If you HELP yourself then heaven WILL come to your aid 1

SOURCE: The Gospel according to Spiritism, chap. XXV: 1 to 5; Matthew, VII: 7-11

SYNTHESIS: 1 )- Ask and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in Heaven give good things to them that ask Him? (Matthew, 7: 7-11). 2 )- From an earthly point of view the maxim: Seek and ye shall find is the same as that other one: Help yourself and the Heavens will come to your aid. This is the base of the Law of Work and consequently the Law of Progress, since progress is the child of work, seeing that this puts into action the force of intelligence. God has given Man something more than He gave to animals, which is an incessant desire to better himself. It is this desire which impels him to seek out the best ways of improving his position in life, which duly leads him to make discoveries, to invent things, and to perfect the sciences because it is science which gives him what he lacks. But the amount of progress achieved by each person during a single lifetime is very small indeed, in most cases even imperceptible. How then could humanity progress without pre-existence of the soul? If the souls who daily live the Earth were never to return, then humanity would be constantly renewing itself with primitive elements, having everything still to do and learn. 3) - If God had exempted man from bodily work his limbs would have withered. If Ha had exempted him from intellectual work then his spirit would have remained in a state of infancy, or mere animal instinct. This is why He made work a necessity by saying: Seek and ye shall find; work and ye shall produce. (). 4) - If is by virtue of this principle that the Spirits do not help in sparing men the work of research by bringing them discoveries and inventions prepared and ready for use, in such a way that they would have nothing to do but accept what was put into their hands, without any inconvenience whatsoever, nor even to bend down and pick it up, nor yet to think about it. (). 5 )- From the moral point of view, these words of Jesus signify that if we ask for the light which will show us the way, it shall be given; if we ask for strength to resist evil, we shall receive it; if we ask for the assistance of the good Spirits, then they will come to accompany us, (). CONSIDERATIONS: Many religions do not consider the law of work in the same way as the spiritist doctrine, for the simple reason of not having understood that when God, in Genesis of Moses spoke: In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, (Genesis, 3:19.) it is interpreted dogmatically as punishment for the disobedience of having Adam and Eve eaten of the forbidden fruit. Allan Kardec explains that we have a lot to learn of those biblical allegories and really the Spiritism comes to enhance the law of work, explaining that it is not a punishment, but a means that God instituted for us to leave ignorance towards knowledge and evolution and to have progress with our own merit. God was able very well to have created men already with the angels' conditions, be in knowledge, be in morals, or be it in spiritual power, but no, God created us: Simple and ignorant", (The Spirits Book, Q. 115-121) with the potential of growing spiritually, because He gave us an eternal soul and He accompanies us on our progresses through the times molding us within our efforts, God is the potter we are the clay". (Isaiah, 29: 16 - 64:8) With the dogmatic doctrine of theology, Spiritism is alienated, because it can not accept the law of work as punishment, but as a blessing, a means by which God gives us the freedom and the opportunity of

Studied at Joana dArc, on 04/05/1999.

progress at our own speed and free will, accompanying us with the law of reincarnation: As many times as necessary", (The Spirits Book, Q. 169). for our improvement. And, Jesus advises us: "To Seek and find". (Luke, 10: 10) And on our asking for our needs, let us accept the Gospel that is full of pieces of advice for us to have faith and trust in God, Who does not abandon us and gives us a means for ourselves to communicate with Him and His kingdom, allowing us the mediunity All are more or less mediums, and it is in that second sight law that Jesus recommends: Ask and it shall be given you" (Matthew, 7:7), and that the Spiritism interprets: Help yourself and Heaven will come to your aid" (The Gospel according to Spiritism, 25: 1-5), is miracle and it is not, it is the second sight law instituted by God, that is in action, many already accept as natural law, others as privilege or sanctity; the man in common already accepts the telepathy as natural law, but not all of men have the same second sight degree, because man is still an unfinished work, God continues molding us to be according to His purposes, He has great plans for us," May His will be done". (Matthew, 6:10) We influence and are influenced and consequently we are what we think, and accordingly to what we think we form the attraction and retraction field, in other words, we attract or repel, actions, desires, passions, ambitions, vocations, etc. And, thence through the force of our will, we ask and receive from God or we seek and find according to faith and trust in God, if we are worthy, conscious or not, God helps us, without us noticing it, God is always in the rudder of our lives, compelling us to ascend for lives purer and purer, and then it will be good for us to accept Jesus' pieces of advice that He recommends: Seek and you will find, ask and shall be given you".(Luke, 10:9) The Spirits say yes they help us, but that they do not save us from our duty, from our work for our progress and evolution, Jesus has put those truths in synthesis: each one according to his works", (Matthew, 16:27). Well if God or the spirits made everything for us, Jesus would have taught: to each one according to the works of the Spirits or of God; but no, now in that case it is explained the spirits saying" Help yourself and the heaven will come to your aid", (The Spirits Book, Q. 663) there it is the law of fraternity and of love from Heaven to us and of us one to the other in: That ye love one another (John, 15: 12-17 - Romans, 13: 8) May God be with us as formerly today and always.

