EDITORIAL

GEAE WEB PAGE HAS MOVED!

Dear friend,
We are glad to inform you that the GEAE group has now its own web provider. The page has moved to

http://www.geae.inf.br

A new list of email is available:

editor@geae.inf.br (to contact the editorial board)
info@geae.inf.br  (for information)
subscribe@geae.inf.br (for subscriptions to "The Spiritist Messenger")
geae-en@geae.inf.br (for submission of materials)
comments@geae.inf.br (for general comments)

The  new  access  is  much  faster than the old one. We invite all to
visit us at www.geae.inf.br and give your impressions.

The GEAE Editors

GEAE BULLETIN IN ESPERANTO: CALL FOR TEXTS AND APPROVAL

We  study  the  possibility  of editing a version in Esperanto of the  GEAE report (actually edited in Portuguese and English).  In order to test the idea's receptivity and approval, we will send a first  extra edition in  this  language:  "Esperantista Ekstra Eldonajo".  Please, send  us  your  comments  and  impression  on this idea. We also need your  contribution  in the  form of text and messages on Spiritism in  Esperanto of those interested in the subject. The reality of this new edition will be on your hands.

This  first  edition was edited with the revision help of our friends Paulo  Cardoso  and  Fabricio  Valle whom we thank very much. We also wish  to  acknowledge  the  "Sociedade F. V. Lorenz  and  Mrs.  Delio Pereira  de  Souza  for  important  information.  They   also  kindly authorized the publication of the report KOMUNIKOJ  n.79  on the GEAE web page.

This  issue brings an article  dealing with the important question of the  relation  of Spiritism with other sciences and on the scientific aspect of  Spiritism. It is relevant contribution made by Prof. S. S. Chibeni,  professor  at  the  philosophy  institute  of the  Campinas University. He shows how the Spiritist doctrine  can be recognized as a scientific discipline even if its main scope  refers to a different kind of matter, the spirit. Such  approach  is  therefore  opposed to recent claims of parallel  lines  of  thought that insist in studying spirit phenomena without the spiritist starting principle. Such parallel studies are simply devoid  of  a  true scientific character. This paper  was divided in four parts which will be published in three consecutive SM issues:

I. Introduction
II. A Sketch of the Kuhnian philosophy of science
III. The Spiritist paradigm
IV. References

THE SPIRITIST PARADIGM (*)
S. S. Chibeni

ABSTRACT: This paper reviews briefly Kuhn's conception of science, in contrast with the traditional conception, arquing then that Spiritism-  such  as  established  by  Allan  Kardec  -  constitutes a genuine  scientific paradigm.  It  is  further claimed that the normal science tradition  of  the  Kardequian  paradigm  remains   unrivaled  as  a scientific guide to the study of the spiritist phenomena.

I. INTRODUCTION

Philosophy  of  science  is  the  branch   of  philosophy that treats scientific knowledge: its foundations, evolution, specificity, scope, etc. In the present work we shall be particularly interested   in the issue of the  so-called  "demarcation  criterion".  It  is  generally  admitted that scientific knowledge demarcates itself from other forms of knowledge by certain specific features. To determine what, if any, these features are has constituted a major challenge for philosophers at  least  since  the  inception  of modern science, in the sixteenth  and seventeenth centuries. In his pioneering  philosophical  analysis of science, Francis Bacon submitted  that it was  the  adoption  of a special method, the 'scientific method', which differentiated science from non science and pseudo science. In philosophy  of science,   the description of the scientific method  given  by  Bacon survived, with some alternations, until approximately the middle of our century, and is still widely adopted by laymen and scientists.

It is beyond the scope  of  this  article  to  present in detail this classical  conception  of  science, as well  as  the  historical  and
philosophical criticisms  that  led  to  its  abandonment.  In  broad outline, the  traditional  view  of  science  assumes  that  a  scientific discipline begins with a long process of pure observation. From the data thus collected general laws governing the phenomena are then extracted. A scientific theory is an ensemble of such laws, concerning a determinate field of phenomena. Science progresses by  the addition of new experimental data and new laws to the existing theories.

In the view thus sketched, the following assumptions are essential:

1) No  theoretical  hypotheses whatsoever are allowed to intervene in the  data collecting period: the observations should be theoretically neutral;

2)  Likewise, the  laws should be extracted from the observational basis by objective,  theoretically neutral methods;

3) The new laws  discovered  along   the  evolution  of  a  science  are  always complementary to,  and never  incompatible  with,  the  laws  already established.

