EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

A concise
study of the
life and works
of Emanuel
Swedenborg
Christian mystic, theologian,
scientist, inventor
Henry Epps

1
 Preface

As a writer, philospher, minister and social theorist I happen

chance on the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg on
amazon.com after I have just written the consummation of
the Ages series. I found a copy of the consummation of the
Ages written by Swedenborg and I researched his writings,
philosophies and theologies and decided to write this book to
bring attention to his exhaustive work that has influenced
many great thinkers over the last two hundred years. I
believe this book will be a great blessing for any and all
readers.

2
3
 Table of contents

1 The life of Emanuel Swedenborg

2 Emanuel Swedenborg writings on heaven and hell

3 Heavenly bodies (Angels & Demons)

10

4
5
6
 Chapter One
The life of Emanuel Swedenborg

Emanuel Swedenborg (born Emanuel Swedberg; 29 January

1688[1] – 29 March 1772) was a Swedish scientist,
philosopher, theologian, revelator, and, in the eyes of some,
Christian mystic. [2] He termed himself a "Servant of the Lord
Jesus Christ" in True Christian Religion,[3] one of the works
he published himself.[4] He is best known for his book on the
afterlife, Heaven and Hell (Swedenborg). Swedenborg had a
prolific career as an inventor and scientist. In 1741, at the age
of 53, he entered into a spiritual phase [5] in which he
eventually began to experience dreams and visions beginning
on Easter weekend April 6, 1744. This culminated in a
spiritual awakening, whereupon he claimed he was

7
appointed by the Lord to write a heavenly doctrine to reform
Christianity. He claimed that the Lord had opened his
spiritual eyes, so that from then on he could freely visit
heaven and hell, and talk with angels, demons and other
spirits.

He said that the Last Judgement had already occurred, in

1757, although only visible in the spiritual world, where he
had witnessed it.[6] That Judgement was followed by the
Second Coming of Jesus Christ, which occurred, not by Christ
in person, but by a revelation from Him through the inner,
spiritual sense of the Word[7] to Swedenborg.[8] In fact,
Swedenborg said, it is the presence of that spiritual sense
that makes the Word Divine.[9] For the remaining 28 years
of his life, he wrote and published 18 theological works, of
which, as noted above, the best known was Heaven and Hell
(1758),[10][11] and several unpublished theological works.
Some followers of Swedenborg believe that, of his
theological works, only those which Swedenborg published
himself are fully divinely inspired.[12]

In Earths in the Universe, Swedenborg stated that he

conversed with spirits from Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, Saturn,
Venus, the Moon, as well as spirits from planets beyond our
solar system.[13] Although from these encounters he falsely
concluded that the planets of our solar system were
inhabited, he admitted he could not see any of these physical
worlds in the spiritual world, and that these societies
appeared in "fixed positions" relative to the society of spirits
drawn from earth.[14] He explained that in order to increase

8
the perfection of the angelic heaven, spirits from many
worlds were necessary to fill in deficiencies and gaps in other
societies.[15]

Swedenborg rejected the doctrine of salvation through faith

alone, since he considered both faith and charity necessary
for salvation, not one without the other, whereas the
Reformers taught that faith alone procured justification,
although it must be a faith which resulted in obedience. The
purpose of faith, according to Swedenborg, is to lead a
person to a life according to the truths of faith, which is
charity, as is taught in 1 Corinthians 13:13 and James 2:20.
Swedenborg's theological writings have elicited a range of
responses. However, he made no attempt to found a
church.[16][17] A few years after his death – 15 by one
estimate[18] – for the most part in England, small reading
groups formed to study the truth they saw in his
teachings.[19] As one scholar has noted, Swedenborg's
teachings particularly appealed to the various dissenting
groups that sprang up in the first half of the 19th century
who were "surfeited with revivalism and narrow-
mindedness" and found his optimism and comprehensive
explanations appealing.[20]

A variety of important cultural figures, both writers and

artists, were influenced by Swedenborg, including Johnny
Appleseed, William Blake, Jorge Luis Borges, Daniel Burnham,
Arthur Conan Doyle,[21] Ralph Waldo Emerson,[22] John
Flaxman, George Inness, Henry James Sr., Carl Jung,[23]
Immanuel Kant,[24] Honoré de Balzac, Helen Keller, Czesław

9
Miłosz, August Strindberg, D. T. Suzuki, and W. B. Yeats. His
philosophy had a great impact on the Duke of Sodermanland,
later King Carl XIII, who as the Grand Master of Swedish
Freemasonry (Svenska Frimurare Orden) built its unique
system of degrees and wrote its rituals. In contrast, one of
the most prominent Swedish authors of Swedenborg's day,
Johan Henric Kellgren, called Swedenborg "nothing but a
fool".[25] A heresy trial was initiated in Sweden in 1768
against Swedenborg's writings and two men who promoted
these ideas.[26]

In the two and a half centuries since Swedenborg's death,

various interpretations of his theology have been made, and
he has also been scrutinized in biographies and psychological
studies.[27][28] Of note is that, just as Jesus Christ, with his
new teachings, was considered insane by some (John 10:20,
Mark 3:21), so Swedenborg, with his claimed new
dispensation, has been considered by some to suffer from
mental illness.[29][30]

[31] “While the insanity explanation was not uncommon

during Swedenborg's own time, it is mitigated by his activity
in the Swedish Riddarhuset (The House of the Nobility), the
Riksdag (the Swedish parliament), and the Royal Swedish
Academy of Sciences. Additionally, the system of thought in
his theological writings is considered by some to be
remarkably coherent.[32] Furthermore, he was characterized
by his contemporaries as a "kind and warm-hearted man",
"amiable in his meeting with the public", speaking "easily and
naturally of his spiritual.experiences".[33][34][35]”, with

10
pleasant and interesting conversation…. An English friend of
Kant's who visited Swedenborg at Kant's behest described
Swedenborg as a "reasonable, pleasant and candid man and
scholar".[36]

Of note here is Swedenborg's statement that he was

commanded by the Lord to publish his writings and "Do not
believe that without this express command I would have
thought of publishing things which I knew in advance would
make me look ridiculous and many people would think lies…"

Swedenborg's father, Jesper Swedberg (1653–1735),

descended from a wealthy mining family. He travelled abroad
and studied theology, and on returning home he was
eloquent enough to impress the Swedish king, Charles XI,
with his sermons in Stockholm. Through the King's influence
he would later become professor of theology at Uppsala
University and Bishop of Skara.[38][39]

Jesper took an interest in the beliefs of the dissenting

Lutheran Pietist movement, which emphasised the virtues of
communion with God rather than relying on sheer faith (sola
fide).[40] Sola fide is a tenet of the Lutheran Church, and
Jesper was charged with being a pietist heretic. While
controversial, the beliefs were to have a major impact on his
son Emanuel's spirituality. Jesper furthermore held the
unconventional belief that angels and spirits were present in
everyday life. This also came to have a strong impact on
Emanuel.[38][39][41]

11
 Swedenborg completed his university course at Uppsala in
1709, and in 1710 made his grand tour through the
Netherlands, France, and Germany, before reaching London,
where he would spend the next four years. It was also a
flourishing center of scientific ideas and discoveries. Emanuel
studied physics, mechanics, and philosophy, and read and
wrote poetry. According to the preface of a book by the
Swedish critic Olof Lagercrantz, Swedenborg wrote to his
benefactor and brother-in-law Eric Benzelius that he believed
he (Swedenborg) might be destined to be a great
scientist.[42][43]

In 1715 Swedenborg returned to Sweden, where he was to

devote himself to natural science and engineering projects
for the next two decades. A first step was his noted meeting
with King Charles XII of Sweden in the city of Lund, in 1716.
The Swedish inventor Christopher Polhem, who became a
close friend of Swedenborg, was also present. Swedenborg's
purpose was to persuade the king to fund an observatory in
northern Sweden. However, the warlike king did not consider
this project important enough, but did appoint Swedenborg
assessor-extraordinary on the Swedish Board of Mines
(Bergskollegium) in Stockholm.[45]

From 1716 to 1718, Swedenborg published a scientific

periodical entitled Daedalus Hyperboreus ("The Northern
Daedalus"), a record of mechanical and mathematical
inventions and discoveries. One notable description was that
of a flying machine, the same he had been sketching a few
years earlier (see Flying Machine (Swedenborg)).[43]

12
 Upon the death of Charles XII, Queen Ulrika Eleonora
ennobled Swedenborg and his siblings. It was common in
Sweden during the 17th and 18th centuries for the children
of bishops to receive this honour as a recognition of the
services of their father. The family name was changed from
Swedberg to Swedenborg.[46]

In 1724, he was offered the chair of mathematics at Uppsala

University but he declined, saying that he had mainly dealt
with geometry, chemistry and metallurgy during his career.
He also noted that he did not have the gift of eloquent
speech because of a speech impediment. The speech
impediment in question was stuttering, noted by many
acquaintances of his: it forced him to speak slowly and
carefully and there are no known occurrences of his speaking
in public.[47] The Swedish critic Olof Lagerkrantz proposed
that Swedenborg compensated for his impediment by
extensive argumentation in writing.[48]

13
 Flying Machine, sketched in a notebook in 1714. The
operator would sit in the middle, and paddle himself through
the air. See Smithsonian model[44]

During the 1730s, Swedenborg undertook many studies of

anatomy and physiology. He had the first anticipation, as far
as known, of the neuron concept[49] It was not until a
century later that science recognized the full significance of
the nerve cell. He also had prescient ideas about the cerebral
cortex, the hierarchical organization of the nervous system,
the localization of the cerebrospinal fluid, the functions of
the pituitary gland, the perivascular spaces, the foramen of
Magendie, the idea of somatotopic organization, and the
association of frontal brain regions with the intellect. In some

14
cases his conclusions have been experimentally verified in
modern times.[50][51][52][53][54]

In the 1730s Swedenborg also became increasingly

interested in spiritual matters and was determined to find a
theory which would explain how matter relates to spirit.
Swedenborg's desire to understand the order and purpose of
creation first led him to investigate the structure of matter
and the process of creation itself. In the Principia he outlined
his philosophical method, which incorporated experience,
geometry (the means whereby the inner order of the world
can be known), and the power of reason; and he presented
his cosmology, which included the first presentation of his
Nebular hypothesis. (There is evidence that Swedenborg may
have preceded Kant by 20 years in the development of this
hypothesis.[55])

In Leipzig, 1735, he published a three volume work entitled

Opera philosophica et mineralis ("Philosophical and
mineralogical works"), where he tries to conjoin philosophy
and metallurgy. The work was mainly appreciated for its
chapters on the analysis of the smelting of iron and copper,
and it was this work which gave Swedenborg international
reputation.[56]

The same year he also published the small manuscript de

Infinito ("On the Infinite"), where he attempted to explain
how the finite is related to the infinite, and how the soul is

15
connected to the body. This was the first manuscript where
he touched upon these matters. He knew that it might clash
with established theologies, since he presents the view that
the soul is based on material substances.[57][58]

He also conducted dedicated studies of the fashionable

philosophers of the time John Locke, Christian von Wolff,
Leibniz, and Descartes, as well as returning to earlier thinkers
Plato, Aristotle, Plotinus, Augustine, and others.[59]

In 1743, at the age of 55, Swedenborg requested a leave of

absence to go abroad. His purpose was to gather source
material for Regnum animale (The Animal Kingdom, or
Kingdom of Life), a subject on which books were not readily
available in Sweden. The aim of the book was to explain the
soul from an anatomical point of view. He had planned to
produce a total of seventeen volumes.

16
17
 Chapter Two

Emanuel Swedenborg writings on heaven and

hell

Heaven and Hell is the common English title of a book

written by Emanuel Swedenborg in Latin, published in 1758.
The full title is Heaven and its Wonders and Hell From Things
Heard and Seen, or, in Latin: De Caelo et Ejus Mirabilibus et
de inferno, ex Auditis et Visis.

This book is a detailed description of the afterlife, how

people live after the death of the physical body. The book
owes its appeal to that subject matter. Whatever is uncertain
in this world, one thing is certain - we all shall die, and there
are few who have not, at some time, meditated on this
inevitable change.[1]

1. The Lord, speaking in the presence of His disciples of the

consummation of the age, which is the final period of the
church,# says, near the end of what He foretells about its
successive states in respect to love and faith:##

Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun shall

be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the
stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens
shall be shaken. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of

18
man in heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the earth
mourn; and they shall see the Son of man coming in the
clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall
send forth His angels with a trumpet and a great sound; and
they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from
the end to end of the heavens (Matt. 24:29-31).

Those who understood these words according to the sense of

the letter have no other belief than that during that latest
period, which is called the final judgment, all these things are
to come to pass just as they are described in the literal sense,
that is, that the sun and moon will be darkened and the stars
will fall from the sky, that the sign of the Lord will appear in
the sky, and He Himself will be seen in the clouds, attended
by angels with trumpets; and furthermore, as is foretold
elsewhere, that the whole visible universe will be destroyed,
and afterwards a new heaven with a new earth will come into
being. Such is the opinion of most men in the church at the
present day. But those who so believe are ignorant of the
arcana that lie hid in every particular of the Word. For in
every particular of the Word there is an internal sense which
treats of things spiritual and heavenly, not of things natural
and worldly, such as are treated of in the sense of the letter.
And this is true not only of the meaning of groups of words, it
is true of each particular word.### For the Word is written
solely by correspondences,#### to the end that there may be
an internal sense in every least particular of it. What that
sense is can be seen from all that has been said and shown

19
about it in the Arcana Coelestia; also from quotations
gathered from that work in the explanation of The White
Horse spoken of in the Apocalypse. It is according to that
sense that what the Lord says in the passage quoted above
respecting His coming in the clouds of heaven is to be
understood. The "sun" there that is to be darkened signifies
the Lord in respect to love;##### the "moon" the Lord in
respect to faith;###### "stars" knowledges of good and truth,
or of love and faith;####### "the sign of the Son of man in
heaven" the manifestation of Divine truth; "the tribes of the
earth" that shall mourn, all things relating to truth and good
or to faith and love;######## "the coming of the Lord in the
clouds of heaven with power and glory" His presence in the
Word, and revelation,######### "clouds" signifying the
sense of the letter of the Word,##########} and "glory" the
internal sense of the Word;########### " the angels with a
trumpet and great voice" signify heaven as a source of Divine
truth.############ All this makes clear that these words of
the Lord mean that at the end of the church, when there is no
longer any love, and consequently no faith, the Lord will open
the internal meaning of the Word and reveal arcana of
heaven. The arcana revealed in the following pages relate to
heaven and hell, and also to the life of man after death. The
man of the church at this date knows scarcely anything about
heaven and hell or about his life after death, although all
these matters are set forth and described in the Word; and
yet many of those born within the church refuse to believe in
them, saying in their hearts, "Who has come from that world
and told us?" Lest, therefore, such a spirit of denial, which

20
especially prevails with those who have much worldly
wisdom, should also infect and corrupt the simple in heart
and the simple in faith, it has been granted me to associate
with angels and to talk with them as man with man, also to
see what is in the heavens and what is in the hells, and this
for thirteen years; so now from what I have seen and heard it
has been granted me to describe these, in the hope that
ignorance may thus be enlightened and unbelief dissipated.
Such immediate revelation is granted at this day because this
is what is meant by the Coming of the Lord.

