It recently happened to us : At the end of a lecture, whose theme emphasized the matter of the practices differing from the norms of conduct that the Spirit Doctrine prescribes, a fellow approached us, showing a series of doubts about the spirit institution where he regularly went, near his residence. He confessed that he was trying to harmonize with that group, but the way they conducted the works conflicted with the explanations from the Codification Books.
He also explained that in that center, the workers adopted the practice of the "apometry" to promote sections of "desobsession" and that the treatment through "magnetic current" was the fad of the Brazilian Mid-west. (sic) (!?) He also told us that, while some used crystals to energize the assisted, others recommended the habit of meditation under pyramids for the necessary spiritual balance. There were also those who stimulated the famous "bath with coarse salt", together with "medicinal" herbs and the like.
Invited to work at that center, assisting needy people from the region, he showed himself extremely apprehensive in assuming such responsibility, since such practices were not consonant with the teaching of the Spirit Doctrine.
When questioning us whether or not he should accept such task, we explained to him that: Since he had some knowledge about the norms of the Codification and showed good critical perception and doctrinaire criterion, either he should draw away from the group with which he had associated himself, trying to identify himself with another institution in which meetings in the terms of the Third Revelation were established, or he should stay as a missionary, transmitting, little by little, the clear notions of the Spirit Doctrine. We remembered our brother that many centers sustained hypnotizing movements and ideas in order to ingrain, in the marrow bone of the Spirit Doctrine, some strange practices, under the auspices of the assistance calls of innocuous results and propagate impacting neologisms for supposedly efficient "spiritual treatments". We explained that the tragedy of the matter is that those groups are dominating and, as a consequence, they hold hegemonic power in the spirit movement in certain places.
We explained that the Spirit Center has to work as if it was an authentic spiritual emergency room, exactly as a relief in favor of the souls in disorder, and not a stronghold of illusions. The Spirit House has to be increasingly prepared to receive a contingent of people lost in the swamp of their own imperfections, and who are in the dim valleys of ignorance.
Those who read books considered as advanced literature, but from rather dubious authors, without seriously reading and studying Allan Kardec first, take a big chance of taking narrow paths and confuse tracks, through which accessing the clarification is difficult. The spirit nuclei reproduce the doctrinal nature and conscience of their leaders. Our brother told us about practices that clearly collide with Karnes's postulates. Consequently, Spiritualism is not practiced there. However, those are stages of incipient understanding, maybe necessary to neophyte people (and we have to remember here: to each one according to his/her merit). It was necessary to remind him, however, that even in groups that are badly guided by their leaders there are people who are willing to help needy brothers, independently of any pre-established rules, what grants them some merit, obviously.
We alerted him, however, about the difficulties that he would certainly find, because easy access to the minds crystallized on basis of "incontestable truths" would not be easy, but nothing prevented him from accepting the challenge, if the intention to serve were bigger than the practices that were not in consonance with the Spirit project. The important thing is to serve in the name of Christ, even if heroically cohabiting with practices void of any logical sense. On the other hand, calming his hesitant spirit, we reminded him that nobody is forced to live under the bonds of embarrassment.
Spiritualism brings us a new religious order that needs to be preserved. The Third Revelation is the wise answer from Heavens to the questions of the afflicted creature on the Earth, leading it towards God. We believe that preserving it from the presumption of the reformers and from the superficial proposes of those who ignore it and just belong to the groups where it is presented is our duty. "At this moment, we count the glories of Science, Technology, thought, art, beauty, but we cannot ignore the devastating statistics of perversity originating from behavioral perturbation"(...) the human creatures have not found the point of their full realization yet. That because Jesus has been the object of immediatist excogitations in the championship of the personal projections, in religion, politics, and mean interests. (...)" (1)
If we embrace Spiritualism, as a Christian ideal, we cannot deny it fidelity. The legacy of tolerance does not consubstantiate itself in the omission of the verbal warning before the conceptual insertions and anomalous practices that some fellows intend to impose in the heart of the Spirit Movement.
