Sermons on Spiritism.

— Although we do not personally know the author of this booklet, we may say that it is the work of an enlightened and sincere Spiritist. We are pleased to see the defense of Spiritism taken up by skillful hands, which know how to combine the force of reasoning with the moderation that is the prerogative of true strength. The adversaries' arguments are there combated with a logic to which we do not know what other one could be opposed, because there is only one serious logic, that whose deductions leave no room for reply, and we find that the author's is of this kind. Without doubt, rightly or wrongly, one can always reply, for there are creatures with whom one never has the last word, even were it a matter of proving to them that there is sun at midday; but it is not with these that one is concerned to be in the right, it mattering little whether they are convinced of their error or not. Nor is it to these that we address ourselves, but to the public, judge in the last instance of good or bad causes. There is in the spirit of the masses a good sense that may fail in isolated individuals, but whose whole is like the resultant of the intellectual forces and of common sense. In our opinion, the brochure in question unites the advantages of substance and form, that is, to the soundness of reasoning it combines the correctness and elegance of style, which never harms anything and makes the reading of any writing more attractive and easier.

We do not doubt that this writing will be received by all Spiritists with the sympathy it deserves. We recommend it with all confidence and without reservations. By contributing to its propagation, Spiritists will render service to the cause.

[Second article. Review of October.]

Preached in the cathedral of Metz on the 27th, 28th, and 29th of May 1863, by the reverend Father Letierce, of the Society of Jesus, refuted by a Spiritist of Metz and preceded by considerations on Spiritist madness. n

— It is always a satisfaction to see serious adherents enter the lists when, to the logic of argumentation, they combine the calm and moderation from which we must never depart, even against those who do not use the same methods toward us. We congratulate the author of this booklet for having known how to unite these two qualities in his interesting and most conscientious work which, we have no doubt, will be received with the attention it deserves. The letter placed at the beginning of the brochure is a testimony of sympathy that we could not acknowledge better than by transcribing it textually, for it is a proof of the manner in which he understands the doctrine, as well as the following thoughts, which he takes as an epigraph: “We believe that there are facts which are neither visible to the eye nor tangible to the hand; which neither the microscope nor the scalpel can reach, however perfect one may suppose them to be; which likewise escape the taste, the smell, and the hearing, and which nonetheless are susceptible of being established with absolute certainty (Ch. Jouffroy, preface to the Esquisses de philosophie morale, p. 5). [Esquisses de philosophie morale - Google Books.]

“Believe not every Spirit; test whether the Spirits come from God.”

(Gospel.)

“Sir and dear master, “Deign to accept the dedication of this modest defense in favor of Spiritism, of this cry of indignation against the attacks directed against our sublime morality? It would be for me the surest testimony that these pages are dictated by that spirit of moderation which we daily admire in your writings and which should guide us in all our struggles. Accept it as a simple essay of one of your recent adherents, as the profession of faith of a true believer. If my efforts are fortunate, I shall attribute their success to your elevated patronage; if my incompetent voice finds no echo, Spiritism will not lack other defenders, and I shall have for myself, with the satisfaction of conscience, the happiness of having been approved by the immortal apostle of our philosophy.” We extract from the brochure the following passage, from one of the sermons of the reverend Father Letierce, in order to give an idea of the force of his logic.

“There is nothing shocking to reason in admitting, within a certain limit, the communication of the Spirits of the dead with the living; such communication is perfectly compatible with the nature of the human soul, numerous examples being found in the Gospel and in the Lives of the saints; but they were saints, they were apostles. For us, poor sinners who, on the slippery precipices of corruption, would need only a helping hand to lead us back to good, is it not a sacrilege, an insult to divine justice, to go and ask the good Spirits, whom God has scattered around us, for counsels and precepts for our moral and philosophical instruction? Is it not an impious audacity to ask the Creator to send us guardian angels to remind us incessantly of the observance of his laws, of charity, of the love of our fellow men, and to teach us what we must do, according to our strength, to arrive as quickly as possible at that degree of perfection which they themselves have attained? “That appeal which we make to the souls of the just, in the name of the goodness of God, is heard only by the souls of the wicked, in the name of the infernal powers. Yes, the Spirits communicate with us, but they are the Spirits of the damned; their communications and their precepts, it is true, are similar to those which the purest angels could dictate to us; all their discourses breathe the most sublime virtues, the least of which should be for us an ideal of perfection that we can scarcely attain in this life. But it is only a snare to better draw us in, a honey covering the poison with which the demon wishes to kill our soul.

“Indeed, the souls of the dead, according to Allan Kardec, are of three classes: those that have reached the state of pure Spirits, those that are on the path of perfection, and the souls of the wicked. By their nature, the first cannot come at our appeal; their state of purity makes any communication impossible with the souls of men, enclosed in so gross an envelope; besides, what would they come to do on Earth? to preach exhortations that we could not understand? The second have too much to work for their moral improvement to waste time coming to converse with us; they are not yet the ones who assist us in our gatherings. What is it, then, that remains for us? I have said it, the souls of the damned, and these do not need to be entreated to come; always disposed to take advantage of our error and our need for instruction, they address themselves in mass to us, in order to drag us with them into the abyss where the just punishment of God has plunged them.” [1]

Brochure in-12. Price: 1 fr.; by Post: 1 fr. 10 c. – Paris, Didier bookshop, 35, quai des Augustins;

Ledoyen, Palais-Royal;

Metz, Linden bookshop, 1, rue Pierre-Hardie. [Sermons sur le spiritisme, prêchés à la cathédrale de Metz - Google Books.]

[2] Brochure in-18. – Price: 1 fr.; by Post, 1 fr. 10 c.; Paris: Didier & Co., Ledoyen; – Metz: Linden, Verronnais, booksellers.