Title Unspecified 1993

Title Unspecified Editor 1993

POSITION AVAILABLE
     Physical Education Instructor
     Girls School of The Academy of the New Church
     The Girls School of The Academy of the New Church invites applications for the position of instructor of physical education. Background in health education and coaching experience is preferred.
     The minimum requirement is a B.S. in physical education. The position will begin in September 1993, Please apply to Margaret Y. Gladish, Principal, Box 707, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009 by March 1, 1993.
Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

     Vol. CXIII     January, 1993          No. 1
New Church Life
     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG
     PUBLISHED BY THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM
     Rev. Donald L. Rose, Editor
Mr. Neil M. Buss, Business Manager
     PRINTED BY ASAP PRINTING and COPYING
SOUTHAMPTON, PA 18966
SUBSCRIPTION: $12.00 TO ANY ADDRESS. SINGLE COPY $1.25
Second-class postage paid at Bryn Athyn, PA      Do people have "an uncanny ability to find, fall in love with, and marry" a person of similar emotional maturity? Do we tend "to marry someone who is at our own level of regeneration"? You will want to put on your thinking cap as you read this month's installment of "Misconceptions about Marriage."
     Dozens of people visit the Bryn Athyn cathedral every week. In recent months a surprising number of them have been Russians. And so last autumn we put on a bilingual program in the cathedral's choir hall accommodated to Russians. A photograph taken on that occasion shows Mrs. Leonard Fox and Miss Lara Zaridze giving their part of the presentation. In the background you see the magnificent quilt presented to Bishop Louis King and his wife Freya (p. 32). The excellent presentation given by Mr. Leonard Fox appears on page 24.
     It has been suggested that the presentation by Grant Odhner entitled "Holy Supper, an Invitation" be printed as a pamphlet for use throughout the church. It is a suggestion well worth consideration. Meanwhile, we present it here in its entirety and commend it to your attention.
     There are announcements in this issue which you will not find in the table of contents. There are three ministerial announcements on page 20. For applications to Academy schools, see pages 33 and 34; for college teaching position available, p. 32. The announcement about a workshop and
lecture (p. 39) is not just for teachers but also for parents.
     The 100th anniversary in Toronto is coming up at the end of April. See p. 39.

Information about New Church Camps. There are at least ten New Church camps coming up this year between June 1st and September 6th. The geographic locations and the age levels of the campers vary widely. An information sheet is being compiled. For a copy, write to Dolores Carberry-Smith, Box 707, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

HOLY SUPPER, AN INVITATION 1993

HOLY SUPPER, AN INVITATION Rev. Grant H. ODHNER 1993

     Why the Lord Calls Us to the Holy Supper

     "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me" (Rev. 3:20).

     Dining with others, ideally, expresses our friendship and closeness with them. We do it to share love and thoughts. We do it too for mutual joy. Symbolically, "dining with another" in the Word expresses this kind of relationship. We call this happy relationship between people "conjunction." Conjunction is what the Lord longs for, waits for, works for.

The essence of love consists in conjunction. Indeed this is its life, which is called enjoyment, delight, sweetness, blessedness, happiness, and felicity. Love consists in this: that its own is another's. And to feel another's joy as joy in oneself, this is to love (DLW 47).

     The Lord, being Love itself, feels a burning need to have happy relationships with others, relationships in which there is reciprocity ("give and take") and mutual joy.

What is it to love oneself alone and not another outside oneself by whom one may be loved in return? . . . . The conjunction of love is by reciprocity, and there is no reciprocity in self alone . . . . From this it is clear that the Divine Love must necessarily be and exist in others, whom it may love and by whom it may be loved.

For when there is such a need in all love, it must exist most of all-that is, infinitely so-in Love itself (DLW 48, emphasis added).

     This is why the Lord started the Holy Supper: it springs from His intense desire to be conjoined with us. (He told the disciples at the last supper: "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you . . . . ") He longs to give what He has to give and to feel our free response.
     So the basic meaning of the Holy Supper is to express the Lord's love for us and our love in return (see AC 2165:4, 5, 4211, 4735:2, 4904e, 5120:5e, etc.).

WHY COME TO THE HOLY SUPPER?

     Do we want to be closer to the Lord? to other people? This really is the issue.
     Do we want to have our purposes and our priorities more closely aligned with the Lord's? Do we want to feel a greater sense of His power over evil, a greater sense of His freedom from it? Do we want to experience greater meaning and joy in living?
     Do we want to feel closer to our fellow human beings? Do we want to strengthen in ourselves the things that enable us to love and be loved, to understand and be understood? Do we want to strengthen in ourselves the things that enable us to serve others better, to cooperate with them, to find mutual satisfaction and delight in life?
     The Holy Supper has the power to bring about these things, In general, it's that simple.

ALL THINGS OF THE CHURCH

     The Holy Supper sums up all things of the church (see TCR 711, AC 4581:6). It expresses the covenant between the Lord and ourselves.

It expresses (on His part) what He feels for us and wants for us, what He gives to us and does for us; it expresses (on our part) our willing reception and faithful response.
     This covenant makes the church. The Lord's part of the covenant is symbolized by the bread and wine. The bread is His love for us and the goodness that it brings. The wine is His wisdom and the truth that we have from it. (He called the bread and wine "My body" and "My blood" to draw our focus to His visible Person as the source of spiritual life; only through His Divine Human can we know God, love God, and be responsible to God.) Our part of the covenant is symbolized by our coming forward-freely and knowingly-and eating and drinking the symbols of His life, taking them into ourselves in a spirit of love for Him and commitment to His way.

SOLEMN FEAST OR CELEBRATION?

     Because the Holy Supper sums up all things of the church, it can be taken in many different spirits. Do we feel mostly gratitude right now? Or are we most aware of His mercy in the face of our inadequacy and sin? Are we excited about something He has shown us recently? Are we simply content with the satisfactions of walking in His way? Perhaps we're mostly feeling a sense of need for new life, a need to be closer to Him, to know Him better. All states of the church with us can be expressed in the Holy Supper, because all states of the church result from what we have received from Him and hope to receive.
     So the Holy Supper can be a solemn occasion (as it undoubtedly was when the Lord instituted it). Or it can be a very joyful occasion. It can be both. It can be taken in many different spirits.

     A Sacrament of Repentance

     On a number of occasions in the Writings, the Holy Supper is called a "sacrament of repentance." From the very beginning the Christian Church has seen this link between the Holy Supper and repentance (see I Cor. 11).
     Unfortunately, "repentance" tends to make us think of self-flagellation, suffering and guilt. Repentance should not mean that to us. The Writings define repentance as:

1)      examining our life (both behavior and motive);
2)      seeing some specific evil;
3)      acknowledging and confessing it (taking responsibility);
4)      praying to the Lord for help and power to stop;
5)      actually stopping the evil and beginning a new life (see NJHD 159ff, DP 114, AR 531:5, TCR 528).

     The Writings do speak of "making oneself guilty" of an evil and "condemning oneself' on account of it (in context of step 3). But they teach us clearly that we cannot be freed from evil if we really believe that it is our own: we must believe that it is from hell, not from ourselves (see AC 761, 6206, 6324f, 10219:3). What they mean by "making oneself guilty" and "condemning oneself' is that we are to acknowledge that we have had a role in accepting evils from hell: something in us has welcomed them. Taking responsibility for our problems is the first step to resisting the old feelings and inviting new ones.
     The point is: we simply can't find communion with the Lord unless we repent. How much good (heavenly "bread") can we receive from Him, and how sensitive can we be to it, if we regularly find enjoyment in some evil? How much, and how clearly, can we receive truth (heavenly "wine") from Him if we habitually let ourselves think selfishly (and therefore falsely)? The love and wisdom that He promises us cannot be ours unless we are willing to repent.

     The repentance that we do before the Holy Supper need not always be an intense sort. The Writings recommend that we do that kind once or twice a year. Most of the time what is required is the kind of repentance that Christians do daily: noticing when we're thinking ill and when we're thinking well, resisting the bad thoughts, affirming the good, asking the Lord for power in this work.
     The Holy Supper is always a sacrament of repentance. Even when we're approaching it joyfully, that act implies that we have made efforts to turn from evil. It always implies a spirit of willingness to have our lives changed, through the Lord's mercy and power (see AC 4217:2).

     Communion with Others

     Is the Holy Supper just an individual matter, or is it a communal one as well?
     The Holy Supper expresses our love for our neighbors and our communion with them (see AC 4211, 4735:2, 3316:3, 3464:2, 4217:2). It does this even as a private act. We find true communion with other human beings chiefly by accepting into ourselves the Lord's unselfish love and purposes (the "bread") and His sensitive and uniting wisdom (the "wine"). In this way we become a "branch" joined together with other branches in the "Vine."
     At the same time, the Lord fed all of His disciples together. He offered them bread from a common plate (we presume), and He passed the cup among all His disciples, saying, "Drink from it, all of you.
     We do not find the Lord in isolation. We can know His love and learn His truth only through the agency of other people, whom we call His church. Unquestionably there is a great value to us as individuals and to us as a church group in seeking the Lord together and expressing our mutual dependence on each other and on Him.

If the Holy Supper is a communion with the Lord and with the church, surely it is pleasing to Him when we reflect on the people with whom we are "supping."1
     1 Interestingly, the Writings suggest that food (even in a non-ritual setting) actually nourishes us better when we enjoy it in charitable company (see AC 5576:3, 6078, 7996, 8352:3; SE 3566). Doesn't this say something for the power of eating with fellow worshipers?

     A Few Common Barriers to Taking Holy Supper

     Am I ready for that Am I committed enough? These are good questions. It is an important act of worship, and certainly needs to be done in a considered way.
     On the other hand, these questions can become false barriers. How does someone who is "ready" feel? When does someone feel old enough or committed enough?
     There's something in us that will never feel ready, old enough, committed enough. At some point we must listen to what our better self hopes for and "make the plunge." At some point we must act, trusting in the Lord's mercy and power to change us and help us grow.
     One simple way to assess whether we're ready is to look at our life and ask, "Do I make efforts to do what is right? Do I, at least some of the time, resist doing and thinking things that are evil? Do I recognize my need for the Lord's help?" If so, chances are we're committed enough to benefit from the Holy Supper.

     Am I worthy enough? Again, this is a good question. There are indeed times when we are not worthy enough.
     Think of it this way. Are there times when it's inappropriate to seek or express friendship with another? If we have been knowingly negative toward our boss or fellow employee, for example; if we have been working against that person, saying and doing unworthy things behind his/her back, can we instantly turn around and say that we wish to be right with him and to love him?

We could do this sincerely only if we had reflected ahead of time on what we had been doing, had resolved to change our life, and perhaps had even made some attempts in that direction.
     The same holds in our relationship with the Lord. How can we sincerely approach Him and be joined with Him as a friend if we have been living in an unworthy way? Our approach must be sincere. And the test of our sincerity is our actual efforts to turn from evil.
     Yet it's vital to realize here that it's never a question of whether or not the Lord wants to "dine with us." He always does. And He never regards us as too unworthy for Him. In other words, unworthiness is not a barrier on the Lord's part but on ours. The problem is, when we have been unworthy (and haven't made any effort to change), we can't benefit much from the Holy Supper. We can't summon any genuine humility. Our minds and hearts can't be softened and opened and touched by the Lord. We won't let them be.
     It's important to realize that worthiness is not a matter of how we feel. Nor is it a matter of how good we are. Can anyone ever say he is worthy? Does anyone ever feel worthy? No, not even angels. What angels do feel is an ever-growing gratitude that the Lord constantly forgives and constantly stoops to fill them with His love and wisdom.
     Again, a test of whether we are worthy enough is: Do we want and need the Lord-His help, His power, His love, His guidance (truth)? We know that we really want this by reflecting that we have in fact been making some efforts, however small, toward resisting our "demons." No feeling of shame or unworthiness should keep us from seeking closeness with the Lord, provided we have made some effort.

     "I tried, and it didn't seem to help." The Holy Supper is called "the holiest act of worship."

We're told that it has enormous power. And yet somehow it's hard to believe these superlatives. We may not sense "fireworks" when we take it. We may not be aware of any strong boost to our life.
     We can't expect instant miracles. For the most part the Lord changes us gradually. Progress means more to us when we participate in the process. And there is little sense of participation in "lightning bolt" experiences.
     What's more, we are poor judges of the power in the Holy Supper, especially at the outset of our spiritual life. We become sensitized to that power, and receptive of it, with time and growth. We begin the "new birth" as spiritual infantswhat we see and grasp is so vague and general! Our spiritual hands can only bat the air in jerking motions! Our spiritual eyes, however eager, take things in with little appreciation of the depth and detail all around us!
     The Holy Supper can indeed be a very powerful experience at times. But we shouldn't make our experience (or lack of it) the indicator of its value or power. We need to be in it for the "long haul." We must commit ourselves to it and give it time.

     Why and How the Holy Supper Works

     Once Swedenborg listened to a conversation in the spiritual world. Angels were saying that the Holy Supper has the power to conjoin us with the Lord. Someone listening said, "This is a mystery!" The angels replied, "It is a mystery, but still a mystery that can be understood" (AR 224e). We can grasp it enough to appreciate why it works.

WHAT LIES WITHIN AN ACT

     First of all, we must realize that every action holds incredible power, at least potentially. Unless we see this, we cannot appreciate the "mysterious" power of the Holy Supper.

     The power of an act comes from the mind. True, a deed with very little mind in it has little significance. But when there is mind and heart in it, an action becomes highly significant. Actions go further than mere thoughts and feelings. A woman can reflect, "I ought to do this" or "I am committed to this." But if she acts on this thought, a greater energy is required. Her thought must go forth into concrete media. Her mind must choose and gather know-how and tools. (It can't act without these.) Then she must be concerned with timing, with when and where to act. Mental energy is involved in these steps. Finally, in acting she must move her body and move something in the world outside of herself. This extension from thought to action can happen in an instant, but there is so much involved! This mental "going further" is what makes actions more powerful and more formative than mere thoughts and feelings by themselves.2
     2 Bodily actions are called "ultimates" in Swedenborg's Writings. "Ultimate" means "last thing" or "outmost thing. The reference is to the last or outermost thing in a series, a series that goes from "inner" (the realm of mind) to "outer" (the realm of body). The Writings say that spiritual power (mental power) is greatest when it descends into "ultimates," into bodily action.

A DEEPER REASON

     The deeper reason that actions are more powerful and formative than mere thoughts and feelings is that they link us more fully with the spiritual world.
     For example: when I think a prayer, I come into spiritual contact with certain spirits. If I were to let that prayer descend into my facial expressions, into words, into my hands, into my neck and knee joints, that same prayer would draw stronger response from spirits and would be more strongly felt by me, Mere thought brings me into contact with like-minded spirits: intentional acting brings about a real "bond" with them.3
     3The Writings tell us that thought brings about spiritual "presence" with those in like thought, but affection brings about "conjunction" with them (see DP 326, AR 937). Our deliberate actions also bring about conjunction, because these actions are the full expression of our will's affections (see HH 475, AE 440).

     Now obviously it's really the stronger feeling on my part that causes me to let my thought-prayer show itself in my gestures. Nevertheless, sometimes our gestures seem to come before feelings. In fact, sometimes we must make gestures come first! Our feelings are often subconscious, but when we force ourselves to adopt appropriate behavior, then our hidden feelings can descend to our awareness.4 And even when we are already aware of the inner feeling, acting on it can heighten that feeling. Actions have special power to do this.
     4 In this context the Writings say, "Act precedes; a person's willing follows" (AC 4353:3; cf. 4366).
     A man can think, "I appreciate this woman," but his thought takes on greater power for him when he expresses it in words or in a letter, or by bringing her flowers. (It takes on greater power for her too.) Again, we commonly feel more sorry after saying we're sorry. We feel more thankful after saying "Thank you." We feel a new sense of warmth for guests, and a greater desire to serve them, after we have actually shaken their hands and welcomed them.
     So there can be incredible power in our actions: power to stir inner states of mind, to focus them, and heighten them. This power is the result of the bonds that are formed with communities of spirits and angels when we knowingly act.

TO SUM UP SO FAR

     We've been talking about the relationship between our mind (thoughts/feelings) and our body's actions. In the New Church we call this relationship one of "correspondence."

What we've been saying is that there's power in a correspondential act.
     This is why the Holy supper has power. When we are involved in its movements, bringing a willing mind to them, those actions link us with angels and draw a stronger current of influx from the Lord through those angels. The effect: our mind's inner ties with heaven are extended more deeply and broadly; new options for thinking and feeling are opened to us. The result is that our love and thoughts are inwardly strengthened; we experience new feelings, new thoughts, new commitment.

     Correspondence and the Bread and Wine

     But there is another aspect to the "correspondence" involved in the Holy Supper. The explanation is a bit more abstract, because it gets away from our focus on human thoughts and feelings. But these ideas, important to a deeper understanding of how the Holy Supper works!
     Not only do actions correspond to what's in our minds, but things do too. This is something that we're generally not aware of, but every object in creation exists because it springs from something spiritual.
     The first source of all things is the Lord. But His life is stepped down to our level through various spiritual levels. (Each level "corresponds" to the level above it.) So objects in this world, like actions, are expressions of things in the Lord's spirit or mind. And by reflection they are expressions of things in the human mind as well.
     Take water. It corresponds to truth. What this means is that water exists only because truth exists in the Lord! In other words, water is what it is only because truth has the power to spiritually cleanse, neutralize, dissolve, soothe, quench our mental thirst, and so forth. Everything that water does is a low-level reflection of a certain aspect of truth as it exists in the Lord.

     This is true of every single thing in creation (and every natural process). Every different element in the mineral kingdom, every species of animal and plant, has its own specific source in something in the Lord (or something from the Lord which has been modified by spirits as it descends to us).
     It follows that bread, wine, and the ingredients that go into them also spring from certain things in the Lord. They correspond to them.

BREAD

     "Bread" has been a metaphor for all food for countless ages. It has been brought before God and eaten in a worship setting for as long. People have seen it as a symbol of what the Lord gives us: personal life, His sustaining presence, food and clothing, protection, peace, happiness, love. You might think that it has meaning merely by human tradition. But the real reason is that it corresponds to the Lord's love, the source of all His gifts to us.
     There's an adage: "Bread is older than man." Bread exists because the Lord's love exists. Bread nourishes and delights our bodies because the Lord's love does that for our hearts. Bread is the embodiment on the physical plane of Divine love and its goodness. Who taught us to make it?
     Wheat. The essential ingredient in bread is grain flour. Grains like wheat and barley (the chief ones in Bible times) have their own natural characteristics that are reflections of their spiritual origins, These grains are actually seen in the spiritual world. You might suppose that this is because they exist in the natural world, and are recreated from the earthly memory of spirits. In fact they exist there as well as here because they are expressions of specific things in the Lord (see AC 9239; cf. AE 374:2, TCR 78).
     Wheat, the most widely grown grain, has long been held as the most noble one.5

Wheat ranks high among grains in protein and carbohydrates, making it a good food for building the body and giving energy. It has a special kind of gluten (a protein substance) that helps dough made from it to adhere together well without becoming too heavy. Its germ is rich in fat which contains minerals and vitamins. Wheat, like bread made from it, corresponds to the Lord's love and goodness, received deeply by a person, bringing heavenly nourishment and delight. (Barley, an inferior grain that makes a heavier bread, corresponds to His love and goodness received on a more external level.)
     5 Though it's not clear from the Old Testament, the Writings pointedly tell that wheat was the grain used in the Israalites' prescribed daily offerings (see AR 316, 778; TCR 707; cf. Exodus 29:2). Since the Lord replaced these offerings with the Holy Supper, which symbolizes them all, we infer that the bread we use in Holy Supper should ideally be made of wheat. This could also be inferred from NJHD 218 seen in its context.
     Unleavened. The Lord commanded the Israelites to use unleavened bread in their offerings and also during holy feasts like the Passover. Leavening (yeast) is symbolic of impurities in our minds and hearts (see AC 2342, 7902, 9992). When these are present, we take credit for the good the Lord does through us; we regard our own benefit in what He gives us; we make much of ourselves and little of Him in the good that comes our way. The Pharisees embodied these attitudes, which is why the Lord said, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees" (Matt. 16:6, 12; cf. I Cor 5:6ff). The puffed-up bread (in this context anyway) seems to stand for good that human beings have tampered with; the unleavened bread stands for good from the Lord, accepted and appreciated as He gives it.6
     6 The Writings nowhere insist that the Holy Supper bread must be unleavened, yet by implication from its symbolic meaning, it certainly makes sense. In addition there's the link between the Passover and the Last Supper, and the broader connection between the bread used in the Old Testament offerings and the Holy Supper bread (see AC 4581:4, 7978e et al).

WINE

     Like bread and its physical ingredients, wine and its ingredients correspond to something in the Lord. Wine is an expression on the physical plane of a certain kind of truth, and of certain functions that truth has in our spiritual development. Wine's correspondence and meaning rest not just in its properties, but in the biological/physiological processes by which it is made.
     Grapes. Wine is made from grapes. Grapes, as fruits, are symbolic of the Lord's love. The juice that comes from the grape (mostly water) corresponds to His truth. Truth flows from love. (Truth is love brought to view, love expressed, love given tools to work.)
     But grape juice that is not fermented stands for the Lord's truth received on the natural level-full of appearances and misconceptions, clouded by our natural desires and false hopes. After fermentation it stands for that truth received spiritually.
     Fermented. Fermentation happens when the yeast organisms (present everywhere) grow in the juice, feeding on the sugars there. As they work, the liquid is thinned, alcohol and carbon-dioxide (fizz) are produced. Eventually the yeast is killed by the alcohol. It sinks to the bottom along with any other sediment, and the clarified wine is siphoned off the top. As it ages, the flavor becomes more smooth and rich.
     Fermentation corresponds to the process of temptation (see AC 7906, DP 25, 284). We are able to grasp truth spiritually only through enduring temptations. The yeast or leaven (as above) stands for the impure desires and false ways of seeing things that are present at the outset of regeneration. These falsities grow in us, stealing our delight in what is good, sapping our energy for doing good, and clouding our sight of truth. Fermentation symbolizes the conflict between the truth (grasped superficially at first) and falsity, between good and evil in us. Through our efforts to let the Lord rule in us, a gradual purification takes place.

Our thinking becomes clearer as we let go of impure desires. That's when we see the falsity in our thinking and it is separated from the truth. This new truth is the clarified wine.7
     7 As with the unleavened bread, the Writings never pointedly insist that fermented grape wine must be used in the Holy Supper; however, the correspondences and symbolic meaning are pretty clear.

SO HOW DO THESE CORRESPONDENCES JOIN US WITH THE LORD AND WITH HEAVEN?

     When we eat bread and drink wine, the meaning inherent in those elements links us with the Lord, their source. It also links us with angels, because they are in the same spiritual realities. Love (the kind that's the source of bread) and truth (the kind that's the source of wine) flow into our minds with power to the extent that we are able and willing to receive them.
     This spiritual connection through eating the bread and drinking the wine has power to the extent that we are receptive and "conscious," acting with spiritual intentionality, as we do in the Holy Supper.
     In a way, this is like a good kind of magic! But it flows from the true order and nature of things. And we can understand why it works.8
     8 The Writings say that magic actually arose from the perversion of correspondences, when they were used to manipulate and control people (see AC 5223, 6692, et al).

DO I HAVE TO BE CONCERNED WITH ALL THIS?

     This explanation of why and how the elements work can seem rather removed from the emotional reasons why we come before the Lord in the sacrament. It can seem rather removed from the actual benefits of the Holy Supper. Do we need to know all these "technical" things?
     People once knew these things intuitively.

In this scientific, skeptical age, that intuition can be restored only through knowledge. The Lord has taught us about correspondences so that we might understand and believe, with our reason as well as with our hearts. This knowledge can clear up any doubts that may arise regarding the ritual elements of the Holy Supper. It can free our minds to focus on the Lord and on the spiritual purposes of the sacrament. In fact, it can focus our minds more strongly on the Lord, the source of all goodness and truth!
     No, at a given time we may not need to know the hows and whys of correspondences in order to take the Holy Supper and benefit from it. But the church needs to know, if it is to understand and foster the proper uses and benefits of the sacrament (see TCR 667ff, 698ff). And the time comes, perhaps, when every individual wants to know these things. Why else would the Lord give that knowledge?

     Questions

     How often should I take the Holy Supper? The Lord is always extending Himself to us. Does this mean that we should take the Holy Supper relatively often? "Frequently" is the word used in describing the "life of piety" (NJHD 124 [= AC 8253]; cf. AE 794:4).9 But "frequently" is a relative word. This must be an individual matter. It will vary a great deal from person to person, and from one state of life to another.
     9 HH 222 mentions three or four times a year. Note: AR 531:5, often cited in this connection, which mentions "once or twice a year," is not speaking of frequency of taking Holy Supper but of frequency of doing the serious kind of repentance.
     It is important to take the supper sincerely, with genuine "hunger" and "thirst." This doesn't mean that we should always look for an emotional feeling of "hunger" and "thirst." Sometimes we will see our need in a more considered, intellectual way (remembering that the Holy Supper, like many considered acts, can often stir feelings-feelings that are there but not conscious).

     We should not take it with unthinking frequency. Yet we should not take it so infrequently that the sacrament fails to give us regular spiritual support and sustenance. It should be a familiar act that helps us keep in touch with the Lord, helps us keep our priorities straight, helps to stir and feed our motivation to follow Him.

     How much bread and wine should I take? The Lord freely offers His love and wisdom to us! We shouldn't be timid! We should take enough bread and wine to sense and enjoy. The sensations are an ultimate basis for our bond with Him through the sacrament.

     When both a common cup and individual cups are offered, which should I take? It seems evident that the Lord offered one cup to His disciples. Through the ages drinking from a common cup has been symbolic of unity. Many people prefer to use the common cup when it can be offered. But it's not vital to the basic meaning of the sacrament. Do what's comfortable.

     What if I am an alcoholic? Some alcoholics find that they can safely drink a small amount of wine in this special context. Others have arranged for a cup of grape juice to be provided for them. Talk to your pastor.

     Must I be a member of the church to partake? No.

     Must I have been confirmed? No. Confirmation is an elective rite. (It's not even mentioned in the Writings.) Anyone who has made an inner commitment to the Lord should feel more than welcome to take the supper.
     Many people do find that becoming confirmed is a good way to begin taking Holy Supper. Confirmation serves as a considered way to express their choice to commit themselves to the Lord.

Making that deliberate statement gives them a new sense of confidence in coming to the Holy Supper. (A similar statement is made by getting betrothed or married in the church or by having a child baptized.)

Is the Holy Supper necessary to salvation? It is not (see AC 1175; AE 1180). But the Lord gave it to help us. He tells us that there is great power in this act of worship-more than in any other! Who doesn't need help in establishing links with heaven and with the Lord? So many things in our spiritual life seem complicated and difficult to do. Here is something simple.
MINISTERIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS 1993

MINISTERIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS Editor 1993

     Rev. Arthur (Terry) W. Schnarr, Jr. has accepted a call from the Hurstville Society in Australia to become their pastor effective July 1, 1993. Terry has been the assistant to the present pastor, Rev. Douglas Taylor, who will be retiring at that time.
     Rev. James P. Cooper has accepted a call to become the pastor of the Washington Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     Rev. Ragnar Boyesen has accepted a call to become the pastor of the Kempton, Pennsylvania, Society, effective July 1, 1993.

MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT MARRIAGE 1993

MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT MARRIAGE Rev. MARK R. CARLSON 1993

     Part VII

     Let us now look at a seventh misconception about marriage. This one deals with the process of mate selection and its implications for marriage.
     Many people have observed that we tend to marry a partner who is in some way like our parents. The old song which happily announces, "I want a girl just like the girl that married dear old Dad," definitely has a ring of truth to it. It does not take much reflection to observe that the pleasing personality traits, beliefs, and characteristics of our opposite-sex parent are likely to attract us when we find them in a potential partner. But the truth is that much more is going on in the process of mate selection than this.
     Murray Bowen, a leading theorist in the field of marriage and family counseling, has observed that people have an uncanny ability to find, fall in love with, and marry a person who has achieved similar levels of emotional maturity. Of particular interest for New Church people is that Bowen sees emotional maturity as being related to one's ability to separate thinking from feeling, and especially the ability to act from clear thinking even in highly emotional situations. His observation appears to confirm what the Writings say about the necessity for the old will to be separated, and for a new will to grow up in the understanding as we are regenerated.
     If he is correct, it also means that we tend to marry someone who is at our own level of regeneration! In working with troubled marriages, I have seldom found that individuals verbally express judgments about their partner's spiritual development; nevertheless, they often act as though they know it is deficient compared to their own. I suspect that partners are almost always at the same level, emotionally and spiritually.

And it seems to make good sense that the Lord would guide us to fall in love with someone our spiritual equal.
     But there is even more to the process of mate selection than this.
     It appears that not only do we choose someone who is on equal spiritual footing with us but also someone who will challenge us in such a way that we may more effectively participate in the process of regeneration. Harville Hendrix, in his book Getting the Love You Want, points out a very significant factor in mate selection which is commonly overlooked. Hendrix agrees that on the conscious level we do tend to look for someone who embodies the positive characteristics of our primary care givers when we were young, just as the song alluded to above suggests. But on an unconscious level he says we are more attracted to someone who has the negative traits of our childhood care givers when looking for a mate.
     There is a great deal more that is worthwhile in Hendrix, and I would strongly recommend this book for all couples. But the observation that we are unconsciously attracted to the negative characteristics of primary caregivers in potential partners could be pivotal in forming a New Church model for understanding the psychological and spiritual dynamics of marriage. Perhaps such a model would look something like the following:
     We fall in love. We marry. Unwittingly we choose a person with the very weaknesses in our parents or guardians which most wounded us as children. These wounds are what psychologists would call emotional wounds, and if these wounds are severe enough we might be called "emotionally disturbed." While most of us are probably not emotionally disturbed, nevertheless, because of the spiritual state of humankind, we are all emotionally wounded to one degree or another. We have not received the full spectrum of love the Lord intended for us to receive. This failure in some way impairs the healthy development of our natural mind.

     But our emotional woundedness goes even deeper than its effect on our natural mind. When we do not receive the full spectrum of love as a child, there is deficiency in our remnant experiences of good, or what the Writings often call "remains."1 Our "remains of good" consist of the memories of what it was like to be loved, together with an influx from the Lord into those memories. For protection these memories are drawn into the interiors of the natural mind as they become unconscious to us.2 Nevertheless they remain with us, they continue to influence our behavior unconsciously, and are essential for our spiritual rebirth.3
     1 AC 561, 1738, 1906.
     2 AC 5363.
     3 AC 711, 1050.
     We are not strongly attracted to potential partners who do not have similar weaknesses to our childhood caregivers because to be loved by them does not fill the void in our remains, and their love does not feel like a love particularly worth having. But if we can be loved by a person who has similar weakness to our caregivers, one whom we perceive on some level to have the potential to heal us with his or her love, then at last we sense we may find wholeness through this person.
     The trouble is that, in order for us to be healed emotionally in marriage, often our partner must overcome his or her area of greatest spiritual weakness. And herein lies the essential conflict of most marriages, a conflict which brings up on the one hand a resistance to change within oneself, while on the other hand a consuming desire for one's partner to change. It was once a curious thing for me to observe that married partners often want from each other the very thing the other is least able to give! Now I see this apparent impasse as simply a very common signpost of a working marriage.
     In our next installment we will offer an example of how marriage can be a powerful force in regeneration.

INFLUENCE OF SWEDENBORG ON RUSSIAN CULTURE 1993

INFLUENCE OF SWEDENBORG ON RUSSIAN CULTURE LEONARD FOX 1993

     Throughout the entire communist period, the name of Emanuel Swedenborg was practically unknown in Russia and the other republics of the Soviet Union. Publication of Swedenborg's theological works was banned, and no mention was made in any scholarly or popular books that those theological works, which we often call the Writings, had exerted a very significant influence on the greatest Russian writers, philosophers, and social reformers of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
     Russia's contact with the Writings actually dates from the time of Swedenborg's lifetime. There are written records to indicate that at least three notable Russians knew Swedenborg personally: one was I. R. Koshelev, an adjutant in the service of Prince Poryomkin; another was I. A. Dmitrevskiy (1733-821), one of the most famous actors of the late eighteenth century. The third individual was an Orthodox priest named Joaniki Goroneskul, who was the pastor of the Russian church in Stockholm. Not only had Goroneskul read the available Latin volumes of the Writings, but he also believed in their content, as is evident from conversations that were recorded by Carl Robsahm as having occurred between him and Swedenborg. In 1769, Goroneskul returned to St. Petersburg, where Swedenborg's name had long been known and respected, since he had been elected an honorary member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences in 1734 on the basis of his scientific work.
     Volumes of the Writings were certainly being read in Russia at this time, and during the 1760s and 1770s the first translation of Heaven and Hell into Russian was made. The translator was N. F. Malyshkin, a judge in the city of Yaroslavl'.

By 1780 the translation was ready for publication, as we know from the title page that was printed in that year by the Moscow printer Novikov. For some reason, however, the work itself was never published, although the complete manuscript was found in Yaroslavl' after Malyshkin's death.
The next translation of which we are aware was made by Stepan Dzhunkovskiy, a high-ranking official of the Russian court and at one time director of the national economy and public works. Dzhunkovskiy lived in London from 1784 to 1792, and during that time apparently became well acquainted with the Writings. By 1827, he had completed a translation of Divine Love and Wisdom, which remained in manuscript and was found at the time of his death. His son planned to publish the entire work, but only the first fascicle, comprising nos. 1 to 182 of the text, was ever printed (Karlsruhe, 1864).
During the early part of the nineteenth century, the Writings were receiving considerable attention in Russia, primarily through French and German translations, but also in the Latin originals. There were circles of readers, and even an embryonic society in St. Petersburg. The famous poet Derzhavin mentions Swedenborg in a poem written in 1808, and we know that when the monk Filaret, who later became Metropolitan of the Russian Orthodox Church, arrived in St. Petersburg in 1809, he was advised by members of the Holy Synod to read the Writings. He did, in fact, read them, and later declared that they did not in any way contradict the teachings of the Orthodox Church. There is a great deal of evidence to indicate that the Writings were known in the highest, most talented, and best educated circles of the Russian empire. Some of those who studied the Writings, such as General A. N. Muravyov and his family, who played a major role in the movement to emancipate the serfs, as well as Princess Cleopatra Shakhovskaya, actually considered themselves Swedenborgians. Despite their belief in the truths of the Writings, they did not renounce their allegiance to the Orthodox Church, since they did not see any fundamental conflict between their acceptance of the Writings and their church affiliation.

This was also true of Ol'ga Pavlishcheva, who introduced the Writings to her brother, the great poet Aleksandr Pushkin. Evidence of Pushkin's knowledge of the Writings is found in his treatment of the subject of chance in his work [Russian text], The Queen of Spades, written in 1833, where the epigraph to chapter 5 mentions Swedenborg's name: [Russian text] ["That night, the deceased Baroness von V. appeared to me. She was all in white, and she said to me, 'Greetings, Councilor!' Swedenborg]. It is known that Pushkin's father "rejoiced when he heard that his daughter read the religious works of Swedenborg," so it is apparent that the entire family was involved in studying them.
     The influence of the Writings was quite marked on two other well known poets of the mid-nineteenth century, Fyodor Tyutchev and Aleksey Tolstoy. In his later poetry, written from about 1850 to 1865, Tyutchev introduces themes that he undoubtedly found in Swedenborg's Writings, which he had read most likely during his long sojourns in Germany. Aleksey Tolstoy was one of the best known Swedenborgians of nineteenth-century Russia. One of his poems-about lovers meeting in the "land of light" after death-is entitled "Swedenborg" or sometimes appears with the title "From Swedenborg."
     Among those interested in Swedenborg around the same time as Pushkin was, surprisingly, Alexander Herzen, who mentions Swedenborg repeatedly in one of his stories, entitled It Was on the 22nd of October 1817. As Herzen records in his memoirs, he had been introduced to Swedenborg's theological works during his Siberian exile in the 1830s by one of his friends, Aleksandr Vitberg.
     It was during the 1830s, too, that F. Golubinskiy, the well known professor of philosophy, gave lectures on Swedenborg at the Moscow Academy.

     To return to the subject of Russian translation: over a period of almost twenty years, from about 1844 to 1863, a man named Valerian Aleksandrovich Klenovsky was engaged in translating a number of volumes of the Writings. His labors were very great indeed, amounting to about 13,000 manuscript pages, and included considerable portions of Arcana Coelestia, almost all of Apocalypse Revealed, complete translations of The Four Doctrines, Divine Love and Wisdom, New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine, The White Horse, and Earths in the Universe, as well as part of Conjugial Love. I have not been able to discover anything about Klenovsky, but several manuscripts of his Arcana translations have the word "Moscow" written on the title page. It would seem, therefore, that he lived in Russia and sent his translations to the Swedenborg Society in London as he completed them. Unfortunately, it appears that none of his translations were ever published, but I have seen the manuscripts in the library of the Swedenborg Society, and his work is of a very high quality.
     In the same year as the last dated translation by Klenovsky, that is, in 1863, a translation of Heaven and Hell by Aleksandr Nikolayevich Aksakov was published in Leipzig. This was followed in 1864 by Aksakov's book, The Gospel According to Swedenborg: Five Chapters from the Gospel of John with a presentation and Exposition of their Spiritual Sense, and in 1870 by a work entitled Swedenborg's Rationalism. Aksakov's translation of Heaven and Hell was to have a very significant effect on two of the greatest figures in nineteenth-century Russian culture-Fyodor Dostoevsky and Vladimir Solovyov.
     It is known that Dostoevsky had a copy of Aksakov's translation in his library, and echoes of Swedenborgian thought appear in his novels. This is most apparent in The Brothers Karamazov, and there, particularly in Part 2, Book 6, in the section entitled "On hell and infernal fire, a mystical discussion" ("[Russian text]"). It is likely, in fact, that Swedenborg provided, at least partly, a model for the character of Father Zosima in that novel.

The Nobel-prize-winning author Czeslaw Milosz (who himself has been greatly influenced by Swedenborg) has written several articles analyzing the influence of the Writings on Dostoevsky.
Solovyov, who is considered to be the most important Russian philosopher of the nineteenth century, was certainly familiar with Aksakov's translation of Heaven and Hell. His attention had been drawn to Swedenborg most likely by his teacher of philosophy at the University of Moscow, P. D. Yurkevich, who died in 1874. Solovyov was reading the Writings throughout the 1870s, and in a letter of April 27th, 1877, he wrote that he recognizes only Paracelsus, Boehme, and Swedenborg as "truly important" individuals ([Russian text]). Solovyovs eclectic philosophical theology borrowed ideas from Swedenborg, as well as from many others, such as Jakob Bohme, Baruch Spinoza, Hegel, I. V. Kireevskiy, and A. S. Khomyakov. Although there is no doubt of Solovyov's intellectual debt to the Writings, he mentions Swedenborg very seldom in his work. Swedenborg's Gorand Man of heaven, as well as his concept of the Divine Humanity of Jesus Christ, may have influenced Solovyov's idea of the "God-Man"-an idea on which he lectured during the 1870s in St. Petersburg-and may also have been at work in concepts developed in his poetry, such as the muse of the "Divine Sophia." The only extensive piece of writing on Swedenborg by Solovyov is an article of six double-column pages that was written for the 1900 edition of the Brockhaus-Efron Russian encyclopedia.
Solovyov's Divine Sophia was also used by other symbolist poets, such as Andrey Byely, who, in his poem "[Russian text]" ["The First Encounter"], wrote:
[Russian text]

     You, Charity, are like a rose,
     You, Faith, a quivering rapture,
     Hope, you are murmuring tears,
     Sophia-a lofty Swedenborg!

     Through Solovyov, interest in the Writings developed among the young generation of Russian writers, philosophers, and theologians who came after him. Andrey Byely, one of the leading lights of the so-called "Silver Age" of Russian literature, was responsible for the publication in 1914 of a limited edition of Conjugial Love. The text was an anonymous translation into Russian dating from 1850, from which the section on scortatory love was omitted.
     Father Pavel Florensky, one of the foremost Russian religious philosophers of our century, was also well acquainted with the Writings. In Florensky's book [Russian text] [The Meaning of Idealism], published in 1915, he says: "Man as an idea is a living whole in which individual men play the part of organs. It is the 'Heavenly Man' as he is present in the religious consciousness of the mystics, the 'Body of Christ' as it is described by Swedenborg in his treatise, 'About Heaven, About the World of Spirits, and About Hell'" (p. 52), Here, Florensky indicates his familiarity with Aksakov's translation of Heaven and Hell by quoting its title, [Russian text] [About Heaven, About the World of Spirits, and About Hell], since it is the only one to include the words "about the World of Spirits."
     It is evident, too, that both the philosopher Nikolai Berdyaev and the theologian Sergey Bulgakov were strongly influenced by the doctrine of correspondences, since in one form or another that doctrine plays a major role in the work of both men. The great symbolist poet Aleksandr Blok and the writer Dmitriy Merezhkovskiy (several of whose works have been translated into English) were, to a greater or lesser extent, also influenced by the theological concepts of Swedenborg.

     From the time of Derzhavin and Pushkin, therefore, to the age of Byely, immediately before the revolution, the Writings of Swedenborg exerted a continual and significant influence on the spiritual and intellectual life of Russia, affecting the thought and work of some of the best known figures in Russian literature and philosophy. As I mentioned, during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries many of Swedenborg's Writings were translated directly from Latin into Russian. Some were published, while others still remain in manuscript. It is planned that in the future these excellent translations will be edited and published for the Russian readers of today, and the spiritual treasures of Emanuel Swedenborg's Writings will once again be available to all those in the former Soviet Union who seek the truth.

     THE WRITINGS IN RUSSIAN TRANSLATION

     (In the collection of the Swedenborg Society, London; compiled by L. Fox.)

     Printed Works

     Arcana Coelestia (extracts entitled: [symbols used] ["Teachings on Charity and Faith"], 70 pp., Paris, 1897; extracts, Petrograd, 1906 and 1908).
     Conjugial Love (anonymous translation, ca. 1850 ["Scortatory Love" omitted], published by Andrey Byely in an edition limited to 200 copies, Moscow, 1914).
     Divine Love and Wisdom (translation by Stepan Dzhunkovsky, completed 1827, published [only nos. 1-82] in Karlsruhe, 1864).
     Heaven and Hell (Russian title: [symbols used] ["About Heaven, About the World of Spirits, and About Hell"], translation by Aleksandr Nikolayevich Aksakov, Leipzig, 1863).

     The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine (translation by Konstantin Faminskiy, London, 1904; another translation, by Rev. I. Edomski, Riga and London, 1938).
     On the Divine Love; On the Divine Wisdom (St. Petersburg, 1904).
     True Christian Religion (nos. 282-335, London, 1872 [from the manuscript listed below]).

     Manuscripts

     Apocalypse Revealed [nos. 1-386, 387-675, 802-962] (translated in the 1850s by V. A. Klenovsky, ca. 2,000 pages).
     Arcana Coelestia. Extracts [nos. 4056-4280, 4635-5190, 5191-6626, 6627-7487, 7488-8386. 8387-9442, 9443-9973, 9974-10837] (translated mostly between 1851 and 1863 by V. A. Klenovsky; some parts translated by others until 1897; totals 9,420 pages). Conjugial Love [nos. 1-208] (translated by V. A. Klenovsky, 586 pages).
     Divine Love and Wisdom (trans. by V. A. Klenovsky, 797 pages; another, partial translation by Rev. E. Tribes, 410 pages).
     Divine Providence (trans. by Rev. E. Tribes, 656 pages).
     Doctrine of the Lord (trans. by V. A. Klenovsky, 1860, 228 pages).
     Doctrine of the Sacred Scripture (trans by V. A. Klenovsky, 114 pages).
     Doctrine of Life (trans. by V. A. Klenovsky, ca. 1844, 109 pages).
     Doctrine of Faith (trans. by V. A. Klenovsky, 63 pages).
     Earths in the Universe (trans. by V. A. Klenovsky, 222 pages).
     The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine (trans. by V. A. Klenovsky, 175 pages).
     True Christian Religion [nos. 392-625 and 753-791] (translator unknown, 1,310 pages).
     The White Horse (trans. by V. A. Klenovsky, ca. 1858, 74 pages).

[Photo of Lara Zaridze and Nana (Mrs. L.) Fox during a lecture in the Bryn Athyn cathedral]
POSITION AVAILABLE IN ACADEMY COLLEGE 1993

POSITION AVAILABLE IN ACADEMY COLLEGE Editor 1993

     The Academy of the New Church College invites interested parties to apply for a full-time position in the college with primary responsibilities focused on teaching history. Secondary responsibilities could include, but are not limited to, instructing in physical education or modern languages, and/or coaching college sports, and supervising residence halls. The position would begin in September 1993 and an M. A. in history is a minimum requirement for the position. The successful candidate would be willing to pursue a Ph.D. in history if not currently held.
     Deadline for applications is February 8, 1993. Please send vita to Dr. Jane Williams-Hogan, Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. The fax number is (215) 938-2637.
     The Academy will not discriminate against applicants on the basis of race, gender, color, or national or ethnic origin.

APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO THE ACADEMY GIRLS SCHOOL AND BOYS SCHOOL 1993

APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO THE ACADEMY GIRLS SCHOOL AND BOYS SCHOOL Editor 1993

     Requests for application forms for admission of new students to the Academy Secondary Schools should be made by April 1, 1993. Letters should be addressed to Mrs. Robert Gladish, Principal of the Girls School, or Mr. T. Dudley Davis, Principal of the Boys School, The Academy of the New Church, Box 707, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Please include the student's name, parents' address, the class the student will be entering, the name and address of the school he or she is now attending, and whether the student will be a day or a dormitory student.
     Completed application forms should be forwarded to the Academy by June 30, 1993. Admission Procedure is based on receipt of the following: 1. Application; 2. Transcript; 3. Pastor's recommendation; 4. Health forms.
     The Academy will not discriminate against applicants and students on the basis of race, color, or national or ethnic origin.
ACADEMY SECONDARY SCHOOLS SUMMER CAMP 1993

ACADEMY SECONDARY SCHOOLS SUMMER CAMP Editor 1993

The 1993 ANC summer camp will be held on the campus of the Academy of the New Church in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, from Sunday, July 11 until Saturday, July 17, 1993. The camp is open to boys and girls who will have completed eighth or ninth grade in May or June of 1993.
Students will receive registration details after the first week in March. We try to send to every eligible student, but sometimes miss someone. If anyone eligible has not received the information form by the second week in March, or if you know someone who may need information, please contact the Camp Director, Cory B. Boyce. Call him at (215) 947-4200 or write to him at Box 707, Academy of the New Church, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

ANC COLLEGE ADMISSIONS 1993

ANC COLLEGE ADMISSIONS Editor 1993

     The Academy College exists to order and unite the arts and sciences from a perspective of truths Divinely revealed in the teachings for the New Church. Each faculty member joins his or her special subject knowledge with a faith in the Heavenly Doctrines. The goal of this education is the development of mature men and women whose knowledges and skills are guided by religious principles toward a life of use and happiness.
     For more information about the college, or a copy of the catalog which describes programs and course offerings, please mail your request to the address below. Prospective students are welcome to visit the campus and attend classes any time the college is in session. Arrangements for visiting can be made by phoning Joyce Bostock, the college secretary, at (215) 947-2548 between 8:30 and 4:00 on weekdays.
     Students interested in entering the Academy College for the fall term of the 1993-1994 academic year should send requests for application forms to

     Mrs. Bruce Glenn, Director of Admissions
     Academy of the New Church College
     P.O. Box 717
     Bryn Athyn, PA 19009, USA

     The completed application forms for the fall term should be received by the college no later than March 1, 1993. As The Academy College operates on a three-term system, students may be admitted to any of the three terms, Applications for the spring term of the present academic year, beginning March 15, 1993, are acceptable if received by February 1, 1993.
     The college's requirements are in no way intended to be racially discriminatory, and the Academy will not discriminate against applicants and students on the basis of race, color, gender, or national origin.

Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     MINGLING WATER WITH WINE

     How does a recovering alcoholic take the holy supper? Some might say not to take it at all. Others might say take only the bread. And yet others have proposed that in this case unfermented grape juice be used.
     There is another solution with impressive history behind it. Throughout the years of the early Christian Church it was the custom to mingle water with wine in taking the sacrament. This was done with reverent Scriptural reason, and it may also have reflected the designation of "wine" in contradistinction to "strong drink." The latter, it is said, was undiluted wine, while the former was a common drink in which fermented grape juice was mingled with water.

     SERIOUS CAUSES OF LAUGHTER (5)

     Celestial angels who attend a person who is dying are aware of the person's strange and fallacious ideas. They laugh at them, but not by any means in derision. Translators have with good reason rendered this "smiling" rather than "laughing," although the Latin word is the same. There is nothing whatever derisive in the laughter of these angels (see AC 180).
     There can be so "very many things within laughter" (AC 2216)
     Sarah, the mother of Isaac, is famous for laughing at the news that she would have a son. It was the kind of laughter she was ashamed to confess (see Genesis 18:15). How different was the laughter that came when Isaac was born. Sarah said, "God has made me laugh so that all who hear will laugh with me."
     To laugh with Sarah in her good fortune is a heavenly thing. Laughter can be a sign of celebration and gratitude.

Once Swedenborg beheld a most charming scene. An angelic couple seemed to him at a distance to be naked infants surrounded with garlands of flowers. He told the couple this, and what did they do?
     Most translators have said that they smiled pleasantly (See CL 137). The new translation by David Gladish says that "they laughed cheerfully." Rev. Morley D. Rich, writing twenty years ago, observed that "puritanical and dour souls" have wondered if there could be good in laughter. He pointed out that "laughter and hilarity, like all human emotions, are good or evil according to the affection and thought within."1
      1 "The Blessed Mirth of Heaven," NCL 1971, p. 332

     DO WIVES BELONG TO THEIR HUSBANDS? (2)

     To our previous editorial on this subject we would add the following.
     There is a number in the book Conjugial Love that deals with a struggle for supremacy between husbands and wives. Here it is said that some husbands reduce their wives to the status of "possessions" (CL 291).
     Although either partner may be inclined to dominate the other, and although the woman has a particular power to dominate (see CL 292), men have assumed a kind of historical superiority over women. Some men insist on superiority in all things of the house simply "because they are men." "And women are held to be inferior because they are women" (CL 291).
     There has been a "common saying" that "the husband is the head of the wife" (CL 125). The common saying, although the reference is not given, must come from the first book of Corinthians (11:3). The notion seems to have been that the husband represents the Lord and the woman the church.

But the Lord is the head, and the church is "the husband and wife together."
     The Writings do not support notions of one partner being over the other. They show that a striving for super-eminence is one of the causes of coldness in marriage.

     A GIFT FOR THE DALAI LAMA

     You may have heard rumors to the effect that someone actually presented a book or two of the Writings to the Dalai Lama. Well, it's true, and here are the particulars.
     Piotr Klaflcowski from Poland has been living in Norway for the past twelve years. He has a degree in linguistics, and lectures on Tibetan Buddhism (having spent four years studying it in India). His primary religious interest is Buddhism, but he is a member of the Swedenborg Society, and has had as a goal building a bridge and starting some form of dialogue between Buddhism and the New Church.
     So it was that when His Holiness the Dalai Lama of Tibet visited Oslo at the invitation of the Nobel Peace Prize anniversary committee, Mr. Klafkowski prepared a gift.
     On December 7, 1991, he presented five books to him. There were three works of the Writings: Divine Providence, Heaven and Hell, Intercourse of Soul and Body. He also presented a copy of The Swedenborg Epic by Sigstedt and the pamphlet Better than Gold by Duckworth.

     THREE NEW PUBLICATIONS

     The Swedenborg Foundation is undertaking to publish a series of monographs. The first one of some 60 pages is now in print. Its title is Sampson Reed, Primary Source Material for Emerson Studies.
     Sampson Reed was much admired by the transcendentalists and by Emerson in particular. Sadly, the Emerson-Reed friendship was headed toward an inevitable collision, inevitable because of a critical difference in their perceptions, not only of Swedenborg but of Biblical revelation itself.

We quote from the preface written by Sylvia Shaw.

     Emerson considered Swedenborg the ultimate poet, an artist who expressed truths symbolically by using natural imagery. Reed, on the other hand, revered Swedenborg's works as being God's promised revelation to mankind, the spiritual rejuvenation which he believed constituted the Second Coming of Christ. For Emerson, Swedenborg's truths had an abstract, subjective, poetic quality; for Reed they were concrete, objective, and divinely inspired. The conflict finally came to a head with Reed's preface to the 1838 edition of Growth of the Mind.2
     2 Not to be confused with Bishop de Charms' Growth of the Mind.
     By then both Emerson and Reed were enjoying a good measure of literary success. Each had made free use of Swedenborgian ideas without avowing them to the public. They had in effect pioneered application of Swedenborg's theology to American literature. Both writers understood the damaging consequences such a disclosure would inflict upon their literary success, so neither credited Swedenborg as his source. By 1838 Reed had come to regard it a man's duty to speak the truth rather than to please an audience or protect a career. He therefore openly acknowledged Swedenborg's writings as the source of his philosophical ideas.

     Also available from the Swedenborg Foundation:

     A newly revised edition of the George Trobridge classic, Swedenborg, Life and Teaching. 160 pages.
     A new production is A Scientist Explores Spirit, a compact biography of Emanuel Swedenborg with key concepts of Swedenborg's theology.

This is co-authored by George F. Dole and Robert H. Kirven.
ART OF TEACHING AND PARENTING 1993

ART OF TEACHING AND PARENTING Editor 1993

     The Glencairn Museum will be hosting a workshop sponsored by the Academy of the New Church College Department of Education on Saturday, March 27, 1993.
     Waldorf class teacher Eugene Schwartz will address the art of teaching history, the inner life of the teacher, add how the role of the adult changes with the development of the child. As New Church parents and teachers who are familiar with a path of spiritual development, what can we learn from the Waldorf approach that is in harmony with a New Church philosophy of education?
     This workshop is designed to stimulate our own search for a truly distinctive form of education.
     Pre-registration for the workshop (9:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m.) is required. The evening lecture (8:00 p.m.) is open. If you have any questions, or would like to receive a brochure, call Dianna Synnestvedt at (215) 947-9188 in the evenings.
100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE OLIVET DAY SCHOOL 1993

100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE OLIVET DAY SCHOOL Editor 1993

The 100th anniversary celebration, April 30 to May 21 1993, will be a sentimental and inspiring time for people who love this school. Friday evening (April 30th) there will be a play put on by the school's students. On Saturday evening (May 1st) there will be a banquet with a distinguished guest speaker.

POINTS FROM LONDON 1993

POINTS FROM LONDON Nancy Dawson 1993

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     The November issue' of the Life arrived here two days ago. I was pleased to find in it Rev. Erik Sandstrom's article about the centenary celebrations of the much-loved Michael Church.
     As a member of its Centenary Committee and its amateur researcher and historian, for the sake of the record, however, I think it would be useful to correct one or two minor misunderstandings printed in Mr. Sandstrom's very welcome and much appreciated report.
     In the first paragraph it is stated: "It is believed that no other church building has been, consistently used to serve for that length of time in the use of establishing the New Church in the world." I doubt very much if this is true, as it is very likely that both in the General Conference and in the General Convention there have been others of even longer service. However, I think it is true that the little church in Burton Road, Brixton, is the longest serving building for worship stemming from what was originally known as "the Academy position," and it predates the establishing of Bryn Athyn by 25 years. The old Carmel Church building in Kitchener, Canada, had been built also in 1892, but it has long ceased to exist.
     The report also states that the society was "originally associated with the General Conference of the New Church." Although over the years it has had increasingly warm and friendly relationships with its friends in the General Conference, the congregations worshipping there over the century have never been formally associated with the General Conference in any way, In fact, the first society came as a body from the nearby Conference church in Camberwell so that it could form a new society to worship in keeping with the Academy ideals, and for many of its formative years looked to Bishop Benade for leadership and guidance.

     And, one other very minor point: Mr. C. J. Whittington did not like hymns. He preferred to set the words of the Psalms to music, so most of his works that we continue to sing and love are short selections or anthems from the Word itself, not hymns written by others. And, incidentally, did you know that the music traditionally sung in most parts of the General Church to the words of "Our Glorious Church" was written by Whittington?
     Nancy Dawson,
          London, England
GATES OF THE NEW JERUSALEM 1993

GATES OF THE NEW JERUSALEM Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom 1993

Dear Editor:
     This summer I made a research study on Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, related to the New Church. I wish to thank all those who responded to my questionnaire, sent to over 70 new members. If you or any reader would like a summary of the results, please first request a copy from your pastor; otherwise, send me the request.
     Any questionnaires not yet returned would still be welcome.
     The main idea of my study was to see how people of different religious backgrounds enter the New Church. The number of Catholic converts to the New Church has increased more than that of any other background. What is the best or worst thing to say to a Catholic or Orthodox seeker? And how does the Orthodox background relate to the New Church in the former Soviet Union? How can we, as members, become better at giving the New Church doctrines to others, for their benefit? The full study came to 140 pages and is now under review.
     Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom,
          Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

Church News 1993

Church News Various 1993

     PITTSBURGH

     The year 1992 started with the Bishop's Counseling Committee doing a very thorough, very long job in the selection of a new pastor. Rev. Nathan Gladish was chosen, and moved to Pittsburgh from San Diego. Rev. Eric Carswell returned to Glenview. Judging from the first 100 days, the new administration was well chosen.
     The new pastor put in a strong transition team, retaining the old Pastor's Council for another year. High on the monthly agenda of the Pastor's Council is preparation of the church calendar each month, which contains as many as 150 different facts regarding who, what, when and where.
     Starting right away, "economic summits" were held each month with the Executive Committee. With the Freeport Transportation Committee's taking on the expenses and ownership of the new bus, and continuing to limit the school to three teachers and grades Pre-K through 6th, the church is operating with a balanced budget and no long-term deficit. The smooth transition and improved economics were helped by the fact that Mauro de Padua was appointed as assistant to the pastor, with the financial support of the General Church.
     A strong "foreign policy" will be continued, including pulpit exchanges with Freeport, limited involvement with Pittsburgh's "East End Cooperative Ministry," and the pastor's participation in the Combined Clergy, the Christian-Jewish Dialogue, and the Night Chaplains of Allegheny General Hospital. The advertising program continues to attract visitors, some of whom come back again and again.
     The first State-of-the-Union address by the pastor was received with appreciation by the society at its semi-annual meeting in October. And although the honeymoon of the first 100 days was over, one thing was sure: after having six different pastors in the past twelve years, the society did not want any term limitations on Pastor Nathan Gladish.
     Not a beat was missed in the transition to the new administration, as shown in the following recap of news events that appeared in the last twelve issues of the Reporter.
     It has been a full year at the Pittsburgh New Church. There were baptisms: Hanna David, Norman Kirschbaum, Bill Roberts, Jordan Hitchcock, and Dominic Roselli.
     There were weddings: Susan David to Owen Dwyer, and Tibby McClenahan to Kris Ring. On January 9th there will be another, Caroline (Nellie) Stein to Seth Michaels.
     There were deaths in church families: James Price Coffin, Anna Havannas, Natalie Leezer and, in Denver, Lee Smith.
     And there were births: Colton Phillippi, Suzanne Sheer and Garrett Olson.

And there will be several more babies early in 1993, once again starting the cycle.
     The Tionesta Weekends continued, with John and Joan in the kitchen. And Dot Blair continued the society May Camp that she and Bill managed for more than twenty years. About 135 overnight campers were joined by quite a few day visitors. A few weeks earlier, Barry Smith organized a working weekend at which twenty-three persons painted all the barracks with paint supplied by the state.
     In the summer, Laurel Leaf Academy continued to break attendance records, with over 400 enrollments in the three weeks. But for the first time, Pittsburgh provided the pastor for only one of the weeks, with Grant Schnarr from Chicago and Ragnar Boyesen from Freeport doing the other two. Nathan and Mauro found their week at Laurel to be invigorating.
     For a while there was an extra Swedenborgian sermon each week in Pittsburgh. Dr. Roach presented "The Voice of New Truth" for thirty minutes every Saturday on an AM radio station, We look forward to its return when more funds are available.
     Marion Kendig retired as organist after 54 years of playing. We now have a rotation of members Judi Gese and Neil Simonetti and two friends, Karen Crenshaw and Carolyn Slaugh. The name of Swedenborg was not new to Carolyn, whose father's library contained a set of the Writings.
     Matt Olson took over the maintenance job that Bill Blair held so many years. Work committees removed overgrown trees, put in door-bell butters, erected a storage shed, laid new office rugs, and had a series of manse preparation parties.
     Ed Lee played the banjo at the opening of Pittsburgh's new airport. We are very proud of this new facility. We are also proud of our professional sports teams: the Pirates won their third consecutive National League East Championship, the Penguins have a strong start toward a third consecutive Stanley Cup, and the Steelers clinched the AFC Central Division championship.
The afternoon doctrinal class broke two new attendance records in November: 18 at the class at Williamsons' and 19 at Lees'! One explanation for the increased attendance is the aging of America. Another is that these members are trying to develop their rational while there is still time.
     Marriage Enrichment-the first meeting was at the Gladish's apartment, with six enthusiastic couples attending. They shared stories of how they met spouses, and discussed some of their hopes for these monthly enrichment meetings.
     Introduction to the Church: six people enjoyed the Introduction-to-the-New-Church course led by Nathan. The course was structured to provide understanding of central topics which make the New Church unique among Christian religions.

     Swedenborg Sampler: this group met at Ned and Heather Uber's. The course material included selected readings from six different books of the Writings of Swedenborg.
     Worship Committee: this group has met under the leadership of Nathan Gladish. They discussed the uses of worship, and made a list of areas to be considered.
     The Pittsburgh New Church School started its 108th year with three teachers and 22 students, nine boys and 13 girls. Ten of them come in from Freeport on the bus.
     Mrs. Mark (Miriam) Gruber has five students in kindergarten Monday, Wednesday and Friday. On those days she drives the bus.
     Mrs. Larkin (Alix) Smith has six students in second grade and three in third grade. There are no first graders. Alix just passed the tough new bus/truck driving exam, and drives the bus on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
     Mrs. James (Judi) Gese has four students in fourth grade, three in fifth grade and one in sixth grade.
     Ten families have children in the school: Stephen and Caroline David, Nathan and Elise Gladish, Mark and Miriam Gruber, John and Diane Howard, Al and Trish Lindsay, Charlie and Claudia Lindsay, Steve and Sharon Neiger, Don and Lynne Smetanick, Ned and Heather Uber, and Julie Davis (not a member).
     Wilma Williamson continues to act as part-time secretary for the school and church, and many volunteers help with the children. This year the school was visited by Principals Phil Schnarr from Toronto and Jeremy Simons from Kempton.
     Jack Rose
ORDINATIONS 1993

ORDINATIONS Editor 1993

     Announcements
     Maseko-At Diepkloof, South Africa, November 29, 1992, Jacob Maseko into the first degree of the priesthood, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King officiating.

     Tshabalala-At Diepkloof, South Africa, November 29, 1992, Reuben Tshabalala into the first degree of the priesthood, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King officiating.

Swedenborg Writes . . . . 1993

Swedenborg Writes . . . . Editor 1993

     This booklet is a collection of fifty-two notable passages from Swedenborg's Theological Writings with a short commentary on each by Leon C. Le Van, It is designed so that the reader may consider one passage each week throughout the year.
     Published by
The Swedenborg Enquiry Centre
Australia
     $4.00 plus $1.00 postage
     Box 743, Cairncrest
General Church Book Center               Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                    Phone: (215) 947-3920

Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

     Some eighty ministers will be meeting in Bryn Athyn the first week of March. This magazine often benefits from things that begin at the clergy meetings. A good example is the series "Misconceptions about Marriage," which comes to its conclusion this month. It began as a presentation to the clergy.
     The lectures by George de Charms on education were alive and challenging. And yet some of the best things he produced are little known. Just read the first paragraph on page 55, and you are on your way into a stimulating journey into the giant subject of the philosophy of education.
     The article on Saint Emanuel Swedenborg is not the kind of thing you are used to reading in New Church Life. Dr. Van Dusen has sent us something we did not expect.
     The study in January on the influence of Swedenborg on Russian culture has been highly praised by our readers. There was so much new information in it! And there is more! See page 84. On the Ides of March there will be fascinating meetings in Moscow. Among those present will be: Mr. and Mrs. L. Fox, Rev. G. Appelgren, Dr. J. D. Odhner, Dr. George Dole, and Rev. Olle Hjern.
     We receive suggestions to reprint things from the past, and they usually go on the back burner. A reader urged us to print Dr. Odhner's remarks on vegetarianism so many months ago.
     We printed last month a photograph of the Ivyland Church, and now we have the sermon given on the occasion of its dedication.
     For ministerial announcements see page 91.
     [Words in Korean]
     Do you know what this is? See page 80.

IVYLAND CHURCH DEDICATION 1993

IVYLAND CHURCH DEDICATION Rev. ROBERT S. JUNGE 1993

     Today our text is from Isaiah, where it is written: "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations" (56:7).
     A house of prayer. Prayer is a speaking or talking to the Lord. It comes from the depths of our hearts. And so a house that is dedicated to the Lord should provide an opportunity to come before the Lord and express our deepest hopes and our deepest dreams, and even to confess where we have failed.
     In Solomon's prayer he spoke of many things that might befall Israel: pestilence, famine, sickness, all kinds of natural illness or troubles. And yet these various diseases, these various troubles, all represent in a deeper sense the kinds of things that each one of us has before us.
     There are times indeed in life when we do not see the truth, and we feel as if the very land of our life, the very substance of our life, is drying up. We suffer spiritual drought. It's because of something that is a failing in us, not in the Lord. But if, as Solomon advises, we take each special case before the Lord, come before Him and lay our confession before Him and ask Him to hear and forgive, then the Lord will provide.
     It is true with all of our individual failings and all of our individual faults. The Lord will provide, if we come before Him and we ask Him to hear and to forgive. So in a very special way a church, which is a house of prayer, becomes a refuge for the people. It becomes a place where they can come before the Lord, and they can open their hearts to the Lord and the Lord will answer.
     And how does He answer? He answers in ways that also are part of what the church really is. He answers as to hope-hope, the very mainstream of our lives. Hope is that in our minds which enables us to picture things in a way that they aren't yet but that we can work toward. The Lord will give us hope if we come before Him with sincere hearts.

     He also answers with consolation. Who here today has not suffered times in their lives when they need consolation? Not just a pat on the back, not something very simple or external, but a consolation which comes from deep within, comes from the Lord our God.
     And a church, too, should fulfill as a house of prayer the ideal of being a joyful place. It should sing praises to the Lord. It should be happy. It should bring joy into our lives. When we really go before the Lord and look to Him and approach Him with love in our hearts, joy can touch us and then our prayers are answered. So a church can become for each one of us a very special place where we come into the presence of the Lord as individuals, and where we can talk to the Lord and He can answer us from within and give us hope, confidence, and joy,
     But a church is more than just individuals. Our text makes that very clear when it says, "My house will be a house of prayer for all nations." When we come together as a church, each of us comes as an individual, having our own troubles and our own problems. But when we also come as a group and ask the Lord to forgive, to hear, and to do and to act, then we can recognize that we are not alone. Then we can come into a closer relationship with our neighbor. It isn't necessarily that we hear all of their troubles-though sometimes that does happen. But when we come together and worship, we see something of the intent of our neighbors when they are bowing before the Lord and asking the Lord to hear and to forgive. We come to recognize that we are not alone, and that others are coming and asking the Lord's forgiveness and mercy as well.
     When we share hopes-hopes which reach far beyond the things of this world, even to eternal life-when we share those things with our neighbor, we come into a greater community or communion with our fellow church people. And this, too, makes a different aspect of a house of prayer. For it is a house of all praying together and also singing praise with joy to the Lord, our God.

     And so a congregation comes to worship the Lord together and we gain something very special. Because as we share our worship together we see something of the Lord, something of His nature in each of our neighbors. We see something of their good intention, something of their love, something of their thoughtfulness. And this enables a congregation of people to see the Lord even more richly than when they are praying by themselves. Both are important uses-a house of prayer for individuals and for all nations, for all people, for all the children of God.
     But still, even a congregation stands among other congregations. Each congregation of the church has a different character, a different use, and each can benefit from seeing what is from the Lord, from seeing the uses from the Lord that each congregation of the church throughout the whole world serves. It's a wonderful thing. It brings hope, It brings consolation. It brings a sense of joy.
     When the Lord was in the world, He spoke of the temple of His body. The house of God, the temple of the Lord, actually means His Divine Human-His human qualities that make it possible for us to really approach Him in prayer and to picture Him in our minds and to feel that we can really lay our human feelings and problems before Him. His Divine Human makes it so that He can and that He will answer us.
     So the house that we just built actually represents in its own way the ability to come into the presence of the Lord, to come before the Lord, our Divinely Human God. When we do this as individuals, it's a very personal thing. And when we see something more of the Lord in our neighbors, it becomes a broader thing. And what we are receiving is a richer and a broader sense of the Lord's love and compassion. The more we see how others are helped by the Lord, the richer our idea of the Lord becomes.
     So when we see the Lord's church spreading to all nations throughout the whole world, we come to recognize that heaven and even the heaven of heavens-cannot contain the Divine.

Yet when the Lord came into the world and became a man and glorified His Human, He showed us what the very word "equality" means. He showed us what it is to be truly human. Every worthy quality from Him enables us to picture, to get a vision of the Lord on earth, the Lord with us, the Lord in His holy temple.
     As we dedicate this church, we also think of it as a house of prayer. We think of it as a means of bringing the Lord's presence into this world: a means whereby individual worshipers can see their God, learn to know Him, learn to love Him, and learn to respond with all their hearts so that this church is truly dedicated to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, with all His Human qualities, with all His living presence, to bring us hope, consolation and inmost joy. Amen.

     Lessons: I Kings 8:22-53

     [Pastor Junge and David Closterman raise Ivyland Church sign.]

PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION 1993

PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION Rev. GEORGE DE CHARMS 1993

A Definition of Education

Men have been trying for a long time to define education; and there are almost innumerable definitions and none of them entirely satisfactory, so if you hit on one that is entirely satisfactory, you will make a name for yourself. Why should that be so? The reason is that education, the development of a human being, is as complex as life itself, and the varieties of this complexity are as numerous as individuals, and therefore the question "What is education?" is a larger question than a single mind can grasp with any sureness.
You begin by saying that education is a training of the mind. Now if you reflect a moment you will realize that a great deal of our development comes without any training at all, nothing that we call training. We learn many things while we are not being trained, so that it goes beyond training. Much education, and in many respects the most vital part of education, lies too deep within the recesses of the human mind for us to discern it. If we are observant, we will find that education goes forward right before our eyes in ways that are altogether unexpected and surprising. Just about the time we think we are doing some training of our children, we find they have been developing in another direction without our knowing it. A great deal of education takes place when both the teacher and the learner are quite unconscious of what is happening. Even when the teacher's back is turned the child may learn something. When the student's attention is fixed on something else he may learn something. This is because a large part of education is affected by forces that are invisible to us-forces that come from the spiritual world-the influence of spirits and angels that is vital but quite unseen.

As a matter of fact, the deepest forces that are developing the human mind are those that come from within through the soul from the Lord alone.
As educators and teachers we are concerned with what human beings can do by conscious effort, but if we are going to understand it properly, we must see that in its relation to the things we cannot do. The greatest mistake that an educator can make is to think he can do it all, and not see clearly the limitations of what he can do, where his responsibility begins and where it ends. We must not take in too much territory, for if we do, we not only fail in our objective, but we fail to make the best use of those things that are required of us, of that part of education that is in our hands.
If we think about it, we do influence children, both by unconscious contacts with them and by deliberate effort, and as a matter of fact, we cannot help doing it. We cannot avoid continual contacts with growing minds, especially of the children that are in our own home. They see to that! We have contacts with them even when we would rather get away from them for the moment. The care of helpless infants, of irresponsible children, and of undisciplined youths is the obvious responsibility of parents. As a matter of fact, children in infancy and in youth all look to adults to help them when they are in trouble. They would like to do many things for themselves when they are not in trouble, or do not know they are, but when they are in trouble they turn to adults for help, and we cannot refuse it. Every contact with children has an influence upon them and has a part to play in their education, whether we will it or not. So we have no choice as to whether we will educate our children-we can't help it! The only choice we have is how we will educate them. For this reason we must seek some answer to the question "What is education?" in order that we may with some intelligence direct our relations to children in such a way as to promote their best welfare.

Even after we have done this to the best of our ability there will remain a large field that is beyond our scope-beyond our control.
     Those influences that are beyond our control are not beyond the control of the Divine Providence, and our own concern then is with reference to the direction of our own life, our own character, performing our own duty, and fulfilling our own responsibility, allowing the Lord to use that in whatever way He sees best for our children. What the Lord can do through us secretly, for our children, at times when we are not able to control the situation, will depend upon our reception of Him, will depend upon the presence of heaven with us, the spheres of heaven with us, and thus it will depend upon our individual resistance to evil in life. As a matter of fact, those unconscious influences on children are the most vital things in their lives, and often we find that while we have been consciously thinking of what is good for the child, consciously trying to instill in him certain things that we ourselves are not living up to, we find that the child is far more impressed with what we do than with what we say.
     We have a school here, we have a teacher, a certain set of lessons; we have the child come to school at a certain place, and we think in that way and by those means we will educate him. We can't do that. That is only a very small part of a child's life-not a very important part to many children. They come to school because they have to, stay as long as they have to, thinking about something outside (much more interesting to them) while they are there, and they almost say, "Now teach me if you can!" Under those circumstances we make a great mistake to ignore all other influences and just put them in school and think they will learn there. The result is that we will just pour our mind into theirs, and that is an extremely mistaken idea of education. And yet if we define education as training, that is what we mean.
     It is a harder job than that, fortunately for the children.

For as a result of the way in which they are protected, we have individuals growing, not little automatons responding to our limited ideas of what they ought to be! We have individuals who can take what we give them and make something out of it that is directed by the Lord. It is the most fortunate thing in the world, because the most heinous kind of education is the kind that tries by every possible means to destroy that individuality and to stamp on the child the image of our own mind and ideals.
So we find we must always take into consideration the secret forces that are playing on the child's mind, and we must co-operate with what the Lord is doing for the child and not endeavor to become all-powerful ourselves and insist on our own will in the matter of education. We must begin with an attitude of humility. Here are little minds that have been created by the Lord for uses that He foresees, and the Lord is leading them to the fulfillment of those uses. He asks us to help. He doesn't ask of us to take it out of His hands and make something else out of it. If we are going to help, then we have to see something of what the Lord is doing for the child and be careful that we don't interfere with that. That is our first responsibility.
Also, as we have pointed out, our own influence with the child, our formal instruction of the child, will be profoundly affected by our own character, our own attitude toward the Lord and Divine Providence, by our personal ideals of life, and thus by our spiritual associations. The angels and the spirits that are present with us, and the sphere of our thought and love, will more deeply impress the child, will more deeply affect him, than anything we say or do. And also, what we teach in regular courses will have an effect profoundly influenced by what we teach in informal moments, in casual remarks, in attempts to meet a sudden situation that we have not foreseen nor prepared for. We do more educating that way than any other, as a matter of fact. If we look back over our own past education, what is it that stands out?

Do we remember anything specific, any lectures that our professors gave us? Can we repeat them word for word or outline them? No! But we do have an impression of certain personalities that we came in contact with-what their principles were, what they inspired us to strive for. That is what sticks. Suppose we ignore all that and say it is all a matter of what we actually teach by so many formal expressions-words, We miss the mark, and while we are trying to do that, the real effect is going to be something else that we did not anticipate.
     All these influences taken together make up the totality of a child's education, and they must all be considered together as a whole. Of this, formal systematic teaching is but a small part, and can be only a small part. We must have some idea of these larger effects-these wider fields of influence-if we are going to have that small part of formal education wisely planned and intelligently used.
     Now if we would give you a definition of education in its broadest sense, we would say that it is the totality of influences-Divine, spiritual, human and material-the totality of influences playing moment by moment on the mechanism of the child's mind, rousing it to conscious life and stirring in it loves and interests, in the exercise of which it grows. That would be the definition of education in its widest aspect.
     Now you will ask me at once, What is the use of such a definition as that? It is too broad, too indefinite, to be of any practical value. That would not help us to teach anything, just to say that all the influences on a child's mind would develop him. Well, from a strict standpoint of a formal pedagogue, I would agree that such a definition is quite inadequate, and yet I hold that the pedagogue must begin with that concept if he is going to understand the practical things he is required to do. It is a most important starting point for our thought, in order that we may not make the mistake of thinking that our formal training is everything, that we may not forget that it merely fits into a larger whole and is part of it.

We must see our formal training in its proper place in relation to that thing we call education in its broadest aspect. We must begin by acknowledging our limitations-the limits of formal training as compared with education as a whole. We must do this or we may attempt to do with it the things that lie outside its range. And in order to make our formal education what it ought to be, we must constantly study the other vital elements in child growth and preparation for life, and seek to understand them to some degree. And so I say it is by no means useless to begin with such a definition as I have given you as the broadest definition of education.
Education, as we think of it in the professional sense, however, does not have to do with our whole life but with that period of growth and development that precedes adult age, or at least precedes a full entrance upon the responsibilities of a life's work. For what we call adult age is not determined by the calendar but by the state of mind. There are two most general divisions of life in the world: one is before we have reached maturity and the other is afterward. The one is during the time when we are under the guidance and control of parents and teachers, and the other is after we have attained the state of independence. During both these periods the Divine work of education is going forward without a break, and a thousand forces are playing upon the mind every second. These forces are a result of the Lord's creation and influx, and of the disposition of that which He has created, and in their totality these forces are constantly directed by the Lord in such a way as to lead toward heaven, and make it possible for man to come into it, if man himself is willing to follow. But there is a great difference between these two periods in the operation of the Lord upon man, a difference that is vital to our understanding of education. During the time preceding maturity the Lord operates, as it were, from without upon the mind; that is, He operates by means of the forces that play upon the child's mind from both worlds, from the environment of both worlds, and the formation of man's mind is the result of all these forces.

He is the creature of them. He has no individual will or determination or choice of his own as yet. He thinks he has, but if we analyze it, he is altogether the product of something he has experienced, or something he has been taught; whereas after maturity the Lord operates still in the same way, but in addition to that He operates also from within by means of conscience, individual judgment, personal decision, and responsibility. So there is a great distinction between the Lord's education of a person during his minority and after he becomes an adult.
     What is it that children must derive from parents and teachers that they cannot acquire in any other way? That is the real question: "What is it that the Lord expects of us when He puts children into our hands and gives us the responsibility of them?" The answer to such a question will bring us closer to a practical definition of education, and it will give us a more outstanding ideal toward which we can strive in our efforts to develop an educational system.
     Children derive from parents and teachers, and in the broadest sense from all their contacts with adults, three things that cannot be derived from any other source, and those three things together constitute the contribution of man to the education of children. The first thing is the sphere of their life-adults' sphere of their life, that is, the spiritual associations that they have around them that affect the children. Children have no sphere of their own. They have no fixed associations in the other world. They have not yet chosen or been able to choose their associates there. They live in the sphere of the adults who are around them, and are affected by that sphere continually.
     This influence of the spheres of adults that surround them is perhaps the most powerful agent of education that there is. By means of it all remains are stored up. Delights are insinuated. Ideals are established. These fundamental attitudes of mind and life are formulated and inaugurated in the minds of children far more in the spheres of our life than by anything we consciously teach them.

They feel much more than they can formulate, and what they feel is simply the sphere of our lives. That is the first thing that can be given only by adults.
The second thing is the guidance of rational judgment. Children have no rational judgment of their own. They have not the knowledge, the experience on which to base it. They have to rely on guidance in these matters. The adults who have charge of them must make wise decisions for them, and children not only need that-they crave it. They become utterly lost if they do not have some adult to whom they can go to relieve themselves of the necessity of making decisions that are beyond them. At once it is clear that the decisions we make for our children are very important, that they have a tremendous effect on their lives. These decisions may exercise profound influence over all their thinking and feeling later on. They can't help doing it, for our decisions, our judgment as to what children may or may not do, where they may or may not go, what they may or may not see, have a determining influence on what is the environment that is going to form in the child's mind, and this not only in one world but in both worlds. That is the second thing that only adults can do. Children without this would be lacking an essential element in their education.
The third thing that only adults can do is to provide for children the knowledge and experience of the past-not necessarily to form a judgment about it, but to give them the knowledge and give them the experience from which, as they grow older, they can judge and think for themselves. Children are born into complete ignorance, and if left to themselves without any human contacts, they could know only what could be learned by their own individual experience. All the memory of the race would be lost to them (suffering from amnesia), but adults can give them knowledge from the basis of their own individual experience. Far broader than that they can give them the experience and knowledge that has been preserved in the past of the race, everything that has been gathered from man's investigations and observations from which to begin their own thinking and judgment.

To present the knowledge that is gained by others gives opportunity to introduce them to wisdom and intelligence with its delight. Just to know what other people have found out or what other people think doesn't make them wise, and much of the knowledge that we impart to children doesn't make a very strong impression on them, you realize. It didn't on us either. We listened to it and then went off to think about something else because our real interest wasn't in it. Sometimes we held it in our memory as long as a week, you know. Other times we forgot it sooner. However, what has happened in every case is that placing before the minds of children a rich background of knowledge opens the gates of opportunity. It gives an introduction that may stir interest, arouse love or affection. There is something that the child has been born to love or to like. What it is we don't know. It is different with every child. But so long as that spark of interest and love has been touched and lighted, then there is a difference. Then the child begins to learn something; he doesn't wait for us to hammer it into him. He goes after it-investigates, and investigates in such a way that he is paying careful attention, analyzing, retaining it in his own mind and drawing conclusions from it. There you have some education that leads to individual investigation, study and experience. All our human efforts to educate children can do nothing more than to open the opportunity to that. Every child has to learn to do it for himself. All we can do is to give him the opportunity-nothing else. However, that giving of an opportunity is a very important and essential thing, and our problem is to try to give that opportunity to every child, no matter what the difference is in his form of mind, no matter what the difference is in his innate heredity and Divine endowment. We must try to give him the opportunity, stir and arouse whatever interest is there, so that he will begin to learn from his own initiative.

By these three things, then-the spheres of our life, the guidance of rational judgment, and the knowledge and experience of the past-adults cannot help exercising a very profound influence upon children, for either good or bad. Therefore, they are faced with the inevitable question: How shall we do it so that it may be good and not bad? It is just as important to know what is the right thing to teach at the proper age and state of a child as it is to know what kind of food to give the baby if he is going to live and grow strong, for the two are the same. One builds the body and the other builds the mind, but it is just as important that the mind has the right kind of food as it is that the body does. By emphasizing one kind of environment and minimizing another, we dispose the mind in one direction or in another direction, and that is the sum total of what it has been given into the hands of man to do.
The rest is done by the child himself under the immediate guidance of the Lord. How any individual child will react to the environment we provide for him, and to what stimuli he will respond, we do not foresee. We can't possibly know what part of that environment will serve for him those special needs of interest and love and affection that will become the determining things of his life. That is a matter that only the Lord knows. And here is one of the most important things for us to realize-that we should not try to control that! The greatest errors in all human efforts in education are when we try to take over and do what belongs to the Lord, for then we try to force the life of another into some mould that we have imagined. Then we do tremendous injury to the child. Some fond mother makes up her mind that she wants her boy to grow up to be so and so, and without any regard for the fact that he has an individual mind that has been created by the Lord for some use in the other world that she doesn't know, she is determined to have him follow that line that she has envisioned. And it may mean utter failure and ruination unless, as is providentially provided, the individual child is given the power and ability to resist that compulsion and to follow the leading of the Divine providence as it comes to him through his own mental perceptions later on.

Now if all this is true, then our whole object in education is not to force children into this or that or the other group of children. Our whole objective is to cooperate with what the Lord is doing for those children, to recognize that their highest welfare lies in a free development under the Lord's guidance, not under ours. How different an ideal of education that is from the kind that tries to envision what our children are going to be ahead of time, and to create and produce an education that will inevitably lead them to that goal.
It has been supposed that in the New Church we have a New Church education for the primary purpose of increasing the membership of our church. That has been supposed to be the Catholic reason for having Catholic schools also. It is not the end and purpose of our education to increase the membership of our church. The end or purpose of our education is to develop a mode of training that will be in cooperation with the Divine Providence, that will open the gates of influx to the operation of the Lord with children so that He may lead them, and it will not take away their freedom of spiritual life by determining their life for them ahead of time. Therefore true New Church education has the greatest possible regard for the spiritual free development of children in the next generation.

Editor's Note: The above is taken from the college lectures of Bishop de Charms which were taken down in shorthand in 1942. In 1979 a lightly edited version was published by the General Church Schools Committee. Although out of print, this version is available in some of our libraries. We have asked Miss Angela Rose to edit portions of these lectures for this series.

MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT MARRIAGE 1993

MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT MARRIAGE Rev. MARK R. CARLSON 1993

     MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT MARRIAGE

     Conclusion

Editor's note: The intention was to conclude this series in the January issue, but because of lack of space we had to delay the following until now. For the sake of continuity we would remind readers of where we left off in January.

     It was suggested that in order for us to be healed emotionally in marriage, " . . . often our partner must overcome his or her area of greatest spiritual weakness. And herein lies the essential conflict of most marriages, a conflict which on the one hand brings up resistance to change within oneself, while on the other hand, a consuming desire for one's partner to change. It was once a curious thing for me to observe that married partners often want from each other the very things the other is least able to give! Now I see this apparent impasse as simply a very common signpost of a working marriage."

     If what has been said above is true, notice how in the following example (a very common scenario) marriage can be a powerful force for growth and regeneration.
     A wife wants her husband to be more attentive and tenderly loving, because these behaviors feel like real love to her. But her husband cannot easily produce these behaviors. She had fallen in love with him at least partly because he tended to be somewhat cold and emotionally unavailable just as her father had been. For him to love her in this way he will have to become more in touch with his own feelings and therefore more aware of the feelings of others.
     Likewise, this woman's husband wants her to be more upbeat and happy about life in her dealings with him, because these behaviors feel like real love to him. But she cannot easily produce these things.

He had fallen in love with her at least partly because she tended to be somewhat depressed and unhappy, just as his mother had been, For her to love him in this way she will have to deal with the causes of her depression.
     If both the husband and the wife will listen to each other, and if they become willing to make efforts to give each other the kind of love the other wants, notice what will happen. As each partner learns to love in ways the other feels as loving, both partners are spiritually healed as their areas of weakness are addressed. And similarly, as each partner begins to receive what now feels like genuine love from the other, they are both healed emotionally as they begin to fulfill each other's deficit of "remains."
     The circle of love is complete, bringing both emotional and spiritual healing to the couple. Childhood wounds are healed, the capacity for giving and receiving love is increased, and both partners open to receive more love from the Lord as they learn how to love their spouse.
     What is so difficult to recognize, and even more difficult to act on, is the realization that our partner often does not feel loved by the loving actions we naturally engage in. Rather, our partner often feels loved by actions that seem totally foreign to us. Loving a partner in ways that come easy to us is cheap love, and often feels cheap to a partner. But loving in ways that are difficult for us is expensive love, and feels valuable to a partner.
     Hendrix, of course, is not aware of New Church doctrine, but notice how well his own words describe an important aspect of the conjugial relationship:

     When you accept the limited nature of your own perceptions and become more receptive to the truth of your partner's perceptions, a whole world opens up to you. Instead of seeing your partner's differing views as a source of conflict, you find them a source of knowledge: "What are you seeing that I am not seeing?" "What have you learned that I have yet to learn?"

Marriage gives you the opportunity to be continually schooled in your own reality and in the reality of another person. Every one of your interactions contains a grain of truth, a sliver of insight, a glimpse into your hiddenness and your wholeness. As you add to your growing fund of knowledge, you are creating a reality love, a love based on the emerging truth of yourself and your partner, not on romantic illusion.1
     1 Harville Hendrix, Getting the Love You Want: A Guide for Couples (New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1988), p. 115.

     And so to summarize, the seventh misconception about marriage is the commonly held belief that in looking for a mate we are attracted to a person who exhibits the positive characteristics of our opposite-sex parent. The larger truth is that we have an uncanny ability to choose someone at our own level of spiritual development, and that unconsciously we look for someone who is a composite of the negative characteristics of our primary care-givers, be they male or female.
     Perhaps this insight allows us to see more clearly why so many well-intentioned partners end up such bitter enemies. Being wounded again in marriage is very painful, especially when we expected just the opposite would happen. Also, it helps us to see from another perspective why the Writings teach that regeneration and conjugial love go hand in hand. And finally, perhaps if explains in very concrete terms why marriage requires so much work.
     The Lord's first miracle took place at a wedding for a reason. There are many conjunctions that must take place both within and without during our spiritual life. The six pots of tasteless water are the times of doubt and temptation when there is little delight and there seems little hope for a marriage. But the Lord our God turns the tasteless water into the sweetest of wines. That is His promise to all who take heart and follow Him. "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then that which is inferior, but you have kept the good wine until now" (John 2:10).

     (End of series)

SPIRITUAL-NATURAL 1993

SPIRITUAL-NATURAL JOHN KANE 1993

     It is the spiritual-natural world in which we live, a fact of which we are not generally aware. So-called primitive peoples did and still do appreciate this, also early Christians. They do not call it spiritual-natural for it is to them in no need of explanation. Just about everyone in the western world just considers that we live in the natural world-no more.
     But where is this spiritual in the natural? All around. For example, art and architecture; also finance, which is no more than a book entry or on a computer disk. Gold and silver are worth no more than the value we put on them, and not long ago it was discovered that paper was just as good and more convenient. All inventions and technology are in origin spiritual too, for they are conceived in the mind.
     The spiritual world, in which exists the human mind, New Churchmen know to be where we go after death, a mind world where there is good, and evil too. In the present natural world the spiritual is ultimated in art and in technology, ultimates that have great power.
     If we were to think of this world as the spiritual-natural, it might be easier to prepare ourselves for the spiritual world for which we are destined. It might even help to defuse the pointless battle between science and art, for they are no more than part of the same thing.

SAINT EMANUEL SWEDENBORG 1993

SAINT EMANUEL SWEDENBORG WILSON VAN DUSEN 1993

     On March 22nd, 1983 the St. Thomas Christians elevated Emanuel Swedenborg to the status of a saint in an elaborate ceremony. When I heard of it, my first thought was, "What a brilliant idea. He deserves it!" But it also comes as a shock to realize this occurred almost ten years ago, and very few in the Swedenborg realm even know of it.
     I can hear a few Swedenborgians saying, "But he was opposed to sainthood." This is not entirely true, and it is our first order of business to address this.
     The idea of a saint appears widely in both the Old Testament and the New. My concordance shows 67 references. A synonym for saint is "holy," that is, a saint is one who is holy. Even in the Potts Concordance most of the references to "saint" are under "holy." My favorite quote on saints is from Ephesians 2:19-22: "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you are also built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God."
     I believe all who "act by the good they know" are part of the Temple of God. But the saints are, so to speak, major supporting beams of the temple. By the way, those who think the idea of saint is only Christian should look at "saints" in the Encyclopedia Britannica. Saints, or equivalent terms (e.g., in Islam, friends of God), is almost a universal religious idea. The only religion I know of in which saints are missing is Protestantism!
     Very simply, a saint is one in whom the holy shines through. They become exemplars of what religion is referring to.

But the holy manifests in many ways. One is given to helping the poor; another, like St. George, stood up to persecution even unto death. Some were ascetics. Others, such as St. Seraphin of Sarov, were noted for countless miraculous healings. The saint becomes the representative of whatever holy aspect had shown through. They are turned to not as individuals but as examples of the holy. For this reason saints lose their given names and are denominated by religious names. "St. Emanuel" is fitting because Emanuel means "the Lord with us." Those who would pay respect to St. Emanuel are not thinking of the person of Swedenborg, an 18th century engineer, etc. They are thinking of the holy that showed through in his theology, which to many is "the Lord with us." It is the holy in his writings which is respected in St. Emanuel.
     The word "saint" is derived from sanctus, the past participle of the Latin verb sancire, to consecrate. In the early church it was a synonym for Christian, as when St. Paul addressed the saints at Philippi and Ephesus. Later it was applied to individuals of great holiness. Early martyrs were called saints because it was thought no one could voluntarily go to his death for belief in Christianity unless God was present and helping him.
     How did Swedenborg himself conceive of saints? I found he referred to saints at least forty times in his theology and in the Spiritual Diary. These references follow a very clear pattern. When he is showing the internal sense of a Bible reference to saints, it means the people of the Lord's church and the holy truths of the church (e.g. AR 801). His use follows closely the way saints are used in the Bible-not to represent persons in themselves, but rather persons in whom the holy has shown through (see AR 815). The "camp of the saints" (Rev. 20:9) "stands for heaven or the Lord's kingdom on earth, which is the church" (AC 4236).
     In contrast to this are a number of passages in which Swedenborg meets saints in the spiritual world, or people who supposed themselves to be saints, or wished to be seen as saints.

(See AC 951, AR 752, TCR 560, 824, HH 535-6, SD 1300, etc.) In all of these the person's real nature was of hell. It is easy to understand this both negative and positive view of saints. To wish to be adored, respected, venerated, etc., is a dangerous vanity. Those who are really saints, in the ancient sense, have lived in such a way that the holy shows through them. Respect paid to these people is not to the person but to the spiritual he represents. There is a nice passage in the Spiritual Diary that explains why it is permitted to respect saints.

. . . that it is from permission that certain ones in the church worship the saints as gods, to the end that the idea of a visible God may not perish; and that they thus retain some notion from nature that the Divine proceeding from the Lord is human in every form (4775).

Saints are uniformly people who do not want to be worshiped (as was undoubtedly true in St. Emanuel's case). But when the holy shows through a person, then we may pay respect to his image because it helps us to get closer to the Divine Human. So this matter turns on a subtle point. It is wrong to give the reverence to a person that is due to God alone, but it is permitted to look to the spiritual that he came to represent. Picture yourself praying to a picture of Swedenborg. Ask yourself what you look to. Is it to an engineer who lived in the 18th century, of such-and-such characteristics, or do you pay respect to the wonder of the theology that came through him? I'll warrant most will feel it is the latter. I would be unable to adore an engineer I never met, a man whose faults I could easily discuss. But I could easily pay reverence to the holy that came through him. This is true for any religious symbol. Say a man prays to a simple wooden cross. He knows quite well it is of wood and perhaps even who fashioned it and what it cost. But the symbol of the cross in prayer becomes a representative of all that a cross could stand for.

It is literally a representation. The saints also represent the holy come to earth, having spent a time with us. And then having lived different kinds of lives, they are used by us as representations of a particular aspect of the holy. St. Emanuel represents that it is possible for a person to enter into a deep dialogue with God and to show forth the holy as a result. This is the aspect of the holy that St. Emanuel represents. This is something quite different from the person of Emanuel Swedenborg.

The Lord's kingdom is the neighbor that ought to be loved in the highest degree, because by the Lord's kingdom is meant both the church throughout the whole earth, known as the communion of saints, and also heaven (TCR 416, emphasis added).

He who in faith acknowledges, and in heart worships, one God is in the communion of saints on earth, and in the communion of angels in heaven. These are called communions and in reality they are so, because they are in one God, and one God is in them (TCR 15, emphasis added).

