Notes on This Issue       EDITOR       2008


Vol. CXXVIII
     January, 2008     No. 1

     New Church Life

     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS

     REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

Three Paths Into The Kingdom
     A Sermon
          Scott I. Frazier 3

Renewing The Culture
     Walter E. Orthwein 11

Editorials
     The Case Herein Is This, In the Lord's Mercy below      22
     The History of Earth: The on Earth: The Old Testament      27

Communications      32

Church News

Ordinations and Church Dedication      37

Announcements      39

     NEW CHURCH LIFE (USPS 378-180)

     PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

     THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM

     The Rev. Dr. Erik E. Sandstrom, Editor

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     February, 2008     No. 2

     New Church Life

     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS

     REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

Arise & Measure: A Personal Rule
     A Sermon
          Fred E. Elphick 43

Happy Epiphany
     Martie Johnsson, Jr, 49

Memorials
     Memorial Service for Kenneth Stroh      54
     Resurrection Address: Rev. Erik Sandstrom      59

Editorial
     The History of the Word on Earth: The New Testament      65

Church News

First Official Meeting of the New Church in India      71

They Were New Church     Robert Cole 73

Announcements      75

March, 2008     No. 3

     New Church Life

     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS

     REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

Walking on Water
     A Sermon
          Stephen D. Cole 81

Reflections on the Sermon
     Kenneth & Janet Briggs 85

Bound on Earth, Bound in Heaven
     Don Brandis 92

Editorials
     The Lord's Redemption At Easter      100
     How Does the New Church Increase?      102

Communication      109

Science and Correspondences
     Julie Conaron 107

Church News

Translation Goal
     Donald L. Rose 113

Eldergarten 2008
     Forrest Dristy 114

Announcements      120

     April, 2008     No. 4

     New Church Life

     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS

     REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

Small Talk With God
     A Sermon
          Garry B. Walsh 126

Looking Beyond Self and the World
     Bill Hall 132

Prayer: Our Connection to the Spiritual World
     Annika Fitzpatrick 135

Editorial
     The History of the Word on Earth: The Writings     147

Review:
     A Lexicon to the Latin Text      160

Church News
     Brazil      164

Announcements      165

     May, 2008     No. 5

     New Church Life

     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS

     REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

Be Still and Know that I am God
     A Sermon
          Thomas H. Rose 169

New Church Education for People with Special Challenges
     Kirsten R. Rogers 176

When Prayers Go Unanswered
     E. Kent Rogers 191

Editorial
     Laying Down Your Life      199

Church News
     Hurstville Society Sydney Australia      205

Announcements      208

June, 2008 No. 6

     New Church Life

     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS

     REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

Wings for the New Church
     A Sermon
          Cristovao R. Nobre 214

Resurrection Address for Charles Cole
     Robert S. Junge 224

Prayer From A Buddhist/Swedenborgian Perspective
     Jeremy K. Finkeldey 226

Testimonies about Swedenborg
     Donald L. Rose 234

June the Nineteenth
     Dawn Barnitz Potts 236

Editorial
     From New Heaven to New Church     240

Announcements      248

     July, 2008     No. 7

     New Church Life

     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS

     REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

The Parable of the Leaven: A Sermon About Change
     A Sermon
          Jeremy E Simons 255

Why Young People Leave The Church
     Tom Fiedler 263

Not "Three Aspects" of God
     Daniel W Goodenough 266

What? The Christian Church Has Ended?
     Kenneth J. Alden 269

Editorials
     Male and Female Created He Them     273
     Be Perfect      281
     Letter to the Editor      282

Church News      283

Announcements      286

     August, 2008     No. 8

     New Church Life

     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS

     REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

Destined for Marriage
     A Sermon
          J. Clark Echols, Jr 291

Created for A Specific Purpose.
     A Sermon
          Jan H. Weiss 296

The Transition-Widowhood and Widower-Hood
     Julie Conaron 303

Highlighting The Word
     Fred Elphick 311

Useful Indices
     Joe David 314

Theology of Sexuality
     Alain Nicolier 318

Editorial
     What is the Meaning of Life?      329

NewChurchLive.tv (Internet Church)      337

News from the Bishop's Office      340

Announcements      343

     September, 2008

     New Church Life
     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS

     REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

Why A College?
     A Sermon
          Rt. Rev. Tom Kline 347

Elegy to Charles S. Cole
     Stephen B. Gladish 352

Theology of Sexuality, Part II
     Rev. Alain Nicolier 356

Declarations of Faith and Purpose 365

Editorial
     Those Who Will Be in the New Church 371

Communications 384

Errata 386

Positions Offered and Church News 387

Announcements      393

     October 2008

     New Church Life

     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS

     REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

The Importance of Fear in Our Lives
     A Sermon
          Geoffrey H. Howard 399

Progressive States in Creation from the Creator
     Norman E. Riley 405

Beyond Number Boards
     Jonathan Cranch 408

A Russian Connection
     Richard Lindquist 410

Book Reviews Secrets of Heaven      412

This Republic of Suffering
     Donald L. Rose 415

Editorial 417

Communications 424

Church News
     Report from Riounde New Church, Kenya
          Isaac Synnestvedt 424
     Response to Riounde New Church
          Duncan G. Smith 489
     Gathering Leaves 2008
          Dale Morris 429

Men and Women in the Ministry
     Olaf Hauptmann 431

Contact Persons for Public Worship and Doctrinal Classes 434

Announcements      439

     November 2008

     New Church Life

     A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

The Integrity of the Word
     A Sermon
          Douglas Taylor      443

Love and Judgment: A Big Spiritual Dilemma
     Michael D. Gladish      451

The Theological School
     Dean Andrew M.T. Dibb      455

The Baptism of the New Church, Part I
     Howard Roth      458

The Joseph Project
     David Lindrooth 467

Editorial
     Atheism-No Proof of God      464

Letter to the Editor      475

Bibliography
     Alain Nicolier 475

General Church Schools Directory     477

Annual Report of the Secretary of the General Church      485

Announcements      489

December 2008

New Church Life

A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS
REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

The Lord The Savior Promised in Isaiah
     A Sermon
          Michael D. Gladish 492

The Baptism of the New Church, Part II
     Howard Roth 499

Editorial
     Christmas Explained 504

Communication
     Men and Women in the Ministry, A Response
          Julie Conaron 513

Review:
     The Five Ages
          William H. Clifford 515

Directory of the General Church 2008-2009      519

Announcements      533



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     Our Sermon by Rev. Scott Frazier is a useful reflection for the New Year. Depending on our initial response and while the goal of heaven remains the same, there are alternative paths for each one of us. See how the year ahead can hold more promise for you.

     The article on Renewing the Culture by Rev. Walter E. Orthwein was delivered as an Address at the Banquet at Glencairn, Oct. 6, 2007 ending the exciting two day Last Judgment Conference. He revised this version for publication, and full copies are available upon request. A separate publication of the entire proceedings is also expected. Mr. Orthwein examines the prophecies of the New Church. How can it establish or maintain its distinct form in a current world? Can it select movements with which to make one, while avoiding others?

     All readers are invited to find the invitations to send or become students at the Academy of the New Church Schools. The Secondary or High School has its page of exciting offerings, the Master of Arts in Religious Studies (M.A.R.S.) appeals to graduate students of all ages, and the Bryn Athyn College is offering a top-drawer sine qua non Liberal Arts education to all High School graduates. These schools and programs are powerhouses for New Church Education, pocket battle-ships offering thousands of student-hours in the heavenly doctrines, competing with some excellent heavy cruisers of secular or parochial leanings.

     May the New Year of 2008 bring all our readers an increased measure of prosperity and spiritual calm!

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Three Paths Into The Kingdom 2008

Three Paths Into The Kingdom       Rev. Scott I. Frazier       2008


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Our story today is about the three ways the Children of Israel could have entered the Land of Canaan. Our story today is also about the three ways we can enter the Lord's Kingdom and become angels. The different ways available to Israel are pictures of the different paths the Lord offers us in His mercy as we hope to be regenerated. Just as Israel is eager, even desperate, to enter the Land of Canaan, we are eager to enter His Heavenly Kingdom and dwell in happiness and peace. This is a story about becoming better people.

     The Children of Israel are trying to leave the wilderness and enter a land they know has been promised to them. Unlike the wilderness, a harsh place with little water and little food, the Promised Land is "flowing with milk and honey". That famous phrase is a perfect description of what the children of Israel are hoping for an easy land, a land of plenty, a land seemingly free of need and toil. Imagine the anxiety and expectations of the massed multitudes as they wait for the twelve spies to return with their report of what the land was like. When the spies do come back, they bring back not only reports of the land, but a great sample of grapes brought from the land as proof of its bounty. This is a good land that has been promised them, truly a land flowing with milk and honey.

     The internal sense revealed in the Heavenly Doctrines tells us that this is a picture of a blessed state. This is a picture of the promise of regeneration: a life of heavenly things that make us happy. Imagine a life where we feel happy when we help the people around us, a life where we look at the people around us and take pleasure in thinking of ways to help them. This is the milk and honey of the land we hope to enter.

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The grapes symbolize charity, the ability to help the people around us. When the spies bring the grapes back, we see that the Promised Land includes doing good things, being charitable. The spies bring back evidence that the Promised Land is a wonderful place. If we can get to the Promised Land, we will be the kind of people who take delight purely in helping the people around us and loving the Lord. Who wouldn't want to live there?

     But this is not all that the spies reveal. They admit that to enter the land and possess it, Israel will have to defeat giants and fortified cites. It will not be without some combat. Israel may want the land very badly, but the thought of facing giants and fortresses causes fear and doubt. Maybe Israel will not be able to defeat the inhabitants of the land. We also learn that combat is required of us; to become heavenly people, we must defeat our own giants and fortified cities. We must also face and defeat our own pride and false beliefs - the giants and fortresses - before we can truly be regenerate and heavenly. This is no easy task -just as the spies felt like grasshoppers before the giants, so we feel small and helpless against our own evils when we first see them in ourselves.

     Faced with this situation, the Children of Israel have a choice. Joshua and Caleb urge the people to go up. They insist that the Lord will give Israel victory. The other spies, however, insist that the task is too great, and imply that the Lord cannot be trusted to follow through on His promise. They can either go into the land now and trust the Lord or not go in and abandon the Lord. We have the same choice. When we are first offered the path to His Kingdom, we can either trust Him and go immediately, or reject His offer and not go. These are the first two possible paths. The third path we will examine later.

     Going immediately is the easy path into His heavenly kingdom. Going immediately was what the Children of Israel were supposed to do. They were supposed to listen to the report of Joshua and Caleb, trust in the Lord, and enter the Land of Canaan right then.

5


Remember that this is shortly after leaving the Egyptians drowning in the sea. Moses is still with them, and they have not been in the wilderness long. Thinking of the milk and honey, and of the grapes that the spies brought back, the Children of Israel could have entered the land, fought against all the inhabitants in their way, and inherited the land soon. The Lord offered them the easy path first: believe in Me and conquer. This is the path of Joshua and Caleb, the easy path.

     In our lives, we are also offered the easy path. The first time we learn of who we are supposed to be, the first time we find out another virtue we are supposed to cultivate as adults, we are offered the easy path. Take, for example, forgiveness. The Word is very clear that we should forgive people and not harbor enmity in our hearts. We should always look to the good in other people and remember that in some way every person is in the image of the Lord. To become like this, we must do battle against our own evils and falsities and see that those evil and falsities are not us. This is the promise the Lord makes. If we believe Him from the beginning, each of us can be that kind of person relatively easily and perhaps even quickly.

     Is this an impossible claim? Is this too hard? Is the Lord being unreasonable? The Heavenly Doctrines tell us that being this kind of person is possible. Divine Providence tells us: If we believe, as is the truth, that all good and truth come from the Lord, and all evil and falsity from Hell, we will not appropriate good to ourselves and take credit, and we will not appropriate evil to ourselves and be guilty. This appears to be impossible, but this is what being human - and angelic - is all about.

     Perhaps this is easier said than done, but this is the promise -the Lord says, we do. If we remember that anger and hostility are not us, that we shouldn't nurse our grudges and dwell upon others' evils, that, in a word, we should be forgiving, then we will be forgiving.

6


If we start this way, if we avoid forming habits of evil and anger, our spiritual path is much easier. We do not avoid combats against evils, but we enter the promised land soon and with fewer combats. This is true with every kind of spiritual struggle we have, not just with forgiveness. The Lord says, we do: this is the easy path.

     But this is not what the children of Israel did. They chose not to believe Joshua and Caleb but instead doubted the Lord. They believed the other spies when they reported that the land was too difficult to possess. They not only hesitated, but they questioned Moses, they threatened, and they seriously considered turning around and returning to Egypt. They didn't merely have a moment of weakness; they decided to abandon the Lord. When they learned what was expected of them, they revolted and refused to continue. They wanted the milk and the honey, they wanted more grapes, but they were unwilling to believe that the Lord could give these things to them.

     And what did the Lord do? At first it looks as if the Lord punishes them. He announces, through Moses, that Israel must wander in the wilderness for forty years. He announces that all the adults who doubted him in that moment (except, of course, Joshua and Caleb) will have to die. The Lord announces that they will not get the land. This seems to be a severe punishment, but it is merely the result of their decision to abandon the Lord.

     And yet it isn't even really a punishment. As is always the case in the Old Testament, an expression of anger or wrath on the part of the Lord is actually an expression of Divine Mercy. The Lord is not punishing the Children of Israel - He is giving them a second chance. Yes, they will face forty years of wandering, and yes, all the adults must die off first, but their children will inherit the land. Even after they have abandoned the Lord and murmured against His chosen leader, He is providing them with a back-up plan. This is not the easy path He offered first, but the hard path.

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It is still a path into the promised land, but a path involving much more combat and toil than the first path. What the children of Israel will discover about this second path is that it solves their problems: they will be toughened into a desert army, they will be new people (the children of who they used to be), and they will be strengthened to try again.

     In our lives, we often hear what the Lord asks, and we doubt. Sometimes we have momentary doubts; sometimes we reject Him altogether. Perhaps it is only rarely that we take the easy path and believe Him the first time. The Lord knows us very well and always has a second option, a second path, but a path made harder by our own rejection. The Lord's solution for us in our states of doubt and rejection is for us to wander for forty years and become new people. In our lives, the harder path is the path of temptation, symbolized by the forty years, by which we finally put away our rejection, symbolized by the death of the entire generation. We can still enter the promised land of heavenly life, but we must face real temptation to defeat what we have already confirmed in our lives. Temptation in this case is unpleasant, necessary, and useful. It is a second chance, not a punishment.

     For example, if we have confirmed in ourselves an inclination to harbor grudges, if we have the habit of thinking ill of our neighbor, if we have already made criticism and scorn part of our lives, the Lord still has mercy on us. Our path is much harder than if we hadn't confirmed these evils in our life, but all is not lost. Through temptation we struggle to stop harboring anger in our heart, and the Lord brings us forgiveness, but it is a harder path. This harder path does lead to the promised land, and temptation does lead to a heavenly life of love to the neighbor. Temptation toughens us up to try again, and no matter how many times we approach the promised land and fail, the Lord will always offer us another path to try again.

8




     These are the two paths to the Lord's Heavenly Kingdom that work. The easier path is better than the harder path, but both work. The Children of Israel at first took neither path. Instead, they tried a third path, the wrong path. After rejecting the easy path that Joshua and Caleb wanted, the Children of Israel then heard what the Lord had announced about the forty years of wandering. We can imagine the feeling of dread and even betrayal they must have felt as they realized what their initial rejection meant. Were they doomed to wander for forty years? Would they all die? What a terrible fate! They did not see the mercy of the Lord in this harder path and rejected it as well. Instead, they decided that they would, in fact, go right then into the land, as Joshua and Caleb had first insisted.

     That path was closed, however. The Lord would not go with them, and neither would Moses or the Ark of the Covenant. Even knowing this, the people wanted to go up anyway. They tried to enter and possess the land without the Lord. Despite the warnings, the Children of Israel now tried to do something on their own that they had previously been unwilling to try even with the help of the Lord. As we read today, they met with total failure.

     We face the same potential mistake. When we find out what the Lord offers us - a path of temptation - we can also become indignant and feel betrayed. Why does it have to be so hard? Can't we just be good the way we are? Why must we struggle to become good people? Perhaps we are good just the way we are. We want the easier path back. We want to inherit the kingdom of happiness now, without temptation. This isn't a moment of doubt, and it isn't fear of the task at hand. This is the belief that we can be good and defeat our evils on our own. The Lord warns us that we need His help, but we don't believe Him. We can live without His Word, without His revealed truth, without His Ten Commandments, and we can be happy.

9




     What if we decide that we can be happy without being forgiving? What will happen if we do not struggle against anger, scorn, and enmity? What if we are just going to be happy and maybe help people without addressing our own anger. We'll keep our anger because it's "who we are", our personality, our style. We don't have to repent; we can just stay the way we are and find eternal joy.

     This is when the Amalekites attack. The Amalekites attacked and defeated the Children of Israel before they even got to the Land of Canaan. Israel didn't win the battle and had to retreat. We face the same defeat at the hands of our own evils. The Heavenly Doctrines tell us that the Amalekites symbolize hidden evils that pollute our thinking. Amalekites don't offer arguments against the truth; they hide in our loves and destroy whatever good we try to do. The Amalekites are going to defeat us every time we think we don't need the Lord. Our own evils will defeat us until we admit that we have to change and that we need to change because the Lord says so.

     Even in this case, though, the Lord shows the Children of Israel mercy. After they have rejected his first path, after they have rejected his second path and tried their own, He is still willing to help them. They still have the second, harder path available to them. In the same way, no matter how many times we try to be happy on our own, we can always go back to the Lord and accept his path of temptation. The Children of Israel eventually do possess the land flowing with milk and honey. We, too, always have the opportunity of living the will of the Lord and being happy in His Word and His Kingdom.

     There are three paths to heavenly happiness. The easy path is to believe the Lord from the beginning and resist evils before we confirm them. The hard path is to defeat through temptation our confirmed evils, with the Lord's help. The wrong path is to believe we do not need His help and can be happy with our evils.

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     When we see the easy path, we should believe the Lord and take it. When we see the hard path, we should believe the Lord and take it. When we see the wrong path, we should reject it and return to the Lord and His Word. "As for Me and My House, we will follow Jehovah." Amen.

Lessons: Numbers 13:1-3, 21-33; 14:2, 26-33,39-45; Divine Providence 320, 321

     The Rev. Scott I. Frazier was inaugurated into the priesthood and ordained into its first degree on May 28th, 2006. Besides his Master of Divinity from the Academy, Scott obtained an M. A. in history from Villanova University. Scott was already an Instructor in Latin and Hebrew in the Bryn Athyn College, and after his ordination added Religion to his schedule. He is also on the Translation Committee of the General Church, and serves as occasional visiting Pastor. Scott and his wife Nicole (Hill) and family live and work in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania.

[Photograph of Rev. Scott Frazier.]

11


RENEWING THE CULTURE 2008

RENEWING THE CULTURE       Rev. WALTER E. ORTHWEIN       2008


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     "..no idea can be had of spiritual life except from the things that are in civil life; therefore, if the latter is set aside, the former falls to the ground, until at last it is no longer believed in." (Arcana Coelestia 4366:2)

     Because this world is an outgrowth of the spiritual world and lives every moment from it, it follows that a new order in the spiritual world cannot but affect the state of things in this world. For example, the Last Judgment of 1757 cleared the way for the establishment of a New Heaven in the spiritual world and its outgrowth will be a New Church on earth. That is why the New Jerusalem was seen coming down from God out of heaven into this world. "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth" (Revelation 21:1). We can therefore think that a new world, a whole new way of life, is being created, from the inside out. A new civilization is being created, or, as people are wont to say these days, a new culture.

     We are told, at the end of the work on The Last Judgment, that the state of the world after the judgment would be similar to what it had been before, with civil affairs, wars, peace treaties, and so on. The church, though, while similar outwardly, would be different internally: ". . .henceforth the man of the church will be in a more free state of thinking on matters of faith, thus on the spiritual things which relate to heaven, because spiritual freedom has been restored to him. For all things in the heavens and in the hells are now reduced into order, and all thought concerning Divine things and against the Divine inflows from thence-from the heavens all thought which is in harmony with Divine things, and from the hells all which is against Divine things" (Last Judgment 74, emphasis added).

     The fact that the freedom we now have is freedom to think about "spiritual things which relate to heaven" shows the importance of the new knowledge about such things which the Lord has revealed in His second coming.

12


Greater freedom of thought about spiritual things presumes greater knowledge of them. And since this knowledge is meant to be applied on the natural plane of life, I think the need for greater civil liberty is also implied. Greater spiritual freedom requires a corresponding expansion of such civil liberties as freedom of speech.

     Generally speaking, freedom means the ability to do what you wish, but spiritual freedom only comes with desiring the right things - namely, things in harmony with the truly human order of life produced by Divine love and wisdom in heaven. True freedom is the freedom to think, will and do, not just anything, but that which is good and true (Divine Love and Wisdom 240, 264, 425).

     There is confusion in our society about what freedom means, a lack of understanding of the difference between freedom and license, or between genuine freedom and the illusory freedom of hell, which is really slavery. What good is civil liberty if the soul remains imprisoned by "the vanity of the world and the allurement of the flesh, the pride of self-intelligence and the lust of power, sordid avarice and covetous desire"? The Last Judgment gave us the freedom to follow the Lord, but also the freedom to turn away from Him. If the loves of self and the world cause us to turn away from Him, then the new freedom we've received has not served the purpose for which it was intended. A sense of responsibility to the One who restored our freedom is part of the situation.

     "Separation of church and state" is necessary for the protection of both; but banishing religious ideas from public discourse of civil affairs is a destructive modern perversion of that principle. Adhering to the truth of the Word is not contrary to civil liberty; just the opposite - this is the truth that makes us free (John 8:32). Were not appeals to that truth a major element in the abolition movement, and later in the civil rights movement?

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Why should religious truths now be excluded from the debate on such topics as abortion, stem cell research, euthanasia, and what constitutes marriage? Of course we have to distinguish between Divine truth and the human inferences drawn from it and proposed applications of it, but we can do that. One of the uses of discussing these things in the public square is to separate the wheat from the chaff

     All logic rests upon some premise, which is simply assumed as self-evident, or axiomatic. The premise is not arrived at by logic; rather, it is the starting place and foundation upon which reason and logic rest. Facts and logic can confirm a theistic premise or paradigm just as well as a materialist one. So there is nothing inherently "logical" or "reasonable" about materialism, and nothing illogical or irrational about the theistic paradigm.

     The specter of "theocracy" has been raised, but this is a red herring. Accepting a theistic paradigm-much less even considering one along with others - is hardly theocracy. In fact, since everyone's "God" is what they value most highly, then the basis of all passionately held opinions could be said to be "religious." The god in question may be nature or human reason, but if that is what is accepted and appealed to as the highest good and source of truth, then that is "god," and those who appeal to that god as the basis of their arguments could, ironically, be said to be trying to "impose their religion" on society. Forcing the removal of the Ten Commandments from a courthouse wall would in that case be really just as "theocratic" as placing them there in the first place, although the "religion" that dictated their removal is a secular one.

The Culture Wars:

     Leading up to the Last Judgment there was "war in heaven," in which "Michael and his angels fought with the dragon, and the dragon fought, and his angels..." (Revelation 12:7). The war was a "spiritual war, which is of falsity against truth, and truth against falsity."

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The "heaven" referred to is "the former heaven which passed away," spoken of in the 21st chapter. It was an imaginary heaven produced by evil spirits in the world of spirits. "Michael" stands for "those who confirm from the Word that the Lord is the God of heaven and earth.." It is from such people that the New Church is formed. The "dragon" represents those who turn from the Lord to themselves, and from heaven to the world, and thus become "sensual from the corporeal" (Apocalypse Revealed 548).

     The description of the "dragon" seems quite pointed when we consider the strains of extreme individualism, intellectual conceit, materialism and hedonism in our "post-Christian" culture. In saying this, I do not mean that these are the only traits or even the dominant ones in the culture, or that there is an absence of beneficial influences which are favorable to the establishment of the New Church. The "Michaels" of the New Church are not alone in resisting the dragon, and we should gratefully acknowledge the help provided by many others whose thought is based on the Scriptures and whose work is especially impressive because they are doing it without the additional support of the Heavenly Doctrine.

     The war in the spiritual world was won by the armies of the Lord, and a new spiritual order was established. On earth, however, the battle rages on. Along with thoughts inspired by new truth from heaven, we are also influenced by thoughts from hell which are against Divine things. This is as true of New Church people as anyone else.

     This, I believe, is the spiritual cause behind the so-called "culture wars" in which our society is engaged at present. What are we to make of these "culture wars?" I find myself in sympathy with many of the stands taken by Christians, but, knowing what The Writings say about the state of the former church, as well as being aware of some of the incredibly wicked things in history which were carried out in the name of Christianity, my sympathy with the Christian position in the culture wars is not absolute.

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I assume that some of the Christian leaders whose analysis of social trends I find illuminating would take a dim view of the New Church. But there are some particulars on the agenda of religious groups responding to the extreme secularism and moral disorders of contemporary society with which I think New Church people can make common cause.

     The doctrine of conjugial love-and the whole relationship of the sexes and their respective uses-has often been a focus of controversy within the New Church, and occasionally between the New Church and the world around it. And this same area of life is very prominent in the "culture wars." This is not surprising when we consider who the central figure is in the story of the "war in heaven": a woman about to give birth. Later, in Revelation 21, the New Church is compared to "a bride adorned for her husband." It is not surprising that marriage and childbirth are two of the main fronts in the culture wars.

     Freedom is a property of love, and since conjugial love is the highest of all loves it brings the greatest freedom (Conjugial Love 257). We can see, then, that the restoration of both freedom and of conjugial love are closely linked. Both have been renewed in the new heaven; both are in the process of being established on earth. It is a difficult, laborious process of birth. But the Lord has provided for new and expanding freedom in this world, and has given us the promise that "conjugial love will be raised up anew by the Lord....such as it was with the ancients.... with those who are made spiritual by Him through the Word" (Conjugial Love 81e).

     The New Church on earth has not been persecuted so violently as the Christian Church was in its beginning, but when it comes to the application of its doctrine to how we actually live-that's where the challenge comes. The challenge from our own contrary inclinations should be our primary concern, but the culture around us is also challenging.

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     There are two opposite errors we must avoid: one is self-righteous accusation of others-pointing out the speck in others' eyes while ignoring the plank in our own; the other is to be so paralyzed by awareness of our own sin and unworthiness that we fail to sound a warning when we see a wolf approaching the fold.

     The Last Judgment culminated in the formation of a new heaven and the birth of a New Church on earth. The next step-what we need now-is a new culture, which will support and help nurture the order of life the church is seeking to establish. Here is the progression: The Word comes from the Lord. The church comes from the Word. The culture comes from the church. And (ideally) the church, in turn, is supported by the culture.

     I would compare the culture that surrounds the church to the atmospheres derived from the spiritual sun which serve to receive, store up, accommodate, and transmit the life from that sun to the heavens (Divine Love and Wisdom 174). Similarly, all aspects of a culture - the traditions, customs, mores, the kind of language used, art and entertainment - can serve to communicate the life and faith of the church from which the culture is derived. The culture diffuses the faith just as the atmosphere diffuses the sun's energy.

     Or, to change the analogy a little, the culture is like the natural sun in relation to the spiritual sun - that is, an "aid and support" to the spiritual sun. Ideally, this is what a culture should do: aid and support the church in bringing the life of heaven to people on earth. The culture lives from the church and receives its goods and truths, and conveys them to society. It makes those abstract, spiritual, transcendent things real and visible and present with people; it weaves them into the fabric of their daily lives. This is why the state of the culture around us is a matter of concern for the church.

     One more comparison: the truths of the church are like the tea leaves that impart flavor and color to the whole cup.

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The "leaves" are rational truths from the tree of life in the midst of the New Jerusalem; the "tea" is the new culture that surrounds the church and gets its quality from the truths of the church.

     I once read an interview by Bill Moyers with Isaac Asimov, the great science fiction writer. Asimov did not believe in God or an afterlife in which we would be judged, and he rejected the idea that human morality depended upon such belief. Human reason is enough of a basis for morality, he said, and claimed that he was a moral person. I don't doubt that he was, but I think that his morality was very much derived from religion, although indirectly. His mind was formed within a culture produced by the Judeo-Christian tradition. The ethos, the character, the mental atmosphere that surrounded him was steeped in that tradition. In his mind the "tea bag" may have been removed, but the water Asimov was imbibing and swimming in retained the quality it had received from it. The moral sensibility that persists among people in a secular society is a remnant of a departed spirituality, not the product of human reason. And as the "tea" becomes increasingly diluted by secular thought, the moral influence from the former age also weakens.

     We're told in the Writings that the angels think of God as Human, and cannot think of Him in any other way. The reason is that "their thought proceeds in accordance with the form of heaven" (Divine Love and Wisdom 11). Our minds, also, are strongly influenced by the culture in which we live.

     People whose minds are thoroughly grounded on the Word are immune, more or less, to false assumptions, attitudes and currents of opinion in society, but still, the culture should reinforce and nurture and enrich their spiritual outlook, not continually work against it. A supportive culture is especially important for those whose minds have not been formed by the Word, and who are thus ill-equipped to order their lives according to its truths. The culture should strengthen what is good and true in people, rather than pander to the worst inclinations of human nature and constantly try to lead people astray.

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     I am trying to present a general idea, which I think is true, but I am aware that it could be used to justify a stifling atmosphere of intrusive moralizing by professional scolds. That would be an abuse of the principle. But real freedom and happiness can exist only with order; not an order that depends mainly upon external enforcement, but which arises spontaneously from within people who love the end for which the order is maintained. The kind of cultural matrix I have in mind is nothing like the oppressive culture of political correctness that prevails on so many college campuses. Rather, think of the "micro-cultures" (as we might call them) composed of people in certain professions: historians, scientists, doctors, lawyers and educators all belong to a culture that maintains the standards of the profession. The general culture of the whole society should perform a similar use, upholding and inculcating basic human decency, including reverence for the things of religion and marriage.

     Our culture today does exert a positive influence in some areas: regarding the way we speak about people of different races; the abusive language that once was acceptable and now is not, language which society simply won't tolerate. On the other hand, taking the Lord's name in vain is now something even little children assimilate from the popular culture. The culture (and even civil law to some extent) could just as well inculcate reverence and chastity instead of blasphemy and obscenity. And this is what it ought to do (see Divine Providence 129:2 and 136:2).

     The Writings explain that the flowing of the spiritual into the natural depends upon favorable conditions in the natural. If spiritual truth finds an inhospitable environment in the natural, it recoils and withdraws (Divine Love and Wisdom 254). It is like something touching a nerve in your tooth. Or like hopping out of a warm bed onto a cold floor - you want to hop right back in again.

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     This shows how important the culture is. It can either invite the presence of angels, or repel them. Just as animals need a suitable habitat in the natural environment, so angels, and people on earth who get along with angels, need a habitat in the spiritual environment. We want to establish a culture on earth in which angels can feel at home.

     If this sounds too idealistic, substitute the word "children" for angels - we want a culture in which children will be valued and safe and encounter good and true and beautiful things to enrich their minds and character.

     Therefore a church can't be indifferent to the state of the society around it. Just as a culture needs a church to give it its vital essence, so a church needs a culture in which the spiritual life it seeks to convey to the world can be expressed and find a foundation. Luther said "the world is God's enemy," and there is a certain truth to this; a certain amount of tension between the church and the world is healthy, just as it is healthy for a person to be troubled by conscience at times. But this does not mean it is healthy for the world in which the church must exist, and which depends upon the church for its spiritual life, to be hostile to the church.

     The Writings tell us that in the spiritual world whenever any new truth is introduced into a person's mind, some reason for doubting it also shortly arises. Doubt is a useful thing. It causes us to consider carefully what is actually true. A truth which is accepted too easily is likely to be understood shallowly, without nuance or subtlety, and with little sympathy for those who see things differently (see Arcana Coelestia 7298).

     I think this applies to society as a whole, also. Each new truth introduced into society is met by an opposing falsity; each new falsity by an opposing truth. This produces a combat, which the Writings compare to the chemical process of fermentation. Eventually what is false and useless is rejected, and the issue becomes clear-just as the lees sink to the bottom of the bottle as the wine ferments and becomes clear (Divine Providence 25, 284).

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     I think this is a good way of viewing the "culture wars" going on around us in the wake of the Last Judgment and the publishing of The Heavenly Doctrine. New truth, introduced from the new heaven, meets with opposition and there is heated debate, but eventually greater clarity results.

     Judgment is the opposite of profanation, which is the mixing together of what is good and evil, true and false, so completely that the good and true cannot be distinguished and extricated from the evil and false. Getting in the habit of self-examination and clearly labeling the evils we discover in ourselves as evil is the first step in getting free from them. Fulfilling the promise of the Last Judgment-spiritual freedom and the creation of a new world- requires a change in our hearts. "Create in me a clean heart, 0 God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me" (Psalm 51.10).

     But in addition, I think The Heavenly Doctrine also challenges us to do all we can to create conditions on earth, in our culture and civil order, which will make it possible for the new spiritual freedom people have to be brought down to earth and made tangible in the way we live. We need to create a culture which will encourage and support and nurture the "better angels" of our nature. The decline of the former church as a force in the world is partly a good thing since that church embraced much that was false, but it has left a vacuum at the heart of western civilization (once known as Christendom) which the New Church must fill.

     In conclusion, consider the rich meaning of the word "culture." We see the word "cult" in it, which reminds us that a culture is produced and sustained by a church. We see the resemblance to the word "cultivate," which reminds us that a culture is an on-going work that needs to be tended, that it is the ground in which truths can take root and grow to produce good fruits. And then think of what the word "culture" means in biology and medicine: a medium in which an organism is grown. A civilization is the medium in which we humans grow, and the church is composed of human beings.

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     A culture is a living thing, and like all living things, it receives its life from the only source of life, the One who says: "It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life" (John 6:63). The One who says: "Behold, I make all things new" (Revelation 21:5).
Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified       Editor       2008


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     In celebration of Swedenborg's birthday, January 29, 1688, we print a picture of Swedenborg's home on Hornsgatan, Sodermalm (Southwark), Stockholm. Swedenborg bought this house with a large property ca. 1747. It also contains another house for a caretaker and gardener and his family. Several other buildings were a library, stables, a mirror pleasure-house, a root cellar, a shed, an aviary, and a labyrinth for the children. There was still room for an orchard and gardens. The property served Swedenborg for his entire enlightenment period of writing and publishing the Writings. It was his home-base when sailing or sending copies overseas to publishers in London or Amsterdam. The building was torn down in 1888. His Summer House, which has been preserved and can still be visited at Skansen, Stockholm, was yet another building located at the other end of the property. This is a copy of a painting by Nils Anderson, 1853. Photo by Ed and Kirsten Gyllenhaal.

[Photograph of painting of Swedenborg's home.]

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Editorials 2008

Editorials       Editor       2008


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     The Case Herein Is This, In the Lord's Mercy below...

     Swedenborg was born on January 29, 1688, 320 years ago. Let us look at some aspects of his role as revelator. The first book of The Writings he published using Lewis and Hart in London, was the Arcana Coelestia, starting in 1749. Did you know that the years of publication for the eight volumes between 1749 and 1756, did not come out one per year? Volumes I through IV came out annually alright from 1749 through 1752, but then in 1753, both Vol. V and VI came out, in 1754 Vol. VII, but 1755 went by with no publication, and at last, in 1756 Vol. VIII came out. It was in these volumes that the phrase "the case here is this" occurs over 800 times. Why so often, and why in this first work of The Writings?

     In order for Swedenborg to be able to write, "The case here is this," first there had to be Divine enlightenment from the Lord who is the Divine Human, the glorified Christ. We know Swedenborg received this from the Lord. "The Lord opened the sight of my spirit, thus admitting me to the spiritual world" (True Christian Religion 779). "Such immediate revelation is now made because that is what is meant by the Coming of the Lord" (Heaven and Hell 1). This enlightenment from the Lord is necessary in order to see the internal sense of the Word (De Verbo 21 or 7:8). With such enlightenment, "genuine truth which is to be the source of doctrine, is manifest in the sense of the letter of the Word" (Sacred Scripture 57 title). The sense of the letter always refers to the text of Sacred Scripture, thus the Bible verse themselves. Swedenborg even gives an example how "I myself can certainly say that when I read the blood of the Lamb and think of the Lord's blood the angels present with me know no other than that Divine Truth emanating from the Lord is what I read and that that Truth is what I think of" (Arcana Coelestia 9410).

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     However, the doctrine is never seen from the internal sense. "The teaching can never first be seen from the spiritual sense" (De Verbo 21). In other words, the Lord does not whisper the internal sense just as Swedenborg reads the text where it is contained. No-Instead, the "doctrine of genuine truth can also be drawn in full from the sense of the letter of the Word, because in this sense the Word is like a man clothed whose face and hands are bare" (Sacred Scripture 55). Swedenborg had to draw out the full meaning. Every doctrine we take for granted in the new Church, was first extracted from the text of Sacred Scripture. Swedenborg was enlighted to do this, first by seeing the "hand and face" parts of the Sacred Scripture, i.e. the Schmidius Bible he was reading in Latin. And so, when reading, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth", Swedenborg's enlightenment allowed him to understand that God starts life by making human beings with an internal man or soul and an external man or body (Arcana Coelestia 16). Swedenborg then used this "face truth" as a "lamp" to light up later "clothed" passages, where the spiritual sense was deeply concealed. For "the Word cannot be understood without doctrine, and that doctrine is like a lamp that enables genuine truths to be seen" (Sacred Scripture 91). In this manner, the correspondences between the spiritual and natural senses were gradually opened up, and the "signification" or "correspondence" of each word revealed. Both the "lamp" i.e. the "doctrine of genuine truth" and the spiritual sense that the lamp has uncovered, were revealed to Swedenborg. He had much help to move the process along very rapidly! "The reason why the spiritual sense of the Word has been at this day disclosed by the Lord is that the doctrine of genuine truth [lamp] has now been revealed; and this doctrine, and no other, is in accord with the spiritual sense of the Word" (Sacred Scripture 25).

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     Therefore, as the internal or spiritual sense emerged bit by bit from the literal sense, it was then stated on its own as "doctrine." "Doctrine is what the internal sense teaches ...The internal sense is doctrine itself... the internal sense is the same as the Doctrine they have in heaven" (Arcana Coelestia 10400, 9380, Heavenly Doctrine 7). The Writings therefore not only describe their own method but also follow it. Since the process is by now a fait accompli, however, we can go right ahead and just read them! Their meaning is self-evident.

     The internal or spiritual sense of the Word, and Doctrine (or Teaching) are thus on a par, and constitute the contents of the Word of Lord in His Second Coming. We call the Writings or the Heavenly Doctrine "the Word" because the Writings often identify themselves with doctrine. "Because this was revealed to me out of heaven, it is called HEAVENLY DOCTRINE, and to present this is the purpose of this book" (Heavenly Doctrine 7). "Divine doctrine itself constitutes the Word in the highest sense... Divine doctrine also constitutes the Word in the internal sense" (Arcana Coelestia 3712). Moreover, since the internal sense-thus also doctrine-is as a soul to the sense of the letter (Sacred Scripture 4), consequently the Word of Heavenly Doctrine thus the Writings as books, constitute the "soul" to the "body" of the Scriptures as books. These scriptures are Sacred, "the Word in the literal sense" (Arcana Coelestia 3712). Because the Lord Himself who has revealed the Word of Heavenly Doctrine, is "doctrine itself' (Arcana Coelestia 5321, 3364), it is consequently clear how Swedenborg could at the end of the above process state "Ita Se Habet." The Lord taught Swedenborg the process, and you can read the product after these words: "The Case here is this." "The situation is as follows." How often have you read this phrase in the Writings? Do you recall where?

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     Practically all such phrases occur in the Arcana Coelestia, or in works published in 1758 but written during 1757. Thus, they occur mostly prior to the Last Judgment. There are 546 instances in the Arcana of "ita se habet" and 3 in Heaven and Hell. There are 248 instances of "hoc se habet" in the Arcana, 3 in Heaven and Hell, 2 in the True Christian Religion. There are 20 instances of "ita enim habet," only in the Arcana. There are still other variations of the phrase. All can translate into "This is the case" or "The situation is as follows." A clear doctrine follows. All the later works are extracted either from the Arcana or from the Apocalypse Explained, and so are doctrinal works. Apocalypse Revealed is a new start. All through these later works, e.g. Heaven & Hell, The Divine Love & Wisdom, etc. doctrine is just presented as the staple diet, having been drawn from Scripture already.

     Now we come to another phrase, "more in the Lord's mercy may be seen below ..." "Ex Divina Domini Misericordia, in sequentibus." It occurs over 120 times. Do you remember reading that one also? Where? We find also this phrase only prior to the Last Judgment, and almost exclusively in the Arcana Coelestia. Why? Well, in Lord 61:2 published in 1763, we read: "This was not seen from the Word before, because... the Last Judgment had not yet been accomplished; ...hell, would have plucked it out of the hearts of men, and would ...have profaned it. This power was completely broken by the Last Judgment....After that... every man who desires may become enlightened and attain wisdom."

     Prior to 1757, it was too dangerous to publish plainly stated doctrines! There had to be some protection offered to the truths. Since the Arcana Coelestia did come out before 1757, what was its protection? It was by scattering and postponing. What better protection than to "scatter" the plain doctrine into an excruciating maze of "this signifies this, and that signifies that," etc., phrase after phrase. Nothing is clear. "That this is the [internal] sense cannot be seen from the first exposition wherein everything is scattered, that is to say, from what was said in #3366" (Arcana Coelestia 3376).

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"These things are disconnected, [and what] they involve in their series cannot appear unless they are all collected together into a single idea" (Arcana Coelestia 3074). Well, "ita se habet" does collect all things together into a single idea. However, just when a profaner thought he could gather enough truth to profane it, along comes another "but more of the Lord's mercy below." The truth is postponed until later. Without the reference-tools we have today, the profaner would have been frustrated and put the book down, or died of apoplexy, thus unwittingly saving him from grievous harm. Only good people have the patience to read a few more pages until along comes another "the case herein is this" which puts everything into "a most beautiful sequence" (Arcana Coelestia 3376) again. After 1757, the Writings can therefore declare, "Now every man who desires may become enlightened and attain wisdom." "More mercifully later" is no longer needed to prevent profanation, but was once needed. The danger is past. Now it is all "Ita se habet" even for readers of the Arcana! Just keep on reading until the next "the case herein" comes along.

     It was no doubt because the Last Judgment had removed the danger of profanation, that in 1758, five small works were published. They summarize or "bring into a single idea or beautiful sequence," the doctrines found scattered and postponed all through the eight volumes of the Arcana Coelestia: Heaven and Hell, The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine, The Last Judgment, The White Horse, and Earths in the Universe. Each contains a more or less massive reference system to the Arcana Coelestia. Of these, Heaven and Hell is such a best seller that it should be a Guinness Record: most widely read book of the Writings, translated into more languages than other works of the Writings, most continuously read modern work, etc. This year 2008 marks the 250th anniversary of its publication. That is the case!

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History of the Word on Earth: The Old Testament 2008

History of the Word on Earth: The Old Testament       Editor       2008

     After the first Ancient Church was established after the Flood, using Enoch's Word derived from the mouth of the Most Ancients, the Ancient Word came next. That Word was used in every part of the Ancient Church, until it became "too remote" (Sacred Scripture 102). The causes were various: idolatry, magic, dogmatic systems, the love of dominion, and mythology. It was magic that killed the Ancient Church in Egypt, and under a "special providence" the sons of Israel were born (Arcana Coelestia 6025) and went there so that "another Word less remote" (ibid.) yet "Divine in every syllable" (Arcana Coelestia 10632:4) could be written. This was the Old Testament, covering the history of the Hebrews from Abram ca. 2000 b.c., and receiving continual supplements down to Malachi ca. 400 b.c.

     How was the Old Testament composed? Well, first events happened so that they represented the Lord's life on earth, the spiritual world and the Word of the Lord. Spiritual or heavenly conditions were actually realized through correspondences on a daily basis back in those days. The scenario is of great interest, because the era of miracles came at this same time: "At that time representatives came forth into actual realization," (Arcana Coelestia 1675) and "representations commanded by the Lord had force and effect." "Miracles ... were done by means of correspondences" (Arcana Coelestia 8615:3) to stand for the things of the Church. One example given is Samson's great strength merely by the correspondence of his hair! (Arcana Coelestia 3301.4) Just because miracles do not happen today, does not mean that they could not have happened during this special era of human history. (See "A Unique Human Era," New Philosophy April 1986) The spiritual conditions required for miracles back then were so different that the same miracles performed today would destroy us.

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     Part of those conditions was the angelic protection afforded to the encampment of Israel during the 40 years of wandering, extending also to the miracles performed by means of the Ark of the Covenant. Angels attended the Ark so that the "outward worship" of the Children of Israel was "conveyed" first to interiorly good simple spirits who "give no thought to inward values," and then to internal angels who could see in these spirits "the realities representing heavenly and Divine values" (Arcana Coelestia 8588:6). The rituals in the Tabernacle were thus "carried up in a miraculous fashion" (Arcana Coelestia 4307) while also covering over the idolatrous thoughts and affections on earth which "would have defiled" everything (Arcana Coelestia 8788). This angelic presence brought about a "rearrangement of Divine Truth" which resulted in the pillar of fire and cloud which protected Israel's encampment surrounding the Tabernacle (Arcana Coelestia 8192). Heaven's order was so powerful that Balaam could not curse but only bless it! (Numbers 22-24) Even the "pattern" for that Tabernacle had been "shown to Moses on top of Mount Sinai" (Conjugial Love 75) citing Exodus: "the pattern of the tabernacle that I show you....on the mountain" (Exodus 25:9, 40, 26:30).

     It is interesting to detect the sequence in how the Five Books of Moses were written. We would think Moses just started writing. But no, first the history had to happen, and that began with Abram's story in Genesis 12. However, there is a surprise: before Moses even wrote the first word, the Lord wrote "The Ten Commandments"! These "were the first of the Word, being promulgated from Mount Sinai before the Word was written by Moses and the Prophets" (Apocalypse Explained 939, emphasis added). In other words, the first writing of the Old Testament was by the finger of God. That is why it was such a great miracle: the Ten Commandments were "uttered and heard in heaven as to their internal sense, while in their external sense they were uttered and heard on earth" (Arcana Coelestia 2609).

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Angels and men heard them simultaneously. Moses destroyed the first tables together with the golden calf, and later transferred the second table he himself cut, to the text of the Old Testament. However the Decalogue is not on the first page, but in Exodus 20! Moses inserted them in the sequence of history when in fact they were written first. Moses also inserted sections from the Ancient Word to constitute Genesis chapters 1 through 11.

     Once Moses and others started writing, they had no trouble keeping up with the work: It was by dictation" (Heaven and Hell 254). The Old Testament was dictated so as to be "divine in every syllable" (Arcana Coelestia 10638). The wording was exact: "The prophets...wrote exactly as the spirit from the Divine dictated, for the actual words which they were to write were uttered in their ears" (Arcana Coelestia 7055:3). Hence, the recurring scripture phrase "The Word of Jehovah came unto me, saying." Spirits newly arrived from earth could presumably speak Hebrew in dictation: "How the Lord spoke with the prophets through whom the Word was given, through spirits who were sent to them, whom the Lord filled with His aspect, and thus inspired the words which they dictated to the prophets. So it was not influx but dictation. As the words came from the Lord, each one of them was filled with the Divine and contains within it an internal sense, which angels perceive in a heavenly and spiritual sense, while men do so in a natural sense. Thus has the Lord conjoined heaven and the world by means of the Word" (Heaven and Hell 254).

     So a grand time-chart for the Old Testament would be: 1. Finger of God writes Ten Commandments. 2. Moses copies second Tables of stone. 3. Ancient Word copied for Genesis 1 to 11. 4. Dictation of Genesis and of Exodus 1 to 19. 5. Insertion of Ten Commandments miracle and related events. 6. Dictation of rest of books of Moses. 7. Dictation of all subsequent books to constitute the Old Testament.

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     Since the events which were to be recorded first occurred under Providence, yet in such a way that all involved were free to follow their own loves, consequently their activities could represent heavenly things and most deeply the Lord's life. "Things happened the way they did for the sake of the representation of what is contained in the internal sense." (Arcana Coelestia 4756) Joseph came to Egypt and served under Potiphar for no other purpose than "that he might represent how the Lord progressively made the Human in Himself Divine, about which the Word was to be written, that it might contain Divine things in the internal sense" (Arcana Coelestia 5307:3). Joseph himself also said "God sent me before you" (Genesis 45:7).

     And once they actually starting writing, the stories were assembled just into such a sequence that the Lord's "life on earth, such as it was to be in the world, even as to perceptions and thoughts" (Arcana Coelestia 2523) could be contained in them. The sequence and the wording were "edited" by dictation: "No other historical details have been brought in, and those that have are not presented in any other sequence, nor expressed in any other words than such as in the internal sense may express these arcana" (Arcana Coelestia 1468e). Only a Divine dictation could accomplish such an intricate rendition. The Old Testament is consequently holy and powerful down to every jot and tittle. (Arcana Coelestia 4868:3, 8862:2, Sacred Scripture 37, 38, 49, 50)

     The reason the Lord's glorification underlies every single word dictated was for the sake of the angels, - so that they could behold Lord's glorification "as if present." If the internal sense of the Old Testament had not presented the Lord's Advent as if already accomplished, "the Lord would have been obliged to come into the world immediately after the fall of the Most Ancient Church" (Arcana Coelestia 2523).

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In other words, unless the Lord had foreseen that the Hebrews would love to reenact rituals, and that their stories could be dictated in this manner, the advent would have happened thousands of years earlier when Noah came out of the ark. Christmas would have come early! The Old Testament postponed the need. However, when the Lord did come in Bethlehem, He grew up more quickly than other boys (True Christian Religion 89) and studied His own scriptures (Arcana Coelestia 1461). He began His mission in the synagogue in Nazareth, by reading out loud: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,...to preach the acceptable year of Jehovah. And He rolled up the book and said, This day is this Scripture fulfilled in your ears" (Luke 4:16-21, Isaiah 61:1,2, Lord 11). The Lord began yet another dispensation of the Word,-from His own mouth, namely the New Testament.
Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified              2008


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     It is a wonderful thing that wherever the Word is read with reverence and the Lord is worshipped from the Word, the Lord is present together with heaven. This is because the Lord is the Word, and the Word is Divine Truth which constitutes heaven; therefore the Lord says:

     Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matt xviii 20)

     This may be effected with the Word by Europeans in many parts of the habitable globe because their commerce extends over the whole world; and everywhere the Word is read by them or there is teaching from it. This appears like fiction, but still it is true.

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Communications 2008

Communications       Various       2008


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To the Editor:

     First I would like to thank Bishop Acton for his thought provoking articles on Paradigms Revisited. His statement "of course, without the Roman practice of crucifixion the entire resurrection story would not have happened." I concurred in this assertion as a given.

     Shortly after reading the above I was reading in the Apocalypse Explained and specifically # 655: 5 which to my understanding plainly teaches that the crucifixion was a Jewish custom, instituted by Moses: "And if there be in a man sin and judgment of death, and he be slain, thou shalt hang him upon wood" (Deut. xxi. 18, 20-23). This seems to shed quite a different light on the story, the implication being that it signified the destruction of good in the Church. Comments by bishop Acton would be most welcome.

     Sincerely,
     Stanley Hill

Bishop Acton's answer:

     I realize the Apocalypse Explained uses the term "crucifixion" as a Jewish custom but it doesn't seem to be the same kind of "crucifixion" which was Roman custom. Schaff's "Religious Encyclopedia" of 1882 explains the difference: "Crucifixion as a punishment of death was common among the old Indians, Egyptians, Phoenicians, Carthaginians, and even among the Greeks and Macedonians." For example, after the conquest of Tyrus, Alexander the Great ordered the crucifixion of two thousand Tyrians as a punishment for the resistance that the city had made.

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The Israelites however used to crucify those who had been decapitated or stoned, as a further aggravation of the punishment. From the "Interpreter's Bible" on Deut 21: 22, 23 under the title of "The Body of a Criminal": If a man has been proved guilty of a capital charge and is put to death (usually by stoning), as an additional disgrace and lesson to the community his body might be hung up (or perhaps impaled) for all to see after his death (cf. Josh 8:29; 10:26-27; I Sam. 31:10; II Sam. 4:12). As an object accursed of God, the body must be taken down and buried by evening so that the land may not be defiled with that which is taboo or unclean.
Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified              2008


----------      
     "Fascinating", "Exciting", "Stimulating",

     "Mind-Expanding", "Enriching", "Motivating"

     These are just some of the words being used to describe

     The Master of Arts in Religious Studies Program

     Come see why!

     Applications are now being taken for the

     2008/2009 academic year!

               For more information, please contact: Becky Henderson

               Administrative Coordinator

               P.O. Box 717 - Pendleton Hall

               Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

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APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH GIRLS SCHOOL AND BOYS SCHOOL 2008

APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH GIRLS SCHOOL AND BOYS SCHOOL              2008


----------
     We warmly invite applications to the Academy of the New Church Girls and Boys Schools. Founded in 1877 we continue to pursue excellence in the field of New Church education.

     At the Academy of the New Church Secondary Schools, we prepare our students for a good and useful life. As an educational arm of the General Church of the New Jerusalem, we lead students through a rigorous academic curriculum so that they may find meaning, fulfillment, and happiness. As we instruct our students in the teachings of the New Church and encourage a life according to New Church principles, we develop their intellectual powers, teach them about spiritual realities of life, and offer them many avenues to practice spiritual and moral virtues.

     In February we will mail recruiting packages to age appropriate families who appear in the General Church database. These packages include an application form for admission of new students to the Schools. If you do not receive a recruiting package and would like one, please contact the School Secretary at 267-502-2556. Requests for application should be made by March 1, 2008.

     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 dormitory student. We urge parents to submit completed application forms by April 15, 2008.

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     Requests for financial aid are included as part of the application process. All requests for financial aid should be submitted to the following. Please note: The earlier the request is submitted, the more likely we will be able to meet the need.

     Mr. Les Alden, Business Manager
     ANC, Box 711 Bryn Athyn, PA 19009
     [email protected] 267-502-2608

     Admission procedure is based on receipt of the following: Application, Transcript, Pastor's Recommendation, Agreement Form, and Health Forms.

     Letters, phone or email inquiries should be addressed to:

     R. Scott Daum
     Boys School Principal
     ANC Boys' School
     P.O. Box 707
     Bryn Athyn, PA. 19009
     267-502-2538

     Susan O. Odhner
     Girls School Principal
     ANC Girls' School
     P.O. Box 707
     Bryn Athyn, PA 19009
     267-502-2566

     Thank you.

     The Academy will not discriminate against applicants and students on the basis of race, color, gender, and national or ethnic origin.

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INTELLECTUALLY LIBERAL. MORALLY CONSERVATIVE. SPIRITUALLY BOLD. BRYN ATHYN COLLEGE 2008

INTELLECTUALLY LIBERAL. MORALLY CONSERVATIVE. SPIRITUALLY BOLD. BRYN ATHYN COLLEGE              2008


----------
     At Bryn Athyn College, we help students connect with their careers and prepare to lead good and useful lives. Founded in 1877, we are a Christian liberal arts college located just outside of Philadelphia. We believe that a spiritual purpose touches and affects all we do and that exploring one's faith can itself be a rational undertaking.

     Bryn Athyn College offers you:

     ï¿½     Affordable access to a quality education and generous Financial Aid.

     ï¿½     Versatile majors and a wide variety of Interdisciplinary programs

     ï¿½     Service Learning, Study Abroad, and Internships for First-Year students

     Apply online or visit

     us on the web to find out more.

     www.brynathyn.edu � 267.502.2511� [email protected]

     Bryn Athyn College � 2895 College Drive � Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

37


Church News 2008

Church News       Editor       2008


----------
     October 21, 2007 in Seoul, Korea-Bishop Kline is pictured with the Rev. Dzin Kwak and the Rev. Kyu Yang (left), newly ordained into the pastoral degree. Rev. Yang will be succeeding Rev. Kwak as Pastor in Seoul upon Rev. Kwak's retirement in 2008.

[Photograph of Rt. Rev. Thomas Kline and the Revs. Kyu Yang and Dzin Kwak.]

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     On December 2, 2007, the Rev. Alan Lewin was ordained into the second degree of the Priesthood of the General Church, the Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline officiating. The photo shows the chancel of Michael Church, London.

[Photograph of Rt. Rev. Thomas Kline and Rev. Alan Lewin.]

     Bishop Thomas Kline, Rev. Dzin Kwak, and some members of the congregation at the dedication of the church building in Gwangju, South Korea on Monday, October 22, 2007, Rev Yang was there too, but he is not in this photo.

[Photograph of Rt. Rev. Thomas Kline and congregational members.]

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ORDINATIONS 2008

ORDINATIONS              2008


----------
     Dube, Jerome Bhekuyise-At Westville (Durban), Republic of South Africa, November 11, 2007, into the second degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Lewin, Alan-At London, England, December 2, 2007, into the second degree, Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline officiating.

     Mkhize, Sibusiso Protus-At Westville (Durban), Republic of South Africa, November 11, 2007, into the second degree, Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.
Employment Opportunities at The Academy of the New Church 2008

Employment Opportunities at The Academy of the New Church              2008





----------
     In connection with the Academy and General Church strategic plans, we are in the process of considering candidates for several positions at the Academy.

     ï¿½     Director of Campus Services. Responsible for the use, quality of service and business operations of various campus facilities and student services, including residence halls, dining, student health services, bookstores, facilities managers in the fieldhouse, performing arts center, ice rink, etc. Reports to the Heads of Schools with dotted line reporting to the Treasurer.

     ï¿½     Vice-President of Enrollment Management at Bryn Athyn College. Responsible for admissions policy, strategy, and marketing at the college and oversight of financial aid. This person will also give support to admissions personnel and processes in the Secondary Schools. Reports to the Dean of Bryn Athyn College.

     ï¿½     Director of Service Learning at Bryn Athyn College. Responsible for this core segment of the College curriculum. Reports to the Dean of Bryn Athyn College.

     ï¿½     Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Responsible for residence life, campus social life, orientation, and student discipline. Reports to the Dean of Bryn Athyn College.

     The specific qualifications for these positions vary. However, the institution is seeking individuals with a dedication to the New Church and a commitment to promote growth. All positions will work closely with students, faculty, administration and the broad New Church community. To obtain further information, interested candidates should contact Joe Weiss, Human Resource Director, Human Resources Office, PO Box 743, Bryn Athyn, PA, 19009 or FAX to 267.502.2563 or email to [email protected] by February 29th, 2008. The Academy of the New Church is an equal opportunity employer.

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Notes on This Issue 2008

Notes on This Issue       Editor       2008


----------
     The Sermon this month comes from London, where Rev. Fred Elphick has been the Pastor for a good number of years. The lesson is how to apply the measurement of the Holy City to our lives. Does this mean we compare ourselves with other people? There is a right way to go about it.

     A second sermon we believe was delivered on board the USS Stennis, an aircraft carrier, one location Chaplain Rev. Martie Johnson has served. We don't often consider Grace or Epiphany, but it is worth reflecting on this January event so soon after the celebration itself. There is a way the wise men can lead the way for us to follow.

     We have seen the passing of two ministers of the General Church, the Rev. Kenneth O. Stroh, and the Rev. Erik Sandstrom Sr. We include some cogent extracts on these loved and well known servants of the New Church.

     Church News includes an exciting view of the New Church in India! Reports are coming in, and we now have brethren and sisters in the Church there and it seems certain that more will come. Rev. Appelgren was the ambassador while Mr. Devassy is the actual newcomer to the New Church who is evangelizing his countrymen.

     Rev. Frederick C. Elphick is the Pastor of Michael Church, London but will retire in July when Assistant Pastor Alan Lewin takes over. Fred was inaugurated into the priesthood on June 6, 1984 and ordained into the second degree on September 23, the same year. He has served as the Pastor of Michael Church since that year, as well as visiting pastor to he Surrey Circle in England. From Oct 1987 until 1989 he also visited the Letchworth Group. He has edited the UK Newsletter since January 1986, and continued visiting the group in the Netherlands in 1992. More recently, he has become chairman of the Swedenborg Society Council, and also serves on their Advisory and Revision Board. Fred lives with his wife Jane (Gill) in Beckenham, London.

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ARISE AND MEASURE: A PERSONAL RULE 2008

ARISE AND MEASURE: A PERSONAL RULE       Rev. FRED E. ELPHICK       2008


----------
And the angel stood by, saying, Arise and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and those worshipping therein. (Revelation 11:1)

     People must wonder, when they hear or read the Word, why so many measurements are mentioned. Spans of time, people's ages, distances, and dimensions are given, often in minute detail. As in our text from the book of Revelation, we even read of such things in the other world, where there are no space and time.

     Actually though, as we can conclude from many descriptions in the Writings for the New Church, when it is said that there are no space and time, the meaning is that there are no natural space and time. Time and space in the other world simply have a different basis, namely, reflecting the constant characteristics of the human mind. For example, we feel close to people with whom we have things in common, distant from those with whom we have not. So things in heaven are not disconcertingly appearing and disappearing, or changing beyond recognition, but rather reflect the settled states of progress in the governing loves of the inhabitants. It is because of this that heaven is in that wonderfully organized human form the Writings call the Gorand Man. For the Lord places everyone exactly in the community best suited to his or her function or use in life and thus to the greatest fulfillment and happiness.

     And so the things around the angels, the houses they live in, their parks and garden cities, have spiritual dimensions which are a measure of their own character, in much the same way as we might say that a person has a 'big' heart, or is 'broad' minded. It is only when one is in 'a changeable state,' as for example in the preparatory stages of life in the world of spirits, that one is aware of changes in one's surroundings.

44




     Thus, all the measurements recorded in the Word, down to the very numbers used, correspond to spiritual realities that are the basis of human life. In the book of Ezekiel, for example, written several centuries before the Lord's coming, an angel measures a city and temple in the spiritual Israel. The complete record of his measurements, as we read in part earlier, spans no less than three chapters,-some ninety-five verses! Still it is written in such a way that when a person reads it, the angels associated with him perceive the spiritual meaning and the delight that goes with it, the Lord's love and wisdom enfolded within those verses. The same goes for the rest of the Word.

     In the same way, after the Lord's coming, John records in the book of Revelation that he was given a reed like a staff and told to measure the temple of God, the altar, as well as the people in it. "Arise and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and those worshipping therein." He was being told to find out the state of the church. As we have seen, measurements correspond to qualities or the essential character. Applied to us as individuals, this command conveys the idea that we need to get up and measure ourselves, to carry out a survey of our lives.

     As we move through the rhythms and cycles of our short time on earth, as new opportunities present themselves, we feel the need to assess our progress and to encourage ourselves to face the next challenge. Yet we know that our ability to make a true assessment is as weak as a reed. We don't know if we can handle it. But the Lord alone knows our character and what we will become, and He in fact shows us no more than we can handle, for His burden is light.

     So do we have the measure of our life? Are we good people? Are we evil? Are we as good or bad as we think we are? Think of the reed that John used to measure the temple. It was like a staff, it was strong.

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When the Lord is our guide and support, His strengthens our ability to make a true assessment of our character (cf. Apocalypse Revealed 485:3).

     We know that whatever measure of good we have comes from what we choose during our life in the world (Arcana Coelestia 8533, Divine Providence 334, Heaven and Hell 349). As the Lord said: "Give and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom" (Luke 6:38). 'Running over', as well as denoting abundance, implies a limit set only by the container. So we can think of the good received as the church-the real life of religion-in people. And so John was told to not only measure the temple, but also the people in it. In one sense, we can say the church is people-at least the part of them that lives and breathes in the sphere of heaven. And for this heavenly part of our minds to become a living force in our everyday lives, we need to know enough about ourselves, our strengths and weaknesses, to make progress.

     However, we must conduct this exploration with a reed that is like a staff: we must measure ourselves from the Lord's perspective, not from ours. "Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, and measured the heavens with a span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in a scale, and the hills in balances?" asked Isaiah (40:12). Who but the Lord?

     The Writings say that to measure means to explore the quality of something. So that when we look at our own lives, we are to make a just measurement of our actions, our thoughts, our intentions, against what we see taught in the Word. This is to measure from the Lord's perspective. Think of the measurement described in our reading from Ezekiel. All the parts of the temple-the various aspects of our spiritual life as they appear in the mind-were measured with a line of flax and by just such a reed as we have been describing (cf. Apocalypse Explained 629:3).

46


We need to size up the present state of our character by what we know from the Word: this is to be our rule. For it is no accident that the word 'rule' involves both governing and measuring. Rules both govern and are a standard of measurement. We can think of our own rule of life in both these ways.

     How then are we to go about applying such a measurement to ourselves? To begin with, we need a manageable framework which can become our own personal rule of life-a pattern of living to which we can commit ourselves, not just for a few days, but also for life. This is rule in the sense of a measure based on what we understand the Lord would have us do. It is something He can use to order the cycles of our spiritual life. We may fall short on occasion, but we should not let this discourage us.

     So the first step in beginning a new order to our life is a change in attitude-a matter of what we wish for in our will. Basically, it is to stop hankering for what is against the Lord and to wish for good affections. For it is our will that rules (Divine Providence 151, Arcana Coelestia 7342). Initially, this is more a change of intent than a change in habit. If, for example, we compare it to giving up smoking, or any other addictive habit, then the first stage is to want to stop. The dislike of one's own habit can gradually become stronger until it reaches the point when the person either cuts down or actually does stop. So it is with an evil. We have to begin the new rule by simply disliking the evil.

     But when, the Writings say, we progress and want to "actually desist from" our evil actions (Divine Providence 151), at this point not only have we acquired a healthy dislike of the evil because it is hellish, but we have also begun to shun it and fight against it. And note well that this new purpose can come about simply by measuring our lives once or twice a year against the teaching of the Word. Because the Word embodies all love and wisdom, it affects our whole life.

47


As it says, as soon as a person deliberately and from set purpose refrains from any evil as being a sin, he is kept by the Lord in the intention of refraining from the others (Conjugial Love 529). Not only that, but if a person transgresses unwittingly, or from some overwhelming bodily desire, it is comforting to know that this is not made a permanent part of his character, because, as it is said, he had not intended or set his mind on it (ibid).

     Our personal rule of life then, can be what we have set our mind on-a confirmation that we want to take a certain path in life. And it seems reasonable to build on what we are already doing. For example, it might be unrealistic for someone who at present only reads the Writings occasionally, suddenly to start reading two or three hours a day! On the other hand, one who is already a regular reader may decide to make a manageable increase. The same applies to all aspects of our spiritual life: to prayer and worship, to church attendance, even to the giving of financial support. If we measure these by the principles of revelation, the Lord will show us where to make manageable adjustments. The basic framework is a simple one: "Remember the Sabbath day" gives us a weekly pattern of worship, and "Give us this day our daily bread" provides a daily guide. Within these present guidelines, there is plenty of room for personal decisions about 'where' and 'when' and 'for how long.' Worship may then, in a broader sense, inspire our entire life.

     So gradually developing a realistic rule of life could become a useful framework, something there in the background as a personal standard, something that we can use periodically to assess ourselves. In the face of so many pressures in life, do we not need set times at which to look at our actions and the intentions behind them? Yes, modern life has many pressures. Still, we need time for the things that matter-daily, weekly, monthly, yearly. It is our choice.

48


At regular intervals, we can ponder what it is that gives us the greatest delight or the most grief and use these as pointers. For example, take a person who is inclined to drink too much. That may be the one thing that gives most enjoyment but afterwards the most grief both for the drinker and for other people. By taking notice of such pointers, we can see both the direction we should take and where our intentions are in fact heading.

     There is on the other hand a kind of self-measurement that can be destructive. Probably one of the most insidious forms is measuring the way you feel against the way other people appear. This is not a true measurement, and it can destroy a person's trust and confidence in the Lord. We know subjectively how we feel our disappointments, perhaps even our despair over some situation. Then we look objectively at other people, and they seem to be so much better than we are. They seem to cope with their families, their jobs, even with their health! But this is a faulty comparison. We are using the wrong basis of measurement, trusting in a weak reed instead of a strong staff. We actually know very little about the issues in other people's lives. Things may be very different beneath the surface.

     So think rather of the Lord standing in the gateway of heaven, teaching us, showing us, that we can trust in what He says in His Word: its wisdom shines in its own light. For the Lord's words are the true rules of life, revealed especially in the Writings for the New Church. So let us take heed! For it is His voice we can hear in Ezekiel and again through John: "Look with your eyes and hear with your ears and set your heart on everything I show you" (Ezekiel 40:4). "Arise and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and those that worship therein" (Revelation 11:1).

     Amen

Lessons: Ezekiel 40:1-6; 41:1-4, Revelation 11:1Isaiah 40:9-14, 25-28Conjugial Love 528, 529

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HAPPY EPIPHANY 2008

HAPPY EPIPHANY       Jr. Rev. CHAPLAIN,REV. MARTIE JOHNSON       2008


----------

A dialogue with a Jesuit and a reflection on human prudence and the life of religion

     "A-ha! Eureka! I get it!" This year, let's all make sure we give the gift of grace when we do our best to love our neighbor. How do we do that?

     In many other churches around us last month, folks gathered on January 6 to remember and understand the feast of Epiphany. What's that about? The word "epiphany" means "manifestation and the dawning." It is the "showing forth" of the Messiah, of who Jesus really is, to us Gentiles. There are many stories at the beginning of Jesus' ministry (His first miracles) that were an epiphany (a dawning) on Him and others about who He was and what His ministry would be. In Christian churches, the Epiphany season typically begins with the story of the arrival of the Wise Men. Let's face it, "they get it" because the birth of Christ as an event dawns on them as they follow the star of the Lord's leading.

     We don't celebrate Epiphany and it is not part of our New Church liturgy. What role could this idea and celebration have to do with me in the General Church? Nothing, really. The feast of Epiphany is simply about the three Wise mens' adoration which is why they brought the gifts, not about the gifts themselves (although the gifts have significance and prophetic meaning as well), which were all for the good. Is that an "a-ha"? Perhaps not, because we know that "the wise men from the east who came to see the Lord when He was born had a knowledge of correspondences [which] remained with many eastern people even down to the time of the Lord's advent.

50


That is why a star went before them, and they brought with them gold, frankincense and myrrh. For the star which went before symbolized knowledge from heaven, inasmuch as stars in the Word symbolize concepts. The gold symbolized celestial good, the frankincense spiritual good, and the myrrh natural good - the three kinds of good from which everything of worship originates" (De Verbo 7).

     Three types of good! Well, spiritual we are, but in the natural we dwell, so what could worship of the Lord look like with natural good? We know that one of the two great commandments is for us to love our neighbor as ourself. Now, the Writings talk about all sorts of levels of the neighbor-so take your pick! Always make sure, though, that you remember to care for yourself and your family so that you can care for and reach out to others (cf. Heavenly Doctrine 97). This year, in addition to thinking about a resolution, remember that our baptism or confirmation makes us a "new creation" and as such our faith helps us lead a "new life" that follows the Lord's leading. This ability comes from the Lord's grace, and it can elevate us from the natural to the spiritual in keeping His truths first in our hearts and minds. Rev. Roger Haight, S.J., in his book The Experience and Language of Grace, points out that this raises some striking questions: "Can one really know whether this or that in the concrete is the will of God? and not my will? How does one decide in this particular movement or experience that it is a manifestation of grace and that it is not escapist, involving a surrender of autonomous and solid rational judgment?" Put another way, how do we tap into more of the Lord's grace when we know we can't see His hand of providence until afterward? We know the work The Divine Providence addresses one aspect of this question by asking us to use our human prudence because "if a person as from his own prudence did not dispose all things pertaining to his function and life he could not be led and disposed from the Divine Providence;

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for he would be like one standing with his hands hanging down, his mouth open, his eyes closed and holding his breath, awaiting influx. He would thus divest himself of the human, which he has from the perception and sensation that he lives, thinks, wills, speaks and acts as from himself; and at the same time he would divest himself of his two faculties, liberty and rationality" (Divine Providence 210).

     God's Grace as also His providence is general and omnipresent, and it is also particular to each of us. Our lives, and the experiences that comprise them, meet our faith, and when they come together, then we follow our beliefs, our star! Sometimes our experiences and feelings meet head on - as in temptation and sometimes our experiences fit our understanding of faith like a hand in a glove. We are to use our faith, reason, and knowledge, and this gives us our best opportunity to cooperate and be part of the Lord's purpose, which is to create a "heaven from the human race."

     Consider this: our lives are the not just the application of doctrine and reason! Our lives are the actual canvass for the Lord's grace. Rev. Roger Haight S.J., reflecting on the thoughts of William James, states in the same book: "Reason alone cannot uncover all there is to know-theology that proceeds from abstract principles or objective formulae, that is, devoid of concrete experience or subjective life, and that deductively arrives at conclusions that are equally unrelated to human life have no significance for it." Besides, we know from the Writings that "all religion is of the life and the life of religion is to do good" (Life 1). Haight agrees: "the ultimate test of religious value is not how it happens but its fruits, that is, what is attained. If a person is really born anew, this will become manifest in his life" (Haight p.21).

     Our lives lived and their good or bad story, are the place to seek, find, and cooperate with God. Is this an epiphany?

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It sort of was for me, but at the same time, we know that all things that spiritually exist must materialize on the "ultimate" level here in the natural world of "effects and useful endeavors" (cf. Divine Love and Wisdom 303).

     So, being a New Churchman is to seek to live a new Christian life, and that is where the Lord's leading or grace becomes real and actual. This is how the "life of religion" does good. Who is doing the good? We are! Just as the Wise men were led to bring gifts, so too are we to bring the gift of the grace of God, and love of charity and good in particular, to the world around us.

     Is this easy? Not always. Evil is real. There is great suffering all around us, and the Lord's grace and religion itself are in the breach of disdain and neglect every second of every day. Evil and suffering are always the biggest issue for religion because they manifest themselves in the face of the goodness of God and make us all ask: How does one know that God is good, - given the suffering I experience or see? Rev. Haight further states, "These questions correspond to real existential problems that often exist inside or within a core of faith. The problem is real precisely because of the concrete and actual experience of evil in the world. Evil, suffering, sin and death are realities; they are the causes of doubt to faith and the reasons of atheism; and they are solid reasons constituting the challenge to any doctrine of grace. Grace must be one that is founded on equal experiences of reality" (op. cit.). Remember, even after Jesus' birth, evil arrived to take His life and the family fled to Egypt. Just the same, we are the receiving vessel for the Lord's love and grace. "Without this reception and reciprocity, [a person] would be like chaff in the wind, and would stand as if lifeless, with mouth open, and hands hanging down, awaiting influx, devoid of thought and action in regard to the things that concern [his/her] salvation. It is indeed true that [he/she] is by no means the agent in regard to these things, but yet [he/she] is a reagent as of [him/herself]" (Life 107).

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We have to try to reflect His light because "He is the vine and we are the branches," so we must bear fruit, good fruit that is "worthy of repentance," as John the baptizer said.

     Now, what has come from your experiences and your faith? Put another way, how do we reflect the Lord's light and love to keep our world warm and bright to combat the things that make it cold and dark? Look for ways that your experience offers to you and follow that star. The star that you follow will include your life as it illuminates the world, just as their stars did for Dr. Martin Luther King and Benazir Bhutto. In your life, the Lord's will can be done. The Lord's grace can change your life and reshape your love. Why? "Love consists in this, that its own should be another's; to feel the joy of another as joy in oneself, that is loving. But to feel one's own joy in another and not the other's joy in oneself is not loving; for this is loving self, while the former is loving the neighbor" (Divine Love and Wisdom 47). So, indeed may you receive this blessing and my love: "May the grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ be with us all." Amen.

U.S.S. John C. Stennis (Carrier Vessel Nuclear -74)
Priest of the General Church of the New Jerusalem

The Rev. Martie Johnson Jr. was inaugurated into the priesthood in 2001 and ordained into the second degree in 2002. He served as Assistant to the Pastor in Boulder, Colorado in 2001, also traveling in the Western United States. In 2003 he became the Pastor for the Cascade New Church in Seattle, Washington, still visiting in the northwestern areas. From 2005 he has been on active duty as Chaplain in the United States Navy, and is finishing this work in the Seattle area. Martie and his wife Melinda (Simons) and family live in Seattle.

[Photograph of Rev. Martie Johnson.]

54


MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR KENNETH OLIVER STROH 2008

MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR KENNETH OLIVER STROH       Rev. Grant H. ODHNER       2008


----------
     [Photograph of Rev. Kenneth Stroh.]

     Today we remember a man who had a high sense of calling. Kenneth Oliver Stroh dated his call to be a priest to his 12th year of life, while he was up in a tree. Throughout his long life, he was never so happy as when he was pastoring-preaching the Word, visiting the sick, representing the Lord to people. There were to be periods in his life when he was not actively serving as a priest-or not as actively as he would have liked-but pastoring was always his calling, always his goal, and the work of his heart.

     To do this work one must love the Word. And Kenneth certainly did. He enjoyed reading it and talking about it. He delighted in the science of it. For example, he cared how words were translated, and enjoyed being a consultant to translators from the Swedenborg Society while he was living in Great Britain. But more importantly, he cared about the Word's message. He had a sound grasp of its doctrine, especially as it relates to life, and he articulated that message in a clear, caring, and sensitive way. It is hard to imagine that he will not continue in this work after death. We read, "In heaven those are concerned with church affairs who in the world loved the Word and eagerly sought in it for truths, not with honor or gain as an end, but with the uses of life both for themselves and for others. These people in heaven are in enlightenment and in the light of wisdom in the measure of their love and desire for use. These individuals minister in the preaching office" (Heaven and Hell 393).

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     Immediately after being ordained in 1948, Kenneth moved to Detroit to serve as the first resident pastor of the General Church congregation there. He actually was the assistant to Norman Reuter who was living in Ohio and traveling to Detroit only every few months. For two years, Ken did the regular preaching and teaching. This was a wonderful beginning for that group-today a thriving society. Kenneth was soon called to London. He moved there with his new wife, Virginia Blair Stroh. They served there for just two years (1950-1952). This was a difficult time of illness for both Kenneth and Virginia, and they were compelled to return to the states and recoup. They moved to Bryn Athyn. For the next nineteen years he found a niche in Bryn Athyn, were the family grew and grew up here. Virginia passed into the spiritual world in 1971.

     But from about 1954, he began what would be his main work: teaching religion and sometimes other things in the elementary school and serving as the primary preacher at the children's services at the Cathedral. For eighteen years, he did the lion's share of these services! From this very spot he introduced a large baby-boom generation to the Sunday worship of the Lord. Many will never forget Kenneth's gentle, resonant voice beginning his talk with the word, "Children-."

     Over the great majority of these years, since 1958, Kenneth also served as the Director of Music for the Bryn Athyn Church. He also led the Bryn Athyn community orchestra. With remarkable diligence, year after year he chose music and learned scores for the Cathedral choir and the Bryn Athyn Orchestra. (It is in affectionate tribute to his service as Cathedral choir director that we are enjoying that choir today.) It was no small job to select music and learn scores in order to lead these groups effectively. Yet he quietly did this year after year-not as his main use in life, not in his own mind.

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Yet what pleasure this work gave to so many people-performers and listeners alike! Over the years, he helped organize many a memorable musical event: Vivaldi's Gloria, Handel's Messiah, Mendelssohn's Elijah. And he gave his service to many a Glencairn Christmas sing. With remarkable patience, he worked with those enthusiastic amateurs. One professional musician who played with the Orchestra related that he did not know many professional conductors who could conduct a concerto from memory as Ken could. And on top of conducting, some here will remember him pulling a piccolo out of his pocket at the end of "Stars and Stripes Forever"-to the surprise even of members of the orchestra-to add that humorous and classy touch to the performance.

     In 1976 Kenneth was asked to serve as the full-time organist for the Cathedral-to play the instrument that he had recently helped select. This was an incredible request for a 56-year-old man! It required Kenneth to learn that very difficult "king of instrument"-something he did with amazing proficiency. He did not seek or desire this job, but he took it on, and - like everything,-he accomplished it faithfully and with artistic sense.

     In 1981, Ken had the opportunity to get back into full-time pastoral work. He was asked to serve as interim pastor for the Pittsburgh New Church for a year. He did this with relish, and the society there discovered one of the best-kept secrets in the General Church-a fine preacher and a lovely pastor! When that year was up he was called to the society in Colchester, England where he served happily as pastor, and ultimately as Bishop's representative to Europe, for seven more years before retirement. And it was while in England that he met and married, Janina Szymbra Stroh, who has brought great sweetness and blessing to his last twenty years.

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     We began this address by drawing attention to Ken's sense of calling. Anyone who knows Kenneth Stroh well would recognize how central this was to him as a man. He loved the use of the ministry, and it was that love and practice that formed him. He once wrote an article about "The Life of Use" where he said: "Man becomes a form of use by regeneration, and no man need be discouraged by seeming inadequacies and failures. For uses do not depend on him, despite all appearance to the contrary, since man is but an instrument by means of which the Lord performs use. In His mercy, the Lord has given man to share in this performance so that he may receive the blessings of use. But use itself is from the Lord, indeed the Lord is use. This is why there is always hope for anyone in the world who is willing to lift up his eyes unto the mountains, from whence cometh his help. For the Lord gives help gradually, patiently, to all who ask it. All men and women who live the life of use are close to the Lord and are in the interior worship of Him. For such the Lord can open the way to interior blessedness, so that they are prepared to enter into the joy of their Lord" (New Church Life 1962, p. 18).

     Like Isaiah, Kenneth had seen the glorious vision and had been touched by its holiness: "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me" (Isaiah 6:2-8).

     Today we honor a man who answered the Lord's call to use, and was a good and faithful servant in that. And we rejoice in the thought that he is even now entering into the joy of his Lord. Amen.

Bryn Athyn Cathedral, PA. December 9, 2007

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Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified              2008


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Charity 158. VII. ALL PEOPLE WHO LOOK TO THE LORD AND SHUN EVILS AS SIN, IF THEY SINCERELY, JUSTLY, AND FAITHFULLY DO THE WORK OF THEIR OFFICE AND EMPLOYMENT, BECOME A FORM OF CHARITY.

     All are born that they may become charity; and they cannot become charity unless they perpetually do the good of use from affection and its delight. Therefore when people sincerely, justly, and faithfully do the work that belongs to their office or employment, from affection and its delight, they are continually in the good of use, not only to the community or public, but also to individuals and private citizens. But this cannot be unless they look to the Lord and shun evils as sins; for-to look to the Lord and shun evils as sins is the first of charity (n. 8); and the second of charity is to do goods. And the goods that they do are goods of use, which they do every day, and which, when they are not doing, they think of doing. There is an interior affection which inwardly remains and desires it.

     Hence it is that they are perpetually in the good of use, from morning to evening, from year to year, from their earliest age to the end of their life. Otherwise they cannot become a form, that is, a receptacle of charity. (Emphasis by Mr. Sandstrom)

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RESURRECTION ADDRESS: REV. ERIK SANDSTROM 2008

RESURRECTION ADDRESS: REV. ERIK SANDSTROM       Rev. CHRISTOPHER R. J. SMITH       2008


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     Rev. Erik Sandstrom was born in 1909, which is how he was able to reach age 98! His inauguration into the priesthood was in 1934, and the ordination into the second degree in 1935.

     MARCH 21, 1909 DEC. 11, 2007

     "Before Abraham was, I am" (John. 8:58). "I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life" (John 14:6). Divine life is the only reality. "I am the Resurrection and the Life; he who believes in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live" (John 11:25). Divine life is the only reality. "I am the vine, you are the branches. Without Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5). Divine life is the only reality. Is this something we believe, really believe, in our heart of hearts? Certainly, the Reverend Erik Sandstrom gave every evidence of believing it, right to the core of his being. And during his last days, it is something he often repeated.

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Divine life is the only reality.

     It was not a thought that he kept to himself while others might be talking around his bedside. It was something he wanted to express, that he wanted others to hear and consider. In fact, it strikes a note that rang throughout his life. He recalled wanting to be a minister since early childhood. His mother said he had declared this goal when he was just five years old! As a teenager, he was used to giving evening worship for his scout troop. At age twenty-five, he entered the priesthood and remained there for 73 years.

     Mr. Sandstrom was born in Stockholm, ninety-eight years ago. He grew up in a congregation that became the first General Church society in Sweden. The two years following high school were marked by his serving nine months of military service, successfully completing a course in banking, and meeting Dr. Alfred Acton. Dr. Acton had come from Bryn Athyn on sabbatical to find and photocopy manuscripts written by Swedenborg. He remembered attending every doctrinal class given by Dr. Acton to the Stockholm society. And when Dr. Acton learned of the young Erik's desire to become a minister, he did all he could to help.

     Rev. Sandstrom had started his first pastoral assignment, in Sweden, in 1934. Looking back, Mr. Sandstrom saw the twenty-one 21 years that he served in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark as "marked by a deliberate effort to establish the authority of the Writings, not only as to doctrine but also and even more importantly as to life."

     In 1955, Rev. Sandstrom was called to serve the Michael Church, in London. In England, the Sandstrom family "experienced eight years of happy and harmonious life of study and worship in the church." A visitor was always warmly welcomed and made to feel right at home. The manse at 135 Mantilla Road was indeed a happy place to visit.

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     London was followed by a call for Rev. Sandstrom to be Professor of Theology and Religion at the Academy of the New Church. At the same time, he served parishioners living in Akron and Cleveland, Ohio and Erie, Pennsylvania. He was responsible for proposing and organizing the 1966 General Assembly in Oberlin, Ohio. He retired at the age of sixty-nine after serving six years as Dean of the Theological School. Moving to South Dakota in 1978, he was resident pastor for that area, as well as visiting pastor to the Denver Circle until he retired a second time eight years later when he and his wife moved back to Bryn Athyn. Even then, he continued to add to his long list of side jobs - giving classes and worship for small groups, acting as a consultant for the Swedenborg Society in London or for the Liturgy Committee in this country. Until quite recently, he was a senior teacher for the Asia Mission, assisting Rev. John Jin. And all the while, he felt privileged to be invited to give occasional classes in Cairnwood Village right up to his last days.

     Rev. Sandstrom's life gives strong testimony to the fact that he never lost sight of his call to be a priest, with the solemn duty to let the Word be known and followed. He was passionate about many subjects, including the Divinity of the Writings, the nature of the Divine Human, the Additamentum, and the timing of betrothal. When he found himself at odds with others, he would write and speak fearlessly. His diligent study of the Word gave him the ability to expound on any doctrine at the drop of a hat, giving the impression that he had only just been reading the pertinent passages! Just when you thought he had lost his train of thought, that he had meandered too far afield, he showed that he was simply picking up loose ends to zero in on the question at hand! Mr. Sandstrom would point to such a passage as this: "It is to be known that the church is in accordance with its doctrine, and that doctrine is from the Word; nevertheless it is not doctrine but soundness and purity of doctrine, consequently the understanding of the Word that establishes the church.

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Neither is it doctrine, but a faith and life in accordance with doctrine..." (True Christian Religion 245). When this happens, then we are truly thinking, not about the Writings, but from them.

     What now of the future? Some people, the Word says, "are immediately...taken up into heaven" (Heaven and Hell 426). It is possible that the Lord will call Mr. Sandstrom to do something akin to the radio broadcasts he made while living in the Black Hills of South Dakota. He may be asked to preach in the world of spirits. The Lord may use his passion to make known why the New Church is the crown of all the churches that have existed on this earth (True Christian Religion 787). Mr. Sandstrom pressed us to see that "the holy city New Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven" (Revelation 21:2)-is a city, not a garden. However, the city has streets and streets lead somewhere. Where does the Lord want us to go?

