Spiritist centre
A Spiritist centre, also called Spiritist society or Spiritist house, is the basic unit of organisation of Spiritism, which is a distinct form of Spiritualism. In legal terms, Spiritist centres are ordinary non-profit associations, whose members are in charge of providing funds to run the centre itself and the various charity activities kept by it. Each centre is run by a "president" or one or more "directors" elected for a term. Spiritist centres differ from Spiritualist churches in that they are not formally organized as ecclesiastical bodies. In addition to the legal and corporeal aspects of its  existence, a Spiritist centre is also believed by its members to have an informal and incorporeal level of existence in the spirit world which comprises its patron and a series of protector spirits (which may be shared by other centres in the world). Types of societies. There are many types of Spiritist organisations, depending on their goals, formal organisation, size, etc. Activities. Spiritist centres are complex to define because they are not, in the strictest sense, ordinary religious entities. The activities carried on by a Spiritist centres are of many types: Formation. Spiritist centre may be founded by anyone well -versed in Spiritist doctrine. Courses of Instruction. Doctrinal classes have a twofold goal: 1) to share the knowledge available in the books and brought by the founders 2) to identify potential mediums and workers. Most Spiritist centres conduct the following courses: The first three courses are almost universal. Proselytism. The only form of proselytism found in Spiritism is the disclosure of the doctrine (or aspects of it) to the general public. Divulgation of doctrine is carried on in many ways: Spiritual assistance. Spiritists understand the term "Spiritual assistance" very literally, meaning "assistance to the spirit" of either a living person  or a deceased one. Spiritual assistance offered at Spiritist centres includes disobsession, healing, and blessing (directed to the followers and occasional visitors) as well as medium meetings in which several types of "spiritual" assistance is directed to spirits of deceased people. Spiritual assistance is intended to fight the four greatest foes of mankind -- suicide, murder (which includes abortion), addiction and envy (which is the cause of most other problems) -- thus reducing the suffering of mankind. The ultimate goal of spiritual assistance is to help our planet to make it through its current stage of evolution, ceasing to be a "world  of penance" to become a happier one. Material assistance. Spiritist centres also carry on social works directed to outsiders which are "in need of help". Material assistance is intended to provide relief to the immediate needs of the poor and the unhappy. In Brazil, Spiritist centres characteristically maintain the following types of charities: Bigger centres may keep clinics, schools, publishing houses, etc. In spite of their respect for homoeopathy, the kind of medicine practised in clinics maintained by spiritist centres and the medicines they give to the poor are both nearly always mainstream.