The  most rigorous elaboration of the classical conception of science was  undertaken by the philosophical program called 'logical positivism',  which  flourished  from 1920 to 1940, approximately. This program reached a high level of formal and theoretical sophistication, and exerted a profound and  lasting  influence  upon  the  scientific community. Already in 1934, however, the basic tenets of logical positivism were vigorously attacked by a yet  unknown  philosopher,  Karl Popper, in a book that remained virtually ignored for more  than  two decades. In the late fifties, when the logical  positivist  program  was already weakened by a sustained process  of  self-criticism,  and Popper's work was translated into English ("The Logic  of  Scientific Discovery"), it became clear that the traditional view of science was no longer tenable.

Here  again we lack space to present the arguments leveled  by Popper against logical  positivism,  as well  as  his conception of science, known as "falseationism". We remark  only  that  the Popperian theses  run, in their turn, into severe  difficulties, pointed out by several philosophers  of  science,  notably  by Thomas Kuhn, Imre Lakatos and Paul Feyerabend(**).

We have discussed elsewhere (Chibeni 1984, 1988 and 1991)  the  issue of the  spiritist science  in connection with Lakato's  philosophy of  science.  This same  issue will be now  analyzed in  the light of the Kuhnian philosophical ideas. To be  fully accomplished, however, this undertaking  would  require a detailed exposition  to the Kuhnian and Kardequian  theories,  which  evidently  cannot  be  made  within the restricted limits of an article. The sequel should therefore be taken only as an outline and invitation to further research. We shall begin by reviewing some of the  basic concepts and proposals put forward by Thomas Kuhn.

(*) This text is the English version, prepared  by  the  Author  with  some modifications, of the article "O paradigma espirita",  published in the  official  journal  of  the  Brazilian  Spiritist  Federation,  "Reformador", June 1994, pp. 176-80.

(**)  The  most  representative  works of these philosophers are Kuhn  1970, Lakatos 1970 and Feyerabend 1978.  For  a  simple exposition of  their main ideas, in contrast  with  the  traditional  and  Popperian views, see Chalmers 1970).

"LA HORA DE LA VERDAD" MAGAZINE
Juan Molina, Spain

Dear friends,
Issues  of the magazine  "La Hora de la Verdad" are  available on the Net. Please, visit us at:

http://www.friendnet.es/persona/pastoreros

Our  updated  web pages has  a wide library on Spiritism and provides news, music and  free  books related to Spiritism for download. Don't forget to visit us.

Let God make us all follow his illuminated paths,

Grupo Jóvenes Pastoreros
Fuente Vaqueros (Granada)
Spain

FIRST SPIRITIST MEETING IN PARANA
Foz do Iguaçu, PR

The first Spiritist meeting of the Parana state will  occur  on April 24,25 and 26 1998 at Foz do Iguacu (tourist resort at Brazil's border with Paraguay and Argentina). The  meeting  is sponsored  the  Parana Spiritist Federation  and  the  Spiritist regional unions namely 10th  Cascavel, 12th  Guarapuava, 13th Foz do Iguacu and 14th Pato Branco.

The encounter  is being coordinated by the eminent Spiritists Alberto Almeida and Raul Teixeira who have chosen the specific  main  topics:

"Violence and Non-Violence" and "A Spiritist proposal for the integral education of man"

The  event  will be held at the Rafain Palace Hotel and participation is free (no subscription fee, no previous subscription required).

For more information, please, contact the Parana Spiritist Federation phone/fax : 041-233-6174 or, the 13th Spiritist Regional Union phone: 045-520-6376.

SPIRITISM IN GERMAN
Maria Angelica de Souza Silva, Germany

I wish to contact Spiritist associations  mainly  in  the  Dusseldorf area. Would it be possible via GEAE?

Maria Angelica de Souza Silva

The Gospel  teaches us that there may be always a new beginning every moment so as to gain Christ's presence.

Patience is the power to bring to us the kingdom of happiness.  Jesus knows  our shortcomings and gives us His tolerance. Let us help  each other. Live is the law.

We must be faithful in little promises.  Many people  are  completely  involved with heavenly glories, while they  are  careless  in  little things.

Let us wake up. Devotion  claims  fulfillment. He who  knows  becomes responsible. The world needs help.

Let  us be of service at every  opportunity. In the Gospel as well as in business one must look ahead.

Jesus said: "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And not one of them shall fall to the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered."

We can not  measure  God's glory  around us, but we can recognize the divine attributes of God through our love to our fellow man.

As far as it goes, the definition of the New Testament, "God is love; and he that abideth in love abideth in God, and God abideth in  him", carries  with  it the promise that by living and practicing pure love  man will finally attain to the state of union with the Maker for ever.

Would  we find God? Then we need to follow Jesus Christ. Service with Him is the real easement of life's problems.

Good  things do not come to us by chance. The happiness and the peace in the soul's kingdom come  from love's service. When we find love in our heart, Jesus is there.