[REFERENCES TO THE AUTHOR'S ARCANA COELESTIA.]

# The consummation of the age is the final period of the

church (n. 4535, 10622).

## The Lord's predictions in Matthew (24 and 25), respecting

the consummation of the age and His coming, and the
consequent successive vastation of the church and the final
judgment, are explained in the prefaces to chapters 26-40 of
Genesis (n. 3353-3356, 3486-3489, 3650-3655, 3751-3757,
3897-3901, 4056-4060, 4229-4231, 4332-4335, 4422-4424,
4635-4638, 4661-4664, 4807-4810, 4954-4959, 5063-5071).

### Both in the wholes and in the particulars of the Word

there is an internal or spiritual sense (n. 1143, 1984, 2135,
2333, 2395, 2495, 4442, 9048, 9063, 9086).

#### The Word is written solely by correspondences, and for

this reason each thing and all things in it have a spiritual

21
meaning (n. 1404, 1408, 1409, 1540, 1619, 1659, 1709, 1783,
2900, 9086).

##### In the Word the sun" signifies the Lord in respect to

love, and in consequence love to the Lord (n. 1529, 1837,
2441, 2495, 4060, 4696, 7083, 10809).

###### In the Word the "moon" signifies the Lord in respect

to faith, and in consequence faith in the Lord (n. 1529, 1530,
2495, 4060, 4696, 7083).

####### In the Word "stars" signify knowledges of good and

truth (n. 2495, 2849,4697).

######## "Tribes" signify all truths and goods in the complex,

thus all things of faith and love (n. 3858, 3926, 4060, 6335).

######### The coming of the Lord signifies His presence in

the Word, and revelation (n 3900,4060).

########## In the Word clouds signify the Word in the letter

or the sense of its letter (n. 4060, 4391, 5922, 6343, 6752,
8106, 8781, 9430, 10551, 10574).

########### In the Word "glory" signifies Divine truth as it is

in heaven and as it is in the internal sense of the Word (n.
4809, 5922, 8267, 8427, 9429, 10574).

############ A "trumpet" or "horn" signifies Divine truth in

heaven, and revealed from heaven (n. 8158, 8823, 8915); and
"voice" has a like signification (n. 6771, 9926).

22
 An article about Swedenborg[3] includes a list of biographies
about him, with a brief analysis of each biographer's point of
view.[4] Some of the things he claims to have experienced
are that there are Jews, Muslims and people of pre-Christian
times ("pagans" such as Romans and Greeks) in Heaven. He
says he spoke to married angel couples from the Golden Age
who had been happy in heaven for thousands of years.[5]
The fundamental issue of life, he says, is that love of self or of
the world drives one towards Hell, and love of God and of
fellow beings drives one towards Heaven.

The work proved to be influential. It has been translated into

a number of languages, including Danish, French, English,
Hindi, Russian, Spanish, Icelandic, Swedish and Zulu. A variety
of important cultural figures, both writers and artists, were
influenced by Swedenborg, including Johnny Appleseed,
William Blake, Jorge Luis Borges, Daniel Burnham, Arthur
Conan Doyle,[6] Ralph Waldo Emerson,[7] John Flaxman,
George Inness, Henry James, Sr., Carl Jung,[8] Immanuel
Kant, Honoré de Balzac, Helen Keller, Czesław Miłosz, August
Strindberg, D. T. Suzuki, and W. B. Yeats. Edgar Allan Poe
mentions this book in his work The Fall of the House of
Usher.[9] It also plays an important role in Honoré de Balzac's
novel Louis Lambert.[10] William Blake referred to and
criticized Heaven and Hell and Swedenborg by name several
times in his poetical/theological essay The Marriage of
Heaven and Hell.

Swedenborg wrote about Heaven and Hell based on what he

said was revelation from God.[11] According to Swedenborg,

23
God is love itself.[12] and intends everyone to go to heaven.
That was His purpose for creation.[13] Thus, God is never
angry, Swedenborg says, and does not cast anyone into Hell.
The appearance of Him being angry at evil-doers was
permitted due to the primitive level of understanding of
people in Biblical times. Specifically, holy fear was needed to
keep the people of those times from sinking irretrievably into
the consequences of their evils. The holy fear idea was in
keeping with the fundamental truth that even they could
understand, that everything comes from Jehovah.[14] In the
internal, spiritual sense of the Word, however, revealed in
Swedenborg’s works, God can be clearly seen for the loving
Person He actually is.[15]

2. THE GOD OF HEAVEN IS THE LORD

First of all it must be known who the God of heaven is, since
upon that all the other things depend. Throughout all heaven
no other than the Lord alone is acknowledged as the God of
heaven. There it is said, as He Himself taught,

That He is one with the Father; that the Father is in Him, and
He in the Father; that he who sees Him sees the Father; and
that everything that is holy goes forth from Him (John 10:30,
35; 14:9-11; 16:13-15).

24
I have often talked with angels on this subject, and they have
invariably declared that in heaven they are unable to divide
the Divine into three, because they know and perceive that
the Divine is One and this One is in the Lord. They also said
that those of the church who come from this world having an
idea of three Divine beings cannot be admitted into heaven,
since their thought wanders from one Divine being to
another; and it is not allowable there to think three and say
one.# Because in heaven everyone speaks from his thought,
since speech there is the immediate product of the thought,
or the thought speaking. Consequently, those in this world
who have divided the Divine into three, and have adopted a
different idea of each, and have not made that idea one and
centered it in the Lord, cannot be received into heaven,
because in heaven there is a sharing of all thoughts, and
therefore if any one came thinking three and saying one, he
would be at once found out and rejected. But let it be known
that all those who have not separated what is true from what
is good, or faith from love, accept in the other life, when they
have been taught, the heavenly idea of the Lord, that He is
the God of the universe. It is otherwise with those who have
separated faith from life, that is, who have not lived
according to the precepts of true faith.

# Christians were examined in the other life in regard to their

idea of the one God and it was found that they held the idea
of three Gods (n. 2329, 5256, 10736, 10738, 10821).

A Divine trinity in the Lord is acknowledged in heaven (n. 14,

15, 1729, 2005, 5256, 9303

25
13. III. IN HEAVEN THE DIVINE OF THE LORD IS LOVE TO HIM
AND CHARITY TOWARDS THE NEIGHBOR.

The Divine that goes forth from the Lord is called in heaven
Divine truth, for a reason that will presently appear. This
Divine truth flows into heaven from the Lord from His Divine
love. The Divine love and the Divine truth therefrom are
related to each other as the fire of the sun and the light
therefrom in the world, love resembling the fire of the sun
and truth therefrom light from the sun. Moreover, by
correspondence fire signifies love, and light truth going forth
from love.# From this it is clear what the Divine truth that
goes forth from the Lord's Divine love is-that in its essence it
is Divine good joined to Divine truth, and being so conjoined
it vivifies all things of heaven; just as in the world when the
sun's heat is joined to light it makes all things of the earth
fruitful, which takes place in spring and summer. It is
otherwise when the heat is not joined with the light, that is,
when the light is cold; then all things become torpid and lie
dead. With the angels this Divine good, which is compared to
heat, is the good of love; and Divine truth, which is compared
to light, is that through which and out of which good of love
comes.

# In the Word "fire" signifies heavenly love and infernal love

(n. 934, 4906, 5215).

"Holy and heavenly fire" signifies Divine love, and every

affection that belongs to that love (n. 934, 6314, 6832).

26
"Light" from fire signifies truth going forth from good of love;
and light in heaven signifies Divine truth (n. 3195, 3485,
3636, 3643, 3993, 4302, 4413, 4415, 9548, 9684).

Some Basic Teachings

God is One

Heaven and Hell opens with an affirmation[16] of the many

statements in the Old and New Testaments (e.g.
Deuteronomy 6:4, Isaiah 44:6, 45: 14, 21, Mark 12: 29,32,
John 1:18, Revelation 11:17) and Swedenborg’s revelation
(e.g.[17],[18]) that there is a God and He is one. If God is all-
powerful, he must be one. It is contradictory to say that
there is more than one being who is all-powerful![19]

311. XXXV. HEAVEN AND HELL ARE FROM THE HUMAN RACE.

In the Christian world it is wholly unknown that heaven and

hell are from the human race, for it is believed that in the
beginning angels were created and heaven was thus formed;
also that the devil or Satan was an angel of light, but having
rebelled he was cast down with his crew, and thus hell was
formed. The angels never cease to wonder at such a belief in
the Christian world, and still more that nothing is really
known about heaven, when in fact that is the primary
principle of all doctrine in the church. But since such

27
ignorance prevails they rejoice in heart that it has pleased
the Lord to reveal to mankind at this time many things about
heaven and about hell, thereby dispelling as far as possible
the darkness that has been daily increasing because the
church has come to its end. [2] They wish for this reason that
I should declare from their lips that in the entire heaven
there is not a single angel who was created such from the
beginning, nor in hell any devil who was created an angel of
light and cast down; but that all, both in heaven and in hell,
are from the human race; in heaven those who lived in the
world in heavenly love and belief, in hell those who lived in
infernal love and belief, also that it is hell taken as a whole
that is called the Devil and Satan-the name Devil being given
to the hell that is behind, where those are that are called evil
genii, and the name Satan being given to the hell that is in
front, where those are that are called evil spirits.# The
character of these hells will be described in the following
pages. [3] The angels said that the Christian world had
gathered such a belief about those in heaven and those in
hell from some passages in the Word understood according
to the mere sense of the letter not illustrated and explained
by genuine doctrine from the Word; although the sense of
the letter of the Word until illuminated by genuine doctrine,
draws the mind in different directions, and this begets
ignorance, heresies, and errors.##

# The hells taken together, or the infernals taken together,

are called the Devil and Satan (n. 694).

28
Those that have been devils in the world become devils after
death (n. 968).

## The doctrine of the church must be derived from the

Word (n. 3464, 5402, 6822, 6832, 10763, 10765).

Without doctrine the Word is not understood (n. 9025, 9409,

9424, 9430, 10324, 10431, 10582).

True doctrine is a lamp to those who read the Word (n.

10400).

Genuine doctrine must be from those who are enlightened

by the Lord (n. 2510, 2516, 2519, 9424, 10105).

Those who are in the sense of the letter without doctrine

come into no understanding of Divine truths (n. 9409, 9410,
10582).

And they are led away into many errors (n. 10431).

The difference between those who teach and learn from the
doctrine of the church derived from the Word and those who
teach and learn from the sense of the letter alone (n. 9025).

29
30
 Chapter Three

Heavenly beings (Angels & Demons)

Angels

More than perhaps any other seer in history, Swedenborg

details a life after death that consists of real experiences in a
world in many basic ways quite similar to the natural world.
Angels in heaven do not have an ethereal or ephemeral
existence but enjoy an active life of service to others. They
sleep and wake, love, breathe, eat, talk, read, work, play, and
worship. They live a genuine life in a real spiritual body and
world.[20]

We in the natural world can only see angels here when our
spiritual eyes are opened, as demonstrated by many
instances in the Old Testament [21] and New Testament
(Matthew 18, Luke 2:14, Matthew 17, Luke 24, Revelation
1:10). Swedenborg received his revelation by the same
process, of his spiritual eyes being opened by God.[22],[23]

An angel’s whole environment – clothes, houses, towns,

plants, etc. – reflect (spiritually “correspond to”) the mental

31
state of the angel and changes as the angel's state
changes.[24]

Angels have the power of restraining evil spirits, one angel

being able to restrain a thousand such spirits all at once.
Angels exercise their power chiefly in defending people
against hell.[25]

In the Christian world it is believed that in the beginning

angels and devils were created in heaven, also that the devil
or Satan was an angel of light, but having rebelled he was
cast down with his crew, and thus hell was formed.
Swedenborg states that, on the contrary, every angel or devil
began life as an inhabitant of the human race.[26] In other
words, there are no angels or demons who were not people
on earth first.[27][28]

170. REPRESENTATIVES AND APPEARANCES IN HEAVEN.

The man who thinks from natural light alone is unable to

comprehend that there is any thing in heaven like what is in
the world; and for the reason that from natural light he has
previously thought, and established himself in the idea, that
angels are nothing but minds, and that minds are like
ethereal breaths, having no senses like those of men, thus no
eyes, and if no eyes no objects of sight; and yet the angels
have every sense that a man has, and far more exquisite
senses; and the light by which angels see is far brighter than
the light by which man sees. That angels are men in the most
complete form, and enjoy every sense, may be seen above

32
(n. 73-77); and that the light in heaven is far brighter than the
light in the world (n. 126-132).

41. VI. THE HEAVENS CONSIST OF INNUMERABLE SOCIETIES.

The angels of each heaven are not together in one place, but
are divided into larger and smaller societies in accordance
with the differences of good of love and of faith in which
they are, those who are in like good forming a single society.
Goods in the heavens are in infinite variety, and each angel is
as it were his own good.#

# There is infinite variety, and never any thing the same with
any other (n. 7236, 9002).

So in the heavens there is infinite variety (n. 684, 690, 3744,

5598, 7236).

Varieties in the heavens, which are infinite, are varieties of

good (n. 3744, 4005, 7236, 7833, 7836, 9002).

These varieties exist through truths, which are manifold from

which is each one's good (n. 3470, 3804, 4149, 6917, 7236).