I am quite certain Emanuel Swedenborg would have voted against his own canonization, as is characteristic of all true saints. Actually, the saints don't need us, having found their way to the temple. It is simply we who need saints and symbols. As long as we look to the Holy Itself that showed through them, the Holy will help us. We particularly need reminders that this is a potential for all people-that the Holy can come to earth and walk among us.
St. Thomas Christians. Who are the St. Thomas Christians who have thus surprised us? I have had some contact with this group, and find their understanding and respect for Swedenborg's theology is much like our own. I do not find that they are putting any special interpretation on his theology. They simply found that Swedenborg's theology is an enlightened statement of their own.

Yet it is striking how different in origin is this church compared to Swedenborgian churches. The St. Thomas Christians have a lineage which literally goes back through the apostle Thomas to Christ.
     The main force introducing Swedenborg into this group is their leader and the head of the church, Patriarch Maran Mar Joseph Warsai. He is a man of great vigor and intellect. Talking with him is like having a chance to consult with ancient tradition. I was particularly charmed to hear him speak Aramaic, Jesus' own language. His worldly name is Dr. Joseph Vredenburgh. He says about half his congregation of 2,000 have fully accepted St. Emanuel, and about half have partly accepted him. They have discussion groups devoted to the writings of St. Emanuel, but they need more of his books. St. Emanuel stands with other modern saints created by them, such as Martin Luther King and Father Damien of Molokai. I have visited the leper colony at Molokai and read Damien's biography at the same time. The Hawaiians who know of Father Damien still speak respectfully of this great man. Damien was not made a saint by his own Roman Catholic Church since he did not meet their standards for miracles. Personally I would say what he did for the colony of lepers was a great miracle in itself.
     The origin of the St. Thomas Christians. The Apostle St. Thomas (the doubting Thomas) drew as part of his missionary territory western India, the Malabar Coast. He was later martyred there. This church pays respect to both Thomas' gospel and the Acts of Thomas, which are considered non-canonical by most Christian churches. If you read these gospels, they are surprisingly oriented toward looking for the Divine within. And it was Swedenborg's grand spiritual adventure and discovery that impresses St. Thomas Christians. I almost wonder if the books of Thomas were rejected by the early church because of their depth.
     I will be brief on the lineage of this church.

It was clearly founded by St. Thomas, and the church's literature says directly it is not wrong to doubt or question. That is how we learn. The church on the Malabar Coast was in some isolation and under local persecution. They parted with the main branch of Christianity at the fourth Ecumenical Council (451 AD). It was an age in which church leaders were attempting to put what had been given them into a form for all the ages. They came to bitter disputes over theological points which now seem of little moment. This is an early period, even before the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches had divided (about 1000 AD). The entire Christian Church was represented in these councils through their bishops. The division that affected the St. Thomas Christians came over two doctrines. The council voted that Mary be called Theotokis (literally the bearer of God). Nestorius felt this tended to overlook the human aspect of Christ. He was expelled and exiled for this, and his followers, Nestorians, were persecuted for this. Another group was persecuted because they were monophysites (Christ is one nature out of two natures, Divine and human). These were called Jacobites. The St. Thomas Christians unite these two ancient groups, Nestorians and Jacobites. One reason Swedenborg is venerated by them is that his doctrine that the human of Christ was glorified into the Divine/Human (one nature) solved through revelation these ancient points of controversy.
I believe to most of us it would seem sad that the church could split over such matters. If I were a bishop at the council, I would be inclined to say, "Our interpretations differ but it is not given to us to know all things. Let us remain friends in Christ nevertheless." Religious encyclopedias now indicate all major branches of Christianity no longer feel this is a legitimate reason to separate, that they are simply a part of Christianity. Their church was long associated with the Patriarch of Antioch so they have also been called Antiochian. The branch they represent was allied to Rome in 1599, and in 1635 they split from Rome and joined the Syrian Orthodox Monophysite Patriarch of Antioch.

The Syrian Church of the Malabar rite came to the United States to avoid persecution, and the St. Thomas Christians have separated from that group. They also call themselves Catholic, but by that they mean "universal." They are not part of the Roman Catholic Church.
     This is primarily a liturgical church, recognizing liturgy that goes back through the Apostle Thomas to Christ. They canonized Swedenborg because he so well enunciated their own position.
     I wanted to introduce lovers of Swedenborg to 2,000 new lovers of Swedenborg who have wisely and rightly made him a saint. This group has journeyed from the earliest days of Christianity and found in St. Emanuel's writings a most illuminated statement of their own position. They desire a dialogue with Swedenborgians everywhere. In a way it is a marvelous affirmation of Swedenborg that this group who have come down from Christ through Thomas should affirm Swedenborg's writings. Let us generously welcome our brethren after such a long journey. We have a chance to learn from this church of ancient lineage.
     Contact them through Dr. Joseph Vredenburgh, 134 Dakota St., #308, Santa Cruz, CA 95060; telephone (408) 423-4952.
1993 COUNCIL OP THE CLERGY MEETINGS 1993

1993 COUNCIL OP THE CLERGY MEETINGS Editor 1993

The Council of the Clergy will be meeting in Bryn Athyn the week beginning March 1st. Some eighty men will take part in these meetings.

VEGETARIANISM IN THE GOLDEN AGE 1993

VEGETARIANISM IN THE GOLDEN AGE Rev. HUGO LJ. ODHNER 1993

     (Reprinted from the October 1930 New Church Life)

     In the Arcana, n. 1002, it is said that "eating the flesh of animals, regarded in itself, is something profane," and that in the most ancient time they never ate the flesh of any beast or bird, but only vegetables and various milks and butters. To kill animals and eat their flesh was to them a wickedness. From time to time, many in the New Church have stressed this teaching, and sought to bring the people of the Church into the general practice of vegetarianism from a religious conscience. This raises the question as to the doctrinal merits of such an effort.
     Under ideal conditions, seeking our food from the vegetable kingdom would no doubt be preferable; and the time may come when it is possible in this detail to approximate the state of the golden springtime of the earth. Some day, also, we may be able to dispense with garments, and live the simple life under a patriarchal government, and never mention the word "faith," lest we revert into a merely spiritual state. Still, the path back to the celestial life is not found by following the lure of external perfection, or by an artificial return to the habits and outward modes of the ancients, but rather in purging our hearts of the evils which oppose the spiritual loves to the neighbor and to the Lord, and which mar our relations with our fellow immortals.
     The Ancient Church and the Jewish were permitted the use of meat; but to them the blood was sacred, and had to be poured out as a testimony that it signified the holy celestial from the Lord. The reason for this partial abstinence was mainly representative. After the coming of the Lord, representatives were abolished, and since then "man is not regarded in heaven from external things, but from internal things" (AC 1003).

     The Lord endeavored to transfer our conscience from external things to internal things when He taught that "not that which entereth into the mouth defileth a man." And in the Arcana it is therefore said that, after the fall, when men had become evil as to their heredity nature, meat-eating, so far as it is not against a religious conscience, is lawful, and is not a thing which condemns a man (AC 1002).
     The question remains as to whether it should be made a matter of conscience to abstain from flesh as food. The doctrine leaves this for the individual to answer. A good man is averse to all unnecessary cruelty to animals, and to all destructives. Use should decide our actions, and the primary use on the ultimate plane is that the body be nourished for health and strength as the foundation for a healthy mind, that man may carry on his uses to the society of men. But the warning is given us that there are deceitful spirits who "lack the breadth of thought" to see the really useful or necessary, and therefore endeavor to obsess the simple, and burden their consciences with many trivialities, and raise scruples about matters of small moment (see AC 5386, SD 1240, 3847). Such spirits suggested to Swedenborg that he should eat or buy in a certain place because the people there were upright, and to spend no money abroad where it would not benefit his country, and so on. Unreasonable consideration for the transient animal life which abounds in the ground or the air, or for the beautiful vegetation about us, would seriously interfere with our uses of charity, and thus with the object of creation. Our conscience should be formed from spiritual, rather than merely natural good, and should be applied according to our changing needs. Such a conscience, being free and plastic, commands the respect of all rational men.
     The conclusion is therefore given that "all things will go well, and will be fruitful and multiply, if men shun what is signified by eating blood and shedding blood; that is, if they do not extinguish charity by hatreds and profanations" (AC 1018).

Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     SERIOUS CAUSES OF LAUGHTER (6)

     Sometimes we can look back on the way we used to think, and feel as if we have left a dark forest. In the section on the trinity in TCR we read, "But, my friend, go to the God of the Word, and thus to the Word itself. . . and you will be enlightened; and then as from a mountain top you will see for yourself the goings and wanderings, not only of the many but your own also previously, in the dark forest" (177).
     As Swedenborg came near the time when the Writings were to be written, he had the experience of looking at his former notions. He viewed them as from above. "I laughed at them in my mind, and still more at those thoughts which offended and opposed." This is from the Journal of Dreams 149, where he says, "A person must laugh at himself. . . when he thinks in opposition." Two paragraphs later he observes that the learned find it difficult to come to a state when they are "able to laugh at themselves."
     Many do get the opportunity to laugh at themselves when they leave this world. Even the learned may then "recall what they had thought about life after death, the soul, spirits and heaven and hell." And some are ashamed and "confess that they thought foolishly, and that the simple in faith thought much more wisely than they" (HH 313).

     REALIZATIONS, SPIRITUAL COMMENTARIES, ETC.

     New Church Life receives good letters that are not intended for publication. One such letter, recently received, offered a suggestion. The writer observed that frequently the communications or letters to the editor are reactions to articles that have been printed.

     Shouldn't readers also be encouraged to write to the Life in the following spirit: "Here's something that came to me and has meant a lot, and I would like to share it with others."
     Perhaps the title could be "Realizations" or "Spiritual Commentaries." The suggestion is before us for affirmative consideration. Readers might help to refine or build on this suggestion, and an excellent idea would be to sit down soon and write something for publication, something you would like to share with others.

     IS NEW CHURCH EDUCATION FOR INCREASING CHURCH MEMBERSHIP?

     A wholesome discussion has been going on in the church on the subject of evangelization. Some of it has appeared in the Missionary Memo. Is evangelization for the purpose of increasing our numbers? The phrases "church extension" and "extension committee" have fallen out of use as we sharpen our understanding of the purpose of evangelization.
     Another useful question makes the title of this editorial. What is the purpose of New Church education? Is it for making the church larger? This can be one of the results, just as it is a result of evangelization. Think about the end we are really striving for. Reading the piece in this issue by the late George de Charms can stimulate and refine thinking on this question.
KOREAN EDITION OF THE JOURNEY OF LIFE 1993

KOREAN EDITION OF THE JOURNEY OF LIFE Editor 1993

There are some excellent books that have not yet been reviewed in this magazine. A book that did not need the boost of a review to sell well is The Journey of Life by Rev. Tom Kline. It sold 1,000 copies in its first year, and is now in its second printing.

     We published a selection from the book in June of 1991, noting that it may be obtained for $5.75 (including postage) from the General Church Book Center. (See address in the back of this issue.)
     The good news is that the book has been translated into Korean and the publication in Korea has now taken place. Besides the ones selling in Korea there are several hundred copies of the Korean version now in this country. With a vivid photograph on the cover, it makes a very attractive paperback.
     We recommend that each church building with a book rack include a copy of this in case of Korean visitors. As many of our readers know (from last April's issue) there is a Korean-speaking New Church group in Long Island, New York, visited by Rev. Robert S. Junge.
ANOTHER FAMILY CAMP APPROACH 1993

ANOTHER FAMILY CAMP APPROACH Editor 1993

     This coming summer there will be a New Church family camp in West Virginia. The dates are August 13-16. The organizers, Rev. Patrick Rose and Rev. Tom Rose, are working toward an "old-fashioned" kind of camp.
     "Our program will be simple: worship morning and evening, some classes of instruction for both children and adults, good discussions, and lots of time for recreation and social life for the whole family. As is the case with any camp, we expect to have lots of FUN!"
     Other camps include: Maple Leaf Academy in Ontario, Canada, June 21-30; Arizona Mountain Camp July 2-5; Laurel Camp, Pennsylvania, July 25 for three weeks; Camp Winding Waters, Oregon, August 2-6; Sunrise Camp, New Jersey, August 23-27; and Magnolia Camp, Georgia, September 3-6.
     For particulars about camps, contact Dolores Carberry Smith in Bryn Athyn (see January issue, p. 2).

WARREN'S COMPENDIUM 1993

WARREN'S COMPENDIUM Howard Roth 1993

     Communication
Dear Editor:
     Having reviewed letters on the subject of simplifying the Writings, I wish to direct your attention to the preface of A Compendium of the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg by Samuel Warren.
     Writing in 1875, he kept in mind a rendering "into pleasant and popular English as far as possible." He points out, however, that "to the unaccustomed mind, there appears a certain oddity of expression in the Writings of Swedenborg, where internal things are the constant theme, and are described as they really are, as they are discerned in heaven."
     He points out that "as with most philosophical writings, and perhaps more than most, it requires for exact expression language in some degree its own; which cannot be changed for more popular current phraseology without the loss of some part of the author's meaning, and while seeming to favor, really hindering the actual apprehension of the profound subjects treated of."
     Warren did not intend a "condensation" of the Writings, but "a general view and example" of the teachings. He urged the reader to go to the Writings themselves. "For they are as full of varied and most interesting matter everywhere as in the extracts given in this volume; and the reader will come to rejoice, more and more, that the field is so wide before him."
     I must add my personal belief and judgment, having read these holy teachings, that the true author is the Lord Himself and not Swedenborg, for he himself declares that all that he was instructed and commanded to write was from the Lord Himself.

So Swedenborg is the writer; the Lord is the Author, and thence my belief from the depths and being of my soul that these Writings are Divine.
     Howard Roth,
          Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania

     Editor's Note: We hope to print later some examples from this compendium that has served for more than a century.
CONNECTIONS 1993

CONNECTIONS Editor 1993

     We are hoping to get a review done of Connections, Offerings from the New Church Women's Symposium. This is edited by Sarah J. Headsten and Kara Johns Tennis. It is packed with interesting articles.
     The president of Theta Alpha International, Kay Reuter Alden, writes: "When the idea of a New Church women's symposium first came up, Theta Alpha was eager to see it come to fruition. Here was a use that would go back to our alumni roots, and would also meet the needs of women in the church trying to apply the truths of the Writings to their everyday lives.
     "The weekend was even more successful than we had hoped. It was a Theta Alpha Journal come to life! By the time it was over, many women were already talking about the next symposium, and indeed, the Theta Alpha International Executive Committee has already voted to support the idea of another one some time around 1994.
     "Connections displays the variety of the Women's Symposium program. There was something of substance for everyone who attended. The instructive and inspiring ideas in these pages give a feel for the vitality that animates our sisterhood. May you, the reader, enjoy the opportunity, either to relive the weekend and savor the parts you missed, or to explore these riches for the first time."

MANUSCRIPTS LONG DORMANT 1993

MANUSCRIPTS LONG DORMANT Editor 1993

     As editor I recently received from the Swedenborg Society a parcel containing a copy of Divine Love and Wisdom. Two unusual things about it: it was in Russian; it was handwritten.
     For generations the Swedenborg Society has faithfully protected Russian copies of the Writings in handwritten copy. Last summer Miss Jennifer Lindsay, working at Swedenborg House, made photo copies. At last we have some people, notably Leonard and Nana Fox, who can work with these treasures, and we look forward to seeing published volumes in the future. See the article directly below.

     D.L.R.
POSTSCRIPT TO "THE INFLUENCE OF SWEDENBORG ON RUSSIAN CULTURE" in the January Issue 1993

POSTSCRIPT TO "THE INFLUENCE OF SWEDENBORG ON RUSSIAN CULTURE" in the January Issue LEONARD FOX 1993

Thanks to the great kindness and patience of Nancy Dawson, Librarian of the Swedenborg Society, information has come to light on Valerian A. Klenovsky, whose Russian translations of many volumes of the Writings still remain in manuscript. Mrs. Dawson located some Swedenborg Society Committee minutes from 1888 and 1889, in which Klenovsky's work is mentioned. The following are relevant passages from Mrs. Dawson's discoveries:

(2nd November 1888tRussian letter from Mr. J. A. Besant offering manuscripts:
An interesting letter from Mr. James A. Besant, Orenburg [illegible], Samara, Russia, was read, in which [there is] an offer of manuscripts in Russian [of works of the Writings] . . . translated by V. A. Klenovsky, a Russian Nobleman and at one time a large landowner in the government of Chansoff, afterwards serving under A. N. Muravieff, governor of the province of Nizhni Novgorod . . . .

The offer is made by Dr. Boyanus, a well known Russian homeopathic doctor, a sincere admirer of Swedenborg's Writings.

Resolved that the manuscripts be accepted with sincere thanks, and Mr. Besant be thanked for his letter and also Dr. Boyanus for his gift, which latter the Society will take under their care in the hope that at a not distant period some use will be made of these manuscripts.

(1889)
Dr. Tafel reported that the Russian manuscripts had arrived, and the list embraces the following: AC 4056 to end, the first portion of the manuscript having been unfortunately lost, the Four Doctrines, EU, WH, AR, D Charity, CL . . . . The translations have been in part prepared under the superintendence of one of the greatest linguistic scholars in Russia, who has also translated fill into the same language, which appeared in 1863 printed at Leipsic.

     In terms of the history of New Church activity in nineteenth-century Russia, this information is of extraordinary interest, since it proves that Klenovsky was not only well acquainted with A. N. Muravyov (spelled Muravieff in the minutes), one of the most devoted Russian receivers of the Writings, but also that he had the great benefit of editorial advice on his translations from A. N. Aksakov, whose Russian version of Heaven and Hell remains an exemplary work to this day.
     Mrs. Dawson deserves a sincere vote of thanks for her research efforts.
     Although the "not distant period" when "some use will be made of these manuscripts" has been only a hundred years (!), we are extremely fortunate to have them still available, as they will now play a major role in New Church evangelization in Russia.

FREDERICK EMANUEL DOERING FUND And CANADIAN SCHOLARSHIP FUND 1993

FREDERICK EMANUEL DOERING FUND And CANADIAN SCHOLARSHIP FUND Editor 1993

     Applications for assistance from the above funds for Canadian male and female students attending the Academy of the New Church in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, for the school year 1993-94 should be received by one of the pastors listed below by the end of March if at all possible.
     Ideally, acceptance for admission to the Academy should precede application for financial aid, but because academic acceptance (including processing of transcripts from other schools, etc.) can take several months to complete, the Academy business office needs to get started on the financial arrangements before then. Grants are usually assigned in the spring, hence the early deadline.
     In addition, students from western Canada may be eligible for travel assistance and even for another special grant. The vision is that no Canadian student who really wants to attend the Academy should be barred from doing so for financial reasons.
     For more information, help or application forms write:

Rev. Michael D. Gladish           Rev. Glenn G. Alden
279 Bumhamthorpe Road                9013 - 8th Street
Etobicoke, Ontario                Dawson Creek, B.C.
M9B 126                          V1G 3N3

Rev. Louis D. Synnestvedt
40 Chapel Hill Drive
Kitchener, Ontario
N2G 3W5

ANC COLLEGE ADMISSIONS 1993

ANC COLLEGE ADMISSIONS Editor 1993

     The Academy College exists to order and unite the arts and sciences from a perspective of truths Divinely revealed in the teachings for the New Church. Each faculty member joins his or her special subject knowledge with a faith in the Heavenly Doctrines. The goal of this education is the development of mature men and women whose knowledges and skills are guided by religious principles toward a life of use and happiness.
     For more information about the college, or a copy of the catalog which describes programs and course offerings, please mail your request to the address below. Prospective students are welcome to visit the campus and attend classes any time the college is in session. Arrangements for visiting can be made by phoning Joyce Bostock, the college secretary, at (215)947-2548 between 8:30 and 4:00 on weekdays.
     Students interested in entering the Academy College for the fall term of the 1993-1994 academic year should send requests for application forms to

     Mrs. Bruce Glenn, Director of Admissions
     Academy of the New Church College
     P.O. Box 717
     Bryn Athyn, PA 19009, USA

     The completed application forms for the fall term should be received by the college no later than March 1, 1993. As The Academy College operates on a three-term system, students may be admitted to any of the three terms.
     The college's requirements are in no way intended to be racially discriminatory, and the Academy will not discriminate against applicants and students on the basis of race, color, gender, or national origin.

APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO THE ACADEMY GIRLS SCHOOL AND BOYS SCHOOL 1993

APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO THE ACADEMY GIRLS SCHOOL AND BOYS SCHOOL Editor 1993

Requests for application forms for admission of new students to the Academy Secondary Schools should be made by April 1, 1993. Letters should be addressed to Mrs. Robert Gladish, Principal of the Girls School, or Mr. T. Dudley Davis, Principal of the Boys School, The Academy of the New Church, Box 707, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.
Please include the student's name, parents address, the class the student will be entering, the name and address of the school he or she is now attending, and whether the student will be a day or a dormitory student. Completed application forms should be forwarded to the Academy by June 30, 1993.
Admission procedure is based on receipt of the following: 1. Application; 2. Transcript; 3. Pastor's recommendation; 4. Health forms.
The Academy will not discriminate against applicants and students on the basis of race, color, or national or ethnic origin.
SUN'S ACTIVITY BY HEAT AND LIGHT 1993

SUN'S ACTIVITY BY HEAT AND LIGHT Editor 1993

The sun produces effects outside itself through atmospheres "by heat as a means and at the same time by light as a means." The atmospheres "when made active in mass, produce heat, but when modified in their least parts, give light." This is from Apocalypse Explained 726, which also speaks of the spiritual sun and of the spiritual atmospheres which "when made active in common exhibit heat, but when modified in their least parts exhibit light."
Rev. Andrew Heilman, in an address on Swedenborg's birthday this year, mentioned this number in connection with the observation that light behaves as a wave but also as if it were composed of particles." Are the "least parts" these particles?

MINISTERIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS 1993

MINISTERIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS Rev. Peter M. Buss 1993

     Announcements

     The Reverend Thomas H. Rose has accepted appointment as the Bryn Athyn Church School pastor. This appointment is effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Michael K. Cowley has accepted a call to become pastor of the Carmel Church Society in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend J. Clark Echols, Jr. has accepted a call to become pastor of the Freeport Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Lawson M. Smith has accepted a call to be pastor of the Durban, South Africa, Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Erik J. Buss has accepted a call to be resident pastor of the Puget Sound Circle, effective July 1, 1993.
     Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 1993

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Editor 1993

     Alabama:
     Birmingham
Dr. R. Shepard, 4537 Dolly Ridge Road, Birmingham, AL 35243. Phone: (205) 967-3442.
     Huntsville
Mr. and Mrs. Winthrop B. Sullivan, 1107 Princeton Drive, Madison, AL 35758. Phone: (205) 772-0074.
     Arizona:
     Phoenix
Rev. Fred Chapin, 5631 E. Shea Blvd., Scottsdale, AZ 85254 (church). Phone: home (602) 996-2919; office (602) 991- 929-6455.
     Tucson
Rev. Frank S. Rose, 9233 B. Helen, Tucson, AZ 85715. Phone: (602) 721-1091.
     Arkansas:
     Little Rock
Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Holmes, 2695 Lane, Batesville, AR 72501. Phone: (501) 793-5135.
     California:
     Los Angeles
Rev. John L. Odhner, 5022 Carolyn Way, La Crescenta, CA 91214. Phone: (818) 249-5031.
     Orange County
Rev. Cedric King, resident pastor, 21332 Forest Meadow, El Toro, CA 92630. Phone: home (714) 586-5142; office (714) (904) 228-2276.
     Sacramento
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Ripley, 225 Woodlake Lane, Newcastle, CA 95658. Phone: (916) 663-2788.
     San Diego
Mr. and Mrs. Geraldo Gomez, 1774 La Jolla Rancho Road, La Jolla, CA 92037. Phone (619) 454-4716.
     San Francisco
Mr. and Mrs. Philip C. "Red" Pendleton, 2261 Waverley Street, Palo Alto, CA 94901.
     Colorado:
     Colorado Springs
Mr. and Mrs. William Rienstra, P.O. Box 95, Simla, CO 80835. Phone: (719) 541-2375.
     Denver
Rev. Clark Echols, 3371 W. 94th Ave., Westminster, CO 80030. Phone: (303) 429-1239 or 428-6019.
     Connecticut:
     Bridgeport, Hartland, Shelton
Mr. and Mrs. James Tucker, 45 Honey Bee Lane, Shelton, CT 06484. Phone: (203) 929-6455.
     Rev. Geoffrey Howard, visiting pastor. Phone: (508) 443-6531.
     Delaware:
     Wilmington
Mrs. Justin Hyatt, 2008 Eden Road, N. Graylyn, Wilmington DE 19810. Phone: (302) 475-3694.
     District of Columbia: see Mitchellville, Maryland.
     Florida:
     Boynton Beach
Rev. Daniel Heinrichs, 10687 B. Clair Ranch Road, Boynton Beach, FL 33437. Phone: (407) 736-9235.
     Lake Helen
Mr. and Mrs. Brent Morris, 264 Kicklighter Road, Lake Helen, FL 32744. Phone: (904) 228-2276.
     Pensacola
Mr. and Mrs. John Peacock, 5238 Soundside Drive, Gulf Breeze, FL 32561. Phone: (904) 934-3691.
     Georgia:
     Americus
Mr. W. H. Eubanks, Rt. #2, S. Lee Street, Americus, GA 31709. Phone: (912) 924-9221.
     Atlanta
Rev. Ray Silverman, 2119 Seaman Circle, Chamblee, GA 30341. Phone: office (404) 458-9673.

     Idaho:
     Fruitland (Idaho-Oregon border)
Mr. Harold Rand, 1705 Whitley Drive, Fruitland, ID 83619. Phone: (208) 452-3181.
     Illinois:
     Chicago
Rev, Grant Schnarr, 73A Park Drive, Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: home (708) 729-0130; office (708) 729-9296.
     Decatur
Mr. John Aymer, 380 Oak Lane, Decatur, IL 62562. Phone: (217) 875-3215.
     Glenview
Rev. Eric Carswell, 73 Park Drive, Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (708) 724-0120.
     Indiana:
     Rev. Patrick Rose, 785 Ashcroft Court, Cincinnati, OH 45240. Phone: (513) 825-7473.
     Kentucky:
Rev. Patrick Rose, 785 Ashcroft Court, Cincinnati, OH 45240. Phone: (513) 825-7473.
     Louisiana:
     Baton Rouge
Mr. Henry Bruser, Jr., 6050 Esplanade Ave., Baton Rouge, LA 70806. Phone: (504) 924-3098.
     Bath
Rev. Allison L Nicholson, HC 33 - Box 61N, Arrowsic, MH 04530. Phone: (207) 443-6410.
     Maryland:
Rev. Thomas Rose, visiting minister, 3809 Enterprise Rd., Mitchellville, MD 20721. Phone: home (301) 4644585; office (301)-464-5602.
     Mitchellville
Rev. Lawson Smith, 3805 Enterprise Road, Mitchellville, MD 20721. Phone: (301) 262-2349.
     Massachusetts:
     Boston
Rev. Geoffrey Howard, 138 Maynard Road, Sudbury, MA 01776. Phone: (508) 443-6531.
     Michigan
     Detroit
Rev. Grant Odhner, 395 Olivewood Ct., Rochester, MI 48306. Phone: (313) 652-7332.
     East Lansing
Dr. Christopher Clark, 5853 Smithfield, East Lansing, MI 48823. Phone: (517) 351-2880.
     Minnesota:
     St. Paul
Karen Huseby, 4247 Centerville Rd., Vadnais Heights, MN 55127. Phone: (612) 429-5285.
     Missouri:
     Columbia
Mr. and Mrs. Paul Johnson, 1508 Glencairn Court, Columbia, MO 65203. Phone: (314) 442-3475.
     Kansas City
Mr. Glen Klippenstein, Glenkirk Farms, Rt. 2, Maysville, MO 64469. Phone: (816) 449-2167.
     New Jersey-New York:
     Ridgewood, NJ
Jay and Barbara Barry, 348 Marshall St., Ridgewood, NJ 07450. Phone: (201) 612-8146.
     New Mexico:
     Albuquerque
Mr. Howard Leach, 548 Mullen Rd. NW, Albuquerque, NM 87107. Phone: (505) 345-5297.
     North Carolina:
     Charlotte
Rev. Bill Burke, 6010 Paddington Court, Charlotte, NC 28277. Phone: (704) 846-6416.
     Ohio:
     Cincinnati
Rev. Patrick Rose, 785 Ashcroft Court, Cincinnati, OH 45240. Phone: (513) 825-7473.
     Cleveland
Mr. Alan Childs, 19680 Beachcliff Blvd., Rocky River, OH 44116. Phone: (216) 333-4413.
     Oklahoma:
     Oklahoma City
Mr. Robert Campbell, 3108 Eagle Pass Road, Edmond OK 73013. Phone: (405) 478-4729.
     Oregon:
     Portland
Mr. and Mrs. Jim P. Andrews, Box 99, 1010 NB 3601, Corbett, OR 97019. Phone: (503) 695-2534.
     Oregon-Idaho Border: see idaho, Fruitland.

     Pennsylvania:
     Bryn Athyn
Rev. Kurt Asplundh, Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Phone: (215) 947-6225.
     Elizabethtown
Mr. Meade Bierly, 523 Snyder Ave., Elizabethtown, PA 17022. Phone: (77) 367-3964.
     Erie
Mrs. Paul Murray, 5648 Zuck Road, Erie, PA 16506. Phone: (814) 833-0962.
     Freeport
Rev. Ragnar Boyesen, 122 McKean Road, Freeport, PA 16229. Phone: home (412) 295-9855; office (412) 353-2220.
     Hawley
Mr. Grant Genzlinger, 4 Main Street, Hawley, PA 18428. Phone: (717) 226-2993.
     Ivyland
The Ivyland New Church, 851 W. Bristol Road, Ivyland 18974. Pastor: Rev. Robert Junge. Phone: (215) 957-5965. Secretary: Mrs. K. Cronlund. (215) 598-3919.
     Kempton
Rev. Jeremy Simons, RD 2, Box 217-A, Kempton, PA 19529. Phone: home (215) 756-4301: office (215) 756-6140.
     Pittsburgh
Rev. Nathan D. Gladish, 299 Le Roi Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15208. Phone: church (412) 731-7421.
     South Carolina: see North Carolina.
     South Dakota:
     Hot Springs
Linda Klippenstein, 604 S.W. River St. #A8, Hot Springs, SD 57747. Phone: (605) 745-6629.
     Texas:
     Austin
Mrs. Robert Grubb, 510 Academy Drive, Austin, TX 78704. Phone (512) 447-6811.
     Dallas-Fort Worth
Mr. Fred Dunlap, 3887 Antigua Circle, Dallas, TX 75244. Phone: (214)247-7775.
     Virginia:
     Richmond
     Mr. Donald Johnson, 13161 Happy Hill Road, Chester, VA 23831. Phone: (804) 748-5757.
     Washington:
     Seattle
Mr. Thomas Andrews, 5035 NE 180th, Seattle, WA 98155. Phone: (206) 365-2194.
     West Virginia:
Mrs. Thelma Smith, Route 1, Box 447, Peterstown, WV 24963. Phone:(304) 753-9508.
     Wisconsin:
     Madison
Mrs. Charles Howell, 3912 Plymouth Circle, Madison, WI 53705. Phone: (608) 233-0209.
     OTHER THAN U.S.A.
     AUSTRALIA
     Canberra
Mrs. Rex Ridgway, 7 Whalan Place, Kaleen, ACT, Australia 2617.
     Sydney, N.S.W.
Rev. Douglas Taylor, 22 Dudley Street, Penshurst, N.S.W. 2222. Phone: 57-1589.
     Tamworth
See Rev. Douglas Taylor under Sydney.
     BRAZIL
     Rio de Janeiro
Rev. Cristovao Rabelo Nobre, Rua Lina Teixeira, 109 Apt., Rocha, Rio de Janeiro R.J. 20970. Phone: 21-201-8455.
     CANADA
     Alberta
     Calgary
Mr. Thomas R. Fountain, 115 Southglen Drive S.W., Calgary 13, Alberta T2W 0X2. Phone: 403-255-7283.
     Debolt
Ken and Lavina Scott, RR1, Crooked Creek, Alberta TOH OYO. Phone: 403-057-3625.
     Edmonton
Mrs. Wayne Anderson, 6703-9811 Street, Edmonton, Alberta T6E 3L9. Phone: 403-432-1499.
     British Columbia
     Dawson Creek
Rev. Glenn G. Alden, Dawson Creek Church, 9013 8th St., Dawson Creek, B.C., Canada V1G 3N3. Phone: home (604) 786-5297; office (604) 782-8035.
     Ontario
     Kitchener
Rev. Louis D. Synnestvedt, 58 Chapel Hill Drive, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada N2G 3W5. Phone: home (519) 748-5605; office (519) 748-5802.

     Ottawa
Mr. and Mrs. Donald McMaster, 684 Fraser Ave., Ottawa, Ontario K2A 2R8. Phone: (613) 725-0394.
     Toronto
Rev. Michael Gladish, 279 Burnhamthorpe Rd., Islington, Ontario M9B 124. Phone: church (416) 239-3055.
     Quebec
     Montreal
Mr. Denis de Chazal, 17 Ballantyne Ave. So., Montreal West, Quebec H4X 2B1, phone: (514) 489-9861.
     DENMARK
     Copenhagen
Mr. Jorgen Hauptmann, Suandvejen 22, 4040 Jyllinge. Phone: 46 78 9968.
     ENGLAND
     Colchester
Rev. Christopher Bown, 2 Christ Church Court, Colchester, Essex C03 3AU. Phone: 0206-575644.
     Letchworth
Mr. and Mrs. R. Evans, 24 Berkeley, Letchworth, Herts. SG6 WA. Phone: (0462) 684751.
     London
Rev. Frederick Elphick, 2111 Hayne Rd., Beckenham, Kent BR3 4JA. Phone: 011-44-1-658-6320.
     Manchester
Rev. Norman E. Riley, 69 Harewood Rd., Norden, Rochdale, OL11 5TH, England. Phone: 0706 54003.
     Surrey
Rev. Goran Appelgren, 8 Ardmore Way, Guildford, Surrey, England GU2 6RR.
     HOLLAND
     The Hague
Mr. Ed Verschoor, V. Furstenburchstr, 6 3862 AW Nijkerk.
     KOREA
     Seoul
Rev. Dzin P. Kwak, #Bol Sanho-villa, 238 Shinsa-dong, Eunpyung-ku, Seoul, Korea 122-080. Phone: home 02-309-7305; church 02-555-1366.
     NEW ZEALAND
     Auckland
Mrs. H. Keal, 4 Derwent Cresc., Titirangi, Auckland 7, New Zealand.
     SOUTH AFRICA
     Cape
     Cape Town
Mrs. Sheila Brathwaite, 208B Silvermine Village, Private Bag #1, Noordhoek, 7985 R.S.A. Phone: 021-891424.
     Natal
     Durban
Rev. James P. Cooper, 30 Perth Road, Westville 3630, Natal, Republic of South Africa. Phone: 011-2731-821612.
     Transvaal
     Transvaal Society
Rev. Andrew Dibb, P.O. Box 816, Kelvin 2054, Republic of South Africa, Phone: (011l) 804-2567.
     Zululand
     Kent Manor
Rev. Andrew Dibb, visiting pastor
     Mrs. Marten Hiemstra, P.O. Box 10745, Meerensee, 3901 R.S.A. Phone: 0351-32317.
     Please contact Rev. James Cooper or Rev. Andrew Dibb concerning these societies:
     Alexandra Township, Buccleuch, Clermont, Diepklool, Enkumba, Hambrook, Impaphala, Kwa Mashu
     SWEDEN
     Jonkoping
Contact Rev. Bjorn A.H. Boyesen, Bruksater, Satersfors 10, S-56691, Habo, Sweden. Phone: 0392-20395.
     Stockholm
Rev. David H. Lindrooth, Aladdinsvagen 27, 161 38 Bromma, Sweden. Phone/Fax: 011 468 26 79 85.

SEEING IS BELIEVING 1993

SEEING IS BELIEVING Editor 1993

     The New Church Faith

     Translated by David F. Gladish, Ph.D.

     Here, in booklet form, is a revised English edition of the Doctrine of Faith with selections from New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine and True Christian Religion. This is an improved version of Dr. Gladish's very popular Seeing's Believing published several years ago. It is a good presentation of the New Church faith to give to a friend or acquaintance, and of course to be repeatedly read by church members.
     30 pages $2.50 plus $1.00 postage
     Box 743, Cairncrest
General Church Book Center               Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                    Phone: (215) 947-3920

Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

Vol. CXIII March, 1993 No. 3
NEW CHURCH LIFE

     Perhaps not all our readers know that in legal parlance "in re" means "in the case of-hence the title of a fascinating article in this issue. Mr. Butterfield of Chicago has uncovered court cases involving the New Church and the Writings. Have you ever read such an article in New Church Life or any church publication?
     The sermon on the opposite page takes the scene of the woman taken in adultery and relates it to things we may suffer in our minds thousands of times.
     "Now that is what we believe to be fundamental to what we call New Church education" (p. 108). "Religious education consists in . . . " (p. 112). On page 111 de Charms says, "it is a great mistake to attempt . . . " And he goes on to tell his experience of how children understand what is said to them. His final paragraph begins as follows: "Let's not make the mistake of supposing . . . ."
     Speaking of New Church education, we have received for review a copy of a pamphlet of 28 pages in which Beth Johns gives an overview of the Academy Secondary Schools. See page 139.
     In 1943 this magazine printed news of the 50th anniversary of the New Church school in Toronto. A banquet was held, "and the keynote of the various papers read on that occasion was gratitude to the Lord for the glorious vision which gives eternal purpose to the work of New Church education." See p. 127 concerning the coming centennial celebration.

     ADVENTURES IN LEARNING

     In Bryn Athyn this summer (June 14-July 2 and July 6-24) a wide variety of courses is being planned in religion, science, education, mathematics, literature, psychology and technology. See p. 134.

ACCUSED 1993

ACCUSED Rev. GLENN G. ALDEN 1993

     "'Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?' She said: 'No one, Lord.' And Jesus said to her, 'Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more'" (John 8:10, 11).

     Just try to imagine that scene. A woman is dragged into the temple by the scribes and Pharisees, men who pose as respectable lovers of the Word of God. They stand her up before the Lord, who is there teaching, and say, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded that such should be stoned, but what do You say?"
     We can only begin to imagine how she must have felt, the shame of being so publicly humiliated, the guilt because of the enormity of her sin, the fear because she must have felt certain she would be killed by stoning, by being buried alive under a pile of rock.
     Is this an unusual story? Hardly. For a similar scene is played out in the minds of countless millions every day. This scene is played out, with variety, in my mind, every day, and it is probably played out in yours. Not a single day goes by when some action I have done, some thought I have had, some word I have spoken, some desire I have felt, is not grabbed by the arm, as it were, and held up for public humiliation and condemnation, in the temple of my mind. Sometimes the voices accusing me are almost audible. "You fool!" "You selfish pig!" "You lazy bum!" "You thief!" "You child abuser!" "You always say that." "You never think!" "You only care about yourself." "Can't you control your temper?" And like the woman who was brought before the Lord, for the most part I feel defenseless, I feel shame, I feel hopeless, and I feel condemned. And the voices tell me that I deserve to be.

100

     Can you identify with that experience? Perhaps you have become aware of how many negative messages or accusations you hear. Perhaps you are so used to thinking negative, self-accusatory things that you don't even know you are doing it. Perhaps you think that all those negative self-condemning thoughts are the voice of conscience. Perhaps you hear those messages in the voice of a parent or another strong authority figure in your life. A person might often hear his father's voice, and hearing it, feel stupid and unable to learn anything.
     But let's look at those accusers of the woman. Just what kind of men are they? Are they good men, filled with the desire to protect society from moral depravity? Are they lovers of the truth, eager that the plainly stated laws of Moses be carefully obeyed? Are they lovers of justice, eager to see that the woman has a fair and impartial hearing? Are they lovers of their fellow human beings, hopeful that the Lord will hear her case, and perhaps suggest mercy and rehabilitation? I think they are sly foxes, eager to maintain their power over the common people. I think they are haters and schemers against the Lord who hope to discredit Him publicly. I think they are opportunists who jump at the chance to turn this woman's misfortune into their own advantage. I think they are utterly selfish and unmerciful and would find great pleasure in stoning that woman to death, and even greater pleasure if in so doing they could also discredit the Lord in the eyes of the people. What do you think?
     But what about those accusers in my head or in your head? What kind of people are they? Are they good men, filled with the desire to protect us or see us delivered from moral depravity? Are they lovers of the truth, eager that we do not forget to obey the plainly stated laws of Moses? Are they lovers of justice, eager to see that we do not slip, unknowing, into justifying our evils or excusing ourselves? Are they lovers of their fellow human beings, hopeful that the Lord will hear and judge us with mercy, and that He will deliver us from these evils?

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I think they are sly foxes, eager to maintain their power over us. I think they are haters and schemers against the Lord who hope to convince us that we will not be saved by Him. I think they are opportunists who turn every evil thought, every past evil deed to their own advantage, even though we are not responsible for the thoughts that inflow and cannot be held accountable for the evil we have done in childhood or youth. I think they are utterly selfish and unmerciful, and would find great pleasure in condemning us to hell, and even greater pleasure if in so doing they could also discredit the Lord in the eyes of the people by showing that their power is greater than His. I think those voices in my head are the accuser mentioned in the book of Revelation: "Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say, 'Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down'" (Rev. 12:10). For me, nothing would more symbolize salvation and the power and kingdom of God than that those accusers be hurled down. What do you think?
Is it frightening to hear me say that those voices in your head that accuse you are actually evil spirits? Does it seem that you need those voices to keep you from falling into evil? I know that whenever I read a passage in the Writings that describes the way evil spirits infest us by accusing us of evil and falsity, I feel a bit uneasy. Even though I know that those voices destroy me, and paralyze me, and drive me to despair, I am afraid to say, "That voice is from hell." I know that I do think the things that the voice accuses me of; I have done the evils the voices attack me for, and I am afraid of that dark pit of potential evil that I believe lies within me. And I am afraid that I am just trying to get off easy, or trying to make my evils appear light when I say that the voices that accuse me are from
I believe that even that fear of these teachings is inspired by those same accusing spirits.

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They do not want to give up their power over me! For I do not know of any passages in the Writings which describe angels flowing into a person and accusing or condemning him. Rather, the angels are described flowing into us in a most gentle and imperceptible way, with a strong desire to lead us gently and preserve our freedom. And angels do not flow into our evils and falsities, but rather they inspire good loves and true thoughts, in such a way that we feel those loves and ideas as our own, and we feel led by them and drawn by them. We are told that angels even protect our evils and falsities, that is, they defend our evils and falsities from the accusations of evil spirits, because they know that those evils and falsities in us are not from us, but from the hells. Angels are like loving parents who, by example and by gentle influence and opportunity, help their child to experience the delight of something precious or tender or useful. But evil spirits are like parents who expect the worst from their child, and use threats and fear to keep the child from doing the evil they believe he will inevitably do. For isn't the result that the child jumps at the first chance to do exactly what is forbidden? But unlike a misguided parent, the evil spirits know that if they can convince us we are evil and hopeless, they will have won our souls.
Sometimes the Word says we are evil, that we are born into all evils, and that we are nothing but evil. Sometimes it seems that we are supposed to believe that we are evil. This is an appearance. We are neither good nor evil; we are only receptacles of good from the Lord or evil from hell. We are born into tendencies to evils of every kind. And of ourselves, that is, without the Lord, we would rush into all evils. At times evil is certainly in us. But when we believe that we are evil we separate ourselves from the Lord's mercy. The Lord never condemns us, not even after death. We condemn ourselves when we believe that we cannot be saved. Note carefully what is taught in Heaven and Hell: "If man only believed, as is really true, that all good is from the Lord and all evil from hell, he would neither make the good in him a matter of merit nor would the evil be imputed to him; for he would then look to the Lord in all the good he thinks and does, and all the evil that flows in would be cast down to hell from which it comes.

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But because man does not believe that anything flows into him, either from heaven or from hell, and therefore supposes that all things that he thinks and wills are in himself and therefore are himself, he appropriates the evil to himself, and the good that flows in he defiles with merit" (n. 203).
When we think from this teaching, it is easy to see what evil spirits are up to. If we really believed that all evil is from hell, it would not be imputed to us, and the evil that flows into us would be cast down into hell. That being the case, what would you do if you were an evil spirit? Would you by to tell a person that he is a lover of good and truth and so try to deceive him into thinking he is good? Would you waste time trying to get him to do evil acts when most people are held back from evil acts by fear? I don't think so. I think if you were an evil spirit, you would try to convince him that he is evil, that all those evil thoughts that come into his mind are his own, that all those evil lusts and feelings that come into him from hell are his own feelings. In a word you would accuse and attack and condemn. And that is what they do.
Over and over the Writings describe temptations not as a state in which evil spirits try to get us to do or think some evil, but as a state in which evil spirits attack and condemn us, and try to make us believe that we are the source of those evils and that the evils are in us and that we are thus evil. We read: "Man in no sense produces any falsity and evil from himself. Instead it is the evil spirits residing with him who produce them, and as they do so they also convince him that these originate in himself. Such is the nature of their wickedness. And what is more, the moment they instill this into him and convince him, they also accuse and condemn him . . . .

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Consequently he makes the evil his own and becomes like those evil spirits residing with him" (AC 761).
     The Lord didn't forgive the woman because she had no accusers. He didn't forgive her because He wanted to teach that adultery is not that bad. He forgave her because that is the way He is. He loved her, and wanted to deliver her from her accusers. And He loves us, and whenever we can be helped to see that those spirits who condemn us are not without sin, He will deliver us as well.
     Lord, help us to see the hearts of those who would condemn us. Protect us from them and inspire us with love so that we may find peace of mind in this life and dwell in everlasting peace in the next. Amen.
     Lessons: John 8:1-12, 26-32, AC 761 PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION 1993

PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION Rev. GEORGE DE CHARMS 1993

     Part II

     Formal Education

     Our purpose has been to start from the broadest possible idea of education and gradually to narrow the field until we come to that portion of mental development that is the proper task of the school.
     By means of the school, many children from different families are brought into cooperation and harmonious choirs. Much is said in the Writings about choirs and their use.

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In fact, all must be brought into harmony by means of them in order to come into heaven. It is especially taught that children in the other life must be brought into choirs in order that they may be perfected (see AC 2290, 2294, 2595, 5396, 3350, SD 492-3-4, HH 343). The teaching given in these numbers indicates that heaven is a harmony of many thinking and willing together with the greatest variety but also the greatest unity-variety of form, unity of purpose and end. All who come into the other world are brought into such a harmony by means of choirs, that is, by learning to think, speak, sing, act together, and it is especially said that this must be done, so far as possible, in childhood because it is easily done when the mind is still plastic and in a state of innocence. It is much more difficult when the mind has been fixed in certain grooves. All children are prepared for heaven, perfected in this way. This is part of their education in the other world, and the Lord operates by means of a gentle influx which from within slowly brings these various minds into ordered relationships.
Now if we analyze the school as to its interior effects on the minds of children, we will find that a similar work is going forward that could not be done in any other way than by gathering together children of similar advancement and capacity, and giving them the opportunity of working together. They learn to think, to speak, to act not only in unison but also in interior harmony of affection. Now when we think of this, we tend to think of their learning to recite or sing something together by rote, but that is not the essential unity. The essential unity is that they think and speak and act from a harmony of affection. That that comes to be the case is evident from what we know as the class spirit, school spirit, the deep loyalties that arise out of their school life together, and the daily lesson of forbearance for the sake of others. Children, when they first come together in that way, are like the mob that was described in AC 5396 in which it is said that there was no cohesion. Every teacher knows what that means-a mob without cohesion.

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Teachers knowing what is essential, what is right, true, just, what is of eternal value, stand as it were in the center of this mass of incohesion, exerting upon it a gradual gentle influence that brings it all into relation, finally, with these things that are eternal and of spiritual value, leading the children more and more, unconsciously for the most part, to a unity of thought and interest in higher things, and so bringing them into the order or the gyre of heaven. And what the teacher can do by conscious effort is very little compared with what the Lord does through the teacher, to bring scattered and unconnected ideas and expressions of the children into a harmonious unit.
There is a great deal of effort to standardize the education and requirements in all schools, and to guarantee a certain level of educational efficiency, but along with that goes the danger of standardizing the child, stultifying his individual development and preventing the kind of individual care and direction that is really the most effective. The purpose of education in the schools should be to provide for the development of every possible variety of mental equipment and to bring it into harmony with others-a harmony of mutual affection, of mutual appreciation and respect, not only for others but also for the uses that they are preparing to perform.
Here again the ends and purposes of the school as a special instrumentality must be in accord with the whole stream of the Divine Providence. In other words, it must have a spiritual objective at the center or it will not really be cooperative with the Lord, whose objective is spiritual and eternal. Unless the school has a spiritual objective in the center it cannot be in the stream of Providence. Now how can it have a spiritual objective at the center unless that objective actually governs, modifies and directs everything that is done in the school? To say that a thing is at the center is to say that it really controls everything else. If it doesn't, it isn't truly at the center.

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If teachers realize fully that the end and purpose of all education is to prepare for regeneration, and therefore that it is spiritual in nature and not merely a preparation for some kind of adjustment to our natural environment, then it will be of the greatest concern to come more and more fully to understand how all the things we teach affect that phase of a child's life. What do they contribute to his preparation for regeneration? That is the most important thing that is involved in all teaching. If we were fully convinced that anything on the curriculum did not contribute to a child's regeneration, either directly or indirectly, then it is hard to see what place it would have on the curriculum. If it does, it is of supreme importance that we understand what that place is, and what it does.
Now the great difficulty is that we are living in a world in which spiritual ends and objectives are ignored by educators and also by scientific investigators. The result is that the textbooks and the scientific data which are placed at the disposal of the teachers for their teaching have no regard for the spiritual objectives of which we are speaking. They take for granted that that will be taken care of by somebody else. Just teach them the subjects and their spiritual welfare will be taken care of by somebody else, and teachers can just proceed, without realizing that the subject being taught, whatever it may be, is molding the spirit every day according to the way it is taught. If a subject is taught in such a way as to give the child the impression that the spiritual side of his life doesn't make any difference, or that it will be taken care of by somebody on the side, then it is leading the mind in the wrong direction. You can't help it. For that reason the whole question of subject matter, of instruction, how it is to be organized and presented, will depend upon our philosophy of life. What is it all for, what are we trying to do with it? What is the purpose of doing all this teaching? That purpose will certainly modify the way we do it, and that purpose-if it is to prepare for regeneration and therefore to have regard in the first instance to a child's spiritual development-will modify very decidedly the way in which we teach.

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It will do so largely to the extent that we ourselves as teachers come to understand what is the contribution of this type or that type of human knowledge to man's spiritual development.
Now if we consider it, the whole world was created by God for one purpose-that there might be a heaven from the human race. There is nothing in all the created universe that was not produced for that end, for which God did not foresee definite use and purpose in helping the formation of a heaven from the human race. That is true of all the natural things of the world, all the material objects in the world, true of every field of activity and use that any person can go into. Now if we believe that, how can we go on teaching those subjects as if they had nothing to do with it? Or how can we consider the question as to what they have to do with it as of very little importance to teacher? The very first thing, if we are going to cooperate with the Lord in such teaching, is to see what the Lord intended, how He intended to have these things contribute to the spiritual welfare of people. And if we begin to see something about that, we begin to see how we can cooperate and present the material so that it may have that effect. Now that is what we believe to be fundamental to what we call New Church education.
We shall start with the acknowledgment that the whole world was created for the sake of a heaven from the human race, and that the highest use of all things created is their effect not on man's body but on his spirit that lives to eternity. And so our central purpose in all the study of education will be to find out what is happening in the minds of the children who are given into our care, what is happening in their minds step by step as they grow, and what the effect of our teaching is upon that mind, what effect every subject on the curriculum has. Why is it important that we teach arithmetic, that we teach grammar, that we teach literature, history, geography, music, art-anything you please? What is the real importance of it?

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If our idea of its importance only goes so far as its effect upon a child's body or upon his natural relations with men in this world, it has not reached the heart of the subject. The final answer is what is its effect on his eternal welfare. If we stop before we see that, we stop in the middle without understanding what the Lord is doing, what the Lord is intending to do with that child by means of our reaching.
     There is no other possibility than that, and yet in our present-day world, with our own minds so largely built up on the basis of a purely materialistic philosophy, it is very difficult for us to see how that is true. We say, What does arithmetic have to do with a man's spiritual welfare, or what difference does it make to a man's spiritual welfare whether you teach typewriting or stenography or any other subject on the curriculum in the approved way, or some other way that we might devise? It appears as though the ways that have been devised have been the result of experience and learning and we can get the greatest efficiency out of them. They have the greatest efficiency toward the end that men are seeking. But when we seek a higher end, the most efficient means for the attainment of that end cannot help being modified, and to that extent our teaching methods will be modified.

     Religious Education

     The distinctive characteristic of religious education is that its material must be drawn from Divine revelation. The whole world of nature was created by God, as we have said, for the sake of man's spiritual life-to contribute to man's understanding of God and spiritual things. It is said to be a theater representative of the kingdom of heaven, and it was the first Word of God to men. Nature itself was the first Word of God to men. But that book of nature that spoke immediately to most ancient people of spiritual and Divine things has become a closed book.

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This is because the minds of men have been turned away from spiritual things and focused upon the things of earth, so that they are unable any longer to penetrate the secrets of nature to the point of seeing their spiritual import. This is the reason why a written Word had to be given, a written Word in which the things of nature and of human life were reordered in a form that might still reveal spiritual truth to men when nature itself had become opaque to their minds. It was as if there were provided by the Lord a new world which men could see and explore, and through which Divine things might still be seen.
The things that children learn from the Word in a sphere of holiness have the deepest effect on their minds and upon their whole life later, and therefore religious teaching calls for more tender and solicitous care than secular teaching in order that religious affections may be rightly implanted, and precious things, protective of the child's life, may not be injured. The truth is that the same spiritual things lie deeply buried in all subjects of the curriculum. In the Word the spiritual things that lie concealed in all things of nature are brought closer to the surface, so that even children can see something of them. Children are unable to grasp what is truly spiritual as yet. But what happens is this: when they learn the stories of the Word, there is influx from heaven to their minds which stirs a delight. The angels who are with them do understand the spiritual implications of all these things. They are delighted with them and they impart a delight to the children. The children don't know whence that delight comes. They think it is just inherent in the stories of the Word themselves, but they feel the delight and that delight is the seed from which conscience grows.
For this reason it is the part of religious education to seek, by means of the Word presented in a sphere of holiness, to stir up remains at every stage of a child's growth, and so to strengthen the forces in that interior mind which can, at adult age, combat and overcome the hereditary tendencies of self-love and love of the world. We must remember that what is being stored here in the interior are really only affections.

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Intellectual ideas are all external and they come from without, for which reason the children can only picture such things in concrete imagery, and all these affections from good or evil are identified and associated with the things that come from without. Children are as yet unable to grasp what is abstract and therefore spiritual. So when we say "remains" we are talking not about spiritual ideas, for children are incapable of them. They don't reason about such things; they just feel them. They don't analyze where they come from or what they are for; they just feel them. That is the nature of remains. It is also the nature of self-love, and again they don't reason; they just act from it.
They are only able to visualize things concretely. For that reason the religious teaching of children must be concrete. It is a great mistake to attempt to impart to them abstract spiritual ideas. You always fail because they are not able to visualize them. That is the reason why the Word has been given in such imagery, in stories that children can understand and grasp, but stories that contain within them a spiritual meaning that children, when they hear, can begin to see and understand. That is the reason why it is a mistake to try to teach children the Writings and think we are giving them a New Church education by teaching them that water corresponds to truth and a mountain corresponds to love. It is all right to tell them, and they will have a knowledge and remember it, but they have no idea whatever what we mean by truth and by love. Time and again I have been impressed by the fact that our children think-when they have heard a great deal of conversation in New Church language from their parents and teachers and older children, and they grasp it and remember it-that they are sure they understand it. Therefore, when we ask them what a certain thing means they say, "Oh, yes, it means truth and it means good," but what that is they haven't the faintest notion. Only by a gradual process can they begin to know what we really mean by these theological terms.

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And so it is a mistake to try to impart that spiritual idea before they are ready for it.
     Religious education consists in meeting the child on the plane at which he is living at the time. Meet him there and provide the specific things which will prepare him for the reception of what is spiritual and heavenly. That is the purpose of religious education.
     But let us remember that the religious ideas that children get from all we teach them will be natural ideas, not spiritual ideas, They think of the Lord as a man like men they have seen, and that He is Divine, but the word "Divine" means He is wonderfully powerful, wonderfully great. The idea of what is infinite is entirely beyond them, and so their concept of God is an anthropomorphic one. It is an idea of God that attributes to Him everything that is characteristic of finite human beings. Many religious thinkers have condemned any idea of God as a man, on the ground that it is anthropomorphic, that it is like the idea of a little child that imagines that God can be like man, that we are merely ascribing to God the things we feel in ourselves. They assume that the race has been growing from infancy into childhood and has built up these childish ideas of God, and so we in our age must remove them by realizing that God cannot be a man.
     Now if we mean that He cannot be a man according to a childish idea of a man, that is true, but if we remove all idea of a man, we have nothing left but the idea of an invincible force, and we remove God along with anthropomorphism. There is nothing left. So the Writings teach us that the concept of God we must seek to build with our children is a concept of infinity that is nonetheless human. God is infinite but He is also infinitely human. He is Infinite Love and Infinite Wisdom, not just an invincible force of which neither love nor wisdom could be predicated. He is Infinite Love and Infinite Wisdom, and that is what is meant by a Divine Man. Now little children cannot understand that because they cannot yet have an abstract idea of what is meant by infinite, but they do get the idea that the Lord is a man.

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They picture Him as a man and that is right. That is the imagery-the only imagery-out of which a true concept of the infinity of God can arise. If we remove the idea of a man then we remove all possibility of seeing what Infinite Love and Infinite Wisdom are. So in teaching religion to children the central thing is that we shall cultivate and preserve with them the idea of the Lord as a man. Never mind that with children it is a crude idea; it won't do any harm. They will lose it as they grow. But the idea of the Lord as a man is the foundation and basis of the true concept of God
Now this is just the thing that the stories of the Word do. The Old Testament pictures Jehovah God as a Father who provides, protects and guides His people Israel, who appears to them in angelic form and tells them what they shall do, gives them promises and rulings. Then in the New Testament we have the picture of that God descending to the earth, taking on a human body in this world, teaching men, and performing miracles and arising from the grave on the third day. All those stories from beginning to end have as their central theme the picture of the Lord as a man, God as a man, but as a Divine man, which to children means a wonderful man. That is the idea above all ideas possible with them. And that is the idea into which there can be heavenly influx with the delights of remains stirred up, because that is the very foundation of all angelic concepts of God. The whole of the heavens worship God as a Divine Man. With them it is a spiritual idea of what constitutes the Human, and how that Human can be unbounded or unlimited or infinite, but it has its foundation and focus in the actual picture of the Lord as a man. It is the center of religious teaching. (to be continued)
Title Unspecified 1993

Title Unspecified 1993

1993 Parliament of the World's Religions-This is taking place in Chicago August 28-September 4.

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IN RE SWEDENBORG 1993

IN RE SWEDENBORG EVAN M. BUTTERFIELD 1993

     The New Church Goes to Court

     A recent opportunity to engage in some recreational legal research led to the uncovering of a number of court cases which involved, in one way or another, the New Church and Swedenborg's Writings. Some of the cases offer only passing references as they set the context for the more secular legal issues involved, while others use Swedenborgianism as the basis for a major legal pronouncement. These "Swedenborgian decisions" are not limited to any one area of the law. Rather, they cover a spectrum of issues, from testamentary capacity (that is, the "sound mind and body" question) and interpretation of a will's provisions to worker's compensation, municipal property tax, and federal income tax fraud.
     In three of the cases the question essentially boils down to whether it is possible to be both sane and a Swedenborgian. In another the issue is whether or not the Academy of the General Church is a New Church educational institution or merely the home of suburban schismatics. One of the tax cases addresses the tax-exempt status of the Swedenborg Foundation in New York City, and in the other the I.R.S. considers the question of whether a church is a church just because its minister says so.
     In this article we will look at the frequently colorful facts of these cases, along with the court's language insofar as it may be of interest to a New Church reader.

     I. The Sanity Question

     New Church members will no doubt be greatly relieved to learn that the highest American courts of not one but two states have held that being a Swedenborgian is not a definitive symptom of lunacy.

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While that means, of course, that there are still forty-eight states that have yet to take a position on the issue, it seems likely that we can all rest comfortably in the presumption of sanity. Further, New Church men and women have been presumptively sane, at least in Illinois and Washington, for some time now. The Illinois decision, Scott v. Scott (212 Ill. 597), was reached in 1904, and the Washington case, Husa v. Department of Labor and Industries (146 P.2d 191), was decided forty years later.
The facts in Scott v. Scott are sadly familiar: the case involves a will dispute among family members fighting over the goodies. Captain Luther Scott, who had served in the Union Army during the Civil War, died at the age of 67 in 1902. He left roughly $18,000 in personal property and real estate to his wife and son to enjoy during their lives. The will directed that if his son had no children, any funds remaining after the death of both wife and son were to pass to the American Swedenborg printing and Publishing Society for the publication and circulation of the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. The son, whose gambling debts and "somewhat dissolute life" had caused his father great anxiety, sued to overturn the arrangement. He alleged first that his mother and the publishing society had exercised undue influence over his father, and had compelled him to construct the will as he had. Further, argued the son, his father had been of unsound mind and memory at the time the will was made. The son pointed to Capt. Scott's adherence to the religious doctrines of Swedenborg as clear evidence of his father's insanity.
The court quickly dismissed the undue influence allegation, observing that not only was there no evidence that either Mrs. Scott or the publisher had urged Capt. Scott to make a will, but also neither of them even knew that a will had been made until after Capt. Scott died. It is for its holding on the other issue, however, that Scott v. Scott is so frequently cited: "No creed or religious belief," wrote the court, "in so far as it pertains to an existence after death, can be regarded as a delusion, because there is no test by which it can be tried and its truth or falsity demonstrated."

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New Church men and women may take great comfort in the court's conclusion: "It follows, therefore, that a belief in Swedenborgianism and enthusiasm manifested in propagating that faith furnish no evidence of monomania, insane delusion, or insanity."
The general applicability of the Scott decision was confirmed in 1907, in Owen v. Crumbaugh (28 Ill. 380), a case involving a similar will dispute over a sort of generic spiritualism, in which the court repeated its lengthy holding from Scott, including the "Swedenborgianism" language. Scott has been cited as a controlling authority in later cases throughout the century, and is still "good law" in Illinois.
A similar conclusion to that of Scott was reached by the Supreme Court of Washington in Husa v. Department of labor and industries of the State of Washington. Husa was a logger who suffered permanent physical and mental injuries when he fell twelve feet from a tree, landing on his head. The state Department of Labor denied his claim for workmen's compensation, arguing that he had been mentally unbalanced and suffered from debilitating delusions long before his accident. The department based its arguments on evidence that the other loggers thought Husa was unintelligent and "a little off because: (1) he was a vegetarian; and (2) he regularly failed to go to town with the other loggers to get drunk, fight, and carouse with women. In addition to these startling abnormalities, he was familiar with and spoke openly regarding the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg! The state supreme court upheld the jury's verdict that the evidence did not establish that Husa had always been unbalanced, and defended Swedenborg as "ranked as one of the greatest intellectuals of all time," who had influenced Coleridge, Browning, Carlyle, Beecher and Emerson.
From these decisions, then, we may legally conclude that any "enthusiasm" we may manifest for the New Church derives neither from mental instability nor from a severe blow to the head.

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     II. Kramph's Estate

     While Swedenborg was an issue in a few other decisions around the country, none are quite so colorful as the Scott and Husa cases. One, however, Kramph's Estate (228 Pa. 455, 77A. 814 (1910)) is undeniably the most important in terms of General Church history. In that decision, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court applied the legal principle of "cy pres" (in effect meaning "close enough) to hold that the estate of Frederick J. Kramph, valued at $38,785, should pass from its trustees to the Academy of the New Church in the Philadelphia suburb of Bryn Athyn. The dispute arose because Kramph's will emphatically specified that the money was to be placed in trust for the endowment of a New Church university "to be founded in the consolidated city of Philadelphia . . . for the education of New Church ministers, who are to teach the doctrine of the New Jerusalem as laid down in the writings of the Honorable Emanuel Swedenborg." Kramph's heirs argued that, because Swedenborg's writings were intrinsically immoral, the trust should be dissolved and the money distributed to them. The trustees, on the other hand, objected that the General Church was a suburban, schismatic body unknown to Kramph during his lifetime, and that therefore the Academy was disqualified by the will's requirement of an urban university. They preferred to keep the trust intact until either a suitable institution was founded by others, or the trust had grown large enough to adequately endow a university itself.
     The Kramph case was heard on appeal from the Orphans' Court of Lancaster County (1903, No. 104), which had agreed with the heirs that "the system of conduct and morals as professed by Swedenborg and as taught in his writings, is repugnant to the law of the land, and a bequest to endow an institution for the inculcation of such doctrine is void as offending against established public policy."

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The Pennsylvania Supreme Court summarily rejected that decision on the grounds that "while there are writings of Emanuel Swedenborg which may be susceptible of a construction which would make them obnoxious to certain of our common standards of morality, yet it does not appear that such writings [sic], at least not with that interpretation put on them which would make them offend . . . ." Perhaps not the most wholehearted endorsement, but certainly preferable to the Orphans' Court's observations.
     After dismissing the heirs' argument, the court held that an infusion of funds into an existing, substantial Swedenborgian institution, even one outside the Philadelphia city line, was more in keeping with the fulfillment of Kramph's intention than letting the money languish forever in trust for the future endowment of an urban college that showed no signs of springing into being. In any case, the endowment would be of insufficient size to be of any use to a struggling new institution. Moreover, the court observed, Kramph had died more than fifty years prior to the dispute, and in all that time no attempt had been made to found a New Church college within the confines of Philadelphia.
     As to the doctrinal objection, the court concluded that since both Convention and General Church doctrine were based on Swedenborg's writings, "it is not for [the court] to decide between them." Thus, both in terms of teaching and location, the Academy at Bryn Athyn was "close enough" to Kramph's vision to benefit from his generosity.

     III. Rendering unto Caesar

     The less spiritual issue of taxation was addressed by the New York Court of Appeals, New York's highest court, in Swedenborg Foundation, Inc. v. Lewisohn (40 N.Y.2d 86, 351 N.E.2d 702, 386 N.Y.S.2d 54 (1976)).

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In 1966, the American Swedenborg Printing and Publishing Society bought a three-story building in Manhattan. The second and third floors were leased to commercial tenants, and the basement and first floor were used by the foundation for its headquarters, library, and reading room. For six years the foundation's part of the building was free from New York's real property tax under a municipal law that exempted religious, charitable, and educational organizations from the tax. In 1972, however, the law was changed to allow the exemption to be withdrawn from organizations whose purpose was not exclusively religious, charitable, or educational. The city promptly did so with respect to the foundation.
The court first addressed the foundation's argument that its purpose was religious. Because the foundation's statement of corporate purpose did not mention a religious goal, and because its relationship with the institutional New Church appeared to be limited to an informal, incidental sharing of some common interests, the Court of Appeals rejected the argument. In addition, the court noted that the foundation's publications were in significant part not religious but composed of Swedenborg's "scientific" works.
The court also rejected the foundation's argument that it was an educational organization, observing that the foundation was not registered with the Department of Education, and that the mere dissemination of Swedenborg's writings and views was far removed from the actual teaching, instruction, or schooling envisioned by the lawmakers. The assertion that the foundation was a charitable institution was similarly rejected: "[A]lthough aspects of the foundation's activities may be loosely characterized as charitable or for the moral or mental improvement of men, women, or children . . . the primary purpose of this foundation [is] to disseminate the writings and views of Emanuel Swedenborg. Commendable and beneficial as this purpose is, . . . 'public benefit' is not the test of qualification for exemption." Not a happy outcome for the foundation.

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The court's holding that dissemination of religious and philosophical writings does not necessarily make an association or foundation a religious or educational organization under New York City's Real Property Tax Law has been frequently cited ever since. Whenever a theologically-oriented foundation's self-image conflicts with New York City's view of its efforts,
Swedenborg's name has been applied, and the frequency with which it is commonly cited in subsequent legal decisions ensures a sort of long-term name recognition-at least in legal circles.
Swedenborg and the New Church are referred to briefly in a 1978 case (37 T.C.M. (CCH) 1978-120 (1978)) involving tax fraud, but not the church itself. In it the U.S. Tax Court devotes three paragraphs to describing the institutional structure of the New Church and to listing nine books by and about Swedenborg. Because the references serve no other function, they are presumably included in order to distinguish Swedenborgianism from the taxpayer's allegedly evasive activities, which took place in the context of a very small independent church based on Swedenborg's writings. The church had never applied for tax-exempt status, and was headquartered in the minister's home, where its irregular services were attended principally by the minister's immediate family. The tax court, which apparently declined to apply the "wherever two or three are gathered" standard, characterized the church as a practically nonexistent artifice. Along with the Internal Revenue Service, the court took a dim view of the minister's failure to report roughly half his income, which took the form of checks made out to and deposited in the church's account, which he controlled exclusively. To the tax court it was a clear case of fraud and intentional tax evasion. This case, too, has been subsequently cited by courts, but with regard to its allowance of certain home office expenses deducted by the minister.

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     IV. Conclusions

     These cases represent some rare but significant appearances of the New Church in court. The question remains, what (if anything) can be learned from these cases? Has anything of broader value, more universal application, resulted? Consider how fortuitous-one might say providential-the outcomes are: Capt. Scott's "dissolute" son would have gained considerably had his father's will been thrown out as the product of an unclear mind, and a precedent would have been set that would have exposed every New Church member's will to attack as the product of lunacy. Mr. Husa would have been left to languish in destitution, unemployed and unemployable due to his injuries, had the court agreed with the state of Washington that his spiritual interests and failure to engage in drunken excess were evidence of mental weakness. The Academy of the New Church might not be as vital as it is today had Kramph's generous vision been abandoned in trust for an urban school, or had his faith been condemned as immoral and his estate divided among his heirs. And while it is true that the Swedenborg Foundation might have preferred a different outcome in its tax case, the decision does aptly illustrate that not only should what is Caesar's be rendered unto him, but that Caesar gets to decide what's his-a valuable lesson in church-state distinctions. The tax court case clearly distanced the-New Church from any association with individual transgressions.
     In all of the cases the New Church and Swedenborg are spoken of with appropriate judicial respect, and sometimes are openly praised. In none of them is there any suggestion that an association with the Writings is odd or strange, or any mention of the curious "cult" accusation that sometimes arises elsewhere. Rather, such accusations are consistently dismissed as baseless, and those who raise them are sent home empty-handed. Combined with the clearly positive outcomes for both the church and individuals, it can perhaps be said that the decisions do, at the very least, offer a consistent thread of providential encouragement: a vision of the New Church and the old state coexisting in a peaceable kingdom.

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Editor's note: This month a New Church man, Glen Klippenstein, running for the state senate in Missouri encountered attempts to discredit him on the basis of his religious affiliation. Mr. Klippenstein won the election on March 9th.
CELEBRATION OF TIME 1993

CELEBRATION OF TIME STEPHEN GLADISH 1993

      (A Speech Given in a Prison)

     This topic may seem strange to talk about if we are hungry, sick, lonely or in prison! Everybody does time, or kills time, but how many of us celebrate time? There are three elements of time I want to address: growth-rings, definitions, and the philosophy of time called carpe diem-seize the day; make the most out of time.
     Up on Mount Lemmon, near Tucson, in the visitors' center there is a 300-pound cross-section slab of a tree six feet in diameter. It still makes a statement. "Sir, I existed!" Solid yellow, full of substance and history, the slab has personality, gusto and permanence flowing from it. This tree was 700 years old when it was cut down. We can tell that by counting all the growth rings. The ring for 1492 is highlighted-a big date for us in the so-called civilized world; it was just a tiny blip in the immense history of that tree. Some rings are thick, others are so thin that only an expert can count them. Good years, bad years. The growth rings show a total of 700 trees within that one tree: 700 rings, 700 years, 700 dimensions of time.
     We are like a tree with growth rings. And our life is like a book, pages corresponding to rings.

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Our brain records every sensory experience, every thought or stimulation of the imagination. Our growth rings are in our memory. When certain electrodes are attached to our skull, vivid memories, emotions, even smells, of our childhood are immediately called to mind. Imagine that each year in our memory, our book of life, fills up with 52 more chapters. In our mind we can always review our life. When we face death, our whole life can flash before our eyes in a matter of seconds. Multiply those 52 chapters-one year-by how many years old you are. That's how many of you there are. You might have 20 good years and only one bad year in your growth rings, maybe only one bad chapter in your whole book of life. Or maybe it's ten good years and ten bad. Still, it's half good! But we may get suspended in a bad year, live in the past, and think we're all bad. We get stuck in a behavior that keeps us from flowing forward down Time's river. Your new year of growth will be followed by another year of growth. So let's not wait, hang around, or "veg out" by just doing time. Every year counts.
What is time? Look in a good dictionary. There are sixty-seven definitions of time. Is the purpose of time to reach a state of supreme happiness? Heaven? Nirvana? Eternal bliss? Many philosophers think so. Time is like a line that goes on forever. We live in a succession of Present time. Time is always changing. It is elastic. What time is it now? The second you stop looking at your watch is not now. Now is never real time. It's psychological; it's an attitude. ("Do it now!" is a popular T-shirt message.)
We say, "I had to wait forever!" We project our happiness into the future. When we are kids we cannot wait to be adults. We can't wait until we are famous. Fats Domino sang, "I'm gonna be a wheel someday. I'm gonna be somebody." When we are famous, we look for something more. George Harrison sang, "I really want to see you, Lord, but it takes too long, I know." When we are at the peak of our productivity, we think about retirement. When we retire, we wish we were working again.

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     But William Blake wrote, "Eternity lies in the tiny grain of sand, in the palm of your hand, in the space of an hour." Thoreau once said, "The present moment is as close as we can get to eternity." Walt Whitman wrote, "Every cubic inch of light and dark is a miracle; every cubic inch of space is a miracle."
     We don't have to wait forever. "Seize the day," "Carpe diem," as Robin Williams told his students in "Dead Poets Society-"Make your lives extraordinary." And as Robert Herrick once wrote: "The rose that blooms today, tomorrow will be dying." We must live for today. Make every day, every second, count. "The more interior and perfect the angels are, the less do they care for past things, and the less do they think of things to come . . . . From this comes their happiness" (AC 2493).
     As the Psalmist King David urged in the 90th Psalm, we must number our days (our growth rings?) to make our lives more valuable. A miracle can happen any moment-happiness too. Lincoln was right when he said, "People are about as happy as they make up their mind to be [alone or together]."
     Note the following passage from AC 1382: "Men cannot but confound the Divine Infinity with infinity of space; and as they have no apprehension of infinity of space except as of a nothing, which in fact it is, they do not believe in the Divine Infinity. Such also is the case with eternity, which men cannot conceive of except as an eternity of time, since it is presented by means of time to those who are in time. The true idea of the Divine Infinity is insinuated into the angels by the fact that they are instantly present under the Lord's sight, with no intervening space or time, even though they were at the farthest extremity of the universe; and the true idea of the Divine Eternity is insinuated by the fact that thousands of years do not appear to them as time, but scarcely otherwise than as if they had lived only a minute; and both ideas are insinuated by the fact that in their present they have past and future things together.

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Hence they have no solicitude about future things; nor have they ever any idea of death, but only the idea of life; so that in all their present there is the Lord's eternity and infinity."
We don't have forever to get to forever. We must treasure time, not squander it. Past and present telescope into this very second. When it comes to love, bonding, friendships, there is no time and space. "When a person is in a state of love or heavenly affection, he is in an angelic state of mind with no time and space" (AC 3827; see also SD 2190, 2956). For example, I left my hometown and returned twelve years later, and all the bonds I had made were still there-exactly the way I left them. I wonder why I left! I had friends all along and didn't know it! If we had a close relationship with family, friends or God (or whoever you believe is running the universe), we still have it! Don't wait. Seize the day, and make your life extraordinary. Be an actor, not a carpenter, if that's what you want. Tell that person you love her; never mind peer pressure. Stand on your desk for what you believe in. Reacquaint yourself with the other "you's." Contribute your verses to the great dramas of life. Be that other person you want to be. Feel that love you felt when you were younger and somebody thought you were a miracle. Do this now. (Remember, now is forever).

Note: Mr. Gladish does teaching and counseling in the Arizona prison system.
ANNIVERSARY IN CANADA 1993

ANNIVERSARY IN CANADA Editor 1993

Friends and former students are reminded that the Olivet Day School in Toronto will celebrate its 100th birthday over the weekend of April 30 to May 2, 1993.

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YOUR TIME 1993

YOUR TIME JOHN SABOL 1993

     There is a hymn which tells us, "There is no time in heaven!" And yet it is very difficult to realize the truth of this statement.
     "Time" on earth corresponds to "eternity"!
     Notice first that we find times very variable on earth. Three hours at play pass in a moment. Three hours of tossing sleepless on a bed seem endless and unendurable. So we can see that time depends on state, even in this world. But here we are tied to time. Our earthly life is in fact a continual struggle against the clock.
     And yet the Writings tell us that in the Word all times signify states (see AC 482, 2199, 2788, 3998, 4283:2, AE 664).
     The angels do not know what time is as mentioned in the Word. They do not know what a day or a year is, but they do know what a state is and its changes. Therefore, before the angels, what is of matter, space, and time disappears.
     The internal sense of the Word has no relation to times, and this is favored by the original language, in which one and the same word is applicable to any time whatever.
     Man (male or female) in a state of love is in the angelic state; thus man is as if not in time, provided he is in no impatience in his affections.
     The Writings tell us that impatience is a corporeal affection. And in proportion as man is in corporeal affections he is in time.
     That times signify states is because there are no times in the other life. The progression of the life of spirits and angels does appear as if in time, but they have no thought from time. The reason is that the progressions of their life are not distinguished into ages, because there are no days and years there, because their sun never sets! Thus it is that no notion of time enters into their thoughts, but a notion of state and its progressions enters.

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     There are three things which perish from the sense of the letter while it is becoming the internal sense, and they are time, space, and person. Time and space are proper to nature. Therefore it is said of those who die that they shall pass out of time, and leave behind all that is of time.
     Would it be a good idea for us to use this wonderful expression, "pass out of time," as the ancients did?
     The sun of the spiritual world remains constantly in its place. It is from this that there is a correspondence of states there with times here, namely, of a state of the good of love with morning, of a state of truth of faith with midday, and of an obscure state with evening and night.
     Earthly time is regulated by the movements of the earth around the sun, so that we need not be surprised to hear that heavenly time is something very different. Heavenly time is in fact freed from all such limitations. It depends entirely on the states of mind and life of the angels.
     From Arcana Coelestia 9213: "In heaven there are changes of heat as to these things which are of the good of love, and of light as to those things which are of the truth of faith, thus changes of love and of faith. In hell too there are changes, but opposite to the former ones . . . . These changes correspond to the changes of the seasons of the year on earth, which are spring, summer, autumn, and winter, and then spring again, and so on . . . . These changes are not the same with one as they are with another, but differ with everyone according to the state of life which he has acquired in this world."
     Now the Word of God tells us of these states, and therefore the times mentioned in it refer to them. For example, our Lord is spoken of as the "Dayspring from on high." We read of the "days of mourning" being ended. We meet the years of temptation and seasons of joyfulness, and every reference to time has its corresponding state.

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     Most striking of all are the constant repetitions, especially in the prophets, of expressions such as "in that day" or "at that time." In every case these refer either (1) to the coming of our Lord, or (2) to the church as a whole, or (3) to the church in each of us.
     The thought of the natural man cannot be separated from the idea of time. This inheres from our human nature. Thus neither can thought be separated from the idea of origin, because origin is in man a beginning in time.
     The appearance of the sun's progression has impressed this idea on our natural man. But the thought of the spiritual man is abstracted from the idea of time, because it is above nature.
     "It is impossible to think that nature is from eternity, or that nature is in time from itself. But it is possible to think that God is from eternity, and that nature together with time is from God" (AE 1130:3).
     Our notion of time becomes a notion of state when we enter the other life, when we pass out of time!
     Today we unfortunately do not suffer ourselves to be led and illuminated through the Word. We lead ourselves from our proprial intelligence (propria intelligentia). Thus we are in obscurity because our internal way is closed.
     May these thoughts on time cause you to use your time wisely here on earth!
KOREAN PUBLICATIONS 1993

KOREAN PUBLICATIONS Editor 1993

Last month we announced the publication of The Journey of Life in Korean. That translation was done by Mr. John Jin. Now we have seen some handsome Korean publications by Rev. Dzin Kwak of Seoul.

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LAST NIGHT I DREAMT 1993

LAST NIGHT I DREAMT Rev. Ray Silverman 1993

      (Written July 13, 1992)

     "Unless the New Church exists which shall abolish the faith in three Gods, and receive a faith in one God, thus in the Lord Jesus Christ, and which at the same time conjoins this faith with charity into one form, not any flesh could be saved" (Canons X:6).
     "'To reign with Christ' means to be wise and to do uses; for the kingdom of Christ, which is heaven, is a kingdom of uses. For the Lord loves all, and thence wills good to all; and good is use; and as the Lord does goods, or uses, mediately through the angels, and in the world, through men, He therefore, to those who do uses faithfully, gives the love of use and its reward, which is eternal bliss; and this is eternal happiness" (CL 7:3).
     Last night I dreamt I was asking some people if they knew why the New Church was so important. They didn't seem to know, although they were in the New Church.
     Suddenly I was overwhelmed with the most powerful feelings I have ever known.
     I burst into tears.
     The answer flooded forth: It's because the New Church teaches the importance of service. The Christian Church was destroyed through the false doctrine of faith alone. The New Church restores true Christianity. The life of use must be taught. The second coming was essential; otherwise no flesh could be saved.
     Rev. Ray Silverman

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Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     CHEAP LOVE

     In the February issue it was said, "Loving a partner in ways that come easy to us is cheap love, and often feels cheap to a partner."
     We are reminded of two sayings in Conjugial Love. One is from number 6: "Happiness within joys makes joys to be joys, enriching them and keeping them from becoming cheap." In the other number, wives from heaven say that they love their husbands to be "in delight from our delights; and if these become cheap to them, they also become dulled with us" (208).
     If you are married to a person, it would seem that you can take that person for granted and not worry too much about hurting or offending. Perhaps you relax concerns about stepping on feelings. But the Writings put a surprising emphasis on fear in love. "When someone loves another, does he not fear to do the other wrong? And does he not fear this the more, the more he loves?" (DP 140)
     Another passage is talking about fear in our relationship with the Lord. "Love that is devoid of reverential or sacred fear is as it were devoid of savor, or is like food unseasoned with salt and consequently insipid" (AC 3718).
     The mutual desire of mind and heart to do another every good can be seasoned with a mutual fear in mind and heart of bringing the other any hurt. This is the antithesis of cheap love.

     SAINT EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

     Subsequent to the publication of the article in the February issue, one of our ministers has met with Dr. Vredenburgh (mentioned on page 76). We hope to publish news of another meeting in the future.

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     March 22nd is the tenth anniversary of the elevation (by the St. Thomas Christians) of Swedenborg to sainthood. Dr. Van Dusen said, "I am quite certain Emanuel Swedenborg would have voted against his own canonization."
     In confirmation of this, here is something Swedenborg wrote as he began to realize what his mission would be. "While the thought occurred to me, as it often does, if it should happen that anyone took me for a holy man, and therefore made much of me, nay, as is done by some simple-minded folks, if they were not only to venerate me but even adore me as a supposed saint, I then perceived that in the zeal in which I then was, I would be willing to inflict upon him every evil even unto the extreme, rather than [to permit any such thing]" (Journal of Dreams 72).
     Besides showing Swedenborg's humility, this entry shows that even at that early date he had a sense of the historic role he would play in human history. It was some twenty-eight years later that he wrote: "The manifestation of the Lord in Person, and the introduction by the Lord into the spiritual world, both as to sight and as to hearing and speech, surpass all miracles; for we do not read anywhere in history that such intercourse with angels and spirits has been granted from the creation of the world" (Invitation 43).
MINISTERIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS 1993

MINISTERIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS Editor 1993

The following moves are effective July 1st, 1993: Rev. Wendel R. Barnett to be assistant pastor of the Olivet Church in Toronto, Canada; Rev. Jeremy F. Simons to be assistant pastor of the Immanuel Church in Glenview, Illinois; Rev. Stephen D. Cole to become pastor of the San Diego Society; Rev. Mark Perry to become pastor of the Atlanta, Georgia, Society; Rev. Chester Mcanyana to become pastor of the Impaphala Society in South Africa.

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ADVENTURES IN LEARNING 1993

ADVENTURES IN LEARNING Editor 1993

     Do you want to be part of the greatest experiment in summer education in the history of the Academy of the New Church and the General Church?
     The Theological School, the Academy College and the General Church Office of Education are co-sponsoring an educational program this summer in Bryn Athyn. A wide variety of courses is being planned in religion, science, education, mathematics, literature, psychology and technology.
     All courses will carry three credits, and some will carry graduate credit. Auditors will also be welcome in most courses.
     This program will be offered in two sessions: June 14-July 2 and July 6-24. Should you think about attending? You surely should if you are one of the following:
     A college student wanting to advance and improve your church and professional development
     A teacher wanting to refresh and develop your credentials and skills
     A minister wanting to stimulate and expand your priestly uses
     A layman wanting to feed and strengthen your affection for truth and the life of charity
     What a wonderful partnership! What a wonderful experience! Want to be part of it? Enrollment has already begun, so write or call soon for information.
     The General Church Office of Education
     Cairncrest - P.O. Box 743
     Bryn Athyn, PA 19009
     Phone: (215) 947-4661

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APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO THE ACADEMY GIRLS SCHOOL AND BOYS SCHOOL 1993

APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO THE ACADEMY GIRLS SCHOOL AND BOYS SCHOOL Editor 1993

Requests for application forms for admission of new students to the Academy Secondary Schools should be made by April 1, 1993. Letters should be addressed to Mrs. Robert Gladish, Principal of the Girls School, or Mr. T. Dudley Davis, Principal of the Boys School, The Academy of the New Church, Box 707, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Please include the student's name, parents' address, the class the student will be entering, the name and address of the school he or she is now attending, and whether the student will be a day or a dormitory student.
     Completed application forms should be forwarded to the Academy by June 30, 1993.
     Admission procedure is based on receipt of the following: 1. Application; 2. Transcript; 3. Pastor's recommendation; 4. Health forms.
     The Academy will not discriminate against applicants and students on the basis of race, color, and national or ethnic origin.
Title Unspecified 1993

Title Unspecified Editor 1993

Rev. Louis Synnestvedt (pictured here) will become Secretary of the General Church on July 1st. He is currently pastor of the Kitchener Society.
On the next two pages are photographs of the three theological candidates and the Dean of the Theological School, Rev. Brian Keith. Also Rev. Dzin Kwak of Korea, Rev. James P. Cooper, who is moving from South Africa to Washington, Rev. William Ankra-Badu of Ghana, Rev. David Lindrooth, Pastor in Stockholm.

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[Photographs of the Revs. Brian Keith, Kurt H. Asplundh, Peter M. Buss, and Derek Elphick.]

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[Photos of the Revs. Dzin Kwak, James P. Cooper, William O. Ankra-Badu, and David H. Lindrooth.]

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HOLY SUPPER 1993

HOLY SUPPER Rev. Michael D. Gladish 1993

     Communication
Dear Editor:
     The article by Rev. Grant Odhner on the holy supper (NCL, January 1993) was beautiful in its simplicity and comprehensiveness. It reminded me of the warm exhortation we received at the general assembly in June, 1991, from Rev. Prescott Rogers urging our young people, especially, to consider the uses of the sacraments and rites.
     I especially appreciated the encouragement Grant gave to see the power in the supper and to take full advantage of this.
     What I wonder-and have wondered for years-is whether people tend to stay away from the supper because they don't understand its use, or whether, in fact, they stay away because it simply doesn't affect them as they have been taught that it should. People talk about cognitive dissonance; I think there is some sort of emotional dissonance involved in the way we "do" the sacrament.
     Often, despite what we say and how hard we try, my experience is that there is very little joy in the holy supper and a fairly high level of anxiety or even fear. We tend to receive it not so much as a celebration of love and wisdom but as a reminder of our weakness and need. We enter into the ritual with great self-consciousness and concern not only about the sphere of the people around us but more deeply about our preparation inwardly before the Lord. For many it is an occasion filled with inner tensions.
     So my question is not so much, "How can we convince people to take advantage of the holy supper?" but "What can we do about this gut-level tension to make it a more joyful and uplifting experience?"
     In summer camps all over the church some very simple and effective new forms have been developed by means of which a real spirit of community has been fostered in the sacrament along with a most affecting reverence and joy in the Lord's presence.

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Of course these forms are not always suitable in an ordinary congregational setting. But in my own society in Toronto we have begun to experiment with special evening services (like the one in the Gospels) in which a peaceful and reflective sphere provides a basis for some new forms. These rituals, while still drawn from the Word, are designed to reflect a greater sense of congregational "communion" than we have in our traditional services, and to foster more a spirit of celebration than of introspection. Time, study, practice and continued reflection will tell how successful this program may be.
     Meanwhile, it is my hope that throughout the church we will be able to enjoy and support any sincere, thoughtful initiatives to make the holy supper more fulfilling emotionally as well as intellectually.
     Rev. Michael D. Gladish,
          Toronto, Canada
What is New Church Education? 1993

What is New Church Education? Editor 1993

Academy Secondary Schools
by Beth Johns
This second pamphlet in the series published by the General Church Office of Education has just been completed.
Written especially for parents of prospective students, it may also interest readers who would like an up-to-date picture of these schools.
Copies are available from the Office of Education, P.O. Box 743, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009, at $.75 per copy.

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ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH THEOLOGICAL SCHOOL, COLLEGE ANDSECONDARY SCHOOLS CALENDAR 1993-1994 1993

ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH THEOLOGICAL SCHOOL, COLLEGE ANDSECONDARY SCHOOLS CALENDAR 1993-1994 Editor 1993

     1993

Sept      3      Fri      New College resident students arrive on campus by 8:00 p.m.
          4-6      S-M      Orientation and registration for all new college students
     6      Mon      Returning College resident students arrive on campus
     7      Tue      Registration of upper-class college students
               Registration begins with all Secondary Schools local students
               Theological School classes begin
     8      Wed      Orientation for all new Secondary Schools students
               College classes begin
               Registration for all new Secondary Schools students
               Cathedral worship service for students, faculty, parents
     9      Thu      Classes begin for Secondary Schools
Oct      22      Fri      Charter Day:
                8:00 a.m. Annual Meeting of ANC Corporation (Pitcairn Hall)
                10:30 a.m. Charter Day Service (Cathedral)
                    9:00 p.m. Charter Day Dance (Society Building)
     23      Sat      7:00 p.m. Charter Day Banquet (Society Building)
Nov      8-12      M-F      College registration week for winter term
          20      Sat      Fall term ends for College and Theological School
          22, 23      M,T      Secondary Schools' mini trips
          23      Tue      Secondary Schools fall term ends and Thanksgiving recess begins
          28      Sun      Resident students return (Secondary Schools by 8:00 p.m.)
          29      Mon      Winter term begins in all schools
Dec      17      Fri      Christmas recess begins at 12:20 p.m.

     1994

Jan      2      Sun      Resident students return (Secondary Schools by 8:00 p.m.)
     3      Mon      Classes resume in all schools
Feb      21      Mon      Presidents' Birthday-Secondary Schools holiday
          21-25      M-F      College registration week for spring term
Mar      3      Thu      College and Theological School winter term ends
     4      Fri      Secondary Schools winter term ends
          13      Sun      Resident students return (Secondary Schools by 8:00 p.m.)
          14      Mon      Spring term begins in all schools
April 1      Fri      Good Friday holiday
May      6      Fri      Semi-annual meeting of Academy Corporation
               Academy Evening
          16-20      M-F      College registration for fall term
          31      Mon      Memorial Day holiday
June      3      Fri      Secondary Schools' Senior Dinner (Glencairn)
               College Graduation Dinner
               Graduation Dance (Glencairn)
     4      Sat      Graduation (Field House)

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1993 WOMEN'S RENEWAL WEEKEND AT LUTHERLYN 1993

1993 WOMEN'S RENEWAL WEEKEND AT LUTHERLYN Editor 1993

     Theme: Losing Your Life to Find It: "He that findeth his life shall lose it; and he that loseth his life for My sake shall find it" (Matt. 10:39).
     When: Friday, April 30, 5:00 p.m. through Sunday, May 2, 1:00 p.m.
     Where: Camp Lutherlyn, Prospect, PA (north of Pittsburgh)
     Cost: $60; students $50; deposit $20
     Lose your life? Yes. The Lord calls us to a better life, and that means we often must challenge what is familiar, comfortable, predictable and safe that we hold onto in this life in order to find the life God intends for us. Join us at Camp Lutherlyn to take on this challenge with the support and inspiration of women willing to share the journey.
     Please send in your deposit to Claudia Lindsay to receive a registration form, or call Tryn or Trish for more information.
     Claudia Lindsay, Registrar      Tryn Clark                Trish Lindsay
972 Sarver Road           3835 Smithfield Ave.      186 Iron Bridge Rd.
Sarver, PA 16055           E. Lansing, MI 48823      Sarver, PA 16055
(412) 353-2227           (517) 351-2880           (412) 295-2316
WHEREVER MAN IS 1993

WHEREVER MAN IS Editor 1993

The spiritual world is wherever man is and in no wise away from him. In a word, every man, as regards the interiors of his mind, is in that world, in the midst of spirits and angels, and he thinks from its light and loves from its heat. Divine Love and Wisdom 92

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SWEDENBORG: Life and Teaching 1993

SWEDENBORG: Life and Teaching Editor 1993

     Announcements

     SWEDENBORG: Life and Teaching
George Trobridge
Revised by
Richard H. Tafel, Sr.
Richard H. Tafel, Jr.
     This most popular book about Swedenborg and the basic doctrines of the New Church is once again in print. It has been revised and reprinted in softcover by the Swedenborg Foundation.
     $9.50 plus $1.05 postage

General Church Book Center                         Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or appointment
Box 743, Cairncrest                                    Phone: (215) 947-3920
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

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Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

Vol. CXIII April, 1993 No. 4
NEW CHURCH LIFE

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     "Isaac or laughter is tremendously important!" (p. 151). One of our editorials this month is inspired by the sermon in this issue.
     There seem to be so many good books and pamphlets to review. Will we ever catch up? See the mention of Connections in this issue. And see at last a review of a book that has been around for several years but has not been sufficiently advertised. It is called Escape from Egypt. The reviewer sees it as an excellent choice as a graduation gift.
     New Church Life is basking in approving comments from parents and teachers concerning the publication of the series on the philosophy of education. People say the first two installments were so good. I think what we have this month may be even better. See what you think.
     There is a letter in this issue about Warren's Compendium. This has for years been a fantastic buy for $5.00. By popular request it has been reprinted, and the price has tripled. But for a 760-page hardback isn't $15.00 still a good price? It is available from the Swedenborg Foundation and the General Church Book Center.
     On the page opposite are remarks on the Lord's lifting us up. Could it be said that the Lord glorifies us? See the quotation below.
GLORIFIES HIM 1993

GLORIFIES HIM Editor 1993

By conflicts and temptations in the world the Lord glorified His Human, that is, made it Divine; in like manner now with man individually, when he is in temptations, the Lord fights for him, conquers the evil spirits who are infesting him, and after temptation glorifies him, that is, renders him spiritual.
True Christian Religion 599

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HE IS RISEN AND LIFTS US UP 1993

HE IS RISEN AND LIFTS US UP Editor 1993

     "The Lord is risen indeed." That was the joyful news shared by the disciples.
     On Palm Sunday He had said, "if I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all peoples to Myself."
     Are we aware of an uplifting influence? "So long as a person lives in the world he does not know that he is raised up above his proprium, because he does not feel it, and yet there is an elevation or as it were a drawing of man's interior will toward the Lord, a turning of man's face in respect to his spirit toward the Lord" (AE 646).
     In the gospel of John the Lord speaks of lifting people up, and the Writings affirm that what we perceive to be our own effort is the Lord's uplifting to Himself (see AC 9378:2). A striking entry in the Spiritual Diary says, "The power of His mercy is of such a nature that He wills to draw all people into eternal happiness, thus unto Himself. I have also on one occasion so manifestly felt such a living attraction that I can know with certainty that there is such a force, and what it is like" (1104).
     As in the northern hemisphere we experience the springtime and celebrate the rising of the Lord, we may rejoice in the knowledge of a pervasive sphere, hidden but powerful. "There is actually a sphere proceeding continually from the Lord and filling the entire spiritual and natural worlds which raises all toward heaven. It is like a strong current in the ocean which unobservedly draws a vessel. All who believe in the Lord and live according to His precepts enter that sphere or current and are lifted up" (TCR 652),

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GOD HAS MADE ME LAUGH, AND ALL WHO HEAR WILL LAUGH WITH ME 1993

GOD HAS MADE ME LAUGH, AND ALL WHO HEAR WILL LAUGH WITH ME Rev. CHRISTOPHER D. BOWN 1993

      We all know that there are two kinds of laughter. One kind of laughter helps us! It uplifts and inspires us. It can even heal us. Yet we know all too well that there is another kind of laughter. It's the kind of laughter that hurts us. It makes us sad and depresses us. It can even wound us and make us sick.
     These two opposing kinds of laughter are expressed in the story we have today about the little boy Isaac and his brother Ishmael. We have an innocent, child-like laughter shown right in the very name Isaac (which means laughter). This also is the laughter that Sarah spoke about when she said, "God has caused me to laugh, and all who hear will laugh with me."
     Then, on the other hand, there is the laughter shown by Ishmael, the older, teenage brother. Ishmael was found laughing at-mocking, ridiculing-his little brother Isaac the day that there was a feast to mark Isaac's being weaned.
     Two kinds of laughter: Isaac and Ishmael; two ways of laughing that we can find right within our own life as well. And the moment we become aware of the two of them side by side-the moment we feel our highest hopes and dreams wounded by our own cynical and negative attitudes-we know that a big change is needed inside us.