     The answer is clear, in one of Mr. Sandstrom's favorite passages: "A man is born to the end that he may become a charity" (Charity 154). "Every man who looks to the Lord and shuns evils as sins becomes a form of charity, provided that he honestly, justly, and faithfully carries out the work of his occupation or employment--from affection and its delight" (Charity 158). "The sole use for which a person is born is that he may perform a use to the community he is in" (Arcana Coelestia 1103:2).

     Now keep in mind that there are several conditions for the New Church to increase from just a few until it covers the earth "as the waters cover the sea" (Isaiah 11:9). One condition is that it must first grow in the world of spirits (Apocalypse Explained 732).

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Now, Mr. Sandstrom has barely arrived in the world of spirits. Death is a mere passing from this world to the next, and is sadly a fact even though the Lord said to the repentant thief on the cross, "Today you shall be with Me in paradise" (Luke 23:43). Imagine the broad smile that came across the face of the two celestial angels who had been sent to receive and protect him, and imagine their surprise: "Praise the Lord; look at what we have here!"

     Then can you see the twinkle in Mr. Sandstrom's eyes. "I've been looking forward to meeting you." "You were expecting us?" "Not only you but my wife Bernice also. I know she is close by. There are many friends I am keen to see again. Already my heart is singing with gratitude to our Lord." We read "After death man is possessed of every sense, and of all the memory, thought, and affection, that he had in the world, leaving nothing behind except his earthly body" (Heaven and Hell 461).

     Now he is no longer here in the flesh, for he has risen. He has been raised as the Lord promised. "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all to Myself" (John 12:32). So we have gathered to remember him and to see something of the Divine Providence in his life. And just being here is an expression of our gratitude to the Lord for having given Mr. Sandstrom many talents and a long, full life in which he used them so very well. May the Lord bless him with an ever-growing awareness that Divine life is indeed the only reality. And we pray that he and his wife may enter into the joy of our Lord, who says, "I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life" (John 14:6). Amen

Bryn Athyn Cathedral, Pa., Dec. 15, 2007

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Message from the Sandstroms 2008

Message from the Sandstroms       Peter M. Buss       2008

Dear friends,

     Our beloved friend and colleague, Erik Sandstrom Sr., entered the spiritual world this afternoon, Tuesday December 11. He passed peacefully from one world into the other. He retained his remarkable clarity of thought and purpose right to the end, discussing with us the essentials of the church, as well as expressing his warmest love.

     The family hoped we might communicate to you one or two of his final thoughts on this earth. As he thought of moving to the next life, he said that "the Lord's life is the only life that is life, and we are life from life." Then "We will see each other once again, when the invisible world becomes visible to us all."

     His final spoken thoughts on doctrine were that charity is the only thing of the church, but he added quickly that only from the Writings can we now establish that charity. For, he added, charity is not good deeds, but the interior affection that moves you all the time from within, referring to Charity 158. "This is what the New Church is for," he added. "The Second Advent has the power to create this charity in the human heart."

     When someone asked him what was the most important truth the New Church needed to emphasize, I suspect you all know his answer: "To worship the visible God, the Lord Jesus Christ - to see Him in our understanding, to have a picture of Him in our minds when we worship Him, to feel His presence, His power and His love when we turn to Him." This last message is his prayer for all of us to continue our service, to allow our Visible Lord to be present, that His New Church may prosper in human minds and hearts. And we can feel sure that this is what he will do into eternity.

     With warm affection from the whole Sandstrom Family. Peter M. Buss Sr.

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History of the Word on Earth: The New Testament. 2008

History of the Word on Earth: The New Testament.       Editor       2008


----------
     Let us recall that the Word is given on earth several times: "The Word has existed in all times, but not the Word [of] this day. There had been another Word in the Most Ancient Church before the flood, another Word in the Ancient Church after the flood; then the Word written by Moses and the prophets in the Jewish Church; and lastly the Word written by the Evangelists" (Arcana Coelestia 2895) i.e. the New Testament. This last started when the Lord made His advent, for He Himself was the Word made flesh (John 1:1, 16). Thus, He was already omniscient, knowing "all truth previous to learning" (Arcana Coelestia 1469). Nonetheless, the Lord "introduced Himself by successive steps" into Divine Order, because the Divine Love in Him consisted of a "desire to save the whole human race" (Arcana Coelestia 2500). Moved by that love, but "from His own power," He introduced himself into a "super-eminence of all wisdom and intelligence" (ibid.). All of this happened "gradually." Although the Lord was born and grew up as any other child (ibid.), yet He grew "more quickly than other boys" (True Christian Religion 89).

     Now, the entire Old Testament prophesies every detail of His actual life and work on earth, "such as it was to be in the world, even as to perceptions and thoughts, for these were foreseen and provided because from the Divine" (Arcana Coelestia 2523). Consequently, the Lord from infancy willed to "imbue" or "instruct Himself with no other knowledges than those of the Word, which was open to Him from Jehovah Himself, His Father." It was an urgent undertaking for Him, because "nothing is said in the Word that does not in its inmost have regard to Him, and that has not first come from Him" (Arcana Coelestia 1461). Not only was the whole of the Lord's life "such as it was going to be" already written, but in addition everything He read had to do with Himself, and had indeed first come from Himself!

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He saw Himself as both the subject and source of the text. Here then was the Lord as a boy, from "His infancy onwards" acquiring the factual knowledge of the Hebrew texts, the Divine meaning of which He already knew within Himself. This learning He accomplished by "revelations from Himself-and speaking with Jehovah as with Himself' (Arcana Coelestia 1999), thus by a "continual communication and internal conversation with Jehovah" His own soul (Arcana Coelestia 1791). "The Lord from His own power conjoined His external man with His internal and filled His cognitions with celestial things...according to Divine order and finally in the celestial things [stemming from His] infancy-As the Lord implanted cognitions in celestial things, so He had perception" (Arcana Coelestia 1616:5).

     By instructing and leading Himself in this way, He came into such a power "when He was [still] a boy" that "by it He conquered and subjugated the most direful hells" (Arcana Coelestia 1401, 1434). These were the "giants" or Nephilim in Genesis 6 who claimed God existed only in themselves (Arcana Coelestia 1268). The Lord who alone did have God in Himself, could as a boy conquer them, without which it would have been "all over" with man, and "none could be saved" (Arcana Coelestia 582, 1266, 7686).

     The Lord made Himself outwardly the Word, which He already was inwardly from eternity by fulfilling the Old Testament prophecies: "The Word was made flesh, and we beheld His glory." That is why the Gospels so often say, "that it might be fulfilled." As a result, however, "people treated Him as they had treated the Word, which they did because He was the Word" (Lord 15). Those who had already crucified the Word now treated the Lord the same way! The process reached its culmination when "the Lord said I thirst, that it might be fulfilled-He received the vinegar, [and] He said, It is finished" (John 19:28, 30). Here the New Testament Scripture "it is finished" means the Lord's completion of fulfilling the Old Testament Scripture (cf. Lord 11, True Christian Religion 262). That is what the Lord accomplished on earth: fulfilling the Old Testament.

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     However, while He was doing this, He Himself also taught, His teachings becoming the New Testament for the coming Christian Church: "The reason why it is said that 'the Holy Spirit was not yet, because Jesus was not yet glorified,' is that while the Lord was in the world He Himself taught Divine truth" (Arcana Coelestia 9818). The duration of the Lord's life on earth lasted anywhere from the year 6 b.c. to 36 a.d. Pilate's tenure as Prefect was from 26 to 36 a.d. During this era, and prior to the eventual composition of the Gospels from about 66 to 90 a.d., the risen Lord Himself taught, but this was not yet the Holy Spirit! The Holy Spirit was "not yet" for "Jesus was not yet glorified" (John 7:39). Thus "much" of the Gospels were "from

     His own mouth" (Sacred Scripture 2), for it "was from the Divine itself [and] all the particular things that He said were representatives and significatives of Divine things, and so of the heavenly things of His kingdom and Church" (Arcana Coelestia 2900).

     The Gospels are therefore "from the Lord's own mouth," and "the rest" of them came came "from the spirit of His mouth, which is the Holy Spirit" (Sacred Scripture 2). The arrangement of the four historical narratives was by His Holy Spirit. However, there was a time prior to the composition of New Testament, and that was while the Lord Himself was speaking on earth. Thus the "new covenant" (True Christian Religion 730) was at first an oral tradition, kept in followers' memories. Composing it as a text did not occur until "after the resurrection, by the Holy Spirit either apart from or by means of angels and spirits" (Arcana Coelestia 9818). The words from the Lord's own mouth were then recollected by "the spirit of His mouth," inspiring the Evangelists to "Bring to your remembrance" and "Recollect everything I said to you" (John 14.26, 16.4) in order to actually write the Gospels. The earliest fragment of such writing is the Egerton fragment, from ca. 90 a.d., and the Codex Sinaiticus containing the earliest complete four Gospels as we have them now, dates from 350 a.d.! Before that, there was the Muratorian Canon version, ca. 200 a.d.

     What was the very first "event" of writing the Gospels? We know that the Lord Himself never "wrote" anything. Or did He? Yes, when they brought the woman caught in adultery, we read, "Jesus stooped and wrote in the ground" (John 8:2-11).

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About this event, we read "The Lord's writing twice in the earth in the temple signified their condemnation for adulteries in the spiritual sense; for the Scribes and Pharisees were those who adulterated the goods and falsified the truths of the Word, thus of the church" (Apocalypse Explained 222:7). It is interesting to think that the Lord Himself wrote a condemnation long before the writing of the Gospels. Is that a similar sequence to the Ten Commandment first being written with "the finger of God," being the "first of the Word, being promulgated from Mount Sinai before the Word was written by Moses and the Prophets" (Apocalypse Explained 939)? Did the Lord Himself on earth also stoop down twice to write words of condemnation before the writing of the texts of the New Testament? In both Testaments, the Lord's own "finger of God" performed the very first act of writing.

     Can we therefore put the writing of the New Testament into a similar sequence as we did with the Old? 1 The Lord at His Advent already knew the Word, but studied it in order to fulfill all scriptures of the Old Testament. 2. During His ministry, He Himself spoke Divine truth starting an oral tradition. 3. He stooped and wrote in the ground, twice. 4. After the resurrection, He as the Comforter or Holy Spirit enlightened His followers to repeat the words He had spoken "from His own mouth," as on the road to Emmaus. 5. The authors of the Epistles wrote from enlightenment to express main doctrines in plain language. (N.B. the "epistles of Paul, which have not an internal sense," were permitted to become central for the Christian Church, "lest," we read, "the Church should work evil to the Word of the Lord, in which there is an internal sense" Spiritual Experiences 4824. The Epistles became a "decoy"). 6. The Lord as the Holy Spirit or "spirit of His mouth" inspired the recollection of His own words, and the collation of all Gospel materials. 7. He used the society "Gabriel" to inspire the Qur'an to be drawn from "both testaments" (True Christian Religion 833:4).

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The Qur'an replaced the Christian Word among Arabs in the sixth century a.d. just when Christian councils were creating dogmas on the Trinity (cf. Divine Providence 255, True Christian Religion 833). 8. The Lord's providence preserved the New Testament until the Second Advent, which is another story!

     Let us recall that "in the beginning" the Lord taught and led the first human beings on this earth "face to face," a practice that continued all the way up to the Most Ancient Church. "Face to face," meant that the Word to them "was not" anything other than Lord Himself! And when at the Advent the "seed of the woman had trampled the head of the serpent," now "He Himself taught Divine truth" (Arcana Coelestia 9818) "face to face" once again! There was at first no other Word than the Lord's own mouth! The people "heard Him gladly" (Mark 6:20) for "no man ever spoke like this man" (John 7:46). That was the oral era of the new gospel truth, lasting until the destruction of the Temple, 70. a.d.

     By around 66 a.d., they think Mark wrote his Gospel, followed around 80 a.d. by Matthew and Luke, and 90 a.d by John. Both Matthew and Luke incorporate most of "Mark" in the same sequence, but interspersed by shared material not found in Mark,-the mysterious source "Q" of modern scholarship. Whatever may be the case, this written New Testament was "sufficient cause" for 2000 years of Christian history. Although the first Christians saw this truth as in a "morning light" (True Christian Religion 109), they were not yet "Christian" enough to form a New Heaven (Coronis xxxi). They were mostly very "simple people" so the full truth "could not be revealed to them, since, had it been, it would not have been understood and would have been of no use to them" (True Christian Religion 206). There were already predictions of Christianity destroyed by their initial heresies and schisms later augmented during Church councils (True Christian Religion 378, 163, 177, 206, 632, 634, 640). All the prophecies of a New Jerusalem descending and of the Second Coming when "the Spirit of truth shall guide you into all truth...for He shall receive of Mine, and shall declare it unto you" (John 16:13-14) were taking center stage. What historical rumbles initiated that event?

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Church News 2008

Church News       Editor       2008


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     THE FIRST OFFICIAL MEETING OF THE NEW CHURCH IN INDIA

     [Photograph of registration certificate.]

     The registration certificate for the New Church in India requires an official address, which is in the city Cochin in Kerala District,

     The Statement of Purpose: "The object of the NEW CHURCH IN INDIA IS TO WORSHIP The Lord Jesus Christ as the One God of heaven and earth, to live a righteous life as it has been set forth in the Sacred Scriptures and in the theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, and to spread the NEW CHURCH IN INDIA to all people in India who embrace the faith of the NEW CHURCH IN INDIA."

     Here is Mr. Peter Devassy, with Rev. Goran Appelgren. We may call Mr. Devassy the Founder of this New Church in India.

     [Photograph of Goran Applelgren and Peter Devassy.]

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     [Photograph of group of people.]

     After a Church Service at the New Church in India Conference.

     [Photograph of a group of people.

     A larger group at the Conference. There were eight baptisms and Rev. Appelgren administered the Holy Supper

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NEW BOOK PRESENTING CONTENTS OF HEAVEN AND HELL 2008

NEW BOOK PRESENTING CONTENTS OF HEAVEN AND HELL       Don Rose       2008


----------
     Back in 1766 a man in Europe printed a book on the afterlife made of quotations from the Writings. Alas, the book was confiscated. Swedenborg told the man not to be discouraged. Swedenborg himself had printed a volume o the Writings in small installments to reach people "in an easier manner than in whole volumes." Ed Cranch suggests that Swedenborg was then "perhaps looking for ways to make this precious gift from the Lord available to morel people" (NCL, 1999, page 259).

     In 1938 the Swedenborg Society of London produced a considerably shortened version of the book: The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine. The many quotations from the Arcana Coelestia "have been omitted in this edition, which accounts for the gaps in the numbering of the paragraphs." This resulted in a handy paperback of only 112 pages which proved popular and was reprinted a number o times. In 1990 a new translation was printed with a striking cover.-Well, I have put together a book in certain respects similar to the one confiscated in 1766. It is called:

     "AFTERLIFE, a Guided Tour of Heaven and Its Wonders."

     It was published by the Swedenborg Foundation in September.

     I would like to mention a useful paperback published by Seminar Books of London in 1993. It was called, "The Shorter Heaven and Hell". It is about the same size as "Afterlife".

     Don Rose

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THEY WERE NEW CHURCH 2008

THEY WERE NEW CHURCH       Rev. ROBERT COLE       2008


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     A gathering, which included clergy, nurses and physicians, was listening to the gentle words of a very distinguished dying Swedish Nobleman and author. "What time is it?" he asked. The date was March 29, 1772. His attending nurse replied, "5:00 o'clock" (Greenwich Mean Time). He said, "That is good!" A Lutheran minister present for the last rites of the Christian Church asked, "Is what you have written about Religion and Theology true?" The great Swede replied (in effect) "I aver in truth that all I have written and published regarding the Lord Jesus Christ, His Coming and the New Church now being established by Him on the earth, is the truth itself and only the truth." Emanuel Swedenborg passed quietly into the spiritual world at the age of eighty-four, this time not to return. Earlier that year, John Wesley, the Founder of Methodism had received a Letter from Swedenborg, who understood from the spiritual world that Wesley had wanted to meet with him. This was true! When Wesley had suggested meeting after his return from a trip in April, Swedenborg had indicated that would be too late, as he was going to go to the spiritual world on 29 March, "never to return." Emanuel Swedenborg had been born on another twenty-ninth, that of January 29 1688!

     The Founding of the General Church took place on February 6, 1897, at about 3:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon in the Library of Rt. Rev. W.F. Pendleton at 2701 Alnwick Road, then Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania, now Bryn Athyn. I was there today, as also many times in the past. Five courageous and dedicated Ministers came to Bishop Pendleton at that time and asked him to form a new General Church and be its Bishop. He apparently was one of those who felt that a new religion directly from the Lord should reflect a great historical city of origin, as a reminder of the Golden age, the Most Ancient Church, and the Celestial and Spiritual heavens, now once again achievable by all who follow the Lord Himself in their life and faith.

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This City was Athens, Greece. The Lord Himself spoke highly of the good Greeks, who asked Him for His help in spiritual matters (cf. John 12:20). William Penn, (who seems to be in heaven), in encouraging settlement by Welsh British people, had apparently set apart this highest area of Montgomery County to reflect their new homes in America to resemble the highlands of Wales from which they had come to begin a new life. Bryn Athyn in "Americanized" Gaelic Welsh means-"Hill of Cohesion," or perhaps in a more general way-"Hill of Friendship."
MESSAGE FROM THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL CHURCH 2008

MESSAGE FROM THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL CHURCH              2008


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     DAILY READINGS LIST - 2008

     Due to a change in personnel and duties, there has been a delay in providing the daily reading list for 2008. The list is now being prepared and will begin with readings for February 1, 2008.
     If you were on the mailing list for the 2007 daily readings, we will mail you a copy of the 2008 list when it is ready. Otherwise, those who wish to receive the list please contact Susan Wright at the General Church Database office: PO Box 711, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009 (tel: 267-502-4990, e-mail: [email protected]).
POSITION AVAILABLE 2008

POSITION AVAILABLE              2008


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     The Los Angeles New Church, a developing General Church congregation, seeks a Development Administrator who is enthusiastic about promoting New Church ideas and spirituality, as well as develop and manage a variety of projects as a means for accomplishing the mission of the congregation. Our goal is to find and manage a gathering place, so that we can host all sorts of services and events that enhance people's spiritual living and builds community.
     We are looking for a self-starter who is capable of working with little direct supervision. The successful candidate will be a "people person," who is systematic, computer literate, and available part time until the project itself can sustain full employment. Wage is negotiable commensurate with prior experience. The minimum term is for nine months, with significant performance reviews relative to specific benchmarks. Subsidized housing is available. The complete job description is available upon request. Email: [email protected]

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CORRECTIONS 2008

CORRECTIONS              2008


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     Announcements





     Mansfield, Mr. Robert Ayres passed into the spiritual world on June 9, 2007 as recorded in the September, 2007 issue of "New Church Life."

     Mansfield, Mr. Robert Keyes still lives in Westville, South Africa.

     Thabede, Rev. Albert "Lucky" passed into the spiritual world on November 13, 2006, and is not retired as listed in December issue, p. 53.

     Nobre, Vicente H.R., is here correctly spelled, see January 2008 issue, p. 39. Slater-Haygarth, is correctly spelled, see same issue p. 40.

     Schoenberger, John, Jacob, passed away on November 25, 2007, at the age of 96, not 86 as reported in same p. 40.

     Ridgway, Peter O., is here correctly spelled, see same p. 40

     We apologize for these errors.
WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG 2008

WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG              2008


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     An on-line family magazine
     from the G.C. Office of
     Education featuring materials
     for all ages focused on a
     new theme every month.

     Love of Children-February, 2008
     The King of Kings-March, 2008
     The Way to Heaven-April, 2008

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NOTES ON THIS ISSUE 2008

NOTES ON THIS ISSUE       Editor       2008


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     The sermon this time is brought to us by Rev. Stephen Dandridge Cole. We can think of the Lord's glorification states when He walks on water, as associated with Easter. We have here the short version. The full length sermon is available on Audio http://store.newchurch.org/nca.php?cat=375

     The sermon brought an immediate response in the article directly following it, entitled Reflections, by Kenneth and Janet Briggs of Langhorne, Pa. They joined the New Church seven years ago, and have studied at Harvard and Duke, as well as taken courses in our Academy Theological School MARS program. Their book on marriage, entitled Experiencing the Light: the Power of 22 came out recently.

     Bound on Earth, Bound in Heaven is another reflection, this time on Katrina, still in the news as New Orleans is reconstructed. Could a modern day Jonah warning of Katrina's devastation have made a difference? How does the Lord operate, or give warning signs, before disaster strikes? Don Brandis from Washington State makes us reflect on our own roles as well.

     There are several announcements, and exciting pictures of the future of the Bryn Athyn College Campus, to which so many of you have come, or sent your teenage students. The move announced by President Eric Carswell and Communications Director Bruce Henderson, definitely looks towards University status.

     Don't miss Don Rose's reminder regarding. Heaven and Hell, first published in 1758, exactly 250 years ago! Several first editions as they came off the press in London that year can be inspected in Swedenborgiana, Swedenborg Library, or seen on the web (see Bayside Swedenborgian Church site). Note the title page reproduced in this issue.

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     Have you attended Eldergarten? A great report by Forest Dristy recaps the event with a picture as well, and ends up attracting you all to next year's event.

     Look at GorandMan program advertisement.
WALKING ON WATER 2008

WALKING ON WATER       Rev. STEPHEN D. COLE       2008


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     Rev. Stephen D. Cole has been serving as a Teacher in Bryn Athyn College since 1999, and from 2002 also took on the Head of the Religion and Sacred Languages Division at the College. Stephen was inaugurated into the first degree of the priesthood in 1977, and ordained into the second degree in 1978. He first served as the minister for the Ohio District, resident in Cleveland in 1977, and then as pastor of the same district in 1979, resident in Cincinnati. In 1987 Rev. Cole answered a call to be Assistant to the Pastor in the Oak Arbor Society, Michigan, and then in 1993 as Pastor of the San Diego Society, California. Stephen resides with his wife Jennifer (Smith) and family in Bryn Athyn, Pa.

[Photograph of Rev. Stephen Cole.]

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"But seeing the wind strong, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, saying, Lord, save me. And straightway Jesus stretching out the hand, took hold of him, and saith unto him, O thou of little faith, Why didst thou doubt? "(Matthew 14:30-31)

     Our lessons today set before us three different stories from different parts of the Word, which all yet have to do with the spiritual testing called temptation. Temptation can take many different forms and so, therefore, it is represented by many different images in the Word. These can be as varied as flood and famine or war and wandering.

     In the events referred to in the text, temptation takes the form of a tempest at sea. As to the natural circumstances, we read that the wind was strong and the boat of the disciples was tossed by the waves. As to the mental condition of the disciples, we hear, even in the letter, of fear and lack of faith.

     Temptation is often thought of as an inclination or enticement to do something wrong. However, the temptation in this story tests trust in the Lord. The disciples as a group are tested as to their faith that the Lord, who has sent them out on the sea, will continue to look after them. Peter, in particular, is tested as to his confidence that the Lord can make him walk on the water. Spiritually, these tests reflect trials of our confidence that the Lord will be with us and care for us as we set out on new ventures or, because we believe that the Lord requires it of us, try taking certain risks in life.

     The faith that the very hairs of our heads are numbered, the confidence that the Lord's providence reaches down to the very least details of our lives, is represented in the story by the sea and the Lord's power over the sea. Seas stand for the ultimate, last, or lowest particularities of our lives.

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The Lord's presence and influx even into these, we are told, is the meaning of the Lord walking upon the sea. Obscure and wavering faith is represented by Peter walking upon the sea and beginning to sink, but being saved when the Lord took hold of him.

     As we see from our lesson from the Arcana, a temptation is not a true temptation unless it is, in some sense, more than we of ourselves can bear. For it to do its work, it has to stretch us beyond the limits of our own power and reveal to us, at least for the time, our complete dependence upon the Lord. When we reach this state, when we realize that we do not have to depend on our own power, there can be a great state of relief. We come through the night and begin to experience the morning. This is why the event recorded took place "in the fourth watch...when it is daybreak and morning is at hand." It is a state when good begins to act through truth, and into this, the Lord comes. At His presence, the sea, which has been tumultuous, is now at peace. Our minds, which have been full of anxieties, are put at rest.

     The story of the capture of Lot by the four kings of Mesopotamia, which we read from the 14th chapter of Genesis, may not seem to have a lot in common with the story about walking on water. However, both are stories of temptation - one the testing reflected in an outright conflict or battle, the other the testing that takes the form of an anxious or unsettled mind. Moreover, if we look at the Arcana explanation of the Genesis story, we find that again there are two stages: the first stage is the victory of the four kings over the five, and it represents a conquering of the evils signified by Sodom, Gomorrah and the other cities of the plain. Then secondly, the fact that they are conquered by the kings of Mesopotamia and that Abram's nephew Lot is carried away captive, represents our immediate tendency to be carried away by the conceit that somehow we have conquered evil from our own power.

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Lot must then be rescued by Abram, which symbolizes the Lord rescuing us from this conceit.

     As Abram rescues Lot and brings him back into the land of Canaan, they are met by Melchizedek, the King of Salem, a city whose name means peace. True peace comes not with the satisfaction of a victory won from oneself, but rather from the full confidence of resting in the power of the Lord.

     The Lord does it all. We are saved by the grace of God, and not through any efforts of our own. The Protestant reformers insisted on the doctrine that we could do nothing to earn or merit salvation. But where this doctrine goes awry is in insisting that therefore we have no say or choice about whether we are saved or not. What the doctrine of the New Church makes clear is that although salvation is an unearned gift from the Lord, we nevertheless have the choice as to whether we will accept the gift or not. The choice to accept the gift of salvation is simply the choice to put ourselves entirely in the hands of the Lord.

     Sometimes truly acknowledging the omnipotence of the Lord means being willing to go forward into what may look like a dangerous or frightening course of action, because we believe that that is what the Lord has bidden us to do. This can feel like stepping out and trying to walk across a stormy sea. At other points, having full confidence in the Lord means somehow coming to the full and genuine recognition that of ourselves we are powerless over some specific evil that besets our lives, and that the Lord and only the Lord can rescue us. We see this recognition in Peter crying out to the Lord "Save me," as he begins to sink into the waves.

     When the Lord says to Peter, as He stretches out his hand to lift him up, "O thou of little faith," it is not an accusation or an admonition. It is the Lord, in His boundless mercy, expressing His recognition that this is the inevitable human condition, that we are born and continue to be "of little faith" until the hard experiences of life bring us to a full confession of our utter need for the Lord. Amen.

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     Lessons: Genesis 14:1-2, 11-16; Matthew 14:22-34; Arcana Coelestia 8165.

     Arcana Coelestia 8165[2] 'Were there no graves in Egypt, [since] you have taken us away to die in the wilderness?' .... These words, it is self-evident, are words of despair. They are also the kinds that are thought by people in a state of despair, which is the final phase of a temptation. At that time, they are on a slope so to speak or slipping down to hell. Yet thinking in that way at such times does no harm, and the angels take no notice of it; for each person's power is limited, and when temptation stretches him to the absolute limit of his power he cannot stand up to anything further and starts to slip. At that point, however, that is, when he is on the slope and starts to slip, he is raised by the Lord and thereby delivered from despair. More often than not, he is then brought into a bright state of hope and the comfort this brings, and into a state of bliss. The words 'damnation through a state of temptations in which they would go under' are used because people who go under in temptations pass into a state of damnation. For the end in view with temptations is that truths and forms of good, and therefore faith and charity, may be strengthened and bonded together. That end however is achieved only when a person is victorious in temptation. If instead he goes under, truths and forms of good are set aside and falsities and evils are strengthened. Hence those people's state of damnation.

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REFLECTIONS ON THE SERMON "WALKING ON WATER." 2008

REFLECTIONS ON THE SERMON "WALKING ON WATER."       KENNETH AND JANET BRIGGS       2008


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     Your authors were so taken by the above sermon delivered recently by Rev. Stephen Cole at the Bryn Athyn cathedral and reviewed in the Bryn Athyn Post (Aug. 16, 2007,) that they took the unprecedented step, for them, of ordering a CD of that service and reviewing it several times. The challenging title and the vivid visual images it evokes caught our attention. We took away a new perspective of the role of temptation as a necessary, skill-building struggle, not merely a personal striving to avoid doing deliberately evil deeds.

     In this new view of temptation, such a struggle may take the form of a tempest of feelings when we finally realize that we are not able to overcome, or even endure, a present situation through our personal efforts and resources alone and we have not yet abandoned enough personal pride to allow us to recognize that the Lord is with us in every particular and "ultimate" detail of every situation. Failing to recognize our personal limitations may leave us on the "downhill slope" that leads to despair and to a depression, which disempowers our inherent abilities to move forward, as friends of the Lord, willing and able to accept new revelation and to understand his ultimate will in our individual lives.

     An additional perspective differing from what we usually entertain, included in the above sermon, is an acceptance that the Lord's "O thou of little faith" comment to the sinking Peter describes "the inevitable human condition, that we are born and continue to be [in]." Your authors believe history bears witness that our differing individual perspectives may lead to conflict and failure to move forward. On the other hand, reliance on a single view from our own experience or one authority or scriptural interpretation may leave us with a picture of a flat world, seen only in black and white and low definition.

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Since fatigue and forgetfulness regularly lead us to forget the Lord's presence with us throughout each day and decade, we stand in need of additional perspectives to keep both the temporal and the permanent-the eternal-dimensions of our lives consciously in focus.

     The discussion between us following the above sermon revealed not surprisingly that our initial experience of its message differed considerably. After some discussion, we found that we had arrived at the same truths by way of our different modes of perception. Although difference of perception has persisted with us, even after many years of studying, discussing, writing and praying together, we remain firmly convinced of their complementarity. This experience confirms our conviction that the best team to maintain an ongoing awareness of the Lord's presence with us is the Church, in the form of husband and wife. We were delighted to read, "We value marriage between a man and a woman and honor the unique, complementary nature of each sex," listed as one of the five core values in the recently published Statement of Purpose for the General Church. (Emphasis added).

     How can we understand the differences between the perceptions of husband and wife and their complementary nature? Dare we name or "personify" these thought processes which we glimpse as swiftly passing and ever changing? The depth of these questions brought to our mind the following quote from the philosopher Martin Heidegger who said, "In confronting the logos, men are uncomprehending... they do not comprehend the logos. ...that is to say, men are those who do not bring together...the logos, that which is permanently together, collectedness. Men are those who do not bring it together, who do not comprehend it in one, who do not compass it in one, and this regardless of whether or not they have heard it.

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Men do not penetrate the logos even if they attempt to do so with words." (Martin Heidegger, An Introduction to Metaphysics, Yale Univ. Press, New Haven, 1959)

     Does the word 'men' in the above quotation, really refer to mankind, or only to the male of that species? In answer to the above, I (KB) was immediately confronted with my personal fascination with the Mount Everest of meaning, "In the beginning was the Word..."

     I chose, logically enough, to start my climb through the Latin via De Verbo 14 and was thereby pleased to find Swedenborg's explanation of the complementary relationship of the inmost (the Word) and the literal integument (word) of the same concept. My next reflection concerned a little book The Definition of Definition (Ralph Barsodi, Porter Sargent, Boston, 1967) that I had long treasured, if seldom read, and how little impressed my wife had been by that approach. Many times our paths of learning had crossed again after I had dallied along the low road and she had arrived there, by some mysterious process, well before me. I now realize that even in exploring the present topic, I could not just "penetrate the logos" by words alone.

     Our own experience, plus the fact that Heidegger spoke and wrote in German, as well as his reliance on the ancient Greek Heraclitus,-all led us to think that men here is gender specific and the above describes the lack of depth in the thinking habits of the majority but not all of present day males. Newspapers often describe the laudable exploits of analytical "splitters" be it of quarks, microorganisms or points of civil law or scripture. A search of the literature indicates that, until very recently, authors of analytical publications were almost exclusively male. In this article, we wish to compare this male analytic ability to the "collectiveness" of the thinking of many but not all women and to explore the complementarity of these modes of thinking.

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     Since most of us find it very difficult to stay focused on the details of our daily tasks and their spiritual eternal dimension at the same time, we may need reminders and encouragement from our spouse. We have good evidence that, at least in the later half of his life, Swedenborg was able to live and function very well, simultaneously in a temporal society and the spiritual realm. This may have been one of the reasons that he did not need to marry in our temporal world.

     A man, or at least the most masculine part of his ego, is apt to seek positions that protect his power. He does not focus deeply enough to recognize and accept the revelations that the Lord has for him regarding what yearns to be born in a particular situation. He (man) tends to hold back.

     What then is it about the constitution of most, if not all, women that can complement the male wisdom that she often admires, and free her spouse to move forward in step with the Lord's progression? If this reputed gift of hers is now ready to come forth into full bloom, from whence does it come? Was it built into her mitochondrial DNA from the time that our Creator introduced "gender," or has it only began to find its function and its name since some of our male dominated cultures began to be enlightened enough to consider it and allow it to be investigated and published?

     In search of a name for this feminine function as well as some description of how it works, we herein consult not only the Writings and the Gospels as well as footprints in the recorded mythologies of ancient civilizations but also its overt expression in the published opinions of some of our modern women writers.

     In True Christian Religion 783, Swedenborg uses references to all four gospels to the emerging Christian Church as the bride to be claimed by the bridegroom, i.e. the Lord, in the marriage of good and truth. Numerous other Gospel episodes point to an awareness of woman as an ubiquitous, perhaps necessary component of the labors which bring forth the New and the Good.

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Take for example Mary at the wedding at Cana, Mary Magdalene at the tomb, the women at the foot of the cross. There are as well earlier and later myths of vegetation goddesses, or women as spiritual guides, such as Sophia, an archetype of the feminine and nourishing images which function in the development of mature consciousness in individuals and in cultures; then the maidens bearing the Holy Grail, etc. The Writings often associate truths and wisdom with the masculine and "the good" with feminine. However, what does it mean to bring the good?

     In order to get to the good, one must gather: Gathering the complexity of specific situations, including the conflicting and complicated particularities and also the eternal dimension that is there within the temporal, attempting to bring each situation into focus and to hold both planes in our awareness.

     We see this in the story of the disciples putting to sea in their boat, a man-made, even if inspired structure, which they trusted to bear them safely across the waters. They were not prepared for a radical change in the weather, nor could they foresee the transformation of their lives they would experience on "the other shore." Using the well-known correspondence between water and truths, we can recognize what appeared to be a conflict between the eternal role of the disciples' calling, and the chaos of fear and doubt they experienced during the crossing episode, - two planes. We too often find ourselves "at sea" in some of the institutions and customs that we have cobbled together, to transport us on and across the "truths" as we understand them. We also feel unprepared when an unseen presence "on the face of the waters" heaps them up into violent but temporary waves capable of destroying much that is old and familiar. It does not take a "rocket scientist" to find an analogy with our present fears and doubts, while astounding advances in technology, transportation and communication threaten much that is familiar to us.

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     It requires, then, a firm focus on the eternal aspect of each temporal frame of our personal life journey, to allow us to see the Lord coming to us firmly supported by the waves of information that otherwise threaten to overwhelm us. Rev. Cole mentions in his sermon that "the Lord in the ultimate [in] the particularities is the meaning of 'the sea'. Thus we have to rely on the Lord when we have temptations, but this is not to obliterate our courage. Rev. Cole speaks about our needing to take risks in order to move forward.

     "Moving forward" requires looking for "what yearns to be born." Although it is not true that men cannot focus on what is yearning to be born (an outstanding example is Swedenborg's vision of the descent of the New Jerusalem), focusing on what is yearning to be born may well be easier for a woman. It comes to her naturally through the experience of labor. Psychologically, too, this may be easier for her, because of her reported greater ease in being able to tolerate and contain the conflicting elements in particularities. In Woman's Way of Knowing we read, "Women constructionists show a high tolerance for internal contradiction and ambiguity. They abandon completely the either/or so common to the previous position described [that one size and shape of a "truth" fits all persons and situations at all times.] 'They recognize the inevitability of conflict and stress and although they may hope to achieve some respite, they also learn to live with conflict rather than talking or acting it away.' They no longer want to suppress or deny aspects of the self in order to avoid conflict or simplify their lives ....These women want to embrace all the pieces of the self in some ultimate sense of the whole - daughter, friend, mother, lover, nurturer, thinker, artist, advocate. They want to avoid what they perceive to be a shortcoming in many men-the tendency to compartmentalize thought and feeling, home and work, self and other.

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In women, there is an impetus to try to deal with life, internal and external, in all its complexity" (Belenky, M; Clinchy, B; Goldberger, N; Tarule, J., Basic Books, New York, 1969, p.139).

     The mythological motif regarding woman's concern with, and involvement in, what is yearning to be born gives credence to the concept that this is her sacred responsibility, particularly at times when there is a shift in the plane of learning, regarding birth of vegetation gods and, on a higher plane, the personal quest of the knight in search of the Holy Grail (see Jesse Weston's Ritual to Romance, Doubleday Anchor Books, Garden City, N.Y., 1957, p.49). In the Gospels, also, women are depicted in times of a shift in planes of spiritual learning.

     Within their marriage, a man and a woman need to keep the focus on the Lord in the particularities of each day's journey together and to look conjointly for their meaning on a spiritual level. Although individuals may be able to acquire this skill by themselves it is likely that they will benefit from the perspective of their spouse who enters any situation from a slightly different angle,-especially when there appears to be a conflict between temporal winds of change and the eternal aspects of some new thing that is yearning to be born. A conjoint view may reveal that certain temporal elements of their present situation are not yet ready for change, even though we have completed our interior preparation and feel ready for a new call. Here, patience and courage are more appropriate than fear and trembling.

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BOUND ON EARTH, BOUND IN HEAVEN: REFLECTIONS ON KATRINA AND HOW THE LORD IS IN THE WORLD. 2008

BOUND ON EARTH, BOUND IN HEAVEN: REFLECTIONS ON KATRINA AND HOW THE LORD IS IN THE WORLD.       DON BRANDIS       2008


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Matthew 16:4 A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah And he left them and departed....13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? 14 So they said, Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets. 15 He said to them, But who do you say that I am? 16 Simon Peter answered and said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 Jesus answered and said to him, Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

     Arcana Coelestia 9410:2 Those who are restricted to the outward sense of the Word, separated from the inward, thus those who are separated from the true teachings of the Church, convince themselves that such power was given to Peter by the Lord, and also to the rest of the Lord's disciples.... Those therefore who know the outward sense of the Word and at the same time its inward sense understand that these things spoken by the Lord had regard to faith and the truths of faith, which are received from the Lord. Such faith received from the Lord possesses that power, thus the Lord Himself, and not at all any mere human being. -

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     We live in a time dominated by natural thinking, by a determinedly secular view of all things When times are hard, when hurricanes displace millions and destroy cities, when the AIDS pandemic kills millions around the world, when a revised world economy benefits some at the expense of others (as all economies do), when bitterly contested elections resolve nothing, when the conflicts that are inevitable arise in any human relationship obscure its benefits, natural thinking has neither spiritual nor moral resources. Even people of faith in such times wonder where God is, what He is doing.

     There is bad news in our world every day even though the news from the Word, although not always easy and sometimes very uncomfortable, is always good. It is often easier to believe that the Lord has all power in heaven than it is that He has all power in our world, even though the Word assures us unambiguously that He has all power everywhere and always. Faith affirms this, and yet all too often we wonder and do not believe. Where is the Lord when terrible things happen, or even when smaller cruel and unnecessary things happen? Why do these bother us, when we know we have faith? Why are we so often unsuccessful in reaching the minds and hearts of others who have no faith with what gives us spiritual comfort when they are suffering? Why are there times when our own faith does not comfort us, when we suffer and find our faith unequal to it?

     The Writings contain the needed answers to these questions. Although we have heard them many times before, part of the reason we are here is to work through these reasons, and so we need to hear them many more times. In the alternation of weekday and Sabbath, of doubt and faith, of natural thinking and spiritual thinking, we do our small but essential part in our regeneration and that of others around us. What is power in our world? Natural thinking sees only the exteriors of people and things, and thus for natural thinking, power consists in one thing forcing itself on another.

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Hurricanes blow down trees and houses, push water overland, flood cities and highways. Nations make war on each other, viruses spread from one human or animal host to another, the managers of corporations decide to close plants in one country and move them to another. We know how to look for the effects of these external events in individual lives.

     The Writings tell us the natural world is the world of effects, the spiritual world that of causes, and the celestial or inmost that of ends or intentions. The current suffering of New Orleans' poorest citizens results from thousands and thousands of human choices, some by them and some by others. The dikes that kept the waters out had not been constructed and maintained properly, the disaster planning had not dealt at all with how to get the citizens who did not own cars out of the city. Much of the National Guard was in Iraq, FEMA had been marginalized due to other demands on federal funds. Further, the causes of poverty in the region as across the nation are complex and deep-rooted and have been largely ignored. The matter has not been important enough to us to deal with effectively.

     Well, the failures that resulted in so much suffering after Katrina can in no way be blamed on God. He neither caused them nor failed to prevent them. The suffering and injustice are not evidence of Divine impotence. So to think would be to think externally about God. Even though we must use some natural concepts in conjunction with spiritual ones if we are to think faithfully about God, natural concepts by themselves are inadequate to understand the Divine. See True Christian Religion 339-"The reason why we must believe, that is, have faith in God the Savior Jesus Christ is that it is faith in a visible God, in whom there is an invisible God; and faith in a visible God, who is human and at the same time God, enters into a person.

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For faith is in its essence spiritual, but in its form natural. With a person therefore faith becomes spiritual-natural, for everything spiritual must be accepted in the natural, in order to be of any value to a person."

     We see from this how the Lord acts mainly from within us, and only secondarily from outside us, from our experience. We need to learn to recognize exteriors from interiors, to see the natural in terms of the spiritual and not the reverse. The Writings tell us, for example, that if educated people who are usually oriented to such merely natural thinking, were told of deeper senses in the literal Word, "he will be taken aback at first, then dismiss the idea as nonsense, and finally ridicule it" (Arcana Coelestia 9407:4).

     To demand the reverse, i.e. that the spiritual conform to the natural, is what the Writings call negative doubt, and it will always fail to bring us into the light of heaven-unless by its failures we try something else (see Arcana Coelestia 2094, 2832, 2588). So let us try something else. How is Jesus Christ-the Divine Human, the risen Lord-Lord of our world? His disciple Peter found out how. Let us watch him do so. Chapter 16 of Matthew's gospel is about our need for signs from heaven, about our need to experience the Divine at work among us. A group of Pharisees and Sadducees came to Him and asked for a sign from heaven, and he rebuked them, saying the only sign they would receive is the sign of Jonah.

     What is the sign of Jonah? There are at least three meanings of the sign of Jonah. The first is the correspondence of Jonah's three days in the belly of a whale to the Lord's resurrection after being dead for three days. In this context the Lord means that the Jews will get the same sign everyone else gets, namely the glorification of the risen Christ as the Divine Human. It is the Divine Human who makes faith possible for each of us and for all of us. We can have faith that He is Lord of heaven and of our world because the Lord has come and subdued the hells, reordered the heavens and given us the Gospel and the Writings.

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The tasks of faith are the same whether people are in the Universal Church or outside it. We all are called by the Lord to shun evils as sins, to do the good we see to do as charity toward everyone else, and to worship the Lord we see. The Lord gives everyone a glimpse of things in the light of heaven now and then, and we need to notice when it happens, learn from the Word what our spiritual insights mean, and to reform our lives by them.

     The second meaning of the sign of Jonah comes from the story of Jonah's reluctant ministry to the people of Nineveh. You remember the story of the evil gentile city of Nineveh, and that the Lord called Jonah to go to it and tell them He would destroy them unless they turned from their wickedness. Jonah did not want to help the gentiles in Nineveh. Here he represented faith without charity. This kind of faith runs away from the Lord, but this does not work, and he ended up on a ship at sea in a great storm the Lord sent against him. Jonah eventually told the sailors to throw him overboard, and they did so, and the storm stopped. Jonah did not drown; he was promptly swallowed by a whale, where as we said earlier he remained three days. He prayed to the Lord to save him again, and the Lord had the whale vomit him out onto dry land. The Lord now had Jonah's attention, and Jonah went to Nineveh and preached repentance to them for three days, i.e. long enough to get their attention. He told them that in forty days the Lord would destroy them if they did not repent, meaning that in the fullness of time the inevitable consequence of unrepentant wickedness is a hellish life, a permanently miserable spiritual state reflected in a miserable natural state. This is in truth the certain result of living wickedly and resisting the Lord's salvation in a world where all power comes from the Lord, and is the spiritual truth that is the second meaning of the sign of Jonah.

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     The people of Nineveh heeded Jonah's sign and repented, turning from their wickedness. By "wickedness" here we may understand the primary social sins denounced in the Decalogue: murder, false witness, adultery and theft. Having renounced these and begged the Lord's forgiveness, they did not settle into a permanent hellish spiritual state. They were lifted into the light of heaven, and had the good lives of people who are being regenerated. Such lives are not always pleasant, but they lead to heavenly life in some form in this life and in the next.

     What about the third meaning of the sign of Jonah? For this we look to our text from Matthew 16. Jesus has rebuked the Pharisees who asked him for a sign from heaven before they would listen to him in the Biblical sense, with a spiritual hearing that leads to obedience. Jesus then asks his disciple Peter, who has been with him now for some time and seen Him in action, heard Him speak to many people, witnessed the healings and the conversions and the repentances. "Who do you say I am?" He asks. "You are the Christ, the son of the living God," replies Peter. The Lord answers, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of Hell will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven" (Matthew 16:15-19).

     The inner sense of this text is unusually rich in meaning. The Lord calls this disciple by different names in different circumstances. "Peter" means "rock" and commonly represents spiritual truth, and in Peter's case usually means truth of faith; truth known, acknowledged and believed. After Peter confesses that Jesus is the Messiah, the son of the living God, Jesus calls him blessed, and also 'Simon son of Jonah'.

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'Simon' has similar correspondences to 'Simeon', the second son of Jacob and Leah, which at the most general level means truth from good, and then more specifically obedience, faith of charity and affection for truth (Genesis 29:33, Arcana Coelestia 3867-3872). "Jonah" means "dove" in Hebrew, and represents the good of charity. "Simon son of Jonah means hearing and obeying spiritual truth from good" or "faith from charity" (Apocalypse Explained 443:4-5).

     Faith of charity or faith from charity is real faith, bound to or conjoined with real charity. It is good and truth conjoined, which is the intention and the product of regeneration. People in this state are blessed, are conjoined in community to the Universal Church and also to a particular church and so to a community in heaven. They are so bound in heaven as well as on earth. The meaning of the third sign of Jonah is that of the Beatitudes. The second and third meanings of 'the sign of Jonah' taken together are this: on the one hand, if you persist in wickedness and refuse the salvation the Lord offers, you will have a certain sort of life forever, and if you accept the Lord's salvation and shun wickedness you will have a very different sort of life. This is true because the Lord has all power in this world and in the spiritual world. Real faith-i.e. faith conjoined with charity-is from the Lord and contains the keys to the kingdom of heaven. "Keys" represent power. The Lord gives people the power to save themselves or to condemn themselves. The Lord does not give us Divine power but only human power. The small but vital power to choose the left hand or the right for ourselves but not for others is essential to the Lord's power on earth and in heaven and in the hells.

     This is also the reason there are positive and negative correspondences of every spiritual representation. The Lord's power on earth does not compel anyone.

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When He says to Peter that He has given him the keys to the kingdom, He means that anyone who has faith from charity, who has good and truth conjoined by regeneration, can see when he or she is in a Sabbath state that all events in our world that involve humans require of them spiritual choices, and that their spiritual state is a result of those choices. Regardless of how clearly or unclearly we see them, these choices determine what we are. "They are judged according to the actions done in their life and according to their thoughts and ends in view" (Arcana Coelestia 2335). What matters most is not whether a person in New Orleans got out before the hurricane or not, but how they reacted to the events of their experience, and especially to the other people in those experiences. Our spiritual lives have much less to do with what others have done to us than with what we have or have not done to them and for them. Material states are not reliable indicators of spiritual states, even though the former are results of the latter,-unless they are seen in the light of heaven. We are not in the world alone, and the states of others are just as important to us spiritually as our own is. Even when the just suffer materially and the wicked prosper, the just are better off.

     Suppose that a twenty-first century Jonah went to New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina struck and spoke plainly and openly about what was to come and why. There were such voices, but they were ignored. But suppose they had been heard in the Biblical sense? Advisors and the public officials of the states involved could have been called together and worked out both a plan for the coming hurricane and also for a more lasting and faithful public response to the needs of the poor, the blind, the elderly, the sick, the prisoners, the lame (Matthew 25:35-40, Arcana Coelestia 4956-4958, 5063-5067, 6004). Then when "the rains came down, and the streams rose, and the wind blew and beat against the house, it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock" (Matthew 7:25).

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LORD'S REDEMPTION AT EASTER. 2008

LORD'S REDEMPTION AT EASTER.       Editor       2008


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     The Writings teach us that there was no other way for the Lord to make His Advent, than by being born as a human being "like any other" (Arcana Coelestia 1573:7). The need for the Advent was because hereditary evils accumulate from parents to children, generation after generation, and this "is the principal reason for the degeneration of a church" (Arcana Coelestia 494). However there must always be a Church somewhere on earth which "has the Word and knows the Lord" (Heavenly Doctrine 244, Sacred Scripture 104, True Christian Religion 267). For if the church has an end, the connection between heaven and the Church also ends, and the human race perishes. Thus it is of "the Lord's Divine Providence [that] some revelation should come into existence, for [the] Word is the general recipient vessel ...conjoining heaven and earth, without [which] heaven and earth would [be] disjoined, and the human race [perish]" (Arcana Coelestia 1775).

     To prevent the human race from "perishing in eternal death" (Lord 18) and since "the Divine cannot take evil upon Itself', therefore only by birth into the world could the Lord "overcome evil by His own power" (Arcana Coelestia 1573:7). To remove this threat from hell, therefore, the Lord assumed the heredity of the human race. "This diversion of iniquities and evils to Himself can never come about except through a hereditary channel" (Ibid.). The Lord thereby made His Advent while at the same time granting the hells access to the "Divine truth bound" -meant by Isaac bound for sacrifice by Abraham (Arcana Coelestia 2813). "Divine truth bound" also refers to the Lord under the title the Son of Man, who always "must suffer" in the Gospel stories. Assuming this human by birth was thus the only way for the Lord to overcome human hereditary evil, through which the hells were threatening to destroy the human race. For overcoming the hells no human being "has ever been able to do or ever can do."

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Therefore, the Lord alone was "willing to be born like any other human being" (Arcana Coelestia 2034.).

     The Lord on earth knew that the salvation of the entire human race depended on Him. That is why He was willing to "bear our iniquities" which means suffer temptations from our sins, just as we do (Lord 15). However, the Lord's temptations were most grievous (Arcana Coelestia 2816, 1661), in fact so severe that "no other could ever endure one ten thousandth part of them" (Arcana Coelestia 1573:4). In fact, the Lord still suffers the temptations "in every individual human being" (Arcana Coelestia 4287:3), since He alone overcomes them. That is why our repentance can at best be motivated by a love "not to harm the Lord" (Arcana Coelestia 8925).

     That is how the Lord's mercy works, by the Divine love grieving (Arcana Coelestia 5480). So great was the Lord's "love" or "end in view" that "His inmost joy [was] for the salvation of the human race, which He had in view in the union of Himself with His Father" (Arcana Coelestia 2034:3). We see how the Lord rejoiced that human salvation lay in His own union with His Divine soul. Since the "Lord's love [was] towards the whole human race," and since "the intensity of the love determines the intensity of the temptation...it becomes clear how severe His conflicts were" (Arcana Coelestia 1690e). Despite such "most malignant wiles and venom" which the hells employed against Him (Arcana Coelestia 1820), yet because of the nature of the Divine love moving Him, "He could not but conquer" (Arcana Coelestia 1812).

     By such conquests the Lord made Himself "righteousness" (Arcana Coelestia 8273) and became "the Redeemer" (Lord 33, 65, True Christian Religion 579:3) by "His own power" (Arcana Coelestia 1787, 1921, passim), and not by that of the Divine Itself, which is above temptations (Arcana Coelestia 2795:2). Because of the Lord's conquest from the Human over hell, and that Human made Divine and risen again victorious (Lord 33), He can now save everyone (Arcana Coelestia 3061). The possibility of universal Redemption is what we celebrate at Easter.

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HOW DOES THE NEW CHURCH INCREASE? 2008

HOW DOES THE NEW CHURCH INCREASE?       Editor       2008

     "The new heaven increases, [and] the New Church descends from it ... to the extent that the false ideas of the former church are set aside" (True Christian Religion 784). Let us remove false ideas and replace them with true ones, and the New Church will grow. One such false dogma is instant salvation apart from means: The Lord can instantly remove all our evils, cleanse us, and lift us into heaven,-as is believed when someone claims to be "born again."

     But the idea of instant salvation or mercy apart from means, is the "flying fiery serpent" mentioned in Daniel: it abolishes obedience to the Ten Commandments and ends up attributing evil to God! (Divine Providence 340) For if God can raise anyone to heaven regardless of their life, while yet evil still happens in the world, then God is to blame, because He could wipe out all evil, but does not do so! Why not?

     The truth however is that the Lord removes our evils only when we do so on our own. The very thought that regeneration (rebirth) thus salvation can happen without human cooperation, is "vanity of vanities" (True Christian Religion 577). Only as man on his own removes or shuns evils, does the Lord remove their roots as well as the evils themselves. The spiritual images connected with instant salvation is thus a "ruined city, a plain devastated by locusts, or keeping a viper warm next to one's bosom" (True Christian Religion 582:2).

     A complete and unexpurgated set of evil tendencies is received by everyone just by being born! Every Church that comes to an end, collapses from the accumulation of hereditary evil tendencies among its population. These we read are "multiplied and augmented in each descending posterity, remaining with each person, and increased in each by his actual sins" (Arcana Coelestia 313).

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They are "never dissipated so as to become harmless except in those who are being regenerated by the Lord." (ibid) This reduction or dissipation comes with the gift of "tendencies to good and truth" from parents who are being regenerated, and thus receptive of conjugial love (cf. Conjugial Love 202, Arcana Coelestia 3469). Mind you, evil hereditary tendencies do not in and by themselves condemn anyone, only actual evils do (Apocalypse Explained 989). However, we leave them intact or ignore these tendencies at our peril, since we then condone the evils they sponsor! When we ignore them, it is like the Sons of Israel fearing the giants of the Promised Land. We are scared of conquering our own evil tendencies, since we don't want to give them up. We like to experiment with our evils, creating worse temptations for ourselves. This is to wander for 40 years of our own making.

     So we need to take special note and heed this warning: "EVILS CANNOT BE REMOVED UNLESS THEY APPEAR." Wow, we have to actually "do evil" before we know what it is! But no: "This does not mean that man is to do evils in order that they may appear" (Divine Providence 278 emphasis added). We can never act out evil just to check whether it is in fact evil! That would be close to profanation. Instead, we must go to the opposite extreme, namely "examine not only [our] actions but also [our] thoughts, and what [we] would do if [we] were not afraid of the laws and disgrace." We should especially imagine "what evils [we] hold in [our] spirit to be allowable and do not regard as sins; for these [we] still commit" (Ibid). "In their spirit" all people imagine secret evils. Because however our "thought is the process which purifies and excretes the evils" (True Christian Religion 659), i.e. our ideas picture our evil desires for recognition purposes, consequently we are not blamed for just thinking of evils. Instead, by seeing them first in thought we can thereby shun the desire.

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This is where our tendencies to evils appear, where we see what we long for in spirit. We must identify and shun these as though they were vipers keeping warm in our bosom. Whether we tackle a tendency right off, or tackle an incipient evil practice, or a well rehearsed one, conquest requires a spiritual temptation,-the 40 years wandering in the wilderness. A temptation is spiritual when we call on the Lord's help.

     Do we sometimes get angry at God for all the innocent people who suffer beyond any reasonable explanation? "How could there be a God when this happens?" However, the answer stares us in the face: suffering happens because people do not hold themselves guilty of evils! That is why the Lord must jog people into a spiritual condition by permitting natural temptations, i.e. misfortunes and accidents, to "break down their pleasures" (Arcana Coelestia 762). If people did what they should, and held themselves guilty of evil, they would often be "exempted from common misfortunes" (Spiritual Experience 4630) since such things do not always happen to people "with whom the Lord is present" (Op. Cit. 4138). Catastrophe is loosely contingent on confessing guilt or not. It is therefore no use to be angry at God for disasters, but instead to examine oneself even when distant disaster strikes others.

     However, to be good we need to look beneath the surface, and call for the Lord's help. Self-examination, repentance and reformation are the means of mercy, because we can undertake them consciously. Regeneration is only partially a conscious effort, but mostly "on the job", i.e. while we are at work (cf. True Christian Religion 580). We don't notice it in progress since no one is capable of "reflecting on his own regeneration" (Arcana Coelestia 933). No one can see oneself being led en route to heaven, since it would just look like a construction zone (cf. Divine Providence 203)! Still, our evil tendencies are actually "removed" while we are planning and carrying out our business or employment (Divine Providence 296:10).

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We make our decisions for heaven when we honestly carry out the terms of our employment. No wonder heaven is a kingdom of uses.

     Now when we begin to examine ourselves, do we see no end to our evils? Hell actually is bottomless, and so also our evil tendencies seem to defy our repentance! Instead we picture ourselves going to hell with flying colors. However, we must resist feeling totally unworthy, and saturated with evils. We cannot tackle all of hell at once, as in eastern meditation trying to rise above the entire field of "maya" and "sangsara", i.e. ignorance and illusion. We could go crazy if we try! Instead, the Lord's "easy yoke" is to shun only one evil at a time, once or twice a year. Is that too much to ask? Pick a tendency, examine it in private, see the guilt, then confess it to the Lord alone while you are "in your room and the door is shut" (Matthew 6:6). This means a secret confession unseen by others (Arcana Coelestia 5694:4), for only then is the prayer "from the Lord" (Apocalypse Explained 695:4).

     Can we be successful at a purely mental event such as repentance? Yes. It is actual repentance when we say to ourselves, "Although I think and want this evil"-fill in the blank by actually naming it so that both you and the Lord can hear it, -then finish "I will not do it, because it is a sin" (True Christian Religion 535). You may add a call for the Lord's help, for strength to do His will or to obey His Word, all in the Lord's name. If we also pray for something or someone, we must end the prayer with the sentiment, "nevertheless not my will or way, but Thine be done" (Arcana Coelestia 8179:3), or else we are too cocky for our prayer to be heard.

     Do we understand just how the Lord can save us? "It is by means of the truths in anyone that the Lord has the power to save you; for you are reformed and regenerated and taken out of hell and introduced into heaven by means of truth from the sense of the letter of the Word.

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This power the Lord took upon Himself, even as to His Divine Human, after He had fulfilled all things of the Word down to its ultimate level" (Sacred Scripture 49).

     We need therefore to include the Scriptures, both Testaments, in our self-examination and prayers for help. Use Bible quotes you love and remember. We should not abstain from "...evils for any reason whatever except from the Word" since nothing else than the Word can "purify the internal man" (Apocalypse Explained 803 added emphasis). Do we dare check out the wrong reasons for repentance, which do not work? "Fear of civil law and penalties, fear of the loss of your reputation, or honor, the fears of becoming poor" etc. in short fear of 'getting caught.' They don't work.

     Part of the problem of confessing our evils, is that we feel guilty also of evils which have been done to us. An abused or victimized person, especially a child, feels guilty of what has happened to them! It helps to understand the reason: guilt and torments of conscience are inspired by devils who accuse us of the "very evils they themselves inspire" (Arcana Coelestia 751, 761, 8159). Being a victim of evil thus means we inherit an unfair guilt. That is because we are innocent of the harm done to us! The "torment of conscience" victims feel, therefore do not belong to them, but to "the very evils which belong to devils, in hell" (Arcana Coelestia 6097, 7344). We therefore need not shun evil done to us, but instead place the torment of guilt at the gate of hell. Both the harm and the guilt came from hell. That is why devils inspire the thought that we are "already saved" (Arcana Coelestia 2380:4,5), trying to confuse us out of further attempts. Angels however know that "No man putting his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God" (Luke 9:51-62). They inspire the thought to always keep moving forward, that you are "not saved" (Ibid.). We cannot freeze up, but must keep going forward.

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     Now the Writings have unmasked devils and evil spirits, so we can see their tactics. They not only inspire us from hell with evil desires, but hand over guilt and torment as well. To counteract this blow, we are told to picture evil as pouring into us from the outside. Don't you remember this quote? "If man believed, as is the truth, that ...all evil and falsity is from hell, he would not... appropriate evil to himself and account himself responsible for it"-nor would he claim credit for the good that comes from the Lord (Arcana Coelestia 6324, Heaven and Hell 302e, Divine Providence 320). It is actually easier to repent of evils if we think of them being beamed up from hell. Shunning evils as sins is then a matter of blocking their entrance. Only the Lord has power to prevent their entry, by virtue of His conquest of hell. We can think, "I can shun this evil [= prevent entry] because of Easter."

     Another trap in confession is to make oneself guilty of too much! "Confession of all sins is the lulling to sleep of all, and at length blindness" (Divine Providence 278). So don't confess guilt to "evils of all kinds"! We blind ourselves if we say we are steeped in sin. We have to be specific, and name just one thing which it hurts most to hear announced! So we say it to ourselves, and our intention is then already worthy of forgiveness. An evil confessed is already known and forgiven by the Lord, because He caused us to see it. Anyone need not "enumerate" the evils because he has "searched them out and seen them in himself, and consequently they are present to the Lord because they are present to himself. The Lord has also guided the person in self-examination, disclosed the sins, and inspired sadness and together with this an effort to desist from them and begin a new life" (True Christian Religion 539). The Lord already led you to see it, and so by your secret confession to the Lord, you are already forgiven. But that does not mean it is gone: we have to stop it in our lives. That is when the evil is also "remitted", i.e. sent out of our lives.

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We have to face down the evil we have confessed, not allowing it back.

     We do this by remembering the Sacrament we have taken, so that "if he afterwards [after the holy supper] abstains from one or another sin which he then discovers in himself, this is sufficient to initiate him into the actuality [of the repentance]" (True Christian Religion 530). For the Holy Supper is a sacrament of repentance (Apocalypse Revealed 531, Brief Exposition 114, True Christian Religion 567) which thus introduces us into heaven while still on earth. The memory of our resolve at the Holy Supper together with the letter of the Word later acts as a bulwark against the hells. Because the "bread and wine correspond to heavenly bread and wine" which in turn "correspond to the holy of love and holy of faith, both from the Lord, and both the Lord", therefore the Lord is conjoined "not with the bread and wine, but with the love and faith of the man who has repented" (Apocalypse Revealed 224). The bread and wine are necessary elements, but the conjunction with the Lord is with the repentant frame of mind. How can we imagine any closer conjunction? The after-effect of the sacrament, is consequently to abstain from the evil we have already confessed. Our earlier prayer not to do it becomes fulfilled in "I will not do it" now, in act. The evil is then remitted, also called "doing the work of repentance" (Heavenly Doctrine 159, 161). We have finally overcome that temptation, and the evil has lost its appeal, or begun to do so.

     Here therefore are the "means of salvation" whereby the Lord's mercy raises us to heaven, all through our lives. The dragon of instant salvation or faith alone, that old serpent, is thrust through by Michael's sword.

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COMMUNICATIONS 2008

COMMUNICATIONS       Various       2008


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Science and Correspondences: food for thought

Dear Editor,

     We've come a long way since the 18th century! When the Lord opened Swedenborg's spiritual sight, little progress had been made in science. It seems the flowering of science (and music also - that's for another time) was awaiting the Last judgment and the Lord's second coming.

     When I first started as a scientist what seems like centuries ago, I often used to wonder how differently Swedenborg might have addressed correspondences if he had known what we do today about the natural world around us. In his time, no-one knew anything about bacteria, viruses, that there was life in the depths of the sea, let alone that organisms could survive in any conditions in or on this earth, no matter how extreme. They didn't even know what those conditions might be. For example, think about the heat vents in the ocean where life survives intense heat and noxious fumes (with the help of specialized bacteria); these vents were not found until just a few years ago.

     When I first studied bacteria, it occurred to me that not all disease-causing bacteria were bad all the time. In many areas in the human body, many different types of bacteria co-exist quite happily without causing any disease. In fact, we need those bacteria to help us digest our food, clean up our skin, or just keep things in working order. The problem in these areas seems to occur whenever conditions change, either with the bacteria or the host (the person) so that one bacterial type takes over. Then infection can occur, and the person becomes sick. My idea is that bacteria could represent the affections associated with the loves of self and the world. The bacteria that always cause disease no matter what could represent the more heinous evils; the others that are sometimes bad could represent loves that are not inherently evil: they just become so when they predominate over the loves of the Lord and the neighbor. When the order is inverted (the host's immune system is compromised, or a barrier to infection is removed/conscience is squashed or the Lord is forgotten) those bacteria/loves can attack and cause natural/spiritual disease.

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     Having watched the BBC/Discovery Channel's "Blue Planet," I became fascinated by the team's journey to the depths of the ocean, a place no-one had ever been before. To do it, they required a special submersible that would not implode when exposed to the intense pressures at those depths: 400x the pressure at the surface.

     When they descended, they discovered not only were these areas not barren deserts, but they saw creatures they had never seen before. Normally these creatures lived in complete blackness, except for the fluorescence/lights generated by the predators which attracted their prey (from bacteria living in these creatures incidentally). When the lights of the submersible shone on them, it was a fascinating yet hideous sight. Many of these "fish" had huge sharp teeth; in some the teeth were so huge that they could not close their mouths.

     However, in other areas, the creatures found resembled decorative plants; some were deep sea versions of corals that lived without light. They were much less hideous than the predatory fish, in fact they seemed more beautiful, but they were still carnivorous.

     The extreme depths with fish with huge teeth made me think of the hells of the Nephilim. The people going to these ocean depths required extra protection, just as Swedenborg did before he could be exposed to the spirits in those hells. The light in the depths of the ocean were as illusory as the fake lights in hell, and there was intense pressure in the ocean, just as I imagine there would be for us in the Nephilim hells, which is why the Lord prevents them from affecting any of us here.

     Maybe the corals and other vegetation existing without sunlight could be likened to lesser hells, maybe representing the hells in the love of falsity: the beauty is still illusory, but it does not seem as fierce and so without beauty as the carnivorous fish?

     I'd appreciate other scientists' ideas of how learning more about the natural world has helped them realize the amount we must still have to learn about the spiritual one!

     Julie Conaron, MS, MA

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MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM THE GENERAL CHURCH AND ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH BOARDS 2008

MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM THE GENERAL CHURCH AND ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH BOARDS       Rev. Eric Carswell       2008


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     Rev. Eric Carswell, President of the Academy of the New Church:

     At the Academy Board meetings this past Friday, Feb. 1st, a major commitment was made to the education of Bryn Athyn College. The Board of Trustees voted unanimously to approve funding for two new buildings for Bryn Athyn College.

     [Drawing of planned college campus.]

     The 39,000 sq. ft. Grant R. Doering Center for Science and Research, which will contain science labs, classrooms, and faculty offices, will be located between Swedenborg Library and Pitcairn Hall. A second building located to the west side of Pendleton Hall will serve as an entranceway to the campus and will include an entrance gallery, a kitchen and dining facility that seats 150, space for student life activities, office space for admissions and financial aid, and a student health center. Construction on both buildings is expected to begin this May and will be completed by the fall of 2009.

     The approval of these new facilities marks a significant point in the growth and development of the College and we hope and pray for the "propagation of the Heavenly doctrines," their integration into many areas of natural study, and the development of the civil, moral and spiritual values which are among the essential purposes envisioned the Academy founders.

     [Drawing of the planned new entrance to the college.]

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Mr. Bruce Henderson the Director of Communications:

     The Academy's decision to move ahead with these facilities is part of the Administration's and Board's commitment to growth, particularly in the College. See the architects' renderings of the new buildings, also available on the College website, www.brynathyn.edu. Meanwhile, the new Dining Hall on the Secondary Schools campus is moving aggressively toward a May 1, 2008 completion date, and the new student housing complex for the College will be ready for the new school year this September.

     The General Church Board of Directors and the Academy Board of Trustees gave joint approval on Saturday, February 2, for a significant new program to attract new students to the Theological School and to increase their practical training. It provides funding so that candidates-especially second career men-will not have to work at side jobs to support their families. And it dramatically increases training for all aspects of the pastor's role.

     Theological School Dean Andrew Dibb says that "While these proposals may be expensive, their long-term benefit for the life of the New Church is incalculable."

     Bishop Tom Kline said the approval of this program by both Boards is "a significant, historic moment in the Church" which will produce very positive results.
WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG 2008

WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG              2008


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     An on-line family magazine from the G.C. Office of Education featuring

     materials for all ages focused on a new theme every month.

     The King of Kings-March, 2008
     The Way to Heaven-April, 2008

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BIBLE TRANSLATION GOAL FOR THE YEAR 2016 2008

BIBLE TRANSLATION GOAL FOR THE YEAR 2016       Rev. DONALD L. ROSE       2008


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     New Church Life once reported that the entire Bible had been translated into 341 different languages. That was a dozen years ago, and in a moment I will give the latest figures. There were two other figures, the number of languages which had just the New Testament was 822. But the "goal" that has been set has to do with the number of languages that have at least one book of the Bible. That was 929 (NCL September 1995 p 407).

     Let's talk about the situation in, 2007. The American Bible Society recently reported that the entire Bible has now been translated into 429 languages. The New Testament has been translated into 1,144 languages. And "some Scripture" now appears in no less than 2,426 languages. The goal for 2016 is huge. It is to have something of the Bible in virtually every language on earth. Maybe 6,912 languages. What an enterprise.

     Of course if the portion of the Bible is extremely short, perhaps a single verse, it makes the task seem more attainable.

     What about the translation of the Writings? In the report of the international Swedenborg congress held in London in 1910 there is an interesting feature. A single sentence from the Writings is rendered in 15 languages. (That is on page 355 of Transactions of that congress.) This could be a subject for discussion this year, which is the 250th anniversary of the publications of certain books of the Writings, including Heaven and Hell.

[Photograph of the front cover of the first edition Latin of Heaven and Hell.]

     Donald L. Rose

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ELDERGARTEN 2008 2008

ELDERGARTEN 2008       FORREST DRISTY       2008


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     The eleventh Boynton Beach Eldergarten was held at the Boynton Beach New Church during the period January 20 to 25. Under the capable leadership of director Gale Arnoux, and with the expert assistance of a large number of the society's experienced members, the event followed a long tradition (dating back to 1995) of providing senior members of the church with a stimulating educational experience pertaining to the teachings of the New Church.

     The popularity of Eldergarten is evident from the fact that the number of applicants usually exceeds the number of spaces available. That was certainly the case this year, when kindhearted stretching of sensible limits resulted in a total attendance of about 140 eager students, all of whom had attained the prescribed "age of wisdom"- that is, all of whom were at least 60 years old (see Arcana Coelestia 10225). These studious participants were from near and far, some from as far away as Colorado and Canada.

     The opening event was the registration on Sunday evening, January 20, when each student received a folder containing useful information pertaining to the coming events. Also provided, to everyone's delight, was a tasty "light supper" including an amazing array of delicious desserts. It was a wonderful way by which the participants could meet each other in preparation for the coming classes.

     Each class day opened with a brief worship service followed by three lectures, a break for refreshments coming after the first one. After the third lecture we were all given a hearty box lunch, which could be eaten in company with colleagues around one of the numerous tables that were located inside and outside the church building.

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It was an arrangement that promoted conversation on all manner of subject matter. Afternoons were set aside as free time.

     The lecturers this year were Rev. Peter Buss, Jr., whose topic was The Lord's Vision and Our Reality: Problems Caused by the Gap; Brian Henderson, Assistant Professor at Bryn Athyn College, whose topic was Breaking the Chains: The Role of Swedenborg and the Writings in the Struggle for Freedom and Abolition; and Rev. Grant Odhner, whose topic was On the Brink of the Land These lecture topics were so different from each other that there was no danger at all of overlapping material or of any repetition whatever. However, they all had one characteristic in common: effective Power Point presentation. I will attempt to give a brief description, however inadequate it may be, of each topic.

     Peter's lectures were concerned with the enormous gap that exists between the ideal, heaven-like picture of what life could be if we all lived in accordance with the truths of the Word and the chaotic, disorderly picture of "real" life as many people experience it. Special attention was given to issues pertaining to marriage and the family and to our current culture, which seems to be in opposition to the truths of religion. By use of helpful imagery involving Big T (infinite truth), Middle T (denominational truth) and Little T (personal truth) he laid out a very clear exposition of the necessary steps we can follow in order to close the gap as it exists in our own lives, thereby also narrowing the gap as it exists in society as a whole.

     Brian spoke to us about the momentous surge in freedom that occurred during and following the latter half of the eighteenth century. This included spiritual, religious, political, and personal freedom, with special attention to the abolition of the slave trade and the final emancipation of all slaves.

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These subjects were viewed as results on the natural plane of the Last Judgment witnessed by Swedenborg in the spiritual world in the year 1757. He discussed interesting but little known information about the role of early Swedenborgians in all of these developments.

     With Grant we were carried on a most inspirational overview of the entire book of Deuteronomy. After discussing the general nature of that book and its relationship to the other books of the Old Testament, he described its various parts and its overall role in the story of the Israelites as they were on the brink of entering the Promised Land. Many references were made to the spiritual significance of the historical record with special insight into its correspondence with our own process of regeneration. The listeners were left with a renewed respect and affection for the hidden truths in that venerable book.

     The Eldergarten days and evenings were by no means restricted solely to the learning of profound historical and theological material. Opportunities were afforded for a number of less intellectual activities. On Wednesday some 55 adventuresome participants boarded a bus that took them many miles northward and, as it were, several decades backward to a part of the state that was more like the Florida of many years past. This remote location, called Forever Florida, included a working cattle ranch as well as many hundreds of acres of natural rangeland. A swamp buggy tour of the premises and a substantial cattleman's dinner fortified the travelers for the long bus ride back to the reality of Boynton Beach. In the meantime, a group of 23 intrepid golfers, who had opted out of the bus trip in favor of a day on the links, encountered a local downpour that restricted their game to a mere nine holes. Their disappointment was assuaged, however, by an excellent dinner in the club house in company with a large number of non-golfing companions.

     Without doubt, the social highlight of the Eldergarten was its final event: the banquet on Friday evening at the Delray Beach Country Club.

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It provided ample opportunity for the participants to circulate amongst themselves and converse on every imaginable subject before being treated to an elegantly prepared dinner of fish or chicken. Following the repast they heard Rev. Kurt Ho. Asplundh deliver in humorous poetic form a delightful summary of the events of the week. To conclude the banquet, thereby bringing to a close the events of Eldergarten 2008, we listened to our executive bishop, the Rt. Rev. Thomas Kline, give an inspiring presentation of his views on the purpose and values of the General Church and his ideas regarding its growth and development in the coming years. It seems clear that the best and most exciting years of the Church lie just ahead.

     [Photograph of the group at Eldergarten.]

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JACOB'S FAMILY CREEK CAMP 2008

JACOB'S FAMILY CREEK CAMP              2008


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     JULY 3-6

     Jacob's Creek Camp is held at Laurelville Mennonite Church Camp in the mountains of western Pennsylvania about fifty miles south-east of Pittsburgh. The stream which runs through it is called Jacob's Creek.

     The spirit and general program at Jacob's Creek provides a camp for all ages combining a family vacation with an emphasis on the doctrines of the New Church.

     This year's theme:

     Divine Providence

     Learn about the laws by which the Lord's divine love and wisdom govern the world!

     About the Program:

     ï¿½     Our emphasis during the structured program is on doctrinal instruction and reflection.

     ï¿½     Our program includes adult lectures and

     discussions, and a fully planned children's program.

     Youth are grouped by age, and their program runs oncurrently with the adult program. Sessions include discussions centered around stories from the Word, projects, and other activities. We also provide pre-school and nursery programs.

     We have family worship two times a day, morning and evening.

     There is ample unscheduled time in the afternoons to allow for swimming, sports, games, hiking, spontaneous group discussions, etc. There are evening programs for everyone. In the past this included: campfire singing, relay races, a talent show, an ice cream social, and even a live band.

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     There is an opportunity to partake of the Holy Supper on Friday evening.

     Facilities-The Laurelville Church Center offers a variety of housing options with sizable and comfortable rooms. Recreation facilities include a pool, a baseball diamond, courts for tennis, volleyball, and basketball, hiking trails, and a new recreation hall for rainy days. Meals are provided by the Laurelville staff. The camp has beautiful indoor and outdoor worship facilities.

     Adult presentations offered twice-The morning sessions will be offered twice so that those assisting with the children's program will be able to participate. The same presentation will be given once earlier and again later in the morning, thus freeing up volunteers needed to continue the quality of our children's and teens' programs.

Jamie Uber
Jacob's Creek Website
www.geocities.com/jcfamilycamp/index.html

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CORRECTIONS 2008

CORRECTIONS       Editor       2008


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     ANNOUNCEMENTS




     Lawing, Freyja Orthwein, is here correctly spelled and she was born on October 31, 2007 See February 2008 issue, p.76

     The editor regrets mistakes in the February issue (here correctly spelled), and apologizes to Rev. Fred Elphick for misspelling his name.

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WHAT GORANDMAN WINDOWS CAN DO 2008

WHAT GORANDMAN WINDOWS CAN DO       JAN H. WEISS       2008


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     GorandMan Search for Windows has the Bible and the Writings of the Second Coming This text is not always easy to read, and understand. In our old age we may not be able to see the very letters well. GorandMan Windows can help to make the Divine Word more visible and understandable.

     Ministers and lay people need help. Getting into the 30 volumes of the Writings and to the internal sense of passages in the Bible is undertaken by very few.

     With the GorandMan Program this is all very different. With the Query Window of the program we can find words and passages. All you need to do is manipulate a few keys on a key board, and you can bring before your eyes any part of the Divine Word. If you want to know the internal sense of a verse in the Bible, it only takes the click of the mouse.

     The program can put the "shadow file" on top of the original text, and in this shadow file we can make many changes. We can bring in colors, and we can bring in notes anywhere in the text. We can delete or change part of the text. We can change, enlarge and bold the fonts. This shadow file can be saved and transferred to other users of the GorandMan Program anywhere in the world, either on disk or over internet. So if a minister did a study once, anyone can have it any time in the future.

     Many things we can with the program that we can learn from a Manual in the web site of New Church Outreach in the section on computers. To place an order, send a check for $25 U.S. to: New Church Outreach, POB 342 Placentia, CA 92871 Please include your: Name and mailing address. My email address is [email protected] and my web site address http://secondadvent.net.

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Notes on This Issue 2008

Notes on This Issue       Editor       2008


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     We could say Prayer is a theme of this issue, taken up in an article also, but beginning here with the first publication of a sermon by the Rev. Garry B. Walsh, Small Talk with God. Are you used to communicating with the Lord? The benefits are explained as contingent on our communications with our loved ones.

     An article by Bill Hall from Queensland Australia examines how we actually serve others, especially when many seem to be grasping for their own advantage. He asks what it means to be "free to follow the Lord's wishes." It means to reach out to others, and knowing that this too is part of the Lord's guidance.

     Another contribution to the theme of Prayer is by Annika Fitzpatrick, and it was written as a paper for a Bryn Athyn College course offered by Rev. Dr. Ray Silverman. Prayer: Our Connection to the Spiritual World uses several sources as well as the Writings, and helps us see that the Lord knows how to give us what we need better than we can pray for.

     Our Church News takes us to Brazil this time, and a new group meeting there and also going on air! There are several centers of New Church activity in Brazil, and a radio program must be exciting.

     Perhaps you have time to buy a new book? A book review offers a sneak preview to an exciting new publication to be launched this month. Are you able to read it cover to cover?

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MESSAGE FROM BISHOP KLINE 2008

MESSAGE FROM BISHOP KLINE              2008


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     One of the key initiatives of the General Church is the formation of an Online Church. Mr. David Childs has been hired as the lay director of this project and we need an experienced priest to be pastor of the project.

     I have asked the Rev. Grant Schnarr to become the Senior Pastor of the General Church Online Church, effective April 1st, 2008. Grant will remain Assistant Pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society until the time that the Bryn Athyn Society chooses to select an assistant pastor to replace him This transition could take place next year or could be something that happens in a matter of years.

     In order to give the Bryn Athyn Society additional support during this time, I have asked the Rev. Glenn (Mac) Frazier to become an assistant to the pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society, appointed by the Bishop, effective July of this year.
SMALL TALK WITH GOD 2008

SMALL TALK WITH GOD       Rev. GARRY B. WALSH       2008


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     The Rev. Garry B. Walsh was inaugurated into the priesthood in 2001. Garry first served as assistant to the Pastor in Oak Arbor Society, Rochester MI, from where he also visited the Cleveland Circle in Ohio. In 2002 Garry accepted the post of Pastor of the Hurstville Society, NSW, Australia. Garry, A native son of Sydney and brought up in that Society, was ordained into the second degree by Bishop Buss on location. In 2005 Rev. Walsh accepted a call to serve as the Pastor of the Washington Society, in Mitchellville MD, USA where he is also the Principal of the Washington Church School. Garry and his wife Laurel (Smith) and family reside in Mitchellville.

[Photograph of Rev. Garry Walsh.]

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"I cried to Him with my mouth, and He was extolled with my tongue. If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear. But certainly God has heard me; He has attended to the voice of my prayer" (Psalm. 66:17-19).

     We read from the work The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine, "that which a person loves above all things is continually in his or her thought, and also in their will" (55). If we consider this for a moment, we might begin to see that every thought we have or emotion we feel is a manifestation, to at least some extent, of the core love or motivation of our life. This is not to say that those impure thoughts or feelings that might sometimes pop into our heads are necessarily signs that we are inwardly harboring some set of horrendous spiritual motivations. Instead, our spontaneous responses to those inappropriate thoughts and feelings are more a manifestation of the person we truly are.

     We hold this thought in mind as we consider the opening statement of the Lord's Ten Commandments. "And God spoke all these words, saying: 'I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before My face'" (Exodus 20:1-3). The Gospel of Matthew states something very similar with the words, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment" (Matthew 22:37-38).

     Love of the Lord is meant to be at the center of our lives. It is meant to be the core influence that shapes our thoughts and our affections. Love to the Lord is supposed to be the governing motivation that drives the charitable external actions that we engage in.

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For most of us, sadly, that day when love to the Lord finally takes complete control can seem far away. Right now, other influences can appear to hold sway. Some of these influences are noble. They are influences that have been inspired by the Lord. They lead us to live out important aspects of our lives in a spirit of caring. They guide us with a degree of wisdom that only the Lord is capable of giving us. Other influences, though, are not so positive. They are the product of the types of hereditary challenges that have hampered the goodness and usefulness of our lives from the time we were very small. Therefore, it is in order to promote the positive influences while combating the more negative and destructive ones, that we are taught to pray.

     The simplest definition of prayer, is "talking to God" (Arcana Coelestia 2535, 3285). In addition, when it comes to prayer, the one that most readily comes to people's minds is the Lord's Prayer. Many people in the throes of some life challenge have turned to the Lord's Prayer in the hope that the Lord might be reached through it. Moreover, in a great many cases the Lord is reached. Calling to the Lord through the Prayer that He taught provides an avenue by which He can touch a person, giving a renewed sense of comfort and hope.

     Still, we might well ask, why is it that people tend to turn to prayer when life is at its most challenging, when for the most part, their life is empty of prayer? This is a subject that is addressed in Arcana Coelestia 8179, "...when people are in the throes of temptation they usually stay their hands and resort solely to prayers, which they then pour forth feverishly, unaware that such prayers achieve nothing, but that they should battle against the falsities and evils which the hells introduce."

     It is interesting from this passage to think how easy it is for a person who is struggling to stop trying and to turn to the relative security of prayer.

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For the most part though, although praying when in crisis can never be a bad thing and indeed should be encouraged, the fact remains that a person's first real attempt at communication with the Lord should not be when things have gone bad.

     We go back the basic point, which is that prayer is talking to God. This is something that comes quite naturally to some people. For a great many others it is more difficult. This is because the Lord is rarely if ever manifestly present with a person. Something deep inside instinctively knows that there must be a Divine Creator (See Divine Love and Wisdom 282). Indeed, the opening sentence of True Christian Religion 8 says that, "There is a universal influx from God into the souls of men of the truth that there is a God, and that He is one."

     If we have been raised with a religious background, the things we have been taught over the years have probably reinforced this inner sense of the existence of God. Still, because the Lord is not readily present to our external senses and as a result is generally not tangibly present to the outer aspects of our minds, it can appear difficult to connect with Him. Connection with Him, however, is something that for us is a 'must.' A connection, as far as our talking to God is concerned, should ideally begin long before we reach a time of crisis.

     Consider our daily relationships with the people we love. When couples in crisis first start to receive counseling, one of the things they are often encouraged to do is to engage in small talk. Regularly what is found is that couples in crisis have not communicated very well in the daily exercise of their lives. Small talk has not become a habit for them. In many cases, it is something that the couple needs professional help to start to practice. Challenges may still come up in their relationship. These challenges, however, will be far easier to work through if the couple has been practicing regular, non-confrontational communication when things are going relatively more smoothly.

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     If this is an important tool for couples, surely it is an important tool when it comes to our communication with the Lord. There is a lot to be said for simply talking to Him regularly. This is because something intrinsic within the basic willingness to pray regularly shows an inner spirit of love and charity. The selection we read from the Gospel of Luke says, "Pray always" (Luke 21:36). We are to "pray always." There are two important reasons for this. One is that we know that our fallen and troubled heredity will condemn us without the Lord's help. Perhaps more importantly, we want to be useful people, and we know that "as of ourselves, we can do nothing" (Brief Exposition 5).

     We read in Arcana Coelestia 1618 that for angels the Sabbath and its worship never end. This, of course, does not mean that angels spend all of their time in churches or similar venues. It does mean, though, that the spirit of worship and the attitude of worship are things that are constantly present in angels' lives. Their lives are thoroughly devoted to the Lord's work. They look to Him, and He continually guides them. We could say that the angels regularly and consistently are talking to Him.

     Clearly, prayer should be an active and ongoing part of our lives. It should factor into everything we do, whether the issue at hand is seen as substantial or trivial. The Lord in the Sermon on the Mount says, "When you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut the door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place" (Matthew 6:6). This can seem like a natural directive. However, we discover the symbolic language used here. A person's room or bedchamber is not a physical place, per se. We learn in Arcana Coelestia 5694 that this is instead a reference to an inner place within all of us. We do not need to go anywhere in order to shut the door and pray in our room.

     Sometimes the challenges that we face in our lives can seem like mountains. It is at times such as these that we need to heed the Lord's words in Matthew 17.

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There He said, "Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and the mountain will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting" (Matthew 17:20-21; see also Mark 11:23).

     Prayer to the Lord is such a critical element when it comes to overcoming those incredibly stressful periods in our life. With the Lord's help, mountains can be moved. With Him, as we have heard many times, "all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26; Mark 10:27). How can we turn to the Lord when things have gone bad, when we have not spoken to Him when times were good? It is like spouses trying to talk their way through a crisis in their relationship when they have not developed a habit of talking when times have been better. It is not that the couple in crisis should not try to talk things through. It is just that the challenge of trying to talk now is far greater than it would be if their communication had been better beforehand.

