We shall begin by presenting some notes about Spiritism history. We will start by making a brief reflection on how and when Mankind's religious inclinations started and we shall go right up to Allan Kardec's Coding of the Doctrine of the Spirits, in the nineteenth century.

8,000 B.C. - Historians assume, but are unable to confirm it, that the belief in a heavenly power began around 8,000 B.C. Every phenomenon of nature created a god - usually domineering (absolute power...) demanding (holocausts...), and vindictive (even causing deaths...). The same happened regarding every human activity. Then, man even began to deify the animals, however always using a symbolic language.

For centuries and centuries, Humankind lived under the original polytheism, commanded by those "gods," which were responsible for everything happening in the world at that time:

Nature gods, one for each of the geological phenomena, such as lightning, thunder, rain, wind, volcano, flood, earthquake, and so on.

There were also gods representing man's daily tasks, hunting, fishing, planting, harvesting, war, healing diseases, birth, and death among many others.

There were still more gods, for each animal, for instance, the ibis, crocodile, cats, cattle...

As time went by, man began to make a link between the date and time of birth and the position of the stars precisely at that moment, the horoscope, by dividing the apparent trajectory of the Sun into twelve parts, each measuring 30º. The use of the horoscope, and the interest in the future was (and still is today) strictly individual. 

The Prophets - Then came the Prophets... they surpassed the beliefs at that time by offering a direct communication with God. The purpose of the prophecies aimed at the collective good.

Then the missionary Spirits landed on this planet with the mission of founding religions, which were to refer (as they did) to the evolutionary stage of each period. All those Spirits, without exception, brought illumination for the future of the people of that time.

Now focusing our attention on the history of religions, we will always find a social hierarchy, inducing the followers (now called believers), the people, to the practice of discipline and submission to the ruling classes. Thus, already began in ancient Egypt, Babylon (country of ancient Asia), Assyria, and Rome. Therefore, mistakenly linking Heaven to Earth, many believers thought that they could achieve individual benefits in exchange for sacrifices, offerings or other promises. 

Jesus - The Christ, anointed by God, undeniably the greatest of all missionaries, granted the treasure of Faith to Humanity. He was the one who ever gave the most love. He spoke to the world of the Kingdom of God, considered intangible and untouchable by the people of that time. He took million of Spirits to a level where they could feel Hope. His eternal teachings had, still have, and will always have the unique effect of illuminating the inside and outside darkness of the mind. It is necessary to have "eyes to see" and "ears to hear." He created no religion. He set no dogmas. Christian morality, from the first to the last resort, is based on the law of love - love for God and neighbor. Therefore, we believe that Jesus is the greatest of all the countless blessings that God has always granted to Humanity.

We will now go through the past civilization, focusing on the rising of the religions. Our objective is to get to Spiritism, characterizing it and showing the multitude of differences when compared with the Candomble and Ubanda. The three of them deserve our respect. However, they are different from each other!  

Religions - Let us see what History recorded and the world shows us presently, regarding the relationship Creator-creature, Son-Father, God-man:

Judaism: It was founded in the Middle East, around the 17th century B.C. by the Patriarch Abraham. Moses was the legislator of the laws of Israel. For the Jews the Bible is formed solely by the Hebrew books and it essentially corresponds to the Christians' Old Testament. Judaism was further strengthened with the creation of Israel in 1948. It has strong ethnic characteristics, in which nation and religion are mixed. Judaism is recognized as the first monotheistic religion of Humanity and chronologically it is the first of the three religions derived from Abraham, together with Christianity and Islamism. Followers: about 14.8 million. 

Hinduism (Brahmanism): India's main religion. It is known for its caste system. It followed Vedism (primitive religion known by four collections of hymns - the Vedas - between 1,400 B.C. and the seventh century B.C.). It recognizes the authority of the Vedas. The human being is subject to sansara (succession of lives and rebirths), governed by the law of karma (action and reaction to any good or bad action). Subsequently, it incorporated the ideal of renunciation of Buddhism. Followers: 949 million.

Confucianism: Dates from the 5th century B.C. It was an attempt to establish rules of behavior in a hectic time of the Chinese world, where several principalities mutually destroyed themselves. Respect for elders, love for work well done, and strict morale - these are the features of Confucianism. Followers: about 8.1 million.