     The laughter of Ishmael has to be banished from our life, just as Ishmael had to be banished. Otherwise the Divine inheritance that comes from the Lord, the laughter of the little boy Isaac, cannot grow within us.
     Have you ever watched a little child grow up? One of the first ways a little child expresses her humanity is to laugh. A tiny baby who looks up at her mother's face, sees a smile there or hears a gentle cooing, just laughs with joy! She laughs as well when she sees colors move in front of her face, perhaps a red woolen ball or a toy made with the colors of the rainbow.

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     Little children laugh naturally. They laugh with an excitement and joy of learning about this exciting world we live in. Every single thing that strikes them as exciting and thrilling brings a laugh and a smile to their faces.
     The laughter little children have comes from the angels who are present with them. The angels present are those closest to the Lord. Those angels feel the Divine, which is Life itself, as being present in every single experience they have. And they see all things as laughing, all things as playful, everything as being alive. Their laughter is shared with little children, with tiny babies, when they laugh.
     As we grow up, a different kind of laughter comes into our lives. When we enter our teenage years, perhaps even earlier, when we are trying to make friends, when we are trying to be part of a group, we begin to laugh at other people, often with a kind of ridicule. We make fun of people who are not like ourselves. We laugh at or make fun of people who wear different kinds of clothes, who like different music, perhaps people who read books or who like school-whatever. We try to form friendships with others by laughing at people who are not like ourselves.

     At that point in life we feel a little bit uncomfortable with ourselves. We feel uncertain about who we are. We are unsure of our identity and our acceptance by our peers. It becomes so easy to laugh at others to define ourselves. This is part of life, a part of growing up. Yet we can lose touch with heaven if we exclude others and cut them off, if we hurt them or injure them through laughter.
     We know how much it can hurt because during teenage years in particular we can feel the hurt or the wound of being laughed at. We know how much it hurts and wounds to be the butt of a mean joke.
     But often people continue with this kind of laughing at others through much of their life, often through teasing, particularly teasing that becomes unmerciful.

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We all probably know people who are like that, who can tease in a way that can wound or hurt others.
     So often our adult sense of humor is just a continuation of the kind of humor we had when we were uncomfortable and awkward with ourselves as teenagers-unless, that is, we open up and are born anew from the Lord; unless we start to become angels ourselves. Then there is a new origin of laughter within ourselves. We no longer laugh at other people, but we laugh with them, If we laugh with anyone, we laugh at ourselves, and we invite others to laugh with us, just as Sarah said, "God has made me laugh, and all who hear will laugh with me."
     It's rather astonishing that in the revelation of the Old Testament almost all the stories about laughter deal with Isaac: the promise that Isaac would be born, the very name of Isaac, Sarah's excitement that she had participated in the birth of this little boy, Ishmael's laughing at or mocking his little brother.
     And many years later when Isaac was married, Isaac and Rebekah his wife were found laughing together and being playful on a rooftop, showing their love for one another. We have a picture of how heaven can be present right within the intimate laughing and playfulness of a husband and wife.
     Almost all the stories in the Word about laughter are the ones that center on Isaac. There must be something special and significant here.
     Isaac's birth and his early years give us a picture of the beginning of what is truly human. Whenever "Isaac" is mentioned, he represents the tender, innocent states of what is truly human within ourselves from the Lord in our adult years of life. Isaac is the deepest feeling within us of being alive from the Lord. It's like the thrill and excitement of being on an adventure that's not just for this world, but an adventure that will take us onward to eternity. It's an adventure of living with other people, sharing our life with them, doing things that are fun and interesting with them.

151

But it especially is an adventure of being of use and being of service, doing things that are good and positive and useful for and with others, sharing the laughter of heaven.
     Isaac as a tiny baby who has just been born and named is the beginning point-a tiny start within us-of that thrill and excitement of being alive, of responding with others to the Lord's presence and His love.
     Most profoundly, Isaac is the beginning within the Lord of His Divine Humanity. The humanity that the Lord had from the Father, that infinite love within Him, begins with the birth of Isaac.
     So Isaac or laughter is tremendously important! The beginning of the Divine Humanity of the Lord is embodied right in the word "laughter." The beginning of humanity in us is pictured right in the word "laughter."
     Perhaps an easy way for us to wake up to this feeling is to laugh at ourselves every day. If we realize our own shortcomings, if we realize our faults, if we relax enough to realize that our problems are not so serious as we might feel them to be, if we can laugh at ourselves every day, we regain a true feeling for reality. We gain a sense of perspective. We are responding with an affection for the truth. We have a sense of humility about ourselves. We realize we make mistakes, like others, and we'll learn from them; we'll go forward with a new day, The Lord is there to help us. We don't need to do it all by ourselves.
     The ability to laugh at ourselves is like a kind of repentance. It is a kind of humility about ourselves and a willingness to move forward with our life and to change.
     Let's not focus only on ourselves, however. We can reach out and help others when we help them laugh. Remember the story of the paralyzed man who was carried on a stretcher up to the top of the roof so that he could come close to the Lord and be healed. Being carried by his friends up to the rooftop is like being carried up into heaven. That can happen just by helping someone laugh.

152

     When others are sad or anxious or even depressed, if we can help get them to laugh with us, a good hearty laugh perhaps, then it is as if we carry them up into the sphere of heaven. We help bring them back in touch with human reality-the living Divine truth of the Lord's love for us, this amazing world He has created, and all the funny people like ourselves who are only human. Laughter is vital!
     Laughter or Isaac is the beginning of true humanity both for us and for others. That also means that it pictures the beginning of the New Church within us as well. We have many wonderful ideals, we have been blessed with many wonderful teachings, but just having them and knowing them does not make the church in our lives. The seed of the New Church sprouting and growing within us in a living way is pictured by Isaac-that thrill and excitement of being alive from the Lord, of responding to the reality of truth not just intellectually but with the whole of our life-with laughter.
     An essential of the New Church, we can say then, is embodied in the name Isaac-the wonder of being alive from the Lord, the thrill of exploring this wonderful world He has created, the excitement of seeing uses we can do and then doing them with other people in healthy, positive ways. This is heaven! This is how the New Church really begins in us.
     So often we see traditional religions being very serious, very heavy, sobering. Yet this is not at all a basic quality of the life of heaven. The angels who are closest to the Lord have a sense of the Divine in all the experiences they have. They have a thrill and excitement in responding to the life that is inflowing inside of them, and they see it expressed in the experiences outside of them. And so everything outside of them seems to be laughing, playful, and alive.
     This points to the real vitality of the religion that we have in the New Church. In our own personal life it comes with our spiritual rebirth. It comes from the Lord. It comes from our free participation and our willing response as we take the Lord's teachings and not just respond to them intellectually, but respond to them by living them instantly.

153

We take the Lord's teachings and apply them to bring our life into harmony with the infinite Divine truth, with what is reality itself.
     The Lord will stir our hearts in myriad ways. An innocent laugh can be one of the most profound ways. And it can be one of the most profound ways we share our life with others.
     What an amazing thing!-that we can be like Sarah in our urgent desire to feel alive, our feeling of being part of reality. We can say with Sarah that God has caused us to laugh and, for all who hear-all who actually do hear, of whatever religion, in whatever church, with whatever upbringing or background-that laughter will strike a responsive chord with them. God has caused us to laugh and all who hear will laugh with us. Amen.
     Lessons: Genesis 21:1-12; Luke 5:17-26; AC 2071, 2072:1, 3 (parts); HH 489:3Arcana Coelestia 2071, 2072:3 (parts)

     That "Abraham fell on his face" means worship . . . . "And he laughed" means the affection for truth.
     This becomes clear from the origin and basic nature of laughter. In its origin it is nothing other than the affection for truth or the affection for falsity, which produces the hilarity and pleasure exhibited in the face by means of laughter. This shows that the basic nature of laughter is nothing else . . . .
     That "laughter" here means the affection for truth becomes clear from the fact that this verse records Abraham's having laughed, as did Sarah both before Isaac was born and after, and also from the fact that he was given the name Isaac from "laughter," for the word "Isaac" means laughter . . . .

154

And so after Isaac's birth, "Abraham called the name of his son Isaac (laughter). Sarah said, 'God has made laughter for me; everyone hearing of it will laugh with me'" (Gen. 21:3, 6). Unless "laughing" and the name Isaac, which means laughter, embodied such things, these details would never have been mentioned.

Heaven and Hell 489:3

Those who have applied the teachings of the church which are from the Word immediately to life are in the inmost heaven, and surpass all others in their delights of wisdom. In every object they see what is Divine . . . . Thus before their eyes all things seem to be laughing, to be playful, and to be alive.
CONNECTIONS 1993

CONNECTIONS Editor 1993

We were hoping to have a review (February issue p. 83) of the offerings from the New Church Women's Symposium which is entitled Connections. The aspiring reviewer has asked to be excused, and we don't blame her. It would be quite a task to do justice to this unique volume.
Co-editor Kara John Tennis writes: "The New Church Women's Symposium was a coming together of women of all ages from around the United States and Canada. The title of this volume conveys the union of purpose we felt in spite of our diversity; we all came to explore the issues of our lives in the light of the church."

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PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION 1993

PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION Rev. GEORGE DE CHARMS 1993

     Part III

     BY RT. REV. GEORGE DE CHARMS

     Education has not been sufficiently sincere. It has not gone to the root of things, but has been satisfied with superficiality.
     People try to find the answer in some new method of education. They say we must teach in a different way. We must try to stir more interest. There must not be too much insistence upon external discipline. Rather, we must arouse a sense of success and encourage self-expression on the part of our students so that they will really take an interest in learning. Suppose we do succeed in getting our students interested in learning; and yet when they have learned, they still regard the purpose of their training as merely to succeed in some superficial accomplishment, in attaining skill and efficiency. That doesn't go to the root of human nature. In my view the task of New Church educators is to put a spirit of sincerity into their teaching, a sincere belief that what they are teaching has a spiritual value. They must have a determination to find out what that is, and to transmit some knowledge of it to their students. I think that so far as this is done, it will make a tremendous difference in the results of education.
     The ambition to bring together spiritual and natural or cultural values, from a standpoint of a teacher, is like finding out how to make glass out of sand, glass which by the arrangement of all its particles will allow the light to pass through it, the light of heaven. All the facts and all the experiences and all the knowledges we can gather from the material world are like grains of sand. They are intended to minister to our spiritual intelligence, to our ability to understand spiritual things.

156

They are intended to let the light of heaven through, and that can be done if they are arranged in the order of heaven. If they are not, they become opaque and we see only the grains of sand and nothing through them. I think that no New Church teacher should be satisfied with any course of instruction unless, to some extent, that is being done. The actual facts and knowledges that are imparted are so arranged that they allow the light of heaven to shine through, so that right in those facts-not in theological abstraction but in those facts, in the very experience of learning them-we come to see something of spiritual truth, something of the face of the Lord and the end of Providence, something of the purpose that is back of it all, and the way in which facts should be used in accordance with that purpose.
That is a very good theory, you will say. It sounds all right but how are we to do that? Well now, you have asked me something, and I am quite prepared to admit that to do that is not so easy. It is going to be a slow and gradual process. But then everything in the whole world that has ever been of any value at all has been achieved only by a slow process of learning, fired by a determination, an inner vision of what can be accomplished. If we have that inner vision and are devoted to it, then gradually, through generations, the ability to do what I have spoken of will grow and increase in power and perfection, for it is the truth. If we follow that truth, we are far more apt to achieve something of success than if we say, "Oh, that is all right-good theory, but too far off. We will just continue to do the thing everybody else is doing. That way we can accomplish something." If we take that road, it is a dead end. If we take the other road, it may be longer but it will go on through and will arrive somewhere eventually.
Let's not make the mistake of supposing that because we have a Divine revelation in the Writings which gives us these principles, that therefore we already have New Church education. We have not. We have just learned something about it. We have an idea of what it might be, a vision that will inspire us.

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We have been given by the Lord the means by which that vision can be accomplished, but it is only by undivided application and effort to that ideal that New Church education in actuality will ever come into being.
     We spoke of another kind of education. This one was to prepare man for complete living, to fit a man for his place in human society, to have an objective efficiency in any profession or business. What is set as the goal is success, and in order to succeed, it is clearly evident that the man must understand the conditions of his environment and must train himself to meet those actual conditions adeptly. He must recognize the customs and the ideas and the prejudices of those around him, and be able to turn them to his own advantage,
     What are we going to say about this idea of success? Many of our people will say that if we ignore that end and simply give a religious training without reference to it, we will fail, because after all, people have to live in the world. They have to succeed on earth, and life after death comes only after they have gone through this success or failure on earth. And so when we have talked about education for heaven, they say, "What are we going to do in the meantime?" I don't think myself that we ought to be opposed to success. I have combated a false idea which I find in many places among New Church people that any ambition for success is wrong, as if we should train our young people not to have any ambition for success. That is a great mistake. The only difference is that we want it to be real success, not a false success that will in the end be utter disappointment. There should be ambition for real success because real success means a real use to the neighbor, and that is the very foundation of happiness. The greater success we can have in such a use, the greater preparation we can have for life after death. That is real!
     There is nothing against success as a goal, and so it is perfectly true that we must consider the actual conditions that we are facing, the actual situation around us, the psychology of the people we come in contact with, the trends of thought and of emotion stirred in the society in which we move.

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If we don't understand them, we will certainly not succeed in our relation to them.
We must be willing to face the facts, and our objective should be not only that we adapt ourselves to the conditions so that we can externally succeed, but our inner objective should also be to adjust ourselves to the Divine will. That is a very different thing from merely saying, "Here is a certain set of conditions, and if we understand them properly we can turn them to our advantage," so that we can succeed in a worldly sense. Our idea of success should be a real service to our neighbors, not a superficial service for which they are willing to give us adequate return. Our service must be genuine and it must go back to what is spiritual and eternal with them and with us.
I know perfectly well that in the last analysis our best efforts will only be clumsy in this respect. I know that the real thing that I am talking about has to be done by the Lord, because He alone has the wisdom and the power to accomplish it, but I also know that through the revelation of the laws of the relation between spiritual and natural things as now given in the Writings, there is a new opportunity offered to men. This means that in their effort to understand and to carry out sincerely what they understand, they may have a part in what the Lord does which has never before been possible. I consider that to be the important difference that there is going to be in the future. Men will have an intelligent part in that work and will find their joy and their delight in it. It will thus be possible for the Lord to impart spiritual wisdom and spiritual delight, happiness and joy that could not be given in any other way. This will bring heaven and earth into cooperative relationship with each other as never before. Isn't that what is meant by the kingdom of God being with men? Is there anything that would be of greater value than to so infill the whole spirit of man's civilization so that it is in cooperation with the Providence of the Lord-an operation of heaven among men?

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I would consider this as a different ideal of success toward which our education is to look, and I think that it requires a different kind of teaching, yet a kind of teaching that is no longer beyond our grasp if we make the most of the opportunity that is given us by virtue of the truth now revealed in the Writings.

     Vocational Training

     The ambition to educate everyone is a relatively modern undertaking. Previously, education was reserved for certain classes of people, and it was not thought feasible to educate everyone, but in very modern times the ideal of educating everyone has been rapidly spreading. This is especially so in our own country, but also in England and in some of the European countries. This idea has presented many problems new to education because of the fact that there are types of minds that do not respond to the older form of book-learning. The problem of how to train or educate them was taken up with a good deal of scientific interest, to try to find out by actual experiment how it might be done.
     Vocational training in its beginning was merely a formalization of what had been done before through apprenticeship, by getting training under those who were actually doing the work. It was also an adaptation to the needs and requirements of mechanized industry. In its beginning, at any rate, it was hardly to be called education, if by that was meant any attempt to develop mental faculties. The object was to train the body in skills, and the mind was to take care of itself on its own, which to a considerable extent, astonishingly, it does. We learn a great deal and gain a great deal in mental development by application to physical skill; there is no question about that. Nonetheless the type of training that was characteristic of vocational schools was lacking in its ability to rouse interest in intellectual or mental development.

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There have been a good many attempts to overcome this, and the more modern developments are in the direction of combining intellectual training with mechanical training and physical training. We have a good many illustrations of that. Throughout the country, schools have been established with that idea, and have tried to carry it out, in various ways combining physical training and mental training. In many respects it has been found very successful-more successful, even from the standpoint of certain types of intellectual development, than mechanical training and the purely academic studies of the traditional college course.
Yet here again the final attitude toward life, the recognition of spiritual values, makes a great difference. Looking no further than external success, the ability to become proficient in something so that we can make money or so that we can have security against want, in itself does not present a very exalted type of education. Nor does it produce results that will make for the truest welfare of society. Unless we recognize that the making of a living, the proficiency in an occupation, is not an end but a means, not a means merely to a personal return but a means toward performance of a higher use, then our concept of vocational training will fall short of what is needed. And that is the case today to a very large extent. There is much failure to develop character, real character, because of the lack of any religious motive. If there is no religious motive, the development of character in the true sense is impossible. What so frequently is developed is the idea of apparent efficiency and skill in bluffing, the ability to get by with as little effort as possible, and the appearance of success. And even where that is discouraged because it doesn't work, because it will not bring lasting results even with reference to worldly success, still the inner character that I am speaking of fails to be developed. What is needed is a respect for use itself, for work as a use to others and use as a spiritual thing, not merely as a mechanical ministration to bodily or external wants.

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Anyone who really loves his work finds delight in the quality of whatever he produces and in giving a full return for whatever recognition he receives from society. When real character is developed, one would not stoop to accept success without a return in value. But there is no incentive to do that unless there is some recognition of a spiritual law, unless there is some idea of a life after death.
If it is only a matter of this world, why not make the most of the time we have and get the greatest return for ourselves, if that is all there is? Honor and character depend upon the acknowledgment of spiritual values. Without that they do not mean anything. So it becomes of extreme importance that in vocational education, as in the other kinds spoken of, religion shall be present as a theoretical background of our thought. And we must also study how that religion can be made the actual driving force behind our education, how it can be made to modify and develop our teaching so that a religious life will result. That cannot be done unless we have religion in the teaching itself, as part of it, not as something that is done somewhere else. It is the very center of what we are trying to accomplish in vocational as in all other training. There is also another thing involved in it, with reference to which there has been but little advance so far, and this is the development of the higher faculties of the mind by means of vocational training.
I believe very firmly in the ideal of a universal education. I think every human being born into the world has just as much right and just as much need for all we can do for him in the way of education as every other human being, regardless of social standing or intellectual background. Universal education is right. It is true that not all people can be educated in the same way, and that there is need for different kinds of schools adapted to the different types of mind. Not everybody is able to take a college education, as it is now understood and taught, but every human being born into the world has the capacity to receive intelligence and wisdom and to be perfected in these to eternity.

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And that means that if we are to cooperate with the Divine Providence, we also must seek to enrich the store of knowledge and intelligence that is made available.
     I believe that the time will come when we will be able to do far more in this way through educational training than has ever been done up to the present time. I think it needs far more knowledge of the mind and the varieties of human intelligence and the modes of developing them than we now have. But I think that in the New Church the ideals should not be confined to a purely academic training that forces everyone through the same kind of knot-hole, and says if they can't achieve education by the means that society has developed, they can just do without it. I believe there should be every intention and effort in the future to develop education that is adapted to various forms of mind, but all with a view of developing mental faculties and appreciation of intellectual things and spiritual things.
     We get discouraged in the classroom sometimes and think it is almost impossible to get the response we want, and yet if we take the long view and watch the development of some of the pupils with whom we have been most discouraged, we frequently find that astonishing things happened that we tried to do and couldn't. They happened as a result of some kind of mental development that is going on without our help. Does that not indicate that the fault lies with us in the way we have approached it rather than in the failure of the individual to receive it? I think that the study of the mind that is possible as a result of the revelation now given in the Writings will open up entirely new fields of education.
     However, let us realize that this is not going to happen suddenly. The fact that we see the possibility of it is not going to bring it to pass. The New Church at the present time is by no means in a position to set out, like Don Quixote, against that windmill in a grand reform movement that is going to change everything.

163

We can't do it.
     I look forward to the day when our schools have increased in size and we are able to provide a complete education. I look forward to the day when there will be far greater variety in types of education adapted to the needs of various forms of mind. And this will include what is now called vocational training, I have no doubt. But I believe that when that time comes, vocational training will be far more than a mere physical training of the body to fit a man for a specific occupation. It will have in view, in the last analysis, fitting that man also for society in this world and a use in the other world, and therefore will promote the development of those God-given mental faculties that are the basis of all the uses in the other world.

     Learning and the Affections

     What we have been talking about is the ultimate goal and aim of education, what we are looking forward to in the future when we train children. But what about the immediate goals? What about the needs right in front of us that we are trying to meet now in any grade we are teaching? In regard to this there is also a great difference in view that arises from the teaching of the Writings, and we would refer to n. 618 of the Apocalypse Revealed where we read that " . . . to learn is to perceive interiorly in one's self that a thing is so, which is to understand and thus to receive a knowledge. He who learns in any other way learns and doesn't learn, because he doesn't retain." Let me repeat that because it is very important: " . . . to learn is to perceive interiorly in one's self that a thing is so" (not only to hear it in one ear and let it slip out the other), to " . . . perceive in one's self that a thing is so, which is to understand and thus to receive a knowledge. He who learns in any other way learns and doesn't learn, because he doesn't retain."

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     The most important question of the educator then is, "What is retained?" How can we be sure that things that are really important shall be retained? How can we know what should be retained? This has a great influence on our answer to the question of when to teach so and so, what we should teach at any given age or period, and how we should teach it. And this all depends upon our answer to the question, "When can certain things best be retained? What should be retained at a given age and how can they be taught so that they will be retained?"
Children cannot learn those things for which the mind is not yet prepared, things that the mind has not matured to the point where it is able to perceive within itself. This is really a matter of growth or maturation, not a matter of education. We may tell these things to children many, many times, and they may be impressed on their memories, but they won't be able to truly learn them because the children will not see them in themselves. They will not really understand them. They will just remember them as formulas.
     One of the greatest difficulties in education, I think, lies in the fact that we very frequently try to teach things for which the mind is not yet prepared. We try to force an understanding prematurely, and so we waste a tremendous amount of effort trying to do something that can't be done. Therefore the most important thing-if we want to get at the immediate effects of our teaching-is to study the capacity of pupils so that we may be led to teach the things they are, in some measure, capable of really understanding.
     Now this doesn't mean that we must confine our teaching to those things that a child can fully understand. It certainly doesn't mean that he will understand all that is involved in what we teach. He may understand very little of what is involved in what we are teaching. As a matter of fact, we ourselves understand but a very little of what is involved in what we are teaching, if you reflect on it, but there must be an element in what we are teaching that the child can understand, and that element must be the center of our approach.

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That must be where we focus the child's attention. Within this there will be deep mysteries that a child will vaguely perceive that will urge him on to learn more, but which he doesn't grasp at all at the time. There will be mysteries not yet unfolded, into the realization of which he can come only by growing. He gets hungrier for more because he perceives something of these mysteries that lie still buried in the little he has learned. But there must also be a meaning that he is prepared to grasp at the time, and which thus constitutes for him a delight, a revelation, an opening of something new to his mind that gives him joy.
Now let us ask, "What determines a child's capacity to learn?" Most fundamentally it is determined by the form of mind with which he is endowed from birth. It is also determined primarily not by his experience but by his growth and maturation and the affections (the loves) that are active at the time. That is what determines his capacity. Experience is the means of awakening those affections, and out of his experience we find the means to arouse those affections in the classroom by illustrations of things that the child has experienced and that have given him delight. But what he will learn, in the sense of perceiving interiorly and in himself, will depend upon the affection that is roused, the delight, the interest.
Now let us note this. Modern educators understand this law in a general way, and they make a great deal of arousing the interest of children-motivating their learning, as they say. Let me point out that back of that there lies something much deeper, having a great effect on them, and that is the spiritual associations of the children. Infants, because they are in innocence, are surrounded by celestial angels. They are in the sphere of celestial affections and, because those affections are aroused in them by the celestial angels present with them, it is possible for them to learn the very deepest truths-to learn, mind you, in the sense of perceiving within themselves the very deepest truths, and to acquire by this means of perception of things that later they can't learn because they are no longer in those celestial associations.

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The only time when those deepest truths can be learned is at the time that the Lord has provided for that purpose, during the state that is called infancy. That is what it is for in the sight of the Lord above everything else-to learn certain things that are going to be permanently important to their later life, especially to their spiritual life after death. When those children grow older, their innocence wanes, their proprial evils begin to appear; their attendant celestial angels retire and are replaced by spiritual angels. Then those deepest things can no longer be learned, but other things important to their life can be learned. I want to emphasize the fact that there is much more here than is understood by modern educators.
The capacities of children to learn at any given age are dependent not so much upon their experience as upon the affections that are developed by growth, and these affections are the result of influx from the spiritual world. They are produced by the spiritual associations of the angels. These associations change as children grow, and this change in spiritual associations is what produces the differences among infancy, childhood and youth. In infancy, celestial angels are present, in childhood, spiritual angels are present, and in youth, natural angels are present, and each produces different affections which are the ground for intellectual development and interest on the part of children. Only that which is received with affection remains.
The only things that are learned are things that are received with affection and are interiorly understood, and these are the proper food of mental growth. Mental food, like physical food, must be given according to the ability to digest, and the ability to digest advances with growth, with age. The digestive agent in spiritual things and mental growth is the affection. It is this that takes up whatever is presented and absorbs it into the system, assimilates it, so that it becomes part of a person. As the affections change with growth, the interests change also, and they have the inclination and power to assimilate knowledge.

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Thus there are certain interests and affections that are normal for children at each different age, and to know these is of primary importance if we are to teach them, for only what is taken up by these affections will be learned. Everything else will be learned and yet not learned because it is not retained.

(to be continued)
SWEDENBORG FOUNDATION ADDRESS 1993

SWEDENBORG FOUNDATION ADDRESS Editor 1993

The foundation has moved from New York to West Chester. The current address is P. O. Box 549, West Chester, PA 19381-0549; phone: (215) 430-3222; customer service 1-800-355-3222; fax (215) 430-7982.
MORE THAN SELF 1993

MORE THAN SELF Editor 1993

In the heavens there is joy in doing good to another but not joy in doing to self unless with a view to its becoming another's and thus for another , sake. This is loving the neighbor more than oneself.
Heaven and Hell 406

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Escape from Egypt 1993

Escape from Egypt Rev. Robert H. P. Cole 1993

     Escape from Egypt by Rev. Douglas M. Taylor, General Church Publication Committee, 1984, 107 pp., $7.00

     Escape from Egypt is a searching doctrinal treatise dealing with our spiritual progress in overcoming, with the Lord's help, the successive temptations signified by "eleven plagues" (as the author refers to the pestilences, including Moses' rod becoming a serpent). This highly interesting and useful book, skillfully authored by Rev. Douglas M. Taylor, was written in 1984 for the thoughtful-minded New Church person, college age or older, and printed by General Church Press. Although this is very late in being reviewed, we would urge all students of the Writings to carefully study, or at least fully peruse, this well connected series of teachings and reflections on the Exodus story.
     Escape From Egypt begins with the provocative questions: "Why is it that of all the young people who graduate from our day schools, high schools and college, some continue in the way of the Lord and enter more fully into the church, while others are captivated by the world? . . .Why . . . of all adult enquirers who begin to learn something of the teaching . . . revealed for the New Church, only some continue;. . . others return to the world or to the Christian Church?" In a partial, early answer based on the internal sense, Mr. Taylor tells us that infernal influences make it difficult for people to enter more deeply into the church.
     Douglas Taylor hosts the thoughtful reader in nine carefully joined chapters including the subjects of the bondage in Egypt, Moses in the bulrushes, the flight to Midian, the burning bush, Moses and Aaron speaking to Pharaoh, the plagues, Passover and release.
     The church, we are shown, is the kingdom of the Lord on earth (see AC 6637). It is much more than buildings, organizations and affections, or intellectual groupings.

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In fact, the membership of the Lord's kingdom on earth is known only to Him and is within (see Luke 17:21). The real "Escape from Egypt" is contained in Old Testament parable stories, and concerns the regeneration of the mind.
With the evil from hell, Douglas Taylor clearly shows that a favorite challenge (referring to chapter one) is to emulate the cruel taskmasters of Egypt. Israel represented the church (see AC 6637). Egypt and the King of Egypt mean science or knowledges about doctrinal things. Joseph, Jacob, the brothers and children meant "something heavenly, something spiritual, something of the Church-some good things of love and charity . . . wisdom and faith-present in the natural mind, dwelling together with the scientifics of the Church and of the world" (p. 5, 6) as long as no self-denial-the inherent opposition of the natural to the spiritual-is involved. "The whole object of the spirits from hell- . . . the Egyptian taskmasters is to hold the man of the Church in a merely natural state, in a merely natural view of spiritual things, and so retard his spiritual progress" (p. 58). "So that's it!," we say out loud, deeply engrossed, as we come upon what appears to be the very challenging, succinct summary statement of the extensive negative theme of Escape from Egypt-the Egyptians gave the Israelites straw to make bricks (Exodus 5:7, AC 7127:2), and that is what is really meant by it.
Perhaps the most positive aspect of Escape from Egypt is described on p. 36. The only way that the natural man can be released by the Lord from spiritual slavery to the hells and their infestations is acknowledgment of the Lord in His Divine Human, not the Divine Itself, not the Holy Spirit. This direct approach to the Divine Human is Moses at the burning bush. This approach, Mr. Taylor points out, enables us to see through the "Egyptian" falsities of evil-false conclusions based upon evidences of the senses-and the fascination of those worldly philosophies that are separated from anything spiritual.

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     A very interesting and intriguing aspect of Escape from Egypt deals with the "angel of Jehovah." The Lord's Human Body on earth was supereminently this "angel." When we read that Moses saw the angel of Jehovah, we should think of the Divine Human of the Lord. A personal perception of the Divinity of the Lord is involved.
     Two helpful suggestions: on p. 44, regarding the burning bush, the terms "ardent," "ardency," and "ardor" could perhaps be replaced by "blazing zeal," "intensely warm affection," "burning love," or something else more modern, more descriptive. One "nothing but" usage could give way to: "The very Esse or Being of the Lord is Divine Love."
     The making of bricks is dealt with at great length, The Hebrews were forced by the Egyptians to make bricks. The bricks are seen as false values, and today's media are often seen as servants of the hells. We are reminded of the fraudulent act recently by a mass media group. They artificially set fire to a truck with explosive devices, seeming to depict a dangerous defect in the truck.
     There can be "good bricks," of course, for houses and churches and Academy school buildings. And instead of infesting rabbits as an example we would suggest flies or other noxious insects.
     Finally, we note the calling up of remains. Mr. Taylor emphasizes those stored up in infancy as goods and truths of innocence. He concludes with the wonderfully moving New Church concept of the passover, unknown to the entire learned world without the Writings: Truth that flows from the good of innocence is the life-blood of spiritual life. This truth is the enlightenment and wisdom enjoyed by those who strive to keep the commandments all the time in any situation. It is a protection against the "death of the firstborn." It is a protection the "Egyptian" does not have. Although Mr. Taylor mentions the term "proprium" in an earlier context (p. 8), here one can plainly see the "death" of the hells' infestations when the Lord passes over or keeps evil spirits away following victory in the last temptations upon self and what is proper to it.

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The blood of the Lamb prevails. The Lord through His Word is the Deliverer. With us it is only as if of ourselves.
     And so we are led carefully from the made-up history of the Word-the Garden of Eden, the Tower of Babel, the flood, the ark-to the Pharaoh, who knew not Joseph, and his terrible taskmasters, through the development, strivings and admonitions of Moses to the wanderings in the wilderness, to the land flowing with milk and honey. The reader, led in such a labyrinthine, tortuous way, has to realize that the only reliable, genuine, positive approach to heaven is a personal trust in the Divine Human of the Lord, and an around-the-clock keeping of His commandments in mind, heart and action.
     We join other reviewers in highly recommending Rev. Douglas Taylor's Escape from Egypt as a gift for college or theological school graduation or other festive occasion.
     Rev. Robert H. P. Cole
PUBLICATION IN POLAND 1993

PUBLICATION IN POLAND Editor 1993

     1993 is the year we have been hoping to see the publication the Writings in some Eastern European countries. The process of preparing volumes for publication is often a slow one. And with shortages of paper and ink it is quite difficult.
     We are delighted to have word from Miss Julie Niall (teaching in Poland until the end of June) that Heaven and Hell was published in March in Warsaw.
     It is expected that later this year publishing will take place the Ukraine and Russia.

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ANNUAL REPORT OF THE GENERAL CHURCH OFFICE OF EDUCATION 1993

ANNUAL REPORT OF THE GENERAL CHURCH OFFICE OF EDUCATION Rev. Frederick L. Schnarr 1993

     1992

     The Office of Education has just completed its fourth year of shepherding the educational uses of the General Church. Begun in the summer of 1988 under the leadership of the Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss, the uses of the Office of Education have gradually grown and crystallized into seven major divisions.
     Thanks to the freedom provided by the Leonard Gyllenhaal Memorial Fund, the Office of Education is able now to function with a full-time Director, a full-time Master Teacher, a part-time teacher from the Academy College, a part-time Senior Teacher from the Bryn Athyn Elementary School, and a variety of paid and volunteer part-time personnel. The fund also provides monies to operate annual support expenses.
     There is not enough space to give a detailed account of the work of the seven divisions of use, but we invite all members and friends of the church to come visit when you are in the vicinity. You will find us on the second floor of Cairncrest, where many rooms are devoted to educational uses. A number of visitors have commented that it is kind of like what you might expect if you visited Santa's workshop. It is a warm, caring and exciting place to be-especially in this age when so many uses look to the growth and well-being of the New Church in so many different lands.
     Here, then, are the seven major divisions of use we operate:
     1.      Schools and Teachers Support
          This is accomplished through staff visits to General Church schools; through the development of a master reference center for teachers; through development and loan of curricular works, unit boxes and materials; through lines of communication between schools; and through in-service programs.

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     2.      The Education Council
     This is the only organization that includes a partnership among all levels of New Church education, from kindergarten through college and theological school.
     3.      Printed mail-order lessons for kindergarten through high school, and college and adult studies
     4.      Preschool, festival, and Sunday School lessons and materials
     5.      College and adult studies and courses in video and audio formats
          This is a rapidly expanding use, which is produced in cooperation with the Academy College.
     6.      Children's Literature
          This division of use has been broken out from our other publication uses because it entails a special relationship with select students and teachers from our schools, as well as a complexity of unusual equipment.
     7.      Publications
          This division provides guidance for all publications of the Office of Education and the Education Council, and sometimes is responsible for both creative and production uses.
     This past year the total output of lessons, studies, videos and other materials from this office has nearly doubled. We have every reason to believe this pattern will continue for many years. This is the reason we have felt an urgency to see that independent centers of operation are gradually established in each district of the church.
     There is no way that this center either can or should try to handle study programs that belong as part of the life and use of each area. The center needs to do what individual areas cannot do for themselves-create and supply new courses, studies, books and materials.

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     We realize it will take some time to get independent centers operational, but we are delighted that five areas are already so organized, and a few others are in process.
     There is a great goodness that should come to each independent area from this effort to nourish and care for their own people, and we will support such development by every means at our disposal.
     In closing I would like to express appreciation to the General Church Data Center personnel and to the Development Office of the Academy for their support and assistance. And then there are the many people, both paid and volunteer, who make all of these uses possible. They compose a small army too many to mention here. But what a dedicated and great group of people! I feel truly privileged to work with them.
     Rev. Frederick L. Schnarr,
          Director
MINISTERIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS 1993

MINISTERIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS Editor 1993

     Pending completion of their theological studies and ordination, the following three gentlemen will be appointed as follows:
     Candidate Kurt Hyland Asplundh will become assistant to the pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society, filling the position held by Rev. Mark Perry.
     Candidate Peter M. Buss, Jr. will become assistant to the pastor of the Washington Society. Rev. Messrs. Lawson Smith and Thomas Rose are leaving Washington, one to go to Durban, and the other to Bryn Athyn. Rev. James Cooper becomes the pastor.

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     Candidate Derek P. Elphick will become the assistant to the pastor of the Oak Arbor Society in Michigan. He will take the place of Rev. Stephen Cole, who will become the pastor in San Diego.
     On April 1, 1993, Mr. Yong (John) Jin and Mr. Barry Halterman were accepted as candidates for the ministry of the New Church.

     New Pastoral/Ministerial Assignments

     Effective July 1, 1993)

     Society/Area                               Minister
General Church Acting Secretary                Louis Synnestvedt
Kempton                                   Ragnar Boyesen
Carmel Church                               Michael Cowley
Washington                                   James Cooper
Durban                                    Lawson Smith
Bryn Athyn School Pastor                     Thomas Rose
Hurstville                                   Terry Schnarr
Freeport                                   Clark Echols
Seattle                                    Erik Buss
San Diego                                   Stephen Cole
Atlanta                                    Mark Perry
Diepkloof                                   Jacob Maseko
Balfour                                    Reuben Tshabalala
Impaphala                                   Chester Mcanyana

     ASSISTANTS

Glenview (plus ICS Principal)                    Jeremy Simons
Toronto                                    Wendel Barnett
Bryn Athyn                                   Cand. Kurt Hy. Asplundh
Washington                                   Cand. Peter Buss, Jr.
Oak Arbor                                   Cand. Derek Elphick

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Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     A PUBLICATION CALLED COMCOUNSEL

     Cruising into its second century, New Church Life has seen many things come and go-including publications! When new ones come along we can't help speculating about their longevity potential.
     A year ago (in our May issue) we took note of the new publication Comcounsel. We delighted in its lack of bluster. The simple statement was arresting: "We intend to publish it once a month (and so far we have)." The March issue is the fifteenth to be published. It has "forgiveness" as a theme. An excellent feature of this publication is the book review. We get at least some exposure to insightful books we probably will not find time to read.
     A quotation from one such book is as follows: "Somebody hurt you, maybe yesterday, maybe a lifetime ago, and you cannot forget it. You did not deserve the hurt. It went deep enough to lodge itself in your memory. And it keeps on hurting now.
     "You are not alone. We all muddle our way through a world where even well-meaning people hurt each other." The postlude of the book concludes, "When we forgive we ride the crest of love's cosmic wave; we walk in stride with God. And we heal the hurt we never deserved."
     The March issue has deftly chosen quotations: the Psalms, Genesis, the gospel of Luke, Arcana Coelestia. One engaging article begins as follows: "I am grateful for my morning prayers." It's a good article to read. Editors Alan Grubb and Hugh Hyatt are to be congratulated.
     The cost is $15.00 a year; students $8.00. Back issues are available at $1,00 each. Write to P. O. Box 613, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

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     SERIOUS CAUSES OF LAUGHTER (7)

     The sermon in this issue brings us close to the laughter of children. Angel laughter is said to be shared with children. The lesson from Heaven and Hell speaks of those in heaven before whose eyes all things seem to be laughing, to be playful and to be alive.
     To children in heaven each object seems to be alive. "And it was perceived that children on the earth have nearly the same ideas when they are at their little plays" (HH 338).
     A king looked out his window " . . . and, behold, Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife" (Genesis 26:8). A more recent translation says that Isaac was "showing endearment" to his wife. As the sermon notes, the literal meaning is that he was laughing with his wife.
     The Writings say, "Consorts who are in conjugial love enjoy heavenly delights together, which appear before their minds almost like the sports of innocence, as between little children" (HH 382).
     Recall that Swedenborg saw a married couple. At a distance they looked like little children. When he engaged them in conversation he heard their laughter (see CL 137). Was it not the laughter of innocence, the laughter of children, the laughter of love?
WHAT IS NEW CHURCH EDUCATION? 1993

WHAT IS NEW CHURCH EDUCATION? Editor 1993

What Is New Church Education? Academy Secondary Schools by Beth Johns, the General Church Office of Education, Bryn Athyn, 28 pp., 75

Beth Johns walked the halls, haunted the classrooms, interviewed the teachers. She specifically asked each teacher at the Academy for a brief description of each course with special emphasis of how New Church teachings are woven into the subject matter.

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She also asked for anecdotes and experiences.
     The quest was well rewarded. One true story made the front page of her pamphlet. A Young doctoral candidate was visiting the Academy of the New Church. As she walked through the halls with Cory Boyce, she exclaimed, "You're so lucky to be teaching here. I can see there's a certain something-a caring environment that affects the students in this school."
     The new pamphlet presents a very good look at the Academy schools, and the verdict is positive-" . . . vibrant, modern institutions equal to the best of their size anywhere, providing young people with top-quality education while keeping the distinct teachings of the New Church at the center of their work."
     The first headings in the pamphlet are questions. What are the goals? Who are the students? Who are the teachers? What methods and curriculum? Then subject areas are explored one by one.
     This reviewer had a hidden hope upon turning to the section on physical education. I was hoping for some facts on how well Academy teams do in inter-school competition with much larger schools. Alas, although the section was full and interesting, it didn't even mention the teams. I am glad I did not make an angry phone call to the author, because a later section headed Extra-curricular Activities did include praise of the sports teams-music to my ears. The following is added: "Best of all, the Academy has a reputation for fair play and good sportsmanship among officials, opponents and spectators alike."
     Dormitory students from way back may remember chafing under dorm rules. Things are changing in this regard. One of the young counselors is quoted as saying, "Dorm life is learning to get along together and really caring for each other. It's about trust, not about rules."
     "Lifetime friendships often begin here while people are in the process of finding out much about themselves." This satisfying pamphlet ends with a description of a typical graduation ceremony.

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I am reminded of an excellent recommendation. If you never had the chance to attend an Academy graduation, there is something you can do that is so easy. Write to the Sound Recording Office, Box 745, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009 and borrow a recording. And if you are a graduate, why not bring back the memories by borrowing a tape of the ceremony in which you participated?
Congratulations to Beth Johns and the Office of Education.
TELEVISION SHOW IN MOSCOW 1993

TELEVISION SHOW IN MOSCOW Editor 1993

     The photograph below, taken last month, shows four people in Moscow just as they were about to be interviewed for Russian television. They are Rev. Goran Appelgren, Rev. Olle Hjern, Dr. J. Durban Odhner and Dr. Mikhail Roschine.
     Incorporated on this telecast were two films from the Swedenborg Foundation, Images of Knowing and The Man Who Had to Know.

     [Photgraph]

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VEGETARIANISM 1993

VEGETARIANISM Leigh Cole and family 1993

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     It was so nice to read Rev. Hugo Lj. Odhner's 1930 article "Vegetarianism in the Golden Age," printed in the February 1993 New Church Life. My husband and I and our three children have been vegetarians for several years. We have often wondered why more New Church people didn't do the same! Dr. Odhner's article made it clear in our minds that it exists as an option for New Church people.
     We thought it might be useful to respond by offering some of our reasons for our chosen lifestyle. To begin with, I became a vegetarian for weight-loss reasons. I quickly shed thirty pounds, and began to feel very healthy. There are many books on the subject of a healthier lifestyle through vegetarianism if readers are interested. It is not my focus here to explain the health benefits, but it may be in line to mention that the medical world is beginning to realize that we may maintain healthier bodies by eliminating animal products from our diet. This, therefore, opens a new door to nourishing and maintaining a healthy and strong body "as the foundation for a healthy mind [in order] that man may carry on his uses to the society of men" (quoted from Dr. Odhner's article of which we speak).
     After we had lived a vegetarian lifestyle for health reasons for some time, other reasons supporting our decision became clear to us as well. We began to feel that if it is possible to eat well without eating animals, then there is no use in eating them. "Live and let live" became our motto. We found ourselves becoming more interested in respecting the Lord's creation, and began finding other ways to live accordingly. Thus we began organic gardening, turning back to the earth for nourishing and protecting our garden. Soon we became true environmentalists.

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We learned to shop for all products with a conscience, meaning that we looked for items that did not exploit people, animals, or the earth.
     The point I must make is an important one. I do not believe we became extreme. Nor did we become nature worshipers. We believe the lifestyle we have chosen matches our religious life as well. Our children are home-schooled for the reason of educating them from the teachings of the New Church. We emphasize to them that life on earth is a stepping stone to eternal life, and that the choices we make here determine what kind of neighborhood we will live in after death. We always begin with love to the Lord, and then love to the neighbor, and service to both. But the earth sustains all of us while we live in this world, and we must "tread lightly" on her, and protect and preserve her for future generations to have the chance to live a healthy and useful life. So in our family we feel that our belief in a compassionate, vegetarian lifestyle, and our attitude to "save the earth," fall into the correct order. Those things are not placed first. Instead, they are an expression of our feelings toward life. The Lord has made a most beautiful world, and if only people would fill their hearts with all goodness, then humankind and animal life would all live in harmony.
     We understand that internals are what count, and that our internals may often be expressed by our actions. For a large portion of North Americans today, enough nourishing food of great variety is available that leaving off meat-eating is very reasonable. Our human neighbors should be taken care of first and foremost, but our animal neighbors truly deserve fair consideration. All of God's creation is an expression of a truth or love. Therefore, we believe that the quality of human life, and the goodness of the human heart, improve when all of God's creation is considered in our daily decisions of how to live.
     Leigh Cole and family,
          Oxford, Wisconsin

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THOSE IN THE PLACE OF PARENTS 1993

THOSE IN THE PLACE OF PARENTS Kenneth Rose 1993

Dear Editor:

A laurel wreath to Donald G. Barber for his summary of the teachings on marriage (April issue, 1992). Ironically, even though he clearly does not endorse "Read this" as a substitute for real consultation, he has produced a "this" that could be quite suitable. It is a bit long, but that is because it is thorough. And for those with good attention spans, it tells specifically where to look for more information. Most importantly, it shows that the answers to today's problems are in the Writings. This is refreshing at a time when "Look here . . . " or "There!" (Matt. 24:23) is being heard all around us, and even within the New Church.
But Mr. Barber was asking for further thoughts. So rather than just congratulations, here is a thought about the problem of consultation with parents 200 years after Swedenborg s time. CL 298 anticipates the problem when it says, ". . . or those in the place of parents . . . ." Prominent among those that this could refer to are those involved in education. Schools certainly have more opportunity, and maybe even the responsibility, to offer consultation to people as they look toward marriage. Most of the social life of unmarried people is centered around schools. Even a "private" party is often associated with members of one class, and the formal events of a weekend amount to a lot less than the social interaction that goes on in and around the school. This presents an opening for teachers, counselors, chaperones and others to supply the judgment, knowledge, and love that can help lead students toward healthy marriages. Even in elementary schools children are becoming involved in relationships that they take very seriously. These all contribute to the formation of ideas and principles of how to get along with the opposite sex, and consultation in those early stages can be very valuable.

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It is a contradiction to suppose that such counsel should begin only after the right partner is found.
     Most American colleges appear to have washed their hands of any responsibility in such areas. Their laissez faire attitude may be based on the idea that the responsibility belongs to parents, but it leaves a tragic void in the lives of students who are far away from parental influence. CL 456e warns specifically against the idea that the young people can handle it themselves. It does not add "or those in place of parents," but the implication is plain.
     Secondary schools in the world at large are taking a more active role in pre-marriage counseling, but much of it amounts to hysterical efforts to protect the "inevitably" sexually active students from disease and pregnancy (which in this context seems to be regarded as another disease). CL 503 makes it shockingly clear that those are not the worst consequences of fornication.
     So how well are New Church schools doing in this regard? The religion teachers are doing a fine jab of teaching the ideals, aren't they? This would correspond to the lectures in a chemistry course. What about the laboratories? No chemistry teacher believes that the lectures can be so effective that the laboratory periods do not need careful planning and direction. Without keen supervision they could be ineffective, and even quite dangerous!
     It is tempting for a teacher to feel that the week is over on Friday-that social life is just recreation, and that students are justified in wanting adults to stay out of it. May it not rather be one of the most important aspects of New Church education?
     Kenneth Rose,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania

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WARREN'S COMPENDIUM 1993

Dear Editor:
     May I support Mr. Howard Roth's commendation of the worth of Warren's Compendium in his letter in the February issue. This is of particular interest to me as this large volume took up most of the space in a small valise which contained my writing materials, etc., and which I carried with me wherever I went during my three years' service with the R.A.A.F. in World War II. I read it more than once, from cover to cover, and it became the basis of my inspiration to read the Writings in their fullness.
     I believe that it could be the ideal first book for many people who have recently come into a knowledge of the church. Prospective readers should study the short preface deeply before throwing in their lot with those who crave for simplified versions of the Writings.
     It has been currently stated that this book is out of print. If this is the case, it is to be hoped that the church authorities will rectify the deficiency as soon as possible. It would be a tragedy indeed if it should become one of the "has beens."
     Chris Horner,
          Ogunbil, NSW, Australia
THANKS AND CONGRATULATIONS 1993

THANKS AND CONGRATULATIONS Rev. Norman E. Riley 1993

Dear Editor:
     I write to thank Mark Carlson for his series "Misconceptions about Marriage." I also congratulate Howard Roth for his letter in the February issue.
     Rev. Norman E. Riley,
          Norden, England

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HERE AND NOW 1993

HERE AND NOW John J. Schoenberger 1993

Dear Editor:
     I have just come upon a very brief article on page 69 of your February issue. The author, John Kane, is unknown to me except that I am told he resides in England, is a reader of the Writings and joined the church some years ago.
     Mr. Kane's very succinct and poignant writing style struck me most favorably, especially when considered against the profound and all-embracing subject he addressed-a subject on which one would expect many pages or perhaps a volume rather than less than a single page of fewer than 25 lines. The very brevity of the article is one of the things prompting this commentary, for I fear it may for that reason have gone unnoticed by some readers, and I feel it would be well for all to have read it.
     My other reason for writing is interest in the subject itself: the awesomely wonderful duality of our life in this world. For attention's sake, if for no other valid reason, it seems to deserve a bit more space than just a part of your aforesaid page 69.
     The article's title, The Spiritual-Natural, I take to have been carefully chosen. Note the hyphen. The subject here is not "the spiritual natural" nor "the spiritual of the natural," the article's obvious point being to emphasize the spiritual and the natural of our earthly being and earthly lives, which is something not too often attended to.
     Actually the only thing in the little article that disappointed me was use of the word "go" in the second line of paragraph 3. I trust this was done only as a customary (though questionable) manner of speech. Talk of "going" to the spiritual world, whether heaven or hell, always evokes in me a mild cringe, for indeed we are there already, and I am sure Mr. Kane would agree that such a notion is really contra to the precious reminder his brief message affords.

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     As long as we have minds, spirituality is here and now, as a reality just as much as, if not more than, our bodies and all the other materiality that surrounds us. When with each of us separation of the two inevitably occurs, is it not more a mere shedding rather than departure? Realizing that fact makes it easier to appreciate that those who have died, if we but allow them, can in good measure be with us still.
     I look forward to hearing more from, as well as about, Mr. John Kane.
          John J. Schoenberger,
               Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania
SOME SUMMER SCHOOLS AND CAMPS 1993 1993

SOME SUMMER SCHOOLS AND CAMPS 1993 Editor 1993

June 14-July 2      Academy Summer Courses #1 in Bryn Athyn
June 21-25           Maple Leaf Academy in Canada
July 2-5           Mountain Camp in Arizona
July 6-24           Academy Summer Courses #2 in Bryn Athyn
July 11-17           Academy Summer Camp in Bryn Athyn
July 18-31           British Academy Summer School in England
July 25-31           Laurel Family Camp #1 near Pittsburgh
August 1-7           Laurel Family Camp #2 near Pittsburgh
August 2-6           Camp Winding Waters in Oregon
August 8-14      Laurel Family Camp #3 near Pittsburgh
August 13-16      Peterkin Family Weekend in West Virginia
August 23-27      Sunrise Camp in New Jersey
September 3-6      Magnolia Camp in Georgia

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SUNRISE 1993 August 23-27 1993

SUNRISE 1993 August 23-27 Editor 1993

The Theme: Charity in Life (Mart. 25:35-46, AC 4955)
          Place:           Methodist Conference Center, Mt. Misery, Browns Mills, New Jersey
          Cost:           About $150
     Monday      The literal sense and its application in our natural lives. The focus is on hungering (thirst, prison, etc.), giving and receiving food (drink, comfort, etc.), but staying with real-world experience and not delving deeply into the Writings right away.
     Tuesday      Focus on the spiritual level, especially how this literal sense has more meaning when we think of spiritual food, drink, etc.
     Wednesday      Focus on the celestial level, especially on how we experience the Lord's love, and how the angels are affected, and how we feel about giving and receiving from others.
     Thursday      A day of integration, living one day at a time, noticing the underlying truths, sharing love and joy.
     Friday      Closing lecture focusing on our commitment to the church and to those we will be with when we go back home.
     Contact Bob Merrell, PO. Box 576, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009; phone (215) 947-4123.

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CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY PROGRAM 1993

CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY PROGRAM Editor 1993

FRIDAY APRIL 30 7:30           "Not Fit for Man or Beast"-play by Olivet Day School Senior Class
     SATURDAY MAY 1 -7:00           Banquet
                                        Guest Speaker, Sylvia Parker
                                        Grade 8 and up are invited
     SUNDAY MAY 2                10:00 Rev. Michael Cowley
                               11:00 Rt. Rev. Peter Buss
     In order for you to be assured of having a seat for the banquet we would kindly request you to send $10.00 per person before April 15, 1993. All cheques should be payable to:
                Richard Parker
           7 Sedgebrook Crescent
           Etobicoke, Ontario
           M9B 2X2 Canada
     Looking forward to seeing you all!
     APRIL 30TH, MAY 1ST AND MAY 2ND, 1993

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Title Unspecified 1993

Title Unspecified Editor 1993

     Announcements

     The above title means: "What can the New Church serve for the human race?"
     These samples are from a 32-page pamphlet produced and distributed in Korea by Rev. Dzin Kwak.
     [Korean symbols]

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Second In a Series 1993

Second In a Series Editor 1993

     Second In a Series
     What Is New Church Education
Academy Secondary Schools
     What is the Essential Philosophy?
Why Separate Schools for Boys and Girls?
What are the Goals?
Who are the Students?
Who are the Teachers?
What is the Curriculum?
     Here in pamphlet form are the answers to these and other questions, showing that the Academy Schools are "vibrant, modern institutions equal to the best of their size anywhere, providing young people with a top-quality education while keeping the distinct teachings of the New Church at the center of their work."
     Written by Beth Johns
Published by General Church Office of Education
     Price 756 plus 506 postage
     Box 743, Cairncrest
General Church Book Center                     Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                              Phone: (215) 947-3920

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Title Unspecified 1993

Title Unspecified Editor 1993

Vol. CXIII May, 1993 No. 5
NEW CHURCH LIFE

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     Notes on This Issue

     We are proud of the things we have published so far this year, for example, the article "Swedenborg's Influence in Russia" (January) and "The New Church Goes to Court" (March). These are unique contributions. In this issue we are proud to present an article on D. Suzuki by Mr. Tatsuya Nagashima. Suzuki enjoys wide fame in the world of religious thought. We have the hope that his book on Swedenborg will be published in the not-too-distant future.
     A word about sermons in New Church Life. We receive these days a great wealth of things to print. This is good, but it can try the patience of people who submit material and wait long to see it published. We thought it would be a good idea to reduce the number of sermons. Printed sermons, after all, are now readily available to those who want them. However, several people have said that they still want to see sermons in these pages. Accordingly, the first six issues of 1993 have six sermons.
     201 years ago Rev. James Wilmer preached "the first New Church sermon ever delivered in America" (Rise and Progress, p. 152). Now on a given Sunday many New Church sermons are being preached. A notable sermon was delivered in Toronto recently, and the preacher was encouraged to use it at one of the Bryn Athyn services. People urged that it be published. See opposite page.
100 AND 50 YEARS AGO 1993

100 AND 50 YEARS AGO Editor 1993

"The spiritual angels are especially affected by songs which treat of the Lord, His kingdom and the church" (AC 8262). So begins the May issue of New Church Life for 1893, an issue largely devoted to church music.
Fifty years ago this month we published a sermon by Rev. B. Ishmael Nzimande on the text, "Behold, I make all things new."

195

GOODNESS WITHIN 1993

GOODNESS WITHIN Rev. MICHAEL D. GLADISH 1993

     Then [Jehovah] said, 'I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of Jehovah before you. I will show grace to whom I will show grace, and I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy. But He said, 'You cannot see My face; for no man can see Me and live'" (Exodus 33:19, 20).
     "Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matt. 5:16).

     One of the basic errors of human thought throughout history has been the assumption that people are inherently good, and that the origin of evil somehow is an influence from society or the environment outside the individual. This has led to the thought that if we could just "fix" the "system," individual people would do the good that comes naturally to them and everyone would live in peace and harmony.
     With this in mind, tremendous social experiments have been tried, including everything from revolutionary changes in all sorts of different forms of government to separate utopian communities and large-scale educational movements. Religious cults-many of them pretending or even thinking that they are Christian-have sprung up and now thrive on the reassuring thought that there's really nothing wrong with us except that we've all been misled and abused. Today there is a lot of popular psychological propaganda like this in the mass media. And yet for all the effort, sometimes heroic, to change the way people are treated, people continue to be and do evil and society continues to struggle.
     Another equally harmful, maybe even more directly harmful, falsity throughout history has been the exact opposite, the idea that people are inherently evil and that therefore it is necessary for enlightened leaders, or society in general, to impose discipline on individuals for their own good and the good of the world.

196

This kind of thinking, although there is some truth to it, has led to enormous arrogance on the part of some and dreadful oppression of others. Through the ages, as a result, we have seen the stifling of individual genius and creativity, suppression of the truth, destruction of whole cultures, horrible forms of psychological abuse and even institutionalized torture, all in the name of God.
     The truth, of course, is that we are neither good nor evil from birth, but we are free agents, vessels capable of receiving and expressing both good and evil. As such, by creation, by design and in a sense by default, we actually do receive both good and evil influences from the very moment of conception, and all these influences, together with our free choices as we grow older, "make" us what we are.
     Heredity is a factor; environment is a factor; but neither of these two factors alone can account for spiritual growth and development in an individual. Spiritual growth-what we often call regeneration-can occur only when we follow the dictates of Divine authority from outside of ourselves even as we are motivated from within by the Lord. These two things-authority and motivation-are both from the Lord. The authority is external; we get it from information and experience coming in through the natural senses. With this information and experience, especially if we are in a position to draw this from a genuine revelation from the Lord, we can evaluate the feelings that arise from within. We can also put together a rational plan to implement those feelings in daily life. This is important; in fact it can be critical to our spiritual life.
     But here's the really good news: the motivation itself, the feeling for good that we have from the Lord through the inward way, is instilled or implanted with everyone no matter what the external conditions of our life may be, and it remains with us very moment, every day forever.

197

Truly, it is not our own until or unless we accept it by deliberately acting according to it, but in any case it is within us as an irrevocable gift from the Lord.
     This is why it seems to some that we are innately good: there is a goodness within each of us. There has to be or we couldn't live. The goodness is the Lord's, so much so that it is sometimes referred t, in the doctrines as the Lord Himself in us. But the effect of the good, the way it works in us, is that it seems to be our own. In His wisdom and in the generosity of His love (sometimes, I think, too with great delight and a sublime sense of humor) the Lord has given it to us so that we always feel it as if it were our own.
     The feeling can of course be suppressed or perverted, in which case the lust for evil covers and masks it. But it's still there, giving life and purpose, even if subconsciously, since without the Lord there is no life or purpose, for any one of us or for the human race.
     This is explained in an interesting passage in the Arcana Caelestia where we read about the priority of good over truth. As in many other passages it says that before a person is regenerated, truth appears to have priority because it seems as if acting according to truth is good; therefore that truth must precede. But really good from the Lord first inspires the life according to truth, although this good "lies concealed inmostly within the person's whole affection." We read, "During all the time [before regeneration], the good present with a person is a something which so to speak he does not consciously will, yet is present within his will-present in every detail of his thought and consequently in every detail of his activity. He is not aware of possessing this which he does not consciously will because he does not perceive anything present with himself apart from that which is his own, that is, which he does will. That which he does not will is twofold: on the one hand there is what he has inherited from father and mother; on the other, what flows in from the Lord by way of heaven.

198

While a person is growing up, what he has inherited from parents manifests itself more and more if he is such that he does not allow himself to be regenerated. For he draws on evils from his heredity and makes them properly his own. But what is not consciously willed (yet flows from the Lord by way of heaven) manifests itself in adult years with those who are being regenerated. With the latter this activity has in the meantime arranged and governed every single detail of thought, and also of will, though that activity has not been apparent" (AC 3603:2, 5-emphasis added).
As you will remember from the first lesson in Exodus, the Lord deliberately hides His goodness from us for our own protection. In other parts of revelation we learn that the intensity-or as it is sometimes written, the "burning ardor" of His love-is so great that if we were aware of it, especially before entering into the work of regeneration, we would be consumed, that is, we would lose our identity, our freedom and the will to live. We would feel like nothing in His presence. Yet, like the force of electricity in a lamp, the Lord is with us, and His power is stepped down or accommodated in many ways so that we can use it as if of ourselves. Therefore although He is the light of the world, He allows us to be enlightened according to our limitations, and He says, as if the energy and power were our own, "Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works . . . and glorify your Father in heaven."
Many of us are familiar with the teaching that the origin of the evil within us is hell, that is, evil spirits, and that therefore we have some choice in whether we take ownership and responsibility for it. We read, "If a person would only believe, as is the truth, that all good and truth originate from the Lord, and all evil and falsity from hell, he would not appropriate good to himself and account it meritorious, nor would he appropriate evil to himself and account himself responsible for it" (DP 320). In passages like this we note the importance of recognizing the source of evil and refusing to accept its influence in our lives.

199

     Now we are looking at the other side of the teaching. And what a tremendous gift we have from the Lord in this revelation: We all have good within us from the Lord; this good feels as if it were our own, and we are graciously invited by the Lord to enjoy that feeling, but if we would only believe, as is the truth, that it comes from the Lord, we could avoid a whole lot of problems. Let's think a moment about how much better off we might be.
     First of all, we wouldn't feel arrogant or unduly proud. This also implies that we wouldn't feel so brokenhearted if we weren't able to recognize the good in ourselves at any given time. Knowing that the Lord is there, simply coming to our consciousness as we are prepared and open to Him, we can know that it is not our own desperate search for meaning that brings meaning to our lives, but the Lord who gives it as we sit still and receive.
     Second, we wouldn't be as critical inwardly of others as we tend to be. Knowing that the Lord is working in the secret parts of every person's life, just as forcefully and prudently and thoroughly and mercifully as the Infinite wisdom will permit, we might find it a little easier than otherwise to accept the odd or difficult behavior of the few that offend us from time to time. After all, if the Lord is doing the best that He can with individuals, who are we to say that this or that cannot be allowed? perhaps we will find it in our understanding to explore the circumstances outside of these people to see if there is anything we can do to help the situation-maybe to clarify things or to clear away obstructions so that the Lord can be more fully received, not only in them but in our relationships with them.
     Ironically, at the same time we would not feel threatened or fearful of making "just" external judgments of people's behavior. From the truth of the Word we can know what is right, at least to a reasonable degree, and based on this objective, external law we can mark and evaluate objective, external acts without hating or condemning a person at all.

200

There may be a reason in Divine Providence why somebody has to express his anger or his frustration or even outright falsity and evil. This doesn't make it right, and it certainly doesn't mean we should condone it; in fact, one reason for allowing it may be to force the issue and allow the consequences of a judgment to follow. But even if we have to accept the death penalty as a consequence for those who commit the most serious crimes, we can still feel the mercy and compassion of the Lord with everybody. Most of all we can be conscious of the need to pray more earnestly for the lifting up of these Divine qualities out of the secret places of our own inner lives into the rational processes of our thought and application.
Finally, if we could believe, as is the truth, that all our goodness is from the Lord, we wouldn't worry about merit. We would not try to keep some sort of score card on how many good or evil deeds we've done and whether we have enough "points" to get to heaven or not. We wouldn't be concerned so much for our own sakes about the global effects of what we do as about our attitudes and whether we are simply doing the best we can. With this in mind we would be free from a sense of condemnation by the judgment and criticism of others; we would be free from spiritual domination and the abuses that arise, not only in churches that claim the authority to open and close heaven, but also in personal relationships that may make us feel intimidated or unworthy of love.
The Word teaches us that to break one commandment deliberately is to break them all. Why? Because it reveals an attitude of disregard for what the Lord says. But the other side of this same teaching (which is also stated) is that to obey one commandment from conscience and respect for the Lord is to obey them all. So the Lord is with us and can be received into our conscious thought and feeling if only we will pay attention to the urgings and promptings of His Spirit within, and do, not this or that specific list of things, but whatever it takes to allow His energy to flow through us.

201

Today it might be a simple act of generosity, done from the heart, to help a friend. Tomorrow it might be an enormous struggle to avoid temptation in regard to marriage or covetousness or the love of self. Whatever it is, let us-each one of us-remember that the Lord in His goodness is within, ready to give aid and encouragement and the delight of success when we reject and shun those evils one by one, and accept His love as if it were our own. And let us therefore let our lights so shine before men that they may see our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven. Amen.
Lessons: Exodus 33:12-23; John 12:44-46; Matthew 4:14-16; AC 4925 and 4928 (selections)
TWO NOVELS 1993

TWO NOVELS Editor 1993

We have heard that a novel has been published in England with the title Angels and Insects (Chatto and Windus, 1992). The second of its two parts is entitled "The Conjugial Angel." We have not seen it, but it is supposed to be "a philosophical ghost story, bizarre, comic and moving."
The author is A. S. Byatt. Her novel Possession has ranked in England among the "Top 10." There are several references to Swedenborg. In the Swedenborg Society Magazine (no. 6) Mr. Richard Lines tentatively suggests that Mrs. Byatt's name "should be added to the long list of imaginative writers who have been influenced in some way by the inspired writings of Emanuel Swedenborg."

202

DAISETSU T. SUZUKI, INTERNATIONALLY KNOWN BUDDHIST: CRYPTO-SWEDENBORGIAN? 1993

DAISETSU T. SUZUKI, INTERNATIONALLY KNOWN BUDDHIST: CRYPTO-SWEDENBORGIAN? TATSUYA NAGASHIMA 1993

     Daisetsu Suzuki is an internationally well known Buddhist scholar. His fame does not come only from the voluminous works about Buddhism he wrote in Japanese, but from his popularity as an internationalized Buddhist who spoke and wrote in English. Today most libraries in the world, I imagine, have some index items of D. T. Suzuki's English books about Zen and Mahayana Buddhism.
     I knew Daisetsu Suzuki long before I discovered Emanuel Swedenborg. I bought his newly reprinted 32-volume complete series in 1980 as a big investment, because I then thought that Zen Buddhism could possibly provide our Christians with some catalysts for better spiritual growth. I was surprised to know, however, that such a noted Buddhist could ever be a translator of Christian theological works, not only one book but four by the same author.
     Soon after World War II, one of the top superiors of the Jesuit Society, in which I was, introduced Zen into the Catholic contemplative life. Fr. Hugo Lasalle S. J. (his nationalized Japanese name: Enomiya Makibi) was an active and influential German priest who built a Zen contemplation hall called "Shin-mei-kutsu" (Divine Contemplation Cave) in a suburb of Tokyo. Early in the morning for an eight-day retreat which I attended, he offered the mass in the presence of those who sat in the tranquil Zen hall, listening to the mountain waterfall. The daily schedule resembled a traditional Zen discipline, but his aim was that spiritual power would be charged by the Lord God through Zen-style reflections, meditations and prayers in perfect silence. After the Second Vatican Council (1962-4), the idea was spread all over Japan and Europe, and Zen was practiced in many Catholic monasteries and convents.1
     1 Zen The Way for the Enlightenment, Enomiya Makibi, Tokyo, Shisoosa, 1967.

203

     All of a sudden in 1981, the shining truths shown by Swedenborg began occupying my mind, so Suzuki's 32 volumes were put aside. But now, ten years later, Rev. Don Rose gave me an incentive to investigate Suzuki's 96-year life's work and to know how he would have been changed after his encounter with Swedenborg. A long neglected Suzuki collection has revived before me. So this article will be, I hope, a retrospective participation with the old, and a prospective contribution for the new cross-religious communications between East and West.
     Being born in 1870 as a Buddhist-physician's fourth son, he was shocked, at the age of six, by his mother's religious act, the self-purification at the waterfall. His mother showed repentance in the falling water, for her husband, and soon thereafter her third son, had died, and she believed that these tragedies occurred owing to her moral unworthiness. The boy's name was Teitaroo and the family name Suzuki, one of the most popular surnames in this country.2
     2 Suzuki-Daisetsu-Zenshuu, vol. 32, p. 483 (a complete collection of D. T. Suzukis works, 32 volumes)
     When he was 17, Teitaroo's high school principal, Mr. Hoojoo, imparted a great influence of Zen Buddhism to all pupils, After his mother's death, Teitaroo visited the well known Kokutaiji Zen temple, Toyama, to practice Zen for the first time. He was 20 years old. The next year he went down to Kamakura to be trained and guided by the contemporary top Zen Master Imakata Koosen at Engakuji Temple. After Koosen's death, Sooen became Teitaroo's Master.
     A name meaning "a great clumsiness" is the given name by Sooen, as a sign of his completion of the Zen training under Sooen's discipleship. Teitaroo (22) was matriculated as a Tokyo University student majoring in philosophy in 1892.

204

     His first step in an international Buddhist's career came when Sooen's Japanese address needed Teitaroo's translation. Sooen brought it to the International Conference of Religions which was held in Chicago in 1893. After Teitaroo graduated from Tokyo University, he published his first book with the title of Shin-shuukyoo-ron (New Religion). In this virgin book, the 25-year Teitaroo's religious convictions were clearly depicted. He tried to make a distinctive contrast, but still juxtapositional overlap, between two religions, Buddhism and Christianity, as the two great religions in the world, in East and West.3
      3 Ibid., Autobiography, p. 478, Chronology, p. 539

     "New Religion" (1896)

     By means of the classic Japanese-style incorporating plenty of now obsolete Chinese characters, Teitaroo solemnly declares the importance of religion, whether it be Buddhism or Christianity, for the well-being of humankind. He wrote:

     I am convinced therefore that religion itself depends on a free response from a human being, and it rules over innumerable behaviors of men and women, since it is the basic principle of human life. Religion will keep its existence forever, I declare, even if heaven and earth might perish and all humankind be destroyed. I am not hesitant to say this: At my best endeavor, what I firmly believe should be briefly presented before the literary world. I will feel much satisfaction if this small book will clarify for the general public the spirit of religion itself. I hope it will exterminate the errors and falsehood imbued in the national minds, and extricate them from the sheer danger of materialism. The book also will prove that human minds are never healthy without religious belief, and human cultures are not perfect without religion, and furthermore that religious faith and scientific progress can certainly go hand in hand. . . . 4

205

     4 Ibid., vol. 23, p. 13. Quotations from the Japanese books are all translated into English by the author of this article.
     I am not a Buddhist, however, because Buddha was a founder of Truth, or the sole heavenly Divine Omniscient and Omnipotent, all of which I do not believe. I know that the Truth is imperishable forever from that age of long ago, when "yin" and "yang" had not yet been divided. Within such a great Wisdom Buddha's wisdom is only a little speck. I am Buddhist because of a different reason from the above . . . .5
     5 Ibid., p. 14

     In this book as small as 147 pages he tries to extend his own religious ideal to a global comprehension which encompasses two great world religions, Buddhism and Christianity, in terms of Buddhistic integration. He first refuted the idea of God of (Deistic) Christian religion, not in terms of existence of the Divine, but in terms of the independent God who sits and looks at the universe from outside. He prefers the term of "Truth" to "God'' for representing the Great Wisdom.
     Suzuki cannot agree with Christian philosophy and its application of the Aristotelian "cause-effect" logic to the existence of the Independent Godhead, because this logic is not valid in God Himself who is supposed, according to Christian apologetics, not to have any cause for His own existence such as "cause without cause."
     He asserts instead, with other Buddhist scholars, that the universe, in terms of its totality, has no cause nor effect. The universe itself is holy and sacred. The earth rolls by its own power; plants grow and perish by themselves. All life is a priori embedded within them, not as such that was created by the God of Christian religion. Its existence is mystery; but his Buddhistic pantheism is much better than Christian monotheism, because Christians add another mysterious being of "God" to the already given mystery of "Universe."6
     6 Ibid., pp. 34-38

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     Now I do not want to employ any sectarian names such as Buddhism, Christianity, Mohammedanism and so on; but I would rather employ the term "Religion" instead, because my insistence is not simply on the doctrines of any single religious sect, but religion itself as of its totality . . . .
     Consequently, we must admit that some Christians can be Christians without accepting Christ as the only Son of God, and that they also can acknowledge, at the same time, the gleaming truths in Buddhism. We must also admit that Buddhists can be Buddhists even though they acknowledge many shining words and axioms in Christian and Islamic religions. . . .
     The essence of religion is that people know the Great Mercy and Its Truth therewith, and apply them to their daily life. . . . The totality of religion is its Truth. Religion is with the Truth, and religion goes with the Truth. Religion cannot live without such Truth. So religion can be religion even without its denominational founders as Jesus Christ or Buddha. The Truth does not depend upon the founders of a particular religious sect, but in its own existence it is entirely independent. The Truth ever exists long before Jesus Christ or Buddha was born. Both founders perceived that Truth and proclaimed it to the public.7
     7 Ibid., pp. 57, 58
     In light of the above, one can adhere to either Christ or Buddha by his own free choice, because both were guides to the Truth. In my own understanding, in some particular doctrines, Christianity is better than Buddhism, but in some others Buddhism is much better than Christianity. Both have their own good points and weak points. Christianity is characterized by its emotional enthusiasm, but Buddhism is characterized by its sublime wisdom. Christianity is like a burning fire, and Buddhism is a high mountain . . . .

207

As it were, Buddha is a Christ in India, and Christ is a Buddha in Judea . . . . Anyway, the most important thing is that one should see the Truth revealed by sectarian founders and follow that Truth and not become blind followers of Christian or Buddhistic organizations.8
     8 Ibid., pp. 60-62

     The above New Religion was written by Suzuki when he was 26, soon after he graduated from Tokyo University. It was improbable that he already knew Swedenborg, because his first Japanese translation of Heaven and Hell was done in 1910, fourteen years later. And Suzuki must have encountered Swedenborg when he was in the United States between 1897 and 1908. He was working then as an editorial staff member of the Open Court Publishing Company, in order to help an American Buddhist scholar, Paul Carus.9
     9 Ibid., vol. 32, pp. 541-2
     When we read his New Religion, however, it seems to have something similar to what Swedenborg wrote about the universal church, in which all those from different religions are included as far as they believe one God and shun evils. It is yet regretful that Suzuki's idea about Christianity was seemingly restricted within the stereotyped knowledge reflecting modern evangelical Protestantism.

     Married life

     D. T. Suzuki, soon after coming back from the States, became a lecturer of English at Gakushuuin and Tokyo University at the age of 39. It is said that around these years he lectured on William Blake at the Gakushuuin. In 1910 he published Tenkai to Jigoku (Heaven and Hell) as the first Japanese translation of Swedenborg's theological works rendered from its English edition.

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The same year he attended the International Swedenborg Congress in London celebrating the Swedenborg Society's Centenary. His portrait was shown in its memorial book as a translator of Heaven and Hell into Japanese, and as a vice-president of the International Swedenborg Congress from Japan.10
     10"Transactions of the International Swedenborg Congress," London, Swedenborg Society. 1911, pp. 14, 352
     The next year (1911) Suzuki married a young American lady whom he probably met in 1906-7, when he was in the States helping Sooen's preaching journey as an interpreter. Her name was Beatrice Elizabeth Green Erskine Lane. Beatrice was born in Boston in 1878, eight years younger than Teitaroo. Her father was a diplomat, Mr. Thomas Jefferson Lane, and her mother a Scottish aristocrat named Erskine. Beatrice graduated from Radcliffe College, and further studied sociology for the M. A. degree at Columbia University.
     In 1907 Suzuki published the book entitled Outlines of Mahayana Buddhism in London, and his academic achievement made him widely known around Europe and America as a Japanese Buddhist scholar. Beatrice's interest in Buddhism started first from Zen, but after her marriage to Teitaroo, her faith gradually turned toward Mahayana Buddhism. Her first testimony of scholarship is shown in her "The Shingon School of Mahayana Buddhism" in 1931 at the age of 53. Beatrice's mother, Emma Erskine Lane Hahn, came to Japan in 1916 and stayed with the Suzukis until she died in 1927. Emma also became a Buddhist as her daughter did, and was buried in a Buddhist temple in Kyoto.11
     11 Op. Cit., Suzuki-Daisetsu-Zenshuu Geppo (Monthly Letter) 20, pp. 5, 6
     It is said that Beatrice studied under William James, Josiah Royce, and Santayana at Radcliffe College, but she was not satisfied with Western philosophy and Christianity.12

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She was once enthusiastic in theosophy, and the Suzukis' house was a branch office of The Order of the Star in the East, led by Krishnamurti. Their theosophical quest must have been started when they stayed at Mr. Richard Heize's residence in Tokyo around 1920. But this organization was disbanded by Krishnamurti himself in 1929.
     12 Daisetsu Suzuki-His Person and His Thoughts, edited by Hiysmatsu, Yamaguchi, Furuta, Tokyo, Iwanami-shoten, 1972, p. 181
     Incidentally, Beatrice was a vegetarian and an animal lover, and opened Doobutsu-Aigo-Jihi-En (Animal-Protection-and-Mercy Garden) in Kamakura. It is said that the Suzukis' house was a paradise-like strolling place for a number of cats. Beatrice died in 1939 at the age of 61 after having lived with Teitaroo for 28 years. Looking back over these years, Suzuki wrote:

     Since the beginning of our married life, mutual commitment was focused into the proclamation of the Eastern thoughts to the Western people. We had no other joy and happiness than to promote, by our own possible endeavors, this communicative understanding between East and West.
     However, speaking from our own feelings, we could have communicated only between us in person about what we think on religious issues without a special regard to an external influence. But both of us have been led in this direction guided by some sort of destiny.13
     13 Ibid., p. 182

     Suzuki survived his wife for 27 years, but none can imagine how much he was shocked by her death. After Beatrice's death, his edition of Eastern Buddhist discontinued, and he published no new book in English for almost ten years.

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     A Book Entitled Suedenborugu

     Now getting back to Suzuki's forties, he translated into Japanese from their English editions four books written by Swedenborg: Heaven and Hell (1910), The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine (1914), Divine Love and Wisdom (1914), and Divine Providence (1915). Furthermore, he wrote another book entitled Suedenborugu in Japanese, Publishing it in 1913.
     According to Mr. Shookin Furuta, the editor of the Suzuki's Complete Collection Series, this book seems to have been compiled from The Man and His Mission written by B. F. Barrett. After I got, from Rev. Don Rose, some pages copied from Barrett's book and checked them with Suzuki's first pages, I found out that Suzuki's "introduction" was unique and original. I will now present some translations from his Japanese book Swedenborugu. The book begins with the following preface:

     Swedenborg was a man who is identified with the Reformer in the theological world, the Pilgrim around heaven and hell, the Giant Man in the spiritual world, the Great King in mysticism, the unparalleled Clairvoyant for ages, the indefatigable Scholar with energy and vitality, the Scientist of distinguished insight, the lofty Gentleman purified from earthly greed. All these characters are inclusively found in One Man-Swedenborg. We are now in such a state in which enlightenment is urgently required in the fields of religions and thoughts. We must not therefore ignore this person called Swedenborg, especially if we are disappointed with our present epoch, and want to be spiritually nourished. This is why I will write this book. (October 1913, Author)14
     14 Op. cit. . Suzuki-Doiselstt-Zenshuu, vol. 24, p. 3

     The book is short (60 pages) and has six chapters. I will translate into English only the first half of the first chapter entitled "Introduction."

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The other five chapters are supposed to be similar to what many biographers of Swedenborg usually write in their books, or probably their main contents were similar to that of B. F. Barrett's.

     Chapter I: Introduction

     Swedenborg's name is not known to our nation. Luther, Wesley, John Fox and Calvin might be known to those who pay attention to religion in the West, but I am not quite sure who really knows Swedenborg. I could present to the reader a unique and epoch-making theologian in Sweden who lived about 150 years ago. He met some important figures in heaven and talked with them, and made discoveries in theology, philosophy and psychology. But who knows him at all?
     There might be some people who know his name, but they are very few who regard Swedenborg as a man modern thoughts and civilization. They might think of him as an experimental object for psychological researches, or as an example of abnormal phenomena of the on. However, if we are serious enough to investigate his case, we will recognize Swedenborg as a man important to various academic fields. My interest in him is based upon the following three:
     Swedenborg said that he went around heaven and hell, and witnessed the actual states of those who died. As a matter of fact, what he mentioned sounds sincere and has no exaggerations, and it seems to be well concordant with the truths of our common understandings. This is the first reason why I write this book.
     Second: In the Universe, we have not only the sensual world as such, but also the world of spirits in possibility. And when our minds are in a specific psychical state, we can seemingly be able to communicate with those spirits. Although that world has no moral relevance with this world, it really stimulates our concern in terms of science and philosophy. This is the second reason why one can be interested in Swedenborg.

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     Thirdly, the theological doctrines presented by Swedenborg have some similarity to those of Buddhism. According to them, man is required to behave along with the Divine by forsaking the proprium. True salvation rests upon a harmonious unity of what one believes with what one does. Wisdom and Love are the manifestation of the Divine, and Love has more depth and breadth than Wisdom. The Divine Providence reaches into the minutest things in the Universe. There must not be any occurrences that happen by accident, but every thing is conveyed by the Divine Providence through Wisdom and Love. The above are the very things which evoke the interest of scholars of religion and our Buddhists. This is the third reason why one gets interested in him.
     With the above three as sufficient reasons, one can recognize that Swedenborg is a man who is worthy to be studied. Furthermore, we should not overlook him, for he cannot be compared to any other men in the world for ages in terms of his unique life. He combined genius of science and a genius of religion with such a high level of congruity as one cannot even fathom. He gives us not only a good instance to be psychologically investigated, but also a good exemplary personality as a great man of inexhaustible energy and of mind purified from secularity. His biography does not show us any drastic changes which draw peculiar attention, but in this age of the Twentieth Century, one can be influenced by his personality and its power of his 84 years of life which was totally devoted to science and religion, and which also is full of unparalleled mysteries within his ordinary style of life. Even seen in the above context only, it is worthwhile for us to investigate his case.

     When we read his books, examine his life in a biography and look into his thoughts, Swedenborg's personality comes into the reader's mind just as if one met him in person. He is a likable man of old age, with a supernatural sphere on his forehead, still wearing a common costume of dignity but always with this lofty insight full of heavenly mysteries, walking through evening mist in London, tasting a celestial pleasure which sustains his feet from below. If one happens to ask that old man about the heavenly way, he propounds it with simplicity and gentleness as easily as a mountain current flows.

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However, his talk has no tone of extravagance nor pretentiousness. He narrates these things as commonly as one talks about daily events. This is why Swedenborg is a man of unfathomable depth. From the above mentioning, one can imagine that Swedenborg should be largely known by the world. He is worthy enough to be known as well as Kant and Wesley. Now there are some reasons why he does not have the popularity that would be expected.
First, what he writes is composed with so many prolonged and repetitive sentences. One can imagine as if he were taught as a mere child by an old man. A public popularity does not always depend on the depth and height of one's ideas. Even a mediocre thought can be delivered very well to the public if it is written with rhetorical skill. It is just as one carefully listens to the orator who has an attractive appearance although his idea is shallow. People in general have a desire of being impressed upon their own five senses. We can see therefore that the loftier the idea is, the fewer those who listen to and agree with it. Mencius' teachings, for example, am not so well rationally constructed as Xuncius'. However, the former pleases the public much more than the latter, because Mencius' rhetoric is full of marvelous exquisiteness, but Xuncius has no such skill but has an easy and ordinary way of speaking. Nevertheless, Xuncius unfolds a much better logic in his compositions. From this viewpoint Xuncius should have been better read than Mencius. We can say the same thing about Swedenborg's works. If the passages of his composition attracted the people in such a way, his fame would be more popularized.
Secondly, it is hard for common people to believe what Swedenborg wrote about the world beyond, because the things beyond are too far apart from the present sensual world. When he talks about them, he seems not to be too excited, because they are too common and daily for him. Readers are more inclined to be suspicious about him, especially when he looks serious and talks in an ordinary speech without extravagance. Readers might be wondering if the writer had ever done such an experiment, or why his statements are so far beyond human common sense.

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And finally, if the writer speaks so flatly about incredible things, readers might say that it results from insanity. And none can believe what an insane man says.
     Thirdly, people might feel suspicious about his statements, because he writes about the world beyond in too many details. Such meticulous descriptions about what is beyond common experience might produce disbelief in people's minds. Emerson, for example, seemed not to be able to totally believe in Swedenborg. One would have easily believed in him if he had only said that there is a heaven and hell, and nothing more. However, one can easily feel disbelief in him when he describes so meticulously, as such and such are in hell at present, or such and such historically well known people are in such and such precinct of heaven, or such and such people who talked with him were found to have changed their minds after they came to that world, and so on. Readers now do not believe what he writes, because his descriptions are so vivid and dynamic. Therefore, I think, one of the reasons why Swedenborg is not accepted by the general public is that he describes everything in too much detail.
     Nevertheless, the above three reasons of their disbelief are not significant. We should not give up our trust in him just because of such superficial impressions. And we must not doubt his worthiness to be believed. Swedenborg's Writings have a sphere of consistent sincerity and honesty. He is not a man of fraudulence and deception. He just writes honestly what he sees and hears. There is no pretension in him. Whether or not one believes in him, we must admit that there is a reason why one feels his sincerity coming from what he writes. And, one must admit that a certain fact experienced in him is pre-supposed. And those experiences are worthwhile to be examined. And if his experiences have such great relevance to our moral values and religious life, we should never ignore them.15
     15 Ibid., vol. 24, pp. 7-10

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     A Commitment for the World

     D. T. Suzuki's Japanese translations of Swedenborg's Writings came to an end with his Shinryo-ron (Divine Providence) in 1915 when he was 45. After that his energetic writing and publishing work continued over fifty more years, but he never wrote or translated anything about Swedenborg, except a nine-page article about Swedenborg in 1927.16
     16 Ibid., vol. 19, pp 634-642. In this short essay Dsisetsu explains about heavenly innocence, quoting from Swedenborg's Heaven and Hell, that the angels acknowledge all good is from the Lord and they can do nothing from themselves. Other notions such as "correspondence." "free will," "equilibrium," etc., are also mentioned.
     A recently published series of all his Japanese works consists of 32 volumes (500 pages each on average, 16,000 pages in all), and besides, Suzuki wrote a number of English books, and they have not yet been published as a Japanese collection series, including the English books, his total works in his life are, from my rough guessing, more or less 20,000 pages, and the majority of these books were written after his mid-fifties.
     All his works, on subjects ranging from Zen Buddhism to various schools of Mahayana Buddhism, were evident proof of one Buddhist scholar who looked for satari (enlightenment) his whole life. His historical and speculative investigations were unceasingly accelerated by his seeking spirit.
     His contribution to the world-wide awareness of Zen Buddhism was marvelous and unprecedented. From his mid-sixties up to the end of his octogenarian ages (1936-1958), he traveled to Hawan, the United States, and Europe, and gave addresses or short lectures in noted colleges and universities such as Columbia, Harvard, Chicago, California, Hawaii, Hartford, Clermont, Yale, Cornell, Princeton, Radcliffe and Amherst in the U. S., and Marburg, Stuttgart, and Munchen in Europe, and Cambridge, Edinburgh and Oxford in the United Kingdom.

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He taught as a visiting professor at Columbia University in his eighties, from 1952 until 1957.
     Just by looking on the last part of his chronology, we admire how vigorously he worked for Buddhism. In 1964, at the age of 94, he visited India, New York, Los Angeles and Hawaii, where he attended the fourth East-West Philosophers' Conference and gave an address. The following year (1965), he started the re-publication of Eastern Buddhist magazine, which was out of publication for 26 years. He also continued translating Kyaogyoo-Shinshoo into English until he died in July 1966 at the age of 96, without retirement, after only one night's hospitalization.
     Now coming back to the subtitle of this article, Is Suzuki "a Crypto-Swedenborgian?". It is quite probable that a majority of those who knew Suzuki would give a negative answer. They say that Suzuki must have been an international missionary for Buddhism, a cross-cultural communicator between East and West, or a robust satori-seeker through his life, or a life-long journalistic writer on various topics of Buddhism by comparing it with the Christian religion or Christian mystics and so on. However, we should not forget that he concentrated his mind on Swedenborg's Writings when he was 40-45 years old while lecturing on William Blake. That was the time when his indefatigable writing efforts about Buddhism, which had started some fifteen years later, were prepared in his mind, Professor Kiyoto Furuno of Musashi University wrote for Suzuki's memorial as follows:

     I read Suendenborugu written by Suzuki, and I had an impression from it that Suzuki was a Swedenborgian. It is quite true that Zen Buddhism was first introduced around the world by Suzuki, but it is also true that Swedenborg was first introduced to Japan by him . . . . I have no right to assert, because I have never done academic research over all Suzuki's works, but I have a conjecture that his basic thought was more or less influenced by Swedenborg. It seems to me that Suzuki was able to translate Zen Buddhism into English with such insight and clarity because Suzuki's brain had previously been trained by Swedenborg's mysticism in his younger years.17
     17 Op. Cit., Suzuki Daisetsu, Hito to Shosoo, pp. 80, 81

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     Our Japanese nation has never had such a committed international Buddhist scholar as D. T. Suzuki throughout history, even if we disregard his unusual marriage to a Radcliffe graduate who embraced Buddhism in her life. It is also true that, like Swedenborg, his main writing period was after his mid-fifties, and it increasingly continued just until the time when he finally expired.
     We are reminded of what Suzuki himself wrote about Swedenborg: " . . . whose 84 years' life was totally devoted to science and religion." And Suzuki's 96 years of life were also totally devoted to religion.
     While he was translating Swedenborg' s Writings, he felt that "Swedenborg's personality had come into one's mind just as if one met him in person," as Suzuki himself put it in his Suedenborugu.18
     18 Op. Cit., Suzuki-Daisetsu-Zenshuu, vol. 24, pp. 8, 9
     He was not a Swedenborgian in terms of his religious confession, but was he not a crypto-Swedenborgian in terms of his lifestyle and his religious commitment, making himself useful for the present world?
     Upon the paper screen, Suzuki once wrote with a brush and soot, in English (unusual for him) as follows:
     "To do good is my religion. The world is my home. Daisetsu"19
     19 Op. Cit., Suzuki-Daisetsu-Zenshuu Geppo (monthly letter) 11, p. 9

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PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION 1993

PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION Rev. GEORGE DE CHARMS 1993

     Part IV

     Now every teacher must have some end in view in order to teach intelligently. We must have a goal-an objective-clearly seen. There must be a remote end-a distant objective-toward which we are tending in everything we teach, and this distant end or purpose on the part of a teacher will not be seen or realized by the child. Nonetheless it must be there. It is the same with physical care. In choosing food, for instance, there must be an understanding of what is essential for a child's health, of what is needed to make him strong as he grows older. This end must determine our choice of food for the child. The child doesn't care anything about that. He likes candy better, so there must also be an immediate end that the child can see if he is going to learn anything. You know how it is with the baby-when he doesn't want to eat, you have to think of some way to induce him to eat. You might have things that are very good for him, but they won't help him unless he eats them, and sometimes that requires considerable ingenuity. I think the same thing comes in teaching; unless we can get the pupils to at least want to learn enough so they will listen, our teaching is pretty well in vain.
     So there must be not only a distant end on the part of the teacher, but an immediate end on the plane of the child's ability to understand. Thus we have to go back to a study of the state through which the child is passing in order to know something about what are the immediate ends and immediate affections that we can appeal to. What are the affections that are normally active at a given age that can be roused as a means of learning? If we can find out these affections, then we can have some mode of getting the children to learn-to assimilate what we are teaching.

