Letter from Mr. Dombre to a preacher.

— Having preached in Marmande during last May, the Dominican Father F…, in his final sermon, decided to cast a few stones against Spiritism. Mr. Dombre would have liked a more thorough discussion of the matter, and that Father F…, instead of confining himself to commonplace attacks, would resolutely take up certain questions of detail; but, fearing that his name might not have enough merit to induce him to do so, he wrote him the following letter under the pseudonym of A Catholic:

— “Mr. Preacher, “I assiduously follow your dogmatic instructions every evening. By a deplorable mischance, I arrived on Friday a little later than usual and learned, on leaving the church, that you had begun, in the form of a skirmish, an attack against Spiritism. I rejoice at this, in the name of fervent Catholics.

“If I have been correctly informed, here are the questions addressed: 1st – Spiritism is a new religion, of the nineteenth century; 2nd – There is, incontestably, communication with the Spirits; 3rd – In communications with the Spirits, well verified, well recognized, you undertake to prove, after the long and serious studies you have made of Spiritism, that the Spirits who communicate are nothing but the demon; 4th – Finally, it would be dangerous, from the point of view of the salvation of the soul, to occupy oneself with Spiritism before the Church has pronounced itself on the subject. I quite appreciated this fourth article, but, if it is acknowledged beforehand that it is the demon, the Church has nothing further to do. [1] Here are four important questions that I am eager to see resolved, in order to confound, at a single stroke, the Spiritists and the Catholics in name only, who believe neither in the demon nor in eternal punishments, but admit a God and the immortality of the soul, and the materialists, who believe in nothing.

To the first question — is Spiritism a religion — the Spiritists answer: No; Spiritism is not a religion, nor does it claim to be a religion. Spiritism is based on the existence of an invisible world, formed of incorporeal beings who people space and who are merely the souls of those who lived on Earth or on other globes. These beings, who incessantly surround us, exert upon men, in spite of themselves, a great influence; they play a very active role in the moral world and, to a certain extent, in the physical world. Spiritism is in Nature, and it may be said that, in a certain order of things, it is a force, just as, from another point of view, electricity and gravitation are. Spiritism unveils for us the invisible world; it is nothing new, since it is mentioned in the history of all peoples. It rests upon general principles, independent of all dogmatic questions. It has moral consequences, it is true, in the sense of Christianity, although it has no worship, nor temples, nor ministers; each one may make a religion of his opinions, but from there to the constitution of a new Church the distance is great. Spiritism, therefore, is not a new religion. Here, Mr. Preacher, is what the Spiritists say regarding the first question. “At this same question the false Catholics and the materialists laugh. The former, the fortunate ones of this world, laugh reluctantly, for the doctrine that entails the plurality of existences or reincarnations wounds their pleasures and their pride. To return in a condition perhaps inferior — a horrible thing! — not to be thought of. The Spiritists say to them: “Here is justice, true equality.” But that equality does not suit them. The materialists, strong-minded freethinkers composed of supposed sages, laugh freely because they do not believe in the future: their lot and that of the little dog that accompanies them are absolutely the same, and they prefer it so. “At the second question — is there communication with the Spirits — the Spiritists and we, fervent Catholics, are in agreement; the false Catholics and the materialists display the laughter of incredulity.

“At the third question — only the demon communicates — the Spiritists laugh in their turn; the materialists laugh too, mocking those who believe in the communications and those who, believing in them, attribute them to the demons. The false Catholics keep silent, as if to say: That is your affair.

“At the fourth question – one must await the pronouncement of the Church — the Spiritists say: “The day will come when belief in Spiritism will become so common, so widespread, that the Church, unless it wishes to remain alone, will be forced to follow the current. Then Spiritism will merge into Catholicism and Catholicism into Spiritism.” At this question the materialist laughs again and says: “What does it matter to me!”, and the false Catholic feels a kind of spite. As I said above, he will not be able to accommodate himself to this doctrine; his egoism and his pride are shocked; he repels the eventuality of that fusion. “It is impossible,” he says, “Spiritism is nothing but a utopia, which will not take four steps in the world.” [2] “Accept, etc.

A fervent Catholic.”

— On the subject, Mr. Dombre expresses himself thus, in a letter addressed to Bordeaux:

“The Abbé F… sought to find out who the Spiritist was, and not the fervent Catholic, who had written him that letter. His emissaries came to me and said: The Abbé F… would need seven or eight sermons to answer you, but he has no time; even so, he would like to know the name of the person concerned. I replied: I assure you that the author of the letter will make himself known, should the abbé answer him from the pulpit. It seems that here they know, by experience, that the more one speaks against Spiritism, the more proselytes one makes; thus, they thought it better to keep silent, for the Abbé F… departed without returning to the subject.