     Consider how this principle applies to the way we talk to the Lord. It is just as important that we try to develop healthy habits of communicating with Him when things are going relatively well for us. Such habits may actually minimize the chances for later crises. And, even if those trying times still come our way, consider how much better prepared we are to talk to the Lord about solutions to life's problems if we have already been engaged in regular conversation with Him

     Of course, there are reasons to talk to the Lord beyond the seeking of solutions to life's problems. A major reason we should talk to the Lord is simply to have Him help us live a life of charity. We go back to the quote from the work Brief Exposition and see that "as of ourselves, we can do nothing." We can do nothing charitable and useful of ourselves. It is in order to be truly useful that we need assistance from the Lord. It is with this in mind that we hear again the Lord's message in Luke, "Pray always."

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     This prayer does not need to be about grand theological matters. It doesn't need to be in response to some great crisis. All it needs to be is small talk. Tell the Lord about yourself. Describe to Him what is happening in your life. Share with Him the things that you desire and the things you wish to achieve. Speak to the Lord about your hopes and aspirations for the people in this world that you care about. Nothing is too trivial. Develop a new relationship with Him. He is there to listen. Indeed, there is no doubt that He wants to listen.

     The Lord's message to us is always this, "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" (Revelation 3:20). Our prayer to the Lord opens the door to Him. This does not need to take place in the quiet recesses of our private room. It does not need to touch on topics of profound importance. It just needs to be conversation. It just needs to be sincere, and hopefully, somewhat consistent. Isn't simple communication the key to all our relationships? There is no doubt that it should be key to our relationship with the Lord as well. Let us end with the thought from the Lord's Word that we began with: "I cried to Him with my mouth, and He was extolled with my tongue. If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear. But certainly God has heard me; He has attended to the voice of my prayer" (Psalm 66:17-19). Amen.

Lessons: Psalm 66:16-20; Luke 21:29-36; Arcana Coelestia 1618

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LOOKING BEYOND SELF AND THE WORLD 2008

LOOKING BEYOND SELF AND THE WORLD       BILL HALL       2008


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     How easy it is to become greatly immersed in the activities of oneself and the world. This immersion may become so obsessive that we come to doubt the existence of anything beyond self and the world.

     In our daily lives of activities with others, we may reach a stage where we only long to go our own way and not to care about the lives of those around us. However, as we read in the Writings, we are always interacting with others. Even when we are completely alone in the physical sense, our minds are receiving input from spirits in the spiritual world. Every thought we have is from the spiritual world: good thoughts from heaven and evil thoughts from hell (See Word Explained # 1147, 943).

     Our lives are not really our own in the sense that we did not create them ourselves. As Dr. Hugo Odhner so clearly explains, we do not live from ourselves (Spirits and Men, p. 14). Our lives are made up of countless influences, many of which we are completely unaware. However, no matter where our thoughts have originated, we always have the power to examine our thoughts and to determine if they are from heaven or from hell. We are never without help from a higher source of life. Our lives are never completely isolated. Even if we went to the moon on a space flight, every bit of understanding and longing that we experience on the earth would still be manifest on the moon. Of course, there would be changes, but the big point is that we would still be receiving life. We are never the originator of life. Life is always a ceaseless gift from the Lord and via the neighbor.

     How do we become more closely linked or adjoined to our neighbor, to our community? What does it take to be a member of a closely-knit community? How do we become a person who works for the common good of all humanity?

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Can we, in all sincerity, work for the common good of all humanity?

     With the TV we can explore foreign nations such as Brazil or China. We can learn what it is like to live in these nations. We can see how the people live and what some of their problems are. If our occupation is foreign journalist, our understanding can be put to good use. If we live in a relatively small city, it is unlikely that we shall contact people from these countries.

     Our role in life is to do what we can in the present moment for the welfare and happiness of those around us. Certainly we need to wish well to all humanity, to all brothers and sisters of the human family, for are we not told that we all have one Father and that the one God has created all of us? "Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us?" (Malachi 2:10).

     When we look out at our brothers and sisters on the planet, what do we see? We see continuous examples of human beings, some old, some young, some with a glow of perfection and others with imperfections. Yet, as we look at our brothers and sisters, do we not feel that we are one with them, one and all? Our lives are made up of small segments. Yes, we hope our aim is to be useful to our neighbor, to be of service in whatever field of endeavor we have been trained. As we reach out to our human family, to our fellow citizens, let us recall with humility and gratitude that our fellow citizens, just like ourselves, receive all benefits of life from the Lord and the neighbor.

     Therefore, we come to perceive and to feel that our lives are not isolated from the stream of human society. In our endeavors and in our dreams we feel a oneness with all humanity, which enables us to reach out to all others from the love we have received from the only source of love, the Lord. As we contemplate the world around us, we see the earth and the sky, we see people, plants, animals, and architecture, all of which impinge upon our senses. According to the training we have received, we are able to interpret what we experience from our contemplation of our world.

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If our state of life is angelic, we will be gifted with the wish to be of service to our fellow brothers and sisters. The choice is always ours as to what we decide to do with our contemplation.

     The Lord gives us the freedom and the power to lift our hearts and minds to the Him, to be thankful to the Him for this present opportunity to be useful to our fellow brothers and sisters. What does it mean to be free to follow the Lord's wishes? It means giving up our own selfish wishes in order to follow the Lord's wishes. It means reaching out to others from humility and love. The big change that comes to us as we reach out to others from humility and love is that we perceive from the heart and the will that the Lord is perpetually guiding our steps, thoughts, and feelings. The Lord is with us as our Eternal Anchor. The Lord beholds us and leads us to act with humility and love to all our fellow citizens and to acknowledge from the heart that He is always our Redeemer and Savior, the one and only Lord who can lead us to heaven and away from hell.
Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified              2008


----------
"THOSE WHO ARE LED BY THE LORD HAVE NO GREATER DESIRE THAN TO PERFORM GOOD WORKS, AND THAT NOTHING IS FURTHER FROM THEIR THOUGHT THAN THE EARNING OF MERIT THROUGH THEM. THE NEW WILL WHICH THE LORD CONFERS ON THOSE WHO ARE BEING REGENERATED BRINGS THIS ATTITUDE OF MIND WITH IT; FOR THIS NEW WILL IS THE LORD'S RESIDING WITH A PERSON."          Arcana Coelestia 6392

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PRAYER: OUR CONNECTION TO THE SPIRITUAL WORLD 2008

PRAYER: OUR CONNECTION TO THE SPIRITUAL WORLD       ANNIKA FITZPATRICK       2008


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Introduction

     "Prayer...is speech with God" (Arcana Coelestia 2535). Prayers occur throughout the Bible; nearly all of the Psalms are prayers. Jesus Himself prayed while on Earth, in many ways, and for many things, the most prominent example being in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 15:32-41). Although prayer plays an important role in the Biblical accounts, and has an important place in our religious life, it can often seem that our prayers don't have much impact. We may feel that we are engaging in "vain repetitions" (Matthew 6:7), that God already knows what we want, or that prayer doesn't work anyway, at least not right away or when we most need it. The perspective that God will do what needs to be done on His own is somewhat ridiculous if taken to its logical extreme, as C.S. Lewis points out, "Why wash your hands? If God intends them to be clean, they'll come clean without your washing them. If He doesn't, they'll remain dirty...however much soap you use" (Lewis, 105). A similar example is cited in the Writings. "Man himself ought to purify himself from evils [and not wait for the Lord to do this without his cooperation, see n. 331]. Otherwise he would be like a servant, going to his master, with his face and clothes befouled with soot or dung, and saying, "Master, wash me." Would not his master answer him, "You foolish servant, what are you saying? See, here are water, soap, and a towel; have you not hands of your own and the power to use them? Wash yourself." Therefore, the Lord God will say, "These means of purification are from Me; and your ability to will and do are also from Me; therefore use these My gifts and endowments as your own, and you will be purified" (True Christian Religion 36). This is where seeing the spiritual role of prayer helps us understand why it is such an important part of the life of religion.

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     The Word tells us, "Ask and it shall be given unto you" (Luke 11:9). However, it also says that we are not to worry about what we shall eat or wear, for the Father knows what we need (Matt 6:31-32). So a key passage here is, "If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you." We may note that the Lord's prayer says, "Thy will be done." The focus of prayer should be on seeking the Lord's will for our lives, and not merely asking Him to confirm what we want. People often emphasize the asking part of prayer, without considering the listening part, or the action that is required to fulfill the prayer. Prayer is speech with God, but conversation is a two-way street. "[H]e who does not acknowledge the Divine of the Lord in His Human, and pray to it, cannot have conjunction with heaven" (Apocalypse Explained 805). The Lord is always with us, conjoining us to heaven through Himself and our associate spirits, but He cannot effect conjunction unless we invite him to do so through prayer. When we pray, honestly seeking the Lord's will, we are allowing the Lord to bring heaven closer to us through direct influx, associate spirits and spheres.

     In the end, of course, prayer is about life. All our prayers are of no avail if we are unwilling to make changes in our lives to align with what the Lord wants for us. Praying for riches without being willing to work is not sincere or useful prayer. The Word tells us that "Divine worship consists primarily in the life of charity and secondarily in prayers" (Apocalypse Explained 325). Note the emphasis here. Our lives influence our prayers as much as our prayers influence our lives, so it is important to ensure that we don't let prayer become something that happens only in our heads. "[T]he use of prayer is to ask and hear how we may do the Lord's will, so it only follows that actually doing the Lord's will is regarded as worship" (Childs, 8).

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Prayer and Associate Spirits

     Associate spirits are one of the two ways that the Lord is able to lead and guide people while they are in this world. He flows into us as much as we are able to receive Him, which is called direct influx, but He also attempts to reach humans by indirect influx, through associate spirits (Heaven and Hell 297). The reason that angels and spirits are so close to humans is that there is a close union of the spiritual and the natural in each human mind. Because people have separated themselves from heaven, the Lord provides associate spirits so that humans can be reached through them (Heaven and Hell 247).

     Man needs associate spirits because of the indirect influx they provide, but spirits need people as well. Spirits, particularly those in the world of spirits, need the minds of men as a way to experience life. Spirits newly arrived in the other world still see earthly things as symbolically important, and need our natural thought to be able to experience ideas and sensory memories. As spirits progress to more interior states, their natural memory becomes quiescent, and they no longer need human memories (Odhner, 70). Thus, the spiritual relationship between humans and spirits is a beneficial interaction for both parties.

     Heaven and Hell 292 tells us that everyone has both good and evil spirits associated with them at all times. These spirits are from the world of spirits, which is between heaven and hell. Spirits from hell are attached to people because people are born into evils of every kind. In order to maintain the spiritual balance that allows people to choose good or evil, the Lord also provides that we be associated with good spirits. These spirits are always kept in perfect equilibrium; when good spirits draw nearer, so too do evil ones (Heaven and Hell 293).

     The kind of spirits associated with any person is determined by the person's affections and loves. The Lord Himself sends the good spirits, while people invite evil ones (Heaven and Hell 295).

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These spirits constantly offer humans affection for both what is good and true and what is evil and false. Humans are able to choose which spirits influence their thoughts and affections, based on their own thoughts and affections. If a person's thoughts and affections agree with the affections of the associate spirits, those affections will influence him or her. The thoughts and affections that people accept from associate spirits actually become a part of them (Heaven and Hell 298).

     Since the spirits around us are drawn to us by our thoughts and affections, we can change our associate spirits by consciously changing our thoughts and affections. First, of course, we can un-invite evil associate spirits, since we are the ones who invited them in the first place. Second, we can align our thoughts and affections with heaven and the Lord so that He can send us good associate spirits.

     When we pray from sincere love and faith, we are asking the Lord to show us how we can align our lives with His will. Of course, the Lord already knows what we need before we ask. In Apocalypse Revealed 376 we read: "It is common in all Divine worship that man first will, desire, and pray, and the Lord then answer, inform and do; otherwise man does not receive anything divine... The Lord gives them to ask, and what to ask; therefore the Lord knows it beforehand; but still the Lord wills that man should ask first, to the end that he may do it as if of himself, and thus that it should be appropriated to him; otherwise, if the petition in itself were not from the Lord, it would not be said in those places, that they should receive whatever they asked."

     The Lord is waiting for us to acknowledge, as if of ourselves, that we need His help. As theologian and philosopher Blaise Pascal put it, "God instituted prayer to allow His creatures the dignity of causality." We have to feel like our desire to change, and our need for God's help, comes from ourselves. The Lord says, "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" (Revelation 3:20).

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When we, through prayer, open the door to the Lord's knocking to see and acknowledge that we need the Lord, He can flow in with love and wisdom from Himself both directly and through associate spirits. But we must make the first move.

Prayer and Spheres

     Spheres are the environments that are around us, either as a result of our own thoughts and affections at the time, or the thoughts and affections of the people around us. All of us have experienced both good and bad spheres or "vibes", such as when we meet someone who is either genuinely happy or in a terrible mood.

     A person's sphere is created by spiritual associations, and is the same as the sphere of the spiritual society with which the person is associated. The startling truth is that no one actually thinks from him or herself, but from the influence of societies in the other world. This is not to say that a person's thoughts and affections are actually from a spiritual society: they are entirely his/her own, but the sphere of the society influences their quality. (Acton, Wynne, "Spheres." New Church Life. Vol. 77; 1937). When we choose to associate ourselves with a good spiritual society, we will be more likely to feel the Lord's influence on our lives; if we choose to associate our thoughts with evil societies, we will find ourselves inclined toward our hereditary evils. No matter what spiritual company we keep, we still think from ourselves but good spiritual company will make good states easier to choose.

     A person is always free to choose between good and evil when he sees that there is a choice. Often, however, people feel "captivated" by a mood or sphere that is difficult to shed. This mood may produce a sense of irresistibility, or powerlessness to make either the good or the bad choice.

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While it appears that these moods or spheres are due to physical occurrences, they are actually a result of people's inner states (Odhner, 66). These states can be from ourselves, or can come to us by association with the states of those around us. A motivational speaker may make us feel empowered to change our lives, while angry rock music may make us feel helpless and frustrated with our lot. In either situation, we are still free to choose our state, but choosing a good environment, both spiritually and naturally, makes choosing a good state a lot easier.

     As human beings with free choice, we are responsible for modulating our states, which we can do either consciously or unconsciously. Whenever we change state, we are also changing associate spirits (Odhner, 69). A simple way to change our state is to change the people we are with, or the place and situation in which we find ourselves. Committing a random act of kindness for someone else can bring a happy state. In addition, we can change our spheres by reading the Word and by asking the Lord to lead us into good thoughts and affections. We accomplish this through prayer, both spoken and acted. It is the Lord who provides that associate spirits be with people, but since spirits are responsive to state/sphere, people are responsible for the type of good spirits who are able to be with them (Arcana Coelestia 5979).

     When a person prays, there "comes forth in the prayer something like a revelation (which is manifested in the affection of him that prays) as to hope, consolation, or a certain inward joy" (Arcana Coelestia 2535). The revelation is due to a change in state that allows greater reception of the Lord's direct and indirect influx. The hope, consolation and comfort that the Lord gives in response to prayer comes from the fact that we have allowed Him to turn our minds in the right spiritual direction. Swedenborg himself described a change in his sphere when he said the Lord's Prayer.

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While saying it, he was received into a higher/more interior sphere, and was able to clearly perceive the interior things of the prayer (Spiritual Experiences 210).

How to Pray

     While in the world, the Lord prayed both publicly and privately, and for Himself, for His disciples, for the sick, for protection and many other things. The Lord's life on Earth gives us a model of how to pray, and what to include in our prayers. He also gives us the Lord's Prayer as an example of how we ought to pray (Matthew 6:9-13).

Ritual Prayer

     Ritual prayers provide a backbone, or jumping off point for our personal prayers. Ritual prayers are useful in guiding our thoughts, especially when spontaneous prayer does not seem to flow naturally. Consider the Lord's Prayer as an example: We are reminded of the role of God as a Father, and as holy. We see that prayer strives for conjunction of heaven and earth, "As in heaven so upon the earth." We ask for daily bread, or the spiritual truths and guidance that we need each day, as well as for forgiveness and the ability to forgive others. We then ask for protection from future evils and temptations and conclude with a reminder that it is God, who is powerful, not we ourselves (Matthew 6:9-13). This is the ideal prayer, but as a personal prayer, we should flesh it out with specific problems that we require deliverance from, specific truths we need or acts that need forgiveness. By adding our own requests to prayer, we can feel the presence of the Lord in every aspect of our lives.

     Ritual prayers are valuable, especially those from the Word, because they provide us with a reminder of what we should be asking for. The danger, of course, is vain repetition, where we mouth the "magic" words and hope that just saying them will bring us want we want.

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External worship alone is not the way to create vibrant dialogue with God: Most people at this day believe that they are to come into heaven solely by virtue of holy worship in temples ...but do not care for the knowledge of truth and good from the Word, and ...fail to imbue with these the life, as well as the memory, remain natural as before, and do not become spiritual; for their holy worship, adorations, and prayers, do not proceed from any spiritual origin" (Apocalypse Explained 126).

     While mindlessly saying a prayer from scripture will affect our associate spirits, it will not influence our lives very noticeably. It is important to avoid making mere repetition a habit. Regular, sincere prayer, whether spontaneous or from the Word, is essential to spiritual life, and there are no excuses for repetition due to laziness or bad planning. Imagine telling the King of Heaven that you don't have time for Him today! Instead, we must invest ritual prayers with meaning for our lives.

Petitionary Prayer

     Prayer is a way to express, as if of self, our desire and need for conjunction with God and heaven. What we are asking for is not as important as why we are asking, and how we respond to the answer. Thomas Moore writes that the importance of prayer is not that it "works" but that, "Prayer makes us holy. It represents our awareness that we live in...two universes: the world of the senses we control... and the world of mystery and timelessness that far transcends our abilities. By keeping these two universes connected, prayer makes holiness possible" (Moore, 250).

     The most common type of prayer is probably petitionary prayer, because we humans want things. For example, we want to be safe and we want those we love to be safe; we want good weather, good grades and good things. Asking God for things is not wrong; after all, He is the Ultimate Provider.

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Unfortunately, the answer to our asking for specific things is often, "No", or "Not now". This is not an answer we like to hear. Sincere prayer, however, remembers that it is God's will that is important. Even when we don't get what we want, God can give us a better understanding of what we really need. Almost all of us can recall asking for something that we did not receive, only to find later that we got something even better, or that what we asked for wouldn't have been good for us.

     Sometimes, all we really need is time. We must wait on the Lord, to allow temptations to pass, and to allow the Lord to work in our lives. Even though the answer to prayer may feel like, "No," it is actually, "Not yet." This should not be considered wasted time: "[M]an is not ready for this new state...His progress is held back in mercy. Man may have free choice butfortunately-the Lord rules the circumstances" (Odhner, 68).

     Prayer for natural things must be tempered with a remembrance that what we really need are not things to eat, wear, or have. We read that, "If [a] man prays from love and faith, and for only heavenly and spiritual things, there then comes forth in the prayer something like a revelation (which is manifested in the affection of him that prays) as to hope, consolation, or a certain inward joy" (Arcana Coelestia 2535). Does this mean that we can or should pray only for spiritual things? No, it means that we ought to remember that while we may want the weather to be nice tomorrow, the Lord is looking to our eternal well-being. The most important prayers we will say are about spiritual things, but most things can become more spiritual through prayer. As we pray for good weather tomorrow, we can realize that what we want more is for our friend to have a beautiful wedding tomorrow, and a happy marriage after that. This could lead us to pray for our friends' marriage, and for a good attitude toward our own marriage, which are spiritual things. By praying for natural things, we align our thoughts with heaven and the Lord will be able to show us what we need to pray for spiritually.

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While praying for natural wants is useful, we must remember that we are to, "Seek first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be added" (Matthew 7:33).

Other Prayers.

     Prayer is not just about asking. If prayer is speech with God, it should not be one long wish list, or a recitation of the things in our life that we want the Lord to change for us. Speech involves thinking, thanking, praising, laughing as well as scolding, yelling and crying. The purpose of prayer is to yank us out of our self-absorption. It calls to mind the fact that life is not just about what we want for ourselves, it is about what we can give to others by following God's voice. The Lord knows what is best for us, but He is waiting to see whether we have the "as of self' desire and determination to follow through and do the work that is needed to make our requests a reality. Prayer signifies our desire to make a change, with the Lord's help. The story in Numbers 14 of Moses 'convincing' God not to slay the Israelites is a great example of this. Moses was in fact the person who was burningly angry with his provoking followers. But the Lord waits until Moses sees for himself and then communicates to God the need for mercy before He "agrees" to pardon the Israelites. Moses is the one who needed to grow in this situation and through prayer, he did.

     Petitionary prayer is usually the most spontaneous; we remember God when we are forced to see how much we need Him. Consequently, people pray when they are angry, scared and depressed. These prayers are not bad, because it is always good to recall how much we need God. The best sort of prayer is when we involuntarily remember that we need the Lord's influence in our lives. This is as simple as taking a mental break to say, "Thank you, Lord, for the 'A' on this test. Please help me remember to use all knowledge for Your glory." No situation is so good that we don't need to remember God, and to allow Him to be the source of our actions.

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     Prayer comes in many forms, spoken, sung, unspoken. Prayer is often used in rituals like church, meals, weddings and funerals, as well as privately. The most important thing for an individual is not when, where or how one prays, but that one prays regularly and sincerely. Maintaining a daily dialogue with God allows us to invite spheres and spirits, insights and answers that we cannot receive just by checking in once a week on Sunday.

Life and Prayer.

     "All religion is of life, and the life of religion is to do good" (Life 1). To be effective, prayer should not be kept in a separate mental compartment, away from the rest of our lives. Prayer should be a way in which we bring the Lord into our daily lives, and prayer is complemented by action. Once we have sought and found the Lord's will, we must actually do it!

     C.S. Lewis states that work and prayer are both important, "What we do when we weed a field is not quite different from what we do when we pray for a good harvest" (Lewis, 106). We cannot merely stand and wait, hoping for the Lord to intervene in our lives. We must invite Him into our lives, as if of self, so that He can influence the work that we are already doing. The Word stresses the importance of living according to the Lord's commandments in order to make prayer meaningful. "If [people] are insincere and unjust in respect to moral and civil life, their holy worship, adorations, and prayers have within them what repels heaven from them, instead of opening heaven to them as they believe; for their holy worship is like a vessel containing things putrid and filthy... But wholly different are holy worship, adorations, and prayers with those who are in the knowledges of truth and good and in a life according to them; with such these acts are pleasing to the Lord, for they are the effects wrought by their spirit in the body, or the effects of their faith and love, thus they are not merely natural gestures, but spiritual acts" (Apocalypse Explained 126).

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     Ultimately, of course, as Dutch theologian Desiderius Erasmus wrote, "Vocatus atque non vocatus, Deus aderit." Bidden or unbidden, God is present. God is always present, conjoining Himself to us, but we must freely reciprocate this conjunction to receive heaven. "For the Lord acts, and from Him man receives action, and operates as if of himself, even by the Lord from Himself. This operation of man from the Lord is imputed to him as his own, because he is held constantly by the Lord in freedom of choice. The freedom of choice resulting from this is the ability to will and to think from the Lord, that is, from the Word, and also the ability to will and to think from the devil, that is, contrary to the Lord and the Word. This freedom the Lord gives to man to enable him to conjoin himself reciprocally with the Lord, and by conjunction be gifted with eternal life and blessedness, since this, without reciprocal conjunction, would not be possible" (True Christian Religion 371:6). Reciprocal conjunction is effected by talking to the Lord in prayer and inviting Him into our every action.

     God, and the associate spirits He sends to guide our spiritual footsteps toward heaven, are as close as they can be, but it takes prayer to conjoin us to God and heaven, which will change our spheres such that we can feel their influence. We need to be reminded not to pray, but that we are already praying. Our lives are our prayers, and we must continually strive to use our lives to forge an ongoing connection with heaven.

     Bibliography

Childs, Robin W. "Prayer." Masters of Divinity Thesis. Academy of the New Church: 1984.
Lewis, Clive Staples. "Work and Prayer." Ed. Walter Hooper. God in the Dock. Michigan: Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002.
Moore, Thomas. The Soul's Religion: Cultivating a Profoundly Spiritual Way of Life. New York: Harper Collins, 2002
Odhner, Hugo Lj. Spirits and Men. Lancaster, PA: Lancaster Press, 1960.

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HISTORY OF THE WORD ON EARTH: THE WRITINGS AS THE WORD OF HEAVENLY DOCTRINE. 2008

HISTORY OF THE WORD ON EARTH: THE WRITINGS AS THE WORD OF HEAVENLY DOCTRINE.       Editor       2008


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     From the first Advent.....The New Testament prophecies of the Second Coming predict the entire revelation and nature of the Writings. However, before the Lord could give us the Writings, there was much preparation needed, which we can trace through Christian history. First, the Lord Himself began to give the spiritual meaning of everything, even while He was here. He intended the Genuine or New Christian Church, and so it was at first! Even as He walked the earth, "when they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples" (Mark 4:34). He also explained the internal sense of the parable of the Sower, and then the parable of the Tares (Matthew 13:18-23, 36-43), ending the last with "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" (Matthew 13:43) This oft-repeated Gospel phrase implies that some at that time could indeed perceive the internal sense of these sayings (cf. Apocalypse Explained 239:4). In addition, after His Resurrection, on the road to Emmaus, and also back in Jerusalem, the Lord gave two long lessons in the spiritual meaning of scripture: "He opened their understanding to comprehend the Scriptures," going back to the books of Moses, the Psalms and the Prophets, to "expound all the things concerning Himself" (Luke 24:24, 44). He explained the need for the Son of Man's suffering and the crucifixion, and then the Resurrection. What else could this explanation have been, than the Arcana classes you have all attended, on the Lord's temptations and glorification? The Lord explained all of that to the Apostles 2000 years ago! "The Primitive Christian Church saw, or rather was able to see...." (True Christian Religion 109).

     As Christian centuries rolled by, we note the Lord's providential intercessions to preserve the Testaments.

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The Lord preserved the reading of the Tanach, which includes the Torah (Moses), Nebi'im (Prophets) and other Ketubim (Psalms) by the Jews scattered throughout the globe during the Christian era (Last Judgment post. 254). The preservation of the New Testament is even more interesting. The first followers, who knew the Lord or the apostles, preserved the Gospels by preaching in the light of the Holy Spirit given from Pentecost onwards, when "they preached the Gospel throughout much of the world, and spread the news of it by word of mouth and by their writings." Each apostle spoke the Word in his own manner "from the Lord" (True Christian Religion 154, cf. Apocalypse Explained 455.22, Spiritual Experience 4742).

     It became evident however that the Christian Church could not be established, since there were no "Christians" yet (Coronis xxxi), and because they only had a potential "to see Divine truths in light" (True Christian Religion 109), which was quickly torn asunder by schisms (Op. cit. 378). The early Christian Church quickly moved from genuine to schismatic, and thus missed the chance of a full doctrinal understanding as prophesied for the Second coming. The prophecies for this event just stayed put, providentially aiming humanity towards a more distant fulfillment. To prepare, the Holy Spirit transferred the Gospels from oral to written right off. Thus even as the "spiritual sun set" but for "some" the "spiritual moon" arose (True Christian Religion 638), this moon had to include the preservation of the New Testament, which was now the Word. For there must at all times be a Church on earth that "has the Word and knows the Lord" (Heavenly Doctrine 244, True Christian Religion 245),a Church which then links the heavens to the Church on earth. The Christian church barely succeeded in this task. We can trace some of this renewal through the monastic movements, all of which began with the regula: i. read the Scripture, and ii. Do good works.

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Such work was first done by the Apostles, then came itinerant preachers, and hermits who just studied the Word. By the 6th century there were the Benedictines followed by Cistercians (11th), the Cathars & Waldensians (12th), Franciscans & Dominicans (13th), and Brethren of the Common Life (14th). All of them read the Word, despite the final extravagancies of the Papacy in the 15th century, which spurred Luther to the Reformation in the early 16th century.

     Despite all its errors, the Christian Church did preserve the Scriptures for 17 centuries. All prophecies of a Second Advent were held in abeyance against the time of their fulfillment, when ironically its manner of fulfillment was not expected, i.e. by revealing the "glory" in the "clouds of heaven." The spiritual sense had as it were been 'locked and loaded' in the Biblical texts, ready to fire at any given moment.

     The spiritual sense had indeed been generally known during the early Christian era. Origen (d. 254 a.d.) had interpreted this internal meaning, both Bede (d. 725 a.d.) and Peter Lombard (who summarized all previous "views" in 1158 a.d.) continued the practice, right up to Father "T" himself: Thomas Aquinas (d. 1274 a.d.) who drew out not only the "allegorical sense" but the "anagogical" and "spiritual" senses as well. He interpreted "let there be light" to mean, "let us be enlightened by Christ"! This internal light may not have been accurate, but at least it was something interior to the Scriptures themselves. As the light waned, the Gospels were meticulously preserved. There was one other strategic preservation of the Scriptures: the divinely inspired extraction from "both Testaments" (True Christian Religion 833:4) by the angel of the Lord Gabriel, called Jibril by Muhammad. He preached basic testament messages and his sermons were later recollected and systematized into the Al-Qur'an for Arabs (Divine Providence 255) and all Muslims ever since. Living by this as by the commandments, provides their means of salvation (Apocalypse Explained 1180:2).

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     While the Gospels and Revelation were preserved in scores of Latin, Greek, or Coptic versions, increasingly only for priests' use, the Acts and Epistles were also preserved. Their provenance is actually more solid than that of the Gospels, since they have found scripts dating from 40 to 60 a.d. The earliest Gospel fragments are later, and much rarer. The Epistles were "doctrinal writings," not written in the "style of the Word" as are the Testaments. Their "mediate" style however could be more "directly understood and could help "commence the Christian Church" and thus maintain an indirect contact with heaven (Apocalypse Explained 815:2, Letter to Beyer, 1766). Since they have no internal sense they cannot be harmed by abuse of the sense of the letter, as the Gospels could be.

     The Reformation took place when the Church was closing in on a monopoly over all Christians. To the same end, long before the Reformation was ready, the Lord raised up the "noble French nation." i.e. Charlemagne and the Franks, meant by "ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom" (Rev. 17:12, Apocalypse Revealed 717, 740, Apocalypse Explained 1170:2). Charles Martel at the Battle of Tours (732 ad.) also prevented Islam from sweeping Europe, but really allowed his son Charles to prevent Papal power from domineering over everything. Church History shows just how effective France was in checking Papal power. With the Reformation came translations of the Bible into the vernacular. This had already begun, particularly into English starting with Wycliffe (1380-90), and continuing with Tyndale (1520s) and Coverdale (1535). Wycliffe escaped the flames, but he was exhumed and burned at the stake post mortem. That really must have burned him up! Although Tyndale himself was burned at the stake in 1536, much of his Bible made it into the later King James Version of 1611, by then authorized and public!

     Jan Hus in Bohemia was promised safe passage to the Council of Constance, but in 1415 was into the bargain burned at the stake, for among other things translating the Bible.

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Meanwhile, Gutenberg's invention of metal type in the 1450s spread so many 'rogue' translations that not all could be burned. Although many of Luther's translations into German were indeed burned, he himself was saved from the stake by the public reading the Bible and by Frederick the Wise who in Providence seized Luther to ensure his work would continue.

     The Reformation restored the Bible to the people. "The only cause [for] the Reformation...was that the Word, which lay buried, might be restored to the world...it had been in the world for many centuries, but at length it was entombed by the Roman Catholics, and not a single truth of the Church could be brought forth from it" (Invitation 24). If the Reformation had not happened, the "Christian Church in the European world would utterly fall" (Apocalypse Explained 1069). "If papal dominion had not been broken at the Reformation, they would have scraped together the possessions and wealth of all the kingdoms of. . . Europe" (Apocalypse Revealed 759).

     When spiritual events do not happen freely, war is permitted, or else human freedom would be burned out at the core (cf. Divine Providence 251). War is always man-made, and can never be blamed on the Lord. Yet, in order to "draw the Bible from its tomb", we find that the Lord "raised up simultaneously so many men to the attack ... stirring up Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, and England." When evils are stirred and riled, there is no stopping war. In order therefore that the Word would "not be buried in Germany" (Invitation 24) the most brutal Thirty Year War (1618-1648) broke upon Europe, pitting Catholics against the Protestants, sword, shield, lance and cannon! The Lord then raised up a champion of the Reformation, King "Gustavus II Adolphus" whose bravery in personally leading the Swedes to stunning victories by using more maneuverable phalanxes, is celebrated to this day.

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His flagship "Vasa" foundered (1628), but would have been the largest battleship until then (Now restored, it may be seen near Skansen, Stockholm, or online). Gustavus' death at the Battle of Lutzen in 1632 did not stop the Protestant victories. Finally, by the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, Protestant Kingdoms of the north received the freedom of "cujus regio, ejus religio", whoever owns the land, picks its religion. The North was now "owned" by the Reformed. The geographical freedom to publish the Word openly meant readers could eventually receive its spiritual meaning as well. European trading empires were permitted to colonize the entire globe, all for the sake of the Word of God going with every ship. This amazing fulfillment of "where two or three are gathered in My Name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matt. xviii. 20) was that the Word of God was read by "a few" Europeans around the entire globe, linking heaven to the Church on earth. "This sounds incredible, yet it is true" (Divine Providence 256). As we know, the Writings have spread round the world following the same route the Bible took.

     When the "end of time" finally came, the stage was already set for the Second Advent. Biblical criticism and reliance of human reason became more and more vociferous, favoring "a revelation as old as creation," namely Nature! Who needs the Word of God? Thus the light of truth was diminished "both [by] those who had imbibed naturalism, and [by] those who had falsified the Word by faith in three Divine persons and in the Passion of the cross constituting redemption." These heresies were "the dragon and his two beasts (Apocalypse 12 and 13)" (True Christian Religion 121:2). Just forty years after the peace of Westphalia in 1648 established free Bible reading, Swedenborg was born in 1688. Does anyone want to know what the Bible means?

     Swedenborg as a boy constantly thought on spiritual matters.

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His rendezvous with the Second Advent lay in the hands of Providence, as he himself avers. He graduated from Uppsala University in 1709, just when Biblical investigation was breaking free from Church intimidation and censorship. An Encyclopedia was sneaked into publication in Paris in 1751, but had to escape to London for the rest of the volumes for fear of persecution. It replaced the Bible as the explanation of everything in all the courts of Europe. However, for the same reason of free expression, heaven's truths could now also transfer into "rationally comprehensible natural language" (De Verbo 6). The Writings thus came out neck and neck with denials of the Divine authority of the Word of God. The very same Bible denied was now the Bible restored. No wonder the 'Era of the Enlightenment' and the 'Age of Reason' tempt us to irony! If human reason replaced the Word of God, was it really enlightenment?

...To the Second Advent

     The first rumble of the "end," at least physical rumbles, was the earthquake of Lisbon, Nov. 1, 1755, which not only killed an est. 40,000, mostly sitting in their pews on All Saints Day, Sunday morning. However, there were spiritual rumbles, since that very year 1755 Swedenborg observed earthquakes in the spiritual world as well (Spiritual Experiences 4944). Lisbon's fate shook the world, severing public trust in Providence, and spurring "naturalism" as the explanation of everything. However, the Lord's hand is never "shortened to save": by 1755 seven of the eight volumes of the Arcana Coelestia were already in print, and anyone could read this doom for themselves: "The adherents to naturalism...are immersed in earthly and bodily interests and as a consequence in the life belonging to self-love and love of the world" (Arcana Coelestia 5116:4, year 1752).

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     The prime subject of the Arcana, as you know, was the Glorification of the Lord in the Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph series. When the Council of Nicaea in 325 a.d. gathered to squash the heresy of Arius, namely that Jesus was "less Divine" than the Father, the resulting resolution to restore the Son to Divinity, was that the "Son of God was born from eternity." The outcome was not bargained for, but was nonetheless a Godhead divided into three. Augustine (d. 430 a.d.) a century later while trying to deal Arius' heresy yet another blow, instead fanned it to flame: each "member of the trinity" has the same essential nature, said Augustine. The greatness of "the Father and the Son adds up to the greatness of the Holy Spirit," the same for the Father and Holy Spirit "adding up to the Son," and so too the Son and the Holy Spirit "adding up to the Father"! End result: the permanent division of the Trinity into three persons. Thus Arius, though dead, "secretly rules in the end" (True Christian Religion 638).

     The Writings had to be given to slice through this Gordian knot: the Son of God was not "born from eternity," a wrong phrase, but instead "was from eternity" and was "born in time." God sent Himself into the world as the "Son of God" (True Christian Religion 92). "The Son is His Human that was conceived of Jehovah the Father, and born of the Virgin Mary, in time" (Lord 30). The body thus taken on by birth into the World, was "glorified or made Divine" without any maternal remainder, making the "Divine Natural to be actual" (Divine Love and Wisdom 233). Thus what was born in time, and what was glorified, "is the same" (Arcana Coelestia 2803:3). This doctrine annihilates the Trinity of Persons, and establishes the groundwork for the Trinity being in the Lord. Father, Son and Holy Spirit are the divine soul, body and operation of the Lord, thus God-Man, God visible in Person. The most often used term for this is Divine Human.

     The Second Coming had to provide this corrective message, and restore the doctrine on the Trinity being in the Lord.

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The Writings could explain to everyone what the Holy Bible they were reading really meant. We recall, "The Lord was born on our planet, because of the Word, that it might be written...and... published throughout the earth, and ...preserved to all posterity, and that thus it might be made manifest, even to all in the other life, that God became Man" (Earths in the Universe 113). The Lord's Second Advent explained just how God became Man.

     Now we saw earlier the list of books of the Word that contain an internal sense, from Genesis to Revelation (Arcana Coelestia 10325, White Horse 16, and Heavenly Doctrine 266). We posed the question in an earlier Editorial, "How the Writings add themselves to the list of the Word revealed on earth we will also see in a later editorial." (Sept. New Church Life, p. 329). The time has come! By what argument can we accept the Writings as the Word of the Lord? What do they say?

     First, the internal sense of the Word and Doctrine in heaven are equated: "Divine doctrine constitutes the Word in the internal sense" (Arcana Coelestia 3712). "Such is the Divine truth in heaven, and such is the Word in its spiritual sense" (Apocalypse Explained 950). "The spiritual sense of the Word is identical with the doctrine which is in heaven" (Heavenly Doctrine 7). "In heaven there is the Word and Doctrine from the Word." In fact, "To be specific about the doctrine which will now follow that too comes from heaven, because it is from the spiritual sense of the Word" (ibid.) This very doctrine is what is revealed in the Writings themselves: "But I shall proceed to the Doctrine itself, which is for the New Church, and which is called HEAVENLY DOCTRINE, because it was revealed to me out of heaven: for to deliver this doctrine, is the object of the present work" (ibid.). The "present work" is "hic opere" meaning "this book." While "reading the Word" (True Christian Religion 779), the Lord "revealed the spiritual sense of the Word" to Swedenborg "at this day" and "disclosed to him" the "doctrine of genuine truth" (Sacred Scripture 25), to be found as we saw just above "in these small books now being prepared for the press" (De Verbo 21).

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By Divine enlightenment the spiritual sense scattered all through the Bible stories, was brought into an "integrated unity such as they have in heaven" (Arcana Coelestia 1756, 2343, 3074, 3376). No wonder Swedenborg also wrote "Hic liber est Adventus Domini" this book is the Advent of the Lord, on the Brief Exposition flyleaf.

     What was the source? "I received everything on the subject of the Word and doctrine from the Word, not from any angel or spirit, but from the Lord alone, while I have read the Word" meaning the Bible (Schmidius) (True Christian Religion 779). In fact, "no spirit has dared, nor has any angel wished, to tell me anything about what is in the Word or about any matter of doctrine from the Word. I have been taught by the Lord alone, who was revealed to me...and He has enlightened me" (Divine Providence 135).

     The Lord alone is the source of the Writings.

     How does this relate to the Second Coming? "The second coming of the Lord was effected by means of a man to whom the Lord has manifested himself in person." Who? "The Lord manifested Himself before me, His servant, and sent me to this office" (True Christian Religion 779). The Lord accomplished the Second Advent "by means of a man, who can not only receive intellectually the doctrines of this church, but also publish them in print." The Lord "opened the sight of my spirit, 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" (True Christian Religion 779).

     Here we see that the Writings also constitute the Second Coming. How was Swedenborg able to write everything?

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Swedenborg was "in the spirit and at the same time in the body, and only sometimes out of the body." (True Christian Religion 157) "To me it is granted to be in both spiritual and natural light at the same time, to be together with angels like one of them, and at the same time to draw forth truths in light, and thus to perceive and teach them" (Invitation 52). This intromission surpasses all miracles save creation itself (Invitation 42, 43, 52, 55).

     Could Swedenborg tell in which state he himself was? All revelators of either Testaments experienced two states or conditions: first, they were in the spirit and "raised into the light of heaven" at which time they saw and heard marvelous things. Only after this had finished, however, did they come into the second state, when "they were in the body." This is when they heard the Lord speaking to them. We must take great care to "distinguish" between these two conditions: "The Word was not revealed in a state of the spirit or in vision," but "came to them in the body, and they heard Jehovah speaking" (Apocalypse Revealed 36, cf. Lord 52). Swedenborg affirms "from the experience of many years" that he too wrote, not in the first state of vision, but in the second or bodily state "while he was reading the Word."

     Has the Word of Heaven also been heard here on earth? The Writings were "heard" by Swedenborg, because they were revealed by the Lord's own mouth. We have the result, "Heavenly Doctrine out of heaven in this book." The only difference between the Word in heaven and the same Word of Doctrine spoken on earth, is that they "sound differently." Angels and men do not "hear each other" (True Christian Religion 280, Arcana Coelestia 8862). In fact, "spiritual expressions are so remote from natural ideas and expressions that they do not approximate in the least" (De Verbo 4), and thus the "things in heaven are ineffable" (Arcana Coelestia 1887 et. al.). Nevertheless, we can hear it. "The internal sense" of scripture "coincides with the universal angelic language, which is spiritual" (Arcana Coelestia 4387).

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Swedenborg found out just how true this was. He experimented by talking in angelic language to angels about the Heavenly Doctrine, trying to transfer it to human ears: "I then wished to bring it forth from the former memory and describe it." He found that "I could not, it was impossible." He could "not utter nor describe" angelic ideas by "any spiritual or heavenly expression" (De Verbo 4). However, when it came from the Lord, while reading His Word, the opposite became true: there is "nothing spiritual, celestial or Divine" that "could not be described even to their rational comprehension, by words of natural language. There is not any Divine Arcanum which may not be perceived, and even expressed naturally." The only concession is that on earth the same thing is "more general and imperfect" (De Verbo 6). In fact, spiritual things may be understood the moment they are heard. (Faith 3) When we read the Writings, therefore, we essentially hear the doctrines, which are in heaven, apart from language. Perhaps that is why we so often quote them in our own words.

     That is what the Writings have done: they present heavenly doctrine in rationally comprehensible terms of human language. We "hear" the doctrine when reading the rational terms. Although both the Writings and the Scriptures use the same words of language, still the Writings form the "soul" to the "body" of the Sacred Scriptures, just as the spiritual sense is as a soul to the literal sense. "The Word contains a spiritual sense, as the body contains a soul" (True Christian Religion 192, Sacred Scripture 5). The Word of Doctrine is a quasi-degree higher or interior than the Word of Scripture.

     So this is in sum what the Writings say regarding themselves: they are the spiritual sense of the Word, drawn from both Testaments, which is the same as the doctrine of heaven and this is the Word in heaven, revealed by the Lord out of heaven in the form of Heavenly Doctrine, putting ineffable angelic things into comprehensible rational terms, all the while that Swedenborg was reading his Schmidius Bible in a bodily state.

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The Writings constitute the soul to the Scriptures as a body, and they sound differently on earth from in heaven, even though the spiritual sense of the Word, which is doctrine, sounds like the language angels speak, which is thus to hear doctrine. Since the term "Word" comprises all the senses, from highest down to the literal, therefore the Writings too are the Word, but heard directly from the Lord on the level of rationally termed Doctrine, while the two Testaments are the Word as to Scripture heard in experiential terms of the five senses. The Old Testament came by dictation, by a transflux through heaven, the New Testament was recollected with or without angelic intermediation by the Divine enlightenment of the Lord's Holy Spirit; and the Writings are directly from the Holy Spirit, drawn from and confirmed by Scripture.

     All works of the Writings composed under the same inspiration, constitute the Second Coming, with a remarkable doubly conscious human, Swedenborg, being called to serve as scribe, and with a providentially liberated uncensored press as a natural vehicle.

     The Word of heaven's doctrine is now in print. Read all about it!

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LEXICON TO THE LATIN TEXT OF THE THEOLOGICAL WRITINGS OF EMANUEL SWEDENBORG 2008

LEXICON TO THE LATIN TEXT OF THE THEOLOGICAL WRITINGS OF EMANUEL SWEDENBORG       Erik E. Sandstrom       2008


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     A LEXICON TO THE LATIN TEXT OF THE THEOLOGICAL WRITINGS OF EMANUEL SWEDENBORG (1688-1772) Edited by Dr. John Chadwick, Dr. Jonathan S. Rose, Swedenborg Society, London, 2008, 583 pages.

     Finally, a definitive Lexicon for Swedenborg's Latin. How often have you found the need to check on the real meaning of some interesting phrase or subject in the Writings? Well, perhaps not too many may exactly have that urgent need. But think of all the translators out there! Hurrah for this work.

     The Lexicon reads as any other professional language lexicon, the A-4 size is easy to handle, the dark blue hard covers with gold script and Swedenborg's Coat of Arms bespeaks modest power. On the base of the Spine is the oft-recurring image of a man digging in a garden, from an ornament used by Swedenborg in his first editions, I suspect a special touch by Dr. Jonathan Rose who has researched all the ornaments. Each letter of the alphabet is introduced by a 48-font size centered letter on a fresh page, followed by the material in two columns, the Latin words in bold, and explanations following in standard succinct mode. The references, of course, are to the various places in the Writings where this word has been used, its form, etc., citing the actual Latin phrases in which they occur, with a swung dash - indicating the word itself or its root, with its endings next to it. If there is more than one use, each use is marked 1, 2, etc. One has to learn the abbreviations for the Latin titles of the Writings, e.g. AM is Amore Conjugialis, MI is De Miraculis, etc. listed up front. The Lexicon covers from a, ab to Zwinglianus, in 509 pages, followed by another section of "Proper Nouns", from Abaddon to Zwingliani, ending on page 570.

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     There are all kinds of Latin dictionaries in existence, and at the Swedenborg Library in the Swedenborgiana section (Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania), the ones from Swedenborg's own era are among the most frequently used items by our local scholars. There has never been anything quite like this Lexicon, however. It fills a long foreseen need. It has been years in the making. I recall in the 1970s when I had the privilege of sitting on the Advisory and Revision Board receiving loose-bound sections as each letter of the alphabet was covered, and keeping them handy. I was sorry to leave England in 1981 with my collection only reaching part IV ending with Korus. I did receive the next two sections, extending my access to Quum. The eight parts of the first edition came out from 1970 to 1990, when it was finalized as the First Edition. However, the beginning goes further back.

     Contents first, then the Preface by Rev. John Elliott outlines how Dr. John Chadwick's father, Fred Chadwick, had also contributed much to the early work of the Swedenborg Society, officiating at many memorable moments. It details Fred then John Chadwick's continuing contributions, with this Lexicon as a kind of apotheosis. Elliott's Preface ends in a touching tribute to John Chadwick, now among those who "enjoy endless Sabbaths." The Introduction by Dr. Jonathan S. Rose comes next, first paying tribute to John as the New Church member who was also one of the most recognized world authorities in Classical Linguistics, a Reader at Cambridge University and a partner in deciphering Linear B Minoan script - also mentioned by Elliott. I insert here part of an obituary, from The Guardian (England), Dec. 2, 1998: "Incorrigibly modest" and always taking second place deferring to Dr. Michael Ventris, John Chadwick's "arduous and brilliant research, unaided by computers, proved the theory" that the Linear B of Minoan script John helped decipher, was in fact "a version of Greek" (Obituary by Michael Everson). John Chadwick was the hero who made use of the assembled slips of paper which various contributors had made over the years, noting special meanings for Latin words.

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The first edition in 1990 was the outcome. Unfortunately, John Chadwick passed away in 1998 before a revised version could be made more permanently binding, so to speak, although not before he had circulated some six hundred changes and additions. The Rev. Dr. Jonathan Rose had already been asked by Dr. Chadwick to become his successor. With Jonathan's involvement came the scanning of the Lexicon by the General Church and the Academy of the New Church, applying to it a program which allowed for checking a greater scope of endings, declensions and participles. Besides Dr. Chadwick's own corrections, some 1800 improvements, quite a few additional corrections plus 450 new entries could now be added. This new publication interpolates between the previous edition of the Lexicon and this latest one, illustrating some of the changes.

     The Introduction includes a Morphology of Swedenborg's Latin, categorizing the Neo-Latin Swedenborg used so as not to confuse it with Classical Latin. It actually is a useful primer of Neo-Latin. Jonathan ends with acknowledgments to a good number of individuals spanning the Atlantic for their outstanding contributions and assistance. Kindly thank some of them yourself next time you see them.

     Next comes the reprint of the Preface to the first edition of the Lexicon, by Dr. Chadwick himself, explaining how the early comments on Swedenborg's Latin had been correlated, a project in which he was "encouraged and supported" by not only the Swedenborg Society but from "other countries." Much of his explanations of contents carry over to this final edition of his "brunt" of the work. He ends his Preface with the hope for future revisions,-now materialized. This is followed by a list of abbreviations, all totaling pages vii - xlviii.

     In Three Appendices p. 573 to 583, the first is a chronological list of all of Swedenborg's Latin works, beginning with those
published by Swedenborg, then the posthumous works.

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The second explains the "repeated sections" i.e. paragraphs in the Writings which have been used more than once, and how the referencing system works. Variations in numbering systems Swedenborg used for various works are capped by a couple of odd uses of verbs and spellings. The third 1-page Appendix deals with Sebastian Schmidt's Latin Bible, some history of the famed Schmidius Bible which Swedenborg used and we know he covered with marginal notes as the Divine inspiration took hold. Here it takes note of how close to verbatim or not Swedenborg quoted passages of Sacred Scripture from Schmidius. An imprecise art, it seems.

     Highly recommended for all New Church scholars, for all New Church members, and as a great gift to someone, even as a coffee-table book. Wherever Swedenborg's Latin is taught, salutes are in order. Also a good gift to all New Church young people from toddlers and on up, to encourage future translators! Its launching date is this April 17th, in London. Note the weather over London on that date. It should be available at your closest New Church book store soon Thank you Swedenborg Society.

Erik E. Sandstrom
WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG 2008

WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG              2008


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     An on-line family magazine from the G. C. Office of Education featuring
materials for all ages focused on a new theme every month.

The Way to Heaven in April 2008
The Lord Protect Us in May 2008
The Holy City in June 2008
Healing Our Blindness in July 2008
Keeping the Sabbath in August 2008

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Church News 2008

Church News              2008


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     BRAZIL

     Rev. Vicente Nobre is happy to announce the first broadcast of a New Church radio program on Saturday evenings, in the city of Curitiba, about 300 miles south of Sao Paula. The radio show is called "The Voice of the Heavenly Doctrines." The potential audience is about half a million! The presenter is Eduardo Beirith, a member of the Church who is a bookseller and lay leader in Curitiba Church. Rev. Nobre says they start with a "short introduction about our Church, followed by some readings from the Word and from the Heavenly Doctrines, then the reading of a sermon. At the end Eduardo explains how to find out more about the Heavenly Doctrines and the New Church." They have a large stock of sermons in Portuguese, and can always have more translated. "It is very touching to see people like our brothers in Curitiba being so involved and so faithful to this great cause that is the Lord's New Church," Vicente reports. Here is the group last year when Rev. Andy Heilman was visiting, Vicente on the far right; and Edourdo as presenter sits by the microphone.

[Photographs of Eduardo Beirith speaking on the radio, and of the group in Curitiba.]

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CORRECTION 2008

CORRECTION              2008


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     Announcements




Heinrichs, Anne Smith Menzies (Bruce)-At Kitchener, Ontario, December 22, 2007 (Mrs. Philip Heinrichs). 79. See March issue Page 121.

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[Blank page.]

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Notes on This Issue 2008

Notes on This Issue       Editor       2008


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     Memorial Day is the topic of this month's sermon, by the Rev. Thomas H. Rose, the Pastor at the Ivyland New Church. Everyone experiences temptations, which are battles, and also is called on to make sacrifices. Is there a common daily way for us to "lay down our life" for our friends?

     The article on Education for the Challenged, has been seen in New Church Life before (1988). I am happy to receive this revised version from Kirsten Rogers. Besides reviewing some New Church Education history and Educational trends, Mrs. Rogers offers a refreshing reminder of the needs of the handicapped, and whatever their mental level, we owe them equal opportunities in our school systems.

     The next article by Kent Rogers, comes to us all the way from Nepal. Kent has for several years been running an orphanage in Kathmandu. Many people support his work via the "Loving Arms Mission." He is expanding his operations together with making people aware of the Writings. In "When Prayers Go Unanswered," Kent poses the question why the Lord does not always seem to care about our problems, and how we can respond in a positive way.

     Church News focuses on the Hurstville Society during the past year. Secretary, Margaret Heldon has forwarded some material. In the absence of a resident Pastor, Owen Heldon has been organizing lay services etc., and welcoming visiting ministers and a Bishop too. Many of you may have met some pillars of the Hurstville Society who have recently passed to the spiritual world. And who used the on-site tennis courts to re-enact an ancient ceremony?

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BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD 2008

BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD       Rev. THOMAS H. ROSE       2008


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"Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! Jehovah of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge." (Psalm 46:11)

     We have a long-established tradition in this country of remembering and honoring those who have given their lives to preserve our freedom. It is right and fitting that we do this. In the United States there are many people-men and women-who have served or who currently serve with honor in the armed forces in defense of our country, and Veterans Day is set aside to acknowledge their contribution and dedication. At this time of year, however, we turn our thoughts to those of our community, to those of any community in the nation, who have made what is known as "the ultimate sacrifice"-dying in the line of military duty.

     Some of us have experienced the loss of someone we loved in time of war. For some, a family member died in battle. For others, it was a friend or fellow soldier, sailor, airman or marine. For all, the loss is felt deeply, and the senselessness of the circumstances of war is brought to mind. David expresses these feelings in the book of Samuel. When Saul, the king of Israel, and Jonathan, David's closest friend, died at the hands of the Philistines on Mount Gilboa, David spoke these words to the people, in a psalm known as the Song of the Bow:

     "The beauty of Israel is slain on your high places!
     How the mighty have fallen!
     Tell it not in Gath,
     Proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon -
     Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice,
     Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.

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     O mountains of Gilboa,
     Let there be no dew, nor let there be rain upon you,
     Nor fields of offerings.
     For the shield of the mighty is cast away there!
     How the mighty have fallen in the midst of the battle!
     Jonathan was slain in your high places.
     I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan..." (2 Samuel 1:19-26)

     We have set aside a time of remembrance for those who have died in service to our country. What is it that we remember the most in our distress over such a loss? It is the person's willingness to lay down his or her very life for family, friends and country. "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends." This applies to circumstances of life other than wars between nations. We extend expressions of honor and gratitude to anyone who has suffered loss or sacrifice, particularly when it is seen to be for our own sake. We all can picture someone dear to us who has given up something in order to be a better person. We may have someone in our life who has struggled grievously through troubled times and who has come out the other side a more spiritual person, to the benefit not only of himself, but also of all around him Like the soldier who lost his earthly life, this person, too, has fought a great battle, and something within him has had to die in order that the good and the true might emerge.

     How often this takes place in life! We honor and respect those who have suffered spiritual temptations. We suffer through them ourselves, and we see that this is the only true and noble way to attain the life of heaven. Very often we are instructed and reminded in the Lord's Heavenly Doctrine that the only way to spiritual life is through spiritual combats against the hells-not so much against the hells in general, but against our own personal hells, which stand in the way between us and the Lord.

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In the life of regeneration, the life that leads to heaven, the Lord calls us, as it were, into military service. He calls us into combat to fight against the influences of the selfish will, our old, unregenerate self This aspect of self, twisted and perverse in the light of heaven, must actually die if the birth of the new self is to take place. The Lord says in the book of John, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain" (John 12:24).

     It is good and right to honor those who have died in service to our country. Love of country is of paramount importance as a love for one's homeland, which nurtures and protects. Love of country is transformed into a greater love, that is, a love for the Lord's heavenly kingdom. It is noble and brave to die for one's country because it is an expression of love to the neighbor and a grand gesture of protection of the innocent. What we are honoring, however, when we remember a person who has died in this way, is the person's willingness to do such a thing for the sake of others. We are not honoring the fact that they died, and we are not honoring war; we are honoring the person's spirit of service, duty and self-sacrifice.

     Again, we are reminded of the very simplest of sacrifices people make to the benefit of others. When a person puts his own self-interest aside and extends love and support toward another, then that person has laid down something of his life for his friend. When a person acts with kindness, even if it is inconvenient to do so, there is a laying down of a bit of the life of self-indulgence that comes so naturally to us all. When a person struggles to give up something within that is wrong and self-gratifying because the Lord has said it is wrong, there is a laying down of one's life for the Lord Himself. The Lord said, "He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it." (Matthew 10:39).

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     This gives us something to think about: losing our life for the Lord's sake, and laying down our life for our friends. The Lord is asking us to give up our life for the sake of the two great commandments. There is no greater sacrifice. Listen to this story from the book of Mark:

     Then one of the scribes came...and asked Him, "Which is the first commandment of all?" Jesus answered him, "The first of all the commandments is: 'Hear, 0 Israel, Jehovah our God, Jehovah is one. And you shall love Jehovah your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.' This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself' There is no other commandment greater than these." So the scribe said to Him, "Well said, teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He. And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." So when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And after that, no one dared question Him (Mark 12:28-34).

     "You are not far from the kingdom of God." We are not far from the kingdom of God if we have a full understanding and practice of what it is to lay down the life of our old self, our old will, for the sake of the new self or new will. It is the most difficult thing a person can possibly do, and none can do it without the Lord.

     The evils and falsities of our natural mind, before the Lord makes us new, are like a family to us. They are familiar. We love them. About them, the Lord gives a remarkable teaching in the gospel of Mark: "And great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them, If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.

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And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple" (Mark 14:25-27).

     Hereditary tendencies toward evil and falsity are like a negative or even a hellish "father and mother." Self-serving, harmful, ungodly and lustful desires are present in our minds. We identify with them, and they become to us as "brothers and sisters." We must recognize this or we will perish, spiritually. In addition, our mind gives birth to evil actions and false ideas-things that we actually make our own and do. These are our "children," in the negative sense. And that thing which dominates us in a negative way, that which we hold dear to our hearts, is our "wife." These are the things of the old self that we must reject in favor of the Lord and the neighbor. These are the things that we must come to recognize as our enemies. There must be war-a great spiritual combat. The casualties of this kind of war will be those terrible influences of the hells which have occupied the territory of our unregenerate natural mind and which, as a family of negative persuasion, have shaped our former self. From a willingness to follow the Lord and to establish His heavenly kingdom within us, there comes a willingness to lay down this former life, even as a soldier lays down his bodily life in an earthly war.

     There are wars and there will be wars in this world. The Lord makes it very clear, however, that earthly wars are not the subject of His Holy Word. Even in the story of David lamenting the deaths of Saul and Jonathan, the true meaning has to do with spiritual combat. Again and again, there are stories of war in the Word, and in every case, the message is about every person's personal spiritual battles, and about the Lord's own combats and victories over the hells for the salvation of the human race. When the lesson is about spiritual combat, the Prince of Peace is called a Warrior, a Commander of battle.

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When Joshua was about to face war, the Lord appeared to him in the form of a great Angel: And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite him with His sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, "Are You for us or for our adversaries?" So He said, "No, but as Commander of the army of Jehovah I have now come." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, "What does my Lord say to His servant?" Then the Commander of Jehovah's army said to Joshua, "Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy." And Joshua did so. (Joshua 5:13-15) The psalm of our lesson has this message: "Be still, and know that I am God."

     To give up our life or to lay it down for our friends is to turn away from the evils and falsities that are present in our natural mind, to do combat against them from the power of the Lord's Word. This is to take the sandals off our feet in the holy presence of our Savior and Deliverer. To quiet the old self before the Lord, to bring to a halt all of the influences that would keep us from the Lord and the neighbor, is to "be still, and know" that the Lord is our God.

     Every year, in this last weekend in May, we are grateful in our remembrance of those who have given their lives in our defense. It is a selfless act of courage to have done so. We are keenly aware that our gratitude focuses on their willingness to serve God, country and neighbor in such a way as to make this sacrifice. We are grateful to all veterans for their willingness to do this, and we remember with love and respect those who have fallen in war for the sake of our own peace.

     At the same time, we are grateful for their reminding us that there is no peace in our own mental territories without our making the same kind of sacrifice, losing our former life for the attainment of true heavenly peace. Everyone who has endured the suffering of spiritual combat has the honor of self-sacrifice in the advancement of the Lord's heavenly kingdom and its true peace.

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     "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble..."

     "Be still, and know that I am God..."

     "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends." Amen.

Lessons: Psalm 46; John 15:7-17; Arcana Coelestia 1664

     The Rev. Thomas H. Rose was inaugurated into the priesthood in 1988, and ordained into the pastoral degree in 1989. He began by serving as Assistant to the pastor at the Mitchellville Society, i.e. Sharon Church, Maryland, and then in 1989, as Assistant Pastor there, taking on also the office of Principal of the New Church School. In 1990 he added the role of Visiting Pastor to the Baltimore New Church. In 1993 Tom became the Pastor for the Bryn Athyn Church Elementary School for nine years. In 2002 he accepted the call to be resident Pastor for the Connecticut Circle, Connecticut. Now he is Pastor of Ivyland New Church Pennsylvania, starting in 2004. Tom and his wife Annette (Henderson) reside on the property at Ivyland Church, Pennsylvania.

[Photograph of Rev. Thomas Rose.]

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NEW CHURCH EDUCATION FOR PEOPLE WITH SPECIAL CHALLENGES 2008

NEW CHURCH EDUCATION FOR PEOPLE WITH SPECIAL CHALLENGES       KIRSTEN R. ROGERS       2008


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Introduction

     Twenty-eight years ago, a little girl from another town visited my kindergarten and changed forever my previously stereotyped ideas of appropriate education for children with special challenges. She was a little person. Yet despite her diminutive stature and her need to use a walker, she came with big ideas about learning and playing along with everyone else in our class of abnormal children. And so she did, enriching our days and broadening our horizons at the same time.

     Five years passed, and in the spring of 1985, a mother called me. She said that her daughter had been born with spina bifida and needed either braces and crutches or a wheelchair for mobility. Then she asked a question that simply stunned me. Would her daughter be allowed to come to our school? The first thought that rushed to mind was that New Church parents should never have to ask whether their children might attend New Church schools.

     That mother's effervescent, red-haired daughter brought her sunshine to our kindergarten that fall, learning and playing along with everyone else. In the meantime, her mother's question led me to begin considering what attitudes and practices prevalent in the educational world at that time, despite the good intentions of their proponents, might actually be inhibiting children with challenges. Gradually I realized that two aspects in particular disturbed me.

     The first of these involved a subliminal yet real mentality that caused many educators, school board members and even parents to react as though students were the "products" of school systems.

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Fostered in various ways by the fierce competition of the business world and by federal, state, and local government regulations, this mentality even now often interferes with the essential purposes of education. It subtly shifts the focus of attention away from the students and their individual needs. Many teacher hours are spent instead on paperwork, justification reports, and the preparation for and evaluation of test results. But schools do not exist to produce a product. They exist to provide a service to serve human society by assisting all its children in the process of learning.

     The second area of concern involved special education. Lest my point of view be misunderstood, I must begin by stating that children today are fortunate to have special education available in their local schools. Only fifty years ago, most mentally challenged and many physically challenged children were simply institutionalized. For them, life in this world offered little. That is not the case today. Still, I began to question the structure inherent in many special education programs a structure that almost always segregated those with moderate to serious challenges into separate classrooms, often even into separate schools. In such situations, how could these young people learn age-appropriate behavior? How could they learn to interact with others their age who did not have special challenges? How, in other words, could they learn to live, work, and play in the real world.1

     Understandably, the mentally and physically impaired children of New Church parents were the focus of my particular concern. Should not all our children be welcomed into our schools? Should not all New Church teachers-elementary school, high school and college-be willing to develop programs that would help those with challenges grow up with their friends, in their communities, and with the Lord and His church at the center of their lives?

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     Happily, our teachers and administrators have really worked during the last twenty years to improve New Church education for our young people with special needs. I believe that the challenges now are for teachers and administrators to maintain a serious focus on this area, and for teachers and professors at all levels to keep building their knowledge and skills, so they can design courses that incorporate multiple teaching strategies and adaptations for those with special needs whenever necessary.

Doctrine

     As a result of my concerns and questions back in 1988, I decided to research the Heavenly Doctrines and the history of educational efforts in the New Church. What do the Writings have to say about the human mind and children that may apply to New Church education for those with mental and physical challenges? How have various bodies of the Church viewed their educational responsibilities? What have been the essential purposes of New Church education during the past 170 years?

     The Heavenly Doctrines tell us that everything a person does contains his whole mental being his essential humanity. A person's mind consists of his love's affection and the thoughts he forms from that affection. The affection and thoughts together are what he is.2 The doctrines also tell us that the human mind can be enriched and perfected to eternity, especially when the person is led by the Lord,3 because, unlike an animal, a person has a spiritual mind that exists simultaneously in both the natural and spiritual worlds.4 And the spiritual mind lives on after the death of the body.

     This description applies just as fully to mentally and physically challenged people as it does to the rest of us. As one passage in the Arcana says of certain newcomers to heaven: Some who have been of childlike mind and simple faith then appear to themselves in white and shining garments, some with crowns. Some are taken around to various angelic societies and are everywhere charitably received as comrades.5

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     Let us illustrate the communication of intelligence and wisdom from one to another in heaven. Swedenborg records in Heaven and Hell the following experience: Certain simple spirits were once taken up into heaven, and on arriving there, they too came into angelic wisdom, so that they then understood things they were never able to comprehend before, and uttered things they were unable to express in their former state.6

     A similar experience appears in True Christian Religion, emphasizing the intuitive power to be gained through worship of the Lord: I saw a spirit who in the company of others appeared simple, because he had acknowledged the Lord alone as the God of heaven and earth, and had established his faith by means of a few truths taken from the Word. He was carried up into heaven to join the wiser angels, and I was told that there he was as wise as they were. In fact, he uttered numerous truths entirely as if of himself, of which he had previously been totally ignorant.7

     It is clear from these reports that a person's spiritual intelligence may far exceed his natural intelligence. We cannot determine spiritual capacities on the basis of natural aptitude.

     In considering a child's development, we learn from the doctrines that every human being is born with a spiritual mind, but it is not open or actively functioning at birth.8 It is opened gradually during his life, as he refuses to participate in evil because it is contrary to the Lord's commandments in His Word.9 In addition, and of particular importance to New Church educators, we note that the formation of this spiritual mind is based on everything from the Word that exists in the memory.10 And a person captures things in his memory because of the delight he feels in knowing them.11

     The first things a child learns, of course, involve only sensory experiences. He tastes his food, holds his bunny, and watches his mother's face. After a while, he begins to crawl, explores his world, and tries to talk.

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He has no conscious awareness of the Lord during infancy. But as the Arcana tells us, [Children] learn many things at first, even useless ones, such as games and the like, not that these things may make them wise, but that the way may be prepared for their acquiring useful things that are matters of wisdom...12

     Throughout childhood, in fact, sensory experience is the only means by which knowledge can enter a person's mind, because the higher levels of his mind are not yet open.13 But as the Heavenly Doctrines clearly state, some of the sensory truths a child learns become the basis for his later rationality and regeneration: the humanity of the Lord; the life of heaven; the literal sense of the Old and New Testaments; the wonder and usefulness of objects in the Lord's universe. When a child learns about these matters of religion and life, a vital link with heaven is formed; and as the Arcana says, the angels then think about Divine things and communicate their affections to the child. This in turn gives him delight and prepares his mind to receive genuine truth and goodness.14

     One of the fundamental responsibilities of New Church teachers, then, is to structure and present sensory knowledge from the Word in such a way that it fosters this vital heavenly communication. To do this, they must also make it the goal in all subject areas. Children of the New Church who have mental and/or physical disabilities can learn from teachers in other schools many useful and interesting things, but little or nothing about the Lord. They can certainly learn about Him from their parents, of course, but much of a child's integrated instruction takes place in school. It is of great value for him to see the Lord in everything he learns. As one Arcana passage says quite plainly, The innocence of childhood is of no use unless by means of concepts it becomes the innocence of wisdom.15

     And in another equally straightforward passage: Little children cannot know a particle of truth until they have been provided with concepts.

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On the other hand, ...the better and more perfectly equipped with concepts they are, the better and more perfectly can intellectual truth...be communicated.16

     We must not underestimate the extreme importance of early and continuous instruction from the literal sense of the Word and the plain statements of the Writings. No child can discriminate between truth and falsity from his own enlightenment. Whatever sight of truth he achieves, whatever useful conclusions he reaches are based on things he has learned from parents and teachers.17" Yet even though what a person learns during childhood does not make him genuinely wise and loving, the Heavenly Doctrines tell us that it does form a plane for the things of the understanding; and the understanding is what receives the truth of faith...., and the truth of faith is what receives the good of charity.18 In other words, the development of a person's rational faculty and the opening of his spiritual mind depend on knowledge he learns about the Lord and the church during childhood and youth.

     A mentally challenged person may not have the higher planes of his mind opened in this world because of something that blocks his deeper understanding of truth. Yet even if the knowledge he gains does not go beyond the sensory plane, it is invaluable to his eternal life, because interior things are implanted in his mind at the same time. Divine Providence describes it this way: All people who are taught by the Lord in the Word are instructed in a few truths while in the world, but in many truths when they become angels. For the interior contents of the Word, which are Divinely spiritual and Divinely celestial, are implanted at the same time, but are not opened in a person until after his death.19

     Every child loves to learn things, especially things about the Lord, and we have seen how vital this early learning is.

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But love of knowledge by itself is not enough.20 As the Arcana tells us, the things we know are spiritual riches, and we possess them in order to render useful service to ourselves, the neighbor, and the country.21 Children, even those with serious challenges, can be guided in using what they know to help each other and to contribute to the life of their home, school, and community.22

The Development of New Church Education

     Educational efforts in the history of the New Church have met with varied success. Some attempts to establish schools have been quite successful, others less so. What we want to examine, however, is why these efforts were made in the first place. What motives have led New Church men and women to try to establish separate schools?

     We begin in England during the educational reform movement of the 1800s. Certain members of the General Conference opened schools during that time period. Of particular interest to us is the motivation of their founders. In his work History of New Church Education Richard Gladish says, To the prevailing sentiment for educating children of the poor, New Churchmen added the concept of education for heaven.23

     Education for heaven was also one of the purposes expressed by some members of the General Convention in the United States during the 1800s. Milo Williams, an educator and scientist, compared a child's mind to a vessel with two compartments, one for affectional things and the other for natural truths. He said that the important purpose of education was to fill the vessels properly, in connection with the literal sense of the Word. Then, when a child's rational mind began to develop, it would have a plane on which its energy could be properly exercised.24

     Williams strongly supported separate New Church schools; and in 1838, Samuel Worcester, chair of the Convention's Committee on Moral and Religious Instruction, declared that children of the New Church must be educated differently from "children of the world."25

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Most of the schools they established were not able to succeed because of concurrent public school reforms.26 But about twenty years later Edmund A. Beaman, in a report to the Convention, also expressed support for New Church schools. He said in his report, Knowledge is useful chiefly as it, like nourishing food, helps to form the mind... [T]he child of the New Church needs a school separate from those of the world, that the means of its mental growth may be, as far as possible, of a New Church quality...It needs a school where the life and sphere of the Church are felt...27

     Although the Convention did not expand their educational efforts, nevertheless, in their elucidation of doctrines relating to the instruction of the human mind, Williams, Worcester and Beaman had made important contributions to the future of New Church education.

     In the late 19th century, in order to train their own priests, proponents of the Academy movement within General Convention established the Academy of the New Church, which rapidly led to the formation of several other schools. These provided education for the young people of the church from the secondary level to theological school. When the General Church of Pennsylvania broke away from Convention to reorganize as the General Church of the Advent, it too adopted education as one of its central purposes, and our present elementary schools had their beginning. The guiding tenet was expressed by W. H. Benade, one of the founders of the movement and its first bishop. He wrote, "...the primary principle of all instruction is that the...very first word...shall have respect to the Lord..."28

     In another important statement he said: If things be taught and learnt as bare sciences, without any leading to what lies beyond them as ends, they will enter the memory indeed but not into the life, and the disposition toward good will not be insinuated into them from the Lord.29

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     By the early 20th century, the General Church of the New Jerusalem had been formed. As we see from the description of the 1915 curriculum of the Bryn Athyn Elementary School, education for the children of New Church parents was no longer a new venture but had become a matter of permanent importance. In the introduction, we find this statement: "It is well known that the prime purpose in the establishment of New Church elementary schools is that distinctive religious instruction may be given to New Church children..."30

     The 1926 curriculum was described in a more comprehensive report, and its statement of purpose was somewhat expanded. Nevertheless, the essential reason for the school's existence remained the same: The primary purpose of the school is the instruction of children of New Church parents in the Word of

God and the faith of the New Church.31

     Since 1926, many people have written about the continuing need for New Church education. I will quote here only the Rt. Rev. Willard D. Pendleton. He wrote two books on education, both of which define and clarify the purposes of education. He describes New Church education as " ...a ladder set upon the earth, ...by which the human mind may ascend to the acknowledgment of the Lord... We regard the educational process, therefore, as a humanizing process."32

     And in another place, he reminds us that it is "...not merely a process for formal instruction. In its more interior implications, it is an effort to direct the thought and affections of the child from self to use."33

     Finally, and of particular importance to our purposes here, Bishop Pendleton provides a comprehensive statement of the objectives in New Church education, which he lists as follows:

     "The first...is to introduce the child into a true idea of God.
     The second...is the formation of a conscience in the understanding.

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     The third...is respect for law and order.
     The fourth...is moral integrity. [This includes honesty and insistence on refraining from things, which ought not to be done.] 34
     The fifth...may be defined as a sense of social responsibility. [This involves things, which ought to be done.]".

Conclusions Emerging from this Background

     Through my investigation into the history of the development of New Church education, I was struck most forcibly by the remarkable consistency of purpose found in the various statements regarding education. Some were more fully delineated than others, and each had its own particular wording, but the essential message was always the same: New Church education exists to lead children to the Lord through a growing awareness of the nature of His Humanity. It exists to introduce children into a heavenly life through obedience to His laws. It exists to help children see the Lord's order and power in everything they learn. And finally, in all of these, it exists to lead through the development of good affections, for nothing is truly learned without them. As the Rev. N. Bruce Rogers said in an address prepared for the 1980 General Assembly, The point of New Church education is to aid parents in minimizing harmful influences and providing beneficial ones. This involves much more than simply instruction in knowledge, though this too is important; it involves the development of attitudes, in acknowledgment of the primacy of love, that the affections may be as good as the knowledges are true.35

     At this point some people may be wondering why no mention has been made of academic standards. The explanation is that the schools of the church were never established for purely academic reasons. Certainly, all students, whatever schools they attend, must be willing to work hard and to submit themselves to the discipline involved in learning.

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Preservation of academic standards helps the majority of New Church students to maintain this commitment to their education. But some children, because of physical or mental challenges, simply are not able to meet ordinary standards in traditional ways. In such cases, the students cannot entirely adapt to fit the schools. If New Church education is to serve these children of New Church parents, the schools must adapt to fit the students. And these adaptations, while they will not always lead to a college degree, should allow all our children to complete elementary school and high school, and attend at least some college courses in preparation for adulthood and for life as angels of heaven.

     It is clear, both from doctrine and from our history, that all children of the New Church deserve our best efforts within our own schools. Our elementary schools and high schools do not exist to compete with local prep schools, which provide only earthly skills. And Bryn Athyn College does not exist to compete with Harvard and Yale, but to provide a unique education based on the spiritual and moral values of the New Church-an education not found in any other college or university. In many cases, our schools do in fact provide an education in academics, sports, and the arts that is competitive with or superior to that generally found elsewhere. This speaks well for the dedication and ability of our teachers, but it is not the reason for the existence of New Church schools. New Church schools exist for the education of all our children in the New Church.

     Admittedly, it takes additional time and effort to adapt our schools and programs to meet the needs of students with special challenges. This can be unsettling, especially when the necessary adaptations may differ from year to year. After all, life is easier if it is comfortable and at least somewhat predictable. But these students need us. New Church schools are alone in their ability to nurture children for both the natural and spiritual worlds.

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We must always be willing to reassess our priorities in order to give these students the extra time and effort they require for their education. And we need the understanding and cooperation of our financial boards and contributors as well, because of the special funding that will be required.

Trends in the Educational World

     When I finally determined to write the original version of this paper (in 1987), one of the areas I wanted to explore was the current thought among educators elsewhere at that time regarding appropriate placement for children with challenges. Setting aside all religious considerations for the moment, did they believe that these children would grow better and more fully if they were included with their peers in their neighborhood schools? Or would they, in fact, learn better in special classrooms and in segregated schools?

     I am delighted to report that during the same period in which my thoughts centered on including children with special challenges, hundreds of leading educators in the United States, Canada, and Europe were also considering this idea. In fact, the preponderance of research during the previous ten years favored inclusion for almost all challenged students. Many integrated programs had been put in place during the 1980s, far too many for me even to begin describing here. But I would like to share with you a few of the forceful statements I read during the course of my research. Douglas Biklen, in his introduction to the book, More Education/Integration, wrote, "...integration is not an experiment or a curricular innovation but is rather a constant aspect of quality schooling...all students have gifts and can contribute to the life of a school and community."36

     In segregated schools and special education classrooms, students with challenges were often taught together with others of the same mental ability but not the same chronological age. But Norman Kunc, also writing in More Education/Integration said of this,

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"If we are to assess a child's Needs, then it is essential to examine all of his needs..." A segregated setting, though it may have an excellent academic program, can fulfill only one quarter of [them]. The child has no hope of learning appropriate social behavior because he is never even given the opportunity to witness age-appropriate behavior.37

     One mother expresses the sight she has come to while working with her own handicapped daughter: "The purpose of schooling for anyone is a preparation for adulthood in the community, a training of people to be able to contribute to society."38

     And finally, a group of physicians and educators from Boston explain why people with special challenges should attend regular schools throughout their education: "The opportunities to experience risks, to make decisions, and to assume responsibility are essential to the development of internal control, self-confidence, and independence." One factor hindering the handicapped adolescent in becoming more independent is the often-observed tendency of parents and society to look upon this individual as an eternal child.39

     I return therefore to my two original questions. Should not all our children be welcomed into our schools? Should not all New Church teachers be willing to develop programs that would help even those with challenges grow up with their friends, in their communities, and with the Lord and His church at the center of their lives?

     Doctrine, the historical purposes of New Church education, and many current educational trends all seem to invite, indeed to urge an affirmative response. All the children of the church are our children. New Church education exists to serve them all. In other words, to Cain's question, Am I my brother's keeper, the answer is, Yes!

     In conclusion, I would like to allow a young woman, mentally challenged by Down Syndrome, to speak for herself.

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She was 21 when she told a Wisconsin legislative subcommittee: "There are a lot of things I can do. I can swim. I can read. I can make friends. I can listen to my records. I can watch television. I can make my own lunch. I can go to see a movie. I can take the bus by myself to Chicago and to work. I can count money. I can sing like a bird. I can brush my teeth. I can do latch hook rugs. I can cook dinner. I can think. I can pray. I can square dance. I can play drums. I know what is right. I know what is wrong.40

     Bibliography

     Beaman, Edmund A. "Report of the Committee on Education," Convention Journal. June 1855.
     Benade, William H. Conversations on Education. Bryn Athyn Pennsylvania: Academy of the New Church Press (1976, reissued from the first edition of 1888-1889).
     Biklen, Douglas. Achieving the Complete School: Strategies for Effective Mainstreaming. New York: Teachers College Press (1985).
     Forest, Marsha. Education/Integration. Downsview, Ontario: National Institute on Mental Retardation (1984).
     Gladish, Richard R. History of New Church Education. Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania: General Church Religion Lessons (1968). More Education/Integration. Marsha Forest, Ed.D. (ed.), Downsview, Ontario: The G. Allan Roeher Institute (1987).
     Pendleton, Willard D. Education for Use. Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania: Academy of the New Church Press (1985). Pendleton, Willard D. Foundations of New Church Education. Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania: Academy Book Room (1957). Pueschel, S. M., C. D. Canning, A. Murphy, E. Zausmer. Down Syndrom: Growing and Learning. Kansas City: Andrews and McNeil, Inc. (1978).
     Rogers, N. Bruce. "Education: The Importance of Affection," New Church Life. September 1981.
     The Six Stages of Down's Syndrome. Ann R. Bisno (ed.), Los Angeles, California: Down's Syndrome Parents Group, Inc. (1983).

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     Tingey, Carol. Down Syndrome: A Resource Handbook. Boston: College-Hill Press (1988).
     Turkington, Carol. "Special Talents," Psychology Today. September 1987.


     1.     Lou Brown, Preparing People with Intellectual Disabilities to Love, Work, and Play in Integrated Environments and Activities, an address to the National Down Syndrome Congress (November 14-15, 1987).
     2.     True Christian Religion 373. See also 403.
     3.     Last Judgment 12:3.
     4.     Life 86.
     5.     Arcana Coelestia 2699:2
     6.     Heaven and Hell 268.
     7.     True Christian Religion 354:3.
     8.     Divine Love and Wisdom 270. See also Coronis 29:2.
     9.     Apocalypse Explained 790:6.
     10.     Apocalypse Explained 790:6.
     11.     Arcana Coelestia 3502:2. See also 1563, 2204, 3512, 6812.
     12.     Arcana Coelestia 3470:2. See Also 1900.
     13.     Arcana Coelestia 1460 and 1893.
     14.     Arcana Coelestia 3665:5. See also 371:2, 1434, 1453:2, 3161:2, 1555:2, 6333:3.
     15.     Arcana Coelestia 1616:5. See also 2292.
     16.     Arcana Coelestia 1901.
     17.     Arcana Coelestia 10225.
     18.     Arcana Coelestia 6750.
     19.     Divine Providence 172:5.
     20.     Arcana Coelestia 6815. See also Divine Providence 96:3.
     21.     Arcana Coelestia 8628:3. See also True Christian Religion 403.
     22.     Charity 129.
     23.     Richard Gladish, History of New Church Education, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania: General Church Religion Lessons (1968), Section 1, p. 50.
     24.     Gladish, Section II, p. 20.
     25.     Op. cit., p. 23.
     26.     Ibid., pp. 38B51.
     27.     Edmund A. Beaman, Report of the Committee on Education, Journal of the Thirty-Seventh General Convention of the New Church in the United States, Boston: Otis Clapp (1855), p. 54.
     28.     William H. Benade, Conversations on Education, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania: Academy of the New Church Press (1976, reissued from 1888-1889), p. 150.
     29.     Ibid., p. 225.
     30.     Curriculum of the Bryn Athyn Elementary School (1915), p.
     31.     Curriculum of the Bryn Athyn Elementary School, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania: Academy of the New Church (1926), p. 9.
     32.     Willard D. Pendleton, Education for Use, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania: Academy of the New Church Press (1985), pp. 158B160.
     33.     Willard D. Pendleton, Foundations of New Church Education, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania: Academy Book Room (1957), p. 109.
     34.     Pendleton, Education for Use, pp. 84B 113.
     35.     N. Bruce Rogers, Education: The Importance of Affection, New Church Life, September 1981, p. 462.
     36.     Douglas Biklen, Introduction, More Education/Integration, Marsha Forest, Ed.D. (ed.), Downsview, Ontario: The G. Allan Roeher Institute (1987), p. i.
     37.     Norman Kunc, Being Realistic Isn't Realistic, More Education/Integration, p. 48.
     38.     Carla Baudot, Rationale for Erica's Integration, More Education/Integration, p. 151.
     39.     Pueschel, S. M., C. D. Canning, A. Murphy, E. Zausmer, Down Syndrome: Growing and Learning, Kansas City: Andrews and McNeil, Inc. (1978), p. 157.
     40.     Carol Turkington, Special Talents, Psychology Today, September 1987, p. 46.

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WHEN PRAYERS GO UNANSWERED 2008

WHEN PRAYERS GO UNANSWERED       E. KENT ROGERS       2008


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     Few people I know complain of a shortage of difficulties and trials in life. Regardless of creed or caste, life hands us plenty enough trouble. But for Christians, among the most grievous of all challenges we face is when God seems silent, distant, unconcerned. Our prayers go unanswered. We may wonder if they are heard at all. We may get pushed to a place where we begin to doubt if God actually loves us, or if God exists. These are among the darkest, loneliest and most distressing times we face as followers of Jesus Christ.

     There are many kinds of prayers; some are relatively petty. We pray for a business venture to succeed, a hassle free flight, or the like. Other prayers stem from the deeper, more altruistic aspects of our being, given to us by God. For example, we may pray for a loved one to be relieved of a terminal illness, addiction, or depression. We may pray for improvement in our marriage. We may pray that God helps us improve ourselves and overcome our own weaknesses. And though we may pray for these things consistently over a long period, sometimes nothing changes or improves. God seems to have forgotten to rain down His presence and love onto us. Our spirit is suffering a period of drought. But it is not that God has moved away from us or stopped loving us. Drought of the spirit is caused by a blindness or inability to sense God. Our minds lack the spiritual lens, the truth; we need to see God (Apocalypse Explained 481).

     What is going on at these times? Why are we left feeling so alone? What purpose is God achieving in our seeming abandonment? Near the end of I Kings, we read a story of a contest to end all contests. We might call it the War of Lords, or the Battle of the Gods. The setting is at the end of a three-year drought. Yahweh Himself has arranged for the contest.

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He tells His prophet Elijah how it is going to go. The worshippers of Baal are to erect an altar to Baal and place a sacrifice on it. Elijah repairs an altar of Yahweh and places a sacrifice on it. Elijah then has a trench dug around the altar and enough water poured onto the sacrifice and altar to fill the whole trench. Whichever God or so-called god is able to bring fire down from heaven and burn the sacrifice, that God shall be proved the true God. Elijah gives the worshippers of Baal a head start. At the crack of dawn, they pray and pray to Baal. They shout and dance themselves into a frenzy in their petitions to Baal. "Oh Baal!" they cry out as loud as they can till the sun goes down. They even go so far as to cut and slash themselves in hope that Baal will honor their self-sacrifice and bring down fire from heaven. But Baal remains silent.

     It is now dusk. It is Elijah's turn. He calls out to Yahweh, God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Immediately Yahweh responds by sending a fire so fierce that the stones are split, the sacrifice is utterly consumed and the water is instantaneously immaterialized. The winner is undeniable: Yahweh.

     When we hear this story, our instinct is to rejoice and think, "Yes, that's my God, the Lord. He always wins." We place ourselves on the victor's team. And in some sense, yes, Yahweh is our God and Yahweh does always win. But not infrequently, we misunderstand the true nature of our God, Yahweh. And it is at these times that life seems so dark and scary.

     The word "Baal" means "lord." Strangely, it is this very word, lord, that is invariably substituted for the Hebrew letters YHWH (Yahweh) in almost all translations of the Bible. In our prayers and conversations, we also use that word, Lord, when we mean our God, YHWH. The word Lord is synonymous with Master and the chief characteristic implied in that word is Power or Powerful. Although all power is inherent within, God's true name, YHWH, does not chiefly, denote power, but Reality or Existence or Being. YHWH means, "Who is Being" or "The I Am" (Arcana Coelestia 7636).

