[
  {
    "Id": "1",
    "Question": "What is God?",
    "Answer": "God is the Supreme Intelligence, the First Cause of all things."
  },
  {
    "Id": "2",
    "Question": "What is meant by the Infinite?",
    "Answer": "That which has neither beginning nor end: the unknown. All which is unknown is infinite."
  },
  {
    "Id": "3",
    "Question": "Could we say that God is the Infinite?",
    "Answer": "That would be an incomplete definition. Human speech is too impoverished and insufficient to define that which transcends human intelligence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "4",
    "Question": "Where may we find proof for the existence of God?",
    "Answer": "In an axiom you apply to all your sciences: ‘There is no effect without a cause.’ If you would search for the cause of whatever is not the work of human beings, then reason will answer your question."
  },
  {
    "Id": "5",
    "Question": "All human beings have within them the intuitive sentiment of God’s existence. What can we conclude from this?",
    "Answer": "That God exists; otherwise, where would such a sentiment come from if it were not based on something real? This is an application of the principle that there is no effect without a cause."
  },
  {
    "Id": "6",
    "Question": "Mightn’t our inner sentiment about the existence of God be the result of education and the product of acquired ideas?",
    "Answer": "If that were the case, why would members of your primitive cultures have this intuition?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "7",
    "Question": "Could we find the first cause of the formation of things in the innermost properties of matter?",
    "Answer": "Even if you could, what in turn would be the cause of those properties? There must always be a first cause."
  },
  {
    "Id": "8",
    "Question": "What about the idea that attributes the first formation of all things to an accidental combination of matter, i.e. to chance?",
    "Answer": "Another absurdity! How could anyone with any common sense believe that chance is an intelligent agent? Moreover, what is chance? Nothing."
  },
  {
    "Id": "9",
    "Question": "Where may we see in the first cause a Supreme Intelligence, superior to all other intelligences?",
    "Answer": "You have a proverb that says, ‘The workman is known by his work.’ So, look at the work and you will find the ‘Workman’! Pride is what creates disbelief. Human pride believes in nothing above itself, and that is why people think they are so powerful. Poor beings! A mere breath from God could blow them over!"
  },
  {
    "Id": "10",
    "Question": "Can human beings fathom God’s innermost nature?",
    "Answer": "No, they lack the aptitude to comprehend it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "11",
    "Question": "Will they ever be able to fathom the mystery of the Divinity?",
    "Answer": "When their spirits are no longer eclipsed by matter, and when they have finally purified themselves enough to be able to approach God, then they will see and comprehend God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "12",
    "Question": "Even though we cannot fathom God’s innermost nature, can we get an idea of some of the divine perfections?",
    "Answer": "Yes, some of them. Human beings comprehend them better only as they progressively overcome matter, but they can at least get glimpses of them through thought."
  },
  {
    "Id": "13",
    "Question": "When we state that God is eternal, infinite, immutable, immaterial, one, all-powerful, and supremely just and good, don’t we have a complete idea of God’s attributes?",
    "Answer": "From your own point of view, yes, because you believe that in so stating them you therefore have named all of them. Nevertheless, you should understand that there are things that transcend the intelligence of the most intelligent person, things your language cannot define, because it is limited to your ideas and sensations. Your reason tells you that God must be perfect in those attributes to the nth degree, for if God lacked any of them or was not perfect in them to the nth degree, God would not be superior to everything else, and thus would not be God. In order to be superior to everything else, God must not be subject to any change and must not be imperfect in any way imaginable."
  },
  {
    "Id": "14",
    "Question": "Is God a distinct being, or as some believe, the result of all the combined forces and intelligences of the universe?",
    "Answer": "If the latter were the case, God per se would not exist because God would be an effect and not a cause. God cannot be both cause and effect at the same time. “You cannot doubt that God exists and that is the point that matters. Believe me and do not try to go any farther. Do not get lost in a maze from which you will not be able to exit. Trying to go farther will not make you any better; instead, it will probably just add to your pride by leading you to imagine that you understand something when you actually understand nothing at all. Therefore, put all theories aside regarding the matter. You have much more important things to be concerned about, beginning with yourselves. Study your own imperfections in order to get rid of them; that will be far more useful to you than trying to penetrate the impenetrable."
  },
  {
    "Id": "15",
    "Question": "What should we think of the opinion holding that all the bodies in nature, all the beings and globes in the universe are components of the Divinity, and taken all together comprise the Divinity itself; i.e. the pantheistic doctrine?",
    "Answer": "Since humans are unable to make themselves God, they would like to at least be a part of God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "16",
    "Question": "Adherents of this theory claim that it demonstrates some of God’s attributes: since there are an infinite number of worlds, then God is infinite; since a void or absolute nothingness is nowhere, then God is everywhere. God being everywhere, because everything is an integral component of God, God infuses all the phenomena of nature with God’s intelligence. What can refute this viewpoint?",
    "Answer": "Reason. Reflect on it carefully and you will have no difficulty in seeing how absurd it is."
  },
  {
    "Id": "17",
    "Question": "Can humans know the origin of things?",
    "Answer": "No. On earth, God does not allow everything to be revealed to them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "18",
    "Question": "Will they ever be able to grasp the mystery of things now hidden from them?",
    "Answer": "The veil is lifted as they become more and more purified, but in order to understand certain things they need faculties they do not yet have."
  },
  {
    "Id": "19",
    "Question": "Can’t humans grasp some of nature’s secrets through scientific investigation?",
    "Answer": "Science has been given to them for their advancement in all matters, but they cannot go beyond the limits set by God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "20",
    "Question": "Outside the realm of scientific investigation, can humans receive communications of a higher order regarding matters that go beyond the scope of their senses?",
    "Answer": "Yes, if God deems it useful, God will reveal what science cannot detect."
  },
  {
    "Id": "21",
    "Question": "Is matter eternal like God, or was it created at some specific time in the past?",
    "Answer": "Only God knows. Nevertheless, there is something you should realize by using your reason: God, the very personification of love and charity, has never been inactive. No matter how long ago you might imagine the onset of the divine action to have been, could you possibly conceive of God as ever having been idle for even one second?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "22",
    "Question": "Matter is generally defined as: that which has extension; that which can impress our senses; that which is impenetrable. Are these definitions correct?",
    "Answer": "From your own point of view they are correct because you can only talk about matters that are familiar to you. Matter, however, also exists in states that are unfamiliar. For example, it may be so ethereal and subtle that your senses cannot detect it; it is matter nonetheless, even though you do not perceive it as such. Matter is the tie that enchains spirit; it is the instrument that spirit uses and upon which it simultaneously exerts its action."
  },
  {
    "Id": "22a",
    "Question": "Then how may we define matter?",
    "Answer": "Matter is the tie that enchains spirit; it is the instrument that spirit uses and upon which it simultaneously exerts its action."
  },
  {
    "Id": "23",
    "Question": "What is spirit?",
    "Answer": "The intelligent principle of the universe. It is not easy to explain spirit in your language. For you, it is nothing because it is not something palpable; nevertheless, for us it is something. You must realize that nothing means nothing and nothing does not exist."
  },
  {
    "Id": "23a",
    "Question": "What is spirit’s innermost nature?",
    "Answer": "It is not easy to explain spirit in your language. For you, it is nothing because it is not something palpable; nevertheless, for us it is something. You must realize that nothing means nothing and nothing does not exist."
  },
  {
    "Id": "24",
    "Question": "Is spirit synonymous with intelligence?",
    "Answer": "Intelligence is one of the essential attributes of spirit, but both merge into a common principle; thus, for you they are one and the same thing."
  },
  {
    "Id": "25",
    "Question": "Is spirit independent of matter, or is it only a property of matter, as colors are properties of light and as sound is a property of air?",
    "Answer": "They are distinct from each other, but the union of spirit and matter is necessary to enable matter to act intelligently. For you it is necessary because you are not built to perceive spirit apart from matter. Your senses are not formed to do so. spirit"
  },
  {
    "Id": "25a",
    "Question": "Is this union equally necessary for the manifestation of spirit?",
    "Answer": "For you it is necessary because you are not built to perceive spirit apart from matter. Your senses are not formed to do so."
  },
  {
    "Id": "26",
    "Question": "Can we conceive of spirit apart from matter, and matter apart from spirit?",
    "Answer": "Absolutely, through thought."
  },
  {
    "Id": "27",
    "Question": "So are there two general elements in the universe: matter and spirit?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and over everything is God, the Creator and author of all. These three elements comprise the principle of all that exists – they are the universal trinity. However, to the element of matter must be added the universal fluid20, which plays an intermediary role between spirit and matter per se, since matter is too dense for spirit to act upon it directly. Although from a certain point of view this fluid may be regarded as part of the material element, it differs from it due to special properties. If it were simply matter, there would be no reason for spirit not to be matter too. It is placed between spirit and matter, yet it is a fluid, just as matter is matter. In its countless combinations with matter, and under the direction of spirit, it is capable of producing an infinite variety of things about which you still know very, very little. By being the agent upon which spirit acts, this universal, primitive or elementary fluid is the principle without which matter would forever remain in a state of dispersion; it would never acquire the 20 “... the universal cosmic fluid is the primitive elementary matter, whose modifications and transformations comprise the innumerable variety of bodies found in nature... As the universal elementary principle, it offers two distinct states: etherization or imponderability, which may be considered the normal primitive state, and materialization or ponderability, which is in a certain way only consecutive to the former. The intermediary point is the transormation of the fluid into tangible matter. However, even then there is not a brusque transition, because our imponderable fluids may be regarded as a halfway phase between the two states We have stated that it is capable of countless combinations. What you call the electric and magnetic fluids are both modifications of the one universal fluid. Properly speaking, this fluid is a perfect and subtler matter that may be considered as being independent of matter per se."
  },
  {
    "Id": "27a",
    "Question": "Might this fluid be what we call electricity?",
    "Answer": "We have stated that it is capable of countless combinations. What you call the electric and magnetic fluids are both modifications of the one universal fluid. Properly speaking, this fluid is a perfect and subtler matter that may be considered as being independent of matter per se."
  },
  {
    "Id": "28",
    "Question": "Since spirit is something in and of itself, wouldn’t it be clearer and less subject to confusion to label these two general elements as",
    "Answer": "inert matter intelligent matter Words do not matter much to us. It is up to you to formulate your language in a way that you can understand one another. The disputes among you almost always arise because you cannot agree on the meanings of the words you use. Your language is incomplete regarding things that do not touch your senses."
  },
  {
    "Id": "29",
    "Question": "Is ponderability an essential attribute of matter?",
    "Answer": "Of matter as you understand it, yes, but not of matter considered as the universal fluid. The ethereal and subtle matter that forms this fluid is imponderable to you, and yet it is the very principle of your ponderable21 matter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "30",
    "Question": "Does matter consist of one or many elements?",
    "Answer": "One single primitive element. The bodies you regard as simple are not true elements, but rather transformations of the one primitive matter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "31",
    "Question": "Where do the different properties of matter come from?",
    "Answer": "From the modifications that the elementary molecules undergo as a result of their combining under certain conditions."
  },
  {
    "Id": "32",
    "Question": "Then wouldn’t flavors, odors, colors, sounds – even the poisonous or healing qualities of certain bodies – be no more than modifications of the one and the same primitive substance?",
    "Answer": "Yes, of course; and they only exist due to the disposition of the organs that are meant to perceive them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "33",
    "Question": "Is the same elementary matter capable of undergoing all possible modifications and acquiring all possible properties?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and this is what you should understand when we say that ‘everything is in everything.’ This opinion is correct, but it should also add: according to the arrangement of the molecules; this may be seen, for example, in an opaque body that becomes transparent and vice versa."
  },
  {
    "Id": "34",
    "Question": "Do molecules have a defined form?",
    "Answer": "Certainly, molecules have a form, but you are incapable of discerning it. Constant for the primitive elementary molecules but variable for the secondary ones, which are only aggregations of the former. However, what you term a molecule is still very far from being the elementary molecule."
  },
  {
    "Id": "34a",
    "Question": "Is this form constant or variable?",
    "Answer": "Constant for the primitive elementary molecules but variable for the secondary ones, which are only aggregations of the former. However, what you term a molecule is still very far from being the elementary molecule."
  },
  {
    "Id": "35",
    "Question": "Is universal space infinite or limited? for instance – a specific flavor or even the active qualities of other substances. Since there is but one primitive element, and since the properties of different bodies are but modifications of this one element, it follows that the most innocuous substance has the same underlying principle as the most harmful substance. Thus, water is made up of one part oxygen and two parts hydrogen but becomes corrosive if the proportion of oxygen is doubled. An analogous transformation may be produced through magnetic action directed by the human will. – Auth.",
    "Answer": "Infinite. If it had limits, what would be beyond them? I know this baffles your reason, yet reason itself tells you that it can be no other way. The same is true of the idea of the infinite – you will never be able to comprehend it from your tiny sphere of thinking."
  },
  {
    "Id": "35a",
    "Question": "Auth.",
    "Answer": "Infinite. If it had limits, what would be beyond them? I know this baffles your reason, yet reason itself tells you that it can be no other way. The same is true of the idea of the infinite – you will never be able to comprehend it from your tiny sphere of thinking."
  },
  {
    "Id": "36",
    "Question": "Is there an absolute void in any part of universal space?",
    "Answer": "No, there is no void. What appears to you to be a void is actually occupied by matter that cannot be detected by your senses or instruments."
  },
  {
    "Id": "37",
    "Question": "Was the universe created or has it existed from all eternity like God?",
    "Answer": "Obviously, the universe did not create itself, and if it has existed from all eternity like God, then it could not be God’s work. We call fluids those states in which matter is even more refined than it is in the gaseous state."
  },
  {
    "Id": "38",
    "Question": "How did God create the universe?",
    "Answer": "To borrow a well-known expression: by the divine will. Nothing can better portray that all-powerful will than those grand words from Genesis: ‘God said, ‘Let there be light, and there was light.’"
  },
  {
    "Id": "39",
    "Question": "Can we know about the way in which worlds are formed?",
    "Answer": "All that we can say and the only thing you can comprehend is that worlds are formed by the condensation of the matter scattered throughout space."
  },
  {
    "Id": "40",
    "Question": "In accordance with current beliefs, are comets a commencement of the condensation of matter and worlds in course of formation?",
    "Answer": "That is correct, but it is absurd to believe in their influence; I mean the influence commonly attributed to them, for all the celestial bodies play their part in influencing certain physical phenomena."
  },
  {
    "Id": "41",
    "Question": "Could a completely formed world disappear and its compositional matter be once again scattered in space?",
    "Answer": "Yes. God renews worlds just as God renews living beings."
  },
  {
    "Id": "42",
    "Question": "Can we know how long it has taken for worlds to form – the earth, for instance?",
    "Answer": "I cannot tell you anything about that, for only the Creator knows. Anyone who claimed to have such knowledge or to know the ages and ages it took to form them would be very foolish indeed."
  },
  {
    "Id": "43",
    "Question": "When did living beings first appear on the earth?",
    "Answer": "In the beginning, all was chaos; the elements were all jumbled together. Little by little, each thing settled into its proper place. Then, living beings appropriate for that state of the globe appeared."
  },
  {
    "Id": "44",
    "Question": "Where did these living beings come from in order to appear on the earth?",
    "Answer": "The earth already contained their prototypes, which had been waiting for the favorable moment in order to develop. The organic elements began to combine the moment the force that had kept them apart ceased, thereby forming the prototypes of all living beings. These prototypes then remained latent and inert – like a chrysalis or a seed – until the proper time for each species to appear. Then, the beings of each species came together and reproduced."
  },
  {
    "Id": "45",
    "Question": "Where were these organic elements before earth’s formation?",
    "Answer": "They were in a fluidic state (so to speak) in space amongst the spirits or on other planets, waiting for the creation of the earth in order to commence a new existence on that new globe."
  },
  {
    "Id": "46",
    "Question": "Are there still creatures that come into being spontaneously?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but their primitive prototype has always existed in the latent state. You witness this phenomenon all the time. Don’t human and animal tissues contain a multitude of larval prototypes waiting to emerge as soon as the decay needed for their existence begins? It is a microscopic world that slumbers and then awakens."
  },
  {
    "Id": "47",
    "Question": "Was the human species among the organic elements on the terrestrial globe?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and it came forth at just the right time. This is the basis for the statement that humans were formed from the dust of the earth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "48",
    "Question": "Can we know the ages in which humans and other life forms first appeared on the earth?",
    "Answer": "No, all of your calculations are purely speculative."
  },
  {
    "Id": "49",
    "Question": "If the prototype of the human species was among the globe’s organic elements, why don’t human beings continue to appear spontaneously, as they did when they first came into being?",
    "Answer": "The beginning of things remains one of God’s secrets. Nevertheless, we can say that once early humans began to spread out over the earth, they absorbed into themselves the elements needed for their formation in order to pass on these elements according to the laws of reproduction. The same happened with all the other species of living beings."
  },
  {
    "Id": "50",
    "Question": "Did the human species begin with one single man?",
    "Answer": "No, the man known as Adam was neither the first nor the only one to populate the earth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "51",
    "Question": "Can we know when Adam lived?",
    "Answer": "More or less at the time assigned to him – about 4, years B.C."
  },
  {
    "Id": "52",
    "Question": "Where did the physical and moral differences that distinguish the earth’s various races come from?",
    "Answer": "From climate, lifestyle and custom. The same would happen if two siblings from the same mother were each raised differently and far apart: they would show no moral resemblance to each other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "53",
    "Question": "Did humankind first appear at various points on the globe?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but at different periods, which is another cause of human race diversity. Later, humankind spread throughout the different climactic zones and new types arose in the course of interbreeding between different races. – Do these different races imply distinct species? “Certainly not. All are of the same family. Do the different varieties of the same fruit mean that they do not all belong to the same species?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "54",
    "Question": "Since the various human types have not all come from the same ancestor, mightn’t they cease to regard one another as brothers and sisters?",
    "Answer": "All are brothers and sisters in God because they are animated by the same spirit and strive towards the same goal. You always want to take words literally."
  },
  {
    "Id": "55",
    "Question": "Are all the globes spinning through space inhabited?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and contrary to what earthlings believe, they themselves are far from being first in intelligence, goodness and perfection. Nevertheless, there are individuals who think they know the whole truth of the matter and imagine that this little planet is the only one privileged enough to be inhabited by reasoning beings. Pride and vanity! They fancy that God has created the universe only for earthlings."
  },
  {
    "Id": "56",
    "Question": "Is the physical composition of all the different globes the same?",
    "Answer": "No, they do not resemble one another at all."
  },
  {
    "Id": "57",
    "Question": "Since the physical composition of all the various worlds is not the same, do the beings inhabiting them have a different physical organization?",
    "Answer": "Of course, just as on yours fish are made for living in the water and birds for living in the air."
  },
  {
    "Id": "58",
    "Question": "Do the worlds farthest from the sun lack light and heat since the sun would appear only as a distant star to them?",
    "Answer": "Do you believe that the sun is the only source of light and heat? What about electricity? On some worlds, electricity plays a role unknown to you, which is much more important than the role it plays on earth. Besides, we have never said that all beings are made of the same matter as you, with organs similar to yours."
  },
  {
    "Id": "59",
    "Question": "Cultures have held widely differing ideas about creation, according to their degree of understanding. With the support of science, reason has recognized the improbability of some of these theories. However, the one given by the Spirits confirms the opinion long acknowledged by more enlightened individuals. The objection to such a theory is that it seems to contradict the sacred texts, but a serious examination will lead to the realization that this contradiction is more apparent than real and that it results from the way an allegorical meaning is interpreted. The issue of the first man, personified in Adam, as being the exclusive progenitor of humankind, is not the only religious belief that has had to be modified. At one time, the movement of the earth around the sun appeared so contrary to the Scriptures that all kinds of persecutions were carried out under such a pretext. Nevertheless, the earth continued to move despite the anathemas and no one today would dispute it without insulting reason itself. The Bible also tells us that the world was created in six days and it establishes the time of its creation at about 4, years before the Christian era. Before then, the earth did not exist at all – it was created out of nothing. It is a solemn text, yet physical science, inexorable science, has proven the contrary. Earth’s formation is indelibly written in the fossil record, and it has been proven that the six days of creation represent successive periods, each lasting perhaps many hundreds of thousands of years. This is not a theory, a doctrine or an isolated opinion. It is a fact as solid as is the movement of the earth around the sun, a fact that theology can no longer refuse to accept, and it demonstrates the error that one can fall into by attributing literal truth to often-figurative language. Should we thus conclude that the Bible is in error? No, rather, people err in the way they interpret it. In excavating earth’s archives, science has discovered the order in which different living beings have appeared on its surface, and this order is in agreement with the one indicated in Genesis. The difference, however, is that instead of having issued miraculously from the hand of God in only a few hours, the work of creation did indeed occur according to God’s will, but through the laws of natural forces over millions of years. But does that make God any less great and powerful? Is the sublimity of God’s work lost because it did not appear instantaneously? Of course not. We would have to have a petty idea about the Divinity not to recognize the divine omnipotence in the eternal laws established to govern the world. Far from diminishing the divine work, science shows it to us under a more magnificent aspect that better conforms to our notions of God’s power and majesty precisely because the work was done without disregard for the laws of nature. Science places humankind last in the order of the creation of living beings and is in tandem with the Mosaic record on this point. However, that record puts the universal flood at 1, years after the earth’s creation, whereas geology shows us that this great cataclysm occurred before humankind even appeared. So far, no traces have been found in the primitive layers that would attest to the presence of humans or of animals which, from a physical standpoint at least, would be of the same category. However, nothing has actually proven this to be impossible. Since many discoveries have already raised questions about this issue, it is possible that at any moment the material certainty of the anteriority of the human race may come to light. In that case, as well as in others, the Biblical text would be shown to portray an allegory. The actual issue lies in determining whether or not the geological cataclysm was the same one as that of the Noah story. We know that the time needed to form the fossil layers does not allow any confusion; therefore, as soon as any vestiges of human existence prior to the great catastrophe are found, it will be proven either that Adam was not the first man, or that his creation has been lost in the night of time. There is no arguing against fact, and it would have to be accepted in the same way as the movement of the earth and the six days of creation. The existence of the human race prior to the geological flood is no doubt still hypothetical, but consider the following: Affirming that humans first appeared upon the earth 4, years B.C., and if all of them except for a single family were wiped out 1, years later, then the entire current population of the earth must have originated from the time of Noah, i.e., 2, years B.C. However, when the Hebrews migrated to Egypt in the eighteenth century B.C., they found a densely populated and highly civilized land. History also shows that at the same time India and many other lands were flourishing as well, and this fact does not take into account the chronological tables of certain cultures that go back even farther. Thus, it would have been necessary for the descendants of a single individual’s family to have populated, from the twenty-fourth to the eighteenth century, i.e. years, all the vast regions that had been known about at the time (supposing that others had not been populated). It would also have been necessary for the human race during this brief period to have evolved from its primitive state of total ignorance to the highest degree of intellectual development. Both suppositions are in contradiction to all anthropological laws. Human race diversity supports this contradiction. Climate and customs undoubtedly produce modifications in physical characteristics, but these modifications can only be carried so far, and physiological examinations prove the existence among some races of constitutional differences more profound than could be produced by climate alone. The crossing of races produces intermediary types and tends to erase extreme characteristics. It does not produce these characteristics, however; it only creates varieties. Thus, for the crossing of races to have occurred, it would be necessary for there to have been distinct races in the first place. But how could there have been distinct races if they all came from one ancestor and especially in such a short time? How could anyone believe that in only a few centuries a few descendants of Noah had been transformed to the point of producing the Ethiopian race, for example? Such a metamorphosis would be as unlikely as the theory of a common origin for wolves and sheep, aphids and elephants or birds and fish. Once more, nothing can prevail against the factual evidence. On the other hand, everything can be explained if we admit that humans existed prior to the time commonly assigned to their appearance; that their origins were diverse; that Adam, who lived 6, years ago, populated an uninhabited region; that",
    "Answer": "Noah’s flood"
  },
  {
    "Id": "60",
    "Question": "Does one and the same force unite the material elements in both organic and inorganic bodies?",
    "Answer": "Yes, the law of attraction, which is the same for all."
  },
  {
    "Id": "61",
    "Question": "Is there any difference between the matter of organic and inorganic bodies?",
    "Answer": "It is always the same matter, but in organic bodies it is animalized. … the motive force of organic bodies"
  },
  {
    "Id": "61a",
    "Question": "question 67, Kardec defines this term as",
    "Answer": "… the motive force of organic bodies"
  },
  {
    "Id": "62",
    "Question": "What is the cause of the animalization of matter?",
    "Answer": "Its union with the vital principle."
  },
  {
    "Id": "63",
    "Question": "Does this vital principle reside within some particular agent or is it merely a property of organized matter; in other words, is it a cause or an effect?",
    "Answer": "It is both. Life is an effect produced by the action of this agent upon matter. However, without matter the agent is not life, just as matter cannot be alive without the agent. It gives life to all beings that absorb and assimilate it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "64",
    "Question": "We have seen that spirit and matter are two elements comprising the universe. Does the vital principle form a third?",
    "Answer": "It is certainly one of the elements required in the composition of the universe, but it has its origin in the modifications of the one universal matter. You may regard it as an element like oxygen or hydrogen, but even these are not truly primitive elements, because they both derive from one and the same principle. That follows from what we have just stated."
  },
  {
    "Id": "65",
    "Question": "Does the vital principle reside in any one of the bodies known to us?",
    "Answer": "Its source is in the universal fluid; it is what you call the magnetic fluid or the animalized electric fluid – an intermediary; the link between spirit and matter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "66",
    "Question": "Is the vital principle the same for all organic beings?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but it is modified according to each species. It is this principle that enables all species to move and act. It also distinguishes them from inert matter because the movement of matter per se is not life. Matter is moved; it does not produce movement by itself."
  },
  {
    "Id": "67",
    "Question": "Is vitality a permanent attribute of the vital agent, or does it only develop through the functioning of the organs?",
    "Answer": "It develops only as the body develops. Haven’t we already stated that without matter this agent is not life per se? The union of the two is necessary to produce life. Yes, that is the case."
  },
  {
    "Id": "68",
    "Question": "What causes the death of organic beings?",
    "Answer": "Their organs wear out. Yes. If the machine has been badly assembled, it breaks down; likewise, if the body becomes diseased, life leaves it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "69",
    "Question": "Why does a lesion in the heart seem to cause death more often than one in any other organ?",
    "Answer": "The heart is a life-producing machine. Nevertheless, it is not the only organ in which a lesion causes death; it is only one of the body’s essential parts."
  },
  {
    "Id": "70",
    "Question": "What happens to the matter and the vital principle of organic beings after death?",
    "Answer": "The inert matter decomposes and is used to form other beings; the vital principle returns to the vital mass. The ethereal fluid spread throughout the physical body is like a telegraph that transmits sensation to the sensitive center, which is the spirit. The nerves are the conducting wires for this fluid, whose course, however, can be interrupted by an agent that isolates it from the brain. The vital fluid, also called the vital principle, is a modified form of the universal cosmic fluid. It is the basic element of life. Life here is considered in the meaning attributed by science, which is characterized by… birth, growth, reproduction and death."
  },
  {
    "Id": "71",
    "Question": "Is intelligence an attribute of the vital principle?",
    "Answer": "No. Plants are alive but they do not think – they only have organic life. Intelligence and matter are independent of each other; a body may be alive yet lack intelligence, but intelligence can only be expressed through material organs. Only the union with spirit endows animalized matter with intelligence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "72",
    "Question": "What is the source of intelligence?",
    "Answer": "We have already said: the universal intelligence. That is only an imprecise comparison because intelligence is a faculty proper to each being and comprises its mental individuality. Besides, you already know that there are matters that humans are not allowed to comprehend; this is one of them – for now."
  },
  {
    "Id": "73",
    "Question": "Is instinct something other than intelligence?",
    "Answer": "Not exactly; it is a type of intelligence. Instinct is nonreasoning intelligence, through which all beings provide for their own needs."
  },
  {
    "Id": "74",
    "Question": "Can we draw a line between instinct and intelligence; i.e. can we determine when one ends and the other begins?",
    "Answer": "No, for they frequently commingle. However, we can very well distinguish the actions belonging to instinct from those belonging to intelligence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "75",
    "Question": "Is it correct to say that the instinctive faculties decrease as the intellectual faculties increase?",
    "Answer": "No, instinct is always present, but humans neglect it. Instinct can lead us to the good; it almost always guides us – sometimes more surely than our reason. It never errs. It would be if it were not distorted by pride, selfishness and faulty education. Instinct does not reason, whereas reason calls for choice and endows humans with free will."
  },
  {
    "Id": "75a",
    "Question": "Why isn’t reason always an infallible guide?",
    "Answer": "It would be if it were not distorted by pride, selfishness and faulty education. Instinct does not reason, whereas reason calls for choice and endows humans with free will."
  },
  {
    "Id": "76",
    "Question": "How may we define spirits?",
    "Answer": "We can say that spirits are the intelligent beings of creation. They populate the universe beyond the material world."
  },
  {
    "Id": "77",
    "Question": "Are spirits beings distinct from the Divinity or are they only emanations or portions of the Divinity – the reason why they are called the children of God?",
    "Answer": "Good gracious! Of course they are God’s work. It is like a man who builds a machine, for example; the machine is the man’s work but it is not the man himself. You know that when individuals make nice and useful things they call them their children, their creation. Well then, it is the same with God. We are God’s children because we are products of the divine work."
  },
  {
    "Id": "78",
    "Question": "Did spirits have a beginning or have they existed from all eternity like God?",
    "Answer": "If spirits had no beginning, they would be equal to God; on the contrary, they are God’s creation and subject to the divine will. God has existed from all eternity – that is incontestable – but we know nothing as to when and how we spirits were created. You could say that we had no beginning if you mean that since God is eternal, then God must have always and unceasingly created spirits. Nevertheless, when and how each of us was created individually, I will repeat: no one knows. It is a mystery."
  },
  {
    "Id": "79",
    "Question": "Since there are two general elements in the universe, i.e. the intelligent element and the material element, could we say that spirits are formed from the intelligent element, while inert bodies are formed from the material element?",
    "Answer": "Obviously. Spirits are individualizations of the intelligent principle, just as bodies are individualizations of the material principle. It is the time and manner of this formation that we do not know."
  },
  {
    "Id": "80",
    "Question": "Is the creation of spirits continuous or did it only occur at the beginning of time?",
    "Answer": "It is continuous, which means that God has never ceased creating them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "81",
    "Question": "Are spirits formed spontaneously or do they proceed from one another?",
    "Answer": "Like all other creatures, God creates them by the divine will; but let me repeat once more: their origin is a mystery."
  },
  {
    "Id": "82",
    "Question": "Is it correct to say that spirits are immaterial?",
    "Answer": "How can we define something when we have no terms for comparison, and when we only have an insufficient language at our disposal? Can one who is born blind define light? ‘Immaterial’ is not the right word; ‘incorporeal’ would be more precise, because you should understand that, since it is a creation, a spirit must be something. A spirit is quintessentialized matter27; thus, you have no analogies for describing it. It is also so etherealized that your senses cannot perceive it. matter. blind"
  },
  {
    "Id": "83",
    "Question": "Do spirits have an end? We can understand that the principle from which they emanate is eternal, but what we are asking is whether or not their own individuality will come to an end and whether or not, like material bodies, at some given time in the near or distant future the element from which they have been formed will disintegrate and return to the mass from which it came. It is difficult to understand how something that had a beginning would not also have an end.",
    "Answer": "There are many things that you do not understand because your intelligence is limited, but that is no reason to reject them. A child does not understand everything that its parents understand, nor does an uneducated person understand all that a scholar understands. We are saying that spirits’ individual existences never come to an end – that is all that we can say for now."
  },
  {
    "Id": "84",
    "Question": "Do spirits comprise a separate world beyond the one we see?",
    "Answer": "Yes, the world of spirits or incorporeal intelligences."
  },
  {
    "Id": "85",
    "Question": "Which of the two, the spirit world or the corporeal one, is the principal one in the order of things?",
    "Answer": "The spirit world; it is preexistent to and will survive everything else."
  },
  {
    "Id": "86",
    "Question": "Could the corporeal world cease to exist, or might it never have existed in the first place, without altering the essence of the spirit world?",
    "Answer": "Yes, they are independent of each other, yet their correlation is unceasing because they continually react upon each other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "87",
    "Question": "Do spirits occupy a specific circumscribed region of space?",
    "Answer": "Spirits are everywhere. They populate infinite space in infinite numbers. There are even some who are constantly at your side, observing and acting upon you without your being aware of it. This is because spirits are one of the powers of nature and one of the instruments that God uses for fulfilling the providential designs. However, not all spirits can go everywhere because there are regions that are forbidden to those who are less advanced. The Form and Ubiquity of Spirits"
  },
  {
    "Id": "88",
    "Question": "Do spirits have a specific, limited and constant form?",
    "Answer": "To your eyes, no; to ours, yes. You might say they resemble a flame, a glow or an ethereal spark. To you, it varies from the color of a dark ruby to a brilliant one, depending on the degree of the individual spirit’s purity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "88a",
    "Question": "Does this flame or spark have a color?",
    "Answer": "To you, it varies from the color of a dark ruby to a brilliant one, depending on the degree of the individual spirit’s purity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "89",
    "Question": "Do spirits take any amount of time to travel across space?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but they are as fast as thought itself. When the thought is in a place, the soul is there too, since it is the soul that does the thinking. Thought is one of its attributes."
  },
  {
    "Id": "89a",
    "Question": "Isn’t thought the soul itself moving from one place to another?",
    "Answer": "When the thought is in a place, the soul is there too, since it is the soul that does the thinking. Thought is one of its attributes."
  },
  {
    "Id": "90",
    "Question": "Is a spirit who moves from one place to another conscious of the distance it travels and the space it crosses, or is it suddenly at the place to which it wanted to go?",
    "Answer": "Either way. If it wants to, a spirit can be perfectly aware of the distance it crosses, or such distance may seem to disappear completely. It all depends on the spirit’s will and the degree to which its nature is purified."
  },
  {
    "Id": "91",
    "Question": "Is matter an obstacle to spirits?",
    "Answer": "No, they can pass through anything: the air, the earth, water, and even fire are all equally accessible to them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "92",
    "Question": "Do spirits have the gift of ubiquity? In other words, can one and the same spirit divide itself up or be at various points all at the same time?",
    "Answer": "A spirit cannot be divided up; however, each is a center radiating in different directions and that is why it appears to be in many places all at the same time. Look at the sun. The sun is only one body, yet it radiates all around and sends its rays to great distances; nevertheless, it does not divide itself up. Far from it; it depends on their degree of purity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "92a",
    "Question": "Do all spirits radiate with the same power?",
    "Answer": "Far from it; it depends on their degree of purity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "93",
    "Question": "Is the spirit per se without a covering, or as some insist, is it surrounded by some kind of substance?",
    "Answer": "The spirit is surrounded by a substance that might look vaporous to you but which is still quite dense to us. Nevertheless, it is sufficiently vaporous to be able to raise itself up into the air and travel to wherever it wants to go."
  },
  {
    "Id": "94",
    "Question": "Where does a spirit get this semi-material envelope?",
    "Answer": "From each globe’s own universal fluid. That is why the perispirit is not the same on all worlds. In passing from one world to another, spirits change their envelope just as you change your clothes. They must clothe themselves with your matter, as we have already said."
  },
  {
    "Id": "94a",
    "Question": "material envelope?",
    "Answer": "From each globe’s own universal fluid. That is why the perispirit is not the same on all worlds. In passing from one world to another, spirits change their envelope just as you change your clothes."
  },
  {
    "Id": "95",
    "Question": "Does the spirit’s semi-material envelope have a specific form, and can it be seen?",
    "Answer": "Yes, a form according to the spirit’s volition, and that is how it sometimes appears to you in dreams or in the waking state and how it may take on a visible or even tangible form."
  },
  {
    "Id": "96",
    "Question": "Are all spirits equal or is there some kind of hierarchy among them?",
    "Answer": "They are of different orders, according to their individual degree of self-purification."
  },
  {
    "Id": "97",
    "Question": "Are there a set number of orders or degrees of purification among spirits?",
    "Answer": "The number is unlimited because there is no line of demarcation that acts as a barrier between each order; thus, the divisions may be multiplied or decreased at will. However, if we consider their general characteristics, we may reduce them to three principal orders. “In the first order we may put those who have already reached perfection: the pure spirits. In the second are those who have reached the middle of the scale: their main concern is the desire to do the good. In the third are those who are toward the bottom of the scale: the imperfect spirits. These are characterized by ignorance, the desire for evil28 and all the passions that delay their advancement. evil"
  },
  {
    "Id": "98",
    "Question": "Do the spirits of the second order only possess the desire to do the good29 or do they also have the ability to do it?",
    "Answer": "Their ability depends on their degree of purification: some possess scientific knowledge; others, wisdom and goodness. All of them, however, have trials that they must yet endure."
  },
  {
    "Id": "99",
    "Question": "Are all spirits of the third order altogether evil?",
    "Answer": "No, some do neither good nor evil; others, however, take pleasure in evil and are pleased when they find an opportunity for it. Still others are frivolous or foolish spirits, more mischievous than wicked. These take more pleasure in spite than evil, and they also take pleasure in amusing themselves by vexing people and causing them petty annoyances."
  },
  {
    "Id": "100",
    "Question": "PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS. – The classification of spirits is based on their degree of development, the qualities they have acquired, and the imperfections from which they have not yet freed themselves. This classification is by no means absolute; no single category displays a well-defined characteristic except as a group. The transition is hardly noticeable from one degree to the next. The gradations blend together at their borders, much like what occurs in the kingdoms of nature, in the colors of the rainbow or even in the different phases of human life. Thus, we may form a larger or smaller number of classes, depending on how we consider the subject. Such is the case with all systems of scientific classification. Such systems may entail various what is good conforms to God’s law, while doing evil infringes upon it.” – Tr.",
    "Answer": "The good"
  },
  {
    "Id": "102",
    "Question": "Tenth class. IMPURE SPIRITS. These are inclined toward evil and make it the object of all their preoccupations. As spirits, they give unscrupulous advice, incite discord and distrust, and use all sorts of disguises in order to deceive more effectively. They associate with individuals whose character is sufficiently weak to make them yield to their suggestions and be led into misfortune, and they are pleased at being able to retard these individuals’ progress by causing them to succumb in the trials they must undergo. In their manifestations, these spirits may be recognized by their language: trivialness and coarseness of expression among spirits, as among humans, is always indicative of moral, if not intellectual, inferiority. Their communications reveal the baseness of their inclinations, and if they try to fool us by speaking sensibly, they are unable to maintain the ruse for very long and always end up betraying their origin. Certain cultures have transformed them into malevolent deities, while others have designated them as demons or evil spirits. During incarnation, they are inclined toward all the vices that are engendered by vile and degrading passions: sensuality31, cruelty, deceit, hypocrisy, covetousness and 31 Noun form of the adjective sensual:",
    "Answer": "Arousing or preoccupied with gratification of the sordid greed. They do evil for the pure pleasure of it, most often without reason. Out of hatred for the good, they almost always choose their victims from among honest people. They are the true scourges of humanity no matter what position they occupy, and no veneer of civility can ever cover their dishonor and ignominy."
  },
  {
    "Id": "114",
    "Question": "Are spirits good or evil by nature, or may they seek to improve themselves?",
    "Answer": "They may improve themselves, and as they do so they pass from a lower order to a higher one."
  },
  {
    "Id": "115",
    "Question": "Have some spirits been created good and others evil?",
    "Answer": "God has created all spirits simple and ignorant, i.e., without knowledge. God has given each of them a mission. It is aimed at enlightening them and progressively leading them toward perfection through knowledge of the truth in order to draw them near to God. In that perfection, they will find eternal bliss without any troubles. Spirits acquire knowledge by experiencing the trials that God has imposed on them. Some humbly accept these trials and thus arrive more quickly at their destiny, whereas others cannot endure them without complaining; thus, through their own fault these latter ones remain far from the perfection and bliss promised to them. Yes, that is an accurate comparison. How much children improve depends on their behavior – rebellious children remain ignorant and imperfect. However, human life has an ending, whereas that of spirits extends to infinity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "116",
    "Question": "Are there spirits who remain forever in the lower orders?",
    "Answer": "No, all will become perfect. They change, albeit slowly, for as we once said, a just and merciful father cannot banish his children forever. Do you think that God, who is so great, so good and so just, could be worse than you yourselves?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "117",
    "Question": "Does it depend on spirits themselves to hasten their advancement toward perfection?",
    "Answer": "Absolutely. The amount of time it takes them depends on their desire and submission to God’s will. Doesn’t a wellbehaved child learn faster than one who is obstinate?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "118",
    "Question": "Can spirits regress?",
    "Answer": "No. As they progress, they gain an understanding of what is holding them back from perfection. When a spirit finishes a particular trial, it never forgets the knowledge it acquired. A spirit may remain stationary, but it never regresses."
  },
  {
    "Id": "119",
    "Question": "Could God exempt spirits from the trials that are required of them to reach the first order?",
    "Answer": "If they had been created already perfect, they would not deserve to enjoy the benefits of that perfection. Where would the merit be without the struggle? Besides, inequality among them is necessary for their personalities to develop, while the missions entrusted to them in the various degrees of the hierarchy reside in the designs of Providence for ensuring the harmony of the universe."
  },
  {
    "Id": "120",
    "Question": "Must all spirits pass through the trial of evil to reach the good?",
    "Answer": "Not evil, but ignorance."
  },
  {
    "Id": "121",
    "Question": "Why have some spirits followed the path of the good, but others the path of evil?",
    "Answer": "Don’t they have free will? God does not create any spirits evil from the start; they are created simple and ignorant, that is, capable of both good and evil. Those who are evil have become so through their own will."
  },
  {
    "Id": "122",
    "Question": "At their origin, how are spirits free to choose between good and evil when they are not yet self-aware? Is there some inner principle or tendency that leads them more toward one side than the other?",
    "Answer": "Free will develops as the spirit acquires self-awareness. There would be no actual choice if it were made by a cause extraneous to the spirit’s will. The cause is not within the spirit, but outside, in the influences to which it yields in virtue of its free will. This is the great symbol of the fall of humankind and original sin: some yielded to temptation; others resisted it. From the imperfect spirits who seek to involve and dominate them, and who delight in making them succumb. This is what is represented in the allegory of Satan. It follows the spirit over the course of its existence until it has acquired so much self-control that evil spirits do not bother it any longer."
  },
  {
    "Id": "122a",
    "Question": "Where do the influences that act upon spirits come from?",
    "Answer": "From the imperfect spirits who seek to involve and dominate them, and who delight in making them succumb. This is what is represented in the allegory of Satan."
  },
  {
    "Id": "123",
    "Question": "Why does God allow spirits to follow the path of evil?",
    "Answer": "How do you dare ask God to give account for the divine acts? Do you think you can delve into God’s will? Instead, you should say that God’s wisdom is found in the freedom of choice that has been granted to each spirit so that each one may have the merit of its own deeds."
  },
  {
    "Id": "124",
    "Question": "There are spirits who follow the path of the absolute good from the beginning, while others follow the path of absolute evil. Aren’t there gradations between these two extremes?",
    "Answer": "Yes, certainly; they are the paths of the vast majority."
  },
  {
    "Id": "125",
    "Question": "Will those spirits who follow the path of evil be able to arrive at the same degree of elevation as the others?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but the eternities will be much longer for them. eternities"
  },
  {
    "Id": "126",
    "Question": "In God’s sight, are the spirits who reach the highest degree after having passed through evil less meritorious than the others?",
    "Answer": "God looks upon those who have gone astray with the same regard and loves all of them in the same way. They are called evil because they have succumbed; before that, they were nothing more than simple spirits."
  },
  {
    "Id": "127",
    "Question": "Are all spirits created equal with regards to their intellectual faculties?",
    "Answer": "They are all created equal, but since they do not know where they come from, they must develop their free will. They progress in both intelligence and morality at different rates."
  },
  {
    "Id": "128",
    "Question": "Do the beings we call angels, archangels and seraphim form a special category that is different in nature from that of the other spirits?",
    "Answer": "No, these are the pure spirits: those at the highest degree of the hierarchy and inwardly perfect in every way."
  },
  {
    "Id": "129",
    "Question": "Have the angels also passed up through all of the degrees?",
    "Answer": "They have passed up through all of them, but as we have already said: some accepted their mission without grumbling, and thus were able to arrive more quickly; others took a longer or shorter amount of time to reach perfection."
  },
  {
    "Id": "130",
    "Question": "If the opinion holding that there are beings that were created perfect and superior to all others from the start is erroneous, how does one explain their presence in the traditions of nearly all cultures?",
    "Answer": "You need to understand that your world has not existed from all eternity, and that long before it existed there were already spirits of the highest degree; hence, people assume they have always been perfect."
  },
  {
    "Id": "131",
    "Question": "Are there demons in the usual sense of the word?",
    "Answer": "If there were demons, they would nevertheless be the work of God. But would God be just and good in creating unfortunate beings that are eternally turned towards evil? If there are demons, they reside on your less evolved world and on other similar ones: they are the hypocritical men and women who portray a just God as an evil and vindictive one. They are those who imagine they can please God by the abominable behaviors they commit in the divine name. Immediately after those days of affliction, the sun shall be darkened; the moon shall not give its light; the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. Verily I say unto you, this 32 In the book Heaven and Hell, pt. 1, chap IX, Kardec deals at length with the Church’s traditional view that the demons and Satan were formerly a group of angels of light who subsequently rebelIed against God, fell from grace and turned to evil. Here, the author is simply concerned with presenting a brief sketch of the Spiritist view of what demons in fact are. – Tr. generation shall not pass away before all these things are fulfilled."
  },
  {
    "Id": "132",
    "Question": "What is the purpose of the incarnation of spirits?",
    "Answer": "God imposes incarnation for the purpose of leading spirits to perfection: for some, it is an expiation; for others, a mission. However, in order to reach this perfection, they must undergo all the vicissitudes of corporeal existence – therein lies their expiation. Incarnation has a further objective, which is to place spirits in situations where they can do their share in the work of creation. On each world, they clothe themselves with an instrument that is in harmony with the essential matter of that world so that they may use that instrument to carry out the orders of God. In this way, they contribute to the general work and progress at the same time."
  },
  {
    "Id": "133",
    "Question": "Is incarnation necessary for spirits who have followed the path of the good from the beginning?",
    "Answer": "All are created simple and ignorant, gaining instruction through the struggles and tribulations of corporeal life. Since God is just, God would not make some blissful without their having deserved it through hardship and work. They reach the goal more quickly. Moreover, the hardships of life are often consequences of a spirit’s imperfections; the more purified it becomes, the fewer torments it will have to suffer. Spirits who are not envious, jealous, greedy or ambitious will not have to endure the torments that result from such defects."
  },
  {
    "Id": "134",
    "Question": "What is the soul?",
    "Answer": "An incarnate spirit. A spirit. Yes, souls are no more than spirits. Before uniting with a body, the soul is one of the intelligent beings who populate the invisible world, and it later temporarily assumes a physical envelope in order to purify and enlighten itself."
  },
  {
    "Id": "134a",
    "Question": "What was the soul before its union with a body?",
    "Answer": "A spirit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "134b",
    "Question": "Are souls and spirits therefore one and the same thing?",
    "Answer": "Yes, souls are no more than spirits. Before uniting with a body, the soul is one of the intelligent beings who populate the invisible world, and it later temporarily assumes a physical envelope in order to purify and enlighten itself."
  },
  {
    "Id": "135",
    "Question": "Do human beings possess something else besides a soul and body?",
    "Answer": "The link that unites the soul and the body. It is semi-material, i.e., half-way between the nature of the spirit and that of the body; these two natures need it in order to communicate with each other. It is through this link that the spirit acts upon matter, and vice-versa."
  },
  {
    "Id": "135a",
    "Question": "What is the nature of this link?",
    "Answer": "It is semi-material, i.e., half-way between the nature of the spirit and that of the body; these two natures need it in order to communicate with each other. It is through this link that the spirit acts upon matter, and vice-versa."
  },
  {
    "Id": "136",
    "Question": "Is the soul independent of the vital principle?",
    "Answer": "The body itself is no more than an envelope, as we have repeatedly stated. Yes. Nevertheless, when the body dies, the soul abandons it. Previous to birth, there is no decisive union between the soul and body. After this union is established, however, only the death of the body can cut the bonds between the two, enabling the soul to leave. Organic life may animate a body that has no soul, but the soul cannot inhabit a body that has no organic life. A mass of flesh without intelligence; anything you might want to call it except a human being."
  },
  {
    "Id": "136a",
    "Question": "Can the body exist without the soul?",
    "Answer": "Yes. Nevertheless, when the body dies, the soul abandons it. Previous to birth, there is no decisive union between the soul and body. After this union is established, however, only the death of the body can cut the bonds between the two, enabling the soul to leave. Organic life may animate a body that has no soul, but the soul cannot inhabit a body that has no organic life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "136b",
    "Question": "What would our body be if it did not have a soul?",
    "Answer": "A mass of flesh without intelligence; anything you might want to call it except a human being."
  },
  {
    "Id": "137",
    "Question": "Can the same spirit incarnate into two different bodies at the same time?",
    "Answer": "No. The spirit is indivisible and cannot animate two different beings at the same time."
  },
  {
    "Id": "138",
    "Question": "What about the opinion of those who regard the soul as being the principle of material life?",
    "Answer": "It doesn’t concern us since it is only a matter of words. Start by trying to understand each other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "139",
    "Question": "But certain spirits, and certain philosophers before them, have defined the soul as being an animic spark that has emanated from the Great Whole. Why the contradiction?",
    "Answer": "There is no contradiction; everything depends on the meaning of the words. Why don’t you have one word for each thing?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "140",
    "Question": "What about the theory that the soul is subdivided into as many parts as there are muscles, thus presiding over each of the body’s functions?",
    "Answer": "That will also depend on the meaning attributed to the word soul. This definition is correct if by it we mean the vital fluid, but it is incorrect if we mean the incarnate spirit. We have already stated that the spirit is indivisible: it transmits movement to the organs through the intermediary fluid without dividing itself up. Ignorant spirits may take the effect for the cause."
  },
  {
    "Id": "140a",
    "Question": "Nevertheless, there are spirits who have given this definition.",
    "Answer": "Ignorant spirits may take the effect for the cause."
  },
  {
    "Id": "141",
    "Question": "Is there anything correct in the opinion of those who think the soul is outside the body and surrounds it?",
    "Answer": "The soul is not enclosed in the body like a caged bird. Rather, it radiates and manifests outside of it like a light shining from a glass globe or a sound vibrating out from a sonorous center. So, in a certain sense it may be said that it is outside the body; it is not an envelope of the body, however. The soul has two envelopes: the first is light and subtle, which we call the perispirit; the other is dense, material and heavy, which is the body. The soul is the center of these two envelopes like a nut in its shell, as we have already said."
  },
  {
    "Id": "142",
    "Question": "What about another theory holding that a child’s soul continues to complete itself during each stage of life?",
    "Answer": "The spirit is only one: as whole in the child as it is in the adult. As instruments of the soul’s manifestation, only the bodily organs develop and complete themselves. This is one more theory that takes the effect for the cause."
  },
  {
    "Id": "143",
    "Question": "Why don’t all spirits define the soul in the same way?",
    "Answer": "Not all spirits are equally enlightened regarding these matters. There are spirits who are still limited, who do not comprehend abstract ideas; they are like the children living among you. There are also pseudo-learned spirits who make a big show of words in order to assert themselves – another similarity to your society. Furthermore, even enlightened spirits may express themselves in different terms that have the same meaning, especially regarding matters that your language is incapable of clarifying; hence the need for the allegories and comparisons that you unfortunately take literally."
  },
  {
    "Id": "144",
    "Question": "Then what is to be understood by the world soul?",
    "Answer": "The world soul is the universal principle of life and intelligence from which individualities are born, but frequently those who use this expression do not understand it. The word soul is so flexible that everyone interprets it according to their own imaginings. At times, it has even been held that the earth itself has a soul, but by this we must understand it to mean the assembly of devoted spirits who direct your actions in the right direction when you listen to them, and who are, in a way, the lieutenants of God on your globe."
  },
  {
    "Id": "145",
    "Question": "Why have so many ancient and modern philosophers discussed psychological science for so long without arriving at the truth?",
    "Answer": "These individuals were the precursors of the eternal Spiritist Doctrine and have prepared the way for it. Being human and therefore subject to error, they have mistaken their own ideas for the light. These same errors, however, have served to bring the truth to light through the pros The Incarnation of Spirits and cons of their doctrines. By the way, a comparative study would enable you to understand that in the midst of error there is great truth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "146",
    "Question": "Does the soul have a defined and circumscribed seat within the body?",
    "Answer": "No, although it resides more particularly in the head among great geniuses and all those who think much, and in the heart of those who feel much, who dedicate all their actions to humankind. One could say that the spirit more specially inhabits such a part of your organism since all the sensations converge on that point; but to place it in what may be considered as the center of vitality would be to confuse it with the vital fluid or principle. Nevertheless, one could say that the seat of the soul may be more particularly found in the organs that serve for manifesting the intellectual and moral qualities."
  },
  {
    "Id": "147",
    "Question": "Why are anatomists, physiologists and, in general, most of those who delve into the natural sciences frequently led into materialism?",
    "Answer": "Physiologists judge everything by what they see. Because of pride, humans imagine they know everything and cannot admit that something could possibly be beyond their understanding. Their own science thus makes them presumptuous. They think nature can hide nothing from them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "148",
    "Question": "Isn’t it odd that materialism is a consequence of studies that should, on the contrary, show humankind the superiority of the intelligence governing the world? Should we therefore conclude that such studies are dangerous?",
    "Answer": "It is not true that materialism is a consequence of such studies. Rather, it is people who draw a false conclusion from them, for they can abuse even the very best of everything. Moreover, nothingness troubles them more than they would have you believe, and high-minded individuals are almost always more boastful than brave. Most of them are materialists because they have nothing available to fill the void of the abyss that has opened before them. However, throw them a life preserver and they will eagerly grab onto it. That’s it! After me there’s nothing, nothing but nothingness; everything is gone without an appeal. A few days from now and any remembrance of me will be gone from the memory of those surviving me and there will be no trace of my passage on the earth. Even the good I have done will be forgotten by the ingrates I’ve served and there is nothing to compensate me for this, no prospect except my body being devoured by worms! over there"
  },
  {
    "Id": "149",
    "Question": "What does the soul become at death?",
    "Answer": "It becomes a spirit again; i.e. it returns to the world of spirits that it had left for a time."
  },
  {
    "Id": "150",
    "Question": "Does the soul preserve its individuality after death?",
    "Answer": "Yes, it never loses it. What would the soul be if it did not preserve its individuality? It still has a fluid proper to it, which it draws from its planet, and which retains the appearance of its last incarnation: the perispirit. “ – Doesn’t the soul take anything else from this world? “Nothing more than its memories and the desire to go to a better world. These memories are full of sweetness or bitterness, depending on how the soul has lived its earthly life. The purer it is, the more it will comprehend the futility of what it has left behind on earth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "150a",
    "Question": "Doesn’t the soul take anything else from this world?",
    "Answer": "Nothing more than its memories and the desire to go to a better world. These memories are full of sweetness or bitterness, depending on how the soul has lived its earthly life. The purer it is, the more it will comprehend the futility of what it has left behind on earth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "151",
    "Question": "What about the opinion that the soul returns to the universal whole after death?",
    "Answer": "Don’t all the spirits taken together make up a whole? When you are in a group, you are an integral part of it, and yet you still retain your own individuality."