It is because of this that all the societies in the heavens, and

all angels in a society, are distinct from each other (n. 690,
3241, 3519, 3804, 3986, 4067, 4149, 4263, 7236, 7833, 836).

33
Nevertheless they all make one through love from the Lord
(n. 457, 3986).

Children who die go directly to heaven, where they are

raised by angel mothers.[29][30]

Men and Women

Angels are men and women in every detail just as they were
here on earth, only they are spiritual and thus more perfect.
See Chapter on “Marriage in Heaven” in Heaven and Hell[31]
and Swedenborg’s book on the topic, Marriage Love[32]
Husband and wife together are called “man” or “one flesh” in
Genesis 1:27, 2:22-24, 5:2, and Mark 10:8.

The spiritual conjunction of husband and wife that is the

basis of true marriage in this world and the next is explained
in Heaven and Hell # 366ff. and Marriage Love #156ff.

The states of [true marriage love] are innocence, peace,

tranquility, intimate friendship, full trust and a desire shared
by the disposition and heart of each to do the other all the
good they can. All these things give rise to blessedness, bliss,
joy and pleasure, and by their everlasting heavenly
happiness.

34
— Marriage Love #180

Swedenborg says that this true married love was known in

antiquity but largely lost since then, mainly due to loss in
belief that this love is eternal and that there is life after
death.[33]

The Christian Marriage Ideal

According to Swedenborg, married life continues after death

as before, agreeing with the instinctive conviction of poets
and lovers whose inward assurances tell them their love will
surmount death and that they will live again and love again in
human form. [34] In other words, there is no “till death do us
part” of happily married couples. (See “Jesus and Paul on the
Eternity of Marriage” [35])

Swedenborg also says that Christian marriage love of one

man and one woman is the highest of all loves, the source of
the greatest bliss.[36] “For in themselves Christian marriages
are so holy that there is nothing more holy. They are the
seminaries of the human race, and the human race is the
seminary of the heavens.” [37][38]

The spiritual conjunction of husband and wife that is the

basis of Christian marriage in this world and the next, is
explained in Heaven and Hell # 366ff. and Marriage Love
(Conjugial Love in older translations) #156ff. Evidence of this
conjunction is found in the fact that husband and wife
together are called [one] “man” or “one flesh” in Genesis
1:27, 2:22-24, 5:2, and Mark 10:8.

35
In heavenly marriages neither partner tries to dominate the
other since love of dominion of one partner eliminates the
delight of that marriage. [39]

The ancients believed in a fountain of perpetual youth. In

heaven their dream is realized, for those who leave this
world old, decrepit, diseased in body or deformed, renew
their youth, and maintain their lives in the full vigor of early
manhood and womanhood. [40]

Swedenborg says that couples who lived in a chaste love of

Christian marriage are more than all others in the order and
form of heaven, and therefore in all beauty, and continue
unceasingly in the flower of youth. The delights of their love
are ineffable, and increase to eternity. What their outward
delights are it is impossible to describe in human words. [41]

Polygamy

“Polygamy” is used here to describe any marital relationship

between men and women other than one husband with one
wife. [42] A further variant is “Multiple Partners, but One at a
Time” [43] (i.e. serial monogamy). If done for evil reasons,
such as lust, it constitutes “successive polygamy.” [44]

36
 Swedenborg said in his revelation that true Christian
marriage love between one husband and several wives is
impossible for its spiritual origin, which is the formation of
one mind out of two, is thus destroyed.[45] He says that love
that is divided among a number of Christian partners is not
true marriage love, but lasciviousness.[46] According to
Swedenborg, a Christian who marries more than one wife
commits not only natural adultery but also spiritual
adultery.[47]. In the highest sense to commit adultery means
to deny the divinity of Jesus Christ and to profane the Word.
Adultery is so great an evil, Swedenborg says, "that it may be
called diabolism itself".[48] After death the damnation of
Christian polygamists is more severe than the damnation of
those who committed only natural adultery.[49] In the other
life adulterers love filth and live in filthy hells [50] [51][52]

Time and Space in the Spiritual World

There are neither time nor space as we understand them in

the other world. Both are replaced by a sense of state. See
Chapter 18, “Time in Heaven” and Chapter 22,“Space in
Heaven,” in Swedenborg E. Heaven and Hell, Swedenborg
Foundation 1946, # 70, 191[53]

World of Spirits

(This is not to be confused with “the spiritual world,” which

is a general term referring to the whole extent of Heaven,
Hell and the World of Spirits) The traditional Christian idea
was of resurrection on Judgment Day at the end of history.

37
Swedenborg says judgment takes place in the World of
Spirits immediately after each individual’s death.[54] After
we die, we wake up in the intermediate region of the
spiritual world, neither in Heaven nor Hell, but in a neutral
"no man's land" Swedenborg terms the "World of Spirits."
[55] Here we gradually lose the ability to pretend and the
spiritual “real us” comes out.[56] The resulting stripping of
one's self bare, even to one's most secret thoughts and
intentions, is the judgment.[57] “There is nothing concealed
that shall not be uncovered, and nothing secret that shall not
be known …” (Luke 12:2, 3; Matthew 10:26, Heaven and Hell,
#498). Following this judgment the new spirit goes on to
Heaven or Hell of his or her own free will. God does not force
them.[58]

Equilibrium and Spiritual Free Will

People are kept in spiritual freedom by means of the

equilibrium between Heaven and Hell.[59][60] So who sends
people to Heaven or Hell? Nobody but themselves. There is
no inquiry as to their faith or former church affiliations, or
whether they were baptized, or even what kind of life they
lived on earth. They migrate toward a heavenly or hellish
state because they are drawn to its way of life, and for no
other reason.[61]

Anyone can enter heaven. However as soon as an evil person

inhales the air there they have excruciating torment so they

38
quickly shun it and escape to a state/place in keeping with
their true state.[62] As the old saying goes, “Where the tree
falls, there it lies.”[63] The basic spiritual orientation of a
person toward good or evil cannot be changed after death.
Thus, an evil spirit could leave hell, but never wants to.[64]

Influence on Joseph Smith and Mormon theology

D. Michael Quinn suggests in his book Early Mormonism and

the Magic World View that Heaven and Hell influenced
Joseph Smith, Jr. in the creation of the Mormon view of the
afterlife detailed in Doctrine and Covenants Section 76.

However, many of the similarities are rooted in Biblical

language and by interpreting Biblical texts. For example, the
general view of three Heavens in the resurrection appears to
have its root from the writings attributed to the apostle Paul
found in the New Testament, 1 Cor 15:40–42:

"There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but

the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the
terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, and
another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for
one star different from another star in glory. So also is the
resurrection of the dead."

Allegorically, Swedenborg likens both the nature of each

heaven as well as the illumination in the sky of each heaven
to the sun, moon, and stars (Heaven and Hell 119). He states
that the sun of the celestial heaven and the moon of the
spiritual kingdom is the Lord (Heaven and Hell 118). In

39
Mormonism's view of I Cor 14:40–42, the resurrected bodies
of those in three degrees of glory (celestial, terrestrial, and
telestial heavens) are likened to the sun, moon, and stars.

Other historians, including Richard Bushman, propose that

the similarities between the revelations of Smith and
Swedenborg are due to the influence of Paul's writing on
both of them.[65]

It should be noted, however, that Corinthians is not included

in the list of books that, according to Swedenborg, constitute
the divinely inspired Biblical canon listed in Arcana Coelestia
10,325,[66] White Horse 216[67], and New Jerusalem and its
Heavenly Doctrine 266.[68] From Swedenborg’s perspective
the teachings of Corinthians are thus not authoritative and
he would not have been influenced by them.[69][70]

40
41
 Chapter Four

Who was Emanuel Swedenborg?

Swedenborg stated in five different places the basic mission

the Lord commanded him to do: "Since it has been given me
by the Lord to see the wonderful things which are in the
heavens and below the heavens, I must, from command,
relate what has been seen." (Apocalypse Revealed 962, Brief
Exposition 120, True Christian Religion 188) ..."[I]t has
pleased the Lord to manifest Himself to me and to send me
to teach the things which shall be of the New Church, meant
by the New Jerusalem in the Apocalypse." (Married Love 1).
More specifically, he wrote that, “Since the Lord cannot
manifest Himself in Person, .… and nevertheless has foretold
that He was to come and establish a new church, which is the
New Jerusalem, it follows that He will do this by means of a
man, who is able not only to receive these doctrines in his
understanding but also to publish them by the press.” (True
Christian Religion VIII, 779). This latter statement appears to
clearly specify that only the works that Swedenborg himself
published are fully authoritative Divine revelation, and this
was the position taken by a major translator of Swedenborg's
work, John Faulkner Potts,[1,2] who compiled the massive
Swedenborg Concordance. As noted on p. viii, the
Concordance reflects this distinction by inserting a dash
between text from the published works and text from the

42
unpublished work for a given section. ( For a complete list of
Swedenborg's theological works, indicating which he
published, click here. For a list of those he did not publish,
click here.) However, since it has sometimes been proposed
that all Swedenborg's theological writings should be
considered as authoritative revelation, it seems useful to
briefly review this matter. It should be noted at the outset
that, although Swedenborg didn't publish the unpublished
works, other people did after his death. Thus, the
unpublished works are sometimes referred to as the
posthumous works.

1. Are there reasons to question the authority of the

unpublished works?

a) Simple logic suggests that, if Jesus has infinite wisdom,

then He knows just exactly what we need in the way of
revelation. Furthermore, in that revelation is more truth
than any of us could absorb in a lifetime. So what
justification could there possibly be for trying to add more
material, especially if in deciding to do this we usurp Jesus'
role of defining what is full revelation - a spiritually hazardous
undertaking?!

b) Ethically, how legitimate is it to publish material

Swedenborg chose not to and then call it full revelation into
the bargain? If someone were to obtain some of your private
notes and published them to the world without your
permission, and in addition said those notes represented
what you thought, would you consider that ethical? And

43
what would be the point of making such a publication in the
first place since, in the eyes of a person reading something
published under those conditions, the notes would have no
credibility?

c) A central argument that has been made in defense of the

unpublished work as authoritative is that Swedenborg wrote
in Apocalypse Explained 1183 that "What has come from the
Lord has been written, and what has come from angels has
not been written" and similar statements in Spiritual
Diary/Spiritual Experiences 1647 and 4034. However, since
Apocalypse Explained and Spiritual Diary/Spiritual
Experiences are unpublished works, the authority of these
statements is open to question. (The nearly finished status
of the Apocalypse Explained has been proposed as a
demonstration of its authoritative nature. However, the
reverse logic could just as easily be proposed - the fact that
work on it was halted when it was so near completion could
be seen as a fairly dramatic statement that it was not to be
part of the revealed work. Rev. Frank Rose points out,
however, that there were indications of Swedenborg's
doubts about publishing it well before he stopped work on it.
For instance, unlike Arcana Coelestia, he did not publish it
serially as he went along. (F.S. Rose, "Swedenborg's
Manuscripts," in J.S. Rose (ed.) Emanuel Swedenborg. Essays
for the New Century Edition on His Life, Work and Impact.
Swedenborg Foundation: West Chester, 2005, pp.136-7))
Furthermore, despite the fact that Apocalypse Explained was
written prior to Apocalypse Revealed, and on the same

44
subject and six volumes long, Apocalypse Explained is never
mentioned in Apocalypse Revealed. Indeed, Apocalypse
Explained is cited nowhere in the published works. (It is
listed in the published works by search engines a few times,
but these citations are only by the translator on word usage.)

d) Unlike the easily specified published works, the

unpublished works are a mess. As Rev. Dr. Jonathan Rose, a
translator of the Writings, points out,

"... the posthumous works are all incomplete or

organizationally flawed in one way or another. The reader of
the manuscripts is constantly reminded that he or she is
dealing with a work in progress, often full of scratchings out,
sometimes with whole changes in method and direction. The
posthumous works generally lack titles and their beginnings
and endings are sometimes hard to locate. The difference
between reading a manuscript and a first edition is strikingly
obvious.

"This distinction is all but lost on the English readers of the

existing standard edition. Although some posthumous works
are gathered in a two-volume set with the title Posthumous
Theological Works, and the word posthumous appears in
miniscule type on the title page of Apocalypse Explained, the
reader can easily forget the distinction. The posthumous
works have been edited and transcribed, translated and
published in books with exactly the same typeface, font, size,
leading, margins, type and color of binding as the published
works. Sometimes published and posthumous works have

45
been bound together in the same volume, with perhaps a
word or two buried in a preface to signal the reader of the
distinction. This did not begin with English publication.
Within a mere decade of Swedenborg's death Hindmarsh
used the same printing houses, the same font, typeface,
margins and leading to publish posthumous works like the
Hieroglyphic Key and bind them in the same volume with a
first edition. This has caused confusion about what was
published and what was not even for people as educated as
previous Swedenborgiana librarians, who placed such
volumes beside genuine first editions."

- J.S. Rose, Boundaries, Looks and Style: Overlooked Aspects

of Faithful Translation. Studia Swedenborgiana, May 1994
(for further details, see J.S. Rose, "Annotated Bibliography of
Swedenborg's Writings," in J.S. Rose (ed.) Emanuel
Swedenborg. Essays for the New Century Edition on His Life,
Work and Impact. Swedenborg Foundation: West Chester,
2005, pp. 385ff.)

See also a brief summary by Rev. Frank Rose on the difficulty

of even coming up with a clearly defined list of the
unpublished work ("The Writings" (letter) New Church Life
October 1968 ), and a more extended treatment by him,
including commentary on the ragged state of, most notably,
Spiritual Experiences, in "Swedenborg's Manuscripts," in J.S.
Rose (ed.) Emanuel Swedenborg. Essays for the New Century
Edition on His Life, Work and Impact. Swedenborg
Foundation: West Chester, 2005, pp.117ff. Rose also points
out that,

46
"we can be satisfied that we have all of the material that
Swedenborg completed with the intention of publishing,"
while "the...unpublished manuscripts are to be used with
caution. The originals of some of them have been lost,
leaving us to rely on imperfect copies. In the autograph
versions many pages are almost undecipherable.
Furthermore, some contain ideas that Swedenborg omitted
from the published works, possibly because he felt led to do
so." (ibid. pp.147-8)

One major problem with proposing such a messy collection

of work as authoritative revelation is that it makes God look
disorganized, requiring readers of His revelation to dig
through a collection of material that ranges from the
confusing to the simply unreadable. More critically, the
reader is forced to second guess what exactly God was trying
to say in this material, which treads perilously along the edge
of people, rather than God, determining the content of
revelation. It also seems a curious way, to say the least, for
God to communicate definitive revelation.