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     At the end of His Sermon on the Mount as well as elsewhere Jesus said, "Not all who call out to Me, 'Lord, Lord' will be received." And anyone who has petitioned God and felt that stony silence in return can testify that at times, this is true. We call out, "Lord, Lord" but our words are not received.

     When the worshippers were dancing around the altar, shouting, and cutting themselves, they were calling out, just as if we do today, "Oh Lord! Hear our prayers!" The only thing that was different was the language they used. We might be tempted to think that our minds and hearts are in a different place than the Baal worshippers, because, after all, we are thinking of YHWH, and not Baal.

     But when we are trying to get God to change reality according to our will, even when our will seems right and good, it is power that we are seeking and power that we are worshipping- as our Lord, Master, or Baal. We make ourselves disciples of Baal, power, when our worship stems from concern for self and the world (Apocalypse Explained 160). Power does describe an aspect-an important aspect-of YHWH. He is omnipotent. But He is so much more. His chief aspect is not power but Love (True Christian Religion 43). This is what He showed us when He took on the form of a human being and walked among us as Jesus Christ. He had a singular message and command-"Love others as I have loved you." His life's story in effect says: "I am totally willing to suffer and die for the sake of loving and helping you."

     The word "Lord" is not the problem. "Throughout heaven [Jesus Christ, Savior of the world] is acknowledged and worshipped as Lord, since He has all power in heaven and on earth" (Arcana Coelestia 14). But when we say or think the word Lord, it is important to think of Jesus Christ and His essential quality and message-love.

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     If Divine Love is YHWH's primary characteristic, Divine Wisdom must be His second (Apocalypse Explained 1124, True Christian Religion 43). God has a plan and the plan is good. God knows what He is doing. If this is not true, than all the love in the world and heaven will not be enough. Only in context of His Divine Love and Divine Wisdom does his Divine Power take its proper position (True Christian Religion 56). His power is to create angels out of mere mortals. His power is to save sinners. His power is to bring joy and love to hearts that are riddled with sorrow and despair, rage and fear. His power is to evolve love within the human heart and within human society. In short, His is the power to save (True Christian Religion 56).

     When something goes terribly wrong in our lives; when something does not go according to plan; when our prayers and petitions fall on deaf ears, it is human to reach the point of anger. "Lord!" we may cry out in utter despair, "You hate me! Lord, You have abandoned me. Lord, You don't exist, do You?" In one sense, in this last idea, we have finally reached the hard-learned truth-that Lord whom we have been petitioning no more exists than does Baal.

     This is not a happy, warm message, but it also is not condemnatory. By putting ourselves in the shoes of the Baal worshippers, I certainly do not mean to evoke guilt or shame. My hope, in fact, is to share a certain peace and relief from that awful feeling of abandonment and separation from God. In the story, the Baal worshippers are slaughtered. Elijah, the good person, then asks God please to give him death because, frankly, he has had enough of life. God sends him up to a mountain to witness a wind so strong it splits apart rocks. YHWH says that He is not in that wind. Next, there is a terrible earthquake, shaking the foundations of the earth. YHWH says that He is not in that earthquake. Next, a fire destroys and consumes everything in its path.

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YHWH says that He is not in that fire.

     Finally, there is a still small voice. This can be translated a delicate whispering voice (New Spirit Filled Life Bible NKJV text notes for I Kings 19:12). In the original language, the word translated 'small' literally means pulverized or crushed. YHWH says that He is that whisper. In the nitty-gritty of our day-to-day lives, love is so tiny, so delicate and fragile. Someone cuts us off, a wave of anger rises and love is forgotten. We face a financial crisis and love is drowned in the sea of worries. Selfish lusts and desires beat and thrash love in the back-alley of our mind Almost everything seems more powerful than love. Even simple boredom and routine have an evaporating effect on love. We see our spouse every day and forget what an amazing human being she is. We see our kids every day and forget how precious they are. Love is so small, so delicate, so fragile and crushable.

     In Jesus, we see this. He did not bring down fire from heaven. He did not call on His legions of angel warriors. He did not speak back to His accusers. He did not even step down from the cross. He was crushed by the hate of humankind However, while love seems so small and so frail, love is in fact, invincible. Love is omnipotent because God is Love. This is the bedrock doctrine and fundamental tenet of Christian faith. It is the true message of Easter.

     So what do we do about these challenges to faith, when life seems cruel and God seems silent? Even in this story, we may wonder how the God of love would have the prophets of Baal slaughtered. Could not a simple conversion ceremony have sufficed? Likewise, we may wonder why a loved one must suffer so terribly with cancer, with alcohol, with depression, with loneliness or something else. This sermon is not going to answer these questions. Rather, this sermon is here to offer a simple, but effective spiritual remedy, which we can employ when we face these times of deep despair.

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     God's plan for us is that we love one another. That is the plan. This sermon is offering that spiritual remedy. What do we do when our loved one is debased by heroin; what do we do when our own body is devastated by debilitating pain; what do we do when God does not answer our pleas for escape from our personal hells? We keep on trying to love, because that is the true God. The God that does not answer us and does not give us what we want-that is Baal. It is good to get so frustrated with this false god that we give up on that lord. When we do, it is as if the prophets and worshippers of Baal that are living inside of us are made no more. They are slaughtered. It is important to note that YHWH did not order the slaughter of the prophets of Baal. Elijah himself ordered that. However, our true God, YHWH, bends human mistakes into healing for others (Divine Providence 281, 240). This story helps to heal us and bring us into states of love. We are happier. We make others happier.

     No matter what is happening or not happening in our lives, our goal is to love. Our peace is in loving. Our freedom is in loving. Our eventual happiness is in doing the exercises of love. When we seek to use God as a means to power, we are going to be enslaved by the false god of power, Baal. Seeking power makes us slaves. God's name is YHWH; we might say life or reality or even as is. Often, we do not like this God. Life is not often easy. Reality is not usually as comfortable as a stiff drink, or an hour drone into the TV, or a plunge into fantasy. Often we want power to change reality more than we want to love reality. But God is the Author of reality as it is. It is the best possible plan for us. It is the ever-unfolding flower of pure love. Although this is easy to say, it is almost impossible to feel at times.

     Even the good person, Elijah, longed for death. He did not like reality as it was. Even Elijah was forgetting that God is not big power, but frail, fragile love. No matter what reality is dishing out, our job is singular, same and simple, to love in each moment, the best we can.

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That is what it means to be a follower of Christ. That is what it means to be a Christian. This idea is not grand or even that appealing. But it does refocus our mind onto the real God, and His real message to us-love others. And in those very dark times when God seems absent or even cruel, it is comforting to realize that we have been petitioning the wrong lord without even knowing it. In those dark times, usually we will realize that we have not been seeking first and foremost to love others, but rather we have been seeking God to do something to suit our will and personal idea of what should happen in life.

     Now let us look at the bad people in the story-Ahab and Jezebel. This pair is said to be the worst of all Israelite history. In Kings, Ahab was spurred on by his wife Jezebel. I was dumbfounded to find out what their names mean. Ahab means, Friend of the Father. And Jezebel means Chaste. These two joined together in unholy matrimony bred the most rampant and flagrant worshipping of Baal that Israel had ever seen or would see. And it is so squeamishly true in our lives too. "God, Father! I am Your friend! From my youth I have loved You and served You! I am chaste! Please, 0 Lord, answer my prayers. Fulfill my petitions!" And the unspoken subtext is "I am good! I am deserving. Give me Your power to wield." Our rational has been wed to our selfish desires and in this state we misperceive ourselves as good when of course God alone is good (Apocalypse Explained 1146, 160). From a self-righteous state of mind, we are praying to power, to Master to Baal. And mercifully, YHWH does not respond to prayers offered up to that name.

     He allows us to cut ourselves in service to this Baal until we despair of that false "Lord" We stop crying out, "Lord, Lord!" and start remembering our real duty-to keep loving in the moment, no matter what reality happens to look like.

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It is no easy task, but it is the only task. And there is something comforting in having a focused goal. The false prophets are killed. The rain finally falls from the heavens. We hear the fragile little voice, "love one another."

     In this, we see one aspect of meaning in the idea that YHWH is the "Father" of Jesus the "Son." Reality, or Life as it is, brings about states of Love in our heart. The Father in the Old Testament is a scary, terrifying depiction of God. But from that comes Jesus, a most humble, beautiful depiction of endless, tireless love. Life as it is, is often terrifying and lonely. But after wrestling with it long enough and frequently enough, God begins to plant that holy seed, Love into the human heart. We begin to see that all of our jockeying for position and power, all of our effort to gain material security, all of our attempts to strong arm God into doing things our way, are simply pointless. In the final count, the only thing that matters is loving the people God brings into our lives.

     We can see this "Father-Son" relationship. But we can take it deeper as well. After that seed of Love is planted in our hearts and minds, we come to see that YHWH's reality is in fact pure love. It is what produced love in our heart. So in one sense, Love is the essence of the Father, and the Son is the ability to see that love in life around us. The Son is the Truth or ability to perceive reality accurately (Arcana Coelestia 7499). And it is not a very difficult leap to see that in essence both the Son and Father are therefore one--Love. As Jesus said of Himself, I and the Father are One (John 10:30). Jesus called Himself the I AM (John 8:58). We can say it this way: The Truth in Life is Love.

     It does not matter if our spouse is kind or cold. Our job is to love. It does not matter if the trip we have planned for months was ruined by rain. Our job is still to love. And in the loving, we begin to feel a certain peace and joy. The ups and downs of reality no longer matter all that much because they are inconsequential to our job.

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We begin, as it were, to ascend above the earth in a chariot of fire. The fire is God's love made real in practice, and the chariot are the ideas derived from that love and practice which sustain us and allow us to feel God with us. We just keep being lifted up on the simple, singular, same and soft task of loving others to the best of our ability in each moment, as it is, in the name of our true and visible God, Jesus Christ. We are not good. We are not chaste. We are not friend of the Father. We are just lucky to be given the chance to try to love. And that is the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. It is His chariot.
LAYING DOWN YOUR LIFE. 2008

LAYING DOWN YOUR LIFE.       Editor       2008


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     Memorial Days abound round the world. Monuments and memorial observances move us to tears as we recall the sacrifices of those in uniform who risk death and injury for the sake of their country. Many recall their own experiences, and how close they came to paying the ultimate price, making the ultimate sacrifice. The reason we are moved, is that it is the greatest love: "Jesus said, Greater love bath no one than this that one lay down his soul for his friends" (John 15:13). "Who does not remember and love the man who, from the zeal of love for his country, fights with her enemies even unto death that he may thereby deliver her from the yoke of servitude?" (True Christian Religion 710).

     This means that the love of serving in the military has nobility, because it is a likeness of the Lord's love, when He said, "I lay down My life for My sheep...I lay down My life that I may take it again" (John 10:15, 17). Not only do these words recall the Lord's Passion of the Cross (True Christian Religion 709:3) but also remind us of the doctrine involved in the Passion: namely that the Lord "by His own power united His Divine Essence to His Human Essence through temptations" (Arcana Coelestia 3381, cf 1663, 1668, 1690 passim). "The Divine led the Human into the most grievous temptations, even to the utmost of power" (Arcana Coelestia 2816).

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It sounds strange that the Divine actually let the Human into temptations. However, just before the temptations began, the Lord came into another consciousness, namely of the Human that was being led; and then the awareness of the Lord changed: "The truth is that the Lord admitted temptations into Himself in order that He might expel thence all that was merely human, and this until nothing but the Divine remained" (ibid.)

     The Lord's admission of temptations into Himself was from His own free choice. For "He fought from His own freedom and finally laid down His soul that He might do all things from His own power, and thus might become righteousness from Himself, which He could not have become except from His freedom." That is why He said, "I lay down My soul of Myself; I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." The Divine guiding the Human in this process, yet the Human admitting temptations in "freedom" are meant by the end of the quote: "This commandment I have received from My Father." (Apocalypse Explained 900:3)

     Imagine that: the Lord prepared His own human for the battles, and this all through His life, in "His own freedom"! All the while, He prepared the battles to reach the "utmost of power" on each occasion, and this until "nothing but the Divine remained." He could do this preparation for battle because He "from His own power governed [ex propria potentia gubernaverit] in the state of temptations, that is, overcame the hells which...were continually ...pouring [falsities and evils] into mankind" (Arcana Coelestia 5045).

     That is why the Lord suffered such pain. It was because of our sins, accumulated through the ages and passed on from generation to generation, that the hells could pour such a stream of falsities and evils into the human race, and thus into the heredity of the Lord.

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These the Lord took on by Himself. Yet it was "not His Divine that suffered, but ... His Human." After the suffering, "a most inward and complete union took place" (True Christian Religion 126:2)..All of this is involved in "laying down My life."

     So also, we fight in our temptations from "freedom" without which "we could not become spiritual." The main-spring from which we fight, is "the love of truth, and ... the love of eternal life." There is no other way for our internal to be "opened and regenerated" (Apocalypse Explained 900:3). The equivalent victory and union for us humans in our regeneration comes when we remember the temptation as just a vague distress, when in fact it was most painful. This is meant by the Lord "wiping away our tears" (ibid.).

     There is no other reason for wars, than our hereditary evils accumulating from generation to generation. The only hope to end all war lies in a plurality of human beings entering into spiritual temptations, and overcoming them in the Lord's name. The individual conquest over evil would in that case remove the cause for war so that it would never arise!

     However, we know this is not yet the case. Instead, "men's life's love has become such that it wills to rule over others, and finally over all; and also to possess the wealth of the world, and finally all wealth" (Divine Providence 251). Such evils accumulate unseen, but by their very nature cannot remain hidden forever. Such a love to rule over all, or to possess all wealth, lies completely concealed in every person's heart in this world, but springs up whenever opportunity to expand one's ego is given (Heavenly Doctrine 71, 77, 152). We may growl in anger at this message, and say, No way! I don't have that desire lurking in me! However, if we react with that much anger, it only proves the point! Our anger is riled at being discovered, and is to blame. Therefore, we are asked to look deeply inside ourselves:

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"These two loves" which can never be quelled by any external control, are like violent prisoners finding every possible rout to escape. They inevitably boasts of their presence. Thus, when evils have risen to the point of threatening destruction on everything, then they are uncovered so that people can see them and freely resist them. They are in Providence allowed to "break out" so that we can "see and acknowledge them" (Divine Providence 251). Enough people have searched out these hidden desires in themselves, and so they have known them when they come out into the open. Something has to be done.

     Now, if the Lord just cast out such evil loves apart from each person voluntarily shunning it as a sin against Him, "there would be no life left to man" (Divine Providence 177). And if instead they were to be repressed by the Lord's hand of Providence, that is to say, prevented by the Lord's own hand from expression, then those evil loves would turn on the person and "like cancer or gangrene, they would spread and consume everything vital in man" (Divine Providence 251). The human soul would be consumed. It is similar to profanation, when evil and good being joined together, are then ripped apart. There would hardly be anything left. Wars by comparison are lesser evils. The Lord's mercy therefore does not remove evils in a moment, nor does it in Providence "repress the evils" since in either case this would destroy the human being. Instead the "means" of His mercy is human cooperation in spiritual things. We have to volunteer for that fight against the evils which the Lord allows to emerge into the open, visible especially in war.

     Granted then that war prevents worse fates, and granted that evil cannot for long conceal itself, it is inevitable that evils emerge into view. It is almost the "daily news." When aggressors invade-a subtle issue in our modern international day and age-the Lord moves defenders' goods to marshal their forces to restore the balance within the borders of each nation involved.

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Repentance is then also possible. The aggressors are free to change their minds. The lost sheep is returned. "He rejoices more over that lost sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray" (Matthew 18:13).

     It must always be kept in mind that there is a love of "dominion" which is actually motivated by care for others. It is called "the love of dominion from love to the neighbor." Such a person wishes good to all, and likes nothing better "than performing uses, or being of service to the public and to individuals" (True Christian Religion 400, 405). His desire for more power is only to perform greater services than otherwise possible. Clearly, someone like this would never invade another nation! They would instead send their army to "counter-attack" the aggressor, to restore the balance of human freedom.

     Since human beings are the ultimate cause for war, since everyone who is not regenerated passes on more hereditary tendencies to domineer over others and steal their riches, they also have to breach the gap of their making, and join together to put an end to any war as well. That is why, once "war has begun," if the best defense proves to be "aggression," then the victim of war "becomes the aggressor"! (Charity 164) The invaded or wronged nations counter-attack. Examples such as D-Day come to mind, where the hand of Providence seemed to be at play even with the weather. What appeared as a "narrow window to launch" north of the Channel, appeared as a "impassable stormy wall" to its south.

     The soldier in self-defense turned counter-attack, then becomes like a lion in battle, but as a "lamb" afterwards when he rejoices in the "deliverance of his country and his people from the invasion of any enemy" (Charity 164). He then treats prisoners-of-war as neighbors to be corrected (Charity 166). Those in uniform then have "the glory of the use" of being in the military, with commanders having also the "glory of the honor" of being in command. (Charity 165)

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     We approach Memorial Day here in the USA. ANZAC Day is celebrated on April 25 in Australia and New Zealand. There is a national observance held on November 11 in Great Britain, Canada and many English-speaking nations; and so also elsewhere. Everyone from love of country knows it is noble to serve one's country, to defend it. The love of country, like a rung in the ladder of loves moving up from self- and family-preservation to the Lord at the top (Heavenly Doctrine 91), is instilled by remains from the Lord and bred into everyone. The Church, the Lord's Kingdom and the Lord Himself are indeed to be loved more than one's country, placing "eternal life" and "truth" above all things. For each person's freedom is involved in "becoming spiritual" since all "freedom is of love," namely the "love of truth and the love of eternal life" (Apocalypse Explained 900:3). These loves stem from the Lord's own love to "lay down His life for His sheep." They are the "greater" loves that fight in temptations, and that are willing to don a uniform. It is such loves that we salute. "If the country is threatened with ruin from an enemy or any other source, it is noble to die for it, and glorious for a soldier to shed his blood for it. This is said because so great should be one's love for it" (True Christian Religion 414).

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Church News 2008

Church News       Editor       2008


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     HURSTVILLE SOCIETY SYDNEY AUSTRALIA

     The Hurstville Sociey has no Pastor at present, but receives visits from ministers both from the United States and from Australian colleagues. The Rev. Trevor Moffat has visited and held services. Rev Alain Nicolier was there for over three months, December, 2007 to February, 2008 and now Bishop Brian Keith has made an Episcopal visit.

     [Photograph of Brian and Gretchen Keith.]

     Brian and Gretchen arrived for their first visit to Hurstville Society just as the Memorial Service for Tom Taylor was conducted by the Rev. Julian Duckworth from the Roseville New Church. On Good Friday March 21st, the Bishop administered the Holy Supper and gave an address on "The Lord Bearing Our Sins," providing an understanding of the Easter Story. Sunday's Easter service was on the subject of Peace, summing up the Lord's work on this earth. After church all joined together for a delicious luncheon to formally thank and say farewell to Brian and Gretchen.

     [Photograph of group from camp.]

     The Annual camp which combines all the New Church congregations in Australasia, i.e. Australia and New Zealand, is a happy gathering with ministers giving instruction, lots of fun and outings and happy entertainment. Here Rev Chris and Margaret Skinner, Brian O'Neill, Rev. Alain and Jeanne Nicolier, Rev. David Millar, Rev. David and Pam Moffat, Rev. Julian and Ruth Duckworth.

     Alain and Jeanne Nicolier arrived December 2nd, and stayed until February 17th, visiting the Gold Coast New Church members and meeting Rev. Ian Arnold who is Pastor there. Alain also led in the Journey program for the Hurstville Society, also run by Michael Lockhart and Michelle Heldon.

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     [Photograph of students in Sydney harbor with bridge in background.]

     The Hurstville Society were hosts to the visit from the Ngalangangpum Aboriginal School, last November, 2007. It was a "Bush to Big Smoke" visit, arriving from Western Australia were twelve aboriginal boys and six girls camped at the Church and a neighbor's home for two weeks. They performed "the smoke ceremony" and sang songs like "One People One Land" written by the renowned Australian Christian composer Monica Brown. The visit owed its thanks to Leanne Mahy, a close neighbor to the Society, who teaches at this school in Western Australia.

     [Photograph of Margaret Heldon.]

     Margaret Heldon and Imran Paddy with the painting by Patrick Mung Mung
WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG 2008

WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG              2008


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     An on-line family magazine from the G. C.

     Office of Education featuring materials for all

     ages focused on a new theme every month.

     The Lord Protect Us in May 2008

     The Holy City in June 2008

     Healing Our Blindness in July 2008

     Keeping the Sabbath in August 2008

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Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified              2008


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     [Photographs of Tom and Shirley Taylor, and Trevor and Audrey Favell.]

     Many will remember Tom Taylor, who passed away recently. Tom was the last surviving pupil of the Hurstville Society "New Church School" held up to the beginning of World War I. He and Shirley celebrated their 62nd anniversary, and have been life-long supporters of the Hurstville Society functions. The society also bade farewell to Trevor and Audrey Favell, who joined the Hurstville Society after seeing the bumper sticker of Rev. Douglas Taylor: "Have you read Swedenborg?"

     [Photograph of Doreen Keal.]

     Both Hurstville Society and the New Church at Ellerslie in Auckland, New Zealand, mourn the passing of Doreen Keal. Doreen with husband Hugh Keal were part of the Hurstville Society from 1961 to 1982, supporting its many uses under three or four pastors. Doreen was organist and headed many organizations ventures. Their family is not only in Auckland but also in the Bryn Athyn and Kempton areas!

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WHAT GORANDMAN WINDOWS CAN DO 2008

WHAT GORANDMAN WINDOWS CAN DO       JAN H. WEISS       2008


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     Announcements




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     GorandMan Search for Windows has the Bible and the Writings of the Second Coming This text is not always easy to read, and understand. In our old age we may not be able to see the very letters well. GorandMan Windows can help to make the Divine Word more visible and understandable.

     Ministers and lay people need help. Getting into the 30 volumes of the Writings and to the internal sense of passages in the Bible is undertaken by very few.

     With the GorandMan Program this is all very different. With the Query Window of the program we can find words and passages. All you need to do is manipulate a few keys on a key board, and you can bring before your eyes any part of the Divine Word. If you want to know the internal sense of a verse in the Bible, it only takes the click of the mouse.

     The program can put the "shadow file" on top of the original text, and in this shadow file we can make many changes. We can bring in colors, and we can bring in notes anywhere in the text. We can delete or change part of the text. We can change, enlarge and bold the fonts. This shadow file can be saved and transferred to other users of the GorandMan Program anywhere in the world, either on disk or over Internet. So if a minister did a study once, anyone can have it any time in the future. Many things we can with the program that we can learn from a Manual in the web site of New Church Outreach in the section on computers. To place an order, send a check for $25 U.S. to: New Church Outreach

     POB 342 Placentia, CA 92871 Please include your: Name and mailing address. My email address is [email protected] and my web site address http://secondadvent.net.

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Notes on This Issue Editor 2008

Notes on This Issue Editor              2008


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     The sermon this month comes from our friend in Brazil, the Rev. Cristovao R. Nobre, on Wings For the New Church. Is there a way we too may fly? There are forces at work we can identify, counteract and then-fly!

     We honor Charles S. Cole who passed into the spiritual world. Find his picture on page 223.

     We have considered prayer before. The main article by Mr. Jeremy K. Finkeldey is an unusual and refreshing comparison between Buddhist and New Church practices regarding prayer. Buddhism as a religion began with Siddhartha Gautama's finding enlightenment in the 6th century B.C. Himself a Hindu,. Siddhartha founded Buddhism by demonstrating an inner path to Dharmakaya, also known as Nirvana, unveiling states of mind and a ground which is also fully lit by the Writings.

     We also pay tribute to Dr. Oz in a timely observance by Rev. Donald L. Rose.

     Mrs. Dawn Barnitz Potts reflects on June the Nineteenth, wondering what is involved with a spiritual event we know and cherish so well, and which occurs on an actual date given to us in the Heavenly Doctrine.

     The Editor apologizes for the error in the May issue in the article by Mrs. Kirsten Rogers, NEW CHURCH EDUCATION FOR PEOPLE WITH SPECIAL CHALLENGES, where "abnormal" was used instead of "normal" (p. 176). We regret the error which mars the meaning of a most enlightening view of the need for all children to be afforded equal educational opportunities. Please find Kit Roger's own clarification of how the misprinted paragraph should be read, on p. 247.

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WINGS FOR THE NEW CHURCH 2008

WINGS FOR THE NEW CHURCH       Rev. CRISTOVAO R. NOBRE       2008


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"And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent" (Revelation 12:14).

     The woman was to make use of the wings in order to raise herself into the air and receive protection from the serpent. It seems to be an obvious statement, since such is the function of wings. But let us look into the internal sense and we will see that the subject is how the Church is to receive intelligence by means of the truths of faith, which are represented by wings. Then we can conclude that sometimes we tend to ignore this use of wings. Sometimes we forget that truths are to be applied to a use if we want them to provide our elevation to a heavenly degree of life.

     Throughout all the Word, the Church of the Lord is represented by a woman. She is mentioned in different ways according to her state, but especially as a bride and a wife. In this part of the book of Revelation, the woman represents the Church that is to exist henceforth. She is specifically called the New Church, that spiritual institution which was seen by John, also in form of a city called the New Jerusalem. It is the true Christian religion that the Lord is establishing in the hearts of those who "keep His covenant, and to those that remember His commandments to do them" (Psalm 103:18).

     The woman was seen clothed with the Sun because she abides in the love to her Master and Lord, the Sun of the heavens. Loving the Lord is to acknowledge Him and keep His precepts (see Apocalypse Revealed 533). The moon under the woman's feet signifies the faith of this Church being applied to the natural facts and experiences of life.

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The stars above her head are the intelligence and wisdom that proceed from the Word and that will exist in the Church (see Apocalypse Revealed 534). She was pregnant and "cried out in travail, and was in torment to bring forth". This represents the difficulty we have receiving these spiritual teachings in our daily lives, since we have to give up our own bad motives and wrong concepts.

     Besides the pain and suffering felt by the woman, the most obvious negative factor present in John's vision was the serpent or dragon standing just in front of her, ready to devour the child after He was born. Such a dragon signifies the falsities of those who err about a God in three persons, and about a faith separated from charity. These concepts are against the truths of the New Church and are constantly attacking them (see Apocalypse Revealed 537). Therefore, owing to such a danger, the woman received two wings of a great eagle so that she could fly to the desert and be safe from the dragon's attack. It is more than obvious that if she were to remain at that place, the dragon would succeed in devouring the child immediately.

     John's vision was a prophecy, as we are taught, about the persecution which comes to all those who embrace the Heavenly Doctrines for the New Church. Many of us have already experienced open attacks on these chief points of our belief: 1) The Lord Jesus Christ is the only God; 2) Salvation is a matter of conjoining our belief with a life of shunning evils; 3) Heaven is inhabited by angels who began as men and women on this earth; 4) Spirits are people who have just died, and are present with man; 5) Marriage is between one husband and one wife, and is to endure forever if they are regenerated together. Sometimes these attacks are by means of contempt and mockery, sometimes by means of hatred and offensive aggression. Often we are called heretics, and such an accusation causes real pain in our hearts. However, what else are we to expect from a serpent of hatred?

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Still, the Lord is our defense against such dangers and attacks, and He promptly provides the means of protecting His beloved Church.

     Sometimes He defends us by providing a sword for us to fight, or sometimes by providing a relief, an escape, as in the case of our text. Two wings of a great eagle were the means of escape for the woman, for the combat against the dragon would be waged and won by one of the Lord's societies of angels, called Michael.

     Wings are mentioned in many passages in the letter of the Word. They represent the truths of faith (Arcana Coelestia 8764) and the power that the truths have to elevate the understanding, just as wings elevate birds to the sky. Wings are like arms for birds; therefore, they represent power, just as arms do. It is due to the power of the truths that the angels were seen as having wings, and in the Word they are called cherubim and seraphim (although angels are men and women and actually do not have any wings).

     Like powerful and wide wings of a great eagle, the truths of faith elevate the understanding of a faithful person of the Church into higher dimensions of spiritual life. Whenever we learn truths, our understanding is being furnished with wings, as it were, making us able to mount up and reach the heavenly light in which the angels are. In its due progression, the truths will cause the understanding to see things from a higher perspective, viewing the cause behind the effects, and the ends of things. The ability of seeing things from a higher point of view in a clear light, is called perception, which is represented by an eagle in the letter of Word.

     Wings by themselves cannot give a bird the ability to fly, as even a child knows, since many birds have wings and cannot fly. It is the same as stating the simple fact that having the truths of faith in the understanding does not assure salvation.

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The truths of faith must be employed with effort and zeal on the natural level of our lives in order to provide spiritual elevation; otherwise, they cannot protect us from the evils and falsities represented by the dragon. The woman was given a pair of wings, but it was up to her to spread them for flight with sufficient vigor and disposition in order to elevate herself to the skies and be liberated. Only taking flight could endow her with freedom and security. "They that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary..." (Isa. 40:31). "To mount up" or "to fly" in the Word represents the elevation of the understanding and perception, that is, a clear vision which is provided by truths (see Apocalypse Revealed 561, Apocalypse Explained 281, 282).

     Flying is an interesting phenomenon that appears to be simple, but in reality is quite complex. In order to fly, a combination of various elements is necessary: the right weight of the body, the span of the wings, the action of flapping, and so on. Scientists discovered long ago that four forces act on a flying body. Some say that these four forces must be in balance so that the body may climb and stay in the air, but it really seems that two of these forces must be stronger than the other two.

     The first acting force, called gravity, causes a body that has mass to have weight and consequently to be attracted to the ground. In the spiritual world, this force exists powerfully as well; it is the tendency of every human being to sink into worldly things, into selfish feelings and attitudes, consequently into the hells that are below. Evils and sins are really powerful forces that drag our souls downward to the hells. In the spiritual world, hereditary evils, as well as the evils that are added by our own acts and intentions, are the measure of our weight. As a result, this weight determines the intensity of the spiritual gravity upon us. We read in the Writings:

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Both falsity and evil are heavy, consequently both sink down; but still it is evil which makes heaviness in the spiritual sense, and thus sinks down just as from a weight; but not falsity by itself except from the evil which is in it; for from itself falsity has no weight; but from evil it has its tendency to sink (Arcana Coelestia 8298).

     In another place:

The interiors of man together with his sensuous things are lifted upward by the Lord when the man is in the good of faith and of charity; but if he is in evil and falsity, then his interiors together with his sensuous things look downward, thus only to the things that are in the world, whereby he puts off the human nature, and puts on the bestial; for wild beasts look downward, or only to those things which are on the earth. He who looks downward, wills what is evil and thinks what is false, but he who is lifted upward by the Lord, wills what is good and thinks what is true; the uplifting by the Lord takes place actually, and from this a removal from evils and falsities (Arcana Coelestia 6592).

     That is gravity. Now in order for flight to succeed, a second force is necessary that must overcome that of gravity. It is usually called lift, and it is provided mainly by the wings. Due to their shape and the action on the air flowing over their surface, wings generate a sustained lift of the body, thus overcoming gravity and making flight possible. The Writings explain also this second force:

The evil which is in man continually reacts against the good which is from the Lord.

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Evil from what is hereditary and from what is actual, adheres to man in each of his thoughts, nay, in the least things of his thoughts. This drags him downward while the Lord, by means of the good, which he instills withholds him, and uplifts him, so that the man is held suspended between evil and good. The consequence of this downward tendency is that if even for the least moment the man were not withheld from evils, he would of himself rush downward (Arcana Coelestia 2410).

     The third force that operates on a flying body is called drag, a kind of resistance to advance. It drags you backwards, owing to the body's weight. This resistance is due to inertia, and everybody needs to overcome inertia in order to move forward from his place. Such a resistance or inertia also exists in the spiritual world. It is a kind of sphere of lethargy, which carries away everyone's belief, leaving them with illusions about God, regeneration and the means of salvation (see True Christian Religion 619:1-3). Such is the influence that comes from the dogma of the Christian Church. We feel this lethargy acting on our disposition every time we decide to move a step forward in our regeneration. That is the reason why it is easier to be useless than useful, to be lazy than engaged in work, to remain still than to move forward in the path of regeneration.

     In order to overcome this third force, or drag, we must employ the fourth force, which is impulsion or traction. With the birds, such a force is provided by their flapping their wings, making a movement in the air like rowing. This action impels the body forward enough to compensate and overcome inertia. In an aircraft, this force is provided by the propeller or jet thrust.

     Without propulsion or traction, a bird would not go anywhere, but would fall down, because no traction means no lift, either. Without a significant effort to progress in our regeneration, lethargy or idleness will cause us to sink down in selfish and worldly things.

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When a bird is not flapping its wings in the air, it is not really flying, but just gliding, that is, it is constantly descending. Gliding is not like flying but is just a way of surrendering slowly to gravity. Eventually, the ground will be your destiny! For the same reason, when we stop using the power of truths in order to fight against evils, thus to elevate ourselves above the love of self and love of the world, we cannot remain on the same level of spiritual life. We start to sink down instead.

     In order for us to be elevated to a higher level of intelligence, we need to employ truths with courage and effort, obeying what they say, which, in short, is shunning evils as sins. Every progress and elevation on a spiritual level requires effort, constancy and vigor. Otherwise, one is subdued by those two contrary forces, from hell and from oneself.

     In order for us to succumb to the forces of hell dragging us down, all we have to do is-nothing! It is enough just to stop fighting against the evils of our old will. By contrast, in order for us to gain lift and sustain it, a real effort, a determined reaction against lethargy and selfish attractions, is absolutely necessary. The life of heaven is a life of effort and activity:

     The delight from good and the pleasantness from truth which cause blessedness in heaven, do not consist in idleness, but in activity; for in idleness delight and pleasantness become undelight and unpleasantness; but in activity delight and pleasantness are permanent and constantly uplift, and cause blessedness (Arcana Coelestia 6410). Eternal rest is not idleness, for from idleness come languor, torpidity, stupor and drowsiness of the mind and so of the whole body. These are death not life, still less the eternal life in which are the angels of heaven. Eternal rest, therefore, is a rest which dispels them, and makes a man live.

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Such rest can be nothing else than something which elevates the mind, and therefore some study and work whereby the mind is aroused, vivified and delighted, being thus affected according to the use from which, in which, and for which the work is done. (Conjugial Love 207).

     The birds were created with wings, but the effort of using them to fly is what birds have to do as of self, on their own. The Lord, by means of the Scriptures and the Doctrines, gives the truths, but the effort to use the power of these truths in order to resist evil is the effort that we must make as of ourselves.

     From our innate nature, we are heavy and dull. We are prone to live more on the dust of the ground than in the heights of skies. It is just natural. We love to live bound to the things of the senses. However, the Lord has created us to reach for the sky. The rational ability He gave us is our spiritual ability to fly. It is important that we learn to use the power of truths of the Church to modify our lives, by desisting from evils because they are sins. We cannot neglect learning truths; even less can we neglect to follow and obey the truths we already know, and to follow them with due care and diligence. For this is the only way we have to reach the real purpose of our creation. We are to maintain our level of spiritual life, not just be gliding down from a higher point to where we have been in the past. We were created to be flying high and far towards our destination, above the motives of a selfish and worldly life. The continuous exercise of truths to resist evils will make us fly high and far afield towards the purpose of the Lord's love.

     The woman received a pair of wings to fly to a place where she would be preserved, out of the reach of the dragon, until the certain time mentioned in our lesson. Both time, times and half a time, and twelve hundred and sixty days mean that the New Church will at first be among few.

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During this time, the Church will be as in a desert, isolated, protected, until the falsities and evils of the former Christian Church are judged. Then the New Church will spread to "its appointed state" and will be with a large number of people (see Apocalypse Revealed 547). The falsities of the former Christian belief must be removed before the New Church grows up.

     Those who have heard the Lord's invitation and have already come to embrace the New Church truths ought to make use of its teachings in order to elevate themselves above their former lives. But this elevation depends on their will, their effort, on their own or as of themselves. As they learn to fly, they will gain courage and confidence in the Lord, until the time comes when there will be no more danger of an attack from the serpent below. For "...they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint" (Isaiah 40:31). Amen.

Lessons: Isaiah 40; Revelation 12; Divine Providence 20

     The Rev. Cristovao R. Nobre was inaugurated into the priesthood at Bryn Athyn Cathedral together with several other young men, in June 1984 and ordained into the second degree in Brazil in August 1985. Cristovao found the New Church through a book by van Dusen, and eventually contacted the Rev. Andy Heilman then resident Pastor to the Society in Rio, Brazil. He heard the first New Church sermon by the Rev. Figueredo, and was baptized after more reading and study. He began serving first as Minister of the Rio de Janeiro Society in Brazil in 1984, then as its Pastor in 1985. He and his family traveled to Church services first in Rio and then Campo Gorande every Sunday, visiting the isolated, and working on translation from the Latin into Portuguese. After a well loved service of 20 years, he retired in 2004, continuing as a part-time Translator of the General Church. Cristovao lives with his wife Cleia (de Souza) in Alcobaca Brazil, but they are also seen in Bryn Athyn or Colchester.

[Photograph of Rev. Cristovao Nobre.]

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RESURRECTION ADDRESS FOR CHARLES S. COLE 2008

RESURRECTION ADDRESS FOR CHARLES S. COLE       Rev. ROBERT S. JUNGE       2008


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     [Photograph of Professor Charles Cole.]

     Professor Charles S. Cole was so very active in the field of New Church Education, as a Teacher at the Academy of the New Church schools, and as Dean of the College. He was also President and Chairman of the Swedenborg Scientific Association which publishes the New Philosophy. His support for students attending the British Academy Summer Schools is legendary. He and his wife Karen have been welcome in numerous places round the world at Church occasions. Charles S. Cole passed away on May 18th 2008, aged 92.

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     EXTRACTS FROM THE ADDRESS

     Love is the life of man. Together with wisdom, love makes the human form, an image and likeness of the Lord Himself. Today we think of a man who loves his family, the Academy, the Church, and particularly his wife. We speak in the present and say that he loves, for we know that our loves never die. A good man's loves are joined together under one ruling love, his love for the Lord His God. Only the Lord can know the ruling love in a man's heart. However, we can observe what a man stands for, and we can honor, respect, and love those things.

     As a young man even before he was married, Charles S. Cole had the opportunity to observe regular family worship. Carefully preparing and providing family worship became one of the early and lasting causes in his life. The home must express its devotion to the Lord as the source of all its genuine usefulness and happiness.

     Serving the war effort as a young engineer, led the couple to make their home in Pittsburgh and Washington. Their permanent home became Bryn Athyn, but they never forgot their experiences and the uses of the outlying societies of the church. There is a sense of community and fond friendship wherever we share the Lord's gifts with others. Those who love the Church sense this community of spirit wherever their uses take them. That common bond of love for the Lord and His Word draws them together as one in the human form.

     The rest of Charlie's professional career was dedicated to New Church Education at the Academy. He was dedicated because teaching became an integral part of his life. Inspiring each individual student became a priority, even a passion. How often he lost a sense of time in preparing a lesson, or trying to help an individual student discover the answer. His students were an opportunity from the Lord to build upon the innocent remains so vital to our homes, and at the heart of New Church education.

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     One of the first challenges at the Academy was to teach anatomy and physiology in the light of the Word. Later the challenge came to teach philosophy, again to illustrate and confirm the Heavenly Doctrine, but now to confirm it in many other fields, beyond chemistry and anatomy.

     In the classroom, in school administration, and in all the life on the campus, the vision is to bring the spiritual to bear upon the natural. The understanding of the Lord's Word must become a blessing in the midst. That was the vision Charlie tried to bring to the College when he became its Dean. Each subject in its own way should be woven together with the others into a fabric to testify to the truth of the Lord's Word, indeed to testify to the Lord Himself The variety of creation is from the Lord. The challenge is to explore and support those hopes and dreams; but let them blossom in freedom as if from themselves. Many individuals, many societies such as Kempton, or uses such as the British Academy, testify to the importance of such support.

     When we come together to celebrate the entrance into eternal life of one we know and love, we have deep gratitude for the uses they have performed. As their love has reached out and inspired us, we reciprocate and love them in return. Love is reciprocal, but it is also conjunction. It is our hope and our earnest prayer that we will once again be conjoined to those we love who have gone before us to the other world. Hoping truly to serve the Lord together as our Heavenly Father, we become brothers in His Kingdom on this earth, even as we hope to be in His heavenly kingdom after death. Picturing then, our brother entering into those precious uses in the Gorand Man of heaven, we pray that we may join him there when our day comes. As our Lord said to the prophet Daniel, "Peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong" (Dan 10:19). Amen.

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PRAYER FROM A BUDDHIST/SWEDENBORGIAN PERSPECTIVE 2008

PRAYER FROM A BUDDHIST/SWEDENBORGIAN PERSPECTIVE       JEREMY K. FINKELDEY B.A       2008


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     Excerpted from Spiritual Practice and Consciousness, (Finkeldey, 2007)

Introduction

     My purpose in submitting this excerpt to New Church Life as an article for publication is to help to illustrate, in part, how Buddhist concepts can collaborate nicely with those revealed in the theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. I believe it is in keeping with Swedenborg's doctrine of charity to strive to discover the commonalities which exist among the various and divergent religious/spiritual traditions that have been provided by the Lord for the salvation of the human race. The increasing perfection of heaven is dependent on the growth of its diversity, and the practice of finding, focusing on, and connecting with the good in others is essential to the emergence of the Lord's kingdom on earth. Can we benefit from learning about the spiritual views and practices of others? Considering what Swedenborg says about the "Gentiles" in the following citation, how could one think otherwise? "... [M]ore from the Gentiles are saved than from Christians; for those Gentiles who have thought kindly of their neighbor and have wished well to him, receive the truths of faith in the other life better than those who are called Christians, and acknowledge the Lord more than Christians do. For nothing is more delightful and blessed to the angels than to instruct those who come from the earth into the other life" (Arcana Coelestia 2284:5).

Excerpt

     Is it possible to speak of prayer without speaking of God? In the Afterword by David Loy to D. T. Suzuki's Swedenborg: Buddha of the North, Loy comments: "Inasmuch as God is infinite, all our conceptions of Him must miss the mark, but inasmuch as we need a conception of Him, the best image is that of a man.

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To a Buddhist, this is reminiscent of the old nineteenth-century argument that since a religion must have a God, Buddhism cannot be a religion. "The question this begs is: is it possible to have a religion (such as Buddhism) that criticizes all conceptions of the Divine, including the image of God as human, yet still functions as a religion because its spiritual practices nonetheless promote the divine influx?" (Suzuki, 1996, pp. 103-104)

     I find it reasonable that Buddhism "promotes the divine influx" by means of its practice of love towards the neighbor (through the cultivation of compassion and loving-kindness) and by means of its disciplined use of the mind in meditative practice. Buddhism is essentially a subjective exploration of the nature of reality and of the mind (by means of the mind) in meditative states (Gyatso, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, 2005, p. 141). Further, Thich Nhat Hanh explains his perspective on the Divine as follows: "In Buddhism we do not speak of God, we do not speak of creation, we do not speak of revelation, we do not speak of redemption or punishment. In Buddhism, what is equivalent to God is Mind, especially the collective mind. Mind is the ground of everything.... If we understand God as the ground of being from which everything is manifested, then our understanding is not different from the Buddhist vision of mind; because in the teaching of Buddhism, mind is the artist who designs everything, especially the collective mind" (Hanh, 2006a, First Question).

     This Buddhist concept of God as Mind, as the ground of being from which everything is manifested, is derived in part from the Buddhist philosophical concept of "no-self' (or emptiness). This notion refers to the idea that all things are empty of a separate existence. This is simply a way of saying, among other things, that everything is connected to everything else. Nothing has an entirely independent existence. In Buddhism, everything is thought of as being interdependent.

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In western thought there is a tendency to philosophically separate humans from God, turning each into separate entities. This has its truth of sorts. The Lord is divine. People are human. The Lord is infinite. People are finite (and eternal). The Lord is the Creator. People (and everything else not divine) are that which is created. The "rub" in this western view, in my opinion, is that it tends to incline people to see themselves as being separated from God. Swedenborg explains that the Divine is indivisibly One, and yet is in every created thing apart from time and space (Divine Love and Wisdom 4, 59, 69-76, and 285).

     There are other conflict-causing glitches in the western Judeo-Christian "God-concept" when seen from a Swedenborgian viewpoint. For example, the Jewish tradition denies the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ. In their struggle for influence over freethinking minds, Christian Fundamentalism and other forms of Christianity run the risk of tending to divide the one God into a committee of three equal Gods by destroying the right understanding of the Divine Trinity and the necessary oneness of the Divine. This goes hand-in-hand with the Reformed Christian doctrine of salvation by faith alone, which makes introspection and true repentance irrelevant. Consider also the propensity for conflict currently manifest between Islam and the Judeo-Christian west-in the name of God and the defense of the self. Much better is the Buddhist teaching of emptiness. We are empty of a separate existence-we "inter-are". Or, as Swedenborg expressed it, "we are because God is" (Divine Providence 46).

     The no-self, or emptiness idea is one of the deep teachings of Buddhism. It is deep in the sense that it refers to the inner dimension of reality, rather than the phenomenal world at the outer natural level. In the phenomenal world there is the very clear and powerful experience of a "self" distinguishable from other "selves".

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It is therefore remarkable that the Buddha (and his followers), through deep meditative introspection and apparently without the help of a "Swedenborg-type" divine revelation, could reach the deep insight that everything is connected. This insight is very close to the idea that, "we are because God is" (Divine Providence 46). It is the knowledge of this interdependence of all things that fuels the powerful loving-kindness energy and practice in Buddhism.

     Buddhist practitioners are highly inner self-managed individuals who tend to be thought of as being more involved with meditation than with prayer. In a recent Psychology Today article Katherine Ellison notes: "Practiced Buddhist meditators deploy their brains with exceptional skill. Drawing on 2,500 years of mental technology-techniques for paying careful attention to the workings of their own minds-they develop expertise in controlling the flow of their mental life, avoiding the emotional squalls that often compel us to take personal feelings oh, so personally, and clearing new channels for awareness, calm, compassion and joy. Their example holds the possibility that we can all choose to modulate our moods, regulate our emotions and increase cognitive capacity-that we can all become high-performance users of our own brains" (Ellison, 2006, p. 72).

     Although Buddhists are most well-known for skills in meditation, it should be noted that Buddhists also pray. This is made clear by Thich Nhat Hanh in his delightful treatise on prayer entitled The Energy of Prayer: How to Deepen Your Spiritual Practice (Hanh, 2006c). In the introduction to this work, written by Larry Dossey, an author and medical doctor who advocates prayer in the practice of medicine, prayer is defined with a question: "What is prayer but communication with the Absolute, from whence we arose, with whom we are connected, and to whom we shall return...? Prayer is... a bridge to the Absolute" (Hanh, 2006b, pp. 9 and 13).

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As I mentioned earlier with emphasis, Buddhism is profoundly non-theistic. Why, then, would Dossey, in his introduction to this Buddhist commentary on prayer, capitalize "Absolute"? Indeed, why would the Buddhist author himself, whom I cited previously as saying "In Buddhism we do not speak of God" (see above), speak of God in the following quote? "In Buddhism, we know that the one we are praying to lies inside us as well as outside of us. Buddha lies in our heart and so does God. It is a mistake to think that God is only outside" (Hanh, 2006b, p. 57, emphasis added).

     This statement by Thich Nhat Hanh, one of my primary representatives of Buddhism, is a virtual echo of Swedenborg's comment in Divine Love and Wisdom regarding the angelic view of the Lord. He writes: "[T]hese things can be little understood by a man who thinks about God from space. For God is everywhere and yet not in space. Thus He is both within an angel and outside him. Consequently an angel can see God, that is, the Lord, both within and outside himself, within himself when he thinks from love and wisdom, outside himself when he thinks about love and wisdom.... Let every man beware lest he fall into that abhorrent heresy that God has infused Himself into men, and that He is in them and no longer in Himself, when yet God is everywhere both within and outside man; for He is in all space apart from space.... [I]f He were in man [not apart from space]... man then could even think himself to be God. So abominable is this heresy, that in the spiritual world it stinks like a dead body" (Divine Love and Wisdom 130).

     The only real difference between the two statements is that Hanh warns against thinking that God is only outside of us while Swedenborg warns against thinking that God is "infused... into men" thus dividing an indivisible and omnipresent Divinity.

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     I believe that the answer to the question as to how a Buddhist can speak of God is that the non-theism of Buddhism is not the atheism with which we in the west are generally familiar. According to Webster, "[A]n atheist rejects all religious belief and denies the existence of God; an agnostic questions the existence of God, heaven, etc. in the absence of material proof and in unwillingness to accept supernatural revelation" (Neufeldt, 1988, p. 86). I have not found an authoritative modern source that categorically states that Buddhism denies the existence of God, or, is anti-God. I assert that Buddhism belongs more in the category of agnosticism, as defined above, than atheism.

     Hanh offers a view of prayer as a spiritual practice that has been tempered and influenced by his extraordinary life and practice as a Buddhist meditator and teacher. It is a view that looks at prayer as a means of transcending the self in its space/time milieu and touching the interdependence and oneness of all things (Hanh, 2006b, pp. 42-43). This interdependence and oneness of all things, I assert, is established by the Lord's presence apart from space and time as the necessary element in every created thing (see Swedenborg, 1969, Divine Love and Wisdom 53 & 285). Hanh explains that there are many elements of effective prayer; but there are two that, in his view, are the most important. The first is, "to establish a relationship between ourselves and the one we are praying to" (Hanh, 2006c, p. 41). The second of his two most important elements of prayer is the "energy" of "love, mindfulness, and right concentration" (Hanh, 2006b, p. 43).

     Hanh stresses the importance of visualization in prayer (Hanh, 2006b, pp. 30 and 42). This kind of visualization establishes the relationship between the one who is praying, the one who is being prayed to, and sometimes the one who is being prayed for. From his Buddhist tradition, he offers a visualization 'gatha' that is like a small verse designed to remind us of that relationship:

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"The one who bows and the one who is bowed to are both, by nature, empty. Therefore the communication between us is inexpressibly perfect" (Hanh, 2006b, p. 42, emphasis added).

     "Empty", that is, of a separate existence. Visualization is also essential in Swedenborgian prayer. In his work entitled True Christian Religion, Swedenborg stresses the importance of visualizing the Lord in His Human form: "Linking with an invisible God is like linking the sight of the eye with the expanse of the universe, the bounds of which are not to be seen. Or it is like looking out in the middle of an ocean, when the gaze falls on air and sea and is frustrated. But linking with a visible God is like seeing a man in the air or the sea opening his arms and inviting you into his embrace. For any linking of God with man must also be a reciprocal linking of man with God; and this second reciprocity is only possible with a visible God" (Op. Cit. 787).

     Hanh seems to echo something of this Swedenborgian idea in his work on prayer: "You will not find God in an abstract idea. This is something very important. God is here for us through very concrete things" (Hanh, 2006b, p. 71).

     The second most important idea offered by Thich Nhat Hanh regarding effective prayer is the idea of cultivating the "energy" of "love, mindfulness, and right concentration" in prayer. He writes that, "when you have mindfulness, then you have concentration." He defines "mindfulness" as being "the real presence of our body and our mind. Our body and our mind are directed toward one point, the present moment....To pray effectively, our body and mind must dwell peacefully in the present moment" (Hanh, 2006b, p. 43). The real presence of the body in prayer is augmented by "prostration". Hanh advises assuming a prostrate position with one's body when praying. He says, "It is a position that diminishes the ego, opens one up, and brings one close to the earth" (Hanh, 2006b, p. 63).

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This is necessary, he says, because, "It is essential for prayer that body, speech, and mind are one, and are all truly present. It is not enough to pray with words; effective prayer also takes mental and physical concentration" (Hanh, 2006b, p. 63).

     So, dwelling peacefully in the present moment, with the real presence of body and mind, and praying from love while visualizing our connection with the one to whom we are praying summarizes Hanh's Buddhist view of effective prayer.
In his explication of the Buddhist qualities of the (Christian) Lord's prayer, Hanh reminds us to avoid trivialities and to remember what the true purpose of prayer is. He does so by asking: "What are we looking for? We are looking for something very great. We are not asking God to let the sun shine so we can have a good picnic....We are looking for the kingdom of God. Our first aim in prayer is the kingdom of God" (Hanh, 2006b, p. 75).

     Clearly, Hanh's view of prayer incorporates his life-long experience as a meditator, to the point that his model of prayer looks very similar to meditation itself. Before moving on to the topic of meditation, I would like to add one more thing from Thich Nhat Hanh that is critical to the thesis of this paper - and that is his idea of the importance of healthy communities and environments. He explains: "When we live in an unhealthy environment, the negative thinking, speaking, and actions of that environment influence us, and sooner or later we may fall sick. Living in an environment where people seek only to satisfy sensual desires can cause collective suffering, despair, and depression....If we want to have good health, we have to be determined to develop a good environment....A larger community that is committed to spiritual, physical, and mental health is our best opportunity for healing" (Hanh, 2006b, p. 99).

     And specifically regarding prayer done as a community: "In the Buddhist tradition, we know that praying as a community, a "Sangha," is stronger than praying as an individual....

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When we simultaneously practice sending spiritual energy, then that energy is magnified and much more effective.... When the whole community prays with us, it can be a significant moment in our lives. We are one of the Sangha who is praying. Our own undivided attention is a key to open the door of the ultimate reality, and the undivided attention of our friends in the practice is an even greater key" (Hanh, 2006b, p. 55).

     Whether one is an early Christian, a Swedenborgian, or a Buddhist, prayer plays a vital role in spiritual development and thus in consciousness enhancement. It has tremendous value for the individual and for the group, as a result of its power to conjoin both individuals and groups-not only with each other but also with Ultimate Reality-which is the Lord.
TESTIMONIES ABOUT SWEDENBORG 2008

TESTIMONIES ABOUT SWEDENBORG       DON ROSE       2008


----------
     There are fine books by the thousands, and a given individual has just so much time to read a tiny fraction of them. Why should one read one book rather than another? Testimonies can help to answer that. Here are three testimonies about Swedenborg. First from Ralph Waldo Emerson: "The moral insight of Swedenborg, the correction of popular errors, the announcement of ethical laws, take him out of comparison with any other modern writer, and entitle him to a place, vacant for some ages, among the lawgivers of mankind."

     Next the poet, Edwin Markham. "His writings are today the prime influence beating down the wall of irrationality, making way for a faith that appeals at once to reason and to the heart."

     And finally Helen Keller: "I wish I might be able to radiate the spiritual illumination that came to me when I read with my own fingers Heaven and Hell. All the days of my life since have 'proved the doctrine' and found it true.

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If people would only begin to read Swedenborg's books with at first a little patience, they would soon be reading them for pure joy."

     Those three witnesses command attention by virtue of their stature in history, but they may seem dated. It is refreshing to have the testimony provided by Dr. Mehmet Oz. He does not urge others to read, but simply makes an honest and modest statement of how the Writings have helped him. Here are some of his appealing lines.

     "How could an all-loving God choose to extend that love to only a select few? Swedenborg taught that God loves us all, and the various religions allow us to approach him in the way best suited to our needs. He argued that we are all born for heaven, and that it is what we love that determines our fate, not what we profess to believe."

     "It was Swedenborg's explanation of suffering that I found most useful. According to Swedenborg, God permits evil only to preserve our spiritual freedom. Since good which is not freely chosen is not good at all. He never wills the resulting suffering, but constantly turns it into opportunities for growth and transcendence. (I have seen patients transform their lives after a serious illness)."

     "In my practice I have struggled to provide holistic healing. For example, helping a transplant recipient deal with the emotional crisis of a rejecting heart is often more of a challenge than the surgery itself. Nothing in science can address, or give us comfort when we face the possibility of our own death or the loss of a loved one. As a physician, I seek to connect with my patents on both the physical and spiritual levels, since true healing is never about curing just the body. Although I rarely mention him by name, Swedenborg has made this easier for me."

     Thousands know and respect Dr. Oz, and his testimony may well make an important difference in the reading choices that they make.

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JUNE THE NINETEENTH 2008

JUNE THE NINETEENTH       DAWN BARNITZ POTTS       2008


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     The celebration of the Second Coming of the Lord is mentioned specifically in the Writings to have happened on the nineteenth day of June. This dramatic, monumental occurrence which effected a new Heaven and re-ordered the Hells is not called in the Writings, "New Church Day", or the "Church's Birthday," but is only referred to as "The 19th day of June."

     Is this number "nineteen" used on purpose? With investigation, we can come to see that we are actually taught in the Word to believe that it is, and is called The Nineteenth of June for a reason.

     Quoting from the Arcana: "Sometimes, when I have been speaking with the angels, numbers have been seen, as it were written before the eyes, like those which are seen on paper in clear day; and it was seen that the things themselves which were being spoken of fall into such numbers; from which experience also it has been given to know that every number in the Word contains some Arcanum" (Arcana Coelestia 4495:2, 6). Further, "It is manifestly evident that whatever numbers are used in the Word never mean numbers" (Arcana Coelestia 716:5) because "'number' in the spiritual sense...has relation to quality" (Apocalypse Revealed 287). "The numbers themselves...are by no means perceived as numbers by those who are in the internal sense, but as real things or states" (Arcana Coelestia 2252).

     At first analysis, the number "nineteen" always seems a strange number to have such tremendous importance. We can note first, that it is not a multiple of anything. Most numbers are related in importance by their correspondence and out of a relationship to each other.

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     When looking up the correspondence of all other numbers in the Old or New Testament we do not find the number "nineteen" itself given a specific meaning anywhere. Wonderful to find, it is mentioned only in the Heavenly Doctrine in relation to the Second Coming and the New Revelation. Can we see then how "nineteen" is saying something totally new?

     To quote: "It has pleased the Lord to open the sight of my spirit, and to permit me to converse face to face with angels and men that have died, and to observe them and touch them, and to say many things about the unbelief and fallacies of men who are still living. With these I have had daily association from the year 1744 to the present time, a period of nineteen years..." (Divine Wisdom 7). Isn't this fact lovely and amazing when we know that angels only see the internal sense of the letter?

     How can we further understand this number "nineteen" so that we can appreciate why the Lord, in Providence, used this date for the Second Coming? There are many combinations of numbers that make up nineteen. However, the ones that are immediately noticed are the combinations "ten and nine," and "twelve and seven." What might they mean? The number ten corresponds to what is 'much,' 'complete' or 'full', and also sometimes, 'remains.' It is a very significant number, relating to so many major things in the Word, such as The Ten Commandments, The Ten Blessings, ten virgins, ten horns, and so on.

     There are also hundreds of passages throughout all the books of the Word where the number "three" is mentioned, and "in each case it is where a finished and perfect work" is described. This is the meaning of the number "three:" "what is full and complete and perfect" (cf. Arcana Coelestia 8150, Sacred Scripture 29, True Christian Religion 211). We are taught that nine corresponds to knowledge and conjunction (Arcana Coelestia 2075).

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Nine being the multiple of three has within it three "threes, which would seem to express what is even more than just perfect, but it seems to mean something "perfectly" perfect. (See Arcana Coelestia 5335).

     As for the numbers "twelve" and "seven" which also add up to nineteen, we all know the many, many stories in the Word that relate to twelve: the 12 disciples, twelve gates to the city, twelve stones on Aaron's breast plate, and so on. The number "seven" is also quite often used. "Twelve" simply means, "all Goods and Truths in their complex" (Arcana Coelestia 5315:6) and "seven," "what is Holy" (Arcana Coelestia 716).

     By absorbing these things about correspondences in the letter of the Word and letting our minds be lifted up by the Lord to think about something more deeply when we say "Happy Nineteenth of June, we can be led to see an indefinite number of new things contained in the number "nineteen." For example, putting the above together: 'The Lord has come again perfectly, in a new way in His Divine Human, with all knowledge given in His New Word. And this Word makes possible a new conjunction. It is for all time, and out of this Word there is now possible a complete and perfect holy conjunction.'

     Isn't it important to the Church that we move into the realm of the spirit? Thus we may see what can be created new within our own minds from His New Word, and thereby be led to a spiritual awakening to the realities of the spiritual Nineteenth day of June in our lives.

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Eldergarten 2009 2008

Eldergarten 2009              2008


----------
     To our New Church friends and members, 60 years of age and older: The members and friends of the Boynton Beach Society invite you to attend ELDERGARTEN 2009, to be held in Boynton Beach, Florida, January 18th-23rd, 2009. Our speakers will be Rt. Rev. Louis B. King, Rev. Walter Orthwein, and Rev. Scott Frazier.

     The Eldergarten program begins on January 18th, Sunday evening, with registration and a light buffet. Speakers will give presentations on four mornings, with a free day mid-week. Events include a reception, box lunches during the week, and a banquet on Friday. All meal functions are included in the registration fee of $130 per person.

     Seating is limited, so when you receive our mailing, return your registration form and check promptly.
From the Bishop's Office: Ministers' Moves 2008

From the Bishop's Office: Ministers' Moves              2008


----------
     Effective July 1, 2008 The Rev. Ethan D. McCardell has been called to serve as Pastor of the Cascade New Church in Seattle, Washington.

     The Rev. Frederick M. Chapin has been called to serve as Pastor of the Freeport New Church (Sower's Chapel), Pennsylvania.

     The Rev. Daniel W. Goodenough has been named as Regional Pastor for the Southwestern United States, effective immediately.

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FROM NEW HEAVEN TO NEW CHURCH 2008

FROM NEW HEAVEN TO NEW CHURCH       Editor       2008


----------
     How unique to celebrate June 19, 1770, an event in the spiritual world where there is no time and space! Since the New Jerusalem descends "from God out of this New Heaven, it is apt that we thank the Lord Himself For when we say, "Our Father who art in the heavens," it refers to the Lord's Divine Human which, after His glorification "became an essence by itself which fills the universal heaven" (Arcana Coelestia 3061, 1461e). The Lord now only appears to be in the Spiritual Sun, while He is actually "in the heavens:" "He teaches and leads man...in truth from that heaven" (Divine Providence 162). The Lord's Divine Human is visible at any time in the New Heaven before our doctrinal eyes.

     "A New Church in the heavens as well as throughout the earth is understood by the new heaven and new earth" (Heavenly Doctrine 1). But the Church is from the Word. Which Word? "The New Church as to doctrine was seen as a city" (Apocalypse Revealed 896, Cf. E 431:7). "The Heavenly Doctrine of that Church is understood by the city Jerusalem descending from God out of heaven" (Heavenly Doctrine 1). The Writings themselves in toto, are the Word of the Heavenly Doctrine, and constitute the New Jerusalem!

     "Where" is the New Heaven? There are three heavens, as you know: celestial, spiritual and natural. The New Heaven is on the level of the natural, for it occupies an "expanse beneath" and "distinct from the Ancient heavens" (Heavenly Doctrine 4).

     We wonder, "who" constituted the New Heaven? The answer: "This heaven was formed of all those who, from the coming of the Lord to the present time, had lived the life of faith and charity, since these alone were forms of heaven" (Heavenly Doctrine 2).

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We imagine the entire world for 2000 years contributing to this heaven,-from the dark ages, Scholasticism, the Crusades, the Renaissance, the Black Death, the Reformation,-all those wars. Think of the high mortality rates among infants, and the large families to ensure that a few at least survived! Who do you suppose formed the inner reaches of this New Heaven? "Chiefly...infants from the whole world, who have died since the Lord's coming...were received by the Lord, educated in heaven, and instructed by the angels, and reserved, so that they, together with the others, might constitute the New Heaven; whence it may be concluded how great that heaven is" (Heavenly Doctrine 3, Apocalypse Revealed 876:2).

     And who were "the others"? Only Christians? The Writings insist how absurd and cruel it is to say that Heaven is open only to Christians, when non-Christians outnumber Christians, ten to one (Divine Providence 330). So we eagerly read the following: "This heaven was formed of all those who had been such from the coming of the Lord until the present time, ...composed both of Christians and of Gentiles" (Heavenly Doctrine 3, cf. Heaven and Hell 318 and Arcana Coelestia 932, 1032, et. al.).

     "When" was the New Heaven established? It is easy to conclude that the very publication of the work, The Last Judgment, in the year 1758 in London, Lewis and Smith publishers, constituted the fulfillment of the New Jerusalem prophecy. For we read: "Since I have been permitted to witness all that has happened, I am able to describe how the hells were conquered and how a New Heaven has been founded and arranged...in a small book published in London in 1758" (True Christian Religion 115).

     However, the New Heaven could not be fully established so soon after the great upheavals of 1757. False heavens, that is imaginary heavens in the World of Spirits with evil spirits at the top and good spirits at the bottom, were leveled.

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The simple spirits who had been enslaved for centuries, and whose maximum innocence but also ignorance had been protected in the "lower earth," first had to be "led out" (just as the angels led Lot and his family out of Sodom), and then organized into a New Heaven. That Judgment had begun in the last days of 1756, lasted through all of 1757 and into the first month of 1758. During that gigantic spiritual upheaval in the world of spirits between heaven and hell, it took earth time to establish that New Heaven, and we note that same time line in works of the Writings going into print year by year. So if we assume that the New Heaven only commenced in 1758, when was it completed? The prophecy "I am coming quickly" meaning "[the Lord] is certainly going to come...to effect the judgment and to establish a New Heaven and a New Church" (Apocalypse Revealed 949) was also commenced in 1758. There are several references to this establishment as a work in progress.

     We note first that in 1758 while writing the work Apocalypse Explained, Swedenborg says "until the New heaven and the new Church comes into existence" implying it was not yet in existence (Apocalypse Explained 691:2). Eight years later, in 1766, Swedenborg writes in a letter that this New Heaven is "not yet fully established," and just one year later, he says "The Lord is now establishing a new heaven from those who believe in Him and acknowledge Him to be the true God of heaven and earth, and who also look to Him in their lives." Swedenborg witnessed 10,000 to 20,000 spirits and angels "being arranged in order" every day (Letters #5 and #7 to Beyer). It looks like an ongoing process, nearing completion.

     Now it is most curious that in 1766, the year the Apocalypse Revealed was published and available in bookstores, Swedenborg send out about 100 copies of this work to various friends, clergymen and government officials as well as libraries, mostly in France and Sweden (see Swedenborg Epic p. 320, 323, 325-6).

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We certainly see here Swedenborg's personal intelligent involvement in the providing a foundation for the establishment of the New Church. In this context we are reminded of the prophecy, "Unless those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved" (Matt. 24:22, meaning "Unless the New Church be established by the Lord, no one can be saved" (Apocalypse Explained 91, True Christian Religion 163:8)). Distributing 100 copies of Apocalypse Revealed seems in line with fulfilling this prophecy.

     It is also interesting to notice that the Apocalypse Explained, written in 1758 and 59, and prepared in a final draft for the printer, stops at chapter 19, the white horse chapter. This was because the little work, The White Horse, was already in print in 1758. The white horse refers to the New Church and so the book The White Horse forecasts the New Church. However, Revelation chapters 21 and 22 talk about the New Heaven, and since these were not yet complete, the Apocalypse Explained could not explain what had not yet been completed! The work had to stop at chapter 19. A few years later, in 1766, the New Heaven was further along, and the Apocalypse Revealed could run through the entire Book of Revelation, including chapters 21 and 22.

     Thus, for example, in Apocalypse Revealed 486, written around 1765, explaining the words, "Arise measure the temple of God, the altar, and those adoring there," the meaning is the Lord "seeing and knowing the state of the Church in the New Heaven" (Op. cit.). This was part of establishing the New Heaven, and so this scripture cold be revealed on earth. So also when the words "Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God Almighty, just and true are Your ways 0 King of Saints" (Revelation 15:3-5) were reached in Swedenborg's writing, the meaning could be revealed:

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Those who entered the New Heaven were people "who worshiped the Lord, and lived according to His commandments in the Word, and who, therefore, were in charity, and at the same time in faith from the Lord through the Word, [and in the] acknowledgment of the Lord and a life according to the Decalogue" (Apocalypse Revealed 876:2). Swedenborg saw and talked to them as they entered the New Heaven. This was in 1766.

     Do we find any further signs of the progressive establishment of the New Heaven, in later works of the Writings? In 1769, the Canons of the New Church were written, but not published, where Swedenborg says, the New Heaven is "now being established" in 1769 (Canons 47, added emphasis). By 1771, Swedenborg moves from talking about the New Heaven to the New Church coming from it: the Lord "from this New Heaven, successively inaugurates and establishes a New Church on earth" (Coronis 0:III). This method of inaugurating and establishing a New Church is also named: "By a revelation from His mouth, or from His Word, by inspiration" (ibid.). What else would "revelation from his mouth, from His Word, by inspiration." refer to, except the Writings themselves, that is the process of how the Writings themselves come forth.

     If the True Christian Religion was "revealed from the Lord's mouth by inspiration," note well that the very first number of this work also talks about the New Heaven: "It should be known that in the New Heaven, which is at the present time being established by the Lord, this statement of faith serves as its preface, doorway and summary" (True Christian Religion 1, emphasis added). This is the present tense, meaning it was happening while it was recorded. The "Faith" here is familiar to almost everyone, since it is recited in our Services of worship: "The Lord from eternity, who is Jehovah came into the world to subjugate the hells and to glorify His Human; without this no mortal could have been saved; and those are saved who believe in Him" (True Christian Religion 2). This faith is called the "doorway" to the actual formation of the New Heaven.

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It is of no surprise that 100 pages later, this continual establishment of the New Heaven is also mentioned in the present tense: "at the present time a New Heaven of angels is being established by the Lord, drawn from those who believe in the Lord God the Savior, and approach Him directly; all others are rejected" (True Christian Religion 108 emphasis added).

     It is clear from the progress of the passages referring to the New Heaven, that by 1771, which was the publication year of The True Christian Religion, that this Heaven was fully established. The New Church could begin to descend from it, which is why just 7 paragraphs after #108, it says, "the New Church is now to be established," because the Lord's redemption "has been going on up to the present time, and for the reason that at this day is the second coming of the Lord" (True Christian Religion 115).

     This was written we suppose "sometime" between end of 1769 and beginning of 1770, since #115 of True Christian Religion is early in the book. The progressive stages of development is emphasized another 70 or so paragraphs further on, where we read, "the Lord is effecting a redemption at this day by founding a New Heaven and establishing a New Church to the end that man may be saved" (True Christian Religion 182). Perhaps he write this around March or April of 1770. Who knows how quickly Swedenborg could write about each chapter?

     The True Christian Religion was finished with its last paragraph, #791. Do you recognize this number? It is the well known and most nostalgic of passages for the New Church person: "After the completion of this book, the Lord called together His twelve disciples, who had followed Him in the world; and a day later He sent them all forth throughout the spiritual world to preach the Gospel, that the Lord God Jesus Christ is king, and His kingdom shall be for ever and ever" (True Christian Religion 791).

     We should end here, but there is a curious addition to the sequence of establishing the New Heaven, especially establishing the New Church from the New Jerusalem descending out of that heaven.

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The curiosity is this: Swedenborg wrote in a letter on April 30, 1771, again to Beyer, "When this book [True Christian Religion] has been published, the Lord our Savior will operate mediately as well as immediately to establish the New Church, which is founded on this Theology, throughout Christendom. The New Heaven, from which the New Jerusalem is to descend, will now soon be completed, see Rev. Xxi 1-3." (Letter to Beyer, April 30, 1771, emphasis added). Here it is end of April 1771, almost a whole year after June 19, 1770, and the New Heaven is still "soon to be completed." But establishing the New Church cannot wait: from the publication date onwards, the Lord can operate both directly and indirectly to establish the New Church. And the reason he wrote this, is that between the last paragraph of the True Christian Religion, #791, which observed what happened on June 19, 1770, and the publication of this work, in June 1771, took an entire year to accomplish. The reasons are not clear. However, after #791 there is a Supplement inserted, paragraphs #792-#851. However, this is repetition of previous material. Then Swedenborg spent time to compile two indices, plus a thorough proof reading which resulted in an Errata list at the very end. It apparently took a whole year to bring this work to its final publication. That is why Swedenborg predicted that the very publication of the True Christian Religion, would have this impact.

     We receive a sense of the future from an earlier passage in this work, which reads, as the "New Heaven increases, does the New Jerusalem descend from it....this therefore cannot happen in an instant, but happens as the falsities of the previous church are banished....[and] uprooted. This will happen with the clergy, and so spread to laymen." "In proportion as this New Heaven, which makes up the internal of the church in the case of a person, grows, so the New Jerusalem comes down out of that heaven, and this is the New Church" (True Christian Religion 784).

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Attention All Readers of New Church Life. 2008

Attention All Readers of New Church Life.       Kit Rogers       2008


----------
     I am very happy that my article, "New Church Education for People with Special Challenges," was printed in the May issue of the Life, because it involves a subject close to my heart.

     However, in the electronic transfer from computer to computer, some errors and omissions occurred. Readers will be able to mentally add missing quotation marks and dashes, but I must correct one serious error caused by their spell-check program.

     In line 7 of the first paragraph (p. 176), I am trying to indicate that some labels are not very meaningful. The word in question should have said "normal" rather than abnormal. That part of the sentence should read, "....she came with big ideas about learning and playing along with everyone else in our class of 'normal' children."

     Sincerely, Kit Rogers.
WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG 2008

WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG              2008


----------
     An on-line family magazine from the General Church Office

     of Education featuring materials for all ages focused on a

     new theme every month.

     The Holy City in June 2008

     Healing Our Blindness in July 2008

     Keeping the Sabbath in August 2008

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ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH THEOLOGICAL SCHOOL,BRYN ATHYN COLLEGE and SECONDARY SCHOOL CALENDARONE HUNDRED and THIRTY SECOND SCHOOL YEAR 2008

ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH THEOLOGICAL SCHOOL,BRYN ATHYN COLLEGE and SECONDARY SCHOOL CALENDARONE HUNDRED and THIRTY SECOND SCHOOL YEAR              2008


----------
     2008

July     6-12     Sat-Sun     ANC Summer Camp
     13-19     Sat-Sun     Tools 4 Life Camp
     14-25     Mon-Fri     Summer Institutes

August 18     Mon          BAC RAs arrive on campus
     20     Wed          BAC and TS international students arrive
     21-23     Thu-Sat          (Canadians arrive Aug. 23)
     21-22     Thu-Fri     BAC and TS international students orientation
     23     Sat          BAC faculty retreat
                    All BAC and TS students arrive on campus;
     24     Sun          Dinner with new BAC students & parents
     25     Mon     8:30-     BAC new student orientation
     26     Tue     4:00     Registration for all BAC students
     27     Wed     8:10 am BAC and TS Service Day and dinner, Dean's address (Glencairn)
     31     Sun          College and TS Fall Term classes begin
                    ANC resident students arrive on campus

September 1     Mon          Labor Day Holiday
     2     Toes          ANC Registration and Orientation
     3     Wed          ANC 1st Term classes begin
               7:30pm     BAC, TS and ANC Opening Worship (Cathedral)
     11     This     4:00pm     President's address, reception (MPAC)

October 10     Fri     8:00am     Charter Day: Annual Meeting ANC corp (MPAC)
               1030am     Service (Cathedral)
                         Dance (TBD)
     11     Sat     9:00 pm     Banquet (Asplundh Field House)
     13     Mon     7:00pm     Charter Day Holiday
     27-31     Mon-Fri          BAC registration for winter term

November 7               BAC and TS Fall Term classes end
     10     Mon          BAC reading day
     11     Tue          BAC and TS exams begin
     14     Fri          BAC and TS Fall Term ends after exams
     19-21     Wed-Fri     ANC 1st Tam exams
     26-30     Wed-Sun     ANC Thanksgiving break
     30     Sun          BAC and TS resident students return; ANC resident students return

December 1 Mon          BAC and TS Winter Term classes begin; ANC 2nd Term begins
     19 Fri          BAC and TS Christmas vacation begins following afternoon classes; ANC Christmas vacation begins at Noon

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     THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH THEOLOGICAL SCHOOL,
     BRYN ATHYN COLLEGE and SECONDARY SCHOOL CALENDAR
     ONE HUNDRED and THIRTY SECOND SCHOOL YEAR
     2009

January     1     Thur     New Year's Day holiday
     4     Sun     BAC, TS and ANC resident students return
     5     Mon-     BAC, TS and ANC classes resume
     19     Mon     BAC, BAC and TS MLKing, Jr. holiday; ANC in-school observance
     26-30     Mon-Fri     BAC registration for Spring Term
February     16     Mon     BAC and TS Presidents' Day in-school observance; ANC holiday
     20     Fri     BAC and TS Winter Term Classes end
     23     Mon     BAC and TS reading day
     24     Tue     BAC and TS exams begin
     25-27     Wed-Fri     ANC 2nd term exams
     27     Fri     BAC and TS Winter Term ends after exams
March     2-6     Mon-Fri     ANC Spring break
     8     Sun     BAC, TS and ANC resident students return
     9     Mon     BAC, TS Spring Tom classes begin; ANC 3rd Term begins
April     10     Fri     BAC and TS Good Friday holiday
     10-13     Fri-Mon     ANC Easter Break
     13-17     Mon-Fri     BAC pre-registration for declared majors
     27-30     Mon-Thu     Pre-registration for undeclared majors
May     1-3     Fri-Sun     BAC Weekend
     2     Sat     1:00 pm     Semiannual Meeting of ANC Corporation (MPAC or Pendleton Hall)
     15     Fri     BAC and TS Spring Term classes end
     18-21     Mon-Thu     BAC and TS exams
     22     Fri     6:30 pm     BAC and TS Graduation Dinner and Dance (Cairnwood)
     23     Sat     10:00 am BAC and TS Graduation (MPAC)
     22-27     Fri-Wed     ANC Seniors 3rd Term exams; May 25 Memorial Day holiday
     26-28     Tue-Thu     ANC Freshman-Juniors 3rd Term exams
     29     Fri     5:00 pm ANC Senior Dinner (Glencairn)
               9:00 pm ANC Graduation Dance (Glencairn)
     30     Sat     10:00 am ANC Graduation

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ORDINATION 2008

ORDINATION              2008


----------

     Announcements
     Frazier, Rev. Scott Innes-At Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, May 11, 2008, into the second degree, Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline officiating.
Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified       CORRECTIONS       2008

     p. 210: Klippenstein not Klipppenstein Mrs. Sydney Heldon not Mrs. Sidney Heldon.

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Notes on This Issue 2008

Notes on This Issue       Editor       2008

     
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     Our sermon this month was delivered recently at the Cathedral by the Pastor of Bryn Athyn Society, the Rev. Jeremy F. Simons. It considers the complex nature of change, and the factors involved with change. Do we receive the fullness of the Lord's presence? This depends on our willingness to change for the better.

     We are pleased to receive an article by Tom Fiedler, concerning the different approached to life by people born in different eras. Is our New Church message heard by all generations the same way? Do we need to change the way we express it? There is a worthwhile answer.

     Rev. Dan Goodenough has written a clear and concise way of looking at the Trinity, and how we should beware of some analogies. We may in fact label ourselves wrongly.

     Is the Christian Church really 'dead'? Rev. Kenneth Alden considers this question, in view of all the activities of the Christian churches in one 5th of the world population. How should we regard this teaching? The eternal dimension gives a longer view.

     You may recognize a few faces in Church News, garnered from websites. Of enduring quality and life, are New Church Assemblies, and Summer Schools and camps. Pictures tell the story of fifty years of such activities!

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PARABLE OF THE LEAVEN: A SERMON ABOUT CHANGE 2008

PARABLE OF THE LEAVEN: A SERMON ABOUT CHANGE       Rev. JEREMY F. SIMONS       2008


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"Again He said, 'To what shall I liken the kingdom of God? It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened." (Luke 13:21)

     The parable of the leaven describes the kingdom of heaven by comparing it to the way that yeast makes bread rise, turning dough into something that can be baked into bread. The parable often makes little sense to people when they first hear it. How can the kingdom of heaven be like yeast? However, when you see what it is getting at, you may see that it is a parable about a changing world and about how the Lord acts on it. He is the one who changes the world, both the world as a whole and your personal world, and the process can be compared to the making of bread.

     The whole point of religion is to change people's hearts. One of its most joyful aspects is the assurance that people's hearts can change, and that the Lord is guiding the world to become a better place. The result, we are told, will be bread and not something inedible.

     It is reasonable to have concerns about the world's future. There may be a coming recession; you may be worried about the results of the upcoming elections, about the effects of global warming, the shrinking of the earth's resources, terrorism, possible global war, or any number of things. It is easy to be pessimistic about humanity's inhumanity to man, our relentless materialism and immorality, the apparent decline of religion in the West, and forces that threaten marriage and the family in our culture.

     The teachings of the New Church, however, assure you that whatever hardships may lie ahead, the long-term future of the human race is almost certain to be a happy one.

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According to the Heavenly Doctrine, we are entering a new spiritual era; it has already begun. Moreover, this era will be better than all previous ones. This is what is called the New Church, which is the New Jerusalem, and you are invited to be a part of it. People's hearts will change The negative trends and the proliferation of harmful and mistaken ideas are like the leaven that is mixed into the bread-dough. They force a process of change and transformation, and the end result will be better than what we started with.

     Our topic this morning is the way that change happens. In any culture, and in any community, styles change, trends come and go, and things that are seen as interesting and valuable one year will be ignored and forgotten about the next. The changes can seem random. They are not always positive, and they often seem unrelated to anything spiritual or important. But according to the teachings of the New Church, all the movements of culture are interconnected in fascinating ways, and they all ultimately relate to the Lord's purposes as He guides the human race towards heaven. The changes are not random. They spring from constant universal laws as they interact with human free choice. Our topic this morning focuses on four ways that the Lord works to bring about the process that our text compares to the making of bread.

     Our reading from True Christian Religion made the observation that "although the secrets revealed by the Lord at the present time surpass in excellence and importance all spiritual knowledge made public up to now, they are regarded on earth as of no value" (True Christian Religion 848). When the angels wondered how long this would be true, they were told, "Until time and times and half a time," a phrase from Daniel and Revelation which means "until the end of this age and the beginning of the next" (Apocalypse Revealed 562). In the next era, this information will be highly valued.

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Therefore the question is, what governs public opinion, and how does the Lord guide it? Here are four influences of which the Writings speak: The first is described by the Lord's words in our reading from John: "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me" (John 10). The Lord makes information available, and people are then free to follow or not as they choose. A second is that you are influenced by what the Writings call "universal atmospheres" from the Lord, which invisibly affect all created things (Conjugial Love 386). A third is that although you seem to yourself to think and feel autonomously, the truth is that you are enormously influenced by others (Divine Providence 308). Although people do change individually, they are always doing it within their own context, and these patterns change slowly. The fourth is that since these three influences are seldom in perfect agreement with each other, the differences need to be resolved, and the process of doing this can be compared to what happens when yeast is mixed with the dough in the making of bread (Divine Providence 25).

     The interaction of these and other influences is one way of describing the Divine providence. The Lord guides the human race while leaving all free to think and do as they wish. Because of this guidance, public opinion changes, and one day the "secrets revealed by the Lord at the present time" will no longer be "regarded on earth as of no value."

     The first principle here is that "My sheep hear My voice." The Lord has revealed the truth. Information of all kinds is available throughout the world, and it is increasing continually. People choose to learn, accept, believe, and practice whatever they wish. It just so happens that the Bible is by far the best-selling book of all time. An estimated six-billion copies have been printed (Wikipedia.com). Worldwide it is not only far and away the cumulative leader, it has also been the best-selling book every year since printing was invented-and even before then (Christianpost.com July 4, 2007).

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This has happened partly because of organizations dedicated to the cause of distributing Bibles. However, they could never have been successful if people did not respond. For some reason, world opinion has cooperated in making this happen. Is it just chance, or has the Lord caused public opinion worldwide to move in this direction? There is a remarkable self-reinforcing aspect to the process of being the sheep who hear the Lord's voice. We are told, "there is in faith, or in truths, an imperceptible blessing insinuated by the Lord, relating to eternal blessedness, which is preferred to evil delights" (Spiritual Experiences, minor 4611). This means that once that voice is heard and believed, it begins to change the one hearing it.

     One effect that the Lord's words have on you is related to the second way that He works to change your heart. You are influenced by what the Writings call "universal atmospheres" from the Lord, which invisibly affect all created things. We read, "Everything that flows out from an object, surrounds it and envelops it, is called an atmosphere. As, for example, the atmosphere of light and heat from the sun around it; the atmosphere of life from a person around him; the atmosphere of aroma from a shrub around it; the atmosphere of attraction from a magnet around it; and so on. [2] But the universal atmospheres which we are discussing here are from the Lord around Him; and they emanate from the sun of the spiritual world, at whose center He is...The realization of His purposes by means of these atmospheres is Divine providence" (Conjugial Love 386).

     That is, you are affected by the Lord's presence, by the atmospheres that surround Him, and the effect of this influence is so powerful that it is said that this is what the Divine providence is. "The realization of His purposes by means of these atmospheres is Divine providence." This is the origin of the universal impulses in all living things to survive, reproduce, provide for the survival of their offspring, and similar things.

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On the natural level, these impulses are what move all of nature. On the spiritual level, these atmospheres are received by people to the extent that they turn to the Lord, hear His voice in the truths that are taught in the Word, and obey them. The way that people respond to these atmospheres on both the natural and spiritual levels produces the changes that we observe as trends, styles, cultural views of good and bad behavior and correct and incorrect ideas. These things are always changing, and the impetus for the changes is related to how people respond to these universal atmospheres.

     A third factor here in the way that the Lord works to change your heart is that you are not as independent of others as it seems. "Almost everyone believes that we think and intend autonomously and therefore talk and act autonomously. Can we on our own believe anything else when the appearance is so convincing? Yet this is impossible. (The truth is that) the source of our thinking is not in ourselves but in others, whose source is again not in themselves" (Divine Providence 308).

     The "others" who influence your thoughts and feelings are the people that you associate with and also your spiritual associates, the good and evil spirits who are with you interiorly. What this means is that ideas, points of view, and values tend to be shared by members of a group, making it hard for conflicting ways of seeing things to be taken seriously. Styles, manners, and concepts of right and wrong tend to be held in common within a culture because of this sharing of thoughts and feelings. Yet every individual is actually free to think whatever they like, and everyone's exact thoughts and feelings are unique to them. The effect, nevertheless, is that it is hard to change individuals without changing the whole culture. Things that catch on quickly do so because they are in harmony with the way that people already think. Real change happens slowly.

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The importance of your spiritual associations is underlined by the statement in the Apocalypse Explained that "the New Church on earth grows according to its increase in the world of spirits, for spirits from that world are with men" (Apocalypse Explained 732:3).

     Three factors, then, affecting changes in humanity's spiritual character are the revelation of new truth, the effects of the Lord's presence, and the way that people are connected together, in both this world and the next, as to their thoughts and feelings. A fourth factor is the leaven of our text. The forces that act on what people think and feel do not necessarily agree with each other. Disagreements within a group produce processes that can be compared with what happens when leaven is put into flour. We read, "There are evils together with falsities which, when introduced into societies, act like ferments put into meal and juice of the grape. By means of these, discordant things are separated and concordant things are united, and purity and clearness are the result. They are what are meant by these words of the Lord: 'The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal'" (Divine Providence 25).

     The process of resolving the issues of life is compared to the fermentation process that takes place when yeast is put into flour to make bread. A similar process takes place in the making of wine. The meaning here is that even though the issues and conflicts in a person's life are caused by false and evil things, the effect can be a very good one. They force people to repeatedly consider and struggle with their beliefs and priorities. The kingdom of heaven is formed in the person in that struggle. People individually, and societies in general, successively reject what is false and evil as they see it more and more clearly. And in the process they are purified-being made into good bread, or clear wine. Contrary ideas cause you to think and consider what the truth really is. This is the value of controversy and disagreement.

