Season's Greetings.

— Several hundred letters were addressed to us on the occasion of the New Year, so that it is materially impossible for us to answer each one individually. We beg, therefore, our honored correspondents to accept here the expression of our sincere gratitude for the testimonies of sympathy with which they have lavished upon us. Among them, however, there is one which, by its nature, requires a special reply: it is that of the Spiritists of Lyon, subscribed by about two hundred signatures. We take the opportunity to add, at their request, a few general counsels. The Spiritist Society of Paris, to which we have already given knowledge of it, judging that it could be useful to all, not only requested us to publish it in the Review, but decided on its separate printing, in order that it be distributed to all its members. All those who had the kindness to write to us will surely share in the sentiments of reciprocity that we express therein and which are addressed, without exception, to all Spiritists, French and foreign, who honor us with the title of their leader and their guide on the new road that opens before them. It is not, then, only to those who wrote to us on the occasion of the New Year that we are addressing ourselves, but to all those who, at every instant, give us such moving proofs of their gratitude for the happiness and the consolations they draw from the doctrine, aware as they are of our difficulties and of the efforts employed with a view to favoring its propagation; to all, in short, who believe that our labors serve for something in the progressive march of Spiritism.

REPLY ADDRESSED TO THE LYONESE SPIRITISTS ON THE OCCASION OF THE NEW YEAR.

My dear brothers and friends of Lyon, The collective message that you saw fit to send me on the passing of the New Year caused me lively satisfaction, proving that you have kept a good remembrance of me. But what most gladdened me in that spontaneous act was to have found, among the numerous signatures that figure there, representatives of nearly all the groups, because it is a sign of the harmony that ought to reign among them. I feel happy that you have perfectly understood the object of that organization [see Organization of Spiritism], whose results you can already appreciate, for it must now be evident to you that a single society would have been almost impossible.

I thank you, my good friends, for the wishes you formulate; they are all the more agreeable to me as I know that they come from the heart, and these are the ones that God hears. Be satisfied, for he welcomes them daily, granting me the joy, unheard of in the establishment of a new doctrine, of seeing the one to which I devoted myself grow and prosper, in my days, with extraordinary rapidity. I consider it a great favor from heaven to be able to witness the good it has already done. This certainty, of which I daily receive the most touching testimonies, repays me with interest for all my pains and fatigues. I ask of God but one grace: that of giving me sufficient physical strength to go to the end of my task, which is far from being finished. But, come what may, I shall always have the consolation of the certainty that the seed of the new ideas, now scattered everywhere, is imperishable. Happier than many others, who labored only for the future, to me it is already given to see the first fruits. I only regret that the smallness of my personal resources has not permitted me to put into execution the plans that I traced, in order that the advance might occur in an even more rapid manner. Nevertheless, if in his wisdom God willed it otherwise, I shall bequeath these plans to my successors who, without doubt, will be happier. Despite the dearth of material resources, the movement that is taking place in public opinion has surpassed all expectation. Believe, my brothers, that in this your example had an influence. Receive, then, our compliments on the manner in which you know how to understand and practice the doctrine. I know how great are the trials that many of you have to endure; God alone knows their term in this world. But, also, how much strength against adversity does faith in the future give us! Oh! pity those who believe in nothingness after death, for, for them, the present evil has no compensation. The unhappy unbeliever is like the sick man who hopes for no cure; the Spiritist, on the contrary, is one who, sick today, knows that tomorrow he will be well.

— You ask that I continue with my counsels. I give them most gladly to those who believe they need them and call for them. But only to those. To those who think they know much and feel dispensed from the lessons of experience, I will say nothing; I only wish that one day they may not lament having overestimated their own strength. Such pretension, moreover, betrays a sentiment of pride, contrary to the true spirit of Spiritism. Now, sinning at the foundation, by this alone they prove that they stray from the truth. You are not of that number, my friends; I take the occasion, then, to address a few words to you, in order to prove that, from afar as from near, I am wholly yours.

