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614. What is to be understood by natural law?
"The law of nature is the law of God. It is the only rule that ensures the happiness of man, for it shows him what he should or should not do, and he only suffers because he disobeys it."
615. Is the law of God eternal?
"It is eternal and unchangeable as God Himself."
616. Can God have prescribed to mankind in one age what He has forbidden in another?
"God cannot be mistaken. Men are obliged to change their laws, because they are imperfect; but the laws of God are perfect. The harmony which regulates both the material universe and the moral universe is founded on laws established by God from all eternity."
617. What are the objects embraced by the divine laws? Have they reference to anything but our moral conduct?
"All the laws of nature are divine laws, since God is the author of all things. The seeker after science studies the laws of nature in the realm of matter; the seeker after goodness studies them in the soul, and practises them."
- Is it given to man to fathom both these divisions of natural law?
"Yes; but a single existence does not suffice for doing this."
What, indeed, are a few years for acquiring all that is necessary to constitute a perfect being, if we consider only the distance that separates the civilised man from the savage? A human life, though prolonged to its utmost possible length, is insufficient for such a work; much more is it so when cut short before Its term, as is the case with so large a proportion of the human race.
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Some of the divine laws regulate the movements and relations of inert matter; they are termed physical laws, and their study is the domain of science, others of these laws concern man, as considered in himself and in his relations to God and to his fellow-creatures they are termed moral laws, and regulate the life of relation as well as the life of the soul.
618. Are the divine laws the same for all worlds?
"Reason tells you that they must be adapted to the special nature of each of those various worlds, and proportioned to the degree of advancement of the beings who inhabit them."
619. Has God given to all men the means of knowing His law?
"All may know it, but all do not understand it. Those who understand it best are they who seek after goodness. All, however, will one day understand it; for the destiny of progress must he accomplished."
The justice of the various incarnations undergone by each human being is evident when seen in the light of the principle just enunciated; since, in each new existence, his intelligence is more developed, and he comprehends more clearly what is good and what is evil. If everything had to be accomplished by each man in a single existence, what would be the fate of the many millions of human beings who die every day in the brutishness of the savage state, or in the darkness of ignorance, without having had the possibility of obtaining enlightenment? (177, 222)
620. Does a spirit, before his union with the body, comprehend the law of God more clearly than after his incarnation?
"He comprehends that law according to the degree of development at which he has arrived, and preserves the intuitive remembrance of it after being united with a body; but the evil instincts of man often cause him to forget it."
621. Where is the law of God inscribed?
"In the conscience."
- Since man carries the law of God in his conscience, where was the need of revealing it to him?
"He had forgotten and misunderstood it; God willed that it should be recalled to his memory."
622. Has God given to some men the mission of revealing His law?
"Yes, certainly. In every age there have been men who have received this mission; spirits of higher degree, who have incarnated themselves for the purpose of advancing human progress."
623. Have not those who have professed to instruct mankind sometimes made mistakes, and led them astray by false reasonings?
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"Those who, not being inspired by God, have arrogated to themselves, through ambition, a mission which they had not received, may, undoubtedly, have led them into error; nevertheless, as, after all, they were men of genius, great truths are often to be found, even in the midst of the errors they taught."
624. What are the characteristics of the true prophet?
"The true prophet is an upright man who is inspired by God. He may be recognised both by his words and by his deeds. God does not employ the mouth of a liar to teach the truth."
625. What is the most perfect type that God has offered to man as his guide and model?
"Jesus."
Jesus is the type of the moral perfection to which man may attain upon this earth. God offers Him to our thought as our most perfect model and the doctrine taught by Him is the purest expression of the divine law, because He was animated by the divine spirit, and was the purest being who has ever appeared upon the earth.
If some of those who have professed to instruct man in the law of God have sometimes led him astray by the inculcation of error, it is because they have allowed themselves to be swayed by sentiments of too earthly a nature, and because they have confounded the laws which regulate the conditions of the life of the soul which regulate the life of the body. Many pretended revealers have announced as divine laws what were only human laws, devised by them for serving their own passions and obtaining dominion over their fellow men.
626. Have the divine or natural laws been revealed to men by Jesus only, and had men, before His time, no other knowledge than that given them by intuition?
"Have we who told you that those laws are written everywhere? All the men who have meditated upon wisdom have therefore been able to comprehend and to teach them from the remotest times. By their teachings, imperfect though they were, they have prepared the ground for the sowing of the seed. The divine laws being written in the book of nature, it has always been possible for man to know them by searching after them. For this reason, the moral precepts they consecrate have been proclaimed, in all ages, by upright men; and, for the same reason also, the elements of the moral law are to be found among every nation above the barbarian degree, although incomplete, or debased by ignorance and superstition."