The doctrinaire purity is, for those who jump at conclusions, the intransigent defense of the spirit postulates, without a bigger observance of the evangelic norms; to others, who also jump at conclusions, it is the rigid equality of types of behavior, without the due consideration of the differentiated levels of evolution in which people are staging. We know that rigidity in excess in the defense of the doctrine could lead us to serious mistakes, if we follow the paths of unjustifiable extremisms, notwithstanding that they will result in unacceptable division, in view of the obligations of the fraternity.
It is obvious that we cannot convert the defense of Kardec's purity in crystallized standardization of the practices which can oppose the spontaneous creativity, in face of the freedom of action. In spite of repelling extreme attitudes, we cannot give up the vigilance required by the pureness of the spirit postulates. So, when the situation imposes itself, we do not hesitate, and we have to be on alert about the fidelity we owe to Kardec and Jesus. It is important that we do not forget that through small concessions we defile the project of the Third Revelation.
"It is necessary to preserve the Spiritualism as we inherited it from the eminent Codifier, keeping the clearness of the postulates and contents, not allowing the establishment of pernicious addenda, which will just cause confusion to those who are credulous and do not know his directions." (2) It is undeniable that there are countless practices that are not compatible with the doctrinaire project that it is imperative that we fight to exhaustion, on the basis of the Christian dignity, without any traces of fanaticism, tending to make impossible any healthy discussion of controversial issues.
Showing some apprehension about the Spirit Movement our "Brazilian Kardec" recalls: "the Good News (...) produces internal jubilation and not exterior tumult (...) It is not licit that we transform ourselves in insensate people in dealing with spiritual questions. Preserving, therefore, the pulchritude and seriousness of the Doctrine in the Spirit Movement is the duty of all of us and particularly of the National Federative Council through the Federate Entities" (3) (our highlight)
For those who are still excessively set in phenomenal questions, Bezerra reminds: "(...) the mediumship must be holily, Christianly practiced, with responsibility and criteria of elevation in order not to become an instrument of perturbation and carelessness" (4). The mediumship practice must be reserved to people who know Spiritualism, since the participation of people who ignore how the mediumistic stimulation works is extremely dangerous, and, due to the lack of attention on this topic, after more than one century of mediumship under the light of the Spirit Doctrine, we still have it, still ridiculed by the intellectuals, materialists, and atheists, who insists on despising it until today.
Regrettably, in the name of the Spiritualism, many proposes "apometries", desobsessions through mental-electromagnetic current (5), the use of colored lights to cleanse the human halo and (baffling) cure heartburn, kidney calculus, dermatitis, toothache, influenzas, hiccup in children, verminosis, chilblain, etc. Weren't that enough, there are even recommendations of coal therapy (?!) to neutralize the "evil eye". It is just putting a piece of coal under the bed and we will immune to humanity's greatest affliction - "envy" - and, in this tragicomedy, Spiritualism stumbles in some Spirit Centers.
The true Spirit practice is the Christian moral expression, consubstantiated in the Gospel of the Master Jesus. Thus, the spirit group will only have more credibility if there is doctrinaire purity and if the practice follows Jesus' teachings, under any type of continent (desobsession, mediumistic education, lectures, books, messages, Social Assistance, etc.).
In Spiritualism, Christ appears as the admirable and generous conductor of hearts and the Gospel shines like the Sun, in its magic greatness. A doctrine that grew dramatically in the past luster's, in its hosts there are good leaders, while there was also the appearance of imprudent innovators, with the presumption of "modernize" Kardec.
Let's remember that Kardec gave humanity the best of all packages (doctrinaire purity) to the divine gift that is the Doctrine of the Spirits, and those who have, as their basis the foundation of the Gospel can even live with any work or philosophy, because they will be immune to the virus of the besieging influences.
Jorge Hessen
E-Mail: jorgehessen@gmail.com
Site: http://jorgehessen.net
SOURCES:
(1) Bezerra de Menezes. (A psycophonic message received by the medium Divaldo Pereira Franco, on November 9, 2003, in the closing of the Meeting of the National Federative Council, in the headquarters of the Brazilian Spirit Federation, in Bras'ilia. Published in Reformador/December/2003)
(2) Ibid
(3) Ibid
(4) Ibid
