Spiritist Review - Journal of Psychological Studies - 1865

Moral Spiritist study



One of our corresponding members from Lyon sent us the following report on January 10^th, 1865:

“We know a person from a neighboring town whose name we shall not declare to avoid slander and because the name has nothing to do with the fact. He was a Spiritist and had improved himself by the influence of that belief, however he had not taken the most advantage of that considering his intelligence. He used to live with an aunt that loved him like a son and that would do any work and sacrifice for her dear nephew. She would take care of the house in order to save money. It was all good up to that point. What was not so natural was the fact that the young and healthy nephew would allow her to do painful tasks for her age, like the transportation of heavy loads and similar things. He would not touch a piece of furniture in the house as if he would count on servants at his services. When foreseeing some hard job ahead he would find excuses to be away, afraid that he would be asked to do something that he could not refuse. Nonetheless he had received many lessons about that, not to say reproaches, but he remained insensitive. One day the aunt was extenuated while splitting wood and he calmly smoking his pipe. A neighbor came by and fired at him with his eyes, saying: This is a man’s job, not a woman’s. He then took the axe and began cutting the wood while the other observed. He was considered a righteous man, of good conduct but he did not show empathy and perseverance and for that he was not liked, and the majority of his friends had stayed away. We, the Spiritists, suffered for that lack of feelings and used to say that one day he would pay dearly for that. The forecast did occur recently. We must say that due to the efforts the old lady was taken ill with a very serious hernia that brought her a lot of pain, but she would have enough courage to not complain. During these latest cold days, the nephew left early to avoid the hard work, but he did not return. He was crossing a bridge when he was hit by a vehicle that slid from a hillside and died two hours later. We wanted to have him evoked and here is what our good guides said:

The one you want to call will not be able to communicate for some time. I came to respond in his place and tell you what you want to know. He will confirm this later. At this time, he is very disturbed by the thoughts that agitate him. He sees the aunt and the disease she acquired as a consequence of the physical fatigue and from which she will die. He is tormented by that since he considers himself the murderer. And he is in fact since he could have spared her the work that will be the cause of her death. It is a terrible remorse for him and that will persecute him for a long time, until he has atoned his fault. He wanted to do it now; he is always with her, but his efforts are useless and becomes desperate. His punishment will be to see her dying as a consequence of his indifference for his behavior is a kind of selfishness. Pray for him so that he can bear his regret that later on will save him.

Question – Can our dear guide tell us if other defects that he fixed as a consequence of Spiritism will not be taken into account, and if that has not serve to mitigate his situation?

Answer – There is no doubt that such improvement is taken into account since nothing escapes the in-depth eyes of the divine providence. But that is how each of our good or bad actions have their natural, inevitable consequences, according to these words of Jesus Christ: - For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then shall he render unto every man according to his deeds.^[1] The one that corrected oneself from some faults is spared from the punishment that would result from them, receiving, on the contrary, the awards for the qualities that replaced them, but one cannot escape the consequences of the defects that still persist. Therefore, one is not punished but in proportion and according to the seriousness of the latter. The less defects that remain the better one’s position. One quality does not atone another fault; it reduces their number and consequently the total punishment. Those that are corrected form start are the easiest to eliminate and egotism is the hardest to get rid of. People think that they did a lot for moderating their violent character, have resigned to their fate or eliminated a few bad habits. There is no doubt that they will benefit from that, but it does not preclude them from paying the tribute of depuration for the rest.

My friends, selfishness is what we see best in others, because we feel the impact, and the egoist hurts us; but the egoist finds in himself his satisfaction, that is why he does not perceive it. Egoism is always a proof of dryness of the heart; it dulls sensitivity to the sufferings of others. The man of heart, on the contrary, feels the suffering and is moved by it; that is why he devotes himself to spare or mitigate them in others, because he would like others to do the same for him; so he is happy when he spares a pain or suffering to someone; having empathy towards the suffering of a fellow human being, he feels real relief when the suffering no longer exists. Count on his gratitude if you do him a favor; but of the egoist expect only ingratitude; the gratitude in words does not cost him anything, but in action, it would tire him and disturb his rest. He acts for others only when he is forced to do so, but never spontaneously; his attachment is because of the good he expects from people, and this sometimes without his knowledge. The young man of whom we spoke certainly loved his aunt and would get upset if he had been told otherwise, and yet his affection did not go so far as to tire himself for her; it was not a premeditated plan on his side, but an instinctive repulsion, following his native selfishness. The light he could not find in his lifetime appears today, and he regrets not having benefited better from the teachings he has received. Pray for him.

Egotism is the rodent worm of society, and more or less of each one of you. I will soon write a dissertation in which it will be faced in its multiple nuances; it will be a mirror: look at it carefully and try to find in any corner a reflex of your own personality.

Your spiritual guide

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[1] Mathews 16:27