The Gospel According to Spiritism, chapter 10: forgiveness without limit, and the research on it

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” The line belongs to the Beatitudes, the opening of the Sermon on the Mount, a discourse the Gospel of Matthew (chapters 5 through 7) attributes to Jesus. It is the subject of chapter 10 of The Gospel According to Spiritism, by Allan Kardec, published in 1864. In it, forgiveness stops being a mere matter of good manners and becomes, in Spiritist doctrine, a requirement for the soul's progress.

The chapter combines Kardec's commentary with messages attributed to Spirits. The ideas about life after death and the influence of Spirits are teachings of the doctrine and cannot be proven. Forgiveness as a practice, however, has some research behind it, which comes up later.

Forgiving in order to be forgiven

The starting point is reciprocity. Whoever does not forgive, the Gospel teaches, will not be forgiven, and the measure used toward others will be the measure used on oneself. To forgive is to open one's heart to divine indulgence, and refusing to forgive blocks one's own spiritual advancement.

When the apostle Peter asks whether he should forgive up to seven times, Jesus answers “seventy times seven.” Kardec takes this to mean there is no limit at all. True forgiveness comes from the heart, not from the lips, and cannot depend on vanity or wounded pride.

Two ways of forgiving

Kardec separates two attitudes. Generous forgiveness is noble and sincere and seeks to rebuild the bond. Humiliating forgiveness is granted from on high, to appear superior, and produces more resentment than reconciliation. Extending a hand only to show off would not be a virtue.

The chapter returns to another passage from the Gospel: whoever is about to make an offering at the altar and recalls that a brother holds a grievance against him should first reconcile. For Kardec, religious practice calls for a purified heart, and words of forgiveness without real feeling are not enough.

Grudges beyond death

According to the Spirits cited, hatred does not end with death. Enemies who have already died are said to keep nursing it, and obsession, subjugation, and possession would often stem from unresolved disputes carried over from past lives. Forgiving before death would undo those bonds and prevent future persecutions. This is Spiritist belief, without proof.

Judging without arrogance

In the passage about the speck and the plank, Jesus asks that each person examine their own faults before correcting those of others. For Kardec, harshly criticizing others without acknowledging one's own failings is arrogance disguised as virtue.

Judging, though, is not always wrong. What is condemned is malicious intent, criticism with no useful purpose, and taking pleasure in tearing someone down. Fair criticism should come with moderation, kindness, and humility, and be applied to oneself with greater rigor than to others.

The Spirits' messages

The chapter includes instructions from Spirits, communicated in French cities between 1861 and 1863. Simeon, in Bordeaux, says that to forgive is to forget: forgiveness that keeps the resentment alive is not evangelical. Paulo, in Lyon, states that forgiving is an act of love and maturity, and that whoever swears never to forgive condemns themselves.

The guardian Spirit José, in Bordeaux, presents indulgence as charity in action: refraining from judgment, staying silent about others' wrongs, and seeking the good in each person. João, bishop of Bordeaux, calls for strengthening the weak, encouraging the repentant, and covering others' mistakes with compassion.

What research adds

Psychology studies forgiveness without invoking Spirits. A meta-analysis published in 2014 by Nathaniel Wade and colleagues gathered 54 research reports, with more than 2,300 participants, and concluded that interventions designed to promote forgiveness increase forgiveness of a specific offense compared with no treatment. The treated groups also showed greater changes in depression, anxiety, and hope. Longer interventions worked better.

The study treats forgiveness as a psychological process, not as reincarnation or obsession. But it shows that the chapter's central idea, that a grudge weighs on whoever carries it, has support outside the doctrine.

The chapter's conclusion is that resentment poisons whoever holds onto it, while forgiveness brings the peace of an elevated soul. Mercy, the text concludes, should be practiced in thought, word, and deed, starting with one's own heart.