*****

I - behold THE fowls OF THE air 2 II - PROVIDE NOT GOLD IN YOUR PURSE
Source: The Gospel according to Spiritism, chap. XXV: 6 to 11. Matthew, VI 19-21; 25-34 and X: 9-15

SYNTHESES: I )- BEHOLD THE FOWLS OF THE AIR: 6 )- Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon Earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay on for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your Heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God clothe the grass of the field, which today is and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall He not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore, take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? Or What shall we drink? Or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. (Matthew, 6: 19-21 & 25-34) I )- Behold the fowls of the air: 7) - In a literal translation these words would be a denial of all providence, of all work and consequently of all progress. With this kind of principle Man would be limited to waiting passively. (). This could not have been the thought of Jesus, since this would be a contradiction of what He said on other occasions and also contradict the Laws of Nature. God created Man without clothes or shelter, but He gave him intelligence so as to be able to make them .(), God comprehends our necessities and provides for them when needed. Nevertheless, Man is insatiable in his desires and does not always know how to be contented with what he has. Possessing what is necessary is not enough for him; he demands that which is superfluous. Then Providence leaves him to himself. Frequently he becomes unhappy though his own fault, (). 8 )- The Earth will produce sufficient to feed all its inhabitants when Man discovers how to administer the benefits which it offers according to the Laws of Justice, Charity and Love for ones neighbor. When fraternity reigns amongst all peoples, as it does amongst the providencialist of any country, then the momentary superfluity of the one will overcome the insufficiency of another, and everyone will have what is necessary. Then the rich man will consider himself as one who possesses a great quantity of seeds. If ha shares them with others they will produce a thousand fold for himself and for others. (). Charity and fraternity are not decreed under law. If one or the other is not in the heart then selfishness will rule. Consequently it is the task of Spiritism to see that they both penetrate the heart of man. II - PROVIDE NOT GOLD IN YOUR PURSE:

Studied at Joana dArc, on 01/06/1999.

9 )- Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses, nor script for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for the workman is worthy of his meat. 10 )- And in whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, enquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence. And when ye come into a house, salute it. And if the house be worthy, let your peace be upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you. And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when you depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. Verily I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the Day of Judgment, than for that city (Matthew, 10: 9-15). 11 )- In those days there was nothing unusual in these words which Jesus directed to His apostles, on commanding them to announce the Glad Tidings for the first time. They were in accordance with the patriarchal customs of the Orient, when the traveler was always made welcome in the tent. But then in those days travelers were very rare indeed. Among modern peoples the development of travel has created new customs. (). With regard to those who cared neither to receive them nor to listen to them, did He tell His disciples that they should curse them, that they should impose the teachings upon them, or that they should use violence and force so as to convert them? No, He simply told them to go away and seek others who were willing to listen. Today Spiritism says the same thing to its followers. Do not violate any consciences. Do not force anyone to leave their faith in order to adopt yours. Do not communicate those who do not think as you do. Welcome all who come to join you, and leave in peace all those who are repelled by your ideas. Remind yourselves of the words of Christ. In other times the heavens were taken over by violence, but today they are taken over by mildness. (See chapter 4, items 10 & 11) CONSIDERATIONS: Really Allan Kardec is right in saying that if we take Jesus' words literally would be a denial of work and of progress. A lot of religions usually insist of our dependence in the providence to the point of turning itself in a blind faith, without incentive for evolution and progress, obviously it was not that what Jesus wanted to teach and the doctrine comes to elucidate that actually we are spirits in evolution. And, that God created us simple and ignorant, and that in the dance of our learning some times we are in the erraticidade, other times we are embodied to develop ourselves and to have progress in several experiences which may give us intellectual and moral development. Now, if man allowed himself to be passive dependent on God in the sense of God doing everything miraculously for him, he would not have any progress and, therefore, any merit. The same way that a blind faith in the providence does not give incentive for progressiveness.. It has already been said that in the east where one believes a lot in reincarnation, they accuse us of being an encouragement to leave for other life or other reincarnation what could be done today and that consequently would stay stagnated those who act like this. And, it was really proven that in a certain way many believers in reincarnation in the east are passive, they live the life without extra effort because they believe through a blind faith that they will have success in another reincarnation. Now, if "our works will follow us", (Matthew, 16: 27), the effort we may do, already in this life, for us to improve ourselves and to transform ourselves is already a work done and not postponed, what makes us say: yes, we should not worry as if we were to live once only, depositing faith and hope in the future, but we should not also abandon our efforts, saying Oh! It is difficult, I will leave for other life which will be easier. On the contrary, the law of causes and effects charges interests and it becomes more difficult on another life if we do not know to take advantage what life offers us now. Then we ought to know that we have to develop and to progress, that is the law. We know in practice that many spirits bring with themselves an intellectual and moral luggage to be wished for, quickly in the school, they show an accentuated development, not leaving doubts that they took very much advantage in their previous lives, while one sees children "hard headed", hard to understand things no matter how much one explains it to them.