Buddhism: Religion born in Asia, founded by the Hindu prince Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha (560 to 480 BC). Teachings: everything is transitory, the reality is mutable, and there is nothing in us of metaphysical reality. The being is subject to a cycle of birth and death, while the result of karma (action) is not interrupted. The existence is subject to misfortune, manifests by pain, disease, and death. Has the ideal of renunciation. The majority of its followers are concentrated in Asia (about 494.9 million).

Shintoism: Religion of Japan, in which the gods are the personification of the natural forces and the spirits of the ancestors are regarded as gods too. From the 6th century onwards, the Buddhist attached the Shinto deities to their pantheon and gradually formed a syncretism. In the 17th century, new Shintoism sects refused any compromise with foreign religions. In the 19th century, it turned into a kind of religion of the State (worship of the emperor-god). Followers: 2.7 million.

Christianity: Group of organized religions based on the person of Jesus Christ, and on the writings recording his words and thoughts. Christianity was born in Judea and was initially widespread in the East, and after the death of Jesus, the Apostles preached Christianity in the Mediterranean. Christianity, in its origin a sect derived from Judaism, is considered the revealed religion, i.e. of divine origin, but with the difference that Jesus, its founder, was not a mere intermediary between God and Humanity, but God himself.

There are 2.3 billion Christians on the planet. Thus, Christianity is the religion that has the largest number of followers in the world. Throughout history, Christianity was divided into three main segments: Catholic, Protestant and the Orthodox Church, as well as others such as the Anglican Church and the creeds called "Christianity border" (groups that are at the intersection between Christianity and another doctrine, such as the Adventist Church, Mormons, and Jehovah's Witnesses).

Islamism: is the Muslims' religion and civilization, founded by Muhammad, having emerged in the 7th century, in the Arabian peninsula, and it is the last of the monotheistic religions. Muhammad received from God the Qur'anic revelation [The Koran or Quran and Hadith (the Prophet's tradition) form the tradition, the true constitution that serves as an imperative model for the Muslims]. There is no Muslim clergy. The main dogma of Islam is the existence of God (Allah), the one Supreme Being, infinitely perfect, creator of the universe and sovereign judge of men. For the Muslims, Muhammad is the envoy of Allah. Followers: 1.5 billion.

Chinese folk religions: It is a group of beliefs and practices, which include local deities, and Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist elements. Followers: 434,600.000.

Animism and Shamanism: They believe that everything that exists - living beings, inanimate objects, places, and even natural phenomena - has a soul. Followers: 242,500.000.

Sikhism: monotheistic religion created in the 15th century in India. It appears due to a dissidence of Hinduism. Followers: 24 million. 

We also have those who follow no religion at all and they come to almost 813 million people. As for atheism - the doctrine that denies the existence of any deity and dismisses the idea of a divine justification for life - its followers add 136.6 million. One of the arguments used by atheists to support their position is the supposed incompatibility of the coexistence of God and human suffering. ⁽¹⁾ 

Earth Organization - As we pointed out earlier, from time to time missionary Spirits arrive at this planet, with the specific task of building the master columns of the religion that takes man to God. All, without exception, state that human behavior - good or bad - will constantly be the cause of the approach or withdrawal of happiness. Consistently, these Peace workers, representing Jesus - both those who came before and after Him - waved the banner of love to God and neighbor as the main access route to the Celestial Kingdom.

Jesus, speaking to people who followed a dogmatic religion, at the time the Roman Empire was still the "master of the world," He could not say things that would make no sense to people. Examples? Let us see some. Let us begin by remembering the record about the Master of masters made ​​by the Spirit Emmanuel in "The Path of Light", Chapter I, p.17/18, 13th Edition, 1985, FEB, RJ/RJ : Jesus helped to organize Earth, since when the planet did not exist. Indeed, the Earth, some 4.5 billion years ago, was born from a solar cloud. In the beginning, it did not have a regular form. As it attracted a greater quantity of matter, it began to take the spherical shape.

