9. Alongside the moral issue, a no less important consideration presents itself in connection with the very nature of the faculty. Mediumship could not be, nor will it ever be, a profession, not only because it would be morally discredited and immediately compared with fortunetelling, but because a material obstacle is opposed to it: it is an essentially transitory, fleeting and changeable faculty, whose permanence no one can count on. Therefore, it would always be a very uncertain resource to be exploited because it could fail at the moment in which it would be most necessary. A different matter altogether is a talent acquired through study and work, and which, for that very reason, is an asset from which it is naturally permitted to make a profit. Mediumship, however, is neither an art nor a talent, and that is why it cannot be made into a profession; it does not exist except through the concourse of spirits; if spirits are lacking, there is no longer mediumship; the aptitude may persist but the practice is annulled; thus, there is not one medium in the world who could guarantee the obtainment of a spirit phenomenon at any given moment. Exploiting mediumship is thus to make use of something that one does not really own; to state otherwise is to deceive the person being charged. What is more, it is not they themselves that they are making use of, but the spirits, the souls of the dead, whose concourse is put up for sale. Such a thought is instinctively repugnant. It is this sort of trafficking, degenerated into abuse, exploited by charlatanism, ignorance, credulity and  superstition  that  motivated  Moses’ prohibition. Modern Spiritism, understanding the serious side of the matter through the discredit it has cast over such exploitation, has elevated mediumship to the category of being a mission.

10. Mediumship is something sacred that must be practiced in a holy and religious manner. If there is one type of mediumship that requires this attitude most completely, it is healing mediumship. Physicians provide the fruit of their study, which they have made at the price of often painful sacrifice; magnetizers  provide their own fluid41 – oftentimes even their health – and they may charge for their practices; healing mediums, however, transmit the healthful fluid of good spirits, and do not have the right to sell it. Although poor, Jesus and the disciples charged nothing for the healings they obtained.

Thus, those who do not have the financial means to support themselves should go and seek resources somewhere else other than in mediumship, and if necessary, devote to it only the spare time they have available. Spirits will take into account their dedication and sacrifices, whereas  they will avoid those who intend to use mediumship as a means for material gain.