It is because they did not take advantage in the past or they did not have the opportunity, consequently they have everything still to be learned, one has already heard been spoken of students who on seeing their incapacity of studying they get afflicted and become desperate and hopefulness, while other students with the same matters, feel themselves happy and qualified able and they do not understand the reason of their fellow students' despair. The reason is simple, in the past their fellow students would not have taken advantage of life and they entered in another life with empty hands, with everything to be done, everything to be learned, and they did not accompany the progress of the world, yes, the world is always progressing, because, that is the law, and unhappily when the Earth becomes a world of Regeneration, those who could not accompany that progress, will be forced to be reincarnated in a world of tests and atonements which will be the school compatible with the degree they may have reached. Therefore not all of us will be worthy of a world regenerator, however all will reach a superior degree according to the will of God, but they will have to pay until the last farthing, (Luke, 12: 59) that grace, that is the law. Then in Jesus' teachings, one sees that He does not come to give us Heaven so much easy, or everything that we may want, what He comes more is to point us the laws, (Matthew, 26: 52) and to recommend us to look after our spiritual lives with more devotion than the material ones. The spiritual life as it is the true life, it brings to the spirit consequently everything that he needs materially, he must not worry himself, since God will provide, and in the other end, who keeps material goods to the point of having so much that he leaves abandoned, to the moths and the thieves, (Matthew, 6:19) it can be stagnated, recommending yes, Jesus: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also", (Matthew, 6: 21). and that should worry more about the spiritual things, because we are eternal spirits, with that Jesus brought us assurety. If we accompany the Spiritist Doctrine, we will understand Jesus' teachings better and better, because now we are more mature we do not accept explanations or vain answers easily, such as: Oh, they are mysteries of God. Well then, Jesus announced; For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither anything hid, that shall not be known and come abroad (Luke, 8:17) that will not come to be revealed. Through the spirits we know that there is reincarnation and they explain openly without mysteries, what Jesus was not able to, but said: "I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now (John, 16: 12 - the Spirits book, 4: q. 166 to 188). Then, Jesus taught under a veil and if He was asked by the disciples He would answer: Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven, but to them it is not given" (Matthew, 13: 11). it is because not all would have condition to the light; for those who live in some blindness light can only be given little by little. Our body influences on the spirit, but it is the spirit that administers and controls the body, as well as the material life, that is why the more the spirit is pure, the more it can influence and dominate the matter, that is why Jesus said: Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you". (Matthew, 6: 33). It is because of that, that certain people of certain spiritual degree dominate the matter in such a way that everything they do turns right, it seems that God and the angels are besides them, if they enter in businesses they become rich, if they enter in science they become famous scientists, if they followed the moral and religious life they become great famous men, everything comes out well, if they choose to be doctors or teachers they reach fame in the same way, etc. Yes, it is the spiritual life that controls the material life, people (folk)... it is because of that, that it is worthwhile to study and to practice the Gospel and the Spiritist Doctrine, (The Gospel according to Spiritism, VI: 5) because it includes the two sides of life, the beyond and the on this material side, we are much happier in knowing the reasons of life, why we are born, why we die, why in the Earth and not in another planet, why to be born in Brazil and not in another country, why be poor and not rich, why the taste for music or for literature or even for philosophy, for religion, for science, etc. Why the impulse for progress, why the thirst for knowledge, faith, hope, enthusiasm, the willpower in overcoming obstacles, etc.

People, the spiritist doctrine already knows how to explain many of the subjects, however it is worth to remind that the Doctrine is not the owner of truth, if it was clear that we would abandon studying or learning,... the doctrine would turn lazy, we already have the doctrine since 1857 and we continue to learn, we already have the Christianity for 2000 years, but, we continue to discover through the Spiritist doctrine, the very beautiful, doctrine which Jesus brought. People, to be a spiritist and to be a Christian is the same thing, but what a difference there is, between the interpretation of the teachings which Jesus brought to the light of the spiritist doctrine, and the one of the doctrines of the "Christian churches", the difference is that with Spiritism there are no mysteries, Spiritism is emphatic to say, there is reincarnation, we are spirits that have already lived before and we will continue to live on. To be born, to live, to progress, to die and to live again, that is the law". (Obras Postumas - Lpide do
tmulo de Allam Kardec)

Have you already imagined the development that we extract, only in the philosophy of reincarnation, and much more still through the use of reason, which makes us conclude the existence of the reincarnation law and progress of the souls, in ascension towards God. Then, in this study of today, Jesus directs us to be men of welfare and to be servants of good works and to use the common sense in the use of material goods, for the good of the Spirit, for our development, in the increase of virtues gaining them in service to our neighbour, extracting from us our selfishness and changing us to altruists with the material goods which God puts to our favour. Using material goods as ascension stairways for the heavens, teaching us to have fraternity, teaching us to think high, explaining, do not make effort to collect fortunes where the moths corrode, therefore, Jesus teaches as the Spiritist Doctrine, the effort for the interior transformation and to be men of welfare (John, 5: 14 & 8:11), "the true spiritist can be recognized by their moral transformation and by the efforts they employ in order to dominate their bad instincts. (The Gospel according to Spiritism, 17: 4) Conquering ourselves we can help others, because our light shines, others will notice and they will ask us: what do we do for our transformation or which is our knowledge; Jesus knew and taught: first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brothers eye
(Matthew, 7: 4, 5)

Nobody is Christian or spiritist only for himself, everyone in all the spiritual degrees contribute one to the other, in other words, each other, and Jesus' recommendation is: This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you , (John, 15: 12), it is because the law of fraternity exists in the whole universe and it is only accomplished perfectly by love, love does not harm, love constructs, love caresses, it caresses, hugs, embraces, gives itself away, because love is the essence of God, God is love, and when, one disincarnates oneself love follows us, love is eternal, it is as to say: only good things are eternal, "And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity, (I Corinthians, 13: 13) St. Paul said: And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing (I Corinthians, 13: 3). May then God permit that we succeed in increasing our love a little bit, be it for ourselves, be it for our neighbour, let us follow Jesus and we will not walk in darkness, let us learn the illustrations of the good spirits. Because Spiritism did not come to stray us from Jesus' teachings or of Jesus Himself, but to complement, instruct, elucidate, incite to the good, and to synthesize: brethren, "Spiritists! Love one another, that is the first precept; educate yourselves is the second (The Gospel according to Spiritism, Chap., 6: 5). Jesus said: I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly (John, 10: 10). "God sent not His Son into t he world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved I came not to judge the world, but to save the word (John, 3: 17 - 12:47). God be with us, as formerly, today and always.

