414. People in heaven are continually progressing toward the springtime of life. The more thousands of years they live, the more pleasant and happy is their springtime. This continues forever, increasing according to the growth and level of their love, thoughtfulness, and faith.

As the years pass, elderly women who have died of old age - women who have lived in faith in the Lord, thoughtfulness toward their neighbor, and in contented marriage love with their husbands - come more and more into the flower of growing youth and into a beauty that surpasses any notion of beauty accessible to our sight. Their goodness and thoughtfulness is what gives them their form and gives them its own likeness, making the pleasure and beauty of thoughtfulness radiate from every least corner of their faces so that they become actual forms of thoughtfulness. Some people have seen them and have been stunned. The form of thoughtfulness that is open to view in heaven is like this because it is thoughtfulness itself that both gives and is given visible form. In fact, it does this in such a way that the whole angel, especially her face, is virtually thoughtfulness itself appearing to open perception. When people look at this form, its beauty is unutterable, affecting the very inmost life of the mind with thoughtfulness. In a word, to grow old in heaven is to grow young. People who have lived in love for the Lord and in thoughtfulness toward their neighbor are forms like this, or beauties like this, in the other life. All angels are forms like this, in infinite variety. This is what makes heaven.

318. Non-Christians, or People outside the Church, in Heaven

The general opinion is that people who have been born outside the church, the people called "the nations" or "non-Christians," cannot be saved because they do not have the Word and therefore do not know the Lord; and without the Lord there is no salvation. They could know, however, that these people too are saved simply from the fact that the Lord's mercy is universal, that is, it is extended to all individuals. Non-Christians are born just as human as people within the church, who are in fact few by comparison. It is not their fault that they do not know the Lord. So anyone who thinks from any enlightened reason at all can see that no one is born for hell. The Lord is actually love itself, and his love is an intent to save everyone. So he provides that everyone shall have some religion, an acknowledgment of the Divine Being through that religion, and an inner life. That is, living according to one's religious principles is an inner life, for then we focus on the Divine; and to the extent that we do focus on the Divine, we do not focus on the world but move away from the world and therefore from a worldly life, which is an outward life. ¹

Footnotes:

2863. 'Behold, Milkah, she also has borne sons, to Nahor your brother' means those outside the Church who dwell in a brotherly relationship by virtue of good. This too becomes clear from what has been stated already about Milkah and Nahor in 1363, 1369, 1370. For Terah had three sons, Abram, Nahor, and Haran, who worshipped other gods, see 1356; Milkah was Haran's daughter who became Nahor's wife, 1369; and Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans 'in the presence of Terah', 1365-1368. These places show what 'Milkah and Nahor' means, namely that 'Milkah' means truth as it existed among those gentiles, and Nahor good. The existence of truths among these nations becomes clear from many considerations, for it is well known that wisdom and intelligence existed with them in former times, such as their acknowledgement of one God, and their writing about Him in a sacred fashion. They also acknowledged the immortality of the soul and a life after death, as well as happiness for the good and misery for the evil.

[2] In addition to this they had the ten commandments for their law, that is to say, the commandments that they should worship God, honour parents, and not murder, steal, commit adultery, or covet what belonged to others. Nor were they satisfied to be such as are interested only in external things, but were interested in internal. It is similar at the present day, in that the more decent of the gentiles from all parts of the world sometimes talk more fittingly about such matters than Christians do. Nor do they merely talk about them but also live according to them.

[3] These and many other truths exist with gentiles, and these join themselves to the good which comes to them from the Lord. From these conjunctions of truths and good, gentiles are in a condition to receive still more truths, for one truth acknowledges another. Truths link together without difficulty as they are all interconnected and related to one another. For this reason people who have been endowed with good in the world accept the truths of faith without difficulty in the next life. Falsities with them do not combine with that good but merely attach themselves to it, yet in such a way that they can be separated from it. Things that are combined remain, whereas those that merely attach themselves are separated. They are separated at the same time as people come to know and take in truths of faith. Every truth of faith removes and separates falsity till at length the individual loathes it and flees from it. From this it is now evident who are meant by the sons whom Milkah bore to Nahor, Abraham's brother, namely those outside the Church who dwell in a brotherly relationship by virtue of good.