     The point is that society changes and individuals change.

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The changes are not random, but are governed by factors and guided by the Lord. He is able to do this in a way that moves humanity in a good direction and also leaves us in freedom.

     It will not always be true that "the secrets revealed by the Lord at the present time... (will be) regarded on earth as of no value." Swedenborg writes, concerning the sales of the Heavenly Doctrine, "I received letters [informing me] that not more than four copies had been sold in two months, and this was made known to the angels. They wondered indeed, but said that it should be left to the Providence of the Lord, which was such as to compel no one, though it might be done. But that it was not fitting that [any others] should read [my work] first but those who were in faith; and that this might be known from [what happened at] the coming of the Lord into the world, who was able to compel men to receive His words and Himself, but [yet] compelled no one. Still there were found those who would receive, those who were in faith, to whom also the apostles were sent" (Spiritual Experiences 4422).

     "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand" (John 10:27). Amen

Lessons: Luke 13:20-21, John 10:14-16, 27-28, Spiritual Experiences 5222, True Christian Religion 848

     The Rev. Jeremy F. Simons was inaugurated into the priesthood in 1982 and ordained into the second or Pastoral degree in 1983. He first served as Assistant to the Pastor in Kempton Society, Pa., then as its Pastor in 1983 taking on also the role of Principal to the school there. In 1993 Jeremy accepted a call to be Assistant Pastor to the Immanuel Church, in Glenview, Ill., and the Principal of its Church School. Jeremy accepted the call in 1996 to be the Assistant Pastor to the Bryn Athyn Society, and in 2004 he became its Pastor. Jeremy lives with his wife Allyn (Edmonds) in Bryn Athyn.

[Photograph of Rev. Jeremy Simons.]

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"Rejoice!" 2008

"Rejoice!"              2008


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     New CD release from the Office of Education

     "Rejoice!" features family-friendly festival music for New Church Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Palm Sunday & Easter. More than 30 songs including favorites such as "New Hope of Every Nation"; "My Soul Magnifies the Lord"; "When Very Early in the Dawn" and new children's selections such as "The Four Horses" and "Shine, Shine, Golden Jerusalem."

     Available now from the Office of Education (267.502.4949) and the General Church Bookstore (267.502.4980) at promotional price of $12.00 through August 31st.
KEMPTON PROJECT WEBSITE 2008

KEMPTON PROJECT WEBSITE              2008


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     http://www.kemptonproject.org/

     Do you wish to look up any scripture passage, and then click on what the Writings say on that verse? Try it out.

     Just click on the webpage given above, and follow the directions. You can insert any chapter and verse of the Word of Sacred Scripture, the books which contain a spiritual sense, and then locate this meaning revealed in the Writings. There is more to explore. Rev. Andy Heilman and Mr. Roy Odhner developed or are running this program.

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WHY YOUNG PEOPLE LEAVE THE CHURCH. 2008

WHY YOUNG PEOPLE LEAVE THE CHURCH.       TOM FIEDLER       2008


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     Some New Church parents of adult children wonder why their children have either left the New Church or are no longer influenced by Swedenborg and the New Revelation. It is heartbreaking to conclude that those who have left did so from a conscious free will rejection of this present Dispensation.

     The New Church parent is not alone. New Church people often presume that the Jewish, Catholic and Protestant parent is losing her children to the current cultural pantheism because her church teaches false doctrine. Is it not time to put aside this presumption and examine other evidence? Just why are young adults (including New Church youth) abandoning the faith of their parents?

     We need to recognize that there are (and always will be) spiritual forces that seek to eradicate truths of faith and affection for them (remains) that parents consciously strive to instill in their offspring. These spiritual forces will attack us directly as individuals, but they will attack us through natural persons and worldly organizations in our nation and community.

     Faith in God and eternal life must never be mixed with science, or Science must never be mixed with politics, or Economics must never be mixed with anthropology; and the big one, Theology must never influence government. Of course that allows the Humanist to be the watchdog over everyone who does not share Humanist metaphysics. By default then, the Humanist hopes the rest of us won't notice that Humanism itself shifts from compartment to compartment whenever convenient for manipulating the rest of us. And most of us don't!

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     The Boomer generation was the last generation to be raised in a predominantly Judeo-Christian culture, but with a heavy emphasis on 'self-esteem' lacking in the depression generation. Generation X has been raised in a culture of Humanistic skepticism (AKA post-modernism) while generation Y* has been raised in a culture of pantheistic socialism (political correctness). Each paradigm has adopted new definitions and altered basic assumptions.
     * Generation X, those born from 1965 to 1982; Generation Y those born from 1980 to1995.

     For example, the depression generation and baby boomers shared a didactic absolute epistemology. Those are three fancy words for a discoverable reality one can see and understand through reason and meticulous observation (AKA rationalism and modernism). Hence the hard sciences were popular viz. physics, mathematics and the various forms of mechanical engineering. Those generations were encouraged to pursue knowledge individually, critically and competitively, regardless of what the experts and authorities promote. This way of thinking is portrayed by its critics to be "bigoted" and "exclusive".

     Generation X and Y were educated in a dialectic relative epistemology. In other words, reality is merely whatever collective humanity (through consensus) perceive it to be at any given time. Hence the arts and humanities, political science and psychology are popular subjects. For X and Y generations reality is evolving according to thesis-antithesis and synthesis (dialectic process). Their education has conditioned them to follow the published and acclaimed intellectual lead and seek consensus.

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This is labeled by its critics as "group think" and by its adherents as "transformational thinking"

     Of course these cultures blur in and out of each other. Fortunately, the internet and communication with third world aspirants has broadened the paradigms of each generation. But in the New Church our failure to see the conflicting foundations of the way each generation thinks (specifically the logic employed to process information) will result in frustrated communication. And none of us will be able to 'get it', let alone pass our values on to our children.

     The solution is to define our terms and follow the money. We can no longer assume terms such as 'liberal', 'freedom', `religious', 'progressive', 'tolerant', 'democracy' and `fundamental' mean the same to each generation. We can no longer assume that our children and their children speak the same language even though we use identical words and phrases.

     Following the money should be broadened to discover our individual motivation. The times call for rigorous honesty, transparency and courage. We can no longer assume that one generation accepts the same basic "obvious" facts about God, reality, the purpose of life and the value of one's family as the previous one did. Everything we wish to bequeath to following generations must be redefined in such a way as to avoid self-serving storge* agendas and un-confessed phobias. It isn't going to be easy, but I bet it will be enlightening.
     * Storge, from the Greek atorgei, Wikipedia, family love, Conjugial Love 176, Heaven and Hell 277

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NOT "THREE ASPECTS" OF GOD 2008

NOT "THREE ASPECTS" OF GOD       DANIEL W. GOODENOUGH       2008


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     Who is our God? How should we think of God? We know the trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is not three persons, because God is one person. In the New Church He is often called Divine Human. However, if not three persons, then how do we explain what Father, Son and Holy Spirit really mean? How many of us have simply said-they are three aspects of God?

     There is a real trinity or three-ness in God, and it is the same three-ness all human beings have: soul, body, and active influence (See True Christian Religion 165-169 for a good summary). The core of any person is the soul-our spirit and mind, how we really feel, care and love deep inside ourselves; and also what we truly think inside, in our own freedom and rationality. Our soul is our primary or ruling love-what we love above all else.

     Our soul is the real human being. Nevertheless, our souls would be helpless unless they had bodies to express and show what our soul is, and to act on our wishes. Our bodies live from our soul. It is through our bodies that we do things and contact other people's souls. It is through our bodies that we can see each other. That is why angels have spiritual bodies, to express their souls. A soul never exists by itself, but always has a body, to show itself and carry out its wishes.

     Finally, to be human we must be able to have outside influence, to go beyond ourselves, through doing and saying things that actually affect others. A soul and body that could never reach out and touch other people would mean a totally isolated life.

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To be human, life must mean we can have effects on other people, through our actions and sayings, our looks, our mood, the spiritual aura flowing from our loves. We influence others because our minds and hearts go out through our bodily actions and are felt-for good or for bad-by others. Though people sometimes abuse this ability, its purpose is that we may love each other, and be actively loved by others.

     The Lord God is Human-it is in His image that He made us human. His soul is Jehovah-infinite love and wisdom that created the universe and preserves it. That is our "Father," but that alone is invisible-"Someone" we cannot know. The Lord God's body is Jesus Christ-the human form that Jehovah God took on by being born of a virgin. During life on earth, He made His body Divine, or "glorified" it: He made Himself the Divine love in human form. It is in Jesus Christ that we can see God. "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14.6). Jesus Christ is the body and face of God.

     In addition, the Holy Spirit is His Divinely active influence. He touches all human beings and reaches out to uplift us towards Himself, by flowing into us with love and light-good feelings and ideas we can grasp and use. The Lord's Holy Spirit or activity is also called His proceeding, His operation, and His Divine providence. All these mean the inflowing activity of our Creator God, acting through His body Jesus Christ.

     This is the New Church trinity. The Writings do not say Father, Son and Holy Spirit are "three aspects" of God, and we really should not say that either. Although "three aspects" may seem an easy way to avoid the mistake of three Divine persons, in fact it is not true. It also lines up the New Church with the ancient heresy of "modalism"-that "Father, Son, Holy Spirit" are just three different modes or ways that God appears.

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This is an old idea in Christianity, but false, and it moves God away from our sight and makes him a kind of chameleon who changes how He looks. Since an aspect is an appearance or a way of looking at something, modalism can also mean the trinity is not something that is inherent in God, but a matter of how we look at Him-that is, the trinity or three-ness is not anything actually in God, but in how we see Him.

     The New Church is sometimes called modalist (wrongly!), and we open ourselves to this when we say Father, Son and Holy Spirit are "three aspects" of God. Sometimes we are called modalist because they do not know what else to do with our denial of three distinct persons while we affirm Jesus' full Divinity. Historically, only the modalists did that. Often Christians say, "three aspects" of God too, not realizing what it means.

     It is important that Father, Son and Holy Spirit are much more than three of God's aspects, appearances or names. They are the three essentials of one Divine Human Being-soul, body, and activity/influence. No one-not even God-can be human without all three of these. Talking about the New Church trinity is a great opportunity to show how the New Church idea of God and His incarnation is new, yet Biblical, is simple, and makes sense.
Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified              2008


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     "Father, all things of mine are yours, and all of yours are mine." What does this mean, if not that the Father's Divine belongs to the Son's Human, and the Son's Human to the Father's Divine? Consequently in Christ God is man and man is God, and thus they make one as soul and body make one....It is plain from this that the Father's Divine is the Son's soul, and the Son's Human is the Father's body. (True Christian Religion 122:4, 5)

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WHAT? THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH HAS ENDED? 2008

WHAT? THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH HAS ENDED?       Rev. KENNETH J. ALDEN       2008


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     Our title captures one of those enduring questions that confronts every generation that embraces the New Church and accepts the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg as a revelation of Heavenly Doctrine from the Lord. Intellectually we can recognize that the Lord foretold the end of the Christian Church, notably in Matthew 24, Luke 17, and Revelation 15-21. But what often challenges us is the fact that there are so many active Christian congregations around us, doing good work and spreading the Gospel around the world. It hardly seems credible that such a church may be called "ended." Does it imply that all these people are without a living religion-that they have no truth to guide their lives? After all, most of us know many practicing Christians whom we respect and love for their belief in the Lord and their life according to His commandments. How does this experience fit with the teaching of the Heavenly Doctrine?

     Our experience confirms the teaching of the Heavenly Doctrine in two ways. First, there is the negative possibility that some of the goodness we see is tainted by hypocrisy. With his spiritual eyes opened by the Lord, Swedenborg witnessed many cases of people who had seemed on earth to be the best of Christians but who were exposed after death as being interiorly self-serving and worldly. From this perspective, there is not necessarily any contradiction between the teaching that the Christian Church has ended and our experience of active churches doing laudable things. Further, the Heavenly Doctrine says of the post-Christian Church era: "As to the external appearance divided churches will exist as heretofore, their doctrines will be taught as heretofore; and the same religions as now will exist among the Gentiles" (Last Judgement 73).

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     Although the Lord foretold such spiritual darkness at the end of the church that the spiritual "sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light" (Matthew 24:29), His purpose in His Second Coming was to give new light for a New Church. With a new revelation from the Lord, the truth shines again in that Word and is received among a new people, along with a remnant of people from the former church. So, when the New Testament was added to it, the Old Testament Word took on a new meaning and shed new light. Now the Old and New Testament take on a new meaning and shed new light when the Heavenly Doctrine opens them up to be understood spiritually. With the establishment of a New Church, new light goes out, not just to the members of that church, but to the universal church throughout the world. All who worship one God and keep the Ten Commandments constitute one church which, in the eyes of the Lord, is as one person. The church which has and rightly understands the Word is like the heart and lungs supplying life to the whole body. Whereas the Jewish Church once filled that role, it was later transferred to Christians. Now it has been transferred to the New Church which is a kind of center from which spiritual light is available to Christians, Jews, and all other people and faiths.

     When we find people who genuinely believe in one God and live by the truth they know, it confirms what the Heavenly Doctrine says-light is going out through the spiritual world and reviving the church (See Conjugial Love 532; cf. True Christian Religion 182:2). In fact, the Heavenly Doctrine compares the succession of churches on earth to the stages of a person growing to maturity, and on into wisdom (See Apocalypse Explained 641:4). We could say that the universal church has a "change of heart" and a new way of thinking as it moves from infancy to childhood, then to adolescence and adulthood, and now into the age of wisdom.

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The previous states have all ended and a new center of interest and thought has taken their place, and yet the valuable things from childhood or adolescence are still there, but receiving their light and life from the new center.

     The Heavenly Doctrine teaches that all people who acknowledge one God and keep His commandments can be saved (See Divine Providence 253). It also teaches, "No one can hereafter come into heaven unless he be in the doctrine of the New Church as to faith and life" (Canons 47:7; cf. Brief Exposition 92; True Christian Religion 758). Can we not conclude that all who are heaven-bound are moving toward being in the doctrine of the New Church in faith and life? On earth people receive as much of that light and life through the New Church in the spiritual world as their religion can support. Is this not what it means, that the Christian Church has been ended and a New Church has been established by the Lord, that there is a new center where the Word is rightly understood and from which the light of the Word shines anew?
Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified              2008


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As regards the Lord's spiritual Church it should be realized that it exists throughout the whole world, for it is not confined to those who possess the Word and from the Word have knowledge of the Lord and of some truths of faith....Although they do not know the Lord while they are in the world they nevertheless have within themselves a worship and virtual acknowledgement of Him when good exists within them, for the Lord is present within all good. Arcana Coelestia 3263:2

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Early Childhood Religion Programfrom the General Church Office of Education2008-2009 2008

Early Childhood Religion Programfrom the General Church Office of Education2008-2009              2008


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     The Office of Education offers a special program to help meet the spiritual needs of your pre-school age children. Starting in September and going through June, each month your family will receive a package of "treasures" based on a story from the Word, following spiritual concepts for three different age categories* birth to one year * two to three years * four to five years

     Every month's package includes an illustrated story for the two to five year olds, or a "talk-about" picture for the babies; projects complete with all materials and instructions to bring the stories to life; a parent pamphlet based on the month's theme; inspirational quote cards; and suggestions of ways to develop or enrich the theme with one child or with the whole family. The first month's package includes a CD of music especially developed for this program.

     Sign up for the Early Childhood Religion Program now.

     The cost is $30 per child for orders placed before August 8th

     $35 for each child enrolled after August 8th.

     Only one shipping charge will be applied per family.

     In the United States, shipping cost is an additional $25 US per family.

     For Canada, shipping is an additional $30 US per family.

     Overseas addresses are an additional $45 US per family.

     If you receive your mail through interoffice, there will be no mailing charge.

     If you have any questions,

     please contact Janet Lockard at 267-502-4951 or [email protected]

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MALE AND FEMALE CREATED HE THEM 2008

MALE AND FEMALE CREATED HE THEM       Editor       2008


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     Incontrovertible is the sheer fact of two genders. There is however a fair amount of confusion nowadays over the genders. We witness traditional societies round the world with a largely subservient status for women, with male domination in some form or other, while other cultures have exalted and secure status for women. There is today also the 'transgender' phenomenon, with gender confusion and even alteration. We also face the agenda of 'gay' proponents and practitioners, who wish to accept alternate life-styles. Meanwhile, Christian mores and religion accept the one man to one-woman monogamy as the only ideal. Their voices are often muted. The New Church from the source of Heavenly Doctrine has always belonged in this latter camp. That is why "Male and Female Created He Them" are taken at face value. Monogamous marriage is "from creation." In addition, the spiritual sense shows how the understanding and will may unite a couple interiorly and forever (Arcana Coelestia 54, Conjugial Love 156:2, Last Judgment 20).

     Why is there so much confusion? It is because the spiritual levels of the human mind are not disposed in the same manner in male and female. These levels are spiritual, and therefore hard to detect or confess as relevant. The Writings reveal these distinctions, and from them "sides" have been taken on gender issues even in the New Church.

     The levels or degrees of creation are essential and must not be ignored or treated as a mere exercise. The Writings warn that unless we keep these discrete degrees inserted throughout creation, "enormously false conclusions will arise" which some will then swear are "right and true" (cf. Divine Love and Wisdom 187). We have better get it right, then, because otherwise we will not see any distinctions between the two genders either.

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     Declaring male and female to be the "same" in every regard would be such an "enormously false conclusion." No, there are indeed distinctions, but they have to be revealed for us to know about them. The physical distinctions stem from the spiritual ones.

     The key to understanding discrete distinctions is that conjunctions take place between two levels of unequal height! The "truth of a higher degree" is always conjoined with the "good of a lower degree" (Arcana Coelestia 3952). That means the conjunction between one man and one woman involves two levels, which stand in inverse relationship to each other in the two genders. Well, the sequence begins in the Lord Himself: The "Divine marriage itself within the Lord is not a marriage between the Divine good and the Divine truth present in His Divine Human but between the Good of the Divine Human and the Divine itself." This is explained: "The Good of the Lord's Divine Human is that which in the Word is called 'the Son of God' and the Divine itself that which is called 'the Father'" (ibid.).

     From the Lord, creation then produces a similar "chain" of higher joined to lower: "from eternity, the Lord who is Jehovah produced from Himself the sun of the spiritual world," which is the first of creation, and from that, "created the universe, and all things in it" (Divine Love and Wisdom 290, 152, Canons 7). As the creation process flowed outwards from the Creator, from the spiritual sun as the beginning of finition, God's substance or essence, which is Love (True Christian Religion 33) was the starting-point for all finite things in the created universe (True Christian Religion 29). Being so proximate in the process, the highest two levels were too active for even angelic reception. They are therefore like "belts, made radiant by a fiery source, which surround the Sun," (Arcana Coelestia 7270:2) which is the Lord.

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This is the nature of the consecutive degrees of order down to the heaven nearest to the Lord, by a "continuous chain linked to the First Being" down to the "lowest degrees present with humans, [who are in] the last and lowest...natural order" (ibid.). As these degrees are discrete, i.e. non-continuous, they become relatively "unresponsive and frigid, general and obscure" (ibid.). All the way down the chain, truth of a higher degree is conjoined to the good of the next lower level. Divine Truth (Wisdom) is conjoined with the celestial good (Arcana Coelestia 3952). This marriage produces celestial truth, conjoined with spiritual good; its truth is conjoined with natural good. Natural truth is conjoined with rational good; its truth is joined to sensuous good. Sensuous truth is joined to corporeal good (although these degrees are quasi discrete). Seed is conjoined to soil. Soil is termed "female" in the Writings, and all "seeds" are masculine (True Christian Religion 585). That does not ignore stamen and pistils, but returns to the ancient model of the earth as mother, and all seed as male. This model for a truth of a higher degree joined with the good of a lower degree follows the "chain" of creation right into the male and female.

     We get the idea. These degrees are present in both male and female. God created humans into two genders: "Male and Female Created He Them." They are like the soil itself on earth, where all influx terminates (Arcana Coelestia 7270). The higher "truth" is conjoined with a lower "good" just as a seed is implanted into soil.

     When we talk of degrees, we usually think of consecutive tiers as in a cake, or floors in a building. However, there is also a concentric way of looking at this. What is highest in consecutive order becomes the center in simultaneous order. It is like an extended telescope, which is then pushed together: the highest eyepiece then becomes the "center" of the collapsed cylinders. Seen from above, you see something like a dartboard, with a bulls-eye, an inner ring, an outer ring, etc.

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     The Writings talk of male and female distinctions that way: not above or below, but two concentric circles. Nevertheless, they are the same as high and low. Therefore, the gender distinction: In the male, the deepest i.e. highest or inmost level of the soul is love, and its covering or veiling is truth. Conversely, the highest or inmost level of the soul of the female is truth, having in it a strong urge to be joined to a male source, and this truth is covered or veiled with love. The woman's truth is accepted "as is" and proceeds in terms of affection.

     Since a male's inmost is good, which proceeds in terms of truth, this is called "the truth of good" or the "truth from good." "The truth of good or truth from good is masculine" (Conjugial Love 88). It is the same as "love and its clothing wisdom, or, love veiled over with wisdom" (Conjugial Love 32). We can picture love as colored "red" and wisdom as colored "blue." The male in that case is a red circle with a blue edge. The female is the converse: "the good of truth or good from that truth" (Conjugial Love 88) or "wisdom and its clothing the love stemming from it" (Conjugial Love 32). Her picture is thus a "blue" circle and a "red" edge! As said before, the two genders are converse of each other as to the discrete levels of their soul! From this, distinctions come all physical differences. Here we find a new reason for saying "Vive la Difference"!

     There are no proofs of this, but plenty of illustrations. Everyone knows what attraction to the "feminine" involves. Males are attracted by the face, body, clothing, make-up, behavior, manners of women. Women look deeper to find men attractive, but among the more outward characteristics of "male"- are the bearded chin, the deeper voice, a more visible musculature. The Writings mention these differences between the genders (Conjugial Love 218) and "jobs" according to gender (Conjugial Love 90). However, we should admit right here and now that a totally unforeseen factor, only hinted at during the Age of Reason when the Writings were published, was universal education and suffrage.

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Beginning with the works of Rousseau, contemporary to Swedenborg, Education was revolutionized, and today both genders receive equal educational opportunities and increasingly equal jobs as well. Everyone today knows that 'coeds' just as often as not outperform males in practically every scholastic subject! There are no differences, many say. Only in most sports are there still a gender distinction, i.e. males and females do not compete together or against each other. All of this has erased or at least put into question many of the social distinctions observed in the Writings. However, we should beware of erasing the inward distinctions of degrees of creation along with them.

     Still active, for example, will always be the physically based attraction between the genders, namely "beauty, manners, and similarity of conditions" (Arcana Coelestia 4145). However, these do not account for the vast depth of love and "falling in love" which must be moved by far deeper forces, namely those of the soul stemming from creation itself Such depth of love for the opposite sex is illustrated in the Writings by those who duel to the death for the love of a woman (Conjugial Love 333). One recent movie put it: "Is she worth dying for?"

     The inverse relationship of the degrees of the soul is the secret powerhouse for the level of attraction between males and females. This level of friendship is totally blunted and parodied between friends of the same gender. Same gender friendships are not internal unions, but are like the sparring of athletes (Conjugial Love 55:6). Because of the inverse discrete levels of the soul, the male soul is "male" and all through his body and the soul of the female is "female" and all through her body, and they can never be changed into each other (Conjugial Love 32, 33, 46)! The love worth dying for, the deepest attraction, doctrinally stated, therefore exists between "the male wisdom from the love of growing wise, and the [female] love of wisdom from that wisdom," or between "truth from good (masculine), and the good of truth from that truth (feminine)" (Conjugial Love 89).

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This can exist only between two of the opposite sex.

     There are many "keys" to keep such a conjugial or marriage union alive and looking to eternity. We only mention one: the woman or wife is able to draw man's love of his own intelligence to her own heart, and love his intelligence for him! She does this in ways not even she knows (Conjugial Love 193), and not without some silence about the man's deeper inclinations (Conjugial Love 167:2).

     Can we see some of the distinction of gender in ourselves? Can we reflect that whatever is of "love" then comes out in a conscious response from the "other" end of the equation. If you are male, your love only works by means of truth, and at least at times views truth abstractly from your driving love. If you are female, your truth is the starting point, a "fact" to go by, but it only manifests itself together with your personal affection or involvement. There can hardly be a "litmus" test for such interior distinctions, since the outcome is affection together with truth in either case. Both men and women appear the same in their productivity. That is why the inner mental workings of the two genders have to be revealed.

     Finally, we come to the conjunction between the male and the female. Because there is One only God of all creation (by however many Names He is known!) and because the entire Church both in heaven and indeed on all planets in the universe, appear as One Church before His eyes, to reflect One God and One church, heterosexual monogamy is the only legitimate conjunction from creation (Conjugial Love 70). The two genders were made so complementary that only a denial of the history of the human race could construe any other than a heterosexual union.

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Besides, the "end of creation is an angelic heaven from the human race," which is why the highest level of human delight is attached to the act of procreation (cf. Conjugial Love 68, 143, 390, Heaven and Hell 402), thereby guaranteeing the continuation of the human race. The source of the delight is from the conjugial or marriage sphere, which extends from the Lord as Source throughout His entire creation, "in an instant" (Conjugial Love 92, 222, 389). The "conjugial-instantly" leaves the mere "speed-of-light" for dead! So holy is the monogamous act of procreation that the organs themselves are deemed holy, and should not be abused away from procreation; and all manner of alternatives are deemed as "foul" and "profane", "prohibited degrees," listed in the literal text of Leviticus 18 (Arcana Coelestia 6348, Apocalypse Revealed 784, 799, Conjugial Love 519). In that chapter, all sexual disorders are listed by verse: adultery, incest, homosexuality, bestiality. Rape is mentioned elsewhere, and sexual abuse or harassment is condemned as the intentions behind these acts, via the 9th and 10th commandments against all "covetous desires." Such "foul" liaisons, which "profane marriage," are prohibited degrees of sex. When the Old Testament text already proscribes anything that clearly, all the Writings need do is to add the Divine imprimatur to it.

     The spiritual relationship between the husband and wife being on two levels, the reproductive organs also switch to the opposite of its gender. I.e. the woman's womb refers to truth, or a rational reception of doctrine of the church (switching from woman's usual representation of good). The male now represents love from which truth comes as seed (switching from the male's usual representation of truth). Both male and female in the act of procreating, thus move to their interior nature (male love veiled by truth, female truth veiled by love). This is illustrated by the Lord and the Church represented by a Bridegroom and Bride. As a couple approach the Lord, the Bridegroom represents the Lord, and the Bride the Church.

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But after they are married and have taken their vows, the Lord alone is the Bridegroom, and the Man and his Bride, i.e. husband and wife together, form the Church or Bride (Conjugial Love 125). The representation changes when the interior marriage takes place, effecting a reversal in roles between going up the aisle and going down it! This doctrine has been the source of the occasional New Church custom of the Bride and Groom exchanging places on the Chancel after they are declared "husband and wife."

     It is for the same reason that physical conjunction is prohibited during the betrothal state or anytime prior to the wedding. Remember that Mary was in danger of being stoned to death for being with child before she and Joseph had contact. Most world cultures hold the pre-marital state equally sacred and protected, an ideal in which the New Church joins forces together with a rational view as to 'why.' Namely, "It is apparent that a love for the opposite sex is not the origin of truly conjugial love, but that it is its first stage, being first in time, but not in end" (Conjugial Love 98). People who fall in love want to have sex before marriage, and perhaps the explanation above is not enough. The Lord forgives the "sins of youth" and everyone can always recover to an orderly path. However, the law is to harness the sexual desire by the Betrothal union, which is of "souls" before that of the body. The "end" of marriage is first; but the "first" manifestation of marriage is the physical attraction, tempting couples to yield. Nevertheless, marriage love does not grow from that attraction! A stronger marriage does not result from premarital unions. That is why the holy state of betrothal protects the couple by turning to the spiritual side of the marriage, letting doctrine sustain their souls as they seek a closer union. The ideal "time" for the wedding is then just right, whenever its condition is fulfilled.

     "Male and female created He them" signals an order to creation.

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The miracle that the same Lord and God created two genders, lies in the degrees in the chain of creation running through both, but offset by one step. If you think of a staircase, good is a platform, and truth is the riser. The male begins with a platform and goes down the next riser; and female starts with a riser and comes down to a platform. The higher truth is always joined to a lower good, all the way down. Although the male and the female stand on the same ground, spiritually, couples access each other, higher to higher, lower-to-lower, higher to lower. All these relationships are described in the work Conjugial Love. These movements are only perceived as lateral movements, which can become a source of "colds" and some argument in marriage. However, knowing these doctrines allows both singles and couples to be aware of degrees of height in the human soul: the masculine need to see a point most high and lofty, and the feminine need to fly even higher with her affection for that same point. The truth both see is from the Lord, and joins them forever.
BE PERFECT 2008

BE PERFECT       Editor       2008

     The Lord said, "Therefore you shall be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5:48).

     Since creation is finite, it cannot be perfect. Only the infinite Lord God is perfect. Why then does the Lord command us to "be perfect"? It is because it has a spiritual meaning. Literally, it is impossible, but the spiritual meaning is quite possible: "They are `perfect' when the Lord is in them" (Doctrine of Life 84). Simple, we are perfect, when the Lord can be in us.

     Even though we are still finite and imperfect, the Lord can be in us when we turn to Him, or when we have overcome evils on our own, and thanked the Lord for the victory. The good that we then do has the Lord in it, because genuine good does not seek any reward or praise. We do it unselfconsciously, in charity. We are "perfect," but only because we then lose the power of reflecting on the good that we do.

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The more regenerated a person is, even if it is only a momentary state of regeneration, the more he loses his power of reflection. Those who are being regenerated are not "capable of reflecting on the state of their regeneration" (Arcana Coelestia 933), thus on his or her own state of perfection.

     However, this is the very condition when the Lord is present. We do not notice Him either, since doing good is unselfconscious.

     Perfection is thus a spiritual state or quality of being, which comes at some moments in life. We may recognize that it has happened to us at some time, but we do not know exactly when! We just are grateful that good came out of our efforts.

     Perfection also increases another way: with the sheer number of those involved: "Each heavenly society becomes more perfect as new angel guests enter" (Heaven and Hell 71, Last Judgment 12). "Every perfection in heaven increases with the increase of number" (Heaven and Hell 418, Arcana Coelestia 3629).

     So two modes of "perfection" may be ours, even though we remain finite humans: first, by states of regeneration so that the Lord can be present in our unselfconscious good; and secondly by many joining together to do good. Then you are "perfect." The beauty of this is that we become perfect, to eternity.
Letter to the Editor 2008

Letter to the Editor       Bill Hall       2008

To the Editor:

     Thanks very much for the article, "When Prayers Go Unanswered" in the May New Church Life. Thanks, too, to the author, E. Kent Rogers.

     This article is very inspiring and practical. And with all my being, I hope I shall apply to my life the beautiful and inspiring truths of this article.

     As the author says, "In the final count, the only thing that matters is loving the people God brings into our lives." (p. 198).

     The ending is truly memorable. "We are just lucky to be given the chance to try to love. And that is the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. It is His chariot."

     Bill Hall

     Queensland, Australia

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CHURCH NEWS 2008

CHURCH NEWS              2008


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     Assembly in South Africa.

[Photograph of the members of the Assembly.]

     The Assembly took place near the gorgeous Drakensberg Mountains in Kwazulu Natal from 18-20 April, 2008. The theme was "Hamba Nenkhosi" which means "Walking with the Lord." Bishop Peter Buss gave the keynote address. About 100 people attended from all over South Africa, and the mood was one of shared hope and community. After the great success of this one, we are hoping to have them more frequently in the future.

     After our Sunday worship service with Holy Supper.

     [Photograph of Assembly members.]

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     Great Britain Young People Gatherings.

     [Photograph of participants of the Young People Gatherings.]

     There have always been camps, hikes or Summer Schools for the young or "young at heart" in Great Britain. In the top picture you will find many pillars of London or Colchester societies, or the Open Road as it was called, meaning all the rest, many now in the spiritual world. Included is a youthful face of Rev. Fred Elphick. The two other photos show New Church young people in high spirits from more recent venues. Who among the readers recall attending a Summer School in England? Or perhaps sending their teens to them? The British Academy Summer School (BASS) is now closing in on its 50th consecutive year! There are probably third generation attendees by this time, since the first one was held in 1959. This Editor was one of the 9 students.

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JACOB'S LADDERRELIGION LESSONS 2008

JACOB'S LADDERRELIGION LESSONS              2008


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     Learning about the Lord one level at a time!

     Religion Lessons for the Home

     The General Church Office of Education is excited to bring you a religion lesson program for children ages 5-12. Based on the religion curriculum for the General Church School System, these lessons are filled with full-color pictures and a variety of activities. Children can experience a sense of wonder and excitement as they learn the stories of the Word from parents, Sunday School teachers and others. A very important part of every level is material for parents or teachers-wonderful opportunities to renew or increase the adult's affection for and understanding of the Lord's Word. Jacob's Ladder transforms religion lessons into an exciting multi-sensory experience for today's families.

     Gorandparents and other relatives love

     to sponsor this type of program!

     Cost is in US dollars

     Introductory Level JL-K01      Each Level Costs: $60.00
     Level One JL-101
     Level Two JL-201               Shipping Costs: USA $10.00
     Level Three JL-301          Canada 20.00
     Level Four JL-401               Overseas 30.00
     Level Five JL-501               Overseas 30.00

     Please contact Janet Lockard at 267-502-4951
     [email protected].

     or visit us at www.newchurch.org/resources/education/resources/families

     General Church Office of Education 1100 Cathedral Road, Box 743 Bryn Athyn, PA 19009-0743 U.S.A.

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WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG 2008

WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG              2008


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     Announcements





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     An on-line family magazine from the General Church

     Office of Education featuring materials for all ages

     focused on a new theme every month.

     Healing Our Blindness in July 2008

     Keeping the Sabbath in August 2008

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[Blank page.]

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Notes on This Issue 2008

Notes on This Issue       Editor       2008


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     Two sermons in this issue both deal with 'destiny,' which the Writings define as a spiritual life for everyone. Divine Providence leads everyone according to their spiritual life to "this or that place" in a particular heavenly Society (Divine Providence 67). The first sermon by Rev. J. Clark Echols deals with this scenario in terms of marriage: how do you find a partner, how do you progress together? And the second sermon by Rev. Jan Weiss, gives the comforting message that the Lord is calling everyone to their fulfillment, individually.

     The article by Julie Conaron was part of her Master of Arts Thesis recently, and wonders exactly how partners separated by death sense each other's presence. Many grieving partners receive much solace from extraordinary experiences.

     Rev. Fred Elphick wrote the item on Highlighting the Writings under the full title, GENERAL INDEX TO SWEDENBORG'S SCRIPTURE QUOTATIONS (Swedenborg Society 2006) in the British Newsletter about three years ago. There are however interesting reflections on the nature of the Word.

     The Rev. Alain Nicolier has produced an astonishingly detailed and masterly investigation on the subject of homosexuality, entitled "A Theology of Sexuality (2005)." Here we extract material from the larger study, in two parts. Part I makes it clear first that the Bible does condemn it, but also that the disorder stems from many factors which we can understand. The subject just continues in Part II next month, with a conclusion of the ideal marriage union which we take for granted. Many are able to return to that ideal.

     Do you have trouble finding where something was said in the Writings? You hunt for it, but it eludes you. Or perhaps you can't locate where 'Gad and Asher' is talked of. Help is at hand. Please copy or tear out the pages by Joe David on where topics and books can be found. Some of this material is found in various other places, but here they are all gathered together. Perhaps readers can add other details they find helpful.

     Please note the extracts from the Bishop's Report.

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DESTINED FOR MARRIAGE 2008

DESTINED FOR MARRIAGE       Jr. Rev. J. CLARK ECHOLS       2008


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Then they two are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man put asunder (Mark 10:8, 9).

     It is your destiny to be married to the perfect spouse. You and another shall complete each other. The harmony of thought and desire shall create a new unity that had not existed in creation before your joining. The union of your will and understanding, desire and thought, inner and outer life, will establish a marriage with your spouse.

     It is in our spiritual nature to yearn for relationships. From the time of your earliest memories to this day, as a human being, you are motivated to find fulfillment and completion by sharing who you are and what you have.

     This urge has its origin, of course, in our Creator and in the union of Divine Love and Divine Wisdom that exists in our God. And the effort to be joined descends through the levels of creation, even to the matter of the earth. The energy then ascends, and forms a receptacle, the human mind, which completes the circle of life, and allows a joining to the Lord.

     The relationships you have with your spouse and the Lord are determined by the way you connect love and wisdom. That is, the quality of your desires, and the thoughts that are connected to them, determine the kind of relationships you have. Here is the core of the New Church teaching. It is not mysterious. It is a powerful tool that the Lord says makes genuine marriage love possible, even though we live in an age as far removed from the golden age as is possible. The tool to achieve a better marriage is,-seek to be honest with yourself about your desires, and look for ways to reject what makes you become selfish or hurtful.

     Swedenborg, in the work Marriage Love, describes a number of people who reject this tool. That is sad. Perhaps you have a complaint about your own relationships, including marriage with the Lord. That can be depressing.

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However, in order to give us hope, the Lord has shown us what marriage is like, from its beginnings to its fullest expression, from its most rudimentary to its most sublime. He wants us to know that everything He is doing for us, in us, through us and in others and through others, is to fulfill our destiny, which is that we will have a perfect marriage in heaven.

     Today we read the parable about Adam and Eve. The obvious moral of the story itself supports the notion that a man and a woman are intended to be together. While the initial condition of the garden is a paradise, still, "it is not good that that man should be alone." And the Creator made another human to match the first. The destiny of the joining of the two is further established by the image of the new mate being created from a part of the first, indeed a part closest to his heart, yet he supplies only the framework material, which is then in-filled by the new person's own heart. Even the language tells us about this destiny, as the first created human, for "Ish" calls the new partner "Ish-shah .

     Of course, this is not just a literal history. Rather, it tells of the spiritual marriage, first within the individual, then with his God and his spouse. Reading the internal sense of this story enriches your life, your marriage, and your relationship with the Lord, because it allows the Lord to enlighten you about yourself. Your spirit is encouraged and brightened by the hope the Lord has for you; the hope that will motivate any change you make; hope that will delight you on every level of life.

     Another powerful description of your destiny to be married is that of Isaac and Rebekah, found in Genesis 24. Now this is not a parable. It actually happened. The moral of the story exists in the literal telling was well as in the spiritual meaning, which makes it even more powerful a tale. It begins when Abraham identifies Isaac's need for a wife, and goes into action. The messenger is led through the desert precisely to the spot, at the precise moment, where Isaac's perfect partner is to be met. Of course, the messenger would have discovered this important and well-known family in a matter of a few days search. However, the beauty of the story is that he does none of the work to achieve success. In fact, the messenger opened himself to guidance by God by praying that God's will be done.

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He placed himself into God's service. It was thus even more obvious that this was God's doing; that it was Isaac and Rebekah's destiny to be together.

     The story ends with a deeply moving scene, not of Abraham's wish being fulfilled, but with Isaac's. He is alone in the field after a season of very hard work. Perhaps alone still, he is thinking, pining for what is missing in his life. He lifts his eyes and looks, and there, the camels are coming! Rebekah lifts her eyes and she sees Isaac, she gets down off her camel. Their deeply held desire for a partner, directed by the thought of trust in God, buoyed by hope in His destiny for them, gives them the instant recognition of each other, even before they could make out each other's faces.

     The spiritual meaning of this story is about how the Lord rearranges our mind so that what we have learned by experience can confirm our love of what is good. As we turn the journey of our life over to the Lord, trusting that He knows best, and hoping in the destiny He provides, then He will use everything we know that is true to give us our heart's desire. All that is not true we will discard. We begin by doing what seems like giving up, even suicide. Nevertheless, we are encouraged along the way, as hard as it will be, as long as it takes. Every day, as we read about ourselves in the Lord's Word, we will find a marker, a milepost, a directional sign, letting us know we are making progress, and headed in the right direction. We are given courage and stamina by the hope that it is our destiny to have integrity of mind and body, desire and thought.

     Those are old stories, fables, really. That makes them universal. They describe every person in the world. The New Church thus offers a key to the door upon which the Lord is knocking. In addition, we can offer that key to anyone who tells us that they are on a journey to a better life, and seeking guidance.

     There are many challenges from physical world. Some of them seem intractable. Many are very confusing. Our responsibility is not to stand off at some great distance, yell, and scream at people to "come over this way!"

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It is not the responsibility of all of us to go over, take their hands, and guide their steps, either. Our responsibility is to be dauntless in our pursuit of our own destiny, singing all along the way, attracting as much attention as we can, responding as the Lord gives us to.

     We can confront, individually and corporately, the illnesses of the mind that plague our culture and us. We certainly can climb up and so see farther, overcoming our culture's shortsightedness. We do that using the Word as our guide, our refuge, our strength, and taking steps in our own journey. We thus welcome others to join us, as they want and are able to. In fact, the Lord will be providing us resources for our journey by that means! Imagine how the Lord will bless us if we see everyone who comes to us, as an enhancement of our lives, and helper fit for us, who will carry some of our load and whose gifts will perfectly complement what we already have by the combining of our talents.

     We are living in a new age. The New Jerusalem has descended. A New Church is being established. Conjugial love is possible, because the Lord has opened our hearts and minds to His love and wisdom. This is good news. You can get out of spiritual sleep. You will have a perfect partner. You can get through the desert, and have your thirst quenched at the well of truth by the hand, by the power, of that affection which is the fulfillment of your deepest wish, the fulfillment of your greatest hope. "In a marriage of truly conjugial love, each partner becomes more and more deeply human, for that love opens the deeper aspects of their minds, and as these are opened, a person becomes more and more human" (Marriage Love 200). We are then "looking to an everlasting and eternal union with [our spouse] and the growing blessings of that union, which fuel in [us] a hope that continually refreshes [our] minds (Marriage Love 304).

     The woman clothed with the sun who appears early in the story of the last judgment and second coming, in the end becomes a Bride for the Lamb, adorned for her husband. The doctrine of the New Church, which has a grandeur that inspires a deep awe, can become in us the beauty of new love, beginning a life that is destined for the perfect marriage of love and wisdom, desire and thought, spirit and body.

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     As you yearn for true marriage love, so does every human being on the face of the earth. Alternatively, you, like so many, may not yet be conscious of it. On the other hand, you, like so many, may be in too much pain to feel it. Or you, like so many, may have the urge buried under layers of scar tissue of your own making. But it is there. Let the hope for new life, hope in your destiny to be married, carry you into your own new age, as the Lord prepares you for heaven. Amen

Lessons: Genesis 2:18-25; Mark 10:1-9; Marriage Love 200, 201.

     The Rev. J. Clark Echols Jr. was inaugurated into the priesthood in 1978, and ordained into the second degree in 1980. He first served as Assistant to the Pastor at the Immanuel Church in Glenview, Ill., also visiting the Madison Circle. In 1982 he was called to serve as resident Pastor to the Denver Circle in Co, also visiting the Central Western District, until 1993 when Clark answered the call to serve as the Pastor to the Freeport Society, Pa. In 2001 Clark visited the Lake Helen Circle and groups in Northern and Western Florida. In 2002 he became the Pastor of the Glendale New Church Society in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he remains. In 2005 he added the role of visiting Pastor to Indianapolis, and to the Dawson Creek Circle for one year until it received its resident Pastor; and continues to be the Interim visiting Pastor of the Los Angeles New Church, Cal. Clark lives with his wife Margaret (Cranch) in Cincinnati, Ohio.

[Photograph of Rev. Clark Echols.]

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CREATED FOR A SPECIFIC PURPOSE 2008

CREATED FOR A SPECIFIC PURPOSE       Rev. JAN H. WEISS       2008


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"Thus says the LORD who created you, and who formed you, Fear not: for I have redeemed you, I have called you by your name; you are Mine." (Isaiah 43:1)

     I have good news for every one of you. The Lord has a plan, and a reason, and a destiny for your life that is specific to you alone. Even before He created you, the Lord had a plan, a reason, and a destiny for your existence and life. You have a choice to accept or reject this plan and destiny. The Lord gave you total freedom to do what He has intended for you, or to do what you want to do, what feels right to you.

     If you deny or reject the Lord's destiny and you choose yourself as the supreme king of your life, then that amounts to denying the Lord's purpose and His love for you. If you choose to trust yourself and pursue your own goals, you also choose to trust your own intelligence, and you are on your own. However, if you choose to trust in God and you accept His destiny for your life, common sense tells you that He will show you the way and give you His intelligence.

     The Lord has to show your destiny, and give you earthly signs in such a way that at all times you will feel a free agent. The Lord wants you to feel that you made the choices and you did the work. This excludes input from prophets, psychics and card readers.

     The New Church teaches that your God given destiny is a love relationship with the Lord and a heavenly relationship with a partner of the opposite sex, which will last to eternity. You will have a spiritual home in the heavens where you will perform a use to the overall spiritual health of the heavens. Your destiny is filled with hope and excitement.

     It is not filled with doom or terror. The earth is not coming to some terrible end.

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The Lord is in control of the universe at all times, and protects those who are 'in sync' with His goal! This is my general message. Now let us go into details.

     The Lord is infinite love, and from this love, He was moved to create human beings outside Himself: He could love them and they could love Him in return (True Christian Religion 46). However, the essence of His love is such that He will never force or manipulate anyone to love Him in return. Human freedom is inherent in His creation, and all human beings have two choices. Either they love the Lord or they love themselves. In this, the Lord does not have any say.

     If you choose yourself in preference to the Lord, you will be in the happiness of self-love. The Lord never retaliates if you choose yourself. He does not bring you any retribution or punishment. But loving yourself above all others has its natural limitations in happiness. It can bring frustration, anxiety, and unhappiness.

     But if you choose to love the Lord, your possibilities are unlimited. The more you attune yourself to the influx of His love, the more possibilities are opened, and the happier you become. This increase of happiness continues to eternity (that is, in the dimension of time) and in degree (that is, in the dimension of state), so even if you could stand still in time, your love relationship would still become deeper and deeper.

     In heaven, you are happy because you perform a use to the whole of heaven. All the heavens are before the Lord as a grand man. So performing a use is best illustrated with the model of the human body.

     If your body is healthy, you feel it as one, though your body consists of many substances, parts, organs, and kinds of cells. All these substances, parts, organs and cells perform a use to each other. The life of each one produces something or does something that can be used by all the others. The more you learn about the workings of the human body, the more you can see that this is true, and how complex the interaction is.

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     At conception that body begins to develop, but in the process of time this development progresses more and more. An organ has a small beginning, but it develops in time. It may grow first in size, and then later it may renew itself. This illustrates somewhat what I mean by developing in the dimension of time and the dimension of state.

     Another useful model for illustration is a company. In each company, some function as brains, others as muscle, and others as bones. All are needed to do their part, so the company as a whole can perform a use to a customer, to give a service or a product. In that model, we can see people performing a variety of uses. There is a continual effort to perfect this performance. If people were randomly and abruptly moved around in their jobs, the company would fall apart and would cease to exist.

     From both models, we can see that each human being has a destiny, but there is the destiny of today and the destiny of tomorrow, and there is the destiny far into the future. The more people come into the heavens, the more perfect the performance of each one can become.

     So God does have a plan and a destiny, specific to you alone. The destiny of males is two-fold. They work in the world in a forensic use, and they perform a use to their wife when they are at home. The destiny of females is also two-fold. Her most important use is to receive from her husband either natural seed leading to birth in this world, or spiritual seed (truth) which she conjoins with good leading to the birth of a new use in the spiritual world. But we know that not all wives in the heavens have the same love for children. Some have a great love and care for many children there. Others have little or no love, and therefore care for few or no children. Yet they are all in heaven and therefore all have a love relationship with the Lord and a conjugial relationship with their husband. Apparently, it is a matter of temperament. There does not seem to be a difference in the happiness that they receive from the exercise of their love for children.

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     While husbands in the heavens are forensic, we also see women out in society performing uses. Sometimes they appear with their husband, but sometimes they appear by themselves and independent of their husband. There is a tremendous difference between husbands and the way they perform their use in society and at home. The same difference exists between the wives that are on earth and in the heavens. There are no carbon copies.

     So you should not look for your destiny outside of yourself You should not see it in others or in general principles. You should look for it within yourself You should look for the Lord's handwriting on your own heart and soul, seeing His destiny for yourself in your own heart and spirit. Your destiny is unique and different from all others.

     One very important point must be made here. Do not look for some supernatural, overpowering and unmistaken sign. The Lord wants you to operate in complete freedom. Unmistaken signs are never given, because these would take away your freedom. You would not feel that you are living your own life, but you would feel the Lord has taken over your life. So you expect to see your destiny gradually, by listening to your own heart, by seeing your own abilities and your own likes. For "life's destiny [is] according to the affections of [your] love" (Divine Providence 305). Sometimes you see these in yourself and by yourself, but sometimes you see them in yourself through the eyes of others, who are close to you. You will approach your destiny gradually. Also, your search for your identity is unique. You will find it in your own way, because of your own abilities and your own doubts.

     There is no doubt that the Lord wants to help you find your destiny. He first helps you to find the general direction of that destiny, then He continually helps you fine-tune your approach to that destiny, and He will do that to eternity.

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     The general direction of your destiny is either a state of heaven in which you perform a use to others, or a state of hell in which you exclusively satisfy your own desires. This is the first and most important choice you have to make. You do not need any signs here. It is a decision of the heart.

     After that, you will have to make series of small decisions, and I can best talk about them and illustrate them with the story of a person entering the spiritual world and going to his spiritual home. When a person arrives in the other world, three types of angels prepare him or her, and after that set them on a path towards their eternal home. Enough of the path ahead is seen so that he or she feels confident to start walking. However, the end the path is seen to curve so the final destiny is not seen. This experience is repeated every time the end of the road is reached.

     This visual representation illustrates the way the Lord gives you signs to help you reach your eternal destiny. First, you have to be prepared, and then you begin to work towards your destiny. In the first state of preparation, you are shown your final destination in a dream. Then you wake up to reality, your eyes are opened to reality. In this state, you begin to see who you are and who others are. The third state is a state in which you get down to doing about what you have been thinking. This is the moment you set foot on the path and begin to move on it.

     If you did not have a dream, you would not be willing to think about it, or do something about it. However, facing the reality of yourself and the world around you is very important. Our dream may be very unrealistic. You may think you can do something or cannot do something, but you could turn out to be incorrect in either case. Here you have to learn from others around you, which is usually hard on yourself and on the others. You can be very stubborn or you may find it hard to unlearn old habits. You may have a hard time seeing signs, reading signs and acting on signs.

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     This series of states of preparation and walking is repeated many times. You do not get the dream completely, you do not verbalize your destiny completely, you do not see your own reality the first time around, and you learn only a certain amount when you make a step on the path. It all goes gradually, day by day, and year by year. This walking, though sometimes frustrating, is also exciting and exhilarating.

     Listen how Isaiah describes this walking. "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you: when you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon you. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior."

     Passing through the waters is coming in contact with falsities in your mind, facing and going through them. Here the Lord is with you every step of the way. Walking through the rivers means facing fantasies about yourself. They will not overcome you. From drowning in these fantasies, the Lord protects you. Fire and flames represent selfishness and the foolish desires that arise from these evils. They will not harm you.

     At the end of all these experiences is the Lord your God, the One with whom you will have a relationship of love, your Savior, the one who will save you from your selfishness. This relationship will be something very special, and this special quality is expressed by our text: "Thus says the LORD who created you, and who formed you, Fear not: for I have redeemed you, I have called you by your name; you are Mine."

     If we were to compare the literal sense of the Word to the Lord while He was on earth, this text would correspond to the Lord's hands. We can see His hands, there is no cover, and there is total clarity. He has created you, and He has formed you from infinite love and according to infinite wisdom. He has redeemed you, which means that He has given you freedom to be your own person, and to have your own relationships with Him, with your partner, and with your friends.

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He has called you out of the womb of your mother, but He has not just called you, He has called you by your name, and He has told you that you are His.

     When the Lord calls you it means He wants to teach and lead you to His heaven. But He calls you by your name! By name is meant the essence or quality of a person. In heaven, a person is distinguished from another person by his quality. In heaven every person is special and unlike anyone else. It is by this quality that you are known, and distinguished from other people. The Lord calls you by your name, so He teaches and leads you according the state of your love and wisdom. So you are very special in His eyes, and once you see this, you can also see yourself as something very special. It is in your seeing and following your special destiny that you resolve and restore your feeling of self-esteem. This leads you to a new view of yourself, for after the Lord has called you by your name, you now love and esteem the Lord's view of you. And so we pray that the Lord in His infinite love will call everyone, and that He will call you by your name. Amen

Lessons: Isaiah 43:1-7, Divine Love and Wisdom 170, 331, True Christian Religion 46

     The Rev. Jan H. Weiss was inaugurated into the priesthood in 1955 and ordained into the second degree in 1957. Jan first was called to be Assistant to the Pastor both in the Carmel Kitchener and Olivet Toronto Churches for three years. In 1958 he was called to be Assistant to the Pastor in the Immanuel Church in Glenview, Ill. He retired from the ministry in 1961, but has been very active in independent evangelization initiatives, and in developing the Gorand Man search engine for the Writings, advertized already in New Church Life. Jan lives with his wife Catharina (DeKleyn) in Placentia, California.

[Photograph of Rev. Jan Weiss.]

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TRANSITION-WIDOWHOOD AND WIDOWER-HOOD 2008

TRANSITION-WIDOWHOOD AND WIDOWER-HOOD       JULIE CONARON       2008


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     In the majority of cases, a married couple on this earth will be "separated" at some point in their lives: few people leave this earth at the same time as their spouse. The spouse remaining becomes a widow or widower. This can happen early in the marriage, when there are still young children, through accident, tragedy or illness, or after many years.

     The Writings explain that there is a reason why some people live a long time on this earth and others for just a short time (Spiritual Experiences 5002). The Lord knows how long anyone will live, whether they will die in infancy or live to a ripe old age, and how they will live, and He provides for it. Why some people die young and others do not depends on several factors (Spiritual Experiences 5003):

     1. Their use in this world to others here

     2. Their use while here to spirits and angels

     3. Their uses to themselves in this world, e.g. do they still need to be let into their evils to prevent their damnation?

     4. Their eternal uses.

     It is still hard to appreciate these concepts when one has "lost" one's beloved spouse, but it does present a picture of the Lord always providing for people's eternal welfare. No matter what happens, whether it is a tragedy like 9/11 or an old person passing away in their sleep, the Lord foresees and provides for people's eternal uses, which is what is important. He also provides for the grieving friends and family: they will ultimately benefit from the loved one's presence in the spiritual world, and will enhance everyone's eternal use. As we have seen above, death is just a passage from one world to the next (Heaven and Hell 445), with the next world feeling more like home than this one.

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     In the world of spirits, people progress more rapidly in their spiritual journey than they can here (Odhner, Spirits and Men, p.309); they can be shown more graphically the source of their temptations. While generally relatives, friends and married partners help each other in their regeneration, they can be a block to the other's progress (Odhner, p.310). Separation by death can help both of them, as long as the one transitioning has made their essential life choices.

     In spite of the excellent eternal reasons for someone to cross over, there is often a sad, grieving spouse remaining in this world. Conjugial Love 325 states that the state of a widow is more grievous than that of a widower. At first glance, some of the reasons listed appear obsolete. In eighteenth century Sweden, a woman may not have been able to provide "the necessaries of life," which is not so true in the twenty-first century western culture. From external observation, it often appears that the widower seems more distressed, since he no longer has a wife to nurture him or provide him with feminine comforts.

     However, the other reasons listed in this passage make it clear that the Writings are discussing the internal states of a widow. These are that she does not have the masculine judgment to turn to, nor does she have his interior wisdom or prudence, but, most importantly, she has no one receiving "the love she has as a woman; thus she is in a state alien to the state innate in her, and entered into by marriage" (Conjugial Love 325, Rogers' translation). Good needs truth to manage things, protect and counsel it. Many of the reasons given by widows for their loneliness match what the Writings teach about widows: there is no-one to help her decide, keep her ideas balanced, but mostly she has no-one to love. For those widows who enter the state early in life, there are often young children for her to nurture, but it is also a challenge dealing with a young family, the financial difficulties of losing the breadwinner, and being the only parent in this world.

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     If the spouse in this world is feeling grief and loss, is the spouse in the spiritual world feeling it also? Odhner thinks there must be some distress, but they live in a world that constantly reassures them that all who share in a love are present with one another, and that the Lord is caring for all (p.319).

     The spiritual meaning of a widow in the Word is "one who is in good and not in truth" (Apocalypse Revealed 764). In that situation, the good is without protection, which is how many widows feel. Another passage states that a widow signifies one "who is in the affection for good, and from that desires truth." (Apocalypse Explained 1121). This refers to both men and women in the internal sense who are without protection against evil and falsity, but it does illustrate some of the causes of the bereft feelings experienced by widows and widowers.

     Widows and widowers must face their future in this world without their partner physically present. The departed spouse will initially be in the world of spirits, where they are for a shorter or longer time depending on their states, the purpose being for their examination and preparation. Heaven and Hell 426 says that no one stays longer than thirty years, but this was written prior to the last judgment, when many people were there for a long time. Apocalypse Revealed 866, written after the last judgment, shortens the time to twenty years, suggesting the stay in the world of spirits began to be of shorter duration. Some widows and widowers are concerned that if they remain here more than twenty or thirty years their spouses cannot be their conjugial partners. However, heaven is a state, not a place, the "place" being an appearance based on the states of the spirits who live there. So the spouse in the spiritual world could well become an angel in heaven without severing the bonds to his or her partner on this earth, especially since the partner on earth can also "be in heaven" as to their interiors (Odhner, p. 312).

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     As Odhner professes, people do indeed "have a foothold" in the community of heaven into which they will come fully after death, as well as other communities while they are still on this earth and growing (p. 313). They are present there as to their inner person (Odhner, p. 314). As people do their spiritual work, their spirits move through the world of spirits from community to community. Many eternal partners may be residing spiritually in the same community of heaven even while they are both on earth.

     Death cannot really move anyone away from or beyond their loved ones spiritually as spirits are not limited by space and time. The spirits of loved ones remain together. The loved ones in the spiritual world remember their loved ones on this earth: they do not need their external memories for this (Odhner, p.315). Loved ones "find" each other in the other world, through their spheres.

     The relationship between married partners is different than that between people and their associate spirits. Associate spirits do not know they are with people (Heaven and Hell 292), although the angels do (Arcana Coelestia 5862). The angels watch over people in this earth. Odhner goes on to say that angels watch over people on this earth, they perceive, see and observe their states (p. 317), but just how aware of the people personally is not known.

     The relationship between spouses, when one has transitioned, is quite different from that of people and their associate spirits. The spouses in the spiritual world have an actual impact on the spouse in this world's states, and vice versa (Odhner, p. 319). The spouse in the natural world is not conscious of this, as consciousness would interfere with their spiritual freedom (Divine Providence 134). Hugo Lj. Odhner, while discussing the way attendant spirits with people change as their states change, states "A striking exception to this rule is suggested in the teaching that death does not separate conjugial partners" (Odhner p.51-52).

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He then goes on to quote the famous (amongst the widowed) passage, [T]he two are not actually separated by the death of one; for the spirit of the deceased continues to dwell with the spirit of the one not yet deceased, and this until the death of the other, at which time they come together again and are reunited, loving each other even more tenderly than before, because they are in the spiritual world" (Conjugial Love 321, Rogers' translation).

     The whole passage actually deals with remarriage, discussing the reasons why many conjugial partners do not remarry, and if they do, it is usually for reasons outside of conjugial love.

     Another passage speaks of the adjunction of conjugial partners calling it a "spiritual dwelling together, which occurs in the case of married partners who love each other tenderly, however separated they may be in body...It is apparent from this that conjugial love joins two souls and minds into one" (Conjugial Love 158, Rogers translation).

     Many widows and widowers have two important questions: 1. What exactly is this "dwelling together" and how is it manifest? 2. How do the married partners left in this world deal with the trauma of separation?

     Rev. Grant H. Odhner in Having a Loved One on the Other Side (p.393-396) suggests some answers to these questions. He notes that love is eternal and does not end with death (p.393). Good loves cannot grieve and feel angry forever. The new widow or widower takes pleasure in the things that delighted their spouses in quite a new way. The bereaved becomes aware of the presence of the departed in some of the decisions they make; they like to do the things their partners loved (p. 393). The old natural issues become separated, and the spouses on this earth can see the deeper loves in a new way: there is a clarification and a new feeling about the departed spouse.

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This "new" relationship with the spouse and the re-establishment of their loves' deeper delights helps ease the grief and enables them to live anew (p. 394). They will resume their full relationship with the spouse when they leave this earth, but in the meantime, the relationship is not lost. The very body of each has taken form in response to the other's spirit (p. 395).

     How does the world view the love between two people after death? In one book, heaven is declared the home of true lovers (Houts, p. 373). The Guggenheims found that 67% of widows have had contact with their deceased spouses (p. 12-13), so this phenomenon of feeling connected to the spouse is not only with new church couples. Here are just some of the experiences from outside literature:

     ï¿½     A man in the spiritual world prepares for his wife (Houts, p. 63).

     ï¿½     A widow is reassured that her husband will be there waiting for her when she comes, that he would still be who he was, and they would be reunited (Guggenheim, p. 59).

     ï¿½     Another widow had told her spouse to communicate with her before he died, and he often used to buy her roses. One day she smells a bouquet of roses in her office: she knows he is communicating with her (Guggenheim, p. 63-64).

     ï¿½     One widow had felt controlled by her husband when he was in this world, and he had refused to let her run a daycare in their home. After his death she did open that daycare, and the day she did, she smelled (his) coffee, which to her said he did not want to control her anymore (Guggenheim, p. 64-65).

     ï¿½     A widow saw her young husband, who had died of a brain tumor. He was peaceful and reassuring, and let her know he would be watching over her (Guggenheim, p. 95).

     ï¿½     A man's wife appeared to him. She was beautiful and not sick anymore. He did not know why she came, but just "having had a marvelous, unbelievable relationship with a wife for more than fifty years, that's a good enough reason!" (Guggenheim, p. 98)

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     ï¿½     Reassurances from a husband in the spiritual world come to his wife to tell her their daughter would be fine. She fell apart after her dad died and became alcoholic, but she did indeed recover (Guggenheim, p. 102).

     ï¿½     There are many instances of non-verbal communication (Guggenheim, p. 173). One involved a man who lost all his loved ones in a tragic car accident: his wife, in-laws, and all his eight children. He fell apart, and tried to kill himself several times. During the final attempt, all his family appeared to him. They said nothing, but reassured him all was well with them. He returned to his physical body, vowed to live again and tell as many people as would be willing to listen about the life after death before he himself goes there (Kubler-Ross (2), p. 57-58).

     The author also spoke to people who told about widows' experiences outside the New Church:

     One English woman was widowed when her husband was killed in World War II. She felt he had visited her after he died. She did believe in a life after death, but was not particularly religious.

     ï¿½     A New Church widow's sister-in-law was the daughter of parents who were both Christians, but of different sects. For various reasons, the woman's husband had divorced her and remarried. Not long afterwards he died. This woman obviously still loved her ex-husband because she was so glad to find out from her New Church sister-in-law that she would meet him after death. It helped confirm her belief in a life after death, and that she would see her husband again.

     ï¿½     Five months after her husband died a widow was sitting on the couch around Christmastime feeling tearful, lonely and despondent, watching TV for company. Out of the corner of both eyes, one after another, she saw a flicker of light. Her attention was drawn away from the TV to see from where the light came-she saw nothing.

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Almost immediately afterwards, she had the feeling of someone standing by her side, and slightly behind her. At the same time, she smelled a fragrance, which startled her, and made her turn around to see who was there. There was no one physically present, but the smell was that of her husband's aftershave. It lasted but a minute and was gone. As she recounts "It was too real to be imagined (her emphasis)." She found herself sobbing, and when she has remembered it since it has made her cry.

     ï¿½ She went on to say she felt as if this wonderful man was trying to make sure she was doing alright and comforting her. She explained in their lives together he was always trying to make her laugh when she was sad or upset, and in her mind she felt this was one of those experiences.

     There are many stages in widows and widowers adjusting to their new life. Early on is the new grief, the wishing to turn back the clock, which may be accompanied by guilt: "maybe if I'd done more for him/her, they'd still be here," etc. The loss is profound, no matter at what age, but sometimes appears to be worse when the bereaved is younger because of the years of "separation" they anticipate.

     "The days drag, but the years fly by," as one widow remarked, a symptom of the state many experience where time becomes warped. As the newly bereaved rebuild their lives and adjust to their new states, some of the pain eases. One widow of 11 years said that, although the intensely painful feeling does ease, there is always "a hole."

     As a new use or uses takes the place of being a natural wife or husband, some of the intensity of the grief abates. For New Church widows and widowers the strong belief in a life after death with their spouses eases some of the pain of physical loss, and this is true for those outside the church who have a strong faith in a life after death, especially when they believe they will be reunited with their spouses.

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     Selected Bibliography

     Guggenheim, Bill and Judy. Hello from Heaven. 3rd ed. Bantam books, New York (1997)

     Houts, Margaret Scot. Voices from the Open Door. The Open door publishing company (1912), from copy of manuscript

     Kubler-Ross, Elisabeth. Death, the Final Stage of Growth. Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, NJ (1975)

     Odhner, Grant. "Having a loved one on the other side," New Church Life, September 1996, 393-396, Bryn Athyn, PA

     Odhner, Hugo Lj. Spirits and Men. Academy Book Room, Bryn Athyn, PA (1960, 1978 printing)
HIGHLIGHTING THE WORD 2008

HIGHLIGHTING THE WORD       FRED ELPHICK       2008


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     When you have a look at the Swedenborg Society's new edition of Searle's Index, you will see at the back hundreds of references from all over the Writings to the book of Job, the Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles. Yet one of the stumbling blocks for newcomers is the idea that Swedenborg excluded several books in the Old Testament and a whole chunk of the New. However, as the above references show, he did not.

     What Swedenborg did was to show that while all the books that make up the Bible are useful to the church, there are particular ones that have an undreamed of inner power and glory. The Lord Himself revealed this spiritual sense to him, coming in the "clouds" of heaven-the clouds being the literal meaning of the books that carry that inward glory.

     Take a Bible and in the Contents, highlight all the books from Genesis to Judges, Samuel and Kings, the Psalms, and Isaiah to Malachi. You have got most of the Old Testament, with the last 17 books in an unbroken series.

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Do the same for the New Testament and you have the four Gospels and Revelation. You have not taken away. You have just highlighted the books listed in the Writings as being Divine in every minute detail. These are "the Word" in the strict sense.

     The places in the Writings that tell us which books are the Word in this strict sense are The New Jerusalem & Its Heavenly Doctrine 266, referring to Arcana Coelestia 10325; and The White Horse (no 16) which adds "The book of Job is an ancient book in which, indeed, there is an internal sense, but not in a connected order, (Arcana Coelestia 3540, 9942)."

     So what are the requirements for a book to be the Word in the strict sense? Surprisingly, having correspondences and a spiritual sense is not enough. It has to have a continuous spiritual sense that runs in a connected order-an 'inner text'. So we read, "...that [internal] sense is the very Word itself in which the Divine is most nearly present..." (Arcana Coelestia 3432:3).

     Countless passages reveal amazing facts about the hidden treasures of the Word. In addition, in the light of these, we can see the hand of Providence in the inclusion in the Bible of other books "useful to the church" (see Apocalypse Explained 815:2). That enquiry will have to wait for another time. There are lots of questions!

     Let's conclude with a brief look at what is said in the Arcana in the section on Charity and Faith, beginning the explanation of Exodus 31: "Seeing therefore that man lives after death, and this to eternity; and that a life awaits him in accordance with his love and faith, it follows that from love toward the human race, the Divine has revealed such things as will lead to that life, and will conduce to man's salvation. That which the Divine has revealed is with us the Word" (Arcana Coelestia 10320).

     Defined in this way, it follows that the Word is Divine both in general and in particular (Arcana Coelestia 10321).

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It comes down through the heavens to humankind, accommodated to the angels on their level and adapted to the grasp of people on earth. Hence it has an inner spiritual meaning, and an outer one drawn from the natural world. The joining of heaven and man by the Word is possible because these two levels correspond (See Arcana Coelestia 10322).

     Only people responsive to the Lord's love and who have faith in Him, are enlightened to see its real meaning. For He raises their minds into the light of heaven (Arcana Coelestia 10323). These ones can make doctrine from the Word to serve as a lamp (Arcana Coelestia 10324).

     Then follows the passage, which tells us which books are the Word in this strict sense: "The books of the Word are all those which have an internal sense; and those which have not an internal sense are not the Word. The books of the Word in the Old Testament are the five books of Moses, the book of Joshua, the book of Judges, the two books of Samuel, the two books of Kings, the Psalms of David, the Prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi; and in the New Testament the four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John; and Revelation" (Arcana Coelestia 10325).
Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified              2008


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     The seed is distributed through the body in all directions, is received by the soul [anima] which is in the whole body, thus in the fibers and vessels everywhere, and then delights - gives pleasure - to the wife, and fills with delight; and thus she is molded into the form of the man. This is "Bone and flesh of my bone and flesh" [Genesis 2:3]. It produces intelligence in him; and... produces impregnation. It is allowable to love a pregnant wife. The reasons are numerous. Spiritual Experiences 6110:63, 64

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USEFUL INDICES 2008

USEFUL INDICES       Joe David       2008


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     When Swedenborg was writing the Arcana Coelestia, he frequently added a short section about other things he learned in the spiritual world, one before the chapter he was explaining and one, usually on a different subject, after that chapter. Sometimes the same subject was considered in a long string of sections, and these long strings were sometimes collected and published separately later. Here is a subject index of that inter chapter material.

Angelic Societies          After chap. 6 #684-691     Vol. 1
Awakening from Death      Between chaps. 2, 3, and 4 Vol. 1
Charity               Before chaps. 1 thru 23 of Exodus Vols. 9, 10, and 11
Charity and Faith          Before chaps. 24 thru 40 of Exodus Vols. 11 and 12
Children in Heaven      After chap. 18 #2289-2309 Vol. 3
Earths in the Universe      After chaps. 1 thru 40 of Exodus Vols. 9 thru 12
Freedom               After chap. 22 #2870-2893 Vol. 3
Gentiles in Sp. World      After chap. 20 #2589-2605 Vol. 3
Gorand Man, (general)      After chs. 27 and 28 #3624-3648, 3746-3750 Vol. 3
Gorand Man, (corr. of parts) After chs. 29 thru 43 Vols. 5 thru 7
Heavenly Joy          Before and after ch. 5, and before ch. 6. #449-459 & 537-553 Vol. 1
Hell                    Before chap. 7, and between chaps. 7, 8, and 9 #692-700, 814-831, and 938-969 Vol. 1
Influx               After chaps 46 thru 50     Vol. 8
Internal Sense          Before chaps. 1, 12, 16 thru 25 Vols. 1, 2, and 4     
Light, Gardens, etc      Before and after chap. 13 #1521-1534, and 1619-1633. Vol. 2     

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Last Judgment (see also Matthew) After chap. 17, before chap. 26 Vol. 2 #2117-2133, 3353-3356
Marriage in Heaven      After chap. 21 #2727-2759 Vol. 3 Matthew, chs. 24 and 25 (int. sense) Before chaps. 27 thru 40 Vol. 4 thru 7
Memory in the Sp. World     After chap, 19 #2469-2494 Vol. 3
Most Ancient Church      Before and after chap 10 #1114-1129, 1265-1272 Vol. 2
Names of the Lord      Before chap. 16 of Genesis #1886-1889 Vol. 2
Perceptions of Sp and Ang Before and after chap. 12 #1383-1399, 1504-1520 Vol. 2
Position, Place, Dist      Before and after chap. 11 #1273-1277, 1376-1382 Vol. 2
Preface to Latin Vol. 2     Before chap. 16     Vol. 2
Preface to Latin Vol. 3     Before chap. 23     Vol. 4
Presence of Sp. and Angels     After chaps. 44 and 45 #5846-5865, 5976-5993 Vol. 8
Representatives and Correspondences After chaps. 23 thru 26 Vol. 4
Sacred Scriptures Before and after chap. 15 #1767-1776, 1869-1879 Vol. 2
Sensing thru Others (Add. Remarks) After Chap. 15 # 1880-1885 Vol. 2
Sickness               After chap. 43 #5711-5727     Vol. 7
Speech of Angels          Before and after chap. 14 #1634-1649,1757-1764 Vol. 2
Thoughts About Spirits      Before and after chap. 4 #320-323, 443-448 Vol. 1
Vastation               After chap. 9     #1106-1113     Vol. 1
Visions and Dreams      After chap. 16 #1966-1983     Vol. 2
Word, the               Before chap. 23 #2894-2900     Vol. 4

     During the time when Swedenborg was writing his Theological works, he penned many short outlines, sketches and other short works, some of which were published by him, and some that were gathered up later and published posthumously.

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Here is an index of those that are today published in what I think of as the "standard" edition of the Writings.

Additions to True Christian Religion Posthumous, vol. 1, pp. 149-164
Appendix to White Horse Misc. Th. Wks. 5th. Sect. pp. 387-393
Argument concerning judgment...Posthumous, vol. 1, pp. 515-520
Athanasian Creed A.E. vol. 6, pp. 485-532 (alt. sections)
Athanasian Faith A.E. vol. 6, p. 114-353 (alt. sections)....
Bibliography of all Swedenborg's works Posthumous, vol. 2, p. 567
Brief Exposition Misc. Th. Wks., 2nd section, pp 317-353
Canons of the New Church Posthumous, vol. 1, pp 169-226
Consummation of the Age Posthumous, vol. 1 pp. 107-113 (outline only)
Cont.-Spiritual World Misc. Th. Wks. Sect. 8b, pp. 591-634
Conversations Posthumous, vol. 1 pp. 533-536 (outline only)
Conversation w/Calvin Posthumous, vol. 1 pp. 547-551
Coronis Posthumous, vol. 1 pp. 19-97
Council of Trent Posthumous, vol. 1 pp. 537-546
Divine Love A.E. vol. 6, p. 352
Divine Wisdom A.E. vol. 6, p. 399
Doctrine of Charity Posthumous, vol. 1, pp. 231-300
Doctrine of the New Church Posthumous, vol. 1, pp. 555-560 (sketch only)
Earths in the Universe Misc. Th. Wks. 6th. Sect. pp. 397-504 (Also see index on interchapter material)
Ecclesiastical History of the N.0 Posthumous, vol. 1, pp. 305, 306 (outline only)
Five Memorable Relations Posthumous, vol. 1, pp. 521-532
Gad and Asher Posthumous, vol. 1, pp. 604
God the Savior Posthumous, vol. 1, 552-554
Index of Scripture Posthumous, vol. 1, pp. 99-102

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Invitation to the N.C. Posthumous, vol. 1 pp. 119-143
Influx Posthumous, vol. 1 p. 603
Intercourse Bet. the Soul and Body Misc. Th. Wks., 3rd Sect. pp. 317-373
Justification and Good Works Posthumous, Vol. 1, pp. 537-546
Letters to Alstromer Posthumous, vol. 1 p.585 (the Pope)
     " Beyer Posthumous, vol. 1, Nine; pp. 9, 569, 576, 579, 583, 586, 589, 601 and 602 (various topics )
     " Bonde     Posthumous, vol. 1, p. 588 (Danger)
     " Hartley          "     pp. 5-8 (Biog.).
     " Hesse-Bondstadt     "      Two, pp. 590, 591
     " the King (of Sweden) " p. 594
     " Oetinger          "      Two, p570, p.573
     " Universities     "      p. 599
     " Venator          "      p. 593
Laws of Providence A.E. vol. 6, pp. 194-281
Last Judgment Posthumous, vol. 1, pp. 377-477
Last Judgment (Continuation) Misc. Th. Wks. 8th. Sect., pp. 507-588
Lord and Holy Spirit A.E. vol. 6, pp. 537-544, (comparison)
Lord's Presence A.E. vol. 6, p. 332
Marriage Posthumous, vol. 2, 435-466
New Jerusalem and Heav. Doctrine Misc. Th. Wks., 1st. Sect. pp. 3-205
Plants; Seven Propositions A.E. vol. 6, p. 313
Precepts of the Decalogue Posthumous, vol. 2, pp. 427-430
Prophets and Psalms (Int. Sense) Posthumous, vol. 2, pp. 5-164
Scripture confirmations of Doctrine Posthumous, vol. 2, pp 323-411
Supplement to T.C.R T.C.R., vol. 2, nos. 792-845, (Peoples ) Luther, Melancthon, Calvin no. 796 ff. Nations no. 800 ff.
Various Things Posthumous, vol. 1, pp. 478-501

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THEOLOGY OF SEXUALITY, PART I 2008

THEOLOGY OF SEXUALITY, PART I       ALAIN NICOLIER       2008


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Readings: Deuteronomy 23:17-18: "There shall be no ritual harlot of the daughters of Israel, or a perverted one [one practicing sodomy] of the sons of Israel. You shall not bring the wages of a harlot or the price of a dog to the house of the LORD your God for any vowed offering, for both of these are an abomination to the LORD your God."

Romans 1:27: "Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due."

     True Christian Religion 31: (iv) THE INFINITY OF GOD AS PREDICATED OF SPACE IS CALLED IMMENSITY, AND AS PREDICATED OF TIME IS CALLED ETERNITY. DESPITE THESE PREDICATIONS HIS IMMENSITY IS TOTALLY DEVOID OF SPACE AND HIS ETERNITY IS TOTALLY DEVOID OF TIME. The reason why the infinity of God predicated of space is called immensity, is that the term 'immense' is used of what is great and large, and also what is extensive and in this respect spacious. But the reason why the infinity of God predicated of time is called eternity is that 'for eternity' is used of progressive stages, which are measured by time, without end. For example: the globe with its land and sea surfaces is in itself what enables objects to be regarded as spatial; and its rotation and motion in orbit is what enables them to be regarded as temporal. These movements create periods of time and the surface of the globe creates distances, and they are so perceived through the senses in the minds of those that reflect on them. But as shown above, there is no space or time in God, yet space and time begin from Him. Hence it follows that immensity means His infinity predicated of space, and eternity His infinity predicated of time. ....

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     [3] I too was once in a state like this, when I was thinking what God did from eternity, or before the world was made: did He deliberate about creation and work out the order to be followed? was deliberative thought possible in a total vacuum? and other useless speculations. But to prevent me becoming deranged by such speculations, I was lifted up by the Lord into the sphere and light enjoyed by the interior angels; and when the idea of space and time which had previously restricted my thinking was there to a small extent removed, I was allowed to grasp that the eternity of God is not an eternity of time, and that because time did not exist before the creation of the world it was quite useless to engage in such speculations about God. But because the Divine from eternity, and so regarded as separate from all time, does not involve the existence of days, years and centuries, but these are to God a single instant, I concluded that the world was not created by God in time, but that time was introduced by God together with creation.

     [4] I will add this account of an experience. At one end of the spiritual world are to be seen two statues of a monstrous human shape with open mouths and gaping jaws. Those who have useless and mad thoughts about God from eternity imagine themselves being swallowed by these statues. But this is mere imagination into which those plunge who have absurd and improper thoughts about God before the creation of the world. Introduction

     The subject of homosexuality has many diverse aspects, and as you might suspect, I cannot cover them all. I want to make clear here that in spite of my wish to remain neutral and simply try to reveal facts, it is nevertheless true that as I study the subject of homosexuality it increasingly appears to me to be a lifestyle that is detrimental to physical and spiritual health.

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     The more I read articles and books on the subject, the more I realize that there are a great many myths, one of which says that "the Bible does not condemn homosexuality." The introductory passage above contradicts this statement, as [also the] quotation taken from Leviticus 18.

     It's important to know that in general it is homosexuality that is condemned and not the homosexual person, who often is someone who has been abused, who has been lied to, and who is a victim of numerous myths made popular by a certain kind of superficial press coverage, and by celebrated writers who are adept at this kind of thing.

     One particular psychological approach plunges the mind into confusion, and some commentaries written by C.G. Jung on the nature of the human psyche are a prime example. Indeed, in spite of Swedenborg's influence on Jung, it is nevertheless true that an important split exists between the two men where the quality of the soul is concerned.

     Personally I think that Jung did not fully understand the nature of the soul, because of the fact that he did not well integrate into his thinking the concept of degrees that Swedenborg presented in a detailed way. Jung says, "We are all androgynous in our soul", while Swedenborg says that the soul has sexual orientation, whether, "masculine for the male, or feminine for the female." But I will return to this concept later in order to develop it more fully, because androgyny of the soul presented as anima-animus by Jung has influenced, and continues to influence enormously the stream of psychology generally accepted today. Its theories lead to defenses of homosexuality and to such great confusion in mind-body interaction, and in sexualization.

INNATE THEORIES
     (1)     I shall begin with what homosexuals themselves say, and also what some in the fields of religion and psychology say. This will be just a bare outline, since little is written on the subject that is not extremely controversial.

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Their theory is that "a person is born homosexual, he has no choice; it is an uncontrollable urge."

     Another version of the innate theory goes: "The mind wants a sexuality different than the one suggested by the body. In some way there exists an error in compatibility from conception which produces trans-sexuality, where an individual changes the sex dictated by his body from birth in order to choose a sex that agrees with his mental aspiration."

     In considering homosexuality as innate, there can actually be several causes, the most rare being a physiological abnormality emerging from an hormonal imbalance that gives rise to a condition in which the body of a male individual has female characteristics also, and vice versa. For external and internal reasons this can lead to homosexual behavior, as it does with those who are born with a bi-sexuality called androgeny or hephroditism. Such persons may vacillate between partners of both sexes until they decide to opt for one sexuality or the other and undergo irreversible surgery.

     There is the passage in the Writings to consider which says that the influx of Divine life is dependent on the form of the receptacle. If there is a malformation or deficiency in the receptacle this will influence the integrity of the influx and also the spiritual association. The spirits then present and in correspondence with this dysfunction are going to influence the individual to develop abnormal, unusual or even deviant behavior.

     This is therefore one of the possible causes of homosexuality, which involves little of a person's free will but which binds him all the same.

     (2)     Another possible cause, which is somewhere between innate and acquired and which might encourage homosexual behavior, is the hereditary factor.

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Today, and ever since the fall, everyone is born with a tendency to let himself be guided by evils and falsities of every kind. And in spite of the preservation of freedom of choice, education and environment can influence a homosexual choice.

     I will go into certain details about this later on, when considering homosexuality as an acquired behavior that emerges as a reaction to the quality of the relationship with one of the two parents, or with both of them, or the absence of one or the other, or both. We know that a deviant attitude can be established in an infant who is abandoned, violated or abused.

     (3)     We also know that, beginning in adolescence, many young people who have fully identified their sexuality still experience some confusion as to its expression. They are easily influenced, especially in today's environment. The fact is, for example, that advertising presents homosexuality as a legitimate choice, and that fashion promotes androgynous and unisex styles. The world of show business glamorizes the sexual ambiguity of some singers and actors.

     Today some public or famous personalities are idolized because of this ambiguity. Defense and justification of their homosexuality are everywhere in the media and they become symbols, especially for the young whose minds are being formed.

     A survey made of 37,000 young people between twelve and seventeen reveals that 26% of them are uncertain about their sexual orientation. The percentage declines with age, but this statistic shows how lacking our society is in guidelines in this area, especially in the critical time of adolescence.

MYTHS

     To begin, I would like to share with you the myths about homosexuality that are spread by the unenlightened media who often make themselves spokespersons for the debate's two extremes, i.e. homosexuals who distort reality to re-make news to their advantage, and the religious right who condemn without understanding or explaining.

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     Myth #1 One of the myths they spread is that 10% of the population is homosexual. This figure is distorted by the confusion between the practice of homosexuals and the homosexual mentality. Let me explain. In this percentage is included homosexuality among incarcerated and mentally ill people, which is not an issue of free consent but the result of abuse and being forced in various ways.

     In reality the fact is that less than 2% of the population engages in homosexual and bi-sexual relationships. This figure is taken mainly from Anglo-Saxon populations where such statistics are fairly precise. You should know that homosexuality is even more rare than this among Latino people and very unusual among African, Indian and so-called "primitive" peoples. For more details on the reason for that, see Nouvelle Terre 235 and 236, concerning Divine Sense of Touch.

     Homosexual activists want to spread the myth of a large number in order to give the appearance that they come closer to the norm in their practice, and to be more accepted by the general public. You could say that this is "working" for them, since tolerance is well-established, as are laws protecting them. And this without any effort to really understand the deep cause. Myth #2 Another myth is that the homosexual relationship is not very different from the heterosexual relationship, and that the two should be treated alike. Reality shows the opposite however, and studies show that the typical homosexual male has hundreds of partners during his life. Studies made by medical journals have revealed that only 2% of all homosexuals say they have had only one partner in their life. Most of the relationships last no more than two years.

     The figures speak for themselves:

     24% of male homosexuals have had at least 100 partners

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     46% of male homosexuals have had at least 500 partners

     28% of male homosexuals have had at least 1000 partners

     So promiscuity is rampant in this environment, in spite of loud and clear claims as to their fidelity. Such claims are only made to validate their life choice. It is true that a good number of heterosexuals also have innumerable partners, but it is five times less the case than with homosexuals, where monogamy is exceptional.

Myth #3 Another myth says that homosexuality generates no more diseases, venereal and otherwise, than does heterosexuality. Here again I will let the figures speak. The studies I always use are those made by American and English medical journals, which are well known worldwide.

     Cancer of the rectum is 4000% more prevalent with homosexuals than with heterosexuals, and AIDS is 8000% more prevalent. AIDS is the fifth highest cause of death among men between 25 and 45, and 60% of all new cases show up among men who have chosen this lifestyle. This means that 30% of 20 year-old homosexuals will not live beyond 30!

     It needs to be known that most homosexuals who were interviewed under the condition of anonymity admitted that they don't adhere to the same moral criteria as the rest of the population. With a homosexual couple extra-marital relations are allowable, assuring a minimum of durability in a relationship. Such a standard would not survive in a monogamous relationship.

     In addition to having the highest percentage of physical ailments, homosexuals suffer greatly from isolation, unease, phobias, disillusionment, confusion and depression. And these are not because of the feeling of being excluded from society, as they may think and would have us believe.

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A Study

     An interesting study reported by Robin Yapp, Science Editor of the British Daily Mail on October 7 (2003) mentions an experiment conducted with 200 homosexuals under the direction of the great professor of clinical psychiatry, Robert Spitzer. This study advances the hypothesis that homosexuals can regain heterosexuality by means of a specific kind of psychotherapy that has evolved from the belief that this life-style is shared for the most part by people of a depressive, obsessive temperament who generally suffer a great deal. The publication of the results of this study was of course the object of great indignation on the part of the homosexual population.

     Professor Spitzer's study was made of 143 men and 57 women who volunteered to undergo the therapy and to take the risk of honest self-evaluation. Without going into the details, the therapy consisted of developing self-control, identifying the origin of urges and how they were rooted in wounds from the past, and sharing social life with heterosexuals in non-sexual contexts which would not unleash the sex drive.

     After a year of participation in the therapy, 78% of the men and 95% of the women gradually lost their attraction for people of the same sex and began to prefer the opposite sex, and eventually became completely heterosexual.

     The rest of the group remained either indecisive, in need of more probing and long-lasting therapy, or, for a tiny percentage, desirous of continuing their homosexuality for reasons of purely carnal diversity, refusing to work on the real causes as they reevaluated themselves.

