In this issue we continue the study of the book Posthumous Works, published after Allan Kardec disembodied and containing texts written by him. The present work is based on the translation made by Dr. Guillon Ribeiro, published by the Brazilian Spiritist Federation.
Questions for discussion
31. The Spirit’s progress is based on what?
32. Is the plurality of lives important for this purpose too?
33. Is the number of times we incarnate limited or unlimited?
34. What is a wandering Spirit?
35. Do the Spirits always reincarnate on the same planet?
36. Have Spirits always manifested from the beginning of Humanity?
37. Does the invisible world act on the visible world?
38. Why does Spiritism state that there are no miracles or supernatural events?
39. Does a religion benefit when it follows the advancement of Science?
40. Does Spiritism have dogmas?
Answers to the proposed questions
31. The Spirit’s progress is based on what?
The Spirit’s progress is the result of his own work. He advances according to his higher or lower work and his good will to acquire the qualities that he lacks. (Posthumous Works, Confession of Reasoned Spiritist Faith).
32. Is the plurality of lives important for this purpose too?
Yes. Since the Spirit is not able to acquire, in one corporeal existence, all the moral and intellectual qualities that are required for him to reach his goal, he needs a succession of lives, each one taking him a few steps forward on the path of progress and purifying some of his imperfections. With each new life, the Spirit brings with him the intelligence and morality acquired in his previous lives, as well as the germs of imperfections he has not yet being able to get rid of. When a life has been misused by the Spirit, that is, if he made no progress on the path of good, he must then begin it all over in a more or less painful condition, due to his negligence and unwillingness. (Posthumous Works, Confession of Reasoned Spiritist Faith).
33. Is the number of times we incarnate limited or unlimited?
The number of corporeal lives is not determined, since it depends on the Spirit’s will to shorten it by working hard on his moral improvement. When he becomes a pure Spirit, totally free of his imperfections, then reincarnation is no longer needed. (Posthumous Works, Confession of Reasoned Spiritist Faith).
34. What is a wandering Spirit?
It is the state in which the disembodied Spirit is, and still needs to reincarnate. In between physical existences, it is said then that the Spirit is wandering and living the spiritual life. The period of time while the Spirit is wandering, however, is not determined. (Posthumous Works, Confession of Reasoned Spiritist Faith).
35. Do the Spirits always reincarnate on the same planet?
No. When they acquire, in a planet, the total progress that this determined planet allows, they leave it to reincarnate in another more advanced world, where they acquire new knowledge, and so on, until incarnating in a material body is no longer necessary. They will live then only the spiritual life, where they still progress in another direction and by other means. Having reached the culmination of progress, they enjoy the supreme happiness. Admitted to the counseling of the Almighty, they become His messengers, His direct ministers regarding the government of the worlds, having under their orders Spirits of different degrees of advance. (Posthumous Works, Confession of Reasoned Spiritist Faith).
36. Have Spirits always manifested from the beginning of Humanity?
Yes. The souls or Spirits (of those who lived) form the invisible world that fills the space and in the middle of which we live. Based on this, since there are men, there are Spirits, and if they have the power to manifest, they must have surely done it in all times. This is what has been observed by the History and religions of all peoples. (Posthumous Works, Manifestations of the Spirits).
37. Does the invisible world act on the visible world?
Of course. Since the visible world lives in the middle of the invisible world, with which it is in permanent contact, it follows that they constantly influence each other. This influence is the source of several phenomena considered supernatural, because what causes them is not known. The action of the invisible world on the visible world, and vice versa, is one of the laws of the forces of Nature, necessary for universal harmony, as the Law of Attraction. If it were to cease, harmony would be disturbed in the same way as would happen if a gear was removed from a mechanism. (Posthumous Works, Manifestations of the Spirits).
38. Why does Spiritism state that there are no miracles or supernatural events?
The reason is simple. The miraculous fact is characterized by being unusual and exceptional – it is an exception to the Laws of Nature. Now, if a phenomenon is reproduced under identical conditions, it is because there is a law to which it is submitted, and therefore it cannot be considered miraculous. This law may be unknown, but this does not mean that it does not exist, and time will make it known. The halt of the movement of the Sun, or rather the Earth, attributed in the Bible to Joshua, would be a real miracle, because it would constitute a manifested exception to the law that governs the movement of the stars. However, if this fact could be reproduced in the given conditions, this would show that it would be subject to a determined law and, therefore, it would not be miraculous. The Church is in fear because it sees the circle of miracles being restricted, but this is not justified because God proves His greatness and power better through His striking set of Laws, rather than by some violations of these Laws. (Posthumous Works, Manifestations of the Spirits).
39. Does a religion benefit when it follows the advancement of Science?
Religion only has to benefit, because the facts found by Science, in a peremptory manner, cannot be denied by any religious belief. Religion can only gain in authority following the progress of scientific knowledge. However, it will lose if maintained backward, or if it protests against this same knowledge in the name of the dogmas, because no dogma can prevail against the Laws of Nature. (Posthumous Works, Manifestations of the Spirits).
40. Does Spiritism have dogmas?
No. Spiritism, founded on the knowledge of the Laws until then misunderstood, did not come to destroy the religious facts, but to ratify them by giving them a rational explanation. It only destroys the false consequences inferred from them as a result of the ignorance of these Laws or their misinterpretation. Therefore, there are no dogmas in Spiritism. (Posthumous Works, Manifestations of the Spirits).
