The terms -
Spiritism,
or Spiritist
Doctrine,
and
spiritist,
or spiritist
- were
created by
Allan Kardec
to designate
the new
doctrine of
Spirits and
their
supporters,
which
emerged with
the
Spiritist
Codification,
whose
justifications
are found in
the
introduction
to The
Book of
Spirits,
item I.
The Encoder of Spiritism
chose these
denominations to avoid
confusion with other
designations such as
spiritual, spiritualist
and spiritualism, which
already had their
concepts well defined.
Spiritism has as its
principle the relations
of the material world
with that of the Spirits
or with the beings of
the invisible world,
whose doctrine stems
from its codification by
Allan Kardec. With the
aid of the Superior
Spirits, through five
basic works that involve
a whole coherent,
logical and rational of
fundamental principles
and ideas, which are
systematized according
to their scientific,
philosophical and
religious aspects.
In addition, the
Spiritist Doctrine is
dynamic and complemented
by the subsequent
Spiritist literature,
due to the revelations
and teachings of the
Spirits, following human
progress, the advances
of Science and the
progressiveness of the
Spiritist revelations,
according to our
evolutionary degree, as
Jesus said, “I still
have much to say to you,
but you cannot bear it
now. But when that
Spirit of Truth comes,
he will guide you into
all truth; for he will
not speak on his own,
but whatever he hears he
will speak, and he will
tell you what is to come ”(John
16: 12-13).
This is because the
Spirits, through the
development of
intelligence, free will
and morals, begin their
evolutionary processes.
From the beginning of
its formation, the
Spirit does not enjoy
the fullness of its
faculties. Intelligence
only develops little by
little. In each new
existence, man has more
intelligence and can
better distinguish well
from evil.
Moral progress
accompanies intellectual
progress, but it does
not always follow
immediately. Moral
progress follows
intellectual progress
when the Spirit develops
his free will and begins
to understand good and
evil, making correct
choices and being aware
of the responsibilities
of his actions. Morals
and intelligence are two
forces that only reach
balance over time, whose
advances allow us to
absorb more knowledge
and truths.
Therefore, Spiritism
came, at the predicted
time, to fulfill the
promise of Christ, and "If
Spiritism had come
before scientific
discoveries, it would
have failed, like
everything that appears
before its time".
(KARDEC. The
Genesis.)
Thus, the Spiritist
Doctrine is the product
of collective
construction, formed by
the group of beings of
the spiritual world,
each one bringing the
tribute of their lights
to men, to make this
world known to them and
the fate that awaits
them.
For the Spiritist
Doctrine, Spiritism and
Science complement each
other, mainly with the
knowledge arising from
the spiritual
revelations transmitted
by superior Spirits and
the laws that govern the
relations of the
corporeal world with the
spiritual world, which
are laws of Nature,
bringing light to
misunderstood phenomena
for the man.
For Spiritism, the
Universe is not just
matter. It has an
intelligent principle
governing everything
that exists. From the
simultaneous action of
the material and
intelligent principles,
phenomena are born that
are inexplicable if you
do not consider one of
the two. Above all is
God.
“As a means of
elaboration, Spiritism
proceeds exactly in the
same way as the positive
sciences, that is,
applying the
experimental method.
When new facts appear,
which cannot be
explained by known laws,
Spiritism observes,
compares, analyzes and,
going back from effects
to causes, arrives at
the law that presides
over them; then it
deduces their
consequences and seeks
useful applications”. (KARDEC. The
Genesis.)
Spiritist Science came
from Allan Kardec, who
devoted himself body and
soul to scientific work
in a tireless way in the
elaboration of the
Spiritist Codification,
starting to analyze
spiritist facts under
the rigor of scientific
methodology and
philosophical
principles.
To guarantee the
veracity, Kardec
established a universal
control of the teachings
of the Spirits by the
universality and
agreement of their
revelations, that is,
the guarantee by the
agreement of the
revelations of the
Spirits that they make
spontaneously, through a
large number of mediums,
strangers to each other,
and from several places.
