuries by the apostles,
martyrs, the Church Fathers, learned individuals, philosophers and,
finally, Spiritists. Spiritists – the last to arrive – have been announced
and foretold since the coming of the Messiah, and they will receive
the same recompense. But what am I saying? A greater recompense.
As the last to arrive, Spiritists profit from the intellectual endeavors
of their predecessors, because humans must inherit from humans,
and their endeavors and results are collective: God blesses solidarity.
Furthermore, many among them are alive again today, or will come
back in the future to complete the work they had formerly begun.
More than one patriarch, more than one prophet, more than one
disciple of Christ, more than one disseminator of the Christian
faith may be found amongst Spiritists; however, they are now more
enlightened, more advanced, no longer working on the foundation
but on the top floor of the building. Their wages, therefore, will be
in proportion to the merit of the work.
Reincarnation – that wonderful tenet – both immortalizes
and defines spiritual affiliation. Called to give an accounting of its
earthly mandate, the spirit understands the continuity of the task,
interrupted but always resumed once again. It sees and senses that
it has seized in its flight the thought of its predecessors. It enters the
arena again, matured by experience, to advance a little more. And all,
workers of the first and of the last hour, with their eyes opened to the
profound justice of God, no longer complain, but simply worship.
This is one of the true meanings of this parable. Like all the
parables that Jesus addressed to the people, beneath its forms and
images it contains the seed of the future as well as the revelation of
that magnificent unity that harmonizes all things in the universe,
and that solidarity that reconnects all present beings to the past
and future.
Henri Heine (Paris, 1863)

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The Mission of Spiritists

4. Do you not already hear the rumbling of the tempest that
must do away with the old world and engulf in nothingness the
sum of earth’s iniquities? Ah! Bless the Lord, you who have put
your faith in his sovereign justice, and who, as new apostles of the
belief revealed by prophetic voices On High, go forth and preach
the new tenet of reincarnation and of the elevation of spirits,
according to whether they fulfilled their missions well or badly
and how they bore their earthly trials.
Fear not! Tongues of fire are upon your heads. Oh! True
followers of Spiritism, you are the chosen ones of God! Go
and preach the Divine Word. The time has come in which
you must sacrifice your habits, labors and futile concerns to its
propagation. Go forth and proclaim it. Spirits from On High
are with you. Of course, you will speak to individuals who will
not want to listen to the voice of God, for that voice incessantly
calls them to selflessness. You will proclaim disinterestedness
to the greedy, abstinence to the dissolute, and kindness to
domestic tyrants as well as to despots: wasted words, I know;
but what does it matter! You must water with your sweat the
ground that you must sow, for it will not produce a crop except
through repeated efforts of the evangelical hoe and plow. Go
forth and proclaim!
Yes, all you men and women of good faith, who are aware of
how small you are as you look at other worlds scattered throughout
the infinite, set out on a crusade against injustice and iniquity. Go
forth and reverse this worship of the golden calf, each day more and
more encroaching. Go; God will guide you! Simple and unlearned
men and women, your tongues will be loosened and you will speak
as no other orator speaks. Go forth and proclaim, and attentive
peoples will joyfully take in your words of consolation, fraternity,
hope and peace.

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What do the traps that will be set for you along your way
matter! Only wolves fall into traps for wolves, because the shepherd
knows how to defend his sheep against such murderous butchers.
Go forth, men and women who are great before God, and
who, more blessed than St. Thomas, believe without asking to see,
and accept the fact of mediumship even when you have never been
successful in obtaining it yourselves. Go forth; the Spirit of God
is leading you.
Press onward, magnificent phalanx of faith! And the great
battalions of disbelievers will vanish before you like the morning
mist at the first rays of the rising sun.
Faith is the virtue that moves mountains, Jesus said.
However, impurity and all its vices lie heavier than the heaviest
mountains on the heart of humankind. So, go forth with
courage in order to move this mountain of iniquity, which future
generations will know about only through legend, just as you
yourselves know only very imperfectly about the period of time
prior to pagan civilization.
Yes, moral and philosophical upheavals will occur at all
points on the globe. The time approaches when the divine light
will be shed over the two worlds.
Go forth, then, and take the Divine Word: to the great ones
of the world, who will scorn it; to the learned, who will demand
proof; to the small and simple, who will accept it, because it is
especially among the martyrs of labor – that earthly expiation – that
you will find zeal and faith. Go forth; with canticles of thanksgiving
and songs of praise to God, they will receive the holy consolation
you bring them, and they will bow their heads in thanks for their
portion of earthly afflictions.
May your phalanx be armed with resolution and courage!
Get to work! The plow is ready; the soil awaits you; now you
must work!

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Go forth and give thanks to God for the glorious task he

has entrusted to you, but bear in mind that among those called to
Spiritism, many have gone astray. So watch your course and follow
the way of the truth.
Question: If many of those called to Spiritism have gone astray,
by what signs do we recognize those who are on the righteous path?
Answer: You will recognize them by the principles of true
charity that they profess and practice. You will recognize them by
the number of afflicted to whom they take consolation. You will
recognize them by their love for their neighbor, their selflessness
and their personal disinterestedness. You will recognize them,
finally, by the triumph of their principles, for God wills the
triumph of his law. Those who obey his laws are the elect, and he
will give them victory. However, he will crush those who falsify the
spirit of that law and who make it a stepping stone for satisfying
their vanity and ambition.
Erastus, The Medium’s Guardian Angel (Paris, 1863)
Workers of the Lord
5. The time is near for the fulfillment of those things
proclaimed for the transformation of humankind. Blessed will
be those who have worked in the Lord’s field selflessly and with
no other motive than charity! Their workdays will be paid a
hundredfold more than what they expected. Blessed will be those
who said to their fellow men and women, “Brothers and sisters, let
us work together and combine our efforts so that the Master may
find the work accomplished at his coming”; for the Master will
say to them: “Come unto me, you who have been good servants,
you who have known how to silence your jealousies and discords
so that no harm would come to the work!” But woe unto those
who, because of their dissentions, will have delayed the time of the
harvest, for the storm will come and they will be swept away in

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the upheaval! They will cry, “Have mercy! Have mercy!” But the
Lord will say to them, “Why do you ask for mercy, you who did
not show mercy to your brothers and sisters; who refused to offer
them a hand; who trampled the weak instead of upholding them?
Why do you ask for mercy, you who sought your recompense in
the delights of the earth and in the satisfaction of your pride? You
have already received your recompense, such as you wanted it. Ask
for nothing more. The recompenses of heaven are for those who
did not ask for the recompenses of earth.”
At this moment, God is taking a census of his faithful
servants and is taking note of those who only have the appearance
of devotion so that they may not usurp the wages of the courageous
servants, because it is for those who do not recoil before their tasks
that God will entrust the most difficult positions in the great
work of regeneration through Spiritism. And these words will
be fulfilled: “The first will be last and the last will be first in the
kingdom of heaven.”
The Spirit of Truth (Paris, 1862)

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There will be false christs

and false prophets
• The tree is known by its fruit • The Mission of Prophets
• Prodigies Performed by False Prophets • Do not believe
all spirits • The Spirits’ Teachings: – False Prophets. –
Characteristics of the True Prophet. – False Prophets in
the Spirit World. – Jeremiah and the False Prophets.

The tree is known by its fruit

1. The tree that produces bad fruit is not good and the tree that produces
good fruit is not bad, for each tree is known by its own fruit. Figs cannot
be picked from thorn bushes, nor can bunches of grapes be cut from briars.
A good man brings forth good things from the good treasure of his heart,
whereas the evil man takes evil things from the evil treasure of his heart,
for the mouth speaks from what fills the heart. (Lk. 6:43-45)

2. Beware of false prophets who come to you covered in the skins of sheep,
but who on the inside are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruit.

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Can grapes be picked from thorn bushes or figs from briars? Thus, every
tree that is good produces good fruit and every tree that is bad produces bad
fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce
good fruit. Every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and
cast into the fire. Hence, you will know them by their fruit. (Mt. 7:15-20)

3. Take care so that no one deceives you, for many will come in my name
saying, “I am the Christ” and they will deceive many.

Many false prophets will appear who will deceive many people, and because
iniquity will abound, the charity of many will grow cold. But he who
perseveres to the end will be saved.

Therefore, if someone says to you, “The Christ is here, or the Christ is there,”
do not believe him, for false christs and false prophets will appear and will
perform great prodigies and amazing things to the point of deceiving the
elect themselves if possible. (Mt. 24:4-5, 11-13, 23-24; Mk. 13:5-6, 21-22)

The Mission of Prophets

4. Prophets are commonly perceived as possessing the gift
of being able to reveal the future, so that the words prophecies and
predictions have become synonymous. However, in its evangelical
sense the word prophet has a broader meaning. It applies to all
who have been sent by God with the mission of instructing
humankind and revealing hidden the things and mysteries of the
spiritual life. Hence, a person can be a prophet without making
predictions. That was the notion of the Jews during the time of
Jesus. Thus, when he was taken before the high priest, Caiaphas,
the assembled scribes and elders spat in his face, struck him with
their fists and insulted him by saying, “Christ, prophecy for us and
tell us who struck you.” Nevertheless, there have been instances
in which prophets have had foreknowledge of the future, whether
by intuition or by providential revelation, in order to transmit

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warnings to humankind. Since such predicted events actually

occurred, the gift of predicting the future came to be regarded as
one of the attributes of a prophet.

Prodigies Performed by False Prophets

5. “False christs and false prophets will appear, who will
perform great prodigies and amazing things to the point of deceiving
the elect themselves.” These words provide the true meaning of the
term prodigy. According to the theological definition, prodigies and
miracles are exceptional phenomena that occur outside the laws of
nature. Since the laws of nature are the work of God exclusively,
God could obviously derogate from them if so desired. However,
simple common sense says that God could not have possibly given
unevolved and perverse beings a power equal to the divine power,
and even less the right to undo what God has done. Jesus could
not have consecrated such a principle. If, according to the meaning
that has been attributed to these two words, the Spirit of Evil has
the power to perform such prodigies to the point that the elect
themselves are deceived, the result would be that, being able to
do what God does, prodigies and miracles are not the exclusive
privilege of those sent by God. Moreover, they would not prove
anything, since nothing would distinguish the miracles performed
by saints from the miracles performed by the Devil. It is therefore
necessary to look for a more rational meaning for these two words.
To uneducated common folk, every phenomenon with
an unknown cause comes across as supernatural, extraordinary
and miraculous. Once the cause is known, it is realized that the
phenomenon, as extraordinary as it may seem, is nothing other
than the application of a natural law. In this manner the circle of
supernatural events shrinks to the extent that the circle of scientific
knowledge broadens. For the advancement of their ambitions,

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interests and domination, humans in all eras have exploited certain

knowledge they possess in order to give themselves the prestige of
a supposedly superhuman power or a supposed divine mission.
These are the false christs and false prophets. The spreading of
enlightenment destroys their credit, and that is why their numbers
dwindle to the degree that people become enlightened. The fact
that they perform what in the eyes of certain people come across
as prodigies is not, therefore, the sign of a divine mission, since it
could result from knowledge that anyone may acquire, or from
special organic faculties that the most unworthy persons may
possess as well as the most worthy. True prophets are recognized
by more serious, exclusively moral characteristics.

Do not believe all spirits

6. Dearly beloved, do not believe all spirits, but test whether the spirits are
from God, for many false prophets have appeared in the world. (I Jn. 4:1)

7. Spirit phenomena, far from giving credibility to false

christs and false prophets – as some people love to say – have,
much to the contrary, come to deal them a final blow. Do not
ask Spiritism for prodigies or miracles, since it formally declares
that it does not perform them. Just as physics, chemistry,
astronomy and geology have revealed the laws of the physical
world, Spiritism has revealed other, unknown laws that govern
relations between the corporeal and the spirit world, and
which are laws of nature as much as are the laws of science. By
providing an explanation for a certain order of phenomena that
have been incomprehensible until now, Spiritism destroys what
still remained in the realm of the extraordinary. This way, those
who would be tempted to exploit such phenomena for their
own profit and to pass themselves off as messiahs of God cannot

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abuse people’s credulity for long, and will soon be unmasked.

Moreover, as has been stated, these phenomena per se prove
nothing: a mission is proven by their moral effects, which are not
given to just anyone to produce. This is one of the results of the
development of the Spiritist science; by scrutinizing the cause
of certain phenomena, it lifts the veil on many mysteries. Those
who prefer the darkness to the light are the only ones interested
in combating it; but the truth is like the sun: it dissipates the
densest fog.
Spiritism has revealed another category much more
dangerous than false christs and prophets; it is found not among
humans, but among discarnates: that of deceiving, hypocritical,
proud and pseudo-learned spirits who have passed from the
earth to the spirit world and have adorned themselves with
venerated names in order to seek – thanks to the mask with
which they have covered themselves – to give credence to the
most bizarre and absurd ideas. Before mediumistic interactions
were known, such spirits exerted their actions in a less ostensive
way, through inspiration or through unconscious hearing or
speaking mediumship. The number of those who, at various
times, but especially as of late, have presented themselves as
certain ancient prophets, as Christ, as Mary, the mother of
Christ, and even as God, is considerable. John’s letter warns
against them when he says, “Dearly beloved, do not believe all
spirits, but test whether the spirits are from God, for many false
prophets have appeared in the world.” Spiritism provides the
means to test them by pointing out the characteristics by which
good spirits can be recognized, characteristics that are always
moral and never material.36 It is in the distinguishing between
good and evil spirits that these words of Jesus can be especially
applied: “The quality of a tree can be recognized by its fruit;
36
See the way to distinguish spirits in The Mediums’ Book, Pt. 2, chaps. XXIV ff. – Auth.

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a good tree cannot produce bad fruit and a bad tree cannot
produce good fruit.” Spirits are judged by the quality of their
deeds, just as a tree by the quality of its fruit.

The Spirits’ Teachings

False Prophets
8. If they tell you, “The Christ is here,” do not go there;
on the contrary, be on your guard because there will be many
false prophets. Do you not see the leaves of the fig tree beginning
to fade? Do you not see its many shoots awaiting the time of
blossoming? And did not Christ say to you, “A tree is known by its
fruit?” Thus, if the fruit is bitter, you say that the tree is bad, but if
the fruit is sweet and healthful, you say: Nothing that is this pure
could have come from a bad tree.
This is the way you must judge, my brothers and sisters;
the deeds are what you must examine. If those who say they are
vested with divine power are accompanied by all the signs of such
a mission, that is, if they possess the highest degree of the eternal
and Christian virtues: charity, love, indulgence, the goodness that
reconciles all souls; if, in support of their words, they add actions,
then you can say: These are truly messengers of God.
However, distrust sugary words; distrust the scribes and the
Pharisees who pray in the public squares, dressed in long robes. Distrust
those who claim to have the one and only monopoly on the truth!
No, no, Christ is not there, for those whom he sends to
disseminate his holy doctrine and to regenerate his people by
following his example will be kind and humble of heart above
all else. Those who by their example and counsels must save
humankind – quickly heading toward its perdition and roaming
tortuous roads – will be above all else modest and humble.

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Run from those who display one atom of pride as if they were
contagious lepers who infect everything they touch. Remember
that all individuals bear on their brow, but more especially on their
actions, the stamp of their greatness or decadence.
Go forth, therefore, my beloved children. Advance
without hesitation, without ulterior motives, along the blessed
course you have undertaken. Go forth, go forth always without
fear. Courageously distance yourselves from anything that could
hinder your progress toward the eternal objective. O travelers,
you will be in the darkness and pain of trial for only a little
while longer if you will allow your hearts to follow that gentle
doctrine that has come to reveal to you the eternal laws and to
satisfy all the aspirations of your soul regarding the unknown.
Right now you can give embodiment to those fleeting sylphs you
have seen in your dreams, and which, being ephemeral, could
only enchant your spirit without saying anything to your heart.
Now, my dear ones, death has disappeared, giving way to the
radiant angel you have come to know, the angel of re-encounter
and reunion! Now, you who have well fulfilled the task imposed
by the Creator, you have nothing more to fear of his justice, for
he is the Father and always forgives his wayward children who
clamor for mercy. Therefore, press on; advance without ceasing.
Let your banner be progress, continual progress in all things,
until you finally arrive at the happy destination where all those
who have preceded you await.
Louis (Bordeaux, 1861)
Characteristics of the True Prophet
9. Distrust false prophets. This recommendation is useful at
all times, but especially at times of transition, when, like this one,
a transformation of humanity is in the making and a multitude of
ambitious and scheming individuals set themselves up as reformers

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and messiahs. It is against such impostors that one must be on guard,

and it is the duty of all honest persons to unmask them. You will
undoubtedly ask how they can be recognized. These are their signs:
The command of an army is entrusted only to a competent
general capable of leading it. So, do you think that God would be
less prudent than humans? Be certain that he entrusts important
missions only to those he knows are capable of fulfilling them,
for great missions are heavy burdens that would crush individuals
who are too weak to bear them. As in all matters, the master must
know more than the apprentice; in order to enable humankind to
advance morally and intellectually, individuals who are superior
in morality and intelligence are required! That is why missions
are always entrusted to spirits who are already very advanced
after having completed their trials in previous lifetimes, and who
now incarnate with this objective. If they are not superior to the
environment in which they must act, their efforts will be fruitless.
That said, we must conclude that true missionaries of
God must justify their mission by their ascendancy, virtues and
greatness, and the results and moralizing influence of their deeds.
Let us draw a further conclusion: if by their character, virtues
and intelligence they are either beneath the role they attribute
to themselves or the personage under whose name they harbor
themselves, they are nothing but histrions of low rank, who do not
even know how to emulate their model.
Another consideration is that most true missionaries of God
are unaware of the fact; they carry out the mission to which they
have been called through the force of their genius, seconded by a
hidden power that inspires and guides them without their knowing
it, and with no premeditated plan. In other words, true prophets are
revealed by their actions: they are discovered by others; whereas false
prophets present themselves as messengers from God. The former are
humble and modest; the latter are proud and full of themselves.

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They speak with arrogance, and like all deceitful persons, always
seem fearful of not being believed.
We have seen some impostors passing themselves off as
apostles of Christ, others as Christ himself; and what is shameful
for humankind is that they have found people gullible enough
to give credit to such turpitudes. Nevertheless, one very simple
consideration should open the eyes of the most blind, which is,
if Christ were to reincarnate on the earth, he would come with
all his power and all his virtues, unless we were to believe that he
had degenerated – which would be absurd. Now, in the same way
that if just one of God’s attributes were taken away, you would no
longer have God; if just one of Christ’s virtues were taken away, you
would no longer have Christ. Do those who present themselves as
Christ possess all his virtues? That is the question. Observe them;
scrutinize their ideas and actions and you will realize that, more
than anything else, they lack the distinctive qualities of Christ:
humility and charity, whereas they do possess what he did not:
greed and pride. Moreover, notice that at this very moment there are
many supposed Christs in various countries, just as there are many
supposed Elijahs, St. Johns or St. Peters, and that obviously they
cannot all be true. You can be certain that they are individuals who
are exploiting the credulity of others and who find it comfortable
to live at the expense of those who listen to them.
Therefore, distrust false prophets, especially during a time of
renewal, because many impostors will say they are messengers from
God. They provide themselves with vain satisfaction while on the
earth, but a terrible justice awaits them; you can be sure of that.
Erastus (Paris, 1862)
False Prophets in the Spirit World
10. False prophets are not found only among incarnates.
They are also, and in much larger numbers, found among proud

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spirits, who, under the false appearance of love and charity, sow
disunion and retard the work of humankind’s emancipation,
infiltrating it with their absurd theories, which they make their
mediums believe. And to better fascinate37 those they want
to exploit in order to give more weight to their theories, they
unscrupulously adorn themselves with names that humans do not
pronounce except with respect.
These are the spirits who sow the seeds of antagonism among
groups, who compel them to isolate themselves from each other
and to look at each other with suspicion. This alone should be
enough to unmask them because by acting in such a manner they
themselves offer the most categorical denial of who they claim to
be. Blind are those persons, therefore, who allow themselves to fall
into such a blatant trap.
Furthermore, there are many other means for recognizing
them. Spirits of the order to which they say they belong must not
only be very good, but eminently rational as well. So then, pass
their theories through the sieve of reason and common sense and
you will see what remains of them. You will agree with me that every
time a spirit indicates as a remedy for the ills of humankind, or as a
means of achieving its transformation, utopian and impracticable
things or childish and ridiculous measures, or when it formulates
a theory contradicted by the most basic notions of science, it can
only be an ignorant and deceitful spirit.
On the other hand, you can be sure that if the truth is not
always appreciated by certain individuals, it is always appreciated
by the good sense of the masses, which is one more criterion. If two
principles contradict each other, you will have the measure of their
intrinsic worth by seeking out which one enjoys greater significance
37
“Fascination… refers to a delusion created directly by a spirit in the thought of a medium,
which in a certain manner paralyzes his or her capacity to judge the quality of the
communications. Fascinated mediums do not believe themselves to be deceived.” (Kardec,
Allan, The Mediums’ Book, International Spiritist Council, 2006, p. 395) – Tr.

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and more sympathy. In fact, it would be illogical to believe that a

doctrine that saw the number of its adherents diminish could be truer
than another that sees its number increase. In wanting the truth to
reach everybody, God does not confine it within a closed circle:
he makes it appear at different points so that everywhere the light
may be alongside the darkness.
Mercilessly shun all spirits who present themselves as exclusive
counselors, preaching separation and isolation. They are nearly
always vain and mediocre spirits, who tend to impose themselves
on weak and credulous individuals, lavishing exaggerated praise
on them in order to fascinate them and keep them under their
domination. They are usually spirits eager for power, and who as
public or private despots during their lifetimes, once more want
to have victims to tyrannize after their death. In general, distrust
communications that entail a mystical or peculiar character, or that
prescribe rituals and bizarre actions. There is always a legitimate
motive for suspicion in such cases.
On the other hand, you may be sure that whenever a
truth must be revealed to humankind, it is, so to speak,
communicated instantaneously to all serious groups that have
serious mediums, and not to this or that group to the exclusion
of all others. No one is a perfect medium if obsessed, and there
is manifest obsession whenever a medium is able to receive
communications from only one particular spirit, no matter how
high it tries to place itself. Consequently, all mediums or groups
who believe themselves to be privileged by communications
that only they can receive, or who are subjected to practices that
emphasize superstition, are undoubtedly under the influence of
a well-characterized obsession, especially when the dominating
spirit adorns itself with a name that everybody, both spirit
and incarnate, should honor and respect, and not allow to be
degraded at any time.