*****
PARABLE OF THE dry FIG-tree 3
Source: The Gospel According to Spiritism - chap. XIX: 8 to 10. Mark, XI: 12-14 and 20-23

SYNTHESIS: 8 )- And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, He was hungry: and seeing a fig-tree afar off having leaves, He came, if haply He might find anything thereon: and when He found nothing but leaves: for the time of figs was not yet. And Jesus answered and said unto it, no man eats fruit of thee hereafter forever. And His disciples heard it. And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto Him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursed is withered away. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass. (Mark, 11: 12-14 & 20-23). 9 )- The dried up fig tree is a symbol of those people appearing to have a tendency towards goodness, but who in reality produce nothing worthwhile. They are like the preachers who show more brilliance than substance, whose words have a superficial varnish to them in order to please the ear, but which on close examination reveal nothing substantial for the heart, and after having listened to them we ask ourselves of what benefit they have been. It also symbolizes all those who can be useful but are not; of all utopias, empty orders and doctrines without solid bases. What is most lacking in the majority of cases is true faith, productive faith, the kind of faith which moves the fibers of the heart, in a word the faith which moves mountains. (). This is to say that all orders and doctrines which have produced no good for humanity will be reduced to nothing. That all persons who are deliberately purposeless or idle, because they have not put into action the resources they have brought with them, will be treated as the fig-tree which dried up. 10 )- Mediums are the interpreters of the Spirits, supplying the lack of material organs through which they may transmit their instructions. Here is the reason why they are endowed with faculties for this purpose. In these present days of social renewal, they have a very special incumbency. They are like trees that are destined to supply spiritual sustenance to their brothers and sisters. (). God will take away the gift that has become useless in their hands, that seed from which they did not know how to bring forth fruit, and will allow them to fall into the hands of evil Spirits. CONSIDERATIONS: All creations demand evolution and progress, that is, from the seed that struggles to leave the soil... until the man who struggles to be happy and accomplished, and thereabout goes, is it not so? God waits for the fruits of His creation and it is giving that one receives! Each tree is hoped to give its fruit, in the law of causes and effects, with time the sap lack to give fruits cause the dryness of the tree, for that the spirits recommend that for a Spiritist Center to survive has to devote itself to works of good and of charity, as well as the one of fraternity! The running water because it maintains running stays alive, the stopped waters deteriorate, in other words, they die, and the same occurs with the second sight on service of the Master, it is to be used... Jesus said: Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savor, wherewith shall ye be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of man. (Matthew, 5: 13). To be the salt of the world does not mean to be preachers and divulgers of the doctrine of Jesus with fears of failing, but to live a condign love life the best than we can without been hypocritical or pretence owner of truth. God be with us, as formerly, today and always.
Notice: Please read "Parables and Teachings of Jesus" by Caibar Schutel.

Studied at Joana dArc, on 06/07/1999.

THE APOSTLES 4
Parables and Teachings of Jesus. Caibar Schutel and support aids.

SYNTHESIS: * The religious mission is always linked to two natures of workers: prophets and apostles; it is like this that it shows, it is diffused, and it is completed. * The Christian work is an evidence of what we affirm: the greatest prophet. John the Baptist announces the greatest envoy by God; Jesus Christ; and He in his turn, constituted apostles who take to men's understanding the divine thought. * John the Baptist, the maximum exponent of the ministry of the prophets, had for mission to announce the Redeemer's arrival, he is the great soul that as a wholesome dawn shone in the coming of the Christianity. * The apostles came to give execution to Christ's word. * In a narrative abbreviation it is impossible a meticulous reference to all the apostles. We congregated them, we gathered them, and we synthesized all of them in the apostle Peter who seems to be the official speaker of the group, according as is inferred of the Actions of the Apostles and of other evangelical passages. What we notice in Peter one sees more or less in all of them; simple men, rustic, out coming from the populace, sons of the people, Peter, very well could characterize the apostolic school. * Peter, there is no doubt, was one of the most loved disciples of Jesus, which in company of John and James, followed him in His cures and in the most imperious moments, especially in those in which were pointed out the most transcendent phenomena of the Christianity. * Along the highways, of the fields, of the cities, the disciples attended the phenomena of cures and expurgation of evil spirits, facts that should serve them as lessons for their future ministry. * In the Sea of Galilee... in the lake of Genesar... in Tabor, etc. * For occasion of the Resurrection, they saw and talked with the Nazarene, obtaining like this more firmness in their immortality convictions. * But it is good to point out that, in spite of all those transcendental lessons and vivificate, the apostles were only in truth, after Jesus leaving this world and sent them the Comforting Spirit, the Spirit of the Truth, when they were gathered in the cenacle of Jerusalem, they received him in the form of "fire tongs" and took place the execution of the promise that the Master had done to them, so that they could exercise their missionary task freely.

* The apostolic mission is of conversion and of regeneration under the basic dictates of love, synthesis of Christ's doctrine. The religious mission as runs across us, is not affected to the priests but yes to the apostles of all times. To these are fitted Christ's representation, in agreement with his doctrine in which the spirit surpasses the letter.
CONSIDERATIONS: * From the book" Controverter Cases of the Gospel". Paulo Alves Godoy. Editions FEESP, we transcribed the apostles' names: (PEDRO. Simo Pedro or Cefas (JOO. Joo Evangelista (TIAGO. Tiago Maior (TIAGO. Tiago Minor or Tiago son of Alfeu (TOM. Ddimo
4

Studied at Joana dArc, on 07/09/1999.

