Affection that Spirits devote
to certain people

We present in this issue the topic #95 from the Systematized Study of the Spiritist Doctrine, that is being presented weekly, according to the programme elaborated by the Brazilian Spiritist Federation (FEB), structured in 6 modules and 147 topics.

If the reader uses this program for a study group, we suggest that questions proposed be discussed freely before the reading of the text that follows. If you would like to study alone, we ask you to try to answer the questions at first and only then read the text that follows. The answer key can be found at the end of the lesson. 

Questions

1. Do the Spirits usually nurture affection for the incarnated? 

2. Can the affection that a Spirit feels for someone have anything of carnal?  

3. Do the good Spirits worry about the misfortunes that strike us in the corporal existence? 

4. What is the attitude of the Spiritual Benefactors before a misfortune has stricken us? 

5. Of all the misfortunes that can strike us, what are the ones which the good Spirits worry more about?

Text

Good Spirits sympathise with good people 

1. Spirits devote affection for the incarnated according to the affinities that exist between them. Thereby, good Spirits sympathise with good people or people who are susceptible to become better. Less advanced Spirits tune with vicious creatures or with those who can become such thing. Hence derive the affections, which are nothing more than consequences of the conformity of sentiments.    

2. The human being has, in the Spiritual World, friends who can perfectly intercede for his happiness in order to ensure the stability he needs to fight and serve, love and win, despite of the harassment from the disincarnated who were friends of his in past dramas.     

3. They are – these friends from the Higher Plan – the ones who awaken the hope and restore the good mood in the individuals who see themselves engaged with the investments which originate from the spiritual plan.     

4. Superior Spirits nurture elevated sentiments for the incarnated and for the disincarnated. These affective bonds are nothing that may resemble the carnal affections. That, however, does not always happen with less advanced Spirits.

5. Although the real affection has nothing of carnal, it can occur that a Spirit, when becomes attached to a person, not always do it only for affection. The esteem that this person inspires him can aggregate also a reminiscence of human passions. 

Spiritual Benefactors cheer up with our happiness 

6. Good Spirits worry with our misfortunes, in the same way that they share our joys. Trying to do us all the good that is possible, it is natural that they feel blissful with our happiness and moments of joy.   

7. Regarding to the misfortunes that may strike us, it is necessary to remember that they are divided in physical and moral.  

8. Knowing that our corporeal existence is transitory and that the tribulations inherent constitute means of reaching a better situation, the good Spirits afflict more with the misfortunes which have been originated in causes of moral order than with our physical sufferings, all temporary.    

9. Thereby, they don’t bother much with the misfortunes that strike our ideas and mundane preoccupations, acting in the same way as we do regarding to the puerile sufferings of children.    

10. Understanding bitterness in life as a mean of advancement, they consider them as an occasional crisis that will result in the salvation of the ill. They feel sorry for our sufferings, as we do with the sufferings of a friend. However, seeing things from a fairest point of view, they appreciate us in a different way of ours.  

Good Spirits worry about our selfishness and about the coldness of our hearts

11. In such cases, good Spirits seek to cheer us up with interest in our future, while less advanced Spirits, with the goal of compromising us, impel us to the despair.   

12. At sight of the Spiritist teachings, we can deduce, therefore, the following conclusions regarding the studied subject: 

·       Good Spirits afflict when we, in front of any misfortune, don’t know how to endure it with resignation; inferiors, however, rejoice with our negative posture.    

·       The moral evils that most concern the Spiritual Benefactors are our selfishness and the coldness of our heart, which teaches the Spiritism, succeed all the rest. Our disincarnated adversaries and less advanced Spirits, however, love such behaviour. 

·       Good Spirits laugh at all of our imaginary misfortunes which are born of our pride and of our ambition. Less advanced Spirits, however, take advantage of them, if it is possible, to sink us even more in the pit of our bitterness.  

·       Spiritual benefactors rejoice with the misfortunes and sufferings which result in the abbreviation of the time of our tests. The unfortunates do not like this and seek, when the occasion appears, to obtain exactly the opposite result.  

Answer Key

1. Do the Spirits usually nurture affection for the incarnated?

A.: Yes. Spirits devote affection for the incarnated according to the affinities that exist between them. Good Spirits sympathise with good people or people who are susceptible to become better. Less advanced Spirits tune with vicious creatures or with those who can become such thing. Hence derive the affections, which are nothing more than consequences of the conformity of sentiments.    

2. Can the affection that a Spirit feels for someone have anything of carnal?

A.: It depends. Although the real affection has nothing of carnal, it can occur that a Spirit, when becomes attached to a person, not always do it only for affection. The esteem that this person inspires him can aggregate also a reminiscence of human passions.

3. Do the good Spirits worry about the misfortunes that strike us in the corporal existence?

A.: Yes. Good Spirits worry with our misfortunes, in the same way that they share our joys. 

4. What is the attitude of the Spiritual Benefactors before a misfortune has stricken us?

A.: Understanding bitterness in life as a mean of advancement, they consider them as an occasional crisis that will result in the salvation of the ill. They feel sorry for our sufferings, as we do with the sufferings of a friend but appreciate us in a different way of ours. In such cases, good Spirits seek to cheer us up with interest in our future, while less advanced Spirits, with the goal of compromising us, impel us to the despair. 

5. Of all the misfortunes that can strike us, what are the ones which the good Spirits worry more about?

A.: They afflict more with the misfortunes which have been originated in causes of moral order than with our physical sufferings, that are, as we know, temporary.  

Bibliography:

The Spirit’s Book; by Allan Kardec, questions 484 to 487.

The Thought of Emmanuel; by Martins Peralva, Page 150.