Chapters 2 and 3— Evangelical Elucidations
In the Light of the Spiritist Doctrine, by Antônio Luiz Sayão, 1902
Chapter 2
Matthew, Chapter 1, Verses 18 to 25. The appearance of the angel in a dream to Joseph. — The lineage of Jesus
MATTHEW: Chapter 1, verse 18. The generation of Jesus took place in this way: When Mary, his mother, was betrothed to Joseph, it was found that she had conceived by the work of the Holy Spirit, before they had cohabited. — 19. Joseph, her husband, being just and not wanting to disgrace her, decided to leave her secretly. — 20. But while he was thinking about this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for what is conceived in her is by the Holy Spirit. — 21. She will give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” — 22. All this happened to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet, as follows: — 23. “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel, which means — God with us.” — 24. Joseph, then, waking up, did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary as his wife. — 25. And without them having had carnal relations, she gave birth to her firstborn and named him Jesus. (2)
(2) See also Deuteronomy 24:1; — Acts 4:12; 5:31; 13:23, 37, and 38.
Regarding these verses, we will focus solely on the term — to espouse, which means — to enter into a betrothal, that is, to arrange a marriage. Mary and Joseph had agreed to marry, to bind themselves through marriage, to live as husband and wife.
Moreover, in verse 25 it reads: And, without having had carnal intercourse, she gave birth to her firstborn, as found in The Four Gospels, The Revelation of the Revelation, by J-B. Roustaing, Volume 1.
As for the rest, everything should be understood in spirit and truth, according to the explanations already given about the genealogy of Jesus.
Chapter 3
Luke, Chapter 1, Verses 1 to 25. Gospels. — Appearance of the angel to Zechariah. — Prediction of the birth of John. Muteness of Zechariah.
LUKE: Chapter 1, verse 1. Many people have undertaken to compile an orderly account of the events that have taken place among us — 2, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. 3, With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught. 5. In the time of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. 6. Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. 7. But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old. 8. Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, 9, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. 11. Then an angel of the Lord appeared to Zechariah, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13. But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. 14. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. 16. He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous — to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” 18. Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.” 19. The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. 20. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.” 21. Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. 22. When he came out, he could not speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak. 23. When his time of service was completed, he returned home. 24. After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. 25. “The Lord has done this for me,” she said. “In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.” (3)
(3) See also John 1:27 — Acts 2:4, 15:18, 23:1, 24:16 — 1st Epistle to Peter 5:1 — Revelation 1:17, 8:3, 4.
The evangelists were, unconsciously, mediums, that is to say; they were, by nature, susceptible to receiving magnetic impressions for the manifestation of Spirits.
Indeed, returning to the spiritual life, the soul fully possesses itself and its perispirit regains, in all its fullness, the capacity for perceptions. It can then, by manipulating the fluids, impress human beings, influence their organs, and transmit their thoughts. Among these beings, those most capable of receiving this influence and becoming instruments for the manifestation of Spirits are the mediums.
We will only give an idea of this phenomenon, and those who wish to study and understand what mediumship is and convince themselves that only Spiritist Science gives us complete knowledge of our soul, all its development and resources when outside of material life, should refer to the works of the Master. Spiritism is a rational philosophy that shows us the ways in which our transformation and regeneration take place. Only this science, both moral and positive, can provide us with the necessary light, in an era such as the one we are going through, of turmoil and transitions, to understand the teachings and precepts consecrated twenty centuries ago by the sacrifice on Golgotha of the greatest hero humanity has ever known.
As for the birth of John, it was necessary for it to impress the public spirit from his appearance on Earth, and it happened under very particular circumstances, such as his parents being old and the temporary muteness of his father. However, it is important to note that although Elizabeth was advanced in age, her age was not such that it made it impossible for her to conceive according to natural laws, which can be clearly inferred from the words the angel spoke to Mary about Elizabeth (verse 36): she, who is called barren. Therefore, there was no miracle in her conception, since there was no derogation of any natural law.
Zechariah and Elizabeth, married for a long time, were greatly distressed by not having children, as this was attributed to her infertility and was considered a disgrace in the eyes of men during those times, for a woman to be infertile. Both fervently prayed to God that He would grant them a child. As a reward for the perfect submission with which they both kept the commandments, edifying all by their exemplary moral conduct, the Lord, when the time came for the appearance of the Precursor, allowed Elizabeth’s trial of infertility to end and for her to conceive, so that the birth of John could take place.
The muteness of Zechariah cannot and should not be attributed to him having doubted the event that was announced to him, given that intelligence was granted to man so that he may investigate in order to understand what was within his reach of knowledge. That muteness was a phenomenon that occurred as a means to draw greater attention to the prediction made and to corroborate it.
John was Elijah, the great prophet mentioned in the book of Kings (3rd chapter, verse 17) (4), and was regarded as such by the Jews. Precisely because the people saw John as the reappearance of Elijah, many questions regarding this matter were directed to him during his mission. See above in verse 17: and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah. What does this mean, if not that Elijah would reincarnate in the body of the child to be born of Elizabeth?