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It is incontestable that, by submitting all spirit phenomena

and communications to the crucible of reason and logic, it will be
easy to reject absurdity and error. One medium can be fascinated
and one group deluded; however, the strict assessment by other
groups, the knowledge acquired, the high moral authority of group
leaders, the communications of the principal mediums who receive
a stamp of logic and authenticity from our best spirits, will render
rapid justice to these deceitful and cunning communications
originated by a horde of deceitful or evil spirits.
Erastus, Disciple of St. Paul (Paris, 1862)
(See Introduction, sect II: Universal control of the Spirits’
teaching; also, The Mediums’ Book, chap. XXIII, Obsession)
Jeremiah and the False Prophets
11. This is what the Lord of Hosts says: Do not listen to the words
of prophets who prophesy and deceive you. They publicize the visions
of their hearts and not what they have learned from the mouth of the
Lord. They say to those who blaspheme me, “The Lord says to you: ‘you
shall have peace,’” and to all those who walk in the corruption of their
hearts, ‘No evil will touch you.’ But who amongst them has heeded
the counsel of God? Who has seen him and listened to what he has
said? I have not sent such prophets; they run by themselves; I have not
spoken to them, yet they prophesy from their own head. I have heard
these prophets, who prophesy lies in my name, saying, “I dreamed;
I dreamed.” How long will this fantasy be in the hearts of prophets
who prophesy lies and whose prophesies are only the deceptions of their
own hearts? Therefore, if these people or a prophet or a priest asks you
and says, “What is the burden of the Lord?” say, “You yourself are the
burden and I shall cast you far from me,” says the Lord. (Jer. 23:16-
18, 21, 25-26, 33)
It is this passage from the prophet Jeremiah that I would like
to discuss with you, my friends. Speaking through Jeremiah, God

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says, “It is the vision of their own hearts that makes them speak.”
These words clearly indicate that at that time charlatans and
impassioned persons abused the gift of prophecy and exploited
it. Consequently, they abused the simple, nearly blind faith of the
people by predicting good and agreeable things in return for money.
This type of fraud was very widespread within the Jewish nation,
and it is easy to understand that, in their ignorance, the poor were
unable to distinguish good prophets from bad ones, and were
more often than not deceived by these so-called prophets, who
were nothing more than impostors or fanatics. There is nothing
more significant than these words, “I have not sent such prophets;
they run by themselves; I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesy.”
Further on, he says, “I have heard these prophets, who prophesy lies
in my name, saying, ‘I dreamed; I dreamed.’” This points out one of
the ways they used in order to exploit the trust the people had in
them. Always credulous, the multitudes did not even think about
contesting the veracity of their dreams or visions; they found it
very natural and were always inviting such prophets to speak.
After Jeremiah’s words, listen to the wise counsels of the
apostle John when he said, “Do not believe all spirits, but test
the spirits to see if they are from God,” for amongst the invisible
there are also those who love to delude when they get the chance.
The deluded are obviously mediums who do not take enough
precautions. This is unquestionably one of the biggest obstacles
upon which many mediums stumble, especially if they are new to
Spiritism. It is a trial for them and they can triumph over it only
by using great prudence. Therefore, before anything else, learn to
distinguish between good and evil spirits, so that you yourselves
do not become false prophets.
Luoz, A Protector Spirit (Karlsruhe, 1861)

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Do not separate what

God has joined
• The Indissolubility of Marriage • Divorce

The Indissolubility of Marriage

1. The Pharisees also came to him in order to test him, saying to him, “Is it
permitted for a man to divorce his wife for whatever reason?” He responded
to them, “Have you not read that he who created man at the beginning
created them male and female, and that he said, ‘For this reason, a man
shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife and the two
shall become one flesh only?’ Hence, they shall no longer be two but one flesh
only. Therefore, let no man separate what God has joined.”

They said to him, “But then why did Moses command that the husband
give his wife a letter of separation and divorce her?” He responded to them,
“It was because of the hardness of your hearts that Moses permitted you to
divorce your wives, but in the beginning it was not like that. I also declare to
you that he who divorces his wife, except in the case of adultery, and marries

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another, commits adultery; and that he who marries the wife that another
divorced also commits adultery.” (Mt. 19:3-9)

2. There is nothing immutable except what has come from

God. Everything that is the work of humans is subject to change.
The laws of nature are the same at all times and in all countries.
Human laws change according to time, place and intellectual
progress. In marriage, what is of divine order is the union of the
sexes to carry out the replacement of people who die. However,
the conditions that govern this union are of an order that is so
human that throughout the entire world – even throughout
Christendom – there are no two countries where such conditions
are completely the same, nor is there one where they have not
undergone change over time. The result is that, in the eyes of civil
law, what is legal in one country and at a given time is adulterous
in another country and at a different time. This is because civil
law is meant to regulate family interests, and these interests vary
according to customs and local needs. Thus it is, for example, that
in certain countries, only religious marriage is legal; in others, a
civil marriage is also required; in others, finally, a civil marriage is
enough by itself.
3. Nevertheless, in the union of the sexes, besides the divine
physical law common to all living beings, there is another divine
law, as immutable as all God’s laws, and exclusively moral: the law of
love. God has willed for individuals to be united not only through
the ties of the flesh, but also through those of the soul, so that the
mutual affection of the spouses is extended to their children, and
that there should be two, instead of one, to love them, care for
them and enable them to progress. In the conventional conditions
of marriage, is this law of love taken into consideration? Not in the
least. The affection of two individuals attracted to one other by a
mutual sentiment is not confirmed, and in the majority of cases

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this affection is shattered for the sake of other interests.38 What is

sought is not the satisfaction of the heart but the satisfaction of
pride, vanity and cupidity; in short, the satisfaction of all interests
of a material nature. When everything is well according to such
interests, the marriage is said to be suitable, and when the material
assets are well matched, it is said that the spouses are also suited for
each other and ought to be very happy.
However, neither civil law nor the commitments that it
contracts can replace the law of love if it does not preside over the
union; the result is that what has been joined forcibly separates on its
own; that the oaths sworn at the altar become perjury if they are
pronounced as a banal formula. As a consequence, there are the
unhappy unions that end up becoming criminal, a double disgrace
that could be avoided if within the marriage the only law that
sanctions it in God’s eyes were not left out: the law of love. When
God stated, “The two shall become one flesh only,” and when
Jesus says, “Let no man separate what God has joined,” one must
understand the union according to the immutable law of God and
not according to the changeable law of human beings.
4. Is the civil law, then, superfluous and should we return
to marriages according to nature? Certainly not. The civil law
is meant to regulate social relationships and family interests in
accordance with the requirements of civilization; this is why it is
useful and necessary, but variable. It must be provident because
civilized human beings cannot live like primitives; but nothing –
absolutely nothing – prevents it from being a corollary of the
divine law. Obstacles to the fulfillment of the divine law arise from
social prejudices, and not from the civil law. These prejudices,
although still alive, have already lost much of their influence among
enlightened cultures, and they will disappear altogether with moral

38
Written in the 1800s; although still prevalent in some parts of the world, forced marriages
are disappearing from the customs of the western world. – Tr.

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progress, which will finally open people’s eyes to the countless ills,
wrongs and crimes that result from unions entered into solely
out of material interests. And someday we will ask ourselves if
it is more humane, more charitable, more moral to chain to one
another two individuals who cannot live together than to restore
them their freedom, or if the perspective of an indissoluble chain
does not increase the number of irregular unions.

Divorce
5. Divorce is a human law with the purpose of legally
separating what is already separated in fact. It is not contrary to
God’s law, since it merely reforms what humans have stipulated
and is applicable only in cases in which the divine law has not
been taken into account. If it were contrary to the divine law, the
Church itself would have to consider as transgressors those of its
leaders, who by their own authority and in the name of religion
have imposed divorce on more than one occasion: a double
transgression therefore, since it is practiced only with material
interests in mind and not to satisfy the law of love.
However, Jesus himself did not consecrate the absolute
indissolubility of marriage. Did he not say, “It was because of
the hardness of your hearts that Moses permitted you to divorce
your wives?” This means that, since the time of Moses, separation
might have been necessary when mutual affection was no longer
the sole objective of marriage. Jesus adds, however, “… but in the
beginning it was not like that,” which means that at the origin
of humankind, when people were not yet perverted by selfishness
and pride, but lived according to God’s law, unions were based on
reciprocal sympathy39 and not on vanity or ambition; thus, there
was no room for divorce.
39
Sympathy: “Harmony of or agreement in feeling, as between persons or on the part of one

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Jesus goes even further and specifies the case in which

divorce can have a place: adultery. Now, there is no adultery
where sincere mutual affection reigns. It is true that he prohibits
any man from marrying a divorced woman, but one must keep
in mind the customs and character of the people in those times.
In cases of adultery, the Mosaic Law prescribed stoning. Jesus
wanted to abolish a barbaric custom; hence, a penalty was needed,
and he found it in the disgrace attached to the prohibition of a
second marriage. It was in some ways one civil law replacing
another civil law, but which, like all laws of such nature, had to
endure the test of time.

person with respect to another. The harmony of feeling existing between persons of like
tastes or opinion or of congenial dispositions” (Webster’s College Dictionary, 1991). – Tr.

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Strange Morals
• Whoever does not hate his father and mother • Forsaking
Father, Mother and Children • Leave to the dead the care of
burying their dead • I have not come to bring peace, but division

Whoever does not hate his

father and mother
1. A large crowd of people was walking with Jesus, when he turned to them
and said, “If anyone comes to me but does not hate his father and mother,
his wife and children, his brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he
cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not want to take up his cross
and follow me cannot be my disciple. Therefore, anyone among you who does
not renounce everything he has cannot be my disciple. (Lk. 14:25-27, 33)

2. He who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of

me; he who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
(Mt. 10:37)

3. Although very rare, certain words spoken by Christ make

such a strange contrast that one instinctively rejects their literal

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meaning, and the sublimity of his doctrine does not suffer any
harm because of it. Written after his death – none of the Gospels
were written during his lifetime – one may be led to believe that,
in this case, the depth of his thought was not well expressed, or,
what is no less probable, the original meaning may have suffered
an alteration in passing from one language to another. It is enough
for an error to be committed just once for it to be repeated in
subsequent copies, as is seen so often regarding historical facts.
The word hate in this verse from Luke: “If anyone comes to
me and does not hate his father and mother,” is such a case; no one
would even think of attributing it to Jesus, so it would be pointless
to argue about it and even less to seek to justify it. One would first
have to know if he did in fact state it, and if so, one would have to
determine if, in the language in which he expressed himself, this
word had the same meaning as in ours. In this verse from John,
“He who hates his life in this world will save it for eternal life,” it is
certain that it does not express the idea we attach to it.
The Hebrew language was not rich and contained many
words with several connotations. One example of this is the word
in Genesis that designates the phases of creation, and which also
served to express a given period of time and the diurnal rotation;
hence its later translation using the word day, and the belief that
the world had been the work of six times twenty-four hours. The
same applies to the word that meant either camel or rope (ropes
were made from camel hair), and which was translated as camel in
the allegory of the eye of a needle. (See chap. XVI, no. 2)40
40
Non odit in Latin, kai or misei in Greek, does not mean to hate, but to love less. What the
Greek verb misein expresses, the Hebrew verb that Jesus must have used expresses even
better: it not only means to hate, but to love less, not to love as much as, or not to love the
same as another. In the Syriac dialect [a dialect of Aramaic, the mother tongue of Jesus –
Tr.], which Jesus probably used more frequently, this is accented even more. It is in this
sense that it is stated in Gen. 29:30, 31: “And Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah, and
Yaweh, seeing that Leah was hated….” It is obvious that the true meaning here is loved less
and that is how it should be translated. In many other Hebraic passages, and especially in
Syriac ones, the same verb is employed in the sense of not to love as much as another, and

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Moreover, one must take into account the customs and

character of peoples, which influence the particular meaning of their
languages. Without this understanding, the true meaning of certain
words is lost. From one language to another, the same term can assume
different degrees of strength; it might be an insult or a blasphemy
in one language but insignificant in another, depending on the idea
attributed to it. Even in the same language, certain words lose their
significance over time. That is why a strictly literal translation does
not always express a thought precisely, and in order to be exact, one
must sometimes use equivalents or paraphrases rather than cognates.
These remarks find a special application in the interpretation
of the Holy Scriptures, and the Gospels in particular. If one does
not take into account the environment in which Jesus lived,
one is exposed to errors regarding the significance of certain
expressions and certain events due to the habit of comparing
others to oneself. Therefore, one must rid the term hate of its
modern acceptation as contrary to the spirit of Jesus’ teaching.
(See also chap. XIV, no. 5 ff.)

Forsaking Father, Mother and Children

4. Whoever has left his home, or his brothers, or his sisters, or his father, or
his mother, or his wife, or his children or his lands for my name shall receive
a hundredfold and shall have eternal life as an inheritance. (Mt. 19:29)

5. Then Peter said to him, “As for us, you can see that we have left everything
and followed you.” Jesus said to them, “Verily I say to you that no one will
leave his home, his father, his mother, his brothers, his wife or his children
for the kingdom of God, who will not receive much more in this world, and
in the time to come, eternal life. (Lk. 18:28-30)

it would be a misinterpretation to translate it as to hate, which has another well-defined

meaning. Furthermore, the text from Matthew clears up all difficulty. – M. Pezzani. (This
note was inserted by Kardec – Tr.)

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6. Another said to him, “Lord, I will follow you, but first allow me to dispose
of what I have at home.” Jesus answered him, “Anyone who has put his hand
to the plow and looks back is not fit for the kingdom of God. (Lk. 9:61-62)

Without arguing over words, here we must look for the

thought, which was obviously this: The interests of the future life
should be placed above all human interests and considerations,
because such thought is in accord with the substance of Jesus’
doctrine, whereas the idea of renouncing one’s family would be
its negation.
Moreover, do we not have before us the application of these
maxims in the sacrifice of our interests and family affections for
our homeland? Would anyone blame a son for leaving his father,
mother, siblings, wife and children to march in defense of his
country? On the contrary, would he not be worthy of merit for
leaving the sweetness of home and the warmth of affections in
order to fulfill a duty? Hence, there are duties that are placed above
others. Does not the law make it an obligation for the daughter
to leave her parents in order to join her husband? The world is
replete with cases in which the most heartbreaking separations
are necessary; however, affections are not broken because of it.
Distance does not lessen the respect or the solicitude that is owed
to parents, nor the tenderness toward children. Thus, one can see
that even if taken literally (except for the term hate) these words
would be neither the negation of the commandment that orders
the honoring of father and mother, nor the sentiment of parental
affection – even more so if taken according to their spiritual
meaning. These words had the purpose of using a hyperbole to
show how imperative the duty was to concern oneself with the
future life. Furthermore, they must have been less shocking in
a culture and time in which, as a result of customs, family ties
had less strength than in a morally more-advanced civilization.
Such ties, weaker in early cultures, become strengthened with the

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development of sensibility and moral sense. Separation itself is

necessary for progress; it occurs in families as well as in cultures,
which would degenerate if there were no intermingling, and if they
did not incorporate one another. It is a law of nature, as much in
the interest of moral progress as in the interest of physical progress.
These matters are examined here solely from the earthly
point of view. Spiritism enables us to see them from higher up by
showing that the true bonds of affection reside in the spirit and
not in the body; that such bonds cannot be broken by separation,
or even by the death of the body; and that they are strengthened in
the spirit life through the spirit’s purification: a comforting truth
that provides much strength for bearing life’s vicissitudes. (See
chap. IV, no. 18; chap XIV, no. 8)

Leave to the dead the care

of burying their dead
7. He said to another, “Follow me,” but he responded, “Lord, first I must go
and bury my father.” Jesus replied, “Leave to the dead the care of burying
their dead; as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God. (Lk. 9:59-60).

8. What could these words mean: “Leave to the dead the

care of burying their dead?” The preceding considerations show
first that, under the circumstances in which they were spoken,
they could not express criticism against someone who regarded it
a duty of filial devotion to go and bury his father. However, they
entail a deeper meaning that can only be understood with a more
complete knowledge of the spirit life.
Life in the spirit world is in fact the true life; it is the
normal life of the spirit, whose earthly existence is only
transitory and passing. It is a sort of death when compared to
the splendor and activity of the spirit life. The body is nothing

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more than a coarse garment that temporarily cloaks the spirit,

a true fetter that holds it imprisoned to the earth, and from
which it is happy to be delivered. The respect one has for the
dead is not bound to the physical matter of the body but to the
remembrance of the absent spirit. It is analogous to that which
we have for the objects that belonged to the deceased and were
touched by him or her, and which are kept as remembrances.
This is what this man could not understand by himself. Jesus
teaches him by stating: Do not worry about the body, but think
first of the spirit. Go and teach the kingdom of God. Go and tell
others that their homeland is not on the earth but in heaven, for
true life is found only there.

I have not come to bring peace, but division

9. Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not
come to bring peace, but a sword; for I have come to separate a man from
his father, a daughter from her mother and a daughter-in-law from her
mother-in-law; and a man will have as enemies those of his own house.
(Mt. 10:34-36)

10. I have come to cast fire upon the earth; and what do I desire except that
it be lit? I must be baptized with a baptism, and how I am in a hurry for it
to be accomplished!

Do you believe that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I assure you,
but on the contrary, division; for from now on if there are five persons in a
home, they will be divided against one another: three against two and two
against three. The father will be divided from his son and the son from his
father; the mother from her daughter and the daughter from her mother; the
mother-in-law from her daughter-in-law and the daughter-in-law from her
mother-in-law. (Lk. 12:49-53)

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11. Was it Jesus, the personification of tenderness and

goodness, Jesus, who never ceased proclaiming love for one’s
neighbor, who could say, “I have not come to bring peace, but
a sword; I have come to separate son from father, husband from
wife; I have come to cast fire upon the earth; and what do I desire
except that it be lit?” Are not such words in flagrant contradiction
with his teaching? Is there not blasphemy in attributing to him
the language of a bloody and ruinous conqueror? No, there is
neither blasphemy nor contradiction in these words, because
it was he himself who spoke them and they bear witness to his
great wisdom. It is solely the form, a bit ambiguous, that does
not express his thought precisely, and this fact has given rise
to misunderstandings as to their true meaning. Taken literally,
they would tend to transform his wholly peaceful mission into a
mission of subversion and discord – an absurd conclusion rejected
by common sense, for Jesus would not have contradicted himself.
(See chap. XIV, no. 6)
12. Every new idea encounters strong opposition and
there is not one that has not been implemented without struggle.
Resistance in such cases is always in proportion to the importance
of the results foreseen, for the greater the idea, the more numerous
the interests it will ruffle. If it is notoriously erroneous, if it is
deemed inconsequential, no one will be concerned with it and
will allow it to pass, knowing it has no viability. However, if it is
true, if it sits on a solid base, if a future is foreseen for it, a secret
presentiment warns its antagonists that it is a danger to them and
to the order of things in whose maintenance they are interested.
That is why they throw themselves against it and its adherents.
The measure of the importance and results of a new idea,
therefore, may be found in the excitement that its appearance
causes, the violence of opposition it provokes and the degree and
persistence of the anger of its adversaries.

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13. Jesus came to proclaim a doctrine that would undermine

the very base of the abuses upon which the Pharisees, scribes and
priests of his time were living, so they killed him, believing they
could kill the idea by killing the man. But the idea survived because
it was true; it grew because it was in the designs of God, and upon
leaving an obscure village in Judea, it planted its banner in the
very capital of the pagan world in the face of its most obstinate
enemies, those who had the most interest in combating it because
it subverted the secular beliefs they held onto more out of self-
interest than conviction. The most dreadful struggles awaited its
apostles there; the victims were innumerable, but the idea grew
everyday and emerged triumphant, because, as the truth, it rose
above its predecessors.
14. It should be noted that Christianity arrived when
paganism was already in decline and was struggling against the
light of reason. It was still practiced in form, but faith in it had
disappeared and only personal interests sustained it. As we know,
interest is tenacious; it never yields to the evidence; it becomes
angrier as the reasons that oppose it become more peremptory
and better demonstrate its error. It knows very well that it is in
error, but that does not bother it because true faith does not
dwell in its soul. What interest fears most is the light that opens
the eyes of the blind. The error is advantageous to it, so it holds
onto and defends it.
Did not Socrates also teach a doctrine analogous to a certain
degree to that of Christ? Why then did it not prevail in the midst
of one of the most intelligent cultures on earth at the time? Because
its time had not yet come. Socrates sowed on unplowed ground;
paganism was not yet worn out. Christ received his providential
mission at the proper time. Not all the people of his time – far from
it – were up to the level of Christian ideas, but there was a more
widespread aptitude for assimilating them due to the beginning of

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a sense of emptiness that popular beliefs left in the soul. Socrates

and Plato had opened the way and had predisposed their spirits.
(See in the Introduction, sect IV: Socrates and Plato: Precursors to
the Christian idea and Spiritism)
15. Unfortunately, the followers of the new doctrine were
not able to agree on the interpretation of the Master’s words, most
of which were veiled by allegory and figures of speech. From its
very beginning, countless sects have flourished, all of them claiming
that they alone possess the truth; not even eighteen centuries have
managed to put them in agreement. Forgetting the most important
of the divine precepts, the ones that Jesus had made the cornerstone of
his building and the express condition of salvation: charity, fraternity
and love for one’s neighbor, these sects have hurled anathemas at
one another and have fought with one another, with the strongest
crushing the weakest, stifling them in blood, torture and burnings
at the stake. Victors over paganism, Christians went from being
persecuted to being persecutors. It was with iron and fire that they
planted the cross of the unblemished Lamb in the two worlds. It is
a confirmed fact that religious wars have been the cruelest and have
made more victims than political wars, and that in no other wars
have more acts of atrocity and barbarity been committed.
Has it been the fault of Christ’s doctrine? Obviously not,
since it formally condemns all violence. Did he ever tell his
disciples: Go kill, massacre and burn those who do not believe
as you? No, because he told them quite the contrary: All people
are brothers and sisters, and God is supremely merciful; love your
neighbor; love your enemies; do good to those who persecute you.
He further said to them: Whoever kills with the sword shall die
by the sword. The responsibility, therefore, does not fall to Jesus’
doctrine, but to those who have misinterpreted it and have made
it an instrument to serve their passions; those who have ignored
these words: My kingdom is not of this world.

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In his profound wisdom, Jesus foresaw what would occur.

But such things were unavoidable because they were connected to
the inferiority of human nature, which could not be transformed
all of a sudden. Christianity had to pass through this long and
cruel trial of eighteen centuries in order to show all its strength,
since despite all the evil committed in its name, it has emerged
pure from it. This has never been disputed. The blame has always
fallen on those who abused it. Following every act of intolerance,
it has always been stated: If Christianity were rightly understood
and practiced, this would not have happened.
16. When Jesus stated, “Do not believe that I have come to
bring peace, but division,” his thought was the following:
“Do not believe that my doctrine will be established
peacefully; it will bring bloody battles, using my name as a pretext,
for humans will not have understood me or will not have wanted to
understand me. Separated by their beliefs, brothers will unsheathe
their swords against one another and division will reign in the
midst of the same family, whose members do not share the same
faith. I have come to cast fire upon the earth to clean it of error and
prejudice, just as fire is put to a field in order to destroy the weeds;
and I desire for it to be lit so that the purification may be quicker,
for out of conflict the truth will emerge triumphant. Peace will
follow war; universal fraternity will follow sectarian hatred; the
light of faith will come after the darkness of fanaticism. Then, when
the field has been prepared, I will send you the consoler, the Spirit
of Truth, who will reestablish all things; that is, given to understand
the true meaning of my words, more enlightened individuals will
finally be able to understand, and will put an end to the fratricidal
battle that divides the children of the same God. Finally, weary of
a combat without result, which has left only desolation in its wake
and has brought trouble into the midst of families, human beings
will realize where their true interests lie regarding this world and

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the other. They will see on which side the friends and enemies of
their peace of mind are located. All will then shelter themselves
beneath the same banner, the banner of charity; and all things will
be reestablished on the earth in accordance with the truth and
principles that I have taught.”
17. Spiritism has come at the right time to fulfill the promises
of Christ. Nonetheless, it cannot do so without destroying abuses.
Like Jesus, on its path Spiritism encounters pride, selfishness,
ambition, cupidity and blind fanaticism, which, struck in their
final defenses, attempt to bar its way and raise obstacles and
persecutions against it. Therefore, it too must fight; but the time
of struggle and bloody persecutions has passed. Those that it will
have to endure are all of a moral nature, and their end is near. The
former lasted for centuries; the latter will last only a few years,
because the light, instead of starting from one single point, has
sprung forth from all points of the globe and will more quickly
open the eyes of the blind.
18. These words of Jesus must therefore be understood
as referring to the rage that his doctrine would provoke, the
momentous conflicts that would be its consequence, the battles that
would have to be borne before is was established – just as happened
to the Hebrews before they entered the Promised Land – and not
the result of a premeditated plan on his part to sow disorder and
confusion. The evil would come from humans and not from him.
He was like the doctor who comes to heal, but whose medicine
provokes a healthful crisis in removing the ills of the patient.