(MATEUS. Levi or Levi the Publican (TADEU. Judas Tadeu or Judas Libeu (SIMO. Simo Cananita or Simo, the Zealot (BARTOLOMEU. Natanael (ANDR. Andr, brother of Pedro (JUDAS. Judas Iscarioti or Judas of Kerioth (FELIPE. of Betsaida * From: "History of the Formation of the New testament". Pinheiro Martins (Publisher CELD). in agreement with the legend Matthew would have traveled in missionary task to Ethiopia (actually Kingdom of Kush or Nubia) where he was martyred. * To the apostle John, Jesus asked that he looked after His mother, later he become one of the leaders of the Christian community at Jerusalem, together with Peter and Tiago, brother of the Master. * Seemingly John went to preach to the Greek cities of Asia western Minor, settling in Efeso, where he took Maria, mother of Jesus, there she died and she was buried. * John was exiled for the island of Patmos by Emperor Dominiciano in 95 or 96 DC later he was freed and returned to Efeso where died and was buried about the year 100. * Tiago Major was arrested and executed in the year 42 by order of Herodes Agrippa. * Tiago, brother of the Master, nicknamed Justo, was martyred in Jerusalem in the year 62. * Peter exercised the apostolic activity in Palestine until the year 49, second a legend, Peter assumed the leadership in the Christian community of Rome in unknown date and it was there that he was crucified in the hill of Vatican, by Nero, in the year 64. Another version, however, says that he died in the year 67. Seemingly there is some research that speaks that he would have been crucified upside down, on his request, for not finding himself worthy of being crucified as Jesus was. * Judas Tadeu was devoted to Evangelization of Mesopotamia, later he was to be martyred in Beirut. * Mathias was chosen instead of Judas who committed suicide (Acts 1: 23-26). The apostles were also called of disciples or students (Mt. 11:1). Apostle literally means "as an angel, a messenger, he who gives a message, an ambassador, a police officer, a commissary." There are two types: 1-Men selected by Jesus as visual witness of the events of his life, listeners of His words and witness of His resurrection. 2- The converted after the resurrection as Barnabes and St. Paul.
(Collins Gem Dicitionary of the Bible. to See. James L. Dow, M. A.. Collins London and Glasgow)

CONSIDERATIONS: There is to be considered that although we call apostles the first 12 chosen by the Master one does not leave out to analyze that, for instance, Our Lady was an apostle, because she worked fervently (very hard) in the House of the Road.(Casa do Caminho). And, certain that expert of the Old Testament and companion of Jesus' life, it is obvious that in the House of the Road she taught, exemplified, and evangelized a lot of people, hence of having been, as one could say an apostle. There is to be seen, certain that Allan Kardec on service of Spiritism as Christianity re-alived was an apostle certainly out of time. There is to be considered that he was spoken of having been the apostle of common sense. And there is some who speak that Lon Denis was the apostle of Spiritism, because he continued Allan Kardec's work, leaving by us a great support of contributions and complementary works. Without a doubt, Lon Denis was apostle of the Master being considered that Christianism Revived and Spiritism is the same thing. One can even consider that the chosen apostles by Jesus were called of "Major Apostles" and all the others, who appeared after, of "Minor Apostles." Apostles or not many are called to the vineyard of the Master, to give their contribution although many are called and few are the chosen, but God gives opportunity to all, some are called in the morning some in the afternoon and others at almost nightfall. And, all will participate in the happiness of the crop reaping.

May God be with us as formerly, today and always?

***** RESIGNATION AND INDIFFERENCE 5

SOURCE: Parables and Teachings of Jesus. By Caibar Schutel (Matthew, V: 6): Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

SYNTHESIS: * Blessed are those who riot against the injustices, but they are resigned and calm. * Oh! Unto you, the indifferent ones, the accommodating ones, the cowards, the servile ones, who in self advantage applaud the injustices. * There is a lot of difference between resignation and indifference. * Resignation is the conformity active in the inevitable events of life. * Indifference to the passive submission to the depressing injustices. * Resignation is obedience to the ordinances of God. * Indifference in the sufferings is heart hardness and absence of submission to the divine Will. * Resignation is an excellent virtue, which we need to cultivate. * Indifference is manifestation of selfishness, which we need to extirpate. * Blessed are those who do not undergo the injustices of the Earth nor do they make a pact with the oppressors, the vile tributary of the high positions. Let us see the Spirits Book Q. 486: Question: Do Spirits take an interest in our misfortunes and our prosperity? Those who wish us well, are they grieved by the ills we undergo during life? Answer: "Good Spirits do you all the good they can, and rejoice with you in all your joys. They mourn over your afflictions when you do not bear them with resignation, because in that case affliction produces no beneficial result, for you are like the sick man who rejects the disagreeable draught that would cure him." Spirits' Book, Question. 740: Q. May not such calamities also constitute for man a moral trial, compelling him to struggle with the hardest necessities of his lot? Answer: "They are always trials, and, as such, they furnish him with the opportunity of exercising his intelligence, of proving his patience and his resignation to the Will of God, and of displaying his sentiments of abnegation, disinterestedness, and love for his neighbour, if he be not under the dominion of selfishness. REFLECTIONS: * We have a resignation example in Jobs person, in the Bible, he always accepted the will of God, and he was resigned and accepted his whole suffering. * We have example of indifference in the Good Samaritans parable, when we analyze that people were indifferent to the victim of thieves, because only the Samaritan volunteered to help the unhappy victim. CONSIDERATIONS: Could it be that God loves the indifferent people? Would He make arrangements for all the creatures or only for those who submit themselves to His Will? Let us see: There are rich people - there are poor people. There are beautiful people. There are ugly people. There are healthy people. There are sick people. There are healthy people - there are crippled people. There are dark people. There are white people. There are good people. There are bad people. There are religious people. There are irreligious people.
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Studied at Joana dArc, on 05/10/1999.

