spirit until justice shall be done; that is, until the spirit has freed itself by expiation from the vices which made it unjust and impure. Even as you call Jesus the Just One on account of his purity, thus unjustice in this passage is equivalent to impurity. He shall not break the bruised reed, nor quench the smoking flax, until he shall have assured the victory to justice; or until the spirits incarnated upon your earth shall have become purified, either on your planet, at the time of its renovation, or by means of long ages of expiation on the lower worlds to which the spirits who have remained guilty and rebellious until this period have been banished. But at length even these spirits will clearly perceive their wilful perversity and blindness, and their dread of expiation, and their repentance and remorse will cause them to incline, however feebly, towards something better.

"And in his name shall the nations trust." All will understand that his morality alone can make men progress; and all will trust in his influence to reach perfection. The present revelation opens and unfolds this new phase.

The words of the prophet Isaiah must be fulfilled respecting the Pharisees who took council together against Jesus. They were then the bruised reed which he would not break, and were afterwards to become the smouldering flax which he would not quench. They were, like all others, required to free themselves by expiation from the vices which made. them unjust, and to purify themselves. In order that these words might be fulfilled sooner, Jesus commanded the sick persons who followed him, and whom he healed, not to make Him known, lest these guilty spirits might be led to plunge themselves deeper in their evil courses, and thus be exposed to still severer expiations.

MATTHEW, CHAP. XII.-VERSES 22-28. MARK, CHAP. III.-VERSES 20-26.

Blasphemy of the Pharisees.

Matth. xii. (22) Then they brought a demoniac to him who was blind and dumb, and he healed him, so that the blind and dumb both spake

and saw. (23) And all the crowds were astonished, and said, Is not this the son of David? (24) But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This man does not cast out devils except by Beelzeboul, the ruler of the devils. (25) But Jesus knowing their thoughts, said to them, Every kingdom which is divided against itself is made desolate, and every house divided against itself shall not stand. (26) And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then shall his kingdom stand? (27) And if I cast out demons by Beelzeboul, by whom do your sons cast them out? by this shall they be your judges. (28) But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come unto you.

Mark iii. (20) And they came into the house, and a crowd collected again, so that they were not able to eat bread, (21) And when those near him heard it, they came out to seize on him, for they said, He is out of his mind. (22) And the Scribes came down from Jerusalem, and said, He hath Beelzeboul, and casteth out demons by the ruler of the demons. (23) But having summoned them, he said to them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan? (24) And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. (25) And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. (26) And if Satan rises up and is divided against himself, he cannot stand, but hath an end.

§ 159. This man was subjugated by an evil spirit, who rendered him blind and dumb. The obsessing spirit shed the fluids which surrounded him over his victim's organs of sight and hearing, and the fluidic action caused by the combination of their perisprits paralysed these organs, and deprived the patient of their use for a time. Jesus healed him by the action of his powerful will, which drove away the obsessing spirit. At the same moment, he restored the patient's organs of sight and hearing to their normal condition. by the magnetic action of the fluids which he directed upon him. This subjugation of the patient was an expiation for his having previously greatly abused the faculty of speech, and for his not having profited by the light which had been given him.

When the multitude beheld an event which they could neither explain nor comprehend, they were seized with wonder and admiration, and exclaimed, "Is not this the son of David?" It had been foretold that the greatest of the prophets should be of the lineage of David, and the son of David was regarded by Hebrew interpretations as a material liberator.

The words which Jesus addressed to the Scribes and Pharisees, as well as those spoken of him by his relations,

or those who were regarded as such by men, referred as much to the future as to the present. Consequently they apply to Spiritism as well as to the Gospel. They were recorded as a lesson for the present time, as regards the apostles and disciples of Jesus, and for the future, as regards the advent of the present era of Spiritism, then future, by the New Revelation. The ages are all linked together, and the further you advance, the better will you understand the close connection which exists between the appearance of Jesus on earth and the present spirit-manifestations. By revealing the origin of Jesus, we have already taught you that his appearance on earth was in reality a spirit-manifestation. As the protector and ruler of your planet and its humanity, he came to pave the way, and lay the foundations for your regeneration. The present manifestation is likewise caused by spirits who are sent among you to continue and to develop the Master's work.

