Allan Kardec-THE Spirit's Book_ The Principles of Spiritist Doctrine (1989)

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ALLAN KARDEC
"To do so is to fail in charity, and to infringe on freedom of thought."
840. Is it an infringement of the freedom of conscience to place hindrances in the way of
beliefs that are of a nature to cause social disturbance?
"You can only repress action; belief is inaccessible."
The repression of the external acts of a belief, when those acts are injurious to others is not an
infringement of the freedom of conscience, for such repression leaves the belief itself entirely free.
841. Ought we, out of respect for freedom of conscience, to allow of the propagation of
pernicious doctrines, or may we, without infringing upon that freedom, endeavour to bring
back into the path of truth those who are led astray by false principles?
"Most certainly you not only may, but should, do so; but only by following the example of
Jesus, by employing gentleness and persuasion, and not by resorting to force, which would be
worse than the false belief of those whom you desire to convince. Conviction cannot be
imposed by violence."
842. All doctrines claiming to be the sole expression of the truth, by what signs can we
recognise the one which has the best right to call itself such?
"The truest doctrine will be the one which makes the fewest hypocrites and the greatest
number of really virtuous people-that is to say, of people practising the law of charity in its
greatest purity and in its widest application. It is by this sign that you may recognise a
doctrine as true; for no doctrine, of which the tendency to make divisions and demarcations
among the children of God, can be anything but false and pernicious."
843. Has man freedom of action?
Free - Will
"Since he has freedom of thought, he has freedom of action. Without free-will man would be
a machine."
844. Does man posses freewill from his birth?
"He possesses free-will from the moment when lie possesses the will to act. In the earliest
portion of a lifetime free-will is almost null; it is developed and changes its object with the
development of the faculties. The child, having thoughts in harmony with the wants of his
age, applies his free-will to the things which belong to that age."