Thus, we ask:

- When Jesus, was here, incarnate, was He unaware of the existence of the American continent, which was discovered 15 centuries later, becoming the home to millions of Spirits? ⁽²⁾

- Press, electricity, aviation, electronics, atomic energy, computers, bioengineering, and many other scientific advances: were they or were they not known by Jesus?

No way! All these issues were necessarily known by Christ. But, how could He announce them at that time and to those people? How? What about Spiritism?

With Jesus' ability to foresee what would come ahead (the future), Jesus did mention Spiritism, which he pedagogically called the future "Consoler," according to John's records (14:15, 16, 17 and 26). 

Allan Kardec appears at the right time and the right place (19th century and France). Allan Kardec was the pseudonym adopted by Hippolyte Leon Denizard Rivail. He was an eminent pedagogue, who did not wish to use his well-known, and respected name to support the content of the work published at the time and which was a result of a meticulous coding of information received from the Spirits: "The Book of Spirits," the cornerstone of the Doctrine of the Spirits, followed by other works.

Spiritism shows God's Love with the irrefutable logic of reincarnation and the Divine Law of Action and Reaction: sufferings today are the bitter fruit of misguided planting yesterday. Here the sufferer understands the reason for his suffering. Moreover, knowing that he is in a temporary rescue, he comforts himself and aims at his moral reconstruction. This is the comforting aspect of the Doctrine of the Spirits!

With the arrival of Kardec, Christ's prediction was fulfilled! "The Consoler" arrived on this Earth. Indeed, "The Gospel According to Spiritism," in chapter six - Christ the Comforter - item 3, we find: "Spiritism arrived in time, to carry the promise of Christ, and the Spirit of Truth presides over its foundation."

 In "What is Spiritism" (the "Preamble") Allan Kardec defined Spiritism and commented:

- Spiritism is a science that deals with the nature, origin, and destiny of Spirits, as well as their relationship with the corporeal world;

- (...) Spiritism is at the same time, a science of observation and philosophical doctrine. As a practical science, it has its essence in relationships that can be established with the Spirits; like a philosophy, it comprises all the moral consequences of these relations;

In the Spiritist Magazine of December, 1968, in a long opening speech, "Is Spiritism a religion?" Allan Kardec explained what he thought about the matter. We chose some notes on pages 358 and 359:

- Spiritism cannot be considered a "religion," since there is no worship, no sacerdotal caste, ceremonies, and privileges, yet it has a distinct religious meaning when it defines a moral bond between men, when it unites them, resulting from community views and feelings, fraternity and solidarity, mutual forbearance and benevolence.

On "Posthumous Works" (in "Light Response to Detractors of Spiritism"), he remarked:

- Spiritism is a philosophical doctrine of religious effects (...) it goes to the bases of all religions: God, soul, and afterlife. But it is not an incorporated religion, since it lacks a cult or ritual. It has no temples and among its supporters, no one was given the title of priest or high priest.

Only by these assumptions, we can already see that Spiritism cannot be mistaken with other religions. Although all religions (Judaism, Catholicism, Confucianism, Protestantism, Theosophy, Esoteric Buddhism, Brahmanism, etc.) are spiritualists, i.e. they accept immortality of the Spirit and God's existence. It also cannot be mistaken with those that: a) accept reincarnation; b) in their practices, marked by syncretism, they exercise mediumship.

As soon as Brazil was discovered, its colonization began. In this case, "to colonize" meant the arrival of the Portuguese representatives. And since the one who gives the orders needs those to obey, Portugal did not think twice: for three centuries, it provided the criminal importation of "obedient" creatures violently brought from Africa. It is in "Historical Statistics of Brazil"/IBGE: 4,009,400 slaves were brought to Brazil between 1531 and 1855. Terrifying!(To be continued in the next issue.)

Notes:

(1) The numbers of followers of different religions, with data from 2010, were taken from the 2013 APRIL ALMANAC, p.130, Year 39, Editora Abril, SP/SP, at page 132 is the number of Spiritists in Brazil: 3,848,876, according to the 2010/IBGE Census.

(2) In both American continents, today, there are about 948.3 million of embodied spirits (page 344 of the APRIL ALMANAC, cited above).