  },
  {
    "Id": "152",
    "Question": "What evidence is there for the soul’s individuality after death?",
    "Answer": "Don’t you have such evidence through the communications you receive? If you were not blind, you would see; if you were not deaf, you would hear, because frequently a voice speaks to you and reveals to you the existence of a being outside yourselves."
  },
  {
    "Id": "153",
    "Question": "In what sense should we understand the eternal life?",
    "Answer": "Only the life of the spirit is eternal; the life of the body is transitory and temporary. When the body dies, the soul returns to the eternal life. That indeed represents eternal happiness, but it is all a matter of words. You may call things whatever you want as long as you understand the words you use."
  },
  {
    "Id": "154",
    "Question": "Is the separation of the soul from the body a painful process?",
    "Answer": "No. Frequently, the body suffers more during life than at the moment of death; the soul itself feels nothing at death. The suffering that is sometimes experienced at the moment of death is pleasure for the spirit, for it sees that the end of its exile is at hand."
  },
  {
    "Id": "155",
    "Question": "How does the separation of the soul from the body occur?",
    "Answer": "Once the bonds that held the soul are ruptured, it disengages itself. No, the soul liberates itself gradually. It does not escape like a captive bird that is suddenly set free. These two states touch and blend with each other; this way the spirit disengages itself little by little from its bonds: they unravel; they do not break."
  },
  {
    "Id": "156",
    "Question": "Can the definitive separation between soul and body occur before the complete cessation of organic life?",
    "Answer": "Sometimes, in the death throes, the soul has already left the body, which has nothing left in it except organic life. The individual no longer has any self-awareness, and yet a faint breath of life still remains. The body is a machine that is kept going by the heart and it continues to live as long as the heart circulates blood in the veins, and for that it does not need the soul."
  },
  {
    "Id": "157",
    "Question": "At the moment of death, does the soul sometimes experience a yearning or an ecstasy entailing a fore-glimpse of the world it is about to reenter?",
    "Answer": "The soul often feels that the bonds holding it to the body are loosening, and consequently it employs all its efforts to sever them entirely. Already partially released from matter, it beholds the future unfolding before it and it enjoys the spirit state beforehand."
  },
  {
    "Id": "158",
    "Question": "Can the example of the caterpillar, which begins by crawling on the ground, then shuts itself up in its cocoon in apparent death to be reborn into a brilliant existence, provide us an idea of terrestrial life, which is followed by the grave and then a new existence?",
    "Answer": "A pale idea. The image is good but you must not take it literally, as you are always prone to do."
  },
  {
    "Id": "159",
    "Question": "What sensation does the soul experience at the moment it realizes that it is in the spirit world?",
    "Answer": "That depends. If it has done evil for the love of it, the spirit is at first ashamed of what it has done. However, it experiences something completely different if it has been morally upright. It feels relieved of a great weight and does not fear the most scrutinizing glance."
  },
  {
    "Id": "160",
    "Question": "Does a spirit immediately meet those whom it knew on earth, and who died before it?",
    "Answer": "Yes, depending on the affection they had for one another. They almost always come to receive it as it strives to return to the spirit world, and they may even help free it from the bonds of matter. It also sees many whom it had lost sight of during its sojourn on earth. Additionally, it sees those who are in the errant state and goes to visit those who are still incarnate."
  },
  {
    "Id": "161",
    "Question": "In violent or accidental death, when the organs are not yet debilitated by age or disease, does the separation of the soul and the cessation of life occur simultaneously?",
    "Answer": "Usually so. In any case, however, the instant that separates them is very short."
  },
  {
    "Id": "162",
    "Question": "After being beheaded, for example, does an individual remain conscious for a few moments?",
    "Answer": "Frequently, it remains so for a few moments until the organic life is extinguished once and for all. However, many times the fear of death causes a loss of consciousness before the actual moment of execution."
  },
  {
    "Id": "163",
    "Question": "Upon leaving the body, is the soul immediately conscious of itself?",
    "Answer": "Immediately is not the right word; it remains in a state of confusion for some time."
  },
  {
    "Id": "164",
    "Question": "Do all spirits experience the confusion that follows the separation of the soul and body to the same degree and for the same amount of time?",
    "Answer": "No, it depends on how evolved they are. Those who are already purified are almost immediately self-aware because of their detachment from matter during corporeal life. However, carnal individuals with impure consciences retain the impression of matter much longer."
  },
  {
    "Id": "165",
    "Question": "Does an understanding of Spiritism have any influence on the shorter or longer duration of this confusion?",
    "Answer": "It has a very considerable influence because the spirit understood what its situation would be beforehand. The practice of good and purity of conscience exerts the most influence, however."
  },
  {
    "Id": "166",
    "Question": "How can a soul who did not reach perfection during its corporeal life complete the work of its purification?",
    "Answer": "By submitting to the trial of a new existence. In order to purify itself, the soul of course undergoes a transformation, but for this to occur it needs the trial of corporeal life. Yes, we all live many lives and those who say otherwise wish to keep you in the ignorance in which they themselves dwell. That is their desire. Obviously."
  },
  {
    "Id": "166a",
    "Question": "Then does the soul live many corporeal existences?",
    "Answer": "Yes, we all live many lives and those who say otherwise wish to keep you in the ignorance in which they themselves dwell. That is their desire."
  },
  {
    "Id": "167",
    "Question": "What is the purpose of reincarnation?",
    "Answer": "Expiation and humankind’s progressive improvement. Without reincarnation, how could there be justice?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "168",
    "Question": "Is the number of corporeal lives limited, or does a spirit go on reincarnating forever?",
    "Answer": "In each new life, a spirit takes another step on the path of progress. When it has stripped itself of all impurities it has no further need of the trials of corporeal life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "169",
    "Question": "Is the number of incarnations generally the same for all spirits?",
    "Answer": "No. Those who advance quickly spare themselves many trials. Nevertheless, since progress is almost infinite, a large number of incarnations are always required."
  },
  {
    "Id": "170",
    "Question": "What does the spirit become after its final incarnation?",
    "Answer": "A blessed spirit; a pure spirit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "171",
    "Question": "On what is the doctrine of reincarnation based?",
    "Answer": "On the justice of God and revelation. We will repeat this to you over and over: a good father always leaves the door of repentance open to his children. Doesn’t reason tell you that it would be unjust to keep eternal bliss from those who have not enjoyed the opportunities needed to improve themselves? Aren’t all people God’s children? It is only among selfish human beings that The Plurality of Existences we find iniquity, insatiable hatred, and unforgiving punishment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "172",
    "Question": "Are all of our different corporeal existences lived on earth?",
    "Answer": "No, not all of them. They may be lived on other worlds as well. Those on this globe are neither the first nor the last, but they are of the most material and the farthest from perfection."
  },
  {
    "Id": "173",
    "Question": "With each new corporeal existence does the soul pass from one world to another, or does it live several lives on the same globe?",
    "Answer": "It may live many lives on the same world if it has not evolved sufficiently to go to a more advanced one. Of course. Certainly; you may have already lived on other worlds besides earth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "173a",
    "Question": "So we may reappear several times on the earth?",
    "Answer": "Of course."
  },
  {
    "Id": "174",
    "Question": "Is it necessary to live again on the earth?",
    "Answer": "No, but if you do not progress, you may go to another world that is no better – perhaps one that is even worse."
  },
  {
    "Id": "175",
    "Question": "Is there any special advantage in coming back to live on the earth?",
    "Answer": "No special advantage, unless you come on a mission; however, in that case, you will progress nonetheless, just like you would on any other world. No, no! That would keep you at a standstill. What you want is to evolve toward God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "175a",
    "Question": "Wouldn’t it be better to remain a spirit?",
    "Answer": "No, no! That would keep you at a standstill. What you want is to evolve toward God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "176",
    "Question": "After having incarnated on other worlds, can spirits incarnate on this one without ever having come here before?",
    "Answer": "Yes, just as you can incarnate on other globes. All worlds are in solidarity. What you have not accomplished on one, you may on another. There are many and at various degrees. That would be of no use to you whatsoever."
  },
  {
    "Id": "176a",
    "Question": "Then are there those who are on the earth for the first time?",
    "Answer": "There are many and at various degrees."
  },
  {
    "Id": "177",
    "Question": "In order to arrive at the perfection and supreme bliss that are humankind’s final aim, must a spirit have lived on all the worlds in the entire universe?",
    "Answer": "No, because there are many worlds of like degree, where the spirit would learn nothing new. It may find itself there each time in very different situations, which will provide it with many opportunities to acquire experience."
  },
  {
    "Id": "178",
    "Question": "Can spirits be reborn corporeally on a world that is relatively less evolved than the one on which they have already lived?",
    "Answer": "Yes, when they have a mission to fulfill that will aid their progress. They joyfully accept the tribulations of this kind of existence in such a case because they furnish them a means for their further advancement. Spirits may remain at a standstill but they never regress. Thus, their punishment consists in not advancing and in having to recommence badly-used lives in an environment more suited to their nature. Those who have failed in their mission or trials."
  },
  {
    "Id": "178a",
    "Question": "Who are the ones who must recommence the same existence?",
    "Answer": "Those who have failed in their mission or trials."
  },
  {
    "Id": "179",
    "Question": "Are the beings who inhabit each world all at the same degree of purification?",
    "Answer": "No, it is like on earth. There are some who are more advanced and some who are less advanced."
  },
  {
    "Id": "180",
    "Question": "In passing from this world to another, does a spirit retain the intelligence it possessed here?",
    "Answer": "Yes indeed, because intelligence is never lost. Such a spirit may not have the same means of expressing it, however. It depends both on its degree of purity and the state of the body it acquires."
  },
  {
    "Id": "181",
    "Question": "Do the beings who inhabit different worlds have bodies similar to ours?",
    "Answer": "Of course they have bodies because the spirit must be clothed with matter in order to act upon matter. This envelope, however, is more material or less so, according to the degree of purity the spirit has reached. This is what determines the differences among the worlds through which we must pass, for there are many dwellings in God’s house, and therefore many degrees. Some recognize this and are conscious of it here on the earth, but others know nothing at all about it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "182",
    "Question": "Can we accurately know the physical and moral state of different worlds?",
    "Answer": "We, the Spirits, can only reply to you according to your degree of evolution. This means that we must not reveal these things to everybody because not all are in the same position to comprehend them; hence, such revelations would be troubling to them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "183",
    "Question": "In passing from one world to another, must a spirit experience a new childhood?",
    "Answer": "Childhood is a necessary transition on all worlds, but it is not always as obtuse as it is on yours."
  },
  {
    "Id": "184",
    "Question": "Can spirits choose the new world they will inhabit?",
    "Answer": "Not always, but they may ask for and receive what they desire if they deserve it, because spirits only have access to worlds according to their degree of purification. Its degree of purification."
  },
  {
    "Id": "185",
    "Question": "Is the physical and moral state of living beings on each globe perpetually the same?",
    "Answer": "No. All worlds are subject to the law of progress. All began like yours: in an inferior state; however, the earth will undergo a transformation. It will become a terrestrial paradise when all humankind chooses good over evil."
  },
  {
    "Id": "186",
    "Question": "Are there worlds on which the spirit no longer lives in a material body and only has the perispirit as its envelope?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and that envelope itself becomes so etherealized that to you it is as if it did not exist at all. This is the state of the pure spirits. There is no such line. The difference diminishes little by little, finally becoming imperceptible – like the night fading away at the first light of day."
  },
  {
    "Id": "187",
    "Question": "Is the perispirit’s substance the same on all globes?",
    "Answer": "No, it is more etherealized on some than on others. When it goes from one world to another, a spirit clothes itself with the matter proper for each world at a speed faster than lightning."
  },
  {
    "Id": "188",
    "Question": "Do pure spirits inhabit special worlds, or do they inhabit universal space without being attached to any particular globe? The Plurality of Existences",
    "Answer": "Pure spirits inhabit certain worlds, but they are not confined to them as people are to the earth. They are much better than all others at being ubiquitous. I cannot calculate it, because we do not count time like you; moreover, our way of life is not the same. We develop much more quickly, so much so that it has been only six of your months since I came here. But I must say that in regards to intelligence, I am already about thirty earth years old."
  },
  {
    "Id": "189",
    "Question": "From the time it is first formed, does a spirit enjoy the fullness of its faculties?",
    "Answer": "No. Like a human being, a spirit has its infancy. When they first come into being, spirits have no more than an instinctive existence, possessing only the consciousness of themselves and their actions. Their intelligence only develops little by little."
  },
  {
    "Id": "190",
    "Question": "What is the state of the soul during its first incarnation?",
    "Answer": "It resembles the state of infancy in corporeal life. Its intelligence is only beginning to unfold – it tries its hand at life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "191",
    "Question": "Are the souls of our primitives in a state of spiritual infancy?",
    "Answer": "It is a relative infancy since they are already-developed souls endowed with passions. Development, yes, but not perfection. They are a sign of activity and an awareness of the Self. In the very young soul, intelligence and life exist only in a seed-like state."
  },
  {
    "Id": "191a",
    "Question": "So do passions indicate development?",
    "Answer": "Development, yes, but not perfection. They are a sign of activity and an awareness of the Self. In the very young soul, intelligence and life exist only in a seed-like state."
  },
  {
    "Id": "192",
    "Question": "Through perfect conduct in this life, can we hurdle all the degrees and become pure spirits without having passed through the intermediate ones?",
    "Answer": "No, because what humans imagine as perfection is actually very far from it; there are qualities they neither know about nor comprehend. They may be as perfect as their nature permits, but it is not absolute perfection. It is like certain children who, no matter how precocious they may be, must still pass through youth before arriving at maturity; or ailing individuals who must go through convalescence before recovering their health. Furthermore, spirits must advance in knowledge as well as in morality, and if they have progressed in one sense only, they will have to do so in the other in order to reach the top of the ladder. Nevertheless, the more individuals advance in their present life, the shorter and less painful their subsequent trials will be. Yes, of course. They can reduce the length and difficulties of the path. Only the negligent remain at a standstill."
  },
  {
    "Id": "193",
    "Question": "During their new existences, can humans regress to a lower level than the one they have already reached?",
    "Answer": "In social position, yes; as a spirit, no."
  },
  {
    "Id": "194",
    "Question": "During a new incarnation, can the soul of a moral individual animate the body of a scoundrel?",
    "Answer": "No, because a spirit cannot regress. Yes. If it repents, such would be a reward."
  },
  {
    "Id": "195",
    "Question": "Mightn’t the possibility of improving oneself in another existence lead some persons to persevere on the evil path with the thought that they can always correct themselves later?",
    "Answer": "Those who think that way do not really believe anything at all. The idea of eternal punishment no longer restrains them because their reason rejects it; instead, it leads them to question everything. If only reasonable means were used to guide humans, there would be no such skeptics. During its corporeal life, an imperfect spirit may think as you have stated, but once released from matter it thinks very differently. It soon perceives that it has calculated badly, and so to make up for it, it will carry an opposite sentiment into its new existence. Progress is accomplished thereby, which is why on the earth there are those who are more advanced than others. Some have already had the experiences that others have yet to go through; the latter acquire such experiences little by little. It depends on each individual to hasten his or her own progress or to delay it indefinitely."
  },
  {
    "Id": "196",
    "Question": "Since spirits can only improve by undergoing the sufferings and tribulations of corporeal existence, does it follow that material life may be seen as a type of sieve or filter through which the beings of the spirit world must pass in order to arrive at perfection?",
    "Answer": "Yes, that is right. They improve during such trials by avoiding evil and practicing the good. However, it is only after many incarnations or successive purifications and after a longer or shorter lapse of time that, according to their own efforts, they reach the goal meant for them. Your spirit is everything. Your body is a garment that rots – that is all."
  },
  {
    "Id": "197",
    "Question": "Is the spirit of a child who dies very young as advanced as that of an adult?",
    "Answer": "Sometimes much more so because the child may have had more existences and may have therefore acquired more experiences, especially if he or she has progressed. That is very frequently the case. Haven’t you yourself often witnessed it?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "198",
    "Question": "Does the spirit of a child who dies very young without having done any evil belong to the higher degrees?",
    "Answer": "If such a child has done nothing evil, it has also done nothing good. God does not relieve such a spirit of the trials it must undergo. If it is pure, it is not because it was a child, but because it was already advanced."
  },
  {
    "Id": "199",
    "Question": "Why is life so often cut short in childhood?",
    "Answer": "The length of a child’s life can be, for its spirit, the remainder of a former life that had been cut short before its due term. Moreover, the death of a child is often a trial or an expiation for the parents. It begins a new existence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "199a",
    "Question": "What becomes of the spirit of a child who dies very young?",
    "Answer": "It begins a new existence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "200",
    "Question": "Are spirits male and female?",
    "Answer": "Not as you understand it, because sex depends on organic composition. Love and sympathy exist among spirits, but they are based on the affinity of sentiments."
  },
  {
    "Id": "201",
    "Question": "Can a spirit who has animated the body of a man animate the body of a woman in a new existence, and vice versa?",
    "Answer": "Yes, since the same spirit can animate both male and female bodies."
  },
  {
    "Id": "202",
    "Question": "When we are spirits, do we have a preference as to whether we will incarnate into a male or a female body?",
    "Answer": "It matters little to a spirit: it depends on the trials it must undergo."
  },
  {
    "Id": "203",
    "Question": "Do parents transmit a portion of their soul to their children or do they give them only animal life, to which a new soul afterwards adds the moral life?",
    "Answer": "Only animal life, since the soul is indivisible. Daft parents may have intelligent children, and vice versa."
  },
  {
    "Id": "204",
    "Question": "Since we have had many existences, does kinship go back to previous ones?",
    "Answer": "It could not be otherwise. The succession of corporeal lives establishes ties among spirits dating back to former existences. Such frequently gives rise to the affinity between you and some spirits who you might think are strangers."
  },
  {
    "Id": "205",
    "Question": "According to certain individuals, the doctrine of reincarnation appears to destroy family ties by carrying them back to previous lives.",
    "Answer": "Instead of destroying them, it extends them. Since kinships may be based on previous affections, the ties that unite members of the same family are less precarious. Moreover, reincarnation broadens the duties of fraternity because your neighbor or your servant may be a spirit who was formerly related to you by blood. That is true, but such importance is founded on pride. What most people honor in their ancestors are title, class and fortune. They would blush if they had had an honest shoemaker for a grandfather, but would boast if they had descended from a debauchee of noble birth. No matter what people say or do, The Plurality of Existences they will not prevent things from being what they are, for God does not regulate the laws of nature according to their vanity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "206",
    "Question": "Since there may be no actual affiliation among the spirits of a particular family’s descendants, would it be foolish for the members to honor their ancestors?",
    "Answer": "Assuredly not, because they should feel happy belonging to a family in which more highly evolved spirits have incarnated. Although spirits do not proceed from one another, they have no less affection for those who are linked to them by family ties, for they are often attracted to this or that family because of affinities or previous connections. You may be very sure that the spirits of your ancestors do not feel honored at all with the respect you render them out of pride. Their merits do not benefit you except as you strive to follow their moral example. Only in that way can your memories not only be pleasant but even useful to them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "207",
    "Question": "Parents almost always transmit a physical likeness to their children. Do they also transmit a moral likeness?",
    "Answer": "No, because their souls or spirits are different. The body proceeds from the body but the spirit does not proceed from the spirit. There is no other link than blood kinship among descendants. They are sympathetic37 spirits, attracted by similarities of inclination. In harmony with one’s tastes, mood, or disposition; congenial: a sympathetic companion"
  },
  {
    "Id": "208",
    "Question": "Don’t the spirits of the parents exert an influence on their children after birth?",
    "Answer": "A very great influence because, as we have already said, spirits should aid in one another’s progress. As it is, the spirits of the parents have the mission of developing their children through education. This is a task for them – if they fail to perform it, they will be guilty."
  },
  {
    "Id": "209",
    "Question": "Why is it that good and virtuous parents sometimes have wicked children? In other words, why don’t the good qualities of the parents always, out of affinity, attract good spirits as their children?",
    "Answer": "Wicked spirits may ask for good parents in the hope that their counsels will guide them along a better path. God often grants their wish."
  },
  {
    "Id": "210",
    "Question": "Through their thoughts and prayers, can parents attract a good spirit instead of an imperfect one to indwell the body of their child?",
    "Answer": "No. They can, however, improve the spirit of the child to whom they have given birth, and whom has been entrusted to them – it is their duty. Ill-natured children are a trial for their parents."
  },
  {
    "Id": "211",
    "Question": "Where does the likeness of character come from, which so often exists among siblings, especially between twins?",
    "Answer": "They are sympathetic spirits who are attracted by similar sentiments, and who are happy to be together."
  },
  {
    "Id": "212",
    "Question": "In children whose bodies were born joined, and who have some of their organs in common, are there two spirits, that is, two souls?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but their resemblance often makes them seem to you as though there is only one."
  },
  {
    "Id": "213",
    "Question": "But if spirits incarnate as twins out of sympathy38, where does the aversion come from that may sometimes be noted between them?",
    "Answer": "It is not a rule that twins must be sympathetic spirits. Evil spirits may desire to struggle together on the stage of life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "214",
    "Question": "What are we to think of the stories of children fighting in their mother’s womb?",
    "Answer": "A figure of speech! In order to portray their hatred as ingrained, it is figuratively set before birth. Humans usually do not make sufficient allowance for images that are intended to be merely poetic."
  },
  {
    "Id": "215",
    "Question": "Where does the distinctive character that we observe in each culture come from?",
    "Answer": "Like humans, spirits also form families through similarities in tendencies. The purity of such tendencies depends on how evolved the spirits are. Additionally, cultures are large families where sympathetic spirits congregate, and the tendency that leads members of these families to congregate is the source of the individual likenesses that exist within the distinctive character of each culture. Do you think that good and humane spirits would seek to live among unrefined and cruel people? No. Spirits are attracted to like­ minded cultures, just as they are attracted to like-minded individuals. They look for their own group."
  },
  {
    "Id": "216",
    "Question": "In their new lives, do individuals retain any traces of their moral character from former ones?",
    "Answer": "Yes, that can happen. However, as spirits evolve, they change, and their social position may change as well. If 38 Sympathy: “Harmony of or agreement in feeling, as between persons or on the part of one person with respect to another. The harmony of feeling existing between persons of like tastes or opinion, or of congenial dispositions"
  },
  {
    "Id": "217",
    "Question": "During their different incarnations, do individuals retain any vestiges of their physical character from previous lives?",
    "Answer": "The body is destroyed and the new one has no connection with the old. Nevertheless, the spirit is reflected in the body. Although the body is only matter, it is molded by the spirit’s qualities, which impress it with a certain character that is mainly visible in the face. For this reason, the eyes have been rightly described as the mirror of the soul, which means that the face most particularly reflects the soul. Thus, it may be that individuals who are extremely unattractive physically can nevertheless project something pleasant if they are good, mindful and humane spirits. On the other hand, there are very attractive faces that awaken nothing in you – you might even find them repulsive. How can you believe that only perfect bodies house high order spirits, when every day you encounter moral individuals with deformed bodies? Although there may be no pronounced physical likeness, a similarity of tastes and tendencies can still pass on what we call an air of familiarity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "218",
    "Question": "Does an incarnate spirit preserve any trace of the perceptions it had and the knowledge it acquired in its previous lives?",
    "Answer": "A vague memory remains, giving the incarnate spirit what you call innate ideas. No, because the knowledge acquired in each existence is not lost. When a spirit is free of matter, it always recalls such knowledge. While incarnate, it may forget it partially and temporarily, but the intuition that remains helps it advance. Without it, it would always have to start over. Instead, with each new existence the spirit starts from the point at which it had finished the preceding one. Not always as close as you might think, because the conditions of the two lives are often very different; also, the spirit may have progressed in the interval between them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "218a",
    "Question": "Then the theory of innate ideas is not just a myth?",
    "Answer": "No, because the knowledge acquired in each existence is not lost. When a spirit is free of matter, it always recalls such knowledge. While incarnate, it may forget it partially and temporarily, but the intuition that remains helps it advance. Without it, it would always have to start over. Instead, with each new existence the spirit starts from the point at which it had finished the preceding one."
  },
  {
    "Id": "219",
    "Question": "What is the origin of the extraordinary abilities of those individuals who, without any previous learning, seem to have an intuition about certain areas of knowledge such as languages, mathematics, etc.?",
    "Answer": "A memory of the past and the soul’s previous progress, of which it now has no awareness. Where else could such abilities have come from? Bodies change, but the spirit does not – it merely changes its garment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "220",
    "Question": "In changing bodies, can spirits lose certain intellectual faculties; for example, could they cease to have a taste for the arts?",
    "Answer": "Yes, if they dishonored that faculty or made a bad use of it. Moreover, a faculty may remain dormant throughout an entire existence because the spirit wishes to exercise an unrelated one. In that case, it remains latent but reappears later."
  },
  {
    "Id": "221",
    "Question": "Are the instinctive sentiment of the existence of God and the presentiment of the future life due to a retrospective memory that humans have even in the primitive state?",
    "Answer": "They are a memory they have retained of what they knew as spirits before incarnating, but pride often stifles this sentiment. This doctrine is as old as the world. That is why we find it everywhere – proof that it is true. Since it preserves an intuition of its spirit state, the incarnate spirit possesses an instinctive awareness of the invisible world. This awareness, however, is frequently distorted by prejudices, as well as by superstitions arising from ignorance."
  },
  {
    "Id": "222",
    "Question": "Some persons have stated that the doctrine of reincarnation is not new, that it was taken from Pythagoras. We have never said that the Spiritist Doctrine is a modern invention. Since it stems from the very laws of nature, Spiritism per se must obviously have existed since the beginning of time, and we have always sought to show that traces of it may be found in remotest antiquity. It is well known that Pythagoras was not the creator of the theory of metempsychosis39; he took it from the Hindu philosophers and Egyptians, who had believed in it from time immemorial. The idea of the transmigration of souls was therefore a common belief, accepted by the most eminent individuals. By what road did this idea come to them? Was it by revelation or intuition? We do not know. Whatever the case may be, an idea could not have traversed the ages and have been accepted by the most advanced minds if there were not something to it. The ancientness of this doctrine should therefore be, if anything, a proof in its favor rather than an objection against it. However, it is equally known 39",
    "Answer": "[Theory] through which the spirits who did not behave properly and nobly on earth must reincarnate as lower order animals I’ve already suffered too much today; I don’t want to suffer anymore tomorrow. You suffer; you are not as happy as you could be, whereas there are others all around you who seem to enjoy perfect happiness. Would you like to trade your situation for theirs? Of course, I would! But what do I have to do? Almost nothing. Simply start over what you have done badly and try to do it better. There is a huge fortune for you to enjoy; however, you must work hard for it for exactly one minute. I’m willing to work for one minute, two minutes, an hour, a whole day if necessary! What difference would that make if my life will end up in abundance? You have wasted a whole day so you owe me compensation. You have performed badly so you owe me reparation; however, I will let you start over tomorrow. If you perform well, I will keep you, and you will be able to continue aspiring to the higher position I promised you. A member of any of a group of pastoral peoples, physically and linguistically akin to the San, who inhabited present-day Cape Province, South Africa, in the 17th century. Pierre Simon, Marquis de, 1749-1827, French astronomer and mathematician. Sir Isaac, 1642-1727, English physicist and mathematician. Any of various forms of philosophical or religious thought based on a mystical insight into the divine nature. Descending from the mountain (after the transfiguration), Jesus commanded them, saying, ‘Do not tell anyone what you have seen until the Son of Man has been raised from among the dead.’ His disciples then questioned him, ‘Then why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?’ And Jesus responded, ‘In truth, Elijah is to come first, and will reestablish all things. But I declare to you that Elijah has already come, and they did not know him, but made him suffer everything they wished. It is thus that they will put to death the Son of Man.’ Then his disciples understood that he had spoken to them of John the Baptist. Truly, truly, I say to you that if a man is not born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter again into his mother’s womb and be born a second time? Truly, truly, I tell you that unless he is born of water and of spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I have told you, you must be born again."
  },
  {
    "Id": "223",
    "Question": "Does the soul reincarnate immediately after separation from the body?",
    "Answer": "Sometimes it reincarnates immediately, but most often after an interval of longer or shorter duration. On more highly evolved worlds, reincarnation is almost always immediate. Since the corporeal matter of those worlds is less coarse, an incarnate spirit enjoys nearly all of its spirit faculties. Its normal state is the same as that of your lucid somnambulists."
  },
  {
    "Id": "224",
    "Question": "What becomes of the soul during the intervals between incarnations? Or discarnate – Tr.",
    "Answer": "It becomes an errant spirit, aspiring to and awaiting a new destiny. From a few hours to thousands of centuries. Strictly speaking, there is no outside limit assigned to the errant state. It may last for a very long time, but never forever. Sooner or later, a spirit always has the opportunity to begin another existence, which serves for the purification of its previous ones. It is a consequence of its free will. Spirits know full well what they are doing in prolonging it, but for some, extending it is also a punishment inflicted by God. Others ask for it to be extended in order to pursue studies that cannot be done productively except in the spirit state."
  },
  {
    "Id": "224a",
    "Question": "Tr.",
    "Answer": "It becomes an errant spirit, aspiring to and awaiting a new destiny."
  },
  {
    "Id": "224b",
    "Question": "How long may such intervals last?",
    "Answer": "From a few hours to thousands of centuries. Strictly speaking, there is no outside limit assigned to the errant state. It may last for a very long time, but never forever. Sooner or later, a spirit always has the opportunity to begin another existence, which serves for the purification of its previous ones."
  },
  {
    "Id": "225",
    "Question": "Is the errant state in and of itself an indication of spirits who are less evolved?",
    "Answer": "No, since there are errant spirits of every degree. Incarnation is the state that is transitory, as we have already stated. In their normal state, spirits are disengaged from matter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "226",
    "Question": "Could we say that all spirits who are not incarnate are errant?",
    "Answer": "Those who must reincarnate, yes, but the pure spirits, who have reached perfection, are not errant: their state is definitive."
  },
  {
    "Id": "227",
    "Question": "How do errant spirits learn, since it can hardly be in the same way as for us?",
    "Answer": "They study their past and seek ways to evolve. They watch and observe what is going on in the realms through which they pass. They listen to the discourse of enlightened individuals and the counsels of spirits who are more evolved than they are, and this provides them with ideas that they do not yet possess."
  },
  {
    "Id": "228",
    "Question": "Do spirits retain any of the human passions?",
    "Answer": "Upon losing their corporeal envelope, high order spirits leave evil passions behind and retain only the ideals of the good, but low order ones retain their passions; otherwise, they would belong to the first order."
  },
  {
    "Id": "229",
    "Question": "When they leave the earth behind, why don’t spirits abandon their evil passions since they are able to see the trouble they can cause?",
    "Answer": "In your world, there are persons who are excessively jealous, for instance. Do you believe they will lose that defect upon leaving? After they leave the earth, since they are not entirely freed from matter – especially those who have displayed strong passions – they retain a sort of atmosphere around them that is infused with all their evil qualities. They only occasionally glimpse the truth so as to have the moral path revealed to them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "230",
    "Question": "Can a spirit progress while in the errant state?",
    "Answer": "It may improve itself a great deal; it always depends on its own will and desire. However, it puts its newly-acquired ideas into practice only during corporeal life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "231",
    "Question": "Are errant spirits happy or unhappy?",
    "Answer": "Their degree of happiness or unhappiness depends on what they have merited. They either suffer from the passions whose essence they have retained, or they are happy according to their degree of dematerialization. In the errant state, a spirit realizes what it lacks in order to be happier; thus, it searches for the means to attain it. However, it is not always permitted to reincarnate when it wants to. This in itself is a punishment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "232",
    "Question": "While in the errant state, can spirits visit other worlds?",
    "Answer": "That depends. When the spirit leaves the body, it is still not completely disconnected from matter. Hence, it still belongs to the world on which it has lived – or to one of the same degree – unless it has progressed sufficiently during its lifetime. Progression is the purpose to which it must hold, for it will never perfect itself unless it progresses. Nevertheless, it may go to certain more highly evolved worlds, but as an outsider; it can get only glimpses of such worlds, and these glimpses are what drive it to improve itself so that it may become worthy of the happiness enjoyed on them, and to be able to inhabit them later."
  },
  {
    "Id": "233",
    "Question": "Do spirits who are already purified ever go to less evolved worlds?",
    "Answer": "They frequently do so in order to help such worlds progress. Without these spirits, these worlds would be left to themselves, without guides to direct them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "234",
    "Question": "As some have stated, are there worlds that serve as layovers and resting places for errant spirits? Spirit Life",
    "Answer": "Yes, there are worlds that are intended particularly for errant beings, worlds that they may temporally inhabit, a type of camp site, a place where they can repose during a very long errant state, a state that is always somewhat wearisome. These are intermediary positions between worlds and are gradated according to the nature of the spirits who have access to them, and where they will enjoy a greater or lesser sense of well-being. Yes, spirits who temporarily inhabit those worlds can leave them to follow their destiny. Imagine them to be like migrating birds that descend on an island in order to regain strength before continuing on their way."
  },
  {
    "Id": "235",
    "Question": "Do spirits progress during their layovers on these transitory worlds?",
    "Answer": "Certainly. Those who gather on them do so with the purpose of educating themselves in order to more easily obtain permission to go to better and better places until they reach the position of the elect."
  },
  {
    "Id": "236",
    "Question": "Due to their special nature, are these transitional worlds destined forever to be layovers for errant spirits?",
    "Answer": "No, that function is only temporary. No, their surface is barren. Those who inhabit them do not need anything. No, their barrenness is only transitory. Their nature is expressed in the beauties of their immensity, and their beauties are no less admirable than what you call natural ones. It already has been. During its formation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "236a",
    "Question": "Are they inhabited by corporeal beings at the same time?",
    "Answer": "No, their surface is barren. Those who inhabit them do not need anything."
  },
  {
    "Id": "236b",
    "Question": "Then are these worlds destitute of natural beauties?",
    "Answer": "Their nature is expressed in the beauties of their immensity, and their beauties are no less admirable than what you call natural ones."
  },
  {
    "Id": "236c",
    "Question": "At what period?",
    "Answer": "During its formation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "237",
    "Question": "Once in the world of spirits, does the soul still have the perceptions it had in this life?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and others that it did not have because its body was like a veil that obscured them. Intelligence is a natural attribute of the spirit, but it is expressed more freely when it is unshackled."
  },
  {
    "Id": "238",
    "Question": "Are the perceptions and understanding of spirits unlimited? In other words, do they know everything?",
    "Answer": "The nearer they approach perfection, the more they know. If they are high order spirits, they know much. Low order spirits are more or less ignorant on all subjects."
  },
  {
    "Id": "239",
    "Question": "Do spirits comprehend the beginning of things?",
    "Answer": "That too depends on how evolved and purified they are. Low order spirits do not know any more than humans."
  },
  {
    "Id": "240",
    "Question": "Do spirits perceive time as we do?",
    "Answer": "No, and that is what causes you to misunderstand us when it comes to setting dates or epochs."
  },
  {
    "Id": "241",
    "Question": "Do spirits have a more correct and precise idea of the present than we do?",
    "Answer": "More so or less so, like someone who sees clearly has a more correct idea of things than a blind person. Spirits see what you do not see, and they judge differently than you; but once again, it depends on how evolved they are."
  },
  {
    "Id": "242",
    "Question": "How do spirits have knowledge about the past? Is such knowledge unlimited for them?",
    "Answer": "When we concern ourselves with it, the past is present, precisely in the same way you remember something that has impressed you during your exile. However, since we are no longer hampered by the material veil that clouds your minds, we remember things that have disappeared from your memory. Spirits, however, do not know everything, especially their own creation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "243",
    "Question": "Do spirits know the future?",
    "Answer": "Again, it depends on how purified they are. Most of the time, they may glimpse it, but they do not always have permission to reveal it. When they do see it, it appears to them to be the present. A spirit sees the future more clearly the more it approaches God. After death, the soul sees and takes in its past migrations at a glance, but it cannot see what God has in store for it. For that, it is necessary for it to have become one with God after many lives. Complete is not the right term because God alone is sovereign; no one can equal God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "244",
    "Question": "Do spirits see God?",
    "Answer": "Only high order spirits see and understand God; low order spirits feel and intuit God. It does not see God but senses the divine sovereignty, and when something must not be done or when a word must not be spoken, it receives a sort of intuition, a secret warning, which keeps it from proceeding. Don’t you yourselves have presentiments that are like secret warnings to do or not to do something? The same happens with us, but to a higher degree; you should understand that, since the essence of spirits is more subtle than yours, we can more easily receive divine warnings. It does not come from God directly, because to communicate with God directly one must deserve it. God transmits divine orders through spirits who are more evolved in purification and instruction."
  },
  {
    "Id": "245",
    "Question": "Is spirits’ sight circumscribed as it is in corporeal beings?",
    "Answer": "No, it resides within the entire spirit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "246",
    "Question": "Do spirits need light in order to see?",
    "Answer": "They see with their own light, without the need for outside light. There is no darkness for them, except that in which they may find themselves due to expiation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "247",
    "Question": "Do spirits need to move about in order to see in two different places? For instance, can they see what is happening simultaneously in two hemispheres of the globe?",
    "Answer": "Since spirits travel at the speed of thought, we can say that they see everywhere all at once. Their thought can radiate and be directed to many points at the same time, but this faculty depends on their purity; the less pure they are, the more limited their sight. Only the high order spirits can see everything as a whole."
  },
  {
    "Id": "248",
    "Question": "Do spirits see things as distinctly as we do?",
    "Answer": "More distinctly, for their sight penetrates what yours cannot. Nothing obscures it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "249",
    "Question": "Do spirits perceive sounds?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and they also perceive those that your limited senses cannot. All perceptions are attributes of the spirit and are part of its being. When it is clothed with a material body, perceptions only arrive through organic channels. In the state of freedom, however, they are no longer localized."
  },
  {
    "Id": "249a",
    "Question": "Is the hearing faculty, like that of sight, in their whole being?",
    "Answer": "All perceptions are attributes of the spirit and are part of its being. When it is clothed with a material body, perceptions only arrive through organic channels. In the state of freedom, however, they are no longer localized."
  },
  {
    "Id": "250",
    "Question": "Since the perceptions are attributes of the spirit itself, can it stop using them?",
    "Answer": "A spirit only sees and hears what it wants to; at least this is generally the case, especially for more evolved spirits, because less evolved ones frequently must hear and see what may be useful for their improvement, whether they want to or not."
  },
  {
    "Id": "251",
    "Question": "Are spirits sensitive to music?",
    "Answer": "Do you mean your music? What is that kind of music when compared to celestial music, that harmony of which no one on Spirit Life earth can have an idea? One is to the other what the primitive chant is when compared with a soft melody. Nevertheless, ordinary spirits may take a certain pleasure in listening to your music because they are not yet able to appreciate anything more sublime. For spirits, music has infinite charm due to their highly developed sensitive qualities. Of course, I am referring to celestial music, which is everything the spiritual imagination can conceive of as the most beautiful and delicate of all."
  },
  {
    "Id": "252",
    "Question": "Are spirits sensitive to the beauties of nature?",
    "Answer": "The beauties of nature on different globes are so diverse that they are far from knowing about all of them. Yes, they are sensitive to them according to their aptitudes for appreciating and comprehending them. Evolved spirits enjoy the beauties of the whole, before which the beauties of detail fade, so to speak."
  },
  {
    "Id": "253",
    "Question": "Do spirits experience our physical needs and sufferings?",
    "Answer": "They know about them, for they have endured them, but they do not experience them physically as you do, because they are spirits."
  },
  {
    "Id": "254",
    "Question": "Do spirits feel fatigue and the need for rest?",
    "Answer": "They cannot feel fatigue as you understand it, and therefore they do not need corporeal rest, because they do not possess organs in which the energies must be restored. However, spirits do rest, meaning they do not remain in a state of constant activity. They do not act in a physical way, because their action is entirely intellectual and their rest is entirely mental. There are moments when their thought decreases in activity and is no longer directed toward any object in particular. This is a true repose for them, but it cannot be compared to that of the body. The kind of fatigue that spirits can experience is in proportion to how evolved they are; the more purified they are, the less rest they need."
  },
  {
    "Id": "255",
    "Question": "When a spirit says that it is suffering, what is the nature of such suffering?",
    "Answer": "Mental anguish, which tortures it more acutely than physical suffering."
  },
  {
    "Id": "256",
    "Question": "Why do some spirits complain about the cold or heat?",
    "Answer": "It is a remembrance of what they suffered during their life, a feeling as painful as the reality itself. Frequently, they use these expressions to express their situation. When they remember their body, they experience a sensation similar to when you take off a heavy coat – immediately afterwards you continue to feel its weight on your shoulders."
  },
  {
    "Id": "257",
    "Question": "The body is the instrument of pain; if not its primary cause, at least its immediate cause. The soul has the perception of such pain and this perception is the effect. The memory that it preserves of pain can be very acute, but this does not imply any physical sensation. Actually, cold and heat cannot disorganize the soul’s tissues – a soul can neither freeze nor burn. Every day, do we not see the memory of or the concern about a physical ill producing its effects, even to the extent of causing death? We all know that individuals who have undergone an amputation feel pain in the limb that no longer exists. The limb is obviously neither the site nor the starting point of the pain; the brain itself has simply retained the impression. Likewise, we can assume there is something similar in the sufferings of spirits after death. An in-depth study of the perispirit, which plays such an important role in all spirit phenomena, such as vaporous or tangible apparitions, Spirit Life in the state of the spirit at the moment of death, in the so-frequent notion that it is still alive, in the frightening situation of suicides, in those who have undergone capital punishment, in those who have overindulged in material pleasures, and so many other facts, have shed light on this question, providing the explanations that we are presenting here in summary. The perispirit is the link that unites the spirit with the matter of the body. It is drawn from the environment, from the universal fluid. At the same time, it contains electricity, magnetic fluid and to a certain extent, inert matter. We could say that it is the quintessence of matter. It is the beginning of organic life but not of mental life, because that belongs to the spirit. The perispirit is also the agent of external sensations. In the body, these sensations are localized in the organs that serve as their channels. When the body is destroyed, the sensations become generalized, and that is why a spirit does not say that it suffers more in its head than in its feet. Moreover, we have to be on our guard against being confused as to the sensations of the perispirit, which have become independent of the sensations of the body; we can only take the latter as a term of comparison and not as an analogy. Freed from the body, the spirit may suffer, but this suffering is not the same as that of the body; however, it is not an exclusively mental suffering either, like remorse, because the spirit may complain of being hot or cold. Nevertheless, it suffers no more in summer than in winter. We have seen spirits pass through flames without feeling any pain, showing that temperature has no effect on them. The pain they do feel is not physical pain per se; it is a vague inner sensation, of which the spirit is not always aware because the pain is not localized or produced by an outside agent. It is a memory rather than a reality, but a very painful memory nonetheless. At other times, it is more than a memory, as we shall see. Experience has taught us that the perispirit disengages itself more or less slowly from the body at the moment of death. During the first few moments, the spirit does not comprehend its situation – it does not think it has died, because it feels alive. It sees its body at its side and knows that it is its own, but does not understand why they are separate. This state lasts as long as there is a link between the body and the perispirit. A suicide once said to us,",
    "Answer": "No, I’m not dead, yet, I can feel the worms devouring me. [The]… instrument that is indispensable for the soul to relate to the outside world. Since by its very nature the ‘neural fluid’ is very material and coarse, it is necessarily separate from the soul itself, but becomes more rarified as the soul becomes sublimated and gradually approaches the radiant nature of the spirit …. This entire theory is not very reassuring. We had thought that, once freed from our dense envelope – the instrument of our pains – we wouldn’t suffer anymore. Now you’re telling us that we can continue to suffer; whether it is one way or another it is suffering nonetheless."
  },
  {
    "Id": "258",
    "Question": "While in the errant state and before a new corporeal existence, does a spirit have the awareness and foresight of what will happen to it during its new lifetime?",
    "Answer": "The spirit itself chooses the kinds of trials it will undergo. Its free will consists in doing so. Nothing happens without God’s permission, because it was God who established all the laws that govern the universe. You may as well ask why God made such and such a law instead of some other one! In giving a spirit freedom of choice, God leaves to it the entire responsibility for its acts and their consequences. Nothing stands in the way of its future. The path of the good or the path of evil is an open choice. If the spirit succumbs to its trials, there is still the consolation that not everything is lost, because God, out of divine goodness, allows it to start over where it failed. It is necessary to distinguish between what is the work of God’s will and what is the work of human will. If a danger threatens you, it is not you who have created it, but God. However, you have willingly exposed yourself to it, because you saw it as a way to advance, and God has allowed it to happen."
  },
  {
    "Id": "259",
    "Question": "If our spirit chooses the kinds of trials it will undergo, are all the tribulations of life therefore foreseen and chosen by us?",
    "Answer": "Not all of them, because it cannot be said that you have chosen and foreseen everything that happens to you in the world – not even the smallest things. You have chosen the kinds of trials; the details are consequences of the position you have chosen, and frequently, of your own actions. If a spirit has been born among evildoers, for example, it already knew what kind of temptations it would face, but it did not know how it would act in any given situation; its actions are the products of its volition or free will. In choosing a particular path, a spirit knows it will have to endure the struggles that arise thereon and it knows the nature of the tribulations it will encounter, but it does not know what events await it. The details spring from circumstances and the force of things. Only the major events that will influence its destiny are foreseen. If you walk down a path full of ruts, you know you must be very cautious because you run the risk of tripping, but you do not know when you will trip, and maybe you will not trip at all if you are sufficiently on your guard. If you are walking down the sidewalk and a tile falls on your head, you must not think that it was ‘written beforehand’, as it is commonly said."
  },
  {
    "Id": "260",
    "Question": "Why would a spirit want to be born among evildoers?",
    "Answer": "It has to be sent into the environment in which it can experience its requested trial. To this end, it must find an analogous situation; for example, in order to struggle against the instinct of thievery, it must dwell among thieves. And would that be something to regret? That is what happens on highly evolved worlds, where evil has no access; thus only good spirits dwell on them. Use all your efforts to ensure that the same happens as soon as possible on your earth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "261",
    "Question": "In the trials it has to undergo to reach perfection, must a spirit experience every type of temptation possible? In other words, will it have to go through all the circumstances that can trigger pride, jealousy, greed, lust, etc.?",
    "Answer": "Of course not. You should be aware of the fact that there are those who from the beginning have taken a road that has spared them many trials, but those who allow themselves to be led along the evil road risk all its dangers. For instance, a spirit may ask for wealth and it will be given. Then, depending on its character, it may become greedy or wasteful, selfish or generous, or it may indulge in all the pleasures of sensuality. This, however, does not mean that it had to succumb to all those tendencies."
  },
  {
    "Id": "262",
    "Question": "How can a spirit, who at its origin is simple, ignorant and inexperienced, consciously choose an existence and be responsible for its choices?",
    "Answer": "God compensates for its inexperience by outlining the path it should follow, as you do for a child from birth. However, as the spirit’s free will develops, God gradually leaves it the freedom to choose its own way. It is at this point that the spirit will choose the wrong path if it does not listen to the advice of good spirits. This is what we may call the ‘fall of man’. God knows how to wait: God never hastens expiation. Nevertheless, God can impose a certain existence on a spirit when, due to its impurity or ill will, it is not capable of determining what would be most useful, and when God sees that such an existence could serve for its purification and advancement, and at the same time, its expiation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "263",
    "Question": "Do spirits make their choice immediately after death?",
    "Answer": "No, because many of them believe in eternal punishment, and as we have already told you, this in itself is a punishment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "264",
    "Question": "What guides a spirit in choosing the trials it wants to bear?",
    "Answer": "It chooses what may serve as an expiation according to the nature of its wrongs and whatever might enable it to evolve more quickly. Some spirits may impose a life of poverty and hardship on themselves in order to try to bear it with courage. Others may wish to experience the temptations of fortune and power, which are much more dangerous than poverty because of the abuse and ill use that may be made of them, and because of the base passions they encourage. Still others may desire to be tested in the struggles they will have to bear in the contact with various vices."
  },
  {
    "Id": "265",
    "Question": "If some spirits choose contact with vice as a trial, are there others who choose it out of affinity and the desire to live in surroundings that cater to their tastes, or where they may give free rein to their materialistic tendencies?",
    "Answer": "Of course there are, but only among those whose moral sense is still underdeveloped; the trial derives from this, and they must endure it for a longer time. Sooner or later, they will understand that satisfying their crude passions has deplorable consequences, which they will have to endure for a period that will seem like an eternity. God may leave them in this state until they have understood their wrongs Spirit Life and then ask for the means of redeeming them through profitable trials."
  },
  {
    "Id": "266",
    "Question": "Wouldn’t it be natural for a spirit to choose the least painful trials possible?",
    "Answer": "For you, yes; for the spirit, no. Once it has freed itself from matter, illusion disappears and it thinks differently. a cake baker or candy maker."
  },
  {
    "Id": "267",
    "Question": "Can a spirit choose its next corporeal life during its present one?",
    "Answer": "Its desire may have an influence, depending on its intention. In the spirit state, however, it frequently sees things quite differently. It is the spirit as such that makes the choice; but even so, it may make it during its material life because a spirit always has moments in which it is independent of the matter it inhabits. Undoubtedly. It is the flesh that desires greatness and wealth in order to enjoy them, but it is the spirit who desires them in order to experience the tribulations they can cause."
  },
  {
    "Id": "268",
    "Question": "Until it reaches the state of perfect purity, does a spirit have to constantly undergo trials?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but they are not as you understand them; you call material tribulations trials. Even though it may not yet be perfect, a spirit who reaches a certain degree does not have any more trials to endure. However, it always has nonsuffering duties consisting in helping others to improve themselves; these will in turn help it evolve further."
  },
  {
    "Id": "269",
    "Question": "Can a spirit be mistaken as to the effectiveness of a trial it chooses?",
    "Answer": "It may choose one that exceeds its strength, and then it succumbs. It may also choose one that will not be profitable at all; for example, a kind of idle and useless life. In such a case, however, upon returning to the spirit world it realizes that it has gained nothing and asks to make up for lost time."
  },
  {
    "Id": "270",
    "Question": "Why do persons have certain vocations or the desire to follow one career instead of another?",
    "Answer": "It seems to me that you can answer this question yourselves. Isn’t it the result of everything we have said about the choice of trials and the progress accomplished in a preceding existence?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "271",
    "Question": "When a spirit in the errant state studies the conditions that will enable it to progress, how could it possibly imagine it could do so by being born among cannibals?",
    "Answer": "Spirits who have already advanced are not born among cannibals – only those of the same nature as cannibals, or those who are even less evolved."
  },
  {
    "Id": "272",
    "Question": "Can spirits who come from a world that is less evolved than earth or from a much less advanced people, such as cannibals, be born amongst civilized people? Spirit Life",
    "Answer": "Yes, there are those who go astray by wanting to ascend too quickly, but they are out of place among you. They display habits and instincts that clash with yours."
  },
  {
    "Id": "273",
    "Question": "Could a person belonging to a civilized culture reincarnate into a less advanced one as an expiation?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but it would depend on the kind of expiation. Masters who had been cruel to their servants might become servants themselves and suffer the harsh treatment they used to inflict on others. Those who gave orders at one time might, in a new existence, obey those who formerly bent to their will. This would be an expiation if they used to abuse their power, and God can impose it on them. Furthermore, a good spirit may choose an influential life among such a culture to enable it to advance; in that case, it is a mission."
  },
  {
    "Id": "274",
    "Question": "Do the different orders of spirits establish a hierarchy of powers, and is there subordination and authority among them?",
    "Answer": "Very much so. Spirits have authority over one another relative to their degree of evolution and exert it through an irresistible moral ascendancy. I said: irresistible."
  },
  {
    "Id": "275",
    "Question": "Do the power and influence that individuals enjoy on earth warrant them any supremacy in the spirit world?",
    "Answer": "No, because the lowly will be exalted and the great will be abased. Read the Psalms. Don’t you already know that spirits are of different orders according to their merits? Well then, the greatest on earth may be in the last class among the spirits, while their servants may be in the first. Don’t you understand this? Didn’t Jesus say: ‘Whosoever humbles himself shall be exalted, and whosoever exalts himself shall be humbled?’"
  },
  {
    "Id": "275a",
    "Question": "How should we understand this exalting and abasing?",
    "Answer": "Don’t you already know that spirits are of different orders according to their merits? Well then, the greatest on earth may be in the last class among the spirits, while their servants may be in the first. Don’t you understand this? Didn’t Jesus say: ‘Whosoever humbles himself shall be exalted, and whosoever exalts himself shall be humbled?’"
  },
  {
    "Id": "276",
    "Question": "Don’t those who were great on earth but find themselves abased among the spirits feel humiliation?",
    "Answer": "Of course, they almost always feel greatly humiliated, especially if they had been proud and jealous."
  },
  {
    "Id": "277",
    "Question": "After a battle, does a soldier who meets his general in the spirit world still acknowledge him as his superior?",
    "Answer": "The title is nothing. True superiority is everything."
  },
  {
    "Id": "278",
    "Question": "Are the spirits of different orders mixed together?",
    "Answer": "Yes and no; that is, they may see each other but they are distinguished from each other. They avoid or approach one another according to the similarity or dissimilarity of their sentiments, as is also the case amongst you. It is an entire world in and of itself and yours is only a dim reflection of it. Those of the same order are drawn together by a sort of affinity, and they form groups or families of spirits united by sympathy and purpose: the good ones, by their desire to do good; the evil ones, by their desire to do evil, by shame for their wrongs and by the need to find themselves among others like them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "279",
    "Question": "Do all spirits have mutual access to one another?",
    "Answer": "The good ones go everywhere; it must be this way in order to bring their influence to bear upon the evil ones. Nevertheless, the realms inhabited by the good ones are forbidden to the imperfect ones so that the latter cannot bring their evil passions there."
  },
  {
    "Id": "280",
    "Question": "What is the nature of the relationship between good and evil spirits?",
    "Answer": "The good ones seek to combat the evil tendencies of the others in order to help them evolve – it is a mission."
  },
  {
    "Id": "281",
    "Question": "Why do certain low order spirits take pleasure in inducing us to evil?",
    "Answer": "They do so out of spite for not having deserved to be among the good ones. Their desire is to prevent inexperienced spirits, as much as possible, from attaining the supreme good. They want to make others experience what they themselves are experiencing. Don’t you see the same amongst yourselves?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "282",
    "Question": "How do spirits communicate with one another?",
    "Answer": "They see and comprehend one another. Speech is material: it is a reflection of the spirit. The universal fluid establishes a constant communication among them; it is the vehicle for the transmission of thought, as the air is for you the vehicle for sound. It is a sort of universal telegraph line that connects all worlds, enabling spirits to communicate from one world to another."