2. An alternative hypothesis

There would appear to be a simple alternative explanation of

the status of the unpublished work, suggested by another
famous statement of Swedenborg's:

47
“From my fourth to my tenth year I was constantly engaged
in thought upon God, salvation, and the spiritual diseases of
men; and several times I revealed things at which my father
and mother wondered ... From my sixth to my twelfth year I
used to delight in conversing with clergymen about faith, and
that the life of faith is love...” (Letter to G. A. Beyer,
Stockholm, Nov. 14, 1769. Tafel, II, 279-280)

In other words, his whole life was in preparation for his

ultimate use of writing the published, authoritative works of
the Second Coming. The preparation idea has long been
seen in the organized New Church as applying to
Swedenborg's pre-theological work. We are here simply
suggesting its extrapolation to Swedenborg's unpublished
theological works. But what about yet another famous
statement, of Swedenborg's - "From the first day of my call I
have not received anything that pertains to the doctrine of
that [New] Church from any angel, but from the Lord alone
while reading the Word." (True Christian Religion 779)? The
key point here is that this statement doesn't specify what
level of understanding/illumination Swedenborg was
receiving at at any given time, i.e. the extent to which he was
still seeing "through a glass, darkly." (1. Corinthians. 13: 12)
In other words, this statement does not conflict with the idea
of Swedenborg going through the preparation process. Even
to the finessed extent of the Apocalypse Explained polishing.

48
So we propose that Swedenborg proceeded, under God’s
auspices, through steadily ascending levels of understanding
in his revelation. The pre- to post-publication transformation,
however, appears to have been a sort of discrete degree
taking things to the next level, i.e. to the authoritative
revelation level. There are several pieces of evidence that
such a shift took place:

1. When he arrived in Amsterdam in 1747, in the period just

before he began to write the Arcana, he wrote in a
manuscript, "1747, August 7, old style. 'There was a change
of state in me into the heavenly kingdom in an image.'" "This
note suggests he had experienced a profound change in his
spiritual status on that day. It is intriguing that he did not
begin publishing theological material until after this change
had taken place." (quoted, with translation modified by J.S.
Rose, in F.S. Rose, "Swedenborg's Manuscripts," in J.S. Rose
(ed.) Emanuel Swedenborg. Essays for the New Century
Edition on His Life, Work and Impact. Swedenborg
Foundation: West Chester, 2005, pp.131, emphasis added)

2. In that same period, he made a fundamental change in his

usage: "In all the theological works up to this time [i.e. during
the pre-published works era], the name he used for Christ
was "God Messiah." He ended this practice on January 23,
1748, when he abruptly shifted to the more traditional term,
"The Lord," the term that he used to the end of his life. Right
at the outset of the first volume of his published works he
explains what he means by that term.

49
"From this point on, the term Lord is used in only one way:
to refer to the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, and the name
"Lord" is used without any additions." (Arcana Coelestia 14)

(F.S. Rose, "Swedenborg's Manuscripts," in J.S. Rose (ed.)

Emanuel Swedenborg. Essays for the New Century Edition on
His Life, Work and Impact. Swedenborg Foundation: West
Chester, 2005, pp.131, emphasis added.)

3. Although perhaps coincidental, it is certainly of interest

that during this period, in the summer of 1747, is also when
he decided to resign his position on the Board of Mines,
despite an offer to double his salary. (ibid.)

4. Rev. Erik Sandström has mentioned in another context the

idea that Swedenborg's revelation was "progressive" (E.
Sandström. Appendix on Robsahm's Memoir, The New
Philosophy 1998: 101 (whole issue)

5. Swedenborg followed the pattern in his pre-theological

works of publishing some and not others (see list at
http://www.emanuelswedenborg.org/). In other words, the
pattern of publishing in some cases and refraining from
publishing in others was apparently developed as part of his
preparatory period experience.

50
If there was in fact a "discrete degree" upward shift in his
revelation perception level, that does not mean Swedenborg
was outright mistaken in what he wrote in the unpublished
works, just that he did not yet fully appreciate and convey
"the whole truth and nothing but the truth." He was just still
in his preparation period and not yet at his full "heavenly
image"/"plenary inspiration" "discrete degree." Indeed, this
explanation also covers another traditional problem seen in
the published works themselves, namely the corrections he
made to drafts of the published works. These would appear -
like the Apocalypse Explained polishing exercise - to
represent just further refinements of his continuing
learning/preparation, but in this case within the authoritative
"discrete degree" level. Extrapolating this argument still
further, it seems reasonable to propose that the apparent
mistakes in the published works themselves are just final odd
and end leftovers of his learning/preparation that he didn’t
have time to finish. Recall that he said he could have written
a lot more if it had been permitted (e.g. a number of times he
refers to topics he did not pursue that would "fill many
pages" (e.g. Arcana Coelestia 4623, True Christian Religion
444)).

A point that has been raised in support of the unpublished

works as authoritative is that the published works sometimes
quote the pre-theological works (e.g. Prophets and Psalms).
But it was Swedenborg at the published-work "discrete
degree" who was doing the quoting then, and in the
illumination he had at that point he could presumably

51
accurately pick out the true Word material from his earlier
work. Not to mention that, if quoting a work was enough to
establish its status as part of the revealed Word of God, then
you would have to include the book of Job, the Epistles of
Paul, etc. (e.g. Apocalypse Revealed 417, True Christian
Religion 59), which are explicitly excluded from the list of
canonical books revealed in Arcana Coelestia 10325, White
Horse 16 and New Jerusalem and its Heavenly Doctrine 266.

If the case is made that the preparatory theological works

were just that and nothing more, an obvious question is why,
then, didn't Swedenborg discard the rough copies of them, as
he did rough copies of the published works and much of his
correspondence (cf. J.S. Rose, "Annotated Bibliography of
Swedenborg's Writings," in Emanuel Swedenborg. Essays for
the New Century Edition on His Life, Work and Impact.
Swedenborg Foundation: West Chester, 2005, p. 388)?
Swedenborg must have known the problems the unpublished
works would potentially cause if he left them behind. One
obvious answer would be that expectation of those problems
arising was precisely the reason why he did leave the
unpublished material. In the best free-will-maintaining
tradition, leaving it provided grist for the mill for those
looking for reasons to discount the teachings of the Second
Coming, in keeping with the negative principle (Arcana
Coelestia 2568, 2588). It seems reasonable to propose, in
fact, that the handful of “mistakes” in the published works
(e.g. in True Christian Religion 632, and Brief Exposition 31,
the date of the Nicene Council is stated as 318 instead of

52
325) were provided for the same reason – so the negative
principle doubter would have material with which to do his
or her thing in freedom. The Second Coming teachings are,
after all, a pretty overwhelming and logically compelling
revelation, so it would seem particularly important to provide
some disbelief opportunities!

In Conclusion

The unpublished works have long been a source of incorrect

teaching (see, for instance, the teachings listed in
"Swedenborgian Legends."). Is there any role at all for those
works? Swedenborg, in two places in his unpublished work,
characterized the Biblical epistles as “useful books for the
church” (Apocalypse Explained 815, Letter to Beyer, April 15,
1766), even though not revelation. It has been proposed that
the unpublished works may stand in a similar position
relative to the teachings of the Second Coming. Could that
be the case? If the unpublished works are the product of a
lower discrete degree level of revelation, it would certainly
seem neither logical nor appropriate to use them to interpret
the higher degree of revelation of the published works. Thus,
the unpublished works would appear to be, like
Swedenborg's pre-theological works, only of historical
interest, for those studying how Swedenborg got to where he
did.

53
Practically speaking, the allegiance to the unpublished works
for the last 200 years by many followers of "Swedenborgian"
teachings has created what would seem to me to be a major
problem: Much of the large collection of doctrinal thinking
and collateral literature that has been developed over all
those years is a blend of material from Swedenborg's
published work and from the unpublished works, most
notably Apocalypse Explained and the Spiritual
Diary/Spiritual Experiences. In other words, that literature
and doctrine is not a reliable source of information about
what God actually teaches and thus is not helpful, and
perhaps hazardous, to our spiritual life. Clearly this situation
needs to be rectified. How? Going back and trying to
separate the inspired from the unpublished material in all
that doctrine and literature would be a huge task. It would
also seem to me to be pointless. Wouldn't it make more
sense - and be a whole lot faster response to this urgent
need - to simply go back and start over, and build an "All
things new" (Revelation 21: 5) set of doctrine and practice
based purely on the published works?

54
55
 Chapter Five

The True Christian Religion

FAITH OF THE NEW HEAVEN AND THE NEW CHURCH

IN ITS UNIVERSAL FORM AND IN ITS PARTICULAR FORM (n.

1-3).

Chapter 1

God the Creator (n. 4)

The Unity of God (n. 5)

1. The entire Holy Scripture, and all the doctrines therefrom

of the churches in the Christian world teach that there is a
God and that He is one (n. 5-7).

2. There is a universal influx from God into the souls of men

of the truth that there is a God and that He is one (n. 8).

For this reason in all the world there is no nation possessing

religion and sound reason that does not acknowledge a God
and that God is one (n. 9, 10).

4. Respecting what the one God is nations and peoples have

differed and still differ from many causes (n. 11).

56
5. Human reason can, if it will, perceive and be convinced
from many things in the world, that there is a God, and that
He is one (n. 12).

6. If God were not one, the universe could not have been
created and preserved (n. 13).

7. Whoever does not acknowledge a God is excommunicated

from the church and condemned (n. 14).

8 With people who acknowledge several Gods instead of one,

there is no coherence in the things relating to the church (n.
15).

The Divine Being, Which is Jehovah (n. 18)

1. The One God is called Jehovah from Esse, that is, because
He alone Is, [was], and is to be, and because He is the First
and the Last, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the
Omega (n. 19).

2. The One God is Substance itself and Form itself; and angels
and men are substances and forms from Him; and so far as
they are in Him and He is in them, are images and likenesses
of Him (n. 20).

3. The Divine Esse is at once Esse [Being] in itself and Existere

[Outgo] in itself (n. 21,22).

57
4. It is impossible for the Divine Esse and Existere in itself to
produce another Divine, which is Esse and Existere in itself;
therefore another God of the same Essence is impossible (n.
23).

5. The doctrine of a plurality of Gods, both in past ages and at

the present day, sprang solely from a failure to understand
the Divine Esse (n. 24).

The Infinity of God, or His immensity and eternity (n. 27)

1. God is Infinite because He is Being and Existence in

Himself, and because all things in the universe have their
being and existence from Him (n. 28).

2. God is Infinite because He was before the world was, that

is, before times and spaces arose (n. 29).

3. Since the creation of the world, God is in space without

space and in time without time (n. 30).

4. In relation to spaces God's infinity is called Immensity,

while in relation to times it is called Eternity; but although it
is so related, there is nothing of space in His Immensity, and
nothing of time in His Eternity (n. 31).

5. The Infinity of God may be seen by enlightened reason

from very many things in the world (n. 32).

58
6. Every created thing is finite, and the Infinite is in the finite,
as in its receptacles, and is in people as in its images (n. 33,
34).

The Divine Essence, which is Divine Love and Divine Wisdom

(n. 36)

1. God is love itself and wisdom itself, and these two

constitute His Essence (n. 37).

2. God is good itself and truth itself, because good is of love

and truth is of wisdom (n. 38).

3. God, because He is love itself and wisdom itself, is Life

itself, which is life in itself (n. 39, 40).

4. Love and wisdom in God make one (n. 41, 42).

5. It is the essence of love to love others outside of oneself,

to desire to be one with them, and to render them blessed
from oneself (n. 43-45).

6. These essentials of the Divine love were the cause of the

creation of the universe, and are the cause of its preservation
(n. 46, 47).

The omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence of God (n.

49)

59
1. Omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence pertain to
the Divine wisdom from the Divine love (n. 50, 51).

2. The omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence of God

can be clearly understood only when it is known what order
is, and when it is known that God is order, and that He
introduced order both into the universe and into each and all
things of it at the time of their creation (n. 62-65).

3. God's omnipotence in the whole universe, with each and

all things of it, proceeds and operates in accordance with the
laws of His order (n. 56-58).

4. God is omniscient, that is, He perceives, sees, and knows

each thing and all things, even to the most minute, that take
place according to order, and from these the things also that
take place contrary to order (n. 59-62)

5. God is omnipresent from the firsts to the lasts of His order

(n. 63, 64).

6. People were created a form of Divine order (n. 65-67).

60
7. From the Divine omnipotence people have power over evil
and falsity; and from the Divine omniscience has wisdom
respecting what is good and true; and from the Divine
omnipresence is in God, just to the extent that he lives in
accordance with Divine order (n. 68-70).

The creation of the universe (n. 75)

No one can gain a right idea of the creation of the universe

until their understanding is brought into a state of perception
by some universal knowledges previously recognized (n. 75).

The creation of the universe described in five Memorable

Relations (n. 76-80).

Chapter 2

The Lord the Redeemer (n. 81)

61
1. Jehovah God descended and assumed a Human that He
might redeem people and save them (n. 82-84).

2. Jehovah God descended as the Divine truth, which is the

Word, although He did not separate from it the Divine good
(n. 85-88).

3. God assumed the Human in accordance with His Divine

order (n. 89-91).

4. The Human whereby God sent Himself into the world is

the Son of God (n. 92-94).

5. Through the acts of redemption the Lord made Himself

righteousness (n. 95, 96).

6. Through the same acts the Lord united Himself to the

Father and the Father united Himself to Him (n. 97-100).

7. Thus God became Human, and a Human became God, in

one Person (n. 101-103).

62
8. The progress towards union was His state of Exinanition
[emptying Himself], and the union itself is His state of
glorification (n. 104-106).

9. Hereafter no one from among Christians enters heaven

unless he believes in the Lord God the Saviour [and
approaches Him alone] (n.107, 108).

10. Corollary on the state of the church before the Lord's

coming, and its state after that (n. 109).

