On the prophetic Spirit – By Count Joseph de MaistreCount Joseph de Maistre, born in Chambéry in 1753, and deceased in 1821, was sent to Russia, by the King of Sardinia, as plenipotentiary minister, in 1803. He left this country in 1817, when the Jesuits were expelled and whose cause he had embraced. Among his works, one of the best known in literature and in the religious world, is the one entitled:
Evenings of St. Petersburg, published in 1821. Although written from an exclusively Catholic point of view, certain thoughts seem inspired by forecasting the present times, and as such deserves special attention. The following passages are taken from the eleventh interview, volume II, page 121, 1844 edition.
“… More than ever, Gentlemen, we must attend to these high speculations, for we must be prepared for an immense event in the divine order, to which we are marching at high speed, and that must shock all observers. There is no more religion on earth; human race cannot remain in this state. Terrible oracles also announce that the times have come.”Several theologists, even Catholics, believed that facts of the first order and not very distant were announced in the revelation of Saint John, and although Protestant theologists, in general, spoke only of sad dreams about this same book, where they have never seen more than what they wanted, however, after paying this unfortunate tribute to sectarian fanaticism, I see that some writers of this party are already adopting the principle that: several prophecies contained in the book of Revelation referred to our modern times. One of these writers even went so far as to say that the event had already begun, and that the French nation was to be the great instrument of the greatest revolution.There may not be a truly religious man in Europe (I am speaking of the educated class) that does not expect something extraordinary now; well, tell me, gentlemen, do you think that this agreement between all men can be neglected? Is it just this general cry that announces great things? Go back to past centuries; transport yourself to the birth of the Savior. At that time, wasn’t a loud and mysterious voice shouting, from the eastern regions: "The East is about to win? The victor will depart from Judea; a divine child is given to us; he will appear; he descends from the highest of heavens; he will bring the golden age back to earth.” You know the rest.These ideas were universally widespread, and as they lent themselves infinitely to poetry, the greatest Latin poet seized upon them and coated them with the most brilliant colors in his Pollion, which was since translated into rather beautiful Greek verses, and read in this language at the Council of Nicaea, by the order of Emperor Constantine. It was, certainly, well worthy of the Providence to order that this great cry of the human race resounded forever in the immortal verses of Virgil; but the incurable incredulity of our century, instead of seeing in this room what it really contains, that is to say, an ineffable monument of the prophetic spirit that then agitated in the universe. It is amusing to prove to us learnedly that Virgil was not a prophet, that is, a flute does not know music, and that there is nothing extraordinary in the eleventh eclogue of this poet. The materialism that sullies the philosophy of our century, prevents it from seeing that the doctrine of the Spirits, and in particular, that of the prophetic spirit, is quite plausible in itself, and moreover, the best supported by the most universal and imposing tradition that has ever existed. As the eternal disease of man is to penetrate the future, it is a sure proof that he has rights over this future, and that he has the means to reach it, at least under certain circumstances. The ancient oracles attained to this inner drive of man, warning him of his nature and his rights. The enormous erudition of Van Dale, and the pretty phrases of Fontenelle, were employed in vain in the past century, to establish the general nullity of these oracles. But, whatever that may be, man would have never resorted to oracles, he would have never been able to imagine them, if he had not started from a primitive idea, by virtue of which he regarded them as possible, and even as existing. Man is subjected to time, and nevertheless, a stranger to time, by nature. The prophet enjoyed the privilege of stepping out of time; his ideas, no longer being distributed over time, touch one another by virtue of a simple analogy and merge, then necessarily spreading great confusion in his speeches. The Savior himself submitted to this state when, willingly, surrendered to the prophetic spirit, and analogous ideas of great disasters, separated in time, led him to combine the destruction of Jerusalem with that of the world. This is again how David, led by his own sufferings to meditate on “the righteous persecuted,” suddenly comes out of time and cries out before the future: “They have pierced my feet and my hands; they counted my bones; they shared my clothes; they cast spells on my clothes.” (Psalms XXI, v. 18,19).