  },
  {
    "Id": "283",
    "Question": "Can spirits disguise their thoughts and hide themselves from each other?",
    "Answer": "No, everything is out in the open for them, especially when they are perfect. They may be apart from each other but they always see each other. This is not an absolute rule, however, since certain spirits can very easily make themselves invisible to others if they deem it useful."
  },
  {
    "Id": "284",
    "Question": "Since spirits no longer have a body, how can they establish their own individuality and make themselves recognizable to others around them?",
    "Answer": "They establish their individuality by means of their perispirit, which makes them distinct from one another, as do bodies among humans."
  },
  {
    "Id": "285",
    "Question": "Do spirits recognize each other after having lived here on earth? Does the son recognize his father and the friend, her friend?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and thus from generation to generation. We see our past life and read it there as if it were a book. As we watch the friends and enemies of our past, we also witness their passage from life to death."
  },
  {
    "Id": "286",
    "Question": "Upon leaving its mortal remains behind, does the soul immediately see the relatives and friends who had preceded it into the spirit world?",
    "Answer": "Not always immediately. As we have already said, it requires some time to recognize its situation and shake off the material veil."
  },
  {
    "Id": "287",
    "Question": "How is the soul received upon its return to the spirit world?",
    "Answer": "The soul of the just, as a beloved and long awaited bother or sister; the soul of the wicked, as a despised being."
  },
  {
    "Id": "288",
    "Question": "What sentiment do impure spirits experience at the sight of another evil spirit who has just arrived?",
    "Answer": "Evil spirits are pleased at seeing beings who resemble them and who are deprived, like they are, of infinite happiness. Just like on earth, it is a rascal among equals."
  },
  {
    "Id": "289",
    "Question": "Do our relatives and friends sometimes come to meet us when we leave the earth?",
    "Answer": "Yes, they come to meet the soul they love. If it has escaped the dangers of the road, they congratulate it as though it were returning from a journey, and they help it to break free of its corporeal bonds. It is a blessing granted to good spirits when those who love them come to meet them; on the other hand, those who are blemished remain in isolation or are surrounded only by spirits like themselves – it is a punishment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "290",
    "Question": "Are relatives and friends always reunited after death?",
    "Answer": "That depends on how evolved they are and the path they are following for their advancement. If one of them is more advanced and progresses more quickly than the other, they cannot remain together. They may see each other occasionally, but they will not be reunited until they can walk side by side, or when they have reached equality of purification. Moreover, being kept from seeing relatives and friends is sometimes a punishment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "291",
    "Question": "Besides a general sympathy46 that results from various similarities, are there special affections among spirits? See the footnotes to nos. and 213 for the definitions of sympathy and sympathetic in this context – Tr.",
    "Answer": "Yes, just as among humans; however, the link that unites spirits is stronger in the absence of the body because they are no longer exposed to the vicissitudes of the passions."
  },
  {
    "Id": "291a",
    "Question": "Tr.",
    "Answer": "Yes, just as among humans; however, the link that unites spirits is stronger in the absence of the body because they are no longer exposed to the vicissitudes of the passions."
  },
  {
    "Id": "292",
    "Question": "Is there hatred among spirits?",
    "Answer": "There is no hatred except among impure spirits, and these are the ones who sow enmity and dissensions amongst you."
  },
  {
    "Id": "293",
    "Question": "Will two beings who were enemies on earth retain their resentment in the spirit world?",
    "Answer": "No, usually they will understand that their hatred was senseless and its motive childish. Only imperfect spirits retain a sort of animosity until they are purified. If it was nothing more than a material interest that had separated them, they will no longer think about it no matter how little dematerialized they are. If there is no antipathy between them, and if the cause of their dissension no longer exists, they can meet each other again with pleasure."
  },
  {
    "Id": "294",
    "Question": "Is the remembrance of the wrongs that two individuals have committed against each other an obstacle to their sympathy?",
    "Answer": "Yes, it makes them keep their distance from each other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "295",
    "Question": "What sentiment do those whom we have wronged in this world experience after death?",
    "Answer": "If they are good, they forgive you according to your repentance. If they are evil, they may hold on to their resentment and at times even pursue you in another existence. God can allow this as a chastisement."
  },
  {
    "Id": "296",
    "Question": "Are spirits’ personal affections susceptible to change? Spirit Life",
    "Answer": "No, because they cannot be mistaken about each other; they can no longer deceive each other. They no longer wear the mask behind which hypocrites hide themselves and that is why their affections are unchangeable when they are pure spirits. The love that unites them is a source of supreme bliss."
  },
  {
    "Id": "297",
    "Question": "Does the affection that two beings had for each other on earth always continue in the spirit world?",
    "Answer": "Yes, of course, if it is based on true sympathy; however, if physical attraction has had more influence than sympathy, it will cease with the cause. Affections among spirits are more solid and lasting than on earth because they are not subject to the whims of material interests and selfcenteredness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "298",
    "Question": "Are souls who must get together predestined for such a union from their origin, and does each one of us have, in some part of the universe,",
    "Answer": "our other half No, there is no particular and predestined union between two souls. Unity exists among all spirits, but in different degrees, according to the order they occupy, i.e. according to their degree of purification. The greater their purification, the more united they are. All the ills of humankind are born from discord; concord gives rise to complete happiness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "299",
    "Question": "In what sense should we understand the term",
    "Answer": "other half The expression is incorrect. If one spirit were another spirit’s other half, it would be incomplete when separate from the other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "300",
    "Question": "When two perfectly sympathetic spirits are united, will they remain so throughout eternity, or can they separate and unite with other spirits?",
    "Answer": "All spirits are mutually united. I am referring to those who have already reached perfection. In less evolved spheres, after a spirit has improved itself, it no longer has the same sympathy for those whom it has left behind."
  },
  {
    "Id": "301",
    "Question": "Are two sympathetic spirits each other’s complement or is such sympathy the result of perfect affinity?",
    "Answer": "The sympathy that attracts one spirit to another is the result of the perfect harmony of their tendencies and instincts. If one of them were necessary to complete the other, it would lose its individuality."
  },
  {
    "Id": "302",
    "Question": "Does the affinity needed for perfect sympathy consist only in a similarity of thoughts and sentiments, or does it also consist in a uniformity of acquired knowledge?",
    "Answer": "It consists in the degree of their evolution."
  },
  {
    "Id": "303",
    "Question": "Could spirits who are not sympathetic today become more so later?",
    "Answer": "Yes, all will be someday. Thus, when a spirit who today inhabits a certain less evolved sphere is perfected, it will reach the sphere where the other dwells. Their reunion will occur more quickly, however, if the more evolved spirit has remained at a standstill because it has poorly borne the trials to which it submitted itself. Certainly, if one of them is idle. eternal halves"
  },
  {
    "Id": "303a",
    "Question": "May two sympathetic spirits cease to be sympathetic?",
    "Answer": "Certainly, if one of them is idle."
  },
  {
    "Id": "304",
    "Question": "Does the spirit remember its corporeal existence?",
    "Answer": "Yes, having lived many times as a human being, it remembers what it has been, and I assure you that sometimes it laughs, pitying its behavior."
  },
  {
    "Id": "305",
    "Question": "Does the memory of its last corporeal existence completely and unexpectedly return to the spirit after death?",
    "Answer": "No, it returns little by little, like something that appears out of the fog, and to the degree that the spirit fixes its attention on it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "306",
    "Question": "Does the spirit remember all the events of its life in detail, assimilating the whole in one retrospective glance?",
    "Answer": "It remembers things according to the consequences they hold for its situation as a spirit; but you should understand that there are circumstances to which it attributes no importance whatsoever and which it does not even try to remember. It can recall the minutest details and incidents – events or even thoughts – but when such has no usefulness, it does not do so. Assuredly, it sees and understands it much better than when it lived in the body. It understands the need for purification in order to reach the infinite, and it knows that during each existence it frees itself from a few impurities."
  },
  {
    "Id": "306a",
    "Question": "Could it remember them if it wanted to?",
    "Answer": "It can recall the minutest details and incidents – events or even thoughts – but when such has no usefulness, it does not do so."
  },
  {
    "Id": "307",
    "Question": "How does its past life unfold in its memory? By an effort of the imagination, or like a picture it holds before its eyes?",
    "Answer": "Both ways. All the actions that it has an interest in remembering are as if they were present. The others remain more or less at the back of its memory or are entirely forgotten. The more dematerialized it is, the less importance it attributes to material things. You often evoke an errant spirit who has just left the earth and does not remember the names of the people it has loved or the details that seem important to you. That is because it is no longer concerned with them and they have fallen into forgottenness. What it remembers very well, however, are the main events that have aided in its progress."
  },
  {
    "Id": "308",
    "Question": "Does the spirit remember all the lives that preceded the one it has just left behind?",
    "Answer": "Its entire past unfolds before it like the legs of a journey. However, as we have already stated, it does not recall all its actions with absolute precision, and it remembers them only according to the influence they have upon its present state. As for its earliest existences, those that may be regarded as the spirit’s infancy, they are lost in the void and disappear into the night of forgottenness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "309",
    "Question": "How does the spirit regard the body it has just left behind?",
    "Answer": "As an ill-fitting garment that has inconvenienced it, and which it feels happy to have gotten rid of. Almost always indifference. It is a thing it no longer cares about."
  },
  {
    "Id": "310",
    "Question": "After a certain amount of time has elapsed, does the spirit recognize its bones or other things that had belonged to it?",
    "Answer": "Sometimes, depending on the more or less evolved way in which it regards terrestrial things."
  },
  {
    "Id": "311",
    "Question": "Does the respect we have for the material things that a spirit has left behind attract its attention to them, and does it regard such respect with pleasure?",
    "Answer": "A spirit is always happy at being remembered. The things we save that once belonged to it awaken its memories, but it is the thought that attracts it to you and not the objects themselves."
  },
  {
    "Id": "312",
    "Question": "Do spirits hold on to the memory of the sufferings they bore during their last corporeal existence?",
    "Answer": "They frequently do and this memory enables them to better appreciate the happiness they now enjoy as spirits."
  },
  {
    "Id": "313",
    "Question": "Do humans who were happy on earth regret the pleasures they left behind?",
    "Answer": "Only low order spirits could regret the pleasures which correspond to the impurities of their nature, and which they must expiate through suffering. For more evolved spirits, eternal happiness is a thousand times preferable to the fleeting pleasures of earth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "314",
    "Question": "Do those who have begun great works intended for a useful purpose, but which they see interrupted by death, lament at having left them unfinished?",
    "Answer": "No, because they understand that others are meant to complete them. On the contrary, they try to influence other human spirits to continue them. Their aim on earth was the wellness of humankind; that aim is the same in the spirit world."
  },
  {
    "Id": "315",
    "Question": "Do those who leave their works of art or literature behind retain the love they had for them during life?",
    "Answer": "Depending on how much they have evolved, they often judge them differently and frequently disapprove of what they most admired."
  },
  {
    "Id": "316",
    "Question": "Does the spirit still have an interest in the works that are being done on earth for the progress of the arts and sciences?",
    "Answer": "Again, it depends on how much it has evolved or on the mission it may have to fulfill. What appears magnificent to you is often a small matter indeed to certain spirits, who admire it like a scholar admires the work of a student. They examine only that which can demonstrate the elevation and progress of incarnate spirits."
  },
  {
    "Id": "317",
    "Question": "After death, do spirits retain their love for their native land?",
    "Answer": "It is always the same principle: for high order spirits, their native land is the universe; on earth it is the place in which there is the greatest number of people sympathetic to them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "318",
    "Question": "Do spirits’ ideas change in the spirit life?",
    "Answer": "Very considerably; their ideas undergo large modifications as they become more dematerialized. They may sometimes hold on to the same ideas for a long time, but little by little the influence of matter diminishes and they see things more clearly. It is then that they seek ways to improve."
  },
  {
    "Id": "319",
    "Question": "Since the spirit had already lived the spirit life before its incarnation, why is it so astonished when it re-enters the spirit world?",
    "Answer": "That is only the effect of the first moments and the state of confusion following its awakening. Later, it recognizes its state perfectly as the memory of the past returns and the impression of terrestrial life fades away."
  },
  {
    "Id": "319a",
    "Question": "enters the spirit world?",
    "Answer": "That is only the effect of the first moments and the state of confusion following its awakening. Later, it recognizes its state perfectly as the memory of the past returns and the impression of terrestrial life fades away."
  },
  {
    "Id": "320",
    "Question": "Are spirits sensitive to being remembered by those who loved them on earth?",
    "Answer": "Much more than you may suppose. Being remembered adds to their happiness if they are already happy and consoles them if they are despondent."
  },
  {
    "Id": "321",
    "Question": "Does Memorial Day hold a more solemn meaning for spirits? Do they prepare to visit those who will pray over their graves?",
    "Answer": "Spirits answer to the call of thought on that day as on all others. They assemble in greater numbers on that day because the number of persons who call to them is larger, but each one only pays attention to its friends and not the crowd of indifferent people. They would look like they did while alive."
  },
  {
    "Id": "321a",
    "Question": "Is it for them a meeting day at their gravesides?",
    "Answer": "They assemble in greater numbers on that day because the number of persons who call to them is larger, but each one only pays attention to its friends and not the crowd of indifferent people."
  },
  {
    "Id": "322",
    "Question": "Do forgotten spirits, whose graves are not visited by anyone, come despite that fact and feel troubled at not seeing any friends remembering them?",
    "Answer": "What is the earth to them? They are only linked to it by the heart. If no one loves them any longer, there is nothing that can make spirits feel connected to the earth. They have the whole universe before them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "323",
    "Question": "Does a visit made to its grave provide more satisfaction to a spirit than a prayer made on its behalf in someone’s home?",
    "Answer": "A visit to its grave is a way of showing that one is thinking of the absent spirit – it is the exteriorization of the thought. I have already told you that it is the prayer that blesses the act of remembering. The place itself is of little importance if the memory comes from the heart."
  },
  {
    "Id": "324",
    "Question": "Do the spirits of individuals who are to be honored with statues or monuments attend the inaugurations and watch them with pleasure?",
    "Answer": "Many watch them when they can, but they are less sensitive to the honors paid to them than to the memories."
  },
  {
    "Id": "325",
    "Question": "Where does the desire come from where certain persons wish to be buried in one place rather than in another? Do they return to it with more satisfaction after death? And is the importance given to a physical thing a sign of a spirit’s impure nature?",
    "Answer": "A spirit’s affection for certain places is a sign of moral impurity. What does one piece of earth represent more than another to an evolved spirit? Doesn’t it know that its soul will be reunited with its loved ones, even though their bones may be far apart? No. It is a pious custom and a witness to the sympathy of loved ones. If such gatherings mean little to spirits, they are nonetheless useful to humans – their memories are better concentrated."
  },
  {
    "Id": "326",
    "Question": "Is a soul that has returned to life as a spirit sensitive to the honors paid to its mortal remains?",
    "Answer": "When a spirit has already reached a certain degree of purification, it has no more earthly vanity and it comprehends the futility of all these things. Nevertheless, you should know that there are spirits who, in the first moments of death, take great satisfaction in the honors paid to them. Others become disturbed if they see that their envelope is being forgotten, because they still hold on to some of the prejudices of this world."
  },
  {
    "Id": "327",
    "Question": "Do spirits ever watch their own burial?",
    "Answer": "They frequently do, but sometimes they do not perceive what is happening if they are still in the state of confusion. More so or less so, according to the sentiments of the people gathered there."
  },
  {
    "Id": "327a",
    "Question": "Do they feel flattered by a large gathering at their burial?",
    "Answer": "More so or less so, according to the sentiments of the people gathered there."
  },
  {
    "Id": "328",
    "Question": "Does the spirit attend the meetings of its heirs?",
    "Answer": "Almost always. God wills it for its instruction and as punishment for guilty ones. It is there that the spirit judges what its heirs’ declarations of affection are really worth. All sentiments become patent to the spirit, and the disappointment it feels in seeing the greed of those who divide up the spoils makes their true sentiments very clear; however, their time shall also come."
  },
  {
    "Id": "329",
    "Question": "Is the instinctive respect of people for the dead in all times and among all cultures the result of the intuition of a future existence?",
    "Answer": "It is its natural consequence. Without it, such respect would have no meaning."
  },
  {
    "Id": "330",
    "Question": "Do spirits know the time when they will have to reincarnate?",
    "Answer": "They can sense it like a blind man who feels the fire he is approaching. They know they must return to a body just as you know you must die someday, but without knowing when it will happen. Yes it is."
  },
  {
    "Id": "331",
    "Question": "Do all spirits concern themselves with their approaching reincarnation?",
    "Answer": "There are those who never give it a thought, who do not even comprehend it. It depends on the degree of their advancement. For some, uncertainty about their future life is a punishment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "332",
    "Question": "Can spirits hasten or delay the moment of their reincarnation?",
    "Answer": "They may hasten it through strong desire. They may also delay it if they recoil from the upcoming trial, since among spirits there are cowardly and indifferent ones. However, they do not delay it with impunity; they will suffer for it, like those who refuse the medicine that can restore them to health."
  },
  {
    "Id": "333",
    "Question": "If a spirit felt quite happy in an average situation among discarnate spirits and had no ambition to evolve, could it prolong its errant state indefinitely?",
    "Answer": "No, not indefinitely. Advancement is a necessity and spirits sense it sooner or later. All must evolve – it is their destiny."
  },
  {
    "Id": "334",
    "Question": "Is the union of a soul with a particular body predestined, or is the choice made at the last moment?",
    "Answer": "The spirit is always designated beforehand. In choosing the trial it wishes to undergo, the spirit asks to reincarnate, and God, who sees and knows everything, sees and knows beforehand that a particular soul will unite with a particular body."
  },
  {
    "Id": "335",
    "Question": "Does a spirit have the right to choose the body it will enter, or does it only choose the kind of life that will serve as its trial?",
    "Answer": "It may also choose its body because the body’s imperfections will be the trials that will help its advancement if it overcomes the obstacles it encounters thereby. This choice is not always up to the spirit but it may at least ask for it. If it refuses it, it will suffer much more than one who had not undertaken a new trial in the first place."
  },
  {
    "Id": "336",
    "Question": "Could it happen that there might be no spirit who is willing to incarnate in a particular unborn child?",
    "Answer": "God would provide for this. When a child is to be born alive it is always predestined to have a soul; nothing is created without a design."
  },
  {
    "Id": "337",
    "Question": "Can the union of a spirit with a particular body be imposed by God?",
    "Answer": "Such a union may be imposed in the same way as the spirit’s other trials, especially when it is not yet able to make a conscious choice about the matter. Moreover, as an expiation, a spirit may be compelled to unite with the body of a particular child who, by its birth and the position it will have in the world, may become a means of punishment for that spirit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "338",
    "Question": "If it just so happened that several spirits presented themselves to occupy the same body, how would the decision be made among them?",
    "Answer": "Many could very well request the same body, but in such cases it is God who decides which one is best suited to fulfill the mission for which the child is destined. But as I have already said, the spirit is designated before the instant in which it is to join the body."
  },
  {
    "Id": "339",
    "Question": "Is the moment of incarnation accompanied by a state of confusion similar to the one following discarnation?",
    "Answer": "The confusion is much greater and especially much longer. At death, a spirit escapes slavery; at birth, it enters it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "340",
    "Question": "Is the moment of incarnation a solemn one for the spirit? Does it accomplish it as something serious and important?",
    "Answer": "The spirit is like a traveler embarking on a dangerous voyage, not knowing if he will meet death on the waves ahead."
  },
  {
    "Id": "341",
    "Question": "Is a spirit’s uncertainty as to the probability of successfully enduring the trials it will experience in life a cause of anxiety before its incarnation?",
    "Answer": "It is a cause of great anxiety because the trials of its existence will either delay or hasten its evolution, depending on whether they are borne well or badly."
  },
  {
    "Id": "342",
    "Question": "At the moment of its reincarnation, is the spirit accompanied by spirit friends who come to assist with its departure from the spirit world, just as they come to meet it when it returns?",
    "Answer": "That depends on the sphere the spirit inhabits. If it belongs to a sphere in which affection reigns, spirits who love it accompany it up to the last moment, encouraging it and quite frequently following it during its lifetime."
  },
  {
    "Id": "343",
    "Question": "Are the spirit friends who follow us throughout life those who we sometimes see in our dreams, and who show their affection for us even though we do not recognize them physically?",
    "Answer": "Quite often they are. They come to visit you as you would visit a prisoner in jail."
  },
  {
    "Id": "344",
    "Question": "At what moment does the soul actually join the body?",
    "Answer": "The union begins at conception but is only complete at the moment of birth. From the moment of conception, the spirit designated to inhabit a given body is connected to it by a fluidic tie, which gets tighter and tighter up to the instant the child is born. The newborn’s cries announce that it has entered the number of the living and the servants of God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "345",
    "Question": "Is the union between the spirit and body definitive from the moment of conception? In other words, during this first stage could the spirit refuse to inhabit the body that has been designated for it?",
    "Answer": "The union is definitive in the sense that no other spirit can replace the one who has been designated for that particular body. However, since the ties that bind it are very tenuous and easy to break, they may actually be severed by the will of a spirit who recoils from the trial it has chosen. In that case, the child does not survive."
  },
  {
    "Id": "346",
    "Question": "What happens to a spirit if the body it has chosen dies before birth?",
    "Answer": "It chooses another. The imperfections of matter are frequently the cause of such deaths."
  },
  {
    "Id": "346a",
    "Question": "What could be the usefulness of such premature deaths?",
    "Answer": "The imperfections of matter are frequently the cause of such deaths."
  },
  {
    "Id": "347",
    "Question": "What usefulness can a spirit derive from incarnating into a body that dies a few days after birth?",
    "Answer": "Such a being does not yet have a sufficiently developed consciousness of its existence; the importance of its death is almost null. As we have already said, these cases are often meant as a trial for the parents."
  },
  {
    "Id": "348",
    "Question": "Does a spirit know beforehand that the body it has chosen will have no chance of surviving?",
    "Answer": "It knows sometimes, but if it chooses it for that reason, it does so in order to avoid its upcoming trial."
  },
  {
    "Id": "349",
    "Question": "When a particular incarnation fails for a spirit for any reason, is it immediately furnished with another existence?",
    "Answer": "Not always immediately. The spirit requires time to make another choice, unless an immediate reincarnation had been previously decided upon."
  },
  {
    "Id": "350",
    "Question": "Once definitely united to the body of a child and therefore no longer able to withdraw, does a spirit sometimes regret the choice it has made?",
    "Answer": "Do you mean if as an incarnate spirit it might complain about its life, or if it would like to have another? Yes. Does it regret the choice it made? No, because it does not even remember having made the choice in the first place. Once incarnate, a spirit cannot regret a choice of which it has no awareness, but it may find the burden to be too heavy, and if it thinks the burden is beyond its strength to endure, it may resort to suicide."
  },
  {
    "Id": "351",
    "Question": "In the interval between conception and birth, do spirits enjoy all their faculties?",
    "Answer": "More so or less so, depending on the phase of gestation because during that time they are not yet fully incarnated; they are only attached to the body. At the moment of conception, confusion begins to envelop the spirit and it is thereby warned that the time has come to start a new existence. This confusion increases until the time of birth. In the meantime, its state is more or less that of an incarnate spirit during sleep. As the moment of birth approaches, its ideas are erased, as well as its memory of the past, which it is no longer conscious of once it returns to life on the earth. But this memory returns little by little when it reenters the spirit state."
  },
  {
    "Id": "352",
    "Question": "At the moment of birth, do spirits immediately recover the fullness of their faculties?",
    "Answer": "No, the faculties develop gradually with the organs. Spirits find themselves in a new existence and must learn to use their bodily instruments. Their ideas return little by little, like those of individuals who wake up from sleep to find themselves in a different situation than the one they were in the day before."
  },
  {
    "Id": "353",
    "Question": "Since the union of a spirit with its body is not complete and definitely consummated until after birth, can the fetus be considered as having a soul?",
    "Answer": "The spirit who must animate it exists outside of it, so to speak. Strictly speaking, the fetus has no soul since the current incarnation is only in the process of being accomplished. Nevertheless, the fetus is linked to the soul that it will have."
  },
  {
    "Id": "354",
    "Question": "How can intra-uterine life be explained?",
    "Answer": "It is like a germinating plant. The fetus lives a corporeal animal-like life. As a fetus, human beings already have within themselves a vegeto-animal47 life, which they complete at birth with a spiritual life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "354a",
    "Question": "uterine life be explained?",
    "Answer": "It is like a germinating plant. The fetus lives a corporeal animal-like life. As a fetus, human beings already have within themselves a vegeto-animal47 life, which they complete at birth with a spiritual life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "355",
    "Question": "As medical science has pointed out, there are infants who, even in their mother’s womb, have no possibility of surviving. For what purpose does this occur?",
    "Answer": "This is a common occurrence that God permits as a trial, either for the parents or the spirit appointed to animate the child."
  },
  {
    "Id": "356",
    "Question": "Are there stillborn infants who were not meant for a spirit to incarnate in them in the first place?",
    "Answer": "Yes, there are some who never had a spirit destined for their bodies – nothing would have been accomplished in them. It is solely for the parents that such a child is delivered. Yes, sometimes, but then it does not survive. Of course; what would it be without a spirit? It would not be a human being."
  },
  {
    "Id": "356a",
    "Question": "Can a being of such a nature be carried to term?",
    "Answer": "Yes, sometimes, but then it does not survive."
  },
  {
    "Id": "357",
    "Question": "What are the consequences of abortion for a spirit?",
    "Answer": "Its existence is nullified and must be commenced again."
  },
  {
    "Id": "358",
    "Question": "Is artificial abortion a crime regardless of the time of conception?",
    "Answer": "A crime is always committed when the law of God is transgressed. The mother or any other person involved always 47"
  },
  {
    "Id": "359",
    "Question": "In cases where the life of the mother would be endangered by the birth of the child, is it a crime to sacrifice the child in order to save the mother?",
    "Answer": "It is better to sacrifice the being who does not yet exist than the being who already exists."
  },
  {
    "Id": "360",
    "Question": "Is it rational to treat the fetus with the same respect as the body of a child who has already survived?",
    "Answer": "You should see the will of God and the divine handiwork in everything, and not treat lightly the things you ought to respect. Why not respect all the works of creation, which are sometimes incomplete by the will of the Creator? Everything follows according to God’s designs and no one is called upon to judge them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "361",
    "Question": "Where do a person’s good or evil moral qualities come from?",
    "Answer": "They reflect the qualities of the incarnate spirit. The purer the spirit, the more the person is inclined toward the good. Yes, but it would be better to say an imperfect spirit; otherwise, one might believe in spirits who will always remain evil – those you call demons."
  },
  {
    "Id": "362",
    "Question": "What is the character of the individuals in whom frivolous and foolish spirits are incarnated?",
    "Answer": "They are thoughtless, cunning, and sometimes malicious beings."
  },
  {
    "Id": "363",
    "Question": "Do spirits possess any passions that do not belong to humankind?",
    "Answer": "No; otherwise, they would have passed them on to you."
  },
  {
    "Id": "364",
    "Question": "Is it one and the same spirit who gives an individual his or her moral and intellectual qualities?",
    "Answer": "Certainly it is one and the same, and such qualities will depend on the degree of the spirit’s evolution. Individuals do not have two spirits within them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "365",
    "Question": "Why are the most intelligent individuals, who display a highly evolved spirit incarnated in them, sometimes and at the same time extremely cruel?",
    "Answer": "It is because the incarnate spirit is not sufficiently purified; also, because the person yields to the influence of other spirits who are even worse. A spirit progresses in an imperceptible ascending forward progression, but this progress is not accomplished simultaneously in all senses. During one period a spirit may advance in knowledge; during another, in morality."
  },
  {
    "Id": "366",
    "Question": "What about the opinion according to which the various moral and intellectual qualities of humans are the product of many different spirits incarnate in them, each possessing a special aptitude?",
    "Answer": "If you reflect on it, you will realize how absurd that is. A spirit must possess all aptitudes and in order to progress, it needs a unified will. If a person were a collection of spirits, this unified will would not exist. He or she would possess no individuality, because at death all those spirits would be like a flock of birds escaping from a cage. People often complain that they do not understand certain things, but it is interesting to notice how they multiply their problems when they have a very simple and natural explanation right there in their own hands. This notion is another example of taking the effect for the cause; it attributes to the human being what the pagans attributed to God. They believed in as many gods as there were phenomena in the universe. However, even among them sensible persons saw nothing more in those phenomena than effects having as their cause a sole God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "367",
    "Question": "Upon joining the body, does a spirit identify itself with matter?",
    "Answer": "Matter is no more than the spirit’s envelope, as clothing is the body’s envelope. Upon joining the body, a spirit preserves the attributes of its spirit nature."
  },
  {
    "Id": "368",
    "Question": "Does a spirit exercise its faculties with full liberty after its union with a body?",
    "Answer": "The exercise of its faculties depends on the organs serving as their instruments. They are weakened by the density of matter. Yes, and exceedingly opaque."
  },
  {
    "Id": "369",
    "Question": "Is the free exercise of the soul’s faculties subordinate to the development of the bodily organs?",
    "Answer": "The organs are the instruments for the manifestation of the soul’s faculties. This manifestation depends on the degree of the respective organs’ development, just as the excellence of a piece of work depends on the excellence of the tool."
  },
  {
    "Id": "370",
    "Question": "Could one infer from the influence of the organs a connection between the development of the cerebral structure and the moral and intellectual faculties?",
    "Answer": "Do not confuse the effect with the cause. The spirit always possesses the faculties that are proper for it. Thus, it is not the organs that give it its faculties, but rather the faculties that stimulate the development of the organs. Solely is not the exact term. The qualities of the spirit, who may be more advanced or less so, are the basis for this diversity; however, we must take into account the influence of matter because it hinders to a greater or lesser degree the exercising of these faculties."
  },
  {
    "Id": "371",
    "Question": "Is there any basis for the opinion that mentally impaired individuals have a soul of a little-evolved nature? The 1857 original contained the heading",
    "Answer": "Idiotisme No. They have a human soul who is frequently more intelligent than you might think, and who suffers immensely from the insufficiency of its means to communicate – as a mute suffers from the inability to speak."
  },
  {
    "Id": "371a",
    "Question": "Tr.",
    "Answer": "No. They have a human soul who is frequently more intelligent than you might think, and who suffers immensely from the insufficiency of its means to communicate – as a mute suffers from the inability to speak."
  },
  {
    "Id": "372",
    "Question": "What is the aim of Providence in creating unfortunate beings like the mentally impaired?",
    "Answer": "The spirits who dwell in such bodies are expiating past wrongs. They suffer from their constraints and from the impossibility of expressing themselves because of undeveloped or defective brains. We have never said that organs have no influence at all; rather, they exercise a very great influence on the manifestation of the faculties, but they themselves do not produce the faculties – that is the difference. A good musician will not make good music with a bad instrument, but that does not mean he or she is not a good musician."
  },
  {
    "Id": "373",
    "Question": "What could possibly be the merit in the existence of beings who, like the mentally impaired, can do neither good nor evil, and therefore cannot progress?",
    "Answer": "It is an expiation imposed for their having abused certain faculties in a former life; it is a temporary pause. Yes, genius sometimes becomes a curse when it is abused."
  },
  {
    "Id": "374",
    "Question": "In the spirit state, are the mentally impaired conscious of their mental state?",
    "Answer": "Yes, quite often. They understand that the chains hindering their development are a trial and an expiation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "375",
    "Question": "What is the situation of the spirit in the state of insanity?",
    "Answer": "When freed from the body, the spirit receives impressions directly, and directly exerts its action upon matter. Once incarnated, however, it finds itself in completely different conditions and in need of acting with the help of special organs. If one part or a group of these organs is altered, the spirit’s actions are interrupted – defective eyes cause blindness; defective ears cause deafness, etc. Now imagine that the organ presiding over the manifestations of intelligence and will is partially or entirely damaged or modified and you will easily understand that the use of such an incomplete or distorted organ will result in an affliction that the spirit is fully aware of, but whose course it is powerless to deter. Yes, but you must not lose sight of the fact that just as a spirit acts upon matter, matter reacts upon the spirit to a certain degree; hence, a spirit may find itself momentarily controlled by the alteration of its organs through which it manifests and receives various impressions. It may happen that, with time, and after the insanity has lasted quite a while, the repetition of the same acts end up exerting on the spirit an influence from which it will not be freed until its complete separation from every material effect."
  },
  {
    "Id": "376",
    "Question": "What is the reason for insanity sometimes leading to suicide?",
    "Answer": "The spirit suffers immensely from its constraints and from the powerlessness to freely manifest itself. Thus, it seeks a way to break its ties in death."
  },
  {
    "Id": "377",
    "Question": "After death, does the spirit of a mentally impaired person continue to feel the derangement of its faculties?",
    "Answer": "It may feel it for quite some time until it is completely disconnected from matter, like a person who, upon awakening, continues to feel the confusion into which sleep has immersed him or her."
  },
  {
    "Id": "378",
    "Question": "How is it possible for the impairment of the brain to react upon the spirit after death?",
    "Answer": "It is a remembrance. A weight bears down upon the spirit, and since it was not aware of everything that took place during its insanity, it requires some time to be able to understand its current state. That is why the longer insanity lasts during life, the longer the affliction and the constraint will last after death. Disconnected from the body, the spirit continues to feel the impression of its bonds for some time thereafter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "379",
    "Question": "Is the spirit who animates the body of a child as developed as the spirit of an adult?",
    "Answer": "Maybe more so if it is more evolved. Only its imperfect organs keep it from fully manifesting itself. It must act according to the instrument that serves it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "380",
    "Question": "In a very young child, and despite the obstacle that the imperfection of its organs imposes on its ability to freely manifest itself, does the spirit think as a child or as an adult?",
    "Answer": "While a child, it is natural that the as-yet undeveloped organ of intelligence cannot provide it with all the intuition of an adult. Its intelligence is therefore quite limited until age matures its reason. The confusion accompanying incarnation does not cease suddenly at birth, but only dissipates gradually with the development of the organs."
  },
  {
    "Id": "381",
    "Question": "With the death of the child, does the spirit immediately regain its former vigor?",
    "Answer": "It should, since it has been disencumbered from its physical envelope. Nevertheless, it does not regain its former lucidity until the separation is complete, that is, until there is no connection between the spirit and the body at all."
  },
  {
    "Id": "382",
    "Question": "Does the incarnate spirit suffer from the constraint imposed by the imperfection of its organs during childhood?",
    "Answer": "No. Childhood is a necessity. It is natural and corresponds to the designs of Providence. It is a time of repose for the spirit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "383",
    "Question": "What is the usefulness of a spirit having to go through childhood?",
    "Answer": "A spirit incarnates in order to perfect itself. During childhood it is more accessible to the impressions it receives, and which may assist in its progress. Persons in charge of its education should contribute towards this goal."
  },
  {
    "Id": "384",
    "Question": "Why are a child’s first expressions those of crying?",
    "Answer": "To incite the mother’s interest and ensure the care it needs. Don’t you understand that if it only expressed joy while still unable to speak, few would be concerned about its needs? Therefore, you ought to admire the wisdom of Providence in everything."
  },
  {
    "Id": "385",
    "Question": "What is the reason for the change that occurs in its character at a certain age, particularly upon leaving adolescence? Is it the spirit that changes?",
    "Answer": "It is because the spirit recaptures its true nature and reveals who it really was prior to its present incarnation. You do not know the secrets that children conceal behind their innocence. You do not know what they are, what they have been or what they will be; nevertheless, you love and cherish them as though they were a part of you. This happens to such a degree that the love of a mother for her child is reputed to be the greatest love that one being may have for another. Why do even strangers feel sweet affection and display tender benevolence toward a child? Do you know? No? Well, I will explain it to you. “Children are beings whom God has sent into a new existence. So that God is not accused of excessive severity, God gives them all the appearances of innocence. Even in children of an evil nature, their misdeeds are covered up because they are unaware of the quality of their acts. However, this innocence does not truly reflect their state of advancement in relation to what they previously were. In reality, it is a picture of what they ought to be, and if they are not, the blame falls on them alone. “Nevertheless, it is not merely for the children’s sake that God gives them such an appearance; it is also and especially for their parents, whose love is necessary in their fragility. Such love would be extraordinarily weakened if the parents were faced with a quarrelsome and badtempered character. On the other hand, supposing their children to be good and gentle, parents give them all their affection and surround them with the tenderest care. However, when children no longer need the protection and assistance that has been given to them for fifteen or twenty years, their true and individual character emerges in all its nakedness. Their character remains good if it was fundamentally good in the first place, but it will always display nuances that were hidden during early childhood. “You can see that God’s ways are always the best, and that when one has a pure heart, they are easily explained. “In fact, ponder the possibility that the spirit of the child who is born among you may have come from a world on which it had acquired altogether different habits. How would you want this new being to remain in your midst with passions so diverse from yours, inclinations and tastes entirely opposite to yours? How would you want it to incorporate itself into your environment except in the way God wanted it to, that is, after having experienced the sieve of childhood? In this phase are mixed all the thoughts, all the characteristics and all the varieties of beings generated by that multitude of worlds on which individuals develop. Upon dying, you yourselves will also be in a sort of childhood in the midst of new family members. In your new non-terrestrial existence, you will be ignorant of the habits, the customs and the forms of relationships of that world, and you will have difficulty in managing a language you are not used to speaking – a language more alive than your thought is today. (See no. 319) “Childhood provides yet another purpose: spirits only enter corporeal life in order to improve and purify themselves. The fragility of the early years renders them flexible and accessible to the counsels of experience and to those who should aid their progress. That is the time when one can best reform their character and curb their evil tendencies. Such is the duty that God entrusts to parents, a sacred mission for which they will have to answer. “Consequently, childhood is not only useful, necessary and indispensable, but it is also the natural result of the laws that God has established, and which govern the universe."
  },
  {
    "Id": "386",
    "Question": "Could two individuals who have already known and loved each other meet in another corporeal existence and recognize each other?",
    "Answer": "Recognize each other, no; feel attracted to each other, yes. Frequently, intimate connections founded on sincere affection arise from no other cause. Two individuals are drawn together by apparently fortuitous circumstances, but it is actually the result of the attraction of two spirits who have been searching for each other amidst the crowds. Not always. The memory of past lives might hold greater disadvantages than you suppose. After death, they will recognize each other and will remember the time they spent together."
  },
  {
    "Id": "387",
    "Question": "Is sympathy always the result of their having known each other previously?",
    "Answer": "No. Two spirits who have affinities naturally search for each other without their having been previously acquainted as incarnates."
  },
  {
    "Id": "388",
    "Question": "Wouldn’t the encounters which sometimes occur between certain persons, and which are attributed to chance, be the effect of a kind of sympathetic relationship?",
    "Answer": "Among thinking beings there are connections that you do not yet know anything about. Magnetism is at the core of this science, which you will later comprehend better."
  },
  {
    "Id": "389",
    "Question": "Where does the instinctive repulsion come from when certain individuals meet each other for the first time?",
    "Answer": "They are antipathetic spirits who perceive and recognize each other without ever having spoken to each other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "390",
    "Question": "Is instinctive antipathy always a sign of an evil nature?",
    "Answer": "Two spirits are not necessarily evil just because they are not sympathetic. Antipathy may originate from a dissimilarity in their way of thinking. As they evolve, however, these shades of dissimilarity are erased and the antipathy disappears."
  },
  {
    "Id": "391",
    "Question": "Does the antipathy between two individuals arise first in the one whose spirit is worse or in the other whose spirit is better?",
    "Answer": "It arises in both, but the causes and effects are different. An evil spirit feels antipathy towards anyone who may be able to judge and unmask it. Upon seeing a person for the first time, it perceives that that person will disapprove of it. Its dislike then changes into hatred and envy, which inspire it with the desire to do evil. The good spirit, on the other hand, is repulsed by the evil one because it knows it will not be understood by the other and that neither shares the same sentiments. However, aware of its higher moral principles, it feels neither hatred nor jealousy toward the other: it is content to simply avoid and pity it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "392",
    "Question": "Why does the incarnate spirit lose the memory of its past?",
    "Answer": "Human beings cannot and must not know everything. God, out of divine wisdom, wills it to be this way. Without the veil that hides certain things from them, they would be dazzled, like one who passes suddenly from the darkness into the light. By forgetting their past, they are more fully themselves in the present."
  },
  {
    "Id": "393",
    "Question": "How can individuals be responsible for their deeds and redeem their wrongs if they cannot remember them? How can they profit from the experience acquired in lives that have fallen into forgottenness? We could understand that life’s tribulations might be a lesson for them if they could remember what had caused them in the first place, but since they do not remember them at all, each existence is as if it were the first, and it is thus that they are always having to start over. How can this be reconciled with the justice of God?",
    "Answer": "With each new existence, spirits gain more intelligence and can better distinguish between good and evil. Where would their merit be if they remembered their entire past? When spirits enter their life of origin (the spirit life), their entire previous life unfolds before them. They see the wrongs they committed, and which are the cause of their suffering, as well as what would have kept them from committing them in the first place. They understand the justice of the position assigned to them, and they thus desire a new existence that can redeem the one that has elapsed. They seek trials similar to those they have already experienced, or struggles they believe will be appropriate for their advancement. They ask spirits who are of a higher order to help them in the new task that they are about to undertake, for they know that the spirit who will be given to them as their guide in that new existence will endeavor to enable them to repair their wrongs of the past by giving them a sort of intuition about them. This same intuition is the thought, the wrongful desire, which frequently assaults you, and which you instinctively resist, most of the time attributing your resistance to the principles you have received from your parents. However, it is the voice of conscience speaking to you and this voice is a memory of the past, a voice that warns you not to fall into the errors you committed previously. In that new existence, if a spirit endures its trials with courage and resists them, it evolves and will ascend in the spirits’ hierarchy when it returns to be among them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "394",
    "Question": "On worlds more advanced than ours, where beings are not subject to all our physical needs and infirmities, do they understand that they are happier than we are? Happiness, in general, is relative; we feel it by comparing it with a less happy state. In sum, some of those worlds, though better than ours, have not yet reached the state of perfection, and their inhabitants must have their own annoyances. Even though the wealthy among us do not suffer the anxieties of material needs like the poor, they are no less subject to the same types of tribulations that embitter their lives. Thus, I would ask whether the inhabitants of those worlds in their own situations feel as unhappy as we do, and whether they also complain about their fate since they do not have the memory of a less evolved existence for comparison.",
    "Answer": "Two different answers apply to this question. There are worlds among those you are speaking about, on which the inhabitants have a clear and exact memory of their past lives. You should understand that these can and do know how to appreciate the happiness that God permits them to enjoy. However, there are other worlds whose inhabitants, situated, as you say, in better conditions than yours, are no less subject to great annoyances, and even misfortunes. They do not appreciate their happiness because they do not remember an even unhappier state. Nevertheless, if they do not appreciate it as incarnates, they will as spirits."
  },
  {
    "Id": "395",
    "Question": "Can we obtain any revelations about our former lives?",
    "Answer": "Not always. Nevertheless, many know who they were and what they did. If they were permitted to speak openly, they would make curious revelations about the past."
  },
  {
    "Id": "396",
    "Question": "Some persons believe they have a vague memory of an unknown past. It appears as a fleeting image of a dream, which in vain they try to retain. Wouldn’t this belief simply be an illusion?",
    "Answer": "It is sometimes real, but much more often it is an illusion to be guarded against; it could simply be the effect of an over-excited imagination."
  },
  {
    "Id": "397",
    "Question": "In corporeal existences of a more evolved nature than ours, is the memory of previous lives more precise?",
    "Answer": "Yes, as the body becomes less material, they become easier to remember. The memory of the past is clearer for those who inhabit worlds of a higher order."
  },
  {
    "Id": "398",
    "Question": "Since people’s instinctive tendencies are a reminiscence of their past, then by studying those tendencies can they know about the wrongs they committed?",
    "Answer": "Undoubtedly, to a certain point; however, it is necessary to take into account the improvement that may have taken place in the spirit and the resolutions it made in its errant state. Their present existence could in fact be much better than the preceding one. That depends on their advancement. If they do not yet know how to resist trials, they could be drawn to commit new wrongs as a consequence of the position they themselves have chosen. But such wrongs indicate a stationary state rather than a regressive one, because spirits may advance or remain stationary; they do not regress."
  },
  {
    "Id": "399",
    "Question": "Since the tribulations of corporeal life are at the same time expiations for past wrongs and trials for the future, does it follow that, from the nature of these tribulations, we may deduce the kind of preceding existence we lived?",
    "Answer": "Very frequently, because individuals are punished for their particular sins. Nevertheless, we cannot make this an absolute rule. The instinctive tendencies are a more certain indication because the trials that a spirit undergoes refer as much to the future as to the past."
  },
  {
    "Id": "400",
    "Question": "Does an incarnate spirit willingly stay in its corporeal envelope?",
    "Answer": "That is like asking if a prisoner is happy being under lock and key. An incarnate spirit constantly aspires to freedom. The denser the envelope, the more it wants to be free of it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "401",
    "Question": "During sleep does the soul rest like the body?",
    "Answer": "No, a spirit never remains inactive. During sleep, the bonds that join it to the body are loosened, and since the body does not need it while sleeping, the spirit travels through space and enters into a more direct relationship with other spirits."
  },
  {
    "Id": "402",
    "Question": "How can we confirm the fact that a spirit is free during sleep?",
    "Answer": "By dreams. While the body rests, the spirit enjoys more of its faculties than in the waking state. It remembers the past and sometimes foresees the future. It acquires more power and can communicate with other spirits whether on this world or another. You frequently say, ‘I had a bizarre dream, a horrible dream, but there is no likelihood of it being true.’ You are mistaken. It is almost always a memory of places and things which you have seen, or which you will see in another existence or on another occasion. Since the body is dormant, the spirit tries to break its chains in order to probe into the past and future. “Poor human beings! You know so little about the most ordinary phenomena of life! You believe you are very wise, yet the most ordinary things puzzle you to no end. To the question of all children, ‘What do we do when we sleep? What are dreams?’ you remain without an answer. “Sleep partially frees the soul from the body. When humans sleep, they momentarily find themselves in the state which they will be in permanently after death. Spirits who quickly free themselves from matter upon death had intelligent dreams during earthly life. Such spirits, while their body is sleeping, rejoin the company of those who are more evolved; they travel with, converse with and learn from them. They even work on projects that they find completed upon dying. From these facts you should once more learn not to fear death, because you die daily – as a saint once stated. “This applies only to more highly evolved spirits; however, the mass of spirits, who at death must remain in a state of confusion for some time – that uncertainty of which we The Emancipation of the Soul have already spoken to you – either go to worlds even less evolved than earth, where former affections call to them or where they seek out pleasures that are perhaps even baser than those they indulge in here. They go to take in doctrines even viler, more ignoble and more noxious than those they profess among you. What engenders sympathies on earth is nothing other than the fact that upon awakening, they feel linked to the hearts of those with whom they have just spent eight or nine hours of happiness or pleasure. Moreover, the insuperable antipathies they feel at the bottom of our heart for certain individuals may be explained by the fact that they have a consciousness that is different from their own; they recognize these individual without having ever seen them before. It is furthermore what explains people’s indifference when they do not seek to make new friends – they know that those who love and cherish them are elsewhere. In a word, sleep has more influence than you think on your life. “During sleep, incarnate spirits are always in touch with the spirit world, and that is what leads high order spirits, without too much aversion, to consent to incarnate among you. During their contact with earthly vices, God grants them the freedom to re-strengthen themselves during sleep at the source of the good in order not to fail in their commitment to instruct others. Sleep is the door that God opens to them for contacting their friends in heaven. It is their break after work while they await the great deliverance, the final liberation that must restore them to their true environment. “A dream is the memory of what your spirit has seen during sleep. However, notice that you do not always dream, because you do not always remember what you have seen, or everything that you have seen. This happens because your soul is still under development, so that frequently you retain nothing more than the confused memory that accompanies your departure and your return, which is mixed in with the memory of what you have done or what concerns you have had while awake. Otherwise, how do you explain those absurd dreams that both the wisest and the simplest individuals endure? Evil spirits also use dreams to torment weak and cowardly souls. “Furthermore, you will soon see another type of dreaming develop; a type as ancient as the kind you already know about but of which you are ignorant. It is the dream of Joan of Arc, the dream of Jacob, the dream of the Jewish prophets and certain Indian seers: this sort of dream is the remembrance of the soul entirely disengaged from the body, the memory of that other life of which I have just spoken to you. “Try hard to distinguish between these two types of dreams among those that you remember; unless you do, you will fall into contradictions and errors that could be disastrous for your faith."
  },
  {
    "Id": "403",
    "Question": "Why don’t we always remember our dreams?",
    "Answer": "During what you call sleep, you only experience the repose of the body because the spirit is always in motion. During sleep, it recovers a little of its freedom and communicates with those who are dear to it either on this world or on others. But since the body is composed of heavy and dense matter, it is difficult for it to retain the impressions received by the spirit because the spirit did not receive them through the body’s organs in the first place."
  },
  {
    "Id": "404",
    "Question": "What should we think about the various meanings attributed to dreams?",
    "Answer": "Dreams are not true in the sense that fortune-tellers, for example, understand them, for it is absurd to believe that dreaming about one matter necessarily foretells another. They are true in the sense that they present real images to the spirit, but these images often have no relation to what occurs in its corporeal life. Furthermore, as we have stated, many times they are a memory of the past. Lastly, they may also sometimes be a presentiment of the future if God allows it, or a vision of what is occurring at the moment in another place to which the soul has gone. Don’t you have numerous examples of persons who appear in dreams to warn relatives and friends about what is happening to them? What are these apparitions if not the soul or spirit of these persons communicating with you? When you confirm that what you have seen has really occurred, isn’t it evidence that the imagination has had nothing to do with it, especially if the event was absolutely not in your thought while you were awake?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "405",
    "Question": "Frequently, things are seen in dreams that appear to be presentiments about matters that end up not occurring. Where do these come from?",
    "Answer": "They may occur for the spirit if not for the body, which means that the spirit sees what it desires because it goes looking for it. You must not forget that during sleep the soul is always more or less under the influence of matter, and consequently it is never completely free from terrestrial ideas. Therefore, the concerns of wakefulness may give what you see the appearance of what you desire or what you fear. This is really what can be called a trick of the imagination. When you are strongly preoccupied with an idea, you connect it to everything you see."
  },
  {
    "Id": "406",
    "Question": "When we see living persons perfectly known to us doing things in a dream which they would absolutely never think of doing in real life, isn’t it pure imagination?",
    "Answer": "Which they would absolutely never think about? How do you know that? Their spirit may come to visit yours, as yours may visit theirs, without your always knowing what they are thinking about. Besides, according to your desires, you frequently apply to individuals familiar to you what occurred or is occurring in other existences."
  },
  {
    "Id": "407",
    "Question": "Is complete sleep necessary for the emancipation of the spirit?",
    "Answer": "No. The spirit recovers its freedom whenever the senses become sluggish. It takes advantage of every moment of respite that the body offers it to emancipate itself. As soon as there is a prostration of the vital forces, the spirit disengages itself; the weaker the body is, the freer the spirit will be."
  },
  {
    "Id": "408",
    "Question": "Sometimes it seems to us that we hear within us distinctly pronounced words that have no relation to what we are preoccupied with. Where do they come from?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and even entire sentences, especially when the senses begin to grow dull. It is sometimes the faint echo of a spirit who wishes to communicate with you."
  },
  {
    "Id": "409",
    "Question": "Often, while we have our eyes shut during a state that is not yet sleep, we see distinct images and figures in the minutest detail. Is this an effect of vision or of imagination?",
    "Answer": "The body being numb, the spirit tries to break its chains – it travels and sees. If sleep were complete, this vision would be a dream."
  },
  {
    "Id": "410",
    "Question": "During sleep or a nap, we sometimes have ideas that seem very worthwhile, but which in spite of the efforts we make to recall them are erased from our waking memory. Where do these ideas come from?",
    "Answer": "They are the result of the freedom of the spirit, who emancipates itself and enjoys broader faculties for the moment. Also, they are frequently counsels given by other spirits. Such ideas sometimes belong more to the spirit world than to the corporeal one. But most frequently, if the body forgets them the spirit remembers them nonetheless, and the idea returns at the appropriate time as an inspiration of the moment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "411",
    "Question": "During the time that the spirit is disengaged from matter and acts as a spirit, does it know the time of its death?",
    "Answer": "It often has a presentiment. Sometimes it has a very clear awareness of it, which gives it an intuition about it while awake. That is why some individuals sometimes foresee their own death with great precision."
  },
  {
    "Id": "412",
    "Question": "Can the activity of the spirit during the repose or sleep of the body fatigue the body?",
    "Answer": "Yes, because the spirit is connected to the body like a balloon tied to a post. In the same manner that the jerking movements of the balloon shake the post, the activity of the spirit reacts upon the body and may produce fatigue."
  },
  {
    "Id": "413",
    "Question": "The principle of the soul’s emancipation during sleep seems to indicate that we live two lives simultaneously: that of the body, involving our life of outward relationships, and that of the soul, involving our life of concealed relationships. Is this precise?",
    "Answer": "In the state of emancipation, the life of the body yields to that of the soul, but properly speaking there are not two lives. Instead, they are two phases of the same life; people do not live double lives."
  },
  {
    "Id": "414",
    "Question": "Can two people who know each other visit each other during sleep?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and many others, who do not think they know each other while awake, meet and converse. Without even suspecting it, you may even have friends in another country. The phenomenon during sleep in which you visit friends, relatives, acquaintances and individuals who may be useful to you is so frequent that you experience it almost every night."
  },
  {
    "Id": "415",
    "Question": "Of what use are these nocturnal visits if we do not remember them? The Emancipation of the Soul",
    "Answer": "Ordinarily, upon awakening, an intuition remains that is almost always the origin of certain ideas which arise spontaneously without your being able to explain them, and which are but the ones grasped during such colloquies."
  },
  {
    "Id": "416",
    "Question": "Can people cause spirit visits at will? For example, can they say upon going to bed,",
    "Answer": "Tonight I wish to meet in spirit with such and such person to speak with him/her and tell him/her about such and such thing Here is what actually happens: the person sleeps and the spirit wakens, but the spirit is often very far from following what the person resolved while awake because the life of the person interests the spirit very little when it is set free from matter. This applies to individuals who are already quite evolved, though; the others spend their spirit existence in an entirely different manner. These either give in to their passions or remain inactive altogether. Thus, it may happen that, depending on the reason proposed, the spirit may go to visit the desired individual, but the mere desire while awake to do so is not its reason for actually doing it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "417",
    "Question": "Can a certain number of incarnate spirits meet and form a gathering?",
    "Answer": "Of course. The bonds of friendships, old or new, frequently reunite a number of spirits who feel happy at being together. old"
  },
  {
    "Id": "418",
    "Question": "If a person believed a friend to be dead but who in reality was not, could that person meet the friend in spirit, and thus know that she was still alive? In such a case, could this person have an intuition about it upon awaking?",
    "Answer": "As a spirit, the individual can certainly see the friend and know how she is. If the belief in her death was not meant as a trial, the person will have a presentiment that she is alive, or that she is in fact dead."
