Paper short abstract:

Brazilian Spiritism's actions in the international religious field are partially justified by the [re]construction of this region as one endowed with a spiritual mission. In order to understand spiritist expansion, it is necessary to understand how this socio-cultural construction happened.

Paper long abstract:

In 1949, the Brazilian Spiritist Federation (FEB) made the unification agreement of the Brazilian Spiritist Movement known as the 'Golden Pact'. This expression was used by Lins de Vasconcelos during the National Federative Council's creation, whose aim was to execute, develop and expand the FEB's fundamental plans in the organizational structure of Spiritism in Brazil. Among the deliberations approved in this agreement is the recognition of Francisco Xavier's work (1938), entitled 'Brazil, Heart of the World, country of the Gospel', as a guide to FEB's activities. Brazil's [re]construction as a symbolic region took place on two fronts: Brazil and Portugal. In Brazil, supported by the idea of the founding myth of Brazil created by the Portuguese, the [re]construction of this symbolic region in the Confucius Spiritist Center in Rio de Janeiro, in 1870, was made through the message of Ismael, "Brazil Has the mission of Christianizing. It is the Land of Promise." Later, in 1889, Allan Kardec (in spirit) left the message "Instructions to Brazil's Spiritists", in the Fraternity of the Spiritist Society through Frederico Junior, and after this, with 'Brazil, Heart of the World and country of the Gospels'. In Portugal, the Portuguese medium Fernando de Lacerda psychographed two messages (Eça de Queiroz and Dom Pedro II, 1912) as they reaffirm this [re]construction. The context those facts are inserted in is the promotion of nationalist policies. However, the nationalist discourse is also noted in the religious and symbolic field.