(4) The most well-known editions of the Bible in Brazil are those of the British Bible Society, in which there are the following differences in comparison with the Catholic version mentioned here by Sayão:
1st — The Catholic books, 1st Kings and 2nd Kings, appear with the titles of 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel, therefore the Catholic books 3rd Kings and 4th Kings correspond to 1st Kings and 2nd Kings in the Protestant tradition.
2nd — The two books of Chronicles in the Protestant Bible are called Paralipomenon in the Catholic Bible.
3º — The following Catholic canonical books do not appear in Protestant editions: Tobias, Judith, Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus, Baruch, 1 Maccabees, and 2 Maccabees.
He shall not drink wine, etc., (verse 15). Those who devoted themselves to the service of God imposed upon themselves a special life of abstinence and privations, and the Hebrews used to dedicate their firstborn to the Lord. John was to be one of those: hence what is stated in verse 15.
From the maternal womb, it will be filled with a Holy Spirit (verse 15). After having expiated its faults in space, in errantry, through sufferings and moral tortures proportionate to those faults, the Spirit enters the phase of reparation. Then, after having identified the necessary tests for its advancement, convinced that it will only progress through them, fulfilling the absolute and fatal law of progress, it requests an incarnation in which it undergoes those tests and this incarnation is granted.
As the moment to carry out the test approaches, however, it appears terrifying to them. This is because they feel so weak due to their guilty past that they doubt their strength to endure it. Their disturbance and anxiety begin there, becoming more and more intense as the spirit loses clarity with the development of the envelope within the maternal womb that is to cover them.
It connects to that envelope, from the beginning of conception, through a kind of fluidic cord that, contracting, gradually draws it towards the prison in which it will be enclosed.
Upon the occurrence of birth, the Spirit finds itself completely connected to the body, from which it can no longer disentangle itself, except through the phenomenon called “death.” It then enters a phase of suffering, which is known as trials.
From the anxieties experienced at the beginning of incarnation, one moves to a state of numbness caused by the constraints of matter, which lasts until, as a result of the development of matter, they acquire relative freedom.
And this happens, both with the Spirit still lagging behind, as well as with the one who has already reached a more or less elevated degree of purification. This one, however, as it can already appreciate the importance of the work that it must carry out, which signifies the trust that the Lord has in it, is filled with such great joy that it prevents it, so to speak, from feeling the yoke of matter, making it as if freed, independent of it.
This is what happened with John, a highly elevated spirit, who deeply appreciated the greatness of the mission the Lord had entrusted to him. Filled with an ardent desire to fulfill it faithfully and worthily, he attracted to himself those who were equal to him in elevation and superior, and in their company and supported by them, he did not suffer the constraint of the matter that he was going to be clothed in. The grandeur of his mission gives a measure of his spiritual greatness. Hence, the angel said to Zacharias that the child to be born to Elizabeth would be filled with “a holy Spirit” (5), or, as commonly read in the gospel translations, “filled with the Holy Spirit.” In this case, the expression should be understood as meaning a group or a set of pure spirits, superior spirits, good spirits. Thus, assuming that the angel said — “filled with the Holy Spirit” — what he meant to convey was that John would be assisted by a cohort or a group of spirits from those gradations, to inspire and guide him, as are all those who, incarnated, make themselves, by their moral height, worthy of such assistance.
(5) In support of this form in the language of the angel, among other reasons, we take from the admirable work of A. Bellemare — Spiritist and Christian, in the part where he demonstrates that the terms of the sacred books do not authorize the conception of the Trinity, as established by the Roman Church, giving the name of Holy Spirit to one of the persons of the same Trinity.
The first Christians, who used the qualifier “holy” very easily, as seen in Paul’s Epistles, generally referred to any good spirit as the Holy Spirit. Later, as the general sense in which it was used became more specialized, the term Holy Spirit came to be applied specifically to the guardian spirit or Paraclete.
After the apostles had died, and philosophical and theological discussions had invaded Judea and the entire East, the primitive tradition was lost. The notion that the Holy Spirit was the guardian Spirit degenerated into the idea of the Holy Spirit as the third person of God and God Himself. One circumstance favored this error: the early Christians knew that the Spirits were the producers of phenomena; however, they were completely unaware of the existence of what modern science has called “fluids”, so the explanation of these phenomena eluded their understanding. Thus, they attributed them to a supernatural cause. From admitting a supernatural cause to the divinization of that cause, there was only one step left to take.
Take note of the following: of the twenty times that the Gospels, in their original texts, mention the Holy Spirit, in only six of these instances do the words come preceded by the definite article, that is, in only six do they say — the Holy Spirit. In all other cases, they use the words without the article. Now, excluding the article, the Greek words that correspond to those no longer mean — the Holy Spirit, but rather — Holy Spirit, or a Holy Spirit, since, without the article to determine the Spirit, it is in an indefinite sense that those two words should be understood.
