The Perpetuity of Spiritism.

— In a preceding article, we spoke of the ceaseless progress of Spiritism. Will such progress be lasting or ephemeral? Is it a meteor that shines with passing brilliance, like so many other things? This is what we are going to examine in a few words.

If Spiritism were a mere theory, a philosophical school based on a personal opinion, nothing would guarantee its stability, because it might please today and not please tomorrow; at a given time it might no longer be in harmony with the customs and the intellectual development, and would then fall, like all things out of fashion, which are left behind by the movement; in short, it might be replaced by something better. The same happens with all human conceptions, all legislations, all purely speculative doctrines.

Spiritism presents itself under entirely different conditions, as we have so often pointed out. It rests upon a fact, that of communication between the visible world and the invisible. Now, a fact cannot be annulled by time, as an opinion can. Without doubt it is not yet admitted by all; but what do the denials of a few matter, when it is verified every day by millions of individuals, whose number grows ceaselessly, and who are neither more foolish nor more blind than the others? The moment will therefore come when it will find no more deniers than now exist for the movement of the Earth.

— How much opposition this latter fact raised! For a long time the incredulous did not lack apparently good reasons to dispute it. They said: “How can one believe in the existence of the antipodes, walking with their heads downward? And if the Earth turns, as they claim, how can one believe that we ourselves are, every twenty-four hours, in that uncomfortable position, without perceiving it? In that state, we could no longer remain attached to the Earth, unless we wished to walk against a ceiling, with our feet in the air, after the manner of flies. And then, what would become of the seas? Does not water spill when the vessel is tilted? The thing is simply impossible, therefore it is absurd, and Galileo is a madman.” Being a fact, however, this absurd thing triumphed over all the contrary reasons and over all the anathemas. What was lacking in order to admit its possibility? The knowledge of the natural law upon which it rests. If Galileo had been content to say that the Earth turns, they would not yet believe him even now. But the denials fell before the knowledge of the principle.

The same will happen with Spiritism. Since it rests upon a material fact, existing by virtue of a law that is explained and demonstrated, which strips it of all supernatural and marvelous character, it is imperishable. Those who deny the possibility of the manifestations are in the same case as those who denied the movement of the Earth. The majority deny the first cause, that is, the soul, its survival or its individuality, and it is therefore not surprising that they deny the effect. They judge by the mere statement of the fact and declare it absurd, as formerly they declared absurd the belief in the antipodes. But what can their opinion do against a phenomenon verified by observation and demonstrated by a law of Nature? The movement of the Earth being a purely scientific fact, its verification was not within reach of the common people; it had to be accepted on faith in the scientists. But Spiritism has, in addition, the power of being verified by everyone, which explains its so rapid propagation. Every new discovery of any importance has more or less serious consequences; that of the movement of the Earth and of the law of gravitation that governs this movement had incalculable results. Science saw open before it a new field of exploration, and one could not enumerate all the discoveries, inventions, and applications that were the consequence of it. The progress of Science gave rise to that of industry, and the progress of industry changed the manner of living, the habits, in a word all the conditions of being of Humanity. The knowledge of the relations of the visible world and the invisible world has consequences still more direct and more immediately practical, because it is within reach of all individuals and concerns everyone. Since every man must necessarily die, no one can remain indifferent to that which will happen after his death. By the certainty that Spiritism gives of the future, it changes the manner of seeing and influences morality. By stifling egoism, it will profoundly modify the social relations of individual to individual and of people to people.

Many reformers of generous thoughts have formulated doctrines more or less seductive; but, for the most part, these triumphed only as sects, temporary and circumscribed. So it was and so it will always be with purely systematic theories, because, on Earth, it is not given to man to conceive anything complete and perfect. Spiritism, on the contrary, leaning not upon a preconceived idea, but upon patent facts, is protected against these fluctuations and can only grow, as these facts become more widely known, better understood, and better comprehended. Now, no human power could prevent the dissemination of facts that each one can verify; once the facts are verified, no one will be able to prevent the consequences resulting from them. These consequences are here a complete revolution in ideas and in the manner of seeing the things of this world and the other. Before the century has passed it will be accomplished.

— But, they will say, alongside the facts you have a theory, a doctrine; who tells you that this theory will not undergo variations? that in a few years the theory of today will be the same?

Without doubt it may undergo modifications in its details, in consequence of new observations; but, once acquired, the principle cannot vary and, still less, be annulled; this is the essential point. Since Copernicus and Galileo the movement of the Earth and of the stars has been better calculated, but the fact of the movement remained along with the principle.

We have said that Spiritism is, above all, a science of observation; this is what makes its strength against the attacks of which it is the object and gives its adherents an unshakable faith. All the reasonings opposed to it fall before the facts, and these reasonings have all the less value in their eyes the more they know them to be self-interested. In vain are they told that this is not so, or that it is something else. They answer: We cannot deny the evidence. If only one existed, one might think of an illusion; but when millions of individuals see the same thing, in every country, one logically concludes that it is the deniers who are deluding themselves. If the Spiritist facts had no other result than to satisfy curiosity, they would certainly cause only a momentary preoccupation, like everything that is useless; but the consequences that flow from them touch the heart, make people happy, satisfy the aspirations, fill the void undermined by doubt, cast light upon the dreadful question of the future; still more, in them one sees a powerful cause of moralization for society; they therefore have a great interest. Now, one does not easily renounce that which is a source of happiness. Certainly it is not with the prospect of nothingness, nor with that of the eternal flames, that they will turn the Spiritists away from their beliefs. Spiritism will not depart from the truth and will have nothing to fear from contradictory opinions, so long as its scientific theory and its moral doctrine are a deduction from facts scrupulously and conscientiously observed, without prejudices or preconceived systems. It is in the face of a more complete observation that all the premature and risky theories, arisen at the origin of the modern Spiritist phenomena, have fallen and have come to merge into the imposing unity that exists today, and against which only rare individuals persist, who diminish day by day. The gaps that the present theory may still contain will be filled in the same way. Spiritism is far from having said the last word, as to its consequences, but it is unshakable in its foundation, because this foundation is laid upon the facts. Let the Spiritists, then, fear nothing: the future belongs to them; let them leave the adversaries to struggle under the oppression of the truth, which dazzles them, because every denial is powerless against the evidence which, undeniably, triumphs by the very force of things. It is a question of time, and in this century time marches with giant strides, under the impulse of progress.