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Do not hide your lamp

under a bushel
• A Lamp under a Bushel. Why Jesus Speaks in Parables
• Do not go to the Gentiles • The healthy do not
need a doctor • The Courage of Faith • Bear Your
Cross. Whoever wants to save his life will lose it

A Lamp under a Bushel. Why

Jesus Speaks in Parables
1. No one lights a lamp to put it under a bushel; rather, he puts it on a lamp
stand so that it can illuminate all who are in the house. (Mt. 5:15)

2. There is no one who, after having lit a lamp, covers it with a vase
or puts it under a bed; he puts it on a lamp stand so that those who
enter can see its light; because there is nothing secret that may not be
discovered, nor anything hidden that may not be known and made
public. (Lk. 8:16-17)

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3. His disciples approached him and asked, “Why do you speak to them in
parables?” And he answered them: “Because to you it has been given to know the
mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. I speak to
them in parables, because seeing, they do not see, and hearing, they neither hear nor
understand. In them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled when he said, “You will hear
with your ears but you will not understand; you will look with your eyes but you
will not see. Because the hearts of this people have been deadened, their ears have
become deaf and they have shut their eyes tight lest their eyes see, their ears hear,
their hearts understand, and being converted, I may heal them. (Mt. 13:10-15)

4. One may be surprised to hear Jesus say that a lamp should

not be put under a bushel, when he himself continually hides
the meaning of his words under veils of allegory that could not
be understood by everyone. He explains himself to his disciples:
I speak to them in parables because they are in no condition to
understand certain things. They see, they hear, but they do not
understand; thus, it would be pointless to tell them everything for
now. But I do tell you because it has been given to you to understand
these mysteries. Jesus acted toward the people as one does toward
children, whose ideas are not yet developed. In this way he points
out the true meaning of the maxim: “One must not put a lamp
under a bushel but upon a stand so that all who enter may see.”
This does not mean, however, that one should inappropriately
reveal everything. Every teaching must be proportional to the
intelligence of those to whom it is directed, since there are persons
whom a radiant light would blind without enlightening.
The same thing happens with people in general and
individuals in particular. Generations go through childhood,
adolescence and adulthood. Each thing must come in its time,
for the seed planted out of season will not grow. However, what
prudence orders to be momentarily hidden must be discovered
sooner or later, because, after reaching a certain degree of
development, people search for the living light by themselves;

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darkness weighs on them. Since God has given them intelligence

in order to understand and to guide them in the things of heaven
and earth, they want their faith to be rational, and it is at this point
that the lamp should not be put under a bushel, for without the
light of reason, faith grows weak. (See chap. XIX, no. 7)
5. Therefore, if in its prudent wisdom Providence does not
reveal truths except gradually, it always reveals them to the degree
that humankind matures enough to receive them. Providence holds
them in reserve, and not under a bushel. However, for the most
part, the individuals who do possess them hide them from the
common folk in order to control them. These are the ones who truly
put the light under the bushel. That is why all religions have had
their mysteries, whose questioning they have proscribed. However,
whereas these religions lagged behind, science and intelligence
have advanced and torn away the veil of mystery. Having entered
adulthood, the common folk wanted to grasp the basis of things and
therefore rejected from their faith what was contrary to observation.
There can be no absolute mysteries, and Jesus is correct when
he states that there is nothing secret that must not become known.
Everything that is hidden will be revealed one day, and whatever
people cannot yet comprehend on the earth will be subsequently
revealed to them on more advanced worlds and when they have
become purified. Down on this world, they are still in the fog.
6. One might ask what advantage the common folk could have
derived from this multitude of parables whose meaning remained
hidden to them. It should be noted that Jesus did not express himself
in parables except regarding certain abstract parts of his doctrine. But
having made charity and humility toward one’s neighbor the express
condition for salvation, everything he said in this regard is perfectly
clear, explicit and unambiguous. And it had to be this way because
it was the rule of conduct, a rule that everyone had to understand
in order to observe. It was what was essential for the ignorant

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multitudes, to whom he limited himself to stating: This is what you

must do in order to gain the kingdom of heaven. Regarding the other
parts, he revealed his thought only to his disciples. Since they were
more advanced morally and intellectually, Jesus could initiate them
into more abstract truths. Thus, he said, “To those who already have,
even more will be given.” (Chap. XVIII, no. 15)
Nonetheless, even with the disciples he remained reticent
regarding many points, the complete knowledge of which was
reserved for later times. These points were what gave way to such
diverse interpretations until science on one hand and Spiritism on
the other came to reveal the new laws of nature, thereby rendering
their true meaning comprehensible.
7. Spiritism has come to shed light on a multitude of
obscure points; however, it does not shed it indiscriminately. The
Spirits proceed in their teachings with admirable prudence. Only
successively and gradually have they broached the various subjects
of the Doctrine, and it is thus that the others will be revealed to the
degree that the time comes for bringing them out of the darkness.
If they had presented the Doctrine completely at the start, it would
have been accessible only to a small number; moreover, it would
have alarmed those who were not yet prepared, which would have
harmed its spread. Thus, if the Spirits have not yet said everything
ostensibly, it is not because there are mysteries in the Doctrine
reserved only for the privileged or because they have placed the lamp
under a bushel, but because each thing must arrive at the appropriate
time. The Spirits allow each idea time to mature and spread before
they present another, and for events to prepare its acceptance.

Do not go to the Gentiles

8. Jesus sent out his twelve (the disciples) after having given them the following
instructions: “Do not go to the Gentiles, and do not enter the cities of the

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Samaritans. Instead, go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and wherever
you go, preach, saying that the kingdom of heaven is near.” (Mt. 10:5-7)

9. In many circumstances, Jesus shows that his sights are

not limited to the Jewish people, but that they encompass all
humankind. Therefore, if he told his disciples not to go to the
pagans, it was not that he disdained converting them – which
would have been uncharitable – but because the Jews, who believed
in the oneness of God and awaited the Messiah, had been prepared
by the Law of Moses and the Prophets to receive his word. Among
the pagans, where even the base was lacking, everything needed
to be done, and the disciples were not yet sufficiently enlightened
for such a weighty task. That is why he told them: Go to the lost
sheep of Israel; that is, go and sow on ground that has already been
prepared, knowing that the conversion of the Gentiles will come
in its own time. Later, in fact, the apostles would plant the cross
right in the midst of paganism.
10. These words may be applied to the followers and
propagators of Spiritism. Systematic disbelievers, obstinate
scoffers and self-centered adversaries are to them what the Gentiles
were to the disciples. Thus, in following their example, they first
seek to make converts among persons of goodwill, those who
desire the light, in whom a fertile seed may be found and whose
numbers are great, without wasting their time on those who refuse
to see or hear, and who, the more importance is attached to their
conversion, are all the more obstinate out of pride. It is worth
more to open the eyes of a hundred blind persons who desire
to see clearly than one person who takes pleasure in darkness,
because doing so increases to a greater proportion the number of
those who will support the cause. Leaving the others alone is not
indifference but good policy. Their time will come when they
are persuaded by general opinion and when they hear the same
thing constantly repeated around them. Then they will believe

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they have accepted the idea voluntarily and by themselves and

not due to the pressure of someone else. Furthermore, the same
thing applies to ideas as applies to seeds: they cannot germinate
before the right season and only in prepared soil. That is why it is
better to wait for the propitious time and to first cultivate those
that germinate, thus avoiding aborting the others by pushing
them too hard.
In the time of Jesus, and as a consequence of the narrow-
minded and materialistic ideas of those days, everything was
circumscribed and localized. The house of Israel was a small nation;
the Gentiles were small nations surrounding it. Today, ideas are
universalized and spiritualized. The new light is not a privilege of
any one nation. There are no barriers to it; it shines everywhere
and all humans are brothers and sisters. Moreover, the Gentiles are
no longer a people, but an opinion that is found everywhere and
over which the truth triumphs little by little, just as Christianity
triumphed over paganism. They are no longer combated with
weapons of war, but with the power of an idea.

The healthy do not need a doctor

11. While Jesus was at table in the home of this man (Matthew), many
publicans and sinners came to join Jesus and his disciples. Upon seeing this,
the Pharisees said to his disciples, “Why does your Master eat with publicans
and sinners?” But upon overhearing them, Jesus answered, “The healthy do
not need a doctor, but the sick.” (Mt. 9:10-12)

12. Jesus addressed mainly the poor and disinherited because

they were the ones in greatest need of consolation; and the blind
of good faith and humility because they asked to see, and not the
proud who believed they possessed the full light and were in need
of nothing. (See the Introduction: Publicans, Tax Collectors)

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These words, like so many others, find their application in

Spiritism. Sometimes people wonder why mediumship is granted
to unworthy persons capable of making a bad use of it. It seems –
they say – that a faculty this valuable should be the exclusive
attribute of those of greater merit.
Let us first state that mediumship is connected to an organic
disposition, with which any person may be endowed – just as that
of seeing, hearing and speaking. People are capable of abusing any
of them through their free will, and if God had granted speech,
for example, only to those who were incapable of saying bad
things, there would be more mute than speaking individuals. God
has given faculties to humans and leaves them free to use them;
however, he always punishes those who abuse them.
If the ability to communicate with spirits were granted
only to the most worthy, who would dare to claim this quality?
Moreover, where is the line between being worthy and being
unworthy? Mediumship is given without distinction so that spirits
may bring the light to all ranks, all classes of society, to the rich
as well as to the poor; to the wise to strengthen them in the good,
and to the corrupt in order to correct them. Are not these latter the
sick who are in need of a doctor? Why would God, who does not
want the death of sinners, deprive them of the help that could pull
them from the mire? Good spirits thus come to help them, and
their counsels, which they receive directly, are of a nature that will
impress them more strongly than if they received them by different
means. In order to save them the trouble of having to go far in
search of the light, the benevolent God places it in their hands; are
they not even guiltier if they do not consider it? Could they excuse
themselves for lack of knowledge when they have written with
their own hands, seen with their own eyes, heard with their own
ears, and spoken with their own mouth their own condemnation?
If they do not take advantage of it, they will be punished with

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the loss or perversion of their faculty, with evil spirits taking hold
of them in order to obsess and deceive them. This will not lessen
the real afflictions with which God smites unworthy servants and
hearts hardened by pride and selfishness.
Mediumship does not necessarily imply habitual
communication with high order spirits. It is simply an aptitude
that serves as a more flexible or less flexible instrument for spirits
in general. Hence, good mediums are not those who communicate
easily, but those who are attuned to good spirits and who are helped
only by them. It is solely in this sense that the excellence of their
moral qualities has complete power over mediumship.

The Courage of Faith

13. Everyone who confesses me and acknowledges me before men, I will
acknowledge and confess before my Father who is in heaven; and anyone
who denies me before men, I will deny before my Father who is in heaven.
(Mt. 10:32-33)

14. If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be

ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of his Father
and all the holy angels. (Lk. 9:26)

15. Courage of opinion has always been held in great

esteem by humankind because there is merit in facing the danger,
persecution, opposition and even the simple sarcasm to which
are exposed those who are not afraid to loudly profess ideas that
are not the same as everybody else’s. Here, as in everything,
the merit depends on the circumstances and the importance
of the result. There is always weakness in recoiling from the
consequences of one’s opinions and in denying them, but there
are cases where it is a cowardice as great as that of fleeing at the
moment of combat.

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 Do not hide your lamp under a bushel

Jesus condemned such cowardice from the special point of

view of his doctrine, saying that if anyone is ashamed of his words,
he will be ashamed of him or her; that he will deny those who
have denied him; that those who confess him before others, he will
acknowledge before his Father who is in heaven. In other words,
those who are afraid to confess that they are disciples of the truth are
not worthy of being admitted into the kingdom of the truth. They will
lose the benefit of their faith because it is a selfish faith that they
keep to themselves, and which they hide out of fear that it might
bring them harm in this world, whereas those who, placing the
truth above their own material interests and proclaiming it openly,
work simultaneously for their own future and the future of others.
16. It will be the same for the followers of Spiritism; since its
doctrine is nothing other than the development and application of
the Gospel, Christ’s words are addressed to them as well. They sow
on the earth what they will reap in the spirit life. There, they will
reap the fruits of their courage or their weakness.

Bear Your Cross. Whoever wants

to save his life will lose it
17. You are greatly blessed when men hate you, avoid you, treat you
injuriously, and revile your name as evil on account of the Son of Man.
Rejoice on that day and exult with joy, because a great reward is reserved
for you in heaven, for thus their fathers treated the prophets. (Lk. 6:22-23)

18. Calling the people unto him with his disciples, he said to them: “If
anyone wants to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and
follow me, for he who wants to save himself will be lost, and he who loses
himself out of love for me and the Gospel will be saved. In truth, what good
would it do a man to gain the whole world but lose himself? (Mk. 8:34-36;
Lk. 9:23-25; Mt. 10:39; Jn. 12:24-25)

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19. Rejoice, said Jesus, when others hate you and persecute
you on account of me, for you will be rewarded in heaven because
of it. These words may be translated as: Be happy when, because of
their ill will toward you, others provide you with an opportunity
to test the sincerity of your faith, because the evil they do to you
results in your benefit. Therefore, mourn them because of their
blindness, and do not curse them.
Then, he adds: “Let those who want to follow me take
up their cross”; that is, they should courageously bear the
tribulations that their faith will engender, because those who
want to save their life and their possessions by denying me will
lose the advantages of the kingdom of heaven, whereas those
who have lost everything in this world – even their life – for the
triumph of the truth will receive in the future life the reward
for their courage, perseverance and self-denial. But to those who
sacrifice heavenly possessions to earthly pleasures, God says: You
have already received your recompense.

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Seek and you shall find

• Help Yourself and Heaven Will Help You • Observe the birds
in the sky • Do not wear yourself out for the possession of gold

Help Yourself and Heaven Will Help You

1. Ask and it shall be given to you; seek and you shall find; knock at the
door and it shall be opened to you; for whoever asks receives, and whoever
seeks finds, and it shall be opened to the one who knocks at the door.

Also, who is the man among you who will give a stone to his son when he asks
for bread? Or if he asks him for a fish, will give him a serpent? If, therefore,
you, being evil as you are, know how to give good things to your children, it
is even more reasonable that your Father, who is in heaven, will give good
things to those who ask him.(Mt. 7:7-11)

2. From the earthly point of view, the maxim: Seek and you
shall find is analogous to this one: Help yourself and heaven will help
you. It is the principle of the law of labor and, consequently, the
law of progress, because progress is the child of labor, and labor sets
in motion the powers of the intelligence.

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During humankind’s infancy, humans apply their

intelligence only to the search for nourishment, the means to
shelter themselves from the inclemency of the weather and to
defend themselves against their enemies. However, God has
given them more than to the animal: the incessant desire to
better themselves; it is this desire that drives them to seek out
means of improving their situation, which in turn leads them to
discoveries, inventions and to the perfecting of science, because
it is science that provides them with what they lack. Through
their research, their intelligence expands and their morals
become purified. The needs of the body are followed by the
needs of the spirit. After physical nourishment, humans need
spiritual nourishment, and it is thus that humans pass from the
primitive to the civilized state.
However, the progress that each person accomplishes
individually during his or her lifetime is very little, even
imperceptible to many. How, then, could humankind progress
without the preexistence and re-existence of the soul? If
souls departed every day never to return, humankind would
be constantly renewing itself with primitive beings, having
everything to do and everything to learn. Consequently, there
would be no reason for humans to be more advanced today
than in the early ages of the world, since with each birth all
intellectual labor would have to recommence. On the other
hand, by returning with the progress it has accomplished, and
each time acquiring a little more, the soul passes gradually from
barbarism to materialistic civilization and from there to moral
civilization. (See chap IV, no. 17)
3. If God had exempted humans from bodily labor, their
limbs would have atrophied; if God had exempted them from
intellectual labor, their spirit would have remained in infancy,
in the state of animal instinct. That is why God made labor a

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necessity, and said to them: Seek and you shall find; labor and you
shall produce. In this way, you will be the children of your deeds;
you will derive merit from them and you will be recompensed
according to what you have done.
4. It is through the application of this principle that spirits
do not come to spare humans the work of research by bringing
them discoveries and inventions that are completed and ready to
produce, in such a way that they would only have to take what
was put in their hands, without having to go to the trouble to
bend down to pick it up or even to think about it. If that were the
case, the laziest individuals could enrich themselves and the most
unlearned become wise at no cost, and both would receive merit
for what they have not done. No, spirits do not come to exempt
humans from the law of labor, but to show them the objective they
must reach and the way that will lead them to it, saying to them:
Press on and you shall arrive. You will find stones under your feet;
look and remove them yourself. We will give you the strength you
need if you wish to use it. (The Mediums’ Book, pt. 2, chap. XXVI,
nos. 291 ff.)
5. From the moral point of view, these words of Jesus
mean: Ask that the light may enlighten your way and it will
be given to you; ask for the strength to resist evil and you will
have it; ask for the assistance of the good spirits and they will
come to accompany you, and like the angel of Tobit, they will
serve as your guides. Ask for good counsel and it will never be
refused to you; knock at our door and it will be opened to you;
but ask sincerely, with faith, fervor and trust; present yourself
with humility and not arrogance; otherwise, you will be left to
your own devices and your failures will be the punishment for
your pride.
Such is the meaning of the words: Seek and you shall find;
knock and it shall be opened to you.

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Observe the birds in the sky

6. Do not accumulate treasures on the earth, where rust and worms corrupt
them and where thieves unbury and steal them; but create treasures in
heaven, where neither rust nor worms corrupt, for wherever your treasure is,
there is your heart also.

Thus, I say to you: Do not be anxious about where you will find something to
eat for the sustenance of your life, or where you will get clothes to cover your
body. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?

Observe the birds in the sky: they neither sow nor reap, nor do they store
anything in barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth
much more than they? And who among you, with all his effort, can increase
his stature by one cubit?

Moreover, why are you anxious about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the
fields grow: they neither work nor spin; nevertheless, I declare to you that
Solomon himself in all his glory was ever dressed like one of them. Thus,
if God has taken care to clothe in such manner an herb in the field, which
exists today and tomorrow will be cast into the fire, how much more care will
he take in clothing you, O men of little faith!

Therefore, do not be anxious, saying: What will we eat, or what will we

drink, or what will we wear, as do the pagans who seek after all these thing,
because your Father knows what you need.

Therefore, seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these
things will be given to you in abundance. So do not be anxious for tomorrow,
for tomorrow will take care of itself. Each day has enough evil of its own.
(Mt. 6:19-21, 25-34)

7. Taken literally, these words would be the negation of all

foresight and labor, and consequently, of all progress. With such
a principle, humans would reduce themselves to an expectant
passiveness. Their physical and mental powers would remain

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inactive. If such had been their normal condition on the earth,

they would have never left the primitive state, and if it were to
become the law today, they would have nothing more to do than
to live in idleness. This could not have been Jesus’ thought, because
it would be in contradiction with what he said elsewhere and with
the laws of nature themselves. God created humans with neither
clothing nor shelter but gave them the intelligence to make them.
(Chap. XIV, no. 6; chap. XXV, no. 2)
Therefore, one should see in these words only a poetic
allegory of Providence, which never abandons those who put
their trust in it, but which wills that they work alongside it. If
Providence does not always come to them with material help, it
inspires them with ideas with which they may find the means of
freeing themselves from their difficulty. (Chap. XXVII, no. 8)
God knows our needs and provides for them according to
what is necessary. However, humans, insatiable in their desires,
never know how to be content with what they have: the necessities
are not enough for them; they need the superfluous. It is then that
Providence leaves them to themselves. They are often unhappy
due to their own fault and for having disregarded the voice that
warned them in their conscience; and God allows them to suffer
the consequences so that they may serve as a lesson for the future.
(Chap. V, no. 4)
8. The earth will produce enough to feed all its inhabitants
when, according to the laws of justice, charity and love for one’s
neighbor, people know how to manage the provisions it gives to
them. When fraternity reigns among all peoples as it does among
the provinces of the same country, the temporary surplus of one
will make up for the temporary insufficiency of another, and each
will have what it needs. The rich will then regard themselves as
those who possess a large amount of seed; if they scatter it, it will
produce a hundredfold for themselves and for others, but if they

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consume the seed by themselves, if they waste it and allow the

surplus of what they have consumed to be lost, the seed will produce
nothing and there will not be enough for everybody. If they hoard
it in their barns, the worms will devour it. That is why Jesus said:
Do not accumulate treasures on the earth, which are perishable,
but create treasures in heaven, because they are eternal. In other
words, do not attach more importance to material possessions than
spiritual ones, and know how to sacrifice the former on behalf of
the latter. (Chap. XVI, nos. 7 ff.)
Charity and fraternity are not decreed by law. If they are not
in the heart, selfishness will always stifle them; it is the labor of
Spiritism to enable them to enter the heart.

Do not wear yourself out for

the possession of gold
9. Do not fret for the possession of gold or silver or any other coins in your
purse. Do not prepare a bag for your journey, or two cloaks, or shoes, or staff,
for those who work deserve to be fed.

10. In any city or town that you have entered, inquire as to who is worthy to
house you, and remain with him until you leave. When you enter the house,
greet it saying: May peace be in this house. If the house is worthy, your peace
will come upon it; if it is not, your peace will return to you.

Whenever someone does not wish to receive you or to listen to your words,
when you leave that house or city, wipe the dust from your feet. Verily I say to
you that on the day of Judgment, Sodom and Gomorrah will be treated less
harshly than that city. (Mt. 10:9-15)

11. These words, which Jesus addressed to his disciples

when he sent them out for the first time to proclaim the Good
News, display nothing strange for that era: they are in keeping

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with the patriarchal customs of the East, where the traveler was
always welcomed into one’s tent. However, back then travelers
were rare. Among modern cultures, the increase in travel has led
to the creation of new customs, and those of ancient times are
found only in far-off regions that have not yet been affected by
much travel. And if Jesus were to return today, he would no longer
be able to tell his disciples: Set out without any provisions.
Besides their actual meaning, these words contain a much
deeper moral meaning. Jesus was thereby teaching his disciples
to trust in Providence. By having nothing, they could not tempt
the greed of those who received them. It was a way to distinguish
the charitable ones from the selfish. That is why he said to them:
“Inquire as to who is worthy to house you”; which means, who
is humane enough to shelter the traveler who has no means of
paying, because such persons are worthy of hearing your words.
By their charity you will recognize them.
As for those who did not want to welcome them or listen to
them, did he tell his disciples to curse them, to impose themselves on
them or to use force and coercion to convert them? No, but purely
and simply to go somewhere else and look for persons of goodwill.
This is what Spiritism tells its adherents today. Do not
violate anyone’s conscience. Do not force anyone to leave their
own beliefs to adopt yours. Do not cast an anathema on those who
do not think like you. Gather those who come to you and leave in
peace those who reject you. Remember Christ’s words. Formerly
heaven was taken by force; today it is taken by kindness. (Chap.
IV, nos. 10, 11)

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Give freely what you

have received freely
• The Gift of Healing • Paid Prayers • The Merchants
Expelled from the Temple • Mediumship Free of Charge

The Gift of Healing

1. Restore health to the sick; raise the dead; heal lepers and cast out demons.
Give freely what you have received freely. (Mt. 10:8)

2. “Give freely what you have received freely,” Jesus said

to his disciples. By this precept he prescribes that one should
not charge for something that one has not paid for. What the
disciples had received freely was the faculty of healing the
sick and casting out demons, that is, evil spirits. This gift was
given to them freely by God for the relief of those who were
suffering and for the spreading of the faith; he told them not
to make a business of it, an object of speculation, or a way to
make a living.

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Paid Prayers
3. He then said to his disciples in the presence of all the people listening to
him: “Guard yourselves against the scribes, who walk around in long robes
to show themselves, who love to be greeted in the public squares and to occupy
the best seats in the synagogues and feasts; who, under the pretext of long
prayers, devour widows’ houses. For doing so, such persons will receive a
harsher condemnation.” (Lk. 20:45-47; Mk. 12:38-40; Mt. 23: 14)

4. Jesus also said: Do not make anyone pay for your

prayers; do not do like the scribes who “under the pretext of
long prayers, devour widows’ houses,” which means to seize their
wealth. Prayer is an act of charity, an impulse of the heart; to be
paid for a prayer addressed to God for someone else is to make
oneself a paid intermediary. Prayer, in this case, is a formula,
whose length is in proportion to the amount of money it yields.
Well then, one of two things applies: either God measures or
does not measure his blessings by the number of words. If many
words are necessary, why say only a few of them or none at all
for those who cannot pay? This is a lack of charity. If only one
is enough, then more are pointless. So why make them pay? It
is an abuse of trust.
God does not sell the benefits he grants. Why, then,
would someone who is not even the benefits’ distributor, and
who cannot guarantee their obtainment, demand payment for
a request that might not be answered? God cannot make an
act of clemency, goodness or justice that is requested from the
divine mercy be dependent on a sum of money; otherwise, the
consequence would be that if the sum were not paid or if it were
insufficient, God’s clemency, goodness and justice would be
withheld. Reason, common sense and logic state that God, the
absolute perfection, could not delegate to imperfect individuals

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the right to put a price on divine justice. God’s justice is like

the sun; it is for everybody, for the rich as much as the poor.
If the selling of favors by an earthly sovereign is regarded as
immoral, is it any more legitimate to sell those of the sovereign
of the universe?
Paid prayers have another drawback: those who buy
them very often believe that they themselves do not have to
pray because they have given their money. We know that spirits
are touched by the fervor of the thought of those who take an
interest in them; what could be the fervor of someone who
arranged for a third party to pray for them by paying for it?
What is the fervor of this third party when he or she delegates
this task to another, and that one yet to another, and so on and
so forth? Does that not reduce the prayer’s effectiveness to the
value of a particular currency?