  },
  {
    "Id": "419",
    "Question": "Why is it that the same idea – a discovery, for example – arises at the same time in many places?",
    "Answer": "We have already stated that during sleep spirits communicate with one another. Well then, when the body awakens, the spirit remembers what it has learned and the person thinks he or she has invented it. Thus, many may seem to have discovered the same thing at the same time. When you say that an idea is ‘floating around’, you employ a figure of speech that is more precise than you think. Without even suspecting it, everyone has contributed toward developing it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "420",
    "Question": "Can spirits communicate with one another when the body is completely awake?",
    "Answer": "A spirit is not enclosed in its body as if it were in a box; it radiates all around in every direction. Hence, it can communicate with other spirits even in the waking state, although it does so with more difficulty."
  },
  {
    "Id": "421",
    "Question": "Why do two perfectly awake persons sometimes have the same thought at exactly the same time? That is, mental telepathy – Tr. The Emancipation of the Soul",
    "Answer": "They are two attuned spirits who communicate with each other and read each other’s thoughts even when they are not asleep."
  },
  {
    "Id": "422",
    "Question": "Lethargic and cataleptic individuals generally see and hear what is occurring around them, but they cannot express it. Do they see and hear through the eyes and ears of the body?",
    "Answer": "No, through the spirit. The spirit is conscious but is unable to communicate. The state of the body prevents it. This peculiar state of the organs proves to you that there is something more to a human being than just a body because, although the body is not functioning, the spirit continues to act."
  },
  {
    "Id": "422a",
    "Question": "Why is it unable to communicate?",
    "Answer": "The state of the body prevents it. This peculiar state of the organs proves to you that there is something more to a human being than just a body because, although the body is not functioning, the spirit continues to act."
  },
  {
    "Id": "423",
    "Question": "In the state of lethargy, can the spirit separate itself entirely from the body in such a way as to give the body all the appearances of death, and then return to it?",
    "Answer": "The body is not dead in the lethargic state, because there are functions that continue to operate. Vitality remains in a latent state, like in a cocoon, but it is not extinguished. The spirit is always connected to the body while the body is alive, but once the ties are broken by real death and by the decomposition of the organs, the separation is complete and the spirit no longer returns. When an apparently dead person comes back to life, it is because death had not actually been consummated."
  },
  {
    "Id": "424",
    "Question": "Through care given in time, can one strengthen the ties that are about to break and bring back to life a being who, without such attention, would definitely die?",
    "Answer": "Yes, of course; you have evidence of this every day. In such cases, magnetism is often a powerful means because it gives the body the vital fluid needed to keep its organs functioning."
  },
  {
    "Id": "425",
    "Question": "Does natural somnambulism have any connection to dreams? How can it be explained?",
    "Answer": "It is a state of the soul in which its independence is more complete than in dreams; thus, its faculties are more unrestrained. The soul has perceptions that it does not attain in the dream state, which is actually a state of imperfect somnambulism. “In somnambulism, the spirit is in total possession of itself, but the physical organs are in a sort of cataleptic The Emancipation of the Soul state and no longer receive external impressions. This state manifests especially during sleep, the time during which the spirit can temporarily leave the body, while the body enjoys the repose that is indispensable to matter. When somnambulistic-related activity occurs, it is because the spirit is preoccupied with one thing or another that requires the physical body, which it then uses in the same way it would if it were to employ a table or other material object in the phenomena of physical manifestations, or a hand in written communications. In dreams that you are conscious of, the sensorial organs, including those related to memory, begin to awaken and imperfectly receive the impressions produced by objects or external causes, and communicate them to the spirit. The spirit, also in a state of repose, only perceives confused and often fragmentary sensations, which without any apparent reason are mixed in with vague memories of either the present life or previous ones. It is therefore easy to understand why somnambulists do not remember anything and why most of the time the dreams they do remember have no meaning. I say most of the time because sometimes dreams are the consequence of a precise memory of events of a previous life, and sometimes even a sort of intuition of the future."
  },
  {
    "Id": "426",
    "Question": "Does so-called magnetic somnambulism have any connection to natural somnambulism?",
    "Answer": "It is the same thing with the difference that it is artificially induced."
  },
  {
    "Id": "427",
    "Question": "What is the nature of the agent called the magnetic fluid?",
    "Answer": "It is the vital fluid or animalized electricity, and is a modification of the universal fluid."
  },
  {
    "Id": "428",
    "Question": "What is the cause of somnambulistic clairvoyance?",
    "Answer": "We have already told you: it is soul sight."
  },
  {
    "Id": "429",
    "Question": "How can the somnambulist see through opaque objects?",
    "Answer": "No object is completely opaque – except to your dense organs. We have already stated that matter is no obstacle to spirits, since they can pass right through it. Somnambulists frequently tell you that they see through their forehead, through their knee, etc., because you are entirely immersed in matter and do not understand that they can see without the help of the organs; nonetheless, at your insistence, they believe they actually need them. If you were to leave them alone, however, they would understand that they see through all the parts of the body, or, rather, that they see apart from their body."
  },
  {
    "Id": "430",
    "Question": "Since the clairvoyance of somnambulists is that of their soul or spirit, why don’t they see everything, and why do they so often make mistakes?",
    "Answer": "First, it is not given to imperfect spirits to see everything and know everything. You know very well that they still share your errors and prejudices. Second, while they are connected to matter they do not enjoy all their spirit faculties. God has given clairvoyance to humankind for a useful and serious purpose, and not so that it may learn what it should not know. That is why somnambulists do not know everything."
  },
  {
    "Id": "431",
    "Question": "What is the source of somnambulists’ innate ideas, and how can they speak with such precision about things of which they are ignorant in the waking state, and which are even above their intellectual capacity?",
    "Answer": "It just so happens that somnambulists may actually possess more knowledge than you might think, but it is dormant – their corporeal envelope is too imperfect for The Emancipation of the Soul them to be able to remember such knowledge. But who are they, after all? Like us, they are spirits who have incarnated to fulfill their mission, and the somnambulistic state into which they enter awakens them from their mental lethargy. We have repeatedly told you that humans live many times and when they reincarnate it causes the material loss of what they had learned in a previous life. When they enter what you call the crisis state, they remember what they already know, but always incompletely. They know, but they cannot say where such knowledge comes from or why they have it. When the crisis passes, the memory is erased entirely and they return to their waking state knowledge."
  },
  {
    "Id": "432",
    "Question": "How do you explain the remote viewing ability that some somnambulists experience?",
    "Answer": "Doesn’t the soul travel about during sleep? The same thing occurs in somnambulism."
  },
  {
    "Id": "433",
    "Question": "Does the greater or lesser development of somnambulistic clairvoyance depend on the physical organization of the body or on the nature of the incarnate spirit?",
    "Answer": "On both. There are physical dispositions that allow the spirit to disengage itself easily or not so easily from matter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "434",
    "Question": "Are the faculties that the spirit of the somnambulist enjoys the same as those of the spirit after death?",
    "Answer": "To a certain extent, but the somnambulist’s spirit still finds itself attached to matter, and one must take this fact into account."
  },
  {
    "Id": "435",
    "Question": "Can somnambulists see other spirits?",
    "Answer": "Most can see them very easily, but it depends on the nature and degree of their lucidity. However, sometimes they do not at first understand what other spirits are and thus mistake them for corporeal beings. This happens especially with those who have no knowledge of Spiritism, because they do not yet comprehend the nature of spirits; their human appearance fools them and that is why they think they are seeing living persons."
  },
  {
    "Id": "436",
    "Question": "Do somnambulists who see at a distance see from the place where their body is or from where their soul is?",
    "Answer": "Why ask such a question, since it is the soul that sees and not the body?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "437",
    "Question": "Since it is actually the soul that travels about, how can somnambulists experience in their body the sensations of the heat or cold of the place where their soul is, which is sometimes very far from where their body actually is?",
    "Answer": "Their soul has not entirely left the body. It always remains connected to it by the tie that joins them, and this tie is the conductor of sensations. When two persons correspond The Emancipation of the Soul between one city and another by means of electricity, the electricity is the tie between their thoughts; thanks to it, they can communicate as though they were right next to each other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "438",
    "Question": "Does the use that somnambulists make of their faculties during life influence the state of their spirit after death?",
    "Answer": "Very considerably, like the good or bad use of all the faculties that God has given to human beings."
  },
  {
    "Id": "439",
    "Question": "What is the difference between ecstasy and somnambulism?",
    "Answer": "Ecstasy is a more refined type of somnambulism – the soul of the ecstatic is more independent."
  },
  {
    "Id": "440",
    "Question": "Does the soul of the ecstatic really go to higher realms?",
    "Answer": "Yes, it sees them and comprehends the happiness of those who dwell there, which is why they would like to remain there; however, there are realms inaccessible to spirits who are not sufficiently purified."
  },
  {
    "Id": "441",
    "Question": "When ecstatics express the desire to leave the earth, do they speak sincerely? And doesn’t the preservation instinct retain them?",
    "Answer": "That depends on the spirit’s degree of purification. If it sees that its future situation will be better than the present life, it makes an effort to break the ties that bind it to the earth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "442",
    "Question": "If we were to abandon ecstatics to themselves, could their soul definitively abandon their body?",
    "Answer": "Yes, they could die; that is why it is necessary to call them back by means of everything that might attach them to this world, above all making them understand that if the chain that holds them here were to break, it would actually be the best means of not remaining in that place where they see that they could be so happy."
  },
  {
    "Id": "443",
    "Question": "Ecstatics claim to see things that are obviously the product of an imagination overly excited by earthly beliefs and prejudices. Thus, isn’t what they see unreal?",
    "Answer": "What they see is real to them, but since their spirit is always under the influence of earthly ideas, they may see it in their own way, or rather, they may express it in a language according to the prejudices and ideas they were raised with or the ones you were raised with, in order to make themselves better understood. It is especially in this sense that they can err."
  },
  {
    "Id": "444",
    "Question": "What degree of trust can be placed in ecstatics’ revelations?",
    "Answer": "Ecstatics can be mistaken quite frequently, especially when they want to grasp what must remain a mystery for humankind. In such cases, they may transmit their own ideas, or they may become the pawns of deceiving spirits who take advantage of their enthusiasm in order to delude them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "445",
    "Question": "What consequences may be drawn from the phenomena of somnambulism and ecstasy? Could they be a sort of glimpse into the future life?",
    "Answer": "Or better stated, they get a glimpse into the past and future life. Humans should study these phenomena because they will find in them the solution to more than one mystery that their reason has tried to grasp in vain."
  },
  {
    "Id": "446",
    "Question": "Could the phenomena of somnambulism and ecstasy be brought into harmony with materialism? The Emancipation of the Soul",
    "Answer": "Those who study them in good faith and without preconceived ideas could be neither materialist nor atheist."
  },
  {
    "Id": "447",
    "Question": "Does the phenomenon called",
    "Answer": "second sight All of this is one and the same thing. What you call second sight is, again, the spirit in a state of greater freedom, even though the body is not asleep. Second sight is the sight of the soul."
  },
  {
    "Id": "448",
    "Question": "Is second sight permanent?",
    "Answer": "The faculty, yes; the ability to exercise it, no. On worlds less material than yours, spirits disengage themselves more easily, and while still maintaining articulated language, they communicate with one another through thought only. Second sight is also a permanent faculty for the majority of them. Their normal state may be compared to that of your lucid somnambulists, and that is also why they manifest themselves to you more easily than those who are incarnated in denser bodies."
  },
  {
    "Id": "449",
    "Question": "Does second sight develop spontaneously or by the will of those who possess it?",
    "Answer": "Most of the time it is spontaneous, but the will can often play a large role too. Thus, you can take certain individuals called fortune tellers, for example, some of whom possess this faculty of second sight, and you will see that it is their own will that helps them enter such a state – what you call vision."
  },
  {
    "Id": "450",
    "Question": "Is second sight capable of being developed through practice?",
    "Answer": "Yes, effort always leads to progress, and the veil that covers things becomes clearer. Certainly, physical organization plays its role, and there are organizations that are incompatible with this faculty."
  },
  {
    "Id": "450a",
    "Question": "Is this faculty linked to one’s physical organization?",
    "Answer": "Certainly, physical organization plays its role, and there are organizations that are incompatible with this faculty."
  },
  {
    "Id": "451",
    "Question": "Why does second sight appear hereditary in certain families?",
    "Answer": "It is due to similarity of organizations – transmitted like other physical qualities – and afterwards, development of the faculty through a kind of education, which is also transmitted from one to the next."
  },
  {
    "Id": "452",
    "Question": "Is it true that certain circumstances can cause second sight to develop?",
    "Answer": "Illness, the approach of danger or a large crisis may develop it. In such instances, the body is sometimes in a particular state that allows the spirit to see what you cannot see with the eyes of your body."
  },
  {
    "Id": "453",
    "Question": "Are persons gifted with second sight always aware of it?",
    "Answer": "Not always. For them it is a completely natural thing, and many believe that if others paid closer attention to themselves, they would realize they possess the same faculty."
  },
  {
    "Id": "454",
    "Question": "May we attribute to a sort of second sight the astuteness of certain persons who, without appearing to have anything extraordinary about them, judge things with more precision than others?",
    "Answer": "It always involves the soul. The soul radiates more freely and judges better than when under the veil of matter. Yes. It may also provide a presentiment. There are many degrees of this faculty and the same individual may possess all or only some of them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "455",
    "Question": "The phenomena of natural somnambulism are produced spontaneously and independently of any known external cause, but among some persons gifted with a special physical organization they may be induced through the action of the magnetic agent. The state called magnetic somnambulism is no different than natural somnambulism except that it is artificially produced, whereas the other is spontaneous. Natural somnambulism is a widely known occurrence and no one questions its reality, despite the marvelous character of its phenomena. So, why would magnetic somnambulism be any more extraordinary or irrational simply because of the fact that it is produced artificially like so many other things? It is said that charlatans have exploited it – one more reason for it not to be left in their hands. Once science finally takes full possession of it, charlatanism will have much less credit among the masses. Meanwhile, since both natural and artificial somnambulism are a fact – there is no arguing against fact – they are establishing themselves in spite of the ill will of some. This is occurring even in the realm of science, where it is entering through a multitude of side doors instead of through the front. And when it is fully established there, it will be necessary to grant it the right of citizenship. For Spiritism, somnambulism is more than a physiological phenomenon; it is a light projected onto psychology. It is during somnambulism that the soul can be studied because that is when the soul appears uncovered. One of the phenomena that characterize the soul is clairvoyance independent of the ordinary organs of sight. Those who contest this fact do so on the grounds that somnambulists do not see at all times and at the will of the experimenter, as they do with their eyes. Should we be surprised that the means being different, the effects are not the same? Would it be rational to seek identical effects when the instruments differ? The soul has its properties just as the eyes have theirs, and it is necessary to judge them in their own right and not by analogy. The cause of clairvoyance in the magnetic somnambulist and natural somnambulist is identical: an attribute of the soul, a faculty inherent in every part of the incorporeal being existing within us, and having no limits beyond those assigned to the soul itself. Somnambulists can see every place where their soul can go, whatever the distance may be. In the case of remote viewing, somnambulists do not see things from the place where their body is, as if they were looking through a telescope. They see them as present, as though they were actually at the place where those things exist, because, in reality, their soul is actually there. That is why their body seems non-existent and deprived of sensations until the moment in which the soul retakes possession of it. This partial separation of soul and body is an abnormal state that may last for a short or long time, but not indefinitely. This separation is what causes the fatigue that the body experiences after a certain time, especially when the soul is involved in some active pursuit. The Emancipation of the Soul Soul sight or spirit sight is not circumscribed and has no determined seat, which explains why somnambulists cannot assign one particular organ to it. They see because they see without knowing why or how; as spirits, sight for them does not have a specific site in the body. When they do refer to their body, sight seems to occur in the centers where the vital activity is greatest, especially in the brain, in the stomach area or in the organ which for them is the most intense point of connection between the spirit and the body. The power of somnambulistic lucidity is not unlimited, however. Even when completely free, spirits are limited in their faculties and knowledge according to the degree of purification they have reached – even more so than when attached to and under the influence of matter. This is the reason why somnambulistic clairvoyance is neither universal nor infallible. Its infallibility should be relied on even less the more it is diverted from the purpose proposed by nature in order to be transformed into an object of curiosity and experimentation. When the spirit of the somnambulist finds itself in the state of disengagement, it enters into communication more easily with other incarnate or discarnate spirits. This communication is established through the mutual contact of the fluids comprising their perispirits and enabling the transmission of thought, like an electric wire. Somnambulists, therefore, do not need thoughts to be articulated through words. Instead, they sense and divine them, rendering them eminently impressionable and accessible to the influences of the mental atmosphere around them. That is also why a large group of spectators – especially of on-lookers who are more or less ill-willed – essentially harms the development of their faculties, which close themselves off, so to speak, and do not unfold with full liberty as they would in more intimate or sympathetic surroundings. The presence of ill-willed or antipathetic persons produces an effect on them similar to when a hand touches a sensitive plant. Somnambulists see their own spirit and body at the same time. They are, so to speak, two beings that represent a double existence – spiritual and corporeal – blended together by the ties that unite them. Somnambulists do not always comprehend this situation, and such duality frequently makes them speak of themselves as though they were speaking of a stranger. What happens is that, in one moment, the corporeal being speaks to the spirit being, and in the next moment, it is the spirit being that speaks to the corporeal. The spirit acquires an increase of knowledge and experience during each one of its corporeal existences. It partially forgets them during its reincarnation in dense matter, but it remembers them as a spirit. That is how certain somnambulists display knowledge superior to their degree of education and even superior to their apparent intellectual capacity. The possible intellectual and scientific underdevelopment of somnambulists in the waking state, however, does not allow one to prejudge anything about the knowledge they may reveal in the lucid state. According to the circumstances and objective they have in view, they may draw this knowledge from their own experience, from their clairvoyance of current events, or from the counsels they receive from other spirits. However, the accuracy with which they describe things depends on the degree of their spirit’s evolution. Through the phenomena of somnambulism, whether natural or magnetically induced, Providence furnishes us 51 Sensitive plant:",
    "Answer": "A shrubby tropical American plant… having leaflets and leafstalks that fold and droop when touched"
  },
  {
    "Id": "456",
    "Question": "Can spirits see everything we do?",
    "Answer": "They can because you are constantly surrounded by them; nonetheless, they see only those things to which they direct their attention. They are not concerned about things that do not interest them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "457",
    "Question": "Can spirits know our most secret thoughts?",
    "Answer": "They often know about what you would like to conceal even from yourselves; neither actions nor thoughts can be concealed from them. Certainly, and when you think you are well-hidden, you often have a crowd of spirits around you, watching you."
  },
  {
    "Id": "458",
    "Question": "What do the spirits who surround and observe us think about us?",
    "Answer": "That depends. Frivolous spirits laugh at the little annoyances they cause you and they scoff at your impatience. Serious spirits, on the other hand, pity your imperfections and try to help you."
  },
  {
    "Id": "459",
    "Question": "Do spirits have any influence on our thoughts and actions?",
    "Answer": "Their influence on you in this regard is greater than you suppose, for very frequently it is they who guide you."
  },
  {
    "Id": "460",
    "Question": "Do we have our own thoughts plus others that are suggested to us?",
    "Answer": "Your soul is a spirit who thinks by itself; nevertheless, you must have noticed that many thoughts occur to you all at the same time with regards to the same subject, and that they frequently contradict one another. Well, they are always a combination of your own ideas and other spirits’ ideas, and this is what renders you uncertain – you have several ideas within your mind battling it out with each other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "461",
    "Question": "How can we distinguish between our own thoughts and those suggested to us?",
    "Answer": "When a thought is suggested to you, it is like a voice speaking to you. Your own thoughts are usually those that occur to you at first impulse. Actually, you should not concern yourselves with such a distinction, and it is often more useful not even to know about it – you act more freely. If you make the right decision, you will act more willingly; if you make the wrong one, your responsibility will be greater."
  },
  {
    "Id": "462",
    "Question": "Do individuals of intelligence and genius always draw their ideas from within themselves?",
    "Answer": "Their ideas sometimes arise from their own spirit, but frequently they are suggested to them by other spirits who deem them capable of understanding them and worthy of transmitting them. When they cannot find ideas within themselves, they appeal for inspiration; they are making an evocation without even suspecting it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "463",
    "Question": "It is sometimes said that the first impulse is always the best. Is this correct?",
    "Answer": "It can be good or bad, according to the nature of the incarnate spirit. It is always good for the one who listens to good inspirations."
  },
  {
    "Id": "464",
    "Question": "How can we tell if a suggested thought comes from a good or an evil spirit?",
    "Answer": "Study the matter: good spirits give only good advice; it is your responsibility to make the distinction."
  },
  {
    "Id": "465",
    "Question": "For what purpose do imperfect spirits induce us to evil?",
    "Answer": "To make you suffer as they themselves do. No, but they do so anyway out of envy at seeing happier beings. Those that result from belonging to a lower order and from being far from God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "465a",
    "Question": "Does it actually lessen their sufferings?",
    "Answer": "No, but they do so anyway out of envy at seeing happier beings."
  },
  {
    "Id": "465b",
    "Question": "What kinds of suffering do they wish to inflict on us?",
    "Answer": "Those that result from belonging to a lower order and from being far from God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "466",
    "Question": "Why does God permit spirits to incite us to evil?",
    "Answer": "Imperfect spirits are meant as instruments for testing the faith and constancy of individuals in the practice of the good. As a spirit, you must progress in the knowledge of the infinite, and you experience the trials of evil in order to arrive at the good. Our mission is to place you upon the upright path. When evil influences act on you, however, it is you yourself who call to them out of your desire for evil. Little-evolved spirits come to help you in evil when you have the will to commit it. However, they cannot help you in evil except when you actually desire to indulge in it. If you are inclined to murder, very well, there will be a swarm of spirits who will maintain that thought in your mind. However, there will also be others who will try to influence you for good, and this re-equalizes the balance, leaving you as master of yourself."
  },
  {
    "Id": "467",
    "Question": "Can people avoid the influence of spirits who incite them to evil?",
    "Answer": "Yes, because they only attach themselves to those who solicit them with their desires or attract them with their thoughts."
  },
  {
    "Id": "468",
    "Question": "Do spirits whose influence is repelled by an individual’s will finally give up on their attempts?",
    "Answer": "What else could they do? When they have nothing to do, they leave. Nevertheless, they attentively watch for a favorable moment, as the cat attentively watches the mouse."
  },
  {
    "Id": "469",
    "Question": "By what means can we neutralize the influence of evil spirits?",
    "Answer": "By doing good and placing all your trust in God, you repel their influence and you destroy the power they desire to have over you. Guard yourselves against listening to the suggestions of spirits who excite evil thoughts in your mind, those who incite discord and arouse in you all the evil passions. Above all, distrust spirits who flatter your pride, for they are attacking you at your weakest point. That is why Jesus teaches you to say in the Lord’s Prayer, ‘Lord, do not let us fall into temptation, but deliver us from evil!’"
  },
  {
    "Id": "470",
    "Question": "The spirits who seek to lead us into evil and who thus put our moral firmness to the test, have they received a mission to do this, and if it is in fact a mission for them to fulfill, will they be responsible for doing so?",
    "Answer": "Spirits never receive a mission to do evil. When they do evil deeds, it is by their own will and they will have to suffer the consequences. God may let them test you but never directly orders them to; it is your responsibility to repel them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "471",
    "Question": "When we experience a sensation of anguish, of indefinable anxiety or inner satisfaction without a known cause, does it result from our physical disposition at the time?",
    "Answer": "It is almost always the effect of communications you have with spirits without even suspecting it – or those you have had with them during sleep."
  },
  {
    "Id": "472",
    "Question": "Are spirits who want to incite us to evil limited to taking advantage of the circumstances in which we find ourselves, or can they create such circumstances?",
    "Answer": "They may take advantage of a circumstance, but frequently they cause it, pushing you without your being aware of it toward the object of your ambition. Thus, for example, a man finds a quantity of money by the road. Spirits have not placed the money there but they may have instilled in the man the thought of going in that direction. Then, they suggest he keep the money, while others suggest he return it to its rightful owner. The same process happens with all other temptations."
  },
  {
    "Id": "473",
    "Question": "Can a spirit temporarily take over the corporeal envelope of a living person? In other words, can it enter an animate body and replace the spirit incarnated in it?",
    "Answer": "A spirit does not enter a body as you enter a house. Instead, it associates with an incarnate spirit who has its same defects and qualities so that they can both act conjointly. Nevertheless, it is always the incarnate spirit who acts upon the matter enveloping it and according to its own wishes. A spirit cannot replace the one who is incarnate because the spirit is connected to the body until the time set for the end of its material existence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "474",
    "Question": "If there is no such thing as possession per se, that is, the cohabitation of two spirits in the same body, may a spirit nonetheless find itself dependent on another spirit so that it sees itself",
    "Answer": "subjugated obsessed Yes, and these are the truly possessed. You must understand, however, that this kind of domination never occurs without the participation of the one who suffers it, either through weakness or desire. Epileptics and insane individuals have often been taken as being possessed, but they are in need of a doctor rather than an exorcist."
  },
  {
    "Id": "475",
    "Question": "Can these persons by themselves repel such evil spirits and free themselves from their domination?",
    "Answer": "You can always rid yourself of any burden when you have a firm will."
  },
  {
    "Id": "476",
    "Question": "Couldn’t it be the case that the obsession by an evil spirit is such that the subjugated person does not even perceive it? Couldn’t a third person put an end to the subjection, and in such a case, what role should he or she play?",
    "Answer": "If the individual is morally upright, his or her will power may help by appealing to the cooperation of good spirits, because the more moral a person is, the more power that person has regarding imperfect spirits in order to repel them, and regarding good ones in order to attract them. Nevertheless, this third person will be completely powerless if the one who is subjugated does not cooperate; after all, there are persons who take delight in a dependence that satisfies their tastes and desires. In all cases, however, those who do not have a pure heart cannot have any influence whatsoever – good spirits ignore them and evil ones do not fear them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "477",
    "Question": "Are exorcism formulas at all effective against evil spirits?",
    "Answer": "No. When these spirits see anyone who takes such formulas seriously, they laugh and persevere."
  },
  {
    "Id": "478",
    "Question": "There are persons animated by good intentions, but who are obsessed nevertheless. What are the best means for them to free themselves from obsessing spirits?",
    "Answer": "Tire their patience, pay no attention to their suggestions and show them that they are wasting their time; then, when they see they can do nothing, they will withdraw."
  },
  {
    "Id": "479",
    "Question": "Is prayer an effective means for curing obsession?",
    "Answer": "Prayer is a powerful aid in everything, but you must realize that it is insufficient to simply mutter a few words to obtain what you desire. God helps those who act – not those who limit themselves merely to asking. Therefore, obsessed persons must do their part in order to destroy in themselves the cause that attracts evil spirits."
  },
  {
    "Id": "480",
    "Question": "What should be thought about the expulsion of demons, spoken of in the Gospel?",
    "Answer": "That depends on the interpretation. If you mean by demon an evil spirit who subjugates an individual, when its influence is destroyed, it will truly be expelled. If you attribute an illness to a demon, when you have cured the sickness, you will also have expelled the demon. A thing may be true or false according to the meaning given to the words. The greatest truths may seem absurd when only the form is observed and when an allegory is taken for reality. Understand this well and try to remember it because it is of universal application."
  },
  {
    "Id": "481",
    "Question": "Do spirits play any role in the phenomena produced among individuals called convulsionaries?",
    "Answer": "Yes, a very large one, as does magnetism, its primary source. But charlatanism has frequently exploited and exaggerated the phenomena, thereby making them appear to be ridiculous. They are little-evolved. Do you believe that evolved spirits would enjoy such things?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "482",
    "Question": "How can the abnormal state of convulsionaries and hysterical persons suddenly extend to an entire population?",
    "Answer": "By sympathetic effect. Mental dispositions are communicated more easily in certain cases. You are not such a stranger to the effects of magnetism that you cannot understand this fact and the role certain spirits play in it through their sympathy with those who cause it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "483",
    "Question": "What is the cause of the physical insensitivity displayed both among certain convulsionaries and among other individuals submitted to the most atrocious tortures?",
    "Answer": "Among some, it is an exclusively magnetic effect, acting on the nervous system in the same manner as certain substances. Among others, the exaltation of thought deadens sensitivity because life seems to have withdrawn from the body in order to be transferred to the spirit. Don’t you know that when the spirit is intensely concerned with something, the body does not feel, hear or see?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "484",
    "Question": "Do spirits affectionately prefer certain persons?",
    "Answer": "Good spirits sympathize with moral individuals or those who are susceptible to improving themselves; low order spirits, with wicked individuals or those who may become such. Hence, their affection is the result of a similarity of sentiment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "485",
    "Question": "Is the affection of spirits for certain persons exclusively moral?",
    "Answer": "True affection has nothing carnal about it, but when a spirit attaches itself to a particular person, it is not always out of affection. A remembrance of human passions can have a hand in it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "486",
    "Question": "Do spirits take an interest in our misfortunes and prosperity? Are those who wish us well concerned about the afflictions we experience in life?",
    "Answer": "Good spirits do all the good they can and they feel happy for your joys. They are concerned about your afflictions when you do not bear them with resignation, because then they produce no good results for you; you carry on like patients who reject the bitter medicine meant to heal them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "487",
    "Question": "What kind of afflictions cause spirits to be concerned about us most: physically-caused afflictions or morally-caused ones?",
    "Answer": "Your selfishness and hard heartedness: everything else derives from these. They smile at all your imaginary ills born from pride and ambition, but they rejoice in those that will shorten the length of your trial."
  },
  {
    "Id": "487a",
    "Question": "caused afflictions or morally-caused ones?",
    "Answer": "Your selfishness and hard heartedness: everything else derives from these. They smile at all your imaginary ills born from pride and ambition, but they rejoice in those that will shorten the length of your trial."
  },
  {
    "Id": "488",
    "Question": "Do our relatives and friends who have preceded us into the other life have more sympathy for us than spirits who are strangers?",
    "Answer": "Of course, and as spirits they frequently protect you according to their power. Very sensitive, but they forget those who forget them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "488a",
    "Question": "Are they sensitive to our affections for them?",
    "Answer": "Very sensitive, but they forget those who forget them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "489",
    "Question": "Are there spirits who link themselves to particular individuals in order to protect them?",
    "Answer": "Yes, spirit friends; what you call good spirits or guardian spirits."
  },
  {
    "Id": "490",
    "Question": "What is a guardian angel?",
    "Answer": "A protector spirit of a high order."
  },
  {
    "Id": "491",
    "Question": "What is the mission of protector spirits? The Intervention of Spirits in the Corporeal World",
    "Answer": "Their mission is that of parents toward their children: to guide their wards along the path of the good, to help them with their counsels, to console them in their afflictions and to sustain their courage in the trials of earthly life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "492",
    "Question": "Are protector spirits connected to particular individuals from birth?",
    "Answer": "From birth to death. They frequently accompany them after death in the spirit life and even through numerous corporeal existences, because these existences are no more than very short phases in the life of a spirit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "493",
    "Question": "Is the mission of a protector spirit voluntary or obligatory?",
    "Answer": "The spirit is obliged to watch over you because it has accepted the task; however, it is allowed to choose beings who are attuned to it. For some, it is a pleasure; for others, a mission or a duty. No, but it does so less exclusively."
  },
  {
    "Id": "494",
    "Question": "Is the protector spirit indissolubly connected to the person who has been entrusted into its care?",
    "Answer": "Certain spirits often leave their position to carry out different assignments, but in such cases they are replaced."
  },
  {
    "Id": "495",
    "Question": "Do protector spirits sometimes abandon their ward when the latter is heedless of their warnings?",
    "Answer": "They withdraw when they see that their counsels are useless, and that the ward’s will is set on submitting to the influence of little-evolved spirits. They do not abandon them entirely, however, and always try to make themselves heard. Their wards are the ones who shut their ears. Their protectors return as soon as they are called. “If there is a doctrine that should convert the most incredulous by its charm and sweetness, it is that of guardian angels. Isn’t it a very consoling idea to know that you always have at your side beings who are more evolved than you, who are always there to counsel, sustain and aid you in scaling the rugged mountain of the good, who are more reliable and devoted friends than the most intimate connections that may be contracted on earth? These beings are there at God’s orders. It was God who has placed them at your side; they are there out of love for God and they fulfill a beautiful but laborious mission alongside you. Wherever you may be, your angel will be there with you: in prison, in the hospital, in dens of iniquity, in solitude; nothing separates you from that friend whom you cannot see, but from whom your soul nonetheless receives the gentlest impulses and hears the wisest counsels. “Why can’t you understand this truth more fully! How many times it would help you in moments of crisis; how many times it would save you from evil spirits! But on the great day of accounting, this angel of the good might have to say to you, ‘Didn’t I offer you advice? Yet, you did not follow it! Didn’t I show you the abyss? Yet, you fell into it! Didn’t I make the voice of truth resound in your conscience, yet you followed the counsels of a lie instead?’ Question your guardian angels. Establish between yourselves and them that intimate tenderness that reigns between best friends. Do not think of hiding anything from them, for they are the eyes of God and you cannot deceive them. Consider the future. Seek to progress in this life, and your trials will be shorter and your lives happier. Come; take heart! Once The Intervention of Spirits in the Corporeal World and for all, avoid prejudices and ulterior motives! Enter upon the new pathway now opening before you! Forward, forward! You have guides; follow them. Your goal cannot fail you, for the goal is God. “To those who think it impossible that truly high order spirits could devote themselves to such a laborious task and at all instants, we will say that we can indeed influence your souls, even though millions of miles may separate us. Space does not exist to us, and even while living on another world, our spirits retain a connection with you. We enjoy faculties that you cannot comprehend; however, you can be certain that God has not imposed a task on us that is above our strength, or that God has abandoned you alone on the earth without friends or support. All guardian angels have their wards, whom they watch over as parents watch over their children. They feel happy when they see them on the path of the good but mourn when their counsels are despised. “Do not fear tiring us with your questions; rather, remain in contact with us always: you will thus be stronger and happier. These communications between each indivi­dual and his or her familiar spirit are what make all individuals mediums – mediums ignored today but who will show themselves later, spreading out like an ocean without shores to sweep away disbelief and ignorance. People of learning, teach; people of talent, educate your brothers and sisters! Without knowing it, the work you accomplish is Christ’s work, which God has imposed on you. Why has God granted you intelligence and knowledge if not to share them with your brothers and sisters to enable them to progress on the path of joy and eternal blessedness?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "496",
    "Question": "Can spirits who abandon their wards and no longer do them good do them evil instead?",
    "Answer": "Good spirits never do evil. They leave that to those who take their place, and then you blame fate for the misfortunes that overwhelm you, whereas you yourselves are actually to blame."
  },
  {
    "Id": "497",
    "Question": "Can protector spirits leave their wards at the mercy of spirits who might harm them?",
    "Answer": "There is unity among evil spirits for neutralizing the action of the good ones, but if wards would so desire, they could restore the link to their good spirit. The good spirit may find a more willing person somewhere else to help in the meantime while awaiting its ward to return."
  },
  {
    "Id": "498",
    "Question": "When protector spirits allow their wards to be led astray in life, is it because they are powerless to confront malevolent spirits?",
    "Answer": "It is not because they are powerless, but because they do not want to. Their wards emerge from their trials more evolved and more learned. Their protector spirits assist them with their counsels through the good thoughts they suggest but which, unfortunately, are not always heeded. It is nothing The Intervention of Spirits in the Corporeal World but human weakness, carelessness or pride that grants power to evil spirits. Their power over you comes solely from the fact that you do not offer them any resistance."
  },
  {
    "Id": "499",
    "Question": "Are protector spirits with their wards all the time? Aren’t there circumstances where they may lose sight of them without abandoning them?",
    "Answer": "There are circumstances in which the presence of the protector spirit next to its ward is not necessary."
  },
  {
    "Id": "500",
    "Question": "Does a time come in which a spirit no longer needs its guardian angel?",
    "Answer": "Yes, when it reaches the level at which it can guide itself, just as the time comes in which the student no longer needs the master. But this does not happen on the earth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "501",
    "Question": "Why is the action of spirits in our lives so secretive? When they are protecting us, why don’t they do so openly?",
    "Answer": "If you counted on their support all the time, you would not act by yourselves and your spirit would not progress. In order for it to advance, it needs experience and it must be acquired at its own expense. It must exert its own volition; otherwise, it would be like an infant who is not allowed to walk by itself. The action of the spirits who wish you well always occurs in such a way so as not to hamper your free will, for if you did not have any responsibility, you would not progress on the path that must lead you toward God. Since they do not see who is helping them, humans rely on their own efforts. Their guides watch over them nevertheless and from time to time warn them of danger."
  },
  {
    "Id": "502",
    "Question": "Do the protector spirits who succeed in leading their ward along the path of the good experience any good for themselves?",
    "Answer": "It is a merit that will be taken into account, whether for their advancement or their happiness. They feel happy when they see their efforts crowned with success. It is a triumph for them, as when a mentor exults at the success of his or her disciple. No, because they have done all they could."
  },
  {
    "Id": "502a",
    "Question": "Are they responsible if their efforts are unsuccessful?",
    "Answer": "No, because they have done all they could."
  },
  {
    "Id": "503",
    "Question": "Don’t protector spirits suffer when they see their wards following an immoral path in spite of their warning, and isn’t it a cause of distress for them?",
    "Answer": "They suffer from their wards’ misdeeds and they pity them, but this affliction has none of the anguish of earthly parenthood, because they know that there is a remedy for the evil and that what is not done today will be done tomorrow."
  },
  {
    "Id": "504",
    "Question": "Could we ever know the name of our protector spirit or guardian angel?",
    "Answer": "Why do you want to know names that do not exist for you? Do you believe there are only spirits with whom you are familiar? Give it any name you please: that of a high order spirit for whom you have sympathy or veneration. Your protector will answer to that name, for all good spirits are kin and mutually assist each other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "504a",
    "Question": "But how can we invoke it if we do not know its name?",
    "Answer": "Give it any name you please: that of a high order spirit for whom you have sympathy or veneration. Your protector will answer to that name, for all good spirits are kin and mutually assist each other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "505",
    "Question": "Are protector spirits who employ well-known names always those of the actual individuals who had those names?",
    "Answer": "No, but they are spirits who are sympathetic to them, and who often come at their orders. You require a name; therefore, they employ one that will inspire your trust. The Intervention of Spirits in the Corporeal World When you cannot personally carry out a mission, you send someone whom you trust and who acts in your name."
  },
  {
    "Id": "506",
    "Question": "When we return to the spirit life, will we recognize our protector spirit?",
    "Answer": "Yes, because you frequently knew it before your incarnation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "507",
    "Question": "Do protector spirits all belong to the order of highly evolved spirits? Can they sometimes be found among average orders? Can a father, for example, become the protector spirit of his child?",
    "Answer": "He can, but protection presupposes a certain degree of elevation, and additionally, a power or virtue granted by God. A father who protects his child may himself be assisted by a more evolved spirit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "508",
    "Question": "Can spirits who have left the earth under good circumstances always protect those whom they loved and who have survived them?",
    "Answer": "Their power is more or less restricted. The position in which they find themselves does not always allow them full freedom of action."
  },
  {
    "Id": "509",
    "Question": "Do humans in the primitive state or in the state of moral impurity also have protector spirits? If so, are these spirits of an order as elevated as those of more advanced humans?",
    "Answer": "All individuals have a spirit who watches over them, but such a mission is relative to its purpose. You do not give a professor of philosophy to a child who is just learning to read. The progress of the familiar spirit follows that of the spirit it protects. Having a highly evolved spirit who watches over you, you in turn may become the protector of a spirit who is less evolved than you, and the progress you help that spirit make will contribute to your own advancement. God does not require of a spirit more than what its nature and the degree at which it has arrived will allow."
  },
  {
    "Id": "510",
    "Question": "When a father who has been watching over his child reincarnates, does he still continue to do so?",
    "Answer": "That is a more difficult situation, but in a moment of freedom he may ask that a sympathetic spirit assist him in this mission. However, spirits only accept missions that they can carry out to the end. “Incarnate spirits, especially on worlds where existence is quite material, are too dominated by their physical body to be able to devote themselves entirely to others; that is, to assist them personally. That is why those who are not sufficiently evolved are themselves assisted by spirits who are more evolved, so that if one fails, for whatever reason, it will be replaced by another."
  },
  {
    "Id": "511",
    "Question": "Besides our protector spirit, is an evil spirit connected to each one of us for the purpose of leading us into evil and for providing us an opportunity to struggle with good and evil?",
    "Answer": "Connected is not the right term. It is certainly true that evil spirits try to draw individuals away from the moral road when they find the opportunity. However, when one of them connects itself to an individual, it does so of its own accord because it hopes to be listened to. This gives rise to a struggle between the good and the evil spirit, and the one whose influence the individual has heeded will win."
  },
  {
    "Id": "512",
    "Question": "May we have several protector spirits?",
    "Answer": "All individuals always have sympathetic spirits who are more advanced or less so, who dedicate their affection to them and who take an interest in them; there are also those who help them in evil."
  },
  {
    "Id": "513",
    "Question": "Do sympathetic spirits act in virtue of a mission?",
    "Answer": "Sometimes they may have a temporary mission, but generally they are only attracted due to a similarity of thought and sentiment in good or evil. Yes, humans will always encounter spirits who sympathize with them, whatever their character may be."
  },
  {
    "Id": "514",
    "Question": "Are familiar spirits the same as sympathetic spirits or protector spirits?",
    "Answer": "There are many, many gradations of protection and sympathy. Give to them whatever names you desire. The familiar spirit, however, is usually a friend of the home."
  },
  {
    "Id": "515",
    "Question": "What should be thought of persons who seem to attach themselves to others in order to lead them inevitably into perdition, or on the other hand, to guide them along the path of the good?",
    "Answer": "Some persons exert a certain effect on others; they hold a kind of spell over them that seems irresistible. When this happens for evil, they are in fact evil spirits whom other evil spirits employ in order to better subjugate their victims. God may permit this in order to test them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "516",
    "Question": "Could our good spirit or an evil one incarnate in order to follow us more directly in life?",
    "Answer": "This sometimes happens, but they frequently entrust this task to incarnate spirits who are sympathetic with them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "517",
    "Question": "Are there spirits who attach themselves to an entire family in order to protect it?",
    "Answer": "Some spirits link themselves to the members of the same family, who live together and are united by affection; however, do not believe in spirit protectors of race pride."
  },
  {
    "Id": "518",
    "Question": "Since spirits are attracted to individuals out of sympathy, are they attracted to groups of individuals for particular reasons as well?",
    "Answer": "Spirits prefer places where they can be amongst those who are like themselves. In such places, they can be more at ease and surer of being listened to. Humans attract spirits because of their tendencies, whether as individuals, as a collective group, a city or a nation. Thus, there are societies, cities and nations that are assisted by spirits of greater or lesser advancement, depending on their The Intervention of Spirits in the Corporeal World character and the passions that dominate them. Since imperfect spirits withdraw from those who repel them, the moral purity of a collective whole, like that of individuals, tends to repel evil spirits and attract good ones. The latter awaken and maintain a sense of the good in the masses, in the same way that the former may inspire in them the worst passions."
  },
  {
    "Id": "519",
    "Question": "Do groups of individuals such as societies, cities and nations have their own special protector spirits?",
    "Answer": "Yes, because such groups are collective individualities that are headed toward a common objective and therefore have the need of higher direction."
  },
  {
    "Id": "520",
    "Question": "Are the protector spirits of groups of a more advanced nature than those who are linked to individuals?",
    "Answer": "Everything is relative to the degree of advancement, whether of groups or of individuals."
  },
  {
    "Id": "521",
    "Question": "May certain spirits help the arts to progress by watching over those involved in them?",
    "Answer": "There are special protector spirits who assist those who invoke them, and whom they deem worthy. But what could you expect them to do for those who deem themselves to be something, which, in fact, they are not? They cannot make the blind see or the deaf hear."
  },
  {
    "Id": "522",
    "Question": "Is a presentiment always a warning from a protector spirit?",
    "Answer": "A presentiment can be the inner and secret counsel of a spirit who wishes you well. It can also be an intuition about a choice made prior to incarnation – it is the voice of instinct. Before incarnating, a spirit has knowledge of the principal phases of its coming existence, i.e. the kind of trials in which it will be engaged. When these are of a marked character, it preserves a type of impression in its inner consciousness, and this impression – the voice of instinct – awakens when the moment arrives. It then becomes a presentiment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "523",
    "Question": "Presentiments and the voice of instinct are always somewhat vague. What should we do when we are uncertain?",
    "Answer": "When in doubt, invoke your good spirit or pray to God, our supreme Creator, to send you a divine messenger: one of us."
  },
  {
    "Id": "524",
    "Question": "Do the warnings of our protector spirits have our moral conduct as their sole objective, or our conduct regarding the things of our private life as well?",
    "Answer": "Everything. They seek to enable you to live in the best way possible, but you frequently shut your ears to their good warnings and you thus make yourselves unhappy through your own fault."
  },
  {
    "Id": "525",
    "Question": "Do spirits exert any influence on the events of life?",
    "Answer": "Certainly, because they counsel you. Yes, but they never act outside natural laws."
  },
  {
    "Id": "526",
    "Question": "Since spirits can act upon matter, can they cause certain effects with the aim of producing a given outcome? For example, a man’s time is up; he climbs a ladder, the ladder breaks and he dies from the fall. Did spirits cause the ladder to break so that the man’s fate would be fulfilled?",
    "Answer": "It is certainly true that spirits have an influence on matter, but in order to fulfill the laws of nature and not to derogate from them by causing an unexpected event at a given moment and contrary to such laws. In the example you have just mentioned, the ladder breaks because it is rotten or because it is not strong enough to support the man’s weight. If it were the man’s fate to die in this way, spirits would inspire him with the thought of climbing the ladder, which would then break under his weight. Thus, his death would stem from a natural cause without the need for any kind of miracle."
  },
  {
    "Id": "527",
    "Question": "Let us take another example, but one in which the natural state of matter does not intervene. A man is destined to die from lightning; he seeks refuge under a tree, lightning strikes it and he dies. Did spirits cause the lightning and direct it at him?",
    "Answer": "It is still the same thing. The lightning struck the tree at that particular moment because the event happened according to the laws of nature. The lightning was not directed at the tree because the man was under it, but because he was given The Intervention of Spirits in the Corporeal World the inspiration to take refuge under the tree where lightning would strike. The tree would have been struck anyway, whether the man had been under it or not."
  },
  {
    "Id": "528",
    "Question": "An ill-intentioned man shoots at another but the bullet barely grazes him. Could a benevolent spirit have deflected the shot?",
    "Answer": "If the individual was not meant to be struck, the benevolent spirit may have inspired him with the thought of moving out of its path, or it may have confused his enemy in such a way as to make him miss. Once the bullet is on its way, however, it must follow the line of its trajectory."
  },
  {
    "Id": "529",
    "Question": "What should be thought about magic bullets that are referred to in certain legends, and which fatality hit their mark?",
    "Answer": "Pure imagination. Humans delight in the marvelous but are not content with the marvels of nature. What God has willed must occur. If there is any delay or hindrance, it is the divine will."
  },
  {
    "Id": "530",
    "Question": "Mightn’t frivolous and mocking spirits cause the little difficulties that undo our plans and upset our calculations? In other words, aren’t they the authors of what we commonly call the petty troubles of human life?",
    "Answer": "They take pleasure in such annoyances, which are trials for you and are meant to try your patience; but they stop when they see that nothing comes of it. However, it would neither be just nor correct to blame them for all your frustrations, of which you yourselves are the main authors through your own carelessness. Thus, if your dish breaks, it was probably due more to your clumsiness than the fault of spirits. They act from both motives. Sometimes they are enemies whom you have made in this life or in a previous one, and who pursue you as a result. At other times there is no motive."
  },
  {
    "Id": "531",
    "Question": "Is the rancor of the beings who have harmed us on earth extinguished with their corporeal life?",
    "Answer": "They often realize the injustice and the wrong they have done, but if God allows them, they will continue to pursue you in their hatred in order to test you further. Yes, by praying for them and by paying back their evil with good. That way they will end up comprehending their errors. In all cases, if you know how to place yourselves above their schemes, they will cease them upon seeing they have gained nothing from them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "531a",
    "Question": "Is there a way to put an end to it, and if so, by what means?",
    "Answer": "Yes, by praying for them and by paying back their evil with good. That way they will end up comprehending their errors. In all cases, if you know how to place yourselves above their schemes, they will cease them upon seeing they have gained nothing from them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "532",
    "Question": "Do spirits have the power to divert misfortunes from certain persons and to attract prosperity to them instead?",
    "Answer": "Not entirely, because there are misfortunes that belong to the designs of Providence. Nevertheless, they can lessen your pain by giving you patience and resignation. “Also, be aware that it frequently depends on you yourselves to divert such misfortunes, or at least to mitigate them. God has given you intelligence so that you may use it, and it is especially in this way that spirits help you by The Intervention of Spirits in the Corporeal World suggesting favorable thoughts to you; but they only help those who know how to help themselves. That is the meaning of the words, ‘Seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you.’ “Moreover, what looks like misfortune to you is not always such in reality. Frequently, something good will result from it that is far better, but that is what you do not comprehend because you think only of the present moment or of your own selves."
  },
  {
    "Id": "533",
    "Question": "Can spirits enable us to obtain the gifts of fortune if we ask them to?",
    "Answer": "Sometimes, as a trial. Most often, however, they will refuse, just as you would refuse a child’s inconsiderate request. Either. It depends on their intention, but usually they are spirits who desire to lead you into evil, and who find an easy means of doing so in the pleasures that fortune provides."
  },
  {
    "Id": "533a",
    "Question": "Are they good spirits or evil ones who grant such favors?",
    "Answer": "Either. It depends on their intention, but usually they are spirits who desire to lead you into evil, and who find an easy means of doing so in the pleasures that fortune provides."
  },
  {
    "Id": "534",
    "Question": "When obstacles seem to fatally inflict our projects, is it because of the influence of some spirit?",
    "Answer": "It is sometimes because of the influence of a spirit; other times, and more frequently, it is because you yourselves have mismanaged your projects. Position and character have much to do with it, and if you persist in following a path that is not right for you, spirits have nothing to do with it – you yourselves become your own evil spirit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "535",
    "Question": "When something fortunate happens to us, should we thank our protector spirit?",
    "Answer": "Above all, thank God, without whose permission nothing takes place; afterward, thank the good spirits, who were God’s agents. The same thing that always happens to ingrates. Yes, but it is necessary to see the end. They will pay dearly for this temporary undeserved happiness, for the more they have received, the more they will have to render account for it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "535a",
    "Question": "What would happen if we forgot to thank them?",
    "Answer": "The same thing that always happens to ingrates."
  },
  {
    "Id": "536",
    "Question": "Are the great phenomena of nature – those considered as perturbations of the elements – due to fortuitous causes or do they all have a providential purpose?",
    "Answer": "Everything has a reason for being and nothing occurs without God’s permission. Sometimes they occur for a reason directly related to humankind, but most frequently they have no other purpose than to reestablish the balance and harmony of the physical forces of nature. But that is obvious; it cannot be otherwise. God does not act directly on nature, but has devoted agents on every degree of the worlds’ scales."
  },
  {
    "Id": "537",
    "Question": "The mythology of the ancients is entirely based on Spiritist ideas, with the difference that they regarded spirits as deities, and they represented those gods or spirits as having special attributes. Thus, some were in charge of the wind; others, the lightning, while others presided over vegetation, etc. Is this belief entirely without foundation?",
    "Answer": "It is entirely without foundation and far from the truth. Such spirits do not actually inhabit the earth, but they preside over and direct its phenomena according to their particular attributes. Someday, you will have an explanation for all these phenomena and you will comprehend them better."
  },
  {
    "Id": "538",
    "Question": "Do the spirits who preside over the phenomena of nature form a special category in the spirit world? Are they separate beings, or are they spirits who have been incarnated like us?",
    "Answer": "Who will be or who have been. That depends on whether their role is more material or intelligent, or less so: some command; others execute. Those who perform material functions are always of a lower order among spirits, just as among human beings."
  },
  {
    "Id": "539",
    "Question": "In the production of certain phenomena – storms, for example – does a single spirit act, or do they gather en mass?",
    "Answer": "In enormous masses."
  },
  {
    "Id": "539a",
    "Question": "does a single spirit act, or do they gather en mass?",
    "Answer": "In enormous masses."
  },
  {
    "Id": "540",
    "Question": "Do the spirits who act upon the phenomena of nature do so with full awareness and in virtue of their free will, or out of an instinctive and unreasoning impulse?",
    "Answer": "Some in one way, others in the other. Let us make a comparison: consider the myriads of animals that little by little build up islands and archipelagos in the ocean. Do you believe that there is no providential purpose in this, and that this transformation of the surface of the globe is not necessary for its overall harmony? Yet, all this is accomplished by animals of the lowest degree while they are providing for their own needs and without perceiving that they are God’s instruments. In the same way, the least advanced spirits are useful to the general whole. While preparing for life, and before having full awareness of their acts and free will, they act upon certain phenomena in which they are the unwitting agents. At first, they execute; later, when their intelligence is more developed, they command and direct the matters of the material world. Still later, they direct the things of the moral world. Hence, everything is useful; everything in nature is linked together, from the primitive atom to the archangel, who also began as only an atom – an admirable law of harmony, which your limited minds cannot yet grasp in its entirety!"
  },
  {
    "Id": "541",
    "Question": "During battle, are there spirits who assist in it and who aid each of the forces in the fight?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and who stimulate their courage."
  },
  {
    "Id": "542",
    "Question": "In war, justice is always on one side only. How can spirits support the one that is in the wrong?",
    "Answer": "You know perfectly well that there are spirits who seek only discord and destruction. For them war is war. The justness of the cause means little to them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "543",
    "Question": "Can certain spirits influence generals in the conception of their plans for a particular campaign?",
    "Answer": "Absolutely. Spirits can influence them in this as in all conceptions."
  },
  {
    "Id": "544",
    "Question": "Can evil spirits suggest faulty plans to them in order to lead them to defeat?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but don’t they have free will? If their judgment does not enable them to distinguish a good idea from a bad one, they will suffer the consequences and would do better at obeying than commanding."
  },
  {
    "Id": "545",
    "Question": "Can generals sometimes be guided by a type of second sight, an intuitive perception that shows them the result of their strategies beforehand?",
    "Answer": "That is frequently what happens with geniuses. It is what they call inspiration and it enables them to act with a type of certainty. This inspiration comes to them from the spirits who guide them, and who use the faculties with which such individuals have been endowed."
  },
  {
    "Id": "546",
    "Question": "In the heat of combat, what happens to the spirits of those who die? Are they still interested in the battle after death?",
    "Answer": "Some continue to be interested; others withdraw."
  },
  {
    "Id": "547",
    "Question": "After death, do the spirits of those who had fought each other while alive still regard one another as enemies and continue to be hostile toward each other?",
    "Answer": "In such moments, spirits are never calm. At first, they may still hate their enemy and even pursue them, but when they regain their composure, they see that their animosity no longer has any motive. Nevertheless, they may retain greater or lesser traces of it, depending on their character. Yes, perfectly."
  },
  {
    "Id": "547a",
    "Question": "Do they still hear the din of the battle?",
    "Answer": "Yes, perfectly."