In this sense and
context, the spiritist
is the adept who
follows, orients himself
and conducts his life,
his attitudes and
actions in accordance
with the Spiritist
Doctrine. Therefore, not
every spiritualist,
practitioner of a
certain belief or medium
is a spiritist.
It is important to
emphasize that
mediumship is inherent
to an aptitude or an
organic disposition of
every human being,
conferred without
distinction, that anyone
can be gifted serving as
a means of communication
with the Spirits, not
necessarily being a
spiritist.
“Everyone who feels, to
any degree, the
influence of the Spirits
is, for that reason, a
medium. This faculty is
inherent in man;
therefore, it does not
constitute an exclusive
privilege. For this very
reason, rare are the
people who do not have
some rudiments of it.
Therefore, one can say
that all are, more or
less, mediums. However,
usually, only those in
whom the mediumistic
faculty is well
characterized and is
translated by patent
effects, of a certain
intensity, which then
depends on a more or
less sensitive
organization, are
qualified in this way”. (KARDEC. The
Book of Mediums.
Chapter XIV. Of mediums.
Item 159.)
Spiritism as a
philosophy of life
Spiritism as a
philosophical doctrine
of religious effects
brings moral rules of
life and behavior to all
human beings. It has
Jesus as a model of
moral perfection to
which Humanity can
aspire, because God
offers us Christ, from
the beginning of
everything, as the
Governor of the
Terrestrial Orb, being
the divine Master the
path, the truth and the
life towards the Father.
Moreover, the doctrine
that he taught us is the
purest expression of the
law of the Lord, because
He is the purest of all
who have appeared on
Earth, because the
Divine Spirit animated
him (KARDEC. The Book
of Spirits. Question
625).
Spiritism, like all
religions, is based on
the bonds of love for
God and neighbor, on
charity that saves and
frees the soul, on
universal fraternity and
on the communion of
thoughts based on God's
laws, uniting faith and
reason. In addition, he
is concerned with the
moral consequences of
his teaching, seeking,
in the ethics and morals
preached by Jesus, the
elements that should
guide the conduct of
human beings towards the
Creator.
One of its effects is to
instill religious
feelings in those
without them and to
strengthen them in those
who have them wavering.
In this direction,
Spiritism seeks to
provide the moral
transformation of man,
resuming the teachings
of Christ, so that they
can be applied in the
daily life of each
person, reviving
Christianity in its true
expression of love and
charity, reconnecting
the creature to its
divine origin.
However, Spiritism is
not a constituted
religion, since it has
no cult, nor rite, nor
temples and that, among
its followers, none has
taken or received the
title of priest or high
priest.
Spiritist morals and
ethics
Morals and ethics before
the laws of God must
guide the morals and
ethics of spiritists.
God's laws are eternal,
unchanging, infinite and
universal. In the same
direction, spiritist
morals and ethics are
out of discussion.
Morality involves values
that govern behavior in
the face of norms
established by society
or by the social group,
determining the moral
sense of each individual
in their healthy and
harmonious
relationships. It Seeks
social well-being.
For the Spiritist
Doctrine, in The Book
of Spirits, by Allan
Kardec, in question 629,
“morality is the rule of
good conduct, that is,
of distinguishing well
from evil. It is founded
on the observance of the
law of God. Man does
well when he does
everything for the good
of all, because then he
fulfills the law of
God”. (KARDEC. The
Book of Spirits).
In question 630, “good
is everything that is in
accordance with the law
of God; evil, everything
that is contrary to it.