At the point where things stand today, and taking into account the march of Spiritism through the obstacles strewn in its path, one may say that the principal difficulties are overcome. It has taken its place and settled upon foundations that henceforth defy the efforts of its adversaries. One asks how a doctrine that makes us happier and better can have adversaries. This is quite natural. In its beginnings, the establishment of the best things always wounds interests. Has it not been so with all the inventions and discoveries that revolutionized industry? Did not those which today are regarded as benefits and of which we could not deprive ourselves have obstinate enemies? Does not every law that represses abuses have against it those who live off the abuse? How would you have a doctrine, which leads to the reign of effective charity, not be combated by those who live off egoism? And you know how numerous these are upon the Earth. In the beginning they hoped to kill it by mockery; today they see that such a weapon is impotent and, under the close fire of sarcasm, it has continued on its course without stopping. Do not think that they will confess themselves vanquished. No; material interest is more tenacious. Recognizing that it is a power, with which one must now reckon, they are going to launch more serious attacks, but which will only serve to better prove their weakness. Some will attack it openly, in words and in deeds, and will persecute it even in the person of its adherents, trying to discourage them by dint of intrigues, while others, surreptitiously, by indirect means, will seek to undermine it secretly. Be warned that the struggle is not over. I am forewarned that they will attempt a supreme effort; but fear not: the guarantee of success lies in this motto, which is that of all true Spiritists: Outside charity there is no salvation. Hold it high, for it is the Medusa's head to the egoists. The tactic already put into action by the enemies of the Spiritists, but which is going to be employed with new ardor, is to try to divide them, creating divergent systems and stirring up among them distrust and envy. Do not let yourselves fall into the trap, and hold it as certain that he who seeks, by whatever means, to break the good harmony, cannot be animated by good intentions. This is why I exhort you to keep the greatest prudence in the formation of your groups, not only for your tranquility, but in the very interest of your labors.

The nature of Spiritist labors requires calm and recollection. Now, there is no recollection possible if we are distracted by discussions and by the expression of malevolent sentiments. If there is fraternity there will be no sentiments of ill will; but there can be no fraternity with egoists, with the ambitious, and the proud. With the proud, who are scandalized and offended by everything; with the ambitious, who are disappointed when they do not have supremacy; and with egoists who think only of themselves, discord will not be slow to be introduced, and with it, dissolution. This is what the enemies would like, and this is what they will try to do. If a group wishes to be in conditions of order, of tranquility, of stability, it is necessary that a fraternal sentiment reign within it. Every group that forms without having effective charity as its base will have no vitality, whereas those that are founded according to the true spirit of the doctrine will regard one another as members of a single family who, though unable to live under the same roof, dwell in different places. Among them rivalry would be a folly; it could not exist where true charity reigns, for the latter cannot be understood in two ways. Thus, you will recognize the true Spiritist by the practice of charity in thoughts, words, and deeds; and I tell you that he who nourishes in his soul sentiments of animosity, of rancor, of hatred, of envy, or of jealousy, lies to himself if he aspires to understand and to practice Spiritism. Egoism and pride kill private societies, just as they destroy peoples and society in general. Read History and you will see that peoples succumb under the oppression of these two mortal enemies of the happiness of men. When they rest upon the foundations of charity, they will be indissoluble, because they will be at peace among themselves and with themselves, each one respecting the rights and goods of his neighbors. Behold the new era foretold, of which Spiritism is the precursor, and for which every Spiritist must labor, each in his sphere of activity. It is a task that falls to them and for which they will be rewarded according to the manner in which they have carried it out, for God will know how to distinguish those who, in Spiritism, sought only their personal satisfaction, from those who at the same time labored for the happiness of their brothers.

I must also call your attention to another tactic of our adversaries: that of seeking to compromise the Spiritists, inducing them to stray from the true object of the doctrine, which is that of morals, in order to take up questions that are not within their competence and that could, with all reason, awaken susceptibilities and distrust. Neither let yourselves fall into that trap; carefully keep away from your meetings everything that concerns politics and irritating questions; in that case, discussions will lead to nothing and will only stir up embarrassments, whereas no one will dispute morals, when they are good. Seek, in Spiritism, that which can improve you; this is the essential thing. When men are better, the truly useful social reforms will be a natural consequence. By laboring for moral progress, you will lay the true and most solid foundations of all improvements, leaving to God the care of making things come about in due time. In the very interest of Spiritism, which is still young, but which is maturing quickly, you must oppose an unshakeable firmness to those who seek to drag you along a dangerous path.

— Aiming to discredit Spiritism, some claim that it is going to destroy religion. You know that it is exactly the contrary, for the majority of you, who scarcely believed in God and in the soul, now believe; he who did not know what it was to pray, prays with fervor; he who no longer set foot in the churches goes to them with recollection. Besides, if religion were to be destroyed by Spiritism, it would be that religion was destructible and Spiritism more powerful. To affirm it would be a lack of skill, for it would be to confess the weakness of the one and the strength of the other.