Thus, in verse 15 of chapter 1 of the Gospel of Luke, it says: And he (John the Baptist) will be great in the sight of the Lord; he shall not drink wine, nor any fermented drink, and will be filled with a “Holy Spirit” from his mother’s womb…
Long before, then, the appearance of Jesus on Earth, which proves that it cannot be the Holy Spirit, as defined by the dogma, that would only express the reality if it were based on the words of Jesus Christ, the only one who could announce it, but who had not announced it yet, for the simple reason that he had not yet made his appearance among men.
Even in cases where the Gospels use the expression Holy Spirit preceded by the determinative ‘the’, it is easy to see, through the circumstances of place and time, that it is not about the third person of the Holy Trinity, which had not yet been dogmatically instituted, but always, of the Paraclete, of the Guardian Spirit; or, finally, of a good Spirit, in the Spiritist sense.
The appearance of the angel to Zechariah, who was a medium with the ability to see and hear, was the manifestation of a high or superior Spirit, who took on an angelic figure, clothed in white garments, bathed in a light whose source the husband of Elizabeth could not see, and endowed with wings, as the Hebrews generally represented angels. It was this Spirit who, exerting a magneto-spiritual action on Zechariah, produced a numbness in his vocal organs, similar to the effect of paralysis of that organ.
There is nothing surprising about it when we know that the human magnetizer, solely by the action of their will, achieves identical effects and many others. Therefore, no one who studies, observes, and practices magnetism can see the muteness of Zechariah as a miracle, that is, a fact that cannot be attributed to natural causes that explain it. What we are discussing can be explained in such a way that humans can reproduce it. In this way, it justifies what our beloved Master teaches when he says that Science and Religion are the two levers of the human spirit. With one, he acquires knowledge of the laws governing the material world; with the other, those governing the moral world. Since both come from a single principle — God — they cannot contradict each other. The incompatibility that seems to exist between the two is only the result of a lack of careful and thoughtful observation of things and the extreme exclusivism in which both are entrenched, exclusivism that produces the conflict from which unbelief and intolerance arise.
We are two who do not forget that Catholicism was the belief of our parents and that, unquestionably, it produced beneficial fruits. However, as progress is an absolute law, with the advancement of our Spirit, through the development of all its faculties, we can no longer conform to the impositions of the Catholic Church, with the decreeing of its dogmas, through the process of fear and terror, to display dominance and power, in complete antagonism with Science, which refutes it every day, when religion should be supported by Science, especially in an era when the teachings of Christ receive their complement, when the veil intentionally cast over them begins to be lifted, due to the necessities of the times in which they were administered. Thus, how can we admit that Catholicism harbors hatred towards progress and civilization, as evidenced by reading the last article of the Syllabus, which states: Anathema to whoever says: the Roman Pontiff can and must reconcile and harmonize with progress, liberalism, and modern civilization?
Let us open the history of ancient times and we will see that the attitude of the Hebrew priesthood towards the Messiah was no different, as he fulfilled the law and the prophets, prescribing the replacement of hate with love and condemning all formalities and innovations that distorted the simple and holy commandments of the Decalogue.
Let us appreciate the behavior of the scribes and Pharisees, and we will not be surprised by what is happening today. It is true that martyrdom and torture are no longer applied; however, insults are used, and attempts are made to ridicule those who do not conform to the absurdities and dogmas of those who have sought to monopolize the understanding of the truth.
The result of all this is that the masses, in general, have fallen into indifference. Religious faith has weakened, due to the accumulation of errors and superstitions that have taken the place of the Savior’s teachings; due to the spirit of domination and intolerance from which the imposition of a religion lacking rational basis was born. Hence, the rise of materialism which, with its Universe devoid of reason, justice, love, thought, conscience, and soul, has given birth to a science without ideals. And it is in this context that the hardened and obstinate dare to deny themselves any and all discussion, insisting on proselytizing through anathemas to progress, liberalism, and civilization!
They are mistaken, however, since the law of progress, as we have already said, is absolute and fatal and is inevitably fulfilled, both on a moral level, as well as on a physical and intellectual level.
The time has come for the teachings of Christ to be completed; the time when Science will cease to be materialistic, as it will be forced to take into account the spiritual element; when religion can no longer remain alien to the knowledge of the natural and immutable laws to which matter is subjected. It must be so, for the hour has come when Religion and Science, still antagonistic, will begin to walk harmoniously, providing mutual support. As a result, Religion will acquire its maximum and indisputable prestige, because, no longer receiving contradictions from Science, in agreement with reason, it will no longer be exposed to the blows of the irresistible logic of facts.
Recognizing the legitimacy and authenticity of the Old and New Testament, we base our belief on the teachings of Our Lord Jesus Christ, who descended from Heaven to honor the law given to Moses, bringing grace and truth to the world.
Now, since we can have and practice these teachings, enlightened by the light of reason, there is no reason for us to prefer to receive them distorted by human innovations and imposed with the aspect that those who proclaim themselves enemies of progress and civilization want to present them to us, when we know and feel that the last twenty centuries have prepared us to understand spiritual life and to discern from matter, which is the letter, the intelligence, which is the spirit.
