459- Do spirits have any influence on our thoughts and actions?
“Their influence on you in this regard is greater than you suppose, for very frequently it is they who guide you.”
460- Do we have our own thoughts plus others that are suggested to us?
“Your soul is a spirit who thinks by itself; nevertheless, you must have noticed that many thoughts occur to you all at the same time with regards to the same subject, and that they frequently contradict one another. Well, they are always a combination of your own ideas and other spirits’ ideas, and this is what renders you uncertain – you have several ideas within your mind battling it out with each other.”
461- How can we distinguish between our own thoughts and those suggested to us?
“When a thought is suggested to you, it is like a voice speaking to you. Your own thoughts are usually those that occur to you at first impulse. Actually, you should not concern yourselves with such a distinction, and it is often more useful not even to know about it – you act more freely. If you make the right decision, you will act more willingly; if you make the wrong one, your responsibility will be greater.”
462- Do individuals of intelligence and genius always draw their ideas from within themselves?
“Their ideas sometimes arise from their own spirit, but frequently they are suggested to them by other spirits who deem them capable of understanding them and worthy of transmitting them. When they cannot find ideas within themselves, they appeal for inspiration; they are making an evocation without even suspecting it.”
If it were useful for us to be able to distinguish between our own thoughts and those suggested to us, God would have given us the means to do so, just as God has given us the means to distinguish between day and night. But when a matter seems vague, it must be so for our own good.
463- It is sometimes said that the first impulse is always the best. Is this correct?
“It can be good or bad, according to the nature of the incarnate spirit. It is always good for the one who listens to good inspirations.”
464- How can we tell if a suggested thought comes from a good or an evil spirit?
“Study the matter: good spirits give only good advice; it is your responsibility to make the distinction.”
465- For what purpose do imperfect spirits induce us to evil?
“To make you suffer as they themselves do.”
– Does it actually lessen their sufferings?
“No, but they do so anyway out of envy at seeing happier beings.”
– What kinds of suffering do they wish to inflict on us?
“Those that result from belonging to a lower order and from being far from God.”
466- Why does God permit spirits to incite us to evil?
“Imperfect spirits are meant as instruments for testing the faith and constancy of individuals in the practice of the good. As a spirit, you must progress in the knowledge of the infinite, and you experience the trials of evil in order to arrive at the good. Our mission is to place you upon the upright path. When evil influences act on you, however, it is you yourself who call to them out of your desire for evil. Little-evolved spirits come to help you in evil when you have the will to commit it. However, they cannot help you in evil except when you actually desire to indulge in it. If you are inclined to murder, very well, there will be a swarm of spirits who will maintain that thought in your mind. However, there will also be others who will try to influence you for good, and this re-equalizes the balance, leaving you as master of yourself.”
It is thus that God leaves to our conscience the choice of the course we must follow and the freedom to yield to either of the opposing influences acting on us.
467- Can people avoid the influence of spirits who incite them to evil?
“Yes, because they only attach themselves to those who solicit them with their desires or attract them with their thoughts.”
468- Do spirits whose influence is repelled by an individual’s will finally give up on their attempts?
“What else could they do? When they have nothing to do, they leave. Nevertheless, they attentively watch for a favorable moment, as the cat attentively watches the mouse.”
469- By what means can we neutralize the influence of evil spirits?
“By doing good and placing all your trust in God, you repel their influence and you destroy the power they desire to have over you. Guard yourselves against listening to the suggestions of spirits who excite evil thoughts in your mind, those who incite discord and arouse in you all the evil passions. Above all, distrust spirits who flatter your pride, for they are attacking you at your weakest point. That is why Jesus teaches you to say in the Lord’s Prayer, ‘Lord, do not let us fall into temptation, but deliver us from evil!’”
470- The spirits who seek to lead us into evil and who thus put our moral firmness to the test, have they received a mission to do this, and if it is in fact a mission for them to fulfill, will they be responsible for doing so?
“Spirits never receive a mission to do evil. When they do evil deeds, it is by their own will and they will have to suffer the consequences. God may let them test you but never directly orders them to; it is your responsibility to repel them.”
471- When we experience a sensation of anguish, of indefinable anxiety or inner satisfaction without a known cause, does it result from our physical disposition at the time?
“It is almost always the effect of communications you have with spirits without even suspecting it – or those you have had with them during sleep.”
472- Are spirits who want to incite us to evil limited to taking advantage of the circumstances in which we find ourselves, or can they create such circumstances?
“They may take advantage of a circumstance, but frequently they cause it, pushing you without your being aware of it toward the object of your ambition. Thus, for example, a man finds a quantity of money by the road. Spirits have not placed the money there but they may have instilled in the man the thought of going in that direction. Then, they suggest he keep the money, while others suggest he return it to its rightful owner. The same process happens with all other temptations.”
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