"So many are obsessed by spirits but are unaware." Eduardo Guimaraes, leader of the Inner Enlightenment Spiritist Society in Midtown Manhattan quickly pointed out that Spiritism is not a religion.
"It's a philosophy, a science that explains the origin and destiny of spirits." Angela Stewart sat next to him. She's the group's medium and is well known. They are both Brazilian. Spiritism, they conceded was misunderstood. "We are all spirits," Eduardo stated, "only that we are yet to shed our physical encasement. "Spiritism is not about Ouija boards and contacting familiar spirits," Stewart offered. "It's all about living a clean and moral life. This is what attunes you to your guardian angel and higher order spirits."
Stewart discovered her mediumistic gifts when she was only a girl. Unable to fathom the enormity of the experience, her parents dismissed it as an over-excited imagination, or just a psycho-emotional phase that trouble some children. "But some of the spirits were not friendly," Stewart said, recalling the escalation of these events as she grew much older, to a point "where 20 to 30 spirits were around my bed." She remembered them looking and talking about her. Guimaraes chimed in. "This is where the Spiritist doctrine can offer a comprehensive explanation."
Injecting the concept of reincarnation, he explained that Stewart had some kind of connection to these haunting spirits in her past incarnation (life). "A gifted medium is at first in contact with the lower order spirits, all of whom need prayers and assistance to improve their lot." It is this ontological grounding that makes Spiritism difficult to dismiss as merely satanic shenanigans. Guimaraes and Stewart have heard criticisms by Evangelicals that Spiritism is a practice wrought with deception. "Too many Christians adopt a literal interpretation of the Bible," Guimaraes responded. "All the prophets were mediums. They spoke of hearing, seeing, and dreaming. Of course, it was forbidden in Moses' time, because like everything else, it was abused for material things. Then Jesus came and his healing ministry was characterised by its mediumship."
Of her Evangelical counterparts, Stewart was incisive, referring to revival ministries as mediumistic, but with a glaring shortcoming. "They dance and speak unintelligibly (in tongues), but there is no lucid, enlightening message. They are really in touch with lower level spirits who they believe are of the Holy Spirit." Interestingly, Spiritists believe that "our actions and thoughts are witnessed, and even influenced by spirits." This concept of multiple dimensions, unfettered by time or space, is corroborated by quantum physics and mechanics. "This is why it's so essential to guard our thoughts and behaviour," Guimaraes advised. "We continuously do immoral things, drinking, drugs, illicit sex...you name it. We are consumed by negatives like jealously and greed. This explains why most of us are obsessed by negative spirits. This is the law of attraction at work."
Spiritism has responded and helped countless cases of obsession, a term it uses to describe persistently negative and destructive behaviours. "The majority of patients in psychiatric wards are obsessed by spirits, but medicine and psychology are unaware, or unwilling to adopt the time tested method that spiritists use. "We do not perform exorcisms like Roman Catholics. We do not call the obsessor, 'the devil' or 'evil spirit.' They are our misguided brothers and sisters who had some form of connection with the person they are troubling," said Stewart."In our fraternal meeting we counsel the obsessed person who is sent home and asked to pray and refrain from negative indulgences. Then, in our special meetings we invite, if not compel the obsessing spirit to speak through our medium.
"It is here that malevolence (hatred) is transformed through counselling and prayer. Only then can the obsessor move toward a higher plane," she continued.
According to Guimaraes, these sessions are only successful when the obsessed person makes a gallant effort to get well. "Only then can his guardian angel and good spirits intercede on his behalf. The higher order spirits will always respect your choice (for good or bad)." And commenting on the recently failed predication of the end of time, Guimaraes, rejecting the apocalyptic scenario, and basing his views on their codex, The Gospel of Spiritism, stated, "We will continue to see natural disasters and the reshaping of the world in some form, making us think deeply about life. What is important to know is that higher order spirits are returning, eventually creating a more fraternal life and the end of immorality. This process is slow, but inevitable,"
Dr Glenville Ashby, NY correspondent
The Guardian Media Group