Kardec, magos negros, caboclos e preto-velhos: o espiritismo de Robson Pinheiro dos Santos

Abstract

There is in Minas Gerais, Brazil, a medium that distinguishes himself from the traditional spiritism. More precisely in Belo Horizonte, the medium Robson Pinheiro has been developing a work whose cosmological visions presents itself as a combination of elements of umbanda, candomblé, pentecostalism and new age’s mysticism. From this object the following questions may be formulated: Does the medium practices a post-spiritism that diverges and breaks up from the traditional spiritism’s doctrine or is it responsible for the development of a new current within Brazilian spiritism? Robson Pinheiro is the author of more than forty psychographed works and is a publishing success of the segment. His literary production mixes spiritual realities and presents an unseen version of spiritism. The medium experiences this cosmology in his practices and rituals performed in groups and institutions that he has founded. In these places, the characters of his books possess mediums and interact with the public. A practice of spiritism that does not obey the conventions of Brazilian spiritism. In this sense, because of the repercussions of his performances, works and presence, the medium Robson Pinheiro can be considered as one of the newest expressions within the spiritism movement. This fact originates a rejection by traditional adepts of the segment that consider his works inadequate. On the other hand, some of his followers regard him as a reformer and perceive his practices as the closest to the ones described in the original codification of European spiritism. In order to answer the questions presented, this work aimes to analyze the biography, novels and rites practiced in the groups created by the author.