The optimism expressed in the thought above is typical of our guest, Luiz Julião Ribeiro (photo), who was born in the state of Bahia, was brought up in Goiás and moved to the Brazilian capital, Brasília, in 1978. He became a Spiritist at the age of 16 in Santa Helena de Goiás and has been for many years an active member of the Spiritist Movement. In Brasília (Cruzeiro Novo), he is a volunteer worker and speaker at SEAE Spiritist Centre and at FEB, the Brazilian Spiritist Federation. He has a degree and post-graduation degree in Law and is now retired as a police inspector. In this interview, he speaks about his early days in Spiritism and his experiences in the Spiritist Movement.
How was your first contact with Spiritism?
It was through a neighbour called Manoel. He used to come to me with a book in hand and ask me to read an extract and comment on it. That went on for some time. One day, he told me I should start attending the sessions at the local Spiritist Centre. He said I had a good understanding of Spiritism. But I didn’t know what Spiritism was and hadn’t even heard of it. Eventually, after one of those occasions when he asked me to read and comment on the book, he invited me to go to a Spiritist Centre and told me to call his son too, who was a friend of mine. I agreed to go but my friend refused. To make things worse, he warned me that at the Spiritist Centre people were told to close their eyes during prayers otherwise the devil appeared to them. I did go, as agreed, but when I was there and they reduced the lights for the prayer, I thought of what my friend had said and simply ran away. The day after, Manoel asked me what had happened. I told him and then he laughed and said it was only a joke from his son to scare me. He explained that they had the habit of closing their eyes only to focus on the prayer and avoid distractions, in order to establish proper contact with God. I was impressed by that and thought it made sense.
Which aspect of Spiritism attracted you the most?
I thought the Spiritist Teachings were very rational and in perfect harmony with the reality we live. It is like seeing a bright, clear light that shows you everything you need to see. It answers all your questions in a way that even science or the religion you follow isn’t able to.
Would like to share with us an experience you've been through in Spiritism that has become an important life lesson?
I remember when I was the president of the Irmão Otávio Youth Spiritist Group and I was told off by one of the directors of the Spiritist Centre. I got offended and resigned. I decided to learn on my own, without attending any Spiritist Centre. A few months later, I was in the city’s square doing nothing when someone I knew from the Spiritist Centre came by and asked about me. I explained the situation. She grabbed me by the hand and invited me there and then to go to an open meeting at the Spiritist Centre. I couldn’t say no. We were there when the mediumship session started and a medium was speaking in a nice voice, with a very elevated manner. I began to feel like a strong light was coming in towards me, blinding me. I don’t remember much of what was said, but they were saying, basically, that they had made a huge effort to take that person to where he was but that person was throwing all their efforts away. The Spirit never mentioned the name of the person or gave any description. When the message was ending, I thought to myself: “Well, that’s nothing to do with me.” Then the Spirit reacted instantly and said: “It’s you I am talking to.” I decided that from that day on I would never give up and would fulfil all my commitments.
What do you think is the role of those in charge of Spiritist Centres?
I would say that the directors of Spiritist organisations don’t have power. Instead, they have the duty of loving others as Jesus has loved us. They must act with humility, fraternity, indulgence and pure, disinterested charity. Jesus needs those who want to serve and to love and not those who want to be served.
What would you like to tell our readers as humanity on Earth faces the impact of the coronavirus pandemic?
I must thank you for this opportunity. If I could say something about myself, I would say that we must trust God and Jesus. We know that the world wasn’t created by human beings. He who created it knew very well what He was doing. He wouldn’t have created something so grandiose, beautiful, rich and harmonic to eventually abandon it! We haven’t been abandoned. Everything will be OK! We are going through another important period of the history of planet Earth and its humanity, which has been carefully planned by He who created it and has been managing its destiny. That’s why I am not worried at all, despite the childishness, insecurity and general disregard for the laws of God by humanity. The final victory is a certainty. This pandemic will end and we will come out of it better than we were before, having defeated our own faults and emerging in the end as winners.