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This is the same thing as finding out what mental food is appropriate to any given age. There is a great deal said in the Writings about spiritual foods-foods for the mind. There are three degrees of such spiritual foods and they correspond to the three heavens; that is, they correspond to those spiritual associations that characterize children in infancy, childhood and youth. We have celestial foods, spiritual foods and natural foods, and so long as the children are under the influence of celestial angels, it is the celestial foods that will be appropriate for them. When they come under spiritual angels it will be spiritual foods that will be appropriate, and so with natural angels natural foods. Now if we study the ages-infancy to childhood to youth, ages 1-7, 7-14, 14-21 respectively-we discover dominant affections that characterize each age with all children. And if we study more minutely we will discover progressive stages of those affections in their rise, their noon-day and their decline. There is where we can find the key to education, to the kind of food that is necessary to each period and how it may be palatable and attractively prepared and presented.
We cannot intelligently determine what should be the subject matter of education at any age without a knowledge of these successive stages of mental growth. Now this is a truth that has been seen in general by modern educators, and this gave rise to certain theories of education that are in part true. For instance, it has been much emphasized in modern education that all instruction must have some immediate application, must be seen by the child to have some use, and must be such that it can be applied immediately so that the child can do something with it. And this is emphasized against the older method of cramming the minds of children with knowledges that they had no idea about, or why they should learn them. They just had to learn them as a task that seemed to the child unreasonable, and to which he could be compelled only by fear of punishment or by reward. There was no attempt to appeal to any delight in the learning itself. It is a revolt against that kind of education that has developed the modern view.

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     There has now been very generally accepted the idea that the child must find delight in learning if it is to be valuable to him, and to that end he must see some use, some purpose. Now I say that is all true. The only criticism we have of it is that we regard it as too narrowly utilitarian, not taking into account the whole range of the child's development, his spiritual affections as well as his purely natural delights. The tendency is to confine the efforts largely to practical applications which are obvious to the child and thus can be recognized by him as something of value and use. That is all very well but it doesn't do to leave out those deeper delights that are the result of spiritual associations. It doesn't do to ignore what the Writings call the storing up of remains which have nothing to do with purely utilitarian objectives, but which reach deeper than that to the inner states of the child.
     A knowledge of those internal states of children is necessary if we are to truly meet their needs at any age, for in these internal states of children lie the most important purpose in their growth in the sight of the Lord. All his external interests are merely means to build up the internal life of the child. You might have all those external things without building up that internal life, in which case they wouldn't accomplish their purpose. Therefore, if you take a purely utilitarian view and talk about the child's external interests and appealing to them without having any knowledge or concern about those internal states I have been speaking about, you may go very wrong. You may be working against the child's development rather than for it, as will come out more clearly in a few minutes.
     To initiate children into study and learning from an idea of what is useful and practical by merely transplanting them into an imitation of adult life is apt to develop proprial affections and proprial delights that are not what is really intended, and to neglect the normal delights that belong to their own age. Just make children feel their own importance in what they can accomplish in the realm of adult life and you will see what I mean.

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You stimulate in them a false attitude as to their relation to the world around them, and at the same time you are preventing them from developing the kind of affections that are normal to them at their age.
Of course the attitude of modern educators in this regard is based on the idea that children are naturally inherently good. If we just give them an opportunity to develop in their own way, they will develop the good qualities and will overcome the evil ones. That also is a revolt against the old idea of the utter depravity of human nature, but it doesn't express the truth because children are no more inherently good than they are inherently evil, and they will not spontaneously develop the good. The only way in which children can be led to develop what is good and reject what is evil is by the building up of those internal states I have been speaking of that come from the influence of the angels that are with them. If we neglect that, we are neglecting the only means by which the child is able to overcome his evil heredity.
To found our educational practice on the view that a child is inherently good and will spontaneously reject bad things and develop good ones-a view that is not true-introduces practices into education that are more subtly injurious to the internal states of children than even the older, repressive method. This is more subtle. We don't notice it so much because we get results, but the truth is that we are increasing and encouraging those internal qualities that are evil in the child more than is the case where we are repressive. It is worse-the philosophy of modern education. This is our chief criticism of it. It is directed toward the state of mind in which there is a reliance on self and on inner pride in his own achievement, along with contempt for others and for older people. There is an attitude of resistance to any guidance from without by older people. This closes his mind against the reception of the influx from the angels of the other world that is the very means whereby the Lord is attempting to develop what is good with the child.

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     Now if this is true, then from our standpoint we must have this principle in mind: that which is of most use to the child-real use to him-at any stage of his mental growth is that which most fully enriches his reception of the heavenly influences of those angels that are present with him at that time. This is the real use, the great use, not learning to take delight in something that truly belongs to adults, or to think he can accomplish such things when he is not old enough. The greatest use is to emphasize and increase with him the reception of those heavenly influxes that are called remains, which call forth the internal delights peculiar to his age which arise from his spiritual associations.
     These delights must be felt by the child as his own higher end, that is, something that he can possess and enjoy from himself, from within, and not as something impressed upon him by others that is alien to his life, that stifles his own independence. And if they are to be felt in this way, the child himself must appear to attain them by his own efforts. They are first felt as a result of adult guidance, which tends to open them up and increase their effect, but the child-with help not too obvious-must be led to return to them on his own initiative. To do this he will have to resist, in his own little childish way, the opposite affections.
     Now if we examine this, we see that it has all the elements of human life in it. It has an immediate objective. There is an inspired ambition. There is a force to be overcome. There is a sense of resistance and of accomplishment on the part of the child, thus all that makes human life as we know it. The fact is that children can have all this only in the sphere and with the help of adults. They cannot have it by themselves. That is why the Lord gives them to us, places them under our care and gives us the responsibility for them. They cannot have all that without the help of adults. But at the same time the adults who are helping them can realize that by suggestion and by surrounding them with a sphere in the midst of which they will grow, we can give children a sense that they are doing it themselves.

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Therein lies the greatest element in their development, for this is how they learn gradually what is meant by resisting evil-in later life shunning evils as of one's self and at the same time acknowledging that it is from the Lord. Little children learn to do this from the sphere of parents and teachers.
     Now note that the ideal of education should be, first, to appeal to the good affections that are normal to a child at each age, due to influx from the angels who are present; and second, to have the child, as it were, discover these affections for himself, feel them in himself as if they were his own, and thus struggle to retain them and return to them whenever he comes into his proprial delights. And this means that we recognize education as a process of immediate living, not something that is just getting a child ready to live after a while when he grows up. He has to live now, and as he lives now so will he grow. For this reason we have to regard the immediate ends, not just the distant ends but the immediate ends of our educational processes. But also let us understand it must be a kind of living that is appropriate to the child in his own childish state, and not a kind of living that we impose on him that belongs to adult years. That is the important thing.
     How can we do this unless we discover something about what life is appropriate to a child at a given age, what food will appeal to him, what will attract his attention and interest, what normal ambitions can be stirred as if by himself so that he will struggle to retain the influx that comes from heaven and resist his proprial affections? How can we do this unless we know something about children, about the states through which they are passing and the normal processes of their mental growth?

     (To be continued)

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Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     A BOOK WITH TREMENDOUS POTENTIAL

     I am going to begin praising this book before I have read it. As a participant of the Swedenborg Scientific Association I have been aware of it for years and have been anticipating the actual publication.
     The title may take some getting used to. It is The Natural Basis of Spiritual Reality. The book itself promises to exceed expectations. It is about the human body and its spiritual correspondences. The author, Dr. Norman Berridge, combines the learning of the careful scientist with the insight of the affirmative student of the Writings.
     A part of the Writings that has fascinated generations of New Church people is the series in the Arcana about the "Gorand Man." This is the inter-chapter material that stretches through five volumes. This material was brought together in a volume (Emanuel Swedenborg, one of a series of "Classics of Western Spirituality" issued by Paulist Press) in 1984 under the title, "The Universal Human." How many readers have thought as they read this part of the Arcana that a book ought to be produced by an anatomist making use of this material? And many have benefited by the notes of the late Hugo Lj. Odhner on the human organic.
     Paging through this 387-page book, one feels one is witnessing a dream come true. It seems so well illustrated, organized, indexed. Let us conclude now with a few lines from the author's preface.

     The body of man is the natural object corresponding most closely to heaven and having the greatest relevance to the truly human form. Hence it is that human anatomy and physiology facilitate our understanding of the doctrine of the Gorand Man. How delightful it is to think about the beauty and wonder of the bodily structure and function and at the same time to realize that it is the product of the Lord's Love and Wisdom descended by degrees through heaven, even to the minerals; to the stones, water and air of the lowest level of creation. One may easily be lost in wonder and praise.

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Yet this joyful experience is only a small trace of what it could be if more study, more time and more people were devoted to building temples of wisdom on the foundations of nature. In Swedenborg's time even the angels were interested in what was going on in this planet, and since the whole of nature is a theatre representative of the Lord's kingdom, there is nothing in nature which cannot be instructive once its representation is adequately understood . . . .
When I remember these things and realize that the Writings were given by the Lord through a man-whom He had specially prepared-I wonder how I dare to take the Writings to bits, quoting a sentence here, a few words there. How can any pastiche formed in such a way retain any part of the glory now to be seen in the clouds of the Ward? I am glad to say that sometimes I have been allowed to quote long passages; such as were irresistible. I hope that you will be dissatisfied with the shorter quotations and will take delight and instruction by reading (again?) the whole numbers. Almost always it gives a different "feel" and an enhanced perception of the truth.
It is also the only way to avoid being led astray by a merely human writer!
CORRECTION 1993

CORRECTION Editor 1993

There are three editors of Comcounsel. In our April issue we named only two. The third is Edith van Zyverden. These editors report that they are enjoying their work and continuing therein.

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COMPUTER GIFT FOR GRADUATES 1993

COMPUTER GIFT FOR GRADUATES Susan B. Nickel 1993

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     Spring is here, and graduation is rapidly approaching! As a college educator, I have a suggestion for the appropriate graduation gift for the pending high school graduate.
     If the person in question is college bound, it is rapidly becoming imperative to have him/her equipped with a personal computer and printer. There is one indisputable trend: employers want future workers who have strong communication skills, including computer literacy. Those students who actively use and become proficient at using a computer in conjunction with their college work have a significant competitive advantage both in class and upon graduation.
     I will leave you to compare and research different options available in computers with the experts in your area. The most important and exciting part of my proposed graduation gift, as well as for those who already have their own computers, especially for those who love and study the Word and Writings, is "Gorandman Search." This program contains the Bible and the published works of the Writings, and is a completely cross referenced database in the tradition of the finest concordances. Offered through New Church Outreach, this program provides our most important guide for life and spiritual development literally at one's fingertips. Although my own graduation gift (my dearest possession) from my folks was a complete set of the Writings, which I have hauled around in my moves, Gorandman Search makes available to me, even when away from home, most of the Word and Writings. It is such a total joy! It allows small pauses for study and reflection I never could enjoy before, particularly as I like to search for certain key words or concepts that come to mind in the various situations I face daily.

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And if there is a time when this versatility can be invaluable, it is during the stressful time of the typical college student's fending off an environment riddled with stress, substance abuse, invisible values/morals, and other temptations offered up by the hells. We need to arm our young people with the finest defenses. I suggest referring to Isaiah 59:17. In a wink I found this passage is discussed beginning with AC 1813. (Is that slick or what?) Actually we all need this wonderful program! Gorandman Search can be purchased for about $150 through New Church Outreach, P.O. Box 3531, Industry, CA 91744.
Susan B. Nickel,
Chadron, Nebraska
VIEW FROM AUSTRALIA 1993

VIEW FROM AUSTRALIA Neville Jarvis 1993

Dear Editor:
I write to congratulate Adriaan Braam for the letter, the contents of which J fully endorse, published in the December 1992 issue of New Church Life which has just reached me in the Antipodes. Like Adriaan, I have been following this debate in your journal with considerable interest.
As I work full time with the Swedenborg Lending Library and Enquiry Centre in Sydney endeavoring to interest the public at large throughout Australia in the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg (is that not the correct terminology?), my own personal views on this matter of simplification have certainly been tempered through experience. Adriaan's comment at the top of page 562 is "spot on." I would not advocate for one moment the scrapping of the full and accurate (however that can be defined) translation of the theological writings which we have, those published by Swedenborg and posthumously.

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Yet what seems to be so often overlooked by New Church members is that we need to attune ourselves, as best we can, to the actual states of the people to whom we wish to introduce the heavenly doctrines for the New Jerusalem rather than assume they ought to be where we are.
Over the years I have advocated in a number of forums the need to have condensations, digests, and simplified translations of the theological writings, but with little support. I was delighted when Johnny Appleseed and Co. published Awaken from Death two years ago containing a selection of very useful paragraphs from Swedenborg's Heaven and Hell, from Things Heard and Seen. I imagine that many New Church people would have thrown up their hands in horror. However, we were able to sell over 1,000 copies in the last quarter of 1992 through advertising and outreach activities, and that has led a number of people to buy more books and become avid readers of the theological writings themselves (unabridged versions). Included in the copies of Awaken from Death that we distribute is a statement highlighting the fact that this is only a selection from the main work, urging the reader to go on to read Heaven and Hell itself. We could have advertised Heaven and Hell, of course, and that is something we do from time to time. However, the price charged would have been significantly higher, and it is possible (although we cannot be certain) that we would have missed attracting some of those people who have now had their interest aroused. For me, Adriaan's final sentences are vital-the question and the call to action!
I have to say that I did sense disappointment when I went on to read the next letter in the same issue. I felt that the writer had gone right past the essential point, that is, the needs associated with introducing people to the theological writings so that they have the opportunity to at least find out whether or not these books are hard to read. I cannot agree that any two books, even for the literate reader, must have the same degree of readability. But I leave others to pursue that with examples.

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What concerns me more is whether New Churchmanship depends on the ability to fully read and understand the complete text. I think not. If people can but come to understand just something of our Lord's love and truth, and be encouraged to apply that in their everyday lives, then the Lord will open the pathway of regeneration like a beautiful scene with a beacon of light in the distance acting as a magnet. To me that is the crux of what we need to consider. Boldly stating that the theological writings are not difficult to read or understand seems to imply that the failure is with the other person who admits a difficulty-surely a judgment that no one can make.
Neville Jarvis,
Carlingford, Australia
Concern for use Versus Concern for RIGHTS 1993

Concern for use Versus Concern for RIGHTS H. L 1993

     SPIRITUAL COMMENTARY

     Concern for use Versus Concern for RIGHTS

     One of the beliefs of today's society that has troubled me has been the apparent change in standards used in determining "good" and "evil." During my earlier years there seemed to be much wider agreement as to what constituted acceptable values, and such values determined the good of actions for most of us. Stated simply, a thing was deemed to be "good" or "evil" depending on its effects on a commonly accepted good of purpose.
     In earlier days, my feeling also was that many more persons could see that use to a purpose higher than the good of self-love added consequence to a man' s life. On a worldly level this truth is shown by the added consequence a nail takes on when used in construction, as contrasted with its consequence when serving no use higher than its existence in a box before use. Accordingly, lower things, upon serving use to a purpose of greater consequence, themselves take on greater consequence by the fact of such use.

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On a spiritual level this truth is fundamental to common sense and Christian doctrine concerned with man's physical and spiritual well-being.
     How is it, then, that society's reference point for determining acceptable values has largely changed from concern for a thing's good of use to widely accepted purpose, to primary concern for its effect upon individual "right" to live a favored lifestyle?
     If there were a society of 100 persons, each of whose ruling concern was for the good of his self-love, there would then be as many views as to what constitutes "good" and "evil" as there were members of that society. Accordingly, with no agreement in that society as to what is good and evil because each man's self-love differs, that society could agree on only one legitimate concern pertaining to values. This would be that since one man's self-love is of no more value than another's, the one thing all could agree upon would be that each man should have the right to assert his favored lifestyle equally with all other men. Accordingly that society would have no community-wide absolutes of good and evil, but only absolutes of good and evil which apply relative to each man in maintaining the lifestyle which is his ultimate good.
     In contrast, if there were a hypothetical society of common mind, each of whom agreed that self-love would be subordinated to a common favored good of purpose, then for that society only one reference point would exist for determining good and evil, namely the effect of a thing upon a higher purpose of predominant concern.
     Application of the Writings confirms that the Lord's principal enemy is man's "own." This own constitutes his self-love. As society's predominant own increasingly sees no good as higher than its right to self-assertion, that society's deliberations reflect the same perceptions.
     The Writings state clearly that to the extent a man falls away from belief in Christian teachings, he also falls away from belief in the good of use to anything other than the good by his self-love.

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During times when belief in the good of service to higher purpose was predominant, the question "What good is it?" was deemed the essential of any social value inquiry. Today, determination of social good or evil is often based primarily on "How does it affect the rights of those concerned?" and essentially makes no further inquiry. To the mind which acknowledges no good to be higher than that of his chosen lifestyle, such becomes his definition of good. Accordingly, he then finds no reason to look beyond his right to seek such good, or to question the legitimacy of what he finds. If real use is to the good of one's own, what purpose is served by going further?
     The foregoing leads to the conclusion that society's shift from concern for good of use to concern for good of rights companies a change in man's spiritual life. Just as thinking from the standpoint of use to God's teachings gives rise to acknowledgment that the good of the lower rests in service to the higher, so thinking primarily from reference to one's self-love leads to belief that use to the higher should be subordinated to the good of the lower. The Writings teach that all of problems arise from such an inversion of order.
     H. L.,
          Albuquerque, New Mexico
SWEDENBORG ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA 1993

SWEDENBORG ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA Editor 1993

The SAA has recently been formed. Information is obtain from the Swedenborg Centre, 1 Avon Road, North Ryde, SW 2113 Australia.

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PERSONAL EXODUS 1993

PERSONAL EXODUS DAVID R. CONARON 1993

     I recently heard the following question during a radio quiz show: "From what mountain top did Moses see the promised land of Canaan?"
     I did not hear the answer but the question set off a spiritual alarm in my mind, like a small bell warning me that something was going on here. At the time I had no idea what the insight might be.
     Over the next week the idea of seeing into a promised land but not being able to enter it occurred to me several times. I also thought that it was significant, even dreadful, that none of the Children of Israel who saw the promised land were able to enter it although their offspring were able to.
     Then I heard a sermon. The minister started by describing a selfish person, and I was subject to the following thoughts or emotions in rapid order:

1)      I felt ashamed.
2)      I thought the minister was talking about me personally.
3)      I realized that the minister would never attack a member of the congregation.
4)      I realized that he was describing the thoughts and actions arising from selfishness.
5)      I saw that it was not my present state that he was talking about but my unconscious state many years ago.
6)      I finally saw the significance of the view from the mountain top.
7)      I was able to hear the rest of the sermon.

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     Aside #1: I seem to be about as good at receiving spiritual insights as a 1910 crystal set was at receiving a broadcast. This amuses me and does not bother me because it is wonderful to receive even fitfully after many years of being switched off.
     Aside #2: I believe that there are more correspondences than those specifically described in the Writings. I believe that any understanding of how a story in the Word applies to my life may be considered a personal correspondence, and that this is an example of seeing the spiritual sense of the Word. I saw my spiritual life reflected in the Exodus story.

     Egypt

     I grew up in Egypt. My grandmother was religious in her own quiet way but my family did not discuss religion. I remember agreeing with a friend when I was about twelve that we could see nothing in religion. The only religion that I knew about at that time was the Church of England, which I still think of as rather empty.
     By the time I reached college age, I knew that it was dangerous for me to base all of my decisions on my own experience, and I was looking for what Nietzche called a "Table of Values" by which I could steer a path through life.

     Sinai

     Then I met Julie. She introduced me to the New Church, which I initially accepted as an excellent table of values. This is the aspect of the New Church that leads us to describe it as church that makes sense.
     I knew enough to recognize that there was something wonderful in the New Church people that I met, and I was particularly moved by the angelic nature of Bob Bruell. I could see that the good states of these people were the result of lives of religion. I could also believe that it might be possible for me to arrive at such a state in the distant future.

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However, I could not understand at all what it would be like to be in such a state nor how I could get there.
     I now see this as a view into a promised land that I could not enter until some of my evils died and were replaced by a new generation of loves.
     I stumbled all over the Sinai desert, almost forgetting the vision but receiving spiritual sustenance. I joined the church, and by believing in the Lord and following the Word I developed a clearer picture of things. During this time I slowly realized which of my thoughts and actions were a barrier to spiritual growth and I worked on them.

     Canaan

     Then came Laurel 1990 and my spiritual awakening. I now see that wonderful event from a new perspective, in addition to my previous views and in no way detracting from them. I was able to cross into the land of Canaan where I could taste the fruits of a spiritual life because I had left behind my old bad loves, It was indeed a new me that entered the promised land.
     I do not mean that I was perfect then (or now), but simply that I had gained control of enough selfish things and made enough good things my own for me to understand a good life and to know what living according to the Word really means. I believe that this is consistent with the tribes of Israel who had plenty of work to do even after they arrived in Canaan.

     Conclusion

     I believe that it was in Providence that I did not realize at the time exactly what it was that I left behind in the Sinai.
     When I was younger, I had an attitude that reflected some loves that were bad, but I was unaware of that. For example, I now know deep in my heart how much the Lord loves variety and thus how wrong it is to condemn others for being different.

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When I was younger, I could not see this truth at all and I could be a harsh judge. My spiritual growth involved shunning the harmful acts associated with my bad loves without clearly seeing or understanding those loves.
Now that I have been living differently for some time, it is possible for me to see those once cherished bad loves for the evils that they were without being crushed by my own foolishness.
I now know that I am better than I was, that I have a long way to go, and that the Lord is my shield, strength and comfort.
NEW BOOKS 1993

NEW BOOKS Editor 1993

     Announcements

     We have heard that a new translation of Earths in the Universe by John Chadwick is to be published soon with the title Worlds in Space.
     We have received from Seminar Press Eve, the Bone of Contention by Dr. Michael Stanley. We have not yet received The Shorter Heaven and Hell. This is an abridgment by Julian Duckworth and Trevor Moffat, a book about one-sixth the length of Heaven and Hell.
ALEXANDER VASILIEV VISITS THE USA 1993

ALEXANDER VASILIEV VISITS THE USA Editor 1993

Letters from Mr. Vasiliev (translated from Russian) have been quoted in New Church Life. He is the man who went through the procedure to establish the New Church officially in the Ukraine. He arrived in Bryn Athyn on Easter Sunday, and began looking at handwritten Russian manuscripts of books of the Writings that have been preserved by the Swedenborg Society for a hundred years. (See the articles by Mr. Leonard Fox in the January and February issues.)
EGOLI ASSEMBLY 1993

EGOLI ASSEMBLY Peter M. Buss 1993

     The New Church Buccleuch will host a national assembly of the New Church in South Africa from Friday, August 27 to Sunday, August 29, 1993 with the Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss presiding.
     This assembly will be hosted by the New Church Buccleuch on its own property, and will be the first to be held in South Africa in ten years. On Sunday, August 29 Candidate Albert Thabede will be inaugurated into the priesthood of the New Church, and accepted as a minister of the General Church.
     Peter M. Buss,
          Executive Bishop

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ESCAPE FROM EGYPT 1993

ESCAPE FROM EGYPT Editor 1993

     ESCAPE FROM EGYPT

     By

     Rev. Douglas M. Taylor

     Why is it that of all the young people who graduate from our day schools, Sunday Schools, high school and college some continue in the way of the Lord and enter more and more interiorly into the church while others are captivated by the world? Why do they not all come into the church? Part of the answer, a very important part, lies within the whole story of the exodus of Israel out of Egypt, through the wilderness, into the land of Canaan, the land flowing with milk and honey.
     This study of the internal sense of the Exodus story shows some of the hellish influences that make it difficult for people to enter more and more deeply into the church.
Price: $7.00 plus $1.05 postage
     Box 743, Cairncrest
General Church Book Center               Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                    Phone: (215) 947-3920

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Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

Vol. CXIII June, 1993 No. 6
NEW CHURCH LIFE

242

     There are two ministers named Erik Sandstrom. The younger of the two is Erik E. Sandstrom. His sermon, apt for the month of June, treats of the panorama of world religions, explaining that "the path" in Taoism is the ancient term for regeneration.
     We are delighted to have a review of Dr. G. Baker's book, Religion and Science, a book that is enjoying increasing popularity. The book by Dr. Norman Berridge which we commended last month is advertised at the end of this issue. Speaking of "good reading," see the note on Connections on p. 266.
     There may be emotional responses to the study in this issue on Gurdjieff. The writer is aware of this but invites consideration of factors perhaps not known to many readers.
     How do your emotions respond to the following: "Swedenborgianism is a pseudo-religion. His followers accept his writings as the word of God. They are so fanatical about their cult that they send their children away from home to attend school at their headquarters in Bryn Athyn, PA"? This is from the collection of newspaper excerpts beginning on p. 264.
     In another item your emotions may be stirred by the assertion that Swedenborg was insane " . . . and that reading his works would also induce insanity" (p. 270).
     We have received many reports of baptisms. In this issue they come from Korea, South Africa, England, and America, but they come mostly from Ghana.
     We are publishing the current addresses for New Church places of worship although we anticipate changes this summer in some addresses.

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TRUE CHRISTIANITY 1993

TRUE CHRISTIANITY Rev. ERIK E. SANDSTROM 1993

     "Worship God, for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy" (Rev. 19:10).

     How many living souls know of the New Church and its celebration every June? The answer is myriads of myriads, for the Lord called His apostles to announce to the entire spiritual world that the Lord God Jesus Christ reigns. So this is one of heaven's most widely known festivals. Only on earth are so few in on the secret.
     But here our text reveals a remarkable truth: "the spirit of prophecy" means that, since the beginning of time, the Lord Jesus Christ conjoins Himself with all who live by His commandments. All past, present and future religions receive the same genuine truth, from the same Lord God, for He alone is the Word, and His Word is the "spirit of prophecy." All people who have " . . . lived in good wherever they are, acknowledge the Lord" (NJHD 246), and have received enlightenment; their prophets, confessing one God whom they call LORD, have spoken by His inspiration! (See AE 1232, AR 819.)
     Why then are there so many different religions? Why do people fight against each other calling on the same God but under different names? Because faith divides. Only charity unites. As we read, if all Christians would make " . . . love to the Lord and charity toward the neighbor the principal of faith . . . doctrinal matters would then be only varieties of opinion; . . . all dissensions . . . would vanish;. . . all hatreds of one against another would be dissipated in a moment, and the Lord's kingdom would come upon the earth" (AC 1799:4).
     Is this a promise too good to be true? Is the New Church called to serve as a peacemaker in the world? How can it, being so small and unrecognized?

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But does truth depend on size? In ancient times, charity did unite nations of different doctrinal outlooks. Even though doctrinal outlooks varied, each instructed the other, and accepted the differences in charity as matters of opinion (see NJHD 9). No one harmed his neighbor or went to war. Instead, all truths, like gems in a crown, mutually regarded each other. Variety was welcome. There was no strife while charity smoothed all troubled waters.
     However, the Ancient Church came to an end. The Ancient Word, pre-dating the Old Testament and referred to by Moses, disappeared. Because charity ceased all over the world, genuine truth died out over a few generations. "The Spirit of Prophecy" ceased, angels were no longer welcome, and their messages went unheeded (see AC 6371, 6373).
     But some of the knowledge of the spiritual world was turned into tradition and folk-lore. Let us now look at how such Ancient Church traditions can be traced around us today.
     First, with the loss of the Ancient Word, people lost the correspondential relationship Of objects to heavenly counter-parts; statues and images of the sun, moan, old men, maidens, oxen, calves and serpents were turned into idols, symbols, monuments or legends (see SS 23, TCR 833). That is how the idolatry of Molech, Baal, Ishtar and Astarte arose. The hieroglyphics involve such correspondences (see SS 20). Stonehenge and Hiawatha talking to the animals are other examples.
     Even for us, both Christmas and Easter have replaced the worship of pagan gods. So at these festivals we should strive to control all idolatrous or Pagan aspects-perhaps as hard today as in former times. No images should be allowed to obstruct our view of the heavenly doctrines themselves, as meant by the first commandment: "No other gods before My face-a clarion call preserved by the Sons of Israel.
     Another way the Ancient Church ended was by magic: in Egypt correspondences were turned into secret ciphers, mutterings and spells to trap someone's spirit under their power (see AC 6052, SD 5799).

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It is the source of our modern, somewhat romanticized, notion of "casting a spell" over someone. But originally, the power of magic was lethal; Moses and Aaron contested this power by Divine miracles and won, restoring the rightful order. The Exodus ushered in an era of open miracles that lasted for about 1200 years, until our Lord Himself, who stilled the wind and the wave, came and established the Christian Church, yes, by that same restored power of miracles. Miracles demonstrated how the spiritual world was immanent in nature. It is this correspondence which has been inherited into the sacraments of Baptism and the Holy Supper.
     So this relic of the Ancient Church is still with us in our desire to see magic and miracles, but knowing there is always trick to the equipment. Real magic is found in everyday miracles, such as turning thoughts into speech, or painting a picture of an angel, or seeing how much of the baby is still in the face of a senior citizen, or seeing the conjunctive power of the two sacraments.
     Still another ending of the Ancient Church was in mythology: those who composed the Ancient Word turned doctrine into tales of persons with special name-Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Noah, Babel, etc. These tales were passed down, until the narrators were associated with the tales they told, and were raised to the status of gods (see TCR 292).
     That is how the Greek and Roman myths came to tell the history of the Most Ancient and Ancient Churches. Thus the age of Saturn refers to the Most Ancient Church, the Cyclops attacking the camp of the gods refers to the flood, and Zeus or Jupiter refers to the post-diluvian Ancient Church. Angelic wisdom is meant by Pegasus (see De Verbo 7, TCR 292, Coro. 38).
     The same for the Nordic gods, Woden, Thor, and Freya, contained in our Wednesday, Thursday and Friday; these contain messages of spiritual history, seen if the Writings are first known. So as we listen to Wagner, this helps explain another realm of present-day existence. And don't we also preserve the stories of our forebears and name our children after them?

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But that is the true value of tradition.
     Yet other ways for the Ancient Church to come to an end help us understand Hinduism and Buddhism. The Hindu religion gained prominence with the Aryans of north India around 1700 B.C. A later offshoot of this was the Taoism of Lao-Tse in 600 B.C., talking of the Tao or the way, the path. It is the ancient term for regeneration. But after contact with the spiritual world was lost, all those aspects of the spiritual world known from open contact became the Hindu gods Shiva, Vishnu and Krishna and millions of lesser gods. So Hinduism can be seen as a transcendental form of idolatry, which still seeks to maintain contact with the spiritual world by meditation. What used to be above, in heaven, is now seen to be in the soul. Successive order has become simultaneous (see SS 38). Thus all spiritual things are counted as originating from oneself, and as projections of one's own inner being.
     Buddhism arose out of Hinduism around 400 B.C., by emphasis on this inner self. But it is true that the human soul is the Lord's creation, His dwelling place in man. Even a devil's soul is pure. Buddhists in effect believe that man's soul is god in oneself. After death, they describe meeting various deities, first peaceful but later the same deities now wrathful and vengeful. The dead person's task, then, is to recognize these deities as mere projections from his own inner self. They manifest his own inner qualities.
     However, the truth of the matter is that reality in the spiritual world is above and within this natural existence. We become aware of those inner realities at times here, mainly through the Word, but permanently only after death.
     Still another knowledge from the Ancient Church was that after death our inner qualities are visually represented all around us. Animals, trees, clothing, dwellings, etc., correspond to and reflect our inner states. Oriental meditation concentrates on knowing oneself, and going within to reach Nirvana (Moksa, Sunyatta) or the total union or removal of worldly interference.

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However, this whole subjective world is exactly what the Writings objectively describe. It is now shown how the whole world of meditation relates to natural objects. In the Writings, therefore, meditation-East and West-has met its match.
     This leads us to perhaps the most popular fallacy in the world, also stemming from the collapse of the Ancient Church, namely, reincarnation or the transmigration of souls. Reincarnation originally refers to regeneration, later called the Tao, or going from earth to heaven. But with the spiritual world lost to contact, there was nowhere left to go than back here! But such a return here was by Buddhists thought a most frightful failure to obtain Nirvana, and to be avoided at all cost. Only in the West has the idea of coming back for several lifetimes gained a romantic appeal! So much for worldliness, shunned by most Orientals!
     So reincarnation mixes up what happens before and after death. All that people suppose happens by reincarnation actually takes place after death, in the world of spirits. That is where you go through several states, reliving your life, seeing animals and vegetation which represent your inner qualities, and seeing the meaning of your past experiences as they project into an eternal destination. But no one has ever come back or been born twice (see HH 485-520).
     Aside from jokes about coming back as an animal, etc., this relic is well known from the deja vu experiences, which the Writings explain happen when the memory of a spirit momentarily makes it across, and we "remember something which we have never seen or heard" (see HH 256). Such a recollection is supposed to prove reincarnation, but alas, it only proves that dead people remember their existence on earth. Affections for loved ones become the medium for occasional shared memories. We think we lived before-so far from the actual truth.
     And Islam began six centuries after the Advent. The Writings reveal that Mohammed really was lifted into the highest heaven, as he himself claimed.

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He was inspired to write the Quran, taking from both testaments sufficient truths for a different group of people to be separated from a dying Christianity and be saved, the Islamic way (see DP 255, TCR 833).
     In all these religions the silent undercurrents are none other than the ten commandments. So-called "pagans" and "gentiles" have taboos or rules against profaning holy things, so strict and with such severe penalties that by comparison our easy excuses for indulgences pale into nothing. Thus the Writings declare: "Everyone, provided he lives well, may have a place in heaven" (DP 254). "The Gentile thinks more about God from religion related to life than the Christian does" (DP 322).
     So finally we come to the Christians themselves. The apostles converted thousands by means of miracles and with mainly Divinely inspired teachings recorded in the Epistles and Acts. But right from the start, the genuine truth was rent asunder by heresies (see TCR 378), and the Gospels and Apocalypse were twisted out of their spiritual sense so that damnation again loomed. In Providence, Islam arose to redeem the north-African and middle-east Christians, who otherwise would have fallen condemned. And shortly thereafter, Christianity was split. The Catholics maintained from harm a confessional approach to a magnificent Lord. The Orthodox centered in Constantinople maintained the apostolic traditions of worshiping the Lord directly, rejecting the immaculate conception and purgatory. The Reformed restored the Word into the vernacular, to be read by everyone (see SS 110). And it was among those who actually read the Word for themselves, given in the Middle East but published and explained in the West, and who thus could perceive in the spiritual sense that the Lord is the one God of heaven and earth, that the Lord made His Second Coming. Now, in retrospect, we can see that all who keep the commandments worship the Lord, but under a multitude of different names.
     Through the ages, truths have been preserved among all world religions. All religions know the ten commandments, inspired by the "spirit of prophecy" from the mouth of the Lord alone.

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All are saved by a life according to them: "A Christian sees this from the Word, a Mahometan from the Koran, and a Gentile from his religious principle" (AE 1180).
     What can a New Church member do to help remove all hatreds instantly and allow the halt and lame from all nations to come to the New Jerusalem?
     We can do it by becoming also service-oriented. The New Church can serve the needs of people in all walks of life, in all religions. We supply. What is the commodity? Truths. What is the currency? Charity. And both truths and charity translate into one word we all know the meaning of: caring.
     By caring for the stranger, by showing concern for his religious system, and by agreeing with his true ideas which find a clear echo in the Writings-an echo which actually is a truth resounding-we point the way to the open doors of the New Jerusalem.
     Whether we are members or interested visitors, our talents are already providentially distributed in the right way to help whoever knocks on the door. There is a truth needed by everyone, known by someone here, who then becomes the best qualified person to effect the transfer.
     Thus all who keep the commandments cannot help but turn to Jesus, who is their Lord under whatever local name, for they have heard His spirit of prophecy since time began. "All who live in good acknowledge the Lord" (NJHD 246; see also AC 2589-2590). He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. And His main teaching is charity, or avoiding evils in the Lord's name: then " . . . all dissensions would vanish-and all hatreds would dissipate in a moment, and the Lord's kingdom would come upon the earth." The "spirit of prophecy" can lead all people to worship the one God, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

     Lessons: Revelation 19:9-11, 16, 17; 21:10-13; AC 1799:4; AE 1180:2; SS 38:1

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GURDJIEFF: GUIDE TO HEAVEN OR HELL? 1993

GURDJIEFF: GUIDE TO HEAVEN OR HELL? LEONARD FOX 1993

In the past few years there has been a growing fascination the part of some members of the New Church with the teachings of Gurdjieff. Impetus has been given to this movement through Peter S. Rhodes's lectures and workshops, as well as through his book Aim. Both Mr. Rhodes and those who have participated in the "spiritual growth" groups feel that they have obtained significant benefit from the physical and psychological exercises taught by Gurdjieff.
In view of this positive attitude, there are perhaps certain basic questions that should be asked. Is it possible to separate what is seemingly good and true from a system of thought that is essentially evil and false, or is that seeming good and truth necessarily tainted with evil and falsity? Within a system whose core is evil, is it possible to restrict oneself to the practice of certain aspects of that system which one considers peripheral to its core without being gradually and unwittingly drawn into an inevitable acceptance of other aspects that are spiritually destructive? I believe that the Writings give us clear and Uncompromising answers to these questions. It is very likely, however, that most of those New Church people who have been drawn to the Gurdjieff "Work" are Unaware of the nature of Gurdjieff's life and of the real content-the core--of his teaching, and thus have not been able to know whether, in the final analysis, the benefits they perceive from their practices are real or apparent; and, if they are apparent, whether spiritual harm can result from involvement with them. The purpose of this article is to reveal facts that will provide a degree of knowledge about Gurdjieff and what he actually taught, sufficient to enable an informed individual decision as to whether negative factors outweigh positive ones or vice versa.

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     I am well aware that for some people the issue of the value of the Gurdjieff "Work" is an emotional one, and I anticipate that there may be emotional rather than objectively intellectual responses to what follows. Patient research in Gurdjieff's own books and transcribed lectures, as well as in the large amount of secondary literature now available on his life, will serve to confirm the material presented here. Evaluations and conclusions not in the form of quotations reflect my own opinions.

     Part 1: Gurdjieff's Life

     "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruits; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them" (Matthew 7:15-20).
     "The 'false prophets' are the sons of the age, who are more prudent (that is, more crafty) than the sons of light" (AC 3900:5). "Therefore, my friend, form your opinion of a man not from his mouth but from his heart, that is, not from his words but from his deeds" (TCR 590). "According to the quality of the life, such is the man" (AE 797).
     "Flee Gurdjieff like the plague!" (Ren Gu non, French philosopher and metaphysician, author of many works on the spirituality of traditional religions.)
     "If I had bared myself, I should inevitably have betrayed my tail which there on your planet I skillfully hid under the folds of my dress" (G.I. Gurdjieff, All and Everything: Beelzebub's Tales to His Gorandson, chapter 34).

     Georgi Ivanovich Gurdjieff was born on 28 December 1877 in Aleksandropol, now Leninakan, Armenia, of Greek parents. Although he claimed to have studied techniques of spiritual development in Sufi tekkes, Orthodox monasteries on Mount Athos, Lamaist monasteries in Tibet, and even in a Jewish Essene monastery in Jerusalem (of which no trace has ever been found), he never presented any real evidence of his background.

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It does seem likely, however, that he had contacts with Kurdish Yezidis settled in Armenia, The Yezidi religion is a strange syncretistic faith that may have roots in Manichaeism, and combines elements of heterodox Islam and Gnosticism. While living in Central Asia, Gurdjieff probably spent time with Sufis of the Yesevi and Naqshbandi orders, from whom he undoubtedly learned some of the teachings of esoteric Islam.
     Little is known about Gurdjieff's activities during his teens and twenties, but it appears from what has been pieced together about his early life that he most likely acted as a paid agent of the Russian government to foment trouble in Macedonia and other places. He later claimed to have known Stalin around this time, and said that they had studied together in the Orthodox seminary. It is certain, however, that by the age of thirty Gurdjieff had somehow acquired or developed great abilities in hypnosis, as well as actual or fake extrasensory perception skills. It was about two Years later that, according to his own account, he discovered the "reminding-factor," a technique designed to permit a constant "objective" awareness of oneself or, as he expressed it, "a factor which would remind me always, in my every common state, to 'remember myself.'"
     Of course, self-awareness as a discipline necessary for spiritual development is a teaching common to all traditional religions. We are familiar with the importance assigned to reflection in the Writings, for example. Gurdjieff says that he resolved to share this insight with others, giving them the "reminding-factor" by means of the strength of his own psychic powers (that he called hanbledzoin). It is interesting to see what motivated Gurdjieff to undertake this seeming altruistic work. He writes in Life Is Real Only Then, When "I Am":

     God represents absolute goodness; He is all-loving and all-forgiving.

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He is the Just Pacifier of all that exists. At the same time, why should He, being as He is, send away from Himself one of His nearest, by Him animated, Beloved Sons, only for the "way of pride" proper to any young and still incompletely formed individual, and bestow upon Him a force equal but opposite to His own?. . . . I refer to the "Devil." This idea illuminated the condition of my inner world like the sun, and rendered it obvious that in the great world for the possibility of harmonious construction there was inevitably required some kind of continuous perpetuation of the reminding-factor. For this reason our Maker Himself, in the name of all that He had created, was compelled to place one of His Beloved Sons in such an, in the objective sense, invidious situation. Therefore I also have now for my small inner world to create out of myself, from some factor beloved by me, an alike unending source.

     There are several interesting points about this quotation, not the least of which is the identification of the devil as the "Beloved Son" sent to redeem mankind. Gurdjieff's theological speculations included the idea that the Logos without the participation of a "neutralizing third force" (called fagologiria) is purely "sterile." It should be noted, too, that Fritz Peters, in his book Gurdieff Remembered, says that Gurdjieff "called himself a 'devil'."
     In 1910 Gurdjieff set himself up in Tashkent (Uzbekistan) as a professional hypnotist, healer, and wonder-worker. He was involved to a greater or lesser extent in the fringe occult groups that had formed among the Russians living in Central Asia at that time, and quickly established his own circle. He supported himself by various means, including, as he put it, "shearing [money] from disciples," as well as through commercial ventures of all kinds.
     Within a couple of years Gurdjieff had tired of this existence, so he went to Moscow and St. Petersburg in search of new people to add to his growing "workshop for the perfection of psycopathism," where he could "observe and study various manifestations in the waking state of the psyche of these trained and freely moving 'guinea pigs,' allotted to me by Destiny for my experiments," as he had phrased it during his Tashkent period.

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He eventually made his way to the court of Tsar Nicholas II, where he joined the group of spiritists, healers, occultists, and other questionable characters who set the stage for the entrance of Rasputin.
     In 1915 Gurdjieff met the mathematician Pyotr Demianovich Ouspensky, who was later to become his best known disciple, as well as Thomas de Hartmann, at that time an officer in one of the Imperial regiments and afterward a composer of music for "dances" choreographed by Gurdjieff. After the 1917 revolution, Gurdjieff and a group of his followers, including de Hartmann and other Russian aristocrats, fled to the Northern Caucasus. They soon moved south to Georgia, on to Turkey, then to Germany, and finally, in 1922, to France.
     There, with funds raised in all sorts of ways, Gurdjieff ordered that an estate near Fontainebleau, called the Prieur, should be bought for him. It later became his center of operations and was known as the "Institute for the Harmonious Development of Man." By this time, contacts had been made with many people who were interested in the sort of things that Gurdjieff was teaching. All of these disciples-rich and poor-were assigned the most grueling labor from dawn to sunset, in order to bring the estate into the condition that Gurdjieff wanted. As a reward, they would have a lecture by Gurdjieff in the evening or be taught "sacred gymnastics" dance-exercises designed by Gurdjieff to develop self-awareness.
     In a so-called "Study House" built on the grounds, Gurdjieff had a cloth ceiling installed, on which his own aphorisms were painted and embroidered in a script of his invention. The disciples were obliged to learn both the script and the platitudes written in it. Examples of the latter included: "The best means of obtaining felicity in this life is the ability to consider externally always, internally never"; "The highest achievement of man is to be able TO DO,"

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     Gurdjieff's methods of spiritual teaching were not limited to lectures, exercises, and aphorisms. J. G. Bennett, a confirmed adherent well known for his books, reports that Gurdjieff would go into rages: " . . . his entire body would shake, his face grow purple, and a stream of vituperation would pour out." There were some who could not endure the tremendous physical, mental, and emotional strain that they were put under by Gurdjieff. Deaths and suicides occurred. Katherine Mansfield, the noted author, died at the estate. Although it is true that she had tuberculosis when she arrived, she was undoubtedly hastened to her end by being forced to sleep in a stable during the winter, so that she could benefit from the physical and "spiritual" exhalations of the cows.
     In 1923, the members of Gurdjieff's group gave performances of the gymnastic dances in Paris, and then in America: in New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and Chicago. Shortly after returning to France, Gurdjieff was seriously injured when his car struck a tree. It perhaps provides an insight into Gurdjieff's character to know that when he had recovered sufficiently to be able to walk around again, he ordered that tall trees on the estate should be cut down every day and burned on huge bonfires. His accident apparently diminished the force that he habitually exerted over those around him and in his circles elsewhere. Ouspensky, who had been teaching Gurdjieff's methods in England, broke with him, thereby cutting off the income that Gurdjieff had derived from the British group.
     It was around this time that Gurdjieff, in an effort to attract new disciples all over the world, began to write the books that made him famous, especially All and Everything and Meetings with Remarkable Men. The first attempts at writing and translation proved unsuccessful; after four years he realized that his texts, in their final form, were incomprehensible and that they would need to be completely revised.

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     In 1928 Gurdjieff decided to implement an idea that he had of intentional suffering being connected with creative work. In line with this resolve, his first move was to get rid of his oldest and closest friends and associates. Among those driven away were Maurice Nicoll, the Jungian analyst who later wrote several volumes of commentaries on Gurdjieff's teachings, A.R. Orage, the British journalist, and Thomas de Hartmann.
     Despite immediate financial hardships, Gurdjieff managed to keep the institute going for several more years. From 1929 until the outbreak of the Second World War, he made a number of trips to America, where new groups devoted to his work were formed. The Fountainebleau estate had to be sold in 1933, but Gurdjieff continued his activities in Paris,
     In 1948 Gurdjieff had another automobile accident, from which he emerged with a fractured skull, broken ribs and bleeding lungs. Although he refused all medication and X-rays, he was somehow able to heal himself sufficiently to take up his usual activities after only two weeks. Later that year, Gurdjieff went again to America, this time to arrange for the publication of All and Everything. After returning to France the next spring, his health took a rapid turn for the worse, and on 29 October 1949 he died.

     Part 2: Gurdjieff's Teaching

     Many of Gurdjieff's disciples were painfully aware of the depraved character of his life, and yet they maintained that this was either irrelevant to the significance of his spiritual guidance or a deliberate facade designed to shock people into awareness. J. G. Bennett stated: "The whole atmosphere among those who surrounded Gurdjieff was impregnated with a feverish excitement that made it hard to tell what was right and what was wrong." This confusion of good and evil, as well as the ignominies and abuse that his pupils suffered at his hands, were considered to be a price worth the teachings they received from him.

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Faced with the phenomenon of such loyalty, the obvious question to be asked is: what exactly did Gurdjieff teach?
     This is not an easy question to answer, since Gurdjieff himself never bothered to set out his doctrines in a rational and comprehensive manner. He claimed to teach a method of spiritual regeneration through the achievement of a higher consciousness. This is what constituted-and perhaps still constitutes-the principal attraction that drew disciples to him. The real message of his work, though, can be gleaned from a careful reading of his books and transcriptions of his lectures. Much of what he used as a foundation for his ostensible spiritual discipline was derived in the most superficial way from traditional religions. It was distorted and perverted, however, under the guise of being the "true" or "secret" meaning unknown to all but a select group of initiates-i.e, Gurdjieff himself.
     Constant self-awareness is one of the cornerstones of Gurdjieff's teaching. In his book Aim, Peter S. Rhodes says: "Gurdjieff had students say things in their head or do things with their hands for seven years because they wanted to be conscious every minute of their life. They didn't want to just go and live, as they say, from the world. They wanted to constantly keep in their mind that we are meant to be living from truth" (p. 12). In the context under consideration, it is necessary to wonder what "truth" was involved, especially since one of Gurdjieff's favorite aphorisms was: "Truth can only come to people in the form of a lie."
     In contrast to the goal intrinsic to concepts of regeneration in traditional religions-conjunction of the human soul with the Divine-Gurdjieff taught that man is born without a soul. In his view, people are simply machines or, more precisely, excrement (in lecturing, J. G. Bennett says that Gurdjieff would use scatological language to convey his meaning as directly as possible). A soul can be acquired only by conscious effort.

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That effort, whose goal is the death of what one is and the awakening or rebirth into "true being," involves voluntary suffering. Gurdjieff called it "a way against nature, against God."
     According to one of Gurdjieff's French disciples, Denis Saurat, women were in a much more difficult position than men with respect to obtaining a soul. He reports that Gurdjieff maintained that women could only hope to acquire a soul by means of sexual relations with men. To assist them, as J. G. Bennett states, Gurdjieff went through "unbridled periods" of sexual indulgence, having indiscriminate relations with any and every woman, including his own students, some of whom bore his children. It was said that "only those women who had slept with him were really initiated into his Work." "He was very insistent that sex should be separated from the intellectual and emotional life of man. Sex was sex and, if treated as such, was not only a legitimate but even a necessary part of the process of our development." Bennett adds: "I am bound to say that the advice he gave older men and women resulted in many irregular relationships being formed."
     Gurdjieff also taught that " . . . everything in the Universe is material . . . . The Absolute is as material, as weighable and measurable, as the moon or as man. If the absolute is God it means that God can be weighed and measured, resolved into component elements, 'calculated,' and expressed in the form of a definite formula . . . . Therefore the Great Knowledge is more materialistic than materialism . . . . I repeat: everything in the Universe is material. Ponder these words and you will understand, at least to some degree, why I used the expression 'more materialistic than materialism'. . . . God and microbe are the same system; the only difference is in the number of centers."
     Peter S. Rhodes mentions in Aim that Gurdjieff's system involved "esoteric Christianity." It is true that he gave this name to his teachings, but at the same time he denied the concept of revelation, saying that the "founders" of religions had "created" them.

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He also stated that the followers of religions had twisted the original messages and had invented such "maleficent" notions as "good and evil, paradise and hell, and other fantasies." His ideas about the significance of the Holy Supper are worth quoting as well. "The Last Supper was a magical ceremony similar to 'blood-brotherhood' for establishing a connection between 'astral bodies.' But who is there who knows about this in existing religions and who understands what it means? All this has long been forgotten and everything has been given quite a different meaning. The words have remained, but their meaning has been lost."
     Gurdjieff taught that God is neither omnipotent nor omniscient: "It is not God that is omnipotent but the Universal Will." "Nothing is immortal, even God is mortal. But there is a great difference between man and God, and, of course, God is mortal in a different way to man.
     J. G. Bennett quotes the following from a lecture by Gurdjieff: "Pride of self is the sign of being in possession of oneself . . . . Pride of self is 'I.' 'I' is God. Consequently, it to have pride."
     Although the examples given are only highlights of Gurdjieff's thought on religion, they are perhaps sufficient to indicate its diabolical nature. His more bizarre concepts, such as those concerning the moon, the "laws of seven and three," the "Table of Hydrogens," and his almost incomprehensible cosmology, do not merit the space that would be needed to discuss them.

     In view of the fact that elements of Gurdjieff's teachings have been achieving a certain popularity among New Church people, it is appropriate to consider whether, despite the evils of his life-a life that apparently exemplified the lust of dominion-and the appalling falsities that were part and parcel of his system as a whole, there is anything positive or useful to be gained from the physical and psychological exercises that he taught.

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Accounts have been written by a number of disillusioned disciples of Gurdjieff, but excerpts from one by the French writer Paul Srant are worth quoting. Not only do they express what so many other people experienced, but they point out the intrinsic evil of the entire system and, consequently, the dangers in those aspects of it that are now being presented in New Church circles as positive means to spiritual awareness and development:

     I noticed that the effort of consciousness had created among these people [at Fontainebleau] a rather suspicious mixture of pretension, selfishness, and pride (or more exactly, self-satisfaction). These faults are naturally the lot of all mortals, but what seemed to me grave here is that they were methodically cultivated in the name of non-identification, lucidity, and self-awareness. Obviously when it is taken for granted that all men are machines while one is oneself emerging from this category, the risk of a dangerous temptation arises: if other people are machines, why not use them as such? Duplicity then becomes a very legitimate form of training in sharper self-awareness . . . . This is where a sort of spiritual inversion occurs, infinitely more perilous than immorality accepted as such . . . . The real spiritual danger begins when good is called evil, and evil good. The perversion thus created is well-nigh irremediable.

     I would like to offer one final quotation that seems to me to serve as a metaphor for Gurdjieff's life and work (or Work with a capital W, as his followers call his system). It is from an article that appeared in The Century, a magazine that used to be published in New York. The author is G. E. Bechhofer, who had first met Gurdjieff in 1919 in Georgia. After a visit to Fontainebleau, he gave his impressions, and he writes:

     I often heard it said that Gurdjieff was a marvelous worker. The disciples, breathless with rapture, told me of the unusual speed and ease with which he laid out roads, for example, or sawed wood, laid bricks, designed ovens for drying herrings.

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But recently I have noticed a dubious element in these accounts. The roads did not hold up with wear, the walls cracked, the ovens did not work and dry the herrings. It is possible that Gurdjieff is not the superartisan he was claimed to be.

It is difficult to understand why those in the New Church should be attracted to Gurdjieff. In the Writings the Lord Himself has given us not only the most profound theological and metaphysical truths, consistently and systematically presented in forms that are accommodated to everyone, but He has also given us the most detailed practical instructions possible for the process of our regeneration. Rather than being seduced by the evil and falsity inherent in Gurdjieff's teachings, we should endeavor to expose them for what they are, and thus prevent the hells from making conquests through them.
HELEN KELLER 1993

HELEN KELLER Editor 1993

     This month marks the 25th anniversary of the death of Helen Keller. An hour documentary on public radio recently told her story and included remarks by Rev. Clayton Priestnal, with references to Swedenborg.
     Helen Keller's testimony continues to attract people to the Writings. She wrote:
     Joy is inseparable from the doctrines set forth by Swedenborg.
     Yes, the teachings of Emanuel Swedenborg have been my light and a staff in my hand, and by his vision splendid I am attended on my way.

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NEWSPAPERS MENTION NEW CHURCH IN SENATORIAL ELECTION 1993

NEWSPAPERS MENTION NEW CHURCH IN SENATORIAL ELECTION Editor 1993

     In the March issue we had an article describing court cases in which being New Church or Swedenborgian was at issue. During that month an election in Missouri elicited unprecedented newspaper coverage of the New Church.
     On March 9th Mr. Glen Klippenstein was elected state senator. Here are some newspaper quotes relating to his religion.
     One newspaper noted that Klippenstein " . . . is a member of the New Christian Church, which follows the teachings of the 18th century philosopher Emanuel Swedenborg." This became a political issue, and U. S. Senator Jack Danforth protested. "In the years I have been in politics, I recall no other occasion when an opponent's religious affiliation has been the subject of paid advertising." In a published letter Danforth said that " . . . if Swedenborgians are abused today, there is nothing to protect Jews tomorrow and Catholics the day after."
     A heading in The Kansas City Star March 1, 1993, reads, "Candidate's Religion Attacked." The article begins, "An attack on State Senate candidate Glen Klippenstein has left him explaining his religion and his opponent denying involvement in the attack. Klippenstein is a member of the New Christian Church, which is based on the teachings of philosopher Emanuel Swedenborg." One of his detractors is quoted as saying, "I call it a cult. They don't believe in normal things."
     The article goes on to say, "Klippenstein, a cattleman, and his children have all attended the New Church Academy in Bryn Athyn, PA run by the New Christian Church . . . . Klippenstein said his religion has helped shape his political and social outlook but said there was nothing cultish about his beliefs."
     One newspaper published a rather shrill letter which mentioned "the New Church School in Bryn Athyn," and made the following declaration: "The only reason this school in Bryn Athyn exists is to teach the mystic philosophy of Emanuel Swedenborg, a Swedish writer who lived from 1688 to 1772.

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Swedenborg was an enemy of Christianity who was excommunicated by the Lutheran Church. He taught that the Protestant and Catholic religions are 'evil' and claimed to have gotten this information by telepathy from Martians."
     Further on the letter says: "Swedenborgianism is a pseudo-religion. His followers accept his writings as the word of God. They are so fanatical about their cult that they send their children away from home to attend school at their headquarters in Bryn Athyn, PA . . . . It's the duty of every voter . . . to keep this exotic philosophy out of our legislature."
     In an objective article by Kathleen Best, Post-Dispatch Washington Bureau, we read that Klippenstein ". . . is a member of the New Church, formally called the Church of the New Jerusalem. The denomination is based on the writing of Emanuel Swedenborg, scholar and philosopher whose spiritual visions inspired such authors as Ralph Waldo Emerson and William Butler Yeats.
     "According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the church doctrine that grew out of Swedenborg's writings is based on the belief that there is one God, who is Jesus Christ, and that man's salvation depends on his acceptance of and response to divine truth."
     Another newspaper began an article as follows: "So who is Emanuel Swedenborg and what are his essential concepts?" The article tells the story of Swedenborg and says, "Death is merely a continuation of life . . . . Upon death man finds himself in much the same environment as before though with heightened senses. Even his prejudices, habits and opinions remain intact in the afterlife.
     "The true nature of heaven is 'the delight of doing something that is of use to yourself and to others.
     After the election the News-Press reported that Klippenstein " . . . withstood anonymous attacks on his religion and scored an upset victory in Tuesday's election."

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Note to readers: In 1986 Rev. Grant Schnarr published a pamphlet entitled The Cult Question. Following the above-mentioned election he preached a sermon proclaiming that the New Church is not a cult. Information about tape recordings of this sermon may be obtained from the editor.
D.L.R.
GOOD READING 1993

GOOD READING Editor 1993

What is a "conscious" mother? Who are the "deficient offspring" Aristotle refers to? What is one of the greatest gifts of the New Church? Why did Lillian Beekman leave Bryn Athyn in 1915? How many marriages currently end in divorce? From where do introverts get their energy? Who wrote theological documents and medical books, illuminated manuscripts, composed a symphony, catalogued diseases, animals and rocks, and wrote poems and a treatise on adolescent psychology? How do you store up spiritual food to see you through times of famine? What is metaphor confusion?
The answers to these questions and lots more of interest can be found in Connections: Offerings from the New Church Women's Symposium. Eight dollars will buy you hours of lively reading on what New Church women are thinking. It's available at the General Church Book Center, the Academy Book Room and the Cathedral Book Room.

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REVIEW 1993

REVIEW Charles H. Ebert 1993

Religion and Science: From Swedenborg to Chaotic Dynamics, by Gregory L. Baker, Solomon Press, New York, 165pp

In the New Church we are fond of the expression, "In the light of the Writings." Dr. Baker's book, Religion and Science, is a superb example of how meaning can be given to that expression. In ten chapters he guides the reader through some exciting areas of modern science and allows him or her to emerge with a Swedenborgian world view. Not only are we treated to a sense of the meaning behind the science that is evolving in our day, but we also see science as reflective and illustrative of spiritual truths. The illustration of those truths can interest new readers in further exploration of Swedenborg and deepen the understanding of seasoned Swedenborgians. Dr. Baker has attempted to reach scientists and non-scientists as well as Swedenborgians and non-Swedenborgians. That attempt seems to be largely successful, although I have not talked to any non-Swedenborgians who have read the book.
It is sometimes difficult for New Church authors to know how much perspective on the doctrines to give, particularly when writing for audiences both inside and outside the New Church. Dr. Baker makes it very clear that he is coming from a Swedenborgian background. In chapter two he gives a clear, powerful and easy-to-read introduction to the principles behind the New Church. He focuses particularly on those doctrines such as degrees, correspondences and influx that will form the backdrop for the scientific sections to follow. Even for the experienced New Church person, this chapter forms a sharp synopsis of familiar ideas. Chapter three continues the theme and raises the question of the place of revelation and the place of science. Convincing arguments are given from revelation and the history of science to indicate what we should expect from each source.

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I think that the material in chapters two and three could be the introduction to seeing any science from the Writings, not just physics.
     Chapters four and five give an overview of some essential mathematical and scientific topics. The author dwells particularly on the notion of mathematical models to describe the world (chapter four) and on the physics of the micro- and macro-universe (chapter five).
     In chapter six, "Connections," Dr. Baker gets into the meat of relating spiritual and natural studies. He gives a particularly strong account of the relationship of "degrees" as used in the Writings and the functional and physical layers in nature. His explanation of some of the paradoxes of time and space are very enlightening. Chapter seven relates the doctrines of the Gorand Man and influx to systems and processes in nature and engineering. His illustration of "influx is according to efflux" is very interesting, and certainly gave me new insight into that teaching. Chapter eight on chaotic dynamics and self-similar forms deals with some very modern science to which Dr. Baker has contributed. There are some great pictures that help tell the story.
     Chapter nine, "Limits to Knowledge-The Mechanics of Ignorance," asks us to consider three "scientific" limitations: the speed of light, the quantum uncertainty principle, and the ambiguities that arise in self-referencing logical systems. These concepts sound a bit overpowering, but are well explained and actually require less science than some of the previous chapters. He relates these concepts to the familiar limitations on our knowledge of: our own spiritual states, the spiritual world itself, and the activities of Providence I found this chapter one of the most delightful, and probably somewhat more accessible to the non-scientific reader.
     Many of the faculty members of the Academy of the New Church College (where both the author and the reviewer are employed) have read and discussed this book with considerable enjoyment. Some of the more "science intense" sections of the book were difficult for the non-scientists.

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However, even a partial understanding of the scientific examples and theories in this book can give real illustrations. The reader who does not want to dwell on the scientific aspects would benefit greatly from reading chapters 2, 3, 6, 7 and 9. And don't miss the foreword; it is a gem.
In my opinion, Dr. Baker has succeeded admirably in illustrating some key aspects of modern science in "the light of the Writings" I think that the New Church person who makes the effort to read this book will derive a better understanding of many familiar teachings. For the non-Swedenborgian, this book can help him or her begin the process of seeing the spiritual order behind the laws of nature.
Charles H. Ebert III
NEW CHURCH GOES TO COURT 1993

NEW CHURCH GOES TO COURT Editor 1993

     March issue under the above

     A response to the article in the title invited our attention to a Case in Ohio in which a woman was charged with being insane because she believed the teaching of the Writings about a deceased partner.
     The teaching of CL 321 is that " . . . the spirit of the deceased partner dwells continually with the spirit of the one not yet deceased, and this until the death of the latter, when they meet again . . . .

     Reading the Writings will make you crazy.

     It was charged that a person who read the Writings of Swedenborg would consequently be insane. And this went to court!

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     As you may have guessed, this involved a bequest of money. The money was left for the establishment of a New Church school in Glendale, Ohio, just before the turn of the century. The school was to be called "the Mary Allen School." In the court case the relatives endeavored to have the money come to them instead.
     We quote now from pages 52 and 53 of Section II of A History of New Church Education by Richard R. Gladish.

     Early in 1892, relatives of Charles Henry Allen brought suit in the Common Pleas Court of Hamilton County, in which Cincinnati is situated, to break the will and obtain the money left for the Mary Allen School, They charged that Mrs. Allen had been insane when her will was made, but far more important, they also charged that Swedenborg was insane, and that reading his works would also induce insanity. When, largely through judicial ineptitude in instructing the jury, the case was won for the Allen relatives, and the will set aside in the Common Pleas Court, Convention was roused, and a committee headed by John Goddard made an appeal for at least $5,000 to carry the battle to a higher court. Goddard's notice in the New Church Messenger stated:

     Far more is involved than money. . . . In order to win the jury by creating a prejudice in their minds, the counsel against the will declared that the insanity of Swedenborg was as well established a fact as Napoleon's crossing the Alps, and also declared that a serious and repeated reading of his works would imperil the reason of anyone not unusually strong minded. Thus the Church and all its members were attacked, and we have the opinion of eminent counsel that the verdict of the lower court, if allowed to stand . . . , will remain a test case, to be quoted ever after, and whose effect will be to vitiate the will of any New-Church man who leaves bequests for any religious or charitable purpose whatsoever. . . .

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     For it is an open and public attack on Swedenborg and New-Church people, which will become justified in a measure by the law of the land, without manful and vigorous resistance (Nov. 16, 1892).

     By the following summer, owing to the sterling and gratuitous services of E. W. Kittredge, Esq., a bench of three judges of the Circuit Court of Hamilton County had reversed the earlier decision and sent the Allen Will case back for a new trial in the Common Pleas Court. In their decision the judges had declared that for the counsel for the contestants of the will to quote Dr. Maudsley as to Swedenborg's insanity was "prejudicial to the proponents of the will and intended to divert the attention of the jury from the questions they ought to have considered. . . . It was unfair and improper to urge upon the jury the opinion of one who was introduced to them as 'the highest authority in the world on mental alienation'. . . it was error, for which the judgment should be reversed."
     In the process of reversing the decision, the judges of the Circuit Court noted a few more things. It had been argued by the contestants of the will that Mrs. Allen had been insane because she had "believed that the spirit of her deceased husband was present with her." Now the judgment declared:

     . . . that those whose interpretations of the Scriptures lead them to believe that the spirits of the departed are among the living are not to be confounded with those who believe in actual communication between the living and the spirits of the dead.
     D.L.R.
REVIEW CRITICAL OF SWEDENBORG 1993

REVIEW CRITICAL OF SWEDENBORG Editor 1993

The Philadelphia Inquirer of May 16, 1993, carries a review of a novel by A. S. Byatt. It criticizes Swedenborgians. Referring to the word "conjugial," it says that the spelling is almost as peculiar as the theology.

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Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     ON THE SIDE OF THE ANGELS

     How do we feel about the trends of the times? A reflex response might be that they are deplorable. Things just aren't as good as they used to be.
     We react that way when we are not counting our blessings. It is useful to reflect on good trends and to realize that the devils don't have all the attractive tunes. At the risk of being a Pollyanna I would like to applaud a current preoccupation with angels.
     The sheer number of books about angels and the popularity of these books is astonishing. Let us mention two.
     Where Angels Walk by Joan W. Anderson (Barton and Brett 1992) is a collection of stories in which people were comforted, protected, uplifted. The first page of acknowledgments mentions as "especially helpful" such organizations as the Moody Bible Institute and the Swedenborg Foundation!
     I particularly like the Scripture quotations at the beginnings of the chapters. There are also quotations from thinkers and poets, and one chapter begins with a quotation from "Angelic Wisdom" by Swedenborg.
     The last thing in the book is an author's "afterword." She says: "I am always interested in hearing from people who believe that they have had an angel experience. If you would like to share your experience, please write to me at P.O. Box 1694, Arlington Heights, IL 60006."
     The other recent book is Ask Your Angels (Ballantine Books 1992). Three authors have put together in 355 pages a study of angels and an encouragement to people to be attuned to angelic influence. On page 48 we read that " . . . the eminent scientist Emanuel Swedenborg had an ongoing series of visionary encounters with the celestial realms from 1747 to his death in 1772."

271

He is said to have written " . . . voluminously about his experiences with angels."
     Whereas Anderson's book does not include any of the Writings in her list of twenty books about angels, this book does include Heaven and Hell and Divine Love and Wisdom.
     Mentioning Swedenborg or the Writings does not prove that a person is familiar with them. In fact, the indication is that these authors know very little about them. But they write beautifully about angels, and they seem to be part of a wave of angel interest that has a wholesome and refreshing quality.
     They say that if we "speak of the devil" we invite infernal presence. How good it is to find people so willing to speak of the angels.

     VOTING ON MATTERS OF CONJUGIAL LOVE

     Imagine if matters of conjugial love were to be determined by a majority vote! Suppose it were to be proposed that "the conjugial of one man with one wife is the precious jewel of human life." The vote on this might be different from one culture to another. At some point in history a majority might vote that this is not the precious jewel of human life. And people might back up their negative votes with compelling arguments.
     At the end of the work in which the auth concerning conjugial love is revealed, we find Swedenborg saying to angels, "I am in doubt whether at this day people in the world are willing to believe that in itself this love is a spiritual love and therefore has its existence from religion, for they cherish only a corporeal idea concerning it" (CL 534).
     Angels were appalled at some of the views of people on earth. They gathered together a group of hundreds of "clever, learned and wise" people, and they put the question to them on the distinction between marriage and adultery.

272

A commanding majority took the position that " . . . public law alone makes the distinction."
     The angels went further and asked whether they saw anything of good in marriage and anything evil in adultery. The majority answered: "No rational evil or good." The angels were appalled at the position taken by these sophisticated people (CL 478).
     Once angels inquired how many out of a thousand Christians believed adulteries to be sins. Fewer than a hundred believed this. The majority of nine hundred subscribed to a line of thinking to which we will refer in a later issue. For the moment note a key to the line of reasoning. The angels put their finger on it when they said that people were not reasoning from conjugial love (see CL 79:11).
     A lot of words can be strung together in a kind of reasoning that is not based on conjugial love. We will later go into some of the lines of reasoning. For now we would quote the opening number from the chapter on love truly conjugial. It says that this love is of infinite variety, not being the same with one person as with another. "Yet no one can see the infinite varieties of that love in any light of the understanding, even though elevated, unless he first knows the nature of the love itself in its essence and integrity, thus its nature when together with life it was implanted in man by God. Unless its state then be known, a state which was most perfect, its difference cannot be discovered by any inquiry, there being no stable point from which, as a commencement, those differences can be deduced, and to which, by keeping it in view, they can refer themselves and so be seen truly and not fallaciously" (CL 57).
     The stable point is not the product of man's invention or his choice. It is what the Lord Himself has revealed.

     (To be continued)

273

APPRECIATION 1993

APPRECIATION Karin A. Childs 1993

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     Many thanks to Glenn Alden for his article entitled "Accused"! It's so easy to mistake accusing messages from hell as messages of conscience. And yet if we look at the results of these accusing messages in our mind, they do not inspire us to do better-instead, they make us feel that we are hopeless, and that there's no use in trying to do better. In this way the hells seek to paralyze our efforts to improve. Thank you, Mr. Alden, for so effectively pointing out this devious strategy of the hells.
     I also enjoyed Christopher Bown's article: "God Has Made Me Laugh, and All Who Hear Will Laugh with Me," and the NCL series "Serious Causes of Laughter" has been quite interesting. I'm delighted to keep seeing more and more evidence of the wonderful sense of humor that exists in heaven, and the innocent sense of playfulness. One example is in AC 180, when Swedenborg was being taken through the process of resuscitation. He tells us that the celestial angels that sat at his head were tacitly conversing, and that they " . . . made light of all fallacies and falsities, smiling at them not indeed as matters for derision, but as if they cared nothing about them." SD 1105 says that " . . . they made all the fallacies and falsities of the spiritual to be of no account, thus ridiculous, not at all by scoffing at them, but as if by caring nothing for them and remaining in their own tranquil state."
     If I understand these numbers correctly, it seems the angels smile good-naturedly and find humor in all the false ideas in the mind of the resuscitating person. This sense of humor has nothing of derision in it. It must be like the humor we see in a little child's ideas of how things are. We laugh and smile at the child's mixed-up ideas, but the laughter is full of affection, and we know that such ideas don't matter at all.

274

     Thanks also to Wilson Van Dusen for the article "Saint Emanuel Swedenborg." It was fascinating to read about another group that has been aware of Swedenborg and his works for some time. The-Lord has many ways of bringing His Second Coming to people!
     I appreciate all of NCL's stimulating and enlightening articles.
     Karin A. Childs,
          Rochester, Michigan
WORD FOR THE NEW CHURCH 1993

WORD FOR THE NEW CHURCH Heulwen M. Ridgway 1993

Dear Editor:
Please allow me to reply to Mr. Adriaan Braam's letter, "Simplification," New Church Life December 1992, specifically to his criticisms of my father's letter, "Canberra Group Misrepresented," NCL September 1992 (referred to by Mr. Braam as "the second letter"). As my father (Rex D. Ridgway) passed into the spiritual world on 13 August 1992, as noted by the Editor of NCL at the foot of the letter (page 424), he obviously cannot respond to Mr. Braam's criticisms.
My mother and I have received a number of letters and personal messages from New Churchmen around the world, both priests and laymen, commending my father's letter. We appreciate the sensitivity of these people in contacting us privately rather than writing to NCL. This seemed appropriate action since my father is no longer with us to continue the discussion, either with those who support or with those who oppose his views. For this reason too I will refrain from responding to all of Mr. Braam's criticisms.

275

     However, I am sure that Dad would consider it essential for me to clarify two points for him, namely his use of the term "the Word for the New Church" as applied to the Writings, and the importance of retaining the series in the Writings.
     Mr. Braam says, "I abhor the expression that the Writings are the Word for the New Church. I believe they are for the world . . . . " In using the term "the Word for the New Church," my father was not referring to any New Church organisation, nor was he implying that we should selfishly keep this revelation for the exclusive use of the New Church organisations. From his many conversations with my mother and me, I know that his use of this term embodies two concepts which he held very strongly. Firstly, the Writings are the Word in fullness for the era of the New Church; that is, they contain within themselves the three degrees of celestial, spiritual and natural. Hence, to use my father's words, " . . . 'the Writings' are . . . the New Word for a new era of Christianity."
     Secondly, the New Church transcends all New Church organisations; it is not a man-made institution but is the New Jerusalem that comes down from God out of heaven into the mind of any person who is looking to the Lord in his life by shunning evils as sins.
     I know that my father believed that the Writings are received as the Word by those, and only those, who have that state of heaven, that is, the New Church, in their minds through the life of regeneration; conversely, that the Writings are not received as the Word by anyone, no matter how often he reads them, and regardless of whether or not he is a member of a New Church organisation, if he does not have heaven, or the New Church, in his mind through the life of regeneration, That is, they are received as the Word only by those who are a (new) church in particular. He based his understanding of the New Church being a state of heaven in the regenerating mind, and of the Writings being received as the Word only by the regenerating person, on passages such as AC 9280:3, 5212:4, BE 68e, and AR 350, and of the church in particular being the individual regenerating mind, on passages such as AC 5113, 5113:2, 5351:2, 5373, 5432:5, 5469, 9279:3 (plus references cited), and 10303:3.

276

     My father's many friends in the New Church organisations will recall that these were his views, as he communicated widely on them. For instance, my mother has recently come across the copy of a letter sent by my father to a New Church priest in 1985 in which he wrote: "Here then is the incentive to work individually to come into the heavenly states of 'the Writings' by our own efforts . . . .'the Writings' are themselves the Word of God in every respect, which can stand alone as the New Word for a new era of Christianity . . . . the New Word is the revealed spiritual and celestial sense expressed for humans in human form within which is all Spiritual and
Celestial truth to infinity . . . .
     Thus my father used the term "the Word for the New Church" to mean that the Writings, containing the three degrees of Divine truth within them, are the Word in fullness for the New Church proper, which is a state of heaven in the mind of the regenerating person of this era or age of the New Church, Hence his descriptions of the Writings as "the Lord's Word for this church and age" (NCL September 1992, p. 422), "the Word of the Lord for this age" (ibid., p. 423), and "the Divine Revelation for the new and true Christian era" (ibid., p. 424). The Writings are indeed the Word for the New Church, rightly understood.
     Regarding the importance of retaining the series in the Writings, as exemplified in AC 4680, my father wrote: " . . . any alteration to the Writings . . . would destroy the Divine order in which they are given" (ibid., p. 421). Also, that it is important for the sake of retaining the series "to retain intact the Word of the Lord for this age [and] therefore, that simplifying or rearranging the Writings [is threatening]" (ibid., p. 423).
     Mr. Braam says, "I read AC 4680 but failed to see any connection to the subject.

277

There is no doubt a sequence in the Writings, but simplifying does not automatically mean destroying it. If anything, it states that charity should be the essential element of the church, above faith. If our great faith, based on the Writings, prevents us from sharing with others (charity), we are in trouble."
     It is perfectly evident from his letter that Dad was writing about "simplifying and rearranging" in a manner "which would destroy the Divine order in which they are given" (ibid., P. 421). He specifically mentioned this in the final paragraph of his letter, namely ". . . the importance of retaining for all time the completeness and fullness of each and every volume of the Divine Revelation for the new and true Christian era and to keep its Divine order, its purity and integrity (yes, even its 'hard parts') as close as it is possible to its original Latin as it was given by the Lord . . . " (ibid., p. 424).
     Both AC 4680 and 5242 stress the importance of retaining the series, to the extent that things explained previously . . . here repeated for the sake of the series" (AC 5242). The reason for this can be found in AC 7933e, which states that "[In the Word] the internal text is so continuous that not a particle even could have been omitted without an interruption of the series." AC 6827 teaches us that these series are throughout the Word and are the inmost or supreme sense, which treats of the Lord alone and His glorification, and the internal sense, which treats of the Lord's kingdom, the church, and man's regeneration. AC 1659 tells us that the arcana of the internal sense follow " . . . in a continuous series from those which go before, and connect themselves in a continuous series with those which follow. From his studies, my father understood that rearrangements of the text, for even what might seem to be the best of reasons, namely to increase readability and popularity, would do violence to these series which not only underlie the text but also are its very soul.
     His concern that even the "hard parts" should be retained intact stemmed likewise from his concern for the preservation of the series.

278

AC 5511 tells us why certain things appear hard: " . . . for if there is no correspondence of the External with the Internal, then all that which is internal and comes from the Internal appears hard to the External, because there is no conjunction." Even so, the Lord does not give us leave to change His Divine order, but goes on to tell us in the succeeding pages how to bring about the correspondence of the External with the Internal. Also, AC 5648:3 teaches us that as the things of the internal sense become more interior they become more remote from the apprehension of men who are worldly, to the extent that they may be loathed, although they constitute the delight of the angels.
     To put my father's sentiments into the plainest possible language, it is essential to retain the text of the Word for this age of the New Church in its entirety, and in the order given by the Lord, for the sake of the series within, His desire to keep the Word of the Lord intact stemmed from the utmost of charity, namely the desire to share with all mankind what the Lord in His infinite wisdom has given to us, not to give to the rest of mankind what we, from our finite view, think the Lord would like others to have.
     Miss Heulwen M. Ridgway,
          Canberra, Australia
RELIGIOUS BELIEF 1993

RELIGIOUS BELIEF Editor 1993

The International Social Survey Program polled 19,000 people in more than a dozen countries. They report a new surge of religious belief in the ex-Communist bloc.

279

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1993

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES Editor 1993

     Announcements

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

     Alabama:
     Birmingham
Dr. R. Shepard, 4537 Dolly Ridge Road, Birmingham, AL 35243. Phone: (205) 967-3442.
     Huntsville
Mr. and Mrs. Winthrop B. Sullivan, 1107 Princeton Drive, Madison, AL 35758. Phone: (205) 772-0074.
     Arizona:
     Phoenix
Rev. Fred Chapin, 5631 E. Shea Blvd., Scottsdale, AZ 85254 (church). Phone: home (602) 996-2919; office (602) 991- 929-6455.
     Tucson
Rev. Frank S. Rose, 9233 B. Helen, Tucson, AZ 85715. Phone: (602) 721-1091.
     Arkansas:
Little Rock
Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Holmes, 2695 Lane, Batesville, AR 72501. Phone: (501) 793-5135.
     California:
     Los Angeles
Rev. John L. Odhner, 5022 Carolyn Way, La Crescenta, CA 91214. Phone: (818) 249-5031.
     Orange County
Rev. Cedric King, resident pastor, 21332 Forest Meadow, El Toro, CA 92630. Phone: home (714) 586-5142; office (714) (904) 228-2276.

283

     Sacramento
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Ripley, 225 Woodlake Lane, Newcastle, CA 95658. Phone: (916) 663-2788.
     San Diego
Mr. and Mrs. Geraldo Gomez, 1774 La Jolla Rancho Road, La Jolla, CA 92037. Phone (619) 454-4716.
     San Francisco
Mr. and Mrs. Philip C. "Red" Pendleton, 2261 Waverley Street, Palo Alto, CA 94901.
     Colorado:
     Colorado Springs
Mr. and Mrs. William Rienstra, P.O. Box 95, Simla, CO 80835. Phone: (719) 541-2375.
     Denver
Rev. Clark Echols, 3371 W. 94th Ave., Westminster, CO 80030. Phone: (303) 429-1239 or 428-6019.
     Connecticut:
     Bridgeport, Hartland, Shelton
Mr. and Mrs. James Tucker, 45 Honey Bee Lane, Shelton, CT 06484. Phone: (203) 929-6455.
     Rev. Geoffrey Howard, visiting pastor. Phone: (508) 443-6531.
     Delaware:
     Wilmington
Mrs. Justin Hyatt, 2008 Eden Road, N. Graylyn, Wilmington DE 19810. Phone: (302) 475-3694.
     District of Columbia: see Mitchellville, Maryland.
     Florida:
     Boynton Beach
Rev. Daniel Heinrichs, 10687 B. Clair Ranch Road, Boynton Beach, FL 33437. Phone: (407) 736-9235.
     Lake Helen
Mr. and Mrs. Brent Morris, 264 Kicklighter Road, Lake Helen, FL 32744. Phone: (904) 228-2276.
     Pensacola
Mr. and Mrs. John Peacock, 5238 Soundside Drive, Gulf Breeze, FL 32561. Phone: (904) 934-3691.
     Georgia:
     Americus
Mr. W. H. Eubanks, Rt. #2, S. Lee Street, Americus, GA 31709. Phone: (912) 924-9221.
     Atlanta
Rev. Ray Silverman, 2119 Seaman Circle, Chamblee, GA 30341. Phone: office (404) 458-9673.
     Idaho:
Fruitland (Idaho-Oregon border)
Mr. Harold Rand, 1705 Whitley Drive, Fruitland, ID 83619. Phone: (208) 452-3181.
     Illinois:
     Chicago
Rev, Grant Schnarr, 73A Park Drive, Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: home (708) 729-0130; office (708) 729-9296.
     Decatur
Mr. John Aymer, 380 Oak Lane, Decatur, IL 62562. Phone: (217) 875-3215.
     Glenview
Rev. Eric Carswell, 73 Park Drive, Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (708) 724-0120.
     Indiana:
Rev. Patrick Rose, 785 Ashcroft Court, Cincinnati, OH 45240. Phone: (513) 825-7473.
     Kentucky:
Rev. Patrick Rose, 785 Ashcroft Court, Cincinnati, OH 45240. Phone: (513) 825-7473.
     Louisiana:
     Baton Rouge
Mr. Henry Bruser, Jr., 6050 Esplanade Ave., Baton Rouge, LA 70806. Phone: (504) 924-3098.
     Maine
     Bath
Rev. Allison L Nicholson, HC 33 - Box 61N, Arrowsic, MH 04530. Phone: (207) 443-6410.
     Maryland:
     Baltimore
Rev. Thomas Rose, visiting minister, 3809 Enterprise Rd., Mitchellville, MD 20721. Phone: home (301) 4644585; office (301)-464-5602.

284

     Mitchellville
Rev. Lawson Smith, 3805 Enterprise Road, Mitchellville, MD 20721. Phone: (301) 262-2349.
     Massachusetts:
     Boston
Rev. Geoffrey Howard, 138 Maynard Road, Sudbury, MA 01776. Phone: (508) 443-6531.
     Michigan
     Detroit
Rev. Grant Odhner, 395 Olivewood Ct., Rochester, MI 48306. Phone: (313) 652-7332.
     East Lansing
Dr. Christopher Clark, 5853 Smithfield, East Lansing, MI 48823. Phone: (517) 351-2880.
     Minnesota:
     St. Paul
Karen Huseby, 4247 Centerville Rd., Vadnais Heights, MN 55127. Phone: (612) 429-5285.
     Missouri:
     Columbia
Mr. and Mrs. Paul Johnson, 1508 Glencairn Court, Columbia, MO 65203. Phone: (314) 442-3475.
     Kansas City
Mr. Glen Klippenstein, Glenkirk Farms, Rt. 2, Maysville, MO 64469. Phone: (816) 449-2167.
     New Jersey-New York:
     Ridgewood, NJ
Jay and Barbara Barry, 348 Marshall St., Ridgewood, NJ 07450. Phone: (201) 612-8146.
     New Mexico:
     Albuquerque
Mr. Howard Leach, 548 Mullen Rd. NW, Albuquerque, NM 87107. Phone: (505) 345-5297.
     North Carolina:
     Charlotte
Rev. Bill Burke, 6010 Paddington Court, Charlotte, NC 28277. Phone: (704) 846-6416.
     Ohio:
     Cincinnati
Rev. Patrick Rose, 785 Ashcroft Court, Cincinnati, OH 45240. Phone: (513) 825-7473.
     Cleveland
Mr. Alan Childs, 19680 Beachcliff Blvd., Rocky River, OH 44116. Phone: (216) 333-4413.
     Oklahoma:
     Oklahoma City
Mr. Robert Campbell, 3108 Eagle Pass Road, Edmond OK 73013. Phone: (405) 478-4729.
     Oregon:
     Portland
Mr. and Mrs. Jim P. Andrews, Box 99, 1010 NB 3601, Corbett, OR 97019. Phone: (503) 695-2534.
     Oregon-Idaho Border: see Idaho, Fruitland.
     Pennsylvania:
     Bryn Athyn
Rev. Kurt Asplundh, Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Phone: (215) 947-6225.
     Elizabethtown
Mr. Meade Bierly, 523 Snyder Ave., Elizabethtown, PA 17022. Phone: (77) 367-3964.
     Erie
Mrs. Paul Murray, 5648 Zuck Road, Erie, PA 16506. Phone: (814) 833-0962.
     Freeport
Rev. Ragnar Boyesen, 122 McKean Road, Freeport, PA 16229. Phone: home (412) 295-9855; office (412) 353-2220.
     Hawley
Mr. Grant Genzlinger, 4 Main Street, Hawley, PA 18428. Phone: (717) 226- 2993.
     Ivyland
The Ivyland New Church, 851 W. Bristol Road, Ivyland 18974. Pastor: Rev. Robert Junge. Phone: (215) 957-5965. Secretary: Mrs. K. Cronlund. (215) 598-3919.
     Kempton
Rev. Jeremy Simons, RD 2, Box 217-A, Kempton, PA 19529. Phone: home (215) 756-4301: office (215) 756-6140.
     Pittsburgh
Rev. Nathan D. Gladish, 299 Le Roi Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15208. Phone: church (412) 731-
7421.
     South Carolina: see North Carolina.
     South Dakota:
     Hot Springs
Linda Klippenstein, 604 S.W. River St. #A8, Hot Springs, SD 57747. Phone: (605) 745-6629.

285

     Texas:
     Austin
Mrs. Robert Grubb, 510 Academy Drive, Austin, TX 78704. Phone (512) 447-6811.
     Dallas-Fort Worth
Mr. Fred Dunlap, 3887 Antigua Circle, Dallas, TX 75244. Phone: (214)247-7775.
     Virginia:
     Richmond
Mr. Donald Johnson, 13161 Happy Hill Road, Chester, VA 23831. Phone: (804) 748-5757.
     Washington:
     Seattle
Mr. Thomas Andrews, 5035 NE 180th, Seattle, WA 98155. Phone: (206) 365-2194.
     West Virginia:
Mrs. Thelma Smith, Route 1, Box 447, Peterstown, WV 24963. Phone:(304) 753-9508.
     Wisconsin:
     Madison
Mrs. Charles Howell, 3912 Plymouth Circle, Madison, WI 53705. Phone: (608) 233-0209.
     OTHER THAN U.S.A.
     AUSTRALIA
     Canberra
Mrs. Rex Ridgway, 7 Whalan Place, Kaleen, ACT, Australia 2617.
     Sydney, N.S.W.
Rev. Douglas Taylor, 22 Dudley Street, Penshurst, N.S.W. 2222. Phone: 57-1589.
     Tamworth
See Rev. Douglas Taylor under Sydney.
     BRAZIL
     Rio de Janeiro
Rev. Cristovao Rabelo Nobre, Rua Lina Teixeira, 109 Apt., Rocha, Rio de Janeiro R.J. 20970. Phone: 21-201-8455.
     CANADA
     Alberta
     Calgary
Mr. Thomas R. Fountain, 115 Southglen Drive S.W., Calgary 13, Alberta T2W 0X2. Phone: 403-255-7283.
     Debolt
Ken and Lavina Scott, RR1, Crooked Creek, Alberta TOH OYO. Phone: 403-057-3625.
     Edmonton
Mrs. Wayne Anderson, 6703-9811 Street, Edmonton, Alberta T6E 3L9. Phone: 403-432-1499.
     British Columbia
     Dawson Creek
Rev. Glenn G. Alden, Dawson Creek Church, 9013 8th St., Dawson Creek, B.C., Canada V1G 3N3. Phone: home (604) 786-5297; office (604) 782-8035.
     Ontario
     Kitchener
Rev. Louis D. Synnestvedt, 58 Chapel Hill Drive, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada N2G 3W5. Phone: home (519) 748-5605; office (519) 748-5802.
     Ottawa
Mr. and Mrs. Donald McMaster, 684 Fraser Ave., Ottawa, Ontario K2A 2R8. Phone: (613) 725-0394.
     Toronto
Rev. Michael Gladish, 279 Burnhamthorpe Rd., Islington, Ontario M9B 124. Phone: church (416) 239-3055.
     Quebec
     Montreal
Mr. Denis de Chazal, 17 Ballantyne Ave. So., Montreal West, Quebec H4X 2B1, phone: (514) 489-9861.
     DENMARK
     Copenhagen
Mr. Jorgen Hauptmann, Suandvejen 22, 4040 Jyllinge. Phone: 46 78 9968.
     ENGLAND
     Colchester
Rev. Christopher Bown, 2 Christ Church Court, Colchester, Essex C03 3AU. Phone: 0206-575644.
     Letchworth
Mr. and Mrs. R. Evans, 24 Berkeley, Letchworth, Herts. SG6 WA. Phone: (0462) 684751.
     London
Rev. Frederick Elphick, 2111 Hayne Rd., Beckenham, Kent BR3 4JA. Phone: 011-44-1-658-6320.
     Manchester
Rev. Norman E. Riley, 69 Harewood Rd., Norden, Rochdale, OL11 5TH, England. Phone: 0706 54003.

286

     Surrey
Rev. Goran Appelgren, 8 Ardmore Way, Guildford, Surrey, England GU2 6RR.
     HOLLAND
     The Hague
Mr. Ed Verschoor, V. Furstenburchstr, 6 3862 AW Nijkerk.
     KOREA
     Seoul
Rev. Dzin P. Kwak, #Bol Sanho-villa, 238 Shinsa-dong, Eunpyung-ku, Seoul, Korea 122-080. Phone: home 02-309-7305; church 02-555-1366.
     NEW ZEALAND
     Auckland
Mrs. H. Keal, 4 Derwent Cresc., Titirangi, Auckland 7, New Zealand.
     SOUTH AFRICA
     Cape
     Cape Town
Mrs. Sheila Brathwaite, 208B Silvermine Village, Private Bag #1, Noordhoek, 7985 R.S.A. Phone: 021-891424.
     Natal
     Durban
Rev. James P. Cooper, 30 Perth Road, Westville 3630, Natal, Republic of South Africa. Phone: 011-2731-821612.
     Transvaal
     Transvaal Society
Rev. Andrew Dibb, P.O. Box 816, Kelvin 2054, Republic of South Africa, Phone: (011l) 804-2567.
     Zululand
     Kent Manor
Rev. Andrew Dibb, visiting pastor
     Mrs. Marten Hiemstra, P.O. Box 10745, Meerensee, 3901 R.S.A. Phone: 0351-32317.
     Please contact Rev. James Cooper or Rev. Andrew Dibb concerning these societies:
     Alexandra Township, Buccleuch, Clermont, Diepkloof, Enkumba, Hambrook, Impaphala, Kwa Mashu
     SWEDEN
     Jonkoping
Contact Rev. Bjrn A.H. Boyesen, Bruksater, Satersfors 10, S-56691, Habo, Sweden. Phone: 0392-20395.
     Stockholm
Rev. David H. Lindrooth, Aladdinsvagen 27, 161 38 Bromma, Sweden. Phone/Fax: 011 468 26 79 85.

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SUMMER SCHOOL 1993 1993

SUMMER SCHOOL 1993 Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom 1993

     Why study church history?

     It is the most relevant topic for the 1990s, and for the turn of the millennium. It explains why the world is the way it is, and the relics of former revelations and churches as found throughout the modern world.
     What traces are left of the most Ancient Church? Did I hear "picnics"? And of the Ancient Church? Did I hear "fairy tales"? And of the Hebrew/Israelitish/Jewish Church? Did I hear "parades"? Yes, that is why we have these things. Come and find out the spiritual reasons.
     Church History 557, the Most Ancient and Ancient Churches, is offered on both a graduate and undergraduate level (July 6-24). It goes from the first human beings on this planet to the flood, through further peaks and troughs and finally to the Advent.
     Students in this illustrated course will receive a personal copy of the Ancient Word. How is this possible??
     It is by no means too late to register. Call Rev. Fred Schnarr(215) 947-4661or Rev. Brian Keith(215) 938-2525. Welcome aboard!
     Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom

288

NATURAL BASIS OF SPIRITUAL REALITY 1993

NATURAL BASIS OF SPIRITUAL REALITY Editor 1993

THE NATURAL BASIS OF SPIRITUAL REALITY

By Dr. Norman J. Berridge

This book is a masterly study by a distinguished scientist, showing the relationship between the anatomy of the human body and the Divine laws of heaven. Dr. Berridge states, "The body of man is the natural object corresponding most closely to heaven and having the greatest relevance to the truly human form. Hence it is that human anatomy and physiology facilitate our understanding of the doctrine of the Gorand Man. How delightful it is to think about the beauty and wonder of the bodily structure and function and at the same time realize that it is the product of the Lord's Love and Wisdom descended by degrees through heaven." "If all the world of nature is a representation of the spiritual world, our scientific knowledge should enable us to . . . understand more clearly what has been revealed concerning spiritual things." Here is a well reasoned scientific explanation of order, cause, design and purpose in nature.
     387 pages, including 25 detailed diagrams and an extensive index
Price: $24.95 plus $2.00 postage
     Published by
Swedenborg Scientific Association
1993
     Box 743, Cairncrest
General Church Book Center               Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                    Phone: (215) 947-3920

289

Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

Vol. CXIII July, 1993 No. 7
NEW CHURCH LIFE

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     The sermon by Rev. Harold Cranch about the Second Coming of the Lord is an example of how the newness of the New Church can be presented in a few pages. Mr. Cranch has also written some excellent pamphlets.
     There were 620 people at the Bryn Athyn Cathedral on October 16, 1992 when Rev. Jeremy Simons gave his address on the crown of glory. One of the things that stands out in the memory of many is its treatment of the subject of self-esteem.
     Japanese is so totally different from English. Can you get inside the mind of someone doing the work of rendering the Latin of the Writings into that language? The effort can give a new perspective. Mr. Nagashima's translation work over the last few years has been remarkable.
     Wilson Van Dusen has written an "Open Letter" to the General Church. On page 317 he refers to The Messiah about to Come, about which he wrote in New Church Life in 1975. I would like to mention that in the giant book put out by the Swedenborg Foundation I contributed an essay about the pivotal change in Swedenborg's life. On pages 337 and 338 I emphasized Van Dusen's treatment of this sometimes neglected work. (Speaking of Van Dusen, note the advertisement on p. 336.)
     At the clergy meetings in March the keynote speech had to do with our reactions when someone transgresses. The title was "When We Break His Covenant." Can we learn to be more understanding and helpful in these situations? Two other papers given at the meetings had to do with the subject of homosexuality, one by Rev. Willard Heinrichs and one by Rev. John Odhner. As the subject comes up in this issue, we would mention that these papers are available on request.
     Note that the figures on how our pages were used in 1992 are printed at the end of this issue, with the 1991 figures for comparison. Due to space constraint the Editor's report for 1991 was not published.