— SPIRITISM IS A MORAL DOCTRINE THAT STRENGTHENS THE RELIGIOUS SENTIMENTS IN GENERAL AND APPLIES TO ALL RELIGIONS; IT BELONGS TO ALL OF THEM, AND BELONGS TO NONE IN PARTICULAR. FOR THIS REASON IT ADVISES NO ONE TO CHANGE RELIGION. It leaves to each one the liberty of worshiping God in his own manner and of observing the practices dictated by his conscience, for God takes the intention more into account than the fact. Go, then, each one, to the temple of your worship, and thus you will prove that they slander you, when they accuse you of impiety.

— In the material impossibility in which I find myself of maintaining relations with all the groups, I asked one of your fellow members to represent me especially in Lyon, as I have done elsewhere: it is Mr. Villon, whose zeal and devotion you know as well as the purity of his sentiments. Moreover, his independent position gives him more freedom for the task with which he wishes to charge himself; a heavy task, but before which he will not draw back. The group formed by him in his house was formed under my auspices and according to my instructions, at the time of my last journey. There you will find excellent counsels and salutary examples. I shall see with lively satisfaction all those who honor me with their confidence attach themselves to him, as to a common center. If some wish to form a separate group, avoid regarding them with aversion; and, if they throw stones at you, do not gather them up, nor throw them back: between them and you God will be the judge of the sentiments of each one. Let those who believe themselves the only ones right prove it by greater charity and greater abnegation, for charity could not be on the side of him who does not fulfill the first precept of the doctrine. If you are in doubt, always do good: the errors of the spirit always weigh less in the balance of God than the errors of the heart. I will repeat here what I have already said on other occasions: in case of divergence of opinion, the easy means of getting out of uncertainty is to see which opinion gathers the greatest number of partisans, for there is in the masses an innate good sense that does not let itself be deceived. Error seduces only a few spirits blinded by self-love and by a false judgment, but truth always ends up victorious. Be certain that error deserts the ranks that become enlightened, and that there is an irrational obstinacy in believing that a single one is right against all. If the principles that I profess found only a few isolated echoes and were repelled by general opinion, I would be the first to recognize that I had deceived myself. But seeing the number of adherents ceaselessly grow, in all classes of society and in all countries of the world, I must believe in the solidity of the foundations upon which they rest. This is why I tell you with all assurance: march firmly on the path that is traced for you; tell your antagonists that, if they wish you to follow them, let them offer you a more consoling, clearer, more intelligible doctrine, one that better satisfies reason and that, at the same time, is a guarantee for the social order. By your union, you will frustrate the calculations of those who would wish to divide you. Prove, in short, by your example, that the doctrine makes us more moderate, more gentle, more patient, and more indulgent. This is the best reply to be given to the detractors, while at the same time the sight of the beneficial results is the most powerful means of propaganda. These, my friends, are the counsels I give you, to which I add my Season's Greetings for the year that begins. I do not know what trials God destines for us this year, but I know that, whatever they may be, I shall bear them with firmness and resignation, for you know, for you, as for the soldier, that the reward is proportional to the courage.

As for Spiritism, in which you take more interest than in yourselves, and whose progress, by my position, I can judge better than anyone, I am happy to tell you that the year begins under the most favorable auspices and, without doubt, will see the number of adepts grow in a proportion impossible to foresee. A few more years like those that have passed and Spiritism will have gathered in three quarters of the population.

Let me cite for you one fact among thousands.

In a Department neighboring Paris there exists a small town where Spiritism penetrated only six months ago. In a few weeks it took on a considerable development; a formidable opposition was soon organized against its partisans, threatening even their private interests. They faced everything with a courage and a disinterestedness worthy of the greatest praise; they gave themselves over to Providence, and Providence did not fail them. That town counts a numerous working population, in whose midst the Spiritist ideas, thanks to the opposition that was made, are manifesting themselves rapidly. Now, a fact worthy of note is that the women and the young girls, instead of awaiting the customary New Year's gifts, preferred to acquire the works necessary for their instruction, so that, for that town alone, a bookseller was charged with dispatching them by the hundreds. Is it not prodigious to see simple workers reserve their savings to buy books of morals and of philosophy, instead of novels and trinkets? men preferring this reading to the noisy and degrading pleasures of the cabarets? Ah! it is that those men and those women, sufferers like you, now understand that it is not here that their lot is realized; the curtain rises and they catch a glimpse of the splendid horizons of the future. This little town is Chauny, in the Department of the Aisne. New children in the great family, they greet you, companions of Lyon, as their elder brothers, forming, from now on, one of the links of the spiritual chain that already unites Paris, Lyon, Metz, Sens, Bordeaux, and others, and that will soon link all the cities of the world in a sentiment of mutual fraternity; because everywhere Spiritism has cast fecund seeds and its children join hands over the barriers of the prejudices of sects, castes, and nationalities. Your devoted brother and friend, Allan Kardec.