José Carlos Jorqueira (photo) lives in the Brazilian city of Santana de Parnaíba, in the state of São Paulo. He was born into a Spiritist family and works as a volunteer at the Lar Jesus Entre as Crianças Spiritist Centre in the city of Osasco and to Centelha de Luz Spiritist Centre in Jandira. He has a degree in Marketing and works in commerce. In this interview he speaks about the double experience of training professionals and, as a Spiritist, giving lectures and talks.

Where does your passion for public speaking come from?

I have always enjoyed working with people. As a young man, my forte was the capacity to get people together. Later, that was important also as I began working as a professional salesman and, eventually, developing corporate contracts. The study of Spiritism has prompted me to do more to disseminate this enriching and precious material. Every time I prepare a talk, I learn “a little bit” from what I speak about. The exchange between me and the public is crucial for me to carry on with my journey.

How is that in your professional life?

Well, I do not consider Spiritist talks as a professional engagement. My aim in my work as a professional speaker and motivator is to take spirituality and meaning to the LIFE of people. To show them another side of understanding and point out possible solutions.

How about your Spiritist activity?

It is an immense responsibility, as speaking to a wider public demands from us to “pray and be vigilant”. Spiritist speakers end up becoming a sort of model, as people assume that we are at a higher spiritual level and that we have no problems of our own. The trick, so to speak, is to put yourself at the same position of the public and show them that knowing a bit more about the Teachings or the Gospel does not make a better person out of me. It only gives me a bigger degree of responsibility.

What do you do to keep each activity apart, learning from each one of them?

What changes is only the location and the circumstance, because we are all human beings going through constant change. The interaction between both activities is important. Some people go to Spiritist Centres seeking a solution to their problems, including at a professional level. And in private companies people are thirsty for humanity and longing for meaningful relationships.

Is there any particular experience that you would like to share with us?

I was speaking once to about 500 people attending a professional course. We were talking about the value of life and how to prevent suicide. At the end of the talk, I was so glad to get the feedback from a group of students. Even more remarkable was when a woman asked to say something and told everyone in the audience that some of my talks had saved her life. She had given up living and had come to the talk to renew her strengths.

What advice would you like to give to those seeking to pursue a career in that area or willing to work as volunteer speakers in the Spiritist Movement?

Well, I love the Teachings and I believe that all speakers should be get proper training. Once you get the technique and you learn how to prepare the talks, the results are very different. You manage to grab the audience’s attention and the talk or lecture becomes much more pleasant and at the same time profound.

What are the biggest challenges in have had?

To be valued as a good speaker and to get recommendations.

What have been the main benefits?

The relationship with people has improved and communication has become much lighter and serene. Also, I was forced to study and learn about so many areas of human psychology, including neuroscience, quantum physics and somatisation.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

I believe that flaws in the way we share and disseminate these wonderful Teachings is in part responsible for the difficulties of so many in understanding Spiritism and for the absence of others, who eventually stop attending Spiritist meetings. 

Anything else?