  },
  {
    "Id": "548",
    "Question": "Do spirits who calmly watch a battle as spectators witness the separation of soul from body? How does this phenomenon appear to them?",
    "Answer": "Very few deaths are truly instantaneous. Most of the time, a spirit whose body has been mortally wounded is not aware of it at the time. Only when consciousness begins to return can the spirit be seen moving beside its corpse. This appears so natural that the sight of the dead body lying there does not produce any disagreeable effect. All life having been transferred into the spirit, only the spirit attracts attention, and it is the spirit with whom spectators converse, or to whom they give orders."
  },
  {
    "Id": "549",
    "Question": "Is there any kind of truth to pacts being formed with evil spirits? The Intervention of Spirits in the Corporeal World",
    "Answer": "No, there are no such pacts. However, an evil nature may be attuned to evil spirits. For example: you want to torment your neighbor, but you do not know how to proceed. Thus, you call low order spirits who, like you, desire only evil. In return for their help, they want you to help them in their own evil designs. However, this does not mean that your neighbor cannot be freed from them by an opposing appeal or by an action of the will. Those who desire to commit an act of evil, simply for the sake of committing evil, call evil spirits to their aid, and then become obliged to serve them in turn because these spirits need them for the evil they themselves desire to do. It is only in this that a pact consists."
  },
  {
    "Id": "550",
    "Question": "What is the meaning of the fantastic fables according to which certain individuals have sold their soul to Satan in exchange for certain favors?",
    "Answer": "All fables contain a teaching and a moral; your error is in taking them literally. This one is an allegory that may be explained like this: those who call evil spirits to help them obtain the gifts of fortune or any other favor rebel against Providence. They renounce the mission they have received and the trials they must undergo in this world, but they will reap the consequences of it in the life to come. This does not mean their soul is condemned to suffer forever. However, instead of detaching themselves from matter, they immerse themselves deeper and deeper in it. The joys they have preferred on earth will no longer be available to them in the spirit world until they atone for their wrong through new trials that will perhaps be even greater and more painful. Out of love for material pleasures, they place themselves under the power of impure spirits. Hence, they tacitly establish a mutual pact which leads them to ruin, but which will always be easy for them to break with the assistance of good spirits if they firmly desire to do so."
  },
  {
    "Id": "551",
    "Question": "Can evil individuals, with the aid of evil spirits to whom they are devoted, cause harm to their neighbor?",
    "Answer": "No, God would not permit it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "552",
    "Question": "What is to be thought of the belief that certain individuals can cast spells?",
    "Answer": "Some persons possess a very strong magnetic power, which they may use for evil if their own spirit is evil. In that case, they could be aided by other evil spirits. But do not believe in the fake magical power that exists only in the imagination of superstitious people who are ignorant of the true laws of nature. The events they cite are natural events poorly observed, and above all, poorly understood."
  },
  {
    "Id": "553",
    "Question": "What may be the effect of formulas and practices with which certain persons claim to control the wills of spirits?",
    "Answer": "That of making them look ridiculous if they are of good faith; if not, they are rogues who deserve punishment. All such formulas are mere charlatanism. There is no sacramental word, no cabalistic sign, no talisman that has any power over spirits, because they are only attracted by thought and not by material objects. Yes, there are spirits who indicate signs and bizarre words to you, or who prescribe certain acts to you with the help of those who aid you in performing what you call spellcasting. Nevertheless, you may be very sure that these spirits are mocking you and abusing your credulity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "553a",
    "Question": "Haven’t certain spirits sometimes dictated cabalistic formulas?",
    "Answer": "Yes, there are spirits who indicate signs and bizarre words to you, or who prescribe certain acts to you with the help of those who aid you in performing what you call spellcasting. Nevertheless, you may be very sure that these spirits are mocking you and abusing your credulity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "554",
    "Question": "Isn’t it possible that those who rightly or wrongly trust in what they call the virtue of a talisman may attract a spirit by such trust since it is their thought that acts, whereas the talisman is only a sign that helps to direct the thought?",
    "Answer": "That is the case, but the nature of the spirit attracted by such means depends on the purity of the intention and the level of the sentiments. But it is rare for those who are simple enough to believe in the virtue of a talisman not to have a material objective rather than a moral one. Whatever the case may be, this implies a narrowness and weakness of mind that gives access to imperfect and mocking spirits."
  },
  {
    "Id": "555",
    "Question": "What are sorcerers?",
    "Answer": "When they are of good faith, those whom you call sorcerers are persons who possess certain faculties such as magnetic power or second-sight. Since they do things that you do not comprehend, you suppose them to be endowed with supernatural power. Haven’t your learned individuals often been mistaken for sorcerers in the eyes of the ignorant?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "556",
    "Question": "Do certain individuals really possess the gift of healing by simple touch?",
    "Answer": "Their magnetic power may act to that extent when it is aided by purity of sentiments and an ardent desire to do good, for then good spirits come to their aid. It is necessary, however, to distrust the way stories are told by very gullible or enthusiastic individuals, who are always ready to see the miraculous in the simplest and most natural things. One must always distrust the self-interested claims of persons who exploit credulity for their own profit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "557",
    "Question": "Can blessings and curses attract good or evil to those at whom they are aimed?",
    "Answer": "God does not listen to unjust curses, and those who utter them are guilty before God. Since we have two opposing tendencies – good and evil – there may be a momentary influence in these cases, even upon matter. This influence never occurs, however, without God’s permission and as an increase in the trial for the one at whom it is aimed. Besides, most frequently, curses are usually aimed at the wicked, while blessings are aimed at the morally upright. Blessings or curses can never divert Providence from the path of justice. Providence does not strike those who are cursed unless they are wicked, and its protection does not cover those who do not deserve it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "558",
    "Question": "Do spirits have any other duty besides their own personal improvement?",
    "Answer": "They concur in the harmony of the universe and act as ministers in fulfilling God’s will. Spirit life is a continuous occupation, but it is not at all arduous like that of earth, because it is not subject to bodily fatigue or the anguish of need."
  },
  {
    "Id": "559",
    "Question": "Do less evolved spirits also perform a useful role in the universe?",
    "Answer": "All have duties to fulfill. Doesn’t the least of masons concur in the construction of a building as much as the does the architect?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "560",
    "Question": "Does each spirit have special attributes?",
    "Answer": "It is worth stating that we all must inhabit all places and must acquire knowledge of all things, successively presiding over functions involving all the planes of the universe. However, as Ecclesiastes states, there is a time for everything. Thus, one spirit is currently fulfilling its destiny on this world, while another will accomplish or has already accomplished its destiny at another time, on the earth, in the water, in the air, etc."
  },
  {
    "Id": "561",
    "Question": "Are the functions that spirits perform in the order of things permanent for each spirit, and do such functions belong exclusively to the attributes of certain orders?",
    "Answer": "All spirits must ascend the various degrees of the scale in order to perfect themselves. Since God is just, God could not have given knowledge without effort to some, while others acquired it only in a painful manner."
  },
  {
    "Id": "562",
    "Question": "Since spirits of the most advanced order have nothing more to acquire, are they in a state of absolute repose, or do they still have occupations?",
    "Answer": "What do you think they are doing for all eternity? Eternal idleness would be eternal torture. Receiving orders directly from God, transmitting them throughout the universe and supervising their execution."
  },
  {
    "Id": "562a",
    "Question": "What is the nature of their occupations?",
    "Answer": "Receiving orders directly from God, transmitting them throughout the universe and supervising their execution."
  },
  {
    "Id": "563",
    "Question": "Are the occupations of spirits unceasing?",
    "Answer": "Unceasing, yes, if we understand that their thought is always active, for they live by thought. Yet, one must not equate their occupations with the material occupations of humans. Their very activity is a delight because they know they are being useful. Less evolved spirits have occupations suitable for their nature. Would you entrust the works of cultured individuals to manual laborers?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "564",
    "Question": "Are there among spirits those who are idle, or who do not occupy themselves with anything useful?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but it is temporary and depends on the development of their intelligence. Certainly, as among humans, there are those who live only for themselves. Such idleness nonetheless weighs on them, and sooner or later the desire to progress stirs the need for activity, and they are glad to make themselves useful once again. We are speaking of spirits who have arrived at the necessary point of selfconsciousness and free will, for at their origin they are like new-born children who act more from instinct than from a determined will."
  },
  {
    "Id": "565",
    "Question": "Do spirits examine our works of art and take an interest in them?",
    "Answer": "They examine anything that may indicate the elevation of spirits and their progress."
  },
  {
    "Id": "566",
    "Question": "Does a spirit who had a specialty on earth – a painter or architect, for example – take a special interest in the works that were the object of its predilection during life?",
    "Answer": "Everything blends into an overall objective. If the spirit is good, it will take an interest in them to the degree that they enable it to help with the evolution of souls toward God. Besides, you are forgetting that spirits who practiced an art during the lifetime in which you knew them could have practiced another in a previous lifetime, because it is necessary for them to know everything in order to perfect themselves. Thus, according to their degree of advancement, it might be that nothing constitutes a specialty for them. This is what I meant when I stated that everything blends into an overall objective. Also, be aware of this: what is sublime to you in your backward world is no more than child’s play when compared with what exists on more advanced worlds. Why would you suppose that the spirits who inhabit those worlds, where there are arts unknown to you, would admire what would appear to them as no more than the work of a school child? As I have already stated: they examine whatever may indicate progress. Their case is different. Their point of view is more limited and they may admire what you yourselves admire."
  },
  {
    "Id": "567",
    "Question": "Do spirits sometimes meddle in our occupations and pleasures?",
    "Answer": "Commonplace spirits, as you call them, yes. They are unceasingly around you and at times take a very active part in all that you do, according to their nature. It is good that they do so in order to drive men and women forward in their different walks of life, exciting or moderating their passions."
  },
  {
    "Id": "568",
    "Question": "Do spirits who have missions to fulfill do so while in the errant or incarnate state?",
    "Answer": "They may do so in either state. For certain errant spirits, it is a great occupation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "569",
    "Question": "What do the missions that may be entrusted to errant spirits entail? Occupations and Missions of Spirits",
    "Answer": "They are so varied that it would be impossible to describe them. Besides, there are those that you would not be able to comprehend. Spirits fulfill the will of God, and you are not able to grasp all the divine designs."
  },
  {
    "Id": "570",
    "Question": "Do spirits always comprehend the designs that they are charged with executing?",
    "Answer": "No. There are those who are blind instruments, while others know fully well the purpose for which they act."
  },
  {
    "Id": "571",
    "Question": "Are advanced spirits the only ones who have missions to fulfill?",
    "Answer": "A mission’s importance is in relation to the spirit’s ability and elevation. The courier who carries a dispatch also fulfills a mission, though it is not that of a general."
  },
  {
    "Id": "572",
    "Question": "Is the mission of a spirit imposed on it or does it depend on its will?",
    "Answer": "A spirit asks for it and is happy to receive it. Yes, there are always several candidates but not all are accepted."
  },
  {
    "Id": "572a",
    "Question": "May the same mission be requested by several spirits?",
    "Answer": "Yes, there are always several candidates but not all are accepted."
  },
  {
    "Id": "573",
    "Question": "What does the mission of incarnate spirits entail?",
    "Answer": "Instructing human beings, helping them to advance, and improving their institutions by direct and material means. Missions are of various degrees of generality and importance, however: the one who cultivates the soil fulfills a mission as surely as the one who rules or teaches. Everything in nature is linked together. At the same time in which a spirit is purifying itself through incarnation, it is also working to fulfill the designs of Providence. Each one has its mission in this world because each one can be useful for something."
  },
  {
    "Id": "574",
    "Question": "What could be the earthly mission of intentionally useless persons?",
    "Answer": "There really are persons who live only for themselves and who do not know how to make themselves useful for anything. They are poor beings whom we should pity because they will painfully expiate their intentional uselessness, and their chastisement frequently begins even in this world through weariness and dissatisfaction with life. Among spirits there are lazy ones who recoil before a life of work. God allows them to do so. They will understand the inappropriateness of their uselessness later and at their own expense, and they will be the first to ask to make up for lost time. Also, they had perhaps chosen a more useful life to begin with, but once in action, they rejected it, allowing themselves to be misled by the suggestions of spirits who incited them to idleness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "575",
    "Question": "Common occupations would seem to be duties rather than missions per se. According to the idea normally associated with the word, a mission has a sense of importance that is Occupations and Missions of Spirits less exclusive, and especially, less personal. From that point of view, how can we tell if persons have a real mission on earth?",
    "Answer": "By the great things they do and by the progress they enable their fellow beings to make."
  },
  {
    "Id": "576",
    "Question": "Are those who have an important mission predestined for it before their birth, and do they have knowledge of it?",
    "Answer": "Yes, sometimes, but more often they are unaware of it. They only have a vague notion of it when they arrive on the earth. Their mission is traced out after their birth and according to circumstances as God drives them along the path on which they must fulfill the divine designs."
  },
  {
    "Id": "577",
    "Question": "When individuals do something useful, is it always in virtue of a previous and predestined mission, or might they have received an unforeseen mission?",
    "Answer": "Not everything that individuals do is the consequence of a predestined mission. Instead, they are frequently the instrument a spirit uses in order to perform something it considers useful. For example, a certain spirit thinks it would be a good idea to write a book, which it would actually write if it were incarnate, so it seeks out the writer most capable of comprehending its thought and most capable of acting on it. It suggests the idea and directs its execution. Thus, this indi­vidual did not originally come to earth with the mission of doing this particular work. The same thing applies to certain works of art and discoveries. It should be further noted that during its body’s sleep, the incarnate spirit communicates directly with the discarnate one in order to discuss how the mission is to be carried out."
  },
  {
    "Id": "578",
    "Question": "Can a spirit fail in its mission through its own fault?",
    "Answer": "Yes, if it is not a high order spirit. It will have to start the work over – that is its punishment. Furthermore, it will suffer the consequences of the problems it has caused."
  },
  {
    "Id": "578a",
    "Question": "What are the consequences for it?",
    "Answer": "It will have to start the work over – that is its punishment. Furthermore, it will suffer the consequences of the problems it has caused."
  },
  {
    "Id": "579",
    "Question": "Since a spirit receives its mission from God, how could God entrust an important mission of general interest to a spirit who may fail?",
    "Answer": "Doesn’t God know whether his general will be victorious or defeated? Rest assured that it is so, and the divine plans, when important, do not rely on those who might abandon the work in the middle of it. The whole issue for you is the knowledge of the future, which God possesses, but which is not given to you."
  },
  {
    "Id": "580",
    "Question": "Does a spirit who incarnates to fulfill a mission have the same apprehensions as the one who incarnates to undergo a trial?",
    "Answer": "No. It has experience."
  },
  {
    "Id": "581",
    "Question": "Individuals who are the lights of humankind, those who enlighten humans with their genius, obviously have a mission. But amongst them are those who are mistaken, and who, instead of great truths, spread great errors. How should we regard their mission?",
    "Answer": "As having been falsified by them. They are beneath the task they have undertaken. However, it is necessary to take circumstances into account. Geniuses must speak according to the time in which they live. Thus, a teaching that appears erroneous or puerile to a later era may have been sufficient during its own time."
  },
  {
    "Id": "582",
    "Question": "Can parenthood be considered a mission?",
    "Answer": "It is, without any doubt, a mission, and at the same time, a very great duty that involves parents more than Occupations and Missions of Spirits they might think concerning their responsibility for the future. God has placed children under the care of their parents so that they may guide them on the path of the good, and has facilitated their task by giving children a frail and delicate organization that renders them accessible to all sorts of impressions. However, there are those who are more concerned with training the trees in their orchards and making them produce fine fruit than with training the character of their children. If their children fail due to their neglect, they will have to bear the punishment, and the sufferings of their children will come back to them in a future life because they did not do what was incumbent on them for their children’s advancement on the path of the good."
  },
  {
    "Id": "583",
    "Question": "If a child goes astray, in spite of the care of the parents, are they still responsible?",
    "Answer": "No, but the more the child is disposed toward evil, the heavier their task is and the greater will be their merit if they manage to divert the child away from the path of evil. God is just."
  },
  {
    "Id": "584",
    "Question": "What could be the nature of the missions of conquerors whose only aim is to satisfy their ambition, and who, in order to reach their goal, do not recoil before any calamity they may cause?",
    "Answer": "Most of the time, they are nothing more than instruments used by God for fulfilling the divine designs. Such calamities are often the means for enabling a people to advance more rapidly. All are rewarded according to their deeds, the good they meant to do and the honesty of their intentions."
  },
  {
    "Id": "585",
    "Question": "What do you think of the division of nature into three kingdoms or into two classes: organic beings and inorganic beings? Some regard the human species as a fourth kingdom. Which of these divisions is preferable?",
    "Answer": "They are all good. It depends on one’s point of view: from a material point of view, there are only inorganic and organic beings. From the moral point of view, however, there are obviously four degrees."
  },
  {
    "Id": "586",
    "Question": "Do plants have any awareness of their existence?",
    "Answer": "No, they do not think; they have only organic life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "587",
    "Question": "Do plants feel sensations? Do they suffer when mutilated?",
    "Answer": "Plants receive the physical impressions that act upon matter, but they do not have perceptions; consequently, they do not feel the sensation of pain."
  },
  {
    "Id": "588",
    "Question": "Is the force that attracts plants towards each other independent of their will?",
    "Answer": "Yes, because they do not think. It is a mechanical force of matter acting upon matter; they cannot oppose it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "589",
    "Question": "Some plants – the mimosa and the dionea54, for example – show movements that indicate great sensitivity, and in some cases, a kind of will, like the latter, whose lobes seize the fly that lands on it in order to suck its juices, seeming to have set a trap to kill it. Are these plants endowed with the faculty of thought? Do they have a will and do they form an intermediary class between the plant and animal nature? Do they comprise a transition from the one to the other?",
    "Answer": "Everything in nature is in transition by the same fact that one thing does not resemble another, and that everything, nevertheless, is linked together. Plants do not think, and consequently have no will. The oyster, which opens itself, and all other zoophytes do not possess thought. They have no more than a blind and natural instinct."
  },
  {
    "Id": "590",
    "Question": "In plants, as in animals, isn’t there an instinct for selfpreservation that leads them to seek what may be useful to them and to avoid what may harm them?",
    "Answer": "There is, if you wish, a kind of instinct. It depends on the extent you attribute to the word, but it is purely mechanical. When you see two bodies combine during a chemical reaction, it is because they harmonize with each other, that is, there is an affinity between them, but you do not call it instinct."
  },
  {
    "Id": "591",
    "Question": "On more highly evolved worlds, are the plants, like the other beings, more perfect in nature?",
    "Answer": "Everything is more perfect, but the plants are always plants, as the animals are always animals, and as the human beings are always human beings."
  },
  {
    "Id": "592",
    "Question": "If we compare human beings with animals in relation to intelligence, it seems difficult to establish a line of demarcation, because certain animals on this earth have an obvious superiority over certain humans. Can such a line of demarcation be established in any precise manner?",
    "Answer": "Your philosophers are not in much agreement about this subject. Some would want for humans to be animals, and others for animals to be human. Both are wrong. Humans are beings apart, who sometimes sink very low, or who may sometimes ascend very high. In their physical nature, humans are like the animals and less well-endowed than many of them. Nature has given the animals everything that humans are obligated to invent with their intelligence in order to provide for their own needs and self-preservation. Their body is destroyed like that of the animals – that is certain – but their spirit has a destiny that they alone can comprehend because they alone are completely free. Poor humans, who debase yourselves more than wild animals! Don’t you know how to distinguish yourselves from them? Recognize human beings through their ability to think about God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "593",
    "Question": "Could we say that animals act only through instinct?",
    "Answer": "That again is a theory. It is quite true that instinct dominates most animals, but don’t you see some that act from a determined will? It is because they have limited intelligence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "594",
    "Question": "Do animals have language?",
    "Answer": "If you mean a language formed of words and syllables, no, but if you mean a way of communicating amongst themselves, then yes. They say many more things than you might suppose, but their language is limited to their needs, as are their thoughts. They understand one another by other means. Don’t you human beings use more than speech to communicate with one another? And mutes, what about them? Since animals are endowed with a life of relationships, they have means of warning each other and of expressing the sensations they experience. Do you think that fish do not understand each other? Human beings do not have the exclusive privilege of language, but the language of animals is instinctive and limited exclusively to the circle of their own needs and thoughts, while that of humans is perfectible and lends itself to all the conceptions of their intelligence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "595",
    "Question": "Do animals have free will?",
    "Answer": "They are not simple machines as you might suppose, but their freedom of action is limited to their needs and cannot be compared to human freedom. Since they are far less evolved than human beings, they do not have the same duties. Their freedom is restricted to the actions of their material life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "596",
    "Question": "Where do certain animals get their aptitude to imitate human language, and why is this aptitude found more among birds than among apes, for example, whose body structure is more analogous to the human structure?",
    "Answer": "The particular conformation of the vocal organs, aided by the instinct of imitation. Apes imitate gestures; certain birds imitate the voice."
  },
  {
    "Id": "597",
    "Question": "Since animals have an intelligence that gives them a certain freedom of action, is there in them a principle independent of matter?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and it survives their body. It is a soul, if you’d like; it depends on the meaning you attach to the word. It is much less evolved than that of humans, however. Between the souls of animals and humans there is as great a difference as there is between the human soul and God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "597a",
    "Question": "Is this principle a soul similar to that of humans?",
    "Answer": "It is a soul, if you’d like; it depends on the meaning you attach to the word. It is much less evolved than that of humans, however. Between the souls of animals and humans there is as great a difference as there is between the human soul and God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "598",
    "Question": "Does the animal’s soul retain its individuality and selfawareness after death?",
    "Answer": "Its individuality, yes, but not its self-awareness. Its intelligent life remains in a latent state."
  },
  {
    "Id": "599",
    "Question": "Can an animal soul choose the species in which it prefers to incarnate?",
    "Answer": "No. It does not possess free will."
  },
  {
    "Id": "600",
    "Question": "Since the animal’s soul survives its body, does it remain in an errant state like the human soul after death? The Three Kingdoms",
    "Answer": "It remains in a type of errant state because it is not united to a body, but it is not an errant spirit. The errant spirit is a being who thinks and acts of its own free will. Animal spirits do not have the same faculty. Self-awareness is what comprises the principal attribute of the human spirit. After its death, an animal’s soul is classified by the spirits in charge of doing so and it is utilized almost immediately. It is not given time to enter into relations with other creatures."
  },
  {
    "Id": "601",
    "Question": "Do animals follow a law of progress like humans?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and that is why on higher worlds, where humans are more advanced, the animals are also more advanced and possess more developed means of communication. However, they are always lower than humans and subject to them – they are their intelligent servants."
  },
  {
    "Id": "602",
    "Question": "Do animals progress by their will, like human beings, or by necessity?",
    "Answer": "By necessity. That is why there is no expiation for them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "603",
    "Question": "On highly evolved worlds, do the animals know about God?",
    "Answer": "No. Human beings are gods to them, as spirits use to be gods to humans."
  },
  {
    "Id": "604",
    "Question": "Since the animals – even the perfected ones of the higher worlds – are always beneath humans, wouldn’t this result in God having created intelligent beings perpetually condemned to inferiority? If so, wouldn’t this seem to be in disagreement with the unity of design and progress discernible in all of God’s works?",
    "Answer": "Everything in nature is linked together by ties that you cannot yet perceive, and the most apparently discrepant things have points of contact that humans will never manage to comprehend in their present state. They may glimpse them through an effort of their intelligence, but it is only when that intelligence has reached its full development and frees itself from the prejudices of pride and ignorance that they will be able to see clearly into the works of God. Until then, their limited ideas will cause them to look at everything from a petty and limited point of view. Rest assured that God cannot be self-contradictory and that everything in nature is harmonized through general laws that never deviate from the sublime wisdom of the Creator. Yes, but animals only have the intelligence of material life; in humans, intelligence produces moral life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "605",
    "Question": "If we considered all the points of contact between humans and animals, mightn’t we believe that humans possess two souls: an animal soul and a spiritual soul, and that if they did not have the latter, they would live only as animals? In other words, isn’t the animal a being similar to the human, minus the spiritual soul? If so, wouldn’t it follow that the good and evil instincts of humans would be the effect of the predominance of one or other of these two souls?",
    "Answer": "No, humans do not have two souls, but the body has its instincts, which result from the sensations of its organs. There is nothing in humans except a dual nature: the animal nature and the spiritual nature. Through their body and instincts, they participate in the nature and The Three Kingdoms instincts of animals. Through their soul, they participate in the nature of spirits. Yes, the less evolved it is, the tighter are the bonds between the spirit and matter. Can’t you see that? No, humans do not have two souls; the soul is always one in each individual. The soul of animals and that of humans are so very different from each other that the soul of one cannot animate the body created for the other. But if humans do not possess an animal soul, whose passions would place it on the level of the animals, they nonetheless have an animal body, which often drags them down to that level – a body endowed with vitality, but unintelligent and possessed of the limited instincts required for its self-preservation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "606",
    "Question": "Where do the animals get the intelligent principle that comprises the particular kind of soul with which they are endowed?",
    "Answer": "From the universal intelligent element. Of course, but in humans it goes through a development that elevates it above that of the animals."
  },
  {
    "Id": "607",
    "Question": "It has been stated that the human soul at its origin resembles the state of human infancy in the corporeal life, that its intelligence is only beginning to unfold, and that it is preparing itself for life (see no. 190). Where does the soul accomplish this primary phase?",
    "Answer": "In a series of existences preceding the period you call humanity. Haven’t we stated that everything in nature is linked together and tends toward unity? It is in those beings, whom you are far from knowing about entirely, that the intelligent principle is developed, is gradually individualized and is prepared for life, as we have stated. In a certain way, it is a preparatory work like that of germination, after which the intelligent principle undergoes a transformation and becomes a spirit. It is then that the period of humanity begins for it, and with it the consciousness of its future, the distinction between good and evil and the responsibility for its acts – the same way that childhood comes before adolescence, then youth and finally adulthood. There is nothing humiliating about this origin. Do the greatest geniuses feel humiliated at having been shapeless fetuses in the maternal womb? If anything ought to humiliate them, it is their low status before God and their powerlessness to probe the depths of the divine designs and the wisdom of the laws regulating the harmony of the universe. Strive to realize the greatness of God in the admirable harmony that establishes the solidarity of all things in nature. To believe that God could have made anything without a purpose, and have created intelligent beings without a future, would be to blaspheme God’s goodness, which The Three Kingdoms extends over all creatures. The earth is not the starting point of a human’s first incarnation. The period of humanness usually begins on worlds even less evolved. This, however, is not an absolute rule and it may happen that a spirit at its human beginning may be suited to live on the earth. Such a case is not frequent and would be an exception rather than a rule."
  },
  {
    "Id": "607a",
    "Question": "Does this period of humanity begin on our earth?",
    "Answer": "The earth is not the starting point of a human’s first incarnation. The period of humanness usually begins on worlds even less evolved. This, however, is not an absolute rule and it may happen that a spirit at its human beginning may be suited to live on the earth. Such a case is not frequent and would be an exception rather than a rule."
  },
  {
    "Id": "608",
    "Question": "After death, does a human spirit have any awareness of the existences that preceded its period of humanness?",
    "Answer": "No, because it is only after that period that its life as a spirit began. It even has difficulty in remembering its first existences as a human, exactly as humans no longer remember the earliest days of their childhood, and still less the time they spent in the maternal womb. That is why spirits tell you that they do not know how they began."
  },
  {
    "Id": "609",
    "Question": "Having entered the period of humanness, does a spirit retain traces of what it had previously been; that is, of the state in which it found itself in the period that could be called non-human?",
    "Answer": "That depends on the distance separating the two periods and the progress it has accomplished. For a few generations it may preserve a more or less pronounced reflection of the primitive state, for nothing in nature occurs through an abrupt transition. There are always links connecting the end of the chain of beings or events. However, such traces disappear with the development of free will. The first steps of progress are accomplished slowly because they are not yet aided by the will; but they follow a more rapid progress as the spirit acquires a more perfect consciousness of itself."
  },
  {
    "Id": "609a",
    "Question": "human?",
    "Answer": "That depends on the distance separating the two periods and the progress it has accomplished. For a few generations it may preserve a more or less pronounced reflection of the primitive state, for nothing in nature occurs through an abrupt transition. There are always links connecting the end of the chain of beings or events. However, such traces disappear with the development of free will. The first steps of progress are accomplished slowly because they are not yet aided by the will; but they follow a more rapid progress as the spirit acquires a more perfect consciousness of itself."
  },
  {
    "Id": "610",
    "Question": "Then are the spirits who have said that humans are beings apart in the order of creation mistaken?",
    "Answer": "No, but the issue has not been fully developed and there are things that can only come in their time. Humans are in fact beings apart, for they have faculties that distinguish them from all others and they have another destiny. The human species is the one God has chosen for the incarnation of the beings who can know God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "611",
    "Question": "Isn’t the common origin of living beings in the intelligent principle an affirmation of the doctrine of metempsychosis?",
    "Answer": "Two things may have the same origin, and yet not resemble each other at all later on. Who would recognize the tree, its leaves, its flowers and its fruit in the shapeless germ contained in the seed from which they came? From the moment when the intelligent principle reaches the necessary degree for becoming a spirit and for entering the period of humanness, it has no more relationship with its primitive state. It is no longer the soul of the animal like the tree is no longer a seed. In humans, there is only the animal-like body, the passions that arise from that body’s influence, and the instincts of self-preservation inherent in matter. Therefore, one cannot state that such and such a person is the incarnation of such and such an animal. Consequently, metempsychosis, as commonly understood, is incorrect."
  },
  {
    "Id": "612",
    "Question": "Could a spirit that has animated a human body incarnate in an animal?",
    "Answer": "That would be a regression, and a spirit does not regress. The river does not flow back to is source."
  },
  {
    "Id": "613",
    "Question": "However erroneous may be the idea linked to metempsychosis, couldn’t it be a result of the intuitive sentiment of the different existences of an individual?",
    "Answer": "We recognize such an intuitive sentiment in this belief as in many others, but like most intuitive ideas, humans have perverted it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "614",
    "Question": "What is meant by natural law?",
    "Answer": "Natural law is the law of God. It is the only law that is truly necessary for human beings to be happy. It shows them what they should or should not do, and they only suffer misfortune when they depart from it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "615",
    "Question": "Is God’s law eternal?",
    "Answer": "It is as eternal and immutable as God is."
  },
  {
    "Id": "616",
    "Question": "Can God prescribe to humankind in one age what would be prohibited in another?",
    "Answer": "God does not err. Humans are the ones who must modify their laws because they are imperfect, but God’s laws are perfect. The harmony regulating both the material and moral universe is founded upon laws that God has established forever."
  },
  {
    "Id": "617",
    "Question": "What do the divine laws encompass? Do they apply to anything other than moral conduct?",
    "Answer": "All the laws of nature are divine because God is the author of all things. Scientists study the laws of matter, whereas moral individuals study and practice the laws of the soul. Yes, but a single existence is not enough to do so."
  },
  {
    "Id": "618",
    "Question": "Are the divine laws the same for all worlds?",
    "Answer": "Reason tells us they must be appropriate for the nature of each world and proportioned to the degree of advancement of the beings that inhabit them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "619",
    "Question": "Has God provided all humans the means of knowing God’s law?",
    "Answer": "All may know about it, but not all understand it. Moral persons and those who desire to examine it are the ones who understand it best. Nevertheless, all will understand it someday because such understanding is necessary for progress."
  },
  {
    "Id": "620",
    "Question": "Before its union with the body, does the soul comprehend God’s law more clearly than after incarnating?",
    "Answer": "It comprehends God’s law according to the degree of its perfection, and it preserves an intuitive memory of it after uniting with the body. However, evil human instincts often cause it to forget it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "621",
    "Question": "Where is God’s law written?",
    "Answer": "In the conscience. They have forgotten and disregarded it; but God has willed for them to remember it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "622",
    "Question": "Has God endowed certain individuals with the mission of revealing the divine law?",
    "Answer": "Yes, certainly. In every age individuals have received this mission. They are high order spirits who have incarnated with the purpose of enabling humankind to progress."
  },
  {
    "Id": "623",
    "Question": "Haven’t those who were meant to instruct humankind in God’s law sometimes erred, and haven’t they often led others astray through erroneous principles?",
    "Answer": "People may have been led astray by those who were not actually inspired by God, and who, out of ambition, regarded themselves as having a mission that they did not in fact have. Nevertheless, they were geniuses and great truths could often be found even in the midst of their errors."
  },
  {
    "Id": "624",
    "Question": "What are the characteristics of true prophets?",
    "Answer": "True prophets are moral individuals inspired by God, and whom we may recognize by their words and deeds. God does not employ a liar to teach the truth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "625",
    "Question": "What is the perfect standard that God has offered to humankind as a guide and model?",
    "Answer": "Look at Jesus."
  },
  {
    "Id": "626",
    "Question": "Have the divine or natural laws been revealed to humankind only by Jesus? Before him, were they only known by intuition?",
    "Answer": "Haven’t we stated that they are written everywhere? From the remotest times, all who have meditated on wisdom have been able to understand and teach these laws. Though their teachings were incomplete, they prepared the ground to receive the seed. Since the divine laws are written in the book of nature, men and women are able to understand them as soon as they want to look into Divine or Natural Law them. That is why the precepts of the divine laws have been proclaimed by moral persons in all ages and also why we have encountered their elements – though incomplete or altered by ignorance and superstition – in the moral doctrines of all cultures that have left barbarism."
  },
  {
    "Id": "627",
    "Question": "Since Jesus has already taught the true laws of God, of what value are the teachings given by the Spirits? Do they really have anything more to teach us?",
    "Answer": "Jesus’ teachings were frequently allegorical and in the form of parables because he spoke according to his time and place, but today the truth must be made intelligible for all. Thus, it is necessary to explain God’s laws more fully and elaborate on them because there are so few who understand them and still fewer who actually practice them. Our mission is to awaken eyes and ears in order to confound the proud and unmask the hypocrites who display virtue and religion outwardly in order to hide their inner turpitudes. The teaching of the Spirits must be clear and without error so that no one can feign ignorance and so that all may judge it and evaluate it with their own reason. We are in charge of preparing the Kingdom of God announced by Jesus, and that is why no one should be able to interpret the law of God according to his or her own passions or to distort the meaning of a law that is entirely love and charity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "628",
    "Question": "Why hasn’t the truth always been within everyone’s reach?",
    "Answer": "Each thing must come in its own time. Truth is like light: we must accustom ourselves to it little by little; otherwise, it dazzles us. “There has never been a time in which God allowed humankind to receive communications as complete and instructive as the ones being given today. As you know, in ancient times there were only a few individuals who were in possession of what they regarded as a sacred science, and which they kept as a mystery from other individuals, whom they considered as being profane. You must understand from what you know of the laws governing spirit phenomena that those ancients received only fragmentary truths amongst an ambiguous, often highly symbolic collection. Nevertheless, enlightened individuals nowadays should not discount any ancient philosophical system, tradition or religion, because they all contain the seeds of great truths. Although they seem to contradict one another and are scattered among unfounded embellishments, today they are much easier to comprehend, thanks to the key that Spiritism has provided. It is a key to an infinite number of things that until now seemed unreasonable, but whose reality has recently been irrefutably demonstrated. Therefore, do not fail to make those materials subjects of your study. They are very rich in teachings and may contribute a great deal to your education."
  },
  {
    "Id": "629",
    "Question": "What definition may be given to morality?",
    "Answer": "Morality is the rule of good conduct; in other words, it is the ability to distinguish between good and evil. It is founded on the observance of God’s law. Humans behave correctly when they do everything for the good of all, for then they obey God’s law."
  },
  {
    "Id": "630",
    "Question": "How can we distinguish between good and evil? Divine or Natural Law",
    "Answer": "Good is everything that is in harmony with God’s law, whereas evil is everything that deviates from it. Thus, doing what is good conforms to God’s law, while doing evil infringes on it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "631",
    "Question": "Do humans have the means within them to distinguish between good and evil?",
    "Answer": "Yes, when they believe in God and desire to know God, who has given them intelligence to discern one from the other."
  },
  {
    "Id": "632",
    "Question": "Since humans are prone to error, couldn’t they be mistaken in discerning good from evil and believe that they are doing what is good, when in reality they are doing what is evil?",
    "Answer": "Jesus said, ‘Do unto others what you would want them do unto you’; that sums up everything. Obey it and you will never go wrong."
  },
  {
    "Id": "633",
    "Question": "The rule of good and evil, which may be called the rule of",
    "Answer": "reciprocity solidarity When you eat too much, it harms you. Well then, that is God letting you know how much you really need, and when you exceed it, you are punished. The same applies to everything else. Natural law outlines for all humans the limit of their needs, and when they exceed that limit they are punished by suffering. If they would always listen to that voice that says ‘enough’, they would avoid most of the ills they accuse nature of."
  },
  {
    "Id": "634",
    "Question": "Why may evil be found in the very nature of things? I am speaking of moral evil. Couldn’t God have created humankind under better moral conditions?",
    "Answer": "We have already told you: spirits are created simple and ignorant (see no. 115). God leaves men and women to choose their own path, and it is worse for them if they take the evil one – their pilgrimage will be all the longer. If there were no mountains, humans would not understand that they can ascend and descend; if there were no rocks, they would not understand that there are hard objects. The spirit must acquire experience, and to do so it must know good and evil. That is why there is a union of spirit and body."
  },
  {
    "Id": "635",
    "Question": "The different social positions create needs that are not the same for everyone. Is natural law, therefore, not a uniform rule for everyone?",
    "Answer": "Such different positions exist in nature itself and are in accord with the law of progress, but this fact does not invalidate the unity of natural law, which applies to everything."
  },
  {
    "Id": "636",
    "Question": "Are good and evil absolute for everybody?",
    "Answer": "God’s law is the same for everybody, but evil especially depends on the willingness one has for doing it. Good is always good and evil is always evil, whatever a person’s position may be. The difference is in the degree of responsibility."
  },
  {
    "Id": "637",
    "Question": "Are cannibals who yield to their instinct guilty when they eat human flesh? Divine or Natural Law",
    "Answer": "I have said that evil depends on the will. Well then, persons are guiltier the more they know what they should do."
  },
  {
    "Id": "638",
    "Question": "It seems that evil sometimes results from necessity. Such is, for example, the necessity in certain cases for destruction, even that of our fellow beings. In such cases, has there been a transgression of God’s law?",
    "Answer": "Evil is no less evil by being necessary, but this necessity disappears as the soul purifies itself in passing from one existence to another. Then people become guiltier when they commit evil because they have a better understanding of it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "639",
    "Question": "The evil we commit frequently results from the position in which others have placed us. In such a case, who is more culpable?",
    "Answer": "The responsibility for evil falls upon the one who has caused it. Thus, those who are led into evil by the position in which others have placed them are less culpable than those who have made them commit it. All will suffer the penalty not only for the evil they have done, but for the evil they have caused."
  },
  {
    "Id": "640",
    "Question": "Are those who do not do evil themselves, but who take advantage of the evil committed by others culpable to the same degree?",
    "Answer": "It is as if they themselves had committed it; upon taking advantage of it, they participate in it. Perhaps they would have recoiled before the deed itself, but once it was done and they then took advantage of it, it was because they approved of it and would have committed it themselves if they could have or if they had been more daring."
  },
  {
    "Id": "641",
    "Question": "Is the desire for evil as reprehensible as evil itself?",
    "Answer": "That depends. There is virtue in willingly resisting the desire for evil if one desires to commit it, especially when there is a possibility of satisfying the desire. However, if it is only because the opportunity did not present itself, the person is culpable."
  },
  {
    "Id": "642",
    "Question": "In order to be pleasing to God and to ensure our future situation, is it enough simply not to do what is evil?",
    "Answer": "No. All must do good to the best of their abilities, for all will answer for all the evil that has resulted from the good they left undone."
  },
  {
    "Id": "643",
    "Question": "Are there persons who have no possibility of doing good because of their position?",
    "Answer": "There are none who cannot do good; only selfish persons never find an opportunity for doing so. It is enough to come in contact with others in order to do good, and everyday life offers such a possibility to whomever is not blinded by selfishness. Doing good does not only mean being charitable, but also being as useful as possible whenever your help is needed."
  },
  {
    "Id": "644",
    "Question": "Aren’t the surroundings in which certain people live the main reason for many to involve themselves in vice and crime?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but even then it is the result of a trial chosen by their spirit in the state of freedom. It wanted to expose itself to temptation in order to have the merit of resisting it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "645",
    "Question": "When individuals are immersed in an atmosphere of vice, doesn’t evil become an almost irresistible draw? Divine or Natural Law",
    "Answer": "Draw, yes; irresistible, no, because in the midst of such an atmosphere of vice you can nonetheless find great virtue. There are spirits who have the strength to resist, and who have, at the same time, the mission of exerting a good influence on their fellow beings."
  },
  {
    "Id": "646",
    "Question": "Does the merit of the good that one does depend on certain conditions; that is, are there different degrees of merit in doing good?",
    "Answer": "The merit lies in its difficulty. There is no merit in doing good if there is no self-denial and if it costs nothing. God takes more notice of poor individuals who share their only piece of bread than of the rich who give only what is superfluous to them. Jesus told you this in the parable of the widow’s mite."
  },
  {
    "Id": "647",
    "Question": "Is the entire law of God contained in Jesus’ maxim of loving one’s neighbor?",
    "Answer": "This maxim certainly reaffirms all humankind’s duties toward each other, but it is necessary to show them its application, because otherwise, they will neglect such duties, as they in fact do nowadays. Moreover, natural law covers all life’s circumstances, and this particular maxim refers to only one of its aspects. People need precise rules. General and overly vague precepts leave too many doors open to interpretation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "648",
    "Question": "What do you think of the division of natural law into ten parts, covering the laws of worship, labor, reproduction, preservation, destruction, society, progress, equality, liberty and lastly, the law of justice, love and charity?",
    "Answer": "The division of God’s law into ten parts comes from Moses and covers all the circumstances of life, which is the essential point. You may follow that division, although like other classification systems, it does not contain anything absolute. Such systems always depend on the point of view from which a subject is considered. The last law is the most important since through it humans can advance the farthest in the spiritual life – it sums up all the others."
  },
  {
    "Id": "649",
    "Question": "What does worship entail?",
    "Answer": "Worship is the lifting up of the thought toward God. Through worship, the soul draws nearer to its Creator."
  },
  {
    "Id": "650",
    "Question": "Is worship the result of an innate sentiment or the product of education?",
    "Answer": "An innate sentiment, like that of the Divinity. The awareness of their weakness leads humans to bow before the One who can protect them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "651",
    "Question": "Have there ever been peoples devoid of all sentiment of worship?",
    "Answer": "No, because there have never been atheistic peoples. All have understood that there is a Supreme Being above them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "652",
    "Question": "Does worship have its source in natural law?",
    "Answer": "It is part of natural law because it is the result of an innate sentiment in humankind. That is why we find it among all peoples, albeit expressed in different forms."
  },
  {
    "Id": "653",
    "Question": "Does worship require outward expression?",
    "Answer": "True worship comes from the heart. In all your actions, always remember that the Lord is watching you. Yes, if they are not a vain pretense. They are always useful for setting a good example, but those who practice such forms of worship only out of affectation and vanity, belying their appearance of piety, set a bad example rather than a good one, and they do more harm than they can imagine."
  },
  {
    "Id": "653a",
    "Question": "Are outward worship forms useful nonetheless?",
    "Answer": "Yes, if they are not a vain pretense. They are always useful for setting a good example, but those who practice such forms of worship only out of affectation and vanity, belying their appearance of piety, set a bad example rather than a good one, and they do more harm than they can imagine."
  },
  {
    "Id": "654",
    "Question": "Does God have any preference for those who worship in this or that manner?",
    "Answer": "God prefers those who sincerely worship from the bottom of their heart, doing good and avoiding evil, to those who think they honor God through ceremonies that do not render them any better than their neighbor. “All are brothers and sisters, children of the same God, and God calls all those who follow the divinely established laws, whatever may be the form in which they express themselves. “Those who only put on an appearance of piety are hypocrites; those for whom worship is only a pretense that is contradicted by their actual conduct set a bad example. The Law of Worship “Those who profess to worship Christ, but who are proud, envious and jealous, who are hard and unforgiving toward others, or who are ambitious for worldly things, I declare to you that their religion is on their lips only and not in their heart. God, who sees everything, will say: Those who know the truth are a hundred times guiltier of the evil they do than the unknowing nomad in the desert, and they will be treated accordingly on judgment day. If a blind person passing by you accidentally knocks you down you forget about it, but if it is a person whose sight is perfect, you rightly take offense. “So do not ask if there is one particular form of worship that is the most acceptable, since that would be like asking whether it is more pleasing to God to be worshipped in one language rather than in another. I will say to you once more: hymns do not reach God except through the door of the heart."
  },
  {
    "Id": "655",
    "Question": "Is it wrong to practice a religion that is not believed in from the bottom of the heart if it is done out of human respect and in order not to offend those who think differently?",
    "Answer": "As in so many other things, the intent is the rule. Those whose sole aim is to show respect for the beliefs of others do no wrong; in fact, they do better than those who would ridicule such beliefs, since that would show a lack of charity. However, those who practice a religion out of ulterior motives or ambition are contemptible in the sight of God and humankind. God could not be pleased with those who only put on a show of humility in order to gain the approval of others."
  },
  {
    "Id": "656",
    "Question": "Is group worship preferable to individual worship?",
    "Answer": "Those who assemble for communion of thought and sentiment have more power to attract good spirits, and the same applies when they gather to worship God. But do not think that individual worship is therefore less effective, for each individual can worship God with divine thoughts."
  },
  {
    "Id": "657",
    "Question": "Do those who dedicate themselves to the contemplative life, doing no evil and thinking only of God, have any merit in the divine sight?",
    "Answer": "No. Even though they do nothing evil, neither do they do any good. Moreover, not doing good is in itself evil. God wants men and women to think about God, but does not want them to do only that, for God has given them duties to fulfill. Those who spend all their time in meditation and contemplation do nothing meritorious before God since their life is entirely personal and of no use to humankind. God will ask them to account for the good they did not do."
  },
  {
    "Id": "658",
    "Question": "Is prayer pleasing to God?",
    "Answer": "A prayer is always pleasing to God when spoken from the heart, for intent is everything to God. A prayer from the heart is preferable to one you read no matter how beautiful it may be if you read more with the lips than with the thought. Prayer is pleasing to God when it is offered with faith, fervor and sincerity. Do not believe, however, that God is touched by the prayer of vain, proud or selfish people, unless their prayer represents an act of sincere repentance and true humility."
  },
  {
    "Id": "659",
    "Question": "What is the general character of prayer?",
    "Answer": "Prayer is an act of worship. Praying to God is thinking of God, drawing nearer to God, putting one’s self in communication with God. Through prayer we may do three things: praise, ask and thank."
  },
  {
    "Id": "660",
    "Question": "Does prayer make people better?",
    "Answer": "Yes, because those who pray fervently and confidently strengthen themselves against the temptations of evil, and God sends them good spirits to assist them. Such help is never refused when sincerely asked for. What is essential is not to pray a great deal, but to pray rightly. Such persons think that all the merit lies in the length of the prayer, and they shut their eyes to their own defects. For them, prayer is an occupation, a use of time, but it is not self-examination. It is not the remedy per se that is ineffectual, but the manner in which it is applied."
  },
  {
    "Id": "660a",
    "Question": "even cruel?",
    "Answer": "What is essential is not to pray a great deal, but to pray rightly. Such persons think that all the merit lies in the length of the prayer, and they shut their eyes to their own defects. For them, prayer is an occupation, a use of time, but it is not self-examination. It is not the remedy per se that is ineffectual, but the manner in which it is applied."
  },
  {
    "Id": "661",
    "Question": "May one effectively ask God to forgive one’s sins?",
    "Answer": "God knows how to discern between good and evil; prayer does not hide sins. Those who ask God to forgive their sins do not receive forgiveness unless they change their conduct. Good deeds are the best prayers, for deeds are worth more than words."
  },
  {
    "Id": "662",
    "Question": "May one pray effectively for others?",
    "Answer": "The spirit of the one who prays acts out of a will to do good. Through prayer, it attracts good spirits who cooperate in the good it desires to do."
  },
  {
    "Id": "663",
    "Question": "Can the prayers we offer for ourselves modify the nature of our trials and change their course?",
    "Answer": "Your trials are in God’s hands and there are those that must be endured to the very end; however, God always takes resignation into account. Prayer attracts good spirits who give you strength to courageously endure your trials; thus, they seem less difficult to you. As we have already stated, prayer is never useless when offered rightly, because it provides strength, which in itself is a good result. Heaven helps those who help themselves – you know this. Besides, God could not change the workings of nature to suit the taste of each and every individual, since what may be a great evil from your narrow point of view and for your ephemeral life is often a great good within the general order of the universe. Furthermore, how many misfortunes are authored by people themselves through their own improvidence or wrongdoing? They are punished for their specific sins. Nevertheless, your just requests are heard more often than you might suppose. You think that God has not heard your prayer because there has been no miracle on your behalf, while you have in fact received divine assistance through means so natural that it seems to have happened by chance or by necessity. Most often, God suggests the thought needed for you to get yourselves out of your predicament."
  },
  {
    "Id": "664",
    "Question": "Is it any use praying for the dead and for suffering spirits, and if so, how can our prayers provide them consolation and The Law of Worship shorten their sufferings? Do our prayers have the power to appease the justice of God?",
    "Answer": "Prayer has no effect in changing God’s designs, but the soul for whom you pray experiences relief because it witnesses the interest you show in it, and because an unhappy soul is always consoled when it encounters other charitable souls who share in its suffering. Moreover, through prayer you may incite it to repentance and the desire to do what is needed to become happy. It is in this sense that you can shorten its affliction if on its part it contributes with its own goodwill. Aroused by prayer, such a desire to improve attracts to the suffering spirit other spirits, who come to enlighten, console and give it hope. Jesus prayed for the straying sheep. In doing so, he showed you that you are culpable if you do not pray for those who are the most in need."
  },
  {
    "Id": "665",
    "Question": "What is to be thought of the opinion that rejects praying for the dead because it is not prescribed in the Gospels?",
    "Answer": "Christ said to all humankind, ‘Love one another.’ This recommendation implies using all possible means to demonstrate love toward others, but without going into any details regarding the way to reach this goal. If it is true that nothing can turn God aside from applying divine justice to every one of a spirit’s actions, it is no less true that the prayer you direct to God on behalf of those who inspire your love is for them a testimony of remembrance that consoles them and contributes toward relieving their sufferings. They can be helped when – and only when – they show the slightest repentance, but it will nevertheless cause them never to forget that a sympathetic soul has been concerned about them. It will instill in them the sweet belief that your intercession has been useful. This necessarily results on their part in a sentiment of love for the one who has shown this proof of friendship and piety. Consequently, the love recommended to humankind by Christ has increased between them, and both have obeyed the law of love and union of all beings, the divine law that must lead to unity – the spirit’s objective and purpose."
  },
  {
    "Id": "666",
    "Question": "May we pray to spirits?",
    "Answer": "You may pray to good spirits since they are the messengers of God and the executors of the divine designs. Their power, however, is in proportion to their degree of evolution and always derives from the Creator of all things, without whose permission nothing is done. For this reason, the prayers that we address to them are only effective if pleasing to God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "667",
    "Question": "If it is erroneous, why is polytheism one of the most ancient and widespread beliefs?",
    "Answer": "The idea of a single God could only appear among humans as the result of the development of their minds. Incapable in their ignorance of conceiving of an immaterial being without a determined form and who acted upon matter, they endowed God with the attributes of the corporeal nature, that is, a form and a figure. From then on, everything that seemed to surpass the proportions of ordinary intelligence became a deity to them. Whatever they could not understand had to be the work of a supernatural power, and it was no more than a small step from that to believing in as 56 This reply was given by the Spirit of M. Monod, the Protestant pastor of Paris, who died in 1856. The preceding reply, no. 664, was given by the Spirit of St. Louis – Auth. The Law of Worship many distinct powers as there were effects. Nonetheless, in all ages there have been enlightened individuals who have understood the impossibility of such a multitude of powers for governing the world without some higher direction over them all, and who, consequently, lifted up their thought to a single God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "668",
    "Question": "Since spirit phenomena have been produced throughout time and have been known about since the world began, couldn’t they have contributed to the belief in the plurality of gods?",
    "Answer": "Of course, because humans labeled as God everything that was supra-human; thus, the spirits were gods to them. Also, that is why that, whenever individuals distinguished themselves among others by their actions, their genius or a secret power that the common folk could not comprehend, they were made into a god and worshipped after death."
  },
  {
    "Id": "669",
    "Question": "The practice of human sacrifice dates back to remotest antiquity. Why was humankind led to believe that such a thing could be pleasing to God?",
    "Answer": "First, because they did not understand God as being the source of the good. Amongst primitive peoples matter predominated over spirit. They yielded to their animal instincts and that is why they were generally so cruel – their moral sense had not yet developed. Second, primitive humans naturally believed that a living creature had much more value in God’s sight than an inert object. This is what led them at first to immolate animals and humans later, because, according to their erroneous belief, they thought the value of a sacrifice was in proportion to the importance of the victim. Usually, whenever you buy a gift for someone, you always select one with as great a value as the friendship and consideration you want to show the person. The same applied to ignorant humans with respect to God. There can be no doubt about it. No, but from a mistaken concept of what was pleasing to God – look at Abraham. In time, humans began to commit the abuse of immolating their national enemies and even their personal enemies. However, God has never demanded sacrifices – animal or human. God could never be honored by the useless destruction of God’s own creatures."
  },
  {
    "Id": "670",
    "Question": "Could human sacrifices ever have been pleasing to God if performed with pious intentions?",
    "Answer": "No, never, but God does judge the intention. Since they were ignorant, those ancients may have believed they were performing a praiseworthy deed in immolating one of their fellow beings. In that case, God would have heeded the thought but not the deed. As they evolved, human beings had to recognize their error and reject such sacrifices, which could no longer be acceptable to enlightened spirits; I say enlightened because, back then, spirits were shrouded by the veil of matter. By their free will, however, they were able to perceive their origin and their final purpose, and many already intuitively understood the evil they were committing, although in order to continue gratifying their passions they did not cease practicing it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "671",
    "Question": "What should we think of so-called holy wars? Wouldn’t the sentiment that leads fanatical peoples to think they are pleasing God by exterminating the greatest possible number of those who do not share their beliefs have the same origin as the sentiment that formerly led them to sacrifice their fellow beings?",
    "Answer": "Such peoples are driven by evil spirits. By waging war on their fellow beings, they act against the will of God, who requires that people love their neighbors as themselves. All religions, or rather, all peoples, worship the same God whether by this or that name. Why wage a war of extermination because a religion is different, or has not yet attained the religious progress typical of enlightened cultures? Peoples may be excused for not believing in the word of the one who was animated by the Spirit of God and sent by God, especially those who have neither seen God nor witnessed the divine acts. But how could you possibly expect them to believe in that word of peace when you seek them out while bearing a sword? They must be educated and we must seek to enable them to understand his doctrine – by persuasion and kindness rather than by force and blood. Most of you do not believe in our communications with certain mortals, so how could you expect strangers to believe in your words when your acts belie the doctrine you profess?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "672",
    "Question": "Did the offering of the fruits of the earth have more merit in God’s sight than the sacrificing of animals?",
    "Answer": "I have already answered that by saying that God judges the intention; the deed itself holds little importance. Offering the fruits of the earth rather than the blood of victims would obviously be more agreeable to God. As we have told you and continue to repeat, a prayer said from the bottom of the heart is a hundred times more pleasing to God than all the physical offerings you could make. I repeat: the intention here is everything; the deed, nothing."