627. Since the true laws of God have been taught by Jesus, what is the use of the teachings given by spirits? Have they anything more to teach us?
"The teachings of Jesus were often allegoric, and conveyed in parables; because He spoke according to the time and place in
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which He lived. The time has now come when the truth must be made intelligible for all. It is necessary to explain and develop the divine laws, because few among you understand them, and still fewer practise them. Our mission is to strike the eyes and ears of all, in order to confound pride, and to unmask the hypocrisy of those who assume the outward appearances of virtue and of religion as a cloak for their turpitudes. We are charged to prepare the reign of good announced by Jesus; to furnish the explanations that will render it impossible for men to continue to interpret the law of God according to their passions, or to pervert the meaning of what is wholly a law of love and of kindness."
628. Why has not the truth been always placed within reach of every one?
"Each thing can only come in its time. Truth is like light; you must be accustomed to it gradually; otherwise it only dazzles you."
"Hitherto, God has never permitted man to receive communications so full and instructive as those which he is permitted to receive at this day. There were, undoubtedly, in ancient times, as you know, individuals who were in possession of knowledge which they considered as sacred, and which they kept as a mystery from those whom they regarded as profane. You can well understand, from what you know of the laws which govern the phenomena of spirit communication, that they received only a few fragmentary truths, scattered through a mass of teachings that were generally emblematic, and often erroneous. Nevertheless, there is no old philosophic system, no tradition, no religion, that men should neglect to study; for they all contain the germs of great truths, which, however they may seem to contradict each other, perverted as they are by their mixture with various worthless accessories - may be easily coordinated, with the aid of the key that Spiritism gives you to a class of facts which have hitherto seemed to be contrary to reason, but of which the reality is irrefutably demonstrated at the present day. You should therefore not fail to make those old systems a subject of study, for they are rich in lessons, and may contribute largely to your instruction."
629. What definition can be given of the moral law?
"The moral law is the rule for acting aright, that is to say, for distinguishing practically between good and evil. It is founded on
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the observance of the law of God. Man acts rightly when he takes the good of all as his aim and rule of action; for he then obeys the law of God."
630. How can we distinguish between good and evil?
"Good is whatever is in conformity with the law of God; and evil is whatever deviates from it. Thus, to do right, is to conform to the law of God; to do wrong, is to infringe that law."
631. Has man of himself the means of distinguishing what is good from what is evil?
"Yes, when he believes in God, and desires to do what is right. God has given him intelligence in order that he may distinguish between them."
632. As man is subject to error may he not be mistaken in his appreciation of good and evil, and believe himself to be doing right, when, in reality, he is doing wrong?
"Jesus has said: 'Whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, do ye even so to them.' The whole moral law is contained in that injunction. Make it your rule of action, and you will never go wrong."
633. The rule of good and evil, what may be called the rule of reciprocity or solidarity, cannot be applied to a man's personal conduct towards himself. Does he find, in natural law, the rule of that conduct, and a safe guide?
"When you eat too much, it hurts you. God gives you, in the discomfort thus produced, the measure of what is necessary for you. When you exceed that measure, you are punished. It is the same with everything else. Natural law traces out for each man the limit of his needs; when he oversteps that limit he is punished by the suffering thus caused. If men gave heed, in all things, to the voice which says to them 'enough!' they would avoid the greater part of the ills of which they accuse nature."
634. Why does evil exist in the nature of things? I speak of moral evil. Could not God have created the human race in more favourable conditions?
"We have already told you that spirits are created simple and ignorant (115). God leaves man free to choose his road; so much the worse for him if he takes the wrong one; his pilgrimage will be all the longer. If there were no mountains, man could not comprehend the possibility of ascending and descending; if there
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were no rocks, he could not understand that there are such things as hard bodies. It is necessary for the spirit to acquire experience; and, to that end, he must know both good and evil. It is for this purpose that souls are united to bodies." (119.)
635. The different social positions create new wants which are not the same for all men. Natural law would therefore appear not to be a uniform rule?
"Those different positions are in nature, and according to the law of progress; they do not invalidate the unity of natural law, which applies to everything."
The conditions of a man's existence vary according to times and places hence arise for him different wants, and social positions corresponding to those wants. Since this diversity is in the order of things, it must be consonant with the law of God; and this law is none the less one in principle. It is for reason to distinguish between real wants and wants that are factitious or conventional.
636. Are good and evil absolute for all men?
"The law of God is the same for all; but evil resides especially in the desire for its commission. Good is always good, and evil is always evil, whatever a man's position may be; the difference is in the degree of his responsibility."