291

NEW CHRISTIANITY 1993

NEW CHRISTIANITY Rev. HAROLD C. CRANCH 1993

     "When the Spirit of Truth is come, He will guide you into all truth" (John 16:13).

     When the Lord was in the world, He promised His followers that He would come again. He gave many prophecies of His coming and how it would be accomplished. And ever since He left the natural sight of mankind, His disciples in every age have looked for His return. Many people expect His coming to be in a material body. Yet the Lord referred to His coming as the Spirit of Truth that would lead men to all truth-that would give them the understanding that they were not then able to receive. It would complete the purpose of His First Advent. As that Spirit of Truth He would no longer speak in parables but would show them plainly of the Father.
Emanuel Swedenborg was called by the Lord to announce the Second Coming-to reveal the nature of the spiritual world and the inner meaning of the Bible, and to give a new understanding of all things of religion. The Lord's First Advent was by means of a woman, using the womb of Mary. The Second Advent, the new spirit of truth which fulfills and completes the purpose of the first, was by means of a man, using the mind of Swedenborg. The New Jerusalem descending from God out of heaven is a city of Divine doctrine, a new revelation of Divine truth in which the minds of Christians can dwell. The entire book of Revelation, in spiritual symbols, describes the beginnings of a new Christianity, a new Christian dispensation, a universal church.
     This is the Lord's Second Coming, the promised fulfillment of the first-the revelation of Divine truth to lead mankind into a rational and spiritual religion.
     It is easy to see why a New Church was necessary.

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Over the centuries the teachings of the Bible had been twisted and perverted by the interpretations of the many organizations that developed. Their creeds and doctrines, inspired by the needs of a particular time or created to combat a developing heresy, changed or overemphasized the Biblical teachings. The dogmas and traditions of men were being taught in their place. Today, although many people have the Bible, it is neglected. Few read it, and even fewer study it. Most modern sermons deal with ethics and morality, psychology or politics, and the churches concentrate upon social problems-all needed, but not contributing much to our spiritual development. Most members do not know what their churches teach on important spiritual subjects.
     The Lord said: "Come unto Me," and "Search the Scriptures." He also invited people, "Come, and let us reason together." This is our spiritual duty. It is emphasized in the Arcana Coelestia, and because of its personal importance this passage is used in our confirmation service. We read: "One must first learn the doctrinals of the church, and then exploration is to be made from the Word as to whether they are true; for they are not true [just] because the leaders of the church say so, and their followers confirm it . . . " (AC 6047). Thus we are not merely to accept from the authority of others. We must go to the Word and see for ourselves.
     It is in this spirit that we investigate doctrine. We are not responsible for the doctrines of other men and other churches. But we are responsible for what we believe and the life we live. It was to help us find the truth we need to lead us back to the Word itself-to give us a clear knowledge of the God we worship, the life of religion, and the nature of the spiritual world-that the Lord fulfilled His Scriptural promises and revealed the Spirit of Truth that would lead men and women back to all truth.
     If only one idea is presented to our minds, it does not raise any question, but if two sharply contrasted ideas are presented, we must think, and study, and choose, for they cannot both be right.

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So here we see the teachings of the old doctrine and the new. Let us think about them and go to the Bible, and choose from revelation.
This is to follow the Lord, and not the teachings of mere men. The New Christian Church is totally distinct from all others as to doctrine and life. The need for this can be seen if we view the old teachings and compare them with the new, and measure both against the teachings of the Word. Then we must judge for ourselves. We are not alone in analyzing the doctrines of other organizations. All churches do it. Each came into being as a judgment and a protest against the teachings of other churches. They cannot all be right. In many things they are diametrically opposite. Some teach baptism by total immersion, others by pouring or sprinkling. Some baptize adults only, others in infancy. Some worship on Saturday, others on Sunday. Some teach that Christ was Divine, others that He was a mere man; some, that we must obey the commandments, others, that faith alone is effective for salvation; still others teach that salvation is only through sacramental worship. Several churches teach that only their own actual members can come to heaven; others teach that there is no hell for anyone. The most important Christian Biblical facts-those which the Word was given to reveal-have been denied by Christian leaders,1 and no longer need be accepted even to become ministers of most churches. The divinity of Christ, the virgin birth, and the resurrection of the Lord are openly denied by many highly respected Christian leaders. The Lord's miracles, and even some of His teachings, are denied by eminent church scholars in their search for the "historical" Jesus. Of such doctrines the Lord in the world taught: "Ye have made the teachings of God of none effect by your traditions."

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And so is it today.
     1 Dr. Paul Tillich, eminent Protestant theologian and philosopher, classes as myths: the virgin birth, many of the miracles, the resurrection, manifestations and ascension of Jesus.
     The first and most important of all doctrines is to know the God whom we worship. The old teaching was that there are three separate and distinct persons which in some mysterious way make one God. The Lord Jesus Christ is considered to be one of these persons-the Son of God, who saves those who accept Him from just condemnation by God the Father. This is not Biblical, Most Christians consider this to be the plain teaching of the Bible. It is not. It is the plain teaching of the Athanasian Creed, and that is a man-made political compromise. The New Church teaches that there is only one God in one Person, and that He is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The direct Biblical teaching is that He is the Creator (see John 1:2) who put on a human form so that men who had turned away from Him, or destroyed His teachings, could again see Him, know Him, and love Him-could learn of Him and by their worship and life could prepare for heaven.
     Remember the Lord said, "Come unto me." "No one comes to the Father except through Me." And of course the Father was the Soul dwelling within Him. We cannot come to the soul of anyone except by means of the body through which the soul speaks and acts. So the trinity in God can be best seen in His image and likeness-man. We have a soul; we have a body which reveals that soul; we have an influence upon others, which is our spirit going forth in word and deed to influence them. Each of these is called a separate person in the Athanasian Creed, but in us it is one. In God it is one. So we read in the Bible: "God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself (2 Corinthians 5:19), not saving it from the wrath of another. God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, bringing people back to an understanding and love and willingness to follow His teachings. This teaching agrees with the teaching of the Word from its very beginning to its end. Any doctrine to be true must be in agreement with the entire Word. We cannot say: "There are seven teachings for and five against."

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It does not work that way. The truth is true under all conditions; therefore the whole Word must be consulted.
     The life after death, which gives the reason for our life in this world, is another important teaching. In the other churches little is known, and even less is taught, about that life. There is a confused idea that man is his body, and that when it dies it rests in the grave until a last day when it will be called to new life in this world. With that there is also some belief in a ghostly existence of the spirit, much like clouds drifting in the sky, waiting for the time to be reunited with the body for new life, here, in this world. This teaching cannot be found in the Bible. It does not agree with Biblical doctrine.
     The New Church teachings remove the fear of death. They show that every man and woman is created by the Lord to prepare for heaven. After the death of the body we enter the spiritual world in our interior, more perfect, spiritual body. There we will find our place, where we can willingly perform our uses, the uses that offer us the greatest happiness. Even the evil are given as much happiness as possible, without permitting them to harm others. This idea of the spiritual world as being where we go immediately after the death of our natural bodies the Lord plainly taught on the cross. The one thief said: "Lord, remember me when you come into Your kingdom." The Lord answered: "This day shalt thou be with Me in paradise." Not on the day of the blowing of the last trumpet, but "this day shalt thou be with me." Hosea, the prophet, taught: "After two days shall He raise us up, and on the third day we shall live in His sight." It is clearly taught from one end of the Word to the other. Paul plainly taught it when he wrote that that which is buried is the natural body; that which is raised is the spiritual body (people usually translate that "which will be raised"), but it isn't that. It is "that which is raised" is the spiritual body (see I Cor. 15:44). So life in the spiritual world begins very shortly after the death of the natural body, within the three-day period.
     The nature of the Word or Bible is also made new, for we are taught that there is a deeper meaning in its every part.

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This meaning, which we can see by means of correspondence, clears up the difficult, hard to understand pans of the Bible, so we can see that it is a Divine Book teaching mankind how to live a good life and prepare for heaven. If we live in such a way, it is not necessary to wait until after the death of our natural bodies to enjoy life. We begin its happiness now, when we accept the Lord's way of life, and live it. Then heaven comes into our hearts. The Lord also plainly taught that, for He said: "The kingdom of God is within you." And that means now, and hereafter.
The usual idea of faith is belief in what we cannot understand. The New Church shows that faith, trust and living belief are the same thing. We trust in, or have faith in, that which we can understand and use. The truth is the Divine teaching. Faith is man's reaction to it. Living belief is that truth used in our daily life. So they are all the same thing-understanding, willing, and doing what the Lord teaches. This is a true and understandable faith. It is different from faith alone, just as different as idleness is different from usefulness.
Among the most distinctive of the new teachings is that concerning marriage, Marriage is not a matter of convenience for this world only, nor, as some teach, is it better and more holy not to many. We are shown that in marriage, men and women find the fulfillment of life and happiness. A genuine marriage is eternal. It is the greatest blessing that can be given by the Lord. But happy marriages do not just happen. We must use the teachings the Lord has revealed to make a marriage happy, and to preserve it. This doctrine is the pearl of religion-the source of the greatest happiness on earth and in heaven-but it can be achieved only by those who look to the Lord and try to understand His wisdom in order to bring this purpose into being in their own lives. It is Divine truth and good that unites them, and of such a marriage He taught: "What God hath joined together, let not man put asunder."

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     These and many more distinctive, new and beautiful teachings show why the New Church had to be given, to show men their God, how to understand the Word, how to live good, useful lives, how to build a strong faith, and how to establish happy, everlasting marriages. These things cannot just happen. We must study and understand them, and work to achieve them and value them, before they can be given to us.
     The truths revealed in the Writings are the Holy Spirit of the Lord sent into the world. They are His Second Coming promised in the New Testament where He says: "When the Spirit of Truth is come, He will guide you unto all truth" (John 16:12). The Writings-the Spirit of Truth, the new revelation given by the Lord through Swedenborg-make all things new. The acceptance of these truths is the greatest need in the world today. Providence is preparing men to receive the Lord's church. But it must be received individually as we learn the truths of the Second Coming.
     The Jewish Church rejected the Lord when He came upon earth, for He did not come as they expected. When it rejected Him, He bade its members: "Search the Scriptures, for they are they which teach of Me" (John 5:39). Will men reject Him in His Second Coming because He did not come as they expected? To them we can but say what He taught: "Search the Scriptures." "Come and see." If we will follow the truth, we will come to Him who is its source. If we strive to know it, He can give us an understanding of the truth to free us from doubt and denial. So He said: "If ye continue in My Word, then are ye My disciples indeed, and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." For " . . . when He, the Spirit of Truth is come, He will guide you into all truth." Amen.

     Lessons: John 8:28-32; John 16:7-14; TCR 776-780

298

CROWN OF GLORY 1993

CROWN OF GLORY Rev. JEREMY F. SIMONS 1993

     1992 CHARTER DAY ADDRESS BY REV. JEREMY F. SIMONS

     "You shall be a crown of glory." To whom is Isaiah speaking? He is addressing the people of Jerusalem here, and yet we know that he was not literally talking to them. He was talking about the people who make up the Lord's church, whoever they are and wherever they may be. They are the crown of glory. They are also the chosen people, spoken of in the Word, the children of God, the ones meant by the Lord when he said to Abraham, "In you, all the families of the earth shall be blesses (Genesis 12:3).
     When the church is described in the Word, it is often depicted in such terms as these, which picture it as something so glorious and beautiful that it seems impossible for it ever to come true. Here it is described as a crown of glory and a royal diadem, and is given the names Hephzibah, meaning "my delight is in her," and Beulah, meaning "married," to show the closeness of its people to the God who created them, the God who loves them and rejoices over them as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride.
     It may be difficult for us to comprehend the nature and power of the glory described in passages like this, or to appreciate the happiness and peace that is said to come with it. When the church is alive and present with a people, or even with just one person, it is described as bringing liberation, peace, the end of sorrow and crying, food to the hungry, healing to the sick, sight to the blind. Every good thing that is promised by the prophets is said to be brought into being with the presence of the church (see AC 1422). The church is where the Lord is received and loved, where people love one another and live the life of religion. For the future of the human race, Isaiah promises "beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness" (61:3).

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He describes a day when "they shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea" (11:9). This is the church.
     This is why we are here today-because some have believed that the day which Isaiah foretells is really possible, that some day people will not hurt or destroy, that some day the oil of joy will replace the mourning which is the reality of life for so many people in the world. More than that, we are here today because some have believed that this happy state of the human race will come into being through the systematic teaching of the Heavenly Doctrine of the New Jerusalem, that a New Church will be set up on the earth, and that this is the way, the only way, that the earth can be healed.
     This is why we have the Academy of the New Church, dedicated to the propagation of truths which teach the life that will make this happen.
     But can it happen? Is it possible for these predictions ever to become real, literally real in the sense of a literal peace on earth? Many believe that the prophecies of every tear being wiped away (see Rev. 22) and of swords being beaten into plowshares (see Isaiah 2) are meant only in the sense that everyone who has the church within him or her has these eternal blessings-they are free, at peace, full of joy. And this is true. Those who have heaven within them have these things, no matter what the state of the world is around them. Anyone can have this peace. But the church is not only an individual thing. The state of the church is the state of mankind.
     Many think of the church only in terms of an organization with its rituals and teachings, and think of the New Church as this body that we are all somehow a part of. Those who are more familiar with the doctrines know that a church is what is in people's hearts, that no one but the Lord knows who is part of it, and that we can in no way claim to be the Lord's New Church.

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     In general, the church is composed of all those in the whole world who "live in good in accordance with their religion" (AC 9256:4), and specifically, it is those who live this based on the Word and who therefore know the Lord and love Him (see AC 3857).
     These people are who the church is, and their presence or absence has such a great effect on our lives that few things could be said to have a greater effect. The presence or absence of the love of heaven shapes nations and cultures and directs whole civilizations. The church is not only an individual thing, nor is it primarily an ecclesiastical organization. It is the spirit and character of a community, a nation, a culture, and a civilization. The presence of a living church means health, happiness, prosperity, and justice. Its absence brings poverty, disease, injustice, and loneliness.
     The doctrines often speak of the church in the broad sense of being a whole culture, as in our lesson from Arcana Coelestia, where it speaks of Christians as being the people who live in the Christian world, meaning essentially all people of European ancestry who share Western culture-the Christian heritage. The inhabitants of the Christian world have a certain character as a whole which is distinct from the character of people in other parts of the world. The state of the church in this culture, the spirit of this civilization, has a great effect on our lives, just as everyone's culture affects his or her life in every part of the world.
     The state of the church dictates much of what goes on in our life. Are people industrious, honest, and kind? Is there crime? Are institutions fair and benevolent? Is marriage loved and respected? The answers to these questions are a commentary on the state of the church. The church is an internal thing which cannot be seen with the eyes or easily judged, but those internals manifest themselves in life, and they present indications as to what people are like spiritually. When the church is present, life is glorious; when it is not present, life is unhappy and hard.
     Our lesson from the Arcana Coelestia indicated that the state of the church is difficult to judge because people present themselves to others as well as they can.

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Everyone wants to be seen as a good citizen. But the Heavenly Doctrines are unrelenting in their assertions that the church in this culture has come to an end and that, where once there was love, a state of cold now prevails. This is hard for many to accept.
     Some believe that it is not that the people of the Christian world are not loving and charitable, but simply that the doctrines of the Christian Church are false. But the Writings clearly state the opposite: "The Christian doctrine prescribes love and charity more than any other in the world, but there are few who live according to it" (AC 2596e).
     The New Testament is universally known in the western world. It is far and away the best-selling work of all time. But, according to the teaching of the New Church, it has been falsified in the sense that its major teachings have been explained away-not because they were not understood, but because people were unwilling to live by them.
     "There are gentiles who when they lived in the world had known from contact and report that Christians live the worst life, in adulteries, hatred, quarrels, drunkenness, and the like . . . But they are instructed by the angels that the Christian doctrine and faith itself teach quite differently, but that Christians live less according to their doctrines than the gentiles do" (AC 2597).
     Teachings such as this are abundant in the Writings, and they played a major role in the founding of the Academy. One of the founders, Walter Childs, wrote, as he looked back on the early days of the Academy movement: "There was nothing which struck us so forcibly as the teachings regarding the state of the Christian world. These explained, it seemed to us [Frank Ballou and Walter Childs], exactly why the New Church had not been received and why it would be received by but few in the Christian world" (Walter C. Childs, quoted in Bishop William Henry Benade by Richard R. Gladish, Academy of the New Church, 1984, p. 228).

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     Partly in response to this realization, the founders of the Academy worked to establish a body that would propagate the teachings of the New Church in a world that was not accepting of them, and which would act strongly to instill the dream of the New Church in their children.
     Several generations removed, we continue to follow this dream, believing that a New Church can be established, even though it is not easy. But let us not think that we are the New Church. It may certainly exist among us-we pray that it does!-but we are of the people and culture of the former church, and we will tend to live less according to our doctrines than people in other cultures.
     The vision of the New Church is a fabulous vision, so fabulous that it is hard to believe that it can literally come true. For example, in the Apocalypse Revealed, the qualities of the church are listed. How do they compare with the ways that we are?

     The people of the New Church will have celestial love, which is love to the Lord; they will have wisdom from celestial love; they will be in the uses of life, which are of wisdom from that love; they will be in mutual love, which is the love of doing good uses to the community or society; they will have a perception of use and of what use is; they will have the will of serving and of acting; they will have spiritual love, which is love of truth from good, from which is intelligence; they will be in the good of life; and they will have conjugial love (AR 350-359).

     In response to this list, Rev. George Dole, in a talk at the Fryeburg Assembly, says: "The picture is quite clear. The New Church will be loving, perceptive, reverent, and without pretense. These are explicit standards, explicitly stated. . . . They mean that whenever justice and compassion seem to be at odds, the New Church is not there, for if it were, good and truth would make a one.

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They mean that where there is resentment or rancor, the New Church is not there, for all things of that church are from the good of love" (The Unwarranted Church by Rev. Dr. George Dole, at the Fryeburg New Church Assembly, 1983, p. 5).
     The point here is that we should not believe that this organization is the New Church or that we are, as a group, distinctly different or better than others of our culture. We are a part of our culture and prone to both its strengths and weaknesses. A person can become discouraged when looking at the imperfect nature of our organizations and ask himself, "Is this the New Church?" But in our world, the New Church will struggle. This is clearly taught (see Last Judgment 74), and we should not be disheartened. Divine prophecy is always fulfilled in the end (see AR 547e).
     As an illustration of the task that faces us, take the phenomenon of self-esteem. This is a holiday weekend, with many social events and entertainments. Most people like a long weekend and look forward to opportunities to socialize. But social events also bring out certain types of anxieties. In North America, as in other western nations, it is common for people to feel a lack of self-esteem and be troubled by it. It is common for teenagers to feel anxiety about their friends, about dating, about being popular, even to feel unloved and lonely. It is a problem that people work to overcome, and there are ways to overcome it, although it is not easy.
     But what is a lack of self-esteem? Where does it come from, and what causes it to be so common in our culture? The teaching of the New Church is that when the last time of a church comes, love grows cold, as in Matthew 24, " . . . many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate another . . . . the love of many will grow cold" (verses 10, 12). Many passages in the Writings describe this dislike and intolerance, where there would be kindness and mercy if the church were alive (see AC 1834, 1032).

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     What happens to people who grow up in times like these? They will know that many people do not like one another; they will see rejection and emotional violence. Even if they are loved themselves, still they will see the lack of love around them, and it has its effect. A person does not have to be unpopular to know how unpopular people are treated. When a burglary is reported in a neighborhood, others in the neighborhood feel anxious and vulnerable even though it has not happened to them.
     Why is self-esteem a problem? It has to be because of the fall of the Christian Church. A church falls when people do not love one another, when they no longer follow the Lord, and the results affect everyone in that culture. We are a part of it, and so we have this problem as well. But we are so used to it that we take it for granted.
     To gain self-esteem, they say that a person needs to learn to love himself or herself. But the real long-term solution is not for people to love themselves, but to learn to love one another. The solution is for there to be a church. When people grow up in a world where they can count on love and kindness, where this is how people treat one another, where they feel safe and valued, self-esteem is simply not an issue.
     We would hope that something of that world has been created here, but we know that there is a long way to go. Still, to have the vision of a world like that, to think that such a thing is possible, is a wonderful thing in itself.
     This is why we need the Academy, to pass on the vision until it is fulfilled in fullness until other lands are ready to accept it or until this culture changes its ways. We need people who can believe in its glory, who will not be discouraged, and who will recognize the very real New Church that does exist, here and now, with many of their fellow men.
     There is great happiness in this world, and in many ways it is a world that is filled with love, if we have the eyes to see it. Poverty, hunger, injustice, war, and immorality also exist but, according to the teachings of the New Church, their days are numbered.

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The Lord will not rest until the vision is fulfilled, and how can we doubt that He can bring it about? "For Zion's sake," He says, "I will not hold My peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a lamp that burns." And on our part, Isaiah says, "You who remember the Lord, do not keep silent, and give Him no rest, till He establishes, and till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth." For "you shall be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God" (Isaiah 62:6, 7, 3). Amen.

Lessons: Isaiah 62:1-7; Matt. 24:4-14; AC 3488-89 (selections)
MY PHILOSOPHY OF TRANSLATING THE WRITINGS 1993

MY PHILOSOPHY OF TRANSLATING THE WRITINGS TATSUYA NAGASHIMA 1993

Let me presume his permission to quote here what Bishop Buss wrote me last April when I mailed him a copy of the recently published Japanese edition of Conjugial Love which I translated. He wrote: "Translation work is so satisfying because it is a way of getting the Lord's Word into the hands of many people who would otherwise not have been able to read it. It is also deeply satisfying to the translator, because he is dealing with the most precious things upon the earth, and quite literally doing his work in the Lord's presence. (I guess we all do our work in the Lord's presence, but you feel that you're doing it more so when you're working with His Word directly.)"

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     My philosophy of translating the Writings is somehow advised in the above letter. But now as a NCL reader, I hope I could participate in the repeated topic of "simplification" of the translated Writings, not however as one of the readers, but as a translator, and not as a translator into English, but as a translator into Japanese. From a linguo-etymological viewpoint, English and Japanese have nothing in common, but what Bishop Buss says about "how to get the Lord's Word into the hands of many people" is quite a common consideration of those who do their translations into any languages in the world. Let me first place the most fundamental questions.

1. What is a language and its learning?

     Although I have long been a career language teacher, I used to have quite an obscure notion of "language" until I found and perused the following popular passages from Helen Keller's My Religion:

     In despair she led me out to the ivy-covered pump-house and made me hold the cup under the spout while she pumped. With her other hand she spelled w-a-t-e-r emphatically. I stood still, my whole body's attention fixed on the motions of her fingers as the cool stream flowed over my hand. All at once there was a strange stir within me-a misty consciousness, a sense of something remembered. It was as if I had come back to life after being dead! I understood that what my teacher was doing with her fingers meant that the cold something that was rushing over my hand was water, and that it was possible for me to communicate with other people by these hand signs. It was a wonderful day never to be forgotten! . . . Now I see it was my mental awakening. I think it was an experience somehow in the nature of revelation. It showed immediately in many ways that a great change had taken place in me. I wanted to learn the name of every object I touched, and before night I had mastered thirty words (Helen Keller, My Religion, 1986, Swedenborg Foundation: New York-emphasis by the writer).

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     It was surprising to know that learning language for her was like coming to life after being dead, a mental awakening, and a revelation from above. Helen found out that her teacher's finger signs had "meaning," i.e., the cold something was "water," and that she could communicate with other people by these signs. Although Helen was not able to pronounce nor hear a sound of the word "water," she was able to conjoin one of her senses, the sense of touch, with the abstract notion of the word "water." It was a unification of "a material element" with "a spiritual element." Using an Aristotelian concept, we see that the meaning is a "forma" and the sensual sign as a receiving vessel is "materia." The something sensual was formed, imprinted or engraved by the something mental, meaningful and spiritual. This conjunction was like an inspiration or a revelation from above.
     Let me use another metaphoric illustration. The above conjunction is like physical conception, a conjunction of a sperm with an ovum. A father's seed is conceived in a mother's womb. This correspondentially represents the conjunction of truth with good. The meaning comes from the truth, and the language as a tool is the good. Or, in other words, what is meant by "esse" is conceived and becomes what is meant by "existere." "Esse," i.e., the idea or meaning, cannot be actualized as "existere" without being conceived within the material/sensual tools.
     Generally, human growth is performed simultaneously with a learning of one's own language. An infant gradually learns how to conjoin the physical (aural or visual) signs with abstract notions (meanings). A baby increases vocabulary by conjoining a new sound with a new meaning. A child, in addition to the aural signs while learning how to read or write, has more vocabulary by being supported with the visual aids. Now the meanings are conceived within by two main sensual symbols: phono-lingual symbols and the scriptural symbols. A phono-lingual symbol is interpreted by its sound, and the scriptural symbol is interpreted by its spelled letters.

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In the light of the above, we know that language teaching is to imbue one's mind and organs with these audio-visual symbols which correspond to certain abstract notions, and these conceived notions within the sensual signs are commonly utilized for daily communications.
     It was not a coincidence that an abstract notion of a word is called "concept" in English. It comes from the Latin verb concipere (to conceive). A married woman becomes pregnant by conceiving her husband's seed in her womb. Likewise we conceive a spiritual seed in our mental vessel for giving birth to a new word. The Latin conceptus, the equivalent to the English "concept," is the past participle of passive form of the verb concipere, so it signifies the "one which is/was conceived." A human brain gets pregnant when starting language-learning. Once the first seed is conceived, a sudden change occurs. An embryo is formed immediately as if from its own power, and becomes a fetus, a baby after birth, and finally attains a mature mental capacity to function by itself. That is why Helen wrote: "[A] great change had taken place in me. I wanted to learn the name of every object I touched, and before night I had mastered thirty words." For her it was a miracle, but the same miracle happens in any baby or child who starts learning a language.

2. What is translation?

     When we know what is meant by language learning, we also know what is meant by "translation" in its own sense. While language learning is performed by conjoining a certain sensual symbol with a particular notion which the former symbol represents, a translation is performed by substituting another sensual symbol, which the readers know, for the previous symbol which they don't know.
     In language learning you first have a sensual sign in sound or letters, and afterwards you find out that this particular sign is conjoined with a particular meaning.

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This is not always according to the timely process, but the receiving vessel is previously required for getting a new meaning to come into it. Helen, even as deaf, dumb and mute, had the sense of touch as a receiving vessel for catching the meaning of "water," so that she could ever progress in learning a new vocabulary. Ordinarily, however, a human baby has aural and visual senses so that he/she may unwittingly conjoin them with a particular meaning corresponding to each sign.
     In comparing with the process of the above language learning, translation seems to take a reverse step and progress, i.e., to start from the meaning which one already has in one language, which however the readers do not know, and to carry out the work by discovering the symbolic tools which the readers already know.
     Let me give you an example. I do not know at what age a child learns what is meant by "love," but the child can distinguish the pronunciation of "love" much earlier than knowing what is meant by that sound. Of course they often progress simultaneously, but its pronunciation or recognition of its letter-form is much easier and earlier habitualized by the child than knowing its meaning. So it goes as follows:
     Sensual Symbol ---> Meaning
     However, the translation goes from meanings to sensual symbols, i.e., from the meanings which the translator knows but the readers do not know yet, to the new sensual symbols which both translator and readers know. When the translator puts the greeting of Dominus vobiscum! into English, for example, he/she first has to have a clear understanding of what is meant by that Latin greeting, and to want to deliver it to people who have no knowledge of Latin. The meaning which the translator already has in memory goes back to find what particular English words correspond to it, The translator, starting from the meaning which the Latin greeting conveys, traces back to the sensual symbols in English, and finds out that the corresponding English to the above Latin is "The Lord be with you!"

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So it goes this way:
     Meaning ---> Sensual Symbol

3. What is the translation of the Writings?

Human beings on earth have many ideas in common, but we have many different languages in the world to express them, so they are totally differently expressed in each ethnic group or nation. That means that although the idea is one, there are many sensual symbols to represent it in different languages. Now let us presume that we are all English-speaking people, and we have a translator working from Latin to English. The readers of the Writings know English very well but have no idea of Latin. But the translator has knowledge of both English and Latin. The following are the processes which both take:

     Process A:
          English Symbol ---> Meaning (by both readers and translators)
     They learn English and can comprehend all that English symbols represent. And the readers at large take this process A and do not go further.
     Process B:
          Meaning ---> Latin Symbol (by translators and some candidates)
     They learn Latin and can comprehend all that Latin symbols represent. And some candidates and translators may take this process.
     Process C:
          Latin Symbol ---> Distinctive Correlated Meaning (by translators only)
     This is a feed-back process in which the translator gropes to find, in both languages, some distinct semantic arena which conveys similar terms with each other.

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     Process D:
          Distinctive Correlated Meaning ---> English Symbol (by translators only)
     This is a process of translation from Latin to English.

     The processes B and C can be done simultaneously and even with some overlaps, but language learners can normally distinguish the two: the time when they read a new language as a beginner, and the time at a more advanced level when they begin making sentences using a new language. The former is process B, while the latter is C. After having gone through processes B and C, the translator finally has his own free capacity of reproducing the ideas of what the Latin text represents, and tries to put these ideas into English.
     No wonder each translator makes his/her own compositions in different ways from others, because the esse is conceived in different vessels, and each has his/her own existere. That is also why there are no "infallible translations" which could perfectly represent what was written in the original text, because any two languages are so different in each concept in both languages with so many different notions (comprehension in logic) and applications (extension).
     Let me take a short example from the text of De Commercio Animae et Corporis (The Intercourse Between the Soul and the Body) which I am at present preparing for the translation into Japanese. The text is as follows:

     Quod Bonum amoris et Verum sapientiae conjunctim, h.e., unita in unum, a Deo influant in animamhominis, sed quod in progressione dividantur ab homine, ac conjungantur duntaxat apud illos, qui a Deo se patiuntur duci, in sequentibus videbitur (Intercourse 8).

     I am afraid I might make some awkward compositions in English, but taking a risk of it, I will try to translate, in four different ways, into my own English.

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1.      It will be seen in the following passages that the good of love and the truth of wisdom flow into a human soul by God jointly or as being a united one, but that they are separated by man in the progress, and that they are conjoined together exactly in those who suffer themselves to be led by God.

2.      Goodness of love and truth of wisdom flow into a human soul as being one jointly united. Still in its progress they are divided into two by man. However, these two are conjoined together as one for those who patiently are guided by God. This will be seen in the following paragraphs.

3.      God inflows into a human soul with the good of love and the truth of wisdom as being one conjoined. But a man separates them gradually into two. However, they are conjoined together for those who have enough patience to be guided by God. This will be clarified in the following paragraphs.

4.      God inflows into a human soul with the good of love and the truth of wisdom as being one united. But a man divides them into two on its progress. These two are conjoined together, though, only for those who are willingly guided by God with patience. This will be shown in the following chapters.

     You can notice in the above four, some particular differences in translating "apud illos, qui a Deo se patiuntur duci" (English translations are italicized in the above). Notice the following:

1.      in those who suffer themselves to be led by God
2. for those who are patiently guided by God
3.      for those who have enough patience to be guided by God
4.      for those who are willingly guided by God with patience

     In addition, see two other translations:

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5.      for those who submit themselves to be led by God (Dan Frost)
6.      with those who suffer themselves to be led by God (John Whitehead)

     The above Latin of only three words, se patiuntur duci ("suffer themselves to be led" according to J. Whitehead), can be put into Japanese in almost innumerable ways, as you consider a portion of checks and balances of the Kanji-Kana usage, polite and/or plain forms, emotional and/or less emotional tones, and many other correlative factors between the writer and his possible readers, And the translator has freedom of choosing one from many, depending on how he/she interprets "se patiuntur" (suffer themselves); for example, whether or not with reluctance, or willingness, or resignation, or self-compulsion, or positive/negative perseverance, and so on. As a translator I am often involved in such an extreme case in my country when readers show emotional reactions against my compositions, disregarding whether my translations are right or wrong, but rather giving a personal remark as to whether the compositions are tasteful or untasteful, gentle or rigid, polite or impolite, and so on.
     Translations of the Writings, once rendered into other languages, can have a large diversity and differences in how the particular translator interprets particular passages, and what emotional reactions are of his/her own, and how he/she accepts that particular message from the text. Readers in general can feel such a personal tone and sphere whatever literary works in other languages they read. No wonder, therefore, there can be, for the Writings as well as the Bible, many versions, such as "simplified," "classic," "modern," "paraphrased," and "liturgical." Translators must serve the Lord first, but they also must serve the people, who have their own needs.

     (To be concluded)

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SPIRITUAL PRACTICE THAT MAKES RELIGION OF THE LIFE 1993

SPIRITUAL PRACTICE THAT MAKES RELIGION OF THE LIFE WILSON VAN DUSEN 1993

     An Open Letter to General Church

     I worked with a Swedenborgian group for a whole day. At the end I was asked in a most sincere way how the church can be helped to expand. I would perhaps have forgotten this one question among many that day except for the fact that it has vexed me for some years. I feel a special responsibility to answer because some have said I am the greatest recruiter to the church in this century. I doubt it, for I have done nothing but share my pleasure in the Writings. But how to expand? I am aware of the varied and persistent efforts of many so that I believe we have tried everything.
     Then a very surprising answer came to me. I now think we have each not done the task set before us so we have little to offer others. And that is why we do not yet deserve to expand. My answer is a bit harsh but I feel in this instance frankness will serve best. I am now seventy; I've associated with followers of Swedenborg some forty years. My time grows short so I feel some license to be frank. I have formulated this answer somewhat differently for Convention and General Church. In Convention I find the followers of Swedenborg have barely read the Writings and they readily borrow from foreign traditions for spiritual practices as though the Writings themselves are barren. The task needing to be done in General Church is somewhat different. The people of General Church have more often read the Writings and they can argue points in them quite well. What I detect is a lack of spiritual practice, or even of an understanding of what it is, and why it is needed.
     I will have to define spiritual practice. The religious person needs to do things to take religion from an intellectual knowledge to make it of the life. I trust most in General Church will recognize this central theme in Swedenborg, to be of the life.

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Only what is of the life survives death. A lot of scientifics or memory knowledges will "go down the tubes." By practice I mean all those means that will make religion of the life or "second nature." I ride a motorcycle. Once a relative asked me how to start and operate it. I got flustered and had difficulty explaining a process I've been through a thousand times. Why? The process is of my life but not in memory knowledge. The greatest fault I can see of General Church is that religion is mostly rational knowledge and too little of the life. Until this is accomplished it seems to me we have little to offer others, and don't deserve to expand. All of the practices I will touch upon open up the interior of experience. They are ways that make the spiritual more of the life than of mere thought.
     Now there are two giant and surprising reasons why I can't really be critical of Swedenborgians. The first is that the Writings themselves barely touch on how to regenerate, how to make it of the life, how to practice. Swedenborg's own orientation was to try to describe the spiritual in as great detail as possible. He had personal practices but he gave few clues how others could practice. So the Writings themselves are somewhat silent in this respect.
     Secondly, I cannot be too critical because the Protestant tradition is itself weak in practice. Let me first zero in on the Protestant tradition and later come back to Swedenborg's approach.
     If one looks at early Christianity there was wide experimentation and sharing of discoveries in spiritual practices. In time much of the power of these approaches was lost and only liturgy and prayer remained. In the eastern religions spiritual practices are exceedingly rich. Individuals master some way to God and become a guru or teacher to others. Hinduism and Buddhism are a mass of practices. At the moment I am reading an ancient Tibetan Buddhist approach to regeneration through systematic work in sleep.

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After years of my studying religious practices this is the first I have ever heard of this one. It is so old it is thought to predate Buddha. There are hundreds of such systems in the east. Most western religions are poor and naked in comparison. Practice in the west is largely confined to: you go to church, attempt to do good, and pray. Even prayer is a very rich subject in the east, but in the west most of the depth is missing. In the west you just ask God to help you.
     Let us take liturgy as an example. In the west someone else does it for you, and you sit there and judge how entertaining it is, like T.V. In contrast, in monasteries you can see how liturgy can become a real spiritual practice. In a local monastery they attend relatively long services three or four times a day, and everyone has an active role in the services. Under these circumstances liturgy can become a real and effective practice. I had to counsel one nun who cried during services and went into ecstasies, a reaction to services almost unheard of in the west. In comparison I would hardly call our one-hour-a-week service a religious practice, except for the very few. But perhaps you begin to see what I mean when I say the New Church is in a western tradition in which practice is weak and almost unknown.
     Let me contrast your level of practice with that of Swedenborg himself. It has amazed me all along that Swedenborgians in general seem to have terribly little interest in Swedenborg's own practices. Swedenborg was regenerated by the grace of God and a great deal of work. It puzzles me why so-called "followers" of Swedenborg don't at least try a little bit of the practices Swedenborg himself used. I could do a book on Swedenborg's personal practices and those implied in the Writings. I almost wonder if there isn't the feeling that "Swedenborg could do it but I never could," or that he was an especially blessed person. Let me just skim Swedenborg's practices, all of which any follower of his could use.

     1. Swedenborg indicates over and over that his main practice was a prayerful approach to the Word.

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He shows the early stages of this in a book Swedenborgians have terribly neglected-The Messiah About to Came. I detailed the approach in an article no one paid any attention to.1 Basically Swedenborg approached the Bible as the living Word of God. He went at it slowly, prayerfully, meditatively. In the article I detail the early stage when God came to be present and addressed him through the Bible. Anyone who knows Swedenborg will realize the heart of all his Writings was given to him this way. This method is nearly simplicity itself. I have found the same approach can be used to Swedenborg's Writings themselves as another Word. I am appalled that Swedenborgians haven't thought to follow him in this.
     1 "Another Key to Swedenborg's Development" W. Van Dusen, New Church Life, July 1975, pp. 316-319
     2. Swedenborg's Spiritual Diary is a practice in itself-and again a simple one available to anyone. When you have a spiritual experience and write it down, you give it serious attention. In the books of Ira Progoff are modern examples of this approach. Swedenborg used his diary as source material when he wrote much of the Writings. Again I find it strange that no Swedenborgians seem to follow him in this.
     3. Swedenborg clearly used dreams in the early years, and was guided by them from time to time the rest of his life.2 They are more difficult than the two methods above, the main difficulty being to learn to read the language of correspondences.
     2 Swedenborg's Journal of Dreams, W. Van Dusen, Swedenborg Foundation, NYC 1986.
     4. Church services were a weak approach for Swedenborg, but for individuals who want to approach God this way it can be effective. In True Christian Religion and other works he starts to open up the interior of liturgy and the eucharist.

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Services become a spiritual practice when you become personally involved.
     5. Swedenborg meditated. I've mustered evidence for this.3 His approach to the Bible is partly meditation.
     3 "Meditation" W. Van Dusen, New Philosophy, Vol. 78, No. 4, Oct. 1975, pp. 309-322
     6. "Uses" is a method I've drawn out of the Writings,4 and one Swedenborg himself clearly practiced. His Writings are practically his life's blood given to the world.
     4 Uses, W. Van Dusen, Swedenborg Foundation. NYC, 1978 and 1981

     I could easily spell out other practices he himself used or implied in the Writings. One way I know General Church is weak in practice is that often in the past, when I've described a practice in General Church, I have been totally ignored or attacked as dangerous. These repeated attacks led me to quit writing for General Church fifteen years ago. It is as though a rational understanding of the Writings is seen as the way even though the Writings themselves repeatedly and clearly refute this.
     All of the above practices, except perhaps dreams, are simplicity itself and available to anyone. The most critical thing about a spiritual practice is not to be clever in it and to have precisely the right form. People can begin with total ignorance, and even mistaken notions, but with sincere persistence they will be led by the Lord to a practice right for them. Spiritual practice comes into maturity when the person discovers a way to enter a relationship with God. We can see the relationship opening and becoming real and powerful in both The Messiah About to Come and in Swedenborg's use of dreams. By persistence I mean at least some fifteen minutes or more of practice daily. Choose an approach that appeals to you, and by sincerity and persistence you can enter into an active and personal relationship to the Divine.

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As this matures you are led into ways suitable for you, prayerful persistence is everything. Method is quite secondary.
     What follows from a living relationship to God? Everything. It is a way to open the interior of experience, a way to glimpse heaven. You yourself will be changed by it. It is the way to enter upon regeneration. It provides a living confirmation of the Writings. The interior of the Word was opened to Swedenborg. But if we could see all of the hours, all of the effort, that went into it, we would begin to see him as a modest seeker like ourselves.
     So my point is quite simply that we do not expand because we have too little to offer. We are exceedingly remiss in the spiritual practices that could enrich our lives and give us something to give to others. I cannot be thoroughly critical of the people of General Church. They do read and reflect. Unfortunately they are in a tradition in which practice is weak, so weak most do not even know it is missing. In my own life I have five separate spiritual practices through which I have ample guidance from God. I may be closer to Swedenborg than the followers who have not yet seen the need to follow. I am very much for people of the New Church following Swedenborg and the Writings in developing practices before they borrow from foreign sources. I respect the wonder of Buddhist masters, for obviously they have journeyed and discovered. But still I feel followers of the Writings should exhaustively work with the riches they already have before they venture afield.
     Spiritual practice leads to regeneration, which will enrich us so that we might be of greater use to others. When we have many people, of great use, then the church will expand. I am sorry to be so blunt, but I thought I would be of greater use to speak up. So how to expand the church? First work at your own regeneration, the central purpose of the Writings. When this is accomplished, expansion will follow. Seek first the kingdom of heaven and all else will be added.

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AMENDING THE LAW DEMEANS MARRIAGE 1993

AMENDING THE LAW DEMEANS MARRIAGE Rev. KURT P. NEMITZ 1993

     Homosexuals all around are making demands for approval and acceptance. I honestly believe there are people who are sincerely mistaken on this issue. Therefore, when recently asked to join other Christians from various professions to give testimony to the Maine State Legislature's Judiciary Committee against a proposed "gay-rights" amendment that was intended to prohibit discrimination against homosexuals in housing, employment and public facilities, I did so.
     In my own clergyman's testimony to the committee and to the general public in attendance-over five hundred-I endeavored to place the issue on an impersonal level, and hopefully beyond suspicion of mere pleading for the maintenance of church tradition. (Apropos, in a strikingly current Memorable Relation in Conjugial Love 500, three priests in the world of spirits whom Swedenborg heard preaching against adulteries were accused of doing just that. A huge, contrary-minded crowd gathered around them and screamed demandingly, "Punish them! Punish them!" The claim these priests make that "adultery is contrary to laws and statutes of the church is just an expression of the ecclesiastical establishment's drive for power. What does anything theological and spiritual really have to do with the physical pleasure of the flesh?")
     The thoughts I myself put forth to the legislative committee in objection to the forced acceptance of homosexual behavior were in general as follows.

     Although doubtless well-intentioned, in reality the overall effect of this proposed amendment to bar discrimination against those individuals practicing homosexuality and other forms of deviant sexual behavior will be to inflict injury on the greater body of mankind that constitutes our state.

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It will be bad medicine, like the by-gone, mistaken practice of blood-letting, which not infrequently weakened and broke down the very human system it was imagined to purify and strengthen. By redefining what is acceptable sexual behavior the proposed "gay-rights" bill will demean the role of marriage.
     A loving, monogamous marriage and family life is the warm center of the highest and noblest happiness the human heart can experience. It is the foundation of the well-being of our state and nation. My personal conviction is that this beautiful role that marriage plays in human life is not a matter of indifferent chance. It is rather God's creative focus, and this is why He has blessed it with supreme pleasure and happiness. As Swedenborg succinctly put it: "Genuine marriage is the seedbed of the human race and of the angelic heaven."
     Is it not because of this Divine significance that one of the primary elements in the legal codes of our Judeo-Christian civilization has been law written to preserve and protect the integrity of marriage and the family? When marriage and the family disintegrate, both individuals and society suffer terribly. We are all aware that mental health professionals, sociologists, and even economists are increasingly reporting grim facts about the depth and extent of this devastating suffering.
     Improvements can come about only in an environment where there is a restriction of the pursuit of sexual pleasure to heterosexual, monogamous relationships. Consequently a small element of society that resents this restriction is now seeking to have us re-define our long-proven concept of what is good as regards sexual activity and pleasure-obviously so that other, abnormal forms of pleasure-bringing sexual behavior can be indulged in freely, without constraining disapproval.
     Those-and there are many of us-who do not want to condone such deviant sexual behavior are accused of "unfair discrimination." We can ask, however, whether this charge is valid.
     First, unlike physical characteristics such as gender, skin color or national origin, deviant sexual behavior is a matter of choice. It is in a distinctly different logical category, the category of morals.

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Appeals to "fairness" cannot change this reality.
     This is not to deny that in some the desire for homosexual couplings may be very strong, and in not a few instances even inborn. But is this not equally the case with many other forms of intrinsically anti-social, morally unacceptable behavior we are all prone to? Yet does the fact of our inborn inclination, say, to anger and its desire for revenge, ever justify and validate our being violent and abusive? Or, to take another ever-present case in point: most men are not by nature monogamous, yet does the fact of this inborn sexual inclination ever make polygamy or adultery truly good and legitimate for anybody? Civil law cannot be rightly required to sanction and protect behavior deleterious to the welfare of the citizenry on the grounds that some have an intensely strong urge to indulge in it. Actually, it would be unfair to society to require it to accept and not discriminate against antisocial behaviors.
     Second, as regards the common, individual person who regards homosexual practices as immoral: whenever an individual is forced to accept a form of behavior that he or she in conscience regards as contrary to the welfare of society, the essence of his or her humanity is violated and invalidated. What will life be like for us in this state? will it be truly fair if we are not left free to make discriminating moral judgments about whom we will work, live and socialize with?
     Therefore, while feeling compassion for those whose particular personal affliction is an inclination to deviant sexual behavior, such as homosexuality or pedophilia-'There but for the grace of God go I," we can all say-does not wisdom advise that we reject "gay-rights" legislation? It is bad medicine, a nostrum that intrinsically involves redefining what is good and thereby giving approval to behavior that is insidiously deleterious to the welfare of the state and to the well-being of her citizens.

     Besides several expressions of appreciative concurrence made to me after my testimony, another pleasant, but most unexpected result was that of discovering another reader of the Writings.

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This stranger came over when I had returned to my seat at the conclusion of my testimony and totally surprised me by asking, "Was that quote you made from Swedenborg from his book Conjugial Love?" "Why yes," I replied, "but how did you know?" He explained that he had come upon the Writings just a few years ago in a library in a small town in New Hampshire. He had had no other contact whatsoever with the organized New Church, At his request I sent him the General Church bookroom's catalogue and included with it our Bath, Maine Society's calendar, although I realized that he and his wife and young family live quite some distance away. But to our society's delight, a few weeks ago they made the two-hour drive and joined us for our Sunday worship.
SWEDENBORG SAMPLER 1993

SWEDENBORG SAMPLER Editor 1993

     We have not been allowed to mention Rev. Eric Carswell's Swedenborg Sampler because the supply could not keep up with the demand for it. At last it has been published again and in good quantity, and may be ordered from the General Church Book Center for $9.50, which includes postage. See the address on page 335.
     It is no wonder that this book achieved almost instant popularity. It gives us selected quotations from six books of the Writings in order. It is one thing to give quotations that give an idea what a book like Divine Providence or Heaven and Hell is like. (And this book does just that.) But what about Arcana Caelestia? It does that too-in sixteen pages.
     Every quotation begins with a leading question or heading, and every quotation is followed with a question for discussion. It has been especially helpful in introductory classes. Mr. Carswell writes: "My hope is that this collection of passages and questions will serve as a flexible source for a number of different discussion-group formats . . . . "

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Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     VOTING ON MATTERS OF CONJUGIAL LOVE (2)

     A group in the spiritual world was questioned about marriage, and in that instance an actual majority could see no rational good in marriage. Since they could not see good in marriage, it followed that they could not see anything bad in adultery.
     There are people today who maintain that nothing is obscene. They say that there is no such thing as a dirty picture or movie or TV show. There are situations in which votes are taken as to whether something is considered obscene. It could be a panel of judges voting, or it could be a group of citizens. People will not be able to see that something is dirty unless they see that something is clean. "Who can perceive what the quality of adultery is unless he has perceived clearly what the quality of marriage is? Or who can present to the judgment the filthiness of the pleasure of obscene love unless he has previously presented to his own judgment the cleanness of conjugial love?" (CL 424)
     In a debate in the other world, people whose reasoning was "not from conjugial love" made fun of the idea that marriages are sacred (CL 79). The arguments that can and do arise against the sanctity of marriage are presented to us in the Writings so that we may look at them for what they are. "Only the simple and the religious believe adulteries to be sins; not so the intelligent who, like us, view them from the light of nature. Are not offspring born from adulteries as well as from marriages? . . . . Is not this a benefit and not an injury? What harm to a wife if she admits several rivals? And what harm to a man? That it is a dishonor to a man is a frivolous notion from fancy. That adultery is contrary to the laws and statutes of the church is from the ecclesiastical order, for the sake of power. But what has the theological and spiritual to do with a merely corporeal and carnal delight?" (CL 500)

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     When we are not thinking from conjugial love such arguments can seem valid. But the Writings invite us to look from a different point of view and to think from " . . . a stable point as a beginning whence distinctions may be deduced" (CL 57).

     (To be continued)

     Teachings about Homosexuality

     The book Conjugial Love makes reference to evils " . . . which are not to be named" (see nos. 450 and 459:5). From an historical perspective a writer in our pages showed reasons why homosexuality would be referred to in this way (August issue, 1984). Even as it was, the book Conjugial Love " . . . had difficulty from Swedish censors." A final line in this contribution invites us to note also " . . . the circumlocutions in AC 2220, 2322, where homosexuality is discussed, but not named, in connection with Sodom."
     There are references in the Spiritual Diary, which was not published. They give insights which one imagines would have been worded more delicately if they had been prepared for publication. Of these more later.
     What we find in the published works is a tremendous amount of teaching about marriage, marriage between male and female. There is a universal sphere of marriage received by the male and female (see CL 92). There has been implanted in each sex an inclination to conjunction (see CL 100).'The male man and the female man were so created that from two they may become as one . . . " (CL 37).
     "He who made them at the beginning made them male and female and said, For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together let not man separate" (Matt. 19).

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The emphasis on marriage in the Writings is one of their striking characteristics. What can one say about the phenomenon of homosexuality? There are papers written on this that have not been published, and there are papers published some time ago that readers are unaware of. As we go into this subject we offer to provide such articles for those who request them.

(To be continued)
GAMBLING, ALCOHOLISM AND HOMOSEXUALITY 1993

GAMBLING, ALCOHOLISM AND HOMOSEXUALITY Editor 1993

These are three very different things. What do they have in common? Although this is not the point of the editorial, it may be noted that these three things were mentioned together during a discussion of the breakup of marriages. The question was asked: If you have a couple getting married who are compatible, intelligent and intending to be faithful, what factors could sunder the marriage? One panelist of some experience suggested that compulsive gambling, alcoholism or homosexuality could derail a marriage which seemed to have many other factors in its favor.
Something these three things have in common is that they are limited to a minority. They may be on a list of requests for doctrinal class topics, but they are specialized subjects. If you give a class on honesty or hatred or the love of self, the audience feels fairly uniformly involved. Selfishness or anger or envy are parts of virtually everyone's experience. However, if you take up the subject of gambling, most of the audience feels detached. They may find it intensely interesting in an objective sort of way, but it is not their personal problem. The same applies to homosexuality and alcoholism. (Alcoholism does seem to affect a large number of people who are not alcoholics. So many people have a friend, a neighbor, a boss or employee who is affected by someone's alcohol problem. And so there is a sense of personal involvement even to the non-alcoholic individual.)

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     The compulsive gambler has been compared to the alcoholic in some ways. The intoxicating rush of a big win is desperately wanted. Not only is the winning experience itself an exhilaration; it also promises to make problems disappear. All past debts will be paid off by the big win.
     Alcoholism and homosexuality have in common that the causes are so open to debate. Is it a choice? Is it a sickness? Is it inherited? What is the balance of choice, environment and heredity? There are organizations that deal with these human situations without waiting around for the solutions to these questions.
     From the New Church point of view these things have in common that the Writings seem to say so little directly about them. What is more, the passages one finds seem to come from the Spiritual Diary. And people may Say, "Swedenborg never published that." The most direct passage on drunkenness is in the Spiritual Diary (n. 2422). Relating a lesbianism, a notable passage is SD 3896 and its context. Another passage in the Diary calls to mind the phrase: "There but for the grace of God go I." It talks of a man who by no virtue of his own was held back from intoxicating drink. If he had not been so withheld, he would have "fallen" (SD 3177).
     As we look into these subjects, we endeavor to minimize a holier-than-thou feeling or feelings of contempt on the part of those "not involved." And we also endeavor to minimize feelings of rejection and counterproductive guilt. Every teaching we find can and should be used to increase understanding and hope in the power of the Lord whose love reaches out to all people.

     To be continued. For reference we note two previous editorials: "Getting Drunk" (January 1983) and "A Loathing for Women" (February 1985).

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NOW IS THE TIME 1993

NOW IS THE TIME William Alfred Hall 1993

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     Now is the time to:
     Live from the teachings of the Word. Be thankful to the Lord for His manifold blessings. Pray for the Lord's forgiveness. Forgive myself. Live positively. Be free from "self-pity, anger, pessimism, suspicion, impatience and intemperance" (Hugo Lj. Odhner, Spirits and Men, p. 205).
     Organize my life constructively and positively. Be patient with myself and others. Live from the ideals of truth and good. Relax after strenuous` effort. Maintain my own freedom. Respect the freedom of others.
     Be "energetic, busy, industrious and diligent" (D. Love xii). Be optimistic about my efforts to achieve my aims in life. Pray for radiant health to the end that I may serve and help my fellow-citizens. Be aware of the fallacies of "natural" good. Live from freedom according to reason (see DP 70).
     Always look for the good in others. Acknowledge that I must prepare my work in a logical order. Be well prepared for changes in life that I am seeking. Resolve to view the events of every moment of every day as a challenge for me to do the Lord's holy will. Laugh at some mannerism in myself every day. Laugh with others every day. Resolve to try to enjoy life, to enjoy every minute of every day, which means I will enjoy my work on the computer; I will enjoy looking up new words in the dictionary; I will enjoy reading new books or what are new books to me.
     Resolve not to give in to feelings of sadness, despair and self-pity, no matter how strongly the hells seek to dominate my life. Resolve to be firm and serious in all that I do, but not with the feeling of heaviness.

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Resolve to be so full of thankfulness to the Lord that my heart continually leaps for joy so that I feel surrounded by the Lord's love and mercy every second of every day. Be brimming over with goodwill to all humanity, but always with discretion, prudence and reason.
     Resolve to view the lives of others with kindness and compassion, completely free from negative criticism. Turn to the Word for guidance about everything that I do or contemplate doing. Think things through-to try to see the consequences of my actions. To love my fellow-citizens as I love myself, which means looking for their good intentions even as I look for the good in my intentions. If I do not find good intentions in myself, I shall try to implant them. If I do not find good intentions in others, I shall try to suggest them. Hope and pray that whatever I do will be done from a motive to serve the Lord and the neighbor, and that my heart and mind will reach out to embrace the good and truth in every citizen I encounter.
     Have respect and courtesy for all people. Wish others well even if they do not wish me well. Have forbearance and tolerance for all people: the Arab, the Muslim, the Jew, the pagan and the atheist. To feel my heart surging with exuberance and enthusiasm for my work, always hoping and praying that it will bring benefit to others.
     Sometimes in the midst of urgent activity, just to stop and pause a while, to let go of tension, to relax, and say, "Thank you, Lord, for all blessings you have given me throughout my life. Help me to share Your blessings with others, Lord."
     The above was written in response to the two articles about time in the March 1993 issue of New Church Life.
     William Alfred Hall,
          Tamworth, Australia

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SUZUKI AND SWEDENBORG 1993

SUZUKI AND SWEDENBORG Rev. Horand K. Gutfeldt 1993

Dear Editor:
     I was fascinated by the article of Tatsuya Nagashima concerning Daisetsu T. Suzuki in the May issue of New Church Life. I am happy that somebody has investigated the topic to this extent.
     However, Suzuki is not quite as hidden or cryptic in his Swedenborg studies as the title implies. An article about him in the 1968 Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. 21, pp. 470-471 mentions: "Suzuki was also an admirer of Emanuel Swedenborg (q.v.), whom he introduced into Japan by publishing his biography and translating four of his major works."
     In discussing his work with a man who knew Japanese, I was told that Suzuki used a somewhat unusual exalted language that is not always easily understood or read today.
     "Suzuki was the one who almost singlehandedly made Zen Buddhism accessible and understandable in the western world. There are many followers in various parts of Europe and America who see in this an important supplement to a Christianity that has become stale in many ways. Very few reach the depth of the original mediator, whose inspiration was Emanuel
Swedenborg" (Philangi Dasa).
     Again, my congratulations on the article.
          Rev. Horand K. Gutfeldt,
               Berkeley, California

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GURDJIEFF 1993

GURDJIEFF Peter S. Rhodes 1993

Dear Editor:
     To those who have a sincere interest in Gurdjieff as a person, I recommend his biography, Gurdjieff, the Anatomy of a Myth: A Biography by James Moore This book, unlike many others, gives a balanced account of Gurdjieff's life and also gives a fair accounting of his strengths and weaknesses, both of which he had in abundance.
     Those who have an interest in the system espoused by Gurdjieff may wish to read The Fourth Way by P. D. Ouspensky. Those interested in the relationship between Gurdjieff's system and the Writings would do well to read the five-volume work The Psychological Commentaries on the Teachings of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky by Maurice Nicoll.
     I would like to make it clear that I have no interest in leading people away from the Writings to Gurdjieff, or to using his system in place of the Writings. It has been my experience that the study of Gurdjieff, and particularly Nicoll's Commentaries, have brought many to a deeper and more personal understanding of the Writings and their application to ones daily life. This has been and remains my intent.
     Peter S. Rhodes,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania

     Editor's Note: In January of 1991 we had an editorial entitled "Maurice Nicoll and Swedenborg." This was followed by letters about Nicoll from Massachusetts, California, England and South Africa. One of those letters described how reading Nicoll led to the discovery of the New Church. "I have been eternally grateful to Maurice Nicoll and my friend for introducing me to the Writings . . . ."

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ORDINATIONS 1993

ORDINATIONS Editor 1993

     Announcements
     Asplundh-At Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, June 6, 1993, Kurt Hyland Asplundh into the first degree of the priesthood, Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss officiating.

     Buss-At Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, June 6, 1993, Peter Martin Buss, Jr. into the first degree of the priesthood, Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss officiating.

     Elphick-At Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, June 6, 1993, Derek Peter Elphick into the first degree of the priesthood, Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss officiating.
SWEDENBORG SCIENTIFIC ASSOCIATION BOOKS ON SALE AT SAMUEL WEISER'S BOOK STORE IN N.Y. 1993

SWEDENBORG SCIENTIFIC ASSOCIATION BOOKS ON SALE AT SAMUEL WEISER'S BOOK STORE IN N.Y. Editor 1993

A selection of books put out by the Swedenborg Scientific Association is now on display at Samuel Weiser's at 132 E. 24th Street, between Park and Lexington Avenues in New York City-phone (212) 777-6363. This includes Providence and Free Will in Human Action by Rev. Daniel Goodenough.
CORRECTION 1993

CORRECTION Editor 1993

In Miss Heulwen Ridgway's letter entitled "The Word for the New Church" (June issue) additional references to the church in particular, on page 276, should have included: AC 5113:1, 2; 5275:2; 5351:2; 5826:2; and 9279:3.

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HOW PAGES OF NEW CHURCH LIFE WERE USED 1993

HOW PAGES OF NEW CHURCH LIFE WERE USED Editor 1993

     Here is how the pages of New Church Life were used in 1991 and 1992:
                              1991 1992
                         Pages Pages
Articles                     162      279
Sermons                     75      26
Reports                     18      15
Communications                105      96
Announcements                45      50
Church News                    32      17
Editorials                    36      30
Reviews                     22      0
Directories                28      27
Memorials                     6      0
Miscellaneous                40      36
     Total Pages           569      576

Number of Contributors:

Priests                          35      22
     Laity
          Men          39     29
          Women          12      24
          Total Laity               51      53
               Total Contributors      86     75
     Donald L. Rose, Editor

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COUNTRY OF SPIRIT 1993

COUNTRY OF SPIRIT Editor 1993

Selected Writings
by
Wilson Van Dusen
     This book contains a collection of the following essays, articles, chapters, and introductions.
          A Mystic Looks at Swedenborg
                    from Emanuel Swedenborg: A Continuing Vision
          The Mystery of Ordinary Experiencing
                    The Natural Depth in Man
          Reincarnation: The Universal Return
                    Chrysalis
          The Soul, Hidden and Manifest
                    Chrysalis
          Uses: A Way of Personal and Spiritual Growth
                    Presence of Other Worlds
          Self-Reflection in the Forging of a Person
                    Experiences in Being
          Exploring Swedenborg's Dream Journal
                    Swedenborg's Journal of Dreams - Introduction
          Meditation
                    New Philosophy
          The Psalm of What Is
                    Psychedelic Review
     Edited by James F. Lawrence
Published by J. Appleseed and Co. 1992
Paperback $5.00 - Plus $1.05 postage
     Box 743, Cairncrest                         Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or by appointment
General Church Book Center          Phone: (215) 947-3920
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

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Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

Vol. CXIII August, 1993 No. 8
NEW CHURCH LIFE

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     "Whenever a new beginning is made, the Lord and His angels are with us. They encourage. They inspire." This is from the sermon entitled "Filled with Hope."
     When the mail arrives in the morning, one is reminded of how stimulating it is to be an editor. This issue brings us thoughtful letters from some readers. Because our readers are from different countries there is a time factor on reaction. Letters come from overseas responding to something in a given issue, and the editor finds himself writing and saying, "Wait until you see what is coming in the issues you have not yet received."
     The article in this issue on the subject of enlightenment is the first of three presentations on this subject. The intention is to have the next two in September and October.
     October will mark the 250th anniversary of the birth of John Clowes. To make space for other things we have trimmed the editorial about this great man down to a few lines. We hope we can fit in some more about him later. Most readers of New Church Life know the striking story of Clowes' seeing a vision in the sky of the words "Divine Human," and of his riding his horse back home to read True Christian Religion. If you do not know this story, this year is a good one to enjoy it. It is recorded in various places, for example page 496 of The Swedenborg Epic. If you want a copy of the story, write to the editor. It will be sent gratis.
     Clowes worked prodigiously in the translation of the Writings. You may understand him more when you finish the article in the present issue relating to translation into Japanese. The writer says of Swedenborg, "He had long painstaking experiences, and he staked his whole life on the end in view." Readers of Swedenborg's claim "are forced to choose whether to believe it or not."
     Reports of baptisms continue to come from different countries. You will notice seven marriages reported in this issue.

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FILLED WITH HOPE 1993

FILLED WITH HOPE Rev. MARK PENDLETON 1993

     Seeing a Brighter Future and Reaching for It

     " . . . I will hope continually, and will praise You yet more and more" (Psalm 71:14).

     Just one month to go until the wedding day and a young couple stands together-hand in hand. Ahead of them is the future. It stretches before them like a rolling landscape, with flowers and trees, a stream, and off in the distance, the mountains. Snow caps glisten in spring sunshine. The future looks bright, and in each heart there is joy and a sense of promise. Love is alive and strong. It seems that no challenge will be too great to overcome.
     The two embrace, then kiss. They feel the Lord close at hand. They feel so much hope for their future together. They feel it inside them, longing to burst forth. They picture their life together in detail-the work, the play, the children, special moments together, tough times giving way to resolution and a deepening sense of love for one another.
     Twenty years later, and the couple no longer stands hand in hand. They seldom embrace or kiss in meaningful ways. The picture has changed. The landscape has become desolate. All around are dust, rocks, and trees like skeletons. The stream has dried up, and off in the distance are the mountains, craggy and dark against a backdrop of black and gray-storm clouds. And all around, there's a low rumbling noise, an occasional sharp crash. Where is the sunshine? Where is the sun? No longer seen or felt.
     Perhaps nothing strikes the heart with fear, sadness and disillusionment more than when a marriage begins to fail. Over the years, with calculated assault, the demons have come.

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They've slipped and slithered in through chinks and cracks. Slowly the picture has changed. Hope has been lost, and hopelessness-cold and steely-has taken its place. Doubt has replaced certainty; pessimism fills the spot where optimism once stood firm. Things seem to be on a downhill course, and the couple wonders-truly wonders-if things can ever get better, if love can ever return. Perhaps they're sure that it can't.
     But this change of scenery isn't reserved only for marriage. It can happen in any relationship and in any area of life. Take a simple example: a young college graduate who shows up far work-his first day on the job. His future glistens in his mind. It's there just in front of him: relationships in the office, the things he will do and say, the projects he will tackle, the greatness he will achieve, laughing with the boss over a drink at a Christmas party. He feels strong, confident, affirmative, hopeful. One year later finds him part of a gripe session with co-workers in the coffee room. The job isn't what it was cracked up to be. The pay isn't as good as it should be; the benefits stink, and the boss is a jerk, "How did I ever get stuck with this job in the first place? I must have been blind."
     It can happen in any arena of life. The people around us just aren't what we expect them to be. They're human. Things don't go the way we had hoped. Nobody listens to anybody. Walls are built and territories guarded. An atmosphere of negativity dominates.
     Whenever there is a new beginning, the future looks bright and promising. The Lord and His angels are there with us. We feel their presence and the hope they inspire. The landscape stretches to the horizon, and it's beautiful to look at.
     But as we get into the work of making dreams reality, the picture can change-frustration, disillusionment, until one day we wake up to discover that something which we have loved and cherished is in danger of dying. Hagar expected Ishmael to die in the wilderness. Something we have treasured seems lost and never to be found.

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After Joseph had been sold into slavery, Israel didn't think that he would ever see his son's face again.
     What to do then? Invite hope to return. See a brighter future. Reach for a brighter future.
     Whenever a new beginning is made, the Lord and His angels are with us. They encourage. They inspire. They fill us with confidence and an affirmative attitude-an attitude which, when harnessed, leads to intelligence and wisdom (see AC 2568:4).
     But hell is there too. Evil spirits show up on the doorsteps of our minds with doubt and pessimism. There is a sinking feeling-things are on a downward slope. Infection has set in, and the prognosis is death without resurrection. "This isn't a true marriage." "This job isn't a real job." "If only others would see things the way I see them." "If only other people would change." Evil spirits drag us down and entice us with a negative attitude, an attitude which leads to stupidity, insanity, and isolation (Ibid.).
     How well I remember sitting in a meeting with some peers. One member of the group made a suggestion for some course of action. Right away my body tightened, and I heard a knee-jerk rebuttal coming from within, which so many of us have heard: "That won't work."
     To have entertained that thought any further before hearing the person out, before hearing variations on his proposal from others in the group, would have been to deny that the Lord could work through that man's idea to a good end. It would be similar if we were to look at a newborn infant and then announce to the world, "It won't work. That child doesn't have a chance of making it to heaven." (Ideas are like newborn infants-they begin from love and wisdom in the mind.)
     But evil spirits don't stop there. If they can't get us thinking negatively about other people and their ideas, they will try to get us thinking that way about ourselves and our own abilities. "I can't." "I'm not." "That's just the way I am." "If only I could."1
     1 Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey, p. 78

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     And as if that isn't enough, evil spirits are good at what they do. They promise us that a negative outlook will feel good. You see, when evil spirits are injecting a negative attitude into our minds, they're in their element (AC 6574:2, 695). They're enjoying what they're doing. It feels good to them. If we entertain those evil spirits in our minds, if we buy the negative attitude they're selling, then we buy into their delight as well. Negativity, then, is subtly pleasurable. It feels good to feel negative. It feels good to entertain negative thoughts about other people-to focus on their weaknesses and failings rather than spotlighting their talents, their efforts, and their successes. These things feel soothing to us.
     When hell has taken hold-when a negative attitude has gained our attention-where are the Lord and His angels? Where are the Lord and His angels when a marriage is failing, when people are suffering, when the job stinks and the boss is a jerk? Have they left us? Perhaps they're asleep, just as Jesus was asleep in the boat during a frightful storm (see Matt. 8:24; Mark 4:37, 38; Luke 8:23).
     Of course they're not gone. In fact, the doctrine for the New Church says that they're even more strongly present with us in stressful times, when a negative attitude is pressing on us, than in happy times. They're there, all around us, encouraging an affirmative outlook in any way that they can, longing to feed us with hope and optimism (see AC 2338).
     But they're oh so quiet. The Lord and His angels won't force themselves on anyone. Instead they come to us like gentle breezes (see AC 641, 2338). They wait patiently to be invited in. And if we decide to invite them in, the invitation may have to be a strong one; Lot had to urge the angels strongly before they would enter his house.

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     Hell, on the other hand, is loud (see AC 641). A negative attitude rumbles, rattles and shouts. It lets its presence be known. While all the noise is going on, hope and an affirmative attitude might easily be missed.
     What to do when negativity is clamoring in our hearts? See a brighter future and reach for it. Invite hope in. Urge it to come in. We don't have to listen to what hell is saying. We don't have to buy what hell is selling. "Not in my house."
     One of the most freeing truths of our doctrine says that at any moment we can decide to step out of an ugly landscape and into a beautiful one-at any moment: right now; right now; right now; or right now. We can allow ourselves "to be filled with hope" (AC 2338). We can allow ourselves to "remain steadfastly in an affirmative outlook" (Ibid.).
     How can we invite hope in? Two ways. The first is to picture a brighter future in our minds. You see, the mind has a wonderful ability to picture what it longs for. The mind can form a mental image of something that it wants to achieve long before it's ever achieved. Our minds do it all the time, and we call it by different names-vision-casting, goal-setting, ideals, dreaming, "pie in the sky." It is this function of the mind which invites a feeling of hope. The work Divine Providence puts it this way: "It is the very delight of reason to see from love the effect in thought-not the effect in its attainment, bur before it, that is, not in the present but in the future. Hence a person has what is called hope . . . " (DP 178, emphasis added).
     Remember the betrothed couple with the bright future? Each of them had a mental picture of what the future would be like. Within each one of them, love was doing what it always does-it was working to see and plan for a bright future. As a result, the couple felt a sense of hope. Hope was ushered into their minds.
     Over the past half-century this function of the mind has been discovered and put to use in dramatic ways. There are stories of men in prisoner-of-war camps who raised themselves above their misery and torture using this mental faculty.

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One did so by picturing himself touching his wife's hand. Another pictured himself teaching lectures to students. His subject? The lessons he learned from being tortured. Victor Frankl reportedly did this "during his very torture."2
     2 Seven Habits. . ., p. 69
     Nowadays people are discovering that this function of the mind can be harnessed and put to use in all aspects of daily living. Books are being written about vision-casting and goal-setting as they relate to success in business, in personal development, and in all fields of human endeavor. In a counseling session, a troubled spouse may be asked to picture what a better, more loving marriage relationship with her husband would look like. She's asked to picture it in her mind and describe it in words. She's asked to focus especially on her part in the picture. In this way she's led to discover changes that she can make with herself which will help her marriage along.
     Even in athletics this power of the mind is being discovered and harnessed. A whole field of study has been developed called psychocybemetics, which studies the effects of mental practice on peak performance, and there's found to be a positive correlation between the two.
     The point to make is that the mind is able to picture an outcome before it happens, as a help to the outcome. This ability can be put to use in any aspect of our daily lives. For instance, a mother who loves her children, but who has trouble overreacting to their misbehavior, might put it to use in this way: she might take a few minutes at the beginning of her day to relax and then visualize a specific situation in which a child might misbehave. The picture can include as much detail as is helpful-the child, his actions, the sounds, the feeling of his hand as it slaps against her thigh. Then she can picture herself dealing with that situation in a way that she would prefer.

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Later in the day, when the situation (or one like it) actually arises, she'll be ready for it. She has practiced and she'll do better.3
     3 Adapted from Seven Habits . . ., p. 133
     This ability of the mind can be put to use in peer relationships as well. Once a man led a group of people in an exercise called a guided meditation. (A guided meditation is an exercise in which people are invited to picture different scenes or events in their minds, as a help to discovery and learning.) The group leader began the exercise by inviting the people to close their eyes. He gave them a moment to relax and settle into their chairs. Then he spoke the following words. After each sentence he paused so that people had time to reflect.

     Take a few moments to think about a relationship that you have with someone else-one which has become strained in some way. Perhaps you can remember the moment when the relationship was first strained. As a result, you may feel uncomfortable when you are with that person. Who is it? Can you see that person in your mind's eye?
     Now, picture that person standing in the distance, with the Lord standing next to her. Feel the warmth of His love for her-she's one of His children, and He longs to bring her into a beautiful place. See Him reaching out to touch her. Where does He touch her? Where is He directing His healing power?
     Next, picture that person going about the work that he does. See the good that he does in society. Think about one good quality that he has from the Lord. Picture all the people whose lives are touched by his efforts standing around him and smiling. They're thankful for the work that he does and the qualities he has. Are you one of those people?
     Finally, imagine a situation that is likely to come up in the near future which will bring the two of you together. Can you picture that meeting in your mind? Are you able to look at her? Yes, you are. Go ahead. Now you're talking with her. What would you like to say?

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     When the exercise was finished, the leader invited the people to open their eyes.
     The type of exercise which I have just described may be new to some of you, but I share it with you because of the value it may have held for the people who took part in it. What happened in that exercise was that people were invited to put love to work picturing a brighter future. Each person focused his attention on another human being in an affirmative way. As a result of that one practice, each of the people in that group may have felt a new sense of hope in an otherwise strained relationship, and each of them may have had an easier time facing an awkward situation next time one arose.
     Picturing a brighter future-it's something that the human mind does automatically when things are going well. How about the times when things aren't going so well? At those times do our minds think positive things and picture positive interactions automatically? Often they don't. When things aren't going well in relationships, our minds tend to focus on the negative qualities, the negative traits, and the negative behavior of the people we feel uncomfortable with. Instead of visualizing positive encounters with them, our minds tend to see argument and fighting. Seeing what is positive in another person and practicing a good approach to him may take a concerted effort on our part.
     So what is the point? The point is that each one of our minds has a powerful ability to lift us out of states of misery, oppression, disillusionment, upsets or the like. Our minds have the ability to see a brighter future if only we will let them. The Lord and His angels will help us paint that picture in our minds if only we will invite them in. Twenty years after the marriage ceremony we don't have to be satisfied with dust and rocks, a dry stream bed, and trees like skeletons. We can look for more than that. We can put aside negative talk which wells up from hell, and listen to something else instead. We can invite a positive response: "Hey, that person's idea could work!

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Let's see if we can figure out how." Of ourselves we can say, "I can"; "I will"; "I'll be the one to change."
     But we need to reach for a brighter future as well. An affirmative attitude by itself won't get us through spiritual nighttime. Unless an affirmative attitude is married to affirmative action, the attitude will lose its power. Only in action do love and wisdom find a home.
     Remember the troubled spouse who was asked by her counselor to picture and describe a better, more loving relationship with her husband? Unless she takes that picture home and starts to live it, the picture will fade, and hope will die. But if she does begin to live that picture, the sense of hope which is germinating in her heart will take root, and grow, and blossom.
     And remember Victor Frankl? During his experiences in German death camps, he used his mind to get above his misery and torture. But he went beyond that. He cultivated a moral discipline as well. He reached out to others around him. He taught them what he had discovered, and he helped them keep their sense of dignity and their sense of hope alive.4 He contributed to their welfare, and in that way, perhaps unknown to himself, he cemented his own sense of dignity and hope.
     4 Seven Habits. . ., p. 69
     The mind, then, has a second wonderful ability. Not only does it have power to picture a brighter future, but it also has power to carry out what it longs for and sees. We can take hold of trouble and master it, just as Moses took hold of the serpent by the tail. We can act on an affirmative plan of action. We can change. We can reach out rather than shut down. There can be a touch, an embrace, and a kiss, and love can return. When we do these things, the sense of hope that is already growing in our minds will be strengthened. Divine Providence says it this way: "Love with reason comes to an end in the effect, and from that point it begins anew" (DP 178, emphasis added).

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     Once a man was leading a seminar on personal effectiveness. After the seminar, a man from the audience came up to speak with him, and this is how the conversation went:
     "Stephen, I like what you're saying. But every situation is so different. Look at my marriage. I'm really worried. My wife and I just don't have the same feelings for each other we used to have. I guess I just don't love her any more and she doesn't love me. What can I do?"
     "The feeling isn't there any more?"
     "That's right, and we have three children we're really concerned about. What do you suggest?"
     "Love her."
     "I told you, the feeling just isn't there any more."
     "Love her."
     "You don't understand. The feeling of love just isn't there."
     "Then love her. If the feeling isn't there, that's a good reason to love her."
     "But how do you love when you don't love?"
     "My friend, 'love' is a verb. Love-the feeling-is a fruit of love the verb. So love her. Serve her. Sacrifice. Listen to her. Empathize. Appreciate. Affirm her. Are you willing to do that?"5
     5 Seven Habits. . ., pp. 79-80
     Does this advice apply to us today? Have you ever been in a friendship in which the feeling of respect, admiration and love have left? Have you wished they would return? What to do then? Love that person. Serve that person. Sacrifice. Listen. Empathize. Appreciate. Affirm. Are you willing to do that?
     In the final analysis, living the picture we see is the biggest help to keeping hope alive. Contributing to other people's lives has the power to free us from whatever hell we're stuck in, and the feeling of love can return.

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     And imagine our surprise when it returns. After Israel and Joseph had been reunited, Israel said to him, "I had not thought to see your face; but in fact, God has also shown me your offspring!" To all appearances Israel had lost his son. He hadn't entertained any hope for a return of the one he cherished. Yet there was his love, alive, and more besides!
     Living the picture we see, right here, right now, and the hope that it inspires-perhaps this is the truth which inspired the following verse, taken from the Sanskrit:

     Yesterday is already a memory;
     Tomorrow is only a vision.
     But today, well lived,
     Makes every yesterday a memory of happiness
     And every tomorrow a vision of hope.

     But this sermon can't end without paying a final tribute. We speak of an affirmative attitude and affirmative action as they relate to hope. But even the two of these together aren't enough. After all, hope is something that flows in from the Lord. He alone is the bread of life. He is the one who ultimately feeds us and fills us with a sense of blessing and promise. Without Him we can do nothing. (Experience bears this out.) Our minds and our actions are not the origin of hope any more than a manufacturer is the origin of the raw materials he uses in his work. In the miracle of the rod and the serpent, Moses cooperated with Jehovah by taking action, but it was Jehovah-Love Itself-who worked the miracle. And so the psalmist wrote: "I will hope continually, and will praise You yet more and more."
     What is the message of this sermon? Simply this: no matter who you are, or where you are in life; no matter what struggles you have to face; and no matter how desolate the landscape may appear, your mind can see a brighter picture. And you can reach for a brighter future.

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You can change the picture-if you are willing to-and you can contribute in more and more affirmative ways. "I will hope continually," the psalmist asserted.
Let's all work, then, to turn our backs on the spirit of negativity and hopelessness. May we invite the spirit of affirmation and hope to live among us instead. As individuals and as a church let's urge the Lord and His angels to come in. Let's see a brighter future. Let's paint a brighter picture. Come on; pick up the paint brushes. What do we want it to look like? And after we've finished painting the picture, let's reach for it! Amen.

Lessons: Gen. 19:1-3; AC 2338; DP 178; Psalm 71:12-16
ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE NEW CHURCH 1993

ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE NEW CHURCH Rev. MARTIN PRYKE 1993

      (Part I)

     My purpose is not to present an extensive study of the subject of enlightenment which is dealt with on many occasions in the Writings.1 Rather, after a review of the general topic, I wish to suggest ways in which the enlightenment of the members of the church, both priests and laymen, may best serve the organized church, the sole function of which is to forward the establishment of the Lord's kingdom on earth.
     1 For a full consideration of the general topic see an article by Rev. Norbert H. Rogers which appeared in New Church Life, 1964, p. 151.

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The Enlightenment Granted to All Men

     For us to see any material object with the eyes of the body it is necessary for the light of the natural sun to shine upon that object. In the dark we see nothing. On several occasions the Writings point out that the same principle applies to the operation of the sight of our spirit or mind. A truth revealed in the Word would not reach our consciousness if we did not receive a light (or enlightenment) from within to shine upon
     This enlightenment from within is an influx from the Lord, an influx of His Divine truth, an operation of the Holy Spirit (see AE 1177:2, DLW 150), providing an interior light which makes it possible for us to see truth (or falsity) as it reaches us from without, through the bodily senses. Without this we would not be human, for the ability to see truth is an essential element in our humanity.
     This enlightenment is granted to every man and is from the Lord; that is, it is from the Divine love by means of the Divine wisdom (see AC 3094). It is an influx into his soul and thence into his mind (see AC 6564, 2701, 3128). Because this influx is into man's soul, it is not felt by him, and so the man believes it to be innate in him and to come from his own intellectual faculty (see AC 2701). Of course this unawareness and sense of origin in self sustains the man's as-of-self, which makes his spiritual freedom possible.
     This enlightenment must be given man even while his will is in a state of evil, for with the unregenerate these two (the will and the understanding) are separated. Such a universal or general enlightenment enables the understanding to see and recognize truths from the Word which will serve to elevate the understanding above the will as the first step of regeneration (see AC 5937:2). We must be able to know the truth before we can begin to live and love it (see AE 140:6).
     When the Writings speak of this influx of enlightenment from within directly into the soul of man, they most often also speak of an influx through the heavens which gives man enlightenment (see AC 2701 et al).

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It appears to us that this indirect source of enlightenment through the heavens can be available to man only when he, at that particular time, is associated with those heavens. Surely this source of enlightenment is not available to those who are in association with the hells. And so when we are in affirmative states, looking to good, a kind of enlightenment is possible to us through the heavens which gives us an insight which is impossible when we are in negative, selfish, evil states. A further step is open to those who are actually regenerating.

The Enlightenment of the Regenerating Man

     It is this enlightenment to which the Writings refer most often, especially in the Arcana Coelestia, and we would note here some very specific teachings about this more interior enlightenment.
     The teaching is that a special enlightenment is given to those who seek truths from a love of truth for the sake of its use in life (see AC 6222:3, 7012, 8521:3, 10330:3, 10551:2, 5937:3). In one place it teaches that it is granted to those who shun evils as sins against the Lord (De Verbo 28).
     The same idea is expressed differently when it is said that this interior form of enlightenment is granted to those who are in internals as well as in externals, or are spiritual as well as natural (see AC 7012, 2701). Such look to spiritual ends in their pursuit of truth and so are in a heavenly love which conjoins them with heaven, and through heaven with the Lord while reading the Word. From this association enlightenment follows (see AC 9382).
     Those who seek truth for the sake of reputation or gain have no such enlightenment, whatever they may suppose (see AC 8013, 7012, 10330:310551:3; De Verbo 28). What does happen with such is that from persuasion they accept and confirm the teaching of the church in which they have been raised whether it is true or not (see AC 8013, 7012, 8694). In other words, everyone has enlightenment according to the nature of his affection of truth whether it be good or evil (see AC 7012, 10330:3).

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     The Writings are quite explicit about the nature of the enlightenment granted in such states. It enables the man to recognize a thing as true or not true (see AC 8694:3, 8780:2; DP 168:1, 2), and this recognition is confirmed by a kind of perception (see AC 2702). What we have here is a man so enlightened that he sees clearly, without obscurity or distortion. From an interior perception he has a confidence in his understanding of the truth, and it is the interior light which gives him such a view of truth. In fact, this enlightenment comes about because the man is actually elevated into the light of heaven and sees from this light (see AC 10330:2, 10551:2). It is described as being a "revelation" (AC 8780).
     We are familiar with the number (AC 8443) which speaks of six degrees of truth. The first two degrees are above the Understanding of the angels. The third degree is truth accommodated to the celestial heaven, and the fourth degree to the angels of the spiritual heaven. Neither of these degrees can be grasped by man on earth. Truth of the fifth degree is proper to the ultimate or natural heaven, but ". . . this can be perceived in some small measure by man provided with enlightenment; but still it is such that a great part of it cannot be expressed in human words, and when it falls into the ideas, it produces the faculty of perceiving and also of believing that the case is so" (Ibid.). Truth in the sixth degree is truth as it can be perceived by man and is seen in the letter of the Word. This teaching helps us to understand just what is meant by the statement that the enlightened man is lifted into the light of heaven.
     There are some rather remarkable statements which speak quite clearly to the effect that only those who are enlightened can truly understand the Word. "Only those who are enlightened apprehend the Word" (AC 10323). Because the sense of the letter of the Word is not consistent with itself, " . . . it may be explained and strained by those who are not enlightened to confirm any opinion or heresy whatever, and to patronize any worldly and corporeal love" (NJHD 256; see also AC 4783, 10659, 9382).
     All of this seems to mean that although the unregenerate man, or man in unregenerate states, may see the truths presented in the Word and can, by comparison of passages, draw out doctrine (see below), yet it is only the enlightened man who can see the Word in a genuine light, from a spiritual viewpoint, and so may avoid heresy.

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Rather he will immediately recognize truth when he sees it, will distinguish between what is true and what is false, and so enter into a deeper and a more secure understanding of what the Word teaches.
     There is a further teaching which speaks of the ability of the enlightened man to draw doctrine from the Word and so, by a comparison of passages (AC 6222:3, 7233:3), to formulate a body of teaching from the Word which makes the doctrine of the church (see AC 9424:2, 3, 9025:3, 9382, 10028, 10105).
     This is not merely an intellectual matter, but also involves a perception, an insight, springing from a love of good which will protect the man (and so the church) from falsity. Is not this the wisdom of old age which no longer delights in the art of intellectual jugglery but instead cuts through ratiocination to see the essential truths? This is a vision of truth which sees it both as a revealing of God's love and as a means to a life which ultimates a love of the Lord and the neighbor.
     Another aspect of man's enlightenment when reading the Word is given in the following numbers:

Henceforth the spiritual sense of the Word will be imparted to none but those who are in genuine truths from the Lord. . . . [N]o one is able to see the spiritual sense except from the Lord alone, and unless he be in genuine truth from Him (SS 26).

Genuine truth . . . does not appear in the sense of the letter of the Word to any but those who are in enlightenment from the Lord (SS 57).

. . . the internal sense. . .cannot be understood by any man except one who is regenerated and is also enlightened (AC 8106:3).

     These numbers clearly teach that genuine truth and the spiritual sense of the Word can be seen only by those who are in enlightenment, who have that special perception from within, of which we have been speaking.

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And yet we will ask how this can be so, for the Writings say clearly in a thousand places that they themselves reveal the spiritual sense of the Word and state what it is. Surely there are two ways in which the Writings speak of the spiritual sense.
     On the one hand is the spiritual sense which any man can see intellectually as he reads the Writings. This is a body of truth which we can read and understand, but these truths are, at first, facts or knowledges of truth. They do not live within us; they are something outside of us, something we look at, muse upon, and perhaps argue about.
     But, as indicated above, the real spiritual sense is more than that. It is something that can be seen only by the enlightened mind. Such a mind has the ability, as we have seen, to perceive clearly what is true and what is not; it sees truth in a more interior way. It is a heavenly view, given to us from within by the Lord. But it comes only when we seek truth for the sake of good, which means when the truth which we have at first seen intellectually is put to use.
     It is not easy for us to picture or describe in precise terms the nature of this enlightenment, but this is not surprising, for it is the very beginning of angelic thought; and truth, as seen by the angels, cannot be expressed in human language because our language is confined by the limitations of fixed space and time.
     If we may venture into the field of speculation, we would suggest that in moments of deep meditation, when the things of this world recede completely into the background, then the man in enlightenment (the regenerated or regenerating man) is able to gain a new perspective of the truths with which he is familiar. The relationships and priorities in the whole body of truth become clearer. Obviously if this is something that has come about solely as a result of the individual's own spiritual state, it is not something that he can pass on to others; indeed, as we have noted, it will be inexpressible in human language. Each must find this insight-this enlightenment-by his own life of preparation for heaven.

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With the world in its present fallen condition and with the New Church in its very first states, it may perhaps be presumed that such enlightenment will occur only rarely, and will perhaps not be recognized when it does take place.

Natural Enlightenment or the Enlightenment of Use

     Surely we should also recognize the existence of a purely natural enlightenment or insight which has no reference to man's spiritual life or his perception of spiritual truth.2 We are able to see, from personal observation, that an insight in performing natural or worldly uses is given to those who learn a skill, apply it in daily life, and do so with a conscientious effort to exercise it well whatever the underlying motive may be-a love of honor, or reputation, or gain, or a desire to serve the neighbor.
     2 It is because natural enlightenment is not dependent on man's spiritual state that the evil can perform good uses.
     Do we not see an incredible insight in the work of a craftsman, in the product of artists, in a man's dedication to a hobby, or in anyone as he performs his daily use? This is so whether it be of the most humble or most exalted status, whether it be a profession or trade, whether it be educator or researcher, business man or laborer.
     We speak here of more than knowledge or skill. We see, added to these, an insight, an ability to see immediately the nature of a problem and the appropriate solution. This comes almost instantaneously to some people in their area of expertise. We have called this "natural enlightenment," but perhaps it would be better called "the enlightenment of use."
     Clearly such insight comes from the Lord, for all life and all love come from Him. It is not an influx into spiritual truth-the truths of revelation-but into worldly knowledges and skills.
     It is doubtful that we can rightly categorize or assign relative status to the different forms of natural enlightenment, much less apply discrete degrees to them.

357

Can we say that the inspiration of a composer is different in degree from that of the laborer, or that of the educator different in degree or status from that of the business man? Each receives natural enlightenment according to his knowledge, his skill and his conscientious application of both. The impact on mankind may be very different, but can we say that the natural enlightenment itself is of a more interior or more exterior nature? Does the enlightenment of the priesthood constitute an exception to this generalization? We will deal with this in the second part of our presentation.
     It should be clear that I have not found any reference to this natural enlightenment, or enlightenment of use, in the Writings; their concern is with spiritual enlightenment. Yet it seems important that we recognize the existence of an enlightenment which operates on the worldly plane.

Conclusion

     In a later part of this presentation we will deal with more practical matters: the enlightenment of the priesthood and of others in the work of the church. We especially wish to make some suggestions regarding how best the work of priests, educators and lay men and women may harmonize to perform the work of the church.

     [To be continued]
ESSENTIAL READINGS REPUBLISHED 1993

ESSENTIAL READINGS REPUBLISHED Editor 1993

In 1988 a volume produced by Dr. Michael Stanley was published in England. It was called Emanuel Swedenborg, Essential Readings. A book store manager in America said that it seemed to sell well by virtue of its cover. After a dozen introductory pages it consists of quotations from the Writings arranged under topics. It has now been republished by the Swedenborg Lending Library and Enquiry Centre, 1 Avon Road, North Ryde, Sydney, New South Wales, 2113 Australia.

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MY PHILOSOPHY OF TRANSLATING THE WRITINGS 1993

MY PHILOSOPHY OF TRANSLATING THE WRITINGS TATSUYA NAGASHIMA 1993

(Concluded)

     4. Standard of the Translation of the Writings

     When we employ the philosophical terms of esse and existere, the idea which comes first is esse, and the translated expression which comes next is existere. Esse is conceived by/within existere, and without existere no actual existence of esse is possible. That is to say, the contents which the Latin language conveys should be newly conceived within a new vessel of English. Otherwise, English readers do not know the esse, the revealed truths. And if a translator has no clear understanding of what the Writings intend to reveal, he also cannot find any adequate symbolic tools which could correctly convey the above esse to be understood by the readers. (In this sense, a translation machine or computer, no matter what exquisite system is embedded therein, cannot translate the Writings, because a machine has no esse in it. A machine cannot be inspired, but it has only "input" by an "inspired" person.)
     When the translator reads the original text and thinks of how to put it into the reader's common language, the above esse directly comes to him/her from the Lord, who is the Ultimate Author of the Writings. But the translator's usages of the words, phrases, idioms, or any other rhetoricals come from the Lord but indirectly, through the spiritual world (see Intercourse 8).
     In the above context in terms of the translation of the Word, we come to know that esse is absolutely true and Divine, but the translator's choice of how to make esse readable and understandable in existere is human and variously conjoined with the symbolic tools.

359

That is the reason why there can be, or ought to be, so many different versions of the Writings, as there are versions of the Bible. And if there are such versions as English, Spanish, Japanese, Russian, French and German, so can/must there be different versions for the people of different levels: for children, juniors, adults, scholars, and priests for liturgical use. The readers can also have freedom to choose any one of them.
     The esse is one and absolutely true, but the existere in the Writings, including the original Latin text, is not able to represent fully the Divine Esse, which is the auth itself united with the Divine good. So any effort to find the absolute esse in the written existere fails, because it can be found only in the Divine Human Himself. The Esse, the absolute truth, however, can be predicated of the "Esse in Se" and the "Esse per Se. The Esse in Se is the Divine Human, while the Esse per Se is the mirror of the former being reflected within Swedenborg's Writings. The Esse per Se is absolutely true only as the reflecting mirror of the Esse in Se, who is the Lord Himself. So see the following:

Esse in Se           : the Lord                          : infallible
Esse per Se      : Divine Truths as the mirror      : infallible
Existere           : Revealed truths of the Writings
                    and their translations          : ever improvable

     Esse-and-Existere correlation reminds us of the incarnation of the Word (John 1:14: "Verbum care factum est"-"The Word became flesh"). As the Word was incarnated, so the esse was incarnated in the Writings and became existere. If our Lord's Humanity, before being glorified, was with human infirmity from Mary, the incarnated Word in the Writings also must be with human infirmity, as far as the Word was conceived in the human brain of Swedenborg.
     Since Swedenborg himself is human and free, he was not immune to some possible misunderstandings and misinterpretations.

360

That is why even the original Latin texts were ever improvable works, and why Swedenborg would correct some parts of his Writings if he were once again alive on earth with us. The truth is truth while it has life with it, and it can never be fossilized. And the truth, even conjoined with the utmost love in our Lord, is not without the highest level of dynamism. If the sapientia (wisdom) of the angels in the highest heavens were constant and remained eternally the same, would they experience happiness? That is why Swedenborg himself often says that "truth" without "love" is not truth any longer.
     This is much more true in any translated Writings. As mentioned above, thousands of personal biases, emotions, tacit judgments and even some disagreements with the original texts, can be unwittingly insinuated into their translations. So the translations not only reflect what the original texts mention, but also how the translators interpret those texts from their own understanding and interpretation. Translations of the Writings are, therefore, not mere transcripts into other languages, but other products by the translator.

5. The final criterion

     Nevertheless, we can somehow evaluate translations of the Writings by levels. The criterion of such an evaluation can be formed in the reader's mind in three levels:

     1.      The level of scientia (knowledge) as for the "effect" sought by the translator.
     2.      The level of intelligentia (intelligence) as for the "cause" sought by the translator.
     3.      The level of sapientia (wisdom) as for the "purpose" sought by the translator.

     We can see the following in the Writings: To think from ends pertains to wisdom, to think from causes pertains to intelligence, and to think from effects pertains to knowledge.