  },
  {
    "Id": "673",
    "Question": "Mightn’t there have been a way of rendering those offerings more pleasing to God by consecrating them to the relief of those who lacked the necessities of life? And in that case, mightn’t the sacrificing of animals, performed towards such a useful The Law of Worship end, have been more meritorious than an abusive sacrifice that served no useful end, or when it profited only those who did not need anything? Wouldn’t there be something truly pious in consecrating to the poor the firstfruits of the earth that God has granted us?",
    "Answer": "God always blesses those who practice the good; helping the poor and afflicted is the best means of honoring God. I do not mean to say that God disapproves of the ceremonies you use for prayer; however, there is a great deal of money spent on such ceremonies that could be employed more usefully. God loves simplicity in all things. The person who attaches importance to external acts and not those of the heart is a narrow-minded spirit. Judge for yourself as to whether or not God should be more concerned with form than with depth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "674",
    "Question": "Is the necessity of labor a law of nature?",
    "Answer": "Labor is a law of nature, and as such is a necessity per se. Because civilization both increases peoples’ needs and their enjoyments, it obliges them to work more."
  },
  {
    "Id": "675",
    "Question": "Should we understand labor to entail only material occupations?",
    "Answer": "No; the spirit labors as much as the body. Every useful occupation is labor."
  },
  {
    "Id": "676",
    "Question": "Why has labor been imposed on humankind?",
    "Answer": "It is a consequence of their corporeal nature. It is a means of expiation and at the same time a means of perfecting their intelligence. Without labor, humans would remain in intellectual infancy. Thus, they must owe their food, safety and well-being to their own labor and activity. God has granted more intelligence to certain persons in order to compensate for their physical weakness, but labor is involved nonetheless."
  },
  {
    "Id": "677",
    "Question": "Why does nature itself provide for all the needs of the animals?",
    "Answer": "Everything in nature labors. Animals labor as you do, but their work, like their intelligence, is limited to their self-­preservation. That is why labor does not lead to progress among them, while among human beings it has a double objective: the preservation of the body and the development of thought. The latter is also a necessity and raises them above themselves. When I say that the labor of animals is limited to self-preservation, I mean the objective toward which their labor is aimed. But while devoted entirely to providing for their physical needs, they are also unknowingly agents collaborating in the designs of the Creator. Their labor plays no less of a part in the final objective of nature, although you often do not see its immediate result."
  },
  {
    "Id": "678",
    "Question": "On more highly evolved worlds, are humans subjected to the same necessity of labor?",
    "Answer": "The nature of the labor is relative to that of the needs; the fewer the material needs, the less material the labor. Yet, you must not assume that humans on such worlds remain inactive and useless; idleness would be a torture instead of a benefit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "679",
    "Question": "Are those who possess plenty of assets to ensure their welfare exempted from the law of labor?",
    "Answer": "From physical labor, perhaps, but not from the obligation to render themselves useful according to their means and to perfect their own and others’ intelligence; this too is labor. If those to whom God has granted enough assets to ensure their welfare are not obligated to eat their bread from the sweat of their brow, their obligation to be useful to their fellow creatures is all the greater. It is a portion The Law of Labor they have received in advance, allowing them more free time to do good."
  },
  {
    "Id": "680",
    "Question": "Aren’t there those who are incapable of working at anything at all and whose existence serves no purpose?",
    "Answer": "God is just and only condemns those who intentionally live a life that serves no purpose because they live by depending on other peoples’ work. God desires for all to make themselves useful according to their own faculties."
  },
  {
    "Id": "681",
    "Question": "Does the law of nature impose upon children the obligation to work for their parents?",
    "Answer": "Certainly, just as parents must work for their children. That is why God has made filial love and parental love natural sentiments so that by such mutual love the members of the same family may be led to help each other. This is frequently not recognized in your present society."
  },
  {
    "Id": "682",
    "Question": "Since rest is needed after labor, isn’t rest therefore a law of nature?",
    "Answer": "Absolutely. Rest serves to restore the strength of the body; it is also needed to give a little more freedom to the intelligence, which must raise itself above matter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "683",
    "Question": "What is the limit of labor?",
    "Answer": "The limit of one’s strength; however, in this regard, God leaves people free to decide what their limit is."
  },
  {
    "Id": "684",
    "Question": "What is to be thought of those who abuse their authority by imposing too much work on their subordinates?",
    "Answer": "It is one of the worst things they could do. All who have the power of command are responsible for any excessive work they impose on their subordinates since if they do so, they transgress the law of God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "685",
    "Question": "Do humans have the right to retire in old age?",
    "Answer": "Yes. None are required to labor beyond their ability to do so. The strong should work for the weak. In the absence of a family, society should replace it. That is the law of charity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "686",
    "Question": "Is the reproduction of living beings a law of nature?",
    "Answer": "Obviously; without reproduction the corporeal world would die out."
  },
  {
    "Id": "687",
    "Question": "If the population continues to follow the constant progression that we now see, will a time come in which it is too excessive for the earth?",
    "Answer": "No. God has foreseen this and always keeps everything in balance; God does nothing useless. Since they only see one angle of the picture of nature, humans are unable to perceive the harmony of the whole."
  },
  {
    "Id": "688",
    "Question": "At this moment, there are certain human races that are obviously diminishing. Will a time come when they will have completely disappeared from the earth?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but others will have taken their place, as others will someday take yours."
  },
  {
    "Id": "689",
    "Question": "Are the human beings of today a new creation or are they the perfected descendants of primitive beings?",
    "Answer": "They are the same spirits. They have returned to perfect themselves in new bodies, but they are still far from perfection. Thus, the present human race, which, through its growth, tends to invade the whole earth and to replace the races that are dying out, will also go through its own period of decrease and extinction. Other more perfected races will replace it. These will have descended from the present ones, just as the civilized human beings of the present day have descended from the brutes and primitives of early eras."
  },
  {
    "Id": "690",
    "Question": "From a purely physical point of view, are the bodies of the present race a special creation, or have they evolved from more primitive bodies by way of reproduction?",
    "Answer": "The origin of the human race is lost in the night of time, but since all belong to one great human family, whatever the primitive roots of each race were, they have since been able to mix with one another and produce new types."
  },
  {
    "Id": "691",
    "Question": "From a physical standpoint, what is the distinctive and dominant characteristic of primitive races?",
    "Answer": "The development of brute strength at the expense of intellectual prowess. The opposite is occurring nowadays: humans act more through their intelligence than through physical strength; and yet, they accomplish a hundred times more because they have placed the forces of nature at their service, which the animals cannot do."
  },
  {
    "Id": "692",
    "Question": "Is the improvement of animal and vegetable species through The Law of Reproduction science contrary to natural law? Wouldn’t it be more in conformance with that law to allow things to follow their normal course?",
    "Answer": "Everything must be done to arrive at perfection. Humans themselves are an instrument that God uses as a means for accomplishing the divine ends. Since perfection is the goal toward which nature tends, to favor such perfection is to correspond to those ends. What does it matter that their merits are void provided progress is made? It is up to them to render their labor praiseworthy through their intention. Besides, by means of such labor they exercise and develop their intelligence, and it is from this aspect that they derive the greatest benefit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "693",
    "Question": "Are the human laws and customs that have as their objective or as their result the creation of obstacles to reproduction contrary to the law of nature?",
    "Answer": "Everything that hinders the operations of nature is contrary to the overall law. God has given to humans – above all other living beings – a power that they should use for good and not for abuse. They may regulate reproduction according to their needs, but they should not hinder it unnecessarily. The intelligent action of humankind is a counterbalance set by God among the forces of nature to reestablish their equilibrium. This is what further distinguishes humans from the animals, because humans do so with full awareness. In their turn, the animals take part in this equilibrium. While the instinct of destruction has been given to the animals as a means for their own self ­preservation, it also causes them to hinder the excessive and perhaps dangerous over-population of the animal and vegetable species that nourish them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "694",
    "Question": "What should be thought about means that are meant to prevent reproduction with a view to satisfying sensuality?",
    "Answer": "It proves the predominance of the body over the soul and demonstrates how deeply humans are immersed in matter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "695",
    "Question": "Is marriage – the permanent union of two individuals – contrary to the law of nature?",
    "Answer": "It represents progress in the evolution of humankind."
  },
  {
    "Id": "695a",
    "Question": "contrary to the law of nature?",
    "Answer": "It represents progress in the evolution of humankind."
  },
  {
    "Id": "696",
    "Question": "What effect would abolishing marriage have on human society?",
    "Answer": "A return to the life of the animals."
  },
  {
    "Id": "697",
    "Question": "Does the absolute indissolubility of marriage belong to the law of nature or is it only a human law?",
    "Answer": "It is a human law that is quite contrary to the law of nature. But humans may modify their laws; only those of nature are immutable."
  },
  {
    "Id": "698",
    "Question": "Is voluntary celibacy a state of perfection that is meritorious in God’s sight?",
    "Answer": "No, and those who live that way out of selfishness displease God and mislead others."
  },
  {
    "Id": "699",
    "Question": "Isn’t celibacy a sacrifice for certain individuals who desire to devote themselves entirely to serving humankind?",
    "Answer": "That is very different. I said ‘out of selfishness’. Every personal sacrifice is meritorious when it is made for the good – the greater the sacrifice, the greater the merit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "700",
    "Question": "Is the approximate numerical equality between the sexes an indication of the proportions in which they ought to be united?",
    "Answer": "Yes, for everything in nature has a final purpose."
  },
  {
    "Id": "701",
    "Question": "Which of the two, polygamy or monogamy, is more in harmony with the law of nature?",
    "Answer": "Polygamy is a human law, and abolishing it is a mark of social progress. In God’s view, marriage should be based on the love of the individuals who join hands. In polygamy there is no true love; there is nothing more than sensuality."
  },
  {
    "Id": "702",
    "Question": "Is the self-preservation instinct a law of nature?",
    "Answer": "Absolutely. All living beings possess it, regardless of their degree of intelligence. In some it is purely mechanical; in others it is thought out."
  },
  {
    "Id": "702a",
    "Question": "preservation instinct a law of nature?",
    "Answer": "Absolutely. All living beings possess it, regardless of their degree of intelligence. In some it is purely mechanical; in others it is thought out."
  },
  {
    "Id": "703",
    "Question": "What was God’s purpose in granting the instinct of selfpreservation to all living beings?",
    "Answer": "All beings must collaborate in the designs of Providence. That is why God has given them the need to stay alive. Besides, life is necessary for beings to perfect themselves; they sense this instinctively without perceiving it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "704",
    "Question": "Since God has given human beings the need to stay alive, does God always provide them with the means of doing so?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and if they do not find them, it is because they do not understand them. God could not have given humans the need to stay alive without also having given them the means. Hence, the Creator has caused the earth to produce in such a way as to provide for the needs of all its inhabitants, for only that which is necessary is useful; the superfluous never is."
  },
  {
    "Id": "705",
    "Question": "Why doesn’t the earth always produce enough to provide for humans’ needs?",
    "Answer": "Since they are ungrateful, they neglect her! Nevertheless, she is an excellent mother. Frequently, they blame nature for the consequences of their own incompetence or lack of foresight. The earth would always produce what is needed if humans knew how to be content. If she does not supply all their needs, it is because they use her to provide themselves with superfluities instead of necessities. Look at the nomads in the desert. They always find enough to live on because they do not create imaginary needs. But when half of all that is produced is wasted on satisfying fanciful desires, should people wonder at finding nothing the next day, and have a reason to pity themselves at being deprived in times of scarcity? In truth I tell you that nature is not stingy; rather, people do not know how to control themselves."
  },
  {
    "Id": "706",
    "Question": "Should we understand only the products of the soil as being the fruits of the earth?",
    "Answer": "The soil is the original source from which all other resources derive because, in the last analysis, such resources are only a transformation of the products of the soil. For that reason we should understand the fruits of the earth to be everything that humans can enjoy in this world."
  },
  {
    "Id": "707",
    "Question": "The means of subsistence are frequently lacking for certain individuals, even in the midst of the abundance around them. To what is this fact due?",
    "Answer": "It is primarily due to the selfishness of humans, who do not always do what they should. Next, and most often, it is due to humans themselves. ‘Seek and you shall find’; these words do not mean that it is enough to simply look to the earth in order to find what you desire. Instead, you must seek with ardor and perseverance, without indifference and without allowing yourselves to be discouraged by obstacles that are quite often no more than means of putting your tenacity, patience and firmness to the test."
  },
  {
    "Id": "708",
    "Question": "Aren’t there situations in which the means of subsistence do not depend solely on human will and where the lack of the barest necessities is a consequence of circumstances?",
    "Answer": "These situations are frequently cruel trials which humans must undergo, and to which they know they will be exposed. Their merit is in their submission to God’s will if their intelligence does not furnish them with some means for escaping their difficulty. If death must touch them, they should submit to it without complaint, remembering that their hour of true freedom has arrived, and that despair at the final moment may cause them to lose the fruit of their resignation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "709",
    "Question": "Have those, who in critical situations were obligated to sacrifice their fellow beings to appease their hunger, committed a crime? If it was a crime, was it lessened by the need to stay alive, which the preservation instinct has given them?",
    "Answer": "I have already responded in saying that there is more merit in undergoing all the trials of life with selflessness and courage. In this case, there is a homicide and crime against nature and it must be doubly punished."
  },
  {
    "Id": "710",
    "Question": "On worlds where their physical makeup is purer, do the living beings have need of nourishment?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but their food is in keeping with their nature. Such food would not be substantial enough for your dense digestive systems; likewise, they would not be able to digest yours."
  },
  {
    "Id": "711",
    "Question": "Is the use of the fruits of the earth a right of all humans?",
    "Answer": "That right is a consequence of the need to stay alive. God would not impose a duty without granting the means to fulfill it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "712",
    "Question": "Toward what end has God made the enjoyment of material things attractive?",
    "Answer": "To drive humans to fulfill their missions and also to test them with temptation. To develop their reason so that they may learn to keep themselves from excesses."
  },
  {
    "Id": "712a",
    "Question": "What is the purpose of such temptation?",
    "Answer": "To develop their reason so that they may learn to keep themselves from excesses."
  },
  {
    "Id": "713",
    "Question": "Do enjoyments have bounds traced out by nature?",
    "Answer": "Yes, to show you the limit of what is necessary. But through your excesses you bring on satiety, and thus you punish yourselves."
  },
  {
    "Id": "714",
    "Question": "What should be thought of those who seek to satisfy their tastes through all kinds of excesses?",
    "Answer": "They are unfortunate creatures whom we should pity and not envy because they are very close to death. Both."
  },
  {
    "Id": "714a",
    "Question": "Is it physical or moral death that they are close to?",
    "Answer": "Both."
  },
  {
    "Id": "715",
    "Question": "How can people know the limit of what is necessary?",
    "Answer": "Those who are sensible know it by intuition, but many recognize it at the cost of their own experience."
  },
  {
    "Id": "716",
    "Question": "Hasn’t nature traced out the limit of what is necessary in our own physical organization?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but people are insatiable. Nature has traced out the limits of their needs in their physical organization, but their vices alter their constitution and create artificial needs."
  },
  {
    "Id": "717",
    "Question": "What should be thought of those who monopolize the fruits of the earth to procure for themselves what is superfluous at the expense of others who lack what is necessary?",
    "Answer": "They do not understand God’s law and will have to answer for the privations they have caused."
  },
  {
    "Id": "718",
    "Question": "Does the law of self-preservation oblige us to provide for our own physical needs?",
    "Answer": "Yes, because without energy and health, labor is impossible."
  },
  {
    "Id": "719",
    "Question": "Are we culpable if we seek our own well-being?",
    "Answer": "Well-being is a natural desire. God only prohibits abuse because it is contrary to self-preservation. God does not consider it a crime for you to seek your own well-being if it is not gained at another’s expense and if it does not weaken either your moral or physical strength."
  },
  {
    "Id": "719a",
    "Question": "being?",
    "Answer": "Well-being is a natural desire. God only prohibits abuse because it is contrary to self-preservation. God does not consider it a crime for you to seek your own well-being if it is not gained at another’s expense and if it does not weaken either your moral or physical strength."
  },
  {
    "Id": "720",
    "Question": "Do voluntary privations that have an equally voluntary expiation as their purpose have any merit in God’s sight?",
    "Answer": "Do good to others and you will have greater merit. Yes, the privation of meaningless pleasures, because it frees you from matter and elevates your soul. Merit means resisting the temptation that drives you to excess and the taste for useless things, and it means taking from your own necessities in order to give to those in need. If privation is nothing more than pretense, it is only a mockery."
  },
  {
    "Id": "720a",
    "Question": "Are there any meritorious voluntary privations?",
    "Answer": "Yes, the privation of meaningless pleasures, because it frees you from matter and elevates your soul. Merit means resisting the temptation that drives you to excess and the taste for useless things, and it means taking from your own necessities in order to give to those in need. If privation is nothing more than pretense, it is only a mockery."
  },
  {
    "Id": "721",
    "Question": "A life of mortifications through asceticism has been practiced since ancient times and among different cultures. Is it meritorious from any point of view?",
    "Answer": "Ask for whom it is useful and you will have your answer. If it only serves the one who practices it and if it hinders him or her from doing good to others, it is selfish, whatever may be the pretext under which it is disguised. Submitting oneself to privation by working for others is true mortification and is in accord with Christian charity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "722",
    "Question": "Is the abstention from certain foods prescribed among various cultures based on reason?",
    "Answer": "Everything that humans can eat without harming their health is permitted. Lawmakers, however, have prohibited certain foods with a useful end in mind, and in order to give greater weight to their laws, they have represented them as having come from God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "723",
    "Question": "Is humankind’s use of animals as food contrary to the law of nature?",
    "Answer": "With your present physical constitution, flesh nourishes flesh; otherwise, humans would perish. The law of self ­preservation imposes on you the duty to preserve your energies and health so that you may fulfill the law of labor. You should therefore eat according to the requirements of your own physical organization."
  },
  {
    "Id": "724",
    "Question": "Is the abstention from foods – animal or otherwise – meritorious as an expiation?",
    "Answer": "Yes, if you deprive yourselves for the sake of others; but God cannot see mortification when there is no serious and useful privation. This is why we say that those who only seem to deprive themselves are hypocrites."
  },
  {
    "Id": "724a",
    "Question": "meritorious as an expiation?",
    "Answer": "Yes, if you deprive yourselves for the sake of others; but God cannot see mortification when there is no serious and useful privation. This is why we say that those who only seem to deprive themselves are hypocrites."
  },
  {
    "Id": "725",
    "Question": "What are we to think of the mutilations practiced on the body of humans or animals?",
    "Answer": "What is the point of such a question? Always ask whether a thing is useful. What is useless cannot be pleasing to The Law of Preservation God and what is harmful is always displeasing. You can be very sure that God is sensitive only to sentiments that raise the soul toward God. It is by practicing the divine laws instead of violating them that you can shake off the burden of your terrestrial matter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "726",
    "Question": "If the sufferings of this world enable us to evolve – depending on the manner in which we bear them – may we also evolve through sufferings that we create intentionally?",
    "Answer": "Natural sufferings are the only ones that enable you to evolve because they come from God. Intentional sufferings serve no purpose when they have no value for the good of others. Do you believe that those who shorten their lives through superhuman hardships – the bonzes, fakirs, and a few fanatics of various sects – progress on their path? Why don’t they labor for the good of their neighbors instead? Let them visit the indigent, comfort those who mourn, work for those who are infirm, and endure privations to help the unfortunate; then their life will be useful and pleasing to God. When you only have yourselves in mind in the intentional hardships to which you subject yourselves, it is selfishness; when you suffer for others, it is the practice of charity. Such are the precepts of Christ."
  },
  {
    "Id": "727",
    "Question": "Since we should not create intentional sufferings for ourselves that are of no use to others, should we nevertheless protect ourselves from those that we foresee or from those that threaten us?",
    "Answer": "The self-preservation instinct has been given to all beings against dangers and sufferings. Whip your spirit and not your body; mortify your pride and stifle your selfishness – that serpent devouring your heart – and you will do more for your progress than through self-inflictions that no longer have a place in this day and age."
  },
  {
    "Id": "728",
    "Question": "Is destruction a law of nature?",
    "Answer": "It is necessary for everything to be destroyed in order to be reborn and regenerated. What you call destruction is no more than transformation that is aimed at renewing and improving living beings. God’s creatures are the instruments that God uses for attaining the divine ends. In order to feed themselves, living beings destroy each other with the dual purpose of maintaining the balance of reproduction – which might otherwise become excessive – and utilizing the remains of their external envelopes. But it is only the envelope that is destroyed; the envelope is only an accessory and not an essential part of the thinking being. The essential part is the indestructible intelligent principle, which is developed through the various metamorphoses that it undergoes."
  },
  {
    "Id": "729",
    "Question": "If destruction is necessary for the regeneration of beings, why does nature surround them with the means of self­-preservation and conservation?",
    "Answer": "To prevent their destruction before the proper time. Any destruction that occurs too soon retards the development of the intelligent principle. That is why God has given to each being the need to stay alive and reproduce."
  },
  {
    "Id": "730",
    "Question": "Since death should lead us to a better life and deliver us from the ills of this world, and should therefore be desired instead of dreaded, why do humans have an instinctive horror of it and see it as a cause for apprehension?",
    "Answer": "We have already stated that humans should seek to prolong their life in order to accomplish their task. That is why God has given them the self-preservation instinct: it sustains them in all their trials. Without it they would frequently give in to discouragement. The secret voice that tells them to avoid death also tells them they may yet do something more for their progress. Whenever danger threatens them, it is a warning to them that they must take advantage of the time God has granted them. But ingrates usually give thanks to their lucky star instead of their Creator."
  },
  {
    "Id": "731",
    "Question": "Why has nature placed the agents of destruction side by side with the means of self-preservation?",
    "Answer": "The remedy beside the illness. We already have told you: in order to maintain balance and to serve as a counterweight."
  },
  {
    "Id": "731a",
    "Question": "preservation?",
    "Answer": "The remedy beside the illness. We already have told you: in order to maintain balance and to serve as a counterweight."
  },
  {
    "Id": "732",
    "Question": "Is the need for destruction the same on all worlds?",
    "Answer": "It is in proportion to how material each particular world is; it disappears altogether in a purer physical and moral state. On worlds more evolved than yours, the conditions of existence are altogether different."
  },
  {
    "Id": "733",
    "Question": "Will the need for destruction always exist for humankind on the earth?",
    "Answer": "The need for destruction diminishes among humans to the degree that their spirit overcomes matter. That is why you may observe that the horror of destruction follows upon intellectual and moral development."
  },
  {
    "Id": "734",
    "Question": "In their present state, do humans have an unlimited right of destruction in regard to animals?",
    "Answer": "That right is limited to the need of providing for their food and safety. Abuse has never been a right."
  },
  {
    "Id": "735",
    "Question": "What about destruction that exceeds the limits of need and safety: hunting, for instance, when it has no other objective than the pleasure of destroying needlessly?",
    "Answer": "It is a predominance of the animal nature over the spiritual nature. All destruction that exceeds the limits of need is a violation of God’s law. Animals only destroy to satisfy their needs, but humans, who have free will, destroy without need. They will be called to account for abusing the freedom granted to them because in such cases they yield to evil instincts."
  },
  {
    "Id": "736",
    "Question": "Do those cultures that carry their scrupulousness to excess regarding the destruction of animals have any special merit?",
    "Answer": "Such excess is a sentiment that in itself is praiseworthy, but it becomes abusive and its merit is neutralized by other kinds of abuse. They act more out of superstitious fear than true humaneness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "737",
    "Question": "For what purpose does God inflict humankind with destructive calamities?",
    "Answer": "To impel them to progress more quickly. Haven’t we stated that destruction is necessary for the moral regeneration of spirits, who accomplish a new degree of perfection during each new existence? You must see the end in order to appreciate the results. You only judge such things from your own personal point of view, and you regard such afflictions as calamities because of the injury they cause you. However, these hardships are often necessary in order to make things arrive at a better order more quickly, and to accomplish in a few years what would otherwise require many centuries."
  },
  {
    "Id": "738",
    "Question": "Couldn’t God employ other methods instead of destructive calamities for improving humankind?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and they are employed every day. Through the knowledge of good and evil, God has given to each of you the means of progressing. However, humans do not take advantage of them; thus, it is necessary to afflict them in their pride and make them feel their own weakness. Throughout life humans relate everything to their body, but after death they think differently. As we have already stated, the life of the body is almost nothing – a century in your world is but a flash in eternity. The sufferings that last a few of your months or days are nothing, and are only a lesson that will serve you in the future. Spirits, who have preexisted and The Law of Destruction have survived everything else, comprise the real world (see no. 85). They are the children of God and the objects of the divine kindness. Bodies are no more than disguises behind which they make their appearance in the world. In the great calamities that decimate humankind, moral persons who succumb are like an army, which, during war, sees that its uniforms have become tattered, worn out or lost. The general is more concerned for his soldiers than their uniforms. If we considered life as it is in itself, and how insignificant it is in comparison with the infinite, the less importance we would attach to it. In another life, those victims will find ample compensation for their sufferings if they endured them without complaining."
  },
  {
    "Id": "739",
    "Question": "Are destructive calamities useful from a physical point of view, notwithstanding the hardships they cause?",
    "Answer": "Yes, they sometimes modify the conditions of a region, but the good that results from them is usually only felt by future generations."
  },
  {
    "Id": "740",
    "Question": "Couldn’t calamities also be moral trials for humankind by exposing humans to the most afflictive needs?",
    "Answer": "Calamities are trials that furnish humans with an opportunity to exert their intelligence and to demonstrate their patience and resignation before the will of God. At the same time, calamities enable them to develop the sentiments of self-­denial, self-detachment and love for their neighbor – if they are not dominated by selfishness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "741",
    "Question": "May we avert the calamities that afflict us?",
    "Answer": "Yes, in part, but not as is generally supposed. Many calamities are the consequences of your own improvidence. As you acquire knowledge and experience you become able to avert them, that is, to prevent them if you know how to study their causes. Among the ills that afflict humankind, however, there are those of a general nature that belong to the designs of Providence, and from which all individuals receive, in a greater or lesser proportion, the share for which they are responsible. They can do nothing about these except resign themselves to God’s will. But even these ills are usually aggravated by human carelessness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "742",
    "Question": "What is the cause that leads humankind to war? The Law of Destruction",
    "Answer": "The predominance of the animal nature over the spiritual, and the satisfaction of their passions. In the state of barbarity, nations only know the right of the strongest, and that is why war is a normal state for them. As humans evolve, war will become less frequent since they will avoid its causes, and when it does become necessary, they will know how to make it more humane."
  },
  {
    "Id": "743",
    "Question": "Will war someday disappear from the earth?",
    "Answer": "Yes, when men and women understand justice and practice God’s law. Then all nations will live as brothers and sisters."
  },
  {
    "Id": "744",
    "Question": "What has been the goal of Providence in making war necessary?",
    "Answer": "Freedom and progress. Temporary subjugation enables cultures to evolve more quickly."
  },
  {
    "Id": "745",
    "Question": "What is to be thought about those who stir up war for their own gain?",
    "Answer": "They are truly guilty and will require many lives to expiate all the murders they have caused, for they will have to answer for every individual whose death they caused to satisfy their own ambition."
  },
  {
    "Id": "746",
    "Question": "Is murder a crime in God’s sight?",
    "Answer": "Yes, a great crime because those who take the life of another fellow being thereby cut short a life of expiation or mission – hence the evil."
  },
  {
    "Id": "747",
    "Question": "Is there always the same degree of culpability in murder?",
    "Answer": "We have already said: God is just; God judges the intent rather than the deed."
  },
  {
    "Id": "748",
    "Question": "Does God excuse murder in cases of legitimate defense?",
    "Answer": "Only necessity can excuse it; but if we can save our life without having to take the life of the aggressor, we must do so."
  },
  {
    "Id": "749",
    "Question": "Are persons culpable for the murders they commit in war?",
    "Answer": "Not if they are coerced through force; nonetheless, they are responsible for the cruelties they commit. Likewise, their display of humaneness will also be taken into account."
  },
  {
    "Id": "750",
    "Question": "Which is more culpable in God’s sight: parricide or infanticide?",
    "Answer": "They are both equally culpable, for all crime is crime."
  },
  {
    "Id": "751",
    "Question": "Why is infanticide a custom condoned by legislation among certain cultures that are already evolved from an intellectual perspective?",
    "Answer": "Intellectual development does not necessarily imply moral development. Spirits of superior intelligence may be evil. They are the ones who have lived many lives without improving themselves."
  },
  {
    "Id": "752",
    "Question": "May we link the sentiment of cruelty to the instinct of destruction? The Law of Destruction",
    "Answer": "It is the destruction instinct in its worst form because, even though destruction is sometimes necessary, cruelty never is. It is always the result of an evil nature."
  },
  {
    "Id": "753",
    "Question": "Why is cruelty the dominant characteristic of primitive peoples?",
    "Answer": "Among primitive peoples – as you call them – matter dominates spirit. They abandon themselves to their animal instincts, and since they do not have any other needs beyond those of the body, they care only about their own self­-preservation. This is what usually makes them cruel. Moreover, peoples of imperfect development are under the dominion of equally imperfect spirits. These imperfect spirits remain sympathetic to them until more highly advanced peoples come to destroy or weaken their influence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "754",
    "Question": "Doesn’t cruelty result from an absence of moral sense?",
    "Answer": "You may say that the moral sense is not developed, but do not say that it is absent, since it exists in principle in all human beings. This moral sense is what later transforms them into good and humane beings. It exists in the primitive like the onset of the aroma in the bud of the flower that has not yet opened."
  },
  {
    "Id": "755",
    "Question": "Why is it that in the most advanced civilizations there are individuals who are at times as cruel as barbarians?",
    "Answer": "For the same reason that on a tree loaded with good fruit there is always some that is rotten. Such individuals have, if you wish, only the appearance of civility, like wolves in sheep’s clothing. Low order, very backward spirits, may incarnate among advanced people in the hope of their own progress. However, if the trial is too difficult, their barbaric nature prevails."
  },
  {
    "Id": "756",
    "Question": "Will the society of moral individuals someday be purged of evildoers?",
    "Answer": "Humankind is evolving. Those who are dominated by the instinct of evil and who are out of place among moral people will disappear little by little – like bad grain being separated from the good when threshed – but they will be born again in other envelopes. Then, with more experience, they will comprehend good and evil better. You have an example in the plants and animals that you have learned how to perfect by developing new qualities in them. Very well, it is only after many generations that perfection becomes complete. This is a picture of the different existences of human beings."
  },
  {
    "Id": "757",
    "Question": "Can dueling be considered a case of lawful self-defense?",
    "Answer": "No, it is murder and an absurd custom worthy of barbarians. In a more advanced and moral civilization, people will understand that dueling is as foolish as the combats of antiquity that were regarded as ‘the judgment of God’."
  },
  {
    "Id": "757a",
    "Question": "defense?",
    "Answer": "No, it is murder and an absurd custom worthy of barbarians. In a more advanced and moral civilization, people will understand that dueling is as foolish as the combats of antiquity that were regarded as ‘the judgment of God’."
  },
  {
    "Id": "758",
    "Question": "Can dueling be considered as murder on the part of him who, knowing his own weakness, is almost certain to be killed? The male gender language was maintained in this section, which deals with this obsolete 19th century male-oriented custom. Actually, we continue to practice a more subtle form of dueling nowadays in our daily lives by using words and other antagonistic attitudes that are just as destructive – Tr. The Law of Destruction",
    "Answer": "It is suicide. It is both."
  },
  {
    "Id": "758a",
    "Question": "And when the odds are equal, is it murder or suicide?",
    "Answer": "It is both."
  },
  {
    "Id": "759",
    "Question": "In dueling, what is the value of what is called",
    "Answer": "the point of honor That of pride and vanity – two sores of humankind. It depends on customs and usages. Each country and each epoch has a different way of regarding such matters. Nevertheless, when human beings are better and more advanced morally, they will understand that the true point of honor is above earthly passions, and that it is neither by killing nor by getting themselves killed that a wrong is redeemed."
  },
  {
    "Id": "760",
    "Question": "Will the death penalty someday disappear from human legislation?",
    "Answer": "The death penalty will assuredly disappear and its suppression will signal progress for humankind. When humans become more enlightened, the death penalty will be completely abolished on the earth. They will no longer need to be judged by others. I speak of a time which is still very distant for you."
  },
  {
    "Id": "761",
    "Question": "The law of self-preservation gives us the right to defend our own life. Doesn’t this right apply when we eliminate a dangerous member from society?",
    "Answer": "There are other means of saving yourselves from danger without killing. Moreover, it is necessary to open the door of repentance to the criminal rather than to close it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "762",
    "Question": "Although the death penalty may be banned from civilized societies, wasn’t it necessary in less-advanced times?",
    "Answer": "Necessary is not the right word. People always think a thing is necessary when they cannot find anything better. But as they become enlightened, they better understand what is just or unjust, and they repudiate the excesses committed in times of ignorance in the name of justice."
  },
  {
    "Id": "762a",
    "Question": "advanced times?",
    "Answer": "Necessary is not the right word. People always think a thing is necessary when they cannot find anything better. But as they become enlightened, they better understand what is just or unjust, and they repudiate the excesses committed in times of ignorance in the name of justice."
  },
  {
    "Id": "763",
    "Question": "Is the restriction on cases in which the death penalty is applied an indication of the progress of civilization?",
    "Answer": "How can you doubt that? Doesn’t your spirit revolt when you read the reports of the human slaughters that were formerly perpetrated in the name of justice and frequently The Law of Destruction in honor of the Divinity; of the tortures to which the condemned and even the accused were submitted in order to wrest from them, through excess pain, a confession for a crime that they very often had not even committed? Well then, if you had lived in those times, you would have thought that it was all quite natural, and perhaps as a judge you would have done even more. It is thus that what seems just in one era seems barbaric in another. Only the divine laws are eternal. Human laws change with progress, and they will change further until they have been placed in harmony with the divine laws."
  },
  {
    "Id": "764",
    "Question": "Jesus said,",
    "Answer": "Whoever kills by the sword shall perish by the sword. Be careful! You are as mistaken about these words as you are about many others. The penalty of talion is the justice of God; it is God himself who applies it. You all suffer this penalty at every moment because you are punished wherein you have sinned either in this life or in another. Those who have caused their fellow humans to suffer will be in a situation in which they themselves will suffer in like manner. This is the meaning of Jesus’ words. Didn’t he also say to you ‘Forgive your enemies?’ And didn’t he teach you to ask God to forgive your offenses as you yourself forgive, that is, in the same proportion in which you yourself have forgiven? Understand this well."
  },
  {
    "Id": "765",
    "Question": "What about the death penalty imposed in the name of God?",
    "Answer": "It is equivalent to taking God’s place in the practice of justice. Those who act thus reveal how far they are from actually understanding anything about God, and how much they still have to expiate. The death penalty is a crime where it is applied in the name of God, and those who do so will be responsible for such murders."
  },
  {
    "Id": "766",
    "Question": "Is societal life natural?",
    "Answer": "Certainly. God has made humans for living in society; otherwise, it would have been needless for God to have endowed them with speech and all the other faculties necessary for a life of relationships."
  },
  {
    "Id": "767",
    "Question": "Is absolute isolation contrary to the law of nature?",
    "Answer": "Yes, because people instinctively seek societal living and because all of them must cooperate in humankind’s progress by mutually helping one another."
  },
  {
    "Id": "768",
    "Question": "In seeking societal living, do people only obey a personal sentiment, or is there a wider, providential purpose involved?",
    "Answer": "Humans must progress; they cannot do so alone, however, since they do not all possess every faculty – they need contact with others. In isolation, they become brutish and withered."
  },
  {
    "Id": "769",
    "Question": "We can understand that as a general principle societal life is founded on the laws of nature. But since all tastes are also natural, why would a taste for absolute isolation be condemnable if someone finds satisfaction in it?",
    "Answer": "Selfish satisfaction. There are also those who find satisfaction in drunkenness. Do you approve of that? God cannot consider as pleasing a life in which persons condemn themselves to being useless to everyone."
  },
  {
    "Id": "770",
    "Question": "What is to be thought of those who live in absolute seclusion in order to escape the pernicious contact of the world?",
    "Answer": "Doubly selfish. Doing mostly good rather than evil is the best expiation. Through such seclusion they avoid one evil only to fall into another since they neglect the law of love and charity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "771",
    "Question": "What should we think of those who renounce the world in order to devote themselves to the relief of the unfortunate?",
    "Answer": "They evolve by putting others’ needs before their own. They have the double merit of placing themselves above material pleasures and of doing good by fulfilling the law of labor. That is not the absolute withdrawal of the selfish indi­ vidual. They do not isolate themselves from society, because they labor for it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "772",
    "Question": "What is to be thought of the vow of silence that has been prescribed by certain sects since remotest antiquity?",
    "Answer": "You might as well ask whether speech is natural and why God has given it. God condemns the abuse rather than the use of divinely-granted faculties. Nevertheless, silence is useful at times because in silence you can compose yourself; your spirit becomes freer and can enter into communication with us. However, a vow of silence is foolishness. Undoubtedly, those who regard such privations as acts of virtue have good intentions, but they are mistaken by not sufficiently understanding the true laws of God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "773",
    "Question": "Why is it that among the animals, parents and offspring no longer recognize each other when the latter no longer need care?",
    "Answer": "Animals live a material life, not a moral life. A mother’s tenderness for her young has as its principle the instinct of preservation regarding the beings born to her. When these beings are able to take care of themselves, her task is fulfilled and nature requires no more of her. Thus, she abandons them in order to occupy herself with more newborns."
  },
  {
    "Id": "774",
    "Question": "There are persons who infer from animals’ abandonment of their offspring that the family ties among humans are merely a result of social customs and not a law of nature. What should we make of this?",
    "Answer": "Human beings have a different destiny than that of the animals, so why do you always want to identify with them? For humans, there is something beyond physical needs; there is the need to progress. Social ties are necessary for progress and family ties are summed up in social ties; hence, family ties are a law of nature. God has thus willed that humans learn to love one another as brothers and sisters."
  },
  {
    "Id": "775",
    "Question": "What would be the result for society if family ties were relaxed?",
    "Answer": "A magnification of selfishness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "776",
    "Question": "Are the state of nature and natural law the same thing?",
    "Answer": "No, the state of nature is the primitive state. Civilization is incompatible with the state of nature, whereas natural law contributes to the progress of humankind."
  },
  {
    "Id": "777",
    "Question": "Since there are fewer needs in the state of nature, human beings do not suffer all the tribulations they create for themselves in a more advanced state. What is to be thought of the opinion of those who regard the state of nature as the state of perfect earthly happiness?",
    "Answer": "What do you expect? That sort of happiness is the ignorant happiness of the brute; there are humans who understand no other. It is being happy in the same sort of way as are the animals. Children, too, are happier than when they become adults."
  },
  {
    "Id": "778",
    "Question": "Could humankind regress back to the state of nature?",
    "Answer": "No, humankind must progress without ceasing and it cannot return to the state of infancy. It progresses because God has willed it. Believing that it could regress back to its primitive condition would be denying the law of progress."
  },
  {
    "Id": "779",
    "Question": "Do humans draw from within themselves the power to progress, or is progress nothing more than the result of education?",
    "Answer": "They advance naturally by themselves. Not all progress at the same time or in the same manner, however, and it is through social contact that the most advanced help the others to progress."
  },
  {
    "Id": "780",
    "Question": "Does moral progress always follow intellectual progress?",
    "Answer": "It is its consequence, but it does not always follow it immediately. By making good and evil understandable, for then humans can choose between the two. The development of free will follows the development of intelligence and increases the responsibility of humans for their acts. Complete progress is the goal, but like individuals, cultures only reach it step by step. Until they have developed the moral sense, they may use their intelligence to do evil. Morality and intelligence are two forces that only achieve balance over time."
  },
  {
    "Id": "780a",
    "Question": "How can intellectual progress lead to moral progress?",
    "Answer": "By making good and evil understandable, for then humans can choose between the two. The development of free will follows the development of intelligence and increases the responsibility of humans for their acts."
  },
  {
    "Id": "781",
    "Question": "Is humankind ever permitted to halt the march of progress?",
    "Answer": "No, but it can sometimes slow it down. They are poor conceited beings whom God will chastise, and they will be swept away by the torrent they meant to stop."
  },
  {
    "Id": "782",
    "Question": "Aren’t there those who obstruct progress out of good faith, believing they are helping it because from their own point of view they often see progress where it does not in fact exist?",
    "Answer": "They are like a tiny pebble under the wheel of a large cart; a tiny pebble cannot keep a large cart from moving."
  },
  {
    "Id": "783",
    "Question": "Does the perfecting of humankind always follow a slow progressive march?",
    "Answer": "There is the regular slow progress that results from the force of things. However, when a culture does not advance quickly enough, then from time to time, God causes a physical or moral jolt that transforms it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "784",
    "Question": "Humankind’s perversity is very great. Doesn’t it seem like humans are regressing instead of progressing, at least from a moral point of view?",
    "Answer": "You are mistaken. Observe the whole closely and you will see that they are advancing because they have a better understanding of what evil is, leading them day by day to reform their abuses. The excess of evil will make them understand the need for the good and for reforms."
  },
  {
    "Id": "785",
    "Question": "What is the greatest obstacle to progress?",
    "Answer": "Pride and selfishness. I am referring to moral progress, since intellectual progress is always occurring. Progress itself seems at first glance to double the intensity of these two vices by developing ambition and the love of wealth, but this in turn incites persons to pursue research that enlightens their spirits. It is thus that everything is related in the moral world as well as in the physical, and that good is brought out of evil itself. But this state of things will only last for a while. It will change as people better The Law of Progress understand that beyond the enjoyment of earthly wealth there is an infinitely greater and long-lasting bliss."
  },
  {
    "Id": "786",
    "Question": "History has shown us many cultures that relapsed into barbarity after shocking events deeply upset them. Where is the progress in such a case?",
    "Answer": "When your house threatens to collapse, you demolish it in order to build a stronger and more comfortable one. Until it is rebuilt, however, there is trouble and confusion in your dwelling. “A further example: you are poor and live in a hovel, but you become wealthy and leave it to live in a palace. Then, some poor fellow (as you formerly were) comes and takes your place in the hovel and feels very content because he previously had no shelter at all. Very well! Learn from this that the spirits incarnated in those declining cultures are no longer the spirits who had comprised them during their time of splendor. Because they have progressed, those former spirits have moved into even more perfect dwellings, while less advanced ones have taken their place, which they too will leave behind in their turn."
  },
  {
    "Id": "787",
    "Question": "Aren’t there peoples that by their very nature rebel against progress?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but they are corporeally disappearing day by day. Like all other souls, they will finally arrive at perfection by passing through many, many existences. God deserts no one. You yourselves were such more than once before becoming what you are now."
  },
  {
    "Id": "788",
    "Question": "Like individuals, cultures are collective individualities that pass through childhood, adulthood and decrepitude. Since this truth is attested to by history, doesn’t it lead us to assume that the most advanced cultures of this century will decline and end just as those of antiquity?",
    "Answer": "Those cultures that only live a material existence, and whose greatness is founded only upon power and territorial expansion, are born, grow and die out because the might of a culture exhausts itself just like that of an individual. Cultures with selfish laws that clash with the progress of enlightenment and charity die out because light annihilates The Law of Progress darkness and charity eradicates selfishness. However, for cultures, as for individuals, there is the life of the soul, and cultures with laws that are in harmony with the eternal laws of the Creator will live and will be guiding lights for other cultures."
  },
  {
    "Id": "789",
    "Question": "Will progress someday unite all of earth’s peoples into a single nation?",
    "Answer": "Not into a single nation. That would be impossible because nationalities are formed based on different customs and needs arising from the diversity in climates, and their local laws are designed to accommodate such customs and needs. Charity, on the other hand, knows nothing of geographical latitudes and does not differentiate people by their color. When the law of God comprises the basis of human law everywhere, both cultures and individuals will practice the law of charity toward each other, living joyfully and peacefully because no one will attempt to deceive their neighbor or live at his or her expense."
  },
  {
    "Id": "790",
    "Question": "Does civilization represent progress for humankind or does it represent decadence, as some philosophers profess?",
    "Answer": "Incomplete progress because humankind does not pass suddenly from infancy to maturity. Instead, condemn those who abuse it; don’t condemn the work of God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "790a",
    "Question": "Is it reasonable to condemn civilization?",
    "Answer": "Instead, condemn those who abuse it; don’t condemn the work of God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "791",
    "Question": "Will civilization be purified one day so that the evils it has produced will disappear?",
    "Answer": "Yes, when morality is as developed as intelligence. The fruit cannot come before the blossom."
  },
  {
    "Id": "792",
    "Question": "Why doesn’t civilization immediately effectuate all the good it could produce?",
    "Answer": "Because humans are not yet ready or disposed to obtain that good. Yes, and because all of a spirit’s faculties do not evolve in tandem – everything takes time. You cannot expect perfect fruit from an imperfect civilization."
  },
  {
    "Id": "793",
    "Question": "By what signs may one recognize a completed civilization?",
    "Answer": "You will recognize it by its moral development. You believe yourselves to be very advanced because you have made great discoveries and wonderful inventions, and because you are better situated and better clothed than primitives. However, you will only have the right to truly call yourselves civilized when you have finally banished the vices from your society that dishonor it, and when you finally live as brothers and sisters by practicing Christian charity. Until then, you are really no more than enlightened cultures that have passed through only the first phase of civilization."
  },
  {
    "Id": "794",
    "Question": "Could society be governed solely by natural laws, without having to resort to human laws?",
    "Answer": "It could if humans understood them well enough. If they were to actually practice them, such laws would be sufficient. Society, however, has its requirements and needs special laws."
  },
  {
    "Id": "795",
    "Question": "What causes the instability of human laws?",
    "Answer": "In times of barbarity, the strongest are the ones who make the laws and they frame them to their own advantage. It becomes necessary to modify them as humans comprehend justice more clearly. Human laws become more stable as they move toward true justice; that is to say, to the degree that they are made for all and as they are aligned with natural law."
  },
  {
    "Id": "796",
    "Question": "Aren’t harsh criminal laws a necessity in the present state of society?",
    "Answer": "A depraved society has a need for harsher laws. Unfortunately, such laws are meant to punish a wrong after it has already been committed, rather than to cut out the roots of what has caused the wrong. Only education can reform humankind, who will then have no more need of such harsh laws."
  },
  {
    "Id": "797",
    "Question": "How can humankind be led to reform its laws?",
    "Answer": "This will occur naturally through the force of circumstances and by the influence of moral persons who will guide them along the path of progress. Many things have already been reformed and many more will be. Wait awhile!"
  },
  {
    "Id": "798",
    "Question": "Will Spiritism become a common belief or will it only be accepted by a few?",
    "Answer": "It will certainly become a common belief and will mark a new era in the history of humankind, for it belongs to nature itself. In fact, the time has come in which it must take its place among the other branches of human knowledge. It will nevertheless have to withstand great struggles – more against personal interests than against conviction – because you must not ignore the fact that there are persons interested in fighting it, some out of self-centeredness, others from purely material motives. Its opponents, however, will become more and more isolated and will finally be forced to think like the others, lest they make themselves look foolish."
  },
  {
    "Id": "799",
    "Question": "In what way can Spiritism contribute to progress?",
    "Answer": "By destroying materialism – one of the sores of society – it enables people to comprehend where their true interests lie. Since the future life is no longer veiled by doubt, men and women will better understand that they can ensure their future based on the present. Destroying the prejudices of sect, caste and color, Spiritism teaches them about the great solidarity that must unite them as brothers and sisters."
  },
  {
    "Id": "800",
    "Question": "Shouldn’t we perhaps fear that Spiritism may not be able to defeat humans’ indifference and their attachment to material things?",
    "Answer": "To suppose that any cause could act as some kind of magic spell to transform humans would be to know very little about them. Individuals’ ideas are modified little by little and generations are needed to completely erase old habits. Transformation, therefore, can only be realized with time, gradually, step by step. With each new generation a part of the veil has been lifted, and Spiritism has now come to remove it once and for all. However, even if it had the effect of correcting the defects of only one person, it would be a step for that person and therefore a great good since that first step would make further ones easier."
  },
  {
    "Id": "801",
    "Question": "Why haven’t the Spirits taught from the earliest times what they are teaching today?",
    "Answer": "You do not teach to children the same things you teach to adults, just as you do not give newborns food they cannot digest. Each thing has its own time. The Spirits taught many things that humans distorted or did not understand, but which they are now capable of comprehending. Even though their teaching was incomplete, they prepared the soil to receive the seed which is now about to bear fruit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "802",
    "Question": "Since Spiritism must mark a step in the progress of humankind, why don’t the Spirits speed up this progress through manifestations that are so widespread and patent that they could lead the most incredulous to believe?",
    "Answer": "You desire miracles, but God has sown so-called miracles by the handful right under your feet; yet, you still have people who deny them. Did Christ himself convince his contemporaries by the wonders he performed? Even today, don’t you see those who deny the most obvious facts occurring under their very eyes? Aren’t there those who would not believe even if they did see them? No, it is not by miracles that God guides humankind. Out of divine goodness, God wishes to leave to it the merit of being convinced through reason."
  },
  {
    "Id": "803",
    "Question": "Are all people equal before God?",
    "Answer": "Yes, all tend toward the same goal; God has made the divine laws for everybody. You often say, ‘The sun shines the same on everyone’ and you thereby state a greater and more general truth than you might think."
  },
  {
    "Id": "804",
    "Question": "Why hasn’t God endowed everyone with the same aptitudes?",
    "Answer": "God has created all spirits equal, but each one of them has lived over a longer or shorter amount of time and has consequently developed more or fewer aptitudes. The difference lies in the degree of experience and volition – their free will – by which some advance more rapidly, endowing them a wide range of aptitudes. A medley of aptitudes is necessary so that all may contribute to the designs of Providence within the limits of the development of their physical and intellectual powers. What one cannot do, another does, and so all end up having their useful function. Furthermore, since all worlds are united in solidarity, it is necessary for the inhabitants of more highly evolved worlds – most of which were created well before yours – to come and live here in order to set an example for you."
  },
  {
    "Id": "805",
    "Question": "In passing from a more evolved world to a lesser one, does the spirit keep all its acquired faculties intact?",
    "Answer": "Yes, we have already told you that the spirit who has progressed cannot regress. In its spirit state it may choose a coarser envelope or a more precarious position than the previous one, but always to serve it as a lesson and to help it progress."
  },
  {
    "Id": "806",
    "Question": "Is the inequality of social conditions a law of nature?",
    "Answer": "No, it is the work of humankind, not of God. Only God’s laws are eternal. Don’t you see inequalities disappearing little by little every day? They are destined to disappear together with the predominance of pride and selfishness, leaving only the different levels of merit. A day will come when the members of the great family of God’s children will no longer regard themselves as being of purer or less pure blood, because only the spirit is purer or less pure, and such does not depend on social position."
  },
  {
    "Id": "806a",
    "Question": "Will this inequality disappear someday?",
    "Answer": "Only God’s laws are eternal. Don’t you see inequalities disappearing little by little every day? They are destined to disappear together with the predominance of pride and selfishness, leaving only the different levels of merit. A day will come when the members of the great family of God’s children will no longer regard themselves as being of purer or less pure blood, because only the spirit is purer or less pure, and such does not depend on social position."
  },
  {
    "Id": "807",
    "Question": "What about those who abuse the superiority of their social position by oppressing the weak for their own gain?",
    "Answer": "They are to be lamented, those wretched beings! They will be oppressed in their turn and they will be reborn into an existence in which they will suffer everything they caused others to suffer."
  },
  {
    "Id": "808",
    "Question": "Doesn’t the inequality of wealth originate in the inequality of faculties, which give to some persons more means of acquiring things than other persons?",
    "Answer": "Yes and no. What would you say about fraud and robbery? What do you know about it? Go back to its origin to find out if it is pure. Do you know whether or not if at its source it was the fruit of spoliation or injustice? But apart from the issue of its possible evil origin, do you believe that the longing for wealth – even when honestly acquired – and the secret longing conceived to possess it as soon as possible are laudable sentiments? That is what God judges, and I can assure you that the divine judgment is more severe than that of humans."
  },
  {
    "Id": "808a",
    "Question": "So, would inherited wealth be the fruit of evil passions?",
    "Answer": "What do you know about it? Go back to its origin to find out if it is pure. Do you know whether or not if at its source it was the fruit of spoliation or injustice? But apart from the issue of its possible evil origin, do you believe that the longing for wealth – even when honestly acquired – and the secret longing conceived to possess it as soon as possible are laudable sentiments? That is what God judges, and I can assure you that the divine judgment is more severe than that of humans."
  },
  {
    "Id": "809",
    "Question": "If a fortune has been wrongly acquired to start with, are the heirs later responsible for this?",
    "Answer": "Of course, they are not responsible for the wrong that others committed, especially if they are ignorant of it. But you should know that a fortune is often destined for certain individuals in order to provide them the opportunity to repair an injustice. Happy for them if they comprehend this! If they repair the injustice in the name of the one who committed it in the first place, the reparation will be taken into account for everyone concerned, because it is almost always the original wrong-doer who, from the spirit world, inspires them to do it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "810",
    "Question": "We may dispose of our assets more equitably or less equitably without breaking the law. Thus, are we responsible for our testamentary dispositions after death?",
    "Answer": "Every action bears its own fruit; the fruit of good deeds is sweet, whereas the fruit of other deeds is always bitter. Always bear this in mind."
  },
  {
    "Id": "811",
    "Question": "Is absolute equality of wealth possible and has it ever existed?",
    "Answer": "No, it is not possible. The diversity of faculties and characters opposes it. Either they are framers of theories, or they are ambitious and envious. They do not understand that equality would be quickly broken by the very force of things. Fight selfishness, for that is your social plague. Do not run after chimeras."
  },
  {
    "Id": "812",
    "Question": "If equality of wealth is not possible, does the same apply to well-being?",
    "Answer": "No, but well-being is relative and everyone could enjoy it if humans understood each other better, for true wellbeing consists in employing one’s time according to one’s liking, and not in working at something one does not enjoy. Since everyone has different aptitudes, no useful work would therefore be left undone. Equilibrium exists in everything; humans are the ones who upset it. Humans will understand one another when they practice the law of justice."
  },
  {
    "Id": "812a",
    "Question": "being?",
    "Answer": "No, but well-being is relative and everyone could enjoy it if humans understood each other better, for true wellbeing consists in employing one’s time according to one’s liking, and not in working at something one does not enjoy. Since everyone has different aptitudes, no useful work would therefore be left undone. Equilibrium exists in everything; humans are the ones who upset it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "812b",
    "Question": "Is it possible for everyone to understand one another?",
    "Answer": "Humans will understand one another when they practice the law of justice."
