The Spiritist Review - Journal of Psychological Studies - 1862

The Spiritist Society of Paris could not forget the brothers of Lyon in their suffering. Since November the Spiritist Society of Paris has promptly established a beneficent lottery with the pledge of 260 Francs, organized by several groups of this city. But Spiritism is not exclusive. To Spiritism all human beings are brothers and sisters and owe mutual support to one another, irrespective of their beliefs. Willing to give its donations to the general contribution the Society created a fund-raising at Rue de Sainte Anne 59 whose proceeds will be transferred to the general fund-raising account of the journal Le Siècle.


A letter from Lyon addressed to Mr. Allan Kardec informs that an anonymous Spiritist has just sent them directly the amount of 500 francs. May this generous benefactor, whose anonymity we respect, receive the gratitude of all members of the Society!


A spirit known by the characteristic and graceful name of Cárita and whose mission seems to be to stimulate beneficence towards the needy dictated the letter below that was sent to us from Lyon. Like us, the readers will also place it among the nicest productions from beyond the grave. May that letter awaken in all Spiritists their sympathy towards their suffering fellow human beings! The same seal of goodness and simplicity marks every work of Cárita. Once evoked at the Parisian Society she said to have been Saint Irene, the empress.


To the Parisian Spiritists who sent 500 francs to the poor of Lyon, thank you!


“Thank You! You with your generous heart were able to understand our appeal, and who have come to the aid of your unfortunate brethren. Thank you! Your offering will heal many wounds and alleviate much suffering. Thank you! You guessed that this golden fruit that you sent will be able to temporarily appease hunger and light up long ago extinct fire places.”


“Thank you! Specifically because you were able to disguise the good deed under the cover of anonymity. However, if you disguised the generous thought of being useful to your fellow human beings, like the violet occult under the leaves, there is a Lord from whom your hearts cannot keep any secret and who knows the origin of this beneficent drizzle that came to invigorate more than one overheated mind, keeping misery away from the dreaded poor mothers.”


“God, who sees everything, knows the secret of the anonymous and will compensate those who had the inspiration of helping the poor victims of circumstances beyond their control. God, my friends, likes that incense that comes out of your hearts and that also practices charity and sympathizes with the pain of others. He appreciates, above all, this devotion and this abnegation that goes shy before any portentous recognition, preferring to shelter its modesty underneath simple initials. But God has attached every blessing to the name of the benefactor because, as everyone knows, the outpouring of joy experienced by rescued hearts reaches God and as he sees those transports of joy resulting from your help he annotates the appropriate reward in the big ledger of the spirit.”


“If you could hear those kind emotions, those timid notes of sympathy issued by the miserable ones when receiving the two cents, a celestial manna falling onto their shanties; if you could hear the child’s screams who do not understand that the bread is safe for a few days, you would feel happy and say: ‘Charity is kind and deserves to be practiced’. As you see, one does not need much to convert tears into happiness, particularly at the house of the worker who is not much used to frequent visits of happiness. If the poor ant that moves from breadcrumb to breadcrumb suddenly finds the whole loaf on its way, at the very moment when it was hopeless with respect to feeding its family, such a fortune seems so much incomprehensible that it only mumbles a few loose words followed by tears of tenderness.”


“Therefore, my friends, help these poor workers who’s sole hope is death in a hospital bed or beggary in the streets. Do it as much as you can so that when you are reunited by God, following the great avenue that leads to the great portal whose frontispiece holds the words Love and Charity, reuniting the benefactors and the benefited God tells you all: ‘You learned to give. You were happy for receiving. Come in! May the guiding charity that drove you here introduce you to the world that I reserve to those who stand for this flag: ‘Love one another.’

Cárita”

OBSERVATION: Who would believe that these words were dictate In any case, if it is the devil that guides us to charity there is no harm in doing that.