[1]We could add other reflections drawn from judicial astrology, oracles, divinations of all kinds, the abuse of which has undoubtedly dishonored the human spirit, but which, nevertheless, had a true root like all beliefs in general. The prophetic spirit is natural to man and will never stop stirring in the world. Man, always and in all places, trying to penetrate the future, declares that he is not made for time, for time is something forced, only demanding to end. It follows that, in our dreams, we never have the idea of time, and that the state of sleep has always been considered favorable to divine communications.If you then ask me what is this prophetic spirit that I mentioned earlier, I will answer that "there had never been great events in the world that have not been foretold in some way.” Machiavelli was the first man, to my knowledge, to make such a proposition; but if you think about it yourselves, you will find that his assertion is justified along the whole history. You have the latest example of this in the French Revolution, predicted from all sides and in the most indisputable manner.But, going back to where I started, do you think that the times of Virgil lacked fine minds laughing at "the great year, the golden age, the chaste Lucian, the august mother, and the mysterious child?” However, all this had happened: "The child, from the top of the sky, was ready to descend.” And you can see in several writings, namely in the notes that Pope appended to his verse translation of Pollion, that this piece could pass for a version of Isaiah. Why do you want it not to be the same today? The universe is waiting. How could we despise this great persuasion; and by what right should we condemn the men who, warned by these divine signs, devote themselves to holy research?Do you want further proof of what's to come? Search the sciences; take a good look at the progress of chemistry, even of astronomy, and you will see where they lead us. Would you believe, for example, if you were not forewarned, that Newton brings us back to Pythagoras, and that it will be incessantly demonstrated that heavenly bodies move precisely like human bodies, by intelligences associated to them, without us knowing how? This is what is about to be verified, however, without being able to argue, any soon. This doctrine may seem paradoxical, no doubt, and even ridiculous, because the ongoing opinion imposes it; but wait until the natural affinity between religion and science unites them in the head of a single man of genius; the arrival of this man cannot be remote, and perhaps he already exists. He will be famous and will put an end to the eighteenth century that still lasts; for intellectual centuries are not regulated by the calendar, like the centuries properly speaking. Then, the opinions that appear strange or insane to us today, will become axioms that one is not allowed to doubt, and one will then speak of our present stupidity as we speak of the superstition of the Middle Ages.Even the force of circumstances has forced some scientists of the material school to make concessions that bring them closer to the Spirit. And others, unable to prevent themselves from sensing this muffled tendency of a powerful opinion, take precautions against it, which perhaps make more impression on true observers than direct resistance. Hence their scrupulous attention to using only material expressions. In their writings, they only deal with mechanical laws, mechanical principles, physical astronomy, etc. It is not that they do not feel very well that material theories do not satisfy intelligence in any way, for there is something obvious to the unpreoccupied human mind, and it is that the movements of the universe cannot be explained by mechanical laws alone; but it is precisely because they feel it that they put words, so to speak, against the truth. They don't want to admit it, but they are no longer held back except by commitment or human respect. European scientists are, at this moment, a kind of conjured or initiates, as you wish to call them, who have made science a sort of monopoly, and who do not absolutely want us to know more or different from them. But this science will be incessantly hated by an enlightened posterity that will precisely accuse the followers of today for not having known how to draw, from the truths that God had delivered to them, the most precious consequences for man. Then, all science will change face; the long-dethroned Spirit will resume its place.It will be shown that the ancient traditions are all true; that the whole of paganism is but a system of corrupted and misplaced truths; that it suffices to clean them, so to speak, and to put them back in their place, to see them shine in all their splendor. In short, all ideas will change; and since a crowd of elected officials cry out together from all sides: “Come, Lord, come!” Why would you blame these men who soar into this majestic future and pride themselves on guessing it? Like the poets who, even in our times of weakness and decrepitude, still present some pale glimmers of the prophetic spirit, spiritual men sometimes experience movements of enthusiasm and inspiration that transport them into the future, allowing them to foresee events that were matured by time along the