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Spiritism is a collection of philosophical principles and laws, revealed through spirit communications, which were compiled and codified by Allan Kardec during the 1850's. The Doctrine of Spiritism as defined by Allan Kardec, also known as Kardecist Spiritism or Kardecism, can be described as a philosophical doctrine with moral implications.
Spiritist Societies or Spiritist Centers are non-profit organizations dedicated to the study, practice, and spreading of the knowledge of spiritual laws, with its implications in religious philosophy and science. This is the body of knowledge we call Spiritism. It explains where we come from, the purpose of life, and the reason for suffering. The word “Spiritism” was coined in 1857, to distinguish it from Spiritualism, by the French Professor and Educator whose pen name was Allan Kardec. Its scientific aspects and its moral and religious precepts, have been studied and practiced for approximately 150 years.

Summary of the Principles of Spiritism (Kardecist Spiritist Doctrine or Kardecism):

Philosophy: God: God is the Supreme Intelligence of the Universe and First Cause of All Things. The Creator is All Love, All Just, and All Powerful. Spirit: Spirits are the intelligent beings of the creation. The community of all spirits connected, form a greater unity, which is the Spirit. From the perspective of the spirit world, humans are incarnated spirits; this implies that in essence we are all spirits having a human experience. Human Duality: A human being has a physical (biological) body and a soul (or spirit). From the human perspective there are two planes of existence, the material (physical) and the spiritual (ethereal) worlds, which constantly interact upon each other. Law of Cause and Effect: For every action there is a reaction. In other words, "we reap what we sow". This implies self responsibility. Our actions, positive or negative, will have a similar effect on ourselves either in our present life, or in the the spirit world (afterlife), or in future incarnations (reincarnation). The Law of Cause and Effect is an expression of Divine Justice. This is why the Golden Rule makes perfect sense, "do unto others what you want others do unto you". Law of Progress: Spirits evolve intellectually and morally. During their evolution, spirits go through different hierarchical levels. Spirits progress by setting their own path towards relative perfection and by working on it. Having human experiences is part of the spiritual evolution process. Spiritual progress is always open to all. It is through the practice of Love, Forgiveness, and Compassion that we facilitate our own soul progression. Law of Affinity: Like attracts like. This law applies to the spirit world and to communications between spirits and humans; that is the phenomena called mediumship. In the spirit world, spirits tend to organize in groups that have similar level of vibration (level of spiritual evolution). The Law of Affinity applied to mediumship states that persons endowed with this faculty are more easily able to communicate with the spirits in the spirit world when they are in a mental state where they can tune to the vibrations of the communicating spirits. Jesus Christ: According to the numerous spirit communications received from various trusted sources, the man named Jesus of Nazareth was the most spiritually advanced and morally superior spirit to have incarnated on this Earth. His mission was to provide us with a living example of the level of love, goodness, and values that human beings can attain on this planet. Spiritists consider Jesus to be a model for all humankind and strive to follow Jesus' teachings. That is why many Spiritists call themselves Christians.

Reincarnation: Reincarnation allows evolution of the soul. Spirits reincarnate into successive material existences in order to evolve intellectually and morally. Humans have a degree of free will while living on planet Earth, although they are subjects to natural laws including the Law of Cause and Effect. When spirits return to their home in the spirit world, they have the option to come back to Earth for another life lesson. Most spirits choose this option many times. The goal of reincarnation (or soul evolution) is to reach relative perfection. Then reincarnation is no longer necessary and there is no need for suffering. Human beings determine their own path by the choices they make in this process. To love, to forgive, and to be compassionate are some of the lessons spirits should learn to apply while incarnated on Earth. The spirits of human beings do NOT reincarnate into the bodies of animals. Reincarnation is soul evolution, this implies that regression to less evolved life forms in not possible. Each person’s actions or non-actions (in thought, word, and deed) are subject to the Law of Cause and Effect. Each person must, during their material existences, expiate and atone for its current and past life indiscretions, and make appropriate reparations. This allows for spiritual balance and soul progression. We always receive assistance throughout our spiritual journey from spirit guides assigned to us. We are responsible for any wrongs we have committed, and for any good we could have done, but failed to do. In some cases spiritual progress may be very, very slow. It may take myriads of material existences to reach our goal. But, the path of redemption is never closed and ALL can reach relative perfection and communion with God. There is no such place as a “Heaven” or a “Hell” -- our behavior and the choices we make determine our set of circumstances and our conditions, in the material world and as well as in the spirit world. There are many inhabited worlds in the Universe. Spirits incarnate as human beings on our planet Earth, but they can also incarnate in other inhabited worlds of the universe. Also, spirits from other worlds (more or less developed than Earth) can incarnate in our planet. We are told that at any given time there are a lot more disincarnated spirits (in the spirit world) than there are incarnated in all inhabited worlds, so as world population grows there is always plenty of spirits ready to incarnate in the new physical bodies.