     This study is interesting because it lends support to the hypothesis that homosexuality is an acquired behavior, resulting either from the pressure of an injurious up-bringing or an unbalanced environment, or from a deliberate choice that stems from an uncontrolled sex drive.

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Restoration of Free Choice

     It must be understood that with the homosexual free choice is restored once he understands the particulars of his behavior, figures out the causes which led him to this way of life, and is shown the therapeutic solutions that can bring a certain equilibrium to his life and so get him out of depression and dependency.

Effects of Dysfunctional Parenting

     In the stories of homosexuals who have opted in adult life for heterosexuality after having followed a course of therapy and have re-evaluated themselves, a certain constant emerges, a common thread running through them, namely, the deep suffering of their parents that expressed itself in dysfunctional behaviors. One or both of the parents whose personality was broken by traumas in infancy were unable to control self-destructive behavior that involved destruction of others closely associated with them.

     Lacking any self-control, the parent found himself at the mercy of his own raw, mutilated nature, with its hatreds, resentments, fears and angers all anchored deeply in his mind. Never having been treated as a real person himself, the abused parent cannot treat his partner and children as people worthy of respect, and he makes them endure what he has endured.

     So what could be happening today is that the spouse who is abused by her partner starts to confide in her children. That is, a mother may reach the point where she no longer knows how to set appropriate boundaries with others, and in desperation she may share confidences with her children in a very unsuitable way. Thus an unhealthy closeness can settle in which may contribute to the establishment of a homosexual neurosis with the child, the result of what is commonly referred to in psychology as "emotional incest."

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     Many parents who have been severely mistreated by their spouse, especially the mothers, confide adult suffering to children. But children are incapable of dealing with the suffering of a parent, and they repeatedly undergo emotional shock, which sets off a reversal of roles between the child and the parent. The child can thus become a substitute married partner for this parent who unconsciously now says to herself, "I have barely any affection for my husband; at least I have this child that I love more than anything in the world." The child thus becomes the parent's savior, her confidante, her means of survival.

     A good number of adult homosexuals in therapy have to work to emotionally divorce from their parent before they can establish the normal emotional boundaries that are necessary for restoration of equilibrium and a healthy mental state.

     In analyzing the causes of homosexual behavior as "acquired", it is of course necessary to be discerning and to be aware that there are exceptions to general statements. Even though the significance of the damage done to children by parents, especially on the level of emotional security, should not be underestimated, it cannot be said that all suffering parents who confide in their children are going to foster a homosexual tendency at every turn.

Emotional Problems

     Great emotional emptiness is created when a child is looked upon as a mini-adult, a loss of all bearings that interrupts proper growth of feelings and the development of individual identity. Deprived of the essential healthy parent-child relationship, the child cannot develop a deep-down feeling of his own existence. He will look to others to learn who he is, or else withdraw into himself The homosexual, unsure of his own identity, attaches himself to someone of the same sex in an attempt to find his own identity.

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     All homosexuals who have agreed, anonymously or otherwise, to answer the questions of researchers, or who have followed a course of therapy, say that they suffered from a security neurosis because their emotional needs as children were not met, and they had to try to compensate for this deficit by every means during their adolescence and adult life.

     Their efforts to fill this void become the motivating force of their life, driving them to become attached in inappropriate ways to people, objects and substances. Most of them say that these excesses do not relieve their deep anxiety, however, and that they typically have strong negative feelings. So envy, hatred, anger and rejection are often the only emotions that the insecure person experiences, and these serve as a basis for diverse dependencies that bring only fleeting pleasure, such as alcohol, food, drugs, sex, power, money, hyperactivity, fame, domination etc.

     It is worthy of note that emotionally insecure people, especially in the homosexual milieu, experience obsessive sexual desire, and that they eroticize all their relationships, uncorking all the relational disorders that I mentioned earlier, in the first part. Although amorous relationships are many, they remain superficial and fail to fill the void. Most of these people say that they feel very alone, that they are very vulnerable, and that it is very difficult for them to confide in others.
Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified              2008


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No one denies that man has free will in natural matters. But this is the result of his free will in spiritual matters, because the Lord flows in from a higher or more inward level filling everyone with Divine good and Divine truth....It follows from this that the Lord perpetually wills man to receive truth and do good, thus becoming spiritual, the destiny for which he was born. To become spiritual without free will in spiritual matters is as impossible as pushing a camel through the eye of a sewing-needle, or like touching one of the stars in the sky with one's hand. True Christian Religion 481 emphasis added

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WHAT IS THE MEANING OF LIFE? 2008

WHAT IS THE MEANING OF LIFE?       Editor       2008


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     How often have people asked this question? Another version of it is, "Why am I here?" If something is going wrong, it is "Why me?" All these questions imply a teleological existence: there is a purpose to being, but I don't know exactly what it is.

     Another version is "Where did I come from?" Origin means purpose, since there has to be a reason. In the New Church, there are answers to all these questions, and so there is little point in asking anymore. We know that "the end of creation is a heaven from the human race." "Heaven consists solely of those who have been born [as people] ... and as heaven consists of no others it follows that the end of creation is a heaven from the human race" (Divine Providence 323). So the answer to all such questions as "Why am I here" in each case is "in order that you may become an angel." All the trials and tribulations that make us question our own purpose, end up in the same bin: an afterlife, where all human beings either enter heaven as angels, or what we know as hell, namely their own version of paragons of self-hood. However, because the term "angel" is already taken, the only one left for such is "devil," or if they insist, "Satan." In either case, the purpose remains eternal life. Wherever a newly awakened or resuscitated person is heading, the first question on their minds is, "Am I still dead?" "When] awakening [from death] happens...at first the angels are checking to see whether [the] thoughts of those dying individuals...are about eternal life" (Heaven and Hell 449). Many then "thank God" that their life is eternal, and "that death has not wiped them out" (Five Memorabilia 7).

     The end of creation, that is the purpose behind God creating the universe, is a "heaven" from the human race, not a hell. Hell came from human free choice, from refusing the option of heaven. That does not remove heaven as the primary purpose of creation, however, but this does bring up the next answer to "Why are we here?" It has to do with freedom:

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"Spiritual freedom is from the love of eternal life ... Everyone may come into this freedom provided he is willing to think that there is an eternal life" (Divine Providence 73). Part of the "parcel" of a heaven from the human race, is spiritual freedom of choice, i.e. free choice in spiritual things. Another answer to the "Why" question, therefore, is that we are to exercise spiritual choice. Make a selection! Pick a life. This problem often face young people looking to their future: What job shall I seek? In addition, isn't it interesting that the option is "which job" not "whether to work or not." The entire planet is set up for working. Look at the economies of all nations: they depend on either products or services. People grow potatoes or make furniture etc., or they offer their own services in some manner. A job is part of existence. Although we may dream of an idyllic vacation with nothing to do, it would stop being idyllic if for some reason we were laid off our jobs! 'No job' equals 'no income' for almost everyone. Even those who hate their job, realize they need it. The love of performing uses goes deeper than just having job-security. No one can live usefully without education or training for a job, unless there is inherited income of some kind. Even people well enough off from an inheritance find they have to occupy themselves somehow. The idea of perpetual idleness soon palls.

     Consequently, the eternal "rest from their labors" and "the works which follow after" (Revelation 14:13) promised in the after-life, actually do not mean rest from work at all. The cartoonist view of "heavenly peace" as being eternal idleness dies hard, since everyone here on earth regards a vacation as a "bit of heaven." Those who think heaven consists in idleness while "being served by others" can have a try at it, until they realize it would be eternal dreariness (Arcana Coelestia 454, cf. Conjugial Love #6-16). "Eternal rest" on the contrary means "dispelling idleness" thereby causing men instead to feel alive (Conjugial Love 207, True Christian Religion 694); while "resting from labor and their works following" actually means rest from temptations, i.e. no longer being anguished by doubts of any kind, nor tormented by faults or worries.

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THAT is the rest meant. The "works following after them" means coming into spiritual life, into their own good intentions that were their "soul and life" while at work even on earth, all of which remain in heaven forever (Apocalypse Revealed 640, 641, Apocalypse Explained 896). The outcome upon entering heaven is thus working at a daily use, but with joy and anticipation, with the same 'soul and life' you gave on earth to a 'job well done,' but now with accomplishment at the end of every heavenly day. Thus "...everyone, no matter who, must in the next life perform a use; for the sole purpose for which a person is born is that he may perform a use to the community he is in" (Arcana Coelestia 1103.2). This passage embraces both worlds, the one into which he is born, and the one to which he comes "in the next life." "Angelic life consists in performing the good works of charity, which are uses, and the angels find all their happiness in use, from use, and in accordance with use" (Heaven and Hell 403).

     Every angelic use then descends as inspiration to all who perform similar uses on earth. Angels "direct the deeds of man by removing as far as possible his evil intentions...and dwell with man in his affections" (Heaven and Hell 391). The two worlds thus depend on each other, and "make one... and one cannot be taken away from the other" (Last Judgment 9). That is how closely our human world depends on the input from angels, while their eternal uses rest on the output from earth. "On the heaven of angels depends the heaven of angelic spirits, on this the world of spirits, and on this again the human race" (Arcana Coelestia 2026). "An influx coming through angels adjusts itself to the person's affections, which they guide gently, turning those affections towards what is good without breaking them. The actual influx of them is silent, barely perceptible, for it is an influx into the person's interiors, always operating through his freedom" (Arcana Coelestia 6205). Do we sense that our freedom at our jobs depends on angels?

     We are to do our work "sincerely and well" in every "office and station" which we do by avoiding the evils of graft and corruption, which tempt workers depending on their occupations (Heavenly Doctrine 128). It fits right in with the sheer fact of life that we have to be educated and grow up just to qualify for a job.

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This is the heritage of the fall of humankind Before Noah's flood, children went out and discovered the details of their home instruction on their own, details that "nowadays men must learn before knowing about them" (Arcana Coelestia 895)!

     Therefore, another answer to "What is the meaning of life?" is being useful. "Evidently, the universe was created by God to give existence to uses; and for this reason the universe may be called a theater of uses. And as man is the chief end of creation, it follows that each and all things....belonging to order were brought together and concentrated in him, to the end that through him God might accomplish primary uses" (True Christian Religion 67).

     We are foci for primary uses, performed by God. Thus the more practical answer to "why am I here?" is to be useful to society, find a job, help society function, be of service to others. Anyone who has had a stranger asking you for directions knows how eager you are to be of service, by getting him to his destination! Or, vice versa. That is the love of being useful. Orderly useful work has the same kind of latent urge, seen in the accomplishment. The kingdom of heaven is a kingdom of uses; all angels perform "practical labors and active services" (Heaven and Hell 535). This goes deeper than just helping others: we are born not just in order to exist, but also to "help others." "Man was not born for his own sake, but for the sake of others; that is, so that he should not live for himself alone, but for others. Otherwise no society could hold together, nor could there be any good in it" (True Christian Religion 406).

     Such an innate urge to work of course beautifully matches a world in which everyone has to work! One wonders, "How did that come about!" We remember those family picnics and games and long afternoons. Could not life be just a picnic? Well, the Most Ancient Church tried it, and it worked until the invention of human evil. From then on, "in toil you shall eat... all the days of your life ...in the sweat of your face you shall eat bread" (Genesis 3:17,19). All of this means the misery that comes from evil spirits in your life, and "relapsing into the external man where he was before regeneration" (Arcana Coelestia 270, 275).

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Working for a living was "invented" at the expense of being lumbered in external life with a dead proprium, which harbors all our hate and resentment and snarls at every obstacle. Therefore, we now need to be born with an inkling of what the purpose of life portends: "No one knows what a person's life is unless he knows that it is love. Without knowing this, one may believe that ... life is simply sensing and acting, another that it is thinking, when in fact ... inmost thought, which is a perception of ends or purposes, is actually the first effect of life... and sensation and action its second effect" (Divine Love and Wisdom 2). Our inmost thought right after birth-our "first thought" upon entering this world-has to do with "ends and purposes"! We face up to the "Why I am here" question but now as the reason for our existence. This happens before "sensing and acting." Perhaps we know now why the angels concentrate on a dead people's thoughts about "eternal life" when they usher them in as newcomers after death (Heaven and Hell 449). That inmost thought of "purpose" homes in on an occupation as a purpose of life, taking you all the way into the next world.

     Work is one answer to the question, why am I here? A close "second", indeed the "first" thought of many people, is marriage. Perhaps 99% of the entire human race has institutions of heterosexual marriage, with cultural support and expectation of a family coming from such unions. How many novels and movies have not centered on some drama of giving birth and furthering the causes begun by ancestors, etc. The family unit of father, mother and their own children is what started clans, tribes and finally nations. Always, family has included the extended love of the neighbor, embracing orphans and foster-children, the spiritual version of "family" known to the wisdom of the ancients (Arcana Coelestia 1224, 1264). For family members mean real, celestial and spiritual, things in heaven, with all the names for family relations and relatives ultimately referring the Lord Himself (Arcana Coelestia 1876, 1888, 4442). That is why "family" often incorporates others beyond the core unit. To this day nations have attributes based on commonalities from marriages within given cultural confines.

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Parades such as at the Olympics demonstrate the wholesomeness of the family of humankind.

     The purpose of marriage therefore goes hand in hand with the "end of creation for the sake of a heaven of angels from the human race." Again, "The purpose of the actual creation of the universe was none other than the formation of a heaven of angels from human beings; one where all who believe in God might live in everlasting blessedness" (True Christian Religion 773). That is why another answer to the question of why am I here, is "find a wife" "find a husband." No other purpose has such a depth of motivation! The "conjugial sphere" permeates the universe "from angels to worms" (Conjugial Love 92). That certainly catches us humans in between, doesn't it? "In spring time, the only pretty ring time" as said good ol' Shakespeare.

     Arguments for celibacy stand no chance. "The reasons why the married state is preferable are: the married state exists from creation, its source is the marriage of good and truth, it corresponds to the Lord's marriage with the church, the church and conjugial love are constant companions. [Thus] its purpose is higher than that of all else in creation, since it is the propagation in due order of the human race, and also of the heaven of angels, since this comes from the human race. A further consideration is that marriage is a person's fulfillment, since it makes a person fully a person, as will be proved in the next chapter. All these reasons are lacking in the case of celibacy" (Conjugial Love 156). Case closed.

     Of course many are single but not from choice. "It is different if unmarried people have longed to get married, and even more so if they have kept seeking to get married without success. If such people are spiritual, blessed marriages are found for them, but not until they reach heaven" (Conjugial Love 54). With every individual on earth, there can be conjugial love, since this goes together with regeneration and with the states of the church (Conjugial Love 339, True Christian Religion 847, Conjugial Love 130). However, in an unmarried person, conjugial or marriage love is more in potential than actual, since it depends on an actual partner for the subtle spiritual elements of the conjugial (cf. Conjugial Love 199).

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That is why marriage is a "higher purpose than all other purposes of creation" (Conjugial Love 143), being the purpose of "reproduction, propagation and procreation" which are clearly "continuations of creation" (Conjugial Love 183:5). Because marriage, in which there is conjugial love, is the "ultimate aim of creation, it follows that every ... bliss, pleasure, charm and gratification that the Lord the Creator could ever confer on a person are concentrated on this love" (Conjugial Love 68:2).

     If sometimes your question is "why me?" the answer is "Divine Permission." Spiritual freedom, as we saw, is part of eternal life, and we at times question our own role in the fabric of current events. When we feel victimized, the Lord is only "letting" bad things happen to you, not as if He "wills them" but as though He cannot prevent all of them, because our salvation hangs in the balance (Divine Providence 16). Perhaps all you need is to be jogged back to a spiritual viewpoint (Arcana Coelestia 762). We just have to regroup and try to remain "unruffled in spirit" as we take care of the mess we face (Arcana Coelestia 8478:4). The comforting answer to "why me?" then goes back to that first thought of "purpose of life" right after birth, which we now have to reaffirm. Regardless of how bad things appear to be, we should have trust in the Lord's providence (ibid.). The Lord is not only in general charge of our spiritual life, but specifically details you to be "in this or that place in heaven" (Divine Providence 67). That is "why you." A new choice lies before you.

     We see how important it is to support society by entering into its functions, or else "it could not work." Families are integral to a healthy society, and we cite countless family reunions as evidence for that. Consequently, the question "why am I here?" has plenty of claimants. Many readers no doubt recollect particulars of their own occupations and families. There is satisfaction in knowing one has entered into the world, as intended. The purpose of life is being fulfilled. There is hope for the future, when one's "works do follow after" into the next life.

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Our satisfaction of the soul will continue in a heavenly use. It is not surprising then that everyone is in fact regenerated and saved "according to their occupation" (True Christian Religion 580). A doctor has different temptations to face than say an engineer. And so on. The main "charity" that everyone performs, is not giving to the poor, etc., important though that is, but one's occupation! That is where genuine charity is exercised. The faith strengthened in Sabbath worship is exercised as charity Monday to Friday. "Worship is one thing, regeneration another" (Arcana Coelestia 10206), although "worship itself" carries over into "performing useful services, and dealing honestly with human beings" (Arcana Coelestia 7038). That is why when "uses rule, the Lord rules" (Heaven and Hell 564), for the Lord is in all the good that is done. In that good lies all purpose.
Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified              2008


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     I heard many newcomers from the world complain that they had not known that their life's fate [or destiny. Ed.] would accord with the affections of their love, saying that in the world they had not thought about those affections, still less about the delights of those affections, because they had loved whatever they found delightful... [T]hey had simply believed that everyone's fate would accord with the intelligence of their thoughts, especially the piety of their thoughts... expressive of their faith.

     But they received the reply that they could have known if they had wished that evil of life is repugnant to heaven and displeasing to God, but gratifying to hell and pleasing to the 'devil.' Divine Providence 305 emphasis added.

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NewChurchLive.tv (Internet Church) 2008

NewChurchLive.tv (Internet Church)              2008


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     How It Will Serve the General Church As It Reaches Out to the World

     The General Church is working on a new program over the Internet that will reach many. It's called NewChurchurchLive.tv, and though it won't be launching until perhaps as late as next year, we wanted to tell you about what is planned and its potential to be of service to many. NewChurchLive.tv will be a live weekly televised broadcast of an adult contemporary service in Bryn Athyn designed to reach out to the greater world community. Its primary use is outreach, but it will do this through serving our small congregations and isolated in a way never possible before. This will enable all to feel comfortable inviting friends to be part of a world-wide worship service where a consistently helpful and engaging message will be given each week.

     The service will be broadcast in two ways. The first way is via satellite to groups, circles, societies, brand new and old, who want this program and have set up satellite downlink equipment to receive the broadcasts. This will be especially useful to congregations which do not have a resident pastor with regular services. Congregations who link up will run their own services but be tuned in to see and hear the live message (including readings) of the Pastor, Reverend Grant Schnarr, on a multimedia system such as a computer projector or television. Groups may have their own worship leader, music, prayers, for what fits their particular settings and tastes, and will only receive the televised message simultaneously with other groups who are also tuned in around the world. The folks at NewChurchLive.tv will help set this up and also help groups reach out and grow using this method. The second way NewChurchLive.tv will be broadcast is over the Internet via streaming video to any and all individuals who desire to join in through their computers.

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These services over the Internet will be broadcast in full with music and appropriate ritual for broadcast media. This will be packaged as a television ministry to spread the New Church teachings far and wide using technology to its fullest extent. These programs will be seen live on www.newchurchlive.tv, when the site is up and running There will also be archived message which may be downloaded from the site, as well as information about how to learn more and get more involved. Services will be different, designed to reach out to those who have not yet heard the message of the Lord's Second Coming, and it will be made for television. Plans are in the works to also broadcast Bryn Athyn Cathedral services each week for members as well as those who prefer a cathedral setting. We have a tremendous opportunity to reach people like never before through the Internet.

     With the Lord's help and guidance we hope this new means of communication will help reach millions. We are excited about the possibilities and humbly look to the Lord's leading in this endeavor. Right now we are making plans, building the infrastructure, bringing the talented people together to help with everything from technology to building community and encouraging service.

     What can you do right now? If you are in a small society or isolated group we encourage you to discuss whether something like this might be worth looking into, and discuss how this may help you reach out by setting up to receive the televised message each week. If it looks feasible you can contact us and we can discuss the possibilities. If you are isolated and have an Internet connection get ready to be part of a congregation that reaches across the world! You can also make plans as to how to broadcast the service onto a larger screen and also make a list of friends you will be inviting over to watch the program.

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Our goal is help you reach out to touch the million in a way that people are moved to learn more about the New Church and live according to the Heavenly Doctrines. If you know of friends, adult children, others who may benefit from this regular television ministry please let them know it's coming.

     If you have questions please feel free to contact David Childs, Chairman of the NewChurchLive.tv project at [email protected], or call him at 267-502-4941. If you have suggestions for topics people are interested in learning about in today's world, email them to Grant Schnarr, Pastor of NewChurchLive.tv.

     Grant Schnarr - Pastor
     David Childs - Chairman
WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORD 2008

WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORD               2008


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     An on-line family magazine from the General Church Office

     of Education featuring materials for all ages focused on a new

     theme every month.

     Healing Our Blindness in July 2008

     Keeping the Sabbath in August 2008

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News from the Bishop's Office: 2008

News from the Bishop's Office:              2008


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     New Regional Pastors: We are pleased to announce that the Rev. Lawson Smith has agreed to serve as regional pastor in the Northeast U.S. His primary duties will be supporting Boston, Sower's Chapel (Freeport), and Pittsburgh. This will reduce the Rev. Dr. Andrew Dibb's responsibilities so that he can concentrate on the new developments in the Theological School. (Andy retains responsibilities for Ivyland and several locations with visiting pastors.)

     Rev. Daniel Goodenough is the new regional pastor for the western states in the U.S. Boulder will remain under the supervision of Rev. David Lindrooth as a growth congregation. Seattle will be placed here also, with Rev. David Roth giving direct support. Dan will handle everything else in the western United States.

     Rev. Yong (John) Jin has agreed to become regional pastor for Asia. While he has his own congregation in Philadelphia, he makes annual trips to Japan, Korea and China where he has extensive communication links. John is giving leadership to the developing church there, which should enable the uses to become more mutually supporting.

     Candidate Placement: There are five candidates entering their last year in the Theological School. Their practicum experiences will be varied. Here is where they are going and the priests who will supervise their experience:

     Mark Allais - Buccleuch, Chris Bown
     Jay Barry - Multiple places, Andy Dibb
     Robert Cooper - Boynton Beach, Kenneth Alden
     Coleman Glenn - Glenview, Peter Buss, Jr.
     Thane Glenn - San Diego, Mark Perry

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Mark and his family have already returned from South Africa by now. Jay has been taking courses part time and continuing to run his business in New Jersey. Because of this, he will be making a number of shorter trips to various congregations and doing additional travel work. Robert, Coleman and Thane will be doing their practicums in September and November. Coleman has volunteered to spend six weeks this summer in Australia to help the church there and to gain more experience.

     New Candidate: We are happy to announce that Andre Figueiredo has been made a candidate. Andre has been studying under the Rev. Andy Heilman in Brazil. He will continue his studies there and gain more practical experience.

     Rev. Scott Frazier: Scott was ordained into the second degree of the priesthood on May 11, 2008. He has developed a strong pastoral relationship with students in the College, in addition to working with young people in the Kempton area. He will continue to teach at Bryn Athyn College and give guidance to upcoming Latin scholars through a summer program.

Pastoral Moves/Retirements:

     Rev. Frederick Elphick-Retires as pastor of the Michael Church, London
     Rev. Alan Lewin-Pastor, Michael Church in London
     Rev. Walter Orthwein-Retires as professor at Bryn Athyn College and the Academy Theological School
     Rev. Dzin Kwak-Retires as Pastor in Seoul, Korea
     Rev. Kyu Yang-Pastor, Seoul in Korea
     Rev. Ethan McCardell-Pastor, Seattle (church plant)
     Rev. Frederick Chapin-Pastor, Sower's Chapel in Freeport
     Rev. Phil Schnarr-Pastor, Bryn Athyn Church School

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     Rev. Grant Schnarr -Pastor, New Church Live (online church)
     Rev. Mac Frazier-Assistant to the Pastor, Bryn Athyn
     Rev. Jong-Ui Lee-Pastor, Kwangju in Korea
     Rev. Derrick Lumdsen-Assistant to the Pastor, Westville in South Africa
     Nathan Cole-Candidate, Caryndale

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Notes on This Issue 2008

Notes on This Issue       Editor       2008


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     Announcements






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     Our sermon this issue is from our Bishop, Rt. Rev. Tom Kline, on the topic of College Education. It is most apt in time for Charter Day, which in 1877 gave legal standing for teaching the Heavenly Doctrines, and granting degrees. Priests are ordained to be Pastors, which incorporates teaching the truths and leading thereby to the good of life, something Pastors at the Bryn Athyn College do. The sermon was given after one such inauguration.

     Several generations of students at the Academy, both High School and College, recall Prof. Charles S. Cole with much affection and an abundance of memories. One former student, now involved in Education, sums up our love for this man, and the name that endeared him to us all. Thanks to Stephen B. Gladish for this Elegy.

     Rev. Alain Nicolier completes his study on the Theology of Sexuality, a needed light from the doctrines cast on ancient issues pressing our society. Much of 'nature' versus 'nurture' is involved, since all people have inherited tendencies which are either developed or traumatized. Alain looks into backgrounds to help therapy. The longer view must include the effects of spiritual history and of the Flood on our present-day mentality. He shows how the Lord in His Divine Human leads all towards order.

     We also have some Communications, many thanks for the thoughtful contributions; and Announcements: are you looking for a job? Two are on offer. Don't miss the searches for College President (page 387) and Swedenborg Foundation Editor (page 396).

     Is the Church growing? Have a look at the Declarations of Faith. We rejoice over the increase of Priests, laborers in the Lord's vineyard. After that, take a look at Announcements and the Church News, some of which dovetail with the declarations. New ventures draw our good wishes for success.

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WHY A COLLEGE? 2008

WHY A COLLEGE?       Rev. THOMAS L. KLINE       2008


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     This morning we have witnessed the ordination of a New Church priest into the pastoral degree of the priesthood. This is a priest who is now active as a teacher at the Bryn Athyn College, a priest who is dedicating his life to teaching and pastoral uses in the field of higher education in the light of the Heavenly Doctrines, now revealed.

     It is also significant that just last month, at a special service; the chapel at the Bryn Athyn College was re-dedicated to the worship of the Lord Jesus Christ. In addition, the Academy of the New Church is making a significant effort to build a full college campus at the Bryn Athyn College. A priest pastor at our college, a re-building and re-dedication of our college chapel, and a new college campus-all of these are supportive of the cause of the New Church.

     In light of these events, we wish to speak on the subject of New Church Education. Let us begin with the education of children: New Church education at the elementary school level. There are firm teachings and principles guiding the cause of New Church Education, principles that come from the Lord's three-fold Word, now revealed.

A principle of New Church Education:

     Something unique and invaluable happens when the human mind is ordered by the truths of the Lord's Word during early formative and developmental years. The Lord created the human mind, and true humanity comes from Him. The Lord created the human mind and has now revealed the very truths which can form and cultivate that mind from its earliest years.

     Modern science tells us that the human mind is not formed all at once. Rather, the mind takes form, in a sense wiring itself, connecting itself, physically growing and coming into being, gradually over the first decades of a person's life. The human mind, as it comes into being, can be ordered and formed in many different ways. But if it is ordered and formed by the very truths of the Lord's revealed Word, it takes on a special form that prepares the person for adult life and the life of heaven.

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     When a little child hears and delights in the stories of the Lord's Word from an early age, we allow the Lord Himself to guide the growth of that new life.

Another principle of New Church Education:

     When the human mind, from an early age, is taught to think on two levels, the child is prepared to see the spiritual sense of the Word as an adult. When we teach children a parable, and show them in a simple way that there is an inner meaning to the parable, we are leading those children to a place where they, when they are adults, can easily see the spiritual that is within the natural. When, in any subject, we teach the science of correspondences, even at an early age, we are leading to the ability to think and reflect on two levels, the spiritual and natural To teach the little child that love has the same qualities as gold does in the natural world prepares that mind to eventually see the nature of the two worlds, the natural and the spiritual world that is within.

A third principle of New Church Education:

     We are to teach children about the reality of heaven and the spiritual world, the truths about angels, the spiritual world and heaven. Children receive these truths with delight, almost as if their minds were created to perceive these truths before they hear them. In very fact, their minds were created by the Lord to receive and see these beautiful realities.

     A final and supreme purpose of New Church Education, is to lead the child to see and behold the Lord Jesus Christ as the one God of heaven and earth, Father, Redeemer and Savior.

     New Church Education is unique in the world. It is truly unique as we use the Word of the Lord to cooperate with Him in the formation of the minds and lives of children.

     Usually, when we think of New Church Education, we think of the education of children. This morning we want to focus on higher education - education at the college level. As we will see, New Church Education at the collegiate level is just as important in the development of the human mind.

     Elementary and high school education is a time when the student learns to think about truth. College, or higher education, is a time when the student learns to think from truth.

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     Adolescence, and especially the years around the 20th year of life, is the beginning of a critical time of the transition from historical faith to what the Writings call "true adult faith." Historical faith is what the student learns form parents, teachers and ministers. It is a childhood faith, important, but just a step on the way. True adult faith begins when the individual takes what has been learned and begins to ask the question, "What do I believe?"

     Young adulthood is a time of the opening and development of the rational degree of the mind. Rationality is the ability to be able to make judgments, to see the relationship between ideas and truths, to think and to reason. It is the highest degree of the natural mind, and it is here, on the level of the rational, that we can receive the Lord as adults. This is why the Lord came again to reveal a rational revelation: "Now it is permitted to enter with understanding into the mysteries of faith."

     But why New Church colleges? Is it not enough to just learn truths presented from without: history, science, art, and religion, and form the rational from this? The key passage we read from the Writings this morning as our third lesson is on the development of the human mind where is what is called the "first rational." Listen to this description: the first rational "is acquired by means of the experiences of the sense, by means of reflecting on the things that take place in life, by means of reasoning based on and presented through these, as well as by means of ideas of spiritual things obtained from the Word" (Arcana Coelestia 2657).

     The study of art, the study of history, the study of science, even the study of the Word-notice the word study-is a reflection on things that come from without, the traditional idea of a college or a university. This study is an essential step in higher education.

     But why New Church higher education? Because something else is added at the college level through New Church Education, a leading toward what the Writings call the genuine or second rational. This genuine rational comes not from without, but from within, from the Lord.

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Hear a couple of passages from the Writings of the New Church:

"A person who has also followed heaven's route to rationality and morality is truly rational and moral, because he is this at the same time in spirit, speech and body" (True Christian Religion 564).

"The genuine rational is from good, but comes forth from truth. Good flows in by an internal way; but truth by an external way. Good thus conjoins itself with truth in the rational, and they cause the rational to be. Unless the good therein is conjoined with truth, there is no rational; although there appears to be" (Arcana Coelestia 3030).

     These two stages of rationality are represented by Ishmael and Isaac in our lesson from the Old Testament. Ishmael is the first son born, born of the Egyptian handmaid, Hagar. Egypt here represents the ancient center of the sciences-facts and knowledge from without, facts originating from our five senses. In contrast, Isaac is the second son, born of Abraham's true wife Sarah. Sarah represents affection for spiritual truth that comes from within, from the Lord.

     On a practical level, Isaac, the true rational, is a picture of the formation of the human mind in the presence of the worship of the Lord, in heart, in life and in use. It is a picture of the formation of the rational mind in a sphere of humility, teacher and student alike bowing down before the Lord Himself. It is the difference between academic study alone and academic study that looks toward use in the Lord's kingdom, the difference between the study of God and the worship of God. It is the difference between a professor of religion and a priest-pastor of religion.

     There is another use for a New Church College: New Church higher education is a place for continued study in the light of the Lord's threefold Word. At the turn of the previous century, from the 1800's to the 1900's, the New Church was an active leader in world religious thought. Yet somehow over the years we have lost that place. So the question arises, how can we regain this influence of the New Church in world thought, culture and the life of service?

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The answer: through institutions of higher learning dedicated to the cause of New Church Education, places of higher learning and study in all areas-the arts, the sciences, literature, politics and the life of service and use, places of learning for the continued development of world thought in the light of the Heavenly Doctrines now revealed. Again, the Lord has to be at the very center and core of this work.

     The building of a college campus leading to a New Church University, the dedication of the Pendleton Hall Chapel, and today the ordination of a priest-teacher at an institution of higher learning-let these actions be a sign and testimony to our dedication to the cause of New Church Education.

     Amen.

     Lessons: Genesis 21: 8-21; Luke 2: 41-50; Arcana Coelestia 2657.2, 3, 4

     Our well known and traveled Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline, was inaugurated into the priesthood in 1973 and ordained into the Pastoral degree in 1975. He was ordained into the Episcopal degree in 2003. He began by serving as Assistant to the Pastor in Washington Society, visiting the Atlanta group in 1973. In 1975 he moved to be the Pastor in Atlanta, and visited the Southeast District, until 1981 when he was called to be the Assistant Pastor in the Bryn Athyn Society. In 1996 he became its Pastor. After first becoming Assistant Bishop, in 2004 Tom was called to be the Executive Bishop of the General Church and Chancellor of the Academy. He is also ex officio President of the General Church in Canada, in South Africa, and of the General Church International, Inc.

     [Photograph of Rt. Rev. Thomas Kline.]

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ELEGY FOR 'CHARCOAL' 2008

ELEGY FOR 'CHARCOAL'       STEPHEN B. GLADISH       2008


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     Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772) once described a man he had known on earth, who communicated with him from heaven. This friend could manifest himself by pleasant and enjoyable representatives, such as beautiful colors of every kind, and colored forms, and by infants beautifully decorated and clothed (Arcana Coelestia 4412). From The Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, we learned that such a man's character corresponded to the outer covering of the eye. I immediately was reminded of our favorite subject-a favorite teacher, friend, and human being. With his warmth and effervescent sense of humor, his eyes shone magnificently like twin stars in The Big Dipper- twinkling both in the skies above us and in the classrooms-in front of us. I was privileged to be taught by him in the 'Fifties and 'Sixties, and appreciated him even more in the 'Seventies and 'Eighties': our teacher, Charles S. Cole, known affectionately among students as 'Charcoal.'

     From Swedenborg again we learn that light which proceeds from the Lord flows into the first heaven and appears there as a paradise, a city with beautiful palaces. And a man who lived in love and charity, such as the teacher we honor, received that light and truth and presented it to us his students, just as the eye itself presents its finding to the brain.

     Both Swedenborg's friend and our teacher acted with a soft and gentle influx, and insinuated themselves into the affections of others with the purpose of making our lives pleasant and delightful. Our teacher and mentor carried with him also the correspondences of hearing as well; he encouraged us with his sphere and love of being taught, guided, and affected. His correspondence of sight showed in his desire as a scientist and as a philosopher to obtain clear and distinct ideas, to become intelligent in spiritual things and wise in heavenly things.

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When he taught Human Body to us in High School, we learned the physical attributes and the spiritual correspondences of the entire body, beginning with the digestive system, followed by the heart and lungs, and ending with the brain. We graded each other's papers-a first for me. He demonstrated trust in us to follow his teaching model and to act on his behalf. He could have been an angel. He treated us as if we were angels.

     I like to think our teacher manifests himself through beautiful images of nature, just as Swedenborg's angel friend did. For example, when we run out into the back yard to see the infrequent rainbow glimmering in grey clouds still full of moisture, I think of our teacher. He had such a cheerful countenance, such a great sense of humor, such a beneficent and understanding heart; his presence had the same affect as a rainbow after a threatening thunderstorm.

     His character and demeanor sparkled with hope, promise, love, and forgiveness in every kind of weather and through all four seasons. Sunlight glistened on the raindrops, and bands of vivid colors collected together in a unified arch across the sky - an invitation to travel into a new and beautiful country. Students of all kinds became the bands of light and hope mirrored in his eyes and minted in his classrooms. For decades he taught a plethora of science and philosophy courses both in the Boys School and in Bryn Athyn College. In addition he served as everybody's College Dean, and gave every student, every day - a chance to enjoy his or her place in the sun.

     Another image or clue on the identity of this man can be experienced with the image of a campfire. His twinkling eyes remind me of two stars in The Big Dipper, the rainbow sparkling in the clouds, and the family campfire. He is easily able to illuminate the darkness and bring light and warmth to whole groups of gathered individuals during their natural and spiritual quests in his classrooms to determine their identity, their purpose, their mission, and their belongingness.

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At the same time, he could easily warm and enlighten one person at a time, his compassionate and enthusiastic approach gathering them in close, as if he or she were the most important person in the world. Every visit to his office brought images and experiences of a friendly and fatherly campfire, the gentle flames jumping up joyfully and playfully from the logs.

     So here I am, on July 28th of the year 2008: I sit at a small table in a Tucson, Arizona, Borders Bookstore Reading Room at two in the afternoon, drink an green iced-tea latte, take bites from a blueberry scone topped with an occasional small pat of butter from Glenview Farms, and read Tom Fiedler's essay, "Why Young People Leave the Church" in the latest issue of "New Church Life." I agree with Tom's conclusion that, "But in the New Church our failure to see the conflicting foundations of the way each generations thinks...will result in frustrated communication....Everything we wish to bequeath to following generations must be redefined.... It isn't going to be easy, but I bet it will be enlightening."

     However, I must say for me it is easy, because of our teacher and friend, who illuminated and inspired my life for two decades in the classroom, who years afterward flew a thousand miles to our wedding and said, "In the tough times you will remember all the people in the congregation who stood up for you and who celebrated your wedding day with you, and that memory will get you through any rough roads." This man taught me by example how to treasure my wife, my daughters and sons, my students, and my fellow human beings; he taught me how to bring them harmony and hope. His kind and powerful influence kept me walking on the New Church path....

     I glance out the window and for a moment I thought I saw a phantom rainbow in the sky. I close my eyes and feel the warm campfire presence of this mystery man and am warmed by the memories. I turn to the very last page in the "New Church Life," and see all that's left of my imaginary campfire. The embers glow, sparkle, and twinkle up at me. With dismay, I read in black print under Deaths: Mr. Charles Snowden Cole, at Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, May 18, 2008. 93....

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     I am astounded. No, no, no. He wasn't just Mr. Charlie Cole. He was Professor Charlie Cole. He was Dean Charlie Cole. I hear a bell ring in the Children's Reading Room nearby and think, "Charlie just became an angel." I think of meteor showers from the Orion Constellation, and console myself that, "The Orionides will remind me of Charlie Cole every October 21st." I remember how The Big Dipper's light from a couple stars takes years to reach us, but now, like Charlie Cole's twinkle, its gleam will be with us forever. Okay, Charlie's earthly body is gone from us. But everything he stood for, corresponded to and represented, lives. His campfire never dies. It just turns to the man we all called Charcoal. Charlie Cole (CharCole), still warm and light and alive, full of all the love he gave us; full of all the love we gave him back....

     Here's a footnote to my elegy:

     Even though The Boys School, The Girls School, and Bryn Athyn College today stand tall and demonstrate a quantum leap forward in sophistication and personnel forty years after my Junior College experience back in 1963-1965 and fifty years after my High School graduation, I believe it is the teachers and mentors of those times and decades who instilled the momentum and functioned as the catalysts in the pursuit of Swedenborgian Academic excellence. Each generation carries its own vocabulary and approach, but I believe God channels His Love and Wisdom in such a way with New Church teachers that they can motivate, lead, and inspire even those who think, believe, and live in a different world. Today's College and High School staff cast a long shadow, but they do so in part because they stand on the shoulders of such stalwart mentors as, for example, Charlie Cole, Sig Synnestvedt, Richard Gladish, Willard Pendleton, Bruce Glenn, David Simons, Lyris Hyatt, Margaret Wilde, and Emilie Asplundh.

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THEOLOGY OF SEXUALITY Part II 2008

THEOLOGY OF SEXUALITY Part II        Rev. ALAIN NICOLIER       2008


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     Relationship with One's Father

     Another constant that is common among most of the homosexuals who have been willing to trust in a therapy or an exploration is found in the relationship with the father.

     One must understand that the father has a definitive role in the socialization of his child. By his repeated, daily attitude he can stimulate or inhibit the capacity for self-acceptance and the ability to adjust to change, to meet diversity, to develop his communication with the world and with other people, and to accept his own uniqueness.

     Unlike many children, the homosexual never had any desire to imitate or admire his father for one or several reasons. Some of these are: his too frequent irritation, fits of devastating anger, verbal and physical bullying, derision, extreme slothfulness, lack of affection, and no tenderness. These diverse reasons make it impossible for the little boy's budding masculinity to develop because of the emotional abuse and the feeling of having his individuality denigrated. So he will stifle his virility by detaching himself from everything the father should have been able to represent for him. Many homosexuals have made a secret vow to never be like their fathers. In the end this detachment is generalized to include other men as well, to the point that they totally separate themselves from symbols of masculinity. This induces a dichotomy between biological identity and psychological identity, a separation between the body and the mind.

     Through Swedenborg we know that because of this separation an absence of correspondence results and Divine influx can no longer operate, which causes all kinds of behavioral disorders. Regeneration consists in re-establishing the correspondence, being purified of the evil, and beginning the work of healing, but we will return to this later.

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     If the father is not in a love of God, he cannot be a good father, but will transmit evil heredity only. "A person is born into a state of evil....A person acquires the state from his father, from whom he has his soul....The seed which comes from the father is the first vessel receptive of life... being in the form of his love....It follows therefore that evils we call hereditary come from fathers, and so from grandfathers and great-grandfathers, being transmitted in succession from them into their offspring." (Divine Love and Wisdom 269) "The interior man or spirit itself comes from the father, but the exterior man or body itself from the mother" (Arcana Coelestia 1815).

     In the absence of any good identification with the father and with men in general, masculinity is hidden and remains latent. This is why most homosexuals say they see nothing but absolute emptiness in themselves, no accessible internal, for the internal closes early on as it protects itself against external aggression. So the child grows up in total superficiality; and even if numerous homosexuals do have great sensitivity, intelligence, amiability and so on, their masculinity is non-existent, and their personal esteem and socialization remain very problematic.

     Lacking access to the healthy and viable internal that comes from a good relationship with his father, the homosexual fills this void with phantasmagoric imaginings, projecting his sick psyche in deviant behaviors. He does not want to grow up; he hides behind appearances-the mask, the game, the theater. He does not want to become a man because he does not want to resemble his father; he does not want to become dominating, cruel and destructive.

     However this is often what he does become, because the homosexual relationship is often fraught with domination, betrayal, lies, obsession and dependency, and culminates in depression, illness and suicide.

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The Two Constants

     The constants among homosexuals are (1) an abused parent, often the mother-creating a situation of emotional incest-with one parent, and (2) an abusive parent, often the father-creating the impossibility of masculinization-with the other one.

     This picture suggests neither a parental nor a marital archetype, just a pattern of brokenness and suffering. It is the homosexual tragedy.

Androgyny in ancient cultures

     It seems that history repeats itself, for the myth of the primordial androgyny of the first humans is found in all ancient cultures. Here again I am speaking of myth, for what was in the beginning a spiritual principle has been interpreted and understood in a biological and psychological way. What confusion! But isn't all this confounding of the spiritual with the material an effect of the fall?

     In all the original cosmogonies one finds the idea of the cosmic, anthropomorphic egg that represents the initial androgyny in which opposites are mixed together and where duality is but one.

     In the Tao, "One" produces "Two", which is how the primordial Adam, not male at all but androgynous, becomes Adam and Eve.

Hinduism. Shiva, an androgynous divinity, is identified as the informing principle of manifestation that is portrayed intimately entwined with Shakti, his own power. One notices traces of androgyny in Adonis, Dionysius, and the Sybil. The Chinese phoenix, symbol of regeneration, is a hermaphrodite, seen as the union of seed and breath.

Plato. He recalled the myth of androgyny in "Banquet", where he says, "At that time, androgynous was a distinct gender which, as to both form and name, derived from two beings that both had male and female qualities." (189)

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     Also for Origen, Gregory de Nyssa, Maximus Confessor, and even Simon Magus who was a contemporary of the disciples, becoming One is the purpose of human life. In Adam they saw an image of androgynous God that was lost through differentiation with Eve, but found again in the new Adam, and glorified through the Christ. According to them "metanoia", that is, conversion, causes an overturning of values that results in an individual becoming either male or female, or neither male nor female but in the image of God.

     This is how they interpreted the words of the Lord when He said, "In the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven" (Matthew. 22.30). Or the words of Paul, who said that by baptism: "there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28). They also use Christ saying "...that they may be one as We are" (John 17.11).

     That theme has been taken up in certain apocryphal writing, such as the gospel of Thomas where Jesus supposedly said, "If you make male and female into a one, so that the male is no longer male and the female no longer female then you will enter into the kingdom," (Logon 17-18) or in the gospel of Philip: "Christ came to restore what was separated from the beginning and to again unite the two." (Doresse II, p. 157)

     The epistle of Clement could be cited, or Philo of Alexandria, as well as the neo-platonic and neo-Pythagorean theosophists, and also the heremetics and a number of Christian Gnostics who fall back on ancient Greek theories, using only Christ's words on Unity.

     In ancient Greek mythology numerous divine beings procreated all by themselves, in fact. This parthenogenesis implies androgyny, an image and likeness of the Divine Creator who produced the Cosmos and its inhabitants from His own unity.

     I won't go into all the details, nor refer to all the authors who have written about the myth of androgyny, because it would fill an encyclopedia. Isn't it amazing to see how fully and with what interest this subject has been treated?

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     Carl Jung took up this duality of gender in the mind of a human being using the terms anima and animus, which are also found in Swedenborg's Arcana Caelestia. In Genesis 1:27 it is said, "And God created man in His own image. He created them male and female." In the explanation of the internal sense of this verse, The Writings tell us that this passage treats of the Most Ancients who were interior, celestial people for whom marriage was a source of the greatest joy, and we find there this interesting sentence: "They called the understanding in the spiritual man Male and the will Female, and when the two acted as one, they called it Marriage" (Arcana Coelestia 54).

     This celestial humanity, that existed before the fall and was in the image and likeness of God, considered the mental duality of the intellectual and affective functions "male" and "female." Other passages tell us that this duality emanates from the duality that exists in the Creator. We read elsewhere, "Being and expression in the human God are distinctly One like soul and body. A soul does not exist apart from its body, nor does a body apart from its soul. The Divine soul of the human God is what we mean by the Divine being, and His Divine body is what we mean by its Divine expression. To believe that a soul can exist and can think and be wise apart from a body is an error arising from misconceptions; for every person's soul exists in a spiritual body after it has cast off the material remains which enveloped it in the world" (Divine Love and Wisdom 14; see 17 and 34).

     Those who wish to fully understand the subject of "distinctly One" should read the whole chapter. In a similar vein we read, "Man was created in such a way that those two parts should constitute one single mind, and no other difference should exist between them than, to use a comparison, between that of a flame and the light shining from it" (Arcana Coelestia 2231.2).

     Before the fall the human mind was one, that is to say, a har�monious communion existed within it. But after the fall a dishar�mony was established, for the will became self-centered and evil.

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     The purpose of the Lord's incarnation was to offer humanity a new possibility of union between the two [mental] functions by a process of regeneration of the will. This was made possible by means of the revelation of the Divine wisdom that had been lost in the flood.

     Before the fall, will and understanding were ONE. This does not mean that the celestial beings of that period were androgynous, but that harmony existed between their intellect and their feelings, or between their heart and their mind, between their soul and their body. Thus hypocrisy did not exist; what was outside was the same as what was inside and this was in communion with God. But, according to Swedenborg, these celestial beings were either male or female. What was different was that they could perceive in their conscience who their soul�mate was, and so they could enter into a conjugial relationship in late adolescence. Many examples are given where angels in heaven recognize their eternal partner as if by instinct.

     It is otherwise today. With a divided mind it is difficult for us to recognize our soul-mate. At best we can, with a partner, prepare ourselves for conjugial life by learning to be honest, faithful, authentic, helpful, to love each other freely and to cleanse ourselves of evil and falsity.

     To return to the subject of the sex of the soul, we read in the Writings that, "After death a man is still a man, and a woman is still a woman, and there is nothing in the soul, mind, or body which is not masculine in the male and feminine in the female; and the two sexes have been so created as to strive for conjunction, indeed for conjunction in order that they may become one" (Conjugial Love 46). According to this passage then, it is said that the male is male, even in his soul, and similarly the female, and that the gender of an individual is the same from inmost to outmost.

     If it happens today that there are identity issues with many, this is due to the absence of parents who love each other, the absence of archetypes, and the absence of role-models and points of reference.

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The gender identity crises with homosexuals relate to the absence of guidelines and have nothing to do with a wrong soul in a wrong body. The feeling of inadequacy is existential and emotional, and not due to an error of soul-body compatibility. Another passage tells us, "The soul is a human form, from which nothing can be taken away, and to which nothing can be added, and it is the inmost form in all the forms of the entire person. Moreover, because the forms which exist outwardly take both their essence and their form from the inmost one ...therefore... the form of the soul is fully... human" (Conjugial Love 316). This is why, in the conjugial relationship the masculine soul of the husband and the feminine soul of his wife become ONE, and many references speak of "union of souls."

     This union of two souls, male and female, becomes the image and likeness of the Divine Human who Himself is "distinctly ONE" in the union of Divine Love and Divine Wisdom, or in the union of His Divine essence with His Human essence.

     From all eternity, God is ONE, and when He creates souls He creates them, as I understand it - and this is only me and my reading of the Writings - in pairs, in soul-mates, one male and one female. These souls, in their incarnation, are led to find each other by deepest human perception under the guidance of Divine Providence. This occurred instinctively during the golden age, whereas today, since the fall, it is a real obstacle-course. It nevertheless remains possible for those who allow themselves to be guided by the Lord and who have begun their regeneration.

     I have mentioned before that in describing and explaining the mind, all the researchers and authors from ancient times up to the present have had, and still have, difficulty presenting a clear picture of how the mind works. This is mostly due to the fact that they do not know the doctrine of discrete degrees, which was revealed to Swedenborg by the Lord. This science, together with the science of correspondences, makes it possible to rationally understand and explain the Divine nature, the nature of man, creation, the incarnation, revelation, the conjugial etc.

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I am not going to expound this science of degrees here because it would require whole books. Nevertheless you can read in the Writings (Divine Love and Wisdom 173-277) how they work and how they explain everything.

     In conclusion, I will briefly show here how they can shed light on our subject.

     In the Writings the Eternal Creator is frequently called the Divine Human, especially in the Arcana Caelestia. Outside of time and space, which is to say in His transcendence, He is distinctly ONE; in Him exists the union of all dualities. When He creates in time and space, He does it from His Divine essence through the intermediary of His Human Essence. His Human is the form of His Divine, as His wisdom is the expression of His Love. His Human became visible in the incarnation of Jesus Christ, in whom dwelt the invisible Divine. This Human, masculine in form, enters into communion with His creation which is feminine in nature, as in a conjugial relationship.

     Thus God is called the husband, and humanity, desirous of conjunction, is called the wife. However there is a discrete degree between God's intrinsic, transcendent duality, and His creation. The non-time and space communicates with the spatial-temporal by correspondence.

     The influx of Life can pass from the Infinite Eternal to the finite temporal, because of the qualitative similitude. Similarly a discrete degree exists between the Divine Human and the duality of mind of the human being. In the light of the stated passages, we can understand that human souls are either male or female, but that in each one there is a duality, of intellect and affections.

     A man has these two polarities, as does a woman, and it is frequently stated that in spite of the more intellectual nature of the male, and the more affectionate nature of the woman, a male can have an affectionate or sensitive side that is more developed, and the woman can have a dominant intellectual and rational side, without either losing their sexual gender identity because of this.

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As I have said before, one can be a very sensitive, feeling male who loves being a father to his children, and still be male and not "effeminate" because of it; and similarly with a woman.

     The confusion in sexual orientation is rooted in the absence of guidelines or direction on the part of parental couples. And because the homosexual did not receive appropriate guidance from his father or mother, he seeks to affirm his identity by having relationships with people of the same sex. This has nothing to do with his deep nature.

     Parents who desire a conjugial union and are in the process of becoming one, enable their children to develop their identity in a harmonious way. We read: "The offspring born of couples who are in a state of truly conjugial love derive from their parents a conjugial connection between good and truth, from which they have an inclination and faculty, if a son, to perceive matters having to do with wisdom, if a daughter, to love the things that wisdom teaches" (Conjugial Love 202). "Everyone derives from [one's parents] an innate character in the form of a disposition....The evils that the parents themselves have acquired and by transmission passed on to their offspring are those into which people are born" (Conjugial Love 525).

     This explains why the process of becoming spiritual parents, as couples, is in spite of everything the means given for our regeneration in today's world. This parental couple is the celestial father and the earthly mother; the husband and wife that I mentioned earlier, and who are spoken of in the Word. We are all called, then, to heal our wounds, to put right what is distorted and to purify ourselves in order to open ourselves at last to eternal, conjugial happiness.

     "Let us be glad and rejoice... for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready... Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper...And the Spirit and the bride say, 'Come!'" (Revelation. 19.7-9; 22.17).

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DECLARATIONS OF FAITH AND PURPOSE 2008

DECLARATIONS OF FAITH AND PURPOSE              2008


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Derrick Lumsden

     I believe that "the Lord from eternity, who is Jehovah, came into the world [as Jesus Christ] in order to make the hells subject to Him and to glorify His Human nature; without [coming into the world] no mortal person could have been saved; and those are saved who believe in Him... [but it is imperative to understand that] to believe in the Lord [Jesus Christ] is to have confidence that He saves; and as only those who live a good life can have this confidence, this, too, is meant by believing in Him" (True Christian Religion 2). I believe that the Old and New Testaments and the Heavenly Doctrines are Divine revelation from the Lord and together these works teach about Him in fullness and power.

     It is my intended purpose "to preach the good news that the Lord God Jesus Christ reigns and that His kingdom will be forever and ever" (True Christian Religion 791). I will bear witness to the importance of the two essentials of the New Church: the Divinity of the Lord's Humanity and the necessity of living a truly Christian and charitable life (see Apocalypse Revealed 493, 509). I will teach about the glory of the Lord and lead to the joy of heavenly life through the Word of the Lord and His doctrines.

     Lord, I pray that Your kingdom may come to earth and that I may be a servant of that coming. I pray that You guide me in Your work, please send Your Holy Spirit to teach and lead me. Give me a humble and wise that I may better serve Your church for Your glory and the glory of Your kingdom. Nevertheless, not my will but Thy will be done.

Hennock Aggro

     I believe that the Lord from eternity, who is Jehovah came into the world to subjugate the hells and glorify His Human, and that without this no human could have been saved.

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I also believe that those who are saved believe in Him-thus do His will.

     I do believe that evils must not be done because they are of the devil and from the devil, and that instead, goods must be done because they are of God and come from God.

     I firmly believe in the Lord Jesus Christ; the Almighty and everlasting God, the Maker of the heavens and the earth, and Savior of the world. I believe in the sacred Scripture: the Word of God, the foundation of wisdom, the origin of Life, and the way to heaven; and I strongly believe in the second coming of the Lord, in the spiritual sense of the Word and in the Heavenly Doctrine of the New Jerusalem.

     I believe that to have faith in the Lord is to have confidence that the Lord will save, and that because none can have such confidence except some one who leads a good life, therefore this also is understood by having faith in the Lord.

     I therefore beseech You oh Lord, to teach me the way of Your statutes, and I shall keep it to the end. Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your Law. Indeed I shall observe it with my whole heart (Ps. 119:33, 34).

     My goal for presenting myself for ordination into the ministry is to make myself available to the Lord to use me as a vessel to reach out to other people by means of the Word, to save as many as possible from hell to heaven; as this is the greatest use of mankind.

Kwadwo Adu Amoako

     I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, the only Divine Man as Jehovah God Himself who came into the world to deliver men on earth from the violence and assault of hell, thus from spiritual or eternal damnation.

     I also believe in Him as the infinite, eternal, un-create, omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent One. He is life itself, hence the Source of life of the universe.

     Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is to have the confidence that only He can save from evils and deliver man into spiritual good.

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And because none can have such confidence except those who endeavor to lead a good life, leading a life of good from Him, is to be understood as having faith in Him.

     I believe that every man is purposely created by the Lord for the good of others, and not for himself. Man must therefore be of use to fellow men so that he could assume the true human spirit and form.

     The sacred Scriptures are the Word of the Lord. And the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem are the expositions of the internal sense of the Word delivered to the human race by the Lord. They are therefore the fountain of wisdom, the source of life, and the only way to heaven when man applies them to life.

     I believe that evils must be shunned, because they are from the devil and are exhalations from hell. Goods must be done, because they are of the Lord and from Him.

     My main aim and purpose in offering myself for ordination into ministry, is to present my whole being: soul, spirit and body to the Lord to be used as an instrument to seek and to save those who are in spiritual darkness and in death. That, they could be delivered of the Lord from hell and unto Himself in heaven.

     May God help me!

George Genya Dziekpor

     I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ: the almighty and everlasting God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the Redeemer and Savior of the world.

     I believe that the Lord is our Creator, and the one God in whom there is the trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and from whom angels and men receive life.

     I believe in the Divine authority of the Old Testament, the New Testament and the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem. It is also my belief that by means of them there is conjunction with the Lord and affiliation with angels.

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     I believe that the Lord has made His Second Coming in the spiritual sense of the Word and in the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem. I do believe in the repentance of life leading to regeneration, the life of charity, the life after death, and life everlasting.

     It is in all humility that I present myself for ordination into the ministry, and I confess and acknowledge that I do that in response to a call from the Lord. I vow to be a worthy vessel for the Lord's work of salvation, and affirm my commitment to serve the General Church of the New Jerusalem with all my heart.

     This I do in the presence of God and this congregation. So help me God!

     My prayer to You is: O Lord, let your Word be a lamp to my feet and a light to my path (Ps. 119:105).

Roger Koudou

     (Delivered in French for the sake of his family.)

     I Roger Koudou solemnly and humbly declare my faith before the Lord and this congregation that I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ: the Almighty and everlasting God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the Redeemer and Savior of the world. I believe in the Sacred Scripture: the Word of God, the Fountain of wisdom, the Source of life, and the Way to heaven.

     I believe in the Second Coming of the Lord, in the spiritual sense of the Word and in the Heavenly Doctrine of the New Jerusalem. I also believe that evils must not be done because they are of the devil and from the devil, and that instead goods must be done because they are of God and from God.

     I thank God for calling me to serve Him, and I promise to serve Him and the church with my whole heart.

Israel Gyan Ampem-Darko

     I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, the only Divine Man in the universe from Whom all men and creatures have their being.

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I believe in the true God, the Creator, Redeemer and the Enlightener to Whom this Trinity belongs.

     I believe in the same God the Infinite, Eternal, Uncreate, Omnipotent, Omnipresent and Omniscient. I believe that He alone is Life Itself and the Source of life of the universe.

     I believe that He is the same Jehovah God in the Old Testament Who changed it to Jesus Christ in the New Testament. I believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is Love Itself; the only One God who wishes to give all He has to the other, but because there is nobody like Him in the whole universe, He created man to give him all His love.

     I believe that the love the Lord gives is life which is the source of salvation, peace and happiness for mankind. I also believe that the salvation He gives is the withdrawal of man from evils and falsities or hell by means of man doing His commandments in the Word.

     I believe that man is purposely created by God for others and not for himself; so that he may be of use to other people and have the true human spirit and form.

     My main aim for presenting myself for ordination into the ministry is to get the opportunity to offer my whole being for use by the Lord to save as many people as possible from hell to Himself in Heaven.

     I want to spread the life-giving truths of the Lord and the equality of husband and wife or man and woman in the Lord; to make life comfortable and enjoyable to couples, men and women in this and the next world.

     The Lord help me.

John K. Segbenu

     I believe in the teachings of the New Church that the Lord from eternity, who is Jehovah, came into the world to defeat the hells and to glorify His Human; and without this no mortal could have been saved; and those are saved who believe in Him.

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     By this assumption of the Human, the Lord admitted temptations into His Human to the last of them, which was the passion of the cross. Without this Divine work no mortal could have been saved and they are saved who live well and believe in Him.

     A person is saved by means of the Holy Spirit which is the Divine operation proceeding from the only one God. This Holy Spirit enables a person to shun evils as sins against the Lord.

     I believe also that there is life after death, and that everyone goes to heaven or hell according to the kind of life he or she leads during life in this world.

     Now since it is essence of love to share what it has with others, therefore, it is my heart's desire to be ordained into New Church's priesthood. This ordination will enable me to help spread this new revelation from the Lord effectively. May the Lord's Word be a lamp to my feet and a light onto my path to enable me to be a sincere and faithful servant in His vineyard.

Eric Messan Souka

     July 20, 2008, Vogan, Togo (Delivered in his own language Ewe, for the sake of his family.)

     I believe in the Lord God Jesus Christ as one God of heaven and earth, in whom there is the Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit.

     I believe that the Lord has made his second coming in the Heavenly Doctrine.

     I believe that the Old Testament, the New Testament and the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg are the Word of God; I believe in Conjugal love that it can be achieved only between one man and one woman.

     I believe that baptism was instituted as a sign that a man is a member of the Church and as a memorial that he is to be regenerated.

     I believe that the Holy Spirit cannot be controlled or commanded because it is God Himself.

     I believe that it is the Lord alone who teaches, leads and establishes His church on earth.

     I believe that no one can be introduced into the church and formed for heaven except by knowledge from the Word.

     I also believed that He does that though the priest, who must teach the truth from the Word and lead thereby to the good of life.

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     In presenting myself for ordination into the priesthood, it is my earnest desire, purpose and determination to be a humble servant of the Lord. I pray that the Lord preserves me from abuse of this sacred office, that I may be a faithful and loyal servant and that through me the Lord may build His New Church in the hearts and mind of His own people.

     Let His will be done in my life now and ever.
THOSE WHO WILL BE IN THE NEW CHURCH 2008

THOSE WHO WILL BE IN THE NEW CHURCH        Editor       2008


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     Are you 'New Church'? Of course you are. You are reading New Church Life! What could be more "New Church" than that? It is interesting though that the phrase "those who will be in the New Church" occurs 40 times in the Apocalypse Explained and Apocalypse Revealed, in fulfillment of verses of the Book of Revelation which prophecy the coming of the New Church. Only 8 more occurrences are found in other works of the Writings, six of these from Prophet and Psalms forecasting the next "New Church," and one from Arcana and one from True Christian Religion. This last reads: "'In that day' means after His glorification, that is, after His perfect and absolute union with the Father. This Arcanum is from the Lord Himself, given for those who will be of His New Church" (True Christian Religion 154). It closely matches an early reference in Apocalypse Revealed, the very first number: "That this Revelation is from the Lord alone, and that it is received by those who will be in His New Church, which is the New Jerusalem, and acknowledge the Lord as the God of heaven and earth" (Apocalypse Revealed 1).

     The entire Book of Revelation had to be received by people on earth before any New Church could be founded. The explanation of its contents had to come first (Apocalypse Revealed was published in 1766), and only "those who will be in His New Church, which is the New Jerusalem" could receive it.

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Such people "acknowledge the Lord as the God of heaven and earth" as He is described in His Word. (Apocalypse Revealed 1)!

     There are several groups of verses from the Apocalypse which refer to "those who will be" in the New Church in their internal sense. One group are the "twelve tribes of Israel," 12,000 of each tribe referring to "those who will be in the New Church" (cf. Apocalypse Revealed 351, 352, 354, 361)! Another group has to do with "brother and companion" i.e. that angels and people are brethren and no one should bow to angels since they bow to no one but the Lord. Both angels and men are thus "in the New Church."

     Besides "those who will be in the New Church," another phrase found exclusively in the Apocalypse is: "Those who are in the doctrine of the New Jerusalem" (Apocalypse Revealed 932, 946). This is meant by the "river of water of life" which specifically refers to the "book of Revelation which has now been explained and revealed" (Apocalypse Explained 932). Isn't that interesting? The "river of life" means "The Apocalypse now explained and revealed." The book Apocalypse Revealed is itself prophesied! People who accept that doctrine are also prophesied. Thus whereas the Seven Churches (Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatire, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laocidea) mean "those who will be in the New Heaven and the New Church" (Apocalypse Explained 91), the woman about to give birth means "those who will be in the doctrine of the New Jerusalem both as to faith and charity together" (Apocalypse Explained 712, 721, 765).

     Are you in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem and living by it? Who are such people? They are also meant in Revelation by: the "brothers" who were accused by the dragon "day and night" (Revelation 12:10, Apocalypse Revealed 554); and by the "Glory of God shining from the New Jerusalem, like jasper, like crystal" (Revelation 21:11, Apocalypse Revealed 897);

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by the woman about to deliver, threatened by the dragon (Rev. 12:4, Apocalypse Explained 712, 721); by the wings of eagles for the woman in the wilderness (Revelation 12:14, Apocalypse Revealed 561), and by "thy brethren the prophets" (Revelation 22:4, Apocalypse Revealed 946). That's who. The comforting thing about all these prophecies, is that if you consider yourself 'New Church', you may be a fulfillment of all these prophecies! You are "in the doctrine of the New Jerusalem," and you are "in the New Church." Congratulations!

     We do know what type of New Church members are meant by the 144,000 of the Tribes of Israel we mentioned above, i.e. Gad, Reuben, Naphtali, Benjamin or the rest! The Lord knows who they are, i.e. "those who will be in the Lord's New Heaven and New Church" (Apocalypse Revealed 351, 352, 354, et. al.). But we might enjoy thinking about some of the signs of belonging, namely the absence of the "love of self" and of "self-derived intelligence" meant by the city having "no need of the sun and moon to shine in it, for the glory of God has enlightened it, and the lamp of it is the Lamb" (Revelation 21:23, Apocalypse Revealed 919). The love of self-"sun"- here means lack of opposition to the Lord and a love for Him and His Word. A lot of people would love to identify with this description of themselves: they "have Divine truths inscribed on their life, and therefore they 'walk', that is, live justly in accordance with it, and also they see them inwardly in themselves just as the eye sees objects, who live in accordance with just precepts because they are Divine laws, just as a citizen (homo civilis) lives in accordance with just precepts because they are civil laws...A citizen of heaven...makes the civil laws that are of justice Divine laws also" (Apocalypse Revealed 920).

     It is of course not all that easy to identify such conditions in oneself. It comes down to being a citizen of heaven. We are that when we obey spiritual law as readily as we stop at a stop sign, or let a pedestrian cross.

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We at least wish to become such. And who knows what "self-derived intelligence" looks like? This the "moon" not needed. Most New Church people do know the urge to turn to the Writings on a constant basis, and just love hearing them. That is NOT self-derived intelligence, but intelligence relying on revelation. This is the "Glory of God, the lamp of the Lamb." Again and again, the Writings make new sense and explain things not heard before, not even heard of! So certain was it back in ca. 90 a.d. when the Book of Revelation was inspired for John to compose, that such lovers of the Writings would be found, that the prophecy of the New Church could be stated in such uncompromisingly clear wording: "The seven lamp-stands are the seven churches...Those who will be in His New Church, which is the New Jerusalem" (Revelation 1:20, Apocalypse Explained 91 et al.).

     "Those who will be." It sounds like the New Church is destined to come regardless, and our decision is whether to be part of it, or just watch it pass by! We are part of it when we are "in the doctrine of the New Jerusalem, and do its commandments" (Apocalypse Revealed 932). When we love to hear the Doctrines, we are "in" them. This is to be "fellow-servants" to the angels (Apocalypse Revealed 946). John not bowing to angels means us knowing that people make angels, angels were people, and we are created for the end of a "heaven from the human race." We are "fellow brethren, angels and us"! Angels become irate even when good things are attributed to them (Heaven & Hell 9)! During worship, angels and humans occupy adjacent pews in two worlds, kneeling before the same Lord. Those in the "doctrine of the New Jerusalem," whether angels or men, are "associated as brothers with brothers" (Apocalypse Revealed 818, 946). Hence the angel's words, "Worship God."

     Thus, upon entering the New Church, a mask drops: angels are not created from the beginning, but they are aunts, uncles, grand�parents who have gone ahead, ancestors from all ages.

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"Meet angel Jones!" Every memorial service reminds us of the reality of the after-life, as we talk of our departed friends as already awake and aware of the degree reality which it only takes reading Heaven and Hell to accept. Death as the end to everything, or a vague fear of a Day of Atonement or Armageddon, is the first burden newcomers can heave off their shoulders. The substantial existence of our own soul is an individual reality with an excruciatingly detailed memory of absolutely everything of one's entire life, one's "Book of Life" (Heaven and Hell 462b, Conjugial Love 183, Divine Love and Wisdom 257). It is preserved as the inner substance of our spirit yet touching the world most pointedly, i.e. the "limbus" or border between the two worlds (True Christian Religion 103) which forms the basis for eternal existence. The spirit constitutes a real life after the death of the body in a world of the spirit, i.e. the spiritual world. It is more real than this world. I sometimes ask my students, what is more real, a stubbed toe or a hurt feeling? The hurt feeling wins, and demonstrates the superior reality of our mind, and thus the reality of an after-life compared with the inferior 'stubbed toe' reality of life on earth!

     "And do its commandments." What does this mean? It means the oft-repeated refrain of every New Church person: all that is really required is to live by the Ten Commandments. It is still true. The Lord in the New Testament restored or maintained the Ten Commandments as vital and vibrant. The Writings now explicate in detail how they not only are to be obeyed in their literal statements, but how they are to be obeyed on the spiritual and celestial levels also. This starts us off on "doing the commandments of the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem." We live by the spiritual sense of the Word! The spiritual sense when stated on its own, is Doctrine (Arcana Coelestia 9380, 10400, Heavenly Doctrine 7), and "the Lord's New Church as to doctrine" was seen by John "in the form of a city" (Apocalypse Revealed 896, cf. 194, 880, Apocalypse Explained 222).

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When we are "in" that doctrine, i.e. living in the Holy City Jerusalem, we are consciously aware of its teachings. While always obeying the literal Ten Commandments, we also notice when their spiritual or celestial senses come to bear in our lives. That is more subtle. For e.g. we "shun" the evil of murder as a sin against the Lord, thus in the celestial sense of that text, when we shun claiming any credit for what belongs to the Lord (cf. True Christian Religion 236). We can't act any of His roles! This way, the doctrines become our constant guides. We never know when a doctrine will be tested in our life. The Sunday sermon may "strike" on Wednesday the following week! The Heavenly Doctrine forms as it were a "grid" which spans every person's entire life. Any moment we are in the 'cross-hairs' of one passage or other. No issue escapes a relevant passage clarifying what we should do next. We apply doctrine to life when our knowledge of doctrine prevents a wrong deed or word. Thus living by the doctrines is more like living with them! They form our conscience. If we only love them, they make themselves known when something isn't quite right. We shy away from thoughts, words or deeds which just are not according to doctrine. That is shunning evils as sins. We may not realize that we have just shunned an interior evil as a sin, for e.g. cleared up a mental state which before was fired with lethal anger from hell against someone. However this is what is meant by keeping the two last commandments not to "lust" after evils, i.e. "thou shalt not covet." It is being aware of evils of our will (Arcana Coelestia 8909). These deeper evils are shunned as regeneration progresses, armed with doctrinal knowledge of the deeper senses of the Ten Commandments.

     We can now understand why the New Church is not established by miracles, as the Christian Church was.

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Mind you, there were miracles! If it had not been for miracles, the Lord would not have been received (Spiritual Experiences Minor 4724)! Today, however, the same kind of miracles would harm us instead, and force belief which would next threaten profanation. And so, no miracle for the New Church, other than the event of Swedenborg's eyes being opened, and the Lord using angels and spirits to demonstrate the spiritual world to him. Surprisingly, perhaps, the Writings say this event was "not" a miracle, since Swedenborg's intellect was just separated a little to witness an already existing reality of two world (Coronis Miracle V). People are already spirits! Where's the miracle? Anyhow, we know that the Lord personally inspired the writing of the Writings. No angels "wished," no spirits "dared" to say "anything about the Word or doctrine drawn from the Word, but this was revealed to me by the Lord alone, who appeared to me" (Divine Providence 135). This intromission into the spiritual world-even though we just saw that it was not really a miracle-"surpasses all miracles," because it has not been granted "since creation" (Invitation 52, cf. 39, 43, 55). No one in the history of mankind has experienced the kind of total awareness of the afterlife that Swedenborg enjoyed. Except one. The Lord Himself, of course, experienced this, but the phrase "has not been granted" refers to mere mortals! The Lord is Infinite Divine. Still, on earth He also enjoyed double vision (Arcana Coelestia 1806e, 1807e) and saw all things that concerned Himself, in the universe, heaven, world of spirits, and hell (Arcana Coelestia 1701, 1786, 1919). That is how He could grant the experience again to Swedenborg, but only once. For the Lord does everything perfectly, thus once only. This fact is meant by "surely I come quickly, Amen." Because the Lord had already appeared in Person on earth once, His Second coming cannot repeat the first coming, thus "cannot be in Person" but in the "Word which is Himself" (True Christian Religion 776).

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It is clear that the Lord could do this "only by means of a man who is able not only to receive these doctrines in his understanding but also to publish them by the press" (True Christian Religion 779). Being "of the New Church" and "in the doctrine of the New Jerusalem" means accepting this method of making the Second Coming, as historical fact: "the Lord manifested Himself before me, His servant, and sent me to this office, that He afterward opened the eyes of my spirit and thus introduced me into the spiritual world" (ibid.). Swedenborg is inspired here to refer to himself as the instrument of the Lord's Second Coming.

     It is clear that this doctrinal information "was not in the former Church" because "it would not have been received" if it had been given at the time of the Advent, or any time down to Luther's Reformation (Lord 65). Today, however, we just pass out this information freely, as part of missionary work. We give and give, and those who are of the light will come to it! "Those who will be in the New Church" are always out there. Those with whom the message remains are then those "who approach the Lord alone, and acknowledge Him as the God of heaven and earth" (ibid.). Those who live well from all religions, have this potential New Church faith imbedded in their goodness, and are potential converts (Arcana Coelestia 3263:2).

     The center of the faith of the New Church, the raison d'�tre of the General Church in all its worship and activity, is the doctrine of the Divine Human. Now that the New Jerusalem, i.e., the doctrine of the New Church, has descended from Heaven to earth, and "Christianity is for the first time beginning to dawn" (True Christian Religion 668, 700), just Who the Lord God is and why we worship Him, is made crystal clear. Well, actually many of you who have studied the subject and attended Arcana Classes may feel hard put to explain it adequately. The subject however centers on what we so often repeat, and know and love by heart: "God is one, in whom is the Divine Trinity, and He is the Lord God the Savior Jesus Christ" (True Christian Religion 3).

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That is good enough, all you need to know and say. It is of course explained everywhere, but also in the same number: "Jehovah God is Love itself and Wisdom itself, or Good itself and Truth itself. He came down in the form of Divine Truth, which is the Word and which was God with God, and took upon Himself human form, so as to reduce to order everything in heaven, in hell and in the church" (ibid.). That God HIMSELF came down as a Divine soul to the body taken on from Mary, a body which had OUR human nature, subject to the SAME temptations we have from human heredity, a heredity so full of evil that it was collapsing all the defenses of the human race against the hells invading and snuffing it out; and that the LORD from infancy onwards CONQUERED all the evils of human heredity, thus also the hells backing them, thereby MAKING HIS HUMAN COMPLETELY DIVINE, with no maternal or mortal remainder; and that He did this by REPLACING THE MATERNAL HUMAN WITH DIVINE COUNTER-PARTS, id est, "with the Lord the earlier forms which came from His mother were completely destroyed and rooted out [prorsus deletae et exstirpatae sunt], and Divine forms were received and replaced them" (Arcana Coelestia 6872e, emphases added), this in sum is the doctrine of the Divine Human. Nothing was converted from natural to the Divine (Lord 35), but Divine forms replaced the exact bodily forms of the natural which were completely and utterly destroyed, extirpated, dissipated and annihilated. These are the terms used. The Risen Lord was thus made Divine, glorified, as to the Natural also, meant by "Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I Myself; handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as ye see Me have" (Luke 24:39, 40, John 20:20, Lord 35). Thus He became Jehovah also as to the Human Essence (Arcana Coelestia 1502, 1568, 7014).

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This doctrine is what makes the New Church unique. Every other interpretation of the Crucifixion makes the human of the risen Lord still "like us" except without sin, - the building-block for persons in the Trinity. All creeds perpetuate such false faith, rescued only by the Athanasian Creed rightly understood, as reworded verbatim in Lord 58.

     Instead, we have simply: "The Lord God Jesus Christ Reigns, whose kingdom shall be for ages of ages" (True Christian Reli�gion 791). We now see.

     For such reasons, the New Church is established by a new revelation, and the belief that the Writings are that revelation so long foretold, the "speaking plainly of the Father" (John 16:25), the "power and great glory" of the internal spiritual sense of the Word, seen in the "clouds of heaven" of the literal Biblical text (Coronis LI, Invitation 0, 1) is central to the faith of New Church members. That is why "spiritual peace and internal blessedness and conjunction with the Lord is promised to the New Church" (Coronis LIII). The New Church was in fact "foreseen from the creation of the world" namely that it would be the "crown of the four preceding churches, because it is to have true faith and true charity" (Coronis LII). The prophecy "the time is near" (Revelation 1:3) and "except those days should be shortened, no flesh should be saved" (Matthew 24:21-22) mean that "unless the New Church should arise, which acknowledges these two essentials [one God and repentance of life] and lives accordingly, no one can be saved" (Apocalypse Revealed 9). That makes the establishment of the New Church by the books published and read between 1749 (Vol. I of Arcana) and 1771 (True Christian Religion) and thereafter, of historical indeed epic proportions!

     And the Revelation prophecy of the "time is at hand" in chapter 1:3 involving the dire prediction of the end of the world if the New Church did not come "shortly," is followed by the words "John to the seven Churches in Asia" (Revelation 1:4).

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It means an "invitation to the entire Christian World to enter this [New] Church, and an exhortation to worthily receive the Lord" (Coronis LV). For the seven Churches mean "All who are in the Christian world where the Word is, and by it the Lord is known. These, if they live according to the Lord's precepts in the Word, make the church itself" (Apocalypse Revealed 1, 10). The New Church had to grow just as soon as the books were published. And it did.

     In the New Church, the Lord alone is approached, "directly" without mediators of any kind (Apocalypse Revealed 476), and He is seen to be "one, both in person and essence, with the trinity in Him, namely the Lord." (Lord 61) He alone is acknowledged as God, together with the Life according to the Ten Commandments and repentance of life (Apocalypse Revealed 9, 491). Because it is "now permitted to enter understandingly into the mysteries of faith" (True Christian Religion 508)-mysteries which have bedeviled the entire history of Christianity-the New Church will "receive illustration from the Lord, from the Word" (Apocalypse Revealed 43) to understand "all of the Word, which is now translucent from its spiritual sense" (Apocalypse Revealed 897, 911), and penetrate all its secrets which can then be confirmed from the literal texts of the Word (True Christian Religion 508). The promise is made to the New Church that its members can come into the Good of Love (Apocalypse Revealed 17) and receive Conjugial Love together with the reception of the Lord's New Church (Conjugial Love 43).

     There are other symptoms of belonging to the New Church, beyond the obvious one of loving the doctrines and hearing sermons and classes where the quotations from the Writings do the teaching and leading. Some of these symptoms are found in worship services where the Third Commandment to "Remember the Sabbath Day" are fulfilled: "In the New Church there is to be no external separated from an internal, because the Lord Himself in His Divine Human is approached, worshipped and adored. From Him is all of the Church" (Apocalypse Revealed 918).

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This of course makes the doctrine of the Lord again of central importance, since it is according to our understanding of the Word that the Church exists (Sacred Scripture 76 et. al.). Of course, this understanding now constitutes the Heavenly Doctrines themselves, as translated and published in barely countable numbers world-wide. These books "are" our understanding of the Word, "given for us to understand" by the Lord Himself making His Second Advent in and by them. Our understanding of the Word of Sacred Scripture now stands defined, and we just run or jog to keep up with our personal grasp and view of them.

     It is clear to all readers of the Writings in the New Church that the above law for worshipping the Lord in His Divine Human, to have "no external separated from an internal," applies to rituals of worship. For worship is internal and external. Externals such as rituals, are flexible, but should contain the internals without fail. Indeed we are fairly scared into compliance here, since we read this warning: "unless there are internal things within external ones, that is, unless men think of internal things when they are in external ones, and unless they are at the same time affected by the internal things, or at least unless they are affected by external things for the sake of internal things, there is not anything of the church" (Arcana Coelestia 4433)! Nothing of the Church! If you drift off during the sermon, or stand with hands in pockets and think of dinner, is this to chuck your membership of the New Church out the stained glass window? No, no, you are just concentrating on the contents! Or perhaps angels are talking to you, which happens without our own awareness! (True Christian Religion 14e, Heaven and Hell 438, 453)

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In any case, internal things clothe themselves with natural things, so that they may be "there" and we can "lead a life in them" (Arcana Coelestia 6275:2). We have to pay attention from time to time so that the contents govern and match the format.

     We are however fairly safe, because "the quality of the worship is derived from the goods and truths of the doctrine; for worship is nothing but an external act in which the internal things that are of doctrine should be. Without these worship is without its essence, life, and soul" (Apocalypse Revealed 777). And doctrine, i.e. teachings and quotes from the Writings are what we love! We read the Word of Heavenly Doctrine as a lesson in worship, right after the Word of Sacred Scriptures. Teachings from the Writings or doctrine should form the kernel of every sermon, i.e. what is taught is noticeably from the Writings.

     Then comes the "faith" of the New Church, which is the essence of the membership of the New Church, namely "confidence in the Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ," and a "trust" that if we live right by what we believe, "we will be saved by Him" (True Christian Religion 344). The essence of our faith is then in the "truths from the Word," which involves a spiritual sight of them, seeing their harmony, being convinced by them and acknowledging them in our mind. With New Church Education well established and running for a century plus, we can welcome the evidence of the stages of the New Church faith: its infantile form, youthful faith, then adult faith. We can distinguish between faith in appearances of truth and in genuine truths; between faith from memory or from reason, but then from enlightenment. We can separate natural faith from spiritual faith, and appreciate what celestial faith might mean. We know there is miraculous faith, but the New Church is not established by miracles! Miracles still must be taught, because they are part of the Word, and once they did happen. 'How' is another story.

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They have their place with infants and young people, but when they become adult, from compelled faith, people enter on "free faith" (cf. True Christian Religion 344).

     What of the benefits of being "in the doctrine of the New Jerusalem" and of being "those found who will be in the New Church"? Those who have "accepted the doctrine of the New Church concerning the Lord" and have done "the good works of charity from religion" and thus not "committed evil" are in heaven "clothed in garments of a red color," and after initiation into the "goods of the New Church" they are "clothed with garments of a purple color, which acquire a beautiful golden glow in proportion as they also receive truths" (True Christian Religion 537). Perhaps taste on clothing varies, but whatever clothing is worn in heaven, it will be nice anyhow!

     How have you fared? Are you "New Church"? Have you "been found"? Please find yourself in the New Church.
COMMUNICATIONS 2008

COMMUNICATIONS       Various       2008


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Dear Editor,

     I write to express appreciation for the editorial in the July, 2008 issue of New Church Life entitled "Male and Female Created He Them." In an era when the sanctity of marriage appears to be increasingly overlooked the effect on the New Church is obviously taking its toll (the divorce rate). Even the spiritual sphere that should surround New Church weddings seems to be more and more absent. We are taught in the Word for the Second Coming that marriage is one of the holiest acts of worship stemming from the marriage of Good and Truth in the Lord Himself. The article points out that the progression of states from engagement, through betrothal, to the marriage itself provides an orderly and protective approach to an eternal relationship established by the Lord for the purpose of creating a heaven from the human race. Therefore every detail leading up to the conjunction of the man and the woman is of Divine importance.

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     The wedding itself is a solemn yet joyous occasion in which the changing relationship between the man and the woman and the Lord is of crucial significance. This change is actually carried out representatively on the chancel where the betrothed couple approaches the Lord in His open Word, the bride to the right of the groom. After giving their mutual consent, the officiating minister pronounces them husband and wife with the admonishment "What God has joined together let not man put asunder." The groom then turns to the bride, lifts her veil, and they kiss. Lifting the veil has spiritual significance (Arcana Coelestia 32e). The veil represents the clothing of good with truth (Arcana Coelestia 3207) and the face signifies the interior affection of truth from good which now spiritually establishes their new relationship (Apocalypse Explained 64:2). Then the new husband moves to the right hand side of the wife because now the husband and wife together represent the Church, bride and wife of the Lord.

     After the minister closes the Word and retires, the recessional is played while the congregation is seated and the husband and wife and the wedding party process out of the church. There should be no clapping or other celebration in the sanctuary in honor of the Lord's house.

     My reason for re-emphasizing some of the points made in the editorial stems from my eleven years as Cathedral curator where I helped supervise many wedding rehearsals, and often had to gently remind the participants about respecting the holy sphere proper to the Lord's House of Worship, and the holy ceremony in which the principal couple were about to exchange life-altering vows.

     I believe that unless those externals of order are scrupulously observed by all concerned the power of the hells to subvert the marriage may gain a foothold and lead to its destruction, turning a beautiful promise to ashes.

     Sincerely,
     Carl Gunther

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To the Editor:

     Your editorial Male and Female Created He Them (July, 2008), is the type of publication the New Church needs to establish that the New Church is our essential source for a durable, generation to generation worldview. In a world that seeks to deny fundamental differences between men and women, and reduces mankind to evolved stimulation determined primates, this piece on the need for marriage comes as a refreshingly candid presentation. It demonstrated to me that I thought I knew much more about marriage and the Lord's Will for us all than I do. In other words there are many truths explained in your editorial I had not observed before.

     My concern had been that our Church was not fighting the culture war-that we have allowed the culture to influence the Church more than we have applied the Church to influence the culture through our individual lives. Since you have been Editor of the New Church Life that concern has abated dramatically. The articles you write and publish are more applicable to daily life as opposed to theologically abstract expositions. And that is the best way to wage the cultural war.

     Gratefully, Tom Fiedler


Errata: In New Church Life August Issue, 2008, in Julie Conaron's article "The Transition," the Bibliography p. 311 should refer to Elisabeth Kubler-Ross' "On life after death," Celestial arts, Berkeley, CA (1991), not to "Death, the final stage of growing" which was used elsewhere in Conaron's dissertation; and should also include pages 309-319 of "Having a loved one on the other side" (New Church Life, July 1996) by the Rev. Grant H. Odhner. The references to Odhner on New Church Life pages 304 and 306 were not the Rev. Hugo Lj. Odhner, but to Rev. Grant Odhner, in this series on "Having a Loved on the other side." On page 307 the reference was to Hugh Lj. Odhner. Apologies for these inaccuracies of publication.

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ANNOUNCMENT: BRYN ATHYN COLLEGE OF THE NEW CHURCH PRESIDENT SEARCH 2008

ANNOUNCMENT: BRYN ATHYN COLLEGE OF THE NEW CHURCH PRESIDENT SEARCH              2008


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     We are starting the process of looking for a President for Bryn Athyn College in order to have that individual assume the role July 1, 2009.

     Applicants are invited to send letters and curricula vitae, together with a statement about their understanding of the mission of the Bryn Athyn College, to the Rev. Eric Carswell, Box 711, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009 USA. In addition, anyone who may have an interest in this position or questions about it is encouraged to contact President Carswell (e-mail [email protected]). Applications and supporting material are requested by September 30.
JOURNEY AT SEA 2008

JOURNEY AT SEA       Lydia Barrett Boericke       2008


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     The Rev. Martie Johnson, Chaplain in the U.S. Navy, is serving on the Aircraft Carrier Stennis. This is the same aircraft carrier that was the focus of a popular and compelling documentary series aired on PBS in the spring.