The Merchants Expelled from the Temple

5. They then came to Jerusalem, and Jesus, having entered the temple, began
to expel those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables
of the moneychangers and the seats of those who were selling doves. And he
allowed no one to carry any wares through the temple. He also taught them,
saying: “Is not my house to be called a house of prayer for all the nations? But
you have made it a den of thieves.” When the chief priests heard this, they
sought a means to kill him, for they feared him because all the people were
taken by wonder at his doctrine. (Mk. 11:15-18; Mt. 21:12-13)

6. Jesus expelled the merchants from the temple, thereby

condemning the selling of holy things under any form whatsoever.
God sells neither the divine blessings, forgiveness nor entry into
the kingdom of heaven; humans, therefore, have no right to require
payment for them.

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Mediumship Free of Charge

7. Modern mediums – because the disciples also possessed
mediumship – also have received a free gift from God: that of
being the interpreters of spirits for the instruction of humankind,
to show them the pathway to the good and to lead them to faith;
and not to sell them words that do not belong to them, because
they are not the product of their personal conception, research or
personal labor. God wills for the light to reach everybody; God
does not will for the poorest person to be disinherited from it or
to be kept from it by saying: I do not have faith, because I could
not pay for it; I could not have the consolation of receiving the
encouragement and the displays of affection of those whom I weep
for, because I am poor. That is why mediumship is not a privilege
and is found everywhere. To receive payment for its practice would
thus be to divert it from its providential purpose.
8. All those who know the conditions in which good
spirits communicate and their aversion for anything that may
have a selfish interest, and who know how little it takes to keep
them away, can never believe that high order spirits are at the
disposal of the first person who comes along and evokes them
for a price at a mediumistic session; plain common sense rejects
such a thought. Would it not also be a profanation to evoke for
the price of silver the beings whom we respect or who are dear
to us? Undoubtedly, one can obtain manifestations this way,
but who could guarantee their authenticity? Frivolous, deceitful
and cunning spirits, and a whole multitude of unscrupulous
low order spirits, will always show up and are always ready to
respond to any question asked of them, with no regard for the
truth. Thus, those who desire serious communications must
first ask for them seriously after certifying the nature of the
sympathies of the medium with the beings of the spirit world.

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Now, the first condition for attracting the benevolence of good

spirits is humility, devotion, selflessness and complete moral and
material disinterest.
9. Alongside the moral issue, a no less important consideration
presents itself in connection with the very nature of the faculty.
Mediumship could not be, nor will it ever be, a profession, not
only because it would be morally discredited and immediately
compared with fortunetelling, but because a material obstacle is
opposed to it: it is an essentially transitory, fleeting and changeable
faculty, whose permanence no one can count on. Therefore, it
would always be a very uncertain resource to be exploited because
it could fail at the moment in which it would be most necessary.
A different matter altogether is a talent acquired through study
and work, and which, for that very reason, is an asset from which
it is naturally permitted to make a profit. Mediumship, however,
is neither an art nor a talent, and that is why it cannot be made
into a profession; it does not exist except through the concourse
of spirits; if spirits are lacking, there is no longer mediumship; the
aptitude may persist but the practice is annulled; thus, there is not
one medium in the world who could guarantee the obtainment of a
spirit phenomenon at any given moment. Exploiting mediumship
is thus to make use of something that one does not really own;
to state otherwise is to deceive the person being charged. What
is more, it is not they themselves that they are making use of, but
the spirits, the souls of the dead, whose concourse is put up for
sale. Such a thought is instinctively repugnant. It is this sort of
trafficking, degenerated into abuse, exploited by charlatanism,
ignorance, credulity and superstition that motivated Moses’
prohibition. Modern Spiritism, understanding the serious side of
the matter through the discredit it has cast over such exploitation,
has elevated mediumship to the category of being a mission. (See
The Mediums’ Book, chap. XXVIII; Heaven and Hell, chap. XI)

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10. Mediumship is something sacred that must be practiced

in a holy and religious manner. If there is one type of mediumship
that requires this attitude most completely, it is healing mediumship.
Physicians provide the fruit of their study, which they have made at
the price of often painful sacrifice; magnetizers provide their own
fluid41 – oftentimes even their health – and they may charge for their
practices; healing mediums, however, transmit the healthful fluid of
good spirits, and do not have the right to sell it. Although poor, Jesus
and the disciples charged nothing for the healings they obtained.
Thus, those who do not have the financial means to support
themselves should go and seek resources somewhere else other than
in mediumship, and if necessary, devote to it only the spare time
they have available. Spirits will take into account their dedication
and sacrifices, whereas they will avoid those who intend to use
mediumship as a means for material gain.

41
“We call fluids those states in which matter is even more refined than it is in the gaseous
state (Gabriel DeLanne, O Espiritismo perante a Ciência, pt. 4, chap. 3, Federação Espírita
Brasileira, 1993 – translation ours) – Tr.

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Ask and you shall receive

• The Characteristics of Prayer • The Effectiveness of Prayer •
The Action of Prayer; Transmission of Thought • Intelligible
Prayers • Prayers for the Dead and for Suffering Spirits •
The Spirits’ Teachings: – How to Pray. – The Joy of Prayer.

The Characteristics of Prayer

1. When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites who take pleasure in standing
in the synagogues and on street corners, praying in order to be seen by men.
Verily, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you want to
pray, go into your room, and with the door closed, pray to your Father in
secret; and your Father, who sees what happens in secret, will reward you.

Do not feign to pray much in your prayers as do the heathen, who think they
will be heard because of their many words. Do not become like them, because
your Father knows what you need even before you ask him. (Mt. 6:5-8)

2. When you present yourself to pray, if you have something against

someone, forgive him so that your Father in heaven may forgive your sins
also. If you do not forgive, your Father in heaven will not forgive your sins
either. (Mk. 11: 25-26)

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3. He also told this parable to a few who believed themselves to be righteous,

while despising others.

Two men went up to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee; the other a
publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed like this: My God, I give you thanks
because I am not like other men, who are thieves, unrighteous and adulterers,
nor am I like this publican. I fast twice per week and I give a tenth of all I possess.

The publican, on the other hand, kept his distance and did not even dare to
lift his eyes to heaven; but he beat his breast, saying, “My God, have mercy
on me, sinner that I am.”

I tell you that this one returned to his house justified, whereas the other
did not, for everyone who raises himself will be humbled and everyone who
humbles himself will be lifted up. (Lk. 18:9-14)

4. The characteristics of prayer are clearly defined by Jesus.

When you pray, he states, do not be obvious about it, but pray
in secret. Do not feign to pray much, because it is not due to a
multiplicity of words that your prayer will be granted, but your
sincerity. Before praying, if you have something against someone,
forgive that person, because your prayer will not be pleasing to
God if it does not come from a heart purified of every sentiment
contrary to charity. In short, pray with humility like the publican,
and not with pride like the Pharisee. Examine your defects and not
your good qualities, and if you compare yourself with others, look
for what might be evil in you. (See chap. X, nos. 7 and 8)

The Effectiveness of Prayer

5. Whatever you may ask for in prayer, believe you will receive it, and it will
be granted to you. (Mk. 11:24)

6. There are persons who contest the effectiveness of prayer,

and they base their argument on the principle that if God knows

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our needs, it is superfluous to state them. They add further that,

since everything in the universe is linked together by eternal laws,
our desires cannot change God’s decrees.
Without any doubt there are natural and immutable laws from
which God cannot derogate according to one’s caprice; there is a great
distance, however, from believing this and believing that all life’s
circumstances are subject to fatalism. If such were the case, humans
would be only a passive instrument with no free will or initiative.
Under such a hypothesis, there would be no other recourse than to
bend one’s head under the blow of every event, without seeking to
avoid it; no effort would be made to try to avert danger. God has
not given humans discernment and intelligence to go unused, a will
not to be exercised in desiring things, or activity to remain inactive.
Since humans are free to act in one way or another, their actions
have, for them and for others, consequences dependent on what
they do or fail to do. Through their initiative, therefore, there are
events that inevitably escape fatalism, and which do not destroy the
harmony of the universal laws, just as the quicker or slower pace of
the pendulum does not destroy the law of movement upon which
the mechanism is built. Hence, God can accede to certain requests
without derogating from the immutability of the laws that govern
the whole, although granting them is always subject to God’s will.
7. It would be illogical to conclude from this maxim:
“Whatever you may ask for in prayer will be granted to you,”
that it is enough simply to ask in order to receive, and it would
be unjust to accuse Providence if it does not grant every request
made, because it knows better than we do what is best for us. The
same applies to a wise father who refuses his son things that are
not in his best interest. Generally, humans see only the present;
however, if suffering is useful for their future happiness, God will
allow them to suffer, just as a surgeon allows the sick person to
suffer an operation that should bring healing.

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What God will grant them, if asked with trust, is courage,

patience and resignation. What God will also grant them are the
means to extricate themselves from their difficulties with the aid
of ideas suggested by good spirits at God’s urging, thus leaving
them the merit. God helps those who help themselves, according
to this maxim: “Help yourself and heaven will help you,” and
not those who hope for outside help without making use of their
own faculties. Usually, however, one would rather be helped by a
miracle without having to do anything. (See chap. XXV, nos. 1 ff.)
8. Let us take an example. A man is lost in a desert and is
suffering from terrible thirst. He feels faint and falls to the ground.
He prays to God to help him and waits; but no angel comes to
bring him something to drink. Meanwhile, a good spirit suggests
to him the thought to get up and follow one of the pathways that
are before him. Then, in a purely mechanical motion, he gathers
his strength, gets up and walks erratically. Arriving at an elevated
area, he spots a brook not far away. Upon seeing it, he regains his
courage, and if he has faith, he will exclaim, “Thank you, my God,
for the thought you inspired in me and for the strength you have
given me.” If he does not have faith, he will say, “What a good
thought I had! What good luck I had by taking the path to the
right instead of the one to the left. Sometimes chance really does
serve us well! How I must congratulate myself for my courage and
for not having given up!”
You might ask, however, why did the good spirit not say to
him clearly, “Follow this path and at the end of it you will find
what you need?” Why did the spirit not show itself to him in order
to guide him and uphold him in his feebleness? In that way, he
would have become convinced of the intervention of Providence.
First of all, it was meant to teach him that one must help oneself
and make use of one’s own strength. Second, through uncertainty,
God puts to the test this man’s trust and submission to the divine

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will. This man was in the situation of a child who falls and who,
perceiving someone near at hand, cries out and hopes that it will
be picked up; if the child does not see anyone, however, it makes
the effort and gets up by itself.
If the angel who accompanied Tobit had said to him, “I have
been sent by God to guide you on your journey and to protect you
from all harm,” Tobit would not have merited anything. Trusting
in his companion, he would not even have had to think; that is
why the angel made itself visible only on the return trip.42

The Action of Prayer;

Transmission of Thought
9. Prayer is an invocation; by means of prayer we
communicate through thought with the being to whom the prayer
is addressed. Its purpose may be a request, an acknowledgement or
a glorification. One may pray for oneself or for someone else, for
the living or for the dead. Prayers addressed to God are heard by
spirits in charge of carrying out God’s will; those that are addressed
to good spirits are taken to God. When one prays to beings other
than God, they act only as intermediaries or intercessors, because
nothing can be done without it being God’s will.
10. Spiritism enables us to understand the action of prayer
by explaining the mode of transmission of thought, either when
the being to whom we have prayed comes in answer to our appeal,
or when our thoughts ascend to this being. In order to understand
what occurs in this circumstance, one must visualize all beings,
both incarnate and discarnate, as immersed in the universal fluid
that occupies space, just as we are immersed in the atmosphere
of this world. This fluid receives an impulse of the will. It is the
vehicle of thought, just as the air is the vehicle of sound, but with
42
A reference to the Apocryphal book of Tobit. – Tr.

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the difference that the vibrations in the air are circumscribed,

whereas those of the universal fluid extend infinitely. Therefore,
when the thought is directed toward some being either on the
earth or in space, from incarnate to discarnate, a fluidic current is
established from the one to the other to transmit the thought, just
as air transmits sound.
The current’s energy depends on the strength of the thought
and the will; this is how prayer is heard by spirits wherever they
may be, how spirits communicate amongst themselves, how they
transmit their inspirations to us, and how communications at a
distance are established among incarnates.
This explanation is especially for those who do not
understand the worth of purely mystical prayer; its purpose is not
to materialize prayer but to render its effect intelligible by showing
that it can have a direct and effective action. Prayer is nonetheless
still subordinate to the will of God, the supreme judge in all
matters, and the only one who can render its action effective.
11. Through prayer, humans call to themselves the
concourse of good spirits, who come to uphold them in their
good resolutions and inspire them with good thoughts. They thus
acquire the moral strength needed to overcome difficulties and
to return to the upright path when they have wandered from it;
through prayer they can also divert the evils they attract because of
their own fault. For example, a man finds that his health has been
ruined because of the excesses he has committed, and he leads a
life of suffering till the end of his days. Does he have the right to
complain if he does not receive healing? No, because he could have
found in prayer the strength to resist temptation.
12. If the ills of life were divided into two parts, one
consisting of what humans cannot avoid and the other consisting
of troubles whose primary cause is humans themselves through
their carelessness and excesses (see chap. V, no. 4), one would see

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that the latter is much greater in number than the former. It is thus
obvious that humans are the authors of most of their afflictions
and that they could save themselves from them if they always acted
with wisdom and prudence.
It is no less certain that such troubles are the result of our
infractions against God’s laws, and that if we were to observe these
laws accurately, we would be perfectly happy. If we did not surpass
the limit needed to satisfy our needs, we would not suffer the
illnesses that are the consequence of the excesses along with the
vicissitudes that such illnesses entail. If we placed a limit on our
ambition, we would not fear ruin. If we did not want to ascend
higher than we are capable of, we would not fear a downfall. If
we were humble, we would not suffer the disappointments of
humiliated pride. If we practiced the law of charity, we would not
be slanderous, envious or jealous, and we would avoid quarrels
and dissentions. If we did not do evil to anyone, we would not
fear revenge, etc.
Let us admit the fact that humans can do nothing about
other ills, and that all prayers are ineffective to be freed of them;
would it not be enough if they could be free of all the ills that stem
from their own conduct? In such a case, the action of prayer is easy
to conceive because its effect is to evoke the healthy inspiration of
good spirits, and to ask them for the strength to resist evil thoughts
whose fulfillment could be disastrous for us. In this instance, it is
not the evil that good spirits divert from us, but instead, they divert
us from the thought that could cause the evil; they do not in any way
contravene the decrees of God, nor do they suspend the course of the laws
of nature; rather, it is we ourselves whom they keep from infringing
these laws by guiding our free will. However, they do so without
our being aware of it so as not to infringe on our will. Humans
are therefore in the situation of those who ask for good advice and
put it into practice; that is, they are always free to follow it or not.

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God wills it to be this way so that they will take responsibility

for their acts and in order to leave them the merit of choosing
between good and evil. This is what humans can always be certain
of obtaining if they ask for it with fervor, and it is to what these
words are especially applicable: “Ask and you shall receive.”
Would not the effectiveness of prayer, even if reduced to this
proportion, have an immense result? It was reserved for Spiritism to
prove us its action by revealing the relations between the corporeal
and spirit worlds. But its effects are not limited to just this.
Prayer is recommended by all the Spirits; to renounce prayer
is to ignore God’s goodness; it is to refuse for oneself the assistance
of God, and for others the good that we can do for them.
13. By granting a request, God frequently aims to reward the
intent, the devotion and the faith of the one who prays; that is why
the prayer of a good person is more meritorious in God’s eyes and
always more effective, because a corrupt and evil person cannot
pray with the fervor and trust that come solely from a sentiment of
true piety. From the heart of a selfish person who prays only with
the lips only words will come out and not the impulses of charity
that give prayer all its power. One understands this so clearly that,
by an instinctive reaction, we prefer to commend ourselves to
the prayers of those in whom we perceive a conduct that must be
pleasing to God, sensing they are more readily heard.
14. If prayer exerts a sort of magnetic action, one might
suppose that its effect is dependent on the fluidic power – however,
this is not the case. Since spirits exert this action on humans, spirits
make up for the insufficiency of those who pray, when necessary,
whether by acting directly in their name, or by momentarily giving
them exceptional strength, when they are deemed worthy of such
a favor or if it may be useful.
People who do not think they are good enough to exert a
healthful influence should not abstain from praying for others by

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thinking they are not worthy of being heard. The awareness of

their unworthiness is a demonstration of humility, which is always
agreeable to God, who takes into account the charitable intent
that animates them. Their fervor and trust in God are a first step
in the return to goodness, for which good spirits are happy to
encourage them. Prayers that are rejected are those of the proud,
who have faith in their own power and worthiness, and who think
they can replace the will of the Eternal One.
15. The power of prayer is in the thought; it is connected
neither to the words, the place nor the time in which it is done.
Hence, one can pray anywhere and at any time, alone or in a
group. The influence of the place or time is connected with the
circumstances that may favor introspection. Prayer in a group is
more powerful when all those who pray are joined by the same heartfelt
thought and have the same purpose because it is as if they all speak
in one voice and in unison; but what does it matter to be gathered
in a large number if each person acts alone and for his or her own
benefit! One hundred persons together can pray selfishly, whereas
two or three joined in a common aspiration may pray like true
brothers and sisters in God, and their prayer will have more power
than the other hundreds’. (See chap. XXVIII, nos. 4 and 5)

Intelligible Prayers
16. If I do not understand what the words mean, I will be a foreigner
to the one with whom I am speaking and he will be a foreigner to me. If
I pray in a language that I do not understand, my spirit prays but my
mind does not benefit. If you praise God only with your spirit, how would
anyone among those who understand only their own language respond
‘Amen’ at the end of your thanksgiving if they do not understand what
you say? It is not that your thanksgiving is not good, but that the others
are not edified by it. (I Cor. 14:11,14,16-17)

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17. A prayer is only as good as the thought connected with

it, and it is impossible to connect a thought with what is not
understood, because whatever is not understood cannot touch
the soul. For most people, prayers spoken in an incomprehensible
language are only a group of words that say nothing to the spirit.
In order for prayer to touch, each word must reveal an idea, and if
one does not understand it, it cannot reveal anything. One repeats
it as a simple formula that has more or less virtue according to
the number of times it is repeated. Many pray as an obligation;
others to conform to the habit. This is why they believe they are
exonerated after they have said a prayer a determined number of
times and in such and such an order. God reads the depths of the
heart and sees the thought and sincerity, and it is to demean God
to believe that God is more impressed by the form than the depth.
(See chap. XXVIII, no. 2)

Prayers for the Dead and for Suffering Spirits

18. Suffering spirits beg for prayers. Prayer is useful to them
because when they see that they are being remembered, they feel
less forsaken and less unhappy. However, prayer has a more direct
action on them: it rebuilds their courage and incites them with the
desire to uplift themselves through repentance and reparation, and
it can divert them from thoughts of evil. In this sense, it may not
only alleviate, but shorten their sufferings. (See Heaven and Hell,
pt. 2: Examples)
19. Some people do not believe in prayers for the dead,
because in their belief system there are only two alternatives for
the soul: to be saved or to be condemned to eternal punishment;
and in either case prayer is useless. Without discussing the
value of such a belief, let us admit for a moment the reality of
eternal and unpardonable punishment, and that our prayers

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are powerless to put an end to it. We would ask: if such is the

case, is it logical, charitable and Christian to refuse prayer for
the reprobate? As powerless as such prayers may be to deliver
them, are they not for them a demonstration of pity that might
soften their suffering? On earth, when individuals receive a life
sentence, even if they have no hope of having it commuted,
is a charitable person prohibited from helping to alleviate the
weight of their punishment? When someone is beset with an
incurable disease because there is no hope for a cure, must he
or she be abandoned without any relief? Imagine that, among
the reprobate, there might be a person who used to be dear to
you, maybe a friend, a father, a mother or a son, and although,
according to you, they could not expect any mercy, would you
refuse them a glass of water to quench their thirst? A balm to
dress their wounds? Would you not do for them what you would
do for a prisoner? Would you not give them a show of love, a
consolation? If not, that would not be Christian. A belief that
hardens the heart cannot ally itself with the belief in a God who
places love for one’s neighbor at the head of the list of duties.
The fact that punishment is not eternal does not imply
a denial of temporary punishment, because God, out of divine
justice, cannot mix good and evil. Thus, to deny the effectiveness
of prayer in this case would be to deny the effectiveness of
consolation, encouragement and good counsel. It would be to
deny the strength that one derives from the moral assistance of
those who wish us well.
20. Others base their opinion on a more deceptively
attractive reason: the immutability of the divine decrees.
God, they say, cannot change his decisions at the request of
his creatures; otherwise, nothing would be stable in the world.
Therefore, man cannot ask God for anything; he can only
submit to and worship him.