In order that Jesus might be either understood or listened to, he adapted his language to the intelligence of those to whom he spake. Consequently, like themselves, he used such terms as Beelzeboul, Satan, the ruler of the demons, the demon, the devil; but when rightly understood, these terms must be taken figuratively, to designate the evil spirits who, having originally fallen into evil courses, continue to work evil towards men.

When the Pharisees accused Jesus of accomplishing his mighty works by the aid of the Spirit of Darkness, he pointed out to them that their own sons, the Hebrews, were likewise gifted with the same power, though to a very inferior extent. There were some chosen men sent among the Hebrews on a mission, as there always are among all nations, to guide them in the right path, even when things are at their worst.

Thus there were men of sincere piety among the Hebrews, who obeyed the law of Moses from their hearts, intending thus to serve God; and such men sometimes succeeded in driving away the malevolent spirits who caused obsessions. and subjugations, by prayer and perseverance.

We have already explained (§ 121) that those children of

men who purify themselves and raise themselves above their fathers, are their natural judges.

Spiritists, the Scribes and Pharisees of your own days, accuse you now, as those of the time of Jesus accused him, of acting under demoniacal influences. But we repeat the words of Jesus, that a kingdom divided against itself cannot stand. Know, children of men, that you can relieve your suffering brethren by your faith, your prayers, and your wisdom, and repel the spirits of darkness who seek to dwell among you. Therefore seek more and more to acquire that elevation of thought, that freedom from the things of the flesh, and that self-denial which shall make the prison of flesh which you inhabit, simply a flexible garment. You will then enjoy increasing power to cast out the evil spirits, and will also purify yourselves more and more, and the men around you will prepare enlightened guides for succeeding generations who will lead them easily to the end of their journey. Take courage; prepare and purify yourselves, and never forget that a kingdom divided against itself cannot stand. Let all unite, and march boldly under the flag that we have unfurled for you; follow it always, and we will guide your path.

(Matth. xii. 28.) When we free the spirit from the letter, the expression, "the Spirit of God," as applied to Jesus, signifies the direct influence which the Lord exerts upon him; and as applied to men, you will understand, as Spiritists, that it relates to the purified spirits sent to you by the Lord, as intermediaries between his will and yourselves.

We have explained to you that God, the omnipotent Ruler, is One, Alone, and Indivisible. This is the great secret which we concealed, that it might not be fully revealed until the hour had come. God is eternal and infinite, and rules in illimitable space over all the universes. He is the incessant and eternal Creator; he is the Father of each and all, and of whatever exists in space. The law of progress is the immutable law which he has established for all worlds, but the constitution of each world is appro

priate to itself. It is not necessary for everything to pass through precisely the same phases, for there are spirits who have never fallen, just as there are worlds which have remained in fluidic conditions, or which are more or less material, according to the requirements of the spirits who are fitted to inhabit them. When we come to explain the spiritual meaning of the words, "In my Father's house are many mansions," we will give you fuller and more complete explanations, which would be out of place here, as they would lead us beyond the limits to which we must confine ourselves at present.

We have already told you that every world or planet is under the charge of a perfectly pure spirit, who has watched over its formation, and is then entrusted with its guidance and progress. This spirit is not only morally perfect, but is also perfect in knowledge, relatively to his mission, and to the work which has been entrusted to him. This presiding spirit of the planet is in direct communion with God. He approaches the Universal Fire, and it is through him that the wishes of the Omnipotent Lord are transmitted directly, first to the great spirits, and then from one to another through the intermediate grades of the spiritual scale, till they are communicated to yourselves by your guardian angels, and other good spirits. This communication is effected with the quickness of thought; and it is thus that the Spirit of God works, and comes among you.

Jesus is one of those spirits who approach the Universal Fire. He is entrusted with the guidance of your world; he is pure among the purest of those who labour at the progress of your planet and its humanity, under his direction. He is of perfect and immaculate purity, and as he has never fallen, his essence has always remained pure. It is he, the servant of God, and our Master and yours, who presides over your planet, and guides and guards it with the eye of a father. He is in direct communion with the Lord, like those of his brethren who are equal to him in purity, and each of whom is entrusted with a similar mission. receives his commands direct without intermediaries; and

He