The Brazilian Spiritist Federation (FEB), founded in 1884, is a public utility body[1] that constitutes the most important and influential representative organization of Spiritism in Brazil and in nearly all countries where the Spiritist movement is present.[2][3]
Through notable Spiritist leaders, especially Bezerra de Menezes, the Brazilian Spiritist Federation quickly established the format of Spiritism as a religion in Brazil.[3][4] In various countries, the federation provides extensive support to mediums, speakers, and other Spiritist organizations, publishes and translates books on the subject, and promotes charitable actions.[2] The FEB is the representative association of Brazil in the International Spiritist Council (CEI).
According to data from 2006, the FEB provided philanthropic social assistance to approximately a thousand families and maintained a daycare center for 800 children in Santo Antônio do Descoberto, Goiás.[5] The FEB has published over 10 million books by Allan Kardec. The works psychographed by the mediumship of Francisco Cândido Xavier, better known as Chico Xavier, have surpassed 15.5million copies. Among them, Nosso Lar (dictated by the spirit André Luiz) is the most read, having surpassed the mark of 1.5million copies.
On the following day (January 2), its first board of directors was elected and inaugurated, consisting of Major Ewerton Quadros as president, Fernandes Filgueiras as vice-president, Silveira Pinto as secretary, Elias da Silva as treasurer, and Xavier Pinheiro as archivist. The institution was initially headquartered in Elias da Silva's own residence, a house on Rua da Carioca, 120.
In its founding year, the Brazilian Spiritist Federation soon began charitable social work.[5] However, in its early years, the FEB also faced various difficulties, both administrative and financial, as well as ideological issues internally, and the political and social upheavals of the country's capital externally. As an example of the former, there was a division within the movement between the so-called "secular" or "scientific" faction, led by Professor Afonso Angeli Torteroli, and the "religious" or "mystical" faction, led by Dr. Bezerra de Menezes.[4][3] As an example of the latter, following the Abolition of Slavery (1888), the Proclamation of the Brazilian Republic (1889) occurred along with the upheavals experienced during the República da Espada (Republic of the Sword), including the Second Revolt of the Armada (1893). These circumstances led to the departure of a significant portion of the FEB's initial members, leaving the survival of the institution in the hands of a few collaborators.
In 1889, Ewerton Quadros was succeeded by Dr. Adolfo Bezerra de Menezes. As the head of the institution, Bezerra consolidated the "religious" aspect of Spiritism as the most prominent in Brazil.[3][4] He initially introduced the systematic study of The Spirits' Book in the public meetings held at the Federation. In 1890, the "Service for Assistance to the Needy" was established, which was an important basis for the activities of prescribing mediums in the institution. In the beginning of 1895, Bezerra was succeeded by Júlio César Leal. After Leal resigned after seven months in office, Bezerra accepted reappointment and resumed the Presidency of the Federation on August 3, 1895, a position he held until his death in 1900. During his term, the FEB's bookstore was inaugurated (March 31, 1897), responsible for editing, distributing, and promoting Spiritist literature. However, at least until 1910, all the "classics of Spiritism" released by the FEB's bookstore were edited by the publishing company H. Garnier, renowned for its meticulous book editing.[6]
First half of the 20th century
After several changes of address since its founding, the FEB's own headquarters was inaugurated on December 10, 1911, on the former Rua do Sacramento (currently Av. Passos, 28–30), in Rio de Janeiro, by Leopoldo Cirne. The following year (1912), on May 3, the FEB inaugurated the "Free Course of Esperanto".[6]
In 1932, the FEB published its first major editorial success: "Parnaso de Além-Túmulo" (Parnassus from Beyond the Tomb), which gained great attention from the press and the Brazilian public. The format of the work was not new; it followed the pattern of another work whose rights the institution already possessed – Do País da Luz (4 volumes) – a collection of messages (texts, letters, and poems) mostly from renowned deceased authors of Portuguese literature, received in the first decade of the 20th century by the Portuguese medium Fernando de Lacerda. The authorship of the texts in "Parnaso," received through the mediumship and psychography of the then young Francisco Cândido Xavier, was predominantly from figures in Brazilian literature.[7]
In 1936, the Department of Esperanto was established at the FEB. On the eve of the establishment of the Estado Novo (New State) in 1937, on October 27, the FEB's premises were closed by the police, but three days later, they were reopened by the order of Dr. Macedo Soares, who was then the Minister of Justice.[7]
The period was also marked by the lawsuit initiated in 1944 by the widow of writer Humberto de Campos against the FEB and Francisco Cândido Xavier, seeking the alleged copyright over the psychographed messages attributed to her deceased husband. Since then, the entity began using the pseudonym "Irmão X" (Brother X). After the end of World War II, the institution brought to light the first edition of The Spirits' Book in Esperanto (1946). Two years later, on September 9, 1948, the FEB inaugurated its "Publishing and Graphics Department".[7]
The event that marked the end of the 1940s was the signing, on October 5, 1949, of the so-called "Golden Pact", considered the most important document of Spiritism in the country as it represented the unification of the Spiritist movement at the national level through the coordination of the FEB.[7] As a result of the document's signing, on January 2, 1950, the Federative Council of the FEB (CFN) was established in Rio de Janeiro, bringing together the representatives of the signing State Spiritist Federations. As a result of this effort, the "Caravan of Fraternity" was sent to the Northeast Region of Brazil, composed of, among others, Artur Lins de Vasconcelos Lopes, Carlos Jordão da Silva, and Leopoldo Machado. This initiative led to an increase in the number of adhering state federations.[7]
Second half of the 20th century
Finally, in 1960, in the context of the transfer of the capital of the country from Rio de Janeiro to Brasília, the then President of the Republic, Juscelino Kubitschek, declared the FEB a Public Utility Entity.[1] In 1967, the institution inaugurated its Brasília Section in the Federal District (October 3).
