Control of mediumship and education of the medium   

We present in this issue the topic #117 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. Which factors can influence the practice of mediumship?

2. There is a fact that happens almost every time to every medium while he/she is starting to control mediumship and educate themselves. Which fact is that?

3. What does the instructor Alexandre advise the mediums who want to develop their mediumship and communicate with spirits?

4. Is it correct to say that mediumship itself is neutral?

5. What is, according to Emmanuel, the first necessity of the medium?

Text

The control of mediumship is a result of a slow and meticulous start

1. The practice of mediumship is subordinated to the laws that apply to relationships and behaviours between people from this world and from the spiritual world. It involves a number of factors related to the personality of the medium, the spirits communicating and the rest of people working in the medium’s meetings. That is why everything to do with the physical world, the spiritual world and each participant’s inner world, influences the practice of mediumship.

2. It’s necessary not only to understand mediumship, but also educate the beginner in mediumship. The medium, who is invited to the practice of mediumship, is also invited to sensibility and discipline to improve his/hers “talent”. To improve his/hers “talent”, the medium needs to study the principles of Spiritism.

3. Mediums to produce phenomena come from everywhere and from every social class. Real mediums, however, are only the ones who improve themselves and their mediumship to serve others, and use their “talent” for the goodness of humanity.

4. Nothing important, as we know, is built without hard work. A slow and meticulous start is essential for the ones who seek spiritual progress. A fact that everyone should notice is that, at the beginning of mediumship, mediums will have difficulties in their way. This is not difficult to notice because there is a crowd of bad spirits around us, eager to communicate with men, which results in trivial communications, sometimes inconvenient, that can frustrate the medium.

Mediumship is not a body function, it is a spiritual one

5. Disappointments and frustration would be avoided if we understood that mediumship is a process that goes through different phases. In the beginning of its development, the medium is surrounded by inferior spirits who still have fluids impregnated with terrestrial matter which synchronise better with the fluids of the beginner in mediumship.

6. Only later on, after mediumship is being worked on and improved, it’s when the good spirits can use it for a more noble and better result. Obviously, it is not to be assumed that every medium at the beginning of his/hers activities will definitely receive communications only from bad spirits. This constitutes the majority of the cases, but there are always exceptions.

7. This facts suggest that the mediums should make the effort to improve themselves as people and try to live their lives according to what they learn from Spiritism. This is what the instructor Alexandre tells us in the book “Workers of the Life Eternal” by Andre Luiz in chapter 9, page 103: “ Mediumship is not something from the physical body, it is something from the spirit. If you wish to develop your mediumship, you need to leave the inferior desires behind. If you intend to have contact with the wise spirits, gain knowledge, value the experiences of life, enlighten your brain! If you wait for the company of the saints, sanctify yourselves everyday of your life with your actions, because the superior spirits and saints don’t live their spiritual life isolating themselves in happiness. They also work themselves to make the physical world better, waiting for our spiritual improvement. If you expect the presence of the good spirits in your way, be good yourselves first.”  

8. Our spiritual guides tell us that perseverance in the responsibilities taken and  meditation, together with the abandonment of personal and social superficial matters, produces a liberation of the psyche. The medium’s psyche adapts itself to the good spirits psyche, which establishes a safe exchange of communications.

Mediumship is something heavenly and should be dealt with in a heavenly manner

9. As mediumship itself is neutral and reflects the moral level of who practices it, it’s fair to expect that the mediumship practiced by spiritists should reflect the philosophy of Spiritism. And because Spiritism reflects teachings from Christianism, the practice of mediumship should be totally based in living the Christian teachings. The candidates to mediumship in Spiritism should have the study of The Gospel according to Spiritism as their priority.

10. Emmanuel tells us in the item 387 of his book “O Consolador”: The first necessity that the medium has is improving himself/herself before starting to practice mediumship through the solid knowledge of Spiritsm. Because if the medium doesn’t do that, he/she is bound to interpret things only through his/hers personal point of view. Mediumship enlightened by Spiritism makes the medium become docile and submissive to the superior spirits.   

11. Whoever wishes for serious communications with the spiritual world needs, first of all, ask for them seriously and do whatever is necessary to gain the good spirits trust. It means cultivate behaviours and attitudes such as humility, dedication and absolute no interest in moral or material superficial things.

12. The medium will need to improve herself/himself as a person in order to be an instrument of general improvement around himself/herself. Mediumship, as Allan Kardec says, is a heavenly thing and should be practiced heavenly. This means working mediumship in a punctual and faithful way to Jesus and Allan Kardec.

Answer Key