In our country it is common to use the expressions Kardecist Spiritist, Kardecism and Kardecist as synonyms of Spiritism and Spiritist or reference to a Spiritist Center of a “white table”, or still Kardecist Spiritist Center to designate the institution where the Spiritist Doctrine is studied and practiced.

Are these expressions correct or wrong? After all, was the Doctrine elaborated by the Spirits or by Allan Kardec?

In order to clarify any doubts, we will pass the word to the Encoder of the Doctrine, as Kardec is known.

Information from The Book of Spirits

We started with the basic work of the Doctrine, launched on April 18, 1957 and signed by Kardec: The Book of Spirits. On its first page, also known as the title page or frontispiece, we read: "The Book of Spirits, containing the principles of the Spiritist Doctrine on the immortality of the soul, the nature of Spirits and their relations with men, moral laws, the future life and the future of humanity (according to the teaching of the superior Spirits, through various mediums, received and ordained by Allan Kardec).” (our emphasis in bold).

As we can see, Kardec states that the work contains the principles that make up the Spiritist Doctrine according to the teachings of the superior Spirits, and that he is only the coordinator of these teachings. That's why I decided to name the work as The Book of Spirits, making it very clear who the true authors of it are.

Continuing our study, let us now look at item 1 of the introduction, where we find the following explanation: “For new things we need new words, because that is what clarity of language requires, in order to avoid the confusion inherent to the multiple meanings of the words themselves. The words Spiritual, Spiritualist, Spiritualism have a very definite meaning; to give them another, to apply them to the Doctrine of the Spirits, would be to multiply the already so numerous causes of amphibology.” (Our emphasis in bold).

Avoiding using words already known and consecrated in their meaning, thus not causing confusion, double meaning, Kardec coined others (Spiritism and Spiritist) to apply to the Doctrine of Spirits. We realize that he does not refer here to Spiritism, nor to the Spiritist Doctrine, but to the Doctrine of Spirits, emphatically designating that the Doctrine came from the teachings of the Spirits, the disembodied human souls.

Continuing, we find another explanation in the introduction, now in item 17: “The true Spiritist Doctrine is in the teaching given by the Spirits, and the knowledge that this teaching contains is too serious to be acquired by any other way than by a deep and continuous study, made in silence and recollection. Even because only under these conditions can an infinite number of facts and their nuances be observed, which escape the superficial observer and which allow an opinion to be established.” (our emphasis in bold). Once again Kardec emphasizes that the Doctrine exists thanks to the teachings given by the Spirits, and that these teachings are profound and must be studied carefully, either individually or collectively, in the study groups provided, for example, by the Spiritist Centers. It is only possible to know Spiritism through study, always starting by the works of the so-called Spiritist Codification, that is, the works signed by Allan Kardec. At this point we must clarify that the works are signed by him, because human legislation does not recognize the existence of Spirits, thus, it is considered that all mediumistic work, in the case received by several mediums, is the property of the medium or its organizer. In the Spiritist understanding, the medium, as he is not the true author, must donate the book's copyright to charitable organizations.

Still in The Book of Spirits, now in its Conclusion, item 6, we find the following saying by Kardec: “Spiritism is not the work of a man. No one can say he is its author because it is as old as Creation; It is found everywhere, in all religions.” (our emphasis in bold).

It is very clear that Spiritism is not a Doctrine formulated by a person, by an incarnate person, not even by a Spirit, i.e., that it was not created by Allan Kardec, because if that were the case the Encoder would have said so, he would have assumed this authorship. And he did not. To say that he used false modesty is to commit a statement that dishonors the character of Professor Denizard Rivail (Allan Kardec), who was known for his common sense and honesty, having an unblemished reputation in French society.