Redemption (n. 114)

1. Redemption itself was a subjugation of the hells, a

restoration of order in the heavens, and by means of these a
preparation for a new spiritual church (n. 115-117).

2. Without that redemption no person could have been

saved, nor could the angels have continued in a state of
integrity (n. 118-120).

63
3. In this wise not only people but the angels also were
redeemed by the Lord (n. 121,122).

4. Redemption was a work purely Divine (n. 123).

5. This Redemption itself could not have been accomplished

except by God incarnated (n. 124, 125).

6. The Passion of the cross was the last temptation which the
Lord as the greatest prophet endured; and was the means
whereby His Human was glorified, but it was not Redemption
(n. 126-131). The belief that the Passion of the cross was
Redemption itself is a fundamental error of the church; and
this error, with the error respecting three Divine persons
from eternity, has perverted the whole church to such an
extent that there is nothing spiritual left in it (n. 132, 133).

Chapter 3

The Holy Spirit and the Divine Operation (n. 134-138)

64
1. The Holy Spirit is the Divine Truth and also the Divine
Energy and Operation, proceeding from the one God in
whom is the Divine Trinity – that is, from the Lord God the
Saviour (n. 139-141).

2. The Divine Energy and Operation, which are meant by the

Holy Spirit, are in general reformation and regeneration; and
in accordance with these, renovation, vivification,
sanctification, and justification; and in accordance with these
latter, purification from evils, forgiveness of sins, and finally
salvation (n. 142-145).

3. The Divine Energy and Operation, which are meant by the

sending of the Holy Spirit, are, with the clergy specifically,
enlightenment and instruction (n. 146-148).

4. The Lord makes these energies operative in those who

believe in Him (n. 149-151).

5. The Lord operates of Himself from the Father, and not the
reverse (n. 153-155).

65
6. The spirit of a person is his or her mind and whatever
proceeds from it (n. 156, 157).

A Corollary: Nowhere in the Old Testament is it said that the

Prophets spoke from the Holy Spirit, but from Jehovah God;
it is otherwise, however, in the New (n. 158).

The Divine Trinity (n. 159-163)

1. There is a Divine Trinity, which is Father, Son and Holy

Spirit (n. 164, 165).

2. These three, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, are the three
essentials of the one God, and they make one, as the soul,
body, and operation make one in a person (n. 166-169).

3. Before the world was created this Trinity was not; but after
creation, when God became incarnate, it was provided and
brought about, and then in the Lord God the Redeemer and
Saviour, Jesus Christ (n. 170, 171).

66
4. In the ideas of thought a Trinity of Divine persons from
eternity, thus before the world was created, is a Trinity of
Gods; and these ideas cannot be effaced by a lip-confession
of one God (n. 172, 173).

5. A Trinity of persons was unknown in the Apostolic church,

but was hatched by the Nicene Council, and from that was
introduced into the Roman Catholic church, and from that
again into churches separated from it (n. 174-176).

6. From the Nicene Trinity and the Athanasian Trinity

together a faith in three Gods arose by which the whole
Christian church has been perverted (n. 177, 178).

7. This is the source of that abomination of desolation, and

that tribulation such as has not been nor ever shall be, which
the Lord foretold in Daniel, and in the Gospels and in the
Apocalypse (n. 179-181).

8. So, too, unless a new heaven and a new church were

established by the Lord there could no flesh be saved (n.
182).

67
9. From a Trinity of persons, each one of whom singly is God,
according to the Athanasian Creed, many discordant and
heterogeneous ideas. respecting. God have arisen, which are
fantasies and abortions (n. 183, 184).

Chapter 4

The Sacred Scripture or Word of the Lord (n . 189)

I. The sacred scripture or the Word is Divine truth itself (n.

189-192).

II. In the Word there is a spiritual sense hitherto unknown (n.

193).

1. What the spiritual sense is. (n. 194)

68
From the Lord the Divine Celestial, the Divine Spiritual (and)
the Divine Natural go forth one after the other. (n. 195).

2. The spiritual sense is in each and every part of the Word

(n. 196-198).

The Lord when in the world spoke by correspondences; that

is, when He spoke naturally He also spoke spiritually (n. 199).

3. It is because of the spiritual sense that the Word is Divinely

inspired and holy in every Word (n. 200).

4. Hitherto the spiritual sense of the Word has been

unknown; although it was known to the ancients. Of
correspondence among them (n. 201-207).

5. Henceforth the spiritual sense of the Word will be given

only to such as are in genuine truths from the Lord. (n. 208).

6. Some wonderful things respecting the Word from its

spiritual sense (n. 209).

69
III. The sense of the letter of the Word is the basis, the
containant, and the support of its spiritual and celestial
senses (n. 210-213).

IV. In the sense of the letter of the Word divine truth is in its
fullness, its holiness, and its power (n. 214-216).

1. The truths of the sense of the letter of the Word are meant
by the precious stones of which the foundations of the New
Jerusalem consisted (which is described in the Apocalypse;
and this on account of the correspondence (n. 217).

2. The goods and truths of the sense of the letter correspond

to the Urim and Thummim on the ephod of Aaron (n. 218)

3. Goods and truths in outmosts, such as are in the sense of

the letter of the Word, are signified by the precious stones in
the garden of Eden where the king of Tyre is said to have
been (in Ezekiel). (n. 219).

70
4. The same were represented by the curtains, veils, and
pillars of the tabernacle (n. 220).

5. Likewise by the externals of the temple at Jerusalem (n.

221).

6. The Word in its glory was represented in the Lord when He

was transfigured (n. 222),

7. The power of the Word in its outmosts was represented by

the Nazarites (n. 223).

8. The inexpressible power of the Word (n. 224).

V. The doctrine of the church should be drawn from the

sense of the letter of the Word and confirmed thereby (n.
225,229, 230).

1. Without doctrine the Word is not understood. (n. 226-

228).

71
2. Doctrine should be drawn from the sense of the letter of
the Word and confirmed by it (n. 229-230).

3. The genuine truth of which doctrine must consist can be

seen in the sense of the letter of the Word only by those who
are in enlightenment from the Lord (n. 231-233).

VI. By means of this sense of the letter of the Word there is

conjunction with the Lord and affiliation with the angels (n.
234-239).

VII. The Word is in all the heavens. And angelic wisdom is

from it (n. 240-242).

VIII. The church is from the Word, and with people it is such
as their understanding of the Word is (n. 243-247).

IX. In every particular of the Word there is a marriage of the

Lord and the church, and. In consequence a marriage of good
and truth (n. 248-253).

72
X. Heresies may be drawn from the sense of the letter of the
Word, but to confirm them is hurtful (n. 254-260).

Many things in the Word are appearances of truth, which

conceal within them genuine truths (n. 257).

Fallacies arise through the confirmation of appearances of

truth (n. 258).

The sense of the letter of the Word is a guard for the genuine
truths concealed within it (n. 260).

The sense of the letter was represented by cherubs and is

signified by cherubs in the Word (n. 260)

XI. The Lord when in the world fulfilled all things of the Word,
and thereby became the Word, that is, divine truth, even in
things last (n. 261-263).

73
XII. Before the Word that is now in the world, there was a
Word that was lost (n. 264-266).

XIII. Through the Word there is light also to those who are
outside of the church and do not possess the Word (n. 267-
272).

XIV. If there were no Word there would be no knowledge of

God, of heaven and hell, or of a life after death, still less of
the Lord (n. 273-276).

Chapter 5

The catechism or Decalogue explained in its external and its

internal sense

I. In the Israelitish church the Decalogue was holiness itself.

the holiness of the ark which contained the law (n. 283-286).

II. In the sense of the letter the Decalogue contains the

general precepts of faith and life; but in the spiritual and

74
celestial senses it contains all precepts universally (n. 287-
290).

III. THE FIRST COMMANDMENT: "There shall be [with thee]

no other god in my presence" (n. 291-296).

IV. THE SECOND COMMANDMENT: "Thou shalt not take the

name of Jehovah thy God in vain; for Jehovah will not hold a
person guiltless that taketh His name in vain" (n. 297-300).

V. THE THIRD COMMANDMENT: "Remember the Sabbath

day to keep it holy; six days shalt thou labor and do all thy
work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of Jehovah thy
God" (n. 301-304)

VI. THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT: "Honor thy father and thy

mother; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may be
well with Thee upon the earth. (n. 303-308).

VII. THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT: "Thou shalt not kill" (n. 309-
312).

75
VIII. THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT: "Thou shalt not commit
adultery" (n. 313-316).

IX. THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT: "Thou shalt not steal" (n.

317-320).

X. THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT: "Thou shalt not bear false

witness against thy neighbor" (n. 321-324).

XI. THE NINTH. AND TENTH COMMANDMENTS: "Thou shalt

not covet thy neighbor's house; thou shalt not covet thy
neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor
his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor's" (n.
325-328).

XII. The Ten Commandments of the Decalogue contain all

things that belong to love to God, and all things that belong
to love toward the neighbor" (n. 329-331).

Chapter 6

76
Faith (n. 336)

Preface: Faith is first in time, but charity is first in end (n.

336).

I. Saving faith is faith in the Lord God the Saviour Jesus Christ
(n. 337-339)

Because He is a visible God in whom is the invisible (n. 339).

II. The sum of faith is, that a person who lives well and
believes rightly is saved by the Lord (n. 340-342).

The first principle of Faith in Him is an acknowledgment that

He is the Son of God (n. 342).

III. People acquire faith by going to the Lord, learning truths

from the Word, and living according to them (n. 343-348).

77
The Esse of the Faith of the New Church is: 1. Confidence in
the Lord God the Savior Jesus Christ. 2. A trust that a person
who lives well and believes aright is saved by Him. (n. 344,
seq.).

Merely natural faith, that it is a persuasion counterfeiting

faith (n. 345-348).

IV. An abundance of truths cohering as if in a bundle, exalts

and perfects faith (n. 349-354).

1. The truths of faith may be multiplied to infinity (n. 350).

2. The truths of faith are disposed into series, thus, as it

were, into bundles (n. 361).

3. According to the abundance and coherence of truths, faith

is perfected (n. 352, 353).

4. However numerous the truths of faith are, and however

diverse they appear, they make one from the Lord (n. 364).

78
5. The Lord is the Word, the God of heaven and earth, the
God of all flesh, the God of the vineyard or church, the God
of faith, Light itself, the Truth, and Life eternal (n.354).

V. Faith without charity is not faith, and charity without faith

is not charity, and neither has life except from the Lord (n.
355-361)

1. People can acquire for themselves faith (n. 356).

2. People can acquire for themselves charity (n. 357).

3. People may also acquire for themselves the life of faith

and charity (n. 358).

4. Yet nothing of faith, or of charity, or of the life of either, is

from man, but from the Lord alone (n. 359).

79
5. The distinction between natural faith and spiritual faith,
the latter being inwardly within the former, from the Lord (n.
360, 361)

VI. The Lord, charity, and faith make one, like life, will, and
understanding in a person; and, if they are divided, each
perishes like a pearl reduced to powder (n. 362-367).

1. The Lord with all of His Divine love, with all of His Divine
wisdom, thus with all of His Divine life, flows into every
person (n. 364).

2. Consequently the Lord, with the whole essence of faith

and charity flows into every person (n. 365)

3. What flows in from the Lord is received by a person

according to their state and form (n. 366).

4. But the person who divides the Lord, charity, and faith, is
not a form that receives, but a form that destroys them (n.
367).

80
VII. The Lord is charity and faith in people, and a person is
charity and faith in the Lord (n. 368-372).

1. It is by conjunction with God that a person has salvation

and eternal life (n. 369).

2. Conjunction with God the Father is not possible, but only

conjunction with the Lord, and through Him with the Father

(n. 370).

3. Conjunction with the Lord is a reciprocal conjunction, that

is, that a person is in the Lord and the Lord in the person (n.
371).

4. This reciprocal conjunction of the Lord and person is

effected by means of charity and faith (n. 372).

VIII. Charity and faith are together in good works (n. 373-
377).

81
1. Charity is willing well, and good works are doing well from
willing well (n. 374).

2. Charity and faith are only mental and perishable things,

unless they are determined to acts and coexist in them when
it is possible (n. 375, 376).

3. Good works are not produced by charity alone, still less by

faith alone, but by charity and faith together (n. 377).

IX. There is a true faith, a spurious faith, and a hypocritical

faith (n. 378-381).

From its cradle the Christian church began to be infested and

divided by schisms and heresies (respecting which n. 378).

1. True faith is the one only faith, which is a faith in the Lord
God and Saviour Jesus Christ, and this is held by those who
believe Him to be the Son of God, the God of heaven and
earth, and one with the Father (n. 379).

82
2. Spurious faith is, all faith that departs from the true faith,
which is the only one faith; and this is the faith that is held by
those who climb up some other way, and regard the Lord not
as God but as a mere human being (n. 380).

3. Hypocritical faith is no faith (n. 381).

X. With the evil there is no faith (n. 382-384).

1. The evil have no faith, since evil belongs to hell and faith to
heaven (n. 383).

2. Those in Christendom who reject the Lord and the Word

have no faith although they live morally, and even speak,
teach, and write rationally about truth (n. 384).

Chapter 7

Charity or love to the neighbor, and good works (n. 392)

83
I. There are three universal loves - the love of heaven, the
love of the world, and the love of self (n. 394-396).

1. The will and understanding (n. 397).

2. Good and truth (n 398)

3. Love in general (n. 399).

4. Love of self and love of the world in particular' (n. 400).

5. The external and internal person (n. 401).

6. The merely natural and sensual person (n. 402).

II. These three loves, when rightly subordinated, perfect a

person; but when not rightly subordinated they pervert and
invert him or her (n. 403-405).

84
III. Every person individually is the neighbor who is to be
loved, but according to the quality of his or her good (n. 406-
411).

IV. The collective human being, that is, a community smaller

or greater, and the composite person formed of
communities, that is, one's country, is the neighbor that is to
be loved (n. 412-414).

V. The church is the neighbor that is to be loved in a still

higher degree, and the Lord's kingdom in the highest degree
(n. 415, 416).

VI. To love the neighbor, viewed in itself, is not to love the

person, but the good that is in the person (n. 417-419).

VII. Charity and good works are two distinct things, like
willing well and doing well (n. 420,421).

VIII. Charity itself is acting justly and faithfully in the office,

business, and employment in which a person is engaged, and

85
with those with whom he or she has any dealings (n. 422-
424).