  },
  {
    "Id": "813",
    "Question": "There are persons who fall into deprivation and poverty through their own fault. May society be held responsible for this?",
    "Answer": "Yes, we have already told you that society is always the primary cause of such wrongs. Isn’t it society’s responsibility to attend to the moral education of its members? It is frequently bad education that distorts these persons’ judgment, instead of stifling their harmful tendencies."
  },
  {
    "Id": "814",
    "Question": "Why has God bestowed wealth and power on some and poverty on others?",
    "Answer": "In order to test everyone differently. Moreover, as you know, such trials are chosen by the spirits themselves, and they often fail at them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "815",
    "Question": "Which of the two trials is more dangerous to humans: poverty or wealth?",
    "Answer": "They are equally so. Poverty provokes complaining against Providence, whereas wealth leads to all kinds of excesses."
  },
  {
    "Id": "816",
    "Question": "If the wealthy endure more temptations, don’t they also have the means at their disposal for doing more good?",
    "Answer": "That is precisely what they do not always do. They become selfish, proud and insatiable. Their wants increase with their fortune and they never think they have enough. Verily I say to you that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven."
  },
  {
    "Id": "817",
    "Question": "Are men and women equal before God and do they have the same rights?",
    "Answer": "Hasn’t God given them both the knowledge of good and evil and the faculties for progress?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "818",
    "Question": "Where does the moral inferiority of women in certain regions come from?",
    "Answer": "From the unjust and cruel dominion that men have exerted over them. It is a result of social institutions and the abuse of strength over weakness. Among men who have not advanced very much from the moral point of view, might makes right."
  },
  {
    "Id": "819",
    "Question": "For what purpose are women physically weaker than men?",
    "Answer": "To assign special functions to them. Men are meant for rough work by being stronger; women for lighter work. But both mutually help each other in the trials of a life full of bitterness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "820",
    "Question": "Doesn’t women’s physical weakness make them naturally dependent on men?",
    "Answer": "God has given strength to some in order to protect the weak, not to enslave them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "821",
    "Question": "Are the functions for which women are intended by nature as important as those conferred upon men?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and even greater – women give men the first notions of life."
  },
  {
    "Id": "822",
    "Question": "Since all people are equals before God’s law, shouldn’t they also be equals before human law?",
    "Answer": "This is the first principle of justice: ‘Do not do unto others what you do not want them to do unto you.’ Equality of rights, yes; of functions, no. All persons must have a specific place and their occupations should reflect their aptitude. In order to be just, human law must consecrate the equality of rights between men and women. Any special privilege granted to one and not the other is contrary to justice. The emancipation of women accompanies the progress of civilization; their servitude is in step with barbarity. Besides, sex exists only in the physical organization, and since spirits can become either, there are no differences between them in this respect. Consequently, they should enjoy the same rights."
  },
  {
    "Id": "823",
    "Question": "Where does the desire to perpetuate one’s memory on funeral monuments come from?",
    "Answer": "The last act of pride. It is the pride of the relatives who want honor for themselves. It is not always for the deceased that all these demonstrations are made, but for vanity, for consideration by the world, and for parading their wealth. Do you believe that the memory of loved ones is less lasting in the hearts of the poor just because they can only place one flower on their loved ones’ graves? Do you believe that marble can save from forgottenness those who had been useless while on earth?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "824",
    "Question": "Is funeral pomp completely reproachable?",
    "Answer": "No. When it honors the memory of a moral person it is just and sets a good example."
  },
  {
    "Id": "825",
    "Question": "Are there positions in the world in which persons can flatter themselves by believing they are enjoying absolute freedom?",
    "Answer": "No, because all of you, the least as well as the greatest, need one another."
  },
  {
    "Id": "826",
    "Question": "What would be a condition in which humans could enjoy absolute freedom?",
    "Answer": "That of a hermit in the desert. As soon as two individuals are brought together, there are rights to respect and they no longer have absolute freedom."
  },
  {
    "Id": "827",
    "Question": "Does the duty of respecting the rights of others deprive individuals of the rights pertaining to themselves?",
    "Answer": "Absolutely not, for they are rights that have been granted to them by nature."
  },
  {
    "Id": "828",
    "Question": "How can we reconcile the liberal opinions of certain men with their frequent despotism in their own homes and over their subordinates?",
    "Answer": "In these instances, although they have an intellectual understanding of natural law, it is offset by pride and selfishness. They know what they should do, but they do not do it in practice – they make their principles a wellcalculated farce. The more intelligence individuals have for understanding a principle, the less excusable they will be if they have not applied it to themselves. I tell you truthfully that simple but sincere persons are more advanced on God’s pathway than those who try to appear to be what they in fact are not."
  },
  {
    "Id": "829",
    "Question": "Are there human beings who are meant by nature to be the property of others?",
    "Answer": "Every instance of subjection of one human being to another is contrary to the law of God. Slavery is an abuse 58 The Spirits’ Book was published in 1857 while slavery was still legally practiced in many parts of the world, including the United States and Brazil. The U.S. State Department publishes an annual report entitled Trafficking in Persons that at present (2006) discloses the fact that 14 nations are not doing enough to stop international human trafficking. This report covers “severe forms of trafficking in persons a) sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained 18 years of age; or b) the recruitment, harboring, transporting, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery."
  },
  {
    "Id": "830",
    "Question": "When slavery belongs to the customs of a culture, are those who practice it reprehensible since they are doing nothing more than following a usage that seems natural to them?",
    "Answer": "Evil is always evil. All your sophistry will not render an evil action good. However, the responsibility for evil is relative to the means at your disposal to comprehend it. Those who use the law of slavery are always guilty of violating the law of nature; but in this, as in all things, the guilt is relative. Because slavery was a custom among certain cultures, people practiced it in good faith as something that seemed natural to them. But their reason, more developed and especially enlightened by the teachings of Christianity, eventually showed them that the slave was their equal before God. Then, they had no more excuse."
  },
  {
    "Id": "831",
    "Question": "Doesn’t the natural inequality of aptitudes place certain peoples under the subjection of the more intelligent ones?",
    "Answer": "Yes, in order to enable them to develop, but not to demean them still further by slavery. Human beings have long regarded certain races as domesticated beasts of burden equipped with arms and hands, and have thought that they had the right to sell them as such. They have considered themselves to be of purer blood. The folly of those who do not look beyond matter! It is not the blood that must be purer or less pure, but the spirit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "832",
    "Question": "There are those who treat their slaves humanely, who allow them to lack nothing, and who think that freedom would expose them to even greater deprivations. What do you say about them?",
    "Answer": "I say that they understand their own interests very well. They also show the same care for their cattle and horses in order to get more profit at market. They are not as culpable as those who mistreat their slaves, but they nonetheless use them as merchandise, depriving them of the right to belong to themselves."
  },
  {
    "Id": "833",
    "Question": "Is there something in human beings which escapes all constraint, and through which they enjoy absolute freedom?",
    "Answer": "It is through thought that they enjoy unlimited freedom, for thought knows no obstacles. Its manifestation may be hindered, but not erased."
  },
  {
    "Id": "834",
    "Question": "Are humans responsible for their thoughts?",
    "Answer": "They are responsible before God. God alone can know their thoughts and condemn or absolve them according to divine justice."
  },
  {
    "Id": "835",
    "Question": "Is freedom of conscience a consequence of freedom of thought?",
    "Answer": "Conscience is an inner thought that belongs to persons, as do all their other thoughts."
  },
  {
    "Id": "836",
    "Question": "Do humans have the right to set up barriers to freedom of conscience?",
    "Answer": "No more so than to freedom of thought, because God alone has the right to judge the conscience. If humans The Law of Freedom use their laws to regulate relations between individuals, God uses the laws of nature to regulate relations between individuals and God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "837",
    "Question": "What is the result of barriers to freedom of conscience?",
    "Answer": "It constrains individuals to act against their own way of thinking, turning them into hypocrites. Freedom of conscience is one of the characteristics of true civilization and progress."
  },
  {
    "Id": "838",
    "Question": "Is every belief respectable, even when notoriously wrongheaded?",
    "Answer": "Every belief is respectable when it is sincere and leads to the practice of the good. Reproachable beliefs are those that lead to evil."
  },
  {
    "Id": "839",
    "Question": "Are we blameworthy when we use our own beliefs to scandalize someone who does not think like us?",
    "Answer": "It shows a lack of charity and goes against freedom of thought."
  },
  {
    "Id": "840",
    "Question": "Does it go against freedom of conscience to obstruct beliefs that might disturb society?",
    "Answer": "Acts may be restrained but inner belief is inaccessible."
  },
  {
    "Id": "841",
    "Question": "Out of respect for freedom of conscience, should we allow the propagation of harmful doctrines, or may we without going against such freedom seek to lead back onto the path of truth those who have been led astray by erroneous principles?",
    "Answer": "Certainly you may, and you should. But to follow the example of Jesus, you must teach by gentleness and persuasion and not by force since that would be worse than the belief of the one whom you desired to convince. If there is something that ought to be imposed, it is goodness and fraternity; but we do not believe the means for doing so is violence: conviction cannot be forcefully imposed."
  },
  {
    "Id": "842",
    "Question": "Since all doctrines claim to be the sole expression of the truth, by what signs can we recognize which one actually has the right to be presented as such?",
    "Answer": "It will be the one that produces the fewest hypocrites and the greatest number of moral individuals, which means they practice the law of love and charity in its greatest purity and widest application. By this sign you will recognize which doctrine is good, because those doctrines that result in sowing disunion and establishing divisions among God’s children can be only erroneous and harmful."
  },
  {
    "Id": "843",
    "Question": "Do humans act with free will?",
    "Answer": "Since they have freedom of thought, they have freedom of action. Without free will, human beings would be machines."
  },
  {
    "Id": "844",
    "Question": "Do people enjoy free will from the moment of birth?",
    "Answer": "They have the freedom to act from the moment they have a will to act. During the first phases of life, freedom is almost non-existent. It develops and changes its objectives as the faculties develop. Since the thoughts of children are in proportion to the needs of their age, they apply their free will to things that are necessary for them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "845",
    "Question": "Aren’t the instinctive predispositions that individuals bring at birth an obstacle to the exercise of their free will? The Law of Freedom",
    "Answer": "Instinctive predispositions arise from those of the spirit before its incarnation. Depending on how much the spirit has evolved, these predispositions can incite the individual to reprehensible acts, in which he or she will be aided by spirits who sympathize with such dispositions. However, there is no irresistible incitement if the individual has the will to resist. Remember: ‘where there is a will, there is a way.’"
  },
  {
    "Id": "846",
    "Question": "Doesn’t our organism have an influence on our actions in life? If so, isn’t it at the expense of our free will?",
    "Answer": "The spirit is certainly influenced by matter, which may hinder its manifestations. That is why, on worlds where bodies are less material than on earth, the faculties develop with more freedom; however, the instrument does not give faculties to the spirit. Furthermore, in this case it is necessary to distinguish between moral faculties and intellectual faculties. If individuals have an instinct for murder, it is assuredly their own spirit that possesses it, and which transmits it to them – it never arises due to their bodily organs. Those who suppress their thought in order to occupy themselves with matter become like an animal, and even worse, since they no longer think about being on guard against evil. It is in this that they become culpable because they act in this manner of their own free will."
  },
  {
    "Id": "847",
    "Question": "Can a distortion of the faculties deprive humans of their free will?",
    "Answer": "Those whose intelligence is impaired by any cause are no longer in complete control of their thought, and thereafter they have no more freedom. Such distortion is frequently a punishment for the spirit, who might have been vain and proud and might have made bad use of its faculties in another existence. It may be reborn in the body of someone who is mentally impaired, as the despot in the body of a slave, and the spiteful wealthy person in that of a beggar. The spirit, however, is perfectly conscious of such constraint and suffers from it. It is in this constraint that one sees the action of matter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "848",
    "Question": "Does the distortion of the intellectual faculties because of drunkenness excuse reprehensible acts?",
    "Answer": "No, because drunkards intentionally deprive themselves of their reason in order to satisfy their crude passions; instead of one wrong they commit two."
  },
  {
    "Id": "849",
    "Question": "In humans in the primitive state, what is the dominant faculty: instinct or free will?",
    "Answer": "Instinct, which does not impede their acting with entire freedom in certain things. Like children, they first apply this freedom to their needs; it develops later through intelligence. Consequently, you, who are more enlightened than primitive peoples, are more responsible for your acts than they are."
  },
  {
    "Id": "850",
    "Question": "Isn’t social position sometimes an obstacle to full freedom of action?",
    "Answer": "The world undoubtedly has its demands. God is just and takes everything into account, but holds you responsible for the paltry efforts you make to overcome such obstacles."
  },
  {
    "Id": "851",
    "Question": "Is there fatalism in the events of life according to the usual meaning attached to the word; that is, are all events predetermined, and if so, what becomes of free will?",
    "Answer": "Fatalism only exists when applied to the choice made by spirits upon incarnating to undergo this or that trial. Upon The Law of Freedom choosing a particular trial, they delineate for themselves a kind of destiny, which is the proper consequence of the position in which they now find themselves. I am referring only to trials of a physical nature. As for moral trials and temptations, spirits preserve their free will to choose good or evil and they are always able to yield or resist. When good spirits see individuals lose courage, they may rush to their aid but they cannot influence them to the point of eclipsing their will. An evil spirit, that is, a low order one, can disturb and frighten them by exacerbating a physical danger. Whatever the circumstances, however, the incarnate spirit still retains its entire freedom of choice."
  },
  {
    "Id": "852",
    "Question": "There are persons who seem to be pursued by fatalism no matter what they do. Is it their destiny to be unfortunate?",
    "Answer": "There may be trials which they must endure and which they themselves have chosen. Once more you blame destiny, which is almost always a consequence of your own deeds. In the midst of the hardships afflicting you, make sure your conscience is clear. You will then feel partially consoled."
  },
  {
    "Id": "853",
    "Question": "There are persons who escape one mortal danger only to fall into another. They seem unable to escape death. Isn’t there fatalism in this?",
    "Answer": "Fatalism, in the true meaning of the word, applies only to the instant of death. When that moment arrives in one form or another, you cannot escape it. No, you will not die, and you have thousands of examples. But when your hour for departure comes, nothing will save you. God knows beforehand what kind of death will cause your departure, and frequently your spirit also knows it because it was revealed to it when it made the choice of this or that existence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "854",
    "Question": "From the infallibility of the hour of death, does it follow that the precautions taken to avoid it are useless?",
    "Answer": "No, because the precautions you take are suggested to you in order to avoid the death that could result from the dangers that threaten you. They are one of the means used so that it does not occur."
  },
  {
    "Id": "855",
    "Question": "What is the intent of Providence in making us incur dangers that will have no result?",
    "Answer": "When your life is in danger, it is a warning that you yourself have desired in order to turn you from evil and to enable you to become better. Once you escape this danger, and while still under the influence of the risk you incurred, you consider with greater or lesser intensity – depending on the strength of the action of good spirits – to become a better person. However, once the evil spirits (I say evil in reference to the evil that is still in them) return, you think that you can dodge other dangers just as easily and you allow your passions to be unleashed once more. Through the dangers you incur, God reminds you of your weakness and the fragility of your existence. If we examine the cause and nature of any danger, we will see that in the majority of cases the consequences are punishment for some wrong committed or a duty The Law of Freedom neglected. God thus warns you to reflect on and correct your wrongs."
  },
  {
    "Id": "856",
    "Question": "Does the spirit know beforehand what kind of death it will suffer?",
    "Answer": "It knows that the kind of life it has chosen will expose it to dying more probably in one way than in another. But it also knows which struggles it will have to sustain in order to avoid it; and if God so wills, it will not succumb."
  },
  {
    "Id": "857",
    "Question": "There are soldiers who brave the perils of combat with a certain conviction that their hour has not yet come. Is there any foundation for such confidence?",
    "Answer": "Quite frequently, individuals have a presentiment of their end and thus they may have a presentiment that they will not yet die. This presentiment is given to them by their protector spirits, who desire to warn them in order for them to be ready to depart, or in order to rebuild their courage at times when it becomes necessary. It may also come to them from their own intuition of the life they have chosen or of the mission they have accepted, and which they know they must fulfill."
  },
  {
    "Id": "858",
    "Question": "Why do those who foresee their death generally dread it less than others?",
    "Answer": "It is the individual who dreads death, not the spirit. Those who foresee it think more as a spirit rather than as a physical entity. They understand their deliverance and they wait for it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "859",
    "Question": "If death cannot be avoided when our hour arrives, is it the same in regard to all the accidents that occur over the course of our life?",
    "Answer": "They are generally small enough matters about which we can warn you by directing your thought in such a way that you may avoid them, for we do not like physical suffering. However, this is of little importance for the course of the life you have chosen. Actually, bona fide fatalism applies only at the times when you must enter and depart this world. Yes, but which you, when in the spirit state, foresaw and anticipated upon making your choice. However, do not believe that everything that happens to you is ‘written’, as some say. An event is almost always the consequence of something you have done by an act of your own free will in such a way that if you had not done so, the event would not have occurred. If you burn your finger, it is only the consequence of your imprudence and the condition of matter. Only the great sorrows – those important events that are capable of influencing your moral evolution – are foreseen by God because they are useful for your purification and education."
  },
  {
    "Id": "860",
    "Question": "Can humans through their own will and efforts avoid events that were to occur, and vice-versa?",
    "Answer": "They can, if this apparent deviation fits into the general order of the life that they have chosen. Furthermore, in doing good – their duty and the sole purpose of life – they can prevent evil, especially that which might contribute to a still greater evil."
  },
  {
    "Id": "860a",
    "Question": "versa?",
    "Answer": "They can, if this apparent deviation fits into the general order of the life that they have chosen. Furthermore, in doing good – their duty and the sole purpose of life – they can prevent evil, especially that which might contribute to a still greater evil."
  },
  {
    "Id": "861",
    "Question": "Upon choosing their existence, do those who commit a murder know at the time that they would become murderers?",
    "Answer": "No. They only know that in choosing a life of struggle they will incur the probability of killing one of their fellow beings, but they do not know if they will actually do so or not. Murderers will almost always deliberate in their minds The Law of Freedom before committing the crime, and those who deliberate about something are always free to do it or not. If spirits knew beforehand that as individuals they would have to commit a murder, it would mean they were predestined to do so. However, you should be very clear about the fact that no one is ever predestined to commit a crime, and that every crime, like any and every other act, is always the result of volition and free will. Moreover, you always confuse two very distinct things: the material events of existence and the moral acts of life. If there is sometimes fatalism, it only applies to material events where the cause is outside of you and independent of your will. As for the acts of the moral life, they always emanate from the individual him or herself, who therefore always has the freedom of choice. There is never fatalism in such acts."
  },
  {
    "Id": "862",
    "Question": "There are those who never manage to succeed, who seem to be pursued by a bad influence in all their undertakings. Isn’t this what we could call fatalism?",
    "Answer": "It could be fatalism if you would like to call it that, but it results from the choice of the kind of existence. Such individuals wanted to experience a life full of disappointment in order to exercise their patience and resignation. However, you must not believe that this fatalism is always unavoidable. It is often only the result of their having taken a wrong path that is not in keeping with their intelligence and aptitudes. Someone who tries to swim across a river without knowing how to swim stands a very good chance of drowning. It is the same in most events of life. If people did not try to undertake more than what was in keeping with their own faculties they would always succeed. What causes their failure are their self-centeredness and ambition, which divert them from their proper path and make them consider a vocation that entails nothing but the desire to satisfy certain passions. They then fail and it is their own fault; but instead of recognizing their error, they prefer to blame their horoscope. For instance, a man would have been a good workman making an honorable living, but he became a bad poet instead and died of hunger. There would be a place for everybody if each one knew how to occupy his or her own niche."
  },
  {
    "Id": "863",
    "Question": "Don’t social customs often obligate people to follow a certain path rather than another? And aren’t they subject to the influence of others’ opinions in their choice of occupation? Isn’t what we call human respect actually an obstacle to the exercise of our free will?",
    "Answer": "Social customs are made by humans, not by God; if they submit to them, it is because they suit them. This is also an act of free will, because if they wanted to, they could reject them. So why do they complain? They should not accuse social customs, but their own foolish vanity, which leads them to prefer to die of hunger rather than infringe upon such customs. Nobody takes this sacrifice to public opinion into account, though God will take into account their sacrifice to their own vanity. This does not mean they should unnecessarily go against public opinion, like certain persons who are more possessed of eccentricity than true philosophy. It is just as absurd to display oneself as an oddity as it is wise to willingly descend the social ladder without complaining if one cannot remain at the top."
  },
  {
    "Id": "864",
    "Question": "If there are persons whom fate seems to be against, others seem to be favored by it because everything goes well for them. To what may this be attributed?",
    "Answer": "Usually, they are better at self-guidance. However, it The Law of Freedom could also be a kind of trial: success intoxicates them; they trust in their destiny and later they frequently pay for their success with cruel reversals that could have been avoided with a little prudence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "865",
    "Question": "How can we explain the luck that seems to favor certain individuals in circumstances that depend neither on will nor intelligence – games of chance, for example?",
    "Answer": "Certain spirits have chosen certain types of pleasure beforehand, and the luck that favors them is a temptation. Those who win in the material sense might lose as spirits – it is a trial for their pride and greed."
  },
  {
    "Id": "865a",
    "Question": "games of chance, for example?",
    "Answer": "Certain spirits have chosen certain types of pleasure beforehand, and the luck that favors them is a temptation. Those who win in the material sense might lose as spirits – it is a trial for their pride and greed."
  },
  {
    "Id": "866",
    "Question": "Then wouldn’t the fatalism that seems to preside over our destinies in the material life also be the result of our free will?",
    "Answer": "You yourselves have chosen your trials. The more difficult they are and the better you bear them, the more you evolve. Those who spend their lives in the selfish enjoyment of abundance and their own welfare are cowardly spirits who remain at a standstill. Thus, the number of the unfortunate greatly surpasses the fortunate, since the majority of spirits have sought the trials that will be most useful to them. They see too clearly the futility of earthly grandeurs and pleasures. Besides, the most satisfactory life is always full of events and its own problems to solve, even in the absence of suffering."
  },
  {
    "Id": "867",
    "Question": "Where does the expression",
    "Answer": "born under a lucky star It comes from an old superstition, according to which the stars were connected with the destiny of each human being – an allegory that some people are foolish enough to take literally."
  },
  {
    "Id": "868",
    "Question": "Can the future be revealed to humans?",
    "Answer": "In principle, the future is hidden from them and only in rare and exceptional cases does God permit it to be revealed."
  },
  {
    "Id": "869",
    "Question": "For what purpose is the future hidden from them?",
    "Answer": "If they knew the future, they would neglect the present and they would not act with the same freedom, because they would be dominated by the thought that if a certain thing must happen it is no use being concerned about it; otherwise, they would try to prevent it. God has willed it to be this way so that each one may contribute to the accomplishment of things, even those that he or she would like to thwart. Thus, it is that you yourselves unknowingly prepare the events that will occur over the course of your lives."
  },
  {
    "Id": "870",
    "Question": "But if it is useful for the future to remain hidden, why does God sometimes allow it to be revealed?",
    "Answer": "This happens if a particular foreseen event would facilitate the accomplishment of things instead of preventing them, and if it leads individuals to act differently than they would have if the revelation had not been made. Besides, many times it is a trial. The anticipation of an event may awaken thoughts that are more virtuous or less so. For instance, if a man knows that he will receive a fortune that he had not expected, he may be taken by the sentiment of greed or elation about the probability of adding to his earthly pleasures. In order to obtain the fortune sooner, he may then desire the death of the one who is to leave it to him. On the other hand, perhaps such anticipation will awaken good sentiments and generous thoughts in him. If the The Law of Freedom prediction is not fulfilled, it will be another trial: the way in which he bears the disappointment; nonetheless, he will have acquired the merit or the blame for the good or bad thoughts that the prediction aroused in him."
  },
  {
    "Id": "871",
    "Question": "Since God knows everything, God knows whether a person will or will not fail in a particular trial. If that is the case, what is the need of the trial in the first place, since it cannot add anything to what God does not already know about that person?",
    "Answer": "You might as well ask why God did not create human beings perfect and accomplished to begin with (see no. 119) or why they must pass through childhood before arriving at adulthood (see no. 379). The purpose of a trial is not to enlighten God about what people deserve – God knows perfectly well what they deserve – but to leave them the entire responsibility for their own conduct since they have the freedom to do or not do. Since they can choose between good and evil, a trial has the purpose of placing them before the temptation of evil, leaving them all the merit for resisting it. Also, even though God knows very well beforehand whether they will triumph or fail, out of divine justice God can neither punish them nor reward them for an act they have not yet committed."
  },
  {
    "Id": "872",
    "Question": "The issue of free will may be summed up as follows: humans are not fatally led into evil; their acts are not",
    "Answer": "written Do not let us fall into temptation, but deliver us from evil."
  },
  {
    "Id": "873",
    "Question": "Is the sentiment of justice to be found in nature itself or is it the result of acquired ideas?",
    "Answer": "It is so natural that you revolt at the thought of an injustice. Moral progress undoubtedly develops this sentiment, but it does not create it – God has placed it in the human heart. That is why you frequently find among simple and unlearned people notions of justice that are more exact than those among very knowledgeable ones."
  },
  {
    "Id": "874",
    "Question": "If justice is a law of nature, how may it be explained that people understand it so differently, and that what one individual considers just appears unjust to another?",
    "Answer": "It is because the passions are usually mingled with the sentiment of justice, thereby altering it. The same thing occurs with the majority of the other natural sentiments and it causes things to be seen from an erroneous point of view."
  },
  {
    "Id": "875",
    "Question": "How may justice be defined?",
    "Answer": "Justice consists in respecting the rights of others. They are determined by two things: human law and natural law. Because humans have established laws that are appropriate for their customs and character, such laws have established rights that can vary with progress. Though your current laws are not perfect, they do not consecrate the same rights as the laws of the Medieval Era, for instance. Even though those rights seem monstrous to you and are now obsolete, they seemed just and natural at the time. Therefore, the rights established by humans do not always conform to justice. They only regulate certain social relations, whereas in private life there are a huge number of actions that are the exclusive jurisdiction of the court of conscience."
  },
  {
    "Id": "875a",
    "Question": "What determines these rights?",
    "Answer": "They are determined by two things: human law and natural law. Because humans have established laws that are appropriate for their customs and character, such laws have established rights that can vary with progress. Though your current laws are not perfect, they do not consecrate the same rights as the laws of the Medieval Era, for instance. Even though those rights seem monstrous to you and are now obsolete, they seemed just and natural at the time. Therefore, the rights established by humans do not always conform to justice. They only regulate certain social relations, whereas in private life there are a huge number of actions that are the exclusive jurisdiction of the court of conscience."
  },
  {
    "Id": "876",
    "Question": "Outside the rights consecrated by human law, what is the basis of justice founded on natural law?",
    "Answer": "Christ has told you: ‘Do unto others whatsoever you would have them do unto you.’ God has placed in the human heart the rule of all true justice through the desire that all have to see their rights respected. If you are uncertain of what you should do for your neighbor in any given circumstance, ask yourself what you would want your neighbor to do to you in a similar situation. God could not give you a safer guide than your own conscience."
  },
  {
    "Id": "877",
    "Question": "Does the necessity of living in society impose any special obligations on humankind?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and the first of all is that of respecting the rights of others; those who respect the rights of others will always be just. In your world, where so many do not practice the law of justice, everyone resorts to reprisals, and that is what causes trouble and confusion in your society. Social life bestows rights and imposes reciprocal duties."
  },
  {
    "Id": "878",
    "Question": "Since humans can be mistaken as to the extent of their rights, what guideline can enable them to know what limits to set on such rights?",
    "Answer": "The limit of the right that each one recognizes for his or her neighbor in relation to him or herself under the same circumstances, and vice-versa. Natural rights are the same for everybody from the least to the greatest. God has not made some from purer clay than others and all are equal in the divine sight. These rights are eternal, whereas those established by humans perish with their institutions. Moreover, all individuals sense their own strength or weakness and will always show a certain deference to those who deserve it because of their virtue and wisdom. It is important to point this out so that those who think they are superior may know their duties and may deserve such deference. Subordination will never be compromised if authority is in conformance with wisdom."
  },
  {
    "Id": "879",
    "Question": "What would be the character of those who practice justice in all its purity?",
    "Answer": "They would be truly just and would be following Jesus’ example because they would practice both charity and love towards their neighbor, without which there is no real justice."
  },
  {
    "Id": "880",
    "Question": "Which is the first of all the natural rights of humans?",
    "Answer": "The right to stay alive. That is why no one has the right to assault a fellow human being’s life or to do anything that may compromise his or her corporeal existence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "881",
    "Question": "Does the right to stay alive give them the right to accumulate what is needed to live on and to retire when they can no longer work?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but they must do this as a family – like the bee – through honest labor, and not by accumulating assets as selfish individuals. Certain animals set an example of such foresight."
  },
  {
    "Id": "882",
    "Question": "Do humans have the right to defend what they have accumulated through their labor?",
    "Answer": "Hasn’t God said, ‘Do not steal?’ and Jesus, ‘Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s?’"
  },
  {
    "Id": "883",
    "Question": "Is the desire to possess natural?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but when humans desire to possess only for themselves and for their own personal satisfaction it is selfishness. There are insatiable individuals who accumulate possessions without benefit to anyone else, or merely to satisfy their passions. Do you believe that this is approved by God? Those who accumulate assets through their labor with the intention of helping their neighbor practice the law of love and of charity, and their labor is blessed by God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "884",
    "Question": "What is the characteristic of legitimate ownership?",
    "Answer": "There is only one legitimate ownership: owning something that has been acquired without harm to others."
  },
  {
    "Id": "885",
    "Question": "Is the right of ownership unlimited?",
    "Answer": "Of course, everything that is legitimately acquired represents proper ownership; but as we have said, human legislation is imperfect and it frequently sanctions conventional rights that natural justice does not approve of. That is why humans reform their laws as they make progress and as they better comprehend justice. What appears perfect in one century appears barbaric in the next."
  },
  {
    "Id": "886",
    "Question": "What is the true meaning of the word charity as Jesus understood it?",
    "Answer": "Benevolence toward everyone, indulgence toward the imperfections of others and forgiveness for offenses. Love one another as brothers."
  },
  {
    "Id": "887",
    "Question": "Jesus also taught:",
    "Answer": "Love even your enemies. It is obviously not possible to show tender and passionate love toward one’s enemies, and that is not what Jesus wanted to say. Loving one’s enemies means to forgive them and to return good for their evil. That is how we put ourselves above them; by seeking vengeance, we only place ourselves beneath them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "888",
    "Question": "What is to be thought of alms-giving?",
    "Answer": "Those who are reduced to begging for alms morally and physically degrade themselves in an existence that puts them on the level of the brute. A society based on the law of God and justice should provide for the life of the weak without humiliating them. It should ensure an existence The Law of Justice, Love and Charity for those who cannot work, without leaving them at the mercy of chance and goodwill. No, because it is not the alms-giving per se that is reprehensible, but almost always the way in which it is done. Moral individuals, those who understand charity according to Jesus, seek out the unfortunate without waiting for them to hold out their hand. “True charity is always good and benevolent; it is demonstrated both in the act itself and in the way it is done. A service rendered with graciousness thus has a double value; but if it is rendered with haughtiness, the recipient’s need compels him or her to accept it but his or her heart will hardly be touched. “Also, remember that in God’s sight ostentation erases the merit of benevolence. Jesus said: ‘Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.’ Therein, he teaches you not to tarnish charity with pride. “It is necessary to distinguish between alms-giving per se and benevolence. The one who is most needy is not always the one who begs; the fear of humiliation restrains the truly poor, who almost always suffer without complaining. It is these whom the authentically humane person knows how to help without being ostentatious. “Love one another – that is the whole law, the divine law through which God governs the worlds. Love is the law of attraction for living and organized beings, and attraction is the law of love for inorganic matter. “Never forget that a spirit, whatever its degree of advancement or its situation as an incarnate individual or as a discarnate spirit, is always placed between a more evolved spirit who guides and perfects it, and a less evolved one toward whom it has the same duties to fulfill. Therefore, be charitable not only by taking from your bag a coin that you callously give to the one who dares to beg from you, but by seeking out hidden poverty. Be indulgent toward the errors of your neighbor. Instead of despising the ignorant and the addict, educate and moralize them. Be gentle and benevolent toward all those who are less evolved than you. Be the same toward the lowermost beings of creation, and you will have obeyed the law of God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "888a",
    "Question": "giving?",
    "Answer": "Those who are reduced to begging for alms morally and physically degrade themselves in an existence that puts them on the level of the brute. A society based on the law of God and justice should provide for the life of the weak without humiliating them. It should ensure an existence The Law of Justice, Love and Charity for those who cannot work, without leaving them at the mercy of chance and goodwill."
  },
  {
    "Id": "888b",
    "Question": "Then do you condemn alms-giving?",
    "Answer": "No, because it is not the alms-giving per se that is reprehensible, but almost always the way in which it is done. Moral individuals, those who understand charity according to Jesus, seek out the unfortunate without waiting for them to hold out their hand. “True charity is always good and benevolent; it is demonstrated both in the act itself and in the way it is done. A service rendered with graciousness thus has a double value; but if it is rendered with haughtiness, the recipient’s need compels him or her to accept it but his or her heart will hardly be touched. “Also, remember that in God’s sight ostentation erases the merit of benevolence. Jesus said: ‘Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.’ Therein, he teaches you not to tarnish charity with pride. “It is necessary to distinguish between alms-giving per se and benevolence. The one who is most needy is not always the one who begs; the fear of humiliation restrains the truly poor, who almost always suffer without complaining. It is these whom the authentically humane person knows how to help without being ostentatious. “Love one another – that is the whole law, the divine law through which God governs the worlds. Love is the law of attraction for living and organized beings, and attraction is the law of love for inorganic matter. “Never forget that a spirit, whatever its degree of advancement or its situation as an incarnate individual or as a discarnate spirit, is always placed between a more evolved spirit who guides and perfects it, and a less evolved one toward whom it has the same duties to fulfill. Therefore, be charitable not only by taking from your bag a coin that you callously give to the one who dares to beg from you, but by seeking out hidden poverty. Be indulgent toward the errors of your neighbor. Instead of despising the ignorant and the addict, educate and moralize them. Be gentle and benevolent toward all those who are less evolved than you. Be the same toward the lowermost beings of creation, and you will have obeyed the law of God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "889",
    "Question": "Aren’t there those who are reduced to begging through their own fault?",
    "Answer": "Of course. But if a good moral education had taught them the law of God, they would not have fallen into the excesses that led them into ruin. It is upon this, above all, that the improvement of your globe depends."
  },
  {
    "Id": "890",
    "Question": "Is maternal love a virtue or is it an instinctive sentiment common to both humans and animals?",
    "Answer": "It is both. Nature has endowed the mother with love towards her children in the interests of their preservation, but in the animal, this love is limited to the offsprings’ material needs and ceases when it is no longer needed. In humans, this love persists throughout life and consists in a devotedness and a self-denial that comprise true virtues. It even survives death itself, accompanying the child from The Law of Justice, Love and Charity beyond the grave. You can see that this sort of love contains something more than the love displayed in the animal."
  },
  {
    "Id": "891",
    "Question": "If maternal love is so natural, why are there mothers who hate their children – frequently from birth?",
    "Answer": "It is sometimes a trial chosen by the spirit of the child, or it may be an expiation if the spirit itself had been a bad father, a bad mother or a bad child in another existence (see no. 392). In all such cases, a bad mother can only be animated by a little-evolved spirit who seeks to create difficulties for the child so that he or she will fail in his or her chosen trial. Such a violation of the laws of nature, however, will not remain unpunished, and the spirit of the child will be rewarded for the obstacles it has overcome."
  },
  {
    "Id": "891a",
    "Question": "frequently from birth?",
    "Answer": "It is sometimes a trial chosen by the spirit of the child, or it may be an expiation if the spirit itself had been a bad father, a bad mother or a bad child in another existence (see no. 392). In all such cases, a bad mother can only be animated by a little-evolved spirit who seeks to create difficulties for the child so that he or she will fail in his or her chosen trial. Such a violation of the laws of nature, however, will not remain unpunished, and the spirit of the child will be rewarded for the obstacles it has overcome."
  },
  {
    "Id": "892",
    "Question": "When parents have children who cause them grief, aren’t they excused for not feeling the tenderness for them that they would have felt otherwise?",
    "Answer": "No, for it is regarded as a task that has been entrusted to them, and their mission is to make every effort to lead them to the good (see nos. 582, 583). Besides, such grief is almost always the consequence of the bad habits that the parents have allowed their children to follow from the cradle; thus, they reap what they have sown."
  },
  {
    "Id": "893",
    "Question": "Which is the most meritorious of all the virtues?",
    "Answer": "All virtues are meritorious because all are signs of progress on the path of the good. There is always virtue when there is voluntary resistance to the allure of evil tendencies. However, the highest virtue consists in the sacrifice of one’s own interests for the good of one’s neighbor without ulterior motives. The greatest merit is that which is based on the most disinterested charity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "894",
    "Question": "There are persons who do good through a spontaneous impulse without having to struggle with any contrary sentiment. Do they deserve the same merit as those who have to struggle against their own nature, and who manage to overcome it?",
    "Answer": "Those who do not have to struggle have already made progress. They struggled and triumphed in the past. That is why good sentiments cost them no effort and their actions seem so easy – doing good has become a habit for them. They should be honored as old warriors who have earned their ranks. “Since you are still far from perfection, such examples surprise you by their contrast and you admire them so much because they are rare. However, you must know that on worlds more advanced than yours, what is the exception among you has become the rule. The sentiment of the good is spontaneous everywhere on those worlds because they are inhabited only by good spirits, and a single bad intention would be a monstrous exception. That is why humans are so happy there. The same will occur on the earth when humanity transforms itself, and when it understands and practices charity in its true meaning."
  },
  {
    "Id": "895",
    "Question": "Besides the defects and vices about which no one can be mistaken, what is the most characteristic sign of imperfection?",
    "Answer": "Self-centeredness. Moral qualities many times do not stand up when put to the test, like copper gilding that cannot withstand the test of the touchstone. Individuals may possess real qualities that make them appear moral to the world. However, while such qualities do indicate progress, they do not always bear up under certain trials, and sometimes it takes only one touch of self-centeredness to unmask these individuals’ real character. True selflessness is in fact so rare on earth that it is admired as a remarkable phenomenon when it displays itself. “Attachment to material things is a notorious indication of impurity because the more humans are attached to the things of this world, the less they understand their true destiny. Through selflessness, however, they show that they see the future from a more evolved point of view."
  },
  {
    "Id": "896",
    "Question": "There are selfless individuals who nonetheless lack discernment, and who waste their possessions without real benefit because they do not know how to use them reasonably. Will they have any merit?",
    "Answer": "They have merit for their selflessness but not for the potential good they could do. If selflessness is a virtue, Moral Perfection thoughtless squandering is always, at the very least, a lack of judgment. Fortune is not given to some to be cast to the wind any more than it is given to others to be locked up in a safe. It is a deposit for which they will have to render account. They will have to answer for all the good they could have done but did not do, and for all the tears they could have dried with the money they gave away to those who were not actually needy."
  },
  {
    "Id": "897",
    "Question": "Are those blameworthy who do good without seeking a reward on earth, but in the hope that it may be taken into account in the next life so that their situation there may be better? And does such a thought harm their advancement?",
    "Answer": "One must do good out of charity, that is, selflessly. Certainly not; however, those who do good without ulterior motives, who do it for the sole pleasure of being pleasing to God and their suffering neighbor, have already found a certain degree of advancement, which will enable them to attain happiness more quickly than those who do good through calculation and not through the natural impulse of their heart. No, no; by ‘doing good’ we merely mean being charitable. Those who calculate what each one of their good actions can render them in the other life or in the earthly life proceed selfishly. But there is no selfishness in improving oneself in the hope of drawing nearer to God because that is the objective for all."
  },
  {
    "Id": "898",
    "Question": "Since the corporeal life is only an ephemeral sojourn on this world and since our future life should be our principal concern, is it worthwhile to put forth the effort to acquire scientific knowledge that only bears upon material things and necessities?",
    "Answer": "Absolutely. First, it enables you to help your brothers and sisters. Next, your spirit will evolve more quickly if it has progressed intellectually. In the hiatus between incarnations you will learn in one hour what would require years on earth. No knowledge is useless; it all contributes in some degree to advancement because the perfected spirit must know everything. Since progress must be made in every sense, all acquired ideas help the development of the spirit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "899",
    "Question": "Of two wealthy individuals, one was born in opulence and has never known need, whereas the other owes his fortune to his own labor. However, both employ their wealth exclusively for their own personal satisfaction. Which one is the more culpable?",
    "Answer": "The one who has known hardship. He knows what it means to suffer but does not relieve it in others; as usually happens, he no longer remembers his hardship."
  },
  {
    "Id": "900",
    "Question": "Do those who continue to accumulate assets without benefiting anyone have a valid excuse in saying that they are doing so in order to leave the assets to their heirs?",
    "Answer": "It attests to their bad principles."
  },
  {
    "Id": "901",
    "Question": "Of two misers, the first deprives himself of necessities and dies of want atop his treasure, whereas the second is only stingy toward others but is extravagant toward himself. While he recoils before the smallest sacrifice to render a service or do something useful, nothing seems better to him than satisfying his own tastes and passions. If a favor is asked of him, he is always ill-willed, but if a whim strikes, he is always ready to satisfy it. Which of them is guiltier and which of them will have the worse place in the spirit world?",
    "Answer": "The one who spends. He is more selfish than the miser. The miser has already received part of his punishment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "902",
    "Question": "Is it wrong to desire wealth with the desire to do good?",
    "Answer": "Such a sentiment is of course laudable if it is pure. But is such a desire always disinterested enough? Doesn’t it hide a personal ulterior motive? Isn’t the first person to whom we wish to do good many times our own self?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "903",
    "Question": "Is it wrong to study others’ defects?",
    "Answer": "If it is for the purpose of criticizing and divulging them it is wrong because it displays a lack of charity. If it is with the intention of applying it to oneself in order to avoid the same defects it may be useful. You must not forget, however, that tolerance for the defects of others is one of the virtues entailed in charity. Before criticizing people’s imperfections, think about whether others may say the same about you. So try to possess qualities that are opposite to the defects you criticize in others. This is a means of perfecting yourself. If you criticize them for being avaricious, be generous; for being harsh, be nice; for acting with pettiness, be expansive in all your actions. In a word, act in such a way that these words of Jesus may not apply to you: ‘You see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not see the beam in your own.’"
  },
  {
    "Id": "904",
    "Question": "Is it wrong for a person to probe the ills of society and expose them?",
    "Answer": "That depends on the sentiment leading the person to do so. If a writer only wants to create a scandal, he or she does so out of personal pleasure, publishing material that generally sets a bad example rather than a good one. The spirit enjoys it, but it can be punished for the pleasure it feels in revealing evil. There is no need to do so. If the message is good, benefit from it; if it is bad, it becomes a problem for the writer’s own conscience. Moreover, if writers desire to prove their sincerity, it falls to them to support their principles by setting their own example."
  },
  {
    "Id": "905",
    "Question": "Some authors have published works that are beautiful and morally uplifting, which help the progress of humankind, but which they themselves do not take advantage of. As spirits, will the good they have done through their works be taken into account?",
    "Answer": "Morality without action is like the seed without the sowing. What use is the seed if you do not make it grow in order to feed you? Those persons are guiltier because they possessed the intelligence to comprehend. Having not practiced the maxims they offered to others, they fail to harvest the fruit."
  },
  {
    "Id": "906",
    "Question": "Is it reprehensible for those who do good to be conscious of their deeds and to acknowledge them to themselves?",
    "Answer": "Since they can be aware of the evil they do, they must be equally aware of the good in order to know if they act rightly or wrongly. It is in weighing all their actions on the scales of God’s law – especially on those of the law of justice, love, and charity – that they can tell whether their actions are good or bad, and thus approve or disapprove of them. Hence, they cannot be at fault for recognizing the fact that they have Moral Perfection triumphed over their evil tendencies, and for being satisfied for having done so, provided they do not grow vain, for that would be to fall into another wrong."
  },
  {
    "Id": "907",
    "Question": "Since the principle of our passions originates in nature, are they evil per se?",
    "Answer": "No. Passion is the result of excess brought about by the will, though the principle itself was given to humans for their good. The passions can lead them to do great things. Their abuse of them is what makes them evil."
  },
  {
    "Id": "908",
    "Question": "How may we define the limit at which the passions cease to be good or bad?",
    "Answer": "The passions are like a horse that is useful when controlled but dangerous when it controls. You can recognize when a passion becomes harmful at the moment in which you cease to govern it, and when it results in any injury to yourselves or others."
  },
  {
    "Id": "909",
    "Question": "Could humans always overcome their evil tendencies through their own efforts?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and sometimes with very little effort; what they lack is will power. How few of you make such an effort, however!"
  },
  {
    "Id": "910",
    "Question": "Can humans find in spirits an effective aid to help them overcome their passions?",
    "Answer": "If you sincerely pray to God and your guardian angel, good spirits will certainly come to your aid – that is their mission."
  },
  {
    "Id": "911",
    "Question": "Aren’t there passions that are so alive and irresistible that the will is powerless to overcome them?",
    "Answer": "There are many who say ‘I want to’, but their will is only on their lips. They want, but they are very satisfied at not being able to. When they believe they cannot overcome their passions, it is because their spirit is pleased by them as a result of its own impurity. Those who try to restrain their passions understand their own spiritual nature, and overcoming them is a triumph of the spirit over matter."
  },
  {
    "Id": "912",
    "Question": "What is the most effective means of fighting the predominance of the corporeal nature?",
    "Answer": "Practicing self-denial."
  },
  {
    "Id": "913",
    "Question": "Of all the vices, which may we regard as the root?",
    "Answer": "We have already told you many times: selfishness. All evil derives from it. Study all the vices and you will see that Moral Perfection selfishness is at the bottom of them all. As much as you may struggle against them, you will never uproot them as long as you have not destroyed their cause. Let all your efforts tend toward that end, because selfishness is the true scourge of society. Those in this life who want to approach moral perfection must uproot from their heart every sentiment of selfishness, for selfishness is incompatible with justice, love and charity; it neutralizes all other qualities."
  },
  {
    "Id": "914",
    "Question": "Since selfishness is based on personal interests, it seems difficult to entirely uproot it from the human heart. Will we ever be able to do so?",
    "Answer": "As humans become enlightened about spiritual things, they attach less value to material things. Next, it is necessary to reform the human institutions that entertain and excite the passions. This depends on education."
  },
  {
    "Id": "915",
    "Question": "Since selfishness is inherent to the human species, won’t it always be a permanent obstacle to the reign of absolute goodness upon the earth?",
    "Answer": "It is certain that selfishness is your greatest evil, but it is connected to the unpurified nature of the spirits incarnated on the earth, and not to the human species per se. Upon purifying themselves over successive incarnations, spirits get rid of selfishness just as they get rid of other impurities. On the earth, aren’t there persons who are divested of selfishness, and who practice charity? They exist in greater numbers than you might think, but you know few of them because virtue does not seek to reveal itself in broad daylight. If there is one, why wouldn’t there be ten? If there are ten, why wouldn’t there be a thousand, and so on?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "916",
    "Question": "Far from decreasing, selfishness increases with civilization, which seems to excite and entertain it. How can the cause destroy the effect?",
    "Answer": "The greater the evil, the more heinous it becomes. It has been necessary for selfishness to produce much evil in order to make you understand the need to uproot it. When human beings have been freed from the selfishness that dominates them, they will live as brothers and sisters. They will not do evil to one another and will mutually help one another through the fraternal sentiment of solidarity. The strong will then be the support and not the oppressor of the weak, and no longer will anyone lack what is needed because all will practice the law of justice. This is the kingdom of the good that the Spirits are in charge of preparing."
  },
  {
    "Id": "917",
    "Question": "What is the means for destroying selfishness?",
    "Answer": "Of all human imperfections, the most difficult to uproot is selfishness because it is connected to the influence of matter, from which human beings, still so close to their origin, cannot free themselves. Everything concurs to sustain its influence: your laws, your social organizations and your education. Selfishness will be weakened with the predominance of the moral life over the material life, and especially with the understanding that Spiritism gives you concerning your true future state, which is no longer distorted by allegorical fictions. When it is well understood and identified with customs and beliefs, Spiritism will transform habits, usages and social relations. Selfishness is founded upon the importance of the personality. When well understood, I repeat, Spiritism enables you to see things from such an evolved point of view that the sentiment of the personality somehow disappears before the Doctrine’s immensity. Upon destroying this self-importance and showing its real nature, Spiritism necessarily combats selfishness. “It is the shock that humans experience from the selfishness of others that usually makes them selfish in Moral Perfection turn because they feel the need to put themselves on the defensive. Seeing that others think only of themselves and not of them, they are in turn led to be concerned about themselves more than about others. Let the principle of charity and fraternity be the basis of social institutions and the legal relations between nations and individuals, and all will think less of themselves when they see that others are doing so too; thus, they will undergo the moralizing influence of example and contact. In the light of the present overflowing of selfishness, true virtue is needed to sacrifice one’s own personality for the sake of others, who generally do not recognize it. It is to those, above all, who possess this virtue that the Kingdom of Heaven is opened. For them, especially, is reserved the bliss of the elect, because I can truly tell you that on the day of judgment, those who have only thought of themselves will be cast aside and will suffer abandonment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "918",
    "Question": "By what signs can we recognize in individuals the real progress that will raise their spirit within the spirit hierarchy?",
    "Answer": "The spirit proves its progress when all the actions of its corporeal life consist in practicing the law of God, and when it understands the spirit life beforehand. Let him that is without sin cast the first stone."
  },
  {
    "Id": "919",
    "Question": "What is the most effective means for improving ourselves in this life and for resisting the draw of evil?",
    "Answer": "A sage of antiquity has told you: ‘Know thyself.’ Do what I used to do when I was living on the earth. At the end of each day I examined my conscience, reviewed what I had done and asked myself whether or not I had failed to fulfill some duty and whether or not anyone might have had reason to complain about me. It was thus that I arrived at knowing myself and at seeing what there was in me that needed to be reformed. Those who every night would recall all their actions during the day, and would ask themselves what good or evil they have done, praying to God and their guardian angel to enlighten them, would acquire great strength for self-improvement, because, believe me, God will assist them. Therefore, ask yourselves about what you 59 Socrates. – Tr. Moral Perfection have done and toward what aim you acted in a particular circumstance, whether you have done anything that you would blame in others, and whether you have done anything that you would not dare profess. Also ask: if it pleased God to call me at this moment to enter the world of spirits, where nothing is hidden, would I cower before anyone’s gaze? Examine what you may have done against God, then against your neighbor, and lastly, against yourselves. The answers will be either repose for your conscience, or an indication of a wrong that you must amend. “Self-knowledge is therefore the key to individual improvement. But, you will ask, how do we judge ourselves? Won’t we be under the illusion of vanity, which exalts our wrongs and makes them excusable? Misers think they are simply being thrifty and foresightful, while proud individuals think they are only full of dignity. All of this is quite true, but you have a means of control that cannot deceive you. When you are indecisive as to the quality of any one of your actions, ask how you would judge it if it had been done by someone else. If you would blame it in another, it cannot be any more legitimate for you, for God does not use two measures for justice. Also, seek to know what others think about you and do not neglect the opinion of your enemies, because they have no interest in disguising the truth. Frequently, God places them beside you as a mirror in order to warn you more frankly than a friend would. Therefore, let those who are truly willing to improve themselves examine their own conscience in order to uproot from it their evil tendencies as they uproot weeds from their garden. Let them balance out their moral workday like business persons do with their profits and losses, and I can assure you that there will be more profits than losses. If you can say that your workday has been good, you can sleep in peace and fearlessly wait for your awaking in the other life. “So formulate clear and precise questions and do not be afraid to add to them; you would do very well to devote a few minutes to securing eternal bliss. Don’t you work every day to accumulate what you will need for rest in old age? Isn’t this rest the object of all your desires, the goal that enables you to endure temporary fatigue and deprivation? Well then, what is the rest of a few days, troubled by the infirmities of the body, compared to what awaits the moral person? Isn’t it worth a little effort? I know that many will say that the present is certain but the future is uncertain. That is precisely the thought that we have been charged with tearing down in your minds, for we desire to enable you to understand that future in such a way that no doubt can remain in your soul. This is why we first called your attention to us through the phenomena of nature, by touching your senses, and why later we gave you instructions that each one of you has the duty to spread. It was with this purpose in mind that we have dictated The Spirits’ Book."
  },
  {
    "Id": "920",
    "Question": "Can people enjoy complete happiness while on earth?",
    "Answer": "No, because life has been given to them as either a trial or an expiation; it is up to them to mitigate their misfortunes and be as happy as possible while on earth."
  },
  {
    "Id": "921",
    "Question": "We can understand that people will be happy on the earth when humanity as a whole is finally transformed, but meanwhile, is it possible for anyone to enjoy relative happiness?",
    "Answer": "Most of the time, people are the artisans of their own unhappiness. If they would practice the law of God, they would spare themselves many misfortunes and enjoy a state of happiness that is as great as their existence on such a dense plane will allow."
  },
  {
    "Id": "922",
    "Question": "Earthly happiness is relative to the position of each person, and what might suffice for the happiness of one would be misfortune for another. Is there nevertheless a common standard of happiness for all?",
    "Answer": "For material existence, it is the possession of all that is necessary; for the moral life, it is a good conscience and faith in the future."
  },
  {
    "Id": "923",
    "Question": "Doesn’t that which would be superfluous for one become a necessity for another, and vice versa, according to their social position?",
    "Answer": "Yes, according to your materialistic ideas, your prejudices, your ambition, and all your absurd notions, for which the future will demand justice when you finally comprehend the truth. Obviously, those who have had an income of 50,000, who then see it reduced to 10,000, would consider themselves most unfortunate because they cannot maintain the demands of their social status: keeping good horses and servants, gratifying all their passions, etc. They would regard themselves as lacking the necessities. Frankly, however, shouldn’t you consider them worthy of pity while beside them are others who are dying of cold and hunger, Earthly Joys and Sorrows without a place to lay their head? To be happy, the wise look down, never up; when they do lift their gaze, it is to raise their own soul toward the infinite."
  },
  {
    "Id": "924",
    "Question": "There are misfortunes which do not depend on the way we act and which harm the most righteous people. Isn’t there a way to keep ourselves from such misfortunes?",
    "Answer": "If you want to progress, you must resign yourselves and endure misfortunes without complaining. However, you will always find consolation within your own conscience, which gives you the hope of a better future, provided you do what is needed to obtain it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "925",
    "Question": "Why does God bless with the goods of wealth certain individuals who do not seem to deserve them?",
    "Answer": "It looks like a favor to those who do not see beyond the present; but you yourselves know that wealth is a trial that is usually more dangerous than poverty."