Information from the Spiritist Magazine

In a speech given to the Spiritists of the cities of Brussels and Antwerp, both in Belgium, published in the November 1864 edition under the title Spiritism is a Positive Science, he categorically states: “Such is, in summary, gentlemen, the point of view under which Spiritism must be faced. In this circumstance, what was my role? Neither the inventor nor the creator. I saw, watched, studied the facts with care and perseverance; I coordinated them and deduced the consequences: this is all my part. What I did, someone else could have done in my place. In all this I was a simple instrument from the point of view of Providence, and I thank God and the good Spirits for having deigned to make use of me. It is a task that I accepted with joy, and of which I endeavored to make myself worthy, asking God to give me the necessary strength to carry it out according to His holy will. Yet the task is heavy, heavier than you can imagine; and if it has any merit for me, it is that I am aware of not having retreated in the face of any obstacle or sacrifice. It will be my life's work until my last day, because, in the presence of such an important objective, all material and personal interests disappear like points before infinity.” (our emphasis in bold).

The Lioness master informs that he is not the creator, founder or idealist of Spiritism. He observed the facts, studied the phenomena, coordinated the teachings given by the Spirits, deduced their consequences and published the works. Here's everything. It is, therefore, a mistake to say that Allan Kardec is the founder or creator of Spiritism. And he even claims that someone else could have done the work for him, in an unmistakable show of humility.

Continuing, we find in the September 1867 edition, in the text Character of the Spiritist Revelation: “The first revelation had its personification in Moses, the second in Christ, the third in no individual. The first two were individuals, the third collective; therein lies an essential character of great importance. It is collective in the sense of not being made or given as a privilege to anyone; no one, therefore, can inculcate himself as its exclusive prophet; was spread simultaneously over the earth to millions of people, of all ages and conditions, from the lowest to the highest of the scale (…).” (our emphasis in bold).

And so that there could be no doubt that Spiritism is a collective work of the Spirits, he published the following note: “Our personal role, in the great movement of ideas that is being prepared by Spiritism and that begins to operate, is that of an attentive observer, who studies the facts to discover their cause and draw their consequences. We confronted all that has been possible for us to gather, we compared and commented on the instructions given by the Spirits in all parts of the globe and then methodically coordinated the whole; In short, we studied and gave the public the fruit of our inquiries, without attributing to our works a value greater than that of a philosophical work deduced from observation and experience, without ever considering ourselves the head of the Doctrine, nor seeking to impose our ideas on others, whoever it is.

Clear, illuminating words. Kardec did not even accept being called the head of Spiritism, as he recognized that he had only the merit of perseverance in the work of ordering, studying and clarifying the teachings of the Spirits. And he still categorically states that he does not possess ostensible mediumship, therefore working with various mediums from all over, recognizing only that he received the support of good Spirits through intuitions.

Conclusion

What exists is Spiritism or Spiritist Doctrine, or Doctrine of Spirits. Kardecism, which means Kardec's Doctrine, does not exist, so there are no Kardecists, but Spiritist or Spiritists.

Spiritism is a philosophical Doctrine with scientific bases and moral consequences, arising from the teachings of superior Spirits, with Allan Kardec responsible for organizing these teachings, studying their consequences and publishing them. This does not diminish the importance of the Encoder, nor does it detract from the merit of the work carried out, but establishes the truth: Spiritism is the doctrine of the Spirits.

The reference to Kardecist Spiritism is wrong, because there is only one Spiritism, the one that was brought to the world with the publication of The Book, of Spirits.

It is up to the Spiritists to study and disseminate Spiritism, avoiding using words and references that have nothing to do with the Doctrine, thus avoiding unnecessary confusion and that only serve to perpetuate misunderstandings, as if there were more than one Spiritist Doctrine, when, in fact, we have only and only Spiritism.

Marcus De Mario is an educator, writer, speaker, and coordinator of the Grupo Espirita Seara de Luz in the city of Rio de Janeiro. He is the creator and director of Ibem Educa. He is in front of the Spiritist Orientation channel, through YouTube.