     Martie will be running the Journey campaign for 6,000 ship mates over a six-month period at sea beginning in October. On the ship's next tour, he plans to offer this year's "Building Healthy Relationships" and last year's Journey - "Realizing Spiritual Freedom." This opens another chapter in the General Church's quest for meaningful contact with at least a million people. General Church Outreach is gearing up to support the effort. The Rev. David Lindrooth, Director of Outreach, says, "I cannot think of a higher impact use of this material. General Church Outreach wants to extend its gratitude to Chaplain Johnson for his vision and leadership in making this happen."

     Lydia Barrett Boericke
     Program Manager, General Church Outreach

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Church News 2008

Church News       Rev. DAVID LINDROOTH       2008


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     VISIT TO WEST AFRICA.

     There are some wonderful things happening in West Africa. I thought it worthwhile sharing some highlights from my time here together with Brian and Gretchen Keith.

     My trip started in Abidjan (Brian and Gretchen went straight to Accra to prepare for ordinations). Sylvain Agnes has two groups in greater Abidjan and Roger Koudou (whom I hope you will meet in February) has one. The Abidjan trip began early Saturday morning at the river where we baptized 19 adults and 4 children. There is a strong custom in Abidjan to baptize in a river, which makes sense because the water is always warm and it is more similar to the Jordan experience than using a bowl.

     After the baptisms we traveled to look at some land that Sylvain has purchased for two churches and the Francophone theological school he started several years ago. This involved meeting the local chief and conversation about how a new church theological school will help his local village. The picture is of the chief.

     [Photograph of the chief shaking hands with Rev. David Lindrooth.]

     The Theological School is a real source of excitement. There are currently six students with the first two due to graduate in two years. Also, noteworthy, Sylvain has gained state registration for the school and it will be able to confer degrees.

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The curriculum was developed by Sylvain, Alain Nicolier, Andy Dibb, Eric Carswell, Dan Goodenough and others. Dan, G�ran Appelgren, and Alain (ministers who speak French) all help with grading papers.

     While only General Church ministers teach theology, there are other teachers employed to teach church history, African traditional religion and philosophy and other courses deemed essential to the program.

     The theological school gives a strong root from which the French speaking New Church can grow from. The school gives a doctrinal strength and stability to the Cote D'Ivoire, Togo, Benin, Burkina Faso and other Francophone African countries where the church is getting a start. There are probably close to 200 regular church goers in Cote D'Ivoire right now and another est. 100 in Togo.

     While I was preaching in Abidjan in two churches on Sunday, Brian was ordaining six men into the priesthood in Ghana, - Hennock Aggro, Kwadwo Adu Amoako, George Genya Dziekpor, Roger Koudou, Israel Gyan Ampem-Darko, John K. Segbenu, and in Togo, Eric Messan Souka! One of them, Roger Koudou, has been leading lay services in Cote D'Ivoire since the early 80's. The other five were trained in Accra and tested for proficiency by the Academy of the New Church Theological School. In addition, Jacob Borketey-Kwaku, Godwin Zattey-Agboga, and Eshun Ekow were ordained into the 2nd degree. More ordinations happened in Togo the following Sunday: Brian ordained Eric Souka into the first degree and Segno Kodjo Ayi, into the second. So all told that is 6 new priests and 4 who were elevated into the 2nd degree.

     In two Sundays the whole face of the church in West Africa changed. There are now fifteen priests working in West Africa, four of them serving exclusively French-speaking congregations.

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     Sandwiched between the two Sundays, we had West African Clergy Meetings in Accra. These were precious. There was a strong doctrinal focus with papers about the Lord and the Word. The presentations were thoughtful with a focus on thinking about how these doctrines applied in the Sub Region. One highlight was Ankra-Badu's workshop looking at the traditional African religion's view of one God and how that created an attractive environment for the New Church. The indigenous religion has a strong belief that there is one God, an omnipresent, eternal, loving Creator. This ancient belief opens the way for the New Church.

     Following the meetings Brian, Gretchen and I traveled to Togo for worship, the second round of ordinations and meetings with the people there. Togo has a sort of a 'wild west frontier' feel to it. Getting there involves a long drive with many police check points where the police extort bribes. One police said, as he gently points his AK47 through the window, "Don't you know that when I ask to see your license that is code meaning that you must pay me off." On the way home Ayi's wallet was stolen at the boarder crossing but recovered by a miracle since a truck driver witnessed it. Later, at one of the police check points a cop took his driver's license, wrote him a ticket for not wearing a seatbelt (there is no such law in Ghana) and wouldn't give the license back until the bribe was paid. You have got to have respect for Gretchen for braving all this-and for Katie Ayi who lives in Togo with her husband, Rev. Kodjo Ayi.

     Another unforgettable experience that was an aside was the outing we took during the clergy meetings to Elmina Slave Castle. This fortress built by the Portuguese in the early 1600's served as a prison for gathering and shipping slaves. In the 200+ years that it served this horrific role, it housed more death and atrocity than is comprehensible. More than 20 million passed through those gates and with a death rate of over 50% the horror is incalculable.

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I am reminded of how vital the New Church doctrine of freedom is for our world.

     While West Africa is challenged with poverty, disease and corruption, it is a place where the New Church thrives in all its integrity. People here love the doctrines straight up - as a welcome relief to the 'snake oil' they are often offered in the name of Christianity. Africa has a big heart, and I feel intensely blessed to be able to witness the Lord working here. I am certain that supporting church in West Africa is a vital use of the General Church.
NEW BEGINING THE SEATTLE NEW CHURCH PROJECT 2008

NEW BEGINING THE SEATTLE NEW CHURCH PROJECT       Rev. ETHAN MCCARDELL       2008


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     On August 10th, a group of dedicated people from all around the Puget Sound region gathered to worship the Lord God Jesus Christ, as revealed in the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, and how this symbolizes the process of our own reformation, the first movement of the Lord's truth in our spiritual life. Our mind has to change, our context has to shift, from being one of worldliness and egocentrism to selflessness and service to the Lord and the neighbor. In other words, we have to overcome the bondage of selfish and worldly thinking that prevents us living the life of heaven.

     We talked about how important it is to pray for strength to endure temptation (the means of our spiritual formation) rather than "the Quick fix"-for God will never interfere with our freedom to respond to struggle in our lives. We may not be in charge of the circumstance, but we are always in charge of the response, and our response to struggle determines the measure of our faith and love to the Lord.

     After connecting these points to overcoming the "temptations" of embarking on a new church, we asked ourselves three key questions after worship:

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     1. What do you love about the New Church?
     2. What are the potential barriers to its growth?
     3. How might we "cross over?"

     In a future article, I hope to share with you the inspiring responses we got to those three questions-enough to fill three typed pages of minutes! We are indeed blessed to have a core of dedicated people, an area of the country that is at once beautiful and open (including mindset), and a Church that is convinced of the need to put the "megaphone to the message" in a setting such as this.

     Look out Seattle! Here comes the New Church, providing a picture of a three-dimensional God of love out for the salvation of all His Children. "Seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you. Do not fear little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:31, 32).

     [Photograph of Rev. Ethan McCardell and Family.]

     The Rev. Ethan McCardell and Family

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ORDINATIONS 2008

ORDINATIONS              2008


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     Announcements
     Ayi, Segno-Kodjo-At Lome, Togo, July 20, 2008, into the second degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Aggro, Hennock-At Accra, Ghana, July 13, 2008, into the first degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Amoako, Kwadwo Adu-At Accra, Ghana, July 13, 2008, into the first degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Ampem-Darko, Israel Gyan-At Accra, Ghana, July 13, 2008, into the first degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Borketey-Kwaku, Jacob Borteye-At Accra, Ghana, July 13, 2008, into the second degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Dziekpor, Goerge Genya-At Accra, Ghana, July 13, 2008, into the first degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Eshun, Ekow Essiedu-At Accra, Ghana, July 13, 2008, into the first degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Koudou, Roger-At Accra, Ghana, July 13, 2008, into the first degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Lumsden, Derrick Alan Mark-At Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, into the first degree, Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline officiating.

     Segbenu, John Kwaku-At Accra, Ghana, July 13, 2008, into the first degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Souka, Eric Messan-At Lome, Togo, July 20, 2008, into the first degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.

     Yang Kyu Dae-At Seoul, Korea, October 21, 2007, into the second degree Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline officiating.

     Zattey-Agboga, Godwin-At Accra, Ghana, July 13, 2008, into the second degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.
CORRECTION: 2008

CORRECTION:              2008

     Ridgway, Betty Mary Lavender (Findlay)-At Canberra, ACT, Australia, July 8, 2008. (Mrs. Rex D. Ridgway). 89
WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG 2008

WWW.NEWCHURCHVINEYARD.ORG              2008


----------     

     

     An on-line family magazine from the General Church Office of Education featuring materials for all ages focused on a new theme every month.

     I Am The Vine September 2008

     I Will Build My Church 2008

     Blessings From the Lord 2008

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Notes on This Issue 2008

Notes on This Issue       Editor       2008


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     NEW CHURCH LIFE

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     THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM
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Published by: General Church of the New Jerusalem
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     How many of our readers remembers having this minister as their Pastor or visiting Pastor? Rev. Geoffrey Howard has served in the US and in South Africa. In his sermon, he finds our answer to our fears: trust in the Lord.

     The Rev. Norman Riley considers the timeless Creation story from Genesis in terms of our stages of spiritual development, shedding light from the Arcana series.

     Do laypeople need to get more involved? This has been a recent theme from several sources, and here Jonathan Cranch who organizes the Palo Alto Circle in the Bay Area, asks us to think about all the uses of the Church in which we observe others are engaged. Can more be done?

     Is there a link between a Russian Czar and some iron work in the Cathedral? Read the detective work done by Richard Linquist. The evidence is there, in metal.

     There are a couple of Book Reviews for you to enjoy. What happened in 1749 and this year? And did you know what is happening in Kenya? Church News has the answer, and also from Britain comes a discussion, and Rev. Hauptman believes in an answer.

     The Rev. Geoffrey H. Howard was inaugurated into the priesthood in 1961, and ordained into the pastoral degree in 1963. He first served as Assistant to the Pastor in Glenview, IL, then as resident Pastor to the Tucson Circle in Arizona. He accepted a call to be the Pastor of the Los Angeles Society in 1971, and then began as the Pastor of the Durban Society, South Africa in 1976. In 1988 he became the Assistant Pastor in the Bryn Athyn Society, and two years later took the post of Pastor to the Boston Society. Geoffrey has been retired since 1999, and lives with his wife Nadine (Brown) in Summerville, South Carolina.

[Photograph of Rev. Geoffrey Howard.]

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IMPORTANCE OF FEAR IN OUR LIVES 2008

IMPORTANCE OF FEAR IN OUR LIVES       Rev. GEOFFREY H. HOWARD       2008


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     A Sermon

     Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquited within me? Hope in God for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance. (Psalm 42:5)

     Many passages in the Psalms seem to speak openly and directly to our human states of trouble. They verbalize our otherwise intangible moods, and formulate them into questions that strike a chord. Such profound and personal questions stir our affections. They cause us to think and to reflect. Natural life is sometimes beset with most vexing problems. They weigh heavily upon our soul, causing us to feel trouble and anxiety. Yet each of us is endowed with a certain motivation which impels us to lift ourselves out of our distress. States of sorrow and dismay are uncomfortable to bear. We almost instinctively seek to remove their vexing influence. No one can bear to remain imprisoned in a world of mental turmoil. To raise ourselves above the dread of confusion and distress is an instinctive part of our human make-up.

     We have all experienced, and continue to experience, times when we feel beset with turmoil, times when our course seems hopeless and disastrous. In such states we spontaneously identify with the words expressed by the Psalmist. We verbalize the same question. "Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me?" We need to discover the reason for the plight that bears upon us and which overwhelms us.

     The very thing that causes us to feel anxiety is a sense of fear. Fear induces upon us a sense of dread. Yet, it is a most important experience in the arena of human emotions. Without it we would feel little motivation to change our lives or to alter our course. Without fear the human will would remain totally passive and unresponsive. It would become listless and complacent. Fear touches our will as nothing else can. It stirs us directly and immediately.

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It affects us with uneasiness and uncertainty. Fear is an affection perceived to be of unpleasant quality. We perceive it with a sense of dread. We feel it as an encumbrance, as a yoke, and we feel impelled to cast aside the discomfort it breeds.

     Yet if we regard fear from a higher light, we can begin to see that without it the Lord would have no leverage upon us. He would have no means by which He could lead us on our course to heaven. Yes, the Lord permits us to feel the sense of fear. He permits us to fear the consequences of our actions whenever we stray from the course of His order. This provision gives us the ability to distinguish between two opposite experiences, between comfort and discomfort. This experience applies to all planes of life, physical, moral and spiritual.

     On the physical plane of life, we strive to provide for our physical security and comfort. We seek to provide an environment, which registers comfort and harmony according to the dictates of our physical senses. Also it is obvious that physical fear is essential if the body is to be preserved in a healthy state.

     The Lord has implanted in each one of us a sense of self-preservation and this registers its influence on different planes of our awareness and consciousness. Immediately above the plane of our physical senses lies a higher degree of values, those which pertain to the moral well being of our person. The fear, which operates on our moral consciousness, produces a desire to preserve the honor and the reputation of our name. It also influences how we appear before others. On this moral plane of our mind the influences of heaven and hell both impinge. We sense something of the peace of heaven when we act from a true moral conscience and we do what is right. We sense the fear of going to hell when we do what is wrong. The concern for our reputation and honor in the eyes of others and the fear of the loss of them is motivated from within by the loves and fears which we experience. Yet unless the natural mind becomes subject to the powers of the higher spiritual mind, greed, avarice, and other evils soon consume us. We discover that such desires leave us feeling hollow and empty within.

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     The spiritual mind is the highest plane of human life. This degree of life is opened through our knowledge and understanding of God, through an appreciation of His purposes, and above all, through bringing our will and our thought into conformity with His stated purposes. If the Lord is to rule in our lives, then it is up to us to choose to bring ourselves to act according to the principles of His will, because we want to return the gift of His love. We then come to sense spiritual fear, when we think evil thoughts, for then we fear the loss of His love if we break His commandments.

     Thus we can see that the influence of fear plays upon all planes of life. Physical fear pertains to our physical safety and well being. Moral fear pertains to our concern for our reputation, while spiritual fear pertains to our relationship with God. Thus, there are many different degrees of fear. All are given for the purpose of providing the Lord with a most sensitive tool by means of which He can steer and guide our course. This implanted sense of fear is for the sake of our self-preservation. It evokes a response from us, causing us to strenuously avoid those conditions, which arouse our sense of fear.

     Fear, then, is a sense of dread. Its focus is not for the things which beset us at the present, but rather for what might befall us in the future. We cannot change what has happened in the past, but our reactions do, in large part, have a profound bearing upon the present and how we decide to fashion our future. Even the Lord says, "Do not fear those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10: 28). The fact that fear has its focus on consequences that might befall us in the future is an interesting fact to contemplate. Let us consider this.

     For each of us the future is an uncharted course. Not one of us knows what the future holds. Only the Lord knows that. With the dawning of each new day, we step forward into the future. No one has any idea of what is likely to transpire in that new day.

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We embark upon it with a trust in the constancy of what we have come to expect is likely to transpire. Nevertheless, we all have a keen sense of fear for the unknown. Nothing in our future is known with certainty.

     For example, a child may feel a certain sense of fear when he goes to school for the first time. As he becomes accustomed to the experience his fear diminishes and may turn to enjoyment. He may later fear taking an examination lest he fail to make the grade. In adult life, we may fear to assume a position of responsibility, lest we prove unequal to what is expected of us. When a young couple enters into marriage, there is the lurking fear of what the future relationship may hold. When we have our children, a certain fear prevails lest they not survive, or lest perchance they be born in an unhealthy condition. The list of fears that can touch us can be multiplied indefinitely and can reach into every condition of life.

     But in this regard we must be careful, for uncontrolled fear can have a crippling effect upon our life. Compounded fear can take away our freedom. It can override our faculty of reason. It can drive us into nervous disorders, which can completely disintegrate our mental sanity and stability. We need to be mindful of the fact that there are societies of hell, which strive to distort and exaggerate our sense of fear out of all proportion. We are all subject to the influence of these hells. If fear is not held in check, it will not be long before we develop uncanny phobias which cause us to feel suspicion and uncertainty about everything with which we are confronted. It is important then that we learn how to live with fear, and how to keep its effects upon us in bounds.

     But how do we do this? How we regulate our fears ultimately hinges on one thing, our faith, our belief and our trust in the Lord our God. This answer is suggested by the Psalmist in our text. "Hope in God for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance" (Text). Faith in the Lord is the one and only thing that can truly bring balance to our mental outlook.

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Our faith in the Lord is the only thing that can restore unto us confidence and trust, causing us to know that we are stepping forth into a course charted by the Lord. Only through the reception of His power can we feel that we will be led in safety. Only when we feel He is present with us can we feel confident within ourselves. This conviction is granted only when we know with the surety of our faith that we are doing His will. When we act from a true conscience, the Lord imparts to us the heavenly assurance that we have nothing to fear, for the constancy of His law is then written upon our hearts.

     In this ever-changing world, few things are constant. The laws of nature, by which the universe is governed, are constant. But even then, natural catastrophes and disasters can strike seemingly at will. Our friends and loved ones can be taken from us suddenly and without expectation. We may watch them suffer and die. We depend so heavily upon those whom we love and trust. We fear the consequence of the loss of their earthly presence.

     We trust others, and we depend upon them. Yet our trust in others is not to be compared with our trust in the Lord. We form friendships with others, but even in the very best of friendships, our relationships sometimes become strained, our confidence in them can become shattered by their failings and their frailties. In the whole spectrum of human experience, there is only One who is constant and unchanging, and that is the Lord. He alone is the rock of our strength, and our refuge (Psalm 62:7). The mis�fortunes that befall us in this world, the various spheres that periodically invade our minds, are permitted to occur by the Lord. In permitting these things to occur, He has one end in view, namely, that our adversities may be opportunities for us to turn to Him and to open our hearts more trustfully to Him.

     The dawning of the realization that He alone is constant and dependable comes gradually. We yield our confidence in the values of this temporal world with great difficulty. Along the way the Lord is there, striving to lead us to appreciate the more permanent values of His heavenly kingdom.

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If on occasion our temporal loves were not shattered, perhaps we would never think seriously about the values of the world to come. Probably we would never prepare ourselves to become worthy to enter that kingdom, and join those whom we truly love.

     Mercifully our natural fears diminish and fade as our faith in the Lord becomes strengthened and developed. Such living and spiritual faith grows in one way only. It grows as we come to love Him with all our heart. It is formed as we do what we know He wants us to do. As we step forward into life, and act from a conscience formed from His Word, and live by it, the Lord will come to us and will give us the strength to face any obstacle that may befall us. Fears will continue to invade, but we will find that their quality and nature become different. When trust in the Lord becomes central to our thinking, and the implicit response of our heart, we will be stirred by "holy fear". "Holy fear" or "reverential fear" is a fear of doing anything that will in any way separate us from the Lord and the gift of His love, upon which we have come to depend. We will fear to do anything that will disturb that blessed conjunction of love that He has established with us. Through regeneration we will come to discover the abiding constancy of His love. We will then fear to lose the most precious thing that we have found. We will fear to break His commandments. Faith of this quality is most beautifully described in the following quotation: "Those who trust in the Lord continually receive good from Him; so whatever happens to them, whether it appears to be prosperous or not, is still good, because it conduces as a means to their eternal happiness." (Arcana Coelestia 8480:3). Let us therefore "hope in God... for the help of His countenance" (Text). Amen.

Lessons: 1. Ps. 42 2. Matthew 10: 27-39 3. Arcana Coelestia 2543, 2982, 8480:3. (Selected portions)

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PROGRESSIVE STATES IN CREATION FROM THE CREATOR 2008

PROGRESSIVE STATES IN CREATION FROM THE CREATOR       Rev. NORMAN E. RILEY       2008


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     God Who is Order Itself, operates according to His own Order. This order is seen in many things. First in what is called evolution. Each stage was not one thing developing from the preceding one, but out of it, by means of the descending order from the Creator by the discrete degrees of end, cause and effect. The end, being the purpose from the Creator, the cause being the Spiritual degree formed by Him as the means, thence into the effect in which they come to rest. In each it was the infusion into that which was being formed, as a matrix, out of which the new species could come into being, while the former could still continue to produce its own species. The three kingdoms of Nature have been created for Natural uses alone and are thereby not only created in the order of their use but also born into it. Into the last species of the animal kingdom, the one conceived became the matrix for the influx of a human soul, while the species out of which it had been taken could still continue to produce its own species. In the creation of this being, called man, the purpose was that he would be able to enter into Spiritual uses. For this reason he could not be born into those uses, since this would mean that he would be without the freedom of choice, which would be contrary to the nature of the Divine Creator.

     This human being too had to pass through orderly stages of development, from infancy to adult life. The infant state is that of the innocence of ignorance, described in Genesis chapter one as the earth, "void and empty." By this is meant without any good or truth, since the infant has no knowledge by which choices can be made. This affectional state, out of the Celestial sphere of the Spiritual world from the Creator, the senses of the body are able to function, and the infant responds to the things which are pleasing to the senses. This is seen in the smiles etc, and the opposite when things harsh and noisy are presented.

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The infant therefore should always be surrounded by what is pleasant, corresponding to the Celestial state of love. When this use is fulfilled, the state of innocence is formed in the internal, as remains for later development.

     Now the spiritual influence becomes active in the period of childhood, which is witnessed by the desire to know about things, the hunger for knowledge. This is spoken of as the creation of light. Now follows the four stages of the adolescent ages, influenced by the Natural sphere, exhibited in the gathering together of knowledges, the learning of their purpose and use, followed by the recognition of doing to others as they would others do to them, even if not for an exalted reason, nevertheless it serves for later development. And finally the development of what occupation into which they would like to enter. Finally comes the adult age of the freedom of choice.

     Throughout these ages, in an orderly structured life, there has been instruction from the Word of what is meant by good and truth, yet depending on the states of reception. Interesting to note that the "void and empty" state, is said to be that which precedes infancy and also regeneration (see Arcana Coelestia 7). This in the adult state, is when there arises the feeling, that though one knows about good and truth, they do not yet have them. This opens the seventh day-the Garden of Eden State-which is not the accomplishment of that state in one's life, neither was it with those in the beginning, who also had to pass through the developing states mentioned. This is the reason Chapter 2 of Genesis is divided into two sections. The Garden of Eden State is that of the Perception of what life has to become. This is the reason for the words "it is not good that man should dwell alone," since if a person remained in the state of Perception, one would feel that they were already regenerate and the loves of self would remain hidden, which is what has to be met in the course of regeneration. These states also have been ordered by the Lord. We therefore read in the True Christian Religion number 762, "That four Churches have existed on this earth since the creation of the world is according to Divine order, which is, that there should be a beginning and an end to it before a new beginning arises."

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"The four Churches" were the means of preparing the pathway of Regeneration. The Lord prepares the way, as the Shepherd going before the sheep. What He did for us was not instead of us: we have to follow, as those did in the Ages of preparation, when acting according to the truth revealed, in application to the use of the Age.

     We read further in the True Christian Religion number 583, "Regeneration takes place in a manner analogous to that in which a man is conceived, carried in the womb, born and educated." In brief, the first eleven Chapters of Genesis deal with the life of Repentance, when man shuns what is from the Proprium, for the sake of the Lord's ends, and out of this the love towards the Neighbor. This was the forming of the Celestial and Spiritual Kingdoms, which in a person are the ruling loves, out of which the human can be conceived. Carried in the womb is dealt with in Genesis chapter 12 to the end, as the state of Reformation, which is when the Understanding is being formed by the truth. Born and educated is dealt with in Exodus, which means 'going out.'

     The beginning of each Chapter deals first with Charity then Charity and Faith. This is when Good is received in the Under�standing. The end of each Chapter deals with the Planets, and the Earths in the Starry Heavens. These we take it depict the qualities of Human life, the first as the External and the others as the Internal. Interesting to note that in this series there are six Earths in the Starry Heavens while in the work itself, Earths in the Universe, there are only five mentioned. In the Arcana series regeneration is taking place, so six signifies labor and combat, or, in other words, temptations. While in the work itself the complete Human is presented: the Planets the External, Earths in Starry Heavens the Internal, the Moon faith. Just as the Lord was born on this earth, so also do all things proceed from the Lord as from Primes, down to ultimate things, namely knowledges, and thence to intermediates, where the Internal and External are conjoined.

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It therefore comes between the two sets of five, which together as ten signify all things of remains.

     When mention is made of something coming to an end, in connection with the Churches, it does not in this context mean failure but their fulfillment according to their use, and also in relation to the states of a person's Regeneration. For instance in connection with the Most Ancient Church in respect to the people of that age, and also of our state, their completion is what is said at the end of Genesis Chapter 4, "then they began to call on the name of Yehowah"! This was when the temptations, meant by the serpent and Cain, had taken place in the state of Repentance, as mentioned above.

     We read in True Christian Religion 532, "True Repentance consists in a man's examining not only the acts of his life, but also the intentions of his Will." And at number 587, "The first act of the new birth, which is an act of the Understanding, is called Reformation; and the second, which is an act of the Will and thence of the Understanding is called Regeneration." The progression is complete.
BEYOND NUMBER BOARDS: ENGAGING THE LAITY IN CHURCH USES 2008

BEYOND NUMBER BOARDS: ENGAGING THE LAITY IN CHURCH USES       JONATHAN CRANCH       2008


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     Reprinted from The California Digest.

     One of the important concepts in the emerging General Church Strategic Plan is "Engaging the Laity in Church Uses." In my view, there is no way we can have a million meaningful contacts in thirty years without lay involvement, an expanded clergy, and-most importantly-the LORD's help and guidance. It is, after all, an audacious goal which, based on past performance, we can't possibly accomplish without full trust in the LORD, and confidence in the laity. Priests are trained to teach the truth and lead thereby to the good of life. This is their specific use within the Church. Theirs is a leadership role.

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They are not trained or expected to take on additional uses. It is rather our responsibility as the laity to step up and take on the uses that define us as a bold and thriving Church.

     So, just what are "Church" uses? Number boards? Sunday School teachers? Mowing the grass? Serving on the Board? Playing music or conducting a lay service? Certainly these all support the Church. But do these represent all "Church" uses, and are these the only uses that count?

     Another consideration is that what the laity is already doing differs from congregation to congregation, varying with size, growth and maturity of congregation and pastoral leadership. For example, a school society has "uses" that aren't even on the radar screen of a congregation where the Pastor is only "visiting part-time." Consider, too, that the expectations arising from the "Journey" programs are built around not only lay involvement but also lay development and lay leadership, supported by and in partnership with the clergy.

     There are many examples of a laity engaged in uses, but the connection to "Church" often isn't an obvious one, because they aren't Church-centered or Church-sponsored. The Church is about Love and Wisdom combined in performance of a Use, and the LORD uses the variety of loves of each of us to accomplish His ends. We should be encouraging those good loves, and actions deriving from them, whether they have an obvious "Church" connection or not.

     For the moment let's think outside the box and consider Church uses more broadly. Try this one on for size: Identify what uses folks are passionate about, and support them in those efforts. I see it as a "Church" use to help them to see these efforts as examples of Charity, and strengthen their tie to the Church thereby. Perhaps it is working with babies or their parents, young marrieds, seniors, or the battered or abandoned. It could be the hugely im�portant but everyday task of raising a child without a partner, keeping a marriage intact through challenges, or dealing with separation from a loved one entering the Spiritual World.

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It may take the form of developing skills, monitoring environments, donating blood, coaching youth sports, or simply listening to a lonely soul. It might be volunteering in a shelter, hospital or hospice, or even military service. Heroic or everyday, these are all vital uses.

     Imagine the welcoming feeling newcomers might experience if we helped them to appreciate that the passionate things of their lives were actually expressions of their love to the LORD and indeed (truly in deed), part of their active faith!

     Look around at those with whom you worship. Notice the way they are serving others. Remember that the kingdom of Heaven is a kingdom of useful service. As our LORD said. "By their fruits ye shall know them." Maybe we should strike the word "Church" from this conversation and simply focus on engaging the laity in uses. Just a thought . . .
RUSSIAN CONNECTION 2008

RUSSIAN CONNECTION       RICHARD LINDQUIST       2008


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     Below is information from page 61 of the book Gallery of Mirrors, (Swedenborg Foundation, 1998) by Anders Hallengren.

Turning back to the English New Church Magazine of 1917 and 1918, we find that the Russian revolution was met with great expectations. Some of the Russian revolutionaries, in their turn, looked back and discovered that they had nineteenth century forerunners. In 1925 the centenary of the Decembrist uprising was celebrated in the Soviet Union, and several books and documents were published that revealed that many of these revolutionary precursors were pious Christians, freemasons, theosophists and Swedenborgians. In addition, these sources revealed that the radical reform of 1861, the Emancipation of the Serfs, was propelled and inspired by Russian Swedenborgians.

     This emancipation occurred during the reign of Czar Alexander II.

     My current interest focuses on the last Czar of Russia at the time of the revolution in 1917. He was Nicholas II, the last of the Russian Czars. The readers of New Church Life may recall that the wild monk Rasputin had a sinister influence over Czarina Alexandra Feodorvna and the Russian government during Nicholas' reign.

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Also the name "Anastasia," one of Nicholas' daughters, who may not have died when the Czar and his family were killed, is part of popular history. Movies, books and intellectual studies have been made of this colorful time in Russian history.

     Above I stated that my interest was in Czar Nicholas II. More specifically it is on his Imperial Palace in St. Petersburg and a man who worked on its construction.

     I found that he was of German parentage, born in Hungary, where he served his apprenticeship and worked for several years. He worked also in Austria and Germany. In 1900 he went to St. Petersburg and devoted two years to work for Nicholas II on the Imperial Palace. Some of his metal work was exhibited in Paris. In 1903 he came to Philadelphia, where he worked for the Midland Metal Company. During this period Samuel Yellin, head of the famous Yellin Art metal firm, worked with Schmidt as the latter's helper." This information about Mr. Mathias Schmidt was written by Raymond Pitcairn and published in the Bryn Athyn Post on Sept. 22, 1933.

     Mr. Schmidt eventually came to work on the Bryn Athyn Cathedral. He constructed the Chapel Screen, hinges for the West Door, most of the keys and probably many of the door handles. A photograph of him can be seen on page 131 of the book Bryn Athyn Cathedral, with text by E. Bruce Glenn and photographs by Michael Pitcairn.

     It should not be too difficult for New Church people make use of these facts, to lead discussions with non-members to a knowledge of Swedenborg. In fact it could be an effective missionary strategy to talk about Mr. Schmidt's work in Bryn Athyn, and on the Czar Nicholas' palace, and then to talk about Rasputin, Anastasia and the liberating effect of New Church doctrines in Russia. Serfs were freed in 1861 but today Russians can surf the Internet and discover the mind-liberating truths of the New Church in the Russian language.

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Book Reviews 2008

Book Reviews       Editor       2008


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     BOOK REVIEW

     Secrets of Heaven, 2008, Swedenborg Foundation, 320 North Church Street, West Chester, Pa., 19380. Translated by Lisa Hyatt Cooper. Hardback and paperback. Price ca. $49, or $15 paperback.

     The much anticipated series of translations of the New Century Edition of all of the Writings of Swedenborg, continues to satisfy expectations. Here is volume one of the planned fifteen volumes of the Arcana Coelestia, translated here as Secrets of Heaven. The Introduction by Hanegraaff, with notes by eleven contributors, makes the New Century Edition not only for the 21st century, but set to last until the 22nd!

     The volume size follows the original first Editions A-4 frame, keeping to the royal purple with gold script as previous volumes, which now comprise: Heaven and Hell 2000, Divine Love and Wisdom, Divine Providence (one volume, 2003), an Anthology of Essays, 2005; plus True Christianity, 2006. As the shelf space claims an ever widening margin, the impression grows linearly and exponentially. The impact on the world is not a matter of if, but how great.

     The Contents are spacious and airy, followed by a Series Editor's Preface by Rev. Dr. Jonathan S. Rose. It forecasts Hanegraaff's Introduction, which relates the Arcana to Swedenborg's life in general. There is in fact a short account of Swedenborg's life at the end of this volume as well. Next follows the Translator's Preface, dealing with special challenges in words and vocabulary use, and how Swedenborg himself rendered Scripture quotations from Hebrew into Latin. How precise are the quotations? How does one stay loyal to the original texts? Every variation cannot be noted, there would be too many.

     Another section is the Reader's Guide to this work, by William Ross Woofenden and Jonathan S. Rose.

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The very structure of the work is explained, and how various other MSS featured in preparing Swedenborg for this onerous Arcana task. The reader is shown actual pages of different parts of the work, e.g. the summary of the contents of each chapter preceding the detailed examination.

     Hanegraaff's Introduction details several strands of the Arcana, from Method of Exegesis, styles of the Word, to "Development of Churches, i.e. Church History, the Lord's own development, or glorification on earth, etc., which are the burden of the inner sense of Genesis! Inter-chapter material is also explained, with accounts that develop in later works into the memorabilia. He gives an example of the "code" of the Bible by simply listing a number of meanings of people, things or places, examples which he says "can be multiplied at will." Also he has produced a fascinating graph showing which chapters in Genesis deals essentially with "Historical Development of Religious Culture" and which deal with the "Spiritual Development of the Lord." Some chapters do either or, some do both, something readers of the Arcana will have noticed from time to time.
     [Photograph of cover of Secrets of Heaven.]

     Hanegraaff closes with the observation that the Arcana is a huge reservoir of religious ideas and concepts. He appeals to the reader not to treat the descriptions of heaven as imaginative accounts, or romantic inventions, but more as a "world-view based upon supra-rational revelation presented in rational terms and congenial to modern mentalities" (p. 118).

     There is an Appendix, detailing the pages in which the various sections mentioned occur, e.g. where the essential nature of the Word is dealt with, where Matthew chapter 24 is exposited, which paragraphs deal with which Genesis or Exodus chapter.

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After "Works Cited" there is a list of Swedenborg's Theological Works, the ones he actually published himself, followed by the Posthumous ones-published for him after he left us.

     The actual translation, starting with Swedenborg's own Table of Contents, begins on p. 143.

     One notices quickly some differences from other translations, for example instead of celestial there is heavenly, instead of signifies there is symbolizes. The Latin, significet, means literally just 'means.'

     Standard for each New Century Edition are the numbers in dark orange in the margin of the paragraph it refers to. Also, the Ornaments and borders used by Swedenborg in the original Edition (MCCXLIX) are preserved and reproduced more frequently than in the previous New Century works so far, for a real feel of affinity. These Ornaments were researched by Dr. Jonathan Rose, and published in Covenant, Spring 1998, noting how often each one appears, and where.

     The Translation throughout reads the way one speaks the English language: effortlessly, and with a minimum of hills to climb, or scratches to the head. Anglo-Saxon is used whenever possible-sharp punchy English such as "bogged down," "inner meaning," "reborn."

     Copious Notes begin on page 595, making this truly a critical and scholarly publication. There is an index of works cited in the Notes, then a couple of Indices, one to all the material except the Arcana-if you wish to find who referred to Bilfinger! then to the Arcana itself. The latter is unusually rich, for e.g. detailing the various meanings of "wild animal," making it a mini-concordance.

     I believe if anyone is looking for reasons not to have a New Century Edition, they will change their minds when they see this baby!

     -Ed.

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CIVIL WAR, DEATH AND RELIGIOUS BELIEF: A BOOK REVIEW 2008

CIVIL WAR, DEATH AND RELIGIOUS BELIEF: A BOOK REVIEW       Rev. DONALD L. ROSE       2008


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     This year saw the publication of a scholarly book by the president of Harvard University. The title is: This Republic of Suffering. The author, Drew G. Faust, has gathered together fascinating material about the Civil War. It was fascinating to see a reference to Swedenborg and the book Heaven and Hell. I wrote what might be called a mini review, which was published in The Intelligencer, a suburban Philadelphia newspaper. Here it is for New Church Life readers.

In Their Words

     "We cannot hallow this ground," said Lincoln, "the brave men living and dead who struggled here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract." Many of us could recite the words when we were in grade school. We could hardly grasp the import of this Gettysburg address. I gained a new grasp upon reading a remarkable new book. It is all about death and the civil war. The title is This Republic of Suffering, Knopf, New York, 2008.

     The author, Drew Gilpin Faust, President of Harvard University, spent years putting the volume together. It contains numerous photographs and sketches of graves, of soldiers, of fields of battle, of women dressed in mourning.

     Dr. Faust speaks of an impact on this country "that history has not adequately understood or recognized." She lets us see our country as a nation "transformed by its encounter with death."

     There are touching poems, one of which speaks of:

     Many a grave that lies so lone,
     Without a name and without a stone.

     And when there were grave stones, they sometimes bore only one word, "Unknown." There seemed to be funerals everywhere. "There is not a household exempt from the universal lamentation which ascends from a grief stricken people" (p 171).

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     "This was more than an abstract intellectual issue for the hundreds of thousands of Americans bereaved by the war. Loss demanded an explanation that satisfied hearts as well as minds" (p 174). "The very questions of life and death took on new salience" (p 251).

     People of different religions felt closer together in "an unprecedented level of religious interaction and cooperation" (p 7). Among those who provided satisfying words was a young woman named Elizabeth Stuart Phelps. I was surprised to learn that her book, The Gates Ajar, was the second best selling book of the 19th century. It was reprinted fifty-five times.

     Phelps was one of the writers who brought to public attention striking things about heaven as reported by Emanuel Swedenborg. This brings me to a part of Faust's book that really caught my attention. On page 178 she emphasizes the historic significance of the book Heaven and Hell. It helped bring about "a softening view of heaven." "Swedenborg and thinkers influenced by his views created the foundation for what now came to seem a necessary component of an adequately consoling portrait of paradise" (p 179). So, one outcome at that point in history was a benefit for many from "Swedenborg's comforting ideas about heaven" (p 182).

     This focus on the Swedenborg ingredient is only one facet of this historic piece of writing. It is a book of broad perspectives. The author brings to us grand panoramas and she zooms in on intimate particulars. A soldier cherishes a letter from his wife who writes of her greatest comfort, the belief that if he should fall in battle, "you will rest in heaven." If it were not for that belief and hope, she wrote, "I never could bear up under the present distress."

     One man went unscathed through the battles until the last month of the war. He died only days before it was over. He left a letter to his wife telling her not to grieve for him because he would see her again in "bright mansions above" (p 176).

     We think of such individuals, and we think of those vast numbers as we return to Lincoln's address:

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From these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure of devotion; that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation under God, shall have a new birth of freedom.
WHY WE WORSHIP 2008

WHY WE WORSHIP       Editor       2008


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     The main reason people worship God, is because of the Third Commandment, "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy." The Sabbath is one of the oldest "holy days" dedicated to worshipping the Lord. It was changed from Saturday to Sunday in the early Christian Church to make it a Christian Holiday, replacing pagan sun worship, because the Lord was crucified on Friday, and therefore He rose on Sunday! Sunday is therefore resurrection day too. The New Church being "genuine Christianity" now first dawning makes no issue over which day it should be, only that there ought to be worship. Sunday it is.

     The Writings explain why we should worship the Lord: "The Lord wills a state of humiliation, adoration, thanksgivings in man for his own sake" (Arcana Coelestia 5957, added emphasis). The Lord our God "does indeed demand humiliation, adoration, thanksgiving...which appear like repayments." But the Lord takes no glory in it! "The divine has no glory from man's adoration...Anything of the love of self in the Divine is utterly inconceivable" (ibid.). Imagine the Lord being "pleased" while worshipped! Is that the reason He commands it? No, no. Worship is "for the sake of the man himself, for when in humiliation, he can receive good from the Lord." The Lord can then "flow in with heavenly good" (ibid, cf. Op. cit. 4347, 4593, 7550, 8263, 10646, Divine Love and Wisdom 335).

     It is like telling a child: Come here, and secondly giving him a gift. You can't give it until the child comes. Unless we to come forward to face the Lord, and humble ourselves before Him, He cannot give us all that He wills to give.

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In a state of worship He can instill His gifts as at no other time. That is why the Third Commandment is stated positively: "Remember the Sabbath..." We freely compel ourselves to worship the Lord, in order to receive the benefits of it from Him. That is why it begins, "Remember..." The fourth commandment likewise says, "Honor your Father and Mother..." All the other commandments begin "Thou shalt not..."

     We can think of the Ten Commandments as having three "beginnings"! The first one is the First Commandment: no other gods before the Lord. We submit all other loves to Love to the Lord. By another count, the 3rd and 4th commandments form the 'beginning,' because we read "the sanctification of the rest of the commandments depends upon these" two, (Apocalypse Explained 965:2)! The fourth commandment of course turns us to "Honor" the Lord and the Church as Father and Mother. In other words, "Remember" and "Honor" are the first command�ments we should obey, in order that the rest may also be sacred in our observances. The "third beginning" are commandments 9 and 10, since the 9th commandment warns against the love of the world, and the 10th against the love of self (Apocalypse Explained 1021:2, 1022:2). These two "lusts" review all the evils involved in the "thou shalt not" ones! We have to start again, and shun not only the actual evils mentioned there, but also the desires behind all evils. Then worship is also in life.

     We learn to love worship of the Lord. It is one primary obligation of parents to teach their children Church behavior, and this is best started in Family Worship. There is nothing like parents at home sincerely kneeling and praying before the open Word to awe the 2-year old into a similar act. This activity also fulfils the voluntary oath taken by parents when their children were baptized: to teach the child the Lord's Prayer, and the Ten Commandments. The parents but no others should do this. And who is not touched by the child at Church innocently 'announcing' the Lord's Prayer?

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     There are other stipulations for New Church worship. Some people may find the rituals tedious. However, although the internal of worship is more important than the externals, still the "inner essential itself makes the external form or ceremony holy and living." So it never means that "there should not be external worship," i.e. rituals (Arcana Coelestia 1175). External rituals serve the function of maintaining order over the people's own externals. Rituals maintain a holy sphere. They also invite us to spruce up our appearance for worship. Externals are ordered so they may receive internal things, especially by removing selfish and worldly things, or keeping these subordinate (Arcana Coelestia 1618). Rituals allow internals which have to do with the "love of truth for truth's own sake" to flow in (Arcana Coelestia 10683). That is why in the New Church, internal things cannot be without an external. It is a command especially for the New Church: don't ever have an internal without a proper external. The reason? Because the Lord is worshiped in His Divine Human (Apocalypse Revealed 918). That is why there has been such an emphasis on proper liturgics in the history of the New Church. We can't incorporate rituals that may seem rousing and affirmative, from other churches, if they come with foreign internals or false dogmas already attached. New internals transform the format, or else angels would flee the scene.

     That brings up the source for our worship. In worship, all material must have no other source than the Word: "only what is from the Word is serviceable for worship" (Arcana Coelestia 8943). If not, we risk idolatry! In fact "worship is prescribed in doctrine and performed according to it" (Apocalypse Revealed 880), which is why "doctrine comes first, and worship follows from doctrine" (Apocalypse Revealed 777). Does not this say that the primary point of worship is Doctrinal instruction? Only after "Divine truth is revealed" can "worship be internal," provided people also "live according to the truth" (Arcana Coelestia 10570, 10460).

     Was the Sabbath always a day of instruction?

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No, for millennia, worship was representative of internal contents, and those contents are what today constitute instruction. The Lord changed the Sabbath day into a "day for instruction in Divine things and teachings about faith and love" when He Himself was on earth (Arcana Coelestia 10360:8). While in the world the Lord united His Human to the Divine, and this glorification was prophesied by representative worship, especially among the Children of Israel. All worship after the Flood down to the Advent was representative of internal things which had "respect to Him." Consequently, when the Lord came, He "laid open" these internal things (Arcana Coelestia 4832). He did away with all represen�tatives of Him, and turned the Sabbath into a day of "instruction" in those internals, which were matters of doctrine. From then on, the Sabbath became a day of "instruction, of rest from labors and of meditation on such things as relate to salvation and eternal life," as also a day of "love towards the neighbor"(Arcana Coelestia 10360:8, True Christian Religion 301, cf. Apocalypse Explained 537). How did the Lord make this change? He did it by healing the lame man on the Sabbath, saying, "Take up your bed and walk," which signifies instruction in doctrine!

     And when did the Lord begin instruction in Divine things? Every time the Gospels state "Jesus said" is when He did just that. So representatives in Church worship "ceased" when the Lord came into the world, and internal worship could begin. Representatives, i.e. symbolic rituals and rites such as in the Tabernacle and later the Temple, communicated by correspon�dences with the internals that the angels were in. Angels, buffered by simple na�ve spirits, witnessed the rituals of the Sons of Israel, and their presence was betokened by the pillar of fire and cloud (Arcana Coelestia 8588:6, 8788, 8192). These forms of worship had turned the previous disorders towards order: i.e. the persuasive idolatry of 'Nimrod'-forcing internal worship to be merely external (Arcana Coelestia 1173, 1175, 1176), and the even earlier tendency to ancestor worship which was a factor in the fall of Most Ancient Church, i.e. comparing what ancestors had said with what the angel of the Lord now said (Arcana Coelestia 125, 194, 205)-the worship in Israel erased all such previous perversions.

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At the Advent, however, with the establishment of Christianity, the Temple rituals were transformed into Baptism and the Holy Supper, plus instruction in Doctrine; and the same again with the establishment of the New Church, but this time together with ample Divine explanations in the Writings.

     This change made by the Lord, makes even more sense when we realize that the Divine Human is the object of our worship, and it was formed during the Lord's glorification while in the world.* "The Lord's Divine Human is essentially present in all worship and all doctrine, so much so that it is the very essence of worship itself and doctrine itself" (Arcana Coelestia 2811). We see how important the Divine Human is in our worship. Because of this, "all the treasures" that existed in forms of worship in the past, can now be "dug up" and be "brought to light" by the spiritual sense of the Word, "now disclosed for the New Church, for its use in the worship of the Lord" (True Christian Religion 669). We can understand all previous forms of worship, and see why they were conducted that way, and revive the same essence, but in our new forms. That is why the sacraments of baptism and the holy supper, preserving various ancient rites of purification and sacrifices, are restored to their integral order for worship in the New Church. We have to see the "holiness contained" in them (True Christian Religion 700).
     * After the Resurrection, the "Divine Human" became "the same as before" the Advent, cf. Arcana Coelestia 4687, 5663, 6831, but it differed from before the Advent because it was only in "potential" before the Advent, while it was "actual" after the Advent. Divine Love and Wisdom 233. Becoming "actual" is called an "addition" but it is essentially "the same", because the Lord God does not change. He only came closer to creation in the Divine Natural, i.e. the Divine Human.

     Who leads in worship? Worship is under the charge of ordained priests of the New Church, who should receive "honor and dignity" for the office they serve in administering the holy things of Worship (Heavenly Doctrine 317). Thus all "divine worship belongs to the office of the priest" and that office belongs to the Lord as Savior (Arcana Coelestia 9809:2, 6, Heavenly Doctrine 317).

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Although the Lord Himself is the High Priest of His Church, the Lord has transferred to priests the work that the Lord Himself did on earth, or the work that angels and prophets of the Lord did prior to the Advent: namely to instruct in the Word, and in the doctrine found in the internal sense of the Word. Thus when Malachi said "The priest's lips should keep knowledge, and [the people] should seek the law at his mouth, because he is the angel of Jehovah" (Malachi 2:7) this does not mean that the priest is "the angel of Jehovah, but the Divine truth which he teaches is" (Apocalypse Explained 130.8)! The Divine Truth that New Church priests now teach, are the same truths once taught by the Angel of the Lord! The truth is the same, renewed with each new generation.

     Instruction is now the main use of worship, and it is achieved by means of conjunction by means of the Word with the Lord and with heaven, and consociation with angels through doctrine (Apocalypse Revealed 818, 946). The role of the New Church priest is accordingly to "teach the truths of faith, and to lead thereby [per, secundum] to the good of life" (Heavenly Doctrine 315, 316, added emphasis). The truths which are taught are what lead to the good of life. The Good of Life is the summum bonum of the regenerating members of the New Church. It means confidence in the Lord, contentment in uses, the joys of friendship, and enjoying the feasts of mind and body.

     Now, "regeneration is one thing and worship another" (Arcana Coelestia 10206). They are not one and the same. We are not regenerated by going to Church! Worship has a separate function, which is why it is the first positively stated of the Ten Commandments. Worship is an act of conjunction with the Lord and with heaven, and consociation with angels; of holiness with humility. It is accomplished then and there, every time. Nonethe�less "worship itself" extends into our regeneration, for worship is not just going to Church, but it is also "performing uses" in society. "Anyone who thinks that serving the Lord consists solely in going to church regularly, listening to the preaching there, and saying his prayers, and that that is sufficient, is much mistaken.

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True worship of the Lord consists in performing useful services; and such services during a person's life in the world lay in a proper fulfillment of his function by each person, whatever his own position, that is, in serving his country, its communities, and his neighbor with all his heart" (Arcana Coelestia 7038).

     We take worship with us into the world where we are regenerated, and we bring our regeneration in the world with us when we enter Church. "Worship is according to the state of regeneration" (Arcana Coelestia 10206). Still, they differ as "one" and "another"! We are not regenerated by going to Church, but our worship is qualified by our level of regeneration. And after worship is over and observing the Sabbath commandments has served its purpose (meant by the Word being closed after worship, just as Jesus "closed the book" of the Torah, Luke 4:20), the "life according to the truths taught" carries our worship over into life. "This is to be in the marriage of good and truth, not just in the doctrine of the church." Then the members of the church have the "church in them" not just "with them" (Arcana Coelestia 4899).

     We worship the Lord Jesus Christ as the One God of heaven and earth. The main message of our instruction is that The Trinity is in the Lord. This is the doctrinal message meant by "All power is given unto Me... Go and baptize all nations in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit...Behold I am with you always" (Matthew 28:18-20). The words "given unto Me" and "I am with you" which the Lord said just before and after naming the Trinity here, means that "the Trinity is in the Lord" (Apocalypse Revealed 750, Brief Exposition 32, Divine Providence 262, Lord 46, and True Christian Religion 164). We teach all people who come to the New Church this main doctrine. We must teach it. For the Lord is The Divine Human; Father, Son and Holy Spirit dwell in HIM, as soul, body and saving work. Here is the primary 'euangellion [evangel] of the New Church. We invite the whole world to join us in kneeling before the Divine Human who is the "all of worship."

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Communications 2008

Communications       Mim Lockhart       2008


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To the Editor:

     It is a great pleasure to be receiving New Church Life as a new member of the Church. For decades I thought I was a member. I grew up in Bryn Athyn, attended schools and Church there. It is an unusually thought-provoking feeling to be welcomed to the Church at my age, especially since I thought I was an old hand. It is quite revitalizing! I recommend it to everyone, because it renews enthusiasm. It is lovely to feel welcomed.

     Regards, Mim Lockhart
Church News 2008

Church News              2008


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     REPORT FROM RIOUNDE NEW CHURCH, KENYA

     The Riounde New Church School in Kisii, Kenya, have a good flock of children, almost 200, both orphans and others, which the Lord has brought under our care to educate and raise in the light of the Heavenly Doctrines. First of all, we want to thank you from our hearts for all the support you have been to us up to this point-inspirationally and physically through the coming of Duncan Smith and others who have gotten so many things rolling. Thank you for providing the facilities and resources in the library for us to know and receive the One God as He shows Himself in the Writings.

     In the discussions we have shared as teachers of the New Church School here, we have come up with uses that we are serving and how we see they may be supported. The uses are of three categories: one is the education of the children, the second is caring for our orphans, and the third is education of our teachers for the sake of serving the children and the church community. All these categories would be supported by better external facilities. Foremost in our concern is the immediate application of the Heavenly Doctrines into our curriculum while at the same time allowing the children to learn the knowledge, including awareness of Old Christian doctrine, they require for the sake of passing important examinations that allow them to continue their education and find good jobs here in Kenya.

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In support of this concern, we now have a wonderful library with the Writings themselves and many supplemental resources that we are eager to use. To aid us in this process, we have Isaac Synnestvedt now living with us with this very goal for his work. We look forward to receiving the box we know is on the way and will work right away to put these new materials to good use.

     Many of the children are too poor to buy textbooks for their education. As a result, even the bright children are left behind or at a disadvantage when it comes time for the standardized examinations. If the school had funds to help the children buy textbooks, not only would their test scores surely show improvement, but it would be easier for our teachers to show them the distinctiveness of the New Dispensation from the Lord. Thanks again for the many binders brimming with the methods and experience of the New Church teachers in America .

     Our facilities are still in the beginning stages of develop�ment. What we have has served us since we opened our school and orphanage from scratch in 2004. Now the boat is sinking. The fishes are too many. That's what comes of casting the net on the right side when there are many in need around you. Our washrooms were non-existent until now, but with the work of Duncan, they are on their way to become sanitary and acceptable to a respected institution. Our kitchen is a slapped together smoke-shack where corn and man are cooked together in harmony. Our faithful cook and man-of-all-work, Peter, bends for hours each day over the open flames, squinting to see the porridge or tea he is cooking. The smoke comes seeping and billowing out in all directions, affecting children in class and in the girls' dormitory. Thank you, Peter, we have to eat! We are looking forward to the day we can have a real kitchen with contained fire. Adjoined to the "kitchen" is the girls' dormitory which is one small room with too many beds and many more girls.

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The boys dormitory is a little better and has its own place up on the hill, though repairs and renovations are in order including pouring concrete on the mud floor and sealing the open ventilation of windows and eaves with mesh and screens to keep beasts and bugs out.

     Our teachers' salary amounts to 15 dollars a month, which we are very thankful to receive, though it makes life rather tight. If we were to desire families, for example, we would hope to receive a salary that could support them also, so our New Church School may continue and prosper. The first years we were giving all our lives and time freely to begin this school, and with the visitation of Rev. David Lindrooth in 2006 came the salaries that have sustained our uses until now. We pray to move forward that we may continue serving the children until they are grown.

     Our meals are simple, maize and cooked green vegetable, and portions are often rationed for the orphans. Because of limited funds and help, breakfast does not happen. The children would be more energetic if there was someone to make them breakfast and more food to offer as well as some variety of nutrition.

     Our water is drawn from a nearby stream by Peter and the children. Unfortunately, we do not often have the gas or fire necessary to boil the water before drinking, which almost certainly contributes to the periodic health issues that plague us. If we had consistently boiled or even purified water, we would drink more freely and willingly.

     The "mother" and "father" of the orphans are also teachers in our school. They have many duties to care for the children as well as teaching classes, so there are some needs that simply cannot be met. We have had the dream of finding an older couple to stay here and help raise and care for the children. This also could be supported by funds to give them a place to live.

     It is our hope in the coming years to expand our school beyond 8th grade, right on through 12th. This could be done one year at a time beginning when we have the facilities and staff to do so.

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The students are already here, and we are sad to see them go off to another school! If we served and taught them here through high school, it would greatly increase their connection with the church, and more of them would be prepared to come to the Bryn Athyn College to further their education in the Word, or stick around and serve our community. Perhaps one day we would have so many youths in the church here that we would be able to begin a college here in East Africa, then perhaps a theological school here in Kenya like the one started in Ghana to receive the influx of students from Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya. This is our dream, and we must take the first steps. If another one of our teachers was accepted to the Bryn Athyn College, this would greatly support our dream of beginning a 9th grade with qualified teachers. We are glad Nicks is there now. There are several of us willing to come for higher education, and for of us men here who want to become New Church Pastors. We are waiting on the Lord and serving His children until such time as we are given the opportunity to pursue our educational goals. The four men who very much want to attend theological school are also key members of our faculty. We must be aware and prudent about the steps we take to pursue our education so we do not leave our school hanging. One very viable option for any of our teachers, all of which are untrained, is to attend education classes at a nearby college during the three (separated) months of school break. In this manner, any teacher could receive a teaching certificate within two years without affecting the operation of our school. This would cost approximately 1,000 dollars per teacher.

     We know the Lord has a plan for our school and the church in Kenya . It is our duty, honor, and pleasure to look to Him for the guidance He will surely give us. We are ready and willing to receive all the love and support He is giving us from within and without. Thank you for your inquiry about our hopes for our school and how we see these hopes may be supported. We pray that our synopsis of our current situation will be of service to any support you can give us along the way in our plan for moving forward.

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Sincerely, Reverend Khalid Obiri, Pastor
Robert Ontarige, Lay Leader
George Omosu Magero, Head Teacher
Benard Onsamo, Deputy Head Teacher
Rebecca Oyagi, Senior Teacher
Hyline Rabera Marisa, Secretary and "mother" of orphans
Benson Ombiro, Teacher and "father" of orphans
Evans Nyambane, Teacher
Fred Angasa, Teacher
Julius Getunani, Teacher
Dennis Onwonga, Teacher,
Josephine Nyangena, Nursery Teacher
Isaac Synnestvedt, Implementer of Heavenly Curriculum and draftsman of this letter.

     We are happy to read the following passages from the Word:

     If we pray from love and faith, and only for heavenly things, then there comes forth in prayer something like a revelation which is manifested in our feelings when we are praying; as to hope, or a certain inward joy. (Arcana Coelestia 2535)

     The voice of joy; and the voice of gladness; the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say praise the Lord of Hosts; for the Lord is good; for His mercy endures forever. (Jeremiah)

Dear Rev. Khalid, Teachers and Friends:

     Having read your letter I cannot but pray that the plans being laid to help your people that from centers like yours the Lord's New Church can be spread through out the lands that we inhabit. Here is an outline of directions I hope to start within two weeks of this coming Easter; all being in agreement with your people:

A three year challenge Riounde, Kisii, Kenya:

     * First year: projects that effect health and living conditions for the souls of, namely nutrition, clean water source, 12 volt solar electricity enabling lighting, computer and phone use to office and the Swedenborg library.

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Need to add any reasonable items that will improve the living conditions in the buildings we have.

     * Two important buildings to be completed as soon as possible: Girls dorm and kitchen dining pavilion.

     * Second year: additional classrooms.

     * Build a church and future buildings, finding an affordable and convenient site with utilities close to Ogambo and road access.

     * A good scholarship awarded for someone to study with nutrition and health, with a commission to write outline of sustainable applications, with a guarantee two years employment to the schools following course completion.

     * Supplies needed to do the job. Let Khalid and Nicks know, and let us start to erase some of these items. I am actively soliciting funds that will enable us to do these things. Contributions can be sent via:

     Duncan G. Smith
     77 Park Dr.
     Glenview , Il. 60025

     They will be confirmed by the Glenview Chapter of Uses Worldwide. Code # 5KEKI101

     May we continue to be led by the Lord and His providence.

GATHERING LEAVES 2008 2008

GATHERING LEAVES 2008       Dale Morris       2008

     Duncan G. Smith

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     July 11-14, 2008, at the Purley Chase Centre

     The tree of life in Genesis and Revelation

     Five women from the General Church in the UK went to Gathering Leaves 2008: Glynis and Oula Williams came early on Saturday morning and stayed until Sunday evening; Kerry Burniston, Jody Morris and I (Dale Morris) were there for the whole 4 days, and we led worship on Monday morning.

     The team who organized the whole amazing weekend was excited to have us coming, apparently.

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We went with some apprehension, since none of us had gone to the first two events held in the USA, and we didn't know what it would be like with female ministers (and candidates, too)-but I think all of us were able, if not to put aside our differences, at least to not focus on them, and to discover wonderful bonds of friendship with many people we'd never met. Where the women came from was irrelevant, except in providing hugely varied life experiences-we all had in common the rich, rewarding, challenging and satisfying Writings given through Swedenborg, and we are all trying to bring them to the wider world in our own ways. Each of us is uniquely talented, and we should trust our perceptions and do what we can, wherever we feel able. And sometimes we need to be brave about it, too, and trust that the Lord will be with us in our efforts.

     It felt a bit like Summer School for grown-ups. There was plenty of social time; worship morning and evening; four sessions to attend (before going we had to choose from 18 different options-mine were on Happiness-a spiritual perspective; Speak, Lord, UK Newsletter September 2008 for your servant is listening, about perception; The female disciples of Jesus, an academic study; and How do we reach out and engage with seekers?); an evening of folk dances and silly games; a day trip to Stratford; interludes for yummy meals; much laughter and many intense conversations; lots of singing; and a very moving church service on Sunday-12 women spoke 'their' stories of why they had followed the Lord in the world, and each of us was invited personally by one of these women to come forward for Holy Supper. Some people chose not to take part in some or all of these things; there was no pressure. As the weekend progressed, many of us decided to move 'out of our comfort zone' and try new things. Our last official act was to plant a new tree in the grounds, which had been in the marquee throughout the weekend as a backdrop to our different activities.

     One highlight was an evening when we had to split into one of four groups-art, dance, music, and discussion-and spend just 20 minutes developing a response to a poem by e. e. cummings.

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The artists paraded their individual pieces of art around the circle the rest of us sat in; the dancers gave a moving performance in the centre; the discussion brought up several relevant and apt thoughts; the musicians sang a barbershop song, with harmonies!

     Another highlight was the differing forms each worship ser�vice took. The one we led was by far the most formal, and held in the chapel rather than the marquee: but numerous people com�mented how much it had meant to them, and one appreciated the 'logical' approach (readings, definitions of correspondences, and a talk) which gave her an opportunity to organize her thoughts.

     Other reactions? The Lord's prayer had numerous wordings, but all were accepted as what was usual for each person. The reference to 'mother-father-God' that one or two people used made me a little uncomfortable, but the reasons for this different 'definition' were talked about somewhat, and I don't think anyone was made to feel their thinking was wrong. There was a focus on feminine strengths but no shortage of logical thinking and academic research; there was real enthusiasm for the New Church, in all its forms. It struck me that there were often clear indications of how 'the male mind' played its part in the female thinking over the weekend: the conjugial principle seems to be alive and well. Anne and David Gaffney joined us for church-it was lovely to hear his deep voice just a few chairs down from me. It was good to meet some of the Conference women from other parts of the UK.

     This was a valuable interlude in many busy lives. It took us away from our daily concerns without denying their importance, and gave us the chance to reflect, study, laugh, pray, stretch our minds and hearts to 'breathe a softer air.'

     -Dale Morris
MEN AND WOMEN IN THE MINISTRY 2008

MEN AND WOMEN IN THE MINISTRY       Rev. OLAF HAUPTMANN       2008


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     I enter this debate reluctantly. However, because it is not going away, there is no use keeping silent. If we do keep silent, we could forget why we believe as we claim.

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     Before discussing the doctrinal basis for why the General Church keeps insisting that the ministry is for men only, it is good to take a look at the General Church itself.

     The General Church is a splinter group which broke away from the Convention church in 1890 (It is an interesting side note that the societies of Colchester and Michael Church* in England soon after split from the British Conference to join the General Church).
     * You can read about this in Nancy Dawson's inspiring History of Michael Church on our website. Click on newchurchuk.org-London-History. This is a beautifully clear description of the controversy over the authority of the Writings and the strong values of the 'Academy Movement' that still inspire us today.

     The grounds for the split were a disagreement on the authority of the Writings. The people who became the General Church held the belief that the Writings are the Word of the Lord. The Convention and the Conference were not quite ready to make such a declaration. Some of them it seems, felt quite sympathetic to the General Church position, but for various reasons they did not feel compelled to split from the church to which they had initially given their allegiance.

     The point to be made here is that the General Church was not formed as a simple gathering of people who read Swedenborg. Rather the General Church was formed by people who deeply believed that the Writings are the Word of the Lord. People who felt compelled by their beliefs and convictions, broke away from the original church organization to form their own group where they would be free to practice their beliefs. There were several specific points of contention. Amongst others, they wanted to be free to run their own theological school according to the principles that they saw in the Writings. We could say that the General Church is an ideological organization to a very high degree.

     When we know this, then it becomes easier to understand the General Church through the ages. In whatever question that has come up, the reaction has more or less been to go to the Writings to see what they say about it. To the General Church, the Writings have been what the Urim and Thummim were to the Israelites: the place where the minister would turn to get all his answers.

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The same is the case with the General Church when it comes to the issue of women in the ministry.

     As we read through the book Conjugial Love, we see men and women described very differently. They each have their way of looking at things, and they each have jobs or uses according to their disposition. It says:

A husband has duties appropriate to him, and wife duties appropriate to her, and a wife cannot enter into duties appropriate to her husband or a husband into duties appropriate to his wife and perform them properly. There is no need to illustrate by recounting them that there are duties appropriate to a husband and duties appropriate to a wife, for these are many and various in nature. (Conjugial Love 174)

     We are told that there is no need to enumerate the duties; but we might sometimes feel that it would have been a whole lot easier if these duties had been enumerated and called by name. Then, all our searching of the Scriptures could have ended here. However, it seems that the Lord likes to keep us searching. We read in the next paragraph that "women" cannot enter into the duties of "men" because they cannot raise their understanding to the same level as men, nor can "men" enter into the duties of "women" because they cannot enter into the affection of women (Conjugial Love 175). Five or six pages earlier we are told that because of this difference, women do not speak in gatherings where intellectual wisdom is discussed. It is not because women do not have intellectual wisdom, for it says: "Nevertheless wives still have these things [of intellectual wisdom] in them inwardly," (Conjugial Love 165, see also Arcana Caelestia 8994). Women have it all, but it is just that the job of speaking from intellectual wisdom falls on men.

     All of this can naturally seem very old fashioned to us today. Western people of this day and age like very much to think of themselves as being on the very pinnacle of development and understanding. From this vantage point, we may feel a certain liberty to discard the thinking and writing of the past centuries and millennia.

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In the General Church however, we like to see the Writings as our vantage point, the litmus test to which everything else has to measure up, or be disregarded. This organization has chosen to bind itself to the threefold Word, come what may, which is why it will keep insisting that the ministry is for men only.

     As modern people we many not feel entirely comfortable when we are told that some uses are for men and others for women. It is not exactly the tune which the world around us seems to be humming. However, as religious people, we must refrain from disregarding the Word of God. This way, when we look again at the men and women around us, we will know and appreciate each for their virtues.
GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM Contact persons for Public Worship and Doctrinal Classes 2008 Notes on This Issue 2008

Notes on This Issue       Editor       2008


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     Our sermon this month is from another retired veteran of the Church, Rev. Douglas M. Taylor. The contents are topical, referring both to the Messiah to come, and to the Second Advent.

     In the same vein, the short comparison between the First and Second Advents, by Rev. Michael D. Gladish is reprinted from a year ago. It asks us whether love is unconditional. He points to answers which make The Lord's love among us effective.

     The welcome article by Howard Roth is a major study by a lay scholar of the Writings and will appear in four parts. Howard examines the Lord's call of the Apostles and what baptism means for the New Church today.

     The Theological School, by Rev. Dr. Andy M.T. Dibb, the Dean of Theological School, is an outright appeal for future candidates. The General Church is world-wide, and so is this appeal.

     The Joseph Project, written by Director of Evangelization, Rev. David Lindrooth, is another contribution of a very active Pastor of the Church. It offers expert assistance in spreading the Church in all locales round the world.

     Please note back cover notice.

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INTEGRITY OF THE WORD 2008

INTEGRITY OF THE WORD        Rev. DOUGLAS TAYLOR       2008


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     A Sermon

For I testify unto every one who hears the words of the prophet of this book, if any one shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book. And if any one shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and out of the things which are written in this book. (Revelation 22:18, 19)

     The Word must be preserved because it is the basis and container of all things for the church, both in heaven and on earth. Those in the spiritual world depend upon the people of this world for their very consciousness and their subsistence, and not at all upon their own basis (Last Judgment 9). But the heavens, unlike the hells, are in order and therefore depend upon what is of order with man. It is the Word that teaches what order is. To the extent that people think, will, and live according to the teachings of Divine Revelation, to the same extent they are conjoined to the heavens. As they read the Word in its literal sense, the inhabitants of heaven are present with them in the internal spiritual sense. And the angels draw out their sense without knowing what the people on earth are thinking about, "and yet the thoughts of the angels and of men form a unity by means of correspondences, like end, cause, and effect. This conjunction by means of correspondence is such from creation. This then is the source of man's association with angels by means of the Word" (Sacred Scripture 67:6). Further, "the Lord is present with mankind and is conjoined with them by means of the Word, since the Lord is the Word, and in it as it were speaks with mankind. The Lord is also Divine truth itself, as also is the Word" (Sacred Scripture 78).

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     Accordingly, the church is to draw its doctrine from the Word (Sacred Scripture 5061). Indeed "a church is a church according to its understanding of the Word" (Sacred Scripture 76-79). Doctrine that is not from the Word can come only from human ingenuity and self-derived intelligence. But a church that wills to be led by the Lord, to be conjoined with Him, will always seek to discover what the Lord requires, will "seek to enquire in his Temple," to learn in all humility from His Word. For a Church will be "noble...if in genuine truths, ignoble...if not in genuine truths, and destroyed...if in falsified truths" (Sacred Scripture 77).

     The need to preserve the Word intact is therefore manifest. But how far has this very necessary warning been heeded? It is true that there have always been some people who have insisted on the literal inerrancy of Scripture, and as a consequence have been a means of its preservation. But today (in the Christian Church) their ranks are sadly depleted and their numbers rapidly declining. For against them is arrayed a vast army of exceedingly intelligent men - that is to say, men of great natural intelligence, who from a desire to ascertain the truth about the Word, have had the unfortunate effect of undermining people's faith in its Divine Revelation. In their attempts to understand how the Word was written, these scholars have lost sight of the more important question of why it was written. Although their theories are constantly at variance with one another, they are united in this, that they all regard the Word as nothing more than man's developing idea of God, instead of God's idea of man. The great standard or criterion of judgment is historicity; the test of history, whether or not the Word agrees with what is known and proved from history; this is the main test. There is nothing sacred about the Word, according to this concept; it is merely the document that bears testimony to the various religious experiences of mankind through the ages. There is nothing sacred about the order of the books of the Word, or even of the chapters within the books. Everything must conform to the facts of history.

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Everything must conform also to the idea that there is no such thing as a miracle. Everything of prophecy, of foretelling future events, is easily disposed of by the claim that books that appear to foretell events were actually written after those events, and they are placed accordingly. The great hope is that one day there will be final agreement as to the correct historical order of events.

     And what is the attitude of these biblical critics to the Apocalypse in particular? In general, they regard it as a most interesting form of literature common among the Jews. Some think that its veiled form is due to the need of Christians at the time it was written to hide its message from the Roman oppressors. It is therefore ingeniously interpreted by them in the light of contemporary historical happenings; the "fall of Babylon," for example, being regarded as a secret symbol of the wished-for "fall of the Roman Empire." These are some of the things that are added to "the words of the prophecy of this book", and what has been taken away, of course, is the concept of Divine Revelation.

     The Divine warning itself which is thus ignored is taken as another example of the superstition of the times. It is said to be a common thing in Jewish literature, as is obvious from other similar warnings in the Old Testament. In Deuteronomy, for example we read, "You shall not add unto the Word which I command you, neither shall you diminish ought from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you" (4:2). And again, "Whatever thing I command you, observe to do it. Thou shall not add to nor diminish from it" (12:32).

     In the light of this modern movement to discredit the idea of Divine Revelation, it is easy to see why the Lord warned the Christian Church to preserve their Scriptures intact. And the New Church is under the same obligation to preserve the Word. Indeed, it has a greater obligation to do so, since the people of the New Church have been given to know why this must be done.

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They can know and understand that the sense of the letter of the Word contains an internal spiritual meaning - a sense in which the only subjects treated of are the Lord and His kingdom and its reception by mankind. They can see all the alleged inconsistencies and impossibilities convincingly explained by the doctrine of the internal sense of the Word. They can also see with equal charity that the slightest change in the order of the literal sense will break the sequence and series of the internal sense.

     Hence, New Church people are less likely to add to or take away from the letter of the Word. Perhaps our greatest temptation though in this regard is to jest from and about the Word. For the Writings point out, "Those who make jokes from the Word do not regard it as holy, and those who joke about it hold it in no esteem" (Apocalypse Explained 1064:3).

     From these considerations, it is clear why the New Church joins in the struggle to preserve the Word in its integrity. But what of the Apocalypse or Book of Revelation in particular? Why did it have to be hoarded with an especial care? Why did the "words of the prophecy of this book" particularly have to be kept inviolate? For in the beginning, when "this book" was in the form of a separate scroll, the warning clearly applied to the Apocalypse exclusively.

     It was, of course, a means of conjunction with the heavens, but it was not of much use to the Christian Church as a source of doctrine because, apart from a few principles given in the messages to the seven churches in Asia, the things written in this book could not be understood.

     As we read in the Preface to The Apocalypse Revealed: "There are many who have labored to explain the Apocalypse; but, as the spiritual sense of the Word had been hitherto unknown, they could not see the arcana which lie concealed in it, for the spiritual sense alone discloses these; on which account expositors have conjectured various things, and most of them have applied the things that are in it to the states of empires, intermingling also some things about ecclesiastical affairs.

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But the Apocalypse, like the whole Word, does not in the least, in its spiritual sense, treat of worldly things, but of heavenly things; thus not of empires and kingdoms but of heaven and the church."

     Consequently, "without an explanation there are few things in the Apocalypse which can be kept" (Apocalypse Revealed 944). For example, what is said about the horses that went out of the book cannot be acted upon in its literal sense; nor what is said about the twelve tribes, about the seven angels with the seven trumpets, about the little book eaten up by John, about the woman and the dragon, and many other things besides. Such things were of little use to the Christian Church. Yet it was to preserve them intact, neither adding nor subtracting.

     The reason for this was that the Apocalypse is a prophetic book. A prophetic book is always for the next dispensation, for the church which is to follow on from the one in whose revelation the prophetic book or books appear. Thus the Jews, though they valued their prophetic books very highly, did not understand them. Although they knew that the Messiah would come, they did not acknowledge Him when He did come because they had misunderstood the prophecies concerning Him. They expected a Messiah who would set up an earthly reign and exalt the Jewish nation. It was only after the Lord had actually fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies concerning Himself, that these prophecies were rightly understood. And it was the Lord Himself who revealed their true meaning.

     There was one book, however, that the Jews neither understood nor valued, and that was the book of Daniel. It was not included by them among the Law and the Prophets but was relegated to a place among the books known (interestingly enough) as 'the Writings.' These Jewish Writings were the last to be recognized as part of the Sacred Scriptures.

     It is well known that the book of Daniel has many similarities with the Apocalypse. And the Apocalypse was likewise not unanimously received into the canon of Sacred Scriptures by the Christian Church, mainly because it was not understood.

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     But, as the prophetic book of the Christian Dispensation, it was never intended as a doctrine of life for the Christian Church. It was addressed specifically to its successor - the New Church - the Church of the New Jerusalem. Indeed, the Apocalypse may well be described as the Charter of the New Church. It contains in its internal sense a detailed account of the judgment on the Christian Church. It describes the very evils and falsities that destroyed that church, and which will also destroy the New Church unless they are shunned and cast out. It also gives the reason for the separate existence of the New Church in the world.

     These things were given to mankind to know and act upon in the Heavenly Doctrine of the New Jerusalem - signified by the "holy city, New Jerusalem coming down from God, out of heaven" (Revelation 21:2). The Heavenly Doctrine in its summary form is what is meant interiorly by "the words of the prophecy of this book."

     From this it follows that those who have received that Doctrine as divinely revealed, are the ones to whom is specifically given this warning against adding or taking away. To us who have chosen to obey the teaching of this prophecy is given the responsibility of keeping it intact without adding anything of our own or taking away anything from the Divinity of the books in which this prophecy is revealed, that is, in the Writings for the New Church.

     We add to the words of the prophecy if we import our own ideas or some alien philosophy and bring them to bear on our reading of the Writings; or if we try to make them confirm some preconceived notion; or if we seek support or permission from the Writings for the indulgence of some evil which we really ought to abandon.

     What we add in doing this is from our proprium, from what is our own, and though we may do this adding without any conscious intention to destroy the Writings, nevertheless that is what we would do.

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But we are more deliberate in our work of destruction if we take away from the Writings - that is, if we subscribe to the view that while they may be in some sense inspired, they were however, written down by a man, Swedenborg, and that therefore they are full of his human imperfections. For this breeds an attitude of wariness towards the doctrine of the Writings and a disposition to distrust their teachings. If we have reservations with regard to the Writings, the dictates of human reason then become the criterion or guiding light for our life.

     Still more do we take away if, while endeavoring to live according to the teachings of the Writings, we nevertheless consider them as merely human writings. To believe that is to deny that the Lord has revealed the internal sense of the Word, or the nature of the life after death, or that He has performed a Judgment upon the Christian Church, or that He has made His promised Second Coming; for these things are for the Lord alone to do. No man can presume to do them.

     To believe that the Writings are anything less than a Divine Revelation from the Lord, as they themselves claim to be, is to detract not only from them but also from the Lord Himself who revealed them. We cannot say that we acknowledge the Lord and wish to be led by Him if, in the next breath, we say that we have certain reservations with regard to the Writings. For they are the Lord in His Second Coming. To order our lives according to the teachings of the Writings is to be led by the Lord, and to do that is to keep the prophecy of this book.

     So it is that inmost meaning of our text refers to the confession and acknowledgement of the Lord. We are told in the work The Apocalypse Revealed that to add to the words of the prophecy or to take away from them "signifies that those who read and know the truths of doctrine of this book, now opened by the Lord, and yet acknowledge any other God than the Lord, destroy these two things, cannot do otherwise than perish from the falsities and evils, which are signified by the plagues described in this book" (Apocalypse Revealed 957; cf. 958).

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     That there is no other God but the Lord Jesus Christ is the faith of the New Heaven; it is the New Evangel for the New Church; it is a summary of the doctrine of the Apocalypse, indeed, of all Divine Revelation in the Old Testament, in the New Testament, and in the Writings.

     The same may be said concerning faith in the Lord. There is to be no other faith than faith in the Lord now made visible in His Second Advent. The warning in the text is given to us lest we begin to have faith, that is, confidence in ourselves. With regard to spiritual matters, if we add or take away anything from Divine Revelation, whatever its form, we do not acknowledge the Lord but wish to be led by our own ideas. And our own ideas, when they oppose the Lord, are nothing but falsities from evil �"the plagues that are written in this book." They will plague us as surely as they have plagued the preceding churches if we allow them to do so. They have been exposed in such detail for one reason only, that we may shun them.

     Let us then keep the words of the prophecy of this book. Let us keep them pure and undefiled. Let us acknowledge from the heart that "the Lord God Jesus Christ reigns, whose kingdom shall be for ages and ages." For, "Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book" (Rev. 22:7).

     Amen

Lessons: Daniel 7:13-14; Revelation 22:6-21 Love and Judgment 41 (portions)

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     [Photograph of Rev. Douglas Taylor]     

     The Rev. Douglas M. Taylor was inaugurated into the priesthood in 1960, and ordained as a Pastor in 1962. He first served as a resident minister to the Tucson Circle, visiting Phoenix and San Diego. In 1963 he answered a call to serve as the Pastor of the Hurstville Society, Australia, until 1974, when he responded to become Assistant Dean of the Bryn Athyn Society. In 1978 to

     took the post of Director of Evangelization, until 1989, when again he returned to Hurstville Society, visiting elsewhere in Australia and also New Zealand. After retiring in 1993, he continued as visiting Pastor to the Baltimore Society, Md., visiting Australia some more times, and also giving newcomer's classes in Bryn Athyn. Douglas is now retired, living with his wife Christine (Brock) in Bryn Athyn.
LOVE AND JUDGMENT: A BIG SPIRITUAL DILEMMA 2008

LOVE AND JUDGMENT: A BIG SPIRITUAL DILEMMA       Rev. MICHAEL D. GLADISH       2008


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     From sermon preached in Toronto 2006

     As we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ each year we are confronted with the age old problem of reconciling two apparently contradictory principles, love and judgment. "For God so loved the world," we read, "that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16). Yet Jesus Himself said "For judgment I have come into the world..." (John 9:39). "For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth" (John 18:37).

     What a curious fact. We normally think of God Himself as somehow requiring judgment, and Jesus as the loving Savior. But truth is the standard of judgment, and it does tend to condemn, since no one is perfect. Indeed "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).

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So if Jesus came to teach the truth and to judge, how are we saved?

     Most Christians say that we are saved by faith in the "fact" that He suffered and died on our behalf, offering Himself as a sacrifice to atone for the sins of the whole human race (past, present and future). The idea is that in confronting the evils and falsities of the world He became a "lightning rod" for all the hatred of the world, and that by suffering on our behalf He relieved us of any need to suffer. In classic Christian theology this is called the "vicarious atonement."

     But this makes the love of God rather demanding, don't you think? Should He require a Divinely human sacrifice to move Him to pity and forgiveness? Indeed, it seems rather pagan, doesn't it? One gets the sense of an angry, jealous God demanding payment for the sins of the world and being appeased only by the brutal murder of His own Son. What kind of love is this, and what kind of judgment?

Unconditional Love?

     What a contrast this is from all the talk we hear today about "unconditional love," that is, love that requires no-thing but accepts all people without qualification. We hear it everywhere! "God loves me just as I am." And it's true! But does He love the way we are? Note the Gospel is all about the need to change, beginning with the first words of Jesus' public ministry, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 4:17).

     So how can we understand God's love? And how can we reconcile that love with what He does require?

     Here's a simple answer: God's love is such that He wants to make us happy to eternity (True Christian Religion 43). You can't ask for much more than that.

     But in order to be happy we have to live in harmony and co�operation with the laws of order. Who could possibly imagine that God would love our misery or our mistakes, our selfishness or our stupidity? No, it is because He loves us that He wants us not to be miserable, selfish or stupid. And this love is unconditional, but it requires wisdom, or judgment to be effective.

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     Getting back to Christmas, we can think of it this way: God in His Infinite love as it were says to Himself, "My people are miserable, what can I do to make them happy?" And from His infinite wisdom He replies to the effect, that "I must go down there and show them how to find happiness; I must not force them, but teach them, and show them, so that they have a choice and can turn their lives around."

The Real Nature of Judgment, or Conditions for Salvation

     There are two words in the Gospels for judgment. One refers to condemnation and the other to the concept of discernment, or prudence. The Lord in the Gospels clearly spoke of both, but when He taught He did not do so with any intention to condemn but rather "that the world through Him might be saved" (John 3:17). And here's the key: not saved by His sacrificial death on the cross, but saved by the freedom that His teaching and a proper discernment of the truth provides (John 8:32), so that we can enjoy an orderly, fulfilling spiritual life.

     And this freedom implies decisions, judgments that we must make. For example, there is no doubt that we should love all people, even as our heavenly Father loves all people, "making His sun to shine on the evil and on the good... sending rain on the just and on the unjust" (Matthew 5:45), but we cannot love their evil or their falsity or their confusion or their grief. We cannot love it and we cannot confirm it or support it. Thus we cannot show our love for all people in the same way. Neither could the Lord, which is why He condemned the scribes and Pharisees even though He loved them too.

     And He said, "If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him" (Luke 17:3-4). Note, "If he repents." The same message is clear in the parable of the prodigal son: his father had compassion on him when he repented and came home (Luke 15:11�32). To do otherwise would be to support the disorder, and that does not truly love. So we have the teaching that "Christian prudence demands that a person's life should be carefully checked, and charity exercised accordingly" (Heavenly Doctrine 85).

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Back to Christmas.

     There is an appearance in the literal stories in the Gospels that God sent His Son as someone separate from Himself into the world, "that the world through Him [not the Father] might be saved." But the truth is that God, being pure, unconditional love in its very essence, provided for the salvation of the world by clothing Himself in the human form as Jesus Christ so that He could teach the truth with love and so remove all the obstacles to a life of faith.

     This is why, in perhaps the most famous Advent prophecy of all, we read, "For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given... and His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6). Note, He is all of these in one person. This is why Jesus Himself said, "I and My Father are one" (John 10:30); "He who has seen Me has seen the Father" (John 14:9).

     But how could the Infinite be contained in a finite body? And who looked after the rest of the universe while it was so contained? We might as well ask how the mind can look after the body while its thoughts are focussed on one small thing. The fact is, the infinite is not contained or limited in any way, but it does manifest itself in a focussed way in the love and wisdom of Christ.

The Dilemma Solved

     So we see that the Story of Christmas is not the story of God demanding any-thing, least of all a human sacrifice. It is the story of love providing the wisdom necessary for us to take responsibility, to make good judgments, and to keep His commandments for our own sake, indeed, for our eternal welfare.

     It is the story of love and wisdom working together, as they always do, and working in this case in a human form for all to see and understand.

     "I have come," Jesus said, "as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness" (John 12:46). And "He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life" (John 8:12).

     May this and "all your Christmases be bright" with the light of His love and wisdom!

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THEOLOGICAL SCHOOL 2008

THEOLOGICAL SCHOOL       Dr. ANDREW M.T. DIBB       2008


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     I was appointed Dean of the Theological School when the Rev. Eric Carswell left to become the President of the Academy. One of the duties of the Dean is to meet with the Bishop every two weeks to discuss the training of the future ministry of the General Church. It was during our first meeting that Bishop Kline asked what we could do to attract men to the ministry partly to solve the acute shortage of ministers, and partly to prepare for the planned growth that would come about through the concerted growth drive we are preparing for. What will be the effect of a million meaningful new contacts, of Bryn Athyn College and the High Schools as they grow? To believe in the Lord means believing that His Church will indeed grow. This means that the clergy has to increase in numbers in order to teach and lead those who find the church in the future.

     Training men for the ministry is long and expensive process. It is a total commitment by the men, and if they are married, of their wives and children. In the past many students and their families made this commitment, and we should never overlook the hardships they endured in the process as they struggled to balance a demanding academic curriculum with the responsibilities of keeping hearth and home together. Unmarried students fared a bit better, but they too carried the responsibility of tuition payments and simple survival. It should be no surprise to us that some men, who felt called to the ministry weighed up the costs and decided that their responsibility to the families outweighed their call.

     It was with this in mind that we began a general reconstruction of the way the Theological School operates. The first step was to establish a team to figure out how to remove the financial barriers. In a long series of meetings, discussion, planning and figuring, the team calculated the costs of eliminating one cost after another.

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We decided that if we removed the financial cost of training so that the General Church and the Academy equally shared the burden, then we could offer prospective students a financial package that includes full tuition remission, housing, medical insurance and a stipend for daily living. Scales were worked out for single theologs and for those with or without families. Each final package is calculated for individual theologs, taking the details of their personal households into account. The idea has been to create an equitable system in which any man, married or not, who feels called by the Lord can live modestly for a three year program while preparing for his future work. The joint Boards of the Academy and the General Church agreed to fund this initiative in February 2008, and we moved from the planning stage to the implementation phase.

     In addition to restructuring the financial provisions for theological students, it was felt that we needed some review of our curricular offerings to help equip these men for the future. Our doctrinal program has been under review for some time, with some major changes being implemented as a result. This curricular review continued during the summer of 2008, with some additional changes made to our program. These changes were mostly the result of reorganizing some courses and consolidating others to remove repetition. Essentially, however, the doctrinal program of the Theological School has not changed significantly.

     The major changes in this year's program are in practical courses. The pastoral role rests on sound doctrinal study, but it has other aspects that need attention, particularly those relating to interpersonal relationships and people-skills and management. In the past, when theologs were working long hours at extra-academic jobs to earn a living, skill courses were ad hoc. For example, we dedicated twenty hours over three years to counseling skills. However, by relieving students of the need to work, or at least greatly reducing the number of hours they do work, has made it possible to add some of these skills.

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We have divided these into two distinct areas.

