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Interview Portuguese Spanish    
Year 3 - N° 131 – November 1, 2009
KATIA FABIANA FERNANDES
kffernandes@hotmail.com
Londres, Inglaterra (Reino Unido)
 

 

Translation
Carolina von Scharten - carolinavonscharten@yahoo.com
 

Jussara Korngold: 

“The spiritist’s mission should be to instruct; never to impose” 

 

Jussara Pretti Korngold (picture) has been living in New York since 1996. She was born in the Capital of São Paulo, Brazil, but has been living outside the country for many years. She lived in London first, but moved definitely to the United States later. She is now the Vice-President of the United States Spiritist Council. Jussara is involved in a series of activities within the spiritist movement such as translations, lectures and assistance work. 

She graduated in Economy and has a Master Degree in Accounting. She moved to New York due to her husband’s work.

She has worked for the following companies such as The Chase Manhattan Bank, American Express and Citibank. She is now working as a volunteer for Friends of Renascer - FoR, a non-profit organization that helps promoting and fundraising for Renascer in Brazil.

O Consolador: What roles have you taken within the Spiritist Movement?  

I have been involved in many roles, thanks to God. I am now the founder and President of the Spiritist Group of New York and the Spiritist Alliance for Books. I am also Vice-President of the United States Spiritist Council. 

O Consolador: How was your first contact with Spiritism?

I was born at a spiritist family. I actually belong to a third generation of spiritists. Therefore, I only started to go to meetings and read the books codified by Allan Kardec when I was 11 years old. This happened when my mother took me to the spiritist centre for the first time. 

O Consolador: Was there a specific fact that happened at the time?

I believe my mother was in need and I went there to make her company. I soon fell in love with the Doctrine. It was then I started to ask her to take me there, as I was too young to go on my own. 

O Consolador: What was your family’s reaction? 

They were indifferent to our choice. Out of 5 members, only my mother and I decided to follow Spiritism, unfortunately. 

O Consolador: Which of the three aspects of Spiritism (Science, Philosophy or Religion) attract you the most?   

I believe the three aspects of Spiritism are very complementary, but I am inclined to the Philosophical aspect of it. This is represented at the The Spirits' Book. 

O Consolador: Which spiritist authors you like the most?

Kardec and the classics of Spiritism, such as Léon Denis and Gabriel Delanne, is the base. Besides that, I enjoy all books from Francisco Cândido Xavier, Divaldo Franco and Raul Teixeira. I always recommend these authors for those who ask us to recommend books.  

O Consolador: Which spiritist books would be considered to be essential for any starters in Spiritism? 

It is imperative to read The Spirits' Book in order to get to know Spiritism. I would also recommend the practice of the Gospel at Home with The Gospel According to Spiritism. In addition the book Life Goes On, which was written by André Luiz and psychographed by Francisco Cândido Xavier, gives us a good introduction to the spiritual life, in my opinion.  

O Consolador: The doctrinal differences in our movement are not many. One of them talks about the secular Spiritism. Is Spiritism a religion for you?  

I agree with the following statement, which some attribute to Kardec and other to Emmanuel: Spiritism is not the religion of the future, but the future of religions. I agree with this statement completely. The spiritist concepts are here to be introduced in other religions, but not necessarily replace them.   

Kardec presented us with the triple aspect of Spiritism. He called it Spiritism or Spiritist Doctrine; not Spiritist religion. He highlights at Revue Spirite that Spiritism has a religious aspect, since it follows Jesus teachings and reconnects us with God. Therefore, there are no religious hierarquies; religious roles. I would like to state Spiritism can not exist without the religious aspect of it, as it can not exist without its philosophical and scientific aspects.  

O Consolador: Have you ever felt privileged in your life for having the knowledge of the Doctrine?

I feel privileged everyday. At difficult times we feel how good it is to be a spiritist, since the understanding of life helps us to overcome periods of difficulty. 

O Consolador: How do you see the discussion about abortion?  How is this dealt in the United States?

I believe abortion is a crime. There are cases where it could be justified, as seen at The Spirits' Book. The spirits stated, in cases in which the life of the mother would be endangered by the birth of the child: ‘It is better to sacrifice the being whose existence is not yet complete than the being whose existence is complete.’ 

At the United States, the individuals’ free will is respected at all costs. They tend to see abortion as a natural consequence of human will. The spiritist’s mission should be to instruct; never to impose. 

O Consolador: Do you have contact with the Brazilian Spiritist Movement? 

We don’t have a lot of contact. We are usually in touch with the Brazilian Spiritist Federation (FEB). I believe Brazil and the Brazilians are doing a massive work of broadcasting Spiritism globally. This is why we are here, in the United States. 

O Consolador: When and how has the spiritist movement in the United States started? 

We are working as a team in order to collect the records of the start of the spiritist movement in the United States.  When Francisco Cândido Xavier and Waldo Viera visited the USA in 1965, they found many spiritist centres in the country. They contributed for these centres to grow even more. Therefore, in the beginning the centres would mostly look after Latin American communities. It was from 2000/2001 that spiritist groups were formed focused on the disclosure of Spiritism in the English language. These groups were the Spiritist Group of New York and the Spiritist Society of Baltimore. It is right to saw that the Spiritist Movement, in English, started in the United States in the 21st Century. 

O Consolador: Are there many spiritist groups in the United States? 

The United States Spiritist Council (http://www.spiritist.us) states there are 84 spiritist centres in the United States. The diffusion of the Doctrine is done through seminars, Congresses, visits at the centres, etc. Let’s not forget most of the spiritist centres were formed due to the restless work of Spiritist Lecturers who travel the world to spread the spiritist knowledge, such as Divaldo Pereira Franco and Raul Teixeira. 

O Consolador: How accepted are the spiritist teachings in your country?   

It is hard for us to talk about acceptance of something that is unknown. We are in the process of implementing and consolidating the American Spiritist Movement. There is a lot of work to be done. According to the The Genesis, from Allan Kardec, the time has come. We need to move forward doing our part so that we, in our future incarnations, can reap it. 

O Consolador: Would you say the scientific research is helping medicine and religion to reconnect in the USA?

As Allan Kardec said, science needs to walk side by side with religion. Without a doubt, some of the great discoveries and researchers done by great names such as Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking help this process. It is important to highlight these scientists throughout their research stressed God’s presence and their submission to our Creator. 

O Consolador: The USA is facing a difficult economic situation, but now have a well respected President worldwide. How do the American people see that?

They see this as a transactional period. We now have a President that seems more like a missionary. Let’s pray to God so he can fulfil his task at this transitional moment. 

O Consolador: What action do you believe should be taken, due to the high level of criminality and violence globally?    

We should follow Kardec’s orientation: “It is through Education, not just instruction that Humanity will change”. I believe this is the recipe for the success: teach children and youth the spiritist principles; perhaps even the adults. Pythagoras said: "Educate the children and will not be necessary to punish the men.” 

O Consolador: What do you think should be the priority for spiritists’ leaders in regards to the problems society is currently facing in Brazil and worldwide?

We need to love. Unconditional love is the only way we will be able to continue with our task of bringing light and comfort to our brothers worldwide. Love makes us believe these spirits will change, just as we are changing. Let’s love, following the words and examples of our Master Jesus.

 

 


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O Consolador
 
Weekly Magazine of Spiritism