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Mirta Edit Cal Ataides (photo)
was born and brought up
in the border city of
Rivera, in Uruguay. She
met Spiritism 26 years
ago and is now the
president of her
country’s Spiritist
Federation. In this
interview, she talks
about the work in the
group she is linked to –
Allan Kardec, in Rivera.
She also reflects on the
influence of the
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Brazilian Spiritist
Movement and looks into
the positive impact
joining CEI, the
International Spiritist
Council, most noticeably
the possibility of
hostin the 1st
Spiritist Congress of
Uruguay last year: |
How many Spiritist
groups are there in
Uruguay? Who was the
pioneer, the main name
in the history of
Spiritism in Uruguay?
There are 11 groups who
are members of the
Uruguayan Federation,
and many more that are
not yet affiliated. Only
in the capital,
Montevideo, we have 3
affiliated groups and 6
non-affiliated. Aurora
de los Santos, natural
of Rivera, was the main
Spiritist figure in the
history of Uruguay. She
met the teachings in the
southern Brazilian city
of Livramento and moved
to Montevideo in 1935,
bringing The Gospel
According to Spiritism
with her. She
had very powerful
healing mediumship and
helped many people; she
healed those for whom
traditional medicine had
no answer. She was
arrested many times for
the illegal practice of
medicine. As a widower,
she had to leave her
children with her
neighbours or orphanages
when she was in jailed.
But as soon as she came
out, she went straight
back into treating
people, defending with
all her strength the
teachings that helped
her stand all the
disappointments life
threw at her.
Tell us about the
cooperation with the
Spiritist Movement in
Brazil, which is of
course older and more
established.
There is a close
relationship, and the
fact that Rivera, on the
border, is part of the
official structure of
the Brazilian Spiritist
Movement is proof of
that. That has made it
possible to co-host and
work together in a
number of regional
events. Many Spiritist
speakers are also active
on both sides of the
border.
What is your view on the
Brazilian influence on
the Uruguayan Spiritist
Movement?
Spiritism in Uruguay had
four very distinct
periods: birth, growth,
decadence and rebirth.
In this latest stage,
just like Jesus had a
man from Cyrene who
helped him carry his
cross, we had many men
from Cyrene. I’m talking
about all our Brazilian
brothers and sisters
who, through CEI, and
especially in the figure
of its Secretary
General, Nestor Masotti,
worked endlessly to
rescue us from the
bottom of the pit and
take us once again to
the light. And in
October 2011, we were
finally able to host the
1st Spiritist
Congress of Uruguay and
the 1st South
American Spiritist
Congress in the resort
city of Punta del Este,
with the presence of the
presidents of
federations from the
whole continent.
How have you gained from
joining CEI, the
International Spiritist
Council?
The growth of Spiritism
in Uruguay is directly
linked to the support we
get from CEI, whose
members have always been
ready to come to our
country, to organise and
run seminars, workshops,
conferences. They have
also helped us travel to
Brazil, providing
accommodation, meals,
tickets, and they have
also given us lots of
love and attention.
How about translations?
Do you have a good range
of titles translated
into Spanish and
available in Uruguay?
Yes, we have many, many
works translated,
including many by the
main Brazilian mediums
Chico Xavier (dictated
by the spirits, Emmanuel
and André Luiz), Raul
Teixeira, Divaldo Franco
and others.
Is there any kind of
prejudice against
Spiritism in your
country? Is it well
accepted by the
Uruguayans?
For many years Spiritism
was seen with scepticism
in Uruguay, as many
people said that it
challenged the
principles of reason.
But things have changed
since the 1st
Congress.
Do you host nationwide
events?
Traditionally we have
two organisations
overlooking Spiritism in
Uruguay: one in the
north, one in the south.
That in a way has
allowed us to extend our
links of fraternity with
brothers and sisters
from other countries.
We’ve hosted events in
different parts of the
country with guests from
Brazil, Argentina,
Venezuela and Colombia.
Would you like to
highlight a particular
experience in all these
years in Spiritism?
I’ve taken part in many
events around the world
for decades now. But the
most remarkable
experience for me, what
really became a
watershed in this
incarnation, was the
fact that seven people
very close to me died in
the same year. That’s
what took me to the
teachings. I asked a
priest I knew then for
an explanation and all
he could say was: “It
happened because God
wanted it this way.”
That wasn’t good enough
to me. A sister-in-law
of mine had invited me
several times to go to a
Spiritist Centre. I kept
rejecting her offers, as
I believed a teacher
like myself shouldn’t be
going to places like
that. One day she came
back and said: “Only
once, please accept my
invitation.” And so I
did, and much to my
astonishment that night
the speaker was talking
about “The loss of our
dear ones.” On the way
out, someone gave me
The Gospel According to
Spiritism, where I
found the answers to all
my questions… I haven’t
looked back and have
carried on working for
these wonderful
teachings that have
changed my life.
How is it to be the
president of the
Uruguayan Spiritist
Federation?
It is a nice experience
– the second time I have
been given the
opportunity to do the
job. I have been
visiting many groups,
including those who are
not affiliated to the
Federation. In the
latest development, in
December, we founded in
Salto the city’s first
Spiritist Centre, which
was named Mary of
Nazareth.
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