     Skills Acquisition classes are designed to help the students to bring their doctrinal knowledge into practical formats. Six of these will be offered over a two year period: communication skills, pastoral counseling, conflict resolution, group dynamics and pastoral business. Each of these skills will be taught by highly trained and experienced teachers.

     Experiential Learning activities take the student out of the class room and into contact with real people. Dr. Sonia Werner, working in close relationship with the Bryn Athyn Society, has developed a program in which students spend three to four hours a week in face-to-face contact with people, ranging from retirees at Cairnwood Village to newcomers at the Cathedral, to working with elementary, high school and college students in various projects. The aim is to develop our students' people-skills, and also encourage them to think of the doctrines in practical as well as intellectual ways.

     When all is said and done, the theologs are just as busy as they have always been, but the big difference is that now a far greater part of their time is on task in learning about the doctrine and learning how to communicate it in a wide spectrum of situations. They still study Latin, write papers and give reports, but they also practice their skills on people, listen to people's troubles and share the excitement of new-comers finding the church.

     In this 2008 - 2009 school year we have an intake of six students, which will go someway to resolving the ministerial shortage in the General Church and better position us for the growth we hope will come from the meaningful contact we are making with the world around us. However, the shortage is by no means resolved. The General Church still needs ministers, and will continue to need them for years to come. Our hope is that if men, upon reading this article, feel "the call" to the priesthood, and see in this new financial and training strategy as a way forward, and if they would like to discuss this prospect, please do not hesitate to contact me.

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All discussions are non�binding and will be kept confidential.

You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. (John 15:16)

P.O. Box 717 Bryn Athyn PA 19001 [email protected] (USA) 267 502 2582
BAPTISM OF THE NEW CHURCH 2008

BAPTISM OF THE NEW CHURCH       HOWARD ROTH       2008


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     PART I

"And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit; teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you" (Matt. XXVIII:18, 19, 20). This is the great and final commission of our Lord to His Apostles. It is the command of God, instituting and perpetuating, through human means, His new and everlasting Church upon earth. Two things are commanded, - to teach, and to baptize. The ministers of Jesus Christ are to teach all nations to observe all things whatsoever He hath commanded them; and they are to baptize all nations into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Thus the commission is a brief and plain one. It is the most powerful commission ever given unto man; and yet in how few words, and with how little circumstantial pomp! The power lies in its source. It is but a word, but the word comes from God, - from Him to whom all power is given in heaven and on earth; and when God gave this word, "great" indeed "was the company of those that published it" (see Psalm 68:11).

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     It is interesting to note when, first, after this Divine commission was given to the Apostles, they exercised it. We find the account of the first performance of Christian baptism after the ascension of our Lord to heaven, in the second chapter of the book of Acts. We read there how, on the day of Pentecost, the Apostle Peter, standing up with the eleven about him, preached a sermon to the vast multitude of Jews assembled at Jerusalem at that festival "out of every nation under heaven." He took his text from the prophet Joel: "And it shall come to pass in the last days, that I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh" (Joel II:28). He told them about Jesus of Nazareth, whom they had crucified and slain, - how that David has prophesied of Him that God would raise Him up to sit upon His throne; that now verily He is exalted, and has shed forth His Spirit upon them. "Therefore," says Peter, "let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ!" Then the people were conscience-stricken, and began to ask Peter, "What shall we do?" Peter said unto them, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit". Then they that gladly received his word were baptized; and the same day these were added unto them about three thousand souls.

     You will notice that Peter exhorts them to be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. We elsewhere read in the Acts of the Apostles, that Paul, finding certain disciples at Ephesus, asked them if they had received the Holy Spirit since they had expressed their belief? They answered, "We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Spirit." Paul said unto them, "Unto what baptism then were ye baptized?" They said, "Unto John's baptism."

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Then said Paul, "John verily baptized unto repentance, saying unto the people that they should believe on 'Him' who should come after," that is, on Christ Jesus. And when they heard this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, they received the Holy Spirit. We have here an important testimony regarding what the Apostles themselves thought concerning the Divinity of our Lord.

     It is said, you observe, that they baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is possible, even probable, that the Apostles conformed strictly to our Lord's injunction in pronouncing the name of the Divine Trinity. But this testimony of the Book of Acts shows, it would seem beyond controversy, that baptism into the Name of Jesus, means just the same as baptism into the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; in other words, that the Name of Jesus is the Name of God, and thus also of the whole Trinity which dwells in God. For if the name of Jesus was used by the Apostles as meaning only the Son, and not comprising the Whole Divine Being, then were they administering only a partial and imperfect baptism; whereas it is recorded that those who were baptized into the Name of the Lord Jesus, received the promised gift of the Holy Spirit.

     Another interesting fact to be noticed in these accounts of early Apostolic baptism is, that a number of disciples, who had already been baptized by John the Baptist, now came to Paul to be re-baptized, or rather to be now truly baptized into the Christian Church.

     The first baptism was a sacred, a holy, yea, a Divine ordinance; for we know that John the Baptist was sent to prepare the way for the coming of the Lord, and to prepare the way by his baptizing unto repentance. It was not that John the Baptist's was not duly authorized, or without a Divine sanction, that they who received it had to be baptized again, in order to become Christians; but the baptism of John was preparatory, and to be succeeded and completed by the baptism of Him that should come after. Thus the two baptisms are not the acts of the same dispensation of Divine grace, but of successive dispensations.

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It was not required that those whom the Lord's Apostles baptized, should have already been baptized by John. When our Lord had once given the disciples power to baptize, then the office of John was at an end; and, as we read, "Jesus (that is, His disciples) baptized now more disciples than John, though Jesus Himself baptized not, but His disciples" (John I:.1). And John says of Jesus, "He must increase, but I must decrease. He that cometh after me is greater than I." Thus the one baptism was sufficient for those who were of the first baptism by the disciples of the Lord, but of those who were baptized by John a second was required.

     At this day, the New Church stands in the religious world in a relation not unlike that of the Apostolic Church at the time to which has been referred. The New Church receives now from the Lord, in the letter of the Gospels, her commission to go forth, now, in the time of His Second Coming, teaching all nations, and baptizing them into the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. A new religious era, a new dispensation of Divine Truth, is lifting its standard in the world. It comes silently, unheralded, unannounced in the ears of the multitude; just as in the silence of the night a little infant was born in the humble stable of Bethlehem, there being no place for Him in the inn. The New Church! The New Dispensation! How silently, how mysteriously, how wonderfully, it is dawning upon the world! How many minds have been illuminated by a ray of its light! And what is its light? And whence comes its light?

     Its light is the light of new truth shining into the minds of men. Not of a new truth, nor of many new truths, do we mean, as consisting of the vast advance of scientific discovery and general learning; but the light of new truth, of truth new in kind, new in its source, new in its effect on man's heart and life. Now all truth is Divine. God is its only source; and as God is eternal and unchangeable, so must truth be. How then can we speak of new truth?

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We mean of course, truth newly revealed from Him who is the Truth Itself, - the only Source of Truth, and of all Light, - revealed by Him who is Himself the 'Word', - who is at once the Revelator of Truth, and the Truth revealed. This new light, which is the new truth now dawning on the mental world in the New Church, shines forth, therefore, out of the Word of God. It is the light and the truth of the Word of God, - hitherto, in the purposes of God's Providence, hidden beneath the letter, but now declared to man as the inner and spiritual, therefore the true meaning of the Word. It is the secret meaning which once lay in "dark sayings of old", in the parables and proverbs in which Our Lord spake while on earth, and of which He said, "Hitherto have I spoken to you in proverbs, but the time cometh when I shall no longer speak to you in proverbs, but shall show you plainly of the Father" (John XVI:25).

     Thus, there are different degrees or kinds of truth, even of the Divine Truth. These kinds of truth are the Divine truth adapted to the various grades and degrees of man's mind, and also of his religious life. The literal sense of the Scriptures constitutes one degree of truth; the spiritual sense of the Scriptures is a higher and more interior degree of truth, and is adapted to a more interior plane of the mind, and a more advanced spiritual life, than that which the letter itself addresses.

     And yet, just as all true spiritual life finds its only expression and delight in the humble plane of our external acts and relations, so does all the spiritual power and meaning of the Bible find its basis and its expression in the words of the literal sense. It is not apart from the holy letter of the Word that we get at the spiritual truth, but only through the letter and in the letter. Thus in the Bible has been opened to our gaze the firmament of genuine spiritual truth and knowledge.

     It is a new kind of truth, because it is spiritual truth. Though shining through the parables, the symbols and figures of the literal language, yet it is itself a distinct plane of truth, - as distinct from the letter as is the sunlight distinct from the tinted window-pane through which it shines.

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This spiritual truth is everywhere connected with the letter by the correspondence between all natural and all spiritual things. As the natural world is all a picture of the universe within, and thus of the world of the mind, so is the Bible in its letter a picture, or rather a parable, of the Bible within; that is, of the Word of God itself, infinite, unfathomable, Divine.

     The New Church, which, as the New Jerusalem, the Holy City, a structure of heavenly doctrine, is now descending from God, and from His own light, into the minds of men on earth, takes up now her Divine commission to teach all nations, and to Baptize them into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

     As a system of truth newly revealed from Heaven, its establishment in the world is verily a "Second Coming of the Lord", Who alone is the Truth, and who comes now as He came before, as the 'Word'.

     Before, indeed, He came as the 'Word made flesh', as the Word in a Divine Human Person: now at 'His Second Coming', He comes as the same Word, not in Person, but in the Spirit. His coming is the coming of the Spirit which shall lead us into all Truth. The Lord is therefore at this day making His Second Advent in His own Revelation of His own truth, out of the spiritual sense of His written Word. In this spiritual sense the Word treats everywhere of Him; and since it is itself the Lord as to His Divine Truth, therefore the phrase, "All thing whatsoever I have commanded you", means the entire Word from beginning to end.

     The Divine commission to the New Church is therefore to teach this Word as now new revealed or opened up to our knowledge in the revelation of its spiritual meaning; and the commission of the New Church to baptize all nations into the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is, to baptize them into the Lord as now revealed in his Second Coming, - as revealed in the truths which He has mercifully declared to us in the spiritual sense of the Scriptures, with deep affection addressed as "The Writings", - in that truth wherein He now shows us, as He promised, plainly of the Father.

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     The significance of this Divine commission to the New Church is therefore a new one, - a deeper and a fuller significance than it had when first given to the Apostles.

     It is a significance which does not destroy the Law or the letter of the Word, but which fulfils it. The command to teach is, to teach the Word in its true spiritual character, as now made known out of heaven from the Lord. The command to baptize is, to baptize into the Name of the Lord Jesus, as verily not one of three distinct Divine Persons, but as the only Divine Person, in whom dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; who, thus being revealed as at once God and Man, as embodying the entire Divinity in His glorified Humanity, verily at this day speaks no more in proverbs, but, in Himself, shows us plainly of the Father. The truth which the New Church teaches is therefore henceforth new truth; and the baptism which the Church administers is therefore a new baptism.

     To be continued.
JOSEPH PROJECT 2008

JOSEPH PROJECT       Rev. DAVID LINDROOTH       2008


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Dear Friends:

     General Church Outreach started developing the Joseph Project last July as a way to offer a more robust support to congregations that are striving to better establish themselves in the communities they serve. I am thrilled to have Theresa McQueen and Heather Allais on staff helping to build it. I would like to offer a few words to build out your picture of the concept.

     Broadly speaking, when a congregation desires to work with the Joseph Project, we will help them with planning, evaluation of programs, finding appropriate training and expertise, marketing, and evangelization technique - whatever is needed to help better establish that church in the community it serves.

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     To use an analogy, if a person wants to run a marathon, they might choose to work with a trainer who can help them properly prepare for the run. The trainer might recommend a good dietitian, might suggest stretching exercises and help the person find the right running shoes for the race. The trainer provides helpful advice and encouragement. The trainer might be able to give a better idea of what to expect during the run, and might be a good mentor. However, it is up to the runner to hold himself accountable for the preparation. The trainer isn't a boss or an authoritarian. Like a trainer, the Joseph Project will offer support and mentorship for those congregations trying to go the distance but, like a good trainer, it can't force a congregation to comply. It is an effort to better leverage the resources available to the central body for the sake of the groups that are out there really doing the work.

     The Joseph Project is rooted in a couple of doctrines. While, I am hoping to present a detailed version of my thoughts in February at the clergy meetings I would like to introduce a few thoughts now. One key doctrine is freedom and self determination. I strongly believe that congregational health is linked in a pastor's ability to freely determine with his congregation how it can best bring the doctrines to the people whom it serves. The teachings about variety are partly there because people living in different communities and cultures have specific doctrinal needs which can only be determined on the ground by the pastor carefully communicating with his flock about where they need to be going. If the focus is on the needs of the central administration, the pastor is likely to fail.

     Another key consideration is the doctrine of use. How does a church use its doctrines to impact the lives of the people living in the community around the church? Are these people aware of our teachings, their beauty, and the supportive path to eternal life they offer. Finding ways to articulate in the community the power of our doctrine is vital to the success of our churches.

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How do we create an environment where the people living near your church recognize the importance of the spiritual message that is preached from your pulpit on Sunday - whether they are members or not. The Writings support the concept that the highest use served in a community happens through a church by its leading people to the Lord and eternal life through the Word. I am convinced that the success of a church depends on its ability to clearly articulate the power and value of its doctrinal message to the community. If people are aware of the power of what the church stands for and they know they are welcome to participate, the church will be healthy. I believe it is pretty much that simple. There are some compelling examples of how this happens - but I believe this is an area that we could focus on in our churches.

     I have a strong sense that the organizational principle of the Gorand Man and the human form is better articulated when our prime focus of our global efforts for having a church focus on supporting what is happening on the level of the local congregations. Rather than having all eyes on the Bishop, or Bryn Athyn, everyone should be working for, supporting, and cheering for the wonderful work that happens on the level of the individual who is being served in the context of the local church. Maybe one way to say it is that when a church is independent, using its own enlightenment and is truly serving the spiritual needs of the individuals within its field of influence it becomes more reflective of the grand man of heaven.

     Finally, I often get the question of why I called it the Joseph Project. As you know, Joseph was a dreamer. Really, the Lord gave him the dreams that, after some turmoil in Egypt, resulted in the emergence of a great people. I believe that the Lord calls us to use the gifts of wisdom and rationality to progress forward with the establishment of the New Church. I am sure it won't happen without a measure of turmoil, but the Lord clearly has great dreams for the New Church and how it can serve the human race. The concept of the Joseph project is to use the vast talent resources in this church to support pastors and their congregations on that journey.

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     I love talking about these concepts with people, so feel free to contact me and discuss and add your input.

[email protected]
Box 743 Bryn Athyn, PA
ATHEISM - NO PROOF OF GOD. 2008

ATHEISM - NO PROOF OF GOD.        Editor       2008


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     Atheism supposedly exists now also among some young people of New Church upbringing, those who have been educated in our system! We do not wish to insult anyone's intelligence by claiming how wrong they are, or how they are burying their heads in the sand, because they are of course absolutely right! There never was, never has been, any proof of God's existence. Why should they believe what cannot be proved? There is however a childishly simple proof of God's existence. More of that later.

     Just think for a moment, how infinitely clever, indeed wise, God is for not leaving any witnesses for His existence. He created the universe so there is no signature! Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) called this thunderous absence of a "signature" a sign of the "anonymous author cunningly concealing himself" and no one can be "more carefully withdrawn from direct relationship [to people] than God." Just look, he says in other words, how carefully He has concealed Himself! To the conclusion of this lack of a signature, Kierkegaard concedes that God "is not there." But the proof, he continued in another direction, consisted in turning to one's "inner self, and once only in the inwardness of self-activity, does he have his attention aroused, and is enable to see God." (Soren Kierkegaard, Concluding Unscientific Postscript).

     This inner self is also fallacious, however. This however has to avoid Ludwig Feuerbach's (1804-1872) denial of God as worthy of discussion, since only "man himself, and nature" are proper objects of "philosophical study," not God, a subject that "transcends human experience." Here he is similar to his predecessor David Hume (1711-1776).

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The next generation from Swedenborg, Hume was an empiricist thinly disguised as a Deist. The mind alone was real, said Hume, but a miniature of God's mind. We must therefore trust human reason. This however led to doubting that even the world was the way we saw it, a skepticism which lent fire to later naturalistic arguments, doubting God also. Biblical criticism had with Hume's contemporaries, Hermann Samuel Reimarus (1694�1768), and Gotthold Ephraim Lessing (1729-1781) already used this approach to cast doubt on the historical existence of Jesus, Moses and Muhammad. There was a "ditch" between faith and history. The Bible could not be trusted as a source or description of any truth, let alone that of God. The Gospels were hence irrelevant as history because of the lack of miracles verifying the same truths today. Jesus himself was doubted as an historical figure, but was more the enthusiastic or kerygmatic projection of faith in some ancient outstanding individual.

     These are just a few strands of the arguments paving the way for atheism. Only faith has maintained the Bible as the all time best seller for all centuries. That says something about the persistent clarity of truth, both concealed in scripture, but self-evident here and there as well. Astoundingly enough, it was in this Age of Reason era of final doubt in the Word of God, that all the self-evident truth was drawn out and published for all to witness, if they willed. Atheism today is easily read out of existence in the Heavenly Doctrines (1749-1771).

     So it was up to around 1800 that everyone thought of God or the gods as controlling everything, from wind to thunder, to war and disease, to the stars in the sky. God caused everything, and His ways were often mysterious. But God was now relegated to a "god of the gaps" argued "from ignorance." There are other explanations of everything today, and science provides them! Science has left only a few "gaps" where God might still exist, "growing smaller and smaller." Lightning is caused by electrons, not by Thor or Zeus! Science explains and solves more things than God or faith in Him does. So they say.

     The Writings warned against this whole line of reasoning, in fact ridiculed it, just when the Age of Reason and the Enlightenment were peaking: naturalism is not willing to acknowledge the possibility of "influx from the Lord's Divine through the spiritual world."

469


That is why naturalism has "overwhelmed" the Church (Apocalypse Explained 1220) and favored thinking "about Divine things from things proper to nature, that is space and time" (Arcana Coelestia 5116:3). Then, however, "one infinite God" cannot be comprehended at all, nor the entire creation of the universe, which becomes a "foolish" notion (Canons 4). The consequence would be the "worship of nature" which leads "automatically to atheism" (True Christian Religion 771). That is why "naturalism and atheism rush forth together" (Coronis XVI).

     We of course cannot condemn outright all that science does, nor the scientific principles which have "created" the world of technology we all enjoy, deemed to be the most advanced and civilized since the world began. We count "civilized" by such modern standards as electronic equipment and new model cars. What is denounced is eliminating God and heaven, just because they cannot be seen from the natural "lumen" of science (cf. Divine Love and Wisdom 69)! Just because the scientific method which is now a norm to all learning throughout the world, absorbs information just as easily as a sponge absorbs water (Interaction 9) does not mean that science is only harmful. It just should not deny God! For natural theology can never enter into "spiritual theology," while the reverse, however, cannot be said. For spiritual theology easily enters into the natural scientific techniques (De Verbo 6:4). From spiritual things, all natural things can be seen in order, while from natural things, nothing spiritual at all is witnessed. There are indeed two foundations of truth, the Word and Nature (Spiritual Experiences 5709), yet from the foundation of truth based on nature, nothing of the foundation of truth based on the Word can be seen. "Nothing can be founded upon Scientifics except it be previously founded upon the Word" (Spiritual Experiences 5710). This is repeatedly given as the method:

     "When a person's basic assumption is to believe nothing until he sees and understands it, he cannot possibly believe; for spiritual and celestial things are neither visible to the eyes nor comprehensible in mental images. But the true order is for a person to become wise from the Lord, that is, from His Word.

470


In that case everything follows as it should.... the premise of belief in the Lord's Word and of confirming spiritual and celestial truths by means of natural truths, using as far as is possible the terminology of the learned world" (Arcana Coelestia 129).

     Some have seen the need to see God from a premise of prior existence, as Barth, for example, who thundered "Let God be God." There is no "regenerative soteriology" i.e. human approach to God that generates its own view of Him. This is because "God sought humanity, not the other way around," he said. Similarly, to the extent that atheism is based on lack of proof of God's existence, it is just declaring that the method of discovering reality obviates spiritual reality. You can no more prove that God exists than prove that the "idea of God" is itself real. After all how real is an idea? And so it goes.

     It is supremely ironical that the Lord Himself on earth addressed the impossibility of proving God's existence. Can you guess where? It is of course where He says, "Blessed are those who have not seen, yet believe" (John 20:29) He was talking to Thomas, who had just fallen on his knees and said, "My Lord and my God." Thomas having earlier witnessed the Lord's crucifixion and death, had here witnessed the resurrected Lord. Here was the proof, the nail marks, he asked for. Still, the risen Jesus rebuked him: "Because you have seen Me, you believe." Part of the irony, is that Thomas "saw" the Lord with his spiritual eyes. He was seen only with the spiritual eyes after the Resurrection, saying "their eyes were opened" (True Christian Religion 777, Conjugial Love 30, Apocalypse Revealed 36). Only when they are opened, is there any "proof" of spiritual reality. And every single night, that proof of spiritual reality is supplied to practically all human beings, as quickly and quietly as the earth turns from light into darkness. We dream. Where does the "light" of a dream come from? The room is dark, yet the dream has light! That is seeing with our spiritual eyes. Besides this "proof" which we leave you to ponder, the Lord when He said, "Blessed are those who do not see yet believe," meant the very fact that no one can prove God's existence: "They are blessed who do not see the Lord with their eyes, as Thomas did, and yet believe that He is; for this is seen in the light of truth from the Word" (Faith 10).

     "Believe that He is." That is God's existence.

471


The Only "proof" of God comes from the Word of God, which is the "light of truth." Only the Word can "prove" God's existence. Only revelation can tell us of God (Sacred Scripture 114). Well, does the Word of the Lord exist? Yes. The Word of God exists: Ergo, God its Author exists. We too "are because God is" (Divine Providence 46e)...

     Another argument: How can such a majestic universe exist without proof of a cause or Maker? Who is clever enough to create a universe without leaving a trace, but God? And as if to have the last laugh, the Lord made His Advent by the same method: spontaneous germination in the womb of Mary: "Only by means of conception from His Divine and by birth from a virgin..." (Divine Love and Wisdom 234, Lord 29) To think the Lord could have come any other way is insane. (True Christian Religion 502)

     Still, people ask "Where is the evidence? Unless I see it for myself..." However, because the "reaction appear[s] as though it were a property of the thing created because it occurs when the thing is acted upon," (Divine Love and Wisdom 68) the spiritual acting on the natural is so subtle that it escapes empirical detection. Yet ever since paleo-history, man has known God was behind it all: wise people knew the land was "impregnated by the most subtle substances (which can have no other than a spiritual origin), and through this they have power to conjoin themselves to use, from which comes their prolific principle" (Divine Love and Wisdom 310). "There is present both the spiritual which provides a soul and the material which provides a body. Also within everything spiritual there is a conatus to clothe itself with a body" (Divine Love and Wisdom 343). People have known that for ages, as part of the wisdom and lore of culture.

     Well, if so, is there in fact any tangible evidence of God being the source of life? What could constitute "empirical evidence" of God's Creative hand? Can we see when life began? Was it suddenly? Would evidence of a sudden beginning of life constitute a "smoking gun" for Creation, a finger-print of the Intelligent Designer? Is there any hard evidence of a SUDDEN beginning? Well, ahem, ahem:

472




     "The period of biological innovation occurred at virtually the same instant in geologic time all around the world....evolution at supersonic speed." (Time, When Life Exploded, Dec.4, 1995, p.68)

     Life did explode "instantly," no not on Dec. 4 1995 but from 543 to 510 million years ago. That is a mere 33 "eons," called by Time "virtually the same instant." Now the current estimation of the age of the universe is 13.7 giga-years, i.e. billions of years. Dividing 543 million minus 510 million equals 33 million, into 13.7 billion, equals ca. one 400,000th.

     The "instant" of 33 million years when measurable organic life began all over this planet, is one 400,000th of the total time elapsed since creation. That is awfully quick.

     So does that do it? Is this proof? "Life" began suddenly, everywhere, simultaneously! Is this not only God's signature, but entire palm-print in creation? What else could cause such a sudden arrival of life all at once all over the planet? It is scientifically verifiable evidence. The Lord made His Advent only on this planet (Earths in Universe 113) just because here it can be known that God is Man both from the Word and from experience (Spiritual Experience 4782). God the Creator of the universe was born onto our planet, but 543 million years ago, He left His mark already. Now we can appreciate why the Lord "loves this earth more than others" because here "heavenly truths can be rooted in truths of nature." (Spiritual Experience 1531) Fossils and mathematics match revelation, the foundation of nature matches how creation happened as revealed in Divine Love and Wisdom, published by Swedenborg in Amsterdam, at the print-shop of Fran�ois Changuion, in 1763. "I AM" acts and the time and space universe began.

     If Theists and Atheists met and discussed belief, no solution would likely ensue. There just is no proof. The decision to believe, however, is in the New Church dependent on reading the Writings or not. When Theists are also New Church members, the discussion would revolve around what proof there is that Heaven and Hell or all of the Writings are, in fact, so? However, that is one question that can only be answered by reading for oneself! As Swedenborg himself advised, "Read my books and see for yourself."

473


After reading them, another question can be asked: who has any shadow of a doubt left that everything said there is so? There is no doubt left whatever. "Life after death is a dead certainty." Generations of New Church people have faced death content with the certainty of what is said about the afterlife. It is true.

     The same goes for God's existence. After the Lord is studied in all the Doctrines, the question of God's existence becomes pass�. God is the Divine Itself, the Father, acting as the soul to the Divine Human, the Son, who is the risen Lord. The Holy Spirit comes from Him when He, as the visible God, One both in Person and Essence, speaks. That Divine speech is the "Spirit of Truth leading to all truth," the source of the Writings, the Heavenly Doctrines. The only proof of God comes from all that He has now said, namely the Word of God in the Heavenly Doctrine.

     We close with the childishly simple proof of God.     There have been so many proofs of God put forward that they become frivolous. But there is some substance to them. The Transcendental Argument says (1) If reason exists then God exists, (2) Reason exists, (3) Therefore, God exists. The Cosmological or first cause Argument says, (1) If I say something must have a cause, it has a cause. (2) I say the universe must have a cause. (3) Therefore, the universe has cause. (4) Therefore, God exists. A couple more: The Argument from Beauty or Design (Teleology): (1) Isn't that baby/sunset/flower/tree beautiful? (2) Only God could have made them so beautiful. (3) Therefore, God exists. Finally a rather cynical argument from the Bible: (1) [arbitrary passage from OT] (2) [arbitrary passage from NT] (3) Therefore, God exists.* All of these can be stated more philosophically, but also easily be disproved and so discounted.
     * http://www.godlessgeeks.com/LINKS/GodProof.htm

     But there is a new argument we mentioned at first: How can people for thousands of year, all over the world, without contacting or even knowing of each other, all reach the same doubt over God's existence, unless there does indeed exist a God as the object of all such doubt? You just cannot doubt something that actually does not exist, not for that many millennia, in so many scattered locations.

474


In any case, if God actually did not exist, then the doubt of His existence would not even arise. There would be no belief to begin with. This is proved by children who are taught nothing, ending up believing - nothing! However, if God really did not exist, then there would be no universe nor people who could believe, either! But doubt of God has persisted. God has become the permanent object of human doubt. The very persistence of human doubt thereby makes God's existence permanent! One could put this in Cartesian terms, using Dubito, ergo sum. Transposing, we have, Dubito Deum longeque per orbis terrarum, Ergo Deus est. I doubt God over time and through all the earth, therefore God is.

     However, the only proof of God is found from the "light of truth from the Word." There is also an influx into the souls of all people that there is a God and that He is one (Canons 4). This influx can only reinforce a true belief when this is expounded from the Word. You can't see it in your inner self, as Kierkegaard postulated, since the inner self has no answers which have not entered through the senses. There too there is a proof of God, since the idea of God has to enter through the senses. That means God has to reveal Himself in order for anyone to see and then believe in Him. Once the Word has come about through such experiences, the Word of God stands in for the original personal presence and revelation of God. And the existence of the Word of God cannot be denied, however strongly anyone is confirmed in Atheism or not. If the Bible's existence cannot be denied, neither can God's existence be denied, since only the Word shows God to be. For God's existence, His nature, Advent, Salvation of the human race, all this must be revealed from the Word of God alone (Sacred Scripture 114, 115). No one can come up with this information on one's own, by natural deduction. "No one can see from below the things which are in the heavens" (De Verbo 6:4). They must be revealed. With the Second Coming having taken place in the revealed Writings, the conclusion that "God is" and that "we are because God is" (Divine Providence 46e), is almost a foregone conclusion, but apparently not with 100% of witnesses. Therefore, "Blessed is the man who has not seen, yet believes" (John 20:29, Faith 10)

475


Title Unspecified 2008

Title Unspecified       Sharon Himmelstein       2008


----------
Dear Editor,

     I take issue with Rev. Nicolier's article on Theology of Sexuality, Part II. His interpretations are far removed from the actual content of the Writings and dismiss the role of genetics on the development of homosexuality but instead simply blames the parents. Might I remind Rev. Nicolier that the Lord permits diseases and disorders into the natural world without it always being the direct fault of the victim or the victim's parents. Moreover, investigations on concordance rates of homosexuality in monozygotic and dizygotic twins disprove many of his contentions.

     Sincerely,

     Sharon Himmelstein
Selected Bibliography for Alain Nicolier's Theology of Sexuality August and September 2008

Selected Bibliography for Alain Nicolier's Theology of Sexuality August and September               2008


----------
New Church Life, p. 318-328, 356�364     Barnhouse, Ruth Tiffany, 1977 "Homosexuality, A Symbolic confusion" New York: Seabury Press.

     Bergner, Mario, 1995 "Setting love in order", Hamewith Books

     Comiskey, Andrew, 1989 "Pursuing Sexual Wholeness" Charisma House

     Montagu, Ashley, 1971 "Touching, the human significance of the skin " Columbia University Press

     Payne, Leanne, 1996 "The broken Image," Hamewith Books Series

     Payne, Leanne, 1999 "Crisis in masculinity" Hamewith Books Series

     Whitehead, Briar, 1993 "Craving for love" Monarch Books

476


GENERAL CHURCH SCHOOLS DIRECTORY 2008-2009 GENERAL CHURCH OFFICE OF EDUCATION 2008

GENERAL CHURCH SCHOOLS DIRECTORY 2008-2009 GENERAL CHURCH OFFICE OF EDUCATION               2008


----------
Rev. Brian Keith     Director
Melodie Greer     Assistant Director, Curriculum
Barbara Doering      Teacher Support, Testing, Arts Fund, Home Schooling

Sarah Odhner     Unit Box Circulation, STARS

Gretchen Keith     Vineyard, Curriculum Support, Resource Development
Rachel Glenn      Publications, Vineyard
Janet Lockard      Jacob's Ladder, Early Childhood Religion Lessons
Lisa Weiss           Secretary/Accounts

     TEACHERS IN THE GENERAL CHURCH SCHOOL SYSTEM

     BRYN ATHYN CHURCH SCHOOL

Donald Fitzpatrick Headmaster
Rev. Phil Schnarr School Pastor
Gail Simons      Director
Steve Irwin      Special Projects, Resources
Joanne Keil      Preschool Director
Beth Brock*      Senior Preschool
Paige Austen*      Junior Preschool
Anna Blair*      Preschool Aide
Nicole Pitcairn*      Preschool Aide
Linda Kees      Kindergarten
Beth Bochneak      Kindergarten
Gretchen Glover*      Kindergarten Aide
Amy Jones*           Kindergarten Aide
Christine DeMaria      Grade 1
Robin Morely      Grade 1
Aline Brown      Grade 2
Liz Switzer          Grade 2
Anita Halterman*      Grades 1-2 Aide
Judy Soneson      Grade 3
Cynthia Conaron      Grade 3
Bri Kern*           Grade 3 Aide
Jenna Frey           Grade 4
Carla Reuter      Grade 4
Cara Dibb           Grade 5

477



Debbie Cook      Grade 5
Kirsten Alden      Grade 6
Sheila Daum      Grade 6
Wendy Clymer*      Int. Tutor/Aide
Sandy Pellani*      Int. Tutor/Aide
Carol Nash           Grade 7-Girls
Drew Hyatt           Grade 7-Boys
Brita Conroy      Grade 8-Girls
Greg Henderson      Grade 8-Boys
Molly Cronlund*      Upper Unit Aide
Sharon Neiger      Librarian
Heather McCurdy      Phys Ed
Alex Rogers      Phys Ed
Dianna Synnestvedt      Art
Margit Irwin      Music
Lucas Mergen      Tech Ed
Dean Morey*      Mech. Art, Grade 8-Boys
K Harantschuk      Science Grades 5-8
Sue Hyatt*           Enrichment
Kenneth Rose*      Enrichment
Rev. John Odhner* Religion Grades 4& 6
Rev. Mac Frazier      Religion Grade 5
Lisa Synnestvedt      Director Student Support
Angela Rose*      Student Support
Jodi Carr *      Student Support
Natasha Keys*      Student Support
Janna King*      Student Support
Gail Neukum*      Student Support
Janna Lindsay*      Student Support
Kiri Rogers*      Counselor
Barbara Rose*      Student Support

     CARMEL NEW CHURCH SCHOOL

Rev. Bradley Heinrichs Principal, Religion Grades 3-8
James Bellinger      Principal, Grades 9-10
Laura Hill           Grades 1-2
Nina Reipert      Grades 3-4
Kayla Uniac      Grades 5-6
Liz Longstaff      Head Teacher,Grades 7-8
Stephanie Kuhl      Grades 9-10
Rev. Nathan Cole* Religion Grades 1-2, 9-10
Muriel Glebe*      French
Mary Jane Hill*      Music
Suzanna Hill*      Junior and Senior Kindergarten

478




     GLENVIEW NEW CHURCH SCHOOL

Rev. Peter Buss Jr. School Pastor, Religion Grades 5-8
Laura Barger      Kindergarten-Grade 2
Sarah Berto          Preschool Director, Kindergarten-Grade 2, French Grade 7
Deborah Lehne      Grades 3-4, History Grades 7-8
Rebekah Russell      Grades 5-6
Lucinda Edmonds*      SS Grades 5-6
Philip Parker      Principal, Science/Math Grades 5-8,Phys Ed
Jennifer Overeem* Art
Sue Bellinger*      Music
Rev. Mark Pendleton* Religion Grades 3-4,7-8
Roxanne Junge*      Senior Preschool
Jacquie Chapman*     Junior Preschool
Kara Smith*      All-day Preschool

     KAINON CHURCH SCHOOL

Rev. Erik Buss      Principal, Pastor
Maria Gibb           Grade 1, Music
Marie Rose Sparg      Grades 2-3
Jane Edmunds      Headmistress
Watkins, Sandra      Grades 6-7
Gail Mitchell      Grades 4-5
Warren Short*     Sports

     KEMPTON NEW CHURCH SCHOOL

Rev Lawson Smith      Principal, Religion Grades 9-10
Lori Friend*      Kindergarten
Kathy Schrock      Grades 1-2
Michelle Biermann Grades 3-4, Phys Ed Grades 7-10
Rev. Louis Synnestvedt Grades 5-6, Religion Grades.7-8
Mark Wyncoll      Assistant Principal, English Grades 7-10, Math Grade 6
John Walker      Math Grades 4, 7-10
Barbara Karas      History Grades 7-10, English Grades 7-8, Music
Rev. Andrew Heilman* Hebrew 2, E Science Grades.7-8, Biology Grades 9-10
Kate Pitcairn*      Latin 1-2
Elone Heilman*      Art Grades 7-10
Emily Smith*      Secretary

479




     OAK ARBOR SCHOOL

Rev. Nathan Gladish      Principal, Religion Grades 5-6, sharing Grades 7-8
Elise Gladish*      Pre-Kindergarten-Kindergarten
Judy Pafford      Grades1-2
Julie Elder*      Grades 3-4
Nancy Genzlinger*      Grades 3-4
Nathaniel Brock      Grades 5-6
Rev. Derek Elphick      Religion Grades 3-4, sharing Grades 7-8
Dawn Genzlinger*     Grade 7-8
Karen Elder*      Art Grades 7-8, Music

     OLIVET NEW CHURCH SCHOOL

Rev. James Cooper     Pastor
Jeremy Irwin      Principal
Judy Todd*           Preschool
Deborah Williams*     Playschool
Sara Gatti           Head Teacher, Morning Kindergarten
Gabriele Pulpan      Grades 3-4
Karen Cooper.*      French, Afternoon Kindergarten
Laura Petersen      Grades 1-2
Rachel Hasen*      Music

     PITTSBURGH NEW CHURCH SCHOOL

Rev. Amos Glenn     Principal, Religion Grades 3-8
Gerda Griffiths*      Kindergarten, Phys Ed
Colleen Donaldson     Grades 1-2, Art Grades 6-8
Holly Uber           Grades 3-5, Phys Ed 3-8, Science Grades 6-8
Cynthia Glenn*      Grades 6-8, Music Jr.K-8, Head teacher
Caroline David*      Grades 6-8
Julie Uber*      Art Grades 1-8, Social Studies Grades 3-5

     WASHINGTON NEW CHURCH SCHOOL

Rev. Garry Walsh     Religion
Jana Sprinkle      Kindergarten, Misc.
Kim Maxwell      Grades 1-2
Anne Ball           Grades 3-4
James Roscoe      Grades 5-6, History
Kathy Johns      Head Administration, Grades 7-8, Phys Ed

480



Carole Waelchli      Grade 9-10
Erin Stillman*      Art, Misc.
Sharon Kunkle*      Music 1-10
Rev. Michael Ferrell*     Religion 5-6

     *part time

     SCHOOLS ENROLLMENTS 2008-2009

The Academy

Theological School (Full-time)      16
Theological School (Part-time)      1
Theological School Masters Program      7
College (Full-time)                138
College (Part-time or auditing)      12
Boys School                     117
Girls School                     113
Total Academy                      404


Society Schools
Bryn Athyn Church School           306
Carmel Church School (Kitchener)      44
Glenview New Church School               34
Kainon School (Durban)                59
Kempton New Church School           59
Oak Arbor School (Rochester, MI)      43
Olivet New Church School (Toronto)      39
Pittsburgh New Church School           23
Washington New Church School (Mitchellville) 47
Total Society Schools                654

Total Reported Enrollment in All Schools 1058

481


ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM 2008

ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM              2008


----------
     Between July 1, 2007 and June 30, 2008, 66 members were received into the General Church. During the year the Secretary's office received notice of the deaths of 56 members.

     Memberships July 1, 2007 5077
     New Members 66
     Deceased Members 56
     Resigned 2
     Membership June 30, 2008 5085      
ORDINATIONS 2008

ORDINATIONS              2008


----------
     Frazier, Glenn McKinley-At Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, June 22, 2008, into the second degree, Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.
CORRECTIONS from September and October 2008

CORRECTIONS from September and October               2008

     ORDINATIONS

     Eshun, Ekow Essiedu-At Accra, Ghana, July 13, 2008, into the second degree Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith officiating.
September New Church Life. 2008 Notes on This Issue 2008

Notes on This Issue       Editor       2008


----------

     NEW CHURCH LIFE
     

     PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY
     THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM
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491


     
----------
     Our sermon by the Rev. Michael D. Gladish was preached in Dawson Creek one a year ago. Michael explains what is involved when the Lord's name is spelled in capitals, exactly Who came on earth, and how this leads to healing in our lives.
In the second installment on Baptism of the New Church, Mr. Howard Roth deliberates on the distinct nature of New Church. Baptism. Do you hear now of things you never even knew before baptism? We need no contempt for the past, but embrace new spiritual truths.

     A Book Review by the Rev. William Clifford, of The Five Ages of Man, by the Rev. Patrick L. Johnson in England, affirms an interesting and useful gift for someone for Christmas. Please tell your friends all about it.

     Our December issue reviews the full extent of the General Church operation, in its Annual Directory. If you travel somewhere over a weekend, check out the places to visit, and which minister you will hear preaching. A hive of activity, the General Church!

     The Annual Index of 2008 will allow you to locate subjects to study, authors to write. The baptisms, confirmations, weddings, etc. are also listed alphabetically for the entire year.

     The Rev. Michael D. Gladish was inaugurated into the first degree of the priesthood in 1973, and ordained into the Pastoral degree in 1974. He first served as Assistant to the Pastor at the Olivet Church, Toronto, also visiting the Montreal Circle, all in Canada. In 1974 he moved to Hurstville Society, Australia, to become Pastor there, also visiting Auckland New Zealand. This was until 1981, when he was called to be pastor of the Los Angeles Society, California. In 1987 Michael returned to the Olivet Society to be its Pastor, also visiting in Perry Sound and Muskoka areas. By 2002, he had moved to be Pastor of the Calgary New Church in Alberta, also visiting the Peace River district and Western Canada. He at the same time assumed the role of Executive Vice present of the General Church in Canada, to which in 2004 he added Regional Pastor of Canada. In 2006 he moved to Dawson Creek Society, BC, to be its Pastor. Michael lives and works in Dawson Creek with his wife Ginny. (deMaine).

[Photograph of Rev. Michael Gladish.]

492


LORD THE SAVIOR PROMISED IN ISAIAH 2008

LORD THE SAVIOR PROMISED IN ISAIAH        Rev. MICHAEL D. GLADISH       2008


----------
     A Sermon

     Preached at Dawson Creek, BC, December 9th, 2007

"Before Me there was no god formed, nor shall there be after Me. I, even I am the Lord, and besides Me there is no Saviour" (Isaiah 43:10-11).

     For thoughtful Christians, including New Church members, Christmas typically raises questions about the nature of the Lord. This sermon is intended to help answer some of these questions and so feed our desire for understanding and confidence in our relationship with Him.

     Let's begin with some of the things Isaiah said about the Lord in prophecy, and some explanation of key concepts. First of all, as we noted last week, looking into the future some 700 years, Isaiah spoke of a Child being born and a Son being given on whose shoulder the government would rest, and whose name would be called "Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6). There is no way these words do not describe the one God of heaven and earth who Himself would be born into the world in a human form.

     Yet when we turn to Isaiah 11 we find what seems to be a separation and division between this one God and Christ. There we read about "a rod coming forth from the stem of Jesse, and a branch growing out of his roots," and that "the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD" (Isaiah 11:1-2). Here, as in many other places (e.g., Isaiah 61:1-4) it is as if the promised Messiah is not the Lord but looks to the Lord for inspiration.

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So right away we need to get one thing straight: - any reference to "the LORD" in the Old Testament (spelled in capital letters) is really a reference to Jehovah, which was a name considered so holy by the Jews that they declined even to pronounce it, and out of consideration for that reverence, scholars translating the Hebrew text adopted the term, LORD, instead. As confusing as it is at first, this is NOT the same word as is spelled in lower case letters (only with a capital "L"), which is a direct translation of a different name or title. This becomes particularly important in the New Testament where some of the prophecies are referred to, and where Jesus is given the name, Lord, spelled with just a capital "L."

     The point in Isaiah's prophecies is that the Spirit of Jehovah would be with the Lord Jesus, meaning that His soul and spirit would be Divine even though His body was natural and finite.

     So in Isaiah 40 where it says "Prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God," "the LORD" is Jehovah, He is "God," and it is HE whose birth and life in the world is predicted. - Not a son of Jehovah but Jehovah Himself clothed in human flesh.

     It is the same in Isaiah 60 where we read, "Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you." This "LORD" is Jehovah, the one God of heaven and earth.

     So we have our text for the day, which makes the same point most emphatically: "I, even I am the LORD, and besides Me there is no saviour." We might as well say "beside Me there is no saviour," for God cannot be separated into two "persons" acting side by side. But His Spirit can be present in His own body, and this is what Isaiah is telling us.

     Thus when Matthew tells the story of Jesus' birth he quotes Isaiah (7:14) about a virgin bearing a Son and calling His name Immanuel, which, he says, "is translated 'God with us'" (Matt. 1:23), that is, God Himself, Jehovah, in a human form. Likewise when Zacharias prophesied about Jesus at the naming of his son, John, he said, "Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, for HE has visited and redeemed His people."

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He Himself "bowed the heavens and came down" (Ps. 18:9) to set things right where they had gone wrong.

     One last prophecy may be important to note in the context, this one not from Isaiah but from Malachi, who wrote about 300 years later, maybe 400 years before the birth of Christ. There we read, "'Behold, I send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,' says the LORD of hosts" (Mal. 3:1).

     Here we have an example of both forms of the word, Lord, as well as two different uses of the word, messenger. The first "messenger" obviously is John, who was born to prepare the way for the Lord. But the second Messenger (spelled with a capital "M") is the Lord Himself, and this term, "Lord," refers to Him in His human form, embodied in the person of Christ. But the last one refers to Him as Jehovah, the Divine within that body, for it is HE who is present in this body, as He said (John 10:30 and 14:9), and who is the Messenger of His own infinite love.

     By the way, if all this sounds familiar from your study of other religions or mythology, it is no co-incidence. The prophecy that God would come into the world in a human body is as old as history itself, in fact it pre-dates written history. The idea has simply been corrupted and embellished, taking different forms in different cultures where the truth about the Lord Jesus Christ has not been known. So we have all sorts of strange variations, like the Caesars of ancient Rome, India's Krishna, or the Dalai Lama, all of whom have been considered divinely human beings, not to mention all the interesting demi�gods in Greek or Roman theology.

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     But understandably, even in the New Testament we do sometimes get into difficulty. In Luke's version of the Advent story, for example, we have the baby, Jesus, being brought to the temple in Jerusalem "to present Him to the Lord - as it is written in the law of the Lord, 'Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the LORD'..." (Luke 2:22-23). Here all three references to "the Lord" are to God Himself as He was known to the Jews, so there is nothing descriptive or definitive about Jesus in these verses, they are simply a record of Joseph's commitment to the laws of Moses. Nor did Mary or Joseph fully understand the true character of this amazing Child. But Simeon, who came upon the Child in the temple, did, and so when he took Him up in his arms and blessed Him, he said, "Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to Your word; for my eyes have seen Your salvation," etc. (Luke 2:29).

     Clearly Simeon knew the prophecies of Isaiah, and so addressed both God and Jesus at the same time using still another, different word that is here translated, Lord, but that means in general "Sovereign," "Ruler," or "Master." And this, we understand, is exactly what the otherwise invisible Jehovah God becomes when He makes Himself visible in His Divine Humanity, pure love and wisdom actually, naturally present for the first time in the flesh.

     And this, if you will pardon the expression, is where 'the rubber meets the road.'

     So far we have been reviewing specific Scripture texts, mainly trying to clarify what they say and mean with respect to "the Lord." Now it is important to see why all this matters, and what, after all, it means to say that God Himself came into the world as Jesus Christ "to save us from our sins." What exactly is this "salvation" anyway? What does it feel like and how can we experience it in our daily lives?

     Going back again to Isaiah - just briefly - one of the prophecies was, "Arise, shine; for your light has come!

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And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you." So a New Testament example of the promised salvation is the healing of the blind, as in John 9 or Matthew 9. It is confusing and dangerous to be blind. We hardly know what to expect and we are limited in our ability to be useful or to do the things we want to do. The blind in ancient times were almost always beggars, destitute and for the most part despised by others who believed that their blindness was a punishment for some sin.

     How wonderfully freeing it must have been for the blind to receive sight! How absolutely fabulous it must have been for them to be able to enter into the normal commerce of life, having the satisfaction and self-esteem that comes from being useful, contributing in a healthy and rewarding way to the greater good.

     Now look deeper. Isn't it the same when we pass from the darkness of falsity and confusion, especially in spiritual things, into the pure light of understanding what our spiritual lives are all about? This light of understanding is precisely what the Lord came to provide, and all we have to do to receive it is to read with care the things He taught during His life on earth.

     Or consider the many other examples of the Lord healing leprosy, paralysis and even death in His public ministry. Can you imagine the freedom, the confidence, the gratitude and the joy that those who suffered these things must have felt when their health was restored? It is exactly the same when our own spiritual health is restored after we have suffered the spiritual losses corresponding to these natural illnesses. Paralysis in particular is easy to understand: we're stuck! - can't move or make any progress in our spiritual life. Doubt, anxiety, negativity, a feeling of complete powerlessness to do any good; all these states contribute to a general sense of despair and loneliness. But when the Lord frees us from these conditions by communicating His love and power to us we feel free, happy, positive, inspired and fulfilled.

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And how does He do this? - by taking on the human condition and making His presence felt in concrete human terms, terms that we can understand, terms that address those particular conditions that we face.

     But how can we trust and relate to Him? And how do we understand what He says? The answer lies in all that business about who He really is. For if we can believe that He was born of the Holy Spirit, having the Spirit of infinite love and wisdom within Him from conception, unless we are afraid of Him or too stubborn or complacent to accept His help, we will be drawn powerfully to Him as the ONE who can truly address all our concerns - in fact the ONE who alone is our Saviour, as Isaiah said. Further, if we are unclear about what He has said, or don't know what to make of it, we will at least know that the problem is NOT with His Word but with ourselves, so that if we persevere with humility and patience we can have success.

     This of course sounds naive, but it is actually quite critical! For IF the Lord is God and His Word - the story of His life - is Divine then we really are foolish not to trust it. In fact, this is what our doctrines teach about the Word, saying,

     "There are therefore two principles; one of which leads to all folly and insanity, and the other to all intelligence and wisdom. The former principle is to deny all things, or to say in the heart that we cannot believe them until we are convinced by what we can apprehend, or perceive by the senses; this is the principle that leads to all folly and insanity, and is to be called the negative principle. The other principle is to affirm the things which are of doctrine from the Word, or to think and believe within ourselves that they are true because the Lord has said them: this is the principle that leads to all intelligence and wisdom, and is to be called the affirmative principle" (Arcana Coelestia 2568:4).

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     But let's face it; the story of the Lord's life can be quite challenging, not only because its meaning isn't always obvious but more particularly because it tells us things we don't especially want to hear. Honestly, there are times when we feel it is important to hold on to our pain, grievances, resentments and worldly loves, and so we find the Lord's message hard to take. It's only when we get to the point where we can acknowledge that this isn't really helping us (or anyone else), that we tend to think of the Lord, and then we still have the challenge of knowing what He means and accepting what He says. - Which is precisely why the teachings of the New Church have been given to us. Again, all we have to do is read a little with an earnest desire to learn, and it will all be explained!

     So what does it mean in our lives that God has come to "save His people from their sins?" It means His love and wisdom are accessible to us as never before. It means the hells of evil spirits can no longer control us as they controlled people before He came into the world. It means that when we are spiritually hungry or thirsty or homeless, naked, sick or in prison, lame, blind, deaf, mute or in any way oppressed we can turn to Him and count on Him to relieve us of all these concerns! No, He won't miraculously cure our cancer, fix our broken arm or help us win the lottery to get out of debt, but He WILL save us from our own stupid selfishness and pride, our spiritual confusion, our need to blame and resent others for what happens to us, and a whole lot more if we let Him. And note, any of these spiritual states can be much worse than the physical sicknesses to which they correspond since if left unchecked they can take us to hell - forever!

     It takes concentration, as Peter showed when he lost it and began to sink in the Sea of Galilee, but if we can stay focused and really hear and see and live by what the Lord has revealed our salvation - our spiritual health and well being - will be assured.

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And we will know it and we will feel it and we will be liberated and invigorated by it.
Amen.

Lessons: Isaiah 43:1-3, 10-11, 61:1-3; Luke 2:8-20; True Christian Religion 786-787 BAPTISM OF THE NEW CHURCH 2008

BAPTISM OF THE NEW CHURCH       HOWARD ROTH       2008


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     Part II

     The relation between the truth taught by the New Church and the truth taught in the Church of the Apostles, and the relation between the baptism of the New Church and the baptism of the former Christian Church is forcibly suggested by the incidents we have recited out of the Book of Acts. To those devout Jews assembled at Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, Peter preached the same Word of God which they had ever cherished and revered. He takes his text from one of their own prophets. He tells them that now has the Messiah verily come, although they were so far ignorant of it as to have crucified Him; and that now is His Spirit verily outpoured according to the prophecy of their own Scriptures; "I will show wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, vapor, and smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord" (Joel II).

     Peter cast nothing away. Joel and David were full of Divine testimony, and by this testimony he appealed to them. So, at this day, the New Church speaks to the devout men of every nation who are come up to the spiritual Jerusalem; that is, to all who seek to abide in true doctrine revealed from God.

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It is to the devout, the truth seeking, the truth-loving mind, that the New Church lifts the voice of her teachings; and her text, her basics, her rule, is the same Holy Word of God, which has been preserved and handed down to us by the reverence and sacred love of centuries. The New Church tells again of the Lord's Coming: she speaks in the face of a world that knows not of this coming; yea, to a world that says, "lo! here, lo! there!" forgetting that the Kingdom of God cometh not with observation, but is within, - its coming an event, not of outward appearing, but of inward or internal realization.

     The testimony of the New Church is, that now is the Spirit outpoured, namely, the spirit of truth as a new life-giving stream issuing from the Source of all Truth, through the one medium of revelation, the written Word of God; and there are those who, on hearing the voice of the New Church, have bethought themselves again of their Bibles, and with fearful conscience have wondered if perchance they, in ignorance of the spiritual contents and Divine depths of Scripture, have not followed blindly the traditions of men; and in clinging to exclusively to the "letter which killeth", once more, unawares, crucified the Word!

     And are there not those in Christian denominations, to whom, when the New Church, like Paul to the disciples in Ephesus, propounds the question, "Have ye received the Holy Spirit?" reply, "We have not so much as heard if there be any Holy Spirit?" For as regarding the Holy Word, (of which the Lord said, "the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life,") are there not many at this day who have not even so much as heard that there is in it anything verily spiritual and Divine?

     For is not the Bible treated as other books? It is held more sacredly indeed, but as containing nothing deeper than the letter, thus as being capable only of an earthly and literal interpretation, like the work of a finite mind.

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So that, as regarding those passages which treat of spiritual things under the garb of earthly figures and symbols, - such as the End of the World, the Resurrection of the body, the Creation of the Universe, the Flood, the Divine Trinity, and other subjects, - they have clung only to the earthly symbol, the shadow, the appearance; involving themselves in many a perplexing conflict between reason and doctrine; involving the Holy World of God - the infinite, the unfathomable, the Divine - in conflict with the scientific discoveries of man. In this their blind zeal for the letter of the Bible, they have not so much as learned if in God's Word, yea, in all His revelation, there be any Holy Spirit at all. How has infidelity, and an unhealthy, because unspiritual rationalism, grown out of this denial of the spiritual contents of the Word of God, and the attempt to bring the sacred volume down to the level of a merely finite, literal record?

     To assert a Divine inspiration of Holy Scripture, and then to deny that its words have any deeper or other meaning than the same words used by human authors, is to ignore the difference, and that one of discrete degrees, between what is finite and what is infinite, what is natural and what is spiritual, what is human and what is Divine. And it is in this ignorance, but for which the Bible could never have been subjected to the trivial handling and the violent assaults of the criticism of our times, that we seem to hear the voice of many in Christendom saying, "We have not yet so much as heard, regarding the Scriptures, whether there be in them any Holy Spirit - any inspiration different from that of other teachings on moral and religious subjects!" Still less has the Church, up to this day, known of that spiritual use which the literal Word of God serves, as an actual bond of inter-communion and conjunction between man and heaven and the Lord there; and thus what streams of Divine Life, like the pure river of the Water of Life itself, proceeding out of the throne of God, flow down through the Word into the Church on earth, and through the Church revivify and actually sustain in life the whole human race!

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     A more than Pentecostal outpouring of the Spirit is now made known to us as actually taking place; not in one locality, nor in one moment only, but as ever continuing, being the perpetual operation of the Holy Spirit of the Lord, through the revealed Word, upon the minds and lives of all who obediently and devoutly read, hear, and do it. Of the Lord as thus present with man, thus verily come again, and dwelling in the midst of His Church in the spiritual truth of His Word, and of His Holy Spirit thus operating upon the Church by means of the Word reverently believed and taught, - of all this there are indeed those in these days who "have not so much as heard". As those disciples at Ephesus had been baptized unto John's baptism, but not yet into the Name of Christ Jesus, so has the Christian Church hitherto been baptized unto repentance, and unto salvation by the letter of the Scriptures, by the literal Gospel of our Lord literally understood. Thus they have been baptized into a belief in three Divine Persons, in the personal coming of Christ in the clouds of heaven, in the Resurrection of the material body, in the destruction of this earth at the last day, and a general Judgment. If their faith in these literal phases of revealed truth, - these earthly figures of the true spiritual things, - if this faith has been "unto repentance", then has this baptism fulfilled its Divine purposes. But as the baptism of our Lord's disciples succeeded to that of John the Baptist, so does the New Dispensation call men up now to a higher and more interior anointing and consecration. The baptism of the New Church is not a vain repetition of any baptism of the former Church or dispensation; nor is it the same rite performed under a different order of ministers; any more than Paul's baptism of the disciples into the Name of the Lord Jesus was a hollow repetition of the baptism of John the Baptist.

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     The baptism of the New Church differs from that of the former Church, as one dispensation differs from the preceding, - as the Word known to contain a spiritual sense differs from the Word known only in the letter. For the one Church is in conjunction with the literal sense, the other with the spiritual sense of the Word; and what is true of the Church at large must be true of its several offices and rites. The baptism of the New Church is a baptism indeed into repentance and regeneration; but a baptism into the Name of Jesus Christ, now acknowledged to be, because in the spiritual sense of the Scriptures seen to be, verily, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, in one Person, and not in three Persons! For the Divine in our Lord Jesus Christ is itself the Father who dwelt in Him; from whom He as the Word, and as the Son of God, came forth, and to Whom He returned; the Divine Human is the Son in Whom the Father dwells, as the soul in the body: and is itself the Holy Spirit, ever proceeding from the Son, in whom dwells the Father and giving light to all in the world. Unto this baptism into Name of Jesus as the One God and Lord of heaven and earth, - as at once Creator, Redeemer, and Regenerator, - to this baptism does the Church now call men to come. It is to this confession of the Lord at His Second Coming, and to the teaching of all those things which, beginning with Moses and all the prophets, the Lord Himself, at His Second Coming, now expounds unto the Church out of the spiritual sense of the Scriptures. This is the baptism, the teaching, to which the New Church, in the fulfillment of her Divine Commission, henceforth summons mankind. "And the Spirit and the Bride say, Come! And let him that heareth say, Come! And let him that thirsteth come; and whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely!"

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     In this calling men unto a new baptism, there is implied neither antagonism, nor any contempt, towards the dispensation of the past. The light falls on the venerable temple of the ages, but to shine through it, and glorify it. The first Christian Church, the dispensation of the letter of the Gospels, has, like the ministry of John, verily baptized many generations of men with the baptism of repentance; but this former dispensation has ever been awaiting its fulfillment, its glory, its crown, in the promised coming of the Lord, in the Advent of Him who shall "come forth from the opened heaven, whose name is called the 'Word of God', and who shall 'bear upon His vesture, and upon His thigh a name written, King of Kings and Lord of lords'".

     As to those who have previously received the sacrament of baptism in another church, we in the New Church do not regard it as conducive to the reception of higher spiritual truths for the following reasons: The inefficacy of such baptism is recognized in heaven, and that it effects the consociation of the person baptized with those of a corresponding phase of religion and its teachings!
CHRISTMAS EXPLAINED 2008

CHRISTMAS EXPLAINED       Editor       2008


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     Christmas has become such a public and commercial event that it is hard sometimes to recall the real meaning. But clear it is that whatever Jesus did and said on earth, even if His physical presence cannot be historically verified (what proof of His existence is there apart from the Gospels?), there is at least one thing we can measure His presence by: Christianity! There is no doubt that Christianity exists. In order for the Christian Church to be established, and to continue under such highly criticized circumstances (e.g. Three Popes at one time all excommunicating each other, the Inquisition when people were tortured to confess their failings, the Thirty Year War when Catholics and Protestants hacked each other to pieces and razed each others' cities, up to modern terrorists based on Christian outlook destroying innocent lives) there has to be something essential to keep it going.

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And that is: the basic Christian truths which stand out as opposite anything ever taught in any other world religion: love your enemies, turn the other cheek, work in the Lord's vineyard for the same wage, spread the Word, love the neighbor and God equally. "No one ever spoke like this man" said those who heard Him.

     We of course know also that the Lord came on earth to save the human race. That is Christian doctrine. "Without Him no mortal could have been saved."

     The Writings explain Christmas, that is the Lord's Advent, and exactly what happened, in minutest detail. It is the doctrine of the Glorification, the entire contents of Genesis in its spiritual meaning, the Lord's infancy meant by the story of Abram, and the Lord's first awareness of His own Divine nature meant by the change of the name Abram to Abraham, and Sarai to Sarah, with the extra H referring to the Lord Jehovah's name, i.e. breath. Yehowah or Yahweh is two breaths one after the other, of Love and Wisdom. Say the Tetragrammaton right to left, for yourself! The stories of Isaac, Jacob and Joseph continue the glorification, first as to Truth on the cross and afterwards also as to Good. (Arcana Coelestia 6716, 7014 et al.). Thus He became Jehovah also as to the human essence taken on in the world (Arcana Coelestia 1502, 1568, 7014).
This union between the Divine and the risen Human was between "life and life" (Arcana Coelestia 2021), but it was "the same union" as had existed before the Advent (Arcana Coelestia 4687, 5663, 6831). However, now the "divine Natural" was no longer "potential," bridged by the Angel of the Lord, but was "actual" (Divine Love and Wisdom 221).

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The resurrected Jesus is thus Divine Human, the Lord in whom is God as His soul made visible on the level of our own lives. The New church "will worship one visible God, in whom is the invisible God, as the soul is in the body" (True Christian Religion 787). We are allowed to picture the Lord before our eyes as a Divine "man in the air or on the sea opening his arms and inviting you into his embrace" (Ibid.).

     This was the outcome of the Advent, and thus the crux of what we celebrate at Christmas: the Lord coming on earth to take on human essence. But why? Why did He have to come?

     The answer takes us into the spiritual world, where all people are together after death. Only when all people of several eras, people who have known each other and were contemporaries on earth, come together after death can there be any judgment over right and wrong. All justice is then executed, finally. Those who have been wicked and got away with it, finally have their wickedness catch up with them, and all they did returns on their own heads. The good who have suffered, or who have been in charge but thwarted by the schemes of the wicked, witness the solution to their problems. Aha, that was what I thought. But there is no joy in seeing the wicked punished. No good person or angel rejoices in witnessing punishment. Rather, "angels would undergo hell for the salvation of one soul" (Arcana Coelestia 2077). That is how far from revenge angels and righteous people are. That is why we see after court cases when a criminal has been found out and condemned, the victims say that "Justice has been served." They are glad that justice has been done! They have pity for the criminal, just as angels pity devils. Their love is indeed such that they would give their place in heaven if one devil could thereby leave hell.

     Well, the world of spirits is where such justice is executed. But what if there is a huge influx of folks from earth, crowding the World of Spirits to such an extent that they overwhelm the justice system?

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That is what has happened several times in history: several last judgments, all happening in the World of Spirits (Arcana Coelestia 4333). The rule has always been that people who die, who are then called spirits, stay in the World of Spirits - between heaven and hell - just one to two generations of elapsing time, which is long for enough people to be "together" for a just judgment to take place. That means staying there between 20 to 30 years. Everyone is met by people who are further along in the process, who had arrived from the world within the last 10 to 20 years. They turn around and "minister to men, and through whom, as subjects, communication is effected with the hells and with the heavens" (Spiritual Experiences 5361). So there is a logical carry-over from one world to the next: you meet those who are like yourselves, and you go through the stages together with others. Well, that is the norm.

     However, when the system gets crowded by too many wicked spirits arriving from earth, because they practice hypocrisy they can control the masses of simple ignorant spirits. Such a "crowd there is enormous, and there are societies there just as in the heavens and in the hells" (Apocalypse Revealed 866:2 added emphasis). This was the situation before the Advent. Now the rule is that evil itself passes judgment by itself, evil itself accuses and blames (Conjugial Love 524, Brief Exposition 110). This takes "time" to show up. When however hypocrisy prevented such evils from being seen, the Judgment had to be postponed, and then such "imaginary heavens" were formed (Apocalypse Revealed 865, Last Judgment post. 105). "The evil were tolerated so long on the high places, and the good were detained so long under heaven" (Apocalypse Explained 397, 1094), until all things could be "fulfilled" on their own. For the Lord does not rush to judgment, lest the innocent are cast out together with the wicked!

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That is meant by the tares separated from the wheat, but only after the harvest (Apocalypse Explained 426:3)!

     Given this reason for a delay in judgment, we can see the situation before the Advent, and how the Lord in His providence permitted the Roman Empire to lord it around the whole Mediterranean sea, making in particular the Holy Land into a conquered state. That was how Herod, himself a military commander fighting under Pompey, had then conquered this land of his ancestry for himself. Being a descendent of Esau rather than Jacob, Herod was not exactly accepted by everyone! But after Herod's death, his son Archilaus ruled, but was deposed after only 10 years of rule, for incompetence. Rome then assumed direct rule by Prefects. This military rule of Rome fell exactly over Jerusalem and Judea because of representations. With close to martial law, Pontius Pilate became the fourth of such Prefects, and his tenure was from 26 to 36 a.d. It was during this time that Octavian, i.e. Caesar Augustus, who in Providence was selected as Emperor (cf. Spiritual Experiences 4418), with his absolute power saw to it that the Temple was built in Jerusalem (True Christian Religion 73, 851, Spiritual Experiences 6082). The stage was thus "set" in providence, so that there was a Temple built by Herod, with backing from Augustus. And it was under Pilate, apparently after all a just man, that the Crucifixion took place.

     Although historians and scholars tear to pieces the Gospel accounts, pointing out that the census was not in 4 b.c. but in 6 a.d., were thus "made-up stories" to fit the "message", nonetheless we know that the Gospels are written precisely so that there is a spiritual meaning to all the wording. While the Gospels are based on actual historical events, the stories were arranged according to a higher purpose: to tell the meaning of the Advent. Thus the shepherd near Bethlehem means those "who teach truth," who "instruct others" and "lead to good" and to the "good of life" (Apocalypse Explained 315:11, 376:33, 388:17, 419:17) in the "new state of the spiritual of the celestial" (Arcana Coelestia 4585, 4594).

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For the Lord had to be born in Bethlehem, on the border between Judah and Benjamin, "because He was born as king, and with Him truth was conjoined with good from birth. With the Lord alone was the natural eager for good and willed with longing for truth"(Apocalypse Explained 449). That is why the Lord was born there: the shepherds stood for the quality of teaching and leading, which is what a Pastor does. His Infinite Divine Love and Wisdom were joined in Him, in His soul, "from birth"! It resulted in a unique "eagerness" in the young lad Jesus, to study the Word.

     And so He did just that: "in childhood the Lord wished to take in no other cognitions than those of the Word, which, as stated, was laid open to Him from Jehovah Himself, His Father, with whom He was to be united and become one" (Arcana Coelestia 1461). This is the meaning of "For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord." It means "He fully glorified His Human, that is, united it to His Divine and so made His Human also Divine, [so] that He is Jehovah and God as to both" (Lord 34).
He is "Jehovah and God" as to both the soul and the body. Thus the "Lord became Jehovah when the Divine Essence completely united to the Human essence". This too is meant by "a Savior who is Christ the Lord" (Arcana Coelestia 2921).
And the angels saying "Fear Not" to the shepherds means "resuscitation, then adoration from the deepest humiliation" (Apocalypse Revealed 56). It refers to "holy fear" which befalls anyone who has an angel appear to him. This fear "supervenes" i.e. takes the place of your own life, for it is the "Lord's life that enter in place of one's own life." This is to "look from the Lord to the Lord, yet as if from oneself" (Ibid).

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When this happens, there is an "interior tremor", i.e. we tremble with fear. If it happened to us, we would not be able to help it. The hairs on our body would "stand on end," called "horripilation" (Ibid.). Cats do that when they hiss! We have a relic of it. When adrenalin rushes in, you have probably felt that prickling in your neck, and all over your body? Those were your body-hairs rising. It is also called "goose-bumps" since the hair follicle has a muscle that pulls it upright. When it does, it forms a goose-bump, but it represents holy fear. Although the Shepherds had goose bumps, it was really holy fear!

     The angel told them to "proclaim the good tidings" which is the use of the society Gabriel in the celestial heaven, i.e. those who had lived in the Most Ancient Church, who awaited the Advent which the Lord had begun at the time of Noah's Flood. For at that time, the Lord prepared to make His Advent "right after the Flood, because there was a prophecy of it" namely that the "head of the serpent" would be crushed by the "seed of the woman" (Arcana Coelestia 2523). The Celestial Angels from the Most Ancient Church had expected this moment for a long time, and so they loved to "proclaim the tidings" of the Lord's Advent! They now told the shepherds to do the same. And they did: "And the shepherds made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds" (Luke 2:17, 18). Thus they "declared the good tidings," tidings being a word derived from evangelize, and it means "the Lord's Kingdom at that time" (Apocalypse Revealed 478).

     The Lord was laid in a manger, because this means "the doctrine of truth from the Word, because horses signify the understanding of the Word" (Apocalypse Explained 706:12, De Verbo 7). So make sure your Crib or Representation has some horses there too!

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And the Inn means a place of instruction, or spiritual nourishment, and no place in it means "falsities" which had "adulterated and perverted the Word" at that time. And Swaddling clothes means the first truths of innocence, or truths of "divine love", while the naked infant means a deprivation of truth. This was a "sign" to the shepherds, foretold by the angels, meaning an "attestation that they might believe that the Savior of the world was born" (Ibid.).

     Likewise, the wise men and the star have meaning. The star that was seen means "the knowledge of heaven" or just "concepts" (De Verbo 7), especially of the Lord. Such concepts were still known in the "east", i.e. peoples in Syria and Arabia (Arcana Coelestia 3762, 5223, Coronis 41), where they were preserved since the time of the Ancient Church, when the Science of Sciences had prevailed. This science was the "knowledge of correspondences," i.e. what each object in creation meant spiritually speaking. Thus the wise men from the east who came to see the Lord when He was born "had a knowledge of correspondences which remained with many eastern people even down to the time of the Lord's advent. That is why a star went before them"(De Verbo 7).

     Further: "The star appeared to those from the east because the Lord is the east; and because they had knowledge respecting the Lord's coming from representatives that were with them, the star appeared and went before them, first to Jerusalem, which represented the church itself in respect to doctrine and in respect to the word, and from there to the place where the infant Lord lay. Moreover, a 'star' signifies the knowledge of good and truth, and in the highest sense the knowledge respecting the Lord" (Apocalypse Explained 422:20).

     Thus "heavenly knowledge" led "those who were wise" i.e. who had the knowledge of correspondences, to Jerusalem, which means most generally the Church.

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When they reached Jerusalem, however, that Church was inactive, and when Herod, whom we can take to mean "the quality of the church at that time as being contrary to the Divine, and opposed to all the goods and truths of heaven and of the church" (Apocalypse Explained 654:19) - tried to usurp their purpose, then the star reappeared and led them to Bethlehem instead. That was the original target. "And when they saw the star they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy." The insight we get from the wording here is that the wise men were a bit troubled by their meeting with Herod, and when they again saw that star as a token of heaven's light, the joy literally overwhelmed them. Imagine their joy. Wow. It was like a rescue in the nick of time. The knowledge of heaven led them right up to where the Lord was at that time.

     The Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh,* being the three most costly and treasured substances of that time, means celestial, spiritual and natural good, in the order of heaven. From these "three kinds of good ...everything of worship originates" (De Verbo 7). And the Wise men "worshipped the Lord" as part of the story: "They fell down and worshipped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense and myrrh" (Matthew 2:11). All this happened in Bethlehem, where Benjamin had been born, and where David was King, and means literally "House of bread." It represents as was said "the spiritual of the celestial," the Lord's eagerness to learn truth.
     * Myrrh and frankincense have had spiritual significance since ancient times, even the seamen passing by Arabia can smell the strong fragrance that gives health and vigor." Both myrrh and frankincense grow as small trees or shrubs; they are of the botanical family Burseraceae. http://www.itmonline.org/arts/myrrh.htm

     There are many more parts of the well-known story, but suffice it to say that every single word of a story contains an entire network of truths. For "the Lord never acts except in fullness, and the Word in the sense of the Letter is in its fullness" (Sacred Scripture 53). Such is the nature of the actual words in the sense of the letter, that they are like "very general vessels, every single one of which contains so many and such vast heavenly Arcana that not even one ten-thousandth can possibly be brought to the surface" (Arcana Coelestia 937).

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There are thousands of such doctrines to be found in this story. No wonder it is ever new, every Christmas. For the Advent story is one of the clearest tales ever told, forever new. We now know that there is a meaning contained in every part of it. All of these truths are the ones the Lord found in the Old Testament and "willed to teach Himself" (Arcana Coelestia 1461). It may be that the Lord received actual schooling at the Nazareth Synagogue, for there was one there. But He mostly taught Himself, since His eagerness to learn also harbored "all knowledge prior to learning." "All truth resided with the Lord already" (Arcana Coelestia 1469). He already knew them from His omniscience! Still, He had to acquire their outward vessels. This learning process is found in the meaning of the end of the Christmas story in both Gospels that record it: "and the young child....came into the Land of Israel" (Matthew 2:21), "and the child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him" (Luke 2:40).
Communications 2008

Communications              2008


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To the editor,

     I am writing in response to Olaf Hauptmann's article on Men and Women in the Ministry (October New Church Life). Before dismissing the idea of there being any role for women in the spiritual leadership of the General church, or that the idea of women in a ministry is against the belief that the Writings are the Word of God, I think the following points should be considered:

1. The General church priesthood as it is now is entirely masculine - that's because it was formulated and is run by men.

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2. It performs a vital use in the spiritual life of the church by teaching truths that lead to the good of life.

3. The Writings tell us there are uses proper to men/husbands and uses proper to women/wives, which enables us to lead spiritually healthy and productive lives.

4. In the early church women were prevented from voting or being on church boards because it was believed that these uses were "forensic", and so it was inappropriate for them to speak in church. I assume this argument is no longer deemed valid since there are now women on boards?

5. The Lord created us men and women to complement each other and make a whole person when united in marriage. This is clearly visible in homes guided by New Church, or other good religious, principles.

6. The Writings tell us that good women have a special intuition and perception that enables then to nurture relationships in a uniquely feminine way. Many women are already performing feminine ministerial uses both in and outside their homes, but they are being done voluntarily and often unrecognized, although I see this is beginning to change.

7. We may continue to believe that ministries belong only to men, but, in so doing, we are neglecting the importance of the spiritual feminine uses and preventing the establishment of a uniquely feminine "heart" ministry to spiritually nurture its people and complement the masculine priesthood.

8. We need men and women working together in the spiritual leadership of the General church.

- Julie Conaron

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Book Review 2008

Book Review              2008


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REVIEW OF THE FIVE AGES(c)

BY THE REV.WILLIAM H. CLIFFORD

     Want to leave something out on your coffee table that will entice a complete stranger to pick it up and take a look at something New Church? I recommend:

THE FIVE AGES: Swedenborg's View of Spiritual History by Patrick L. Johnson (published by Swedenborg House of London, England, 2008: ISBN 978-0-85448-154-5).

     There are a number of reasons for my recommendation.

Appearances matter

     First, while we are not supposed to "judge a book by its cover," it is worth noting that the cover of this book is very attractive and draws the eye to its title. About 80% of the cover is white space, which makes the design and title command attention. The simplicity entices the curious to examine the book.
The subtitle: "Swedenborg's view of spiritual history" will also intrigue most readers.

     Second, the book has been beautifully type set. Quotations from the Writings are larger and darker than the commentary on them. There are also frequent illustrations to aid the reader in understanding the text.

     This book is the most attractive New Church book I have seen. It surpasses many books done by major publishers. So I would like to recognize the good work done by G. R. Smith (Cover Illustration and Frontispiece) Stephen McNeilly (Book Design)

Content matters

     Another reason for leaving this book out on the coffee table for your friends and acquaintances to peruse is that this book was written for both the person brought up in the church and for someone who is not familiar with the Writings.

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Patrick Johnson shows awareness of both how Swedenborg uses terms and how those same terms are understood in today's world.

     Swedenborg was obviously at home with the Latin word ecclesia, which it is normal to translate as church, but one feels at times that 'religion' or 'faith' would convey his meaning better. He certainly did not have an exclusive group of believers in mind. (p. 17)

     Mr. Johnson also makes the effort to explain some of the terms of the Writings in modern language and ideas:

     He uses 'celestial', 'spiritual' and 'natural' to identify three lives relating to love, wisdom and service, which could be termed emotional, intellectual and practical. They describe mental environments in which people are motivated either by affections, by beliefs, or by obedience to rules. Heaven is divided into three such levels and Swedenborg's church were primarily related to one or the other of those heavens. (p. 8)

     The proliferation of modern translations of the Writings has created a problem for New Church writers. It has become impossible to use any translation of the Writings without making some readers cringe. Since Mr. Johnson appears to be writing for those outside the church as well as those in the church, his choice of modern translations of the Writings is appropriate. Unfortunately, it may leave some readers familiar and comfortable with older translations a bit disturbed. For readers accustomed to the older translations, it is helpful to focus attention on the ideas being talked about, rather than on the words being used. While this is extra work and may distract the reader from simply reading the book, it will help to minimize the reader's discomfort with some word choices; and will actually increase the understanding of what the author is trying to convey.

     What is The Five Ages about? We get an insight as to the origin and purpose of the book from its dedication: To my father the Rev Philip H Johnson B.A. B.Sc. whose booklet Revelation Through the Ages first launched my interest in the subject.

     Patrick Johnson has expanded his father's work. His book has extensive quotations from the Writings showing us what they have to say about the Five Ages and their relationship to the Five Churches: the Most Ancient Church, the Ancient Church, the Jewish Church, the Christian Church, and the New Church.

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     Mr. Johnson's commentary on these passages from the Writings accomplishes two basic tasks: To explain what these passages say in modern terms and ideas, and to relate them to historical periods.

Honesty matters

     There are two foundations of truth: the Word and nature (See SE 5709, 5710). The New Church needs scholars and thoughtful people who are willing to try and relate their understanding of the Writings (doctrine) to modern understandings of nature (science). Such attempts are fraught with difficulties, whether it is relating what we know about the planets in the solar system with Earths in the Universe or as Mr. Johnson tries here, relating what the Writings teach about the various ages with what we know from archeology and history. While the Divine revelation and nature may be in agreement, our understanding of both is limited and imperfect. Thus doctrine and science do not completely agree with each other.

     How do we deal with the conflicting truths from Doctrine and from Science? It is a challenge everyone attempting such correlations must deal with.
The most important quality in dealing with the conflicts between science and doctrine is honesty. We need to be honest about what each says. The object is to reconcile these two where possible, and to acknowledge where we can't. It is poor scholarship to force doctrine to fit science, or science to fit doctrine. Time brings changes to both our understanding of nature and our understanding of revelation. If we force one to fit the other, we will close our minds to such changes.

     As one reads The Five Ages one can see Mr. Johnson's struggles to reconcile the two foundations of truth - his understanding of the Writings with his understanding of history. He faces this challenge with honesty and openness. He appears to lean towards making doctrine fit history; but he is unwilling to say that the Writings are wrong or false. He often adds a couple of alternative ways of understanding what the Writings are teaching that allows us to retain our beliefs in both history and revelation.

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     Without a doubt, many (especially in the General Church) will be uncomfortable with some of the solutions Mr. Johnson proposes to various issues. But the value in the book is not its solutions, but its lessons on how to face conflicting sources of information honestly and openly. Mr. Johnson has excelled in this. It is not important that the reader agrees with Mr. Johnson, but that the reader thinks about these issues. Mr. Johnson's un-dogmatic style encourages such thought.

     One example of his approach can be found on p. 40 of his book: Personally I regard the references to wheat and dairy products as only being well intended guesses on Swedenborg's part. It is, however, possible that they might have in mind remnants of the most ancients living a 'Mesolithic' lifestyle, transitional between the Paleolithic and Neolithic, where wild grasses were being harvested.
And again on p 35: This passage rather contradicts those above. But we do have to remember that this church probably lasted for thousands of years and was spread over many lands, so that generalizations may be misleading. Maybe this refers to a late time period of that church's history. Alternatively we may assume that the worship carried on these tents was of an intimate family nature, which Swedenborg would not categorize as the 'external worship he excludes in Arcana Coelestia �4493.

Conclusion

     I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the spiritual history of the human race, especially if they are interested on how the doctrines relate to history. Even if you are not interested in the relationship of the spiritual history of the church to natural history, Mr. Johnson's collection of passages on this subject, and his comments are most useful to any student of the Writings.

End Note:

     There is one error that I found, which I hope will be corrected in any future reprints of this wonderful book. On p. 49 Mr. Johnson says: In Arcana Coelestia 4791 he also erroneously suggests that the folds of the lungs are to articulate words and musical tone. The reference to Arcana Coelestia 4791 should read Arcana Coelestia 6326.

(c) 2008 William H. Clifford

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DIRECTORY GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM 2008-2009 2008

DIRECTORY GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM 2008-2009              2008


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Officials
Bishop: Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline
Assistant Bishop: Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith
Secretary: Mrs. Alaine F. York

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM-
(A Corporation of Pennsylvania)
Officers of the Corporation

President: Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline
Vice President: Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith
Secretary: Nancy L. Heilman, Esq
Treasurer/Chief Administrative Officer: Mr. David O. Frazier

BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE CORPORATION

Louisa Allais, Dean R. Boyce, Hugh R. Brown, Shaun N. Buss, Michael S. Cole, Jonathan P. Cranch, James B. de Maine, Charles H. Ebert, Mark O. Elder, Charlotte Gyllenhaal, Nancy L. Heilman, Robert L. Heinrichs, Steven D. Hendricks, Jr., Bradley H. Johns, Fay S. Lindrooth, Alexander H. Lindsay, Jr., Dain Kistner, Stephen A. McDonald, Nathan J. Morley, Brooke Glenn Mullin, Ronald K. Nelson, Timothy V. O'Connor, Bryon Odhner, Linda S. Odhner, Jason V. Reuter, Matthew A. Smith, Karen Day Stoeller, Arthur E. Uber, III, and John H. Wyncoll

Ex-officio Members:      Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline
                    Rt. Rev. Brian W. Keith
                    Mr. David O. Frazier

     SOCIETIES AND CIRCLES

Society                     Pastor or Minister

Alexandra, Johannesburg Rev. Langalibalele A. Xaba South Africa
Atlanta, Georgia           Rev. Patrick A. Rose
Baltimore, Maryland      Rev. Michael E. Ferrell
Bath, Maine           Rev. George F. Dole
Boulder, Colorado      Rev. David C. Roth
(New Church of Boulder Valley)

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Boston, Massachusetts      Rev. Matthew L. Genzlinger
Boynton Beach, Florida      Rev. Kenneth J. Alden
Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania Rev. Jeremy F. Simons
                    Rev. Glenn M. Frazier, Assistant to the Pastor
                    Rev. Donald L. Rose, Assistant to the Pastor
                    Rev. John L. Odhner, Assistant to the Pastor
Buccleuch, Johannesburg Rev. Christopher D. Bown South Africa
Campo Gorande, Brazil      Rev. Andrew J. Heilman, Visiting Pastor
Chicago, Illinois      Rev. Robert H. P. Cole, Visiting Pastor
Cincinnati, Ohio           Rev. J. Clark Echols
Clermont, Durban           Rev. Jerome Dube South Africa
Colchester, England      Rev. Olaf Hauptmann
Dawson Creek, B. C., Canada Rev. Michael D. Gladish
Detroit, Michigan      Rev. Derek P. Elphick (Oak Arbor Church)
                    Rev. Nathan D. Gladish, Assistant Pastor
Diepkloof, Soweto      Rev. Jacob M. Maseko South Africa
Freeport, Pennsylvania      Rev. Frederick M. Chapin
Glenview, Illinois      Rev. Peter M. Buss, Jr.
                    Rev. Mark D. Pendleton, Assistant Pastor
Hurstville, Australia
Impaphala, South Africa Rev. B. Alfred Mbatha
Ivyland, Pennsylvania      Rev. Thomas H. Rose
Kempton, Pennsylvania      Rev. Lawson M. Smith
                    Rev. Andrew J. Heilman, Assistant Pastor
                    Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen, Associate Pastor
Kitchener, Ontario, Canada Rev. Bradley D. Heinrichs (Carmel Church)
                    Candidate Nathan Cole, Assistant to the Pastor
Kwa Mashu, Durban      Rev. Bongani Edward Nzimande South Africa
La Crescenta, California Rev. J. Clark Echols, Visiting Pastor (Los Angeles) London, England           Rev. Alan Lewin (Michael Church)
Phoenix, Arizona           Rev. Daniel W. Goodenough, Regional Pastor
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Rev. R. Amos Glenn
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil      Rev. Andrew J. Heilman, Visiting Pastor
                    Rev. Mauro S. de Padua, Assistant to Visiting Pastor
San Diego, California      Rev. C. Mark Perry
Stockholm, Sweden      Rev. Goran R. Appelgren
Toronto, Ontario, Canada Rev. James P. Cooper (Olivet Church)
Tucson, Arizona           Rev. Glenn G. Alden
Washington, D. C.      Rev. Garry B. Walsh
                    Rev. Michael E. Ferrell, Assistant to the Pastor
Westville, Durban      Rev. Erik J. Buss
South Africa

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Circle                Visiting and/or Resident Pastor or Minister

Albuquerque, New Mexico     Rev. Daniel W. Goodenough, Regional Pastor
Americus, Georgia      W. Harold Eubanks
Auckland, New Zealand      Rev. Richard Keyworth
Balfour, South Africa     Rev. N. Reuben Tshabalala
Cape Town, South Africa     Rev. Christopher D. Bown
Charlotte, North Carolina Rev. Prescott A. Rogers
Connecticut           Rev. Andrew M. T. Dibb
Copenhagen, Denmark      Rev. Ragnar Boyesen
Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas Rev. Patrick A. Rose
Erie, Pennsylvania      Rev. Louis D. Synnestvedt
The Hague, Netherlands      Rev. Frederick C. Elphick
Hambrook, South Africa      Rev. B. Edward Nzimande
Harleysville, Pennsylvania Rev. George D. McCurdy
Jonkoping, Sweden      Rev. Ragnar Boyesen
Lake Helen, Florida      Rev. George D. McCurdy
Madina, Ghana           Rev. S. Kwasi Darkwah
New York City/           Rev. Grant H. Odhner
Northern New Jersey
North Ohio           Rev. Louis D. Synnestvedt
Palo Alto, California      Rev. C. Mark Perry, Visiting Pastor
Perth, Australia
Philadelphia New Church     Rev. Yong J. Jin
(Korean)
St. Paul/Minneapolis,     Rev. Frank S. Rose, Visiting Pastor
Minnesota (Twin Cities)
Seattle, Washington      Rev. Ethan D. McCardell
Surrey, England           Rev. Alan Lewin
Tema, Ghana           Rev. S. Kwasi Darkwah

Note: In addition to societies and circles, there are groups of General Church members in various geographical areas that receive occasional visits from a priest. This information is published in New Church Life periodically in a listing of General Church Contacts for Worship and Classes (most recently published in October, 2008).

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ORDINATIONS 2008

ORDINATIONS              2008


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     Announcements
     Villanueva, Johnny Antonio Zavalaga-At Fatima, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, October 28, 2008, into the first degree, Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline officiating.
CORRECTION 2008

CORRECTION              2008

     MARRIAGE October issue: Heiter-McQueen, Matthew Isaac Heiter and Sheila Janneke McQueen-At Kempton, PA, August 2, 2008, Rev. Lawson M. Smith officiating.

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