Kardec's work in the development of the The Gospel According
to Spiritism and the change in mankind's religious thought

Part 2 (Final)

Christianity is universal, influencing all ages, men and circumstances; it is the truth, which transcends human cultures. All people recognize it. Local Masters, such as Buddha, Confucius, Mohammed and others were emissaries of the great truth, consolidated by the teachings of Jesus. Moreover, Spiritism, considered the Promised Comforter, comes to revive those teachings and clarify many of them hitherto misunderstood. Therefore, Christianity and Spiritism combine, harmonize, and complement each other. 

With The Gospel According to Spiritism the religious thought enters a new stage, the era of Spiritism announced by the Spirits' clarinets throughout the Earth. Man, is being prepared generation after generation, to act with love, overcoming all past atavism, in the accomplishment of his moral transformation. With Spiritism everything becomes easier, and with this extraordinary doctrine, we have no excuse to postpone our mission, since we definitely recognize that "everyone is given according to his works". Therefore, after the death of the body, we will be held responsible for the direction of human society, because we are part of it and it is our duty to live in the most moral and spiritual manner as possible. 

Deep meaning  

It took one thousand and eight hundred and sixty-four years for man to understand the lessons of Jesus in Spirit and Truth. This time was necessary for the spiritual growth of humanity, thus becoming able to study the Good News through the perspective of the immortality of the soul, the afterlife and reincarnation as, at first, was understood by the first Christians. In the mid of the nineteenth century, in a France of revolutions and counterrevolutions, a divine emissary reincarnated, Allan Kardec, who through intense dialogues of reverence and beauty with the Superior Spirits, brought to light an unparalleled, and defying book challenging the religious and social structures at the time: The Gospel According to Spiritism. 

Kardec explains that the work brings the "explanation of the moral precepts of Christ, his agreement with Spiritism and their application to the various situations of life." Therefore, The Gospel According to Spiritism is not a book of theology, it is not lost in the tangle of interpretations to the taste of theologians and philosophers, housed in endless academic discourses on historical questions and other issues that divert the Gospel of its purpose discussions i. e. , the moralization and spiritualization of man.

Based on the principles of Spiritism, Kardec was concerned to study the moral teachings of Jesus, showing their practical application in daily human life, when the spiritual revelation clarifies many points that can only be understood with the vision of the immortal soul, the continuity of life after death and the big key that is reincarnation. Moreover, it strongly says: "Unshakable faith is only that which can meet reason face to face, in all ages of mankind." 

The story of the spiritual gospel  

The book was published initially with the title Imitation of the Gospel. Kardec explains: "Later, under the repeated observations of Mr. Didier and others, I changed it to 'The Gospel According to Spiritism', representing a manual of moral application of Spiritism."

On August 9, 1863, Kardec received a communication from his guiding spirits, on the preparation of the book. They pointed out the following: "This doctrinaire book will have considerable influence, since it explains issues of major interest. Not only will the religious world find in this book the precepts it needs, as nations will benefit from it by applying excellent instructions to their daily lives. You did well by addressing questions of high moral practice, from the standpoint of social, religious and general interests."

Says José Herculano Pires in an explanatory note to his translation of The Gospel According to Spiritism, this work is a "bedside book, to be read every day, also to be used as a preparatory reading at doctrinal meetings, and it must be seen as a textbook for better understanding of the Doctrine."

Kardec exclusively stuck to the moral teachings of Jesus, and in the introduction explains the reason of his choice:

"In the presence of this divine code, even unbelievers end up by bowing to it. It is the ground on which all services can be found, the banner under which everyone can take shelter, however different their beliefs may be. It has never been the object of religious disputes, which are caused by dogma always and everywhere. If the sects discussed it, they would have found their own condemnation, because most of them cling more to the mystique part than to the moral part, which requires the conversion of each one. For men, in particular, it is a rule of conduct that covers all circumstances of private and public life, the principle of all social relations based on the most rigorous justice. Finally and above all, it is an unfailing way to happiness, a veil lifted on the future life. This is the main and sole object of this work." 

The first edition, Imitation of the Gospel, was released on April 15, 1864, and divulged in the Spiritist Magazine's issue of the same month. In the Spiritist Magazine of November 1865, Kardec informs his readers that the third edition of The Gospel According to Spiritism was "in press to appear in a few days". His words were, "This issue was subject to a complete rearrangement of the work. Apart from a few additions, the main changes consist in a more methodical, lighter and more comfortable arrangement of the subjects thus making its reading and searching easier." This third edition is considered final, serving as the basis for translations from French into Portuguese. 

In Kardec's introduction, we can sense his concern and work to elaborate the book, to which he gave a great importance:

"We have collected in this work the passages which can be considered a universal moral code, without distinction of worship. Regarding the quotations, we maintained everything that could be useful to the development of thought, suppressing only the things that did not pertain to the matter. Moreover, we strictly respected Sacy's original translation and the division by verses. However, instead of maintaining an impossible chronological order and with no real advantage, the precepts were classified and methodically distributed according to their nature, in such a manner that they derive from each other as much as possible. The indication of the serial numbers of the chapters and verses allows us to call on the common classification, if appropriate." 

A hymn of love  

A little over two thousand years ago, a light, as no one had ever seen before, covered the planet and began humanity's moral transformation.  This light represents the greatest love, emanating from God, and it was brought by the Master of us all, Jesus. He gave the light of love to every heart through lessons and examples that defy time and warm the thirsty souls of eternal truth. And, after many struggles within the history of humans, a new light, also emanating from God, was present in the world to remember the Christ's lessons: Allan Kardec.

This new Light encoded the Spiritism, an eminently Christian doctrine, and the principles governing it. He left us this wonderful book The Gospel According to Spiritism, lovingly teaching us the sublime timeless lessons of Jesus. Thus, Kardec's words in the Introduction of this book deeply touch our soul: 

"This work is for the use of all; each one can learn from it the means to conform his conduct to the morality of Christ. The Spiritists will find in it the applications that concern them more specifically. Thanks to the established communications, from now on, permanently, among men and the invisible world, the evangelical law, taught to all nations by the Spirits themselves, will no longer be a dead letter, because everyone will understand, and be asked to put it into practice continuously, by the advice of their spiritual guides. The instructions of the Spirits are truly the voices that come from Heaven to enlighten men and invite them to the practice of the Gospel."

Let us experience love through kindness and charity, in The Gospel According to Spiritism, not only our bedside book, but our infallible roadmap to earlier reach perfection.
 

Marcus De Mario is an Educator, Writer, and Speaker. He is a collaborator of Rio de Janeiro's Radio. Director of the Brazilian Institute of Moral Education. Collaborator of the Associação Espírita Lar de Lola and of the Centro Espírita Humildade e Amor, in the city of Rio de Janeiro, RJ.