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In this idea there is an erroneous application of the

immutability of divine law, or rather, ignorance of the law
concerning future punishment. This law has been revealed by
the Spirits of the Lord now that humans are mature enough to
understand what, within faith, is in conformance with or contrary
to the divine attributes.
According to the dogma of the absolute eternality of
punishment, the remorse and repentance of the blameworthy are
not taken into account. For them, all desire to better themselves is
superfluous, for they are condemned to remain forever in evil. If they
are sentenced for a determined period of time, their punishment will
end when that time expires; but who is to say that by then they will
have better sentiments? Who is to say that, based on the example of
many condemned on earth, when they get out of prison they will
not be as evil as before? In the former instance, it would be to keep
under the pain of punishment those who return to the good; in the
latter, it would be to pardon those who remained blameworthy. The
law of God is more foresightful than that. Always just, equitable and
merciful, it does not set any length on the punishment, whatever it
may be; and it may be summarized as follows:
21. “Humans always bear the consequences of their wrongs.
There is not one infraction of God’s law that does not entail
punishment.
“The severity of the punishment is proportional to the
gravity of the wrong.
“The duration of the punishment for any wrong is not set
and is dependent on the repentance of the guilty and his or her return
to the good. The punishment lasts as long as the obstinacy in evil; it
would be everlasting if the obstinacy were everlasting; it will be of
short duration if repentance is not long in coming.
“Once the guilty beg for mercy, God hears them and sends
them hope. However, simple regret for the evil committed is not

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enough; reparation is required. That is why the guilty are submitted

to new trials in which always by the use of their will, they can do
good in order to repair the evil they have committed.
“Consequently, humans are always the arbiters of their own
fate; they can shorten their punishment or prolong it indefinitely.
Their happiness or unhappiness depends on their willingness to
do good.”
Such is the law, an immutable law in conformance with the
goodness and justice of God.
The guilty and unhappy spirit can thus always save itself:
the law of God tells it under what conditions it may do so. What
this spirit most often lacks is willingness, strength and courage. If,
by our prayers, we inspire this willingness in it; if we uplift and
encourage it; if, by our counsels, we give it the enlightenment it
lacks, then instead of asking God to depart from the divine law, we
become the instruments for carrying out God’s law of love and charity,
in which God permits us to participate so that we might give proof
of our own charity. (See Heaven and Hell, pt. 1, chap. IV, VII, VIII)

The Spirits’ Teachings

How to Pray
22. The first duty of all individuals, the first act that should
signal their return to active life each day, is prayer. Nearly all of you
pray, but how few of you know how to pray! Of what importance
to the Lord are the sentences you mechanically say one after the
other out of habit because it is a duty to fulfill, and like every duty,
weighs on you?
The prayers of Christians, of Spiritists, of whatever belief,
should be made the moment the spirit retakes the yoke of the flesh.
They should lift themselves to the feet of the divine majesty with

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humility, with profundity, in a rapture of gratitude for all the benefits

that have been granted up until this very day; and also for the night
that has passed and during which you have been allowed – although
you do not remember it – to be with your friends and your guides in
order to acquire more strength and perseverance from their contact.
Your prayers should humbly ascend to the feet of the Lord to
commend your weakness to him, to ask for his support, indulgence
and mercy. They should be profound because it is your soul that
should ascend to the Creator, that should be transfigured like Jesus
on Mt. Tabor and become white and radiant with hope and love.
Your prayer should entail a request for the blessings you
need, but the need must be real. Thus, it would be useless to ask
the Lord to shorten your trials, to give you joy and wealth. Instead,
ask him to grant you the more precious possessions of patience,
resignation and faith. Do not say, as many of you do: “It’s no use
praying, since God does not answer me anyway.” What do you ask
of God most of the time? Do you often think to ask him for your
moral improvement? Oh no, not very often at all! Instead, you
think of asking him for success in your earthly undertakings, and
then you exclaim: “God is not concerned about us; if he were, there
would not be so much injustice.” How foolish! How ungrateful! If
you were to delve into the depths of your conscience, you would
nearly always find within you the starting point for all the ills you
complain about. So, before anything else, ask for your betterment,
and you will see what a torrent of blessings and consolations pour
over you. (See chap. V, no. 4)
You must pray without ceasing, but without having to go
to a church or kneeling in the public squares. Daily prayer is the
fulfillment of your duties, of all your duties without exception, of
whatever nature they might be. Is it not an act of love for the Lord
for you to assist your brothers and sisters in any moral or physical
need? Is it not an act of appreciation to lift up your thought to him

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when a joy comes your way, when an accident is averted, or even

when a difficulty only grazes you minimally, by saying in your
mind: Blessed are you, my Father! Is it not an act of contrition to
humble yourselves before the supreme judge when you feel that
you have failed, even if only by means of a fleeting thought, by
saying to him: Forgive me, my God, for I have sinned (out of pride,
selfishness or lack of charity); give me the strength not to fail again and
the courage to make reparation?
This is besides the usual prayers of the morning and evening
and the holy days; but as you can see, a prayer can be offered at
any instant without causing any interruption in your labors; on
the contrary, said this way, it sanctifies your activities. You can
be certain that just one of such thoughts arising from the heart is
heard more by your heavenly Father than the long prayers said out
of habit, frequently without any determined motive and to which
the conventional time of day is mechanically calling you.
V. Monod (Bordeaux, 1862)
The Joy of Prayer
23. Come, you who wish to believe: the heavenly spirits make
haste to proclaim great things to you. God, my children, opens
his treasures to distribute their benefits to you. O disbelievers! If
you only knew how good for the heart faith is and how it leads
the soul to repentance and prayer! Prayer! Ah! How touching
are the words that leave the lips at the time one prays! Prayer is
a divine mist that destroys the highest heat of the passions; the
firstborn daughter of faith, it leads us to the pathway that takes us
to God. In introspection and solitude you are with God; no more
mysteries for you, because he unveils himself to you. O Apostles
of thought, life is before you. Your soul detaches itself from matter
and launches itself onto those infinite and ethereal worlds that
poor human beings fail to acknowledge.

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Press onward! Press onward along the pathways of prayer

and you will hear the voices of angels. What harmony! No longer
the confused noises and shrill sounds of the earth, but the lyres
of archangels and the sweet, soft voices of the seraphim, lighter
than the morning breezes when they play among the leaves of your
great forests. Amongst what delights you shall walk! Your language
cannot describe such bliss; it enters through all your pores, so alive
and refreshing is the spring from which you drink through prayer!
Sweet voices and heady fragrances that the soul hears and breathes
when it launches itself onto those unknown and inhabited realms
through prayer! Without the confusion of carnal desires, all
aspirations are divine. And you, too, pray as Christ did carrying
his cross to Golgotha, to Calvary. Carry your cross and you will
feel the sweet emotions that passed through his soul even as he was
carrying the infamous cross. He was going to die, but in order to
live the heavenly life in the dwelling of his Father.
St. Augustine (Paris, 1861)

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A Collection of
Spiritist Prayers

Preamble
1. The Spirits have always said: “The form means nothing;
the thought is everything. Pray according to your convictions and
in the manner that touches you the most; a good thought is worth
more than many words that are foreign to the heart.”
The Spirits do not prescribe any absolute formula for prayer;
when they do, it is for focusing one’s thoughts and especially for
calling attention to certain principles of the Spiritist Doctrine.
One other purpose applies to those who have difficulty expressing
their ideas, because there are some who do not believe they have
truly prayed if their thoughts have not been formulated.
The collection of prayers contained in this chapter is one
chosen from among those that were dictated by the Spirits in
various circumstances. They could have dictated others using
different words appropriate for certain ideas or special cases, but
the form is of little importance if the underlying thought is the

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same. The aim of prayer is to lift our soul to God. The diversity
of formulas should not create any differences amongst those who
believe in God, and even less amongst the followers of Spiritism,
because God accepts all prayers when they are sincere.
Consequently, one ought not to regard this collection as a
set formulary, but as a variety of prayers based on the teachings
given by the Spirits. It is an application of the principles of the
Gospel morality that have been developed in this book and is a
complement to their dictates concerning one’s duties toward
God and neighbor, wherein all the principles of the Doctrine are
brought to mind.
Spiritism acknowledges that the prayers of all religions are
good when they are spoken from the heart and not just from
the lips. It imposes none, nor does it condemn any. God is too
great according to Spiritism to reject the voice that implores God
or sings God’s praises because it is done in one certain manner
rather than another. All those who pronounce anathemas against
prayers that are not in their own formulary show that they know
nothing of the greatness of God. To believe that God is bound
to one specific formula is to attribute to God the pettiness and
passions of humankind.
According to St. Paul (see chap. XXVII, no. 16), one
essential condition for prayer is that it must be intelligible so
that it may speak to our spirit; thus, it is not enough for it to
be uttered in a language understood only by the one who prays.
There are prayers in ordinary language that do not say any more
to our mind than if they were spoken in a foreign language, and
for that very reason they do not reach the heart. The few ideas
they entail are often suffocated by an overabundance of words
and the mysticism of the language.
The main requirement of prayer is that it be clear, simple and
concise, without needless phraseology or an excess of epithets that

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are merely showy finery. Each word should be important, reveal a

thought, and strike a cord; in short, it should cause one to reflect; this
is the only condition in which the prayer can achieve its objective;
otherwise, it is only noise. One observes, however, with what an air
of distraction and inconsistency prayers are spoken most of the
time; one can see the lips moving, but by the facial expression and
even by the tone of voice one realizes that it is a purely outward,
mechanical act to which the soul remains indifferent.
The prayers in this collection are divided into five
categories: 1) general prayers; 2) prayers for oneself; 3) prayers
for the living; 4) prayers for the dead; and 5) special prayers for
the sick and the obsessed.
Aiming at calling particular attention to the object of each
prayer and to render its importance more comprehensible, they
are all preceded with preliminary instructions, a sort of exposition
of rationale under the heading Introduction.

I – General Prayers
The Lord’s Prayer
2. INTRODUCTION: The Spirits have recommended
placing the Lord’s Prayer at the beginning of this collection, not
only as a prayer per se, but as a symbol. Of all prayers, this is
the one they place the highest, whether because it has come from
Jesus himself (Mt. 6:9-13), or because it can replace all others,
depending on the thought one attaches to it. It is the most
perfect model of conciseness, a true masterwork of sublimity in
its simplicity. In fact, in its highly concise form it sums up all the
duties of humans toward God, themselves and their neighbor; it
entails a profession of faith, an act of worship and submission, a
request for life’s necessities, and the principle of charity. Saying it

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on behalf of other persons is the same as asking for them what one
would ask for oneself.
Because of its brevity, however, the profound meaning
contained in some of the words that compose it escapes most
people. That is why it is usually said without directing one’s thought
to the application of each of its parts. It is said as a formula whose
effectiveness is in proportion to the number of times it is repeated.
It is nearly always one of the cabalistic numbers three, seven or
nine, taken from the ancient superstitious belief in the virtue of
numbers and their use in magic.
In order to fill the vagueness that this prayer’s conciseness
leaves in the mind, following the counsel of the Spirits and with
their assistance, a commentary has been added to each clause,
which develops its meaning and shows its application. According
to the circumstances and time available, one can thus say the Lord’s
Prayer either in its simple or developed form.
3. THE PRAYER
I. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name!
O Lord, we believe in you because everything reveals your
power and goodness. The harmony of the universe bears witness
to a wisdom, prudence and providence that surpasses all human
abilities. The name of one supremely great and wise being is
written on all the works of creation from the blade of grass and the
smallest insect to the heavenly bodies that travel through space.
Everywhere, we see the proof of a paternal solicitude, and that
is why those who do not recognize you in your works are blind;
those who do not glorify you are proud and those who do not
render thanks to you are ungrateful.
II. Thy kingdom come!
Lord, you have given to men and women laws filled with
wisdom that would make them happy if they would only observe
them. With these laws, they would make peace and justice reign;

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they would help one another rather than harm one another as they
do. The strong would uphold the weak rather than crush them.
They would avoid the ills that engender abuses and excesses of all
kinds. All the miseries of this world result from the violation of
your laws, for there is not one single infraction that does not entail
unavoidable consequences.
You have given animals the instinct that marks the limit
of their needs and they mechanically conform to it; to humans,
however, besides instinct you gave them intelligence and reason.
You have also given them the freedom to obey or violate those of
your laws that concern them personally, that is, to choose between
good and evil in order to have the merit and take responsibility
for their acts.
No one can feign ignorance of your laws because, in your
paternal providence, you have willed for them to be engraved in
each one’s conscience regardless of religion or nationality; those
who violate them do so because they do not acknowledge you.
A day will come when, according to your promise, everyone
will abide by them; then, disbelief will have disappeared; all will
acknowledge you as the supreme Lord of all things and the reign
of your laws will be your reign on the earth.
O Lord, deign to hasten its coming by giving people the
light needed to direct them on the pathway of truth.
III. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven!
If obedience is children’s duty toward their parents, of
subordinates toward their superiors, how much greater it is the
duty of creatures toward their Creator. Doing your will, O Lord, is
to obey your laws and to be obedient without complaining against
your divine decrees. People will become obedient when they
understand that you are the fount of all wisdom and that without
you they can do nothing. Then, they shall do your will on earth as
the elect do in heaven.

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IV. Give us this day our daily bread.

Give us nourishment for maintaining the strength of our body;
give us also spiritual nourishment for the development of our spirit.
The animal finds its pasture, but humans depend on their
own activity and the resources of their intelligence because you
have created them free.
You said to them: “You shall earn your nourishment from
the earth with the sweat of your brow”; thus, you made labor an
obligation so that they may exert their intelligence in seeking the
means of providing for their needs and well-being, some through
physical labor and others through intellectual labor. Without labor
they would remain at a standstill and could not aspire to the bliss
of the high order spirits.
You aid people of goodwill who trust in you for their
necessities, but not those who take pleasure in idleness and who
would like to receive everything without any effort, nor those who
seek the superfluous. (See chap. XXV)
How many there are who succumb through their own fault,
their negligence, their lack of foresight or their ambition, and for
not wanting to be content with what you have given them! They
are the artisans of their own misfortune and they have no right to
complain, because they are being punished for their sins. However,
you do not forsake even these, because you are infinitely merciful.
You extend to them a helping hand as long as, like the prodigal
son, they sincerely return to you. (See chap. V, no. 4)
Before we lament our fate, let us ask ourselves if it is not
of our own doing. At each misfortune that befalls us, let us ask
ourselves if it was not up to us to avoid it. But let us also say that
God has given us the intelligence we need to lift ourselves out of
any slough and that it is up to us to use it.
Since the law of labor is a requirement for humankind
on earth, give us the courage and strength to fulfill it. Give us

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prudence, foresight and moderation also so that we may not lose

the fruit of our labor.
Therefore, O Lord, give us our daily bread, that is, the
means to acquire through labor the things we need for life, for no
one has the right to request what is superfluous.
If labor is impossible for us, we will entrust ourselves to your
divine providence.
If it is your will to test us by means of the most crushing
privations in spite of our efforts, we will accept them as a just
expiation for the wrongs we have committed in this life or in a
previous one, because you are just. We know that there are no
undeserving punishments and that you never punish without cause.
Dear God, keep us from being envious toward those who have
what we do not or toward those who have what is superfluous while
we lack what is necessary. Forgive them if they forget the law of charity
and love for one’s neighbor that you taught. (See chap. XVI, no. 8)
Moreover, keep from our spirit the thought of denying your
justice when we see the prosperity of the wicked and the misfortune that
sometimes crushes good persons. Thanks to the new enlightenment
that it has pleased you to give us, we now know that your justice is
always fulfilled and never fails anyone; that the material prosperity of
the wicked is as fleeting as their corporeal existence and that they will
suffer terrible reversals, whereas the joy reserved for those who suffer
with resignation will be everlasting. (See chap. V, nos. 7, 9, 12, 18)
V. Forgive our debts, as we forgive our debtors. Forgive our
offenses, as we forgive those who offend us.
Each one of our infractions of your laws, O Lord, is an offense
against you, a debt contracted that we will have to pay sooner or
later. For these we beg the forgiveness of your infinite mercy, and
we promise to make every effort not to contract new debts.
You have made charity an express law for everyone; but
charity does not consist only in helping our fellow beings in their

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need. It also consists in forgetting and forgiving their offenses. By

what right would we demand your indulgence if we ourselves do
not show it toward those against whom we have a complaint?
Give us, dear God, the strength to stifle all resentment,
all hatred and all grudges in our soul. Ensure that death does not
surprise us while we hold a desire for revenge in our heart. If it pleases
you to take us this very day from this world, ensure that we may
present ourselves to you purified of all animosity, following Christ’s
example, whose last words were for his executioners. (See chap. X)
The persecutions that the wicked make us bear are part of
our earthly trials; we must accept them without complaining, just
like all other trials, and not speak ill of those who out of malice in
fact open to us the way of eternal joy, for you spoke through Jesus
lips, “Blessed are they who suffer for the sake of righteousness!”
Thus, may we bless the hand that strikes and humiliates us, for the
contusions of the body strengthen our soul, and we will be lifted
from our humiliation. (See chap. XII, no. 4)
Blessed be your name, O Lord, for having taught us that
our fate is not irrevocably set after death; that we shall find in later
existences the means to redeem and repair our past wrongs, and to
complete in a new life what we have not been able to do in this one
for our advancement. (See chap. IV; chap. V, no. 5)
Thus may all the apparent anomalies of life be finally
explained. The light is shed upon our past and future as a radiant
sign of your supreme justice and boundless goodness.
VI. Do not let us fall into temptation, but deliver us from
all evil.43

43
Some translations read: Lead us not into temptation (et ne nos inducas in tentationem);
this rendering would lead one to understand that temptation comes from God; that God
intentionally compels people to commit evil, a thought so blasphemous that it makes God
equal to Satan. It could not therefore have been what Jesus meant. This is, by the way, in
accordance with the common doctrine regarding the role of demons. (See Heaven and
Hell, chap. X, Demons) – Auth.

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O Lord, give us the strength to resist the suggestions of evil

spirits, who tempt us away from the path of goodness by inspiring
us with evil thoughts.
But we ourselves are imperfect spirits, having incarnated
on this earth to expiate our wrongs and to make ourselves better
beings. The first cause of evil lies within us and evil spirits merely
take advantage of our vile tendencies, in which they support us in
order to tempt us.
Each imperfection is an open door to their influence,
whereas they are powerless and give up any attempt against
perfect beings. Everything we could do to keep them away is
useless if we do not oppose them with a will unshakeable in the
practice of the good and with complete renunciation of evil.
Thus, it is toward ourselves that we must direct our efforts, and
then evil spirits will naturally stay away, because evil is what
attracts them, while goodness repels them. (See below, Prayers
for the obsessed)
Lord, uphold us in our weakness; through the voice of our
guardian angels and the good spirits inspire us with the will to
correct our imperfections in order to prevent impure spirits from
accessing our soul. (See below, no. 11)
Evil is not your work, O Lord, because the source of all
goodness cannot engender evil in any way; we ourselves create
it by infringing upon your laws and by the ill use we make of
the freedom you have granted us. When humans finally begin to
observe your laws, evil will disappear from the earth, just as it has
already disappeared from more advanced worlds.
Evil is not a fatalistic necessity for anyone, and it seems
irresistible only to those who complacently abandon themselves to
it. If we have the will to commit evil, we also have the will to do
the good. Therefore, dear God, we ask for your assistance and that
of good spirits to resist temptation.

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VII. So be it!
O Lord, may it please you that our desires be fulfilled!
Nonetheless, we bow down before your infinite wisdom. Regarding
all the things that we have not been given to understand, may it
be done according to your holy will and not ours, for you desire
nothing but our good and you know better than we do what is
useful for us.
We address this prayer to you, O God, for ourselves; we
also address it to you for all suffering souls, whether incarnate or
discarnate, for our friends and our enemies, for all those who ask
for our help, and in particular for [person’s name].
We pray for your mercy and your blessing upon all.
Note: Here thanks may be rendered to God, and requests
made for ourselves or for others. (See below, prayers nos. 26 and 27)
Spiritist Meetings
4. Wherever two or three are gathered in my name, there I will be in their
midst. (Mt. 18:20)

5. INTRODUCTION. To be gathered in Jesus’ name

does not mean that it is enough to be gathered physically, but to
be gathered spiritually through a communion of intentions and
thoughts for the good. Then, Jesus is found in the midst of the
assembly – either he himself or pure spirits who represent him.
Spiritism enables us to understand in which way spirits can be
among us. They are among us with their fluidic or spiritual body
and with an appearance that we would recognize if they were to
make themselves visible. The higher their position in the hierarchy,
the greater their power of radiation. It is in this way that they
possess the gift of ubiquity and can be at several places at the same
time: all they need for this is the emission of their thought.
Through these words, Jesus wanted to show the effect of
unity and fraternity. It is not the larger or smaller number per se that

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attracts him, since instead of two or three persons, he could have

said ten or twenty; rather, it is the sentiment of charity animating
each one with respect to the others. Therefore, to accomplish this,
just two are enough. However, if these two persons each pray
on their own accord, then even if they address Jesus, there is no
communion of thought between them, especially if they are not
motivated by a sentiment of mutual benevolence. By the same
token, if they regard each other with prejudice, hatred, envy or
jealousy, the fluidic currents of their thoughts repel rather than
unite them in a common impulse of sympathy. Then, they are not
gathered in Jesus’ name; Jesus is only a pretext for the gathering and
not the true motive. (See chap. XXVII, no. 9)
This does not imply that Jesus is deaf to the voice of
one person alone. If he did not say, “I will come to anyone
who calls me,” it is because he demands, above all else, love for
one’s neighbor, which may be better displayed in a group than
in isolation, and because any individualistic sentiment repels
it. Hence, it follows that if in a large gathering only two or
three persons are united in heart through the sentiment of true
charity, while the others isolate themselves and concentrate on
selfish or worldly ideas, Jesus will be with the former and not
the latter. It is not, therefore, the simultaneity of the words,
hymns or outward acts that comprise the gathering in Jesus’
name, but the communion of thoughts in conformance with
the spirit of charity personified in Jesus. (See chap. X, nos. 7, 8;
chap. XXVII, no. 2-4)
Such should be the character of serious Spiritist meetings,
those in which the concourse of good spirits is desired.
6. PRAYER. (At the start of the meeting). We pray to
Almighty Lord God to send us good spirits to assist us, to keep
away spirits who might induce us to error, and to grant us the light
necessary to distinguish truth from falsehood.

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Also, keep away incarnate or discarnate malevolent spirits

who might try to sow discord among us and lead us away from
charity and love toward our neighbor. If any try to come here, do
not allow them access to any of our hearts.
Good spirits, who come to teach us, render us amenable
to your counsels. Keep from us any thought of selfishness, pride,
envy or jealousy. Inspire us to be indulgent and benevolent toward
our fellow beings, whether present or absent, friendly or hostile.
Finally, enable us to recognize your salutary influence through the
sentiments that animate us.
Give to the mediums whom you entrust to transmit your
teachings the holy awareness of the mandate that has been entrusted
to them and the seriousness of the act they are about to perform so
that they may employ the necessary fervor and concentration to do so.
If in this gathering there are persons who have been attracted
by sentiments other than those of the good, open their eyes to the
light and forgive them just as we will forgive them if they have
come with malevolent intentions.
We especially pray to the spirit of [name], our spirit guide,
to assist us and watch over us.
7. (At the end of the meeting). We give thanks to the good
spirits who have wished to come and communicate with us. We pray
that they will help us put into practice the teachings they have given,
and will help each one of us as we leave this place to feel strengthened
in the practice of the good and love toward our neighbor.
We also desire that their teachings will be useful for suffering,
ignorant or wicked spirits who may have attended this meeting,
and for whom we implore God’s mercy.
For Mediums
8. “In the last days,” says the Lord, “I will pour out my Spirit upon all
flesh. Your sons and daughters shall prophesy; your young shall have visions

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and your elderly, dreams. In those days, I will pour out my Spirit upon my
servants and they shall prophesy.” (Acts 2:17-18)

9. INTRODUCTION. The Lord willed for the light to

shine for all people and for it to enter everywhere through the voice
of the Spirits so that everyone may receive proof of immortality. It
is with this purpose that the Spirits are manifesting today at every
point on the earth, and mediumship, revealed among persons
of all ages and every condition, among men and women, and
among children and the elderly, is one of the signs that the times
prophesied about are being fulfilled.
In order to know the things of the visible world and to discover
the secrets of material nature, God has given human beings bodily
sight, the senses and special instruments. With the telescope, they can
plunge their eyes into the depths of space and with the microscope
they can discover the world of the infinitely small. In order to
penetrate the unseen world, God has given them mediumship.
Mediums are the interpreters in charge of transmitting
the Spirits’ teachings to humans; or rather, they are the material
instruments through which the Spirits express themselves in order to
become intelligible to humankind. Their mission is holy because its
aim is to open up the horizons of life eternal.
The Spirits have come to instruct humans about their future
destiny and to lead them along the pathway of the good, but not to
spare them the physical effort they must exert in this world for their
advancement, nor to favor their ambition and cupidity. This is what
mediums must understand very clearly so that they do not make bad
use of their faculties. Those who grasp the seriousness of the mandate
with which they have been vested will fulfill it religiously. Their
conscience would reprove them for a sacrilegious act if for themselves
or for others they were to transform into a form of entertainment or
distraction a faculty given with such a serious purpose, and which
puts them into communication with beings beyond the grave.