A decade later (1977), the FEB established the Campaign for the Evangelization of Childhood and Youth and published "Adaptation of Spiritist Centers for Better Service to their Purposes". This work was followed in 1980 by "Guidelines for Spiritist Centers". In 1984, the FEB established the campaign for the Systematic Study of Spiritist Doctrine (ESDE), released the "Manual of Administration of Spiritist Centers," and relocated its headquarters to Brasília in its own building.
In 1990, the campaigns "In Defense of Life" and "Living in Family" were launched, along with the publications "Spiritist Social Communication" and "Spiritist Assistance and Promotion". In 1996, the FEB launched its website in four languages: Portuguese, English, French, and Spanish.[7]
In each Brazilian state and the Federal District, there is an institution that, autonomously and independently, integrates the Brazilian Spiritist Federation for more direct support to spiritist centers:
Spiritism or Kardecism is a reincarnationist and spiritualist doctrine established in France in the mid-19th century by writer and educator Allan Kardec. Kardec considered his doctrine to derive from a Christian perspective. He described a cycle by which a spirit supposedly returns to material existence after the death of the old body in which it dwelled, as well as the evolution it undergoes during this process. Kardecism emerged as a new religious movement in tandem with spiritualism, the notions and practices associated with spiritual communication disseminated throughout North America and Europe since the 1850s.
Chico Xavier or Francisco Cândido Xavier, born Francisco de Paula Cândido, was a popular Brazilian philanthropist and spiritist medium. During a period of 60 years he wrote over 490 books and several thousand letters claiming to use a process known as "psychography". Books based on old letters and manuscripts were published posthumously, bringing the total number of books to 496.
The Archdiocese of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro in Brazil was established as a territorial prelature on July 19, 1575. It was elevated to the status of a diocese on November 16, 1676. It was later elevated to a metropolitan archdiocese on April 27, 1892. On May 6, 2003, the territorial abbey of Nossa Senhora do Monserrate do Rio de Janeiro lost its territorial rank and was added to the archdiocese. Cardinal Orani João Tempesta OCist has been its Archbishop since 2009. Cardinal Eusébio Scheid SCI, who died on January 13, 2021, was Archbishop Emeritus.
Astral City: A Spiritual Journey is a 2010 Brazilian drama film directed by Wagner de Assis, starring Renato Prieto. It is based on the book of the same name by the medium Francisco Cândido Xavier, and features a soundtrack composed by Philip Glass.
Events from the year 2002 in Brazil
Bezerra de Menezes: O Diário de um Espírito is a 2008 biography drama film directed by Glauber Filho and Joe Pimentel about the Brazilian medium Bezerra de Menezes. It was shot in Fortaleza, Guaramiranga, Maranguape, and Jaguaruana, all cities in Ceará, as well as in Recife and Rio de Janeiro.
Events from the year 1894 in Brazil.
Events in the year 1946 in Brazil.
The following lists events that happened in the year 1989 in Brazil.
Events in the year 1971 in Brazil.
Events in the year 1972 in Brazil.
Events in the year 1973 in Brazil.
Events in the year 1974 in Brazil.
Events in the year 1975 in Brazil.
The Brazil women's national under-20 volleyball team represents Brazil in international women's volleyball competitions and friendly matches under the age 20 and it is ruled by the Brazilian Volleyball Federation that is a member of South American volleyball body Confederación Sudamericana de Voleibol (CSV) and the international volleyball body government the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB).
Nosso Lar 2: Os Mensageiros, commonly known as Nosso Lar 2, is a 2024 Brazilian drama film, written and directed by Wagner de Assis, was released on January 25, 2024. The screenplay was based on the novel The Messengers (1944), psychographed by the spiritist medium Chico Xavier, under the influence of the spirit of André Luiz.
Corina Novelino was a Brazilian philanthropist, writer, educator, medium, and Spiritist columnist.
This article is a chronological index of some of the main events in the prehistory and history of Spiritism, covering events from the 16th century - starting with the emergence of Spiritism in 1857 with the release of The Spirits' Book - until the end of the 20th century.
With the outbreak of modern spiritism phenomena in Hydesville, United States, through the mediumship of the Fox sisters (1848), these quickly spread to Europe where, in France, the so-called "turning tables" became a popular fad. In France, this type of phenomenon, in 1855, caught the attention of the educator Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail. As a result of his research, he published the first edition of The Spirits' Book, under the pseudonym "Allan Kardec". The foundation of the Spiritist doctrine is contained in this book and four others published later: The Mediums' Book, 1861; The Gospel According to Spiritism, 1864; Heaven and Hell, 1865; The Genesis According to Spiritism, 1868. These combined books are called the "Kardecist Pentateuch".
The Confederação Espírita Pan-Americana (CEPA) is a Spiritist confederative and associative institution, formed by individuals and legally constituted institutions in America and Europe.
ARRIBAS, Célia da Graça. Afinal, espiritismo é religião?: A doutrina espírita na formação da diversidade religiosa brasileira. São Paulo: Ed. Alameda, 2010.
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