IX. The benefactions of charity are giving to the poor and

relieving the needy, but with prudence (n. 425-428).

X. There are duties of charity, some public, some domestic,

and some private (n. 429-432).

XI. The diversions of charity are dinners, suppers, and social

gatherings (n. 433, 434).

XII. The first thing of charity is to put away evils, and the
second is to do good works that are of use to the neighbor
(n. 435-438).

XIII. In the exercise of charity a person does not place merit

in works so long as he or she believes that all good is from
the Lord (n. 439-442).

86
XIV. When a moral life is also spiritual it is charity (n. 443-
445).

XV. A friendship of love, contracted with a person without

regard to their spiritual quality is detrimental after death (ii.
446-449).

XVI. There is spurious charity, hypocritical charity, and dead

charity (n. 450-

453).

XVII. The friendship of love among the evil is intestine hatred

of each other (n. 454, 455).

XVIII. The conjunction of love to God and love towards the

neighbor (n. 458-458)

Chapter 8

Freedom of choice (n. 463)

87
I. The precepts and dogmas of the present church respecting
freedom of choice (n. 463-465).

II. The placing of two trees in the garden of Eden, one of life,
and the other of the knowledge of good and evil signifies that
freedom of choice in things spiritual has been given to a
person (n. 466-469).

III. A person is not life, but a receptacle op life from God (n.
470-474).

IV. So long as a person lives in the world he or she is kept

midway between heaven and hell, and is there in spiritual
equilibrium, which is freedom of choice (n. 475-478).

V. It is clearly manifest from that permission of evil in which

everyone's internal person is that person has freedom of
choice in spiritual things (n. 479-482).

88
VI. Without freedom of choice in spiritual things the Word
would be of no use, and consequently the church would be
nothing (n. 483, 484).

VII. Without freedom of choice in spiritual things there would

be nothing in a person whereby he could in turn conjoin
himself with the Lord, consequently there would be no
imputation, but mere predestination, which is detestable (n.
485).

Detestable things concerning predestination divulged (n.

486-488)

VIII. If there were no freedom of choice in spiritual things

God would be the cause of evil, and thus there would be no
imputation of charity or faith (n. 489-492).

IX, Everything spiritual of the church that enters a person in

freedom, and is received with freedom, remains; but not the
reverse (n. 493-496)

89
X. A person's will and understanding are in this freedom of
choice; nevertheless in both worlds, the spiritual and the
natural, the doing of evil is restrained by laws, because
otherwise society in both worlds would perish (n. 497-499).

XI. If a person had not freedom of choice in spiritual things all

the inhabitants of the world might in one day be led to
believe in the Lord; but this cannot be done, because that
which is not received by a person from freedom of choice
does not remain (n. 500-502).

Miracles are not wrought at the present day, because they

take away freedom of choice in spiritual things, and compel
(n. 501).

Chapter 9

Repentance (n. 509)

I. Repentance is the first thing of the church in a person (n.

510, 511).

90
II. The contrition which at the present day is said to precede
faith, and to be followed by the consolation of the Gospel, is
not repentance (n. 512-515).

III. The mere lip-confession that one is a sinner is not

repentance (n. 516-519).

IV. A person is born [with an inclination] to evils of every

kind; and unless he or she, to some extent, removes their
evils by repentance, they remain in them; and he who
remains in evils cannot be saved (n. 520-524).

The fulfilling of the law (n. 523, 524).

V. Recognition of sin, and the discovery of some sin in

oneself, is the beginning of repentance (n. 525-527)

VI, Actual repentance is examining oneself, recognizing and

acknowledging one's sins, praying to the Lord and beginning
a new life (n. 528-531).

91
VII. True repentance is examining not only the actions of
one's life, but also the intentions of one's will (n. 532-534).

VIII. Those also repent, who, although they do not examine

themselves, yet refrain from evils because they are sins; and
those who from religion do the works of charity exercise such
repentance (n. 535-537).

IX. Confession ought to be made before the Lord God the

Saviour, followed by supplication for help and the power to
resist evils (n. 538-560)

X. Actual repentance is easy for those who have now and

then practiced it, but is a difficult task for those who have not
(n. 561-563)

XI. A person who has never repented or has never looked

into and searched himself, finally ceases to know what
damning evil or saving good is (n. 564-566).

92
Chapter 10

Reformation and Regeneration (n. 571)

I. Unless a person is born again and, as it were, created anew,

he or she cannot enter into the kingdom of God (n. 572-575).

II. The new birth or creation is effected by the Lord alone

through charity and faith as the two means, a person
cooperating (n. 576-578)

III. Since all have been redeemed, all may be regenerated,

each according to their state (n. 579-582).

IV. Regeneration is effected in a manner analogous to that in

which a person is conceived, carried in the womb, born and
educated (n. 583-586).

Something about the masculine and feminine sex in the

vegetable kingdom (n. 585).

93
V. The first act in the new birth is called reformation, which
pertains to the understanding; and the second is called
regeneration, which pertains to the will and therefrom to the
understanding (n. 587-590).

VI. The internal person must first be reformed, and by means

of it the external; and thus is a person regenerated (n. 591-
595).

VII. When this takes place a conflict arises between the

internal and the external man, and then the one that
conquers rules the other (n. 596-600).

VIII. The regenerated person has a new will and a new

understanding (n. 601-606).

IX. A regenerate person is in communion with angels of

heaven, and an unregenerate person with spirits of hell (n.
607-610).

94
X. So far as a person is regenerated sins are removed, and
this removal is the forgiveness of sins (n. 611-614).

XI. Within freedom of choice in spiritual things regeneration

is impossible (n. 615-617).

XII. Regeneration is impossible without truths, by which faith

is formed and with which charity conjoins itself (n. 618-620).

Chapter 11

Imputation (n. 626)

I. Imputation and the faith of the present church (which is

held to be the sole ground of justification) make one (n. 626,
627).

II. The imputation that belongs to the faith of the present day
is a double imputation, an imputation of Christ's merit and an
imputation of salvation thereby (n. 628-631).

95
III. The faith imputative of the merit and righteousness of
Christ the redeemer, first arose from the decrees of the
Council of Nice respecting three divine persons from eternity,
which faith has been accepted by the whole Christian world
from that time to the present (n. 632-635).

IV. The faith imputative of Christ's merit was unknown in the

preceding Apostolic Church, and is nowhere taught in the
Word (n. 636-639).

V. The imputation of Christ's merit and righteousness is

impossible (n. 640-642).

VI. There is an imputation, but it is an imputation of good and

evil (n. 643-646).

VII. The faith and imputation of the New Church can by no

means exist together with the faith and imputation of the
former church, and if they are together, such a collision and
conflict result that everything pertaining to the church in a
person perishes (n. 647-649).

96
VIII. The Lord imputes good to every person and hell imputes
evil (n. 650-653).

IX. Faith, with that to which it is conjoined, is what

determines the verdict; if a true faith is conjoined to good,
the verdict is for eternal life, but if faith is conjoined to evil
the verdict is for eternal death (n. 654-657).

X. Thought is not imputed to anyone, but will only (n. 658-

660).

Chapter 12 (n. 667)

Baptism

I. Without a knowledge of the spiritual sense of the Word no

one can know what the two sacraments, baptism and the
Holy Supper, involve and effect (n. 667-669).

97
II. The washing that is called baptism means spiritual
washing, which is purification from evils, and thus
regeneration (n. 670-673).

III. Because circumcision of the foreskin represented

circumcision of the heart, in the place of circumcision,
baptism was instituted, in order that an internal church
might succeed the external, which in each and all things
prefigured the internal church (n. 674-676).

IV. The first use of baptism is introduction into the Christian

church, and at the same time insert ion among Christians in
the spiritual world (n. 677-680).

V. The second use of baptism is that the Christian may know

and acknowledge the Lord Jesus Christ the redeemer and
Saviour, and follow him (n. 681-683).

VI. The third use of baptism, which is the final use, is that the
person may be regenerated (n. 684-687).

98
VII. By the baptism of John a way was prepared, that Jehovah
God might descend into the world and accomplish
redemption (n. 688-691).

Chapter 13

The Holy Supper (n. 698)

I. Without some knowledge of the correspondences of

natural with spiritual things, it is impossible to know what the
uses and benefits of the Holy Supper are (n. 698-701).

II. With a knowledge of correspondences what is meant by

Lord’s flesh and the bread mean the divine good of bread
and wine have a like meaning; namely, that the Lord's flesh
and blood can be known, also that His love, also all good of
charity; and the Lord’s blood and the wine mean the Divine
truth of His wisdom, also all truth of faith, and eating means
appropriation (n. 702-710).

Shown from the Word what is meant by "flesh" (n. 704, 705).

99
What is meant by " blood" (n. 706).

What is meant by " bread" (n. 707).

What is meant by " wine" (n. 708).

III. When all this is understood any one can comprehend that
the Holy Supper contains all things of the church and all
things of heaven both in general and in particular (n. 711-
715).

IV. In the Holy Supper the Lord is wholly present with the
whole of His redemption (n. 716-718).

V. The Lord is present and opens heaven to those who come

to the Holy Supper worthily; and is also present with those
who come to it unworthily, but to them He does not open
heaven; consequently, as baptism is introduction into the
church, so is the Holy Supper introduction into heaven (n.
719-721).

100
VI. Those come to the Holy Supper worthily who have faith in
the Lord and charity toward the neighbor that is, who are
regenerate (n. 722-724).

VII. Those who come to the Holy Supper worthily are in the
Lord and the Lord is in them; consequently conjunction with
the Lord is effected by the Holy Supper (n. 725-727).

VIII. To those who worthily come to the Holy Supper it is like

a signature and seal that they are sons of God (n. 728-730).

Chapter 14

The Consummation of the Age; the Coming of the Lord; and

the New Heaven and New Church (n. 753)

I. The Consummation of the Age is the last time of the church

or its end (n. 753-756).

101
II. The present is the last time of the Christian church, which
was foretold and described by the Lord in the Gospels and in
the Apocalypse (n. 757-759).

III. This last time of the Christian church is the very night in
which former churches have come to an end (n. 760-763).

IV, This night is followed by a morning, which is the coming of

the Lord (n. 764-767).

V, The Lord's coming is not His coming to destroy the visible

heaven and the habitable earth, and to create a new heaven
and a new earth, as many, from not understanding the
spiritual sense of the Word, have hitherto supposed (n. 768-
771).

VI. This coming of the Lord, which is His Second Coming, is

taking place in order that the evil may be separated from the
good, and that those who have believed and do believe in
Him may be saved, and that from them a new angelic heaven
and a new church on earth may be formed, and without this,
no flesh could be saved (matt. xxiv. 22) (n. 772-775).

102
VII. This Second Coming of the Lord is not a coming in person,
but in the Word, which is from Him and is Himself (n. 776-
778).

VIII. This Second Coming of the Lord is effected by means of a

man, to whom the Lord has manifested Himself in person,
and whom He has filled with His spirit, that he may teach the
doctrines of the new church from the Lord through the Word
(n. 779-780).

IX. This is what is meant in the Apocalypse by " the new

heaven," and " the New Jerusalem descending therefrom" (n.
781-785).

X. This New Church is the crown of all the churches that have
hitherto existed on the earth (n. 786-791).

Supplement (n. 752)

The nature of the spiritual world (n. 792-795). Luther,

Melancthon, and Calvin in the spiritual world (n. 796-799).

103
The Dutch in the spiritual world (n. 800-805).

The English in the spiritual world (n. 806-812).

The Germans in the spiritual world (n. 813-816).

The Papists in the spiritual world (n. 817-821).

The Popish saints in the spiritual world (n. 822-827).

The Mohammedans in the spiritual world (n. 828-834).

The Africans in the spiritual world; also something in regard

to the gentiles (n. 835-840).

The Jews in the spiritual world (n. 841-843).

104
Back to home page

105
106
107
108
 References
List of referenced works by Swedenborg and the year they
were first published.

Within parenthesis, the common name used in text, based on

the New Church online bookstore. Then follows the name of
the original title in its original publication.[161] Various minor
reports and tracts have been omitted from the list.

1716–1718, (Daedalus Hyperboreus) Swedish: Daedalus

Hyperboreus, eller några nya mathematiska och physicaliska
försök. (English: The Northern inventor, or some new
experiments in mathematics and physics)

1721, (Principles of Chemistry) Latin: Prodromus

principiorum rerum naturalium : sive novorum tentaminum
chymiam et physicam experimenta geometrice explicandi

1722, (Miscellaneous Observations) Latin: Miscellanea de

Rebus Naturalibus

1734, (Principia) Latin: Opera Philosophica et Mineralia

(English: Philosophical and Mineralogical Works), three

109
volumes (Principia, Volume I) Latin: Tomus I. Principia rerum
naturlium sive novorum tentaminum phaenomena mundi
elementaris philosophice explicandi

(Principia, Volume II) Latin: Tomus II. Regnum subterraneum

sive minerale de ferro

(Principia, Volume III) Latin: Tomus III. Regnum

subterraneum sive minerale de cupro et orichalco

1734, (The Infinite and Final Cause of Creation) Latin:

Prodromus Philosophiz Ratiocinantis de Infinito, et Causa
Finali Creationis; deque Mechanismo Operationis Animae et
Corporis.

1744–1745, (The Animal Kingdom) Latin: Regnum animale, 3

volumes

1745, (The Worship and Love of God) Latin: De Cultu et

Amore Dei, 2 volumes

1749–1756, (Arcana Coelestia (or Cœlestia including Latin

variant, Arcana Caelestia (Heavenly Mysteries) Latin: Arcana
Cœlestia, quae in Scriptura Sacra seu Verbo Domini sunt,
detecta, 8 volumes

1758, (Heaven and Hell) Latin: De Caelo et Ejus Mirabilibus

et de inferno. Ex Auditis et Visis.

1758, (The Last Judgment) Latin: De Ultimo Judicio

110
1758, (The White Horse) Latin: De Equo Albo de quo in
Apocalypsi Cap.XIX.

1758, (Earths in the Universe) Latin: De Telluribus in Mundo

Nostro Solari, quæ vocantur planetæ: et de telluribus in
coelo astrifero: deque illarum incolis; tum de spiritibus &
angelis ibi; ex auditis & visis.