There are people, who are thankful. there are ingrate people. There are submissive people. there are rebellious people. There are sacred people. there are sinful people. There are resigned people - there are indifferent people. Which of these people God loves? God makes to rain for the good and for the bad. (Matthew, 5: 45) * The spiritist doctrine encourages resignation as well as it encourages charity and combats indifference as well as combats selfishness and pride! * Which is the spiritual degree in which we find ourselves? (Are Imperfect?) * Which is the degree of the world in which we now live? (That is, tests and atonements?) * St. Paul encourages resignation when he encourages. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content (Timothy, 6:8). Well, as we are imperfect we are more or less indifferent, although we may be offended in saying that, we ought, however, recognize the reality that although we are not indifferent in everything, should we want or not, sometimes we are, for instance, there is days that if we see a beggar we become touched, but there is days or moments that we pass them and we do not get moved, we may even mutter among lips (let him go to the Welfare Department), would it be because there is in Brazil so much poverty that it no longer touches us! Maybe, but the most reason is because we are indifferent by nature; would it be because the Brazilian is full of it and can not tolerate anymore! It is not well like this, because, if we see foreign tourists and we look at the beggars asking them aid, many times, we see them turning their face without them being touched. Therefore, it is of the human nature to be selfish and indifferent, not for being Brazilian or foreign, our moralization is only made with effort and good will! Which is the case of Allan kardec having concluded that: A good spiritist is known by the effort he does to overcome his bad inclinations or bad tendencies ( Obras Postumas, 58-5 - The Spirits book, Q. 919) It is of the spiritist doctrine that man develops, and that the sinner today is the saint tomorrow, thence the faith and hope that we are perfectible. Therefore our faith and hope that in future we shall be better, brings us comfort and desire to be perfect, what does not happen with people whose religiosity is founded in fears or prejudices, whose lives stay intimidated without will of doing some effort to get themselves better. Thence the knowledge that Spiritism brings us direct us and encourages us to live like Jesus a worthy life, in the constant conscience to be better than we are now, with the faith also that if we do not get in a lifetime we will get in another, "Is the number of incarnations the same for all spirits? - No; he who advances quickly spares himself many trials. Nevertheless, these successive incarnations are always very numerous, for progress is almost infinite. (The Spirits Book, Q. 169), thence do not lose hope, because it is a great comfort that the spiritist doctrine, already as a doctrine brings us! For this study to conclude, suits us to think that Jesus our exemplifier was who the most was resigned, living a life in favour of everyone, resigned in himself and in the last hour He asked the Father: O my Father, If it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. ( Matthew, 26: 39) which was the cup of His cruxification and added O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done. (Matthew, 26: 42) As for the indifference Jesus, obviously did not have any, the only one that seems, but is not, it was when the adulterous woman was brought by religious persons so that He might authorize them to stone her, but Jesus who knew well what was in their hearts ordered those who were without sins to throw the first stone and all of them went await.(John, 8: 7 - 11) In a certain way Jesus taught resignation, when he said: Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature". (Matthew, 8: 27). Oneself being and living resigned, it is to live submitted to the will of God, to have faith and trust in God, Who knows everything about us and does not allow us to suffer unnecessarily brings a blessing for us, and being this world, a world of tests and atonements, as it really is, where there is a lot of suffering, God does not allow us to live in this world much more time than it is necessary, for our apprenticeship. Let us submit then, to His will the more resignated possible to us. May God be with us as formerly, today and always.

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OATH 6
SOURCE: " Parables and Teachings of Jesus by Caibar Schutel.

SYNTHESIS: * The Gospel is a sword of two edges. * It is impossible to understand Spiritism without Christianity. * Jesus did not come to destroy the law of God. * To provoke the souls to be reborn in the Christian feeling it is made occupation to disentangle them from the sect interests, which arrest them to the yoke of dogmas. * Jesus' word cannot pass nor will a comma be removed from it. * To nobody condition is given nor for a hair thread to contradict the law of God. * The man of well, has for his life norm the Gospel. * The oath can be a human intuition, but not divine. * The Lord has endowed us with intelligence, reason and freedom so that we might not enslave ourselves to whoever may be. * Oath is a servitude condition which degrades. * The demand of oath had its beginning in the religious associations. * We need to free ourselves from the religions oppressors that explore the human conscience and enslave their reason. * Yes, yes, no, no, it is what is written; it is what accomplishes us to utter in our resolutions. CONCLUSIONS: Spiritism and Christianity is the same thing, however Spiritism prefers to identify itself as Christianism Revived, revived because the current Christianity diversified itself and dogmatized itself, it is spoken to be very strange from the Christianity that the first Christians knew, the Spiritism which is the doctrine that the Spirits brought is no more than the complement of Jesus' teachings and recalling the morals of the Master, as well as explaining Jesus' Doctrine. * The Christians of the century IV, believed in the saints' communion; * The first Christians believed in the multiplicity of worlds; * The first Christians believed in reincarnation; * The first Christians believed in resurrection, however not of the flesh, but of the soul with the spiritual body which we call perispirit; * The first Christians believed in the eternal life; * The first Christians believed in resignation; * The first Christians believed in the progress of the souls, that those who lived better would have merit before the Lord and they would be happy and those who did not have merit would not be consoled; * The first Christians believed in God with a simple and humble faith and little for the use of reason, because their use of reason, was not developed to them, because of that Jesus said: I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. (John, 16:12, 13) * The first Christians in their simplicity accepted Jesus and His doctrine joyfully, but even much happiness satisfactory admiration and trust, but for lack of a better understanding to everything that Jesus did they attributed to miracles and marvels of God, but as Jesus acted scientifically or within the laws of God, although they were misunderstood, all in their admirations attributed to miracles, thence Jesus saying: Verily, verily, I say
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Studied at Joana dArc, on 02/11/1999.

