Valdenir de Paiva Baggio (photo) was born into a Spiritist family in the city of Pouso Alegre, where he still lives, in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. He works as a computer programming expert and is an active member of the Vinhas do Senhor (Grapes of the Lord) Spiritist Centre. He is a Spiritist speaker, educator and medium. In the following interview, he speaks about Project 412, which he conceived.

What is Project 412?

Project 412 is a venture aimed at helping the dissemination of Spiritism. It focuses on the 412 books dictated with so much love by hundreds of Spirits through the formidable mediunimic powers of the late Chico Xavier. His books will help us improve our knowledge and perfect our morals. We aim to discuss in weekly talks and lectures all 412 books Chico wrote, from Parnaso (in 1932) to Amor e Verdade (1999). Our goal is to help people access the information and to encourage them to read the books.

How did you first have the idea of starting this project?

I began cooperating with the dissemination of Spiritism at the Vinhas do Senhor Spiritist Centre in 2009. Last year I had the idea of putting all of Chico Xavier’s books on the shelves of our library so the public could have access to them. That’s when I had the idea of not only making these books available, but also promoting them. Even though I was already a practicing Spiritist and an active member of the Spiritist Movement, I hadn’t even heard of so many of those books. I decided then to satisfy my curiosity as well as share what I was learning with other people. We must bear in mind that these are very important books.

What will you do in order to expand this project?

One thing is certain: The Spirit World has invested a lot of energy to make sure those books were brought to us in the material world. And as Spiritists we must spread the word and promote them. These are not merely books to be read. They contain profound lessons and teachings and material for extensive philosophical, historic, religious and scientific discussions. There is a huge amount of knowledge there that we need to learn. The plan is to initially disseminate the books, to actually promote them and let people know that they exist. We need to show the wider public that there is an answer for everything. By studying, reading and amassing knowledge on a wide range of issues the dictionary of our memory will be enriched.

What benefits do you think this project will bring?

No one is getting more out of this than me. By reading the books, learning the lessons and promoting them, I have been learning a great deal. I have been able to add so much depth to my regular talks and lectures. On a wider perspective, I think the benefit will be felt by simply exciting the public’s desire to learn, to get them out of their comfort zone in order to learn. The Gospel of Christ remained there for so many centuries waiting for the right time when we would have grown up and matured enough to understand its lessons. Now, as we experience the beginning of this process of collective awakening, it is more relevant than ever that the Gospel of Christ can be understood in its full glory by everyone.

What is the best way of approaching the process of promoting the books, given the great variety of titles and issues involved?

I think, in fact, that we should study them in chronological order. That will give us an idea of how versatile Chico Xavier was as a medium. It will also help us understand how the different issues were introduced and how the Spiritual Benefactors put their plan into practice. They first brought us evidence that live continues after the death of the physical body and then they produced proof that there is life in other planets. That was followed by the news of those who had departed from this world, and then life in the Spirit World and news from the martyrs of Christianity. If we look at the books in chronological order, we will be able to see very clearly what the Spiritual Benefactors had planned to help us.

What are the contact details for those who wish to join the project?

I encourage those who feel in their hearts that they want to embrace Project 412 to approach it without the aim of changing the world. They must focus instead on changing themselves first. Good deeds are a contagious force. When we feel them, we share them. You may contact me via email valdenir.v.09@uol.com.br, or you may leave a comment on the website, www.vinhasdosenhor.com, or via WhatsApp + 55 35 988374960.

What else would you like to add?

The world we are going to hand over to future generations will have been built with our hard work and determination. Or it will be a world destroyed by our idleness and selfishness. We shouldn’t return to the Spirit World trying to argue that we didn’t do more because we lacked the time or opportunity. Let’s arrive in the Spirit World with tears of joy, fully aware of having done our best under the circumstances.