361

From these things it is clear that all perfection ascends and descends along with degrees and according to them (see DLW 202).
     In the light of the above, we come to know first that a generally good translation of the Writings can be worked out by the translator who has a good grammatical knowledge of Lingua Latina. If he/she is at a certain level of mastery of this language, possible misinterpretation or mistranslation could be avoided. His/her aim for translating the Writings is, however, restricted within a scientific sincerity and scholarly responsibility in performing the translation. Whether the Writings are Divinely revealed truths or not he might suspend as of secondary importance.
     A much better translation than the above can be found if the translator has full attention to the causes of all circumstances in which Swedenborg was, and in which he worked as the writer of the Writings. He pays particular attention to the historical background in which Swedenborg lived and his psychic state and condition, by investigating the author's personality and his times and generation.
     The best translation is found only when the translator has the same invariable aim for publication as Swedenborg himself had while on earth. He has sapientia (wisdom) to think from fines (ends in view), which Swedenborg himself kept in mind for publication. He might not be a great scholar of classic or neo-classic Latin, nor of high authority in the field of psychology, but may be possessed with the same intention in translating the Writings as Swedenborg himself was when he wrote them.
     Swedenborg wrote as follows: "Since the Lord cannot show Himself in person, as has just been demonstrated, and yet He predicted that He would come and found a new church, which is the new Jerusalem, it follows that He will do this by means of a man who can not only receive intellectually the doctrines of this church, but also publish them in print.

362

I bear true witness that the Lord has shown Himself in the presence of me. His servant, and sent me to perform this function. After this He opened the sight of my spirit, thus admitting me to the spiritual world, and allowing me to see the heavens and the hells, and also to talk with angels and spirits; and this I have now been doing for many years without a break. Equally I assert that from the first day of my calling I have not received any instruction concerning the doctrines of that church from any angel, but only from the Lord while I was reading the Word" (TCR 779).
     The above passage from the True Christian Religion seems to be the culmination of all Swedenborg's theological works written in more or less 10,000 pages. He spent nearly thirty years of the latter half of his life on them. He sacrificed his fame, honor, dignity, position, privilege, wealth and other things just for the sake of this one purpose. He had long painstaking experiences, and he staked his whole life on that end in view. It is often said that if you misunderstand one's intention, you misunderstand his totality. The above claim of his proclamation as a servant of the Lord does not come from his religious dilettantism or monological mysticism, but from Swedenborg's most sincere obedience to God's call. A number of pages from his Writings will be the consistent proof of his commitment.
     Readers of Swedenborg's Writings must encounter the above claim, and we are forced to choose to believe it or not. Someone might evade such a severe confrontation and evade the challenge of choice, but one must choose either one sooner or later. The second advent of the Lord will come to be for us all either a jumping board or a stumbling block.
     The top of a high mountain is often covered with clouds. The climbers, even if they cannot see the top, must presume that the place where they stand is the top. The height of a mountain is always to be measured at the real top, even though it is not yet seen.

363

     "Mt. Swedenborg" is extremely high, and you cannot see its top. Nevertheless, you must not measure the height just standing somewhere at the foot where you examine the cause or effect. When seeing the end of an ascent, the top is sometimes visible to those who want to see. The top, the end in view, is the purpose which prompted him to work hard beyond his means. Mt. Swedenborg must therefore be measured by the purpose of his writing mission.
     I do not mean that one's intention justifies everything, but that whatever level of flawless compositions one may make, the writer's or translator's affection and his sphere can inflow into the reader's mind while he is reading the writer's compositions for printing and publication.
     In the sense of the above, the translator's work for the Writings is exactly the "priestly work," whether or not he is qualified for this kind of sacred mission.

     P.S.      Since I am not a professional theologian of the New Church, I might be wrong in interpreting the correlation between the Divine Human and the Writings. So I am always ready to listen to any remarks which will correct my misunderstandings, if any.
DR. JOHN ROACH 1993

DR. JOHN ROACH Editor 1993

Dr. Roach died in Pittsburgh on July 16th. He was born in Mt. Vernon, Illinois, on February 3. 1933. He discovered the Writings in his father's library when he was quite young, and by the time he was 30 accepted them fully. In 1967 he found that there was a New Church based on the Writings, but did not know of the General Church until 1979 when he subscribed to New Church Life. His first communication to be printed in the Life was in 1981.

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Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     THE SWEDENBORG SOCIETY AND SUZUKI

     The article about Suzuki (May issue) has sparked interest and brought out more interesting things. Picture the situation in London in 1910. The Swedenborg Society had wisely engaged Daisetsu T. Suzuki to translate Heaven and Hell into Japanese. Word came that there would be a delay in the translation. The cause for the delay was very pleasing to the members of the society!
     The more he got into this book, the more Suzuki became taken with its contents. Imagine his thoughts as he translated the final paragraph which says that the contents of the book would be obscure to those not in the delight of knowing spiritual truths. " . . . but it will be clear to those who are in the delight, and especially to those who are in the true affection of truth for the sake of truth." He found himself going over the work again, and he asked the society for more time.
     Page 13 of the 1910 Swedenborg Society Report notes that the Heaven and Hell translation was delayed because "its translator, Daesetz Tetaro Suzuki had become so interested in the work that he desired to make it as perfect as possible and so most carefully went over the translation again, with a certain delay in the printing-a cause for which the Committee not only excuses but thanks him."
     The society engaged him to do further translations in the years that followed. He gave a talk to the Swedenborg Society in 1912 in which he explained how difficult it was to translate into Japanese the things in Heaven and Hell and Divine Providence. (See the article in the July issue by Mr. Nagashima.) He spoke of his hopes for future readers. The reader sees a book in a library, takes it from the shelf and reads it. "He ponders over what he has read.

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It grows upon him, he is captivated by it, but one day when a sudden illumination comes over his mind, he is no more himself as he used to be. He is a spiritual man, with deeper perception. He will be a Swedenborgian, with a living interest in Heaven and Hell."
In the years that followed, the Swedenborg Society continued to sponsor Suzuki's translation and the publication of the works. Those efforts are continuing to bear fruit.
We are indebted to Mr. Tatsuya Nagashima for providing two photographs [below] of Suzuki, first as a young man with his wife, and then as a wise old man. In Suzuki's handwriting in English is the saying, "To do good is my religion; the world is my home."

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     NDE PRESENTATION AT WORLD PARLIAMENT

     The Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions begins in Chicago on August 28th. At 2:00 p.m. on September 2nd Mr. Leon Rhodes is scheduled to give a presentation called "The Universality of the Near Death Experience." His years of participation in the International Association for Near Death Studies qualify him for this, but it is, of course, the teachings of the Writings that he will use to make this a significant contribution.
     Rev. Grant Schnarr's pamphlet linking near-death experiences with the teachings of the Writings is excellent. It is expected that Mr. Schnarr will be among those taking part in the program on September 2nd.
     Dr. George Dole will be giving a talk relating to Charles Bonney, the New Churchman who presided over the opening meeting of the congress in Chicago a hundred years ago. That opening session in 1893 was attended by four thousand people. There were delegates from eighteen nations.
     Among the New Church people who participated in the first congress were Mrs. S. Seward and Mr. J. R. Hibbard. Mrs. Hibbard, daughter of Richard De Charms, was the first principal of the Girls School of the Academy of the New Church. We quoted some of Mrs. Hibbard's address in March of 1990. Here are a few more lines.

     We are assembled here as an integral part of this Congress of Religions. From all parts of the world, representatives of creeds, both ancient and modern, have come together to exchange thoughts on the various ideas concerning God, and the relation of His creatures to Him . . . .

     The women of the New Church should, with sympathizing heart, lend, helping hand to all humanitarian work, but we must do more.

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We can read by the flicker of the new light pouring in upon us, yet so faint that it is unnoticed by others, the truths that teach what true use is, and by going forth with our little lamps burning, we can perform our use . . . .

     The most solemn exhortation I can make to my sister in the New Church and out of it is to team how to "live truly" and by that I mean how to bring into active use to the neighbor the capabilities with which each one is endowed by her Creator. Everyone, whether man or woman, comes into this world to fill allotted part in the ever-widening sphere of God's universe, and the ability, the faculty, to perform this service as a co-worker with the Lord is innate, God-given. Cultivate it when you feel its awakening, for the sake of use; the Lord will unfold the conditions which will make it active. In its exercise will be found true happiness (April NCL, 1984).

     VOTING ON MATTERS OF CONJUGIAL LOVE (3)

     Take note of the final sentence in n. 333 of Conjugial Love. Here is a number that dramatically illustrates that conjugial love exceeds all other loves. That final sentence says: "The conclusion that there is no such love, nor can be, simply because it does not exist with oneself or with this man or that, has no force." The phrase "has no force" is rendered in the Warren translation: "is not a valid conclusion."
     The part of wisdom is to base one's thinking on the reality of conjugial love. If there are people who do not experience conjugial love, we are ill advised to change the basis of our thinking.
     In sorting out our thinking on various subjects we will come up against compelling arguments, Take the question of whether there is a God. Argument against the existence of God is presented in TCR 77. Those who propounded the argument did so with tremendous energy and seeming force.

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Learned people standing nearby vacillated on the matter, sometimes favoring the arguments against God and sometimes not.
     The angels simply dismissed the argument. They told those who voiced it that they were thinking merely sensually and said, "We therefore excuse you."
     We may come into varying states of obscurity about the existence of God, but it is not something that is determined by a majority vote! There are arguments against conjugial love to which we may sometimes be vulnerable. But in themselves they are without validity or force.

     (To be continued)
JOHN CLOWES 1993

JOHN CLOWES Editor 1993

When Annals of the New Church was published, the choice was to start the story of the New Church in 1743, for when Swedenborg was called by the Lord, the story began. We are in something of a 250th anniversary. It is interesting that John Clowes was born that year. It has been said with good reason that this man more than any other was responsible for introducing Swedenborg's Writings to English-speaking peoples.
WASHINGTON POST WRITES ABOUT THE SMITHS 1993

WASHINGTON POST WRITES ABOUT THE SMITHS Editor 1993

Rev. Lawson Smith, his wife, Shanon, and their six children are on their way to South Africa. A photograph of the family appeared in The Washington Post on June 26th. The accompanying story said:

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     The Smiths met when he was attending the New Church theological school in Bryn Athyn, PA.
     Both are lifelong members of the New Church, often better known as Swedenborgian, after 18th century Swedish scientist and inventor Emanuel Swedenborg, whose theological writings are pivotal to the church.
     New Church followers believe there is one God, the Lord Jesus Christ, and that He reveals himself through the Bible, which is interpreted as a series of parables about human life.
     Swedenborg embarked on the study of the Bible after a successful career as an inventor. As he read the Bible, he wrote of his vision of life in heaven and hell . . . .
GURDJIEFF 1993

GURDJIEFF Various 1993

Communications
Dear Editor:
Mr. Fox's ardor for the church and desire to shield her from harm comes through loud and clear in his recent article, "Gurdjieff: Guide to Heaven or Hell?" in the June '93 issue of New Church Life. Mr. Fox researched Gurdjieffs travels and activities but, I believe, completely misunderstood his philosophy and aphorisms. Only the Lord can see Gurdjieff's intentions, and I question judging a man evil whatever his lifestyle might have been. There am at least as many testimonials by men of character as to Gurdjieff's goodness, compassion, and tireless efforts for the transformation of mankind as there are critics. Mr. Fox states that the " . . . core of the system was evil." The core of the system struck me as a clarion call for man's awareness of the need to reform.

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But of course we each see our own truth, and both stances are beyond our ability to judge with surety. The stated purpose of the article was to give people a knowledge of what Gurdjieff taught; in that it certainly failed.
     Spiritual growth groups use the Psychological Commentaries of Maurice Nicoll (who studied and valued the theological Writings of Swedenborg) and the Writings far more than they do Gurdjieff's teachings per se. However, I do want to note some implications of Mr. Fox's article, and correct the misunderstanding of some Gurdjieffian terms:

     (1)      The awareness habit called "self-remembering" recommended by Gurdjieff was not a preoccupation with the false self, but a practice of constant reminder of our reason for being, or God's presence, by asking, "Am I awake and conscious in this moment?" There are also other interpretations of it.
     (2)      The "neutralizing third force" without which all is sterile was a term used to describe the effort or "Work" of regeneration. It is "neutralizing" because when we Work, the Lord causes evil within us to lose its power over us.
     (3)      When Gurdjieff called himself and others "the Devil," I feel he referred to what we call the proprium, just as the Writings tell us that man left to himself is a fly on the dung hill.
     (4)      Gurdjieff said, "Consider externally, internally never." The phrase is easily misunderstood since without reading Gurdjieff, Ouspensky, or Nicoll we wouldn't guess that "external considering" is a term meaning to come out of yourself to consider another' s attitude, a putting yourself in another's shoes, so to speak, to gain empathy, understanding and forgiveness. For example, if a man was rude to you, rather than listening to your proprium condemning him, you would "externally consider, thinking of his possibly busy day, or that he might be in a rush, or tired or sick, etc.

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On the other hand, to "internally consider" would be to feel owed an apology, to blame, castigate and hate him irrationally. This "think well of the neighbor" adage is not new to us, as the Writings advise it also.
     (5)      Regarding the aphorism, "The highest achievement of man is to do," it is a reference to a state we would consider celestial when man can actually remain fully conscious of himself and God. Gurdjieff believed there were levels of consciousness beyond which you had to evolve before being able to do much of anything, but he did believe that at a certain level man could do the will of God. A more often heard phrase of Gurdjieff is, "Man cannot do, but he must do what he can." We know from revelation that only the Lord can do, and yet we have to do what we can.
     (6)      My understanding from reading varied authors who were at the Prieur is that although ill, Katherine Mansfield knew what she was getting into and wanted nothing more than to spend her days there, even if they were her last days.
     (7)      As for Gurdjieff's "getting rid of" his closest friends and associates, Bennett writes of his own conviction that Gurdjieff, sensing his impending death, and finding his followers too dependent on him, expressed his feelings to Bennett, but knowing it would take a change of relationship to attain this end in the face of their loyalty, he did chase them off to Undertake endeavors of their own vision. It seems that not one of his main followers put a negative interpretation on this behavior. They were convinced that his actions, however unpredictable, were guided throughout by a deep awareness of our dependence on the mercy of God. "There was no doubt," Bennett said, "that his dearest wish was that his work should help deliver man from the slavery and dependence upon the good opinions of others."

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     (8)      Gurdjieff said, "Truth can only come to man in the form of a lie." Mr. Fox implies that this statement is a falsity. Don't the Writings tell us that man, because of his less than perfect state, never sees the truth in pure form but only from appearances? That is my understanding of this saying. It doesn't mean not to bother to observe and seek the truth; just know that it is not the full picture, because of your own condition.
     (9)      Mr. Fox finds it difficult to understand why anyone who has the Writings would need anything else. I find it difficult to understand what there is to be afraid of from collateral reading and experience. The Lord fills our world with things to enhance our natural and spiritual lives. Why is it harmful to enjoy varied forms of the goods and truths He gives us? People in the church do a lot of fearful defending of the Writings against imagined dragons while ignoring the dragon we were told quite a lot about. The Writings tell us to reflect on ourselves, but people seem wary of anything that might be an additional help in that effort.

     Mr. Fox quotes the passage from Matthew which says that a good tree does not bear bad fruit nor a bad tree good fruit. "By their fruits ye shall know them." My spiritual life is far richer since I attended lectures by Peter Rhodes, studied Nicoll, and took part in spiritual growth groups. I feel I have a new understanding of what the Writings mean when I read them. I consider them to be revelation as I always have, but living examples of charity (or lack of it) from doing the "tasks" of spiritual growth have made and continue to make the Writings and the Lord come alive in my life in a way that my religious beliefs had not done before. I now get more out of the fine sermons and services we are given by our ministers. Some people seem not to need the insights, support and closeness of spiritual growth groups. I do. My fear is that the NCL article might discourage people who need it from finding and sharing that joy.

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     Nonetheless, I value Mr. Fox's ardor, sincerity and concern. I struggle to put the protests of proprium at the level of my feet, and to say of him in my heart, "This is my brother. I see that he worships the Lord, and is a good man" (AC 2385:5).
     Ruth Zuber,
          Huntingdon Valley, PA

Dear Editor:
     I am writing in response to the article on Gurdjieff by Mr. Fox. I am not a student of Gurdjieff, but feel I benefit from participating in a spiritual growth class. In the group I attend, teachings from the Writings are part of every class, and Gurdjieff or Nicoll comes up occasionally. As Mr. Fox says, the Writings have given us profound truths and instructions for the life of regeneration. However, application is not always obvious to all of us. If it were, we would not need sermons or classes; the ministers could simply read from the Word itself to instruct us.
     "Man is not born for the sake of self but the sake of others" (TCR 406). We need each other, and benefit from a mutual effort to find ways to better understand ourselves in the light of God's Word. We don't know the spiritual state of Peter Rhodes, the group leaders or any of our ministers, but I am grateful to all of them for their help in my efforts to lead a life that leads to heaven. It is my experience that all of them encourage me to look to the Lord and His Word as the final authority.
     I appreciate Mr. Fox's study and his concern. It is always a good idea to evaluate what we are doing, and we need to be reminded to keep doing this.
     I personally see the spiritual growth groups as another positive way to help individuals and to strengthen the church.
     Donnette Alfelt,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania

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Dear Editor:
     I am very sorry that there may be people who will read Mr. Fox's piece in the June issue and from it make judgments about Peter Rhodes' book Aim without having read it. It is easy to doubt Gurdjieffs integrity. He was an outrageous man. But meeting the most useful of Gurdjieff's ideas in the level hands of Maurice Nicoll or Peter Rhodes is a different matter. Both men offer Gurdjieff's ideas well digested by able minds after long, personal application. We are given some experiments to try-no credo.
     Aim does not proselytize Gurdjieffian thinking; it gives credit to Gurdjieff for an effective approach to self-examination. Gurdjieff assigned "tasks." peter Rhodes assigns tasks in Aim. Rhodes' tasks are original, designed to illustrate to the doer in a specific way how the hells work in his own mind. Gurdjieff's approach begins from the premise that man is not innately good and that he cannot "do." This is good doctrine for one to experience. The Lord alone has the power to battle our evils.
     Knowing doctrine is one thing, a thing the General Church has been very good at promoting. But there is a point in life when living from doctrines becomes the goal. As a seventh grader I could tell you that the work of regeneration is to examine myself once or twice a year and to shun the evils I find as sins against God. But what is evil as a dynamic? What does shunning look like? What does against God mean? Wading into the black swamp of self-examination is living death without both a personally developed faith in the Lord and some practical help. Aim gives help by mapping the strategies of the hells. Spiritual growth groups give help through community on a deeper level. You might call them a form of distinctive New Church social life.
     When you're growing up in the General Church, it is easy to use Swedenborgian terms fluently.

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We often learn the right answers long before we are old enough to have the real questions for ourselves. The little book Aim can help us create a bridge between terms and life. It is hard work to penetrate terms to the discretely higher degree of meaning.
     Aim has nothing to do with following Gurdjieff. It has everything to do with a sincere effort to follow the Lord through His Word. Read Aim, work the tasks presented, and the Holy Supper will become a different experience.
     Gray Glenn,
          Kempton, Pennsylvania

Dear Editor:
     The name Gurdjieff came up in the spiritual growth group I attended, and I was somewhat surprised because I had read very little about him, and that was only in connection with meditation.
     However, after the article by Leonard Fox in the June issue, I must agree it is difficult to understand why New Church people should be attracted to Gurdjieff.
     I do feel that the spiritual growth class was beneficial to me though. For example, I learned about "false cause" in the class.
     As for the spiritually destructive principles which may be present in the teachings of Gurdjieff, Nicoll, or even in the spiritual growth class, I believe we are frequently exposed to evils in our lives and we need to be on guard against temptations. I also believe that if we pray to the Lord and read His Word every day He gives us guidance and protection from evil influences.
     Paul Hammond,
          Springville, CA

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PRINT BOTH 1993

PRINT BOTH Laurel O. Powell 1993

Dear Editor:
     When we teach our small children about the Lord, we often use picture books of simple stories from the Bible. Some of them are very beautifully done. We love them, and they help our children understand the Bible. We do not present these books as the Bible itself; we read to our children from the Bible every day.
     There has been a lot of discussion in these pages about the value and danger of simplifying the Writings. There seems to be an assumption that simplifying the Writings and preserving their integrity are mutually exclusive methods of performing the same use. In all the discussion, I've never seen a clear distinction made between these two different and valuable uses.
     Accurately translating and publishing the Writings is one job. Providing simple introductions to them is another.
     If someone handed me The Tall Book of Bible Stories, or even the Petershams' The Christ Child, and said, "This is the Bible I've been telling you about," I would be disturbed. But if they said, "This will give you a beginning of an idea of why I love the Bible," I would feel that a miracle was happening.
     Likewise, if someone handed me a Beginner's Guide to the Inner Meaning of Genesis and Exodus, I'd be fascinated. But if I went to look up something in Arcana Caelestia and found numbers missing here and there, I'd be full of wrath!
     We can be zealous for purity and zealous for sharing. We can make a clear and honest distinction between the books the Lord gives us and the books we adapt, excerpt, and paraphrase from them. And then we can go ahead and print them both.
     Laurel O. Powell,
          Lenhartsville, PA

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HOLY SUPPER 1993

HOLY SUPPER A. C. Uren 1993

Dear Editor:
     Recent articles in the magazine re the Holy Supper have interested me greatly, especially Rev. Grant Odhner's in the January 1993 issue. Again, Rev. Michael Gladish in the March 1993 issue takes up the subject of the holy celebration.
     The Writings, at AC 10522, put it this way: "But be it known that conjunction with the Lord through the sacrament of the supper is effected solely with those who are in the good of love and of faith to the Lord from the Lord. The Holy Supper is the seal of this conjunction."
     At AC 10519 the Lord tells us why He instituted the Holy Supper, confirming that it is the most holy thing of the church. At TCR 238 the Lord expands that reason by showing us that the "correspondence" operative in the Holy Supper exists from creation; and in the preceding number 237 the Lord prefaced that revelation by telling us that there are three "saps" co-operating to produce a tree (vine) and its fruit in which is seed.1
     1 For the origin of yeasts (leaven) see DP 26; that "ferments" are put into grape juice, see DP 25.
     So it is not surprising to find at TCR 708 similar teaching sitting squarely on the Lord's Word as it occurs in John 15:1-6, where the joyous doctrine of "engrafting" is revealed in relation to the Holy Supper, with three different terms corresponding to the "sap" or juice of the vine.
     This doctrine of "engrafting" is revealed in several places by the Lord in the Writings, such as: AC 5113:14, 15; TCR 524:3, 584, 585, 601, 642; DP 296 and 332. Pertinently, DP 296:2 teaches that "engrafting" is the only effective method available to change a human monster or devil into a beautiful angel, a dragon into a lamb, a cockatrice into a sheep, or an owl into a dove.

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Add to this that the "sap of the True Vine" is shown to be the real means of this engrafting, and the Holy Supper becomes indeed a joyful and uplifting celebration for anyone who has truly experienced this miraculous process.
     When the doctrine of engrafting is taken seriously, there is a new way opened to the Holy Supper. Compare this "new" way to the New Church proverb which was hatched out by the clergy of over 60, maybe even 100 years ago, and in some societies of the New Church still extant: "Beware of teetotalers in relation to the Holy Supper."
     Let's have a look at what the Lord teaches at AC 10031 where the "nutritious juice" is shown to correspond to the "good of innocence" and the term "wine" is identified as this "juice." Let's "get real" about the Holy Supper and joyfully open it up to whosoever will come and take the water of life freely, as in Rev. 22:17.
     A. C. Uren,
          Baywater, Australia

     P.S.      In TCR 708 the "juice of the vine" (genimen vitis) is mentioned. It is my perception that this paragraph crystallizes the matter of the symbols for use in the Holy Supper to represent Divine truth proceeding as a one from the Lord, as received by human beings at different levels or in differing states. (Note the way such differences are expressed in TCR 580.)
     In AC 5120:5 the Lord teaches me that "The 'cup' and not the 'wine' is mentioned because 'wine' is predicated of the spiritual church, but 'blood' of the celestial church, although both of these signify holy truth proceeding from the Lord." My perception is that the Lord as the "True Vine" turns water into sap (if you like, wine). So why cannot this "miracle" be repeated in "the cup"?

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I see no bar, therefore, to the Holy Supper's being celebrated using both "must" and "wine" as symbols of the Lord's Divine truth and its reception by the human race. When the "fermentation" process is solely in focus, as in the spiritual church, fermented wine seems appropriate, but when the "engrafting" process is brought into focus by the imagery of John 15, as in the celestial church, then the "sap of the vine" is appropriate, in my view.
The importance of the fermentation process is not in question. But from my study I am not in the position where I can delete "must" (grape juice, genimen vitis) from the Holy Supper celebration. TCR 708 seems to include it. So I can and do subscribe to the idea that both "must" and "wine" are authorized by AC 5113:14, 15.
ORDINATION 1993

ORDINATION Editor 1993

Announcements
Perry-At Atlanta, Georgia, June 19, 1993, Charles Mark Perry into the second degree of the priesthood, Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss officiating.
SUMMER SEMINAR OF SWEDENBORG STUDIES 1993

SUMMER SEMINAR OF SWEDENBORG STUDIES Editor 1993

In July of 1992 The New Church College in England put on a seminar of New Church Studies. We have just received six of the main papers in loose binding. We will provide particulars next month. Copies are available from New Church College, 25 Radcliffe New Ed., Radcliffe, Manchester, M26 9LS England (phone 061766 2521).

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Swedenborg Sampler 1993

Swedenborg Sampler Editor 1993

Compiled by
Rev. Eric H. Carswell
     Here is a fascinating overview of the basic teachings found in True Christian Religion, Arcana Caelestia, Divine Love and Wisdom, Divine Providence, Conjugial Love, and Heaven and Hell. It provides an excellent choice of quotations in answer to key questions. Designed for use in discussion groups, it is very useful for inquirers' classes, newcomer study groups and young people. It is also a highly useful review for us all.
     92 pages $9.50 including postage
     Box 749, Cairncrest
General Church Book Center                    Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                         Phone: (215) 947-3920

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Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

Vol. CXIII September, 1993 No. 9
NEW CHURCH LIFE

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     "Nairobi is a four-hour flight from Johannesburg, and I went with some trepidation." We salute Rev. Andrew Dibb on his pioneering mission. We are publishing a list of names of people baptized in Kenya during this historic visit (see p. 429).
     We wish we could publish the study by Rev. Willard Heinrichs in its entirety in one issue. The same is true of the study by Rev. Martin Pryke, part II of which is now to be concluded in October, and the final part is to appear in November.
     The declarations of faith in this issue come from ordinations in June of 1992! This is due to editorial fallibility. We have some from June of 1993 soon to be published.
     In the August issue (p. 365) we printed photographs of Daisetsu Suzuki. In one of the photos he is 93 years old. These are from the Complete Collection of D.T. Suzuki's Works, Iwanami-shoten: Tokyo, 1983.
     There have been a number of pastoral moves during the summer, and we are publishing this month a list of new addresses of several ministers. (See page 431.)
     The Swedenborg Sampler sold out yet again, but the supply has been replenished. (See page 420.)
     It is our custom to publish a Charter Day announcement in the September issue, and as we do so we in the northern hemisphere realize that the summer is over. Charter Day weekend in Bryn Athyn is a special time. What a pleasure it is year by year to see so many people renewing friendships and rekindling devotion to the cause of the Academy of the New Church.
     In the spirit of the final two paragraphs of Rev. Peter Nkabinde's piece about the Psalms and life, let us all count our blessings.

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WISE BUILDER 1993

WISE BUILDER Rev. A. W. SCHNARR 1993

     "If you diligently heed the voice of Jehovah your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am Jehovah your healer" (Exodus 15:26).

     The Lord, known as Jehovah in the Old Testament, is the great Healer because He is the Creator. He has created us from the dust of the earth, putting together the variety of substances which form all the distinct parts of our natural body, as a builder puts together the distinct parts which together form a temple. Our natural body is the temple of the Lord, and when it is diseased, it is He who heals us, as is amply illustrated in the New Testament where we read of Jesus' healing all manner of sickness and disease, and calling Himself the Physician.
     But the Lord is much more than a physician who merely looks after our body. He is the physician of our mind, of our spirit which temporarily lives in our natural body. Here too the Lord is the great healer. He heals our unhappiness. He heals our confusion. He heals our turmoil and anxieties. He heals our guilt and our conscience. He heals our worries and our fears.
     These are diseases of the mind, brought about by our stubborn pursuit of our own path and refusal to follow Him. The diseases of the Egyptians, the ten plagues, symbolize the diseases of the mind brought upon ourselves when we do not hear and do what the Lord commands.
     We will have healthy, balanced, and happy minds when we diligently heed the voice of God and do what is right in His sight. This is God's promise to us.
     A healthy mind is a mind that has faith and confidence in the Lord's teachings-that has love and consideration for others.

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This mind sickens when falsity takes the place of the truth from the Word, and selfish and materialistic loves take the place of the good love of the neighbor. These false ideas and evil loves bring the healthy mind and life to death, which is called spiritual death and is damnation, just as diseases bring the natural life unto its death.
     Evils destroy a good happy life, even if we are ignorant of them. Falsities destroy the life of our understanding, bringing us into confusion and darkness, causing us to feel as if our lives are unmanageable, unbearable, or out of control. These are the diseases of the mind which the Lord promises to heal. But how?
     The Lord heals the emotional, psychological, and even intellectual diseases of our mind when it lives in a spiritual house that we have built on a solid foundation. In our mother's womb the Lord builds a temporary dwelling for our mind, but we build the permanent house for our mind, the house we will live in to eternity, by our lives. We build our eternal home by choosing how we live.
     If we want a happy, peaceful, contented home and mind, in this life and in our eternal life, we must follow the Lord's plans for building that house. If we insist on making and following our own plans, we may secure a happy body and mind for much of this life, but from time to time we are certain to experience desolation from the trials and tribulations of life, and our eternal life will consist of repeated desolation, frustration, and unhappiness.
     "Therefore whoever hears these words of Mine and does them, I will liken him to a wise man building his house, who digged, and went deep, and laid a foundation upon the rock; and the rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. Now everyone who hears these sayings of Mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand; and the rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, and it fell.

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And great was its fall" (Matt. 7:24-27).
     The foolish man's house fell because he built it on sand. He didn't do what he was told, for surely someone warned him. The difference between the wise and foolish person is that one does what makes sense and the other only hears it. The one who does what the Lord teaches is the wise person who builds his eternal house on the rock. The wise person follows the Lord's plans and has a healthy mind in a warm and comfortable home. The foolish person's mind is regularly devastated, after which he has the opportunity to rebuild it wisely.
     The spiritual rock on which we are to build our spiritual house, that we are told to dig deep and find, is the Lord. How? There are three ways to dig and find the Lord.
     First, we must go to the Lord as the rock within us. He is the life within us. Life is not our own. He is our ability to love and think. He is our freedom to choose. These things within us are rocks. They will never cease to be given to us from the Lord. "[A]ccess to Him is closed to no person, for the Lord continually invites every person to come to Him, for He says: 'He who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst, and he who comes to Me I will by no means cast out' (John 6:35, 37). Jesus stood and cried, 'If any person thirsts, let him come to Me and drink'" (John 7:37).
     Secondly, we must go to the Lord outside of us, as He is in His Word, and learn from the Word. The teachings of His Word are rocks, rocks which fit perfectly with the rocks within us. From these rocks we have running water in our spiritual house. Just as the water came from the rock to quench the natural thirst of Moses, so also the water which comes from the teachings of the Lord in His Word nourishes our mind.
     He promises to nourish, wash, and cleanse our minds, giving us health and happiness by means of the truths of His Word, saying: "He opened the rock that the waters might issue out; they flowed in the dry places, a river" (Psalm 105:41). "He brought streams out of the cliff, and they remembered that God was their rock" (Psalm 78:16, 20).

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"They shall not thirst; He will lead them [even] in desolate places; He will cause the waters to flow out of the rock for them" (Isaiah 48:12).
     Thirdly, and most importantly, we build our house on the rock when we do what the Lord teaches. Both men in the parable heard the Lord's words, but only the wise man did them. This is what is meant by building your house upon a rock. "'To hear' in the Word signifies not merely to hear in simplicity, but also to receive in the memory and to be instructed, likewise to receive in the understanding and to believe, and also to receive with obedience and do" (AC 9311:1, 5).
     The Lord's teachings, "when not put into practice," we read, "may be compared to butterflies in the air, which a sparrow darts upon and devours as soon as he sees them" (TCR 375). Again we read, "Truths and goods that are learned, but with which a person is not affected, do indeed enter into the memory, but adhere there as lightly as a feather to a wall, which is blown away by the slightest breath of wind" (AC 4018).
     Spiritual winds will blow and beat upon our houses, whether we are wise or foolish. By these winds are symbolized the false and wrong ideas stirred up in our minds by evil spirits, who break into our thoughts and inject false reasonings and rationalizations. Evil spirits flow into our minds with their evil persuasions and false principles and excite them in us.
     With the foolish person who has not done what the Lord teaches, these attacks inundate him, overwhelm him, and cause him unbearable grief and anxiety of mental distress. The foundation of his mind's house is sand, that is, teachings of the Lord's Word in his memory only. When these have not been practiced, they are disconnected and scattered in the mind, and intermixed with false ideas and notions. They are like sand, which is rock broken down, divided, scattered, and mixed with other things. He is devastated and left desolate as his spiritual house, built on sand, is washed away.

391

Even so, the Lord's mercy restores him to sanity, restores his freedom and rationality, and gives him another opportunity to rebuild his house, this time, hopefully, on a rock.
     With a person who has built his spiritual house on a rock, who has done what the Lord teaches, these attacks are temptations, which he withstands. The foundation of his mind's house is a rock because when a person does what the Lord teaches, those teachings enter more deeply into his mind than just into the memory. They enter into his soul and heart, becoming one with the rock deep inside-the Lord. He is unmoved by the influences of the evil spirits. In fact, when the teachings of the Lord are lived, there is an incredible power to resist temptations because the person is then associated with heaven and is in communion with angels far more than he knows. The Lord then, with the angels, strengthens and protects the wise person when he is attacked.
     This is the Lord's promise: "If hearing you obey . . . and do all that I speak, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to Your adversaries" (Exodus 23:22). When we live in accordance with what the Lord teaches in the Word, He will help us to turn aside from evils, and shed light on our false notions. Our house will be founded on a rock, and when the rains come, and the winds blow, our minds will be healthy and strong.
     Our mental diseases will be healed. We will be happy, safe, and secure. We will be clear-thinking and confident. We will be content and trusting, not worried and anxious. We will enjoy our lives both now and after we leave the temporary dwelling of our physical body. The Lord says: "If you know these things, happy are you if you do them" (John 13:17).
     "If you diligently heed the voice of Jehovah your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am Jehovah your healer" (Exodus 15:26). Amen.

392

DECLARATIONS OF FAITH AND PURPOSE 1993

DECLARATIONS OF FAITH AND PURPOSE Various 1993

     I believe in one God, the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom is the trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
     I believe that He wants the salvation of all mankind, and that He leads every man in the minutest details to that end, and that He is present with every man according to man's response.
     I believe that there is a life after death, a heaven of angels from the human race, and that man's destiny is to become an angel in heaven.
     I believe that man's fullest joy is living a life of heaven, in this world and even more in the next, and that this will happen when man looks to the Lord and shuns evils as sins against Him, and loves his neighbor as himself.
     I believe that the Lord is present in fullness and power in the Sacred Scriptures or the Word of God, because it has been spoken by Him and is He.
     I believe that the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg are the Lord's Second Coming as an historical fact and as the fulfillment of the prophecy of "the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
     I believe that the Lord in His Second Coming has revealed the spiritual sense of the Word, the doctrine of genuine truth, and heavenly secrets about the spiritual world and life after death.
     I believe that through this coming and by the Lord's leading there will be established a New Christian Church that receives its life from the New Heaven established by the Lord after the Last Judgment.
     I believe that it is my duty as a priest to look to the Lord's guidance when I minister to the people of my pasture, and to diligently serve people who earnestly want to get closer to the Lord.
     I believe that the Lord has called me to work in His vineyard as a priest, and I pray that He will give me the power to improve my weaknesses and give me humility in using my strengths, for I acknowledge that what is weak is mine and what is strong is His.

393

Jesus says, "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in Me.
     Goran Appelgren

     *******

     I believe that God is one in person and in essence, in whom is the Divine Trinity-Father, Son and Holy Spirit-and that the Lord Jesus Christ is that God. I believe also that the Lord is Love Itself and Wisdom Itself, or Good Itself and Truth Itself.
     I believe that the same God, who was Jehovah from eternity, came into the world to remove hell from man and to glorify His Human; and He accomplished these by means of combats against hell and by victories over it; thus He subdued it, and reduced it into order and under obedience to Himself.
     I believe also that this mighty work would not have been accomplished except by means of temptations even to the uttermost, which was the passion of the cross, and that this is why the Lord underwent these most grievous temptations. I believe that without this no mortal could have been saved; and they are saved who believe in Him and live well.
     And to believe in Him is to believe in the Sacred Scripture, which is the Word of God, the fountain of wisdom, the source of life, and the way to heaven.
     I believe that by means of the Word the Lord has made His Second Coming and this consists in the giving of the spiritual sense of the Word and the Heavenly Doctrine of the New Jerusalem.
     I believe also that by means of the Second Coming the Lord has formed the new angelic heaven, the communion of angels and men, and has established the New Christian Church, which teaches the way to heaven and the life everlasting through repentance of sin and the life of charity.

394

     My purpose in presenting myself for inauguration into the priesthood is to dedicate myself to the Lord for the salvation of souls. "The harvest is truly plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest" (Matt. 9:37).
     It is especially my hope to teach people the doctrine of the New Church and to lead them to the good of life by means of that doctrine.
     I firmly acknowledge that it is the Lord who builds His church. "Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it" (Psalm 127:1). But I also believe that the Lord does not operate apart from means. Therefore, it is especially my purpose to allow the Lord to use me as His instrument, as His obedient servant, for the growth of His kingdom, in the world generally and in Ghana in particular.
     My prayer is: O Lord Jesus Christ, who is my High Priest and the true shepherd of Israel, I pray You for the guidance of the affairs of Your church, and for wisdom to understand the indications of Your providence, that my words and my ways may be guided by Your will, that my works may be blessed by You for the eternal good of Your holy kingdom. Amen!
     Simpson Kwabeng Darkwah

     ******

     I believe that the Lord from eternity, who is Jehovah, came into the world to subdue the hells and to glorify His Human; and that without this no human being could have been saved, and those are saved who believe in Him, for all life is from Him.
     I believe that a person is conjoined with the Lord by faith in Him, and through conjunction with the Lord he is saved.

395

This conjunction is possible with all peoples from all nations and all religions as long as they acknowledge the Lord and are willing to live according to His commandments.
     I believe that to have faith in the Lord is to have confidence that He will save. This confidence is granted to those who lead a good life (see AR 67).
     I believe that Jehovah is Love Itself and Wisdom Itself, or Good Itself and Truth Itself.
     I believe that as the Divine truth, which is the Word, and which is God, He came down and took on the human for the purpose of reducing to order all things that were in heaven, and all things in hell, and all things in the church.
     I believe that Jehovah God did this because at that time the power of hell prevailed over the power of heaven, and on earth the power of evil prevailed over the power of good.
     I believe that evils are to be shunned because they are from hell, and as far as a person shuns evils as sins against God he does good, not from himself but from the Lord.
     I believe the Lord reveals Himself in His threefold Word, the Old Testament, the New Testament, and in the Writings for the New Church.
     I believe that the New Church can help mankind see the visible God, thus giving people a message of hope and joy.
     In presenting myself for inauguration and ordination into the priesthood of the New Church, I pray that the Lord may lead and guide me so that I can reach people, teaching them truth and leading thereby to the good of life. I pray that the Lord will use me as an instrument for the establishment and growth of His church on earth. I pray that the Lord will grant me strength and courage so that not my will but His will be done.
     Mauro de Padua, June 7, 1992

396

WORD AND HOMOSEXUALITY 1993

WORD AND HOMOSEXUALITY Rev. WILLARD L. D. HEINRICHS 1993

     Introduction

     In approaching from the Word a controversial subject such as homosexuality, whether or not it relates to us directly, it is important that we bear in our minds throughout the discussion certain general truths.
     In all His merciful operations with finite human beings, the Lord in His Divine love has one overriding concern: our salvation, a heaven from the human race. The Lord seeks the damnation of no one! As by a mighty force of attraction He seeks to draw all into eternal conjunction with Himself! The means for satisfying this concern is His Divine wisdom. This wisdom is inmostly present and working as the Divine order in all things in the universe: spiritual, moral, civil and physical. This is revealed to human beings in the Old Testament, the New Testament and the Heavenly Doctrines for the New Jerusalem. Apart from this Divinely revealed order there can be no salvation, no heaven from the human race. There is no mercy apart from appropriate means! (See HH 521-527.) Such salvation cannot be achieved apart from an affirmative, humble and innocent response to the means of salvation, to the teachings of Divine order in the Word that in the present case bear directly or indirectly on homosexuality.
     In seeking to reflect from the light of the Word on such a subject as homosexuality, it might be useful to remind ourselves of another reality. The Lord in the Heavenly Doctrines reveals that there are few at this day in whom there is any soundness remaining in the natural, hereditary will. Human nature on this earth is now inclined to evils and falsities of every kind! While homosexuality is the focus of this particular article, it should not be thought that people with a homosexual orientation are being singled out and set apart from other people as some alien species.

397

If each one of us is honest with ourselves, we will discover in ourselves powerful orientations to subtly or openly disregard and dismiss one or more of the Lord's commandments. These orientations, if they are not resisted when possible and, when necessary, repented of, can just as surely lead to hellish torment as the breaches of the sixth commandment that may be involved in homosexual behavior.
     What perhaps at this day sets homosexuality apart from some other orientations and practices is its acceptance and even endorsement in a civilization that is groping in the spiritual darkness that always prevails when a religious dispensation, that once constituted the church specific on earth, has come to its destruction. People growing up in our culture may be prompted to neglect the examination of homosexuality in the light of Divine revelation. It appears so commonplace and so natural to some that it does not seem to be a matter that should be subjected to spiritual and moral scrutiny.
     We are reminded of the controversy over whether this orientation is inborn, perhaps even genetically determined, or whether it is acquired by individuals as they grow and develop through their lifetime. We cannot resolve this particular dispute here, but we can recall the general teachings of the Word bearing on all mind and body relationships. Nothing can have permanent existence in the spirit or mind, and be passed on hereditarily, unless it also has something that corresponds or works together with it in the body. The natural and physical is the complex, container and base of the spiritual and mental. It is therefore proposed that every hereditary tendency or orientation to break any commandment of God has its physiological, perhaps even genetic basis. We should not be surprised if this is true of a homosexual orientation.
     Still the very real possibility that all orientations contrary to the Lord's order have physiological bases should not cause us to throw up our hands in despair.

398

Hereditary orientations do not decide our final spiritual state, but only those orientations that we freely, willingly, in accord with our own adult reason, choose to make a part of our life. We can work to overcome disorder in ourselves no matter how strongly ingrained in our mind and body. We can learn to resist the urging of hereditary tendencies. We can repent of actual evils. The Lord assures us that we can be regenerated, albeit only during the course of our whole lifetime. This can be done as we learn to humbly turn to receive the Lord in His Word and in prayer, saying, "I will not do this thing because the Lord has so commanded" (HH 533). Over time this approach works because where the Lord is received and is present, there is present all the infinite and eternal power of the Divinely Human love and wisdom. For when the Lord glorified His Humanity in the world, He overcame in Himself all hereditary tendencies to disorder and all perverse orientations, and became Divine order itself. Because He saved Himself by His own infinite power, He can now save each one of us by this same power-if only we be patient and willing!

Some Possible Causes of Homosexuality

     In order to see the teachings of the Word about homosexuality in their proper context, and not to apply them so harshly as to discourage hope of salvation for those who have at one time or another been caught up in a homosexual relationship, we need to look at possible causes.
     It seems there are four basic conditions, separately or in various combinations, that may lead to homosexuality.
     There may be a physical abnormality, ranging from a mild hormonal imbalance to the extreme in which the body of a male or female possesses obvious and significant characteristics of the opposite sex. For both external and internal reasons such a physical condition may give rise to a tendency toward homosexual involvement.

399

The individual may be confused as to his or her own sexual identity, and members of the opposite sex might find him or her unattractive and shun any romantic involvement. These are among the external reasons.
     In considering internal reasons, we can reflect on the teaching that influx is according to the state or form of the receiving vessel. If the body, as a most important vessel, is malformed or is functioning defectively, perverse spiritual company has an opportunity to approach and influence the person, giving rise to the possibility of abnormal behavior. So long as such a physical condition prevails, and if the person truly is not able to act in freedom according to his own reason, he cannot be wholly blamed or, in some cases, even partly blamed, for deviant behavior.
     I believe one's spiritual heredity can also be a cause of homosexual behavior. Everyone is born with a natural inclination to evils of every kind. Yet the Writings indicate that a person is more prone to one kind of evil than another because it has prevailed in parents, grandparents, etc. (For example, see Spiritual Diary 2424-26, 2453-54.) This does not mean that the person will be driven to specific evil acts, or that the ancestors of someone whose behavior is deviant necessarily exhibited the same behavior. But it may well mean that, given an environment which encourages the evil, he might have real difficulty turning away from it. The possibility of having a hard time with homosexual tendencies is, of course, all the more likely if the problem is obvious with a number of one's near relatives.
     One's environment, broadly understood, may also prove to be a powerful influence in inclining a person toward homosexuality. Psychiatrists and psychologists have shown at great length how certain kinds of home environments can serve to influence growing children toward homosexual involvement in adult life. But one's environment can also affect one in other important respects.

400

     . . . if one lives for a time with robbers and pirates he finally becomes like them, or if one lives with adulterers and harlots he soon thinks nothing of adultery, or if he mingles with outlaws he soon thinks nothing of doing violence to anyone. For all evils are contagious, and may be compared to a pestilence which is communicated merely by the breath or the effluvia of the body; also to cancer or gangrene, which spreads and infects first the nearer and then the remoter parts, until the whole body is destroyed. The delights of evil into which every man is born are the cause (TCR 120).

     A person's environment can encourage and especially sustain homosexual tendencies in yet another respect. In every activity in which a person is engaged, he or she is associated with specific spirits that fit the character or quality of the activity. If we feel delight in the activity, it is aroused by the spirits influencing our spirit and from it our body. If we think of the activity as in any way allowable, and accept the delights, the influence of those spirits is increased. They not only unconsciously incline us to further indulge ourselves in the activity, but they also begin to inspire in us a growing aversion to any delight that is opposite in character. So if one's introduction to sexual behavior is homosexual, then there is established a basis for association with spirits who are opposed to conjugial delight between a husband and wife. If homosexual behavior is continued for any length of time and its delights are not resisted, the influence of the spirits becomes stronger, and aversion for a heterosexual relationship can grow. In later life such a situation can be reversed, but not without considerable struggle.
     Finally, as a cause for some people's entering into homosexual relationships, we must include free choice. In this case, an adult, from freedom according to his own reason, chooses this relationship. Although he may have hereditary and environmental influences inclining him toward homosexuality, he also has other equally strong influences which give him the ability to exercise choice, and he chooses homosexuality. In some instances the choice is deliberate.

401

In others it is spontaneous because the person has chosen the interior or spiritual evil homosexuality corresponds to. If a person has allowed himself to enter into the lust of dominating others and manipulating them from the love of self, an inclination to homosexual behavior may spontaneously follow. In such an instance the physical act follows as an effect from a more interior evil which is the cause. In the other instance the physical relationship and its delights are deliberately sought out as a primary focus.
     Even from such a general description of some of the causes of homosexual behavior as this, it must be obvious that only the Lord in His omniscience can know exactly how much guilt is to be assigned to an individual who is involved in the behavior. The individuals themselves, if they are able and then if they are willing to carry on honest self-examination, can in some measure determine the extent of their own guilt, at least enough for effective repentance. But other people would do well not to allow themselves to form a strong conviction about spiritual guilt. They must go no further than a certain judgment about the character of the homosexual activity itself.
     In trying to determine the extent of one's own guilt, a person could reflect on teachings about the four degrees of adultery in Conjugial Love (nos. 485-497). When it comes to assessing other people, we should be guided by CL 523. While it is necessary for the protection of society to make judgments about the moral and civil life of others, specific spiritual judgments are prohibited. (See also Spiritual Diary 1220, 2459.)

Teachings from the Word Relating to Homosexuality

     Are homosexual activities to be included with other evils forbidden in the sixth commandment "You shall not commit adultery"? Conjugial Love, in referring to various prohibited degrees of conjunction which are whoredoms and adulteries, directs our attention to Leviticus chapter 18, which in verse 22 states that " . . . you shall not lie with mankind as with womankind: it is abomination" ["detestable": Green].

402

The rest of the chapter specifies numerous kinds of unlawful conjunctions with relatives, and also forbids lying with any beasts.

The Correspondence of Whoredom with the Violation of Spiritual Marriage

     Violation of the Word is committed by those in the Christian Church who adulterate its goods and truths. Those do this who separate truth from good and good from truth; also those who take appearances of truth and fallacies for genuine truths and confirm them; and also those who know truths of doctrine from the Word and live an evil life; besides other such persons. These violations of the Word and the church correspond to the prohibited degrees enumerated in Leviticus 18 (CL 519, emphasis added).

     The Apocalypse Explained refers to the same chapter in Leviticus and describes the forbidden activities there as "adulteries" and "whoredoms" which correspond to the adulterations of good and truth. It is clear from AE 434:16, with its reference to Leviticus 18, verses 6-23, that homosexual activities, along with bestiality, are specifically to be included among the forbidden adulteries.

     " . . . adulteries" and "whoredoms" signify in general the adulterations of good and the falsifications of truth (see above, n. 141, 161); and the various kinds of adulteries and whoredoms (such as are enumerated in Leviticus xviii. 6-30), signify the various kinds of adulterations and falsifications of good and truth. . . (AE 410:11).

     That "Reuben" in the contrary sense signifies faith separate from charity can be seen from his adultery with Bilhah his father's concubine, which is thus described in Moses: "It came to pass while Israel dwelt in the land Ephrath Bethlehem that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father's concubine; and Israel heard" (Gen. 35:22).

403

"Ephrath Bethlehem" signifies the spiritual church, which is in truths from good, or in faith from charity; Reuben's adultery signifies the rejection of the good of charity from the truths of faith, for truth is profaned when it is not conjoined with its own good, which is the good of charity, since it is then conjoined with the love of self and the world, which is adulteration. All adulteries (of which many kinds are enumerated in Lev. xviii. 6-23) correspond to the adulterations of good and truth. That the adultery committed by Reuben corresponds to faith separate from charity has been made known and testified to me by things heard and seen in the spiritual world, where such a sphere of adultery Is perceived to go forth from those who have separated charity from faith in doctrine and life (AE 434:16, emphasis added).

     The Arcana Coelestia seems to go a step further when referring to the forbidden degrees enumerated in these verses. The Lord here calls them "foul conjunctions" which signify various kinds of "profanation."

     In the Word, "adulteries" in the internal sense signify adulterations of good, and "whoredoms" signify falsifications of truth (see n. 2466, 3399); but the foul conjunctions called the forbidden degrees (see Lev. xviii 6-24) signify various kinds of profanation. That here also profanation is signified is plain, for it is said "thou wentest up on thy father's bed, then profanedst it; he went up on my couch" (AC 6348:2, emphasis added).

     The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine, in referring back to AC 6348, calls the prohibited degrees of conjunction "foul adulteries" and again speaks of them as corresponding to "profanations":

     In the Word, "Babel" signifies the profanation of good, and "Chaldea" the profanation of truth (n. 1182, 1283, 1295, 1304, 1306-1308, 1321, 1322, 1326). These profanations correspond to the prohibited degrees, or foul adulteries, spoken of in the Word [Lev. 18:6-24] (n. 6348).

404

Profanation was represented in the Israelitish and Jewish church by eating blood, wherefore this was so severely prohibited (n. 1003) (NJHD 172, emphasis added).

     In Leviticus chapter 20, verse 10 reiterates the death penalty for both partners in adultery. In verses 11 to 24 various prohibited degrees of conjunction are again enumerated. Homosexual activity is referred to specifically in verse 13: "If a man also lie with mankind as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination [a detestable thing]; they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them."

     The Apocalypse Explained notes that the prohibited degrees of conjunction spoken of in Leviticus chapter 20 correspond to "abominable spheres of whoredom." The Arcana Coelestia also, in referring to laws in the Word relating to marriages, directs our attention to Leviticus chapter 20 for an enumeration of degrees of conjunction allowed and forbidden.

     That "whoredoms" and "adulteries" involve such things has been testified to me from much experience in the other life. The spheres from spirits who have been of such character have made these things evident; from the presence of spirits who have confirmed falsities in themselves, and have applied truths from the sense of the letter of the Word to confirm them, there exhales an abominable sphere of whoredom. Such spheres correspond to all the prohibited degrees (of which, see Lev. 20:11-21), with a difference according to the application of truths to falsities and the conjunction of falsities with evils, especially with evils that gush out of the love of self (of which more may be seen in the work on heaven and hell. n. 384-386) (AE 141:16, emphasis added).

     The laws we read of in the Word relating to marriages, that these were to be contracted within the tribe and the family; and also the laws of inheritances, that these were not to pass from tribe to tribe, also had their origin from the same source, namely, from the celestial and spiritual marriage in the Lord's kingdom, or from the marriage of good and truth, which two are signified by "father and mother"; and in like manner the law enacted concerning the degrees of consanguinity allowed and forbidden: each law in the Word that bears on these matters has reference inwardly to the law of consociation and conjunction of good and truth in heaven, and to the consociations of evil and faisity in hell, which are separate from the former.

405

[Concerning the degrees allowed and forbidden see Leviticus 20.] (AC 3703:17, emphasis added).

     Besides the passages presented above, are there other teachings in the Heavenly Doctrines that associate homosexual activity directly with adultery? Numerous passages make this connection, but they do not use the term "homosexual." Instead they almost always refer to "Sodom," "Sodomite," "the sin of Sodom," or something similar.
     In the little work De Conjugio (Concerning Marriage), after speaking of various other kinds of adultery, instruction is given regarding homosexuality. "The love of self, especially of ruling and yet thinking from the Word, is such as that of Sodom, wherefore they demanded the angels from the house of Lot" (De Conj. 86).
     Similar teaching is found in the Spiritual Diary under the heading: "There are many things which bring about whoredoms and adulteries." There we are taught that "those who are in the highest degree of the love of ruling from the love of self, and not for the sake of use, are in Sodom" (SD 6096:29, emphasis added).
     Again, in the Apocalypse Explained, n. 1006:2, 3, in explanation of the sixth commandment, the spiritual origin of various kinds of adultery is given along with a brief description of the different hells to which these adulterers are sent.

     But it is to be known that adulteries are more and less infernal and abominable.

406

The adulteries that spring from more grievous evils and their falsities are more grievous, and those from the milder evils and their falsities are milder; for adulteries correspond to adulterations of good and consequent falsifications of truth; adulterations of good are in themselves evils, and falsifications of truth are in themselves falsities.
     According to correspondences with these the hells are arranged into genera and species. There are cadaverous hells for those whose delights were the violations of wives; there are excrementitious hells for those whose delights were the debauching of virgins; there are direful, slimy hells for those whose delights were varieties and changes of harlots; for others there are filthy hells. There are sodomitic hells for those who were in evilsfrom a love of ruling over othersfrom mere delight in ruling, and who were in no delight of use. [3] From those who have separated faith from good works both in doctrine and in life there exhale adulteries like that of a son with a mother or a mother-in-law; from those who have studied the Word only for the sake of glory and not for the sake of spiritual uses there exhale adulteries like that of a father with a daughter-in-law; from those who believe that sins are remitted by the Holy Supper and not by repentance of life, there exhale adulteries like that of a brother with a sister, from those who altogether deny the Divine, there exhale heinous things with beasts; and so on. Such hells are for them because of the correspondence with the adulterations or defilements of good and truth (AE 1006:2, 3, emphasis added).

     In the Arcana Coelestia, the Lord, in teaching about the story in the Word relating to "Sodom," especially calls our attention to the interior evil symbolized in that story: all interior evil from the love of self. While the internal sense maintains this important focus, several passages do refer to the homosexual behavior depicted in the letter of that story. In Arcana Coelestia 2220 this behavior is spoken of as "the worst adultery," and in Arcana Coelestia 2322 it is spoken of as a foulness that is contrary to the order of nature.

     (To be continued)

407

PSALMS AND LIFE 1993

PSALMS AND LIFE Rev. PETER NKABINDE 1993

Psalm 1 begins, "The happiness of the godly and the unhappiness of the ungodly [the happiness of those filled with love for God and the unhappiness of the wicked]: Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful . . . .
     "And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper" (Psalm 1:1, 3).
     The book of Psalms is the Christian's daily guide. The book of Psalms is the Christian's daily bread. There is no state into which a Christian may fall, and there is no state into which he may rise, which will not have been spoken of or appreciated fully there. The changes of the soul are considered not just abstractly without an example to a particular object, but as real things.
     The spirit is shown laboring under guilt and crying with intense suffering for pardon and help. It is also shown as set free and pouring itself forth in praise to think out of the different conditions of the regenerate life, its cloud and sunshine, its pain and peace, its deep self-knowledge and self-condemnation, and its slowly returning consolation. All this is shown and unfolded in the book of Psalms.
     Really spiritually minded men have thankfully made the Psalms their daily "manna" of devotion. They have made the Psalms their heavenly daily bread. For actually "the bread of God is He that cometh down from heaven and giveth life to the world" (John 6:33). In consequence, the body of our Lord which is given to thee preserves thy soul unto everlasting life.
     At this juncture let us examine closely the performance of "fruit" for indeed there is fruit for the soul. Fruit is the result or outcome of any endeavor. Fruit is the result of any effect or product of some cause. Fruit is the result of evil. Fruit is the result of industry.

408

Fruit is the essential sign of the value of the tree. No matter what beauty of growth of leaves, no matter what beauty of flower there may be; if there be no fruit good for food on the fruit tree, its value is of small importance. The religion of man is the same. For without the works in which love and faith come together into one whole where they exist, it is nothing. You remember what the Divine owner of the vineyard is represented to have said: "Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down. Why does it use up the ground?" (Luke 13:7)
     When the Savior on His road to Jerusalem came to the fig tree covered with leaves but having no fruit thereon, He said, "Let not fruit grow on thee henceforward forever." And presently the fig tree withered away. That was a tangible illustration of the sad end of a career in which there has been much occupation but lack of practice. "By their fruits," said our Lord on another occasion, "ye shall know them" (Man. 7:20).
     The fruit collects into one all the goodness of the tree. Such as the tree is, such is the fruit. As the tree is bent, the branches incline. What do we have which we have not received? It is of mercy, the richest mercy, that we are brought out of our evil condition and gifted every moment with the ability to work out our salvation with fear and trembling.
     But we must work. By works is faith made perfect. By works is love made perfect. Works are the revelation of the inward character. We are to a great extent what we do. We are the result of our works. "By their works," our Lord said, "ye shall know them." God will give to every man according to his deeds. Hence, let us ever ask ourselves, Are we growing and fruit-bearing trees? Or are we nothing but weeds?
     Do we bring forth our fruit in due season? Are we carefully cultivating our spiritual tree? Are we deeply moved for it to grow upward? Are we deeply moved for it to grow heavenward? If this be our determination, blessed shall we be in sowing the seed of heavenly faith within ourselves.

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Blessed shall we be in receiving the fruit in its season. Blessed shall we be in beholding fresh truths coming forth, and old truths with the fresh brilliancy of character, from the ever green leaves of ideas growing from the sacred Word. Blessed shall we be in a childlike confidence that all we do and all we suffer will be for our ceaseless good. Blessed shall we be in life, blessed shall we be in death, and blessed shall we be in heaven.
We shall experience the Divine saying: "The Lord shall guide thee continually and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones, and thou shalt be like a watered garden and like a spring of water whose waters fail not" (Isaiah 58:11). So may we grow. So may we act. And so may we be blessed.
NEW CHURCH IN KENYA 1993

NEW CHURCH IN KENYA Rev. ANDREW M. T. DIBB 1993

It is said that one cannot see Providence except in hindsight, for it is from the perspective of time that one sees the various threads and events of life pulled together to form a coherent whole. This is surely the case with Rev. Patrick Magara, of Kisii, Kenya.
A couple of years ago Mr. Magara, a minister in the Reformed Presbyterian Church, went to Philadelphia and then Pittsburgh to study toward a degree. This was the time he first heard of the New Church. His interest was sparked by conversations heard at the seminary he was attending. Interestingly, the things he heard sparked his interest far more than the teaching of the Reformed Presbyterians.

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     His relationship with that organization was not smooth. During this time he came into contact with the New Church and was attracted to it. One thing led to another, and when he learned more for himself, Mr. Magara left the U.S.A. to preach the new gospel in Kisii.
     I first heard about Kenya from Rev. Robert Junge, and my interest was aroused. Another branch of the church springing up, somewhat independently, in Africa? I was delighted to be asked to travel to Kenya to find out what was going on.
     Nairobi is a four-hour flight from Johannesburg, and I went with some trepidation. Were these people for real? Were they just trying to take the General Church for money? Or were they bona fide converts to the New Church? Until we had some answers to these questions we would never know.
     Mr. Magara met me at Jomo Kenyatta Airport in Nairobi. We spent the first night at a hotel in the city and traveled to Kisii by public bus the next day. During that time I got to know Patrick a bit. Our conversations were hampered somewhat by his English, my deafness, and the noise of the bus. However, we communicated.
     He told me his story along the way. When he returned from Philadelphia, he immediately began preaching his understanding of New Church doctrine. For his efforts he was beaten up by the Presbyterians and the Seventh Day Adventists, and ended up in hospital. The damage to his hand has never healed properly. Some good friends of his, who had an empty building in the village of Etora, about sixteen kilometers (10 miles) from Kisii, took in him, his wife Theresa and their five children. Etora is now the headquarters of the New Church in Kenya.
     Etora proved to be a one-street village full of charming people. Their homes are understandably primitive, but the people themselves am gracious and happy, their lands beautifully tilled and cultivated.
     From Etora, Patrick covers his district; he travels into Kisii and to the other side of the town, where there are three congregations.

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Closer to home there are several groups and congregations in neighboring villages. He feels an especially strong call to reach out to the nomadic and warlike Masai people, and bring them the truths of the New Church as well.
     Because funds are in very short supply, Patrick often walks up to thirty kilometers a day visiting his scattered flock. But his energy is indefatigable. He has organized a structure into which the New Church fits. There is Echo Polytechnic, a fairly typical Kenyan school, teaching religion, motor mechanics, bricklaying and other crafts. He has been given control over a local primary school, and plans to upgrade it and include New Church teachings as part of the curriculum. (In Kenya, religion is a required part of education.)
     During my stay in Kisii I traveled to a variety of Patrick's congregations. On a Thursday we visited local churches; on Friday we bumped to Masai land and visited two congregations there; on Saturday we visited the groups beyond Kisii.
     Most of the congregations do not have church buildings per se. The first congregation we visited actually had a sort of semi-thatched, semi-walled structure. In fact, this was the only church building I saw. The rest of the groups met either under trees (as the Zionists do in South Africa) or, as in the case of Masailand, in the middle of a large bush or thicket.
     The New Church in Kenya is still in its early days. While Patrick Magara has read parts of the Writings, the general understanding about the doctrine of the church is still primitive; there are still residual falsities from the former church. I believe that these can be overcome in process of time with proper training and development of the doctrinal understanding of the people.
     The highlight of my trip was the final Sunday morning. Patrick had mentioned that he wanted to be baptized, as did his secretary, Sampson, and some of the men training with him. At the service, when it came time to baptize the people, almost everyone came forward. When names were counted at the end, there had been eighty-five baptisms.

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They would give me only the names of those who had addresses, despite my pleas to the contrary.) With this baptismal ceremony, the New Church was truly inaugurated in Kenya.
     The church there still faces problems. The General Church leadership is working on finding ways of sending someone over to Kisii for a longer time to train, preach and teach. We are also looking for ways of training men like Patrick Magara and his students to become priests of the New Church.
     The Church in Kenya also has added difficulties not faced in South Africa or most western countries: the state requires churches to run schools and clinics if they wish to be registered. At the same time they cannot raise funds unless they are registered-a catch-22 which makes it hard for churches to start up operations.
     I believe, however, that the New Church will succeed, that it will grow and develop like wildfire in Kenya and spread to other countries in East Africa. The Writings make frequent mention of the openness of Africans to the teachings of the New Church, and experience shows us that in total there are more black African members of the New Church in South Africa alone than in the rest of the world put together. Add Ghana to those numbers, and now Kenya, and we can see that a large part of the New Church future lies in Africa. It was both a privilege and a very humbling experience to be part of this growth and development.
SWEDENBORG PUBLISHERS INTERNATIONAL 1993

SWEDENBORG PUBLISHERS INTERNATIONAL Editor 1993

A recent edition of the SPI newsletter includes among its news items the following from Sweden. Ambassador Lars Berquist has received a grant covering five years from the Wallenberg Foundation to write a thorough biography of Swedenborg. Membership in SPI is $15. Write to SPI, Box 717. Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

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ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE NEW CHURCH 1993

ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE NEW CHURCH Rev. MARTIN PRYKE 1993

     (Part II)

     In the first part of our series we spoke of the enlightenment granted to all men, which is essential to their humanity and their salvation, of the peculiar enlightenment of the regenerating man, and, finally, of the natural enlightenment of use which is given to those who perform their use faithfully. Now we would consider the teaching of the Writings concerning one particular use.

The Enlightenment of the Priesthood

     Although we speak of this often, it is, to our knowledge, only spoken of twice in the Writings (TCR 146 and 155). However, there are also two places where the operation of the Holy Spirit through the clergy is described (Canons of the New Church, chapter on the Holy Spirit, and True Christian Religion 146). Clearly this is relevant to our topic, and we will treat of these teachings first.
     The Holy Spirit is the Divine proceeding and operating in creation. It is the creative force in everything spiritual and natural, but here we speak of the Holy Spirit as it reaches and affects man.
     We are also taught that the Holy Spirit is the operation of Divine truth. "The Divine proceeding, which is called the Holy Spirit, in its proper sense is the Word" (Canons IV:5; DLW 249). The Word, or Divine truth, may reach us as enlightenment from the Lord, but it may also reach us in the pages of revelation. As we read the Word, the Lord's truth reaches and affects us. And so we see the Holy Spirit operating both from within and from without. We are not conscious of the former, but we are very conscious of truth reaching us from without through the Word.

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     The operation of the Holy Spirit through the Word frequently reaches us by an indirect route. It is clearly taught (Canons IV:5) that the Holy Spirit may reach us through our fellow man. We may read and study the Word for ourselves, but sometimes others will read the Word to us. Indeed others may bring the truths of the Word to us in a variety of ways. Knowledges of truth and insights are shared; we may show the truth to another and he to us. However, it is important to note that it is clearly said that "the Holy Spirit is not transferred from man to man, but from the Lord through man to man" (Canons IV:4). This means that the Holy Spirit is from the Lord and never from man; it also implies that if we have not received the Holy Spirit (the Lord's truth) into our own lives, we may yet be the means of passing it on to another. This must be so, for we know that an evil man is able to perform genuine uses; he may even serve as a channel for the operation of the Holy Spirit.
     But lest we think that in the transfer of the Holy Spirit, man acts simply as a pipeline, an inactive instrument, it is further shown in the True Christian Religion that man speaks "of himself from the Lord." In illustration of the teaching that "the Lord acts of Himself from the Father, and not the reverse" it is said:

     All the angels in the heavens are filled with the Lord, for they are in the Lord, and the Lord in them; but nevertheless every one of them speaks and acts according to the state of his own mind, some simply, some wisely, thus with an infinite variety; and yet everyone speaks of himself, from the Lord. The case is the same with every minister of the church, whether he is under the influence of truth or error; each has his own utterance and intelligence, and each speaks from his own mind, that is, from the spirit which he possesses as his own (TCR 154).

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     When one expounds the Word (priest or layman), what is offered is from the Lord alone, yet it is "of himself" in the sense that he clothes it in his own understanding and words. Even when he reads the Word itself, there is something of himself in his manner of reading, in his expression or emphasis.1
     1 We believe that we have suggested a way of harmonizing the teachings on this subject as given in the True Christian Religion and the Canons. The reader may be interested in seeing a further consideration by Rev. Dandridge Pendleton in New Church Life, 1984, p. 104ff. This is part of a series entitled "Priest and Layman" appearing in the 1983 and 1984 volumes.
     We read further of the part which the clergy plays in such a dissemination of the Holy Spirit:

     [The Holy Spirit] passes through men to men, and in the church, chiefly [emphasis added] through the clergy into the laity . . . . The clergyman, because he is to teach doctrine from the Word concerning the Lord, and concerning redemption and salvation from Him, is to be inaugurated by the promise of the Holy Spirit, and by the representation of its transfer; but it is received by the clergyman according to the faith of his life (Canons IV:4).

     Surely there are several important points contained in this teaching. The Holy Spirit can be transferred through any man, but because of his occupation, the dedication of his life to the teaching of the Word, the priest is especially active in this function. There is no suggestion of a different kind of transfer through the clergy, just that in his use there is more opportunity for it to happen.
     It is also here made clear that, because the teaching of the Word is the very heart of the work of the priest, it is appropriate that he be inaugurated into the priesthood with the promise that the Holy Spirit may operate through him. This promise is represented by the laying on of hands.

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We will come back to the point that the reference here is to a promise, not to some instantaneous change in the priest himself.
Therefore, it is further shown that the Holy Spirit is only "received" by the clergyman himself "according to the faith of his life." The priest's personal reception of the Holy Spirit is a matter of his own life of regeneration and has nothing to do with his ordination.

(To be continued)
CREATION OF MAN: A DIVINELY ORDERED EVOLUTIONARY PROCESS 1993

CREATION OF MAN: A DIVINELY ORDERED EVOLUTIONARY PROCESS 1993

Seventy years ago a New Church periodical published an article by Lloyd H. Edmiston under the above heading. It has been reproduced in the summer issue of Studia Swedenborgiana. Editor Dr. W. R. Woofenden notes that "this article still speaks forcefully to a question often raised by todays seekers." Here is an excerpt.
"It may be asked: If the materialistic evolutionary philosophy is so irrational in its inability to explain either the origin of life or the origin of any of the deeper phenomena connected with life, why need we concern ourselves with the subject of evolution at all? The answer is that while we reject the materialistic theories and explanations, we are not free to reject the data and evidence on which the evolutionist builds his false superstructure. His facts, in so far as they are facts, are God's own truths on the material plane. The same Lord who gave us the Bible and our revelations also gave us the book of nature. Rightly interpreted every fact of nature testifies to the wisdom and goodness of God. Every sound mind sees there can be no real conflict between genuine spiritual truth and the facts of the Lord's outer universe. Every reverent mind further sees that the facts of nature cannot explain themselves, and that their true explanation can be found only in the revealed principles of spiritual truth."

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Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     MOMENTOUS PLANS AND DECISIONS

     Thoughts upon Summer Browsing

     This summer I spent a week on an Air Force base. The books on the shelves where I stayed were so different from the ones I am used to. Reading different things and thinking different thoughts is a good part of vacationing. Consider the following.
     One of the books of particular interest was called Thinking in Time (The Uses of History for Decision Makers). The authors are Richard E. Neustadt and Ernest R. May (Macmillan, 1986). It is fascinating to analyze decisions that have been made in this world. In this book it is mostly decisions made by American presidents.
     How interesting it is to review the conditions leading up to a decision and to get insight into the personalities and background of the people who took part in those decisions. A passage in Divine Providence came to mind often: " . . . especially in the plans of the general." No. 251 says that the "fortunes of war" are really the Divine Providence " . . . especially in the plans and preparations of the general, even although he then and afterwards may ascribe it all to his own prudence."
     What ingredients went into the actual decisions in national policy? Was history considered? How do you "use" history? It is suggested that you compare the present circumstance to a previous circumstance and then become clear on what differences and what similarities there are to the former situation.
     Does history "repeat itself" as Thucydides seems to suggest in writing of the Peloponnesian wars? A simple answer is "No." There is " . . . no such thing as the identity of a subsequent state of life with a past state" (CL 185). (TCR 32 seems to say that we never get a repetition of the same physical circumstances.)

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     But can we cast light on a present circumstance by recalling something similar in the past? Yes. When Swedenborg was asked in the other world to establish his case by miracles, he was given to compare this to the effectiveness of miracles at Mount Sinai. And it was said from heaven, "You would no more believe from miracles than did the sons of Jacob in the wilderness, nor, indeed, more than they believed when they saw with their own eyes the miracles done by the Lord when He was in the world" (CL 535).
     The growth of the New Church will not be identical to the growth of the early Christian Church. But the Writings do remind us of what happened in church history in order to give us insight into what to expect in the New Church. The truths which the Lord revealed in the New Testament " . . . were not immediately received, not until after a considerable lapse of time, as is well known from ecclesiastical history" (AE 670:2).

     VOTING ON MATTERS OF CONJUGIAL LOVE (4)

     People in the other world often say openly what they had thought when in the natural world. Sometimes the openness shakes us a little, and that is one of the great benefits of the Writings. Things come out into the open.
     Here in explicit words are some arguments making marriage less appealing than adultery.

     Who does not know that the delight of adultery is pre-eminent above the delights of marriage? that adulterers are in perpetual heat and thence in alacrity, industry, and an active life above those who live with one woman only?

     In this frame of mind, one thing seems exciting, enlivening and so attractive; the other seems commonplace, a little boring. Is a book or a television show about marriage alluring?

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     With a married partner love grows cold, and sometimes so cold that at last there is scarcely a single word of speech with her or any sort of companionship that is living.

     Continuing this line of thinking, it was asserted that illicit love restores and vivifies the "deadness of life with a wife." "Is not that which restores and vivifies of more value than that which deadens?"
     These quotations are from CL 500. They represent a majority view. Actually nine hundred out of a thousand subscribed to this view. The minority can seem so weak when we are in a frame of mind remote from the reality of conjugial love.
     People sometimes admit that they go through states in which they lose appreciation of the truth concerning conjugial love. And what is the clear message the Writings give? It is a message about delight, delight that grows deeper and more blessed. We are allowed to hear angels testify to the truth. How does an angel feel who has lived with the same woman for centuries. Jaded? Bored? We meet an angel who tells us what has kept him lively and young.
     Hear me, I pray. I am an angel of heaven and have lived with my wife now for a thousand years. Throughout all those years I have been in the same flower of age in which you see me now and this from living in conjugial love with my wife (CL 355).
ALL JOYS AND DELIGHTS FROM FIRST TO LAST 1993

ALL JOYS AND DELIGHTS FROM FIRST TO LAST Editor 1993

"I know that few will acknowledge that all joys and delights from the first to the last are gathered into conjugial love . . . . Since it is so rare on earth, it is impossible to describe its supereminent felicities from any other source than the mouth of [this page just seems to end and moves on to the next page without ending.]

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SWEDENBORG SAMPLER 1993

SWEDENBORG SAMPLER Editor 1993

     Compiled by Rev. Eric H. Carswell

     This 91-page booklet was compiled for a specific purpose. We mentioned in the July issue that Mr. Carswell had in mind "a flexible source for a number of different discussion-group formats." Three goals he mentions in group discussion are:
     1)      To give people some acquaintance with ideas as they are directly presented in the Writings.
     2)      To help people see the personal implications of these ideas.
     3)      To help people to get to know and appreciate each other better.

     The book takes six works of the Writings and gives a sampling of what they contain. The first is True Christian Religion. Each quotation begins with a heading, and in this case there are 28 of them, all listed on one page and then again in the pages that follow. Reading the list of headings provides a spark of anticipation. Examples include:

     Why doesn't God save everyone?
     Why do we need the Lord?
     Levels of meaning in the Ten Commandments
     How do we acquire faith?
     How much do we have to know?
     Why do some people think that God doesn't care what choices we make in our daily life?

     The same pattern is followed in sampling five more books: Arcana Coelestia, Divine Love and Wisdom, Divine Providence, Conjugial Love, and Heaven and Hell.
     "Who was Swedenborg?" The question is answered in eight lines on page 2. A paragraph of about the same number of lines introduces each of the six books of the Writings.

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Here is the way Heaven and Hell is introduced: "The full title of the final book we will consider is Heaven and Its Wonder and Hell: From Things Heard and Seen. It was first published in 1758. Modern historians have acknowledged Swedenborg's description of the life after death as among the most comprehensive and clear ever set forward. In this book Swedenborg's description of the entire spiritual world starts with a description of heaven and the qualities and life of angels; goes on to the World of Spirits, an intermediate place where nearly all people begin their life after death; and ends with a description of hell."
The questions posed at the end of each quotation seem likely to stimulate valuable discussion, and this book is of great value for group purposes. It should be mentioned that the book is also valuable for the individual reader. If you have long known and loved the Writings, you may find that as you read these lists of headings you can guess a good number of the passages that will follow, because they include many well loved passages. The price of the book is $9.50, which includes postage.
SUMMER SEMINAR OF SWEDENBORG STUDIES 1993

SUMMER SEMINAR OF SWEDENBORG STUDIES Editor 1993

     The New Church College in Manchester, England put on a highly successful international seminar in the summer of 1992. The papers presented were outstanding.
     From Switzerland came Dr. Friedemann Horn who gave a talk, marked by personal experience and insights, entitled "Swedenborg on the Jews." He also gave an address titled "Swedenborg and Kant." From Sweden they had Anders Hallengren whose title was "In Search of the Ancient Code."
     It must have been enjoyable to hear Dr. John Chadwick's talk, "A Swedenborgian View of Greek Myths."

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It makes such interesting and pleasant reading.
Rev. Norman Ryder's intriguing title was "Swedenborg on the Inspiration of the Word." Knowing Mr. Ryder, one expects and gets a scholarly and insightful treatment. The title of Rev. C. V. A. Hasler's talk was "The Structure of Truth." How could one handle that subject in eight pages? Mr. Hasler did so admirably, basing his thinking on True Christian Religion 351.
These six papers were wisely chosen for publication. They are now available from New Church College, 25 Radcliffe New Road, Radcliffe, Manchester, M26 9LS, England (phone 061 766 2521). The cost is four pounds sterling plus postage of two pounds for surface mail.
WRITINGS IN NEW YORK CITY 1993

WRITINGS IN NEW YORK CITY Editor 1993

With the closing in February of the Swedenborg Foundation bookshop, the only source in New York City for books of the Writings and collateral literature disappeared. Now, though, thanks to the kindness of the management of Samuel Weiser Bookstore, a selection of titles published by the Swedenborg Foundation, the Swedenborg Society, and the Swedenborg Scientific Association is available at this bookstore on an ongoing basis. If you have any special requests for books, you can also order them there. The Samuel Weiser Bookstore is located at 132 East 24th Street (between Park Avenue South and Lexington Avenue), New York, NY 10010-3620. They are open seven days a week, and their telephone number is (212) 777-6363. If you are in New York, stop in and look over their wide selection of books on religions of the world, spirituality, and other subjects.

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SIMPLIFICATION 1993

SIMPLIFICATION Adriaan Braam 1993

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     Right after I mailed my letter to NCL (Dec. 1992, p. 561), another very important reason for simplifying and condensing the Writings came to mind, namely, our very own young people, our future, the ones we seem to lose at such a high rate. However, just because we don't see them doesn't mean they are lost. A book, easy to carry around in a pocket, read and shared, would be great for obvious reasons, Can't wait to see the short HH, or will that be hh?
     In that same letter I responded to the important issue of simplification in relation to most letters in NCL on that subject, including two by the late Mr. R. D. Ridgway, who clearly wrote as representing the Canberra group. I sincerely apologize to anyone who thought it was a personal attack; nothing, however, could be further from the truth. To quote Mr. Ridgway, "I will always uphold the freedom to question opinions of interpretations which, rightly or wrongly, appear to be harmful to the progress and life of the New Church. Everyone of course has that same freedom" (emphasis added).
     My item #10 in that issue was: "I abhor the expression that the Writings are the Word for the New Church. I believe they are for the world but that's another matter." I felt I had already used enough valuable space. I agree 100% with Miss Heulwen M. Ridgway about the thoughts behind that expression, but I still feel the same about it. It puts the Writings in my mind on the same level as The Book of Mormon and Science and Health, and I would like to think there is a difference. Also, I think it excludes visitors; many societies have their own way of doing things. We also go out of our way to make newcomers welcome; we print sheets so visitors will not get lost in the liturgy.

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They are literally told when to stand up and when to sit down. We have greeters with coffee, a new sign at the road, but once inside they hear, "This is New Church only." We don't read from the Word saying, "This is from the Bible for the Christian Church," but say, "from the Bible." If we believe the Writings to be the Word, then let us treat them as such and just say "from the Writings."
     I very much enjoyed the thoughtful and balanced address "Mountains and Market Places" by Roland Smith as printed in the Swedenborg Society Magazine. The Writings were pictured as a lofty mountain, which made me think we should make the way up the mountain more accessible for the world. Those who have made the climb in full hiking gear may not appreciate how difficult it can be.
     Adriaan Braam,
          Islington, Canada
PAMPHLET BY JANET HEILMAN DOERING 1993

PAMPHLET BY JANET HEILMAN DOERING Editor 1993

The pamphlet entitled The New Church has been reprinted yet again, and that is good news.
The first heading is 'The Word of God": the second is "The Second Coming of the Lord." Here we read: "We believe these Writings of the New Church constitute the Second Coming of the Lord-not indeed in the flesh as before, but in a whole new body of rational truth which can enable us to understand the Lord and His purposes in Creation. We believe these new truths are the answer to what the Lord said while on earth: 'Many things have I to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. The Lord while on earth spoke all things in parables, but in the Writings plainly reveals His own nature, the nature of life after death, and the spiritual meaning of the Bible, which meaning treats of the Lord and the spiritual growth of the individual man."

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1993 CHARTER DAY 1993

Editor 1993

     Announcements

     All alumni and friends of the Academy of the New Church, and members and friends of the General Church, are invited to attend the 77th Charter Day exercises to be held in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, Friday and Saturday, October 22nd and 23rd. Highlights of the weekend are:

Friday the 22nd           Cathedral Service           10:30 a.m.
                         Charter Day Dance           9:00 p.m.
Saturday the 23rd      Charter Day Banquet           7:00 p.m.

     Banquet ticket prices are: Adults $8.00, Students $4.00, Tickets can be purchased by contacting Mrs. David Roscoe at the Academy switchboard: Academy of the New Church, P.O. Box 707 - Benade Hall, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009; phone (215) 947-4200. Tickets can be mailed to you (please send a self-addressed, stamped envelope), held at the switchboard for pick-up by 10:00 a.m. on Friday the 22nd, or picked up at the door Saturday night. In Bryn Athyn, tickets can also be purchased at the Development Office in Pitcairn Hall or at the college office in Pendleton Hall. Tickets will also be on sale in the Society Building before and after Friday Suppers. Checks should be made payable to the Academy of the New Church.

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MINISTERS' CHANGES OF ADDRESS 1993

MINISTERS' CHANGES OF ADDRESS Editor 1993

Rev. Kurt Hy. Asplundh                    100 Iron Bridge Road
Box 277                               Sarver, PA 16055
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009
                                    Rev. Derek P. Elphick
Rev. Wendel R. Barnett                    718 Great Oaks Blvd. - #97
c/o 279 Burnhamthorpe Rd.                    Rochester, MI 48307
Etobicoke, Ontario
Canada M9B 126                          Rev. C. Mark Perry
                                        2119 Seaman Circle
Rev. Ragnar Boyesen                     Chamblee, GA 30341
RD 2, Box 217
Kempton, PA 19529                         Rev. Thomas H. Rose
                                        Box 277
Rev. Erik J. Buss                         Bryn Athyn, PA 19009
5409 - 15401 Avenue NE
Redmond, WA 98052                         Rev. Jeremy F. Simons
                                        156 Park Drive
Rev. Peter M. Buss, Jr.                Glenview, IL 60025
3805 Enterprise Road
Mitchellville, MD 20721                    Rev. Lawson M. Smith
                                        8 Winslow Drive
Rev. Stephen D. Cole                     Westville, Natal
941 Ontario Street                     3630 Rep. of South Africa
Escondido, CA 92025
                                    Rev. Louis D. Synnestvedt
Rev. James P. Cooper                     Box 743, Cairncrest
11910 Chantilly Lane                    Bryn Athyn, PA 19009
Mitchellville, MD 20721
                                    Rev. Douglas M. Taylor
Rev. Michael K. Cowley                    2704 Huntingdon Pike
58 Chapel Hill Drive                     Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006
Kitchener, Ontario
Canada N2G 3W5                         Rev. Aaron B. Zungu
                                        Box 408
Rev. J. Clark Echols, Jr.               Ntumeni
c/o The Sower's Chapel                    3830 Rep. of South Africa

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LAST JUDGMENT 1993

LAST JUDGMENT Editor 1993

     THE LAST JUDGMENT
translated by
JOHN CHADWICK
     From the Latin of two works
by
EMANUEL SWEDENBORG
De Ultimo Judicio
and
Continuatio de Ultimo Judicio
     1992
     Hardcover $9.00 plus $1.50 postage
     General Church Book Center
Box 743, Cairncrest                          Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                         Phone: (215) 947-3920

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Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

Vol. CXIII October, 1993 No. 10
NEW CHURCH LIFE

434

     "In the meeting place of this magazine, we hear different and even contrary views . . . . " So begins a letter in this issue with the unusual title of "Leaves." The final paragraph says: "Friends, do not be afraid to speak and write what you believe to be true. Allow the same opportunity to your neighbors."
     The enlightenment of different individuals is the subject of the articles by Rev. Martin Pryke. In this issue he concludes observations about the enlightenment of the clergy, and in the next issue he will speak of how we can bring different areas of enlightenment together for the good of the church.
     In this issue we conclude the study of homosexuality by Willard Heinrichs, who offers to send further material or answer questions. His address is Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.
     In John Odhner's contribution to the subject he says, "Paradoxically, I find myself wishing for more tolerance not only toward homosexuals and polygamists, but also toward people who cannot tolerate such behavior. People are sometimes condemned as 'homophobes' simply for believing that homosexuality is unhealthy or bad." He empathizes with those who "find themselves upset by our deluge of sexual alternatives, and who don't want to give up their values in order to find approval in a liberal milieu. In our multi-cultural, free-floating society, is it possible to be both politically and morally correct? Can we have distinction without prejudice, discernment without condemnation?"
     A copy of Heaven and Hell in Russian (one of 100,000 printed, we are told) has arrived in Bryn Athyn. The cover is reproduced on page 477. The Swedenborg Society in London has also received a copy. See also page 465.

435

ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE NEW CHURCH 1993

ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE NEW CHURCH Rev. MARTIN PRYKE 1993

      (Part II concluded)

     True Christian Religion 146 speaks in terms similar to those of the Canons:

     The operations of the Lord . . . are effected by influx from the Lord with both clergy and laity.

     . . . enlightenment and instruction are with the clergy in particular because these relate to the function of their office, and inauguration into the ministry carries them with it.

     The number goes on to explain how many believe "when preaching with zeal, that they are inspired like the Lord's disciples . . . [and] some of them also declare that they have felt the influx." But they are warned

     not to persuade themselves that the zeal . . . is the Divine operation in their hearts [emphasis added]; for a similar. . . zeal prevails with enthusiasts, and also with those whose doctrinals are false in the extreme . . . . For zeal is really intense ardor of the natural man. If there is the love of truth within it, it is then like the sacred fire which descended upon the apostles (Acts 2:3, 4). . . . But if the love of falsity is concealed within that zeal or ardor, it is like fire imprisoned in wood, which bursts out and consumes the house . . . (cf. DP 291).

     Again the point is made that zeal (which is of the natural man) is not necessarily a sign that the Holy Spirit is in the heart of the priest. However effective the zeal may be, the Holy Spirit may not have touched the priest personally, despite the appearance.

436

     The reference in TCR 146 to "enlightenment" and "instruction" is enlarged upon in TCR 155, where it is shown that the operation of the Holy Spirit in the work of the clergy involves four elements: enlightenment, perception, disposition and instruction.
     The first element, enlightenment, is "from the Lord alone." The problem here is to know which kind of enlightenment is referred to:

     1.      Is it the light from within (the spiritual light, the light from heaven) which enables us to see and understand truth? The clergyman, like all people, is dependent on this to be a rational human being.
     2.      Or is it the enlightenment from use, of which we have spoken-the light which comes to the priest from his training and from the exercise of his office, and which is represented and promised by the laying on of hands at ordination?
     3.      Or is it the enlightenment which comes to a person as a result of his regeneration?

     We do not believe TCR 146 can be referring to the last because the uses of the priesthood can be carried out well and effectively (and with insight) by an evil priest. The enlightenment spoken of in this number cannot, we believe, be dependent on the state of the priest's regeneration.
     It is our conclusion that it is the first of the above three to which this number refers. The enlightenment of use comes as a result of this and by means of the other elements mentioned.
     The second of these elements is perception, which the priest has "according to the state of his mind formed in him by doctrinals." This is the clear, perceptive view of truth which can come only to the well trained mind. "If these are true doctrinals, perception becomes clear from the light that enlightens; but if they are false, perception becomes obscure . . . " (ibid.).

437

     And so it is enlightenment from within (human enlightenment from the Lord), throwing spiritual light on genuine truth, which gives us a clear and genuine perception.
     Disposition, which is the third element, "arises from the affection of the love of the will; the pleasure springing from this love disposes the man" (ibid.). The number goes on to show that if the disposition is to what is evil and false, then a zeal may be excited which is sharp and unmerciful; but if the disposition is grounded in the love of good and truth, then the resulting zeal may be loud and vehement, but yet it will be gentle and merciful in character.
     And so there is a sense in which it can be said that our love will indeed affect the quality of our work, but the difference may not always be discernible to others, or even to the priest. The evil priest can perform the use (see AC 3676:2, 4311:5, 6914:3, Love XVII:3), but surely the good priest (or a regenerating priest in his states of regeneration) adds a depth and quality to his understanding of the Word and to the exercise of his office which is absent in the evil priest. Yet we must remember the nature of the enlightenment which comes to the regenerating man. It is a glimpse of truth as seen in the natural heaven, and this is inexpressible in human language. It seems to me that regeneration brings to the priest a stronger will (he acts from a genuine love of the neighbor) rather than some elusive insight into the understanding of truth.
     The last step is the instruction which the priest gives. (Or does this refer to the instruction he will receive as he reads the Word?) His teaching (or his understanding) will follow from, and be colored by, his enlightenment, perception and disposition. "Thus enlightenment, which is from the Lord, is changed into varied light and heat in every individual, according to the state of his mind" (ibid.).
     May not the teachings of this number be applied to any person, although they clearly have particular pertinence for the priest?

438

People who talk of doctrine from the Word and so serve as channels of the Holy Spirit will all be influenced by enlightenment, perception and disposition as they speak.
     It seems to us that, in the light of all that has preceded, certain conclusions follow naturally:

     1.      Like all people, priests enjoy a spiritual enlightenment which makes it possible for them to see and recognize truth.
     2.      Any unique enlightenment of the priesthood is a natural enlightenment or an enlightenment of use. "Zeal is really an intense ardor of the natural man" (TCR 146). This is the enlightenment which any person has in his chosen occupation. That of the priest can be described only as a superior enlightenment in the sense that the use of forwarding the salvation of souls is the highest of all uses.
     3.      The operation of the Holy Spirit takes place more through the clergy because their use is more occupied with this activity-teaching the truths of the Word.
     4.      There appears to be no teaching that inauguration into the priesthood automatically brings a special influx of the Holy Spirit.1 Those numbers which speak of the laying on of hands in ordination (SD 6094; DLW 220:2; CL 396e) speak of the representation, but say nothing about a transfer of the Holy Spirit or of enlightenment. The ceremony is an introduction to the use, with the promise that with the faithful performance of that use there will be opportunity to serve in the dissemination of the Holy Spirit (see Canons, Holy Spirit, chap. 4, and TCR 146).
     1 The second sentence of TCR 146 may be read to say this, but I see it differently, as explained in #5.
     5.      What, then, does take place at a man's inauguration into the priesthood?

439

True Christian Religion 146 says: " . . . enlightenment and instruction are with the clergy in particular, because these relate to the function of their office, and inauguration into the ministry carries them with it . . . . "
According to my Latin dictionary (W. Freund) inauguratio means beginning, but inauguro may mean to consecrate, inaugurate, install. Does this number simply refer to entering into the use rather than the ceremony itself? It surely cannot mean that in some miraculous way enlightenment is instantaneously granted by the laying on of hands. This is a rite, not a sacrament. We would make a comparison with the wedding ceremony, which does not bestow conjugial love, but offers the promise that that love may follow if the couple works to receive it. Certainly inauguration is of profound significance, as all such rites are. It is a solemn commitment to a use, but it must be the entering into that use which brings enlightenment. Would we think that a man who was inaugurated and then, for some reason, never undertook the uses of the office is possessed of a unique enlightenment simply by virtue of the introductory rite which was never fulfilled?
6. The enlightenment which a regenerating priest (or any regenerating person) may receive is not something which he can pass on to others. This is a heavenly view of truth which is possible only with the regenerate and so is something which each person must attain for himself.

440

     The priest's primary function is, as we well know, to teach the truths of the Word and so lead to the good of life (see NJHD 315 et al) but this extends to include the conduct of worship (see NJHD 319 and AC 10799) and the administration of the sacraments (Canons, Holy Spirit, chap. 4, nos. 8, 9), as well as the government of ecclesiastical affairs (see NJHD 311, 315-319 and AC 10799).
     Surely priestly enlightenment (the enlightenment of use of which we have spoken above) extends to all these areas. This is perhaps easy to see and accept in matters of instruction and worship, including the administration of the sacraments. But it is sometimes more difficult to accept in the sensitive area of church government-especially at a time in the history of out civilization when democracy is believed to be the only acceptable form of government in all areas of human endeavor.
     Yet it must be true that an enlightenment of use is given to the priest in his role as governor-an enlightenment which will come with a concentration on, and an exercise of, this priestly use. A bishop, from his experience, has an insight into the needs of the whole church and how he can best govern; and it is similarly so with a pastor.
     Nevertheless, it must be added that enlightenment (from the Lord, but yet frail with man) does not imply infallibility. This is true whether it be the enlightenment of the priest or of the layman. We respect the insight which the performance of a use brings, but the priest should beware of thinking that this means that his pronouncements (be they concerning doctrine or church government) are without fault or are free from human error.
     It follows that no priest can know when he is acting from genuine enlightenment; it is not perceptible to him and, as the Writings teach, he may easily mistake a zeal from the love of self for a genuine insight into the doctrine or into his use.
     Conclusion
In the third part of my presentation I shall consider the enlightenment of the laity, and follow this with some suggestions (most of which are not new) concerning how we can best bring all these different areas of enlightenment together for the good of the church.

     (To be concluded)

441

WORD AND HOMOSEXUALITY 1993

WORD AND HOMOSEXUALITY Rev. WILLARD L. D. HEINRICHS 1993

     (Concluded)

     Lest we might gain the impression that actions of external behavior are not directly related to the evils which are of concern in the internal sense of the Word, we should note the following passage which speaks of the direct relationship which exists between various spiritual sins and various kinds of adulterous acts. Again homosexuality is specifically included in this discussion of various degrees of "criminality."