  },
  {
    "Id": "926",
    "Question": "Because it creates new necessities, isn’t civilization the source of new afflictions?",
    "Answer": "The misfortunes of this world result from the artificial needs you create for yourselves. People who know how to limit their desires, seeing without greed whatever might lie beyond their means, spare themselves many disappointments in this life. The wealthiest are really those who have the fewest needs. “You envy the pleasures of the people who appear to be the fortunate ones of this earth. But do you happen to know what is in store for them? If they use their wealth only for themselves, they are selfish and will suffer a reversal. Pity them instead. God sometimes allows the wicked to prosper; but their prosperity is not to be envied, because they will pay for it with bitter tears. If the righteous are unfortunate, it is because they are going through a trial that will be credited to them if they bear it with courage. Remember the words of Jesus: ‘Blessed are those who suffer, for they shall be comforted.’"
  },
  {
    "Id": "927",
    "Question": "Superfluity is certainly not indispensable to happiness, but the same does not apply to necessities. So isn’t the misfortune of those who are deprived of them real?",
    "Answer": "They are truly unfortunate only when they lack what is necessary for their life and the health of their body. Such deprivation is perhaps the result of their own making, and they can only blame themselves for it. If it has resulted from the wrong of another, the responsibility would fall upon the one who has caused it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "928",
    "Question": "Through the special nature of our natural aptitudes, God obviously shows to each one of us our vocation in this world. Don’t many misfortunes come from the fact that we are not following the right vocation?",
    "Answer": "That is true, and many times parents are the ones who, through pride or avarice, make their children deviate from the path outlined for them by nature, thereby compromising their happiness. They will be held responsible for having done so. You do not need to resort to absurdities and exaggerations. Civilization has its necessities. Why would the son of an upper class man become a cobbler if he can do other things? Individuals can always be useful according to their abilities if they are not applied to something they are not Earthly Joys and Sorrows meant for. For instance, instead of a bad lawyer, they could perhaps become a skilled mechanic, etc."
  },
  {
    "Id": "929",
    "Question": "There are people who are destitute of all resources even when there is abundance all around them, and who do not see any other solution to their problem except death. What should they do? Should they allow themselves to die of hunger?",
    "Answer": "People should never contemplate the idea of allowing themselves to die of hunger. They can always find the means to feed themselves if pride does not interpose itself between need and work. We frequently say that there are no dishonorable professions, and that it is not the job per se that is dishonorable – words we unfortunately apply more to others than to ourselves."
  },
  {
    "Id": "930",
    "Question": "It seems obvious that without the social prejudices that we allow to dominate us, we would always be able to find some sort of work that would enable us to make a living, even though in a lower position. Among those who have no such prejudices, however, or who put them aside, aren’t there those who are unable to provide for their needs as a result of illness or other causes independent of their will?",
    "Answer": "In a society organized according to the law of Christ, no one should die of hunger."
  },
  {
    "Id": "931",
    "Question": "Why are the suffering social classes more numerous than the fortunate ones?",
    "Answer": "No one is perfectly happy. Those who are looked at as fortunate often hide poignant afflictions. Suffering is everywhere. However, in response to your thought I will say that what you call the suffering classes are more numerous because the earth is a place of expiation. When humans have finally transformed it into the habitat of the good and of good spirits, men and women will no longer be unhappy in this world. It will be a terrestrial paradise for them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "932",
    "Question": "Why do the wicked of this world usually exert a great influence over the good?",
    "Answer": "Because the good are not assertive. The wicked are scheming and daring, whereas the good are timid. The moment they want to, the latter will prevail."
  },
  {
    "Id": "933",
    "Question": "If people are usually the artisans of their material sufferings, are they also the artisans of their mental sufferings?",
    "Answer": "Even more so, because their material sufferings are sometimes independent of their will, while wounding pride, frustrating ambition, avaricious anxieties, envy, jealousy – in short, all the passions – comprise the torments of the soul. “Envy and jealousy! Happy are they who do not know those two voracious worms! Wherever envy and jealousy exist, there can be no calm, no repose. For those who suffer from these maladies, the objects of their longings, their hatred and their spite appear before them like ghosts which do not leave them in peace and which pursue them Earthly Joys and Sorrows even in their sleep. Envious and jealous individuals live in a continual feverish state. Is that a desirable situation? Can’t you understand that with such passions people create intentional punishments for themselves, and that the earth becomes a true hell for them?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "934",
    "Question": "Doesn’t the loss of loved ones cause us suffering and act as a legitimate source of sorrow since such loss is both irreparable and independent of our will?",
    "Answer": "This cause of sorrow strikes both the rich and the poor. It comprises a trial or expiation and a law for all. It is a consolation, however, to be able to communicate with your friends through the means available to you while awaiting other ways that are more direct and accessible to your senses."
  },
  {
    "Id": "935",
    "Question": "What about the opinion of people who regard communication with those beyond the grave as a sacrilege?",
    "Answer": "There can be no sacrilege where there is reverence and when the evocation is made with respect and propriety. The proof of this is that the spirits who have affection for you take pleasure in coming to you, and they rejoice in being remembered and in being able to converse with you. There would only be sacrilege if evocations were made frivolously."
  },
  {
    "Id": "936",
    "Question": "How does the inconsolable sorrow of those who remain on earth affect the spirits who are its object? Earthly Joys and Sorrows",
    "Answer": "A spirit is sensitive to the memory and grief of those it has loved, but persistent and unreasonable sorrow affects it grievously because it sees in such excess a lack of faith in the future and trust in God, and consequently, an obstacle to progress and perhaps to their reunion in the spirit world."
  },
  {
    "Id": "937",
    "Question": "Aren’t the disappointments caused by ingratitude and by the fragility of the ties of friendships also a source of bitterness for the human heart?",
    "Answer": "Yes, but we have already taught you to feel pity for ungrateful and disloyal friends. They will be unhappier than you are. Ingratitude is the child of selfishness and selfish individuals will sooner or later encounter hearts as hard as their own. Just think of all those who have done more good than you, who are more worthy than you, and who have been repaid with ingratitude. Remember that during his life Jesus himself was scoffed at, despised, and treated as a villain and an impostor. So do not be surprised when the same happens to you. Let the good you have done be your reward in this world and do not worry about what those who have benefited from it say. Ingratitude serves to test your persistence in doing good. It will be credited to you, and those who have been thoughtless toward you will be punished to the same extent that they have been ungrateful."
  },
  {
    "Id": "938",
    "Question": "Couldn’t the disappointments caused by ingratitude harden the heart and make it insensitive?",
    "Answer": "That would be unfortunate because persons with heart, as you say, will always be happy for the good they have done. They know that if the good they have done is not Earthly Joys and Sorrows remembered in the present life, it will be in another, and the ingrate will then feel shame and remorse. Yes, if they were to prefer a selfish happiness, a very sad happiness! However, if they know that the ungrateful friends who desert them are unworthy of their friendship, and that they have been mistaken about them, they will no longer regret losing them. Later on, they will find friends who are more understanding. You should pity those who treat you in a way that you do not deserve, because they will suffer a sad recompense. Don’t let yourselves be afflicted by them: it is a means for you to raise yourselves above them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "939",
    "Question": "Since sympathetic spirits are led to meet one another, why is it that among incarnate spirits affection is frequently only one­-sided, and sincere love is received with indifference or even repulsion? Moreover, can’t the liveliest affection between two persons turn into dislike and sometimes hatred?",
    "Answer": "Can’t you understand that this may be a punishment, albeit a passing one? Besides, how many are there who think they are deeply in love because they only judge physical appearance, but when obliged to live together they soon realize their judgment had only been based on physical passion? It is not enough to be enamored with someone who pleases you, and whom you suppose to be endowed with beautiful qualities; it is only by living together that you can appreciate each other. On the other hand, how many unions there are that at first seem to be incompatible, but which, in time, as both get to know each other better, are transformed into a tender and lasting love because it is founded on mutual esteem! You must not forget that it is the spirit who loves and not the body, and that once the physical illusion dissipates the spirit sees reality. “There are two kinds of affection: that of the body and that of the soul, and these are often mistaken for each other. When pure and sympathetic, the affection of the soul is lasting; the affection of the body is perishable. That is why those who believed they loved each other with an eternal love often end up detesting each other when the illusion has vanished."
  },
  {
    "Id": "940",
    "Question": "Isn’t the lack of sympathy between persons destined to live together also a source of suffering that is all the more bitter because it poisons their entire existence?",
    "Answer": "Very bitter, in fact. However, it is usually one of those misfortunes of which you yourselves are the main cause. In the first place, simply because your laws are at fault do you believe that God obliges you to live with those you dislike? Moreover, in such unions you almost always seek more to satisfy your pride and ambition rather than to enjoy the happiness of mutual affection. Thus, you suffer the natural consequence of your prejudices. Yes, and for that one it is a heavy expiation; however, the responsibility for such unhappiness will fall upon the one who has caused it. If the light of truth has reached the soul of the victim, faith in the future will provide consolation. Besides, to the degree that such prejudices are weakened, the causes of these private misfortunes will disappear."
  },
  {
    "Id": "941",
    "Question": "The worry over death is highly vexing to many people. Why such worry if they have the whole future in front of them?",
    "Answer": "It is wrong to have such apprehension, but what do you expect? Since early on, people have been persuaded that there is a hell and a heaven, and that they will most likely go to hell because they have been taught that whatever belongs to the realm of nature is a mortal sin for the soul. Thus, when they grow up, and if they have any reason at all, they can no longer accept such a belief and become atheists or materialists. It is thus that they are led to believe that nothing exists beyond the present life. As for those who persist in their childhood belief, they fear the eternal fire that must burn them without destroying them. “But death does not inspire any fear in the righteous, for faith gives them certainty about the future. Hope beckons them with a better life, and since they have practiced the law of charity, they have the assurance that in the world into which they will enter, they will not find anyone into whose eyes they will dread to look ."
  },
  {
    "Id": "942",
    "Question": "Won’t some people think that these counsels about happiness are a little banal? Won’t they see them as being commonplace or as platitudes, and won’t they say that the secret to happiness is to know how to bear up under misfortune?",
    "Answer": "There are those who say that, and they are numerous. Many of them, however, are like ill persons for whom the doctor has prescribed a particular diet: they would like to be healed without any medications and continue to hand themselves over to indigestion."
  },
  {
    "Id": "943",
    "Question": "Where does the dissatisfaction with life come from, which takes hold of some individuals without any plausible reason?",
    "Answer": "It is the effect of idleness, lack of faith, and usually, satiety. For those who employ their faculties with a useful purpose and according to their natural aptitudes, labor has nothing barren about it and life flows by more quickly. They bear life’s tribulations with patience and resignation because they look forward to the more solid and lasting happiness Earthly Joys and Sorrows awaiting them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "944",
    "Question": "Do people have the right to take their own life?",
    "Answer": "No! Only God has that right. Those who intentionally commit suicide commit a transgression against this law. Insane individuals who kill themselves do not know what they are doing."
  },
  {
    "Id": "944a",
    "Question": "Is suicide always intentional?",
    "Answer": "Insane individuals who kill themselves do not know what they are doing."
  },
  {
    "Id": "945",
    "Question": "What is to be thought of those who commit suicide because they are dissatisfied with life?",
    "Answer": "Folly! Why didn’t they work? Life would not have seemed so heavy to them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "946",
    "Question": "What about those who resort to suicide in order to escape from the troubles and disappointments of this world?",
    "Answer": "Poor spirits, who do not have the courage to bear the misfortunes of life! God helps those who suffer but not those who have neither strength nor courage. The tribulations of life are meant as trials or expiations. Happy are they who bear them without complaining, for they shall be rewarded! But woe to those who in their impiety hope to find salvation in chance! Chance or luck – to borrow their own language – may in fact favor them for a moment, but only to make them later and more cruelly feel the emptiness of their words. Unfortunate beings! They will have to answer for it as for a murder."
  },
  {
    "Id": "947",
    "Question": "Can those who have become disheartened with necessity and who allow themselves to die of despair be considered as having committed suicide?",
    "Answer": "It is suicide, but those who have caused it, or those who could have prevented it, are guiltier than those for whom clemency awaits. However, do not think they will be entirely absolved if they lacked firmness and perseverance, or failed to make the best use of their intelligence to get themselves out of their difficulties. They will be even more unfortunate if their despair was the child of pride; i.e., if they were one of those whose pride paralyzes their intelligence, who would be ashamed at having to earn their living by manual labor, and who would prefer to die of starvation rather than descend from what they call their social position! Isn’t there a hundred times more greatness and dignity in struggling against adversity, in braving the criticism of a futile and selfish society, which only shows goodwill toward those who lack nothing, and which turns its back on you in your time of need? To throw away one’s life because of the considerations of such a society is a stupid thing since society will not care about it in the least."
  },
  {
    "Id": "948",
    "Question": "Is suicide committed in order to escape the shame of an evil act as reprehensible as suicide committed out of despair?",
    "Answer": "Suicide does not erase the wrong. On the contrary, it is a second wrong added to the first. Those who have the courage to do evil should have the courage to bear the consequences. God is the one who judges. Moreover, depending on the cause, God can at times lessen its punishment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "949",
    "Question": "Is suicide excusable when committed in order to avoid bringing shame on one’s children or family?",
    "Answer": "Those who act under this belief do no good at all; however, they think they do, and God will take their intention into account, for their suicide will be a self- Earthly Joys and Sorrows imposed expiation. The wrong is mitigated by their intention, but it is a wrong nonetheless. Besides, if you would get rid of your social prejudices and abuses, you would not have any more suicides."
  },
  {
    "Id": "950",
    "Question": "What is to be thought of those who take their own life in the hope of arriving sooner at a better life?",
    "Answer": "Another folly! Let them do good and they will be surer to reach such a state. Their suicide will only delay their entrance into a better world and they themselves will ask to come back in order to complete the life that they cut short through a wrong-headed idea. A wrong, no matter what it may be, never opens the sanctuary of the elect to anyone."
  },
  {
    "Id": "951",
    "Question": "Isn’t the sacrifice of one’s life sometimes meritorious when it is made in order to save the lives of others or to be useful to one’s neighbor?",
    "Answer": "In accordance with such intention, it is sublime, and such a sacrifice of life is therefore not a suicide. However, God opposes a meaningless sacrifice and cannot look upon it with pleasure if it is tarnished by pride. A sacrifice is not meritorious unless it is selfless. Unfortunately, those who make such a sacrifice sometimes have ulterior motives, and this decreases its value in God’s sight."
  },
  {
    "Id": "952",
    "Question": "Is it considered suicide for those who die as victims of the abuse of their own passions, which they knew would hasten their end, but which they could no longer resist because habit turned their passions into true physical needs?",
    "Answer": "It is a moral suicide. Don’t you see that they are doubly guilty in such a case? They lack courage and yield to brutishness. Moreover, they forget about God. They are guiltier because they had time to reason about their suicide. For those who commit suicide on the spur of the moment, there is sometimes a kind of delirium that approaches insanity. The former will be punished much more than the latter because punishments are always in proportion to the awareness of one’s wrong-doing."
  },
  {
    "Id": "953",
    "Question": "When individuals see an inevitable and terrible death in front of them, is it wrong to shorten their suffering by a few moments through intentional death?",
    "Answer": "It is always wrong not to wait for the term set by God. Besides, how can they tell with certainty whether their time has indeed come – despite appearances – or whether they might receive some unexpected help at the last moment? Nevertheless, it displays a lack of resignation and of submission to the will of the Creator. As always, an expiation in proportion to the seriousness of the wrong, according to the circumstances."
  },
  {
    "Id": "953a",
    "Question": "What in this case are the consequences of such action?",
    "Answer": "As always, an expiation in proportion to the seriousness of the wrong, according to the circumstances."
  },
  {
    "Id": "954",
    "Question": "Is an imprudent act that compromises life without necessity reprehensible?",
    "Answer": "There is no culpability when there is no positive intention or consciousness of doing harm."
  },
  {
    "Id": "955",
    "Question": "Are the women who in some countries intentionally burn themselves to death over the body of their husband to be considered as having committed suicide, and must they suffer the consequences of it?",
    "Answer": "They obey a prejudice, and usually do it more out of coercion than of their own will. They believe they are fulfilling a duty, and this is not what characterizes suicide. Their excuse is their ignorance and their lack of moral development. Such barbarous and stupid customs will disappear with civilization."
  },
  {
    "Id": "956",
    "Question": "Do those who cannot bear the loss of loved ones and kill themselves in the hope of rejoining them accomplish their objective?",
    "Answer": "The result for them is much different than what they hoped for. Instead of being reunited with the objects of their affection, they keep themselves away from them even longer because God cannot reward an act of cowardice, an insult which demonstrates distrust in divine providence. They will pay for that moment of insanity with afflictions even greater than those they wished to shorten, and they will not have the compensation they had hoped for."
  },
  {
    "Id": "957",
    "Question": "In general, what are the consequences of suicide on the state of the spirit?",
    "Answer": "The consequences of suicide vary widely. There are no set penalties and in all cases they are always relative to the causes that produced them. One consequence, from which those who commit suicide cannot escape, however, is disappointment. Besides, the fate is not the same for all – it depends on circumstances. Some expiate their wrong at once, whereas others do so in a new life that will be worse than the one whose course they have interrupted."
  },
  {
    "Id": "958",
    "Question": "Why are human beings instinctively horrified of nothingness?",
    "Answer": "Because there is no such thing as nothingness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "959",
    "Question": "Where does our instinctive sentiment of a future life come from?",
    "Answer": "We have already told you: prior to its incarnation, the spirit knows all these things and the soul retains a vague memory of what it knows and of what it saw in its spirit state."
  },
  {
    "Id": "960",
    "Question": "Where does the belief in future rewards and punishments, which is found in all cultures, come from?",
    "Answer": "It is always the same thing: a presentiment of reality imparted to human beings by their spirit. You should know that it is not uselessly that an inner voice speaks to you; your mistake is in not listening to it. If you thought well and frequently about this, you would make yourselves better."
  },
  {
    "Id": "961",
    "Question": "At the moment of death, what is the dominant sentiment in most people: doubt, fear or hope?",
    "Answer": "Doubt for hardhearted skeptics, fear for the guilty and hope for the good."
  },
  {
    "Id": "962",
    "Question": "Why are there skeptics since the soul brings the sentiment of spiritual things to everyone?",
    "Answer": "There are fewer skeptics than you might think. During life, many pretend they are bold out of pride, but at the moment of death they cease being boastful."
  },
  {
    "Id": "963",
    "Question": "Is God concerned personally with each individual? Isn’t God too great and aren’t we too small for each individual in particular to have any importance in the divine sight?",
    "Answer": "God is concerned with all created beings, no matter how small they may be. Nothing is too small for God’s goodness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "964",
    "Question": "Must God be concerned with each of our actions in order to reward or punish us? Aren’t most of such actions insignificant to God?",
    "Answer": "God has established the divine laws that regulate all your actions. If you violate them, the fault is yours. Obviously, when people commit an excess, God does not pronounce sentence on them by saying, for example, ‘You are a glutton and I am going to punish you.’ But God has set a limit: maladies, and sometimes death, are the consequences of excess. Thus the punishment – it results from breaking a law. Everything happens this way. I have given you the rules to follow and all the necessary implements for rendering this field productive, thereby ensuring your living. I have taught you how to understand those rules. If you follow them, your field will yield abundantly and will furnish you repose in your old age. If you do not follow them, it will yield nothing and you will die of hunger."
  },
  {
    "Id": "965",
    "Question": "Is there anything material about the joys and sorrows of the soul after death?",
    "Answer": "They cannot be material since the soul is not matter. Common sense says so. There is nothing carnal about future joys and sorrows, and that is why they are a thousand times more vivid than those experienced on earth. Once disengaged from matter, the spirit is more impressionable; matter no longer weakens its sensitivity."
  },
  {
    "Id": "966",
    "Question": "Why do human beings have such crude and absurd ideas about the joys and sorrows of the future life?",
    "Answer": "Because their intelligence is not yet sufficiently developed. Does the child comprehend in the same way as the adult? Besides, it also depends on how they have been taught – that is the point at which there is the most need for reform. “Your language is too incomplete to express what exists beyond your reach. Thus, it has been necessary to make comparisons, and you have taken such images and figures as reality itself. However, as people become more enlightened, they better comprehend the things that their language cannot express."
  },
  {
    "Id": "967",
    "Question": "What does the happiness of good spirits consist of?",
    "Answer": "In knowing all things; in feeling no hatred, jealousy, envy, ambition or any of the passions that make people unhappy. The love that unites them is a source of supreme happiness. They do not experience the needs, sufferings or anxieties of material life. They are happy with the good they do. Moreover, the happiness of spirits is always in proportion to their progress. Actually, only the pure spirits enjoy supreme happiness; however, this does not mean the others are unhappy. Between the evil ones and the perfected ones, there is an infinity of gradations, in which enjoyments are proportioned to their moral state. Those who are already sufficiently advanced understand the happiness of those who have reached that state before them and they aspire to it, but for them it is a reason for emulation and not jealousy. They know that it depends on their own efforts to reach it and they labor toward that end with the calmness of a pure conscience. They are happy at no longer having to suffer what is endured by evil spirits."
  },
  {
    "Id": "968",
    "Question": "You place the absence of material needs among the conditions of happiness for spirits. But isn’t the satisfaction of those needs a source of enjoyment for humans?",
    "Answer": "Yes, the gratification of their animal passions. When they cannot satisfy those needs, it is torture."
  },
  {
    "Id": "969",
    "Question": "What are we to understand when it is said that pure spirits are gathered in the bosom of God and employed in singing praises to God?",
    "Answer": "It is an allegory to give you an idea of the knowledge they possess about the perfections of God because they see and comprehend God. Like all other allegories, however, you must not take it literally. Everything in nature sings, from the grain of sand on up, proclaiming the power, the wisdom, and the goodness of God. But you must not suppose that the blessed spirits are absorbed in eternal contemplation. That would be a monotonous and dull happiness, and furthermore, a selfish one because their existence would be an unending uselessness. They no longer suffer the tribulations of corporeal life, which in itself is already an enjoyment. Later, as we have told you, they know and comprehend all things, and they make use of the intelligence they have acquired by aiding the Future Joys and Sorrows progress of other spirits. That is their occupation, and at the same time, it is their enjoyment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "970",
    "Question": "What do the sufferings of low order spirits consist of?",
    "Answer": "They are as varied as the causes that produce them and are in proportion to their degree of impurity, in the same way that enjoyments are in proportion to their degree of purity. We can thus sum them up: coveting everything they lack to be happy but not being able to obtain it; seeing happiness but being unable to attain it; regret, jealousy, rage and despair arising from everything that keeps them from being happy; remorse and an indescribable mental anguish. They long for all sorts of enjoyments but cannot satisfy them. That is what tortures them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "971",
    "Question": "Is the influence exerted by spirits over one another always good?",
    "Answer": "It is always good on the part of good spirits, of course. However, perverse spirits endeavor to draw aside from the path of repentance and the good those whom they think are susceptible of being misled, and whom they often led into evil during their earthly lives. No, but the action of evil spirits is much less significant over other spirits than over human beings because other spirits are no longer sustained by material passions."
  },
  {
    "Id": "971a",
    "Question": "So death does not deliver us from temptation?",
    "Answer": "No, but the action of evil spirits is much less significant over other spirits than over human beings because other spirits are no longer sustained by material passions."
  },
  {
    "Id": "972",
    "Question": "In what way do evil spirits tempt other spirits since they cannot count on the passions to help them?",
    "Answer": "Although the passions no longer exist in the material sense, they still exist mentally in little-evolved spirits. They lure their victims to places where they can witness the spectacle of those passions and everything that arouses them. That is precisely what comprises their torture: misers see gold that they cannot possess; debauchees see orgies that they cannot take part in; the haughty see the honors that they envy, but which they cannot enjoy."
  },
  {
    "Id": "973",
    "Question": "What are the greatest sufferings evil spirits have to endure?",
    "Answer": "It is utterly impossible to describe the mental tortures that are the punishment for some crimes. The actual spirits who suffer them find it difficult to give you an idea of them, but assuredly, the most frightful is the thought of being condemned forever."
  },
  {
    "Id": "974",
    "Question": "Where does the doctrine of eternal fire come from?",
    "Answer": "An image taken as reality – like so many others. See for yourself whether or not it even restrains those who teach it. If you teach things that reason will later reject, you produce an impression that will be neither durable nor healthy."
  },
  {
    "Id": "974a",
    "Question": "But couldn’t this fear lead to a good result?",
    "Answer": "See for yourself whether or not it even restrains those who teach it. If you teach things that reason will later reject, you produce an impression that will be neither durable nor healthy."
  },
  {
    "Id": "975",
    "Question": "Do low order spirits comprehend the happiness of the morally upright?",
    "Answer": "Yes, and that is what tortures them, for they understand that they are deprived of it due to their own fault. That is why the spirit, freed from matter, aspires to a new corporeal existence. It knows that each existence, if well employed, will shorten the duration of that torment. With that in mind, it chooses the trials that will expiate its wrongs. You must remember that the spirit suffers for all the wrong it has done or which it has intentionally caused, for all the good that it might have done but didn’t, and for all the evil that resulted from the good it failed to do. “The discarnate spirit is no longer enveloped by the veil of matter. It is as though it has emerged from a fog and sees what is keeping it from happiness. Hence, it suffers even more because it understands the extent of its guilt. For the spirit, illusion no longer exists; it sees things as they really are."
  },
  {
    "Id": "976",
    "Question": "Is the sight of suffering spirits a cause of affliction for the good ones, and if so, does it disturb their happiness?",
    "Answer": "It is not an affliction, because they know that such evil will end, and they help the others in their betterment by lending them a helping hand. That is their occupation and a joy when they succeed. If they did not see your sufferings, it would mean they are estranged from you after death. Religion tells you that souls continue to see you but that they regard your afflictions from another point of view – they know that your sufferings will aid your advancement if you bear them with resignation. Such spirits are more afflicted by the lack of courage that holds you back than by the sufferings they know are only temporary."
  },
  {
    "Id": "977",
    "Question": "Since spirits cannot hide their thoughts from one another, and since all the acts of their lives are known, does it follow that those who are guilty continually see their victims as being present?",
    "Answer": "Common sense tells you that it cannot be otherwise. More than you might think, but it only lasts until it has expiated its wrong-doing either as a spirit or as an individual in new corporeal existences."
  },
  {
    "Id": "978",
    "Question": "Doesn’t the memory of the wrongs committed by a soul while still imperfect disturb its happiness even after it has purified itself?",
    "Answer": "No, because it has atoned for its wrongs and has come forth victorious from the trials to which it had submitted itself for that very purpose."
  },
  {
    "Id": "979",
    "Question": "Aren’t the trials it still must undergo in order to complete its purification a heavy concern that disturbs its happiness?",
    "Answer": "In the case of the soul that still remains tainted, yes. That is why it cannot enjoy perfect happiness until it is entirely pure. Nonetheless, for the soul who has already progressed, the thought of the trials it still must undergo has nothing painful about it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "980",
    "Question": "Is the link of affinity that unites spirits of the same order a source of happiness for them?",
    "Answer": "The unity of spirits who are attuned to one another through the good is one of their greatest joys because they do not have to fear seeing that unity disturbed by selfishness. On entirely spiritual worlds, they form families animated by the same sentiment, and from that they derive their spiritual happiness – the same as on your world when you group yourselves into categories and enjoy a certain pleasure when you get together. The pure and sincere affection they feel, and of which they are the object, is a source of happiness. There are neither false friends nor hypocrites among them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "981",
    "Question": "Regarding the future state of the spirit, is there any difference between those who have feared death and those who have looked upon it with indifference or even with joy?",
    "Answer": "The difference can be very great, although this is usually obliterated by the causes that produce such fear or desire. Those who fear death or those who desire it may be moved by very different sentiments, and it is these sentiments that will influence a spirit’s future Future Joys and Sorrows state. For instance, it is obvious that those who desire death only because it will put an end to their troubles are, in reality, complaining against Providence and against the trials they must endure."
  },
  {
    "Id": "982",
    "Question": "Is it necessary to make a profession of faith in Spiritism and to believe in the manifestations in order to ensure our well-being in the next life?",
    "Answer": "If that were so, then all those who do not believe in them, or who have not had the opportunity of learning anything about them, would be disinherited, which is absurd. Only the good ensures one’s future well-being. The good is always the good, whatever the path that leads to it."
  },
  {
    "Id": "983",
    "Question": "Since a spirit who expiates its wrongs in a new life undergoes physical suffering, is it correct to say that after death the soul experiences only mental suffering?",
    "Answer": "It is very true that the tribulations of life represent a suffering for the reincarnated soul, but it is only the body that undergoes physical suffering. “You usually say that a dead person no longer suffers, but this is not always true. As a spirit it no longer suffers physical pain, but depending on the wrongs it has committed, it may have mental sufferings still more severe, and in a new existence it may be even unhappier. Those who have wasted their wealth will in turn beg and suffer the privations of poverty; the proud will undergo humiliations of every kind; those who have abused authority and have treated their subordinates with disdain and harshness will be forced to obey masters who are even harsher. All the punishments and tribulations of life are expiations for wrongs of another life when they are not the consequence of wrongs committed in the present one. When you have departed your present life, you will understand this better. (See nos. 273, 393, 399) “Those who believe themselves to be happy on earth because they can satisfy their passions are those who make the least effort at self-improvement. Frequently, they begin to expiate such ephemeral happiness in this life but they will certainly atone for it in another existence as material as this one."
  },
  {
    "Id": "984",
    "Question": "Are the troubles of life always punishment for current wrongs?",
    "Answer": "No. We have already told you that they are trials imposed by God or chosen by you yourselves in the spirit state before your reincarnation in order to expiate the wrongs committed in a former life. No infraction of the laws of God, and especially of the law of justice, ever remains unpunished, and if punishment is not experienced in this life, it certainly will be in another. This is why persons whom you regard as morally upright frequently still feel the consequences of their actions from past existences."
  },
  {
    "Id": "985",
    "Question": "Is the reincarnation of a soul on a less dense world a reward?",
    "Answer": "It is a consequence of its purification, for as spirits become purified, they reincarnate on successively better worlds to the point where they completely rid themselves of all matter and moral imperfections in order to eternally enjoy the bliss of pure spirits in the bosom of God."
  },
  {
    "Id": "986",
    "Question": "Can spirits who have progressed during their terrestrial existence sometimes reincarnate on the same world?",
    "Answer": "Yes, if they have not been able to accomplish their mission and if they ask to complete it in a new existence; however, in that case, it is no longer an expiation for them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "987",
    "Question": "What becomes of those who, without doing evil, nevertheless do nothing to shake off the influence of matter?",
    "Answer": "Since they have made no progress towards perfection, they must begin a new existence similar to the one they have left behind. They remain at a standstill, and thus can prolong the suffering of their expiation."
  },
  {
    "Id": "988",
    "Question": "There are persons whose lives flow in perfect serenity, and having no worries, they are entirely free of concerns. Is their happy existence evidence that they have nothing to expiate from any former existence?",
    "Answer": "Do you know many like that? If you think you do, you are mistaken. Usually, such serenity is no more than apparent. They could have chosen such an existence, but when they leave it behind they perceive that it has not helped them to progress. Then, like those who have been idle, they regret the time they wasted. Bear in mind that spirits cannot acquire knowledge and evolve except through activity. If they choose to rest in a worry-free existence, they do not advance. They are like those who, according to your customs, need to work but go for a walk instead, or go to sleep in order to avoid it. Also bear in mind that each of you will have to answer for any intentional inactivity during your life, and that such uselessness is always fatal to your future happiness. The sum of future happiness is always exactly in proportion to the sum of the good you have done. In the same way, your unhappiness is always in proportion to the sum of the evil you have done, and to the number of those whom you have made unhappy."
  },
  {
    "Id": "989",
    "Question": "There are persons who, although not positively wicked, make everyone around them unhappy because of their character. What is the consequence of this for them?",
    "Answer": "Such persons are assuredly not good. They will expiate this wrong by the sight of those whom they have made unhappy, and this will comprise a constant reproach for them. Then, in another existence, they will endure all that they have caused others to endure."
  },
  {
    "Id": "990",
    "Question": "Does repentance take place in the corporeal or the spirit state?",
    "Answer": "In the spirit state. But it may also take place in the corporeal state when you clearly comprehend the difference between good and evil."
  },
  {
    "Id": "991",
    "Question": "What is the consequence of repentance in the spirit state?",
    "Answer": "The spirit’s desire for a new incarnation in order to purify itself. It comprehends the imperfections that have kept it from being happy and it aspires to a new existence in which it can expiate its wrongs."
  },
  {
    "Id": "992",
    "Question": "What is the consequence of repentance in the corporeal state?",
    "Answer": "Advancement while in the present corporeal life – if one has the time to mend one’s wrongs. Whenever your conscience reproaches you or shows you an imperfection, you may always improve yourselves."
  },
  {
    "Id": "993",
    "Question": "Aren’t there individuals who have an instinct for evil only and who are incapable of repenting?",
    "Answer": "I have told you that the spirit must progress without ceasing. Those who in this life have only an instinct for evil will have an instinct for the good in another one, and that is why they are reborn many times. All must advance and reach the objective at their own pace, more quickly or more slowly, according to their desire. Those who only have an instinct for the good are already purified because they might have had an instinct for evil in a prior existence."
  },
  {
    "Id": "994",
    "Question": "Do wicked individuals, who during their life did not recognize their wrongs, always recognize them after death?",
    "Answer": "Yes, they always recognize them and suffer even more because they regret all the evil they did or of which they were the intentional cause. Nevertheless, repentance is not always immediate. There are spirits who obstinately persist in doing wrong in spite of their suffering; but sooner or later they will see that they have taken an erroneous path and repentance will follow. It is for their enlightenment that good spirits work, and towards which you yourselves should work."
  },
  {
    "Id": "995",
    "Question": "Are there spirits who, although not wicked, are nonetheless indifferent about their fate?",
    "Answer": "There are spirits who do not occupy themselves with anything useful, keeping themselves in a state of expectancy. They suffer in proportion to their inactivity, however, and since everything must lead to progress, such progress is realized through suffering. Undoubtedly they do, but they lack the willpower for what it would take to alleviate it. How many individuals among you would rather die poor than work?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "995a",
    "Question": "Don’t they desire to shorten their suffering?",
    "Answer": "Undoubtedly they do, but they lack the willpower for what it would take to alleviate it. How many individuals among you would rather die poor than work?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "996",
    "Question": "Since spirits see the harm that results from their wrongs, how is it that some aggravate their position and prolong their state of imperfection by doing evil as spirits and turning people aside from the path of the good?",
    "Answer": "Some spirits put off their repentance. Furthermore, a spirit who repents can afterward still allow itself to be drawn back onto the immoral path by spirits who are even less evolved."
  },
  {
    "Id": "997",
    "Question": "We sometimes see spirits who are notoriously imperfect, but who are open to the good sentiments and prayers made on their behalf. How is it that other spirits whom we might believe are more enlightened show a callousness and cynicism impossible to break?",
    "Answer": "Prayer is only effective in the case of spirits who repent. Those who, driven by pride, revolt against God and persist in their wrong-doings, multiplying them further as unfortunate spirits do, cannot and never will receive the benefits of prayer until the day the light of repentance dawns on them."
  },
  {
    "Id": "998",
    "Question": "Is expiation accomplished in the corporeal state or in the spirit state?",
    "Answer": "It is accomplished in the corporeal existence through the trials the spirit must undergo, and in the spirit life through the mental sufferings arising from its state of imperfection."
  },
  {
    "Id": "999",
    "Question": "Is sincere repentance during life sufficient to extinguish a spirit’s wrongs and enable it to merit God’s grace?",
    "Answer": "Repentance helps to improve the spirit, but the past must nevertheless be expiated. If he persists in the thought of evil, his expiation will be all the longer and more painful."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1000",
    "Question": "Can we redeem our wrongs in the present life?",
    "Answer": "Yes, by making reparation for them. Do not suppose, however, that you can redeem them through a few childish privations or through donations after your death when you no longer need your assets. God does not value a sterile repentance, which is always easy and costs no more than mourning by beating on one’s chest. The loss of a finger in rendering a service effaces a greater number of wrongs than mortifying one’s whole flesh for years without any other purpose than one’s own self-interest. (See no. 726) “Evil can only be atoned for by means of the good, and reparation does not have any merit if it does not strike human beings in their pride or their material interests. “What good would it do on our behalf if after our death we were to restore property which we acquired wrongly, and which we had thoroughly enjoyed during life, but which is now of no further use to us? “What good would it do to be deprived of a few useless and superfluous enjoyments if the evil we had done to someone remained in place? “Lastly, what good would it do to humble oneself before God if we maintained our pride in dealing with others?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "1000a",
    "Question": "interest. (See no. 726)",
    "Answer": "Evil can only be atoned for by means of the good, and reparation does not have any merit if it does not strike human beings in their pride or their material interests. “What good would it do on our behalf if after our death we were to restore property which we acquired wrongly, and which we had thoroughly enjoyed during life, but which is now of no further use to us? “What good would it do to be deprived of a few useless and superfluous enjoyments if the evil we had done to someone remained in place? “Lastly, what good would it do to humble oneself before God if we maintained our pride in dealing with others?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "1001",
    "Question": "Is there any merit in ensuring that after our death the property we have left behind will be put to good use?",
    "Answer": "Merit is not quite the right term, but it is always better than doing nothing. Unfortunately, those who only give after their death are usually more selfish than generous – they want the honors of charitable acts without having to practice them. Those who deprive themselves during life have a double advantage: the merit of sacrifice and the pleasure of witnessing the happiness of those whom they have benefited. Selfishness, however, is always ready to whisper that whatever you give away will deprive you of your own enjoyment, and since selfishness speaks louder than selflessness and charity, people hold on to their possessions under the pretext that they are necessary for satisfying their needs and the requirements of their position in society. Pity those who do not know the pleasure of giving, for they have really deprived themselves of one of the purest and sweetest enjoyments of humankind. In Future Joys and Sorrows subjecting them to the trial of wealth – so slippery and dangerous for their future – God has wished to give them by way of compensation the happiness of generosity, which they can enjoy right now in this world."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1002",
    "Question": "What can be done when at their death individuals recognize their wrongs but do not have the time remaining to make amends? Is repentance enough in such a case?",
    "Answer": "Repentance hastens their rehabilitation but it does not absolve them. Don’t they have the whole future ahead, which will never be closed to them?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "1003",
    "Question": "Is the duration of the sufferings of the guilty in the future life arbitrary or subordinate to some law?",
    "Answer": "God never acts capriciously and everything in the universe is ruled by laws that reveal the divine wisdom and goodness."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1004",
    "Question": "What determines the duration of the sufferings of the guilty?",
    "Answer": "The length of time required for their improvement. Since the state of suffering or happiness is in proportion to a spirit’s degree of purification, the duration and nature of its sufferings depend on the time it takes to improve itself. As the spirit progresses and its sentiments become purer, its sufferings diminish and are changed to the same extent."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1005",
    "Question": "Does time for a suffering spirit seem longer or shorter than when it was incarnate?",
    "Answer": "It seems longer because sleep does not exist. It is only for spirits who have reached a certain degree of purification that time is effaced, so to speak, in the face of the infinite."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1006",
    "Question": "Can the duration of a spirit’s suffering be eternal?",
    "Answer": "Of course, if it were to remain eternally evil; that is to say, if it were never to repent or improve itself, it would then suffer eternally. However, God has not created beings eternally devoted to evil. They were only created simple and ignorant, and all of them must progress over a longer or shorter period of time according to their own free will. This will can be belated to various degrees, just as there are children who are precocious to various degrees. Sooner or later, however, it will manifest itself by the irresistible need the spirit feels to leave its state of imperfection and to be happy. The law that governs the duration of suffering is therefore eminently wise and beneficent. It subordinates that duration to the spirit’s own efforts, never depriving it of its free will. If it makes a bad use of it, it will have to bear the consequences."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1007",
    "Question": "Are there spirits who never repent?",
    "Answer": "There are spirits who put off their repentance, but supposing that they will never improve would be to deny the law of progress and to assert that the child will never become an adult."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1008",
    "Question": "Does the duration of punishments always depend on the spirit’s own will or are there punishments that are imposed on it for a specific length of time? Future Joys and Sorrows",
    "Answer": "There are punishments that can be imposed on it for a specific length of time, but God, who wills only the good for God’s creatures, always welcomes its repentance. The spirit’s desire to improve is never fruitless."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1009",
    "Question": "Accordingly, the punishments imposed are never eternal?",
    "Answer": "Consult your own common sense and reason, and ask yourselves whether an eternal condemnation for a few moments of error would not be a negation of God’s goodness. In fact, what is the duration of a life, even if it were to last a hundred years, in comparison to eternity? Eternity! Can you understand that word? Suffering and torture without end and without hope for only a few wrongs! Doesn’t your reason reject such an idea? That the ancients saw in the Master of the Universe a terrible, jealous and vindictive God is understandable. In their ignorance, they attributed the human passions to the deity, but that is not the God of the Christians, who extols love, charity, mercy and the forgetfulness of offenses as the highest virtues. Wouldn’t God have the qualities that God demands as a duty? Isn’t there a contradiction in attributing to God both infinite goodness and infinite vengeance? You say that above all God is just and that humans do not understand the divine justice. Justice, however, does not exclude kindness, and God would not be kind in condemning most creatures to a horrible and everlasting punishment. Could God make justice obligatory for everyone if they were not given the means to comprehend it? Besides, isn’t justice sublime when, allied with goodness, it makes the duration of punishment depend on the efforts of the guilty to improve themselves? Therein you will find the truth of the precept ‘to each according to his deeds.’ Through all the means within your reach, strive to combat and to eradicate the idea of eternal punishment, a blasphemous notion against the justice and goodness of God and the most abundant source of the incredulity, materialism, and indifference that have pervaded the masses from the time their intelligence began to develop. The spirit who has just left the state of ignorance or is about to become enlightened quickly comprehends this monstrous injustice. Its reason rejects it, and then more often than not, the spirit equates the eternal punishment that it rejects with the God to whom it attributes this condemnation. From this arise the innumerable ills that have fallen upon you, and whose remedy we have come to bring you. The task we have pointed out will be much easier to accomplish, since the authorities from whom the defenders of this belief have sought support have avoided a formal pronouncement on this regard. Neither the Councils nor the Church Fathers tackled this serious question. Following the Evangelists themselves and taking Christ’s allegorical words literally, if Christ did in fact threaten the guilty with unquenchable, eternal fire, there is absolutely nothing in Christ’s words that proves they are condemned for all eternity. “Poor lost sheep, learn to behold the Good Shepherd, who approaches you and who, far from wanting to banish you forever from his presence, comes to find you in order to lead you back to the fold. Prodigal children, leave your willful exile. Turn your path toward the Father, who opens his arms to you and who is always ready to celebrate your return to his family. Wars of words! Wars of words! Haven’t you shed enough blood? Are the inquisitional fires to be rekindled once again? You argue over expressions such as ‘eternal suffering’ and ‘eternal punishment’. Don’t you know that what you understand today by eternity was not understood in the same way by the ancients? Let theologians consult the sources and like you they will discover that the Hebrew text does not give the word the same meaning that the Greek, the Latin, and modern translations have rendered as everlasting and unpardonable punishment. The ‘eternity’ of the punishment corresponds to the evil that has occurred. Yes, so long as evil exists among humans, punishments will continue. It is in this relative sense that the sacred texts should be interpreted. Eternal punishment is therefore relative and not absolute. A day will come when all humans will don the garments of innocence through repentance, and on that day there will be no more groaning or gnashing of teeth. It is true that your intelligence is limited, but even at this stage it is still a gift from God, and with the help of reason there will not be one single human of good faith who could possibly understand eternal punishment in any different way. Eternal punishment! How could that be? Only if we believed that evil was also eternal! But only God is eternal and God could not have created eternal evil. If such were the case, we would have to deny one of the most beautiful divine attributes: supreme power, for God would cease to be supremely powerful the moment God introduced a destructive element into creation. Humanity! Humanity! No longer immerse your somber glance in the depths of the earth, searching for these punishments. Weep, hope, expiate and take comfort in the thought of a God who is infinitely good, absolutely powerful and essentially just. The objective of humankind is to gravitate toward divine unity. For divine unity to occur, three things are necessary: justice, love and knowledge. There are three things that are contrary to and oppose this unity: ignorance, hatred and injustice. I must tell you that you lie about these fundamental principles when you compromise the idea of God by exaggerating God’s severity. Furthermore, you doubly compromise it when you allow the spirit of the creature to think that the creature itself possesses more clemency, gentleness, love, and true justice than you attribute to the Infinite Being. You destroy the very idea of hell by rendering it as ridiculous and unacceptable to your minds as the horrendous spectacle of the executions, the burnings at the stake and the tortures of the Middle Ages is to your hearts! How can the idea of hell be sustained at a time when blind reprisals have been banished from human laws? Believe me, brothers and sisters in God and in Jesus Christ; believe me and either resign yourselves to letting all the dogmas you hold to be unalterable perish in your hands, or breathe new life into them by opening them up to the benevolent explanations good spirits are now giving concerning them. The idea of a hell with its glowing furnaces and boiling cauldrons might be tolerated or admissible in a mythological age. In the nineteenth century, however, it is nothing more than an empty phantom that only serves to frighten little children, who will no longer believe in it once they have grown up. If you persist in such a frightening mythology, you will engender disbelief, the origin of every sort of social upheaval. I tremble at the idea of an entire social order shaken and crumbling upon its very foundations for lack of a penal sanction. People of ardent and living faith, vanguards of the day of the light, let us join efforts, Future Joys and Sorrows not to maintain old fables that are now discredited, but to revitalize the true penal sanction under forms that correspond to your customs, your sentiments and the enlightenment of your era. “Who in fact are the guilty? Those who through a transgression, through a wrong impulse of the soul have distanced themselves from the objective of their creation, which consists in the desire for goodness and beauty as idealized by the human embodiment of perfection, the divine model: Jesus Christ. “What is punishment? It is the natural consequence of that wrong impulse, the amount of pain necessary for the guilty through the trials of suffering due to their transgression. Punishment is the goad that arouses the soul through its affliction to turn toward itself, to return to the path of salvation. The objective of punishment is none other than rehabilitation and redemption. Wanting punishment to be eternal for a wrong which is not eternal is to deprive it of its reason to exist. “Truly I say to you, stop comparing eternity in terms of the good, which is the essence of the Creator, with evil, which is the essence of the creature – an approach that ends up creating unjustifiable penalties. Rather, affirm the gradual diminution of punishments and penalties through successive reincarnations and you will consecrate divine unity through reason and sentiment."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1010",
    "Question": "Is the doctrine of the resurrection of the flesh a reference to reincarnation as taught by the Spirits?",
    "Answer": "How could it be otherwise? This expression is similar to so many others that only appear to be nonsensical to those who take them literally and are driven to disbelief. However, give it a logical interpretation, and those whom 60 Tartarus was a section of Hades, the underground abode of the dead in Greek mythology which was reserved for punishing the worst offenders – Tr. you call freethinkers will accept it without difficulty precisely because they are able to rationalize it. Make no mistake, such freethinkers want nothing more than to believe; like everyone else – perhaps even more so – they long for the future, but they cannot accept what is absurd to reason. The doctrine of the plurality of existences conforms to the justice of God and it alone can explain what is otherwise inexplicable. Why do you wonder that this principle is found in religion itself?"
  },
  {
    "Id": "1011",
    "Question": "Then in the dogma of the resurrection of the flesh, does the Church teach the doctrine of reincarnation?",
    "Answer": "That is obvious. This doctrine is the consequence of many things which have gone unnoticed and which will soon be properly understood. Before long, the Church will realize that Spiritism relates at every step to the very text of the Holy Scriptures. Therefore, the Spirits have not come to subvert Christianity, as some claim; on the contrary, they have come to confirm and sanction it through irrefutable proofs. And since the time has arrived to replace figurative language, they speak without allegories and give things a clear and precise meaning that cannot be the object of any wrong interpretation. That is why it is simply a matter of time before there will be more sincerely religious and believing persons than there are today."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1012",
    "Question": "Are there circumscribed places in the universe that are intended for the punishments and pleasures of spirits according to their merits?",
    "Answer": "We have already responded to this question. Punishments and joys are inherent to the degree of a spirit’s perfection. Each spirit carries within itself the source of its own happiness or unhappiness, and since spirits are everywhere, there is no circumscribed or enclosed place for one or the other. As for incarnate spirits, the degree of their happiness or unhappiness depends on the evolution of the world they inhabit. They are no more than figures of speech – happy and unhappy spirits are everywhere. Nevertheless, as we have also told you, spirits of the same order gather together through their mutual sympathy. When perfect, they can meet wherever they desire."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1013",
    "Question": "What is to be understood by",
    "Answer": "purgatory Physical and mental suffering; it is a period of expiation. It is almost always on the earth that you make your own purgatory, and that is where God enables you to expiate your wrongs."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1014",
    "Question": "How do you explain the fact that spirits who are known to be Future Joys and Sorrows highly evolved because of the language they use have given to serious individuals answers on hell and purgatory that are in line with commonly accepted ideas?",
    "Answer": "They speak a language that can be understood by the individuals who question them. When such individuals are highly imbued with certain ideas, these spirits do not want to shock them too suddenly in order not to harm their convictions. If a spirit were to forget about verbal precautions and to say to a Muslim that Mohammed was not a prophet, it would be very poorly received. When they are of a low order and are not completely dematerialized, spirits retain a portion of their earthly ideas and translate their impressions using terms that are familiar to them. They find themselves in surroundings that do not permit them to probe the future except in a deficient way. This is the reason why errant or recently discarnated spirits usually speak just as they would have if they were still incarnate. Hell may be translated as meaning a life of extremely painful trials with the uncertainty that it will ever end. Purgatory is also a life of trials, but with the awareness of a better future. Whenever you are suffering a great deal of pain, don’t you say that you are suffering like hell? These are also nothing more than words uttered as a figure of speech."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1015",
    "Question": "What should be understood by a tormented soul?",
    "Answer": "An errant and suffering soul, uncertain about its future, and to whom you can provide the solace it frequently begs for when it comes to communicate with you."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1016",
    "Question": "In what sense should the word heaven be understood?",
    "Answer": "Do you believe that it is a place like the Elysian Fields of the ancients, where all the good spirits are confusedly crowded together with no other concern than that of enjoying an eternity of passive bliss? No. It is universal space – the planets, the stars and all the highly evolved worlds on which spirits enjoy all their faculties without the tribulations of material life or the anguish inherent to less evolved stages."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1017",
    "Question": "Some spirits have said that they inhabit the fourth, the fifth heaven, etc. What is meant by this?",
    "Answer": "You asked them which heaven they inhabit because you have the idea of many superimposed heavens resembling the stories of a house; thus, they merely responded according to your own language. However, for them, the words fourth or fifth heaven express different degrees of purification, and consequently, of happiness. It is the same when a spirit is asked if it is in hell. If it is unhappy, it will say yes, because for it hell is synonymous with suffering, although it knows very well that it is not a furnace. A pagan spirit would respond that it is in Tartarus."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1018",
    "Question": "In what sense should we understand the words of Christ,",
    "Answer": "My kingdom is not of this world? Christ was responding figuratively. He wanted to say that he only reigned over pure and unselfish hearts. He is in every place where love and goodness rule; however, humans, greedy for the things of this world, are attached to the things of earth and not to him."
  },
  {
    "Id": "1019",
    "Question": "Will the kingdom of the good ever be realized on earth?",
    "Answer": "The good will reign on earth when, among the spirits who come to inhabit it, the good outnumber the evil ones. They will then enable love and justice – the source of goodness and of happiness – to reign on earth. It is through moral progress and the practice of the laws of God that humans will attract good spirits to the earth and repel the evil ones. However, the evil ones will only leave after humans have banished pride and selfishness from the planet. “The transformation of humankind has been predicted, and the time has come for all progressive individuals to hasten it. It will be implemented through the incarnation of more-evolved spirits, who will comprise a new generation on the earth. Then the spirits of evil, who are reaped daily by death, and all those who try to deter the forward advancement of things will be excluded, for they will be out of place among humans of high morality, whose happiness they would disturb. They will go to newer, less-advanced worlds to fulfill pain-filled missions, where they will be able to labor for their own progress and at the same time labor for the progress of their brothers and sisters who are even less advanced. Don’t you see in such an exclusion from a transformed earth the sublime image of Paradise Lost? Also, don’t you see in the humans who have come to the earth under similar conditions, bringing within themselves the seeds of their passions and the traces of their primitive inferiority, the no-less sublime image of original sin? Considered in this way, original sin refers to the still imperfect nature of humans, who are only responsible for themselves and for their own wrongs, and not for those of their parents. “All of you, men and women of faith and goodwill, work therefore with zeal and courage for the great work of regeneration, for you will reap a hundredfold the grain of wheat that you have sown. Unfortunate are those who close their eyes to the light, for they are preparing long centuries of darkness and sorrow for themselves! Unfortunate are those who place all their joys in the things of this world, for they will suffer more privations than the pleasures they have had. And above all, unfortunate are the selfish, for they will not find anyone to help them bear the burden of their miseries. Every man for himself. Do not allow yourselves to be disquieted by opposition. Everything Conclusion they do against you will turn to your advantage, and your greatest adversaries will serve your cause, in spite of themselves. Against the will of God, the ill-will of human beings shall not prevail. Apart from the phenomena, Spiritist philosophy explains to me what no other has ever explained. Through simple reasoning, I find in it a rational explanation of the problems that interest me the most – those of my future. It provides me with peace, security and confidence. It frees me from the torments of uncertainty, rendering the material aspects of life secondary. If it contains only what is Conclusion found in the Koran, it is useless and should therefore be burned; if it contains anything else, it is evil and should be burned. The purest light is not eclipsed by any cloud; the flawless diamond is the one of greatest value, so judge the Spirits by the purity of their teachings. Do not forget that among spirits there are those who have not yet freed themselves from the ideas of earthly life. Learn to distinguish them by their language; judge them by the sum of what they tell you; see whether there is logical sequence in their ideas, and whether there is anything in what they say that reveals ignorance, pride or malevolence; in other words, whether their expressions are always marked with the stamp of wisdom that reveals true superiority. If your world were inaccessible to error, it would be perfect, but it is far from perfection because you are still learning to distinguish error from truth. You need the lessons of experience to exercise your judgment Conclusion and to enable you to evolve. Unity will be found on the side where good has never been mixed with evil. It is on that side that people will be connected with one another through the force of circumstances, for they will realize that the truth lies there. “Besides, what do a few variances that are more a matter of form than depth matter? Observe that the fundamental principles of Spiritism are the same everywhere, and must unite you all in a common thought: the love of God and the practice of the good. Therefore, no matter what may be the mode of progression that is accepted or the normal conditions of your future existence, the final aim is always the same: doing good, and as you know, there are not two ways of doing it. For a long time, humans have torn at one another and have anathematized one another in the name of a God of peace and of mercy, offending God through such sacrilege. Spiritism is the bond that will someday unite them, for it will show them where the truth is and where the error lies. For some time to come, however, there will continue to be scribes and Pharisees who will deny it as they denied the Christ. Would you like to know which spirits influence the various sects that divide the world? Judge them by their deeds and by their principles. Good spirits have never instigated evil; they have never counseled or condoned murder and violence; they have never aroused party-hatreds, the thirst for wealth or the greed for earthly things. Only persons who are good, humane and benevolent toward all are their favorites as they are also Jesus’ favorites, for they follow the path that leads to him."
  }
]