Aline Contente Abrante (photo), from Rio de Janeiro, lives in the city of Coquitlam, next to Vancouver, on Canada’s west coast, where she works as a teacher. She has a degree in Media and a postgraduate degree in English Language. She is also an active member of the local Spiritist Movement, as the founder and current president of the Meimei Coquitlam Society. In the following interview, she speaks about her experience in Spiritism:

When and how did you come across Spiritism? Was it in Brazil or after moving abroad?

I didn’t know anything about Spiritism until a friend of my mother’s suggested that I read ‘Violetas na Janela’ (Violets in the Window). As I read it I felt like it wasn’t the first time I had access to all that information. Then I decided for the first time to go to a Spiritist Centre in the city of Blumenau, in the south of Brazil, where I lived at the time. I really didn’t know what to expect there. Much to my surprise, at the end of the meeting everyone got together to say the Lord’s Prayer. It became clear to me then that Spiritism and Christianity were linked together and I decided to read and study more about it. Shortly after I moved to the city of Belo Horizonte, where I continued to attend Spiritist talks, and in 2000 I moved again, this time to Cabo Frio, near Rio de Janeiro. And there I found a Spiritist Centre that would become my school, my hospital and my home for the following 15 years. That was until I moved to Canada in 2015. 

And why did you decide to move abroad? 

We were looking for a better quality of life for our children and especially a place where there was less violence and insecurity. We were determined to continue with our studies and practice of Spiritism, so we looked for a city in Canada where there was already an established Spiritist Centre. And we came to Vancouver.  

Tell us a bit more about the Spiritist Centre where you currently work as a volunteer.

After four years living in Vancouver, I moved with my family to the neighbouring city of Coquitlam. We carried on with our activities at the Vancouver Spiritist Centre until on October 22nd, 2019, I came up with the idea of opening a study group of The Spirits’ Book at our new house in Coquitlam. I knew that many people had already expressed an interest. A few days later (31/Oct/2019) we held our first meeting. When the coronavirus pandemic began, a few months later, we had to restrict our online activities but we carried on with online meetings and new people were able to join our group remotely. In September 2020, the Spiritist Centre reopened. Our group now consists of about 40 people, on average, who attend our meetings regularly. 

Which language do you use in your activities: English or Portuguese?

The activities of the Meimei Coquitlam Society are carried out in Portuguese, with the exception of the evangelization groups for children and young people, which is done in English. We follow the guidelines set up by the Brazilian Spiritist Federation, adapting them to the English language. We also use material published by the United States Spiritist Federation and we are members of the Canadian Spiritist Council (CSC). 

How is your interaction with the Brazilian Spiritist Movement? I imagine things are easier now with the technology available.

With the technology that is available now, we’ve been able to host, from December 2020, talks with Brazilian Spiritist speakers. That has made us feel more integrated, somehow, to the Brazilian Spiritist Movement. 

How do Canadians receive the Spiritist Teachings? Have they accepted it naturally? 

My experience is based mainly on what I saw in the other Spiritist Centre I attended, in Vancouver. There we had a study group for The Spirits’ Book in English. I have also talked about that with fellow Spiritists from other Canadian provinces, where the studies and meetings are done in English. Still very few Canadians engage in Spiritism. Those who do are in general married to or engaged to a Brazilian partner. They show an interest initially and find the Spiritist Teachings very logical and rational, but very seldom do they proceed with the studies. I would say that the participation of Canadians in our Spiritist Movement is rather seasonal.  

Is there anything else you would like to add? 

I would like to stress how gratifying it is to see how all the Spiritist Centres have been planting the seeds of the Gospel of Christ on Canadian soil. They may be small groups, facing a number of challenges, but each one, with their own characteristics, is doing an important job. They are, ultimately, helping Our Master Jesus disseminate the principles of moral development, which will lead us into fully understanding the concept of full love that He taught us.   

Please leave us with your final thoughts.

May we always remember the words of the Spirit of Truth and may we follow the Teachings of Christ: “Spiritists! Love one another, that is the first precept; educate yourselves is the second. Within Christianity you will find all the truths. The errors in which Man has become enrooted are all of human origin. Here from beyond the grave, where you thought there was nothing, voices clamour: Brothers and sisters! Nothing perishes! Jesus Christ is the victor over all evil, you can be the victors over impiety." - The Spirit of Truth (Paris, 1860)