     There Are Many Things Which Bring About Whoredoms and Adulteries

All degrees of criminality correspond to such things as are spiritual sins. I will mention two. Those who are in faith alone and do not trouble about life produce adultery with an aunt and with a mother. At the presence of these [spirits], such a thought occurs. Those who worship piously and devoutly in churches, and at such times think solely about God, and not about life-to these adulteries with a sister correspond. Such a thought occurs at their presence. Another execrable adultery [is produced] by those who talk much about God, and yet have no scruples about cheating men, and, if they could, about robbing them of their possessions. These, in their place, commit adultery with their maids, whom they change frequently, and thus with whomsoever they please. Those who are in the love of self and whose love is to rule over others, are Sodomites (SD 5939, emphasis added).

     Further insight into the character of the behavior of those in ancient Sodom and its relation to adultery and whoredom is given by the following passage from The Last Judgment (Posthumous):

442

. . . When the wicked increase in number, the society is then perverted; wherefore angels are then sent thither who search out the state and separate the good from the evil . . . . Once I saw that four angels were sent to such a city, who when they came thither entered into a house; but the criminal spirits who, were there, being excited by their presence into interior malice, as takes place, rushed to the house where the angels were, shouting out to them, Did they wish to come out and commit whoredom? They wished to urge them to it, and even attempted to offer violence, but in vain; in a word, they did like what was done in Sodom. And that city was completely destroyed and its inhabitants cast into hells. The reason why they wished to lead them forth to commit whoredom was because in that city were gathered those who in the world had accounted adulteries as allowable; also because they had been in falsities of doctrine, by reason of having regarded life as of no account; moreover, to confirm these things they had falsified the Word, and all those who falsify the Word in order to confirm evils of life and falsities of doctrine account adulteries as allowable and are let into them (n. 136, emphasis added).

Similar incidents are described in Continuation of the Last Judgment 26 and in Spiritual Diary 4932. In still another passage we are told of a certain one who believed himself exalted and learned above others, and came into the fire of self-love. This individual tried to commit sodomy on Swedenborg's spirit. Again this activity is referred to as "adultery."

Concerning a Certain One Who, for the Sake of Approbation, Assented to the Doctrine of Charity

(It was Rudberg.) He was once called upon to promulgate those things which were written by me; hence he believed himself exalted and learned above others, and came into the fire of self-love; and as he was acquainted with me, he therefore assented to, and approved all things with pleasure, although, within himself, he had acknowledged, and had been well versed in, a totally different doctrine-which was the doctrine of faith alone.

443

He then applied himself to the back, and constantly committed adultery in intent. Hence it is manifest that from such persons proceed adulterations (SD 4836, emphasis added).
     In the following teaching, homosexual adultery and its sad consequence after death are directly discussed.

     Concerning Sodomy

In the other life (are they) who have committed the sin of Sodomy (sodomiae peccatores) during life. These have believed nothing concerning a life after death, and that (there is) a hell and heaven: but that they are entirely like beasts, and would die like them; wherefore they possess no intellectual (principle) although they can reason. In the other life they are treated most miserably: they are punished with infernal torments, which are so dire that they can scarcely be described; and moreover (constitute) the region of the tail (caudae) where are the feces: because they are dung and dwell in privies. 1748, July 25 (SD 2675, emphasis added).

     Reflecting on a teaching such as this, one should remember that there are degrees of seriousness associated with all evils. Associated with adulteries there are four degrees according to which predications, pronouncements of guilt, and, after death, imputations are made. Surely these degrees would apply to the adultery of homosexuality also. The above passage, SD 2675, would seem to refer to those confirmed in more serious degrees of this adultery.
     For a complete treatment of the kinds and degrees of adultery, one should read all of CL 478-500. For an overview, the headings are given first in n. 478:3. In particular, headings VI to XIII include these descriptions of the four degrees:

444

     Adulteries of the first degree are adulteries from ignorance.
     Adulteries of the second degree are adulteries from lust.
     These are imputable according as the understanding afterwards does or does not favor them.
     Adulteries of the third degree are adulteries from reason.
     Adulteries of the fourth degree are adulteries from the will, which are committed by those who make them allowable and pleasing. These are grievous in the highest degree.

     These same teachings about degrees of adultery should be kept in mind when we reflect on what is guardedly recounted about confirmed lesbians in the spiritual world in the Spiritual Diary 3895-3900.

     Concerning (Certain) Most Wanton Maidens

3895. Certain female spirits . . . appeared nude and of a snowy whiteness, which signified that . . . they wished to exhibit themselves as innocent before the eyes of those who were present, and thus to withdraw themselves from their sight; for it is their ideas which are thus represented, inasmuch as they would fain present themselves to the view of others as altogether innocent. . . .

3896. They removed themselves to the rear, saying they neither had had nor wished to have anything to do with men, but that they had lived among themselves without men . . . .

3897. They were at the same time in the rear, seeking a place where they might be alone by themselves, receding at length to the bounds of the universe; but it was observed that they were higher above in the rear, where I had previously noticed nothing. When they came to the bounds of the universe from behind, they then spoke with each other (saying) that there were no men present and that they might begin; but their obscenities were not shown me, except that there was a woman appareled like a man.

445

There they were delighting themselves in abominable lewdness. . . .

3899. What they afterwards became it was given to me to know, viz., that being captivated with such base delight they care nothing for, but loathe, the men, and thus all natural modes of connection, whence also they loathe and nauseate matrimonies, which if they enter into they are moved by no pleasure, and thus conjugial love is lost with them and turned into loathing, wherefore they can rarely have offspring, and if they have, they do not love them, for this follows from the destruction of conjugial love. (They love) only their vile cupidities which soothe and occupy the mind with a foul delight. Many of them become the vilest prostitutes, and they are then viler than all others, for they care nothing for decency or any external bond, all shame with them being put away; wherefore as they are prompted by no other than such a kind of stimulus, they have lost all that is otherwise pleasurable in sexual intercourse. That such is the fact was (clearly) perceived.

3900. What they at length become in the other life was also shown. They appear as bony skeletons, so entirely bony, especially as to the cranium and ribs, that nothing whatever of flesh appears. It was said that they lose everything vital. What becomes of them afterwards I do not know; I can, however, conjecture that they become spirits almost totally void of sense. . . .

The following series of teachings from the Spiritual Diary (3712-3718) about "sirens" in the spiritual world also, in rather guarded terms, makes reference to lesbian activity. As the series goes forward it becomes clear that these sirens can have a very powerful yet subtle effect on minds of people living in this world, continually working to undermine and destroy all spiritual and moral life with a person.

446

Continuation Concerning Sirens

. . . Such, moreover, especially desire to come into the world through others, because they are exceedingly deceitful, insinuating themselves through good affections, and having no other end than regard to self and the world . . . . They have a highly persuasive kind of life . . . .

Women constitute the greatest portion of the sirens of this kind, even those who had been distinguished in the life of the body, and who had been held in pre-eminent esteem because they had lived in fair externals, in which alone they delighted; for they do not manifest their wiles, scarcely indeed their ends, but yet they may be detected.-1748, October 26.

During still another day the sirens were with me, and caused me great annoyance, but of what quality they were appeared from this, that when left to themselves they were borne away into things so atrociously obscene that nothing, as I heard, could be more so, and that too among themselves. It may thence be known that there is (with them) no internal bond which shall coerce (their evils), no conscience or acknowledgment (of right), still less the persuasion of anything true and good; but that their interiors are altogether loosed from restraint, not bound except by merely external bonds, such as a regard to decorum and apparent probity, which perhaps influences them more than others. But their interiors are such, so dissolute and relaxed, that provided external bonds were removed, as they are while acting licentiously among themselves, they would rush without horror, without shame, without check from any interior law, into the most abandoned, iniquitous, and obscene acts. Such, at any rate, are their thoughts, for any one can know from this whether a law of conscience constrains one, viz., that he is unwilling to think of this or that because it is evil, because it is base, because it is obscene, so that when such a thought is suggested he is struck with fear, with shame, with horror, or is in some other way withheld from it . . . .

447

[W]hatever of true and whatever of good they see they do not lay hold of (and appropriate), because they are only in externals, but they immediately seize whatever (of this nature) they can, and regard it as a means of deceiving, of perverting, of insinuating themselves, of ensnaring, and of turning it into something magical; for whatever is pious or holy with others becomes with them an external means, and so on. . . .

Sirens desire above all things to obsess man; but still (to do this upon) his interiors through the exteriors, which I experienced during two or three days . . . . The corporeal memory also, thus whatever is of science and of knowledge, they wished to appropriate to themselves, (and) thus to obsess, and to return into the world through another, which obsessions are interior. Whether many persons are at this day thus obsessed may hence, it seems, be inferred: let a man examine himself (and see) whether he is in any internal bond, so that his thoughts shall abhor and turn away with loathing (from evil); let him prevail upon himself to abstain in some way from the most wicked, abominable, and obscene practices, inwardly or as to his thoughts, and let him then consider whether they are merely external bonds that restrain him, which, if they were removed, he would desire, without the fear of the law, to perpetrate them, and would perpetrate them-if he is such a man, then he is inwardly obsessed by such sirens, which obsession prevails at this day, whereas with the Jews, and in the time of the Lord, obsession was external.

Let a man thoroughly consider whether he is of such a quality, for he is now able to know . . . .

For the rest of the series see SD 3718-3723.

While urging that we should apply the doctrine regarding the degrees of adultery to homosexuality, we would do well not to minimize the evil of homosexual activity or the behavior itself. The Lord in His Word, when referring to these activities or behaviors, speaks in the most pejorative terms. They are called "abominations," "foul conjunctions," "foul adulteries," a "foulness that is contrary to the order of nature," "abominable lewdness," "obscenities," "things so atrociously obscene that . . . nothing could be more so," and "most abandoned iniquitous and obscene acts."

448

Why are these acts so roundly condemned? The answer must surely be found in those teachings where the Lord tells us why marriages are so holy. They are so holy because they " . . . are nurseries of the human race, and hence also the nurseries of the heavenly kingdom" (AC 2733). And in regard to the delights associated with genuine marriage love there are those familiar and thrilling teachings such as the following in CL 68: "It is because of the superior excellence of its use above all other uses that all delights from first to last are gathered into [conjugial love]. Its use is the propagation of the human race and of the angelic heaven therefrom; and as this use was the end of ends of the creation, it follows that all the states of blessedness, satisfaction, delight, gratification, and pleasure that could ever be conferred on man by the Lord the Creator are gathered into this love.
In the light of such teachings it is clear why adulteries of all kinds are declared to be diabolical.

It was said to those who are on high, inasmuch as they are interior adulterers, that this single consideration demonstrated that adulteries are diabolical, namely, that as marriages are for the sake of the propagation of offspring, thus of terrestrial societies, and thence of celestial, which as they acknowledged has in it a Divine end-therefore, whatever destroys or prevents marriages and thus destroys propagation, that is (essentially) diabolical.-1748, October (SD 3697, emphasis added).

Homosexual behavior by definition prevents marriages as they are described in the Word and thus destroys propagation. There is the further very unpleasant consideration that in male homosexual behavior, human seed, containing the rudiment of a new soul, is very commonly commingled with feces or is corrupted and destroyed in some other deplorable fashion.

449

Of course, in female homosexual activity, human seed is wholly absent. In both cases sexual delights are sought in a context which precludes any conjunction of interior loves (see CL 55), and any possibility of the procreation of human offspring and a heaven from them. Surely behavior so contrary to the Lord's Divinely Human end and order must have harmful results to the individual who engages in it. The following teaching seems to have a direct bearing on this matter. While it would appear to be speaking mostly of heterosexual activities, we would suggest that its message might apply to homosexual activities also. This teaching at its conclusion might be seen to hold out hope, at least for some, of eventually being divested of their perverted sexual urges.

     Concerning Those Who Practice Venery without True Conjugial Love, or without the Desire of Procreating Offspring

     Because there are many, especially in Christendom, who contract matrimony late in life, and because they are punished when they conceive and bear offspring apart from lawful marriage, many men and women thence contract such a nature that they desire to practice [sex] without any desire for offspring; thus they altogether exclude from themselves that which is the center and inmost [of marriage] (SD 1202, emphasis added).

     Because this is damnable, they are for such a time separated from heaven; and when they live to the end of their life in the desire of venery alone, not of true conjugial love, and so die, they are grievously punished after death. For there are spirits who speak in a quadrupedal, as it were, pulsatory manner but more quickly and volubly than the others, who coming to the provinces of the generative organs in the man or spirit, investigate whether they are of such a quality; and when they find any that are such, they sink down from the province with the spirit or soul . . . .

450

[By punishments they are divested] of that profane cupidity of practicing venery solely for the sake of lust alone, without any desire for offspring. For they are in this manner [as it were] killed by those spirits who say that they desire to kill them, for such is the "animus" of those spirits that they would kill such persons, wherefore they lay them on their back, and as it were cut them up with knives. The souls also suppose that they are being killed, but in this way they are divested of that cupidity (SD 1203; cf. SD 3922-24).

While we may be convinced that homosexuality in its various degrees of seriousness is a form of adultery prohibited in the sixth commandment, and in some instances the worst adultery; and while upon reflection we may grant that homosexual activities warrant the pejorative terms that the Lord applies to them, still we may neglect to see this evil as a serious threat to our church and our culture. Literature on the subject of homosexuality often suggests that at any given time less than ten percent of the population will have a predominant orientation to homosexuality. Whether or not this has been the case in the past, we cannot afford to be complacent about the future. Many are the teachings of the Heavenly Doctrine which, when speaking of our hereditary nature, remind us that " . . . the will of man has continually been depraved, and at last so that evil has taken entire possession of if, in so much that nothing sound (integer) has remained there . . . . There are few with whom there is anything sound left in the will part" (AC 6296:2, emphasis added).
Still, if we have not felt any inclination to the evil of homosexuality in ourselves, we may be tempted to assume that we, and hopefully our children, are exempt from it. But is such an assumption justified? Let us note carefully what is said in the following teaching about our heredity.

There is an inclination in every man to every genus and species of evil, because there is such a multiplication; wherefore, when man grows up, then by his actuality are excited those genera or those species of evil that happen according to his societies, actions, thoughts.

451

Wherefore, man by nature inclines to every genus and species of evil, and from the determination of actuality is home into this or that, and so multiplies (his) genus and species, according to generations and families (SD 2425, emphasis added).

     It is clear that the character of the society around us, the company that we keep, the activities that we are led into or that we lead ourselves into, the thoughts that engage our attention or the fantasies that we permit ourselves to indulge in can provide the occasions for the arousal of genera and species of evil whose existence in us we never before suspected. When we reflect on teachings such as this, and then on the culture in which we live, a culture that in many quarters accepts homosexuality as a valid alternative to heterosexuality, we may have cause for concern, if not for ourselves then for the children growing up in our society. (See TCR 120:2, noted earlier in this article.)
     To make matters worse, it is elsewhere reported that there is inherent in those who are evil the continual lust of seducing; therefore the good, who are in consort with them, are infested in various ways. (See AR 884; cp. CL 461:8; DP 324:8, 340; AE 394:2,3.)
     To offset the powerful and seductive influence of hell acting through both the well-disposed ignorant and the deliberately evil in our culture, the Lord in His Word has mercifully provided us with both direct and indirect teaching bearing on the adultery of homosexuality. What will we do with this teaching? Will we affirm it, or will we deny it? Will we in embarrassment and fear hide the Lord's light under a bushel, or will we set it on a lampstand to give light to all who are in the house? Will we abuse this teaching to hurt and condemn people in their evil, or will we use it to help and redeem them from their pit? How a church deals with the Lord and His Word has always determined whether it finally lived or died.

452

How is the New Church going to deal with what our Lord says about homosexuality? When we contemplate this challenge let us reflect on what the Lord has declared in the Arcana Coelestia Nos. 231 and 232, and pray that what is said there never applies to the New Church as we have come to know it.

     The evil of the Most Ancient Church which existed before the flood, as well as that of the Ancient Church after the flood, and also that of the Jewish Church, and subsequently the evil of the new church, or church of the gentiles, after the coming of the Lord, and also that of the church of the present day, was and is that they do not believe the Lord or, the Word, but themselves and their own senses. Hence there is no faith, and where there is no faith there is no love of the neighbor, consequently all is false and evil.
     At this day, however, it is much worse than in former times, because men can now confirm the incredulity of the senses by memory-knowledges (scientifica) unknown to the ancients, and this has given birth to an indescribable degree of darkness. If men knew how great is the darkness from this cause they would be astounded (AC 231, 232, emphasis added).

     Balancing such teachings as these there are also many heartening and uplifting assertions of our Lord as to what the future can hold for the New Church. May we have from Him in His Word the stout courage and, at the same time, the gentle wisdom to meet the many challenges that adulteries, including homosexuality, pose to the establishment of true marriage love in the church and the achievement of the Divine end in creation through it. Has not our Lord given us this promise?

After His advent, conjugial love will be raised up anew by the Lord, such as it was with the ancients; for this love is from the Lord alone and is with those who are made spiritual by Him through the Word (CL 81e).

453

WORST ADULTERY 1993

WORST ADULTERY Rev. JOHN L. ODHNER 1993

     A PAPER DELIVERED TO THE COUNCIL OF THE CLERGY

     in March 1993

Many Shades of Gray

     People who use scanners and monochromatic computer screens find that the quality and clarity of a picture is better when it is displayed in many levels of gray than when it is displayed only in black and white. The more levels of gray there are in a gray scale display or print, the better the picture will be. I once scanned a photograph into a computer and it displayed very clearly on the computer monitor with 256 levels of gray. But when I printed it on a black and white printer, the whole picture turned black.
     I believe our picture of marriage and adultery is similar. If we see everything in black and white terms-either as very good or very bad-our picture will not be as good as if we are able to distinguish many levels of gray. The ability to distinguish between mild sexual faults and serious adultery is crucial to getting a clear picture.

Otherwise the distinction between the more chaste and the less, and the more unchaste and the less, cannot stand out in a person's idea. Without these distinctions, all relation between them is lost, and with this, all clear-sightedness in matters of judgment. The understanding is then involved in such shade that it does not know how to distinguish fornication from adultery, and still less the mild kinds of fornication, and likewise of adultery, from the grievous. Thus it mixes evils together, making from diverse evils one pottage, and from diverse goods one paste (CL 444a, emphasis added).

454

What Happened at Sodom

     I have sometimes heard New Church people say that homosexuality is the worst kind of adultery. Some people think that this is the teaching of the Writings. I am not aware of any passage in the Writings which says, "Homosexuality is the worst kind of adultery." There is however a passage which refers obliquely to the evils of Sodom: "Although in the next chapter [Genesis 19] it seems as if Sodom means the evil that consists in the worst form of adultery, nevertheless nothing else is meant by it in the internal sense than evil that stems from self-love" (AC 2220).
     Some people have assumed that what made the evil of Sodom the worst kind of adultery was that it involved homosexuality. Consequently, they jump to the conclusion that any kind of homosexuality is the worst kind of adultery. However, homosexuality is only one of several significant aspects of the behavior of the men of Sodom. If we look at what the Writings teach about different forms of adultery, we find other reasons for calling Sodom's evil the worst form of adultery.

What Makes Adultery Really Bad

Three Kinds of Adultery

     The Writings speak of three kinds of adultery. Simple adultery is when a married person has sex with an unmarried person. Double adultery is when a married person has sex with another married person. This is twice as bad, because two marriages are broken by it (see CL 482). Triple adultery is with blood relations-incest. This kind of adultery is three times as bad as simple or double adultery (see CL 484). This passage in Conjugial Love refers to Leviticus 18:6-17, where the types of incest that are included involve parents, step-parents, siblings, half-siblings, grandchildren, aunts, uncles and in-laws. (Other verses in the same chapter in Leviticus condemn homosexuality, along with simple adultery, sexual intercourse during menstruation, bestiality and immolation of children. There is no indication that homosexuality should be included in the same category as incest.)
     One of the reasons why what happened at Sodom was "the worst kind of adultery" was that it must have involved incest-"The men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter."

455

Four Degrees of Adultery

     The Writings speak of four degrees of adultery, the first being the mildest and the fourth the worst (unlike our degrees of murder, where first degree murder is worst).

     1.      Adultery from ignorance. Examples are adultery committed by someone who does not know that adultery is wrong or someone who is completely drunk at the time.
     2.      Adultery from lust, when a person is overwhelmed by the heat of the moment, as for example, when a person is seduced.
     3.      Adultery from reason, committed by those who rationalize away their evil, and justify adultery as something good.
     4.      Adultery from the will, committed by "those who make them allowable and pleasing and not of sufficient importance to merit consulting the understanding in respect to them, making no judgment concerning adulteries as to whether they are evil or not" (CL 492).

     We cannot be certain of the degree of adultery committed by the men of Sodom, since we have very little evidence to go on, and we cannot fully know another's intentions. We know that Lot tried to talk them out of acting so wickedly, and their response was, "Who is he to judge us?" This sounds to me as if it might be adultery of the fourth degree.

Rape

     The lust for violation, or rape, is one of four lusts which are "in the highest degree destructive of conjugial love" (CL 459). This lust for rape "recedes in consequence of consent, and is sharpened by refusal. It is a burning desire to violate any woman, whether virgin, widow, or wife, who absolutely refuses and resists with violence" (CL 511). The men of Sodom wanted to rape the angels who came to Lot. When Lot gave some small consent for them to take his daughters instead, they weren't interested. It is not perfectly clear whether their lack of interest in his daughters was because they were women or because there was a degree of consent on Lot's part.

456

I suspect both reasons may have been involved. In any case, their lust was certainly excited by Lot's refusal. Swedenborg cautions us that few men are in this lust; not every man who is inappropriately forceful with a woman is in the lust for violation. Yet there seems to have been at least a degree of lust for violation displayed in the actions of the men of Sodom.

Group Sex

     Conjugial love can exist only between one man and one woman. To the extent that sexual relationships are shared with more than one they become external and adulterous.
     Love of the sex, being a love shared with many-and in itself natural, yea, animal, is impure and unchaste; and being a roving and unlimited love, is scortatory (see CL 47).
     Promiscuous premarital sex is worse than premarital sex limited to one woman (see CL 459, 460). Taking a concubine while still sexually active with one's wife is worse than taking a concubine after having separated (see CL 463-467).
     One of the four lusts which are "in the highest degree destructive of conjugial love" is the lust for varieties (CL 459). People with an advanced lust for varieties "desire the women of all the world and troops of them . . . and think of the whole female sex as a common harlot" (CL 507). I suppose that if having many partners sequentially is destructive of conjugial love, then having many simultaneously is even more so.
     It seems likely that one of the reasons why the evil of Sodom was great was that it involved group sex.

Homosexuality vs. the Evil of Sodom

     I think it is clear both from the record in the Old Testament and from the teachings of the Writings that the evil of Sodom was the worst form of adultery. It involved not only homosexuality, but rape, group sex and incest, apparently with deliberate intent. The term "sodomy" has been used to denote all forms of homosexuality, but this is not a valid reason to conclude that what the Writings say about the evil of Sodom applies to all forms of homosexuality.

457

Kinds and Degrees of Homosexuality

     All evils have various kinds and degrees (see CL 478) similar to the kinds and degrees of adultery. With a little discernment we should be able to see how homosexuality can vary from a relatively mild problem to a very serious evil.

The Degrees of Adultery Applied to Homosexuality

     The degrees of adultery described in Conjugial Love (485-496) refer to the degree of conscious intention that is involved in the adultery. These degrees would apply in a similar way any kind of evil. Thus there would be four degrees of homosexuality:

     1. Homosexuality from ignorance
     2. Homosexuality from lust
     3. Homosexuality from reason
     4. Homosexuality from the will

     So we could say that homosexuality is light if one does it from ignorance, or momentary lust, especially if it is not repeated or approved of afterwards. Homosexuality is worse if it is justified as being good, or if it is done from the will with no concern for whether it is good or evil.

Homosexuality Is Not Necessarily Adultery

     The term "adultery" can be defined narrowly or broadly. In a broad sense adultery might include everything which undermines or shows disrespect for marriage, including pornography, sexual fantasy, masturbation, obscenity, premarital sex, concubinage, etc. We could add various kinds of spiritual adultery, such as using Scripture to justify evil actions. Such a broad definition may help us see how a faithful husband or wife can apply the commandment not to commit adultery. On the other hand, such a broad definition may lead us to the kind of black and white thinking that "makes one pottage of various evils.
     The Writings usually use the term "adultery" in a more strict sense that involves breaking a marriage covenant. For example, Swedenborg makes it clear that fornication or premarital sex may be immoral, but it is not adultery (see CL 449, 445, 444a; cf. 482), because when both sexual partners are unmarried, no marriage covenant is broken.

458

     From these teachings about premarital sex, we can conclude that homosexuality before marriage is not as harmful as homosexuality after marriage. To indiscriminately label all homosexuality as adultery might cause us to overlook this important distinction.

Homosexuality with Promiscuity, Rape, Incest or Seduction

     By making comparisons with various other teachings about heterosexual immorality, we can draw some general conclusions about different kinds of homosexuality. The following table suggests some of the comparisons we might make.

     Teachings about                         Conclusions about
     Heterosexuality                          Homosexuality

Premarital sex limited to one is                Homosexuality with one partner

not as bad as promiscuous pre-                is not as bad as homosexuality
marital sex (CL 456).                         with many partners.
Lust for rape is worse than sim-                Homosexuality involving con-
ple adultery (CL 511).                         senting adults is not as serious
                                        as homosexual rape.
Incest is worse than simple adul-                Homosexuality is worse if it in-
tery (CL 484).                               volves incest.
Seducing innocent people is                     Homosexuality between consent-
worse than simple adultery               ing adults is less serious than
(CL 513).                                    when it involves seduction of
                                             innocent people.
Lust for defloration is worse                Homosexuality is worse when it
than simple adultery (CL 501).                involves people who have not
                                        had prior sexual experiences,
                                        and when initial desire turns to
                                        contempt and loathing.

459

Evil Mixed with Good

     A person may be predisposed to homosexuality because of hereditary evil or genetic factors. A person's sexual outlook can be deeply influenced by childhood sexual experiences over which the person has no control.
     Evil can become deeply rooted in people without their complicity or fault. The Writings speak of two sources of actual evil that a person acquires to himself by a life of evil. "One is that he receives evil from others through no fault of his own; and the other is that he receives it of his own accord, thus through his own fault" (AC 4171).
     Swedenborg gives the example of someone who at first thinks his marriage is heavenly, but later becomes persuaded that marriage is a worldly contract that can be dissolved by mutual consent. Consequently the person loses the concept of heavenly marriage and lasciviousness results (see AC 4171:4). It seems to me that a person might similarly become persuaded that homosexuality is a valid alternative lifestyle, and as a result become homosexual through no fault of his own. As long as the person is not inwardly persuaded of it, the evil remains only in externals, and is the kind of evil through which good can come (see AC 4172).
     The Writings say that hatred, cruelty, revenge and contempt cannot be mixed with good. Other evils which are not so opposed to love for God and others can be mixed with good (see AC 3993:8). If a person is homosexual but is not cruel, vengeful or hateful, then his evil could possibly be mixed with good.

Other Factors

     There are various other factors that may mitigate or aggravate the seriousness of homosexuality. For example, gender differences must be a factor in homosexuality. Men and women respond differently to sex. Some passages in the Writings can be taken to imply that premarital sex is worse for women than it is for men (see CL 503, 504, 459, 460). Certainly homosexuality with men is different from homosexuality with women (compare CL 55). I don't know whether this difference makes homosexuality worse for one sex than for the other. Medically, gay men are at greater risk than lesbians. I don't know which sex would be at greater risk psychologically and spiritually.

460

     It could be argued that bisexuality is worse than homosexuality. A homosexual person might limit his or her sexual activities to one person, while a bisexual person does not. One might say that a person who is homosexual may feel unable to choose a heterosexual lifestyle, while a bisexual person has the ability to choose. A bisexual person does not have an aversion for the opposite sex, but perhaps it is better to be hot or cold than to be lukewarm. This issue is not very clear to me.
     I don't know how many other factors may be involved in understanding how mild or serious homosexuality is with an individual. Perhaps there are very important factors which I have not mentioned, or perhaps I have misapplied some of these factors. Regardless of omissions and errors, it should be clear that there are many different kinds and levels of homosexuality, and it can be misleading to lump them all together.

Comparison with Polygamy

     We may learn something about homosexuality by comparing it to polygamy. The Writings say some pretty serious things about polygamy. Polygamy is lascivious, makes conjugial purity, holiness and chastity impossible, and prevents a person from becoming spiritual (see CL 345-7). A Christian Polygamist commits not only natural but spiritual adultery, profaning the Word and the church, and bringing on himself a worse damnation than do those who commit only natural adultery (see CL 339). It is detestable and unlawful, closing heaven to a Christian and driving him spiritually insane (see CL 464). It is "the deprivation of all ability and inclination for the conjugial life which is within Christians from birth" (CL 466).
     As with other kinds of sexual behavior, polygamy is serious for some people and mild for others. For Christians, polygamy is terrible. For others, it is not so bad. It is not harmful for those who are natural (CL 340). It is not a sin with those who do it from religion (CL 348), or with those who do not know about the Lord (CL 349). There is even a place in heaven for good polygamists where they can have several wives and concubines (CL 343), although they may eventually have to give up their polygamy (De Conj. 47). Apparently the Lord is very tolerant with human weakness and lust with people who are trying to be good.

461

     I suspect that homosexuality may also be an entirely different matter for a non-Christian than for a Christian. There are homosexuals in our culture who are ignorant of any genuine Christianity. There are people for whom homosexuality is allowed by their religion. Could it be that for such people homosexuality is not a sin? Can they, like polygamists, worship God and shun evils as sins? If so, what happens to them after death?
     By Divine Providence, polygamy is allowed in Islam because it could prevent them from falling into much worse adulteries (see CL 342:4). By legalizing lust, polygamy also limits it (see CL 345). Although I am saddened by current efforts to make homosexual "marriages" legal, I suspect that if such laws pass, they will be tools the Lord can use to put limits on this human lust. The Lord turns evil to good and overlooks evils in good people, and tolerates lesser evils in order to prevent greater ones. Considering this helps me become more tolerant of the evil and observant of the good in other people. If the Lord can allow polygamy on earth and even to an extent in heaven, can't we be a little less judgmental toward homosexuals?
     Paradoxically, I find myself wishing for more tolerance not only toward homosexuals and polygamists, but also toward people who cannot tolerate such behavior. People are sometimes condemned as "homophobes" simply for believing that homosexuality is unhealthy or bad. Some people seem intolerant of polygamy. Angels fall from heaven when they think about polygamy (see De Conj. 43). People from the Golden Age would exile those who thought about it (CL 75), and even people of the Copper Age cannot tolerate the presence of polygamists (CL 78). Probably the Polygamists who get exiled would label these angels "polyphobes." People from Christian heavens have nothing to do with people from polygamous heavens, because otherwise each group would be living with constant challenges to their chosen lifestyle. The lewd and immoral atmosphere around the polygamists would take all the pleasure out of life for the Christians, while the polygamists would always feel rebuked by the Christians' insinuation that polygamy is a sin (see CL 352).
     I suspect that the Christian angels who detest polygamy would have similar feelings about homosexuality. I empathize with angels in this world who find themselves upset by our deluge of sexual alternatives, and who don't want to give up their values in order to find approval in a liberal milieu.

462

In our multi-cultural, free-floating society, is it possible to be both politically and morally correct? Can we have distinction without prejudice, discernment without condemnation? I suspect that part of the answer lies in the fact that a person with discernment can distinguish many shades of gray, while condemnation and prejudice involve only black and white.

Reasons for Levels of Gray

     A little consideration of homosexuality has demonstrated that there are many kinds of homosexuality-many different levels of gray. A person who has a one-time homosexual experience as an ignorant teenager or in a drunken stupor is many levels of gray away from the people of Sodom, whose intentions included rape, incest and promiscuity. If a woman who had as a child been repeatedly raped by her father finds gentleness and safety in a lesbian relationship, it would seem obvious that her father's adultery was far worse than her homosexuality. How can we possibly tell her that she is involved in the worst form of adultery?

Focus on Intention Rather Than Action

     I suspect that one reason why the Lord teaches us about all these different degrees of sexual immorality is so that we can see more clearly that the real evil is never in any action pet se, but in the intention behind the action. The worst degrees of adultery are those which involve the worst intentions, whether they are committed in act or not (see CL 494). By looking more carefully at the intentions involved, we may come to see that people who appear to be involved in serious evils are in a bad state through no fault of their own. We may also come to see that those of us who appear outwardly to be moral and chaste still have impure loves (cf. CL 71).

Leading to a Milder Hell

     Another reason for learning the many levels of gray is to aid the process of growth and healing. Often in our sexual lives as in other areas we are constrained to choosing the lesser of two evils (cf. CL 459, 452 re fornication; 475 re concubinage).

463

Before the Lord can lead us to heaven, He must first lead us to a milder hell (see DP 183). The evils are cast out little by little, one small step at a time. The more stepping stones we have, the easier it will be to get across the river.
     Despite the inroads of the gay-rights movement, there are few homosexuals today who are suffering from a lack of condemning messages from our society. Surely the evil spirits, who love to accuse and condemn (AC 751, 761, 5036:4, etc.), amplify the judgmental messages society sends, seeking to trap people in the mire of shame. They probably take advantage of the fact that people under attack feel inwardly shamed, and will outwardly defend or deny their evils in order to deflect the shame. Attacking evils in others often serves only to strengthen the level of defense and denial.
     Angels scarcely see evils in a person, rather observing all his good and true qualities, and putting a good interpretation on what is evil and false (see AC 1079). The angels know that the evil is not from the person but from hell, so in temptations they defend the person's falsity and evil, for otherwise he would yield (see AC 761). It seems that angels would rather paint a person's evil in fine strokes of lighter gray than use the broad, black brushes we efficiently wield.
     We are inclined to emphasize the severity of an evil, thinking that by making certain actions look really terrible we will encourage the people who do those things to desist. Unfortunately, the effect is usually the opposite of what we intend. By magnifying the intensity of an evil, we discourage people by describing a very wide chasm for them to cross. When we define homosexuality in black-and-white terms (e.g., when we describe even simple homosexuality as the worst kind of adultery), we remove the very stepping stones which might help people cross the chasm, and we fail to offer the acceptance and understanding that might encourage them to make the effort.

Note: Your attention is invited to articles on homosexuality in the September Theta Alpha Journal, notably: "For with God Nothing Shall Be Impossible" and "What Is Spiritual Homosexuality?"

464

Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     THE TRINITY AND COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP

     Several months ago the Conference of the New Church in Great Britain was refused membership in an ecumenical council. The CCBI (Council of Churches in Britain and Ireland) denied membership to the New Church for the following reason: "A clear and unambiguous acceptance of the Holy Trinity as expounded in the historical creeds of the Church" was a requirement for membership. The New Church was deemed not to meet this requirement.
     This is reported in the April issue of Lifeline, where it is also reported that, because of this national ruling, one local organization expelled a New Church group from a Christian association.
     Should one even try to join an interdenominational organization? One consideration is the use to be served. Some New Church ministers are quite active in interdenominational clergy organizations. This has proved quite useful. It is also in keeping with the spirit of the saying in the Writings: "Then would each person say, in whatever doctrine and in whatever outward worship he might be, This is my brother. I see that he worships the Lord, and is a good man" (AC 2385).
     What if our friends in England were to modify their belief about the trinity to secure membership in a council? To their credit they did not. It would have reminded one of the gospel incident of Peter's seeking a place near the fire. All he had to do was deny that he knew the Lord! He did so three times and lived to weep in bitter regret.
     An honest statement of belief and a truthful declaration of what the New Church has to offer may not secure membership in a council this year. So be it. Those who made the refusal could see that the New Church is indeed a new church. We cannot say if or when the acceptance may come.

465

     THREE OCTOBER CELEBRATIONS

     Charter Day is not the only New Church celebration this month. This celebration will bring many people to Bryn Athyn on the weekend of October 25th. One likes to picture a bright autumn day for the procession from the Academy buildings to the cathedral on the morning of the 23rd.
     The weekend before that will be an important one for friends in Chicago. On the 16th and 17th they are celebrating the recognition of the Chicago Circle as a Society of the General Church. This is an occasion of inspiration for us all. The Chicago movement has such an energetic character, and the new members in Chicago give a new quality to the church. One is reminded of the saying that angels "wish for nothing more than to have new angel guests come to them" (HH 71).
     On the 29th Mr. Lars Berquist of Sweden is scheduled to be speaking in Moscow to celebrate the publication of Heaven and Hell in Russian. Concerning Mr.Berquist we quote the following from the summer issue of SPI (Swedenborg Publishers International) newsletter:
     Ambassador Lars Berquist has retired from the diplomatic service of Sweden. In recent years he has served in Moscow, China and the Vatican. A well known author, he has recently published an annotated edition of Swedenborg's Dreambook (Journal of Dreams) and a book on Chinese poetry.
     Lars has received a grant covering five years from the Wallenberg Foundation to write a thorough biography of Swedenborg. In addition, he has been appointed to head up one of Sweden's most eminent cultural organizations.

466

GURDJIEFF 1993

GURDJIEFF Various 1993

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     I am truly amazed at the letters defending Gurdjieff in the August NCL. Leading his dissolute and dishonest life, he is hardly a suitable pastor for New Church people. He cannot have wished to change his ways or make any attempt at regeneration or he would have prayed to the Lord to aid him and He would have done so. His aims seem 100% personal and material.
     Any knowledge of the truth from the Word or from the Writings mixed with an evil lifestyle must have contributed to the worst of sins, that is, blasphemy-the mixing of good and evil. Those who give any credence to his guidance are in grave risk of blasphemy too. How is it that Katherine Mansfield, just because she was a successful authoress, qualifies as a judge in these matters?
     It seems that some are over-anxious about instant regeneration. Truth and good (charity) with honest prayer to the Lord to help us will pull us through in the end. "Little by little," we are told. It is not so difficult.
     John Kane,
          Braintree, England

Dear Editor:
     As a member of the New Church for about sixty years, I cannot but be utterly amazed, not to say "shocked," that-as I read in New Church Life of June 1993-"some members of the New Church seem to have a fascination for the teachings" of a certain Gurdjieff.

467

as stipulated in an article by Leonard Fox-"Gurdjieff: Guide to Heaven or Hell?" How can we reconcile the clear, translucent and inspired works of Swedenborg with teachings such as: "Every thing in the Universe is material"; "It is not God that is omnipotent but the Universal Will"; "Truth can only come to people in the form of a lie"? There are worlds between these thoughts and the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, who from his youth (even before his birth) was prepared by the Lord to look around the spiritual world and speak with angels and evil spirits with the purpose to unfold the spiritual sense of the Old and the New Testaments for our age and ages to come. It was the Lord Himself who led Swedenborg. Where does the authority of Gurdjieff come from? To my mind this man is led by evil spirits, which can only result in misleading upright people who are not critical enough to recognize the influence of hell in his mixture of good and evil. I am thankful to Mr. Fox that he exposed Gurdjieff's disorderly conceptions that are absolutely contrary to what we are taught in the Writings. They can be compared (to my mind) with the urge of bad (political) leaders who want to suppress people, leaders who strive for their own glory, the ones that Swedenborg warns us not to follow because they have dangerous and spiritually detestable ideas. They will not lead to spiritual development for mankind; on the contrary they will destroy Christianity and will lead only to more confusion about the influxes of heaven and hell.
     Tiny Francis,
          The Netherlands

Dear Editor:
     This is in response to the subject of Gurdjieff in your July and August issues, initiated by Rev. Leonard Fox.
     It appears to me that the issue is not Gurdjieff, etc., but the spiritual growth groups mentioned in Mr. Fox's article and the August letters to the editor.

468

The more the matter is considered, the more one realizes that the subject of Gurdjieff, Nicoll, etc. would not even have been raised except by the spiritual growth groups.
     To my knowledge; the spiritual growth groups are not sponsored by, nor are they an official part of, the General Church. Also, I'm not aware that any General Church minister conducts any of these groups officially. It is doubtful that Gurdjieff, or others linked to him, would have been selected had GC ministerial sponsorship had its choice. Instead, aside from sermons, New Church ministers have always tried to convey the truth through doctrinal classes sponsored by the church.
     It seems that AC 6822 is applicable: "Good can be insinuated into another by anyone in his country, but not truth, except by those who are teaching ministers; if others do this, heresies arise, and the church is disturbed and rent asunder. Charity is practiced if through the truth which is of the church the neighbor is led to good. If in the church anything is called truth which leads away from good, this is not worthy of mention, for it is not truth. Everyone must first obtain for himself truth from the doctrine of the church, and afterward from the Word of the Lord; this must be the truth of his faith" (emphasis added).
     Not only is the clergy (teaching ministers-AC 6822) trained in the doctrine of the church, "the embodiment of truth" (AC 4642:1), but they are authorized by the church for these and other reasons. Their main purpose is to teach the truth. For this reason, Gurdjieff, etc., would not enter their minds as an example or authority of truth, any mom than does Shakespeare, because they believe the Writings are the Word of God, thus Divine truth.
     Without calling it such, Mr. Fox has suggested that with Gurdjieff, etc., "heresies arise" (AC 6822), and therefore many in the church are disturbed. But because this spiritual growth movement has come upon the church "suddenly," in terms of the slowly developing "life" and "time" of the organized church, little or no opposition has been heard or recorded.

469

     Mr. Fox has "exposed" this "movement," and judging from the three letters to the editor in the August issue, the reaction has been vehement, as he predicted (p. 250-51). These letters show two things: you can't make a "silk purse out of a sow's ear," and, "convinced against one's will, one is of the same opinion still."
     Further regarding AC 6822, Gurdjieff, etc., is not "truth which is of the church," and in addition, by adherents it "is [inadvertently] called truth which leads away from good" (AC 6822). But by opponents it is "not worthy of mention, for it is not the truth" (AC 6822).
     These opponents subscribe to the last sentence of AC 6822: "Everyone must first obtain for himself truth from the doctrine of the church, and afterwards from the Word of the Lord . . . (emphasis added). The Lord's kingdom (see John 18:34) is not of this world because it is of a life in accord with the Writings of the New Church.
     V. C. Odhner, Jr.,
          Perkasie, Pennsylvania

Dear Editor:
     I regret that some New Church Life readers viewed my article on Gurdjieff as a sort of attack on Peter S. Rhodes's book Aim and on the spiritual growth groups. I referred briefly to Mr. Rhodes and quoted twice from his book simply because Aim has been the primary vehicle whereby people in the New Church have become acquainted with the seemingly positive aspects of Gurdjieffs teachings. My objective in writing the article was not to pass judgment on Aim or the workshops that have developed, but to give information about Gurdjieff's life and about what he really taught-information that may not have been known to some of those in the New Church who have become involved with the Gurdjieff "Work," as well as to indicate what I consider to be the true intention behind that "work."

470

Obviously it is up to each reader to evaluate for himself the information that was presented, and to accept or reject the conclusions I have drawn, but it should have been evident that the subject of the article was Gurdjieff, not Mr. Rhodes.
There is no doubt that Gurdjieff made use of spiritual teachings from the world's religions, but it is my opinion that in formulating his own system, he profaned those teachings by attempting to weave them together with appalling falsities and then present the final product as a seamless whole, a new way to some kind of spiritual enlightenment or, in New Church terms, a method to achieve regeneration. Leaving aside the fact that the essential ingredient of his method was by no means new, but one that has been known and used, in one form or another, for countless centuries (most succinctly expressed by the Greek inscription at Delphi meaning know thyself), the question remains: What was his intention? It seems to me that the Lord is very clear about the nature and importance of intention. He teaches us that "from a man's deeds or works others judge of the thought of his will, which is called his intention" (DLW 215); and also that "the life of man is his love, and that which he loves he wills and intends, and that which he wills and intends, he does" (AC 7779:3); and, further, that "'works' signify the things that are of life because they are the effects of life, for they proceed from the life of everyone. If the life is good the works are good, but if the life is evil the works are evil. The life that is in works is the intention, which is of the will, and of the thought therefrom; and this life is the life of man's spirit; for it is the spirit in man that intends and thinks . . . For this reason the wise do not look at the works, but at the life that is in the works, namely, at the intention" (AE 185).
Although the point I tried to stress in my article was that within the perfect revelation of the Latin Word-the Writings of Swedenborg-the Lord has given a complete and detailed guide to cooperation with Him in the process of regeneration for every human being willing to apply its teachings, I certainly did not mean to imply that New Church people should ignore or reject expressions of Divine truth as they exist in other religious traditions.

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Quite the contrary. For the sake of our spiritual health and well-being, however, it is always necessary to discriminate between authentic spirituality and systems that pretend to authenticity, but whose claims are essentially invalid.
For those in the New Church who feel the need to look outside the Writings for means of enriching their spiritual lives, I would suggest going to real sources of profound insight and unquestionable integrity, and not to distorted caricatures which require a sort of wishful interpretation that attempts to establish for them a legitimacy they do not possess. There is an enormous body of literature that has developed within the traditional religions, the goal of which is to provide seekers with practical methods for spiritual development. The men and women who wrote this literature, or from whom it was taken down in writing, were exemplars of love to the Lord and to the neighbor, individuals who were able to overcome great spiritual temptations and then distill their experiences for the benefit of others. Perhaps in the future their wisdom will be utilized by New Church workshops for teaching true spiritual growth. Space does not permit anything approaching a full list, but the following brief selection will certainly be found useful (all are available in English):

In the Christian tradition-the Orthodox collection called the Philokalia; The Ladder of Divine Ascent by St. John Climacus; Unseen Warfare: The Spiritual Combat and Path to Paradise by Lorenzo Scupoli; the "Spiritual Instructions" and "The Acquistion of the Holy Spirit" by St. Seraphim of Sarov; the sermons of Meister Eckhart and Johannes Tauler; the anonymous Cloud of Unknowing: The Spiritual Espousals by John Ruusbroec; the works of St. John of the Cross; William Law's Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life.

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     In the Jewish tradition-the spiritual instructions of the Hasidic masters, available in a collection by Martin Buber.
     In the Islamic tradition-the letters of Mawlay al-'Arabi ad-Darqawi and Ibn 'Abbad of Ronda; the Divine Flashes by Fakhruddin 'Iraqi; al-Hujwiri' s Kashfal-Mahjub; the Ihya Ulum ad-Din (Revival of Religious Learning) by al-Ghazzali; al-Jilani's Secret of Secrets and Revelations of the Unseen; Jami's Lawa'ih: A Treatise on Sufism; Mahasin al-Majalis: The Attractions of Mystical Sessions by Ibn al-'Arif.

     In the Hindu and Buddhist traditions, there is a huge wealth of material, including such well known classics as the Bhagavad Gira and the Yoga Sutras of Pataiijali, but the works of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi will probably be found most approachable by those new to Hindu methods of spiritual development; Nyanaponika Thera's The Heart of Buddhist Meditation (which teaches a method of "mindfulness" that will surely be of interest to those who have been in a spiritual growth group) and the book Lord, Teach Us to Pray by William Johnston (an updated version of his Christian Zen and The Inner Eye of Love) place Buddhist teachings in a practical form that is particularly useful for those with a Western background.
     To anyone interested enough to read even one or two of the books mentioned here, which represent expressions of authentic methods of spiritual discipline, and not the patchwork grotes-queries of a cult leader such as Gurdjieff, the contrast between the radiance of real gold and the glitter of thinly plated base metal will, I think, be immediately apparent
     Rev. Leonard Fox,
          Bryn Athyn, PA

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LEAVES 1993

LEAVES Richard Linquist 1993

Dear Editor:
     In the meeting place of this magazine, we hear different and even contrary views expressed on a subject. Then we can consider the value and aspects of what is being discussed and be the wiser for that. Those writers who stand surefooted on the field of spiritual truth, revealed through Emanuel Swedenborg, often emit a nice balance of light and heat. This comes through their understanding of the subject. I note that they stand undefeated even under a bombardment of heated criticism, some of which appears in letters to the editor.
     Now, as befitting the cooler days of autumn, let us listen to this poem by Robert Frost.

     BEREFT

Where had I heard this wind before
Change like this to a deeper roar?
What would it take my standing there for,
Holding open a restive door,
Looking down hill to a frothy shore?
Summer was past and day was past.
Sombre clouds in the west were massed.
Out in the porch's sagging floor,
Leaves got up in a coil and hissed,
Blindly struck at my knee and missed.
Something sinister in the tone
Told me my secret must be known:
Word I was in the house alone
Somehow must have gotten abroad,
Word I was in my life alone,
Word I had no one left but God.

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     Summer is past and autumn's leaves can be seen and heard as they scurry along the ground. Dressed in casual clothing in the traditional colors of tan, brown, yellow and red, they play secret games in the breeze. Some wink at us from the corner of the lawn. Others giggle and duck behind a bush.
     But the extremely dry ones, the cynical gossipers, whisper their favorite lies. They coil, hiss, strike but miss. Should we tell evil men that they are spiritually blind? I do not know. Perhaps they should just be left in the darkness. I do know that they are not worth worrying about. If necessary, a spiritually strong man with spiritual truth in his mind can reach out, as it were, and easily crush them to dust.
     Friends, do not be afraid to speak and write what you believe to be true. Allow the same opportunity to your neighbors. I enjoy hearing from those who feel that they have no one left but God, because they are the best reflectors of His love and wisdom.
     Richard Linquist,
          Huntingdon Valley, PA
AMENDING THE LAW 1993

AMENDING THE LAW Evan M. Butterfield 1993

Dear Editor:
An article in your July 1993 issue ("Amending the Law Demeans Marriage" by Rev. Kurt P. Nemitz) demands response. New Church Life has traditionally provided a forum for reasonable discussion of issues, informative and entertaining essays, and illuminating and thought-provoking sermons. Never before in its pages have I seen such intolerance, hatred, and mean-spiritedness expressed as in this article, so much at odds not only with fundamental Christian precepts but also with basic notions of humanity and civil liberty.

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     I have no argument with the author's sentiments regarding the commendable nature of marriage as both institution and spiritual state. I like it too. However, while I am unfamiliar with the particulars of the proposed Maine law, I fail to see how my marriage or family is threatened in any way by a homosexual's being permitted to engage in constructive employment or to live peaceably with a roof over his or her head. What he or she may do while under that roof is an issue between that individual and the Lord, and not of any particular interest to me, or an employer, a landlord, the state legislature, or someone else's clergyman.
     Such laws do not, as the author suggests, carve out some special social recognition for deviant behavior, or create special rights for certain groups; rather they operate to protect existing rights that we all traditionally enjoy-that is, they simply bar taking away social freedoms that are already there. The author mixes up these two distinct issues, maintaining that protecting certain social and economic rights that are already guaranteed to every citizen of our republic somehow tacitly condones behaviors of which he disapproves. The two are quite separate. A person's "desire for homosexual couplings" has precious little to do with his or her desire to be an attorney, banker, construction worker, waitress, or minister, or to buy a house, rent an apartment, or own a condominium. By the same token, my heterosexuality is equally unrelated to my profession, my church attendance, or my choice of houses. To reduce all human behavior to sexual motives is demeaning to us all.
     The author warns against forcing others to accept forms of behavior to which they are opposed. Similar-sounding arguments were made in favor of slavery, against female suffrage, and on the steps of the Alabama state house. Human rights legislation does not force anyone to work with anyone else, any more than we are ever forced to work with people of whose behavior we may not approve. It does not force anyone to live with anyone else: choice remains intact.

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It does not deprive any individual of the right to make personal decisions regarding his or her approval or disapproval of behaviors, and does not redefine what is "good" in the eyes of man or God. It does not sanction and protect specific behavior in any way. Rather it has to do with rights of citizenship, and with the state's-like God's-offering equal protection and opportunity to all.
     I must also take particular issue with Mr. Nemitz's assertion that men are not naturally monogamous by nature, and are somehow inclined to polygamy and adultery, a claim he fails to substantiate in any way, and which I find personally offensive. Whatever others' behavioral struggles may be, monogamy has never presented me with any difficulties, and I resent being painted with so broad a brush.
     Similarly, he fails to address the fact that most modern studies demonstrate that homosexuality is not a matter of "lifestyle" or of choosing one particular behavior over another, but of genetics, with actual physical differences in brain structure and chemistry. We do not call for laws barring the hiring or housing of persons on the basis of alcoholism, Down's Syndrome, baldness, skin tone, heterosexuality, left-handedness, or other equally genetically determined factors. All our personal challenges, even the unpleasant or deeply troubling ones, are given to us by the Lord for some purpose, and we are directed by an authority greater than Mr. Nemitz or the state of Maine to judge not. I do not recall that the instruction to clothe the naked and feed the hungry contained any exceptions either.
     The author closes his speech with a call to feel compassion for those inclined to deviant sexual behaviors such as "homosexuality and pedophilia"-again mixing his issues; the vast majority of child sexual abuse is committed by men who appear in all respects to be conservative, upstanding, heterosexual members of society, not by high-heeled homosexuals. Unfortunately, however, the author expresses little compassion for anyone. Is the spiritual institution of marriage so fragile as to require such vehement, aggressive "protection" against persons who by nature and definition are uninterested in its delights?

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It seems to me the greater threat to marriage lies in our homes: in the soaring rates of divorce, adultery, abuse, materialism, teenage pregnancy and heterosexual promiscuity in general. Are we all so weak that only civil laws prevent our descent into self-willed depravity? It is unfortunate that our church, founded on principles of love and rationality, and so often itself the victim of intolerance and misunderstanding, should be perceived as taking the same position as that expressed by its ordained spokesman.
Evan M. Butterfield,
Park Ridge, Illinois
Title Unspecified 1993

Title Unspecified Editor 1993

[Photos of Alexander Vasiliev (above) mailed newly published copies of Heaven and Hell from Kiev to Bryn Athyn and London. The cover is a very old painting (c. 1490 B.C.) of John on the Isle of Patmos.]

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Songs for a New Christianity 1993

Songs for a New Christianity Editor 1993

     Announcements

Music by New Church Composers
     This book is the outcome of the New Church Music Festival of 1986. These forty-one songs will be both enjoyable and useful for church, home, school and camp.
     Edited by
Maret T. Genzlinger and Donald E. Dillard
     Published by the
Music Festival Committee
1993
     $10.00 including postage
     Box 743, Cairncrest
General Church Book Center               Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                    Phone: (215) 947-3920

481

Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

Vol. CXIII November, 1993 No. 11
NEW CHURCH LIFE

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     The World Parliament of Religions (see August issue p. 366) has taken place in Chicago. Rev. David Roth was called upon to give an opening prayer at a gathering of 6,000 people. We plan to tell about this in our next issue.
     If there were nineteen pastoral moves in the church in 1992-1993, how was this brought about? What is the process or method? Read the Bishop's report. Read of decision-making and of consideration of "how the bishop can better serve a church which, although small in numbers, is spread out over the globe."
     It is interesting that Bishop Buss refers to "many challenges" and "exciting opportunities," while in the same issue a young isolated layman speaks of "an exciting but very challenging time for the church" as he addresses "Issues Confronting the Church."
     On a warm January day a gentleman in Australia set off for a holiday "with a copy of Heaven and Hell provided by the Ridgways, which I proceeded to read like a novel at every spare moment." See "Joy at Discovering Swedenborg."
     A new style of summer camp has come upon the scene. While Laurel camp continues to thrive (367 participants this year), the Peterkin camp has begun with 131 people, and its clear success bodes well for the future (see p. 502).
     Many of our readers have already read in their local newsletters that the price of New Church Life will be going up. Ten years ago the price went from $5 to $12. We hope you will take advantage of the current price and order by January 1st, as after that the price will be $16, as noted on the inside cover of this issue.

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ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE NEW CHURCH 1993

ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE NEW CHURCH Rev. MARTIN PRYKE 1993

     (Part III)

     We wrote very briefly, in the first part of our presentation, concerning the enlightenment granted to all and that granted to the regenerating person. We then spoke in more detail of the enlightenment of use and, in part two, of the enlightenment of the priesthood. We now pursue our study.

The Enlightenment of the Laity

     Obviously it must be true that the laity has enlightenment in its own areas of responsibility, and these areas will be numerous and varied.
     The teaching profession, in a church which is dedicated to the use of distinctive ecclesiastical education, will be the first to spring to mind. Our teachers are prepared, both in subject matter and in New Church educational philosophy, and are introduced carefully into their use. They steadily learn more and more about the children they teach and how they can best present their material, not to mention the most critical gift of all, the ability to lead children to a self-discipline which will serve as a foundation for their spiritual lives. All of this brings a special form of enlightenment.
     Of course there is also parental enlightenment. The parents who conscientiously turn to the Word in raising their children, and constantly look to the spiritual and natural welfare of the children, will gradually gain an enlightenment in the handling of their home. They will develop an insight into the particular needs of each child.
     The enlightenment of teachers is not the same as the enlightenment of parents, just as the school is not (and cannot be) the same as the home. They are two different experiences for the child.

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Obviously it is imperative that these two influences on the child should be in communication, and that each seek counsel of the other. But the final decision concerning what is to be done in the home must be made by the parents; the church and school cannot infringe upon that prerogative. At the same time the school must have the final decision in school matters, for the school is a different situation and serves children from many homes. The school, for example, handles many children of the same age at one time-a situation which the home does not face. It has been observed that the home sees a child in one way, the school in another way, and his peers in yet another. This perhaps illustrates the need for differing responsibilities among the adults who are all seeking to raise the child in the best possible way.
     Fiscal enlightenment is another area of lay enlightenment that is critical to the welfare of the organized church. It would be a "poor" church whose fiscal affairs were handled by those whose enlightenment is in teaching the Word and leading to the good of life. As we will note, communication is essential, but it is not the priest's function to become involved in fund-raising or the protection of church assets; his only proper part in decisions regarding the expenditure of funds is to present needs and priorities to the laymen. These areas are lay responsibilities, and it is the layman who has enlightenment in such affairs.
     Another area of lay enlightenment which deserves very careful study is the enlightenment of women. We have not been very successful in putting feminine insight to use. I doubt if giving women a token part in the fiscal affairs of the church will prove to be a lasting solution. To include women in the councils of the church (the bishop's council and pastors' councils) is a significant step forward, but perhaps what we really need is a complete, thorough and unhurried study of the structure of the church to find ways in which feminine enlightenment can serve us better.
     Finally, I would refer to the enlightenment of young adults.

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Young people entering into the life and work of the church have a fresh view that is of great importance to the church as a whole. These young men and women need to be brought into the active life and responsibilities of the church, not only so that they may feel "involved" and a part of the whole, but also so that older generations (perhaps more fixed in their view) may benefit from the enlightenment of those who enter the church with a new perspective.

The Harmonization of Different Areas of Enlightenment

     I now would like to present some thoughts concerning how these many different areas of enlightenment which exist within a church body can best be harmonized and brought together for the good of the church. These comments suggesting applications to church government are not particularly new. They spring partly from the fruits of my own experience, but principally from traditional and well tried modes in the General Church.

     Clearly we all have two responsibilities in regard to natural enlightenment or the enlightenment of use. First, we are obligated to put our own talents, our own knowledge, our own skill to the best possible service of our fellow man. Second, we have a responsibility to recognize and be appreciative of the natural enlightenment of others in their own fields of expertise and activity. It is unbecoming and fruitless to assume that we have an equal skill or enlightenment in all areas, even if those to a be of great interest to us. It is a foolish person who goes to a doctor but then decides he can better cure himself. We would say the same of a man who has no knowledge or expertise or insight in certain areas of business and then ignores the advice of those who do.
     In a church organization, various areas of enlightenment must work together, notably those of the priesthood, of educators and of the laity. It is not possible for the church to act effectively unless these can harmonize.

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Each cannot, or should not, seek to operate in the confined enclosure of its own specialty completely isolated from others. Such a path leads to a group of dictatorships, each at loggerheads with the rest.
     We have to find ways in which these various areas can work together. I believe that experience has shown, and reason confirms, that the principles of church government laid down by Bishop W. F. Pendleton at the formation of the General Church are still valid. It seems to me that the very future of the church depends upon our returning to those principles assiduously in all that we do. I would draw your attention to the most significant of these guidelines.

Counsel. The priesthood must make final decisions in matters relating to instruction, worship and church government (that is, government within the clergy), and yet such decisions should never be made until counsel has been sought of the laity. In the same way, teachers (often together with priests who are also educators) must make the final decisions in educational matters, but never without taking counsel with parents. Finally, the laity has the ultimate decision in the fiscal affairs of the church, but not without taking counsel with the priesthood and teachers so that needs and priorities may be established.
     I would add some comments about how counsel is best taken within the confines of a church organization:
     1.      There must be a genuine seeking of counsel. Nothing is more demoralizing than to be asked for counsel when there is a strong appearance that the decision has already been made, and that seeking counsel is simply a formality.
     2.      Counsel is a matter of ideas and not simply a matter of counting opinions. This means that we should avoid polls, or giving the impression that a decision will be made as a result of a vote.

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There is, of course, a place for voting in church affairs, but not in seeking counsel. It does not really matter how many think that a thing is so, but whether the views expressed are sound advice. Clearly, if many respected and experienced people share a view, that very fact will bear some weight.
     3.      Do not seek counsel so widely that nobody feels that he or she has a significant voice.
     4.      Genuine counsel, counsel that can be used, is best obtained by sitting down with relatively few who have been chosen because they have some insight in the subject under consideration and possibly represent different points of view.
     The most important element is the opportunity to share, exchange and sometimes modify different opinions.
     It is remarkable how often a relatively small group, with the opportunity to hear one another, will come to a unanimous, or virtually unanimous, conclusion.

Communication. One good form of counsel is to be found in good communication. As the church grows and its organization becomes more complex, it also becomes increasingly vital that there should be communication from top to bottom and in all directions. The membership of the church becomes frustrated and negative when it observes things happening which are not explained. An explanation is never a mistake; it may frequently be extremely valuable for church morale and so for church effectiveness. We need to perfect methods of communicating to all constituencies. I am firmly convinced that our people (perhaps especially the upcoming generations) will become much more involved in, and responsive to, the work of the church if they understand why certain decisions are made, how the finances of the church are handled, and many other matters.

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We need well organized and regularly used paths of communication. It would be time and money well spent.

Consent of the Governed. Leaders in the church (priestly or lay) have, as we have seen, clear responsibilities in their fields of enlightenment, but the recognition of this principle may, if we are not very careful, become dictatorial. No church leader has all power, and we protect the church from the human tendency to the love of dominion by providing that the consent of the governed be an essential element in our structure. The Council of the Clergy does not select an executive bishop; the council nominates a man for such a post, and then the General Assembly (the church itself) accepts or rejects that nomination. And so it is in the appointment of a pastor, who is nominated by the bishop and accepted, or confirmed, by the society.
For the church leadership to go ahead, however well-intentioned their step may be, without proper communication and counsel and without the consent of the church body, is to court disaster, and the church has experienced such disaster in its history. Of course the church body will often (and very appropriately) delegate its authority to give or withhold consent to a smaller body-perhaps an executive board.
All of this should not imply that every decision of the governor has to be approved by the governed. The society does not approve every pastoral decision which relates to the priestly office; the Council of the Clergy does not approve every governmental action taken by the bishop; those serving in our ecclesiastical or educational institutions do not have to approve every act taken by the heads of those institutions. But consent is needed for major actions which profoundly affect the governed in whatever capacity they serve. More importantly, there must be consent to the general government of those in administration. If there is not a general support of their office, then they cannot govern effectively.

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It seems to me that this describes an appropriate application of the "consent-of-the-governed" concept within the framework of our church organizations.

Essential Unanimity. In order to avoid divisiveness and the undue influence of pressure groups (from any direction) it has been our policy to regard a lack of essential unanimity as an indication that action should be delayed. This does not mean that a vocal minority can hold up action indefinitely, but it gives pause for further consideration in the hope that agreement can be reached and a mutually satisfactory solution found. This, of course, applies only to decisions regarding major matters of policy or action. Often it is wise to agree, before a vote is taken, what percentage is to be accepted as constituting essential unanimity-66%, 75% or 80% perhaps.

Disturbance in the Church. A final question must be raised concerning how the laity should respond to the leadership of the priesthood, and the clergy to the leadership of the bishop. Clearly it will be our desire and responsibility to follow such leadership where it concerns matters of its enlightenment. But this cannot be a blind following. As we have said, our leaders are not to be dictators. At the very least we should feel free to question the leadership which is given, provided this questioning is not done in such a way as to destroy the order of the church. When matters of principle arise, when it seems that the plain teaching of revelation is ignored or distorted, when moral issues are at stake, more than a questioning may be called for. Protest may become necessary. A choice may have to be made between resigning oneself from that leadership and taking the orderly steps provided for the removal of a priest from his office.
On the other hand, it should be noted that the Writings teach that, for the sake of order in the church, "He who believes otherwise than the priest, and makes no disturbance, ought to be left in peace; but he who makes disturbance ought to be separated . . ." (NJHD 318).

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The time comes when divisions in the church are so destructive of its uses that a separation has to take place.

Conclusion

The practical forms relating to church government, of which we have been speaking, are simply means to protect the church from our own frailties and the frailties of others. They are forms which seem to give appropriate clothing to our efforts to establish the true government of the Lord in our midst.
What we are really seeking in the affairs of the church is "government by influx." This is the government of the Lord working through men. Such government, which is the government of heaven, is possible only when all the men and women of the church make themselves into appropriate vessels into which the Lord may flow. This is the essential of church government. The greatest contribution we can all make to the strength and growth of the Lord's kingdom is our own lives of regeneration in which we shun the love of dominion and the love of the world.
EXCEPTION IN UNFRIENDLY SUBURBS 1993

EXCEPTION IN UNFRIENDLY SUBURBS Peter M. Buss 1993

The September issue of Philadelphia Magazine has an article about a couple who moved from the big city to a Philadelphia suburb hoping to find friendliness. The whole article is about how cold and aloof they found the suburbs to be. In one paragraph some exceptions are mentioned, and we quote one: "The guide at the cathedral in Bryn Athyn was full of warmth." The suburb they had chosen was only a few miles from Bryn Athyn.

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REPORT OF THE BISHOP TO THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM 1993

REPORT OF THE BISHOP TO THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM Editor 1993

     The 1992/93 year was notable for the many pastoral moves which took place in the church. In all, nineteen pastoral moves were made, including the placement of three graduates from the Theological School of the Academy, and two who graduated from the South African Theological School in Buccleuch, South Africa. The new assignments are as follows:
     The Reverend Messrs.
Kurt Hyland Asplundh           Assistant to the Pastor, Bryn Athyn
Wendel R. Barnett           Assistant Pastor, Olivet Church
Ragnar Boyesen                Pastor, Kempton
Erik J. Buss                    Resident Pastor, Puget Sound Circle
Peter M. Buss, Jr.           Assistant to the Pastor, Washington
Stephen D. Cole                Pastor, San Diego
James P. Cooper                Pastor, Washington
Michael K. Cowley           Pastor, Carmel Church
J. Clark Echols, Jr.           Pastor, Freeport
Derek P. Elphick                Assistant to the Pastor, Oak Arbor
Jacob Maseko                    Pastor, Diepkloof
Chester Mcanyana                Pastor, Impaphala and Visiting Pastor, Empangeni Group
C. Mark Perry                    Pastor, Atlanta
Thomas H. Rose                Bryn Athyn Church School Pastor
Arthur W. Schnarr, Jr.           Pastor, Hurstville
Jeremy F. Simons                Assistant Pastor, Glenview and Principal of the Immanuel Church School
Lawson M. Smith                Pastor, Durban
Louis D. Synnestvedt           Acting Secretary of the General Church
Reuben N. Tshabalala           Pastor, Balfour
     Let me describe the process of pastoral moves. If a society or circle is looking for a pastor or assistant pastor, the decision is effected with input from three sources: the congregation itself, the bishop and his advisors, and the minister (who in turn takes counsel from his wife). In order to allow each of them to give the appropriate input, the following procedure is followed:

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     1.      The bishop visits a congregation, outlines the process for making the decision, and asks the congregation to elect a committee to counsel with the bishop.
     2.      The congregation elects a committee, usually of about seven to twelve people, and they elect a chairperson.
     3.      The committee has the responsibility of surveying the society in some way in order to determine two things: What uses are considered most important to it, and what qualities it will most value in a pastor. The committees have done this in a variety of ways. Some of them devise a detailed survey; others use a fairly simple questionnaire. Some have interviewed each member of the society personally. It depends on the local conditions and on the nature of each committee. The value of these surveys is that they concentrate the thought of the committee on the uses of the church, and allow them to consider individuals in the light of those uses.
     4.      After the surveys are completed and summarized, the summary is sent to the bishop. He then meets with the committee and presents a "long list" of possible candidates for the position. The list may be from four to a dozen possible men, depending on the position. In confidence he discusses the manner in which each may serve the uses that the congregation has defined in its survey. These discussions are carried out in a positive vein, since each minister has good characteristics which can be emphasized. Of course, if a man does not have certain interests or strengths which are needed for a particular position, that will also be discussed. I want to emphasize, however, that my experience in this area has been that the committees discuss individual ministers in a spirit of charity and respect for their use.
     5.      As a result of this discussion, the committee meets, without the bishop present, and determines on a "short list" of ministers whom it would like to consider further.

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The bishop is not present because that preserves the freedom of the committee to retain or remove any name from the list. That way a congregation need not feel that it has been unduly "pressured" to accept a particular person.
     6.      The bishop calls those on this "short list," and asks them if they would be willing to serve if called to that congregation. That allows the minister to consider only those congregations which have a serious interest in him, and it gives him a chance to discuss the matter with his wife and family, and give a response.
     7.      The committee then considers the candidates, seeking additional information about them-usually through written sermons and addresses, but also through taped presentations. Some committees have asked to meet with the man whom they think they will accept before making a final decision. Where this has taken place, it has proved to be very useful.
     8.      What happens if two congregations really want the same man? The bishop has a small advisory group of ministers (five in all) who counsel with him on all steps of this process. In the last analysis it is the bishop's decision to allow a man's name to go before one congregation rather than before another. In making this decision he consults carefully with his advisory group, and tries hard to weigh the relative needs of each congregation based on what they have told him. The minister himself obviously has a big say in such a decision.
     9.      When a committee feels that its counsel to the bishop is that he nominate one person to the congregation, a society meeting is called, and the bishop makes the nomination. The congregation has the right to ask whatever questions it wants, before, during or after the meeting. Its final vote determines the call.

     As a matter of interest, before the moves started, I wrote out what I thought might be the final calls from societies.

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After eleven moves had been completed, I found I had been right in two cases. I mention this to emphasize that, although the bishop has a lot of input into this decision, the system seems to provide for the societies themselves to have a strong say in the final decision.
     This process is necessarily changed in some places. For example, in South Africa the Reverend Geoffrey Childs, the bishop's representative, acted for me in the matter of pastoral moves; in overseas societies, visits by a possible pastor are not possible not always is it possible to present several names to a committee, and so on. But I try to follow a procedure such as this wherever possible. The purpose is to allow the process to govern, and to have it do so in an open and visible manner. Some things are necessarily confidential-for example, one doesn't publicize the names of those candidates who were not chosen. Whatever can be out in the open, however, should be, so that people may have confidence that the decision-makers are being guided by the uses which a new pastor is to fill.
     I hope that this brief explanation of the process will help to clarify one method of decision-making in our church. In matters civil and moral (and the choice of a pastor is in one sense a "civil act"), the more open and visible the mode of government, the better. The Writings teach that we may all make civil and moral judgments, but not spiritual ones; and judgments cannot be made except on the basis of knowledge.
     As bishop I made many visits this year to those congregations which were looking for a new pastor or assistant. I attended the 100th anniversary celebrations of the Olivet Day School in Toronto. In addition I visited Australia and New Zealand in April. I performed the following ordinations:
First Degree:           Kurt Hy. Asplundh, Peter M. Buss, Jr., and Derek P. Elphick
Second Degree:      The Rev. Messrs. Erik J. Buss and C. Mark Perry.

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     Acting on my behalf, the Rt. Reverend Louis King also ordained the Reverend Messrs. Jacob Maseko and Reuben Tshabalala in Diepkloof, South Africa.
     A Joint Committee of the General Church Consistory and Board meets with me regularly to discuss the policies of the church. This committee was formed to give me detailed advice on my conduct of the affairs of the church. Its meetings are intensive, often lasting six hours with breakout discussions, and each year we take two days in the summer to consider several- items. Its members are:

The Reverend Kurt Ho. Asplundh - Pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society
Mr. Theodore W. Brickman, Jr. - Chairman of the Budget Committee until March 1993
Mr. Neil M. Buss - Treasurer of the Academy and General Church
The Reverend Eric H. Carswell - Pastor of the Glenview Society and Bishop's Representative in the Midwest
Mr. Walter C. Childs, III - Development Officer
Mr. B. Reade Genzlinger - New Chairman of Budget Committee
The Reverend Daniel W. Goodenough - President of the Academy
Mr. Peter R. Gyllenhaal - Chairman, Personnel Advisory Committee
Mrs. Albert D. Henderson - Chairwoman of the Salary Committee
The Reverend Robert S. Junge - Pastor of the Ivyland Circle and Bishop's Representative in certain developmental areas outside U.S.
The Reverend Brian W. Keith - Dean of the Theological School
The Rt. Reverend Louis B. King - Bishop Emeritus
The Reverend Thomas L. Kline - Assistant Pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society
The Reverend Frederick L. Schnarr - Bishop's Representative for Education and Director of the Office of Education
The Reverend Grant R. Schnarr - Pastor of the Chicago Circle and Director of Evangelization
The Reverend Louis D. Synnestvedt - Acting Secretary of the General Church
Mr. James G. Uber - Chairman of the Legal Advisory Committee

     The subject that occupied a lot of our time was a consideration of how the bishop can better serve a church which, although small in numbers, is spread out over the globe, is trying to accomplish many things, and has 70 ministers employed in its work.

496

We recognize that our numbers are small, so it doesn't make sense to develop a complex management structure. In addition, I believe that our financial resources should be put to use in our most important areas-in supporting those uses which already exist and which we consider important (our first priority), and in developing a select few new uses-those which have the best chance of promoting the good of the church. With this in mind, the Joint Committee is working with me toward developing a modest system of delegation of some of the bishop's work. Areas like evangelization and education already have their own leaders. A full-time General Church Acting Secretary, the Reverend Louis D. Synnestvedt, will take over many committee uses, and provide leadership in our "visiting minister" activities, where ministers travel to small groups or families to provide for their worship and instruction. In addition, we are thinking that some regions of the church should come more fully under the leadership of a bishop's representative, or regional pastor. In this way, not only will the bishop be freed to do his essential job more effectively, but a local pastor will feel more supported by having an experienced pastor help him in his uses. The congregations too should feel better supported by the church, as a senior minister establishes a presence supporting their pastor, and suggesting which central resources the local congregation can make use of.
This is a modest step forward toward a more logical delegation of responsibility. In places like South Africa, the Reverend Geoffrey Childs is already providing leadership to the church in that country. Perhaps the system that works so well in his case can be used in some regions of the church in North America. As this concept develops more, I will report to you on its development. Inevitably it will be implemented as the right people are available, and as they have the time and the opportunity to enter into this work.

497

     I would like to express the warmest appreciation for the work of two men who stepped down from positions at the end of this year. Mr. Peter Gyllenhaal has been for four years the manager of our General Church building at Cairncrest in Bryn Athyn. In this position he has ensured that the building itself is well preserved, carrying on many repair tasks, including a complete replacement of the heating system (no mean feat, considering the nature of the building). He has also been responsible for personnel matters. In addition, he has been invaluable as a leader in our deliberations on many of the General Church uses, helping us to solve our management problems and, with his considerate and thoughtful approach to individuals, bringing a sense of integrity and dedication to our deliberations.
     Mr. E. Boyd Asplundh has for four years been the Acting Secretary of the General Church, serving in a volunteer capacity. He has rationalized the work of the secretary's office, and has overseen many of the committees of the church. Mr. Asplundh has a keen sense of the history of our church, as well as a legal background, and these have been invaluable to us as we have wrestled with many decisions. He has brought to this work his unswerving integrity and' his evident love of the church and devoted service to it.
     As these two men step down from their work, I wish to thank them both most warmly for all they have done over the last four years.
     A pastor of our church retired this year. The Reverend Douglas Taylor has been a pastor for 33 years, serving in Tucson, Australia, Bryn Athyn (as Director of Evangelization), and then in Australia again. It was a delight to visit with Doug and Christine in Australia in April, and to see how well loved they are in the congregation they have served twice. It was also delightful to see how his lifelong love of evangelization was bearing fruit in his final, five-year pastorate. Just before he left Australia, he baptized five adults and two children, all newcomers to the church over these five years (two others had joined earlier).

498

It is interesting that some of them started attending the church recently, but had been listeners to his radio program in Sydney, which was discontinued in 1973! Isn't it amazing how spiritual seeds which have once been sown may lie in the ground and germinate years later?
     On behalf of the church I would like to extend our warm affection and gratitude to Doug and to Christine for their outstanding service to the church for so many years. They will retire to Bryn Athyn, where no doubt they will find many interests to occupy their fertile minds.
     Yet another person stepped down from an important use at the end of the 1992/93 year. After almost exactly 30 years on the Bishop's Consistory, the Reverend Erik Sandstrom, Sr. is retiring from this use. He joined Bishop Pendleton's consistory in 1963, right at the beginning of Bishop Pendleton's term of office, and served right through his and Bishop King's terms of office. When I became bishop I asked if he would serve two more years on my consistory. (For those who may not know, consistory is composed of ministers chosen by the bishop to counsel him on the affairs of the church. It is like the pastor's council in a local society.)
     Mr. Sandstorm represents all that is best of a generation of dedicated ministers who studied the doctrine with energy and in detail, and who labored in all that they did to apply it to the life of the church. He was a wonderful pastor in Scandinavia and London, England, and a visiting pastor to the North Ohio Circle. He was a theological professor and Dean of the Theological School until his retirement in 1978. Then he served as pastor of the Hot Springs, South Dakota group and the Denver Circle for several years. He returned to the Bryn Athyn area in 1986, and has lived in Huntingdon Valley since then.
     As a close advisor to three bishops, Mr. Sandstrom has always stressed the importance of looking at each problem from the viewpoint of the use to be performed, and from the first principles which doctrine enunciates.

499

His great doctrinal loves are: promoting an awareness of the Visible God, the Lord Jesus Christ; helping people to see how the teachings in the Writings about the as-from-self restore true freedom to humankind; pleading that we see how the truth of the Word descends from the Lord's love and leads back to it; asking us to see that the Lord's uses come first, the uses of His church on earth and in the heavens come next, and individual preferences fall into line behind our service to the Lord and His church. His life has always been an illustration of this principle. We thank him for his counsel over thirty years to the bishops of the church, and for his service for nearly sixty years in its priesthood; and we also thank his wife Bernice for her wonderful sphere, for her sound common sense, for her kindness in all her dealings, and for the love which her husband showed in his contributions to our church.
Our church has many challenges, and so many exciting opportunities. We are entering an era where changes are taking place in the way we do things, and some will applaud them. Others will be wary of them, and still others will think that they are happening too slowly. Differences of opinion are healthy. It would be a rather synthetic church were we all to fall in line with some pre-conceived way to approach worship and uses. Rather do we need to have confidence that our fellow New Church people, who may wish to perform the uses of the church differently than we do, are motivated by charity, and seek to accommodate their opinions to our own.
But that will not be possible unless we are genuinely guided by the Word in all our deliberations. Let me close by paraphrasing the moving advice given to us by Mr. Sandstrom on the occasion of his last meeting with the Bishop's Consistory. We were talking about the many different approaches to worship and to uses which are growing up in the church, and Mr. Sandstrom said that he has great confidence in the General Church and in its ability to go forward with strength into the future.

500

In explaining it, he quoted John 16:25: "These things I have spoken to you in parables [or proverbs]; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in parables, but I will tell you plainly about the Father."
     That prophecy to which Mr. Sandstorm alluded has been fulfilled in the Writings. The Lord speaks plainly of the ways of the Divine love, for it is the Lord's love which is our eternal Father. However, some in the New Church seem to be saying, "Yes, the Writings do show us plainly of the Lord's love, but it is not the Lord who Is speaking in them." On the other hand, sometimes it has been suggested, "Indeed the Lord is speaking in the Writings, but He is still speaking in parables! There is some internal sense to what the Writings say, which the church will discover and interpret."
     The General Church stands for the vision that the Lord indeed is speaking in the Writings, and He is speaking plainly, showing us the Father. This is the vision that alone can give us strength. The Writings are clear. They show the way to love. They are the very Word of God, the Lord speaking to us.
     It is because of this belief that the General Church acknowledges no constitution other than the Word. The Order and Organization of the General Church, last revised by Bishop King, begins with the statement, "The following is not a written constitution . . . . As the General Church is a living body developing under the leading of Providence . . . nothing in this statement is intended to bind the future." We are seeking to look directly to the Lord for guidance when faced with a new challenge, not to some human statement of what is true. We can do this, for He has "told us plainly about the Father."
     Our church will change over the years. New forms of worship will develop. New forms of instruction will be found. These changes in external forms need not concern us, even if some of us like them less than others. The challenge to our church is whether we live up to its vision. If we, in our worship, our instruction and our uses, constantly turn to the place where the Lord is showing us plainly how to love and therefore how to live, the General Church will be strong.

501

That is our continuing challenge. I deeply believe that the General Church will live up to it, and that is why I feel so privileged to serve as its bishop, and so excited about facing the challenges which will come as we approach the twenty-first century.
     "To this man will I look: to him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My Word" (Isaiah 66:2).

     STATISTICAL ACTIVITIES

     As Bishop of the General Church
Annual Council of the Clergy meetings
Bishop's Consistory meetings - 13
Bishop's Joint Committee meetings - 8
Board and Corporation meetings - 5
Dedication of church property - 1 (Ivyland)
Episcopal visits - 27
Inaugurations into the priesthood - 3
Ordinations into the second degree - 2
Pastoral Moves Selection Committee meetings - 7
Midwestern Clergy meetings
Worship and Ritual Committee meetings 6

     General Church in Canada
Episcopal visits - 8
Annual GCIC meeting
Olivet Day School 100th celebration

     As Chancellor of the Academy
Board and Corporation meetings - 6
College Chapel - 2
Secondary Schools Chapel 3

502

     Teaching assignment:
Theology 325: Conversations on Marriage
Pastoral Theology 741: Doctrine of the Priesthood and Principles of Church Government
Theological School Faculty meetings 4

     Ministrations in Bryn Athyn
Total services conducted (festival, public and private) - 18
     Peter M. Buss, Bishop
PETERKIN I 1993

PETERKIN I Kenneth Rose 1993

In the October issue (p. 478) is the announcement of Clayton Harris's baptism in Romney, West Virginia. Where is that? It is just south of the Mason-Dixon Line in northeast West Virginia, and it only very recently became a New Church place of worship.
Preparations had been under way for several months for the first annual Peterkin Camp, but the actual event happened quite suddenly on the afternoon of Friday, August 13th. People arrived from many different directions to converge on the Peterkin Conference Center, where Clayton's aunt, Becky Snyder, greeted them and directed each to the appropriate dormitory: families with children to the small buildings with big rooms, and singles and couples to the big building with small rooms. Each building had places for meeting, children's activities, or socializing, and a separate dining hall accommodated all 131 of us. Our hosts were not Pritikin, the diet people, but the gracious staff was extremely accommodating about meeting everyone's needs.

503

As we finished each meal, that dining-hall staff took over the cleanup chores, leaving us free to concentrate on the first annual Peterkin New Church Camp. Many participants contributed such things as musical interludes at the various services, or took a turn supervising the nursery school crowd or working on crafts with older children.
     The center was built by the Episcopal Church for conferences, and often accommodates several small ones at once, but we took over the whole place for three days, from the spacious chapel through dorms, recreation areas, and swimming pool, to the top of Prayer Hill, where an altar and benches awaited us for each evening's family service-followed, after a decent interval to tuck children in, by adult vespers in the chapel.
     While Peterkin was a New Church center for only a weekend, it seemed solidly established with a wide spectrum of ages and experience, with a common desire to think about the Lord together. Of special interest was the fact that five couples were there joined by one or more children and grandchildren, even though they live in different places. Sisters who had married into different names were reunited in a warm family sphere, and everyone got to meet some new friends as well.
     Rev. Messrs. Dan Goodenough, Patrick Rose, and Fred Schnarr started the mornings with well-prepared and dynamic presentations on three aspects of faith, respectively: the growth of faith alone in various churches (and how it could threaten the New Church), faith in relation to love and marriage, and the faith of the New Church that will heal the nations. Two other ministers, Tom Rose and Peter Buss, Jr., joined those three in giving services and leading discussion groups where everyone from college students to great grandmas showed how they are striving to bring the three-fold Word to the front of their lives. One of the youngest adults expressed delight at seeing so many older couples who love each other. The old in turn enjoyed seeing young minds working to make the truths of the church their own.

504

     Afternoons were left free for the enjoyment of Peterkin's recreational resources, including a scenic train ride through the area, where bald eagles were seen at their nests. (A pileated woodpecker was observed inside camp, which helped make the weekend memorable for one birder. And a few leftover Perseid meteors punctuated the Milky Way after vespers.) But at 4:00 p.m. there were "adult electives," discussion groups on topics announced at breakfast time. On both afternoons the minister in charge announced after one hour that the discussion was finished, but most people just stayed and kept on talking until supper time,
     Evenings brought a campfire, square dancing, a quiet game of bridge, or a rousing talent night. The last full day was bracketed by the two sacraments of the church: the baptism in the morning service, and administration of the Holy Supper in the evening.
     On Monday right after lunch, "Father Patrick" finished our sojourn by conducting a ceremonious planting of church banners around the flagpole by families. Then this little congregation dispersed, carrying new inspiration back to their scattered homes. We express heartfelt thanks to the hard workers (mostly from the Washington Society) who made this spiritual and natural feast possible, and are glad to hear that plans are already under way for "Peterkin II."
     Kenneth Rose,
     Bryn Junge Brock
IN HIS LIGHT 1993

IN HIS LIGHT Editor 1993

This is the title of a new book expected before the end of December. Only 400 copies will be printed. The author is Rev. David R. Simons, 561 Woodward Drive, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006.

505

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM 1993

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM E. Boyd Asplundh 1993

     (A Pennsylvania Corporation)

     SECRETARY'S REPORT

Membership

     On March 5, 1993, the date of the annual meeting, there were 886 members of the corporation. Thirty-seven new members had registered since the last annual meeting held on March 6, 1992. There were nine deaths during the period.
     Meetings
     The annual meeting was held at Pendleton Hall, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania. A total of 85 members and guests were present.
     The President, the Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss, called the meeting to order. He asked those present to rise for a moment of silence in memory of members of the corporation, as well as members of the unincorporated church, who had passed into the spiritual world since the last annual meeting.
     Ten directors were elected for terms of three years, and one director was elected to serve for the final year of a term left vacant by resignation.
     Reports were heard from the President, the Treasurer and the Development Officer.
     Following these reports, a presentation was made by the Rev. Fred Schnarr and other representatives of the Office of Education. The Rev. Brian Keith spoke briefly of plans to offer summer courses (some for graduate-level credit) in conjunction with the Theological School.
     An organizational meeting of the Board of Directors was held on March 6, 1992, following the annual meeting of the corporation. At that meeting, the incumbent elective officers were re-elected and standard resolutions were adopted.
     Four regular meetings of the board were held. At each of these, reports were heard from officers and committee heads, and appropriate action was taken.

506

     At the meeting held on May 16, 1992, Bishop Buss said that the does not want to expand the "central office" but instead he would like to strengthen the existing links with other parts of the church. There is need for local initiative and responsibility.
     The Treasurer reported that while General Church support for professional services has grown somewhat in the ten years from 1982-92, benefit costs have more than doubled. The Real Estate Finance Committee noted that fifteen projects have been funded over the past ten years. Since 1985 these have involved church buildings and manses only.
     The second meeting, held October 3, 1992, featured a report by the Rev. Robert Junge on development of the church in new countries. He spoke in some detail about Ghana and Brazil, and in lesser detail about Japan and Korea.
     At the third meeting, held January 16, 1993, the major presentation was made by the Office of Education. There are eight divisions of this office, but there was time to consider only School and Teacher Support, the Reference Center and publication uses.
     The final meeting, on March 5, 1993, included reports from the President and from the Personnel Advisory Committee as to how the President, who is also Bishop of the unincorporated church, might best receive counsel and be assisted in this dual capacity. There was also a report from the Rev. Grant Schnarr on evangelization.

     DIRECTORS

     Terms Expire 1994
Eyvind H. Boyesen                    Kempton
B. Tryn G. Clark                     Central Michigan
B. Reade Genzlinger               Bryn Athyn
Terry K. Glenn                     Bryn Athyn
Glenn H. Heilman                    Freeport
Michael G. Lockhart               Hurstville

507

Kim U. Maxwell                     Detroit
Roger W. Schnarr                    Toronto
Warren Stewart                     Kitchener
Phillip R. Zuber                Washington, D.C.

     Terms Expire 1995
Edward F. Allen, Jr.               Phoenix
Patricia deM. David               Erie
Nancy S. Dawson                    London
Robert L. Glenn                     South Central PA
Thelma P. Henderson                     Glenview
Wayne Parker                         North Ohio
Duncan B. Pitcairn               Bryn Athyn
William B. Radcliffe               Washington, D.C.
James G. Uber                     Pittsburgh
Kenneth L. York                     Bryn Athyn

     Terms Expire 1996
Michael B. Brown                    Tucson
Rosemary B. Campbell                Los Angeles
Sonia S. Doering                     Bryn Athyn
Theodore C. Farrington               Florida
Hugh D. Hyatt                         Bryn Athyn
Michael D. Kloc                     Charlotte
Roger S. Murdoch                    Chicago
Bruce A. Reuter                     Glenview
Beryl C, Simonetti               Bryn Athyn
Gerald G. Waters                     Durban

     Ex-officio Members
Neil M. Buss                         Bryn Athyn
Peter M. Buss                         Bryn Athyn
Louis B. King                         Bryn Athyn

     Honorary Life Member
Willard D. Pendleton               Bryn Athyn

     E. Boyd Asplundh, Secretary

508

JOY AT DISCOVERING SWEDENBORG 1993

JOY AT DISCOVERING SWEDENBORG PHILIP RICHARDS 1993

     I am an elder of several years' standing in the Uniting Church of St. James in Canberra, Australia. I thought New Church Life readers might be interested to hear how I discovered Swedenborg four years ago and what has happened since.
     For many years I have been disappointed at the almost total lack of interest in doctrine in my church, with no attempt made to explain to the ordinary churchgoer how the Christian dogma in current use was derived from the Word. My hunger for understanding of Scripture led me to come home from the annual Lifeline Book Fair in Canberra with several boxes of religious books to read, and in due course I came across Helen Keller's book My Religion. While everyone seems to have heard of Helen Keller, the deaf and blind woman who overcame her disabilities and went on to become a celebrity, apparently no one here has heard of or read this book.
     Miss Keller's book is a survey of the new revelations given through the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg and her response to them. She notes that Emanuel Swedenborg, the brilliant eighteenth-century scientist and theologian, claimed that the Lord had come to him in person, had commissioned him to write his books, and had opened the spiritual world to him so that he was able to converse with spirits, angels and devils.
     Soon after reading Helen Keller's book I was able to borrow The Swedenborg Epic by C. O. Sigstedt from the local library, and this marvelous biography left a deep impression on me. I now had a good background understanding of the life of Swedenborg the man, and it was clear that he was a scientific genius who was highly respected in his homeland for his achievements and integrity during his lifetime. I was now determined to get hold of his religious books and read for myself.
     But where could I get them?

509

There were no Swedenborg books at the local library except for a set of Arcana Coelestia, and these were too forbidding. I had noticed that there were "Swedenborg Bookrooms" in the capital cities in Australia, and so I came across the Swedenborg bookroom in Canberra in the telephone directory. That phone call in 1989 was surely Divine Providence in action because it brought me into contact with the Ridgway family.
     Heulwen and Lavender Ridgway patiently answered torrents of questions on my first and subsequent visits, and in the process brought me into a deeper understanding of the wonderful revelations in the Writings of Swedenborg. I can remember going off to the coast for our family holiday in January 1990 with a copy of Heaven and Hell provided by the Ridgways, which I proceeded to read like a novel at every spare moment.
     The next important event was an invitation to meet Rev. Doug Taylor, the New Church pastor from Sydney, and his wife Christine, on one of their weekend visits to the Canberra group. This proved to be a very successful meeting for me since Doug gave very interesting answers to my questions, and I became engrossed in his doctrinal class on the seven churches in the book of Revelation. I have not missed a pastoral visit since, and I have also had the good fortune to meet Bishop Peter Buss and attend his church service during his visit to Canberra in March this year.
     While I am making steady progress in reading the Writings, including Arcana Coelestia, I am often struck with how isolated I am. Many times I have felt a strong desire to talk to people about Swedenborg, but no one here is interested or they behave as if they are afraid of becoming involved with an "obscure cult." My wife and family are also not interested in hearing anything about Swedenborg.
     My former pastor at the Uniting Church of St. James had not heard of Swedenborg, and a university lecturer in history at St. James with a particular interest in the history of the Christian Church had not heard of Swedenborg either.

510

I cannot understand why nothing at all is known of Swedenborg. I subscribe to New Church Life, and the Ridgway family is only a phone call away, but I still feel isolated, although it is good to know that there is a New Church in Sydney and a large New Church community in Bryn Athyn.
Once or twice I have had some doubts about the path I am following, but I now firmly believe that the Lord led me to the Writings, and that I am privileged to have found them and to be receptive to the Lord's revelation through the books of Swedenborg. This has enabled me to see the false teachings still in current use in the old Christian Church, and this is not getting any easier to bear with the passage of time.
Finally, as an outsider at this time I must say that your monthly magazine New Church Life is lively and interesting, and I look forward to each edition. It has enabled me to order Dr. Baker's and Dr. Berridge's books, and it is an indicator of a healthy and vibrant New Church society.
SURVIVING WITHOUT SURVIVORS? 1993

SURVIVING WITHOUT SURVIVORS? Editor 1993

     If you are a divorced or separated New Church person, you know the pain of feeling cut off from the married population by your experiences, and may have felt there was no longer a part for you to play in the life of the church. You are not alone.
     Five years ago the Survivors network was formed to build a refuge of acceptance and support for divorced and separated New Church people. Our network writes and publishes Survivors, a free newsletter, three times a year, available from: Ruth Cranch Wyland, 3426 Winchester Drive, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006; Key N. Hauck, 2242 W. Giddings St., Chicago, IL 60625; and Patricia Street, 412 Ramble Wood Circle, Nashville, TN 37221. The network, not an official use of the General Church, also facilitates contact with other divorced and separated people, and has begun support groups. We welcome you.
     The network is supported entirely by freewill contributions.

511

Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     TEACHING AND WITNESSING THE SECOND COMING

     This is the subject of an address given by Rev. Ian Arnold at New Church College in England, published in the May issue of New Church Magazine. It is a lively and important presentation, a few excerpts of which we offer here.
     Mr. Arnold offers a comment about the word parousia. This is the Greek word translated "coming" in the Matthew 24:27 reference to the coming of the Son of Man. English dictionaries note that it is a word for "presence" which is used to designate the Second Coming. He gives the following quotation from Peake's Commentary on the Bible:

The word translated "coming," Parousia, was the normal Greek word used for the visit of a dignitary or royal personage, or manifestation of a god. . . . It should be remembered, however, that the original meaning of the word is "presence." It was the conviction of the Church that from the Resurrection onwards Christ was "present" with His people. His Parousia in the technical sense would therefore be the full revelation of a presence they had already known.

