150 years of The Gospel According to Spiritism
 

This month spiritists from all over the world celebrate an important date: the 150 years of the best known and most read book for fans and supporters of the spiritual doctrine: The Gospel According to Spiritism, whose first edition was circulated in April 1864, almost seven years later releasing The Spirits’ Book, both written by Allan Kardec, the Encoder of spiritist teachings.

Kardec was in Ségur on August 9th, 1863 and no one had talked about the book in which he was then working, whose original title would be Imitation of the Gospel, later altered by suggestions of Mr. Didier and others to The Gospel according Spiritism.

Regarding the work, as we can read in the book Posthumous Works, a Spirit conveyed to Kardec the following message:
 

“This book of doctrine will have significant influence; it is approached to capital questions in it, and not only the religious world will find the maximum that are needed, but the practice life of the nations in it will acquire excellent instructions. You were right to address issues of high moral practice from the standpoint of general interests, social interests and religious interests. The question must be destroyed; Earth and its civilized populations are prepared; it has been a long time since your friends from beyond the grave paved it; throw therefore the seed that we trust you, because it is time the Earth gravitates in the order of radiant spheres, and finally gets out of the gloom and intellectuals fogs.”

Seizing the opportunity, Kardec asked to the spiritual instructor: "What shall say that the clergy?" He replied him:

“The clergy will cry heresy, because you see that you attack it firmly eternal feathers and other items on which supports their influence and credit; it will cry much more that it will feel much more hurt than the publication of The Spirits' Book, which strictly speaking, could accept the principles of data; but at present, you will enter a new path where he cannot follow you. The secret anathema will become official, and Spiritists will be rejected with the Jews and the Pagans by the Roman Church. In contrast, the spiritists will see their numbers increase, because of this kind of persecution, especially seeing priests accused it of work absolutely demonic, a doctrine whose morals shine like a sunbeam by the same publication of your new book, and those who will follow you.”

The following month - September 1863 - Kardec was at Sainte-Adresse, when he received another alluding communication to the book in preparation, which we pulled this excerpt: "With this work, the building starts to get rid of its foundations, and already can glimpse its dome to draw on the horizon. Therefore continues without impatience, as tirelessly; the monument will be finished at the indicated time."

The years have passed, and in fact, the work launched in April 1864 would have, as predicted, considerable influence in the lives of all people who have read it and seek to conform their actions to the guidance that emanates from it, based on the moral teaching of Jesus, which Kardec claims to be the infallible roadmap for the coming happiness we all dream of. The moral teaching contained in the gospels is, by the way, the object of the work, whose 150th birthday we all celebrate.