The Spiritist Review - Journal of Psychological Studies - 1864

March 28^th, 1864

To the Editor, Colonial Progress


Dear Sir,

Knowing your liberalism and also knowing that you are involved with Spiritism I kindly ask you to have the attached letter inserted into the next issue of the Spiritist Review; the letter was addressed to Mr. Priest de Régnon and I let you make the judgement that you consider adequate in the interest of truth. I count on your impartiality dare thinking that you will open the doors of your journal to me for all the complaints of the kind that I am honored to send you.

I am your humble servant,

… C.



“To Mr. Priest de Régnon

Port-Louis, March 26th, 1864



Mr. Priest,

In your last Thursday sermon of March 24^th you attacked Spiritism but I wish to believe that you did so in good faith given the fact that the arguments that you used against Spiritism were not entirely accurate. From our side, convict Spiritists, it is regrettable that you sought them outside the positive source of that science. Had you studied it a little and you would had known that we repeal, as you do, every communication that may come from rude and deceiving Spirits that will minor experience are easily identified and that we are associated only to those communications that are clear, rational and according to the laws of God, that you know as much as we do has allowed the Spiritist manifestations at all times. The Sacred Scriptures are here as a proof of that. As a matter of fact you do not deny the existence of the Spirits, on the contrary, you only admit the bad ones. That is the difference between us. We are certain about the existence of the good Spirits and that their advices, when followed – and every true Spiritist will always follow them – lead more souls to God and do much more proselytes of religion than you can imagine. However, to understand and practice that science, as well as all others, it is necessary to study and get to know it well, to begin with. Therefore, Mr. Priest, I advise you in your own interest first and then in the interest of everyone else that has the honor of hearing you that you should read one of the main books of the subject, The Spirits’ Book, dictated by those good Spirits to Mr. Allan Kardec, president of the Spiritist Society of Paris, formed by serious and in its majority well educated people. You will then see that only ignorant persons will be deceived by false names and lies and that one can easily recognize the tree by the fruits it bears. Would it be necessary for me to remind you of the 3^rd Epistle of John, verses 1-3, about the way we can check the Spirits? Yes, I agree that Spiritism is a science that like the best things in the world may sometimes produce evil things if practiced by those that have not studied and practice it carelessly.



But in that case should you, a cautious man, judged that doctrine without knowing it? Should our beautiful Christian doctrine be judged by the actions of so many senseless, ignorant and even evil persons that committed so many crimes and shed so much blood in its name? No, Mr. Priest, it is not fair nor rational to pass reckless judgment on things that we have not certified beforehand. Leave the surface and move on to the depth of knowledge and then you will be able to handle the matter with actual knowledge and we will listen to you with reverence because you will then undoubtedly be with the truth and we will no longer smile in silence saying to ourselves: He speaks of what he doesn’t know.”

A Spiritist



If Spiritism counts on detractors it also counts on defenders everywhere even in the most distant places. The author of this letter published a very interesting novel in the same journal, a novel based on Spiritism that powerfully contributed to the diffusion of these ideas in that region. We shall handle this on another occasion.



“Spiritism is definitely something horrible because no science, no heretic doctrine has ever raised stronger opposition in the heart of the Church than Spiritism, not even atheism. All imaginable resources, ethical or not, were employed first to muffle it and later on, when realized the total impossibility of destroying Spiritism, to stain it or to show it under the dark image of sin. Poor Spiritism! It was only claiming a little place under the sun to allow the world to freely enjoy its benefits. It did not ask those supposedly disciples of Jesus Christ, the man called love, to bring the word charity inscribed on their faces; all it wanted was to redirect those thousands of stray sheep to the good path, those that were failed by the pretense disciples; all it wanted was to second Jesus in his mission of devotion, healing with hope the poor hearts damaged by the gangrene of doubt and such a selfless and pure request was responded with a decree of prohibition!”



In reality we see strange things in this world: The official messengers of charity condemn more than nine tenths of mankind because they escape their influence and condemn even more severely the ones that wish to save those unfortunate ones.



“Therefore, and without a doubt, Spiritism is something much culpable because it is so much fought against and it seems strange that such a perverse doctrine may have conquered such a large space in such a short period of time. However what must seem much more remarkable is that the abhorrent Spiritism is so sturdily established and so much logical that all arguments raised against it come to contribute to its solidification and propagation despite the attempts of destroying and reducing it to nothing. In fact it is partially due to the obstacles lifted against Spiritism that it owns it fast propagation and the careless sermons of certain adversaries have do not have insignificant contribution to its spread. That is what happens in the natural order of things. Truth has no fear of its adversaries and they are in fact the contributors of its triumph. Spiritism is a tremendous focus of heat and light and whoever blows over such brazier will both infallibly burn oneself a little and revive it even further. Nonetheless commandments and conferences seem insufficient to destroy Spiritism – we are far from denying that definite insufficiency – the Roman congregation has just placed all books by Mr. Allan Kardec in the index^[1], books that contain the universal teachings of the Spirits to whom all of us Spiritists are connected. Allow us to make the two considerations below with that respect:



The Spiritist books in question, no doubt, contain the purest and the required development by the current stage of evolution of humanity, the precepts of Jesus acknowledged to be a Messiah by the Spirits. By condemning those books, therefore, aren’t they condemning the words of Christ in a single blow, and by placing the books in the index isn’t the same of placing the Gospels there, the Gospels that are in agreement with us? Second reflection: isn’t the measure taken today a little bit late? Why wait so long? In addition to being more or less inexplicable (unless you believe that Spiritism seems so much truthful and that you are so much persuaded of its success that you hesitated to face it for a long time and that a very powerful personal interest led you to do so – since we do not have the pretension of considering you ignorant) and awkward. In fact The Spirits’ Book, The Mediums’ Book and the Imitation of the Gospels According to Spiritism are equally in the hands of thousands of people, and we doubt very much that the condemnation by the Roman congregation may now turn bad what everyone considered good and noble.



Regardless, the Spiritist books were placed in the index. That is even better because many of those that have not read them yet will now devour them! Seven out of ten persons that browse the books will be convinced or remain strongly shaken and willing to study the Spiritist phenomena. Even better because when our adversaries find out that their efforts lead to results in direct opposition to the expected results will change sides if they are sincere, selfless and have the enlightenment required by the ministry. In fact that is required by God’s law since nothing in this world may remain stationary but instead everything progresses and the religious idea must follow the general progress or disappear. Consequently, may all of our adversaries continue their crusade! They have already compromised the ordinations, sermons, public courses, occult influences and sometimes apparently victorious due to the state of dependence of those upon whom their tyranny is thrown; they used the auto of faith, publically burning our books in Barcelona. Since they could only burn a few books and seeing the astonishing way by which they were replaced they were finally placed in the index. Ah! Since the inquisition is no longer tolerated, although it is far from being annihilated and still operates under different formats with the support of hidden influences such as those mentioned above, the only thing that still remains is the mass excommunication of all Spiritists, that is, a remarkable percentage of people and in particular a notable percentage of Christians! (We are only talking about the confess Spiritists because there is also the large number of those that are Spiritists without knowing it).”

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[1] The Index – List of Prohibited Books – was a list of publications deemed heretical, anti-clerical or lascivious, and therefore banned by the Roman Catholic Church (TN).