We hereby continue the methodical study of "The Gospel According to Spiritism" by Allan Kardec, the third of the works of the Kardecian Pentateuch. The first edition was published in April, 1864. The answers to the questions suggested for discussion are at the end of the text below.
Questions for discussion
A. What happens in their afterlife to those who are on top of the social scale and are controlled by their pride and ambition?
B. What is the route of all human evil?
C. What awaits him who relies in his intelligence to fight the idea of God?
D. Why does a child not show itself as it really is right from birth?
Reading text
114. In truth I say unto you that those who bear their burdens and help their brothers and sisters are beloved by Me. Study the precious doctrine which dissipates the error of revolt and shows you the sublime purpose of human trials. As the wind sweeps the dust, so the breath of the Spirits dissipates your resentment against the riches of the world, which are frequently very pitiable, since they are subject to more dangerous trials than yours. (Chapter VI, section 6, the Spirit of Truth.)
115. Love, pray, be gentle to the Spirits of the Lord, and call unto them from the bottom of your hearts. Then He will send His beloved son to instruct you and to say these goodly words: "I am come because you called me." (Chapter VI, section 7, the Spirit of Truth.)
116. God consoles the humble and gives strength to the afflicted when they ask. His Might covers the Earth and He places a consoling remedy everywhere with each tear shed. Abnegation and Devotion are a continuous prayer and contain profound teaching. Wisdom resides in these two words (Chapter VI, section 8, the Spirit of Truth.)
117. So, take these two words for your motto: Devotion and Abnegation - and you will be strong, as they resume all the obligations which charity and humility impose. The feeling of accomplished duty will grant you peace of Spirit and resignation. Then your heart will beat more steadily, your soul calms down and your body will be protected against weakness. This is the reason why, if the Spirit is deeply stricken, the body feels weaker accordingly (Chapter VI, section 8, the Spirit of Truth.)
118. By saying that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to the poor in spirit, Jesus teaches that no one will enter that Kingdom without simplicity of heart and humility of spirit; that the ignorant person who possesses these qualities will be preferred to the wise person who believes more in himself than in God. In all circumstances Jesus puts humility into the category of virtues that bring Man near to God, and pride into the category of vices that keep Man away from God. The reason for this is clear: to be humble is an act of submission to God, whereas pride is a revolt against Him (Chapter VII, section 2.)
119. Jesus said: "I thank thee, O Father, Lord of Heaven and Earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and hast revealed them unto babes" (Matthew, Ch. XI, v. 25). It may appear quite singular that Jesus thanks God for having revealed these things to the simple and humble, who are the poor in spirit, and for having hidden them from the learned and prudent. It must be understood, however, that the former are the humble, who submit themselves before God and do not consider themselves superior to anyone else. The latter are arrogant, full of human knowledge, and deny God or treat Him as an equal (Chapter VII, sections 7 and 8.)
120. The same thing happens today with the great truths revealed by Spiritism. Some incredulous are surprised by the fact that the Spirits take so little trouble to convince them. The reason for this being that it is preferable to look after those who seek the light with good faith and humility, rather than offer enlightenment to those who suppose they already possess it (Chapter VII, section 9.)
121. The power of God manifests itself in all things, from the smallest to the greatest. He does not hide His light under a bushel, but rather pours it in waves everywhere, being it manifested in the smallest things, as well as in the greatest to the extent that only those who are blind do not see it. As for these, God does not wish their eyes to be opened by force, seeing that they desire to keep them shut. Their time will come. But first it is necessary that they feel the anguish of darkness and recognize that it is Divinity and not mere chance which hurts their pride (Chapter VII, section 9.)
122. Those who deny truth in such a manner, it is because their spirits have not yet reached sufficient maturity to enable them to understand, nor their hearts to feel it. Pride is the cataract that blurs their vision. What good does it to show a light to one who is blind? The cause of evil must be cured first (Chapter VII, section 10.)
123. Humility is a virtue much forgotten amongst us. However, if you are not humble, is it possible to be charitable to your neighbor? Oh! Of course not, because this sentiment reduces mankind to the same level by telling them they are brothers and sisters who should help one another mutually, which leads them to a state of goodness. Without humility you are only adorning yourself with virtues you do not possess, as if you used clothes especially for the purpose of hiding some physical deformity (Chapter VII, section 11, Lacordaire.)
Answers to the proposed questions
A. What happens in their afterlife to those who are on top of the social scale and are controlled by their pride and ambition?
Jesus said: He that humbles himself shall be exalted and he who exalts himself shall be debased. Spiritism confirms its theory through examples. It shows us that those who were small on Earth are great in the spiritual world; and frequently those who were great and powerful on Earth find themselves extremely small in the spiritual world. This is because the former on dying take with them what is considered the true greatness in Heaven and which is never lost: virtues. The latter take with them all earthly greatness, such as riches, titles, glory, and nobleness of birth, which mean nothing in Heaven. Possessing nothing more than this, they reach the other side finding themselves destitute of everything, as ship-wrecked with no belongings at all including their own clothes. The only item they still retain is their pride, which makes their new position even worse, more humiliating, when it is found that those they trampled on Earth have been raised to places of glory far above. Spiritism also shows us another side of this principle within the process of successive reincarnations, when those, who in one life have raised themselves to high positions, are then born into low conditions in a following life, if they allowed pride and ambition to take control (The Gospel According to Spiritism, Chapter VII, sections 6 and 12.)
B. What is the route of all human evil?
Pride is the route of all human evil. (Ibid., Chapter VII, section 12.)
C. What awaits him who relies in his intelligence to fight the idea of God?
He who uses his intelligence to destroy the idea of God and of Providence amongst his fellow men is similar to the man that raises the hoe, which was given to him to till the soil, against his master. Has he then the right to receive the promised salary? On the contrary, does he not deserve to be expelled from the garden? Such a man will pass through many miserable existences full of humiliations, until he finally bows down before Him to Whom he owes everything. Intelligence holds great riches in future merits, provided it is well employed. Unfortunately many use their intelligence as an instrument of pride and destruction against themselves (Ibid., Chapter VII, section 13.)
D. Why does a child not show itself as it really is right from birth?
Everything in God's work is full of wisdom. A child needs special care which only a mother's tenderness can bestow, tenderness which stems from the frailty and ingenuousness of the child. For a mother her child is always an angel and this is the way it must be in order to captivate solicitude. She would not be able to offer the same solicitude if, in place of graceful ingenuousness, she saw virility and adult ideas in the infantile features, nor if she came to know the child's past. This is why this Spirit as a child wears a temporary tunic of innocence and simplicity (Ibid., Chapter VIII, sections 3 and 4.)