     Mr. Arnold says, "I find this very attractive and helpful . . . . And just to re-word the final sentence here, it can be read: 'His [Second Coming] in the technical sense would therefore be the full revelation of a presence they had already known.'"
     He repeats: "The Second Coming is the full revelation of a presence already known."
     Later in the study Mr. Arnold quotes two passages:

His "coming in the clouds of heaven with glory" means the opening of the Word, and the making manifest that the Word has been written about Him alone (Lord 26).

His Advent does not mean His Advent in person, but that He will then reveal Himself in the Word, that He is Jehovah, the Lord of heaven and earth; and that He alone is to be worshiped by all who will belong to His New Church (AE 870:2).

512

     Mr. Arnold says, "People have sensed the Lord, somehow, somewhere, in the Word. Imperfectly, and as it stands in the letter, it reveals the Lord to us. But now the Lord is fully revealed in the Word. A sketchy picture of Him is massively and very wonderfully infilled."
     After illustrating this infilling in the books Divine Providence, Conjugial Love, and Arcana Caelestia, Mr. Arnold goes on to say, "For myself, and at one level, there is no question but that the Writings are the Second Coming of the Lord. Indeed I am personally quite comfortable with what has from time to time been canvassed, that the Arcana written between 1749 and 1756 contains, embodies, or is the Second Coming."
     Later in the article we read: "There must be a sense in which every time we preach the internal sense of the Word, or experience some concept in the Writings, we are teaching and witnessing the Second Coming. Every time we declare and explain the sole Divinity of the risen Lord Jesus Christ we are surely teaching and witnessing the Second Coming.
     "But what of boldly proclaiming it? Unashamedly? With conviction that this is helpful and really does touch people where they are now?
     "For me there is tremendous scope and opportunity for bringing to bear what we believe about the Second Advent when it comes to understanding and interpreting the world of today. This is not to suggest any unnecessary play on people's fears and anxieties, but it is to pick up on the anxieties already there, and the questions asked about where the world is heading."
     Giving these few excerpts is not an adequate way to present Mr. Arnold's address, and it could even be misleading; however, I hope that readers will gain good things from it, and I expect some will set about finding it to read in its entirety.

513

ISSUES CONFRONTING THE CHURCH 1993

ISSUES CONFRONTING THE CHURCH Charles E. Blair 1993

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     After living outside of a New Church community for the past five years, I have had occasion to think and observe from a distance the changes the church is going through. Like a grandparent who sees her grandchildren only on occasions, I find the changes and the challenges exciting to view.
     Two challenges/questions appear to be facing the church at this point in time. The first question is, What role do alternative forms of worship play? The second question is, How do we best protect the distinctiveness of the church's doctrines and institutions? These questions are closely related. They appear to come down to that one word: distinctiveness. If we know what is essentially distinctive, we will know what to protect.
     The church is distinctive because it is the Lord's church here on earth. This is the starting point for any New Church definition of the word. Progressing to specifics is far more problematic. What I hope to offer are some cautions.
     Can the distinctiveness of the church, in terms of truth, be stressed to the point that the distinctiveness of the church in terms of good/charity is given a lower priority? Focusing solely on truth, the Writings point out, is dangerous. AC 2258 says, "The Divine good adjudges all to heaven, but the Divine truth condemns all to hell." This is a warning: don't use truth to condemn. AC 2268: "If the truths which are in man's memories, and in the thoughts of his mind, are devoid of goods, they are like a city without inhabitants, and are in the same way vacant and empty." Clearly distinctiveness lies in the balance of good and truth.
     I believe therefore that we must be careful about dismissing, out of hand, alternative forms of worship.

514

At times it appears we condemn. I have done that many times. At times it appears we lose track of the fact that the Lord has created us to be unique individuals, unique reflections of His love. Shouldn't our services allow for that unique application, undertaken in a spirit of sincerity, freedom and dedication to the church? What is non-conventional, non-traditional is not necessarily a threat to the church.
     The church, like heaven, is made stronger through diversity. The heavens are made more perfect with every new angel. Isn't, therefore, the church made more perfect with the addition of each new dedicated member who can bring his/her own unique perspective to the church? That is where I believe distinctiveness lies: in that unique, dynamic coming together of many parts to form the whole within the Lord's New Church.
     Right now is an exciting but very challenging time for the church in terms of defining distinctiveness. Our definition must make room in a spirit of charity for all New Churchmen.
     Charles E. Blair,
          Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania
OPEN LETTER TO WILSON VAN DUSEN 1993

OPEN LETTER TO WILSON VAN DUSEN Warren David 1993

Dear Wilson:
I enjoyed your open letter, which emphasizes the need to make religion be of life. That is what it is all about. Please keep on thinking about that and writing about it. In the hope that it will promote future good feelings, I would like to humbly offer just a few pointers on writing about the people of the church. I have extracted a few statements from your letter and added my responses, with emphasis to the critical words.

515

The Messiah About to Come

     "I detailed the approach in an article no one paid any attention to."
     I probably read it myself. I suspect that most of us read New Church Life from cover to cover as soon we get it. I guess we don't count.

A Prayerful Approach to the Word

     "I am appalled that Swedenborgians haven't thought to follow him in this."
     I actually have thought about this, and have tried to follow, as have many of my friends in the church. I guess we don't count.

Dreams

     "Again I find it strange that no Swedenborgians seem to follow him in this."
     I have kept notes on many of my own dreams, for example, and have used correspondences to interpret them. I have also spoken with other people in the church and have found that they too do this. I guess we don't count.

Spiritual Practices

     "We are exceedingly remiss in the spiritual practices that could enrich our lives and give us something to give to others."
     Do you mean every single one of us? In my experience the people of the New Church are very charitable, loving, caring people who do many things to help those in need. Since I have unexpectedly become one of those in need, I have been able to experience at first hand the outpouring of charity from the church people in Bryn Athyn. It certainly makes me glad that I live in this community. I guess we don't count.

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     I guess you never got to know any real, practicing New Church people. It would be a good thing if you could know at least one. I think I am very fortunate to know some, maybe even many. I guess we don't count.
     The use of such blanket statements tends to annoy people when they are published as if they were true, and this is bound to arouse negative feelings and provoke arguments. Please, could you allow just a little room for the good people who are in this church, and thereby let us appreciate the good thoughts you are trying to express in your otherwise worthwhile articles? I certainly would not want you to feel totally ignored. Does my response count for anything?
     Warren David,
          Bryn Athyn, PA
HOMOSEXUALITY 1993

HOMOSEXUALITY Dewey Odhner 1993

Dear Editor:
Isn't it wrong, as my brother John implied in his article in the October issue, to lump together all homosexual acts and equate them with the sin of Sodom? Is it a small difference between that violent crime and two men or two women choosing to spend their lives together? I know that the ultimate male homosexual act is among the abominations prohibited in the Old Testament, and that the Writings include it in acts called foul adulteries. Certainly, if someone tried to involve me or one of my married friends in such an act, I would consider it foul adultery. But if a friend respects my sexual preferences, should I not respect his? Not that I would be comfortable with a friend having many sex partners-no, my point is that I think there are mild and grievous forms of homosexual behavior, and we should encourage our homosexual friends to favor the mild forms.

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     Other acts prohibited in the Old Testament include eating pork and shellfish. The Writings say that eating meat is profane. Most of us are tolerant of friends who eat pork or shellfish. Could we expand our tolerance?
     Dewey Odhner,
          Horsham, Pennsylvania
OFFENSES AGAINST WOMEN 1993

OFFENSES AGAINST WOMEN Rev. Jan H. Weiss 1993

Dear Editor:
     While our society is concentrating on the homosexual lifestyle, I wish that instead we would rum our attention to the violent behavior of men who rape women, or abuse their wives, or molest their children. I often ask myself why it is that no man is speaking out against such behavior.
     In the pages of New Church Life we speak a lot about doctrine; we bring out new ideas or we fine-tune past ideas. But in this letter I am interested only in action. I would like to ask every male reader of this journal to go into some action of expressing dismay and protest to the world. With Conjugial Love in our hand, let's address the world and work for the prevention of such violent behavior.
     To make a beginning I would like to ask every male reader of this journal to write me a letter of moral support for my position of protest, and to start a campaign of letter-writing to our legislators to bring us laws that more effectively protect our women and children.
     By ourselves we are nothing and can do little. But together we are more able and can do much more. Admittedly, the General Church is a totally insignificant part of the Christian world. But we can take encouragement from the example of David, who prevailed over the giant Goliath.

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If we take our sling and a stone in our hand and move it, the Lord will cause our action to be effective. We may not know how at this point, but we know He will. The situation seems so bad and we must do something. I will pray that this request will reach receptive hearts and minds, and will cause much response.
Rev. Jan H. Weiss,
2650 Del Vista Drive, Hacienda Heights, CA 91745
SPIRITUAL GROWTH GROUPS 1993

SPIRITUAL GROWTH GROUPS Charles Edward Mann 1993

Dear Editor:
     I am responding to V. C. Odhner's letter (and others) in the October issue specifically, and more generally to the broader issue of the relationship of spiritual growth (the use of psychological methods to achieve spiritual ends) to New Church doctrine.
     Although Mr. Odhner's caution against the dissembling of truth-as it is understood in the New Church-is admirable, his argument is based on the assumption that spiritual-growth groups teach another "truth" than is contained in the Writings and the Word. In practice, nothing could be further from fact.
     Where the critics of spiritual growth seem to stumble is in their assumption that Gurdjieff as a personality is important to those who practice the psychological exercises of "the Work." His relationship to the Work (as practiced in the New Church) is the same as Alexander Graham Bell's to the telephone. Does Bell's motive for inventing the telephone, whatever it was, change anything about its effectiveness or its practicality as a means for communication? I think not. The same, with a few reservations, can be said of Gurdjieff and the Work.

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     Perhaps one of the problems comes in calling the process of the Work a spiritual act-it's really a psychological act that leads, because of psychological health and growth, to a greater possibility of regeneration, the true spiritual act. I do think there is a basic misunderstanding among those who know the Work only as something that "rascal" Gurdjieff taught so many years ago. His cosmology was (and still is) a joke.
     As AC 6822 states: "Good can be insinuated into another by anyone in his country, but not truth . . . . " This is the function of spiritual growth as I understand is to insinuate good (not new or different truths) through the use of practical psychological tools and methods, all the time giving credit to the Lord for what is achieved. The Writings often say that the presence of the Lord's influx will not be apparent to a man or a woman, and that anything we accomplish of a spiritual nature, such as the shunning of sins and loving the neighbor, will have every appearance of being done "as of oneself."
     Since "use" is a cornerstone of the church in practice, anything that can enhance that "use" is good, but only so far as it can be squared with "truth." The Writings are that "truth," and contain what I would call a strategic approach to use and regeneration, while "the Work" (the rubric under which these collective psychological tools are identified) is nothing more than a tactical (practical) method of personally approaching achievement of this greater strategic design. There's no dichotomy, no divergence of purpose, no greater and lesser "truth," no heresy; spiritual growth is nothing more than a handmaiden (one of many, perhaps) to the only auth, the Lord's revelation as revealed through the Writings.
     Charles Edward Mann,
          Langhorne, Pennsylvania

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BEST NEAR-TERM FUTURE FOR THE MIDWESTERN ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH 1993

BEST NEAR-TERM FUTURE FOR THE MIDWESTERN ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH Rev. ERIC H. CARSWELL 1993

     President of the Midwestern Academy

     For many years the Midwestern Academy of the New Church (9th and 10th grades) in Glenview, Illinois has been a powerful force for good in the lives of its students. Both students and parents have appreciated the way in which the school has helped to build a knowledge of and appreciation for the doctrines and life of the New Church. There has been strong support for the academics and extracurricular offerings that the school has worked hard to provide. But over the last decade there has also been increasing concern about the small number of students attending, and the impact this has on the overall student experience at the school.
     As a number of New Church schools have observed, smallness can be a negatively self-reinforcing cycle. Because a school has a small number of students, other potential students do not attend. This problem can be compounded at the high school level when many students feel an increased desire for broader social contact, competitive sports, and specialized academic or extra-curricular programs.
     An additional issue involved in providing a quality education in a small school is the cost. With rare exception, good high school education is more expensive than good elementary school education. It is important to have teachers with advanced knowledge in high school subject areas and more sophisticated equipment and facilities. The Midwestern Academy is fortunate to have received an endowment from a number of generous donors that has allowed it to offer the kind of quality program that a New Church high school would like to provide for its students. But a number of people have been quite uncomfortable that so much was being spent per student-more than the full cost of a year at the most exclusive universities.

521

While present endowment income is adequate to cover this expense, it is believed that there are more useful purposes in line with the Midwestern Academy's fundamental mission toward which this income could be allocated, including building up the endowment toward the time when a four-year high-school program is feasible.
     Because of these concerns the board of the Midwestern Academy is considering the following plan for the 1994-1995 school year: The school's 9th and 10th grades would be limited to a part-time program consisting of a selected group of courses; only this part-time program would be offered until such time as it is deemed practical and desirable to offer a full-day school program again.
     As presently envisioned, the part-time program would comprise a daily opening chapel, religion, English and history. Following these classes the students would be transported at midmorning to the excellent nearby public high school, Glenbrook South, for the remainder of their academic program, with the opportunity to participate in that school's afternoon extracurricular programs. Four of the seven Midwestern Academy students are attending part-time this year. If this option had not been available, it seemed likely that these four students would have attended Glenbrook South full-time. It is believed that a part-time program will provide some of the benefits of New Church education (e.g. helping the students to learn the essential doctrines of the New Church and thereby to recognize the Lord's order and presence in daily life and fostering a desire to follow that order) while still providing the students with an opportunity for a broad and rich high school experience. A part-time program can provide these benefits at a significantly reduced cost.
     With the limiting of the day-school program, the expectation is that there will be a significantly enhanced New Church youth program sponsored by the Midwestern Academy for all the high-school-age teens in the Glenview area.

522

     There are some legitimate questions about the effects of moving to a part-time program. Such a program would not have the same strength, cohesiveness and specific academic and social benefits that a full-time day-school program ideally could. A person could ask if this is a prudent move, or if it represents an undesirable abandonment of "a bird in the hand" (the present number of students who would attend a full-day program) for "several in the bush" (a more diffuse impact on more students now, along with the dream of an expanded Midwestern Academy in the future).
     There is concern that social contacts at the public high school may result in our children's undue attraction to and expanded opportunity for disorderly and destructive experiences. Similarly there is concern about the effects of some natural and worldly attitudes and concepts that students can come in contact with at a public high school. Some of these attitudes and concepts are not in harmony with the teachings of the New Church, and they can be at odds with what we will be working to teach our students in our homes and at the Midwestern Academy.
     While no young person is ever as safe from such potential influences as we might prefer, a strong foundation as well as daily opportunities to discuss and get perspective on the social and intellectual life at the public school should help many of the students to respond in healthy ways to their experiences. For most New Church teens, some or all of their high school years will be spent at a public school. We know that the Lord is working within each of these teens' responses to his or her experience in order to bring about as much good as can be received in freedom. In some cases, contact with natural and worldly attitudes and concepts results in a teen's turning away from what is good and true; in other cases it strengthens the teen's identification with the beliefs of the New Church. Parents have an important opportunity and responsibility to take an active part in helping their teens make sense of this broader world while they are still at home.

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Life in this world would be far simpler if we could focus just on doing good things and avoiding evil ones. But it is one of the qualities of earthly life that we have to choose among a nearly unending number of possible good things that we could do, setting priorities and seeking to make prudent decisions with the opportunities and resources that the Lord gives us. The Midwestern Academy board and corporate membership are facing this sort of difficult decision as they consider the best future for the Midwestern Academy in the years immediately before us.
If you would like more information or to express an opinion on this issue, please write to me, Eric Carswell, President of the Midwestern Academy, 74 Park Drive, Glenview, IL 60025.
Church News 1993

Church News Doris McDonald 1993

     TORONTO

     The past two years were special in many ways, but in particular as we had the occasion to celebrate two centennials. First, our special friend Miss Irene Briscoe achieved 100 years of age last September 1992. The society honored this unique lady with a Sunday afternoon tea in the church hall. Her younger sister and brother traveled from England to help make this occasion special, and indeed special it was.
     The second celebration was the 100th anniversary of our Olivet Day School this past May. Friday evening the older school children delighted us with their performance of "Not Fit for Man or Beast," and the younger children entertained us with their various musical abilities. They also provided us with wonderful decorations for the entire weekend with their "wallpapering" (artwork and projects done throughout the year). Saturday evening 170 former students and friends from near and far enjoyed a lovely banquet, with numerous former students reminiscing about their days at O.D.S. Our special guest speaker, Miss Sylvia Parker, was not only a former student but also taught here for 21 years, many of those as head teacher.

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The celebration came to a close when we had the pleasure of hearing our former assistant pastor, the Rt. Rev. Peter Buss, preach.
     My last report mentioned a contemplated addition to our present building. Now, two years later, our lovely new entrance and handicap access are in full use. The dedication took place September 19, 1993. Mr. Tom Fountain had the honor of being the first to use the new elevator. Not only do we have this addition, but also our building was extended at the opposite end which houses the school, adding more classroom space and much needed storage. There was a special dedication service for this part of the extension on September 7, 1993, the first day back to school.
     Our uses are varied and numerous. We are still trying to maintain them despite many staffing changes this year. Rev. Michael Cowley, our assistant pastor, was called to Caryndale to become the head pastor there. We wish Michael and Gwenda and their family well in their new endeavors. Also, our principal, Phil Schnarr, who with his wife Terry headed up our Outreach Program, felt a call to go into the ministry, and so at our recent June school closing we paid tribute to their work here, and sent them off to Bryn Athyn with our good wishes as they enter into new uses. These two young families will be much missed.
     A decision was made to make our pastor, Rev. Michael Gladish, principal this year, with Mr. Steve Krauss as head teacher. We also were delighted to welcome back Miss Julie Niall to our teaching staff after a year away teaching in Poland. We are also happy to welcome Rev. Wendel Barnett and his wife Gwen and their six children here to Toronto. Wendel is our new assistant pastor, being responsible for our young families.
     As there seems to be no more room left to elaborate on everything that is happening here, I will just say that we are in an era of much change, with an emphasis on outreach and an offering of a variety of small discussion groups.
     Last but not least, we welcomed nine new babies into our midst and shared in the celebration of five marriages, both always a delight to us all. We also had four deaths and reflected on the various contributions of those friends who now enter into higher uses in the Lord's heavenly kingdom. They will all be much missed. Hopefully I have given you a feel for our busy and diversified society. Please check us out-you won't be disappointed! From all of us to all of you throughout the world we wish a I useful and successful year.
     Doris McDonald

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ORDINATION 1993

ORDINATION Editor 1993

Announcements
Thabede-At Buccleuch, South Africa, August 29, 1993, Ndaizane Albert Thabede into the first degree of the priesthood, Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss officiating.
CORRECTION 1993

CORRECTION Editor 1993

The marriage of Mr. David Glover and Miss Sally B. Marchant reported in the October issue took place on July 27, 1991, not June 27th.
NEWS FROM THE SWEDENBORG FOUNDATION 1993

NEWS FROM THE SWEDENBORG FOUNDATION Editor 1993

     We plan to print a photograph next month of the historic building in West Chester, PA which will be the new home of the Swedenborg Foundation.
     The newly hired marketing manager, Joanna Hill, has supplied a new Foundation brochure featuring this edifice. The address is 320 North Church Street, West Chester, PA 19380. The phone number is (215) 430-3222.
     Something new to order is the new translation of New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine. In his preface the translator, Lee Woofenden, says, "My aim in this translation of The Heavenly City has been to put Swedenborg's simple, readable Latin into equally readable modern English." The price is $9.95.

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COME AND SEE 1993

COME AND SEE Editor 1993

An Introduction
to the
Writings of the New Church
by
Rev. Donald L. Rose
     A clearly written 28-page booklet, inviting the reader to come and see the doctrines of the New
Church, and to understand for himself the teachings of the Writings.
     This very popular booklet has been out of print for three years, but is now slightly revised and
reprinted for the sixth time.
     Available from General Church Book Center for $1.95.
     Box 743, Cairncrest
General Church Book Center               Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12 or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                    Phone: (215) 947-3920

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Notes on This Issue 1993

Notes on This Issue Editor 1993

Vol. CXIII December, 1993 No. 12
NEW CHURCH LIFE

530

     Our intention is to have this issue out early enough for the majority of our readers to enjoy the Christmas sermon before Christmas. (Doing the index has made this a little difficult in the past. Now computer technology facilitates it.)
     It has been our custom to publish the treasurer's report in the December issue. The reports now will be more full and will take several pages, and this one is deferred to the January issue.
     Among other things deferred to the next issue is a letter on spiritual growth groups. Some had wondered whether ministers have given counsel and encouragement to these groups. That letter answers in the affirmative.
     What a coincidence. The enrollments in our different schools all vary, of course. But adding up nine local schools and the Academy schools (good to see the college enrollment increasing) we reach 1002, exactly the figure we had last year. Membership in the General Church has increased, as you will see in the secretary's report.

     [Photo of Historic new headquarters for the 154-year-old Swedenborg Foundation in West Chester, Pennsylvania. The building dates back to 1773, the year after Swedenborg died.]

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FLIGHT INTO EGYPT 1993

FLIGHT INTO EGYPT Rev. PATRICK A. ROSE 1993

     A CHRISTMAS SERMON

     "Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, 'Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him'" (Matt. 2:13).

     The story of the Lord's advent into the world fills us with a sense of wonder, a sense of innocence. God Himself, the Creator of the universe, comes down to earth, and is present within the body of a tiny baby. He is adored and worshiped by an angelic host, by simple shepherds, by Simeon and Anna in the temple, and later by the wise men, the magi, from the east.
     The Christmas story is filled with such beautiful images-images of peace and tranquility. Indeed it was so that there might be peace upon the earth that the Lord Himself had come. He had been born as the Prince of Peace (see Isaiah 9:6). But such peace, permanent peace, would not be possible without conflict. The Lord had come as a warrior, a warrior who would do battle against the forces of evil and darkness which had come to dominate the world. From His own Divine power He was to fight against the hells, and conquer and subjugate them, so that mankind would once more be free to walk the path to heaven.
     Because of this, the hells hated the Lord. For them this newborn Savior, this tiny Baby, was a terrible threat. He had come to break their power and dominion over the human race. And so they burned with a desire to destroy Him.
     This desire of the hells to destroy the Lord finds ultimate expression and representation in Herod's attempt to kill the Lord. Like most evil men, Herod could appear friendly, very friendly indeed, to those who could help him accomplish his ends.

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He graciously received, and helped, the worshipers of the Lord-the wise men from the East. Once he was crossed, though, Herod's anger knew no bounds. Once he realized he had been mocked--once he realized that the wise men had avoided him on their journey home-he was exceedingly angry. He burned with the desire to destroy the Lord, and ordered the destruction of all male children two years old and younger, not only in Bethlehem itself but in the surrounding areas as well.
     Herod, of course, failed in his attempt to destroy the Lord. Joseph had been warned in a dream by an angel and told to take the young Child and His mother into Egypt. There the Lord was taken and there He safely remained until the death of Herod. So it was that the infant Lord was protected from those who sought His life. The attempt to kill Him was frustrated by His being taken away into another country. This whole episode might seem, then, to be a brief incident which can quickly be passed over. Herod tried to destroy the Lord but he failed.
     And yet there is absolutely no episode in the Lord's life which does not have the most profound significance. The Lord was born as the Savior of the human race. Each detail of His birth and each detail of His life was filled with meaning. Each incident portrays something of the way in which the Lord rescues people from the hells and leads them toward heaven. So it is that Herod's persecution of the Lord was not simply an incident but a representation. It represented a danger which threatens the spiritual life of every single human being. Furthermore, the Lord's being taken into Egypt was not simply a method of avoiding Herod, but represented something of the way in which the Lord protects us from evil and leads us toward heaven. What is more, if we can gain some understanding of the truth contained within this story, each one of us will understand more clearly the issues which confront his own individual spiritual life.
     To put it another way, the Christmas story is not just a story about the Lord. It is also a story about us, and a story about the way in which the Lord comes to save us from evil.

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And this evil, which is within us, is represented in part by the wicked King Herod.
     There is thus a sense in which each of us has a King Herod in his mind-a love which either rules or attempts to rule in all that we do and say. This wicked king is none other than the love of self, and the love of self is a subtle and a cunning love. If we love ourselves above all, it may still seem to others-and indeed to ourselves as if we love and worship the Lord. But, as was the case with Herod, our professed desire to worship the Lord is self-centered. If the love of self rules, then in our very heart of hearts we really want only one thing: in the final analysis we care only about ourselves, and about doing what we want to do. Therefore, internally, and often above our conscious awareness, we perceive the Lord as a threat. In the end there can be only one king in the kingdom of the mind. Either the Lord will rule us, or else we will rule ourselves. It cannot be both.
     If a person does love himself more than anything else, then he will resent, and he will seek to destroy, the dominion of the Lord. He does not want to be told by the Lord what he should do. He rebels against the Lord. This is why, even though we may not realize it, there is within each one of us a tendency to ignore the Lord's truth, and to render it ineffective.
     People can destroy the effectiveness of truth in many ways. They can learn the truth and then explain it away, saying that it doesn't really mean what it seems to say. Or they can learn the truth and think about it but never make the effort to actually live according to it. Some people avoid the truth by treating it as something for children. They want their children to learn the truths of religion, but as adults they have no interest in learning more about the truth for themselves. Such avoidance of the truth is even a part of the way in which many people celebrate Christmas. They want the external trappings, the external traditions, of Christmas but have no real interest in exploring the deeper spiritual truths of the Christmas story.

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And so there are many ways in which people avoid the truth. When people are dominated by the love of self, they avoid learning the truth and they avoid living it. They want to rule their own lives. They do not want to be governed by the Lord.
     This is why Herod killed those little boys. Those boys, in the internal sense, represent truths from a spiritual origin (see AE 695:15), and it is through the destruction of such truths that evil can retain its dominion over a person's mind. To the degree in which this happens, to the degree that a person can avoid the real implications of spiritual truth, then Herod, or the love of self, has succeeded.
     This is why the infant Lord was taken down into Egypt. In the internal sense, this was not a retreat or escape from Herod, but represented, in fact, the very way in which Herod himself could later be defeated. The Lord had come down to earth in order to defeat the hells. He had come to save people from evil, to save them from selfishness. And in order that He might do this, the Lord, in being born on earth, had come as the Word. As we read in John: " . . . the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us" (1:14). The Lord was the Word, the Divine Wisdom itself, here on earth in human form. He had come down to people to teach them, to teach them what they needed to know in order to be led out of evil and selfishness into the light and joy of heaven. He had come, as Simeon prophesied in the temple, as "a light to lighten the Gentiles" (Luke 2:32). This is why the infant Lord had been laid in a manger. A manger stands for the doctrine of truth from the Word (see AE 706:12).
     And this also is why the angel told Joseph to take the Lord down into Egypt. Egypt, in the Word, represents knowledge, knowledge that can be stored within the memory. Here in the story of Christmas it represents knowledges from the Word. And the Lord's being taken down into Egypt represents the Lord's instruction in infancy in the knowledges of the Word.
     Now this is, at first glance, a puzzling thing. Why would the Lord, who knows all things, need to be instructed?

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Why would He, an omniscient God, need to learn anything? As to His soul, the Lord was indeed omniscient. His soul is Divine. The human, though, that human which was taken on by means of Mary, was not born Divine, but was made Divine successively. That human needed to learn, and it needed to learn in order that it might be formed into a full receptacle of the Divine.
     When the Lord was born, He had assumed a human body. By means of this body He was present, and He could be found, as a tiny baby, still in swaddling clothes, in the small town of Bethlehem. His presence on earth, though, was at first only of a very general nature. He had descended into a natural body, but within this human there was not as yet a fully developed natural mind. A mind as well as a body had to be formed. And this mind within the Lord's Human was to be formed of knowledges, knowledges taken from the Word of the Old Testament.
     It is the formation of this mind which is represented by the Lord's sojourn in Egypt. The Lord's mind in infancy was to be formed from the knowledges of the Old Testament. Then, as the Divine soul later descended into the mind of the Human, He would reveal new truths, teachings which would astound the multitudes who followed Him.
     Here was the Divine presence-the Lord with men-in a way that had never been possible before. Once the Lord began to teach, once the Lord began His ministry, people could begin to understand Him, understand His wisdom and love, in a completely new way. Within Jesus Christ the Divine mind itself was present here on earth. People could turn to Him, and by His power they could be lifted out of the selfishness and evil that obsessed their minds. Through this powerful presence of the Lord Himself, the power of Herod, the power of the hells, could be broken.
     This special presence of the Lord Jesus Christ has its foundation in the knowledges of Divine revelation. The Lord was born on earth to save all mankind.

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He came to save those alive at the time of His birth. He came to save us as well. The Lord wants to be with us. He wants to rule our minds and lead us into eternal happiness. If this is to happen, though, there must be knowledges within our minds, knowledges from revelation within which He can be present. Such knowledges are vessels, vessels for the presence of the Lord.
     This is why Herod killed those baby boys. Kill the knowledges of spiritual truth, by twisting them or ignoring them, and there is then no longer any immediate presence of the Lord. Rachel, that is, the women of Bethlehem, wept for their infant sons. "In Ramah was there a voice heard, lamentation and weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not" (Matt. 2:18). It is a terribly sad picture. It is the picture of the misery which results when people here on earth reject, and destroy within themselves, the spiritual truths of the Lord's Word.
     Knowledges from Divine revelation are important. Even evil spirits know this, which is why they try to destroy these knowledges. By themselves knowledges will never save us. But knowledges from the Word are still very important. It is through spiritual knowledge that we learn how to live a life that is truly good. And it is through spiritual knowledge that we can enter fully into the presence of the Lord.
     The Lord Himself is present through His Word. The Lord is the Word. When we learn knowledges from the Word, when we study the Word and regularly learn from its pages, then these knowledges within our minds are used by the Lord Himself. He uses them as a dwelling-place, as a place in which He can be present within our minds. When we learn from the Word, we provide, within our very own minds, a dwelling place for the Lord-a manger, as it were, in which He can rest and dwell within us. As the Lord's Divine soul descended into those knowledges He learned in childhood, so too can He Himself descend and be present within those knowledges from the Word learned and received within our minds.

537

We make time for many things in life. During the coming year, we will make time for many more. Some things, though, we will forget and dismiss as simply not important enough. But what of the Word? What about Divine revelation? Though the love of self would lead us to do otherwise, we must take the time to learn from the Word, learn new things, and learn old things with new insight. We must be willing, in innocence, to listen to what the Lord has to teach us, These knowledges, the knowledges of Divine revelation, are the very foundation of His presence within our minds. They make it possible for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to enter and to dwell within us. What we learn from the Word makes possible the very coming of the Lord Himself. Amen.

Lessons: Matt. 2; AC 1461 SUMMER SEMINAR OF SWEDENBORG STUDIES 1993

SUMMER SEMINAR OF SWEDENBORG STUDIES Editor 1993

The New Church College in Manchester, England, is holding its second seminar next summer, August 22-26, 1994. The overall theme is: God in man and man in God-Swedenborg's teaching on the Divine Human.
As in 1992, we are looking forward to speakers being present both from within Britain and from abroad. Speakers who attended the first of the college's summer seminars in 1992 spoke warmly and appreciatively of it.

Ian A. Arnold, Principal,
The New Church College,
25 Radciiffe Road, Radcliffe,
Manchester M26 1LE, England

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DIRECTORY 1993

DIRECTORY Editor 1993

     GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM

     1993 1994

     Officials
Bishop:                Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss
Bishops Emeriti:           Rt. Rev. Louis B. King
                         Rt. Rev. Willard D. Pendleton
Acting Secretary:      Rev. Louis D. Synnestvedt

     Consistory
Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss
Rt. Rev. Louis B. King; Rev. Messrs. Alfred Acton, Kurt Ho. Asplundh, Christopher D. Bown, Eric H. Carswell, Geoffrey S. Childs, Daniel W. Goodenough, Daniel W. Heinrichs, Geoffrey H. Howard, Robert S. Junge, Brian W. Keith Thomas L. Kline, Donald L. Rose, Frank S. Rose, Frederick L. Schnarr, Grant R. Schnarr, and Louis D. Synnestvedt

     "GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM"

     (A Corporation of Pennsylvania)

     Officers of the Corporation
President:                Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss
Vice President:           Rt. Rev. Louis B. King
Secretary:                Mr. E. Boyd Asplundh
Treasurer:                Mr. Neil M. Buss
Assistant Treasurer:      Mr. Bruce A. Fuller
Controller:           Mr. Ian K. Henderson

     BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE CORPORATION
Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King, Edward F. Allen, Jr., Eyvind H. Boyesen, Michael A. Brown, Neil M. Buss, Rosemary B. Campbell, Barbara Tryn G. Clark, Patricia deM. David, Nancy S. Dawson, Sonia S. Doering, Theodore C. Farrington, B. Reade Genzlinger, Robert L. Glenn, Terry K. Glenn, Glenn H. Heilman Thelma P. Henderson, Hugh D. Hyatt, Michael C. Kloc, Michael G. Lockhart, Kim U. Maxwell, Roger S. Murdoch, Wayne Parker, Duncan B. Pitcairn, William B. Radcliffe, Bruce A. Reuter. Roger W. Schnarr, Beryl C. Simonetti, Warren Stewart. James G. Uber, Gerald G. Waters, Kenneth L. York, Phillip R. Zuber

539

Ex-officio Members:           Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss
                              Rt. Rev. Louis B. King
                              Mr. Neil M. Buss
Honorary Life Member:           Rt. Rev. Willard D. Pendleton

     BISHOPS

Buss, Peter Martin. Ordained June 19, 1964; 2nd degree, May 16, 1965; 3rd degree, June 1, 1986. Continues to serve as Executive Bishop of the General Church, General Pastor of the General Church, Chancellor of the Academy of the New Church, President of the General Church in Canada, and President of the General Church International, Incorporated. Address: P.O. Box 711, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

King, Louis Blair. Ordained June 19, 1951; 2nd degree, April 19, 1953; 3rd degree, November 5, 1972. Retired. Bishop Emeritus of the General Church, Chancellor Emeritus of the Academy of the New Church. Address: P.O. Box 743, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Pendleton, Willard Dandridge. Ordained June 18, 1933; 2nd degree, September 12, 1934; 3rd degree, June 19, 1946. Retired. Bishop Emeritus of the General Church, Chancellor Emeritus of the Academy of the New Church. Address: P.O. Box 338, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

     PASTORS

Acton, Alfred. Ordained June 19, 1964; 2nd degree, October 30, 1966. Continues to serve as an instructor in the Academy of the New Church College and Theological School, Chairman of the General Church Translation Committee, Visiting Pastor to Connecticut Circle, and Academy of the New Church College Chaplain. Address: P.O. Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Alden, Glenn Graham. Ordained June 19, 1974; 2nd degree, June 6, 1976. Continues to serve as resident pastor of the Northwestern District of Canada, resident in Dawson Creek, and Visiting Pastor to Crooked Creek, Calgary, Oyen, Red Deer and Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Address: 9013 801 Streef Dawson Creek, B.C., Canada V1G 3N3.

Alden, Kenneth James. Ordained June 6, 1980; 2nd degree, May 16, 1982. Continues to serve as Assistant to the Pastor of the Carmel Church Society and as Principal of the Carmel Church School. Address: 107 Evenstone Road, RR 2, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada N2G 3W5.

Alden, Mark Edward. Ordained June 10, 1979; 2nd degree, May 17, 1981. Unassigned; instructor in Radiation Oncology, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. Address: 2959 Sycamore Road, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006.

Ankra-Badu, William Ofei. Ordained June 15, 1986; 2nd degree, March 1, 1992. Continues to serve as a pastor of the New Church, resident in Ghana, West Africa. Address: P.O. Box 11305, Accra, West Africa, Ghana.

540

Asplundh, Kurt Horigan. Ordained June 19, 1960; 2nd degree, June 19, 1962. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society and Bishop's Representative in Bryn Athyn. Address: P.O. Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Barnett, Wendel Ryan. Ordained June 7, 1981; 2nd degree. June 20, 1982. Assistant Pastor of the Olivet Church, Toronto, Canada as of July 1, 1993. Address: c/o 279 Burnhamthorpe Road. Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada M9B 126.

Bau-Madsen, Arne. Ordained June 6, 1976; 2nd degree, June 11, 1978. Continues to serve as Associate Pastor to Kempton, Visiting Pastor to Wilmington, Delaware, and Visiting Pastor to Wallenpaupack, Pennsylvania. Address: Box 527, RD 2, Lenhartsville, PA 19534.

Bown, Christopher Duncan. Ordained June 18, 1978; 2nd degree. December 23, 1979. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Colchester Society, Visiting Pastor of the Hague Circle, and Bishop's Representative for Great Britain and Europe. Address: 2 Christ Church Ct., Colchester, Essex, England C03 3AU.

Boyesen, Bjorn Adolph Hildemar. Ordained June 19, 1939; 2nd degree, March 30, 1941. Retired, on active assignment. Continues to serve as a translator of the Writings from Latin to modern Swedish, as Pastor of the Jonkoping Circle. Address: 1 Bruksater, Saterfors 10, S-566 91, Habo, Sweden.

Boyesen, Ragnar. Ordained June 19, 1972; 2nd degree, June 17, 1973. Pastor of the Kempton Society as of July 1, 1993. Address: R.D. 2, Box 217, Kempton, PA 19529.

Burke, William Hanson. Ordained June 7, 1981; 2nd degree, August 13, 1983. Continues to serve as Resident Pastor to the Charlotte Circle, Visiting Pastor to the Southeastern United States North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and part of Florida. Address: 6010 Paddington Court, Charlotte, NC 28277.

Buss, Erik James. Ordained June 10, 1990; 2nd degree, September 13, 1992. Resident Pastor of the Puget Sound New Church as of July 1, 1993, and Visiting Pastor to Northwest District. Address: 5409 - 154th Ave. NE, Redmond, WA 98052.

Buthelezi, Ishborn. Ordained August 18, 1985; second degree, August 23, 1987. Recognized as a General Church minister, November 19, 1989. Continues to serve as Resident Pastor of the Clermont Society, Visiting Pastor of the Impaphala Society, Noulinde Group, Enkumba Society and also Hambrook Society at times. Address: P.O. Box 150, Clernaville 3602, Rep. of South Africa.

Carlson, Mark Robert. Ordained June 10, 1973; 2nd degree, March 6, 1977. Continues to serve as Housemaster of Stuart Hall and teacher of religion in the Academy Secondary Schools. Address: P.O. Box 707, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Carswell, Eric Hugh. Ordained June 10, 1979; 2nd degree, February 22, 1981. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Glenview Society, President of the Midwestern Academy, and Bishop's Representative in the Midwestern District. Address: 73 Park Drive, Glenview, IL 60025.

541

Chapin, Frederick Merle. Ordained June 15, 1986; 2nd degree, October 23, 1988. Continues to serve as Resident Pastor of the Phoenix Society and Visiting Pastor to the Albuquerque Circle, Address: 3837 E. Poinsettia Drive, Phoenix, AZ 85028.

Childs, Geoffrey Stafford. Ordained June 19, 1952; 2nd degree, June 19, 1954. Retired on active assignment. Continues to serve as Bishop's Representative in South Africa. Address: 7 Sydney Drive, Westville, 3630, Rep. of South Africa.

Childs, Robin Waelchli. Ordained June 6, 1984; 2nd degree. June 8, 1986. Continues to serve as Assistant to the Pastor of the Glenview Society. Address: 2700 Park Lane, Glenview, IL 60025.

Clifford, William Harrison. Ordained June 6, 1976; 2nd degree. October 8, 1978. Resigned August 15, 1986. Address: 3932 Courtyard Pl., Gorand Rapids, MI 49546-7631.

Cole, Robert Hudson Pendleton. Ordained June 16, 1963; 2nd degree, October 30, 1966. Retired. Address: P.O. Box 356, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Cole, Stephen Dandridge. Ordained June 19, 1977; 2nd degree, October 15, 1978. Pastor of the San Diego Society as of July 1, 1993. Address: 941 Ontario Street, Escondido, CA 92025.

Cooper, James Pendleton. Ordained June 13, 1982; 2nd degree, March 4, 1984. Pastor of the Washington Society as of July 1, 1993, and Principal of the Washington New Church School. Address: 11910 Chantilly Lane, Mitchellville, MD 20721.

Cowley, Michael Keith. Ordained June 13, 1982; 2nd degree, May 13, 1984. Pastor of the Carmel Church Society, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada as of July 1, 1993. Address: 58 Chapel Hill Drive, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada N2G 3W5.

Cranch, Harold Covert. Ordained June 19, 1941: 2nd degree. October 15, 1942. Retired. Acting Pastor of the Sacramento Circle, assisting local pastors as needed. Address: 501 Porter Street, Glendale, CA 91205.

Dibb, Andrew Malcolm Thomas. Ordained June 6, 1984; 2nd degree, May 18, 1986. Continues to serve as Pastor of the New Church Buccleuch, Director of the ministerial training program in South Africa, Visiting Pastor to Cape Town and Kent Manor Groups, and Acting Pastor of Diepkloof Society. Address: P.O. Box 816, Kelvin 2054, Rep. of South Africa.

Echols, John Clark, Jr. Ordained August 26, 1978; 2nd degree, March 30, 1980. Pastor of the Freeport Society as of July 1, 1993. Address: c/o The Sower's Chapel, 100 Iron Bridge Road, Sarver, PA 16055.

Elphick, Frederick Charles. Ordained June 6, 1984; 2nd degree September 23, 1984. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Michael Church London, England. Address: 21B Hayne Road, Beckenham. Kent, BR3 4JA, England.

Gladish, Michael David. Ordained June 10, 1973; 2nd degree, June 30, 1974. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Olivet Church (Toronto Society). Address: 2 Lorraine Gardens, Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada M9B 424.

542

Gladish, Nathan Donald. Ordained June 13, 1982; 2nd degree. November 6, 1983. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Pittsburgh Society and Principal of the New Church School. Address: 299 Le Roi Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15208.

Goodenough, Daniel Webster. Ordained June 19, 1965; 2nd degree, December 10, 1967. Continues to serve as President of the Academy of the New Church. Address: P.O. Box 711, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Heilman, Andrew James. Ordained June 18, 1978; 2nd degree, March 8, 1981. Continues to serve as Assistant to the Pastor of the Kempton Society and teacher of religion and science in the Kempton New Church School. Address: R.D. 2, Box 172, Kempton, PA 19529.

Heinrichs, Daniel Winthrop. Ordained June 19, 1957; 2nd degree, April 6, 1958. Continues to serve as Resident Pastor of the New Church at Boynton Beach, Pastor of the Florida District (excluding the Panhandle), and Chairman of the Traveling Ministers' Committee. Address: 10621 Fl Clair Ranch Road, Boynton Beach, FL 33437.

Heinrichs, Willard Lewis Davenport. Ordained June 19, 1965; 2nd degree, January 26, 1969. Continues to serve as an instructor in the Academy of the New Church Theological School and College and Visiting Pastor to the Baltimore Society. Address: P.O. Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Howard, Geoffrey Horace. Ordained June 19, 1961; 2nd degree. June 2, 1963. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Boston Society. Address: 17 Cakebread Drive, Sudbury, MA 01776.

Junge, Kent. Ordained June 10, 1979; 2nd degree, June 24, 1981. Resigned March 23, 1989. Address: 14812 N. E. 75th Street. Redmond, WA 98052.

Junge, Robert Schill. Ordained June 19, 1955; 2nd degree, August 11, 1957. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Ivyland Circle and Bishop's Representative in certain developmental areas outside the U.S. Address: 851 W. Bristol Road, Ivyland, PA 18974.

Keith, Brian Walter. Ordained June 6, 1976; 2nd degree. June 4, 1978. Continues to serve as Dean of the Academy of the New Church Theological School. Address: P.O. Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

King, Cedric. Ordained June 10, 1979; 2nd degree, November 27, 1980. Continues to serve as Pastor of the New Church at El Toro; Visiting Minister to the Bay Area Circle. Address: 21332 Forest Meadow, Fl Toro, CA 92630.

Kline, Thomas Leroy. Ordained June 10, 1973; 2nd degree, June 15, 1975. Continues to serve as Assistant Pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society. Address: P.O. Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Kwak, Dzin Pyung. Ordained June 12, 1988; 2nd degree, November 11, 1990. Continues to serve as Pastor of the General Church in Korea (on special assignment). Address: #B01 Sanho-Villa, 238 Shinsa-Dong, Eunpung-Ku, Seoul, Korea 122-080.

543

Larsen, Ottar Trosvik. Ordained June 19, 1974; 2nd degree. February 16, 1977. Resigned July 31, 1987. Address: 1505 Grove Avenue, Jenkintown, PA 19046.

Lindrooth, David Hutchinson. Ordained June 10, 1990; 2nd degree, April 19, 1992. Pastor of the Stockholm Society. Address: Aladdinsvagen 27, S-161 38 Bromma, Sweden.

Mbatha, Bhekuyise Alfred. Ordained June 27, 1971; 2nd degree. June 23, 1974. Recognized as a General Church minister November 26, 1989. Resident Pastor of the Kwa Mashu Society and Visiting Pastor to the Hambrook Society and Dondotha and Umlazi Groups. Address: P.O. Box 27011, Kwa Mashu, Natal 4360, Rep. of South Africa.

McCurdy, George Daniel. Ordained June 25, 1967; Recognized as a priest of the New Church in the second degree July 5, 1979; received into the priesthood of the General Church June 9, 1980. Continues to serve as instructor of religion in the Academy of the New Church Secondary Schools and Chaplain for the Secondary Schools. Address: P.O. Box 707, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Nemitz, Kurt Paul. Ordained June 16, 1963; 2nd degree, March 27, 1966. Unassigned; translator. Address: 887 Middle Street, Bath, ME 04530.

Nicholson, Allison La Marr. Ordained September 9, 1979; 2nd degree, February 15, 1981. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Bath Society. Address: HC33-Box 61N. Arrowsic, ME 04530.

Nkabinde, Peter Piet. Ordained June 23, 1974; 2nd degree, November 13, 1977. Recognized as a General Church minister November 2, 1989. Retired. Address: 2375 Zone 2 - Diepkloof, P. O. Opland, Soweto 2001, Rep. of South Africa.

Nobre, Cristovao Rabelo. Ordained June 6, 1984; 2nd degree. August 25, 1985. Continues to serve as Resident Pastor of the Rio de Janeiro Society and Visiting Minister for some other cities in Brazil. Address: Rue Line Teixeira, 109 Apt, 201, Rocha, Rio de Janeiro, 20970, Brazil.

Odhner, Grant Hugo. Ordained June 7, 1981; 2nd degree, May 9, 1982. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Oak Arbor Society and Principal of the Oak Arbor Church School, Address: 395 Olivewood Court, Rochester, MI 48306.

Odhner, John Llewellyn. Ordained June 6, 1980; 2nd degree, November 22, 1981. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Los Angeles Society, and Visiting Pastor to the San Francisco Bay Area Circle. Address: 5022 Carolyn Way, La Crescents, CA 91214.

Orthwein, Welter Edward, III. Ordained July 22, 1973; 2nd degree, June 12, 1977. Recognized as a priest of the General Church June 12, 1977. Continues to serve as an instructor in the Academy of the New Church Theological School and College, and Pastor of the Central Pennsylvania Group. Address: P.O. Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Pendleton, Dandridge. Ordained June 19, 1952; 2nd degree, June 19, 1954. Retired. Address: P.O. Box 278, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

544

Perry, Charles Mark. Ordained June 9, 1991; 2nd degree, June 19, 1993. Pastor of the Atlanta Society as of July 1, 1993. Address: c/o 3118 Frontenac Ct., Atlanta, GA 30319.

Pryke, Martin. Ordained June 19, 1940; 2nd degree, March 1, 1942. Retired. Address: P.O. Box 707, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Reuter, Norman Harold. Ordained June 17, 1928; 2nd degree, October 13, 1930. Retired. Address: P. O. Box 550, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Riley, Norman Edward. Ordained June 14, 1950; 2nd degree June 20, 1951. Recognized as a priest of the General Church January, 1978. Retired. Address: 69 Harewood Road, Norden, Rochdale, OL11 5TH, England.

Rogers, Donald Kenneth. Ordained June 6, 1984; 2nd degree, May 25, 1986. Resigned June 30, 1989. Address: 51 Valley View Court Cartersville, GA 30120.

Rogers, Prescott Andrew. Ordained January 26, 1986; 2nd degree, April 24, 1988. Continues to serve as an Asst. Professor of religion and history in the Academy of the New Church College. Address: P.O. Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Rose, Donald Leslie. Ordained June 16, 1957; 2nd degree, June 23, 1963. Continues to serve as Editor of New Church Life and Assistant to the Pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society. Address: P.O. Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Rose, Frank Shirley. Ordained June 19, 1952; 2nd degree, August 2, 1953. Continues to serve as Pastor of the Sunrise Chapel and Bishop's Representative in the West, Address: 9233 E. Helen Street, Tucson, AZ 85715.

Rose, Patrick Alan. Ordained June 19, 1975; 2nd degree, September 25, 1977. Continues to serve as Resident Pastor of the Cincinnati Society, Visiting Pastor to the North Ohio Circle, Traveling Pastor to Southern Indiana, Southern Ohio and Kentucky. Address: 785 Ashcroft Ct., Cincinnati, OH 45240.

Rose, Thomas Hartley. Ordained June 12, 1988; 2nd degree May 21, 1989. Bryn Athyn Church School Pastor as of July 1, 1993. Address: P. O, Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Roth, David Christopher. Ordained June 9, 1991; 2nd degree October 17, 1993. Continues to serve as Assistant to the Pastor of the Chicago Circle, Visiting Minister to Twin Cities New Church, and other district travel. Address: 2604 N. Racine Avenue, Apt. 1, Chicago, IL 60614.

Sandstrom, Erik. Ordained June 10, 1934; 2nd degree, August 4, 1935. Retired. Member of Worship and Ritual Committee, and General Church Publication Committee. Address: 3566 Post Road, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006.

Sandstrom, Erik Emanuel. Ordained May 23, 1971; 2nd degree, May 21, 1972. Continues to serve as an instructor in religion and theology in the Academy Theological School and College, head of the Religion and Sacred Languages Division, and Visiting Pastor to the North New Jersey/New York Circle. Address: P.O. Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

545

Schnarr, Arthur Willard, Jr. Ordained June 7, 1981; 2nd degree, June 19, 1983. Pastor of the Hurstville Society as of July 1, 1993. Address: 26 Dudley Street, Penshurst, 2222 NSW Australia.

Schnarr, Frederick Laurier. Ordained June 19, 1955; 2nd degree, May 12, 1957. Continues to serve as Bishop's Representative for Education; Director of the General Church Office of Education; Chairman of the Education Council. Address: Box 743, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Schnarr, Grant Ronald. Ordained June 12, 1983; 2nd degree, October 7, 1984. Continues to serve as Director of Evangelization, Pastor of the Chicago Circle and Bishop's Representative for Evangelization. Address: 73A Park Drive, Glenview, IL 60025.

Silverman, Raymond Joel. Ordained June 6, 1984; 2nd degree, June 19, 1985. Unassigned. Working independently in prison teaching as adjunct professor of English and religion for Mercer University, Atlanta, Georgia. Address: 2119 Seaman Circle, Chamblee, GA 30341.

Simons, David Restyn. Ordained June 19, 1948; 2nd degree, June 19, 1950. Retired. Address: 561 Woodward Drive, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006.

Simons, Jeremy Frederick. Ordained June 13, 1982; 2nd degree, July 31, 1983. Assistant Pastor of the Glenview Society as of July 1, 1993, and Principal of the Immanuel Church School and Midwestern Academy of the New Church. Address: 156 Park Drive, Glenview, IL 60025.

Smith, Christopher Ronald Jack. Ordained June 19, 1969; 2nd degree, May 9, 1971. Continues to serve as instructor of religion in the Academy of the New Church Secondary Schools, Address: P.O. Box 707, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Smith, Lawson Merrell. Ordained June 10, 1979; 2nd degree, February 1, 1981. Pastor of the Durban Society as of July 1, 1993, and Headmaster of Kainon School. Address: 8 Winslow Road Westville, 3630, Natal, Rep. of South Africa.

Stroh, Kenneth Oliver. Ordained June 19, 1948; 2nd degree, June 19, 1950. Retired. Address: P.O. Box 629, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Synnestvedt, Louis Daniel. Ordained June 6, 1980; 2nd degree, November 8, 1981. Acting Secretary of the General Church as of July 1, 1993. Continues to serve as Executive Vice President of the General Church in Canada, and Chairman of Information Swedenborg, Inc. Address: P. O. Box 743, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Taylor, Douglas McLeod. Ordained June 19, 1960; 2nd degree, June 19, 1962. Retired. Address: 2704 Huntingdon Pike, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006.

Weiss, Jan Hugo. Ordained June 19, 1955; 2nd degree, May 12, 1957. Unassigned; President New Church Outreach, worked on second version of Gorandman and on simplification. Address: 2650 Del Vista Drive, Hacienda Heights, CA 91745.

Zungu, Aaron. Ordained August 21, 1938; 2nd degree, October 3, 1948. Recognized as a General Church minister November 25, 1989. Retired; still works on translation of the Writings into Zulu. Address: Box 408, Ntumeni 3830, Rep. of South Africa.

546

MINISTERS

Appelgren, Goran Reinhold. Ordained June 7, 1992. Continues to serve as Resident Minister of Surrey Circle, England and Visiting Minister to Copenhagen Circle, Denmark. Address: 8 Ardmore Way, Guildford, Surrey, England GU2,6RR.

Asplundh, Kurt Hyland. Ordained June 6, 1993. Assistant to the Pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society as of July 1, 1993. Address: P. O. Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

Barry, Eugene. Ordained June 15, 1986. Resigned June 30, 1988. Address: 2874 Lindsay Ln., Sequel, CA 95073.

Buss, Peter Martin, Jr. Ordained June 6, 1993. Assistant to the Pastor of the Washington Society as of July 1, 1993, and Visiting Pastor to the Norfolk, Virginia Group. Address: 3805 Enterprise Road, Mitchellville, MD 20721.

Darkwah, Simpson Kwabeng. Ordained June 7, 1992. Assigned to serve in Tema, Ghana under the supervision of the Reverend Robert S. Junge. Address: House #AA3 Community 4, c/o P. O. Box 1483, Tema, Ghana, West Africa.

de Figueiredo, Jose Lopes. Ordained October 24, 1965. Retired. Continues to serve as Assistant to the Pastor of the Rio de Janeiro Society, and editor of A Nova Igreja. Address: Rua des Isidro 155, Apt. 202 Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro 20521 RJ, Brazil.

de Padua, Mauro Santos. Ordained June 7, 1992. Continues to serve as Assistant to the Pastor of the Pinsburgh Society and Visiting Pastor to the Erie Circle. Address: 4101/2 Windsor Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15217.

Elphick, Derek Peter. Ordained June 6, 1993. Assistant to the Pastor of the Oak Arbor Society as of July 1, 1993. Address: 718 Great Oaks Blvd. #97, Rochester, MI 48307.

Fitzpatrick, Daniel. Ordained June 6, 1984. Resigned June 30, 1988. Unassigned. Address: 5845 Aurora Court, Lake Worth, FL 33643.

Gyamfi, Martin Kofi. Ordained June 9, 1991. Continues to serve in Kwahu, Tafo, Oframase and Nteso Region in Ghana under the supervision of the Reverend Robert S. Junge. Address: c/o Box 5, Asakraka-Kwahu, E/R, Ghana, West Africa.

Maseko, Jacob. Ordained November 29, 1993. Pastor of the Diepkloof Society as of November 30, 1992. Address: 8482 Zone 5, Pimville, Soweto 1808, Rep. of South Africa.

Mcanyana, Chester. Ordained November 12, 1989. Pastor of the Impaphala Society as of August 30, 1993, and Visiting Pastor of the Empangeni Group. Address: 502 Mapetla, P.O. Xuma, Soweta 1868, Rep. of South Africa.

Pendleton, Mark Dandridge. Ordained June 9, 1991. Continues to serve as Assistant to the Executive Vice President of the General Church in Canada. Address: 10 Evenstone Avenue, RR 2, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada N2G 3W5.

Rogers, N. Bruce. Ordained January 12, 1969. Continues to serve as General Church Translator, Academy of the New Church College Associate Professor of religion and Latin. Address: P.O. Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

547

Rose, Jonathan Searle. Ordained May 31, 1987. Continues to serve as a translator, instructor of Greek and religion at the Academy of the New Church College, and Curator of Swedenborgiana. Address: P.O. Box 740, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.
     Schorran, Paul Edward. Ordained June 12, 1983. Unassigned. Address: RD 2, Box 14, Kempton, PA 19529.
     Thabede, Ndaizane Albert. Ordained August 29, 1993. Continues to serve as Minister to the Alexandra Township Society. Address: 140 Phase One, Alexandra Township, P. O. Bramley, Rep. of South Africa.
     Tshahalala, Reuben Njanyana. Ordained November 29, 1993. Minister of the Balfour Society as of November 30, 1992. Address: 1428 Zondi, P.O. Mozodo, Johannesburg, Rep. of South Africa.

     AUTHORIZED CANDIDATES

Halterman, Barry C. Address: 2661 Huntingdon Pike, Carriage 2, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006.

Jin, Yong J. Address: P. O. Box 717, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

     ASSOCIATE MINISTER

Nicolier, Alain. Ordained May 31, 1979; 2nd degree, September 16. 1984. Address: Bourguignon-Meursanges, 21200 Beaune, France.

     EVANGELIST

Eubanks, W. Harold. Address: Rt. 3, Box 178, Americus, GA 31709.

     SOCIETIES AND CIRCLES

     Society                                   Pastor or Minister
Atlanta, Georgia                    Rev. C. Mark Perry
Alexandra Township, R.S.A.           Rev. N. Albert Thabede
Baltimore, Maryland                Rev. Willard L. D. Heinrichs
Balfour, R.S.A.                    Rev. Reuben N. Tshabalala
Bath, Maine                     Rev. Allison L. Nicholson
Boston, Massachusetts                Rev. Geoffrey H. Howard
Boynton Bench, Florida                Rev. Daniel W. Heinrichs
Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania           Rev. Kurt Ho. Asplundh
                              Rev. Thomas L. Kline, Assistant Pastor
                              Rev. Kurt Hy. Asplundh Assistant to Pastor
                              Rev. Donald L. Rose, Assistant to Pastor
Buccleuch, Rep. S. Africa           Rev. Andrew M. T. Dibb
Chicago, Illinois                    Rev. Grant R. Schnarr
                               Rev. David C. Roth, Assistant to Pastor
Cincinnati, Ohio                    Rev. Patrick A. Rose
Clermont, Rep. of S. Africa           Rev. Ishborn Buthelezi

548

Colchester, England                Rev. Christopher D. Bown
Detroit, Michigan                    Rev. Grant H. Odhner
(Oak Arbor Church)                Rev. Derek P. Elphick, Assistant to Pastor.
Diepkloof, Rep. S. Africa           Rev. Jacob Maseko
Durban, Rep. S. Africa                Rev. Lawson M. Smith
Enkumba, Rep. S.                     Africa Rev. Ishborn Buthelezi
Freeport, Pennsylvania                Rev. J. Clark Echols, Jr.
Glenview, Illinois                    Rev. Eric H. Carswell
                               Rev. Robin W. Childs, Assistant to Pastor
                               Rev. Jeremy F. Simons, Assistant Pastor
Hambrook, Rep. S. Africa           Rev. B. Alfred Mbatha
Hurstville, Australia                Rev. Arthur W. Schnarr, Jr.
Impaphala, Rep. S. Africa           Rev. Chester Mcanyana
Kempton, Pennsylvania                Rev. Ragnar Boyesen
                               Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen, Associate Pastor
                               Rev. Andrew J. Heilman, Assistant to Pastor
Kitchener, Ontario, Canada           Rev. Michael K. Cowley
(Carmel Church)                    Rev. Kenneth J. Alden, Assistant to Pastor
                               Rev. Mark D. Pendleton, Asst. to Ex. Vice President of GCIC
Kwa Mashu, Rep. S. Africa           Rev. B. Alfred Mbatha
London, England
(Michael Church)                Rev. Frederick C. Elphick
Los Angeles, California           Rev. John L. Odhner
Phoenix, Arizona                    Rev. Frederick M. Chapin
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania           Rev. Nathan D. Gladish
                               Rev. Mauro S. de Padua, Assistant to Pastor
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil                Rev. Cristovao R. Nobre
                               Rev. Jose L. de Figueiredo, retired; Asst. minister
San Diego, California                Rev. Stephen D. Cole
Stockholm, Sweden                Rev. David H. Lindrooth
Toronto, Ontario, Canada           Rev. Michael D. Gladish
(Olivet Church)                    Rev. Wendel R. Barnett, Assistant Pastor
Tucson, Arizona                    Rev. Frank S. Rose
Washington, D. C.                    Rev. James P. Cooper
                               Rev. Peter M. Buss, Jr., Assistant to Pastor

     Circle                              Visiting Pastor or Minister
Albuquerque, New Mexico           Rev. Frederick M. Chapin
Americus, Georgia                    Rev. C. Mark Perry
                               W. Harold Eubanks, Evangelist
Auckland, New Zealand                Rev. Arthur W. Schnarr, Jr.
Central Michigan                    Rev. Derek P. Elphick
Charlotte, North Carolina           Rev. William H. Burke

549

Connecticut                     Rev. Alfred Acton
Copenhagen, Denmark                Rev. Goran R. Appelgren
Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas
Dawson Creek, B. C., Canada           Rev. Glenn G. Alden
Denver, Colorado
El Toro, California                Rev. Cedric King
Erie, Pennsylvania                    Rev. Mauro de Padua
The Hague, Holland                Rev. Christopher D. Bown
Ivyland, Pennsylvania                Rev. Robert S. Junge
Jnk ping, Sweden                Rev. Bjorn A. H. Boyesen
Lake Helen, Florida                Rev. Daniel W. Heinrichs
Letchworth, England                Rev. Christopher D. Bown
Manchester, England                Rev. Christopher D. Bown
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
North New Jersey/New York           Rev. Erik E. Sandstr m
North Ohio                          Rev. Patrick A. Rose
Oslo, Norway                    Rev. Bjrn A. H. Boyesen
Puget Sound, Washington           Rev. Erik J. Buss
Sacramento, California                Rev. Harold C. Cranch
St. Paul/Minneapolis, Minnesota
(Twin Cities)                    Rev. David C. Roth
San Francisco, California           Rev. John L. Odhner
South Ohio                          Rev. Patrick A. Rose
Surrey, England                    Rev. G ran R. Appelgren
Tamworth, Australia                Rev. Arthur W. Schnarr, Jr.
Wallenpaupack, Pennsylvania           Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen

     Note: Besides the General Church societies and circles there are groups in various geographical areas that receive occasional visits from a minister. This information is published in New Church Life periodically in "Information on General Church Places of Worship" (see February 1993 issue, p. 92).
NEW ASSIGNMENTS FOR MINISTERS 1993

NEW ASSIGNMENTS FOR MINISTERS Editor 1993

     1993-1994

     The Reverend Kurt Hyland Asplundh as been appointed Assistant to the Pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Wendel R. Barnett has accepted a call to become Assistant Pastor of the Olivet Church in Toronto, Canada, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Ragnar Boyesen has accepted a call to become the Pastor of the Kempton Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Erik J. Buss has accepted a call to be Resident Pastor of the Puget Sound Circle, effective July 1, 1993.

550

     The Reverend Peter M. Buss, Jr. has been appointed Assistant to the Pastor of the Washington Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Stephen D. Cole has accepted a call to become Pastor of the San Diego Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend James P. Cooper has accepted a call to become the Pastor of the Washington Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Michael K. Cowley has accepted a call to become Pastor of the Carmel Church Society in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend J. Clark Echols, Jr. has accepted a call to become Pastor of the Freeport Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Derek P. Elphick has been appointed Assistant to the Pastor of the Oak Arbor Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Jacob Maseko has been called to be Pastor of the Diepkloof Society, effective November 30, 1992.
     The Reverend Chester Mcanyana has accepted a call to become Pastor of the Impaphala Society and Visiting Pastor of the Empangeni Group, effective August 30, 1993.
     The Reverend C. Mark Perry has accepted a call to become Pastor of the Atlanta Society, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Thomas H. Rose has accepted appointment as the Bryn Athyn Church School Pastor, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Arthur W. Schnarr, Jr. has accepted a call to become Pastor of the Hurstville Society in Australia effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Jeremy F. Simons has accepted a call to become the Assistant Pastor of the Glenview Society and the Principal of the Immanuel Church School, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Lawson M. Smith has accepted a call to be Pastor of the Durban Society in South Africa, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Louis D. Synnestvedt has been appointed Acting Secretary of the General Church, effective July 1, 1993.
     The Reverend Reuben N. Tshabalala has been called to become Pastor of the Balfour Society, effective November 30, 1992.

551

LOCAL SCHOOLS DIRECTORY 1993-94 1993

LOCAL SCHOOLS DIRECTORY 1993-94 Editor 1993

Office of Education: Cairncrest, Bryn Athyn      General Church Schools Support System
Rev. Frederick L. Schnarr          Director
Carol Buss                          Assistant Director
*Barbara Doering                    Senior Teacher
*Donald Fitzpatrick                College Advisor and Publication Chairman
Bryn Athyn: Karl Parker               Principal
*Barbara Doering                     Assistant Principal
Rev. Thomas H. Rose                School Pastor, Religion
Kathy Orthwein                     Kindergarten
Kit Rogers                          Kindergarten
Beth Laidlaw                    Grade 1
Robin Morey                         Grade 1
Candy Quintero                     Grade 1
Claire Bostock                    Grade 2
Linda Kees                          Grade 2
Lois McCurdy                     Grade 2
Heather Klein                     Grade 3
Judy Soneson                     Grade 3
Melinda Friesen                     Grade 4
Vanessa Heinrichs                Grade 4
Rosemary Wyncoll                     Grade 4 Mentor
Sheila Daum                         Grade 5
Jill Rogers                     Grade 5
Kirsten Boatman                     Grade 6
Wade Heinrichs                     Grade 6
Melodie Greer                     Grade 7-Girls
Steven Irvin                     Grade 7-Boys
Gail Simons                     Grade 8-Girls
Glade Odhner                     Grade 8-Boys
Reed Asplundh                    Computers
Robert Eidse                      Physical Education
Noel Klippenstein                Physical Education
Christopher Simons                Music-Director
Dianna Synnestvedt               Art
Judith Smith                     Librarian
*Gretchen Glover                     Kindergarten Assistant
*Amy Jones                          Kindergarten Assistant
*Judy Lee                         Primary Assistant/Tutor
*Margit Irwin                     Music Primary
*Sonja Zecher                    3rd Grade Assistant
*Elizabeth Childs                    4th Grade Assistant
*Nita Holmes                     Intermediate Assistant
*Rachel Martin                     Upper Assistant
*Eileen Rogers                     Tutor
*Marion Gyllenhaal               Reading/testing
*Fay Lindrooth                    Reading/testing

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Durban: (1994 school year-January 1-December 31, 1994)
Rev. Lawson M. Smith                Headmaster, Religion
Sally Pike (thru 6/30)           Grades 1-2
Sarah Berto (as of 7/1)           Grades 1-2
Jane Edmunds                     Grades 3-7
*Elizabeth Andrew                Grades 4-7 Science, Math, Art
*Oonagh Chaning-Pearce               Afrikaans
Glenview: Rev. Jeremy F. Simons      Principal
Laura Barger                     Kindergarten, Music
Marie Odhner                     Grades 1-2
*Kim Even                          Grade 3
Rebekah Brock                     Grade 4, Music
Trudy Wright                    Grades 5-6
Jeryl Fuller                    Grades 7-8
Gordon McClarren                    Math, Science, P.E.
*Jennifer Overeem                Art, Primary P.E.
*Connie Smith                     Resource Center
Kempton: Rev. Ragnar Boyesen      Principal, Religion
Tavis Junge                         Grade 1
Anthea Pike                     Grades 2-3
Anita Synnestvedt                Grades 4-5
Curtis McQueen                    Grade 6
Brita Conroy                    Grades 7-8
Mark Wyncoll                     Grades 9-10
Eric Smith                          Grade 10
*Gray Glenn                     Kindergarten
*Rev. Andrew Heilman               Religion, Science
*Yorvar Synnestvedt                Resource Person
Kitchener: Rev. Kenneth J. Alden      Principal, Religion
Mary Jane Hill                     Grades 1-3
Josephine Kuhl                     Grades 4-6
Lynn Watts                     Grades 7-8
*Beth Friesen                     Pre-kindergarten and Kindergarten
Oak Arbor: Rev. Grant H. Odhner      Principal, Religion
Nadine Zecher                     Grades 1-3
Nathaniel Brock                     Grades 4-6
*Nancy Genzlinger                Grades 3-4 Language Arts
Pittsburgh: Rev. Nathan D. Gladish      Pastor/Principal, Religion
Alix Smith                          Grades 1 and 3
Judi Gese                          Grades 4-6, Head Teacher
*Mauro de Padua                     Chapel
*Miriam Gruber                     Pre-kindergarten and Kindergarten

553

Toronto: Rev. Michael D. Gladish      Principal, Grades 6-8 Religion
Natalie Baker                     Grades 1-2
Julie Niall                     Grades 3-5
Stephen Krause                     Head Teacher, Grades 6-8
*Gillian Parker                     Jr. and Sr. Kindergarten
*Rachelle Nater                     Kindergarten, Grades K-8 Music
*Jennifer Raymond                Grades 1-2
*Rev. Wendel R. Barnett           Grades 3-5 Religion
*Suzanne Pineau                     Grades 4-8 French
Washington: Rev. James P. Cooper      Principal, Religion
Erin Junge                          Grades 1-2; Music 1-10
Jean Allen                          Grades 3-4; P.E. 1-3
Jana Sprinkle                     Grades 5-6; Language Arts 7-8
David Radcliffe                     Grades 7-10; P.E. 4-10
Carole Waelchli                     Grades 5-10 Science and Math
*Karen Hyatt                     Kindergarten
*Rev. Peter M. Buss, Jr.           Worship, Latin, Religion
Midwestern Rev. Jeremy E Simons      Principal
Academy Rev. Robin Childs           Chaplain, Religion and PE
(MANC): Yvonne Allen                Grades 9-10
Jeryl Fuller                     Grades 9-10
Gordon McClarren                     Grades 9-10

     * Major Part-time

     SCHOOL ENROLLMENTS 1993-1994

     The Academy
Theological School (Full-time)     5
College (Full-time)                105
Girls School                     95
Boys School                     109
     Total Academy                         314

     Midwestern Academy
Grades 9 and 10 (Full-time)                    3

     Local Schools
Bryn Athyn                          362
Durban                          30
Glenview                          72
Kempton                          66
Kitchener                          43
Oak Arbor                         22
Pittsburgh                          23
Toronto                          30
Washington                          37
Total Local Schools                          685
Total Reported Enrollment in All Schools           1002

554

ANNUNCIATION 1993

ANNUNCIATION DAVID R. CONARON 1993

     For more than a year now, the annunciation has been of great interest to me because it has been the source of several spiritual insights for me. I now have a greater understanding of my present state and of what may be a future state.
     The story is described in the Word from two different viewpoints in Luke 1:26-38 and in Matthew 1:18-24.

Trust in the Lord

     At first, and especially over the two Christmas periods, I was affected by Mary's words of acceptance: "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word" (Luke 1:38).
     For me these words are the most beautiful description of a degree of trust in the Lord that I have been unable to achieve. I believe that my intellect has been granted a vision of what my will may one day become: I have seen a promised land from a mountain top.
     This view of a higher state is not as simple as providing a target that I can aim for. It is much more like seeing an island from a raft adrift in a great ocean than it is like seeing a sign on a freeway that says I must take exit 21 in 12.8 miles. I do not know how to get to the new state directly, but I do know that I must continue to listen to the small voice within me. By thus choosing to go with the Lord's will in many small decisions I may be blessed with a will of a higher degree that will enable me to trust in the Lord.
     Returning to my ocean analogy, I think of this as paddling into the correct currents so that they can take me to the island and safety.
     At the moment I am not choosing to go against the will of the Lord, but my trust in Him is still weak, so that I wonder how well I would cope with tragedy. It is precisely because of her acceptance of her condition that makes Erin Soneson* an inspiration for me.

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     * Erin Soneson, ex-student of the Academy of the New Church, inspired people as she faced cancer. She passed into the spiritual world on August 25th at the age of 18.
     To sum up, I now believe that one day I will be able to say from my heart: Behold the servant of the Lord; be it unto me according to Thy word.

The Magnificent Angel

     Because of my interest in the story, I have developed a delight in the Renaissance paintings of the annunciation. I was therefore thrilled to go on a Glencairn Museum Association trip so that I could see the annunciations at the National Gallery in Washington, D. C. I was very surprised to discover that I was uncomfortable with many of the paintings: I felt that they were wrong in some way.
     After a month or so of considering these points, I came to a new understanding of my spiritual state through a strange process. This process is one that reveals my unconscious assumptions or beliefs when they are contradicted. A natural example often occurs when I meet people face to face for the first time after one or more phone conversations. I am initially surprised at their appearance because it differs from an unconscious assumption that I had made. This feeling passes quickly as their true nature is accepted. The interesting thing for me is that I was usually quite unaware of those assumptions until they were proved wrong.
     This process revealed two aspects of the paintings that bothered me. The first was when the angel was magnificent or was accompanied by a cast of thousands. (The other aspect is described in the next section.)
     This magnificence contrasts with the gentle way that I receive spiritual insights. I hear a little voice which has a distinctive quality that I have learned to recognize.

556

However, the little voice is easy to ignore, as I demonstrated for nearly twenty adult years. For me there is no heavenly choir or thunder and lightning to assure me that God is talking.
     The Old and New Testaments have become for me a powerful source of descriptions of states which I could never have understood without the Writings. For example, this particular state of how I hear the Lord is well described when the Lord appears to Elijah: "And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind was an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake was a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so. . . " (I Kings 19:11-13).
     Furthermore, I am quite alone while I choose to listen to this voice and to obey it, instead of ignoring it as the hells keep suggesting I do. At this time, my wife, my friends and my ministers are not able to help directly.
     It seems to me that I would not be in freedom to choose the Lord if He appeared to me with the convincingly spectacular effects illustrated in some of those paintings.

Being Ready

     The other aspect of the paintings that bothered me was the way that they depicted Mary as a confident and prosperous wife who was well prepared for a message from God. Some of the paintings went so far as to depict Mary as a holy queen accepting a message from her fellow royalty (God).
     I believe that Mary was a humble maid just starting her adult life and that her gentle quibblings indicate concern and surprise, not readiness. She was at first "troubled at his saying and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this was" (Luke 1:29).
     When I first began to receive spiritual insights, I had a fear that I was becoming irrational, even flaky.

557

Luckily for me (or perhaps I should say "in Providence"), I soon realized that the Writings are a rational description of many irrational events. Examples of such irrational events are belief in the Lord and spiritual growth. These events cannot be precisely planned, although each can be described afterwards by the individual concerned.
     Once Mary understands what is required of her, she says, "How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?" (Luke 1:34) She is not ready for the task. I have never felt ready for any action required of me by my spiritual insights, at least not initially. My fears always get in the way at first and I have to put them aside.
     I believe that it is important that I understand that I need not be ready, in the natural sense of being trained, for what the Lord requires of me. My state at such a time is not at all like the 82nd Airborne's if they were told that they were going to Serbia next week. It is an important part of my learning to trust in the Lord that I accept His opinion that I am ready. Part of this acceptance for me is also the realization that spiritual tasks are not like natural tasks. With a natural task we can miss the target, run out of time, run out of money, do it so badly as to make the effort worthless, and in extreme cases we can be physically hurt. I do not believe that we can fail in any of those ways with a spiritual task, because whatever happens is acceptable to the Lord.
     For me the annunciation is about an innocent young woman starting her adult life ("a virgin espoused to a man Luke 1:27), who is being asked to do an astonishing, even unprecedented, thing and who ultimately says, "Behold the servant of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy Word" (Luke 1:38). She is not confident (perhaps she is even worried), but she is willing to trust in the Lord.
     Before I leave this section, I want to say that I can now enjoy the paintings of the annunciation even if they do not reflect my understanding of the story.

558

Being Understood

     When I first read the story of the annunciation in Matthew, I was disappointed. Then I realized that Matthew was describing the annunciation from Joseph's view: " . . . before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph, her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily" (Matt. 1:18, 19).
     Joseph's actions seem to be a compassionate version of what any man of his day would do with a wife who was found to be pregnant before "knowing" her husband. Apparently he did not believe Mary's story of the Holy Spirit.
     This again emphasizes that spiritual growth takes place between the individual and the Lord without any externals to convince others that what is happening is from the Lord.
     The Writings talk about dissimilarity in religion being a barrier to conjugial love, but Julie and I did not experience any problems of that nature when we met. She was a good New Church girl and I was an atheist, but we were actually quite similar spiritually. My atheism was due to ignorance, and I loved the Writings as soon as I read them. I give credit to Julie, who saw that this would be true.
     It was not until I began to have spiritual insights that a real dissimilarity caused problems. Julie supported me beautifully at first, but a growing discomfort developed in her. The sort of things that kept coming to her were: "I have read the Writings every day of my life and he has hardly read them at all, so how can he be so moved spiritually?" and "He's still no angel to live with; maybe all of what he says is nonsense." Julie tried hard to dispel these thoughts from the hells, but after a year it had reached the point where I was able to detect a little negativity now and then.
     What caused the problem to go away instantly was Julie's receiving spiritual insights, which were quite different from mine but which still had the effect of allowing her to fully understand and accept what I had been talking about.

559

This also happens to Joseph because it was not until "the angel of the Lord appeared to him" (see Matt. 1:20) that he was able to believe what Mary was saying. After his spiritual experience he was a changed man: "Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife . . . " (Matt. 1:24).
Once again a doctrine that I thought did not apply to me has been shown to have direct relevance, and that in a very different way than I initially understood.
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM 1993

ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM E. Boyd Asplundh 1993

     Between July 1, 1992, and June 30, 1993, one hundred fifty-eight new members joined the General Church. Just over half of these were from Africa.
     Two members resigned during the year, and an additional nine members were dropped from the roll.
     During the year the Secretary's office received notice of the deaths of sixty members.
Membership July 1, 1992                     4401
New members (Certificates 8170-8326, 8328)      158
Deceased                                    -60
Resigned                                   -2
Dropped from Roll                          -9
Membership June 30, 1993                     4488
     E. Boyd Asplundh, Secretary

560

NATURAL BASIS OF SPIRITUAL REALITY: AN ILLUSTRATOR'S VIEWPOINT 1993

NATURAL BASIS OF SPIRITUAL REALITY: AN ILLUSTRATOR'S VIEWPOINT LINDA SLMONETTI ODHNER 1993

     Although the self-referential opening gambit, "When I was asked to write this piece . . . " can easily be overdone, I think it worthy of note that I received two requests to review Norman Berridge's new book. My extensive involvement in its production made this an odd, though not entirely surprising, development. What it implies I don't know: perhaps that it is one thing to get people to buy a book, but quite another to induce them to read it, much less to read it with a view to making informative comments. At any rate, writing about the book for publication wasn't originally my idea.
     I began working on the illustrations for the book in 1984, and Dr. Berridge and I conferred as closely as possible by trans-Atlantic mail about the number and nature of the drawings and the use of color. Through our published writing and our personal correspondence we discovered a basic compatibility of outlook which enabled us to work well together.
     When, as sometimes happened, we had to work hard to achieve a meeting of minds, we were able to use our divergent viewpoints as a positive resource. For example, Dr. Berridge didn't want me to clutter up the drawings with a lot of extra information irrelevant to the points he was making in the text. I, on the other hand, felt an intuition (the principle is much clearer to me now) that the drawings should at least hint at information not included in the text, to indicate that the reality behind our presentation was even more subtle and complex than we could convey. I also believed that the captions should orient the reader as thoroughly as possible. Dr. Berridge's focus on simplicity balanced my bias well.
     Several times Dr. Berridge would take issue with a particular component of one of my drawings, which I had copied from a textbook perhaps without much thought, and I would realize afresh the gulf between diagram and reality.

561

I concluded that often the only person who fully understands a schematic drawing is the illustrator who creates it.
     I often thought, when mired in anatomical technicalities, how much easier it was to illustrate my own work. I wondered if the effort at communication and modification was worthwhile (the drawing of the hypophysis took three tries to get right), and whether I should just make the drawings as I thought they should be and hang the rest of it. The quality of the work would certainly have suffered if I had.
     When The Natural Basis of Spiritual Reality was published early this year, a combination of factors made me feel almost as if I had never read it before. So many years had elapsed since I had worked with it, and in fact I never had a finished (or even current) text of the beak from which to work. I did not see the book in its later pre-publication stages, and I know that significant editorial changes were made after I had completed my illustrations.
     In the first chapter, "New Ideas in Accordance with Cherished Beliefs," Dr. Berridge elegantly summarizes the underlying philosophy of the book in paragraph 7, which I here quote in full, together with its heading.

There is a discrete distinction between the spiritual and material. How they can still be related as cause and effect is illustrated by the action of nerves on muscles.

7.      It is important to emphasize the point that we have just been thinking of two very different levels within a series of events following a single cause, the cause being love, the final event being a smile. The smile can be seen; the nerve impulses can be detected by scientific apparatus. The love can be inferred or deduced but not detected directly by any physical means. It is discretely different.

562

Although it acts as a cause, it is distinct and separate. A physical image of the discrete difference can be seen in the relation between nerves and the muscles they activate. Although both are physical and both use proteins, enzymes, and other biochemical substances, they differ so markedly that one cannot pass gradually into another. Special "end plates" with special enzymes must be present to act as an interface. Of the more subtle interface between love and the brain we are profoundly ignorant (pp. 3, 4).

     The idea of discretely different realities communicating through an interface is not especially complicated or difficult to understand, but it is vitally important in our understanding of the relationship between spirit and nature. Berridge's formulation of this concept suits me better than Gregory Baker's statement in Science and Religion that "religion and science do overlap-religion providing the overview and science the details" (p. 29). We are taught that the realm of the spirit actually possesses far more detail and subtlety of distinction than the natural world. And, referring again to Dr. Berridge's example, nerves and muscles do not overlap; instead, they are bridged by a mechanism with its own unique properties.
     Thus the paragraph quoted above reveals not only the philosophy on which the book is based, but also the use it can serve, by showing how the knowledge of the most wonderful things in nature can increase our insight into spiritual things. The Lord has revealed the law of correspondences to us so that we can be enlightened in this way. Such a philosophy as Dr. Berridge elaborates in his book is neither science nor religion, but an interface between them.
     While Berridge's integration of modern findings in human anatomy into a correspondential framework does not explicitly exclude any area of the body, naturally he devotes more attention to areas which Swedenborg's Writings address more fully.

563

The discussion of the heart and lungs occupies much space, along with other organs and systems related to blood and circulation; the brain and sense organs are similarly well represented. The only body function included which does not fit into either of these categories is digestion.
     I was dismayed to find that the essay originally published in the New Philosophy as "The Role of Muscle and Bone in Breathing" does not appear at all in the book, not only because it was one of the best in the series, but also because the book contains no other treatment (except in passing) of the musculo-skeletal system. The consequent omission of the drawing I made for that chapter didn't make me feel any better.
     Dr. Berridge doesn't play it safe in these pages. Some of his speculations are quite daring and leave plenty of room for disagreement. I was intrigued and somewhat put off by the idea that the old and new wills (unregenerate and regenerate) could be represented by the two sides of the heart ( 174, p. 110), but the number he cites in support of it, AC 10808, is fascinating and extremely apt. Of the other ideas, some may inspire agreement and others elicit resistance, but one thing I find quite remarkable is that none of the chapters about the heart and lungs makes any mention of the coronary arteries. The anatomy of the heart and lungs, their attendant circulation, and their modes of conjunction receive detailed scrutiny; the bronchial and pulmonary arteries get due credit. And the subjects of chapters six and seven, "Conjunctions Between the Will and Understanding" and "The Giving of a New Will," seem to require at least an acknowledgment of the coronary arteries, even if only to give a reason for excluding them from the discussion.
     The chapters on the brain are some of the best in the book. Dr. Berridge succeeds in bringing out the way the Writings transcend Swedenborg's limited knowledge of anatomy while still using it as a basis.

564

His discussion of the circulation of the cerebrospinal fluid, for example, illustrates how Swedenborg phrased things more correctly than he could fully realize without ranging far beyond the scientific knowledge of his day. This is only one of the ways in which Berridge probes past superficial knowledge in search of a deeper and fuller insight into the nature of correspondence. He brings together an impressive range of teachings from the Writings and a wealth of scientific facts.
While the text of the book is relatively free of errors, the figures show a need for knowledgeable proofreading. One could argue that not many will notice, but the errors are likely to detract from the book's effect on those who would appreciate it the most. (The errata sheet which now accompanies the book addresses the most serious problems.) I hope that the book will prove popular enough that it will require a new edition incorporating all needed corrections, so that the presentation measures up to the content and does justice to years of dedicated work.
SOUTH AFRICAN ASSEMBLY 1993

SOUTH AFRICAN ASSEMBLY Editor 1993

In late August a national assembly of the General Church was held in Buccleuch (just north of Johannesburg). It was attended by nearly two hundred people, from eight societies of the General Church in that country. The assembled participants heard addresses from the Rev. Messrs. Alfred Mbatha, Ishborn Buthelezi, Andrew Dibb, and Reuben Tshabalala, on subjects ranging from the City of God (the New Jerusalem, which was the theme of the assembly) to the treatise on our ability to address current concerns in a troubled world. Mr. Neil Buss spoke of efforts in education, evangelization and translation in the General Church around the world, and Carol Buss gave a talk on the Office of Education and the resources it can provide to far-flung parts of the world-especially in the realm of children's stories.

565

In the evening, three speakers-the Rev. Messrs. Lawson Smith and Jacob Maseko, and Mrs. Ruth Maseko-spoke on the vision of the New Jerusalem as it stirs us and our children.
The highlight of this most successful assembly was the inauguration into the priesthood of Candidate Albert (Lucky) Thabede. Mr. Thabede has studied for four years in the South African Theological School, and now becomes the pastor of the Alexandra Society, one of the oldest of the congregations of the church in South Africa. He and his wife Maureen put on a delicious feast to celebrate his ordination.
CHICAGO 1993

CHICAGO Rev. Peter M. Buss 1993

     On Saturday, October 16, the Chicago Circle gathered in Pendleton Hall in Glenview, Illinois, to celebrate its recognition as a full society of the General Church. The assembled members from Chicago and Glenview heard of the growth of this congregation from a discussion seminar to a small group which met in the No Exit Cafe, to a solid core of members who now worship at the Old Town School of Folk Music. The following day the bishop presented a special copy of the Word to the congregation in recognition of its becoming a society.
     On Sunday the 17th, the Rev. David Roth was ordained into the second degree of the ministry. David has been the assistant to the pastor in Chicago for the last two years, and tentative plans are being laid for him to move to a new pastorate in 1994.
     Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss

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OPENING CEREMONY BLESSING 1993

OPENING CEREMONY BLESSING Rev. DAVID C. ROTH 1993

     1993 PARLIAMENT OF THE WORLD'S RELIGIONS

     O one God, with many names and many manifestations, we call upon you as the Lord Jesus Christ. You are Jehovah God made flesh-the Father of eternity, Prince of Peace, We ask You now to fill this assembly with Your Divine presence and love. Bless us all with a clearer sense of Your Providence so we may be led through this parliament with You and Your will as our focus.
     We are all gathered here as one to work hand in hand to help make Your creation a safer and more harmonious place for all who live in it-a place that promotes freedom for all people to live and worship as they are sincerely led to believe.
     In the face of all the adversity and unrest in the world, we ask You to bless us with a peace and a confidence that, regardless of any appearances, You are there working with what we give You, quietly and ever so gently bending us toward a good way, but always preserving our individual freedom to choose to worship and love You.
     Bless us with a fervent desire to make this world a heaven on earth--a safe place for our children to grow and play. We also ask You to bless us with a kind and preserving hand toward the world of nature and all of its splendor, so that we may consciously choose to preserve and respect the gift You have given us to share. Help us to remember that all of nature is a theater representative of Your heavenly kingdom, and if we destroy it, we destroy our ability to understand You and to see You represented around us.
     And now shine the light of your Divine Wisdom upon us so we may see our way to newer and brighter paths. Fill us with the warmth of Your Divine Love so we may be inspired to show charity and kindness to all we may meet or interact with here at the parliament.

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Yet, we ask that Your presence and effect on us not end with these few days, but that You will abide with us, continually inspiring us to open up our hearts and minds to those around us who may need a helping hand or a kind word. And help each of us to be touched by some new thought or new way we had not seen before so that our view is broader and our effect greater.
     "God be merciful to us and bless us, and cause His face to shine upon us. That Your way may be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations" (Psalm 67:1, 2).

     [Photo of Rev. David C. Roth]

     See November issue, p. 482 regarding the parliament.

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Editorial Pages 1993

Editorial Pages Editor 1993

     AND ON EARTH PEACE

     It is quite possible that at Christmas time in 1993 there will be more wars going on than in any year in the earth's history. There are so many more people on the earth now, and so many more nations. There are greater and lesser wars, of course, but they are essentially the same (see DP 251). A home destroyed in a localized conflict is no different from a home bombed in a great world war. There is not room on the front pages of our newspapers to keep us aware of the wars going on. For a while some spot on the earth seems to get the headlines: Bosnia, Somalia. Where will it be next?
     Is the message of the angels about peace on earth a hollow one in view of continuing conflicts? Swedenborg commented to angels that "it is called peace in the world when wars and hostilities cease." The angels showed that peace is deeper than that (see HH 290). We should not belittle the cessation of open conflict. There is something so inspiring about the end of a conflict, particularly when it has been one of long duration. Millions throughout the world were uplifted when Israelis and Palestinians recently talked to each other and talked of peace.
     External peace is a beautiful picture of internal peace. Heavenly peace may indeed be compared in many respects with "peace after war, when everyone is secure from enemies and is safe in his own city and home and living in his own fields and garden" (TCR 304).
     Heavenly peace is something that can be granted by the Lord at any point in human history and at any time in the life of an individual. There is a confidence in the Lord that takes away fear, a secure feeling given from within by One who wills that there shall be on earth peace as it is in heaven, by One whom we rightly call, regardless of worldly circumstances, "the Prince of Peace."

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SPIRITUAL GROWTH GROUPS 1993

SPIRITUAL GROWTH GROUPS Peter S. Rhodes 1993

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     The following story contains some thoughts in response to recent letters in New Church Life regarding spiritual growth groups.
     Once upon a time there was a man who went to a foreign land. While he was living in the foreign land he noticed a vacant field in which people had started a garden. The field didn't belong to the people, but it was vacant and no use was being made of it, so they had decided to start a garden and they did. Whenever the man drove past the field that once was vacant, he enjoyed seeing the beautiful flowers and the people working together in the garden. One day he stopped by and asked if it was all right if he joined the garden. He was told it certainly was all right; others could join and plant any plants they felt like planting. So he joined, and from that day on he spent some time working in the garden.
     After living in the foreign land quite a while, he decided he should return to his homeland. He wanted to take some of the garden seeds home with him because he had noticed that although some of the flowers were like ones back home, others were very unusual with different shapes, colors, and fragrance. When he asked them for seeds, the people said to ask permission from the gruff old man who started the garden. They said not to be afraid but to be careful, because the old man's exterior behavior was very rough. So he asked permission from the old man, who it was true had a rough exterior and a very gruff manner, but who nonetheless said, "Yes, take some seeds," So he took the seeds and returned to his homeland.
     When the man was settled back in his home town, he noticed that right across from the church he attended there was a vacant field.

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So he went to the vacant field and started to plant the flower seeds. The very first year some flowers came up and he added to them. Soon other people came by and asked if it was okay if they also planted flowers. They wanted to use some of his seeds and also to bring some of their own. He told them that certainly that would be fine; in fact that was the whole idea: the more people the better; working in the garden together would be a very fine thing to do.
     The second year the flowers were extremely beautiful, and there were nice comments made about how pretty the garden was and how pleasant it was to have a garden where the vacant field used to be.
     During the third year a certain husband and wife came by and asked if they also could join the garden. They wanted to bring some of their own flowers and even some of their friends. They were told that would be fine, that they could join and would be most welcome. After that, frankly (and louisely)* many, many roses grew in the garden where there hadn't been any before. The garden continued to grow, and the more people that joined, the lovelier the flowers were, and not only their beauty but the variety of flowers increased.
     * A reference to Frank and Louise Rose
     Then in the fourth, or maybe the fifth, year a botanist drove by the garden. A week later there was an article in the local newspaper. The article stated that some of the colors in the garden were not really well coordinated, and some of the flowers, coming from a foreign land, were not appropriate for this particular area. It also pointed out that if children picked the leaves from certain flowers and put them into their mouths, it might be dangerous; they might get a bit sick from the leaves. The article also noted that the field was an inappropriate place to have a garden because it was next to a highway, and if drivers were looking at the garden they might take their eyes off the road and cause an accident.

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It also stressed the fact that since the garden was across the street from the church, which also had a garden, if people put the same amount of energy, time and patience into the church garden, it would be larger and that would be a better use of their time.
     Several days after the article was printed in the paper, the man who brought the seeds from the foreign country and started the garden sat in a chair thinking. He looked at the garden, then at the newspaper article in his hand, then back at the garden, and then looked again at the article. He was thinking that it was true that the colors weren't perfectly matched or coordinated. It was also true that some of the seeds from the foreign country weren't appropriate to this place, and it was also true that some of the flowers might be dangerous to children it they chewed the leaves. And he certainly had to agree that if someone was driving by and spent too much time staring at the garden instead of the road, that could be unsafe. He sat there thinking deeply about these things.
     In time his attention turned to one corner of the flower garden where some weeds had started to encroach on some flowers. He put the paper down on the chair and went and pulled weeds as he continued to think. As he pulled the weeds he noticed areas where the ground was dry, so he got the watering can, filled it, and started watering the plants in need of water. He noticed some caterpillars and pulled them off the plants, and continued to work in the garden. Pretty soon other people came by to work. And as they worked and he worked, more and more people showed up to work together in the garden.
     After a while the man came back and sat down again in the chair. He looked out over the lovely garden, and as he viewed the activity going on he thought to himself that there wasn't just one garden; there really were three gardens. There was the garden itself with all the beautiful flowers of such varied forms and hues of color-the flowers from which the breeze carried such a sweet aroma.

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As he breathed the delightful smells he thought of the second garden made up of the people working there. He saw the pretty dresses and the colorful shirts of all the different people that added to the form and the variety of the garden as they worked.
     And he noticed there was a third garden-the most important one-made up of love and affection of people working in the garden. It was a garden made of the love and affection they had for each other, and tender care they showed for the flowers. He thought to himself that although the affections and the love they shared didn't look like flower petals or have the earthly aroma of flowers, still he hoped that this aroma, while not perceptible to man, might be perceptible and pleasing to God.
     Peter S. Rhodes,
          Bryn Athyn, PA
ORDINATION 1993

ORDINATION Editor 1993

Announcements
Roth-At Chicago, Illinois, October 17, 1993, David Christopher Roth into the second degree of the priesthood, Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss officiating.
CHICAGO ANNOUNCEMENT 1993

CHICAGO ANNOUNCEMENT Editor 1993

On Saturday, October 16, 1993 the Chicago Circle was recognized as the Chicago Society of the General Church by the Rt. Reverend Peter M. Buss.