Thus, to do well is to
act according to the law
of God; to do evil is to
infringe it”. (KARDEC. The
Book of Spirits)
In the book The
Genesis, by Allan
Kardec, in the part
about the origin of good
and evil, “if man were
created perfect, he
would inevitably be led
towards good. God wanted
him to be subject to the
law of progress, and
that this progress was
the fruit of his own
work for him, so that he
would have the merit of
it, as well as the
responsibility for the
evil that is done by his
will. ”. (KARDEC. The
Genesis)
“As man has to progress,
the evils to which he is
exposed are a stimulus
to the exercise of his
intelligence, of all his
physical and moral
faculties, inciting him
to seek the means of
preserving himself from
them. If he had nothing
to fear, no need would
drive him to seek the
best; he would be numb
with the inactivity of
his spirit; he would not
invent anything, he
would not discover
anything. Pain is the
sting that compels man
to advance on the road
of progress”. (KARDEC. The
Genesis)
The Gospel of Jesus is
the Moral Code of
Christians, which is
based on the Law of God,
and the morality that
the Spiritist Doctrine
teaches is that of Jesus
Christ, which is why
there is no better one.
In this sense, spiritist
morals must have the
same reference.
Moral guidelines provide
subsidies for the
construction and
application of norms of
conduct, collective and
individual, subsidies
that can be used by
human beings, regardless
of their customs,
religion and traditions.
For this reason,
morality is always
interpreted as good, as
everything that promotes
the integral improvement
of man, adjusting him to
the reality of life,
regardless of religion
and belief, or even in
the absence of these,
becoming a person of
good. However, to be
effectively good, human
beings need to
experience the Law of
Love: good is everything
that conforms to the Law
of God, and evil is
everything that deviates
from it.
Moral conscience stems
from the structuring of
the moral world within
the being, as the
moralized individual is
someone who considers
the meaning of life
within a larger context,
which is not limited to
meeting the biological
survival needs of the
species.
Finally, for an act to
be considered
effectively moral, it
must be voluntary,
spontaneous, free,
conscious, intentional,
never imposed. Coated
with these
characteristics, the
moral act presents
responsibility and
commitment.
Responsible is the one
who responds for his
actions, that is, the
conscious and free
person assumes the
authorship of his act,
recognizing it as his
and answering for its
consequences.
Spiritist ethics
comprises acting in
accordance with the
Spiritist Doctrine,
which is based on the
Law of God, on the
teachings of Jesus
Christ and on spiritist
morals, on the practice
of good and charity.
Ethics synthesizes rules
and precepts of value
and moral order of an
individual, group or
society. It seeks to
base the way of living
and acting. From this
understanding, it is
possible to define rules
and prescriptions that
determine the behavior
and conducts, considered
valid for a group, a
community or for an
individual.
While morality deals
with values, which
should base collective
and individual behavior,
ethics takes care of its
applicability, through
norms and rules that
regulate human
relationships. It can be
said, then, that if
morality reaches all
cultures, at any time,
because they are
universal principles,
ethics is made up of
specific rules defined
for a society or groups.
Another important aspect
is the “give freely what
you have freely
received”, which is
inserted in the context
of Christian morals and
ethics, regulating the
behavior and guiding the
acts of its followers,
in particular of our
reflection: of the
spiritist.
Of all the facts that
testify to the power of
Jesus, the most numerous
are the cures. The
apostles had freely
received the gift of God
to heal the sick and
cast out demons.
In fulfilling his
mission, Jesus counted
on the collaboration of
the apostles and other
disciples. The great
workers of Spirituality,
full of courage and
austerity, crossed the
roads from village to
village, from town to
town. They did not
worry about
possessions, clothes,
purses, saddlebags or
sandals, in carrying out
the orders they
received, already
healing the sick and
bringing peace to the
crowds suffocated by
tribulations, already
announcing loudly and
without desiring other
values, the arrival of
the Kingdom of God,
which should dominate
the hearts.
For us to be considered
disciples of Jesus it is
necessary to develop
moral values:
disinterest, abnegation,
sacrifice, meekness,
courage, dignity,
humility, love. As for
the gratuity of cures
for illnesses and relief
from suffering, God
wants the light to reach
everyone. He doesn't
want the poorest to be
deprived of it and to be
able to say: I don't
have faith, because I
couldn't pay it; I did
not have the consolation
of receiving the
encouragement and
testimonies of affection
from those I mourn,
because I am poor.
The Spiritist Doctrine
is not consistent with
any type of charge for
providing spiritual
services. The teachings
deal with the
disapproval of
commercialization in the
name of the Spiritist
Doctrine. If we receive
freely, freely we must
give.
