438. I may add here that even while we are living in our bodies, each one of us is in a community with spirits as to our own spirits even though we are unaware of it. Good people are in angelic communities by means of [their spirits] and evil people are in hellish communities. Further, we come into those same communities when we die. People who are coming into the company of spirits after death are often told and shown this.

Actually, we are not visible as spirits in our [spiritual] communities while we are living in the world because we are thinking on the natural level. However, if our thinking is withdrawn from the body we are sometimes visible in our communities because we are then in the spirit. When we are visible, it is easy to tell us from the spirits who live there because we walk along deep in thought, silent, without looking at others, as though we did not see them; and the moment any spirit addresses us, we disappear.

121. Verse 10. Fear not the things which thou art to suffer, signifies that they should not grieve because such men persecute them. This is evident from the signification of "fear not," as being, in reference to those about to suffer persecutions, that they should not grieve in mind; for fear with these is also grief; and from the signification of "the things which thou art to suffer," namely, from those who are in the doctrine of all falsities, as being that such are about to persecute. The persecution of those who are in the spiritual affection of truth, by those who are in falsities, is now treated of. This can best be seen from those who are of this character in the world of spirits (of which world see in the work on Heaven and Hell 421-535), for there the quality of everyone in respect to his interiors, which are of thought and intention, is manifest; since everyone there is in himself, because he is a spirit, and the spirit is what thinks and intends.

All spirits there are either conjoined with the hells or conjoined with the heavens. Those who are conjoined with the hells, as soon as they perceive anyone to be in the spiritual affection of truth begin to burn with hatred, and strive to destroy him; they cannot endure the sight of him. Very many of them, if they only perceive for a moment the delight of the spiritual affection of truth, which is the delight itself of heaven, become as if insane, and nothing is then more delightful to them than to destroy that delight. From this it is evident that all the hells are opposed to the spiritual affection of truth, and that all the heavens are in it. It would be similar among men on the earths if they were in the perception in which spirits are; but as they are not in such perception, and therefore do not know who are in spiritual affection, they remain quiet and act in a friendly manner towards each other, in accordance with the delights of the world. But this disposition displays itself in the churches, among those who are zealous in religious matters. It also becomes evident with those who are in that spiritual affection, in this way, that falsities break in upon their thoughts, endeavoring to extinguish their longing and the delight thence; these falsities that break in upon their thoughts are from hell; for everything that a man thinks is either from hell or from heaven (as was said above, n. 120.