1758, (The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine) Latin:

De Nova Hierosolyma et Ejus Doctrina Coelesti

1763, (Doctrine of the Lord) Latin:Doctrina Novæ

Hierosolymæ de Domino.

1763, (Doctrine of the Sacred Scripture) Latin: Doctrina

Novæ Hierosolymæ de Scriptura Sacra.

1763, (Doctrine of Life) Latin: Doctrina Vitæ pro Nova

Hierosolyma ex præceptis Decalogi.

1763, (Doctrine of Faith) Latin: Doctrina Novæ Hierosolymæ

de Fide.

1763, (Continuation of The Last Judgement) Latin:

Continuatio De Ultimo Judicio: et de mundo spirituali.

1763, (Divine Love and Wisdom) Latin: Sapientia Angelica de

Divino Amore et de Divina Sapientia. Sapientia Angelica de
Divina Providentia.

1764, (Divine Providence) Latin: Sapientia Angelica de Divina

Providentia.

111
1766, (Apocalypse Revealed) Latin: Apocalypsis Revelata, in
quae detegunter Arcana quae ibi preedicta sunt.

1768, (Conjugial Love, or Marriage Love) Latin: Deliciae

Sapientiae de Amore Conjugiali; post quas sequumtur
voluptates insaniae de amore scortatorio.

1769, (Brief Exposition) Latin: Summaria Expositio Doctrinæ

Novæ Ecclesiæ, quæ per Novam Hierosolymam in Apocalypsi
intelligitur.

1769, (Interaction of the Soul and the Body) Latin: De

Commercio Animæ & Corporis.

1771, (True Christian Religion) Latin: Vera Christiana Religio,

continens Universam Theologiam Novae Ecclesiae

1859, Drömboken, Journalanteckningar, 1743–1744

1983–1997, (Spiritual Diary) Latin: Diarum, Ubi Memorantur

Experientiae Spirituales.

[edit] See also

General Church of the New Jerusalem

Herman Vetterling

List of Christian thinkers in science

Lord's New Church Which Is Nova Hierosolyma

112
The New Church

New Thought

Religious Science

Second Coming

Swedenborgian Church of North America

Swedenborg Rite

Unity Church

[edit] Notes

1.^ January 29 Old Style February 8 New Style

2.^ "Swedenborg, Emanuel". Retrieved September 9, 2011.

and the Encyclopedia of Religion (1987), which starts its
article with the description that he was a "Swedish scientist
and mystic." Others have not used the term, e.g.
http://www.encyclopedia.com/article-1G2-
3424503013/swedenborg-emanuel.html

3.^ a b "The True Christian Religion, Containing the Universal

Theology of The New Church Foretold by the Lord in Daniel 7;
13, 14; and in Revelation 21; 1, 2, by Emanuel Swedenborg".
Swedenborgdigitallibrary.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

113
4.^ "Which of Swedenborg's books are Divine revelation?".
Swedenborgdigitallibrary.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

5.^ "Christian Bookstore – Religion, Bible and Spirituality

Books from the Swedenborg Foundation Online Christian
Bookstore". Swedenborg.com. Retrieved 2011-03-06.

6.^ [1] Swedenborg, E. The Last Judgment and Babylon

Destroyed. All the Predictions in the Apocalypse are at This
Day Fulfilled.] (Swedenborg Foundation 1952, Paragraphs 1-
74)

7.^ "Swedenborg, E. ''The True Christian Religion: Containing

the Universal Theology of The New Church Foretold by the
Lord in Daniel 7; 13, 14; and in Revelation 21;1,2''
(Swedenborg Foundation 1952, paragraphs 193-215)".
Swedenborgdigitallibrary.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

8.^ True Christian Religion, paragraphs 753-786

9.^ True Christian Religion, paragraph 200

10.^ "Swedenborg, E. ''Heaven and its Wonders and Hell.

From Things Heard and Seen'' (Swedenborg Foundation,
1946)". Swedenborgdigitallibrary.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

11.^ Bergquist, Preface (p. 15–16)

12.^ See “Which of Swedenborg’s books are Divine

revelation?”

114
13.^ Swedenborg, Emanuel. Earths in the Universe, 1758.
Rotch Edition. New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Company,
1907, in The Divine Revelation of the New Jerusalem (2012),
n. 9-178.

14.^ Ibid., n. 42, 47.

15.^ Ibid., n. 9.

16.^ Block, M.B The New Church in the New World. A Study
of Swedenborgianism in America (Holt 1932; reprint Octagan
1968), Chapter 3.]

17.^ Benz, E. Emanuel Swedenborg. Visionary Savant in The

Age of Reason (translated by Goodrick-Clarke (Swedenborg
Foundation, 2002, p. 487).

18.^ Crompton, S. Emanuel Swedenborg (Chelsea House,

2005, p. 76).

19.^ Block, Chapter 3.

20.^ Ahlstrom, S. E. A Religious History of the American

People (Yale 1972, p. 483).

21.^ "Arthur Conan Doyle - The History of Spiritualism Vol I

Page 02". Classic-literature.co.uk. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

22.^ Representative men: seven lectures - Ralph Waldo

Emerson - Google Boeken. Books.google.com. Retrieved
2012-08-16.

115
 23.^ Corbett, Sara. The New York Times.
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people
/j/carl_gustav_jung/index.html.

24.^ Česky. "Emanuel Swedenborg - Wikipedia, the free

encyclopedia". En.wikipedia.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

25.^ Johan Henrik Kellgren published an often quoted

satirical poem entitled Man äger ej snille för det man är galen
("You Own Not Genius For That You are Mad") in 1787. See
Jonsson, Inge, Swedenborg och Linné, in Delblanc & Lönnroth
(1999). (Link to the full poem, in Swedish)

26.^ The trial in 1768 was again Gabrial Beyer and Johan
Rosén and essentially concerned whether Swedenborg's
theological writings were consistent with the Christian
doctrines. A royal ordinance in 1770 declared that
Swedenborg's writings were "clearly mistaken" and should
not be taught. Swedenborg then begged the King for grace
and protection in a letter from Amsterdam. A new
investigation against Swedenborg stalled and was eventually
dropped in 1778 (1999), pp. 453–463.

27.^ "Who was Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772)?".

Swedenborgdigitallibrary.org. 2006-11-19. Retrieved 2012-
08-16.

28.^ See "References" and "Further Reading" sections,

below

116
 29.^ Johan Henrik Kellgren published an often quoted
satirical poem entitled Man äger ej snille för det man är galen
(You Own Not Genius For That You are Mad) in 1787. See
Jonsson, Inge, Swedenborg och Linné, in Delblanc & Lönnroth
(1999). (Link to the full poem, in Swedish)

30.^ "Man äger ej snille för det man är galen - Wikisource"

(in (Swedish)). Sv.wikisource.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

31.^ This subject is touched on in the preface of Bergquist

(1999), who mentions the biography by Martin Lamm
(originally published in 1917) and its focus on the similarities
of Swedenborg's scientific and theological lives. He mentions
an earlier biography by the Swedish physician Emil Kleen who
concluded that Swedenborg was blatantly mad, suffering
"paranoia and hallucinations. A similar conclusion was
proposed more recently by psychiatrist John Johnson in
"Henry Maudsley on Swedenborg's messianic psychosis",
British Journal of Psychiatry 165:690–691 (1994), who wrote
that Swedenborg suffered hallucinations of "acute
schizophrenia or epileptic psychosis". Another contemporary
critique, Foote-Smith E, Smith TJ. Emanuel Swedenborg.
Epilepsia 1996 Feb;37(2):211-8, proposed that Swedenborg
suffered from Temporal Lobe Epilepsy. For a detailed review
of these two articles, see the special issue of the academic
journal The New Philosophy The Madness Hypothesis.)

32.^ Bergquist (1999), p. 474

117
33.^ "The Swedenborg Epic: Chapter 37".
Swedenborgdigitallibrary.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

34.^ Trobridge, G.Swedenborg, Life and Teaching

(Swedenborg Foundation, 1976, p. 202).

35.^ "Emanuel Swedenborg : his life, teachings and influence

: Trobridge, George, 1851-1909 : Free Download & Streaming
: Internet Archive". Archive.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

36.^ Benz, E. Emanuel Swedenborg. Visionary Savant in the

Age of Reason. (Swedenborg Foundation, 2002, p. 226, 227)

37.^ Block, p. 14

38.^ a b (Swedish) Nordisk familjebok, 2nd edition (Ugglan)

article Svedberg, Jesper (1918)

39.^ a b Encyclopædia Britannica, 1911 edition. article

Emanuel Swedenborg

40.^ Svedberg's pietistic interests are described in Bergquist

(1999), pp. 230–232.

41.^ Martin Lamm (1978 [1915]; pp.1–19) notes how all

Swedenborg biographies at that draw similarities between
the beliefs of Jesper and Emanuel. Lamm himself partially
agrees with them, but he maintains that there were marked
differences between them too.

42.^ Lagercrantz, preface.

118
43.^ a b c d x

44.^ By dlberek Daniel Berek+ Add Contact. "swedenborg

flying". Flickr.com. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

45.^ The meeting between the King, Polhelm and

Swedenborg is described in detail in Liljegren, Bengt, Karl XII i
Lund : när Sverige styrdes från Skåne, (Historiska media,
Lund, 1999). ISBN 91-88930-51-3

46.^ Bergquist (1999), pp.114–115

47.^ Berquist (1999), pp. 118–119

48.^ Proposed by Lagercrantz, also mentioned by Bergquist

(1999), p. 119.

49.^ Fodstad, H. The neuron theory Stereotactic and

Functional Neurosurgery 2001;77:20-4

50.^ Gordh, E. et al.Swedenborg, Linnaeus and Brain

Research and the Roles of Gustaf Retzius and Alfred Stroh in
the Rediscovery of Swedenborg’s Manuscripts.] Upsala
Journal of Medical Sciences 2007; 112:143-164.

51.^ Gross C. G. Emanuel Swedenborg: A neuroscientist

before his time. The Neuroscientist’’ 3: 2(1997).

52.^ Gross, C. "Three before their time: neuroscientists

whose ideas were ignored by their contemporaries]
Experimental Brain Research 192:321 2009.

119
53.^ Tubbs RS, Riech S, Verma K, Loukas M, Mortazavi M,
Cohen-Gadol A. Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772): pioneer
of neuroanatomy. Childs Nervous System 2011
Aug;27(8):1353-5.

54.^ Filley CM. Chapter 35: The frontal lobes. Handbook

Clinical Neurology 2010;95:557-70

55.^
http://www.newchurchhistory.org/articles/glb2007/baker.pd
f

56.^ Bergquist (1999), pp. 142–155.

57.^ Lamm (1987), pp. 42–43, notes that by assuming that

the soul consists of matter, as Swedenborg did, one becomes
a materialist. He further notes that this was also noted by
contemporaries.

58.^ Jonsson, Inge, Swedenborg och Linné, in Delblanc &

Lönnroth, p. 321.

59.^ Bergquist (1999), pp. 165–178.

60.^ Jonsson, Inge, Swedenborg och Linné, in Delblanc and

Lönnroth, p.325.

61.^ Bergquist, pp. 200–208.

62.^ Bergquist, p. 206.

120
 63.^ Analysis by Bergquist, p. 209. Bergquist has previously
published a separate book commenting on the Journal called
Swedenborgs drömbok : glädjen och det stora kvalet
(Stockholm, Norstedt, 1988).

64.^ Bergquist (1999), pp. 210–211.

65.^ This account is based in Bergquist (1999), pp. 227–228.

The story was much later told by Swedenborg to Carl
Robsahm (see Robsahm, #15).

66.^ Bergquist (1999), pp. 286–287.

67.^ Cf. Michelle Grier, 'Swedenborg and Kant on Spiritual

Intuition' in On the True Philosopher: Essays on Swedenborg,
ed. Stephen McNeilly (London: Swedenborg Society, 2002), p.
1. Accessed 2010-11-11.

68.^ Bergquist (1999), p. 287.

69.^ Bergquist (1999), p. 288.

70.^ Jonsson, Inge, Swedenborg och Linné, in Delblanc &

Lönnroth, p. 316.

71.^ The Last Judgment and Babylon Destroyed. All the

Predictions in the Apocalypse are At this Day Fulfilled from
Things Heard and Seen. From 'De Ultimo Judicio Et De
Babylonia Destructa,

72.^ Last Judgment, #60.

121
73.^ Swedenborg, E. Heaven and Its Wonders From Things
Heard and Seen (Swedenborg Foundation 1946, #421-535).

74.^ Last Judgment #33-34.

75.^ For an extensive explanation of the inner spiritual sense

of the book of the Apocalypse, see Swedenborg, E. The
Apocalypse Revealed Wherein are Disclosed the Arcana
Foretold Which Have Hitherto Remained Concealed
(Swedenborg Foundation 1928).

76.^ Swedenborg, E. Arcana Coelestia #1002, 1003

(Swedenborg Foundation 1956)

77.^ Twigg, J. ‘’The vegetarian movement in England, 1847-

1981 A study in the structure of its ideology’’ (University of
London, 1981)

78.^ Sigstedt, C. The Swedenborg Epic: The life and works of

Emanuel Swedenborg Bookman Associates, 1952, p. 476, #
642).

79.^ Bergquist (1999),p. 477–478.

80.^ Trobridge, G. Swedenborg, Life and Teaching

(Swedenborg Foundation, 1976, p. 272).

81.^ Bergquist (1999), p. 464.

82.^ Bergquist (1999), pp. 471–476. Accounts of

Swedenborg's last days were collected and published in Tafel
II:1, pp. 577 ff, 556 ff, 560 ff.

122
83.^ Documents concerning the life and character of
Emanuel Swedenborg - Johann Friedrich Immanuel Tafel -
Google Books. Books.google.com. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

84.^ Epic, pp. 430ff.

85.^ Swedenborg, E. True Christianity, Containing a

Comprehensive Theology of the New Church That Was
Predicted by the Lord in Daniel 7:13-14 and Revelation 21:1,
2 (Swedenborg Foundation 2006, Translator's Preface, Vol. 2,
p. 36 ff.).

86.^ Epic, p. 431.

87.^ a b ’’Epic’’, p. 433

88.^ "Street map Swedenborg Gardens, map London with

Swedenborg Gardens". Ukstreetmap.info. Retrieved 2012-08-
16.