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As interpreters of the Spirits’ teachings, mediums must

perform an important role in the moral transformation that is
taking place. The services they can render are due to the good
direction they give their faculty, because those who are on the
wrong road are more harmful than useful to Spiritism’s cause.
Through the bad impressions they produce, they have hampered
more than one conversion. Thus, they will be asked to give an
account of the use they have made of a faculty that was given to
them for the purpose of doing good to their neighbor.
Mediums who want to retain the assistance of good spirits
must work for their own advancement; those who want to see
their faculty grow and develop must themselves grow morally
and abstain from anything that might divert them from their
providential objective.
If good spirits sometimes make use of imperfect instruments,
it is to give good counsel and to endeavor to lead them to the good;
however, if they encounter hardened hearts and if their warnings
go unheeded, they withdraw, and then the field is left wide open
to evil spirits. (See chap. XXIV, nos. 11 and 12)
Experience has shown that, among those who are not able to
profit from the counsels they receive from good spirits, communications
that have for some time displayed brilliance degenerate little by
little, and end up by falling into error, verbosity or foolishness, an
incontestable sign that good spirits have taken their leave.
To obtain the assistance of good spirits and to avert frivolous
and deceitful ones should be the objective of constant effort by all
serious mediums; otherwise, mediumship is a barren faculty that
may even revert to the harm of the one who possesses it, because it
may degenerate into a dangerous obsession.
Rather than flattering themselves for a faculty that does
not belong to them (since it may be taken from them), mediums
who understand their duty attribute to God the good things they

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obtain. If their communications merit praise, they do not flatter

themselves because of it, for they know that such communications
are independent of their personal merit, and they render thanks to
God for having allowed good spirits to manifest through them. If
these communications give rise to criticism, they are not offended
by it, because they are not the work of their own spirit. They tell
themselves that they have not been good instruments and that
they have not possessed all the qualities needed to oppose the
interference of evil spirits; consequently, they seek to acquire such
qualities, and through prayer they ask for the strength they lack.
10. PRAYER. Almighty God, permit good spirits to assist
me in the communication that I am asking for. Keep me from the
presumption of thinking that I am safe from evil spirits, from the
pride that may deceive me regarding the worth of what I obtain, and
all sentiment contrary to charity with respect to other mediums. If
I am induced to error, inspire someone with the thought to warn
me, and inspire me with the humility to accept and acknowledge
criticism, and to take for myself – not for others – the counsels
that good spirits wish to dictate to me.
If I have been tempted to abuse in any way whatsoever the
faculty that it pleased you to have granted me or to flatter myself
for it, I ask that you take it away rather than allow it to be diverted
from its providential purpose, which is the good of all and my own
moral advancement.

II – Prayers for Oneself

To One’s Guardian Angels and Protector Spirits
11. INTRODUCTION. We all have a good spirit who has
been connected to us ever since we were born, and who has kept
us under its watch-care. With us it performs the mission of a father

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with his child: that of leading us on the pathway of the good and
of progress through life’s trials. It is happy when we respond to its
solicitude; it suffers when it sees us succumb.
Its name matters little because it might have a name not
known on the earth; thus, we evoke it as our guardian angel, our
good spirit. We may even evoke it by using the name of any high
order spirit with whom we feel particularly attuned to.
Besides our guardian angel, who is always a high order
spirit, we have protector spirits, who, though less evolved, are
nonetheless good and benevolent. They may be relatives, friends
or sometimes individuals whom we have not known at all in our
current lifetime. They assist us with their counsels and frequently
by their intervention in the actions of our life.
Sympathetic spirits are those who are connected with us by
a certain similarity of tastes and tendencies: they may be either
good or evil according to the nature of the inclinations that attract
them to us.
Tempter spirits make efforts to lead us away from the
pathway of the good by suggesting evil thoughts to us. They take
advantage of all our weaknesses as if they were open doors giving
them access to our soul. There are those who hound us as if we
were prey, but they withdraw once they realize their powerlessness in
fighting against our will.
God has given us a principle and superior guide in our
guardian angel, and secondary guides in our protector and familiar
spirits; however, it is wrong to believe that we unavoidably have an
evil spirit who has been placed next to us to counterbalance good
influences. Evil spirits come intentionally according to how much
access they have to our weakness or our negligence in following
the inspirations of good spirits. Therefore, we ourselves are the
ones who attract them. The truth of the matter is that no one is
ever denied the assistance of good spirits, and that it depends on

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us to repel the evil ones. Because of their imperfections, human

beings are the primary cause of the miseries they must bear and are
most frequently their own evil spirit. (See chap. V, no. 4)
The prayer to guardian angels and protector spirits should
have the aim of soliciting their intervention before God, asking
them for the strength to resist evil suggestions and their assistance
with the needs of life.
12. PRAYER. Wise and benevolent spirits, messengers
of God, whose mission is to assist people and lead them on the
pathway of the good, uphold me during the trials of this life. Give
me strength to bear them without complaint. Keep from me evil
thoughts and help me not to give access to any of the evil spirits who
may try to induce me to evil. Enlighten my conscience regarding
my faults, and lift from my eyes the veil of pride that prevents me
from perceiving them and acknowledging them to myself.
You especially, [name], my guardian angel, who watches
most particularly over me, and all you protector spirits who have
taken an interest in me, enable me to become worthy of your
benevolence. You know my needs; may they be fulfilled according
to God’s will.
13. (Another prayer). Dear God, allow the good spirits who
assist me to come to my aid when I am in trouble, and to uphold
me if I waver. O Lord, enable them to inspire me with faith, hope
and charity. May they be for me a support, a hope and a proof of
your mercy. Finally, enable me to find in them the strength I lack
in life’s trials, and, in order to resist evil suggestions, the faith that
saves and the love that consoles.
14. (Another). Beloved spirits, guardian angels, you whom
God in his infinite mercy allows to watch over humankind, be
my protectors in the trials of my earthly life. Give me strength,
courage and resignation. Inspire me with everything good and
restrain my tendency toward evil. May your gentle influence enter

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my soul. Enable me to sense nearby a devoted friend who sees my

suffering and shares my joys.
And you, my good angel, do not forsake me. I have need of
all your watch-care in order to bear with faith and love the trials
that God wills to send me.
To Keep Evil Spirits Away
15. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you clean the outside of
the cup and plate, while inside they are full of plunder and impurity. Blind
Pharisees, first clean the inside of the cup and plate so that the outside may
be clean also. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like
whitewashed tombs which look beautiful on the outside but which inside are
full of every sort of corruption. Thus, on the outside you seem righteous in
men’s eyes, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. (Mt. 23:25-28)

16. INTRODUCTION. Evil spirits go only where they

find what satisfies their wickedness. In order to keep them at bay,
it is not enough to ask them or even to order them to stay away;
one must rid oneself of what attracts them. Evil spirits sniff out the
wounds of the soul, just as flies sniff out the wounds of the body.
Just as you would cleanse your body to keep vermin away, cleanse
your soul of its impurities to keep evil spirits away. Since we live in
a world swarming with evil spirits, the good qualities of the heart
do not always shelter us from their attempts, but they do give us
the strength to resist them.
17. PRAYER. In the name of Almighty God, may evil spirits
stay away from me, and may good spirits serve as my rampart
against them!
Wicked spirits, who inspire people with evil thoughts;
deceitful and lying spirits, who delude them; mocking spirits,
who entertain yourselves with their gullibility, I repel you with all
the strength of my soul and I shut my ears to your suggestions;
however, I ask God’s mercy upon you.

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Good spirits, who have agreed to assist me, give me the

strength to resist the influence of evil spirits and the necessary
understanding not to be a victim of their ruses. Keep me from
pride and presumption; keep from my heart jealousy, hatred,
malevolence and all sentiments against charity, which are all open
doors to evil spirits.
To Ask for a Fault to Be Corrected
18. INTRODUCTION. Our evil instincts are the result
of the imperfection of our spirit and not of our body; otherwise,
humankind would be exempt from any kind of responsibility. Our
advancement depends on us, because all people who enjoy the use
of their faculties in all things have the freedom to do or not to do;
they lack only the will to do the good. (See chap. XV, no. 10; chap
XIX, no. 12)
19. PRAYER. You have given me, O God, the intelligence
I need to distinguish between good and evil. Thus, the instant in
which I realize that something is evil, I am guilty if I do not make
an effort to resist it.
Keep me from the pride that may prevent me from perceiving
my faults, and from the evil spirits who may incite me to persevere
in them.
Amongst my imperfections, I realize that I am particularly
inclined toward… , and if I do not resist this inclination, it is
because of my habit to give in to it.
You did not create me blameworthy, for you are just; but
you created me with an equal aptitude for either good or evil. If I
have followed the evil pathway, it is a result of my free will. But for
the same reason that I have the freedom to do evil, I can also do
the good. Consequently, I can change my course.
My current faults are remains of the imperfections I have
retained from my previous existences. That is my original sin, from

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which I may unburden myself with my will and the assistance of

good spirits.
Good spirits who watch over me, and especially you, my
guardian angel, give me strength to resist evil suggestions and
emerge victorious from the struggle.
Faults are barriers that separate us from God, and each one
that is overcome is a step taken on the path of progress that shall
bring me closer to him.
The Lord, in his infinite mercy, has willed to grant me this
present existence to serve for my advancement. Good spirits, help
me to take advantage of I so that I may not waste it, and that,
when it pleases God to take me from it, I may leave more evolved
than when I entered. (See chap. V, no. 5; chap. XVII, no. 3)
To Ask for Strength to Resist a Temptation
20. INTRODUCTION. Every bad thought could have
two sources: the soul’s own imperfection, or a sinister influence
that acts upon it; in the latter case, it is always the indication of a
weakness that makes us predisposed to receive such influence, and
is thus an indication of an imperfect soul; consequently, those who
have failed cannot use the excuse of having been influenced by an
outside spirit, for such a spirit could not have induced anyone to
evil if it had judged the person inaccessible to temptation.
When an evil thought arises, we can thus assume that
a malevolent spirit is inducing us to evil, to which we are as
completely free to yield or resist as if we were being tempted by a
living person. At the same time, we should imagine our guardian
angel or protector spirit, who, on its part, combats the evil influence
in us and anxiously awaits our decision. Our hesitation to do evil
is the voice of a good spirit making itself heard in our conscience.
A thought is acknowledged to be evil when it detours us from
charity, which is the basis of all moral truth; when the thought’s

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source is pride, vanity or selfishness; when acting on it may cause

any harm to another person; and lastly, when it entices us to do
unto others what we would not like them to do unto us. (See chap.
XXVIII, no. 15; chap. XV, no. 10)
21. PRAYER. Almighty God, do not let me yield to the
temptation that may lead me into error. Benevolent spirits
watching over me, take this bad thought from me and give me the
strength to resist the suggestion of evil. If I do yield, I will deserve
the expiation of my wrong in this life or another, for I am free to
make a choice.
Thanksgiving for Victory Over a Temptation
22. INTRODUCTION. Those who resist a temptation
owe it to the help of good spirits, whose voice they have listened
to. They should thank God and their guardian angel.
23. PRAYER. Dear God, I give you thanks for having
permitted me to emerge victorious from the struggle I have
sustained against evil; may this victory give me the strength to
resist new temptations.
And you, my guardian angel, I thank you for the assistance
you have given me. May my submission to your counsels merit
your protection the next time.
To Ask for Counsel
24. INTRODUCTION. Whenever we are unsure about
doing or not doing something, we should, before anything else,
ask ourselves the following questions:
1. – Can the thing I am hesitant to do cause harm to
someone else?
2. – Might it be useful to someone?
3. – If someone else were to do it to me, would I be happy
about it?

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If the matter has to do only with oneself, one should balance

the sum of the personal advantages and disadvantages that may
result from it.
If it has to do with other persons, and if doing the good for
one person might do evil to another, one must also weigh the sum
of the good and evil in order to abstain or to act.
Finally, even for the best things, one must still consider the
opportunity and the surrounding circumstances, for a thing that is
good per se may lead to bad results in unskillful hands if not done
with prudence and circumspection. Before undertaking it, one
ought to consider one’s will power and the means of carrying it out.
In all cases, one can always ask for the assistance of one’s
protector spirits, recalling this wise maxim: If in doubt, abstain.
(See chap. XXVIII, no. 38)
25. PRAYER. In the name of God Almighty, I ask the good
spirits watching over me to inspire me to make the best decision
in the uncertainty in which I find myself. Direct my thought to
the good and divert the influence of those who would tempt me
off the path.
During Life’s Afflictions
26. INTRODUCTION. We can ask God for earthly favors
and he may grant them to us if they have a useful and serious
purpose; however, since we judge the usefulness of things from
our own point of view and since our vision is limited to the
present, we do not always see the bad side of what we desire. God,
who sees better than we do, and who wants only our good, may
thus refuse us, just as a father refuses to give his child what might
be harmful. If what we have asked for is not granted, we must
not become discouraged. On the contrary, we ought to think that
the refusal of what we desire is being imposed on us as a trial or
expiation, and that our recompense will be proportional to the

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resignation with which we will have borne it. (See chap. XXVII,
no. 6; chap. II, nos. 5-7)
27. PRAYER. Almighty God, who sees our misery, deign to
listen favorably to the pleas I send to you at this moment. If my
request is inappropriate, forgive me; if it is just and useful in your
sight, may good spirits, who carry out your will, come to my aid
for its fulfillment.
Whatever may come my way, dear God, may your will be
done. If my desires are not heeded, it is because it is within your
designs to test me, and I submit myself without complaint. Enable
me not to become discouraged by this, and may neither my faith
nor my resignation be shaken.
(Make the request).
Thanksgiving for a Favor Received
28. INTRODUCTION. One must not only consider
matters of great importance as happy events; those least in
appearance are often the ones that have the most influence on
our destiny. People easily forget the good and remember especially
what afflicts them. If we would recall every day the benefits we
have received without having asked for them, we would often be
surprised at the number that have slipped our memory and we
would be humbled by our ingratitude.
Each night as we lift our soul to God, we should remember the
favors granted during the day and give thanks for them. Moreover,
it is especially at the moment when we feel the effects of God’s
goodness and protection that we should, in a spontaneous gesture,
render thanks. In this case it is sufficient to elevate a thought
attributing the benefit to God without having to disrupt our work.
God’s benefits do not consist only in material things; we
should also give thanks for the good ideas and the happy inspirations
that are suggested to us. While the proud attribute the merit to

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themselves and disbelievers attribute them to chance, those who

have faith render thanks to God and the good spirits. For this,
long phrases are not necessary. “Thank you, my God, for the good
thought you have inspired me with” says more than a lot of words.
The spontaneous impulse that makes us attribute to God the good
that comes to us bears witness to a habit of acknowledgement and
humility that attracts the sympathy of good spirits. (See chap.
XXVII, nos. 7, 8)
29. PRAYER. Infinitely good God, may your name be
blessed for the benefits you have bestowed on me. I would be
unworthy of them if I attributed them to chance or my own merit.
Good spirits, who have carried out God’s will, and especially
you, my guardian angel, I give you thanks. Keep me from the
thought of being proud for what I have received or of using it for
something that is not good. I thank you particularly for …
The Act of Submission and Resignation
30. INTRODUCTION. When a reason for affliction
strikes us, if we look for its cause we will often find that it is the
consequence of our imprudence, lack of foresight or a previous
action; in this case, we must attribute it only to ourselves. If the
cause of a misfortune is independent of any participation on our
part, it is either a trial for this life or an expiation of a past existence,
and in the latter case, the nature of the expiation can enable us to
understand the nature of the wrong, because we are always punished
wherein we have sinned. (See chap. V, nos. 4, 6 ff.)
Regarding what afflicts us, generally we see only the
present ill and not the final favorable consequences that it may
hold. Frequently, the good comes after a temporary ill, just as the
healing of a sickness is the result of the painful means that have
been employed to obtain it. In all cases we should submit to God’s
will and courageously bear life’s tribulations if we want them to

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be taken into account, and so that these words of Christ may be

applicable to us: Blessed are they who suffer. (See chap. V, no. 18)
31. PRAYER. Dear God, you are supremely just; every
instance of suffering in this world must therefore have its cause
and usefulness. I accept the reason for this affliction that I am
experiencing as an expiation for my past wrongs and as a trial for
the future.
Good spirits watching over me, give me the strength to bear
it without complaint; enable it to be for me a healthy warning;
may it increase my experience; may it combat my pride, ambition,
foolish vanity and selfishness, and may it thereby contribute to my
advancement.
32. (Another). Dear God, I feel the need to pray to you to
give me strength to bear the trials you have sent. Allow the light
to shine brightly within my spirit so that I may appreciate the full
extent of a love that afflicts me in order to save me. I submit myself
with resignation, dear God; but woe unto me! Human beings are
so weak that if you do not uphold me, I fear that I will succumb.
Do not forsake me, Lord, for without you I am nothing.
33. (Another). I lift my eyes to you, Eternal One, and I feel
strengthened. You are my strength; do not forsake me. Dear God,
I am crushed under the weight of my iniquities! Help me. You
know the weakness of my flesh; do not look away from me!
I am overcome by a burning thirst; pour forth your spring of
living water and I will feel refreshed. May my mouth open only to
sing your praises and not to complain about the afflictions of my
life. Lord, I am weak, but your love shall uphold me.
Eternal One, only you are great; only you are the reason and
purpose of my life! May your name be praised even if you strike
me, for you are the Lord and I am your faithful servant. I will bow
my head without complaining, for only you are great; you only are
the purpose of my life.

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At a Moment of Imminent Danger

34. INTRODUCTION. By means of the dangers we face,
God reminds us of our weakness and the fragility of our existence,
showing us that our life is in his hands and that we are upheld by
a thread that may snap at a moment when we least expect it. From
this point of view, no one is privileged, because both great and
small are subject to the same alternatives.
If one examines the nature and consequences of the danger, one
will see that, most often, such consequences, if they have occurred,
are punishment for either a wrong committed or a duty neglected.
35. PRAYER. Almighty God, and you, my guardian angel,
help me! If I should succumb, may God’s will be done. If I am
spared, may I for the rest of my life repair the wrong I surely
committed and for which I now repent.
Thanksgiving after Having Escaped a Danger
36. INTRODUCTION. By means of the dangers we go
through, God shows us that we can at any moment be called to
render an accounting for the use we are making of our life. He
thereby warns us so that we may focus ourselves and mend our ways.
37. PRAYER. Dear God, and you, my guardian angel, I
give you thanks for the help you have sent me during the time
of the danger that threatened me. May it be a warning and may
it enlighten me concerning the wrongs that I could have brought
upon myself. Lord, I understand that my life is in your hands, and
that you may take it from me whenever it pleases you. Inspire in
me, through the good spirits who assist me, the thought of usefully
employing the time you have granted me in this world.
My guardian angel, uphold me in the resolution I have made
to repair my errors and to do all the good within my abilities so
that I may arrive with fewer imperfections in the spirit world when
it pleases God to call me.

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At the Time of Sleep

38. INTRODUCTION. Sleep is the repose of the body,
but the spirit does not need repose. While the senses are numb,
the soul partially frees itself from matter and enjoys its faculties
as a spirit. Sleep was given to human beings to restore their
organic and mental energies. While the body recovers the
energy it spent during the waking state, the spirit renews itself
amongst other spirits. It takes in what it sees and hears, and in
the counsels it is given, it takes the ideas that, upon waking,
come to it in the form of intuitions. Sleep is the temporary
return of the exile to its true homeland; it is the prisoner
momentarily given back its freedom.
However, as happens with the wicked prisoner, the spirit
does not always take advantage of this moment of freedom for its
advancement. If it harbors evil instincts, then instead of seeking
the company of good spirits, it goes looking for its equals and
visits places where it can give free rein to its inclinations.
May those who are aware of this truth lift their thought at
the moment when they feel sleep approaching. May they appeal
to the counsels of good spirits and those whose memory is dear to
them so that they may go to meet them during the short time that
is granted, and upon waking they will feel stronger against evil and
more courageous against adversity.
39. PRAYER. My soul now goes to be with other spirits for
a moment. May good spirits come to help me with their counsels.
My guardian angel, enable me to retain upon awakening a lasting
and healthy impression of them.
Upon Sensing the Approach of Death
40. INTRODUCTION. Faith in the future and the
uplifting of one’s thoughts during life toward future destinations
aids the quick disengagement of the spirit as it weakens the ties

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that are holding it to the body, and quite often corporeal life
has not yet expired when the impatient soul has already begun
soaring toward the great beyond. On the other hand, for people
who have concentrated all their thoughts on material things,
these ties are more tenacious, the separation is more painful and
dolorous, and the awakening beyond the grave is filled with
trouble and anxiety.
41. PRAYER. Dear God, I believe in you and your infinite
goodness; that is why I cannot believe that you have given humans
the intelligence to know you and the inspiration of the future just
to plunge them into nothingness.
I believe that my body is only the perishable envelope of my
soul, and that, when it ceases to live, I shall awaken in the world
of spirits.
Almighty God, I feel that the ties that have bound my
soul to my body are breaking, and soon I will have to render an
accounting for the use of the life I am leaving behind.
I shall bear the consequences of both the good and evil I have
done; in that world there is no more illusion, nor is subterfuge any
longer possible. My entire past will unfold before me and I shall be
judged according to my deeds.
I shall take none of my possessions from the earth: honors,
riches, the satisfactions of vanity and pride – everything connected
with the body shall remain in this world. Not one fragment of it
will follow me, and none of it will be of the least help in the spirit
world. I will take with me only what is connected to my soul, that
is, its good and bad qualities, which will be weighed on the scales
of strict justice, and I will be judged with the same severity as my
position on the earth gave me opportunities to do the good I did
not do. (See chap. XVI, no. 9)
God of mercy, may my repentance reach you. Deign to
extend your indulgence over me.

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If you see fit to prolong my existence, may the rest of it be

used to repair as much as possible the evil I may have done. If my
time is up with no turning back, I am comforted with the thought
that I will be allowed to redeem myself with new trials so that one
day I may merit the bliss of the elect.
If it is not given me to immediately enjoy this untainted
bliss, granted only to the righteous par excellence, I know that my
hope is not precluded forever, and that, with labor, I shall reach
the objective sooner or later according to my efforts.
I know that good spirits and my guardian angel are close
by to receive me; in a short while, I will see them as they see me.
I know that I will meet those whom I loved on the earth if I have
merited it, and that those whom I am leaving behind will come to
meet me again so that one day we may be reunited forever, and
that, until that time, I will be able to come to visit them.
I also know that I will meet again those whom I have
offended; may they forgive me for what they may have reproached
me for: my pride, my hardness, my injustice so that I may not be
covered with shame in their presence!
I forgive those who have done harm to me or wished it on
me in this world; I bear no hatred against them and I ask God to
forgive them.
Lord, give me strength to easily leave the crude joys of this
world, which are nothing compared to the pure joys of the world
I am about to enter. There, for the righteous, there are no more
torments, sufferings or miseries. Only the guilty suffer, but hope
remains for them.
Good spirits, and you, my guardian angel, do not allow me
to fail at this supreme moment: shine the divine light on my eyes
in order to reanimate my faith if it becomes shaken.
(Note: See below, section V: Prayers for the sick and for the
obsessed.)

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III – Prayers for Others

For Someone in Affliction
42. INTRODUCTION. If it is in the interest of the
afflicted person for his or her trial to follow its course, it will
not be shortened at our request; but it would be an act of
faithlessness to become disheartened because the request was not
granted. Moreover, even if the trial does not cease, one can hope
to receive some other consolation that mitigates its bitterness.
What is truly useful for the one who is suffering is courage and
resignation, without which the trial is unprofitable because it
will have to be recommenced. Thus, it is for this purpose that
one must especially direct one’s efforts, whether by appealing to
good spirits to help the afflicted, or by rebuilding the afflicted
person’s morale through counsels and encouragement, or finally,
by materially assisting the person if possible. In this case, prayer
may have a direct effect by directing a fluidic current upon
the person for moral strength. (See chap. V, nos. 5, 27; chap.
XXVII, nos. 6, 10)
43. PRAYER. Dear God, whose goodness is infinite,
deign to soften the bitter situation of [person’s name] if it is
your will.
Good spirits, in the name of Almighty God, I ask you to
assist him/her in his/her afflictions. If in his/her best interests he/
she cannot be spared them, enable him/her to understand that
they are necessary for his/her advancement. Give him/her trust in
God and in the future, which will render him/her less bitter. Give
him/her also the strength not to give in to despair, which would
cause the loss of the benefit, and which will render his/her future
situation even more painful. Lead my thought to him/her so that
it may uphold his/her courage.