637. When a savage, yielding to his instinctive desire feeds on human flesh, is he guilty in so doing?
"I have said that the essence of evil is in the will; therefore a man is more or less guilty according to his light."
Circumstances modify the relative intensity of good and of evil. A man often commits faults that are none the less reprehensible for being the consequence of the social position in which he is placed; but his responsibility is proportioned to the means he possesses of distinguishing between right and wrong. Thus the enlightened man who commits a mere injustice is more culpable in the sight of God than the ignorant savage who abandons himself to his instincts of cannibalism.
638. Evil seems, sometimes, to be a consequence of the force of things. Such is, for instance, in some cases, the necessity of destruction, even to the extent of taking the life of a fellow creature. Can it be said that, in such cases, there is violation of the law of God?
"Evil, in such cases, is none the less evil, although necessary; but this necessity disappears in proportion as the soul becomes purified by passing from one existence to another; and man is then all the more culpable when he does wrong, because he comprehends more clearly the character of his action."
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639. The evil we do is often the result of the position that has been made for us by other men; where, in such a case, lies the greatest amount of culpability?
"With those who have been the cause of the wrong-doing. Thus the man who has been led into evil, by the position that his fellow-creatures have made for him, is less guilty than those who have caused him to go astray, for each has to suffer the penalty, not only of the evil he has done, but of that which he has caused another to do."
640. Is he who profits by another's wrongdoing, even though he took no part in its commission, as guilty as though he had taken part in it?
"Yes; to take advantage of a crime is to take part in it. He would, perhaps, have shrunk from committing the evil deed, but if, the deed being done, he takes advantage of it, it is equivalent to doing it, and proves that he would have done it himself, if he could, or if he dared."
641. Is it as reprehensible to desire to do an evil deed as to do it?
"That is as the case may be. Voluntarily to resist the desire to do wrong, especially when there is a possibility of gratifying that desire, is virtuous; but he, who has only not done the wrong thing because the opportunity was wanting, is as guilty as though he had done it."
642. In order to be acceptable in the sight of God, and to insure our future happiness, is it sufficient not to have done evil?
"No; it is necessary for each to have done good also, to the utmost limits of his ability; for each of you will have to answer, not only for all the evil he has done, but also for all the good which he has failed to do."
643. Are there persons who, through their position, have no possibility of doing good?
"There are none who cannot do some good; the selfish alone find no opportunity of so doing. The mere fact of being in relation with other human beings suffices to furnish the opportunity of doing good, and every day of your lives provides this possibility for every one who is not blinded by selfishness. For doing good is not restricted to the giving of alms, but also comprehends being useful to the full extent of your power, whenever your assistance may be needed."
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644. Is it not sometimes the case that the situation in which a man finds himself placed has a good deal to do with leading him into vice and crime?
"Yes, but that situation is itself a part of the trial which has been chosen by his spirit in the state of freedom; he has elected to expose himself to its temptations, in order to acquire the merit of resistance."
645. When a man is plunged, so to say, in an atmosphere of vice, does not the impulsion to evil become, for him, almost irresistible?
"The impulsion is strong, but not irresistible, for you sometimes find great virtues in an atmosphere of vice. Those who thus remain virtuous in the midst of incitements to evil are spirits who have acquired sufficient strength to resist temptation, and who, while thus testing that strength, fulfil the mission of exercising a beneficial influence on those around them."
646. Is the meritoriousness of virtuous action measured by the conditions under which that action has been accomplished? In other words, are there different degrees of meritoriousness in doing right?
"The meritoriousness of virtuous action depends on the difficulty involved in it; there would be no merit in doing right without self-denial and effort God counts the sharing of his morsel of bread by the poor man, as of a higher merit than the giving of his superfluity by the rich one. Jesus told you this in His parable of the widow's mite."
647. Is the whole of the law of God contained in the rule of love of the neighbour laid dawn by Jesus?
"That rule certainly contains all the duties of men to one another; but it is necessary to show them its various applications, or they will continue to neglect them, as they do at the present day. Besides, natural law embraces all the circumstances of life, and the rule you have cited is only a part of it. Men need precise directions; general precepts are too vague, and leave too many doors open to human interpretations."
648. What do you think of the division of natural law into ten parts, viz., the laws of adoration, labour, reproduction, preservation, society, equality, liberty, justice, love, and charity?
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"The division of the law of God into ten parts is that of Moses, and may be made to include all the circumstances of life, which is the essential point. You may therefore adopt it, without its being held to have any absolute value, any more than the various other systems of classification which depend on the aspect under which the subject is considered. The last of those parts is the most important; because the law of charity includes all the others, and it is therefore through the observance of this law that mankind advances most rapidly in spiritual life."