89.^ By Ewan-M Ewan Munro+ Add Contact. "Swedenborg

Gardens, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, E1 | Flickr -
Photo Sharing!". Flickr. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

90.^ "Who Was Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772)?" An

article including a list of biographies about Swedenborg, with
a brief analysis of each biographer's point of view. Accessed
June 2012.

91.^ Bergquist (1999), p. 15.

123
92.^ It should be noted that the citation "Bergquist (1999)",
which is used here repeatedly, appears to contain mislabeled
quotes. See the "Talk" section of this page, under the
heading "Bergquist footnote problem".

93.^ en dikt om ett främmande land med sällsamma lagar

och seder. Largercrantz (1996), backpage.

94.^ Sigstedt (1952), p. 408.

95.^ Moody, Raymond. Life after Life, 2001. New York:

HarperCollins Publishers, pp. 114-119.

96.^ Swedenborg, Emanuel. Heaven and Hell, 1777. Rotch

Edition. New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1907, in
The Divine Revelation of the New Jerusalem (2012), n. 116-
125.

97.^ Bergquist (1999), pp. 364–365.

98.^ Lamm (1987 [1915]), dedicates a chapter to the

correspondence theories, pp. 85–109.

99.^ Bergquist (1999), p. 312.

100.^ The accounts are fully described in Bergquist, pp. 312–

313 and in Chapter 31 of of The Swedenborg Epic. The
primary source for these accounts is a letter from Immanuel
Kant in 1768 and the Swedenborg collection by Tafel (see
references).

124
 101.^ a b http://www.brandhistoriska.org/olyckor_se.html;
in Swedish

102.^ Staffan Högberg, Stockholms historia (Stockholm’s

history), part 1, p. 342; in Swedish)

103.^ Johnson, G., ed. Kant on Swedenborg. Dreams of a

Spirit-Seer and Other Writings. Translation by Johnson, G.,
Magee, G.E. (Swedenborg Foundation 2002, p. 185).

104.^ Bergquist, L, Swedenborg's Secret (London, The

Swedenborg Society, 2005, p. 270).

105.^ Johnson, p. 70.

106.^ "in Swedish". Dinstartsida.se. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

107.^ John Garth Wilkinson, Emanuel Swedenborg. A

Biography. Boston 1849;
http://www.ivu.org/history/renaissance/emanuel_swedenbo
rg.pdf.

108.^ Johnson, G., ed. Kant on Swedenborg. Dreams of a

Spirit-Seer and Other Writings. Translation by Johnson, G.,
Magee, G. E. (Swedenborg Foundation 2002, p. 67).

109.^ Sigstedt, C. The Swedenborg Epic. The Life and Works

of Emanuel Swedenborg’’ (New York: Bookman Associates,
1952).

110.^ "The Swedenborg Epic: Chapter 38".

Swedenborgdigitallibrary.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

125
 111.^ According to Bergquist (1999), pp. 314–315, There are
several different accounts of the events which makes it
difficult to conclude the exact details of the event. Carl
Robsahm (see references) reports the story in this way.

112.^ According to Bergquist (1999), p. 316, there are some

ten different reports of this event. There are two trustworthy
descriptions, one by Robsahm (writing down Swedenborg's
own description) and one by a priest who enquired of the
woman in a letter fifteen years later.

113.^ a b Sigstedt, p. 329.

114.^ Benz, p. 11.

115.^ This letter is further discussed in Laywine, A., "Kant's

Early Metaphysics". North American Kant Society Studies in
Philosophy, volume 3 (Atascadero, California: Ridgeview
Publishing Company, 1993), pp. 72–74.

116.^ Johnson 2002. p. 69.

117.^ Johnson 202, p. 71.

118.^ Benz 2001, p. 13.

119.^ Johnson, p. 69.

120.^ Johnson, G., Magee, G. E. (Swedenborg Foundation

2002).

121.^ Benz 2001, p. 31.

126
122.^ Benz, E., Heron, A. (Translator) Spiritual Vision and
Revelation, Chapter VI. The Mystery of a Date – Fresh light on
Kant's Criticism of Swedenborg, p. 13, reprinted in The New
Philosophy 2001 104:7,

123.^ Johnson 2002, p. 83.

124.^ Johnson, G. Did Kant dissemble his interest in

Swedenborg? "The New Philosophy" 1999, 102: 531

125.^ a b Johnson 1999, p. 29.

126.^ Johnson 1999, p. 84.

127.^ a b Benz 2001, p. 31.

128.^ Benz 2001, p. 31)

129.^ Benz 2001, p. 29.

130.^ Benz 2001, p. xiii.

131.^ a b Benz, 2001, p. xiv.

132.^ Benz 2001, pp. xiii, xv.

133.^ Johnson 2002, p. 73.

134.^ Johnson 2002, p. xv.

135.^ Johnson 2002, p. 123.

136.^ Johnson 2002, p. 85.

127
137.^ a b Benz 2001, p. 15ff.

138.^ Quoted by Bergquist (1999), p. 178, based on

Swedenborg's Spiritual Experiences (1748), §767 (It should be
noted, however, that Spiritual Experiences is not among the
works Swedenborg published himself, and thus may not be
authoritative revelation. See “Which of Swedenborg’s books
are Divine revelation?”

139.^ "''The Apocalypse Revealed Wherein are Disclosed the

Arcana Foretold Which Have Hitherto Remained Concealed".
Swedenborgdigitallibrary.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

140.^ Bergquist (1999), pp. 286–309.

141.^ "ML 1 - Small Canon Search - Reading - The Word of

God, The Whole Word of God, and Nothing But the Word of
God - Searching the Second Advent Christian Bible - The
Second Advent Christian Canon of Scripture". Small Canon
Search. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

142.^ Note: “conjugial” should not be confused with

“conjugal,” the general term for marriage
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/conjugal

143.^ "Jesus and Paul on the Eternity of Marriage". The

Swedenborg Project. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

144.^ "''Marriage Love'' 46-50)". Smallcanonsearch.com.

Retrieved 2012-08-16.

128
145.^ "''Marriage Love'' #52". Smallcanonsearch.com.
Retrieved 2012-08-16.

146.^ "''Marriage Love'' #84". Smallcanonsearch.com.

Retrieved 2012-08-16.

147.^ "''Marriage Love #1". Smallcanonsearch.com.

Retrieved 2012-08-16.

148.^ "''Marriage Love #117". Smallcanonsearch.com.

Retrieved 2012-08-16.

149.^ "''Marriage Love'' #83". Smallcanonsearch.com.

Retrieved 2012-08-16.

150.^ "TCR 175 - Small Canon Search - Reading - The Word of

God, The Whole Word of God, and Nothing But the Word of
God - Searching the Second Advent Christian Bible - The
Second Advent Christian Canon of Scripture". Small Canon
Search. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

151.^ This summary is drawn from the following works of

Swedenborg:

152.^ Swedenborg, E. The True Christian Religion,

particularly sections 163-184 (New York: Swedenborg
Foundation, 1951).

153.^ Swedenborg, E. The Doctrine of the Lord (New York:

Swedenborg Foundation, 1946)

129
154.^ Swedenborg, E. The Arcana Coelestia (New York:
Swedenborg Foundation, various dates)

155.^ Swedenborg, E. The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly

Doctrine, particularly sections 280-310 New York:
Swedenborg Foundation, 1951)

156.^ "Reformation Faith + Works".

Peacebyjesus.witnesstoday.org. Retrieved 2012-08-16.

157.^ "True Christian Religion, sections 336 ff".

Biblemeanings.info. Retrieved 2011-03-06.

158.^ Latin booktitles, The Swedenborg Society, accessed

November 21, 2006.

159.^ The original title, and year of publication is based on

Bergquist (1999), Litteraturförteckning (pp.525–534).

160.^ ‘’The Works of Emanuel Swedenborg in Chronological

Order’’, Emanuel Swedenborg Studies, accessed February 3,
2011 .

161.^ Emanuel Swedenborg Bibliography, New Church

website, accessed November 14, 2006

[edit] References

Ahlstrom, S.E. A Religious History of the American People

(Yale 1972) Includes section on Swedenborg by this scholar.

130
 Benz, Ernst, Emanuel Swedenborg: Visionary Savant in the
Age of Reason (Swedenborg Foundation, 2002) ISBN 0-
87785-195-6, a translation of the thorough German language
study on life and work of Swedenborg, Emanuel Swedenborg:
Naturforscher und Seher by the noted religious scholar Ernst
Benz, published in Munich in 1948.

Bergquist, Lars, Swedenborg's Secret, (London, The

Swedenborg Society, 2005) ISBN 0-85448-143-5, a translation
of the Swedish language biography of Swedenborg,
Swedenborgs Hemlighet, published in Stockholm in 1999.
ISBN 91-27-06981-8

Block, M. B. The New Church in the New World. A study of

Swedenborgianism in America (Holt 1932; Octagon reprint
1968) A detailed history of the ideational and social
development of the organized churches based on
Swedenborg's works.

Crompton, S. Emanuel Swedenborg (Chelsea House, 2005)

Recent biography of Swedenborg.

Johnson, G., ed. Kant on Swedenborg. Dreams of a Spirit-

Seer and Other Writings. Translation by Johnson, G., Magee,
G.E. (Swedenborg Foundation 2002) New translation and
extensive set of supplementary texts.

Lamm, Martin, Swedenborg: En studie (1987; first ed. 1915).

A popular biography that is still read and quoted. It is also
available in English: Emanuel Swedenborg: The Development

131
of His Thought, Martin Lamm (Swedenborg Studies, No. 9,
2001), ISBN 0-87785-194-8

Lagercrantz, Olof, Dikten om livet på den andra sidan

(Wahlström & Widstrand 1996), ISBN 91-46-16932-6. In
Swedish.

Leon, James, Overcoming Objections to Swedenborg's

Writings Through the Development of Scientific Dualism An
examination of Swedenborg's discoveries. The author is a
professor of psychology (1998; published in New Philosophy,
2001)

Moody, R. A. Life after Life (Bantam 1975) Reports

correlation of near-death experience with Swedenborg's
reports of life after death.

Price, R. Johnny Appleseed. Man and Myth (Indiana 1954)

Definitive study of this legendary man. Includes details of his
interest in Swedenborg and the organizational New Church

Robsahm, Carl, Hallengren, Anders (translation and

comments), Anteckningar om Swedenborg (Föreningen
Swedenborgs Minne: Stockholm 1989), ISBN 91-87856-00-X.
Hallengren writes that the first complete publication of the
Robsam manuscript was in R. L. Tafel's Documents, Vol. I,
1875 (see section "#Further reading")

Sigstedt, C.,The Swedenborg Epic. The Life and Works of

Emanuel Swedenborg (New York: Bookman Associates,

132
1952). The whole book is available online at Swedenborg
Digital Library.

Toksvig, Signe, Emanuel Swedenborg. Scientist and Mystic.,

Yale University Press, (1948), and Swedenborg Foundation,
(1983), ISBN 0-87785-171-9

[edit] Further reading

Newer material:

The Arms of Morpheus—Essays on Swedenborg and

Mysticism, ed. Stephen McNeilly (London: Swedenborg
Society, 2007), ISBN 978-0-85448-150-7.

Between Method and Madness—Essays on Swedenborg and

Literature, ed. Stephen McNeilly (London: Swedenborg
Society, 2005), ISBN 978-0-85448-145-3.

In Search of the Absolute—Essays on Swedenborg and

Literature, ed. Stephen McNeilly (London: Swedenborg
Society, 2005), ISBN 978-0-85448-141-5.

On the True Philosopher and the True Philosophy—Essays on

Swedenborg, ed. Stephen McNeilly (London: Swedenborg
Society, 2005), ISBN 978-0-85448-134-7.

133
Swedenborg and His Influence, ed. Erland J. Brock, (Bryn
Athyn, Pennsylvania: The Academy of the New Church,
1988), ISBN 0-910557-23-3.

Jonathan S. Rose, ed. Emanuel Swedenborg: Essays for the

New Century Edition on His Life, Work, and Impact (West
Chester, Pennsylvania: Swedenborg Foundation, 2002), ISBN
0-87785-473-4. 580 pages. Multiple scholars contributed to
this collection of excellent information on Swedenborg, his
manuscripts, and his cultural influence. Republished in 2004
under new title, Scribe of Heaven: Swedenborg's Life, Work,
and Impact ISBN 0-87785-474-2.

Wilson van Dusen, The Presence of Other Worlds,

Swedenborg Foundation, Inc., New York, Harper & Row,
1974. ISBN 0-87785-166-2

"The Madness Hypothesis," a special issue of The New

Philosophy (1998;101: whole number), a journal produced by
the Swedenborg Scientific Association, reviews the question
of Swedenborg's sanity in scholarly detail, making the case
that he was in fact quite sane.

Donald L. Rose, ed., Afterlife: A Guided Tour of Heaven and

Its Wonders. Swedenborg Foundation, 2006. (Excellent
abridged version of Heaven and Hell)

D. T. Suzuki, translated by Andrew Bernstein, Afterword by

David Loy, Swedenborg: Buddha of the North. Swedenborg
Foundation, 1996. (Brilliantly shows relevance of
Swedenborg's ideas to Buddhist thought.)

134
Sig Synnestvedt, ed., The Essential Swedenborg: Basic
Religious Teachings of Emanuel Swedenborg. Swedenborg
Foundation, 1970.

Older material of importance, some of it not in print:

The most extensive work is: RL Tafel, Documents concerning

the Life and Character of Swedenborg, collected, translated
and annotated (3 vols., Swedenborg Society, 1875—1877);

J. Hyde, A Bibliography of the Works of Emanuel

Swedenborg (Swedenborg Society).

Kant's Träume eines Geistersehers (1766; the most recent

edition in English is from 1975, ISBN 3-7873-0311-1 );

J. G. Herder's "Emanuel Swedenborg," in his Adrastea

(Werke zur Phil. und Gesch., xii. 110–125).

Transactions of the International Swedenborg Congress

(London, 1910), summarized in The New Church Magazine
(August 1910).

Swedenborg and Esoteric Islam (Swedenborg Studies, No 4)

by Henry Corbin, Leonard Fox

Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Swedenborg; or, the Mystic", in

Emerson: Essays and Lectures (New York, New York: The
Library of America, 1983), ISBN 978-0-940450-15-8.

135
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