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Thanksgiving for a Benefit Granted to Someone Else

44. INTRODUCTION. Those who are not dominated by
selfishness rejoice over the good received by their neighbor, even
when it has not been asked for through prayer.
45. PRAYER. Dear God, may you be blessed for the good
fortune received by [name]. Good spirits, enable him/her to see it
as an effect of God’s goodness. If the benefit he/she has received is
a trial, inspire him/her with the thought to put it to good use and
not to become vainglorious so that this benefit may not result in
his/her harm in the future.
You, my good spirit, you who watch over me and desire my
happiness, keep from my thought any sentiment of envy or jealousy.
For Our Enemies and Those Who Wish Us Ill
46. INTRODUCTION. Jesus said: Love even your enemies.
This maxim reveals to us what is most sublime in Christian charity.
However, with it Jesus does not mean that we must have for our
enemies the same affection we have for our friends. With these
words he tells us to forget their offenses, to forgive the evil they
have done to us, to repay their evil with goodness. Besides the
merit of this in God’s eyes, it shows others what is truly superior.
(See chap. XII, nos. 3, 4)
47. PRAYER. Dear God, I forgive [person’s name] for the
evil he/she caused me and wants to cause me, just as I want you to
forgive me and him/her to forgive me for the wrongs I may have
committed. If you have placed him/her on my path as a trial, may
your will be done.
Dear God, keep from me the thought of slandering him/her
and from any malevolent desire against him/her. Enable me not
to feel any joy for the misfortunes that may strike him/her, or any
upset for the benefits that may be granted him/her so that my soul
may not be tainted with thoughts unbefitting a Christian.

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May your goodness, O Lord, be extended over him/her,

thereby leading him/her to have better sentiments toward me.
Good spirits, inspire me to forget evil and remember the
good. May neither the hatred, the rancor, nor the desire to repay
evil with evil enter my heart, for hatred and revenge belong only
to evil spirits, whether incarnate or discarnate. Instead, may I be
ready and willing to extend a helping hand and repay his/her evil
with good and to come to his/her aid if I can.
To prove my words sincere, I wish for an opportunity to
be useful to him/her; but most of all, dear God, keep me from
doing so out of pride or ostentation, or for oppressing him/her
with humiliating generosity, which would cause me to lose the
benefit of my act; for then I would deserve these words of Christ to
be applied to me: You have already received your reward. (See chap.
XIII, nos. 1 ff.)
Thanksgiving for a Benefit Granted to Our Enemies
48. PREFACE. Not wishing one’s enemies ill is being only
half charitable. True charity consists in wishing what is good for
them and being happy for the benefits they receive. (See Chap.
XII, nos. 7, 8)
49. PRAYER. Dear God, in your justice you have seen
fit to make [person’s name]’s heart joyful. I give you thanks for
it in spite of the ill he/she has done to me or wants to do to
me. If he/she uses it to humiliate me, I will accept it as a trial
of my charity.
Good spirits watching over me, do not allow me to feel
any unhappiness over this. Keep me from the envy and jealousy
that only degrades. Instead, inspire me with the generosity that
uplifts. Humiliation lies in evil, not in the good, and we know
that sooner or later justice will be served to all according to
their deeds.

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For the Enemies of Spiritism

50. Blessed are they who hunger for justice, for they shall be filled.

Blessed are they who suffer persecution for righteousness, for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when men slander you and persecute you and wrongly say all
sorts of evil against you for my sake. Rejoice, therefore, for a great recompense
is reserved for you in heaven, because in the same way they persecuted the
prophets who were before you. (Mt. 5:6, 10-12)

Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, fear the
one who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Mt. 10:28)

51. INTRODUCTION. Of all the freedoms, the most

inviolable is that of thought, which also includes freedom of
conscience. Casting anathemas against those who do not think as
we do is to demand such freedom for ourselves while refusing it to
others, thus violating Jesus’ first commandment: charity and love
for one’s neighbor. To persecute them for their beliefs is to attack
the most sacred right that all people have of believing in what is fit
for them and worshiping God according to their understanding.
Obliging them to outward forms like our own is to show that
we are bound more to appearances than to conviction. Forced
renouncement never brings faith; it produces only hypocrisy. It is
an abuse of material power that does not demonstrate the truth.
The truth is secure in and of itself; it convinces and does not persecute,
because it does not need to.
Spiritism is an opinion, a belief; even if it were a religion,
why would persons not have as much freedom to say they are
Spiritists as they would have to say that they are Catholics, Jews
or Protestants, adherents of this or that philosophy or this or that
economic system? A belief is either false or true; if it is false, it
will fall by itself, because error cannot prevail against the truth

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when minds are enlightened; if it is true, persecution cannot

render it false.
Persecution is the baptism for every new idea that is great and
just; it increases with the greatness and importance of the idea. The
animosity and wrath of its enemies are in proportion to the fear it
instills in them. It is for this reason that Christianity was persecuted
in the past and why Spiritism is today, but with the difference
that Christianity was persecuted by pagans, whereas Spiritism
is persecuted by Christians. The times of bloody persecutions
have passed, that is true, but if one no longer kills the body, one
torments the soul, attacking it in its innermost sentiments, in its
dearest affections. Families are divided; mother is incited against
daughter; wife, against husband. Even the body is attacked in its
physical needs by taking away people’s livelihood in order to afflict
it with hunger. (See chap. XXIII, nos. 9 ff.)
Spiritists, do not be troubled with the blows you are dealt, for
they prove that you have the truth; otherwise, you would be left alone
and unharmed. It is a test of your faith, for it will be because of your
courage, resignation and perseverance that God will acknowledge
you to be among God’s faithful servants, of whom he is even now
making note so as to give all their share according to their deeds.
Following the example of the early Christians, be proud,
therefore, to carry your cross. Believe in the words of Christ, who
said, “Blessed are they who suffer persecution for righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Do not fear those who kill the
body but cannot kill the soul.” He also said, “Love your enemies;
do good to those who do you evil, and pray for those who persecute
you.” Show that you are his true disciples and that your doctrine is
good by doing what he said and what he did.
Persecution will last only for a while; so wait patiently for
the dawn, for already the morning star appears on the horizon.
(See chap. XXIV, nos. 13 ff.)

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52. PRAYER. O Lord, through Jesus you said to us:

“Blessed are they who suffer persecution for righteousness; forgive
your enemies; pray for those who persecute you”; and he himself
showed us the way by praying for his murderers.
Following his example, dear God, we implore your mercy on
those who do not know your divine precepts, the only ones that
can ensure peace in this world and in the other. Like Christ, we say
to you, “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do.”
Give us strength to patiently and resignedly bear their
mockery, insults, slander and persecutions as trials for our faith
and humility. Keep from us any thought of reprisal, for the hour
of your justice will sound for all, and we await it by surrendering
to your holy will.
Prayer for a Newborn Child
53. INTRODUCTION. Spirits reach perfection only after
having passed through the trials of corporeal life. Those in the spirit
world wait for God to allow them to take up another existence
that will furnish them a means of advancement, either through
the expiation of their past wrongs by means of the vicissitudes they
must endure, or by fulfilling a mission that is useful to humankind.
Their advancement and future happiness will be proportional
to the manner in which they will have employed the time they
must spend on the earth. The job of guiding their first steps and
of directing them toward the good is entrusted to their parents,
who will answer to God for the way they will have fulfilled their
mandate. It is in order to facilitate its execution that God made
parental and filial love a law of nature, a law that is never violated
with impunity.
54. PRAYER. (By the parents). Spirit, who has incarnated
in the body of our child, be welcome among us. Almighty God,
who has sent it to us, may you be blessed.

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It is a deposit that is entrusted to us and for which we must

render an accounting some day. If it belongs to the new generation
of good spirits who are to populate the earth, we thank you, O God,
for such a favor! If it is an imperfect soul, our duty is to help it
progress on the path of the good through our counsels and our good
examples. If it falls into evil because of us, we will be answerable to
you, for we will not have fulfilled our mission on its behalf.
Lord, uphold us in our task and give us the strength and will
to fulfill it. If this child must be the subject of a trial for us, may
your will be done!
Good spirits who have come to preside over its birth and
who are to accompany it during its life, do not forsake it. Keep
from this child wicked spirits who may try to induce it to evil;
give it the strength to resist their suggestions and the courage to
patiently and resignedly bear the trials awaiting it on the earth.
(See chap. XIV, no. 9)
55. (Another). O God, you have entrusted me with the
destiny of one of your spirits; enable me, Lord, to be worthy of the
task that has been imposed upon me; grant me your watch-care;
enlighten my mind so that I may discern early on the inclinations
of the child that I must prepare to enter your peace.
56. (Another). God of goodness, since you saw it fit to allow
the spirit of this child to come once again to endure the earthly
trials destined to enable it to progress, grant it your light, so that
it may learn to acknowledge, love and worship you. By your
omnipotence, enable this soul to regenerate itself in the fount of
your divine teachings. Under the guidance of its guardian angel,
may its intelligence grow, develop and make it aspire to draw closer
and closer to you. May the knowledge of Spiritism be the shining
light that enlightens it through the choices of its life. Finally, may
it learn to appreciate the full extent of your love that puts us to the
test in order to purify us.

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Lord, cast a parental eye upon the family to whom you

have entrusted this soul; may they understand the importance
of their mission and enable good seeds to germinate in this child
until the day in which, through its own aspirations, it can ascend
by itself to you.
Dear God, deign to answer this humble prayer in the name
and by the merit of that One who said, “Let the little children
come unto me, for the kingdom of heaven is for those who are
like them.”
For a Dying Person
57. INTRODUCTION. The death pangs are the prelude
to the separation of the soul from the body. One could say that,
at that moment, the person has only one foot in this world and
the other in the other world. This passage is sometimes painful for
those who are deeply attached to matter and who have lived more
for the possessions of this world than for those of the other, or
those whose conscience is troubled by grief and remorse. On the
contrary, for those whose thoughts are lifted up to the Infinite and
who are detached from matter, the ties are easier to break, and the
final moments are in no way painful. Hence, the soul is connected
to the body only by a thread, whereas in the first case, it is held by
deep roots. In any case, however, prayer exerts a powerful action
on the effort of separation. (See below: Prayers for the sick; also
Heaven and Hell, pt. 2, chap. I, The Passage)
58. PRAYER. Almighty and merciful God, this is a soul
who is about to leave its earthly body behind to return to the spirit
world, its true homeland. May it enter in peace and may your
mercy be extended over it.
Good spirits who have followed it while on the earth, do
not forsake it at this supreme moment. Give it strength to endure
the final suffering it must experience in this world for its future

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advancement. Inspire it so that it may consecrate to the repentance

of its wrongs the final glimmerings of intelligence or any fleeting
thoughts that may still come to mind.
Guide my thought so that its action may render the effort of
separation less painful, taking to this soul consolations and hope
at the moment of leaving this earth.

IV – Prayers for Those Who Are

no longer on the Earth
For Someone Who Has Just Died
59. INTRODUCTION. Prayers for spirits who have just
left the earth do not have only the purpose of providing them
with a testimony of sympathy, but they also have the effect of
helping their soul’s disengagement, therefore shortening the state
of confusion that always follows the separation, and rendering the
awakening more peaceful. Moreover, as in any other circumstance,
the prayer’s effectiveness lies in the sincerity of the thought and
not in the abundance of words spoken more or less pompously
and in which the heart frequently takes no part.
Prayers coming from the heart resonate around the spirit –
whose thoughts are still confused – like friendly voices that have
come to rouse it out of sleep. (See chap. XXVII, no. 10)
60. PRAYER. Almighty God, may your mercy extend over
the soul of [person’s name], whom you are calling to you. May the
trials he/she has borne while on earth be taken into account, and
may our prayers soften and shorten the suffering he/she might yet
be feeling as a spirit!
Good spirits who have come to receive him/her, and
especially you, his/her guardian angel, help him/her be rid of
matter; give him/her the enlightenment and self-awareness needed

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to remove him/her from the confusion that accompanies the

passage from the corporeal to the spirit life. Inspire in him/her
repentance for the wrongs he/she might have committed, and the
knowledge that he/she is allowed to right them in order to hasten
his/her advancement toward bliss eternal.
[Person’s name], you have just reentered the world of spirits;
nevertheless, you are still here amongst us; you can see and hear
us because there is nothing between you and us but the perishable
body that you left behind and which will soon be reduced to dust.
You have left behind the coarse envelope, subject to
vicissitudes and death, and you have retained only the ethereal
envelope, imperishable and inaccessible to suffering. If you no
longer live through the body, you do live the life of the spirits, and
that life is exempt from the miseries that afflict humanity.
You no longer possess the veil that hides from our eyes the
splendors of the future life; from now on, you can contemplate
new wonders, whereas we are still immersed in darkness.
You are going to travel space and visit worlds with complete
freedom, whereas we trudge painfully along on the earth where we
retain our physical body like a heavy burden.
The horizon of infinity is going to unfold before you, and in
the presence of such grandeur you shall understand the vanity of
the earthly desires, worldly ambitions and futile joys that make up
the delight of humankind.
For humans, death is only a physical separation that lasts a
few instants. From a place of exile where God’s will still retains us,
as do the duties we must yet fulfill in this world, we shall follow
you in thought until the moment in which we will be allowed to
rejoin you, just as you have rejoined those who preceded you.
If we cannot go to where you are to be near to you, you
can come to be near to us. So come to be among those who love
you and whom you love; uphold them in life’s trials; watch over

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those who are dear to you; watch over them according to your
ability and soften their grief with the thought that you are now
happier, and with the consoling certainty that they will some day
be reunited with you in a better world.
In the world where you now are, all earthly resentments must
cease. For your future happiness, may you from this day onward
be inaccessible to them. Forgive, therefore, those who committed
wrongs against you, just as they forgive you for those you may
have committed against them.
Remark: A few special words may be added to this general
prayer according to the particular circumstances of the family or
relationships and situation of the deceased. If it is a child, Spiritism
teaches us that it is not a recently-created spirit, but that it has
lived before and may be quite advanced. If its last existence was
short, it is because it was only a supplement to a trial either for it
or for the parents. (See chap. V, no. 21)
61. (Another)44 Almighty Lord, may your mercy extend
over our brothers who have just left earth behind. May your light
shine on their eyes. Keep them from darkness; open their eyes and
ears. May your good spirits envelop them and enable them to hear
words of hope and peace.
Lord, as unworthy as we are, we dare implore your merciful
indulgence on behalf of this one of our brothers who has been called
from exile. Let his return be like that of the Prodigal Son. O God,
forget the wrongs that he might have committed and remember
only the good he might have done. Your justice is immutable, we
know, but your love is great. We ask you to attenuate your justice
through the fount of goodness that emanates from you.
May the light shine on you, my brother, who has left the
earth behind. May the good spirits of the Lord descend upon

44
This prayer was dictated to a medium from Bordeaux at the moment in which the funeral
procession of an unknown person was passing by his window. – Auth.

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you, envelop you and help you rid yourself of your earthly bonds.
Understand and behold the grandeur of our Lord. Yield without
complaint to his justice but never despair of his mercy. My brother!
May a true return to your past open to you the portals to the
future, and enable you to understand the wrongs you are leaving
behind and the work that remains for you to repair them. May
God forgive you and may good spirits uphold and encourage you.
Your brothers and sisters on earth shall pray for you and they ask
that you pray for them.
For Persons for Whom We Have Held Affection
62. INTRODUCTION. How frightful the notion of
nothingness is! How we ought to pity those who believe that the
voice of friends who weep over friends is lost in the void, unable
to find any echo to respond to them. They have never known
pure and holy affections, those who believe that it all dies with
the body; that the spirit who has illumined the world with its vast
intelligence is a combination of matter that is extinguished forever
like a gulp of air; that, of the most-cherished being such as a father,
a mother or a beloved child, nothing is left but a handful of dust
that time dissipates without return.
How could persons of heart remain indifferent to such a
thought? How could the idea of complete annihilation not freeze
them with terror and at least make them hope that it is not so? If
until now their reasoning has not been sufficient to remove their
doubt, Spiritism has come to dissipate all uncertainty regarding
the future by providing material proof of the survival of the soul
and the existence of beings beyond the grave. That is why such
proof has been welcomed with joy everywhere; confidence is
reborn because people know from this day onward that life on
earth is nothing but a short passage that leads to a better life; that
their efforts in this world are not lost to them and that their holiest

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affections are not destroyed without hope. (See chap. IV, no. 18;
chap. V, no. 21)
63. PRAYER. Dear God, deign to favorably receive the
prayer we are asking on behalf of the spirit of [person’s name];
enable him/her to perceive your divine light and render easy the
way to eternal happiness. Allow good spirits to take my words and
thought to him/her.
You who were dear to me in this world, hear my voice as
it calls out to give you a new token of my affection. God has
allowed you to be delivered first; I cannot grieve this without
being selfish, because it would be as if I wanted you to still be
afflicted with the pain and suffering of life. Thus, I resignedly
await the moment of our reunion in that happier world into
which you have preceded me.
I know that our separation is only momentary and that no
matter how long it may seem to me, its duration vanishes before
the eternity of the bliss that God promises his elect. May his
goodness keep me from anything that might delay that desired
instant, and thus spare me the pain of not meeting you again upon
leaving my earthly captivity.
Oh! How sweet and comforting is the certainty that between
us there is only a material veil that hides you from my sight! That
you may be right here by my side and see and hear me as before,
and maybe even better than before; that you will not forget me as I
will not forget you; that our thoughts may not cease to intermingle,
and that your thought follows and upholds me always.
May the peace of the Lord be with you.
For Suffering Souls Who Ask for Prayers
64. INTRODUCTION. In order to understand the
consolation that prayer can provide to suffering spirits, one needs
to recall their mode of action, as explained above. (See chap.

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XXVII, nos. 9, 18 ff.). Those who are imbued with this truth pray
more fervently due to the certainty of not praying in vain.
65. PRAYER. Forgiving and merciful God, may your
goodness extend over all spirits who ask for our prayers, especially
the soul of [person’s name]. Good spirits, whose only concern is
to do good, intercede with me for their consolation. Make a ray of
hope shine on their eyes, and may the divine light enlighten them
regarding the imperfections that keep them from the dwelling
place of the blessed. Open their hearts to repentance and the desire
to purify themselves to hasten their advancement. Enable them to
understand that, through their efforts, they may shorten the time
of their trials.
May God in his goodness give them the strength to persevere
in their good resolutions!
May these benevolent words soften their suffering by
showing them that there are people on the earth who sympathize
with them and desire their happiness.
66. (Another). We pray to you, O Lord, to pour out the
blessings of your love and mercy upon all suffering spirits, whether
discarnate in the spirit world or incarnate among us. Have
compassion on our weaknesses. You have made us fallible, but
you have given us the strength to resist and overcome evil. May
your mercy extend over all those who could not resist their evil
inclinations, and who are still bound to the wrong path. May your
good spirits envelop them; may your light shine on their eyes, and
attracted by its life-giving warmth, may they fall prostrate at your
feet, humble, repentant and submissive.
We also pray to you, O Father of mercy, for our brothers
and sisters who have not had the strength to bear their earthly
trials. You have given us a burden to carry, O Lord, and we must
not dispose of it except at your feet; however, our weakness is
great and courage sometimes fails us along the way. Take pity

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on these indolent servants who have abandoned their work

before it was time. May your justice spare them and allow your
good spirits to bring them relief, consolation and hope for the
future. The prospect of forgiveness strengthens the soul; point
this fact out, Lord, to the despairing guilty, and, sustained by
such hope, they will have the strength even in the immensity of
their wrongs and sufferings to redeem their past and prepare to
conquer the future.
For a Deceased Enemy
67. INTRODUCTION. Charity toward our enemies
should follow them beyond the grave. We must realize that the
evil they did to us was a trial that might have been useful for our
advancement if we knew how to take advantage of it. It could have
been even more advantageous than purely material afflictions in
that, along with courage and resignation, it allowed us to add to it
charity and the forgetfulness of offenses. (See chap. X, no. 6; chap.
XII, nos. 5, 6)
68. PRAYER. Lord, it was your will to call the soul of
[person’s name] before mine. I forgive him/her for the evil he/
she did to me and his/her bad intentions regarding me. May he/
she repent for it now that he/she is no longer under the illusions
of this world.
May your mercy, O God, extend over him/her and keep
from me the thought of rejoicing at his/her death. If I have acted
badly toward him/her, may he/she forgive me, just as I forgive
those who have acted that way toward me.
For a Criminal
69. INTRODUCTION. If the effectiveness of prayers were
proportional to their length, the longest ones ought to be reserved
for the guiltier persons because they have more need than those
who have led virtuous lives. To refuse prayers to criminals is to lack

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charity and to misunderstand God’s mercy. To believe prayers are

pointless because a person has committed this or that wrong is to
prejudge the Most High’s justice. (See chap. XI, no. 14)
70. PRAYER. O Lord, God of mercy, do not spurn this
criminal who has left the earth behind. Human justice may have
struck him/her, but it has not exempted him/her from your justice
if his/her heart has not been touched by remorse.
Remove the blindfold that hides from him/her the gravity
of his/her wrongs. May his/her repentance find grace before you
and relieve the suffering of his/her soul! May our prayers and
the intercession of good spirits also bring him/her hope and
consolation. Inspire him/her with the desire to right his/her bad
acts in a new existence, and give him/her the strength not to
succumb in the new struggles he/she will undertake.
Lord, have mercy on him/her!
For a Suicide
71. INTRODUCTION. Human beings never have the
right to dispose of their own life, for only God can take them from
their earthly captivity when deemed appropriate. Nevertheless, the
harshness of divine justice may be softened in accordance with
the circumstances, but it is reserved in all its severity for those
who have wished to remove themselves from the trials of life.
Suicides are like prisoners who escape from prison before having
served their sentence, and who, when recaptured, are guarded
more severely. Such is the case with suicides, who believe they are
escaping their present miseries only to immerse themselves in even
greater unhappiness. (See chap. V, nos. 14 ff.)
72. PRAYER. O God, we know the fate reserved for those
who violate your laws by intentionally shortening their days. But
we also know that your mercy is infinite: deign to extend it over the
soul of [person’s name]. May our prayers and your commiseration

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soften the bitterness of his/her suffering for not having had the
courage to await the end of his/her trials!
Good spirits, whose mission is to assist unfortunates, take
him/her under your watch-care. Inspire him/her with repentance
for his/her wrong, and may your assistance give him/her the
strength to more resignedly bear the new trials that he/she will
have to endure to repair it. Keep from him/her evil spirits who may
once again lead him/her into evil and prolong his/her suffering by
causing him/her to lose the fruit of his/her future trials.
You, whose misfortune is the object of our prayers, may our
commiseration soften your bitterness and awaken in you hope for
a better future! That future is in your hands; trust in the goodness
of God, whose bosom is open to all those who repent, while
remaining shut only to hardened hearts.
For Repentant Spirits
73. INTRODUCTION. It would be unjust to rank in the
category of evil spirits those suffering and repentant spirits who
ask for prayers. They might have been evil but they are no longer
so when they acknowledge and lament their wrongs: they are only
unhappy. Some have even begun to enjoy a relative happiness.
74. PRAYER. God of mercy, who accepts the sincere
repentance of the sinner, whether incarnate or discarnate, here is
a spirit who took pleasure in evil, but who now recognizes his/her
errors and is entering upon the pathway of the good. Dear God,
deign to receive him/her as a prodigal child and forgive him/her.
Good spirits, whose voice he/she failed to acknowledge, he/
she now wants you to hear him/her from this day onward. Allow
him/her to foresee the happiness of the Lord’s elect so that he/she
may persist in the desire to purify him/herself in order to reach it.
Uphold him/her in his/her good resolutions and give him/her the
strength to resist his/her evil instincts.

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Spirit of [person’s name], we commend you for your change

and we give thanks to the good spirits who have helped you.
If you used to take pleasure in doing evil, it was because you
did not understand how sweet the joy in doing good was; you also
felt too lowly to hope to achieve it. But from the moment in which
you stepped onto the good path, a light began to shine for you; you
have begun to experience an unknown happiness, and hope has
entered you soul. It is because God always hears the prayer of the
repentant sinner and does not spurn anyone who comes to him.
To enter completely into his grace, apply yourself from
hereon out, not only in no longer committing evil, but in doing
the good, and especially in repairing the evil you have done. Then,
you will have satisfied God’s justice. Each good act will erase one
of your past wrongs.
The first step has been taken. Now, the more you advance
the easier and more pleasant the pathway will seem to you. So
persevere, and one day you will experience the glory of being
counted among the good and happy spirits.
For Hardened Spirits
75. INTRODUCTION. Evil spirits are those who have
not yet been touched by repentance; who take pleasure in evil
and feel no remorse for it; who are insensitive toward reproach,
and who spurn prayer and often blaspheme God’s name.
These are hardened souls, who, after death, take vengeance on
incarnates for the suffering they endure and persecute with their
hatred those whom they hated when alive, whether by means of
obsession45 or by any sort of harmful influence. (See chap. X, no.
6; chap. XII, nos. 5, 6)

45
Obsession (spiritual) “... is the domination that certain spirits may acquire over certain
individuals” (Kardec, Allan, The Mediums’ Book, International Spiritist Council, 2006, p. 393.
See ibid, chap. XXIII for a complete treatment of the subject of possession and its varying
degrees of severity. See also no. 81 below.– Tr.