way.Remember, Mr. Count, the compliment you addressed to me on my erudition about the number three. This number, in fact, is shown everywhere, in the physical world as in the moral world, and in divine things. God first spoke to men on Mount Sinai, and this revelation was constrained, for reasons unknown to us, within the narrow confines of one people and one land. After fifteen centuries, a second revelation was addressed to all men, without distinction, and it is the one we enjoy. But the universality of its action was still to be infinitely restricted by the circumstances of time and place. Fifteen more centuries should yet to pass before America saw the light, and her vast lands still harbor a large crowd of savages, so foreign to the great benefit, that one would be led to believe that they are excluded by nature, due to some inexplicable primitive anathema.The great Lama alone has more spiritual subjects than the Pope; Bengal has sixty million inhabitants, China has two hundred, Japan twenty-five or thirty. Contemplate these archipelagos of the great Ocean that today form a fifth part of the world. Your missionaries have, undoubtedly, made wonderful efforts to share the gospel with some of these distant lands, but you see with what success. How many myriads of men the Gospel will never reach! Hasn’t the scimitar[2] of Ishmael's son entirely driven Christianity out of Africa and Asia? And in our Europe, what a spectacle is offered to the religious eye! ...Contemplate this dismal picture; add to it the expectation of the chosen men, and you will see if the illuminated are wrong, by considering more or less imminent, a third explosion of the omnipotent goodness in favor of mankind. I wouldn't finish if I wanted to collect all the evidence that comes together to justify this great expectation. Again, do not blame the people concerned with this and that see in the revelation itself as a reason to predict a revelation of the revelation. Call them enlightened men, if you like, I will totally agree with you, if you pronounce this name seriously.Everything announces, and your own observations demonstrate it, I do not know what great unit towards which we are marching at great strides. You cannot, therefore, without entering in contradiction with yourself, condemn those who acclaim this unity from afar, and try, according to their strength, to penetrate mysteries so formidable, no doubt, but at the same time so comforting for us.And do not say that everything has been said, that everything is revealed, and that we are not allowed to wait for anything new. No doubt, nothing is lacking for our salvation; but on the side of divine knowledge, we are lacking a lot; and as for future manifestations, I have, as you see, a thousand reasons to expect them, while you have not one to prove the opposite to me. Wasn't the law abiding Hebrew safe in his conscience? I would quote to you, if necessary, I do not know how many passages of the Bible, that promise to the Judaic sacrifice and to the throne of David, a duration equal to that of the sun.The Jew that remained on the shell, had every reason to believe, until the event, in the temporal reign of the Messiah; he was mistaken, though, as we saw it; but do we know ourselves what awaits us? God will be with us until the end of the ages; the gates of hell will not prevail against the Church, etc.; very good! Does it follow, I ask you, that God has forbidden all new manifestations and that He is no longer allowed to teach us anything beyond what we know? Let us agree that this would be a strange argument.A new outpouring of the Holy Spirit now being among the most reasonably expected things, the preachers of this new gift must be able to quote from the Holy Scripture to all peoples. The apostles are not translators; they have many other occupations; but the Biblical Society, blind instrument of Providence, prepares its different versions that the true envoys will one day explain by virtue of a legitimate mission, new or primitive, it doesn't matter, that will drive doubt out from the city of God; and this is how the terrible enemies of unity work to establish it.”
Observation: These words are even more remarkable as they emanate from a man of undeniable merit as a writer, and who is held in great esteem in the religious world. Perhaps we have not seen all they contain, because they are an obvious protest to the absolutism and the narrow exclusivism of certain doctrines. They denote in the author a breadth of views that border philosophical independence. Orthodoxy has repeatedly been scandalized by less. The underlined passages are sufficiently explicit and it is unnecessary to comment them; the Spiritists, in particular, will easily understand their significance. It would be impossible not to see in them the foresight of things that are happening today and of those that the future has in store for humanity, so much these words have to do with the current state, and with what the Spirits announce from all sides.
[1] The original reads Psalms XXV, v. 17. This was later corrected by an Erratum in March 1868.
[2] saber having a curved blade with the edge on the convex side and used chiefly by Arabs and Turks (T.N.)