unto you, he that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. (John, 14:12). * The first Christians accepted Jesus and his teachings with great admiration and spontaneity, everything was revelation with Jesus, they satiated their hunger and thirst of spiritual knowledge and it could not have been in another way, because Jesus spoke and taught the truth. And, as Jesus divulged the truths of the Heavens and the Earth, Jesus obviously revealed to the first Christians that Him (Jesus) was: the way, the truth, and the life", (John, 14: 6) the truth, because He emanated the spiritual truth, the way because He exemplified a worthy life, and the life because He assimilated, he taught and He exemplified everything as a spiritual whole. He taught: it is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life (John, 6:63) Jesus taught that unhappily, many were dead, to God, thence, Jesus saying: But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead (Matthew, 8:32). However He reminded: I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. (Matthew, 22: 32). The first Christians were very privileged to have felt the presence of Jesus with His healthy and pure, (Luke, and 8:46). however Jesus did not stop being the same, until today and always, because He is pure in His promises. He loves us with the same affection, His doctrine if we assimilate it will stay with us forever, be it wherever we might be, His doctrine is life, because it will be with us accompanying us and growing in us. If we move from house, neighborhood or country, we are the same, the same person, the same entity, well then the reactions of Jesus' word sowed in us sprouts and blooms and shows itself, be it wherever we may be; being we embodied or not, if we followed Jesus in the world when incarnated, we are going certainly without a doubt continue to follow Him when we die, in other words, when we disincarnate. Because His doctrine is eternal because it is the truth, the truth which He Himself is the Ambassador, love generates love, love grows and love prevails and it does not wither away, wherefore it is an emanation of God that we assimilate. Jesus lived in consecrated love and exemplifying it, to follow Jesus, is also we seeking to live in love, will we get to reach it! Jesus exemplified for our instruction, education and understanding; little by little He tried to teach us virtuously, virtues in everything that is good, Jesus' virtues were countless, but as we are still in struggle with ourselves, in effort to transform ourselves in souls of well doing, it is good that we gain little by little some virtues, within love, let us see many and how many there are that we can name and make an effort to gain them: * There is tolerance. * There is faith. * There is hope. * There is the control of ourselves. * There is charity. * There is love. * There is indulgence. * There is kindness. * There is mercy. * There is piety. * There is understanding. * There is charity. Etc. And, in this study, Jesus teaches us to gain a virtue or virtues: The one of not judging our neighbour. Little by little Jesus molds us to a virtuous character: Judge not, that ye be not judged (Matthew, 7:1). "But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, Nay; for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil (Matthew, 5:37). What a difficulty for us to conquer this virtue, because we are habituated to criticize, to censure, to discuss, to insinuate, etc., from church against church, sects against sects, politicians or politics against politicians or politics, neighbors against neighbors; we find lacks in churches, lacks in governments, lacks in others, and indirectly we collect, we collect even in thought, we are executioners of one another, we are collectors of one another, we press each other; family presses family, family demands of family, family collects of their family; we demand from our bosses, from our teachers, from our doctors, we censure, we criticize, we collect, we judge,... Oh what a difficulty, what difficult, Jesus comes to ask something difficult for us to do, that is: For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again, (Matthew, 7:2) many said of Jesus: Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is

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an hard saying; who can hear it? (John, 6: 60) Imagine how difficult for us to practice that teaching thoroughly, and thoroughly... it will be included in our list: No gossiping", because it may create censorship, critic, may create judgment; in the list should also be added: "No reading of newspapers, because that is also gossip and it brings consequences even of thoughts, no news of TV, because it conditions us a state of being influenced from it such, in good or bad sense and consequently to judgments that fall to our favour or against us." Yes, Oh, My Jesus help us to practice the high teachings which you brought for us, for our moral and spiritual elevation; help us, oh Master, we feel inferior and unable, be Lord with us, with your understanding, be patient with us, it does seem that our learning will delay and will be long; help us oh, help us yes, because easy is us to say but difficult is us to practice, it is rare one hear from somebody the saying: Look I do not open my mouth against anybody, or this man is a saint." The very critic and censorship against ourselves is an action that can sometimes cause us feel badly, there are people who judge themselves criticized themselves to the point of becoming their own executioners, some come to committing suicide, that is not uncommon, others gain inferiorities against their own character and even may enter in guilt depressions, and they stop being the happy people they were; others get to suffer anxieties and depressions which begin without them paying attention, in the criticizing oneself, in blaming oneself, and in auto-judging. Oh, my Jesus, have compassion to such people, have patience for taking them to the solemnity knowledge and mental health, yes, my Master have patience with them and with us also Master; that maybe we are not better, we sometimes think to be strong and healthy, but, a mosquito is enough to bite us and we fall in bed, we think we are virtuous and wise and a bite is enough against our pride, we become soon ferocious and of shaky character. Yes, my Jesus, the teaching that You bring us today is deep and difficult of assimilation, but we give thanks to you, oh Master, because we know that you accompany us in this difficult life walk, in this corporal life, or in the as many necessary, for us to reach our learning. Thank you Master for being patient, it has already passed two thousand years and we still have difficulty of assimilating the teachings that you, oh Master hast brought for our good and for the good of our neighbour. Once again Lord thank you! St. Paul suggests that we should censure ourselves, but in the sense of to evaluate ourselves. He says: But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For every man shall bear his own burden. (Galatians, 6: 4, 5) There is in the Spirits Book, the following suggestion: Do what I myself used to do during my lifetime upon the earth. At the close of each day I examine my conscience, reviewed all that I had done, and asked myself whether I had not failed in some duty, whether some one might not have reason to complain of me. (The Spirits Book, Q. 919) For us to evaluate ourselves and improve ourselves and for us not to condemn ourselves. God be with us as formerly, today and always.

