The Revue Spirite of 1863

Part 12

We continue in this issue the study of the Revue Spirite corresponding to the year of 1863. The condensed text of the mentioned volume will hereby be presented in sixteen parts, based on the translation of Julio Abreu Filho and published by EDICEL.

Issues for discussion 

A. At the advent of Spiritism, how was the religious Spirit?

B. What causes society to dive into selfish materialism?

C. What is the difference between atonement and test?

Text for reading

112. The Revue mentions the strange fact that occurred to Mr. Cardon, a physician, who died in September 1862, and that Kardec would later insert in Heaven and Hell, Part II, Chapter III. (Pages 251 to 255)

113. Three messages given by the Spirit of Jean Reynaud, recently deceased in Paris, are copied in the Revue, before they were added to the book Heaven and Hell, Part 2, Chapter II, published in 1865. (Pages 255 to 258)

114. The Spirit of Samuel Hahnemann writes about homeopathic medicine, motivated by the presence at the session of a foreign homeopath physician who asked him to give an opinion on the current state of science. In the message, Hahnemann regrets the negligence of fellow earthmen who - ignorant of the essential laws of Organon - exaggerate the doses prescribed and do not give the grinding of medicines the care that he indicated. "No remedy is indifferent, no medication is harmless", says Hahnemann; when the diagnosis is wrong and the medicine is given wrongly too, it returns the germs of the disease it was called upon to fight". (Pages 258 and 259)

115. Mr. T. Jaubert, Vice-President of the Civil Court of Carcassone, says in a letter addressed to the Spiritist Society of Paris (in it he thanks his admission among the honorary members of the Society) that he believes in the immortality of the soul and in communicating with the dead, as much as he believes in the sun. "I love Spiritism as the most legitimate statement of God's law: the law of progress", added Jaubert. (Pages 259 and 260)

116. An article written by F. Herrenschneider regarding the union of Philosophy and Spiritism opens the September issue. It is the introduction to a work that the author proposed to do on the necessity of the alliance between one and the other, from which we copied these issues: I) For ten or twelve years Spiritism has been revealed in France; Spirits’ constant communications have caused at all levels of society a beneficial religious movement which must be encouraged and developed. II) The religious spirit was lost, especially among the literate and intelligent classes, because the sarcasm of Voltaire had taken away the prestige of Christianity and the progress of the sciences had made them recognize the contradictions between dogmas and natural laws. III) The development of riches and marvelous inventions, associated with the disbelief and indifference, protested against renouncing the world, giving rise to a passion for well-being, pleasure, luxury and ambition. IV) It was then that suddenly the dead came to remember that our present life has a following day, and that our acts have their consequences, if not in this, infallibly in the future life. (Pages 261 and 262)

117. Mr Herrenschneider says that the renewal of those relations with the dead is and will continue to be a prodigious event, which will result in the much-needed regeneration of modern society. For when human society has no other purpose than material prosperity and the pleasure of the senses, it immerses itself in selfish materialism, it renounces all efforts that do not lead to a palpable advantage, it only esteems those who have possessions and only respect the power which is imposed.Against such a moral disposition Philosophy is impotent. (Page 262)

118. The author then develops a whole thesis to conclude that the union of Spiritism with Philosophy seems to him of great need for human happiness and for the moral, intellectual and religious progress of modern society, because we are no longer in the time where we could to alienate human science and to prefer blind faith to it. (Pages 263 to 268)

119. Kardec clarifies the doubt presented by confreres of Moulins concerning the difference between atonement and test. Atonement, says the Encoder, necessarily implies the idea of ​​a more or less painful punishment, the result of a fault committed. Test is not related to an earlier fault, but always implies a state of inferiority real or presumed to be of the Spirit, because whoever reaches the climax to which he aspires no longer needs proof. (Pages 268 to 271)

120. Kardec also says that in certain cases tests are mistaken for atonement, i.e., atonement can serve as a test and a test can serve as atonement. He mentions the example of the student who presents himself to receive his graduation, undergoing a test. If he fails, he will have to resume the work, sometimes painful, and the burden is a kind of punishment of his negligence regarding the former. The second test is therefore also atonement. Finally, Kardec clarifies that it is a mistake to think that the essential character of the atonement is to be imposed, for the Spirit himself can request it. (Pages 271 to 274)

121. The Revue presents the second open letter addressed by Kardec to Father Marouzeau, in which the Encoder says that the Reverend's predictions were not fulfilled, despite the attacks, sermons, excommunications and brochures that the clergy launched and continued to do so against the Spiritist Doctrine, all of them with the rudest insults, slander and personal outrage. Reaffirming that the Spiritist Doctrine is not his creation but the work of the Spirits, Kardec concludes the letter by saying: "Father, I give you the period of ten years to see what you think of the Doctrine." (Pages 274 to 278) (Continues on next issue.)

Answers to the proposed issues

A. At the advent of Spiritism, how was the religious Spirit?

According to F. Herrenschneider, who had written about the necessity of a union between Philosophy and Spiritism, when Spiritism arose, the religious spirit was lost, especially among the literate and intelligent classes, because Voltaire’s sarcasm had taken away the prestige of Christianity and progress of the sciences had made them recognize the contradictions between dogmas and natural laws. It was then that suddenly the dead came to remember that our present life has a day to come, that our actions have their consequences, if not in this, infallibly in the life to come. (Revue Spirite, 1863, pages 261 and 262).

B. What causes society to dive into selfish materialism?

When human society has no other purpose than material prosperity and the pleasure of the senses, it immerses itself in selfish materialism, renounces all efforts that do not lead to a palpable advantage, only esteems those who have possessions and only respects the power that is imposed. Such is the generative cause of materialism and against this, F. Herrenschneider said, Philosophy is impotent. (Ibid, page 262.)

C. What is the difference between atonement and test?

Atonement, says the Encoder, necessarily implies the idea of ​​a more or less painful punishment, the result of a fault committed. The test is not related to an earlier fault, but always implies a state of inferiority real or presumed to be of the Spirit, for whoever reaches the climax to which he aspires no longer needs to be tested. Kardec also says that in certain cases the evidence is confused with the atonement, that is, the atonement may serve as a test and the test may serve as atonement. And he mentions the example of the student who presents himself to receive his graduation, undergoing a test. If he fails, it will have to resume the work, sometimes painful, and the burden is a kind of punishment of neglect in the former. The second test is therefore, not only a test, but atonement too. Kardec clarifies, finally, that it is a mistake to think that the essential character of the atonement is to be imposed, for the Spirit himself can request it. (Ibid, pages 268 to 274).

Translation:

Eleni Frangatos - eleni.moreira@uol.com.br