“You will tell me that there is perhaps a little temerity in wishing to enter the lists; I know the needs of our locality; noise is needed. The systematic or interested enemies of Spiritism want only muteness, and I want to deafen them with discussions. Around the unbelievers who are always arguing there are indifferent ones or those predisposed to believe, who derive profit from the struggle, with respect to Spiritist instruction. — But, you will think and perhaps say, will you come out honorably from these polemics? — Ah! my God! When one is a subscriber to the Spiritist Review and has read all the books of the doctrine; when one is plunged bodily into the arguments on which it rests and into those given by the Spirits who communicate, one comes forth like Minerva, armed from head to foot, fearing nothing.” Observation. — They say: “You believe in reincarnation, but the plurality of existences is contrary to the dogmas, which admit only one. For that very reason you are outside the Church.”

To this we will repeat what we have said countless times: “Formerly you expelled from the Church, anathematized, excommunicated, and condemned as heretics those who believed in the movement of the Earth.” You will reply: “That was in a time of ignorance.” — Be it so. But if the Church is infallible, it ought to have been so formerly as today, its infallibility not being able to be submitted to the fluctuations of worldly science. But of late, and only a quarter of a century ago, in this century of light, has it not likewise condemned the scientific discoveries that concern the formation of the globe? What has happened now? And what would have happened if it had persisted in repelling from its bosom all those who believe in these things? There would no longer be any Catholics, not even the pope. Why, then, did the Church have to yield? It is because the movement of the heavenly bodies and their formation rest upon the laws of Nature, and because, against those laws, there is no opinion that can prevail. As for reincarnation, of two things one: either it exists, or it does not exist; there is no middle ground. If it exists, it is because it is in the laws of Nature. If a dogma says the contrary, the question is to know who is right, whether the dogma or Nature, which is the work of God. Reincarnation is not, then, an opinion, a system, like a political or social opinion, which may be adopted or refused: it is a fact or it is not. If it is a fact, and however much it may displease the whole world, nothing they may say will prevent it from being a fact.

We firmly believe — we speak on our own account — that reincarnation, far from being contrary to the dogmas, gives a logical explanation of several of them, causing them to be accepted by the majority of those who rejected them, because they did not understand them. The proof of this lies in the great number of persons brought to religious beliefs by Spiritism.

But let us admit that incompatibility, if you wish. In that case, we will present the question without circumlocution: “When the plurality of existences is recognized as a natural law — which will not be long in coming — and when all recognize this law as the only one compatible with the justice of God, and as the only one that can explain what, without it, is inexplicable, what will you do?” — You will do what you did with the movement of the Earth and the six days of Creation; and it will not be difficult to reconcile the dogma with this law.

A. K.

[1] If the Church has not yet pronounced itself, the question of the demon is nothing but an individual opinion, without legal sanction. And this is so certain that not all ecclesiastics share it; among these we know many. Until fuller information, doubt is permitted and, even now, it may be seen that the doctrine of the demon has little hold over the masses. If the Church were to proclaim it officially, it would be to be feared that from that judgment would result what resulted from the declaration of heresy and the condemnation formerly pronounced against the movement of the Earth, as occurred in our day with the anathemas hurled against Science with respect to the six periods of the creation. We believe that the clergy would be wiser and more prudent if it did not hasten to decide the question, affirming a thing that at present provokes more incredulity and more laughter than fear, and in which we can attest that many priests believe no more than we do, because it is illogical. To expose oneself to being contradicted in the future and then to find oneself forced to acknowledge the error, is to harm the moral authority of the Church, which proclaims the infallibility of its judgments. It would be better for it to abstain. Besides, say what they will and do what they wish against Spiritism, experience proves that its march is irresistible; it is an idea that implants itself everywhere with prodigious rapidity, because it satisfies, at the same time, the reason and the heart. To stop it, it would be necessary to oppose to it a doctrine that satisfied more, and certainly it will not be that of the demon and that of the eternal punishments. — A. K.

[2] There are false Catholics, true Catholics, and materialists who use this language. Had they said it some years ago, one could conceive of it. But in the last four or five years it has taken so many steps, and takes them every day, that, before long, it will have attained its goal. Search in History for a doctrine that has traversed so much distance in so little time. In the presence of that unheard-of result of a propagation against which all the thunderbolts and all the mockeries come to break themselves; which grows in proportion to the violence of the attacks, it is, in truth, much naïveté to say that Spiritism is a mere flash in the pan. If it is so, why so much anger? Let it, then, die out by itself. We, who watch its march from a box seat, who follow all its vicissitudes, see its conclusion; now it is our turn to laugh. — A. K.”