In order to obtain
benevolence from the
good spirits, it is
necessary to have
humility, devotion and
abnegation; the most
absolute material
disinterest. Between
Heaven and Earth,
intermediaries (mediums)
cannot receive money for
this task. The Creator
does not sell the
benefits it bestows.
Mediumship is freely
given by God for the
relief of those who
suffer, and cannot be
used commercially. The
interpreters of the
Spirits cannot obtain
material profit to
instruct men, show them
the path of goodness and
lead them to faith. They
must not sell messages
that do not belong to
them, nor be the object
of financial profit, as
they are not products of
their authorship, nor of
their research, nor of
their personal work. The
medium cannot sell a
possible cure under any
circumstances. This
question is not out of
discussion. The healing
medium transmits the
salutary fluid of good
spirits. Jesus and the
apostles did not charge
anything for healing.
The medium who exercises
his faculty according to
Christ, without material
or selfish interests,
receives the
corresponding spiritual
reward. The only
currency that the
Creator accepts as
exchange is the love of
neighbor. Spiritism must
be the dissemination of
the word of consolation
as Jesus taught us.
Spiritism is not based
on commercial interests.
Good mediums have
affinities with good
spirits. Bad mediums
have affinities with bad
spirits. The moral
qualities of mediums are
influenced by the nature
of the spirits who
communicate through
them.
The qualities of good
spirits are kindness,
benevolence, simplicity
of heart, love of
neighbor and detachment
from material things.
The defects that keep
them apart are pride,
selfishness, envy,
jealousy, hatred,
sensuality and all the
passions by which man
attaches himself to
matter.
Mediumship is neither an
art nor a talent.
Therefore, it cannot
become a profession. It
does not exist without
the cooperation of the
Spirits; lacking these,
there is no longer
mediumship. To exploit
someone's mediumship is
to have something he
does not really own. To
claim otherwise is to
deceive those who pay.
It is different from the
work of the doctor, the
Thus, it is in the
exercise of mediumship
with Jesus and in the
application of His
values to the benefit of
others and in the name
of charity that the
being reaches the
fullness of his
functions and faculties,
converting himself into
blessings, a sower of
spiritual health and
peace: “Give freely
what you have freely
received”.
To end this reflection,
in The Gospel
According to Spiritism,
by Allan Kardec, in
Chapter XVII, “Be
perfect”, in “The Good
Spiritists”, we have:
“Spiritism does not
institute any new
morality; it only
facilitates to men the
intelligence and
practice of the Christ,
providing unshakable and
enlightened faith to
those who doubt or
waver. (...) A true
spiritist is recognized
by his moral
transformation and by
the efforts he employs
to tame his evil
inclinations.”
Bibliography:
KARDEC, Allan;
translated by Evandro
Noleto Bezerra. The
Genesis. 2nd
Edition. Brasília/DF:
Brazilian Spiritist
Federation, 2013.
KARDEC, Allan;
translated by Evandro
Noleto Bezerra.
Heaven and hell. 2nd
Edition. Brasília/DF:
Brazilian Spiritist
Federation, 2013.
KARDEC, Allan;
translation by Guillon
Ribeiro. The gospel
According to spiritism.
1st edition.
Brasilia/DF: Brazilian
Spiritist Federation,
2019.
KARDEC, Allan;
translation by Guillon
Ribeiro. The Book of
Spirits. 1st
edition. Brasilia/DF:
Brazilian Spiritist
Federation, 2019.
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translation by Guillon
Ribeiro. The Book of
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edition. Brasilia/DF:
Brazilian Spiritist
Federation, 2019.
KARDEC, Allan;
translated by Evandro
Noleto Bezerra. What
is Spiritism. 2nd
Edition. Brasília/DF:
Brazilian Spiritist
Federation, 2017.
ROCHA, Cecília
(organizer). Systematized
Study of the Spiritist
Doctrine: Fundamental
Program, Volume I.
2nd Edition.
Brasília/DF: Brazilian
Spiritist Federation,
2018.