Kardecist spiritism

Spiritism or Kardecism is a reincarnationist and spiritualist doctrine established in France in the mid-19th century by writer and educator Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail (a.k.a. Allan Kardec). Kardec considered his doctrine to derive from a Christian perspective.^[1]^[2] He described a cycle by which a spirit supposedly returns to material existence after the death of the old body in which it dwelled, as well as the evolution it undergoes during this process.^[3] Kardecism emerged as a new religious movement^[4]^[3] in tandem with spiritualism, the notions and practices associated with spiritual communication disseminated throughout North America and Europe since the 1850s.^[3]

Kardec coined the term spiritism in 1857^[5]^[6] and defined it as "the doctrine founded on the existence, manifestations, and teachings of spirits". Kardec claimed that spiritism combines scientific, philosophical, and religious aspects^[7]^[8]^[9] of the tangible universe and what he described as the universe beyond transcendence.^[10]^[11]^[12] After observing table-turning, a kind of seance, he was intrigued that the tables seemed to move despite lacking muscles and that they tables seemed to provide answers without having a brain, the spiritualist claims being "It is not the table that thinks! It is us, the souls of the men who have lived on Earth."^[13] Kardec also focused his attention on a variety of other paranormal claims such as "incorporation" and mediumship.^[7]

Kardecist doctrine is based on five basic works, known as the Spiritist Codification, published between 1857 and 1868. The codification consists of The Spirits' Book, The Mediums' Book, The Gospel According to Spiritism, Heaven and Hell, and The Genesis. Additionally, there are the so-called complementary works, such as What is Spiritism?, Spiritist Review, and Posthumous Works. Its followers consider spiritism a doctrine focused on the moral improvement of humanity and believe in the existence of a single God, the possibility of useful communication with spirits through mediums, and reincarnation as a process of spiritual growth and divine justice.^[14]

According to the International Spiritist Council, spiritism is present in 36 countries, with over 13 million followers,^[15] being most widespread in Brazil, where it has approximately 3.8 million followers, according to the data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, and over 30 million sympathizers, according to the Brazilian Spiritist Federation.^[16]^[15] Spiritists are also known for influencing and promoting a movement of social assistance and philanthropy.^[17] The doctrine has had a strong influence on various other religious currents, such as Santería, Umbanda, and the New Age movements.^[3]

^ Kardec 1857, p. 193, "The essential thing is that the teaching of the Spirits is eminently Christian; it is based on the immortality of the soul, on future punishments and rewards, on the justice of God, on the free will of man, on the morality of Christ. Therefore, it is not anti-religious".
^ Arribas 2008, p. 34.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Clarke, Peter B. (2006). Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements. London and New York: Routledge. pp. 190–195. ISBN 978-0415267076.
^ Paul Christopher Johnson. Maryland Journal of International Law - University of Maryland (ed.). "Possessed Persons and Legal Persons in Brazil" (PDF). p. 187. Retrieved November 1, 2021. Spiritism was a new religious movement spawned in the 1850s in part from technological developments like the telegraph and photography.
^ MFESP 2012.
^ Larousse 2012.
^ ^a ^b Pine 2008, pp. 13–37.
^ Kardec 1859, p. 40.
^ Kardec 1861a, p. 15.
^ Lang 2008, p. 171.
^ Neto 2007, p. 622.
^ Vannuchi 2013, p. 250.
^ Porto 2019.
^ Lucchetti 2012, pp. 125–126.
^ ^a ^b Bernardo 2019.
^ Schröder 2016.
^ Calejo 2018.

[FOOTNOTEKardec1857193"The_essential_thing_is_that_the_teaching_of_the_Spirits_is_eminently_Christian;_it_is_based_on_the_immortality_of_the_soul,_on_future_punishments_and_rewards,_on_the_justice_of_God,_on_the_free_will_of_man,_on_the_morality_of_Christ._Therefore,_it_is_not_anti-religious"-1] Kardec 1857, p. 193, "The essential thing is that the teaching of the Spirits is eminently Christian; it is based on the immortality of the soul, on future punishments and rewards, on the justice of God, on the free will of man, on the morality of Christ. Therefore, it is not anti-religious".

[FOOTNOTEArribas200834-2] Arribas 2008, p. 34.

[Encyclopedia_of_New_Religious-3] Clarke, Peter B. (2006). Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements. London and New York: Routledge. pp. 190–195. ISBN 978-0415267076.

[:2-4] Paul Christopher Johnson. Maryland Journal of International Law - University of Maryland (ed.). "Possessed Persons and Legal Persons in Brazil" (PDF). p. 187. Retrieved November 1, 2021. Spiritism was a new religious movement spawned in the 1850s in part from technological developments like the telegraph and photography.

[FOOTNOTEMFESP2012-5] MFESP 2012.

[FOOTNOTELarousse2012-6] Larousse 2012.

[FOOTNOTEPine200813–37-7] Pine 2008, pp. 13–37.

[FOOTNOTEKardec185940-8] Kardec 1859, p. 40.

[FOOTNOTEKardec1861a15-9] Kardec 1861a, p. 15.

[FOOTNOTELang2008171-10] Lang 2008, p. 171.

[FOOTNOTENeto2007622-11] Neto 2007, p. 622.

[FOOTNOTEVannuchi2013250-12] Vannuchi 2013, p. 250.

[FOOTNOTEPorto2019-13] Porto 2019.

[FOOTNOTELucchetti2012125–126-14] Lucchetti 2012, pp. 125–126.

[FOOTNOTEBernardo2019-15] Bernardo 2019.

[FOOTNOTESchröder2016-16] Schröder 2016.

[FOOTNOTECalejo2018-17] Calejo 2018.

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