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JESUS AND THE CENTURION 7

SOURCE: " CAIBAR SCHUTEL, PARABLES AND TEACHINGS OF JESUS"; Matthew, VIII: .5 TO 13

SYNTHESES: And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, and saying Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heel him. The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. When Jesus heard it, he marveled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and has thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour. (Matthew, 8: 5-13). * Capernaum was one of the great cities of Galilee, close to the mouth of the river Jordon and it was in the commercial highway that went from the city of Damascus to the Mediterranean Sea and there the Romans had placed a complete militia of a hundred men under the direction of a command which they called Centurion. * A servant of the Centurion got sick and the Centurion asked Jesus to cure him. * Lucas, apostle of Jesus was from Capernaum (it suits to remind that St. Paul was converted in the road of Damascus). * The disease that had attacked the Centurions servant was paralysis. * The Centurion believed that Jesus would cure his servant at distance. * Jesus granted the request and cured him and praised the faith of the Centurion.
CONCLUSIONS AND CONSIDERATIONS:

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Cairbar Schutel, tries to elucidate for us that Jesus is the doctor of doctors, he raises the subject that there are a lot of people who want Jesus handy, many, or everyone calls Jesus in their homes. All want to see him by their side and some there are that intend to contain him in closets or then to devour him and to enclose him in their womb. A lot of people nowadays say, oh, how much I wish to have lived in Jesus' days, certainly they would learn with the Master to be good Christians, to walk with Jesus and with God, if sick of the body He would cure the body, if sick of the soul, He would cure the soul. But, in this study we have the example and teaching that Jesus cures at distance, be it distance of time or distance between Heaven and Earth. We also understand that the study brings us to mind that Jesus said: I am with you always, even unto the end of the world (Matthew, 28:20). :For he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee (Hebrews, 13:5), and it does not mean to say the end of century or millennium, but always and evermore accompanying us as much in incarnation as in the beyond. There is no doubt about that, but as we are still very material, we want Jesus materially present, because of our little faith as yet ignorance. But, in the faith of the Centurion we can learn how to have faith through understanding, logic and use of reason, because the Centurion was an authority man and he saw Jesus as a moral authority, moral of high spiritual form and he used the use of reason," Now if I give orders and soon they are accomplished, Jesus also giving their orders, their orders are accomplished." We the Spiritists or spiritist students have in common that the spiritist doctrine is through the use of reason, the doctrine spiritist does not admit blind faith, for instance, there is who says "the soul is a wind blow." The Spiritism is a science of the soul and requests more than that, it does not accept blind faith, without rhyme or reason, the doctrine demands and requests a deep explanation and it begins: What is the soul? What is God?
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Studied at Joana dArc, on 07/12/1999.

What is the present? What is the future? Where did we live? Where will we live in the future? And thereabout it goes on, those who do not want to think nor to have his own conviction lets himself be wrapped up even by any explanation blind that might be, but the spiritist wants much more, the spiritist wants to know and for that he searches, investigates, researches and he does not allow himself to be taken by fairy tales and that is how it should be, Jesus said: Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you", (Matthew, 7:7) in our spiritual freedom we can not be tied up to ingrained ideas, our spirit wants to be free and to fly, to fly to the heights of the Heavens and to know his own self and the marvels of God, and that is how it should be. The manipulators of the truth and the spiritual monopolists have already made their time, the subjugation of the people to the religious agents, who were considered the middlemen between us and God, thinking that without them there is not or there would not be salvation, their days ended or they are finishing, because nobody or almost nobody lets himself to be taken, without using at least a little of their use of reason, for instance, they tell us that the bad will burn eternally in a material fire, look, if the soul is eternal and the material fire wears away and ends, soon the fire is not eternal! Then may we use the head and ask: What fire is it? In answer we can with the spiritist knowledge say: it is the fire of remorse until one seeks in regret the change of his suffering state. Now, belonging the morals of the Spiritist to the one of Christ, it advises in the Gospel our innermost transformation, (The gospel according to Spiritism, 18:4) and it asks us to follow Jesus, and it is in the fluids of God and in the comforting word that we are cured, the Spiritism is complement to Jesus' teachings, which in the days of then, they were not comprehended. (John, 16:12). Spiritism does not come to remove Jesus' merits no, he does not come of his own independently to place himself in Jesus' place, Spiritism comes to explain a lot of passages of the teachings of Jesus that we would not understand within the acquaintance dogma of one sole life, of Heaven to the privileged, of only one inhabited world, of an eternal Hell, with a bad Angel in charge of making their inhabitants to suffer. Well then, if Spiritism, a comforting doctrine, did not tell us more than: "Look, everybody one day will be happy, the bad today will regenerate themselves and will be good doers." (O cu e Inferno, one of the Allans Kardec Books, 9:20). Now, if Spiritism only taught that it would be already good and too good; do you not think so? Well then, Spiritism teaches and explains the truths of the laws of God, but it does not impose dogmas, because it does not have any of them, the Spiritism, makes whatever possible of publishing what it proves and confirms, and regarding to what it doubts, Spiritism remains silent and leaves the voice of experience and of practice to speak. Therefore, brothers let us go on learning what the spiritist doctrine has to teach us, because accompanying the comforting doctrine it impels us to look highly to God and to Jesus. It impels us to make ourselves efforts for a moral transformation, (the Gospel according to Spiritism, 17: 4) and to have a faith alive, confident, face-to-face without fears, walking with Jesus, because: where there are two or three in his name, He, is in the middle (Matthew, 18:20) be it like so. May God be with us as formerly, today and always.

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