History of Spiritism in Mexico

The first documented facts in Mexican history about the practice of spiritism occurred in 1870.
However, Spiritism in Mexico only became known through the practice of Francisco I. Madero, a businessman and politician who became president of the country and brought the study of spiritualism into the schools. Madero had his first contact with the spiritism doctrine in 1891, but spiritism was neither born nor died with him.

Much earlier, in the city of Guadalajara, there was a strong spiritism presence with great public relevance that soon reached Mexico City. From there was born, in 1868, the first spiritist newspaper in Mexico: "La Ilustración Espírita", which published high quality content on the doctrine and became an official organ of its dissemination. Its first edition dated December 15, 1868 and highlighted in its call the spiritist maxim of Kardec: "outside of charity there is no salvation". A year after its foundation, the newspaper moved to Guanajuato and in 1872 it began to be edited in Mexico City, where it circulated until 1879. Unfortunately, in July of that year printing was interrupted due to lack of resources, with an attempt to return in 1888.

Another important fact about spiritism in Mexico is the establishment of the "Sociedad Espírita Central de la República Mexicana" (Central Spiritist Society of the Mexican Republic) in August 1872. This society represented the seriousness and strength with which spiritism was installed in Mexico and considered a proof of the principles dictated by the spirits above Allan Kardec. During these years, several spiritism groups had been officially formed, among them, the Allan Kardec Circle of Mexico City, represented by the writer Ignacio Castera, as well as ten others established in Mexico City and various states of the Mexican Republic.
Currently, the Spiritist Council of Mexico (COEM) is the federal body that expresses the union of the country's spiritism associations, groups and federations, and is dedicated to disseminating the doctrine. Its founder and great disseminator is Jorge Zurita, who has been managing and representing Mexican spiritism since 2007.