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Among perverse spirits, there are two distinct categories:

those who are downright evil and those who are hypocritical. The
former are infinitely easier to lead to the good than the latter. They
are most often brutish and coarse of character, similar to what we
see among incarnates who commit evil more out of instinct than
intent, and who do not try to pass themselves off as being better
than they actually are. There is, however, a latent seed in them
that must be brought forth, and one can almost always do so with
perseverance and firmness combined with benevolence, as well as
through good counsel, reasoning and prayer. In mediumship, the
difficulty they have in writing God’s name is an indication of a
fearful instinct, of an inner voice of the conscience that tells them
they are unworthy of it. Those to whom this applies are on the
threshold of conversion and one can hold out all hope for them:
all one has to do is to find the soft spot in their heart.
Hypocritical spirits are nearly always highly intelligent, but
they do not have one sensitive fiber in their heart; nothing moves
them. They feign all the good sentiments to win someone’s trust,
and they are happy whenever they find anyone foolish enough to
accept them as holy spirits, and whom they can subject to their
will. Far from inspiring in them the least bit of fear, God’s name
serves them as a mask to cover their turpitudes. In the invisible
world, as in the visible, hypocrites are the most dangerous because
they act in the shadows without anyone suspecting them. They put
on the appearance of having faith, but this faith is not authentic.
76. PRAYER. O Lord, deign to cast a glance of goodness
upon imperfect spirits who are yet in the darkness of ignorance and
who do not know you, especially upon the spirit of [person’s name].
Good spirits, help us to enable him/her to understand that
inducing people to evil, obsessing and tormenting them, will
prolong his/her own suffering. Allow the example of the bliss you
enjoy to be a source of encouragement for him/her.

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Spirits who still delight in evil, you have heard the prayer we
are offering for you; it should show you that we desire to do good
to you, even though you do evil.
You are unhappy because it is impossible to be happy by
doing evil. So why remain in suffering when it depends on you to
get out of it? Look at the good spirits around you; see how happy
they are and if it would not be more pleasing for you to enjoy the
same happiness!
You will say that this is impossible for you; but nothing is
impossible for those who want it, for God has given you, as he did
all his creatures, the freedom to choose between good and evil, that
is, between happiness and unhappiness, and no one is condemned
to doing evil. If you have the will to do evil, you also have the will
to do good deeds and to be happy.
Turn you eyes toward God; uplift yourselves for only an
instant to him in thought, and a ray of his divine light will come
to enlighten you. Say with us these simple words: My God, I repent;
forgive me. Try repenting and doing good instead of evil and you
will see that his mercy will quickly extend over you, and that an
unknown well-being will replace the anguish you now feel.
Once you have taken one step along the pathway toward the
good, the rest of the way will seem easy. You will then understand
how much blissful time you have wasted through your own fault.
But a future radiant and full of hope will open before you and will
make you forget your miserable past, full of trouble and mental
torment, which wouldbe hell for you if it were to last forever. A day
will come when your torment will be such that, no matter what
the cost, you will want it to stop. The longer you wait, however,
the more difficult it will be.
Do not believe you will remain forever in your present state;
no, that is impossible. You have two prospects before you: one of
suffering even more than you have been till now, and the other to

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be as happy as the good spirits who surround you. The former is

unavoidable if you persist in your obstinacy, but a simple effort of
your will is enough to pull you out of your current bad situation.
So make haste, for each day of delay is a day lost for your happiness.
Good spirits, permit these words to find access to this
backward soul, so that they may help it grow closer to God. We
ask you in the name of Jesus Christ, who had such great power
over evil spirits.

V – Prayers for the Sick and the Obsessed

For the Sick
77. INTRODUCTION. Sicknesses are part of the trials
and vicissitudes of earthly life; they are inherent to the coarseness
of our material nature and the low degree of evolution of the
world we inhabit. The passions and excesses of all sorts sow in
us unhealthy seeds, often hereditary. On worlds that are more
physically or morally advanced, the more purified and less material
human organism is not subject to the same infirmities, and the
body is not silently undermined by the devastation of the passions
(see chap. III, no. 9). Thus, we must resign ourselves to endure
the consequences of the environment into which our less-evolved
nature has placed us until we merit a transfer. While waiting for
this to happen, it should not keep us from doing what depends on
us to better our current situation; but if, despite our efforts we fail
to do so, Spiritism teaches us to resignedly bear our transitory ills.
If God had not wanted bodily sufferings to be dissipated
or softened in certain cases, God would not have placed healing
means at our disposal. God’s provident solicitude in this regard, in
conformity with the instinct of preservation, indicates that it is our
duty to seek and apply them.

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Alongside the usual medication developed by science,

magnetism enabled us to understand the power of the fluidic
action; afterward, Spiritism came to reveal another power in healing
mediumship and the influence of prayer. (See mention below [no.
81] on healing mediumship)
78. PRAYER. (To be said by the sick person). O Lord, you
are wholly just; I must have deserved the sickness you saw fit to
send me, for you make no one suffer without cause. I deliver myself
to your infinite mercy to be healed; if it pleases you to restore me
to health, may your holy name be blessed. On the other hand, if I
must suffer some more, may your name be blessed just the same.
I surrender myself without complaint to your divine decrees, for
everything you do can have no other purpose than to be for the
good of your creatures.
O God, enable this sickness to be a healthy warning to me
and to lead me to make a self-assessment. I accept it as an expiation
for the past and as a trial for my faith and submission to your holy
will. (See prayer no. 40)
79. PRAYER. (For the sick person). O God, your designs
are impenetrable, and in your wisdom you have deemed it right
to afflict [person’s name] with sickness. I pray that you will cast
your compassionate gaze upon his/her suffering and deign to put
an end to it.
Good spirits, ministers of the Almighty, I ask you to second
my desire for his/her relief. Direct my thought so that it may pour
out a healthy balm over his/her body and consolation on his/her soul.
Inspire him/her with patience and submission to God’s will.
Give him/her the strength to endure his/her pain with Christian
resignation so that he/she may not lose the fruit of this trial. (See
prayer no. 57)
80. PRAYER. (To be said by the healing medium). Dear
God, if you would deign to use me, unworthy as I am, I may heal

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this suffering if it is your will, because I have faith in you; but

without you I can do nothing. Allow good spirits to bestow their
health-giving fluid on me so that I may transmit it to this sick
person, and keep from me any thought of pride and selfishness
that may alter its purity.
For the Obsessed
81. INTRODUCTION. Obsession is the persistent action
that an evil spirit exerts upon an individual. It presents very
distinct characteristics from a simple moral influence, without
any perceivable outward signs, to the complete disturbance of
the organism and mental faculties. It obliterates all mediumistic
faculties; in writing mediumship it is displayed by the tenacity of
one particular spirit to manifest itself to the exclusion of all others.
Evil spirits swarm all around the earth as a result of the low
degree of moral evolvement of its inhabitants. Their malevolent
action comprises part of the afflictions targeting humankind in
this world. Like all the illnesses and tribulations of life, obsessions
must therefore be regarded as a trial or an expiation, and be
accepted as such.
Just as illnesses are the result of physical imperfections that
render the body accessible to pernicious exterior influences, an
obsession is always the result of a moral imperfection that exposes
the body to an evil spirit. To a physical cause one applies a physical
force; to a moral cause it is necessary to apply a moral force. To
prevent illnesses, one strengthens the body; to avert obsessions,
one must strengthen the soul; hence for obsessed persons the
necessity to work for their own betterment, which is often quite
enough to free them from their obsessor without the help of
other persons. However, such help becomes necessary when the
obsession degenerates into subjugation and possession, because
then patients sometimes lose their will power and their free will.

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Obsession is nearly always the result of vengeance carried

out by a spirit, and most often it originated in the relationships
that the obsessed person had with the spirit in a previous existence.
(See chap. X, no. 6; chap. XII, nos. 5, 6)
In cases of grave obsession, it is as if the obsessed person is
enveloped and impregnated with a pernicious fluid that neutralizes
and repels the action of healthy fluids. It is therefore necessary
to rid the person of this malevolent fluid; however, an evil fluid
cannot be deflected by a similar evil one. By means of an action
identical to that of a healing medium in cases of illnesses, it is
necessary to expel the evil fluid with the aid of a better fluid that
somehow produces a reactive effect. This is the mechanical action,
but it is not enough; it is also and especially necessary to act upon
the intelligent being, who must be addressed with authority, and
this authority derives only from moral ascendancy – the greater
the ascendance, the greater the authority.
And that is not all. To ensure liberation, the wicked spirit
must be led to renounce its evil intentions; with the help of
ably directed instructions and personal evocations made with
its moral education in mind, it is necessary to awaken in it
repentance and the desire to do good. Then, we may have the
two-fold satisfaction of delivering an incarnate and converting
an imperfect spirit.
The task becomes easier when the obsessed person
understands his/her situation and lends the concourse of his/her
will power and prayers. This cannot occur if the person seduced
by the deceiving spirit is deluded regarding the qualities of the
obsessor and takes pleasure in the error in which it has immersed
him/her, for then, rather than helping, the obsessed person spurns
all assistance. This is the case with fascination, always infinitely
more rebellious than the most violent subjugation. (See The
Mediums’ Book, chap. XXIII)

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In all cases of obsession, prayer is the most powerful aid for

acting upon the obsessor spirit.
82. PRAYER. (To be said by the obsessed person). Dear God,
allow good spirits to free me from the evil spirit that has attached
itself to me. If it is an act of vengeance that it is pursuing for the
wrongs I might have committed against it in the past, you have
allowed it, dear God, for my punishment, and I bear the consequence
of my wrong. May my repentance merit your forgiveness and my
deliverance! But whatever its reason may be, I ask that your mercy
be upon it. Deign to make easier its path of progress, which will
divert its thought from doing evil. On my part, may I repay evil
with goodness, thereby leading it to better sentiments.
But I also know, dear God, that it is my imperfections that
have rendered me accessible to the influence of imperfect spirits.
Give me the necessary enlightenment to recognize them; especially,
combat within me the pride that blinds me toward my own faults.
How unworthy I must be to have allowed an evil spirit to
dominate me!
Dear God, may this blow to my vanity serve as a lesson
for the future; may it strengthen me in the resolution I have
made to purify myself through the practice of goodness,
charity and humility so that from now on I may set up a
barrier to evil influences.
Lord, give me strength to bear this trial with patience and
resignation. I understand that, just like all other trials, it will aid
my advancement if I do not ruin its fruits by complaining, since
it furnishes me the opportunity to show my submission and to
practice charity toward an unhappy brother/sister by forgiving
the evil he/she has done to me. (See chap. XII, nos. 5, 6; chap.
XXVIII, nos. 15 ff., 46, 47)
83. PRAYER. (For the obsessed person). Almighty God,
deign to give me the ability to set [person’s name] free from the

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spirit who is obsessing him/her. If it is in your designs to put an

end to this trial, grant me the grace to speak to this spirit with the
necessary authority.
Good spirits, may you assist me, and you, my guardian
angel, may you lend me your concourse. Help me unburden him/
her of the impure fluid enveloping him/her.
In the name of Almighty God, I entreat the evil spirit
tormenting him/her to withdraw.
84. PRAYER. (For the obsessing spirit). God of infinite
goodness, I implore your mercy for the spirit who is obsessing
[person’s name]. Enable it to glimpse the divine light so that it
may see the path of error it has taken. Good spirits, help me make
it understand that it has everything to lose by doing evil and
everything to gain by doing good.
May the spirit who has been taking pleasure in tormenting
[person’s name] listen to me because I am speaking to you in
God’s name.
If you would think about it, you would understand that evil
cannot prevail over the good, and that you cannot be stronger than
God and the good spirits.
They can protect [person’s name] from any blow on your
part, and if they have not done so, it was because he/she has had a
trial to endure. But when this trial reaches its end, they will block
all your actions against him/her. Instead of harming him/her, the
evil you have done will have served for his/her advancement, and
for that he/she will be nothing but happy. Thus, your wickedness
will have been a plain loss for you and will rebound against you.
God, who is All Powerful, and the high order spirits, his
delegates, who are more powerful than you, shall thus put an end to
this obsession when they wish, and your tenacity shall break before
this supreme authority. However, because God is good, he wants
to leave to you the merit for having ceased through your own free

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will. It is a respite that is being granted to you; if you do not take

advantage of it, you will suffer its deplorable consequences; great
punishments and cruel sufferings await you; you will be forced
to beg for the mercy and prayers of your victim, who has already
forgiven and prays for you, which is a great merit in God’s eyes and
will hasten his/her deliverance.
So, think about it while there is still time, for God’s justice
will strike you like all other rebellious spirits. Realize that the evil
you are doing now will surely have a limit, whereas if you persist in
your obstinacy, your suffering will increase without ceasing.
When you were on the earth, did you not find it foolish to
sacrifice a great good for the tiny satisfaction of one moment? The
same applies now that you are a spirit. What will you gain by what
you are doing? The sad pleasure of tormenting someone, which
does not keep you from being unhappy, no matter what you might
say; it will only render you even unhappier.
Moreover, look at what you are losing; look at the good
spirits around you and see if their situation is not preferable to
yours. The happiness they enjoy will be your lot whenever you
wish. What must you do? Pray to God and do good instead of evil.
I know that you cannot change all of a sudden, but God does not
ask what is impossible; what he wants is goodwill. So try it and
we will help you. Make it so that soon we will be able to say for
you the prayer for repentant spirits (no. 73) and no longer rank
you among the evil ones as you wait for the time when you can be
counted among the good ones.
(See also no. 75, Prayer for Hardened Spirits).

Comment: The healing of grave obsessions demands much

patience, perseverance and devotion. It also demands tact and
skill to lead frequently extremely perverse, hardened and cunning
spirits to the good, because there are those who are rebellious to

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the highest degree. In most cases, one must proceed according

to the circumstances; but whatever may be the character of the
spirit, it is a sure fact that nothing can be obtained by violence
or threat; all influence lies in one’s moral ascendancy. One other
truth, also proven by experience as well as by logic, is the complete
ineffectiveness of exorcisms, formulas, sacramental words, amulets,
talismans, outward practices or any material symbol.
Greatly prolonged obsessions may cause pathological
disorders and sometimes require simultaneous or subsequent
magnetic or medical treatment to reestablish the organism. Once
the cause is destroyed, all that remains is to combat the effects. (See
The Mediums’ Book, chap. XXIII: Obsession; Revue Spirite, Feb.
and Mar. 1864; Apr. 1865: “Examples of healings for obsessions.”)

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 EXPLANATORY NOTE1

Today they believe and their faith is unshakable, because it is

based on evidence and demonstration, and because it satisfies
reason. […] Such is the faith of Spiritists, and the proof of their
strength is that they endeavor to make themselves better, to
control their evil inclinations and to put into practice Christ’s
maxims, regarding all humans as brothers and sisters regardless of
race, caste, or sect, forgiving their enemies and repaying evil with
good in accordance with the divine model. (KARDEC, Allan.
Revue Spirite, 1868).

A strictly rational and scientific study of facts that revealed

the communication of human beings with spirits, accomplished by
Allan Kardec, resulted in the codification of the Spiritist Doctrine,
which was systematized according to scientific, philosophical and
religious aspects.
Beginning in 1854 and lasting until his death in 1869,
Kardec’s endeavor was comprised of five basic works: The Spirits’
Book (1857), The Mediums’ Book (1861), The Gospel according
to Spiritism (1864), Heaven and Hell (1865) and Genesis (1868),
in addition to the book What is Spiritism (1859) and a series of
booklets and 136 editions of Revue Spirite (Jan. 1858 – Apr. 1869).
After his death, the book Posthumous Works was compiled (1890).
A meticulous and unrestrained study of these works
will enable us to extract a number of basic conclusions: a) all
1
Publisher’s note: This “Explanatory Note,” published due to an agreement with the Brazilian
Federal Department of Justice (Ministério Público Federal), is intended to demonstrate
the absence of any discrimination or prejudice in certain passages of the works of Allan
Kardec, which are all characterized by upholding the principles of Christian fraternity and
solidarity contained in the Spiritist Doctrine.

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 Explanatory Note

human beings are immortal spirits created by God under equal

conditions, subject to the same natural laws of progress that
gradually lead all to perfection; b) progress occurs by means of
successive experiences in innumerable reincarnations necessarily
encompassing all social classes, which is the only way the spirit can
accumulate the learning experience needed for its development; c)
in the period between reincarnations the spirit lives in the spirit
world and can communicate with humans; d) progress obeys the
moral laws taught and lived by Jesus, our guide and model, who
is the reference for all people who desire to evolve consciously and
intentionally.
At several points in his work, the Codifier refers to spirits who
have incarnated in uneducated and primitive tribes that existed
at the time in a few regions of the planet, and that, in contact
with other segments of civilization, were undergoing innumerable
transformations – many of which were obviously beneficial for
their members – resulting from the general progress to which all
ethnicities are subject, regardless of the color of their skin.
In Kardec’s time the phrenological ideas of Gall and the
physiognomic ideas of Lavater were accepted by eminent scientists.
Also, the publication in 1859 – two years after the release of The
Spirits’ Book – of Charles Darwin’s book The Evolution of Species,
containing the natural misconceptions and misunderstandings
that every new science entails, caused enormous excitement in
the means of communication within the scholarly community
and the general population. Furthermore, the belief that facial
traits reveal the character of an individual is ancient and implies
that there is an apparent relationship between one’s physical and
moral bearing.
The Codifier did not agree with many aspects presented
by these so-called sciences. Thus, he tried to appraise the
conclusions of such eminent scholars in the light of the Spirits’

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 Explanatory Note

revelation, bringing to the discussion the spiritual element as the

decisive factor in resolving the issues regarding human diversity
and inequality.
In the principles of the Spiritist Doctrine, Kardec found
explanations that point to wise and supreme laws, which is why
he affirmed that Spiritism enables “… the solving of thousands
of historical, archeological, anthropological, theological,
psychological, moral, social, etc. problems” (Revue Spirite, 1862).
In fact, the universal laws of love, charity, immortality of the
soul, reincarnation and evolution comprise new parameters for
understanding the development of human groups in the many
regions of the planet.
This understanding of the Divine Laws allowed Kardec to state:

The body proceeds from the body, but the spirit does not
proceed from the spirit. There is no other link than blood
kinship among descendants. (The Spirits’ Book, no. 207)
[…] Spiritism, restoring to the spirit its true role in creation by
demonstrating the superiority of the mind over matter, naturally
puts an end to all the established distinctions among human
beings according to bodily and worldly advantages, upon which
pride alone founded castes and the stupid prejudices of color.
(Revue Spirite, 1861)
The privileges of race have their origin in the abstraction that
humans normally make of the spiritual principle by taking
only the outward physical being into consideration. From the
constitutional strength or weakness of some, the difference in color
of others, the birth into wealth or poverty, and noble or plebian
blood kinship, they concluded that there is a natural superiority
or inferiority. Upon such data they based their social laws and race
privileges. From this limited point of view – for they take only the
physical life into consideration – certain classes seem to belong –

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 Explanatory Note

and really do belong – to different races. However, if they would

take their point of view from the spiritual being, the essential
and progressive being, i.e. the spirit, preexistent to and surviving
everything and whose body is nothing more than a temporary
envelope that varies like clothing in shape and color; moreover,
if from the study of spirit beings proves that such beings are of
an identical nature and origin, that their destiny is the same and
that all take their departure from the same point and tend toward
the same objective; that corporeal life is nothing more than one
incident, one of the phases in the life of the spirit, and necessary
for its intellectual and moral advancement; that in light of this
advancement the spirit may successively clothe itself in many
different envelopes, be born into different situations, then they
would arrive at the crucial consequence of equality of nature, and
from there, the equality of social rights for all human individuals
and the abolition of race privileges. This is what Spiritism teaches.
You who deny the existence of the spirit in order to consider only
the corporeal individual, the continuation of the intelligent being
in order to look only at the present life, you deny the sole principle
upon which the equality of rights that you demand for yourselves
and your fellow beings is rightly founded. (Revue Spirite, 1867)
With reincarnation, race and caste prejudices collapse, since the
same spirit can be reborn rich or poor, great lord or proletarian,
boss or subordinate, free or slave, male or female. Of all the
arguments against the injustice of servitude and slavery,
against the subjugation of women to the law of the mightiest,
there are none that logically prevail over the material fact of
reincarnation. Therefore, if reincarnation rests upon a law of
nature – the principle of universal fraternity – it also rests upon
the law of the equality of social rights and, consequently, of
liberty. (Genesis, chap. I, no. 36. See also Revue Spirite, 1867)

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 Explanatory Note

At the time, Kardec knew only what various authors wrote

about African primitives, who were always reduced to nearly
complete animality when they were not mercilessly enslaved.
It was based on this “scientific” information of the time that,
using other words, the Codifier repeated what European scholars
described upon returning from their journeys to Black Africa.
However, it was crucial that he address the issue of racial prejudice:

We labor to give faith to those who believe in nothing; to spread a

belief that encourages them to behave better toward one another,
which teaches them to forgive their enemies and to regard each
other as brothers and sisters without distinction of race, caste,
sect, color or political or religious opinion; in other words, a belief
that gives birth to the true sentiment of charity, fraternity and
social duty. (Revue Spirite, Jan. 1863)
Moral persons are kind, humane and benevolent toward all
regardless of race or creed, because they regard all people as their
brothers and sisters. (The Gospel according to Spiritism, chap.
XVII, no. 3)

It is also important to understand that the texts published

by Kardec in Revue Spirite were intended to submit to general
scrutiny the communications received from spirits, as well as to
compare their teachings with the theories and systems of thought
in force at the time. In a footnote in chapter XI, number 43 of the
book Genesis, the Codifier explains this methodology:

In the January 1862 issue of Revue Spirite, when we published

an article on the interpretation of the doctrine of the fallen angels,
we presented this theory as a hypothesis, with no other authority
than that of a debatable personal opinion, because, at the time,
we lacked elements sufficiently complete for an absolute assertion.

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 Explanatory Note

We put it out as a trial essay, seeking to elicit examination of

the issue, fully determined to abandon it or modify it if need
be. Today, however, this theory has endured the test of universal
control. It has not only been accepted by the majority of Spiritists
as the most rational and most in agreement with God’s justice,
but has also been confirmed by most of the instructions given by
the Spirits on the subject. The same applies to the origin of the
Adamic race. (Genesis, chap. XI, no. 43)

Finally, one must realize that the principal scope of the

Spiritist Doctrine lies in the moral perfection process of the human
being, which is the reason why scientific and/or philosophical
investigation and examination occupy a secondary, although
important, position, considering their provisory character resulting
from overall progress and improvement. In this sense the Codifier’s
warning is justified:

It is true that this and other issues lie outside the moral point of
view, which is the essential goal of Spiritism. Hence, it would be
a mistake to make them the object of constant preoccupation.
Moreover, with respect to the principle of things, we know that
since spirits do not know everything, they speak only of what they
know or what they think they know. However, since there are
persons who might draw from the divergence of these theories an
induction against the unity of Spiritism precisely because they have
been formulated by the Spirits, it is useful to be able to compare
the reasons for and against, in the interest of the Doctrine itself,
and to support on the basis of the majority the judgment that
may be made as to the worth of certain communications. (Revue
Spirite, 1862)

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 Explanatory Note

In light of the above considerations, one must conclude that

in the Spiritist Doctrine absolute respect is rendered to human
diversity, and it is the Spiritist’s responsibility to cooperate in
the progress of humankind by practicing charity in its most far-
reaching sense (“benevolence toward all, indulgence for others’
imperfections and the forgiveness of offenses), just as Jesus, our
Guide and Model, taught, without prejudices of any kind as
to color, ethnicity, gender, creed or economic, social or moral
standing.
The Publisher

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