The Revue
Spirite of
1861
Part 7
We continue in
this issue the study
of the Revue
Spirite of
1861, a monthly
newspaper
focused on the
divulgation of
Spiritism,
founded and
directed by
Allan Kardec.
This study is
based on the
translation into
the Portuguese
language made by
Julio Abreu
Filho and
published by
EDICEL. The
answers to the
proposed issues
are at the end
of the text for
reading.
Issues for discussion
A. Are the apparitions of Spirits real?
B. What criticism did Kardec make to the Spiritists of
America?
C. What losses to Spiritism come from false psychics?
Text for reading
111. Speaking of the separation of the soul after death,
Ferdinand says that when one is ignorant, and especially
when very guilty, a thick veil hides from the Spirit the
beauties of the place where the Good Spirits live, and
he is alone or in the company of evil and inferior
Spirits, in a circle that does not allow him to see
where he is.
(P. 205)
112. Kardec says that the facts prove that there are
true apparitions, perfectly explained by Spiritist
science and only denied by those who admit nothing
beyond the visible world.
(P. 207)
113. There are cases, however, in which the images may
be an effect of impressions left by the sight of certain
objects in the brain, which preserves their traits, in
the same way it preserves sounds. The soul, detached
from the body, sees in its own brain these impressions,
which remained in it as a photographic plate.
This is the probable cause of hallucinations. (P. 208)
114. The fixed idea, says Kardec, is the exclusive
memory of an impression. Hallucination is the soul's
retrospective view of an image imprinted on the brain.
(P. 209)
115. In the apparitions there is, as in every Spiritist
phenomenon, the intelligent character, which is the best
proof of its reality. Any apparition that does not give
any intelligent signal can be placed in the list of
illusions.
(P. 210)
116. It is above all in medicine that the spiritual
element plays an important role. When doctors start
taking it into account, they will be then less
misleading than now.
(P. 211)
117. The phenomenon of the apparition can take place in
two ways: either it is the Spirit that will find the
person who can see it; or it is the Spirit of the latter
that transports itself to find the other. Kardec
mentions three cases.
(P. 211)
118. The most interesting case is the one regarding the
physician Dr. Felix Mallo, who had treated a young lady,
whom he recommended to spend some time inland. Six
months later, someone knocks on the door of his office.
It was his client who came to say, "Sir Mallo, I come to
tell you that I died". (P. 211)
119. The most striking apparition is, however, the case
with Mr. Robert Bruce, reported in the Oxford
Chronicle dated 6/1/1861 and referred to by Mr.
Robert Dale Owen, who attested to its truthfulness
before narrating it in book. (P. 214)
120. The Revue transcribes Jules P's message,
which proves that earthly bonds, when sincere, do not
end with death.
(P. 215)
121. Kardec publishes a letter received from the
president of the Spiritist Society of Mexico, in which
he makes a short exposition of the history of Spiritism
in that country. (Pages 218 and 219)
122. On the same day, a letter arrived from Paris by Mr.
Repos, a lawyer in Constantinople, stating that a large
number of writing mediums were already available there.
Elevation of tables, beats, transport of objects,
drawings, and musical compositions - these are the
phenomena hitherto recorded by the Spiritists of the
said metropolis. (P. 220)
123. The Revue transcribes news published in the
Herald of Progress, a New York newspaper run by
Andrew Jackson Davis, considered one of the pioneers of
Spiritism. (P. 221)
124. Commenting on the mediumistic drawings described in
the aforementioned newspaper, Kardec says that American
mediums have a specialty for the production of
extraordinary phenomena, which European mediums cannot
do. (P. 224)
125. Asked by Kardec, the Spirits explained: "To each
one his role. Yours is not the same; and God did not
give you a smaller part in the work of regeneration".
(P. 224)
126. On the other side of the Atlantic, it was said that
the Europeans were far behind in Spiritism, and Kardec
replies criticizing the commercial purpose that took
over the practice of mediumship in North America. To
prove it, he copies several ads published in American
newspapers. (Pages 224 and 225)
127. The commercialization of Spiritualism extended
itself to common objects - like the "spiritual matches,"
without friction and without smell, as informed by the
Spiritual Telegraph of New York.
(P. 226)
128. In 1859, according to the Spiritual Register,
there were 1,284,000 spiritualists in the United States.
The total number in the world, according to the
newspaper, was estimated at 1,900,000. There were at the
same time, devoted to the cause, 1,000 spiritualist
speakers, 40,000 public and private mediums, 500 books,
and 6 weekly newspapers, 4 monthly and 3 fortnightly
newspapers.
(P. 226)
129. Referring to the false mediums, Kardec says that
the worst are the weapons they give to the unbelievers
and the discredit they cast in the minds of the
undecided. Kardec also regrets the action of so-called
mercenary mediums. (P. 227)
(Continued on next
issue.)
Answers to the proposed issues
A. Are the apparitions of Spirits real?
Yes. The facts prove that there are true apparitions,
perfectly explained by Spiritist science and only denied
by those who admit nothing beyond the visible world. The
phenomenon of the apparition can occur in two ways:
either it is the Spirit that goes and find the person
who sees it; or it is the Spirit of the latter that
transports itself to find the other. The most
interesting of these cases is what happened to the
physician Dr. Félix Mallo, who had treated a young lady,
whom he recommended her to spend some time inland. Six
months later, someone knocked on the door of his office.
It was his client who came to say, "Sir Mallo, I come to
tell you that I died." (Revue Spirite, 1861,
pages 207 and 211).
B. What criticism did Kardec make to the Spiritists of
America?
Kardec asked the Spirits why American mediums obtained
so easily extraordinary phenomena and this did not occur
in Europe. The Spirits explained: "To each one his role.
Yours is not the same; and God did not give you a
smaller part in the work of regeneration. "The Encoder,
however, criticized the commercial purpose which had
taken over the practice of mediumship in North America,
and in order to prove it, he copied several
advertisements published in American newspapers, in
which it turns out that the trade of Spiritualism spread
there even to common objects - such as the "spiritual
matches," without friction and without smell, disclosed
in the Spiritual Telegraph of New York. (Ibid, pages 224
to 226).
C. What losses to Spiritism come from false psychics?
On this subject, Kardec said that the worst are the
weapons they provide to the unbelievers and the
discredit they cast in the minds of the undecided. He
also regretted the action of the so-called mercenary
mediums. (Ibid, page 227).
