The Gospel According to Spiritism – Chapter 25

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José Augusto Chagas

The Heaven - Religious View The term heaven is employed, in a general sense, to

designate the boundless expanse of space that surrounds the Earth, and, more specially, the part of the expanse that is above our horizon. (…) The Ancients believed in the existence of several “heavens”, placed one above the other, composed of a solid, transparent matter, and forming a succession of hollow, concentric spheres, and the center, immovable, stood the Earth. (…)

This belief, that came from the lack of astronomical knowledge, was the basis of various theogonies that represent those concentric heavens thus superposed on one another, as localization of progressively increase degrees of beatitude, the topmost one being the region of supreme happiness.

30/11/2014 2Heaven and Hell – Allan Kardec- Chapter 3 – The Heaven

The Heaven - Religious View Man's opinions are always proportioned to his knowledge;

and the discovery of the constitution of worlds around him, like all the other great discoveries of the human mind, has necessarily given new direction to his ideas.

Under the rule of this new knowledge, beliefs had changed, the heaven has been displaced from its former position.

The region of the stars, having no limits, can no longer be assigned as its locality.

Where, then, is heaven? To this question none of the religions of the world can furnish an answer.

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Heaven and Hell – Allan Kardec- Chapter 3 – The Heaven

Heaven - According to Spiritism

There is, therefore, the corporeal world,

composed of embodied Spirits, and the spiritual

world, formed by the disembodied Spirits.

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Spirits

Embodied Disembodied

Perispirit and Physical Body

Perispirit

Heaven and Hell – Allan Kardec- Chapter 3 – The Heaven

The Spiritual World

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• The spiritual world is everywhere, around us and in the space, since that has no limits.

• In virtue of the fluidic nature of their body envelope, the beings that compose that world instead of creeping laboriously upon the ground, transport themselves through space with the rapidity of thought.

Heaven and Hell – Allan Kardec- Chapter 3 – The Heaven

Spiritism View The happiness of each Spirit is in proportion to

amount of progress accomplish by him.

Progress among Spirits are only achieved as the fruit of their own labor, but as they have their free-will, they labor more or less actively for their own advancement.

A single corporeal existence is manifestly insufficient to enable a Spirit to acquire all godness he lacks (kindness, gentleness, charity, generosity, humility...), and rid himself of all the evil that is in him (malevolance, selfhisness, pride, hypocrisy...).

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Law of Labor

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SEEK AND YOU SHALL FIND (Mathews, chap. VII, v. 7 to 15)

HELP YOURSELF AND HEAVEN WILL HELP YOU

From the earthly point of view, the maxim: Seek and you shall find, is analogous to this one: Help yourself and heaven will help you. It is the principle of the Law of Labor and consequently, of the Law of

Progress, because progress is the son of labor, and labor sets in motion the powers of intelligence.

The Progress

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This desire is that drives them to seek out means of improving their situation, which in

turns leads them to discoveries, inventions and the development of science, because it is science

that provides them with what they lack. Through their research, their intelligence

expands and their morals become purified.

The incessant desire to better themselves

Help Yourself and Heaven will Help You

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From the moral point of view, the words of Jesus mean:

Ask that light may enlighten your way and you will be given to youç

Ask the strength to resist evil, and will have it;

Ask the assistance of good Spirits, and they come to accompany you.

Observe the Birds in the Sky

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Therefore, seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you in abundance. So do not be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will take care of itself.

Each day has enough evil of its own. (Matthew, chapter VI, v. 19-21 and 25-34).

Therefore, one should see in these words only a poetic allegory of Providence, that never abandons those who put their trust in it, but

which wills that they work alongside it. If Providence does not always come to them with material help, it inspires them with ideas which they may find the means of freeing themselves from the difficulty.

Progress among Spirits are only achieved as the fruit of their own labor, but we are

not alone

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Conclusion

Thank you!

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