4448. Shechem my son. That this signifies the truth thence derived, is evident from the representation of Shechem, as being interior truth (see n. 4430), thus the truth thence derived, namely, from the good which is “Hamor” (n. 4447); for all the truth of the church is from its good, and from no other source does this truth ever come forth. This truth, here represented by Shechem, is called interior truth, and in its essence is nothing else than the good of charity. For the Most Ancient Church, being celestial, was in the good of love to the Lord, and thence in the perception of all truth, because the men of that church were almost like angels, and had communication with them, from which came their perception, and therefore they never reasoned about any truth of faith, but said “It is so,” because they perceived it from heaven, insomuch that they were not willing even to mention faith, but in its stead charity (see n. 202, 337, 2715, 2718, 3246), and this is the reason why by “interior truth” is here meant the good of charity. That there were remains of the church in question with Hamor the Hivite and his son Shechem, was shown just above (n. 4447).

[2] The case was different with the Ancient Church which was spiritual, for this church was not in love to the Lord, as was the Most Ancient Church, but was in charity toward the neighbor; and they could not attain to charity except through the truth of faith, of which they had no perception, like the most ancient people, and therefore they then began to make an investigation about truth to see whether it is so. (As to the difference between the celestial who had perception, and the spiritual who have it not, see n. 2088, 2669, 2708, 2715, 3235, 3240, 3246, 3887)

3887. In heaven or the Grand Man there are two kingdoms, one of which is called Celestial, and the other Spiritual. The celestial kingdom consists of angels who are called celestial, and these are they who have been in love to the Lord, and thence in all wisdom; for they are in the Lord, and thereby they are pre-eminently in a state of peace and innocence. They appear to others like little children; for a state of peace and innocence presents this appearance. Everything there is as it were alive before them, for whatever comes immediately from the Lord is alive. Such is the Celestial Kingdom. The other kingdom is called Spiritual. It consists of angels who are called spiritual, and these are they who have been in the good of charity toward the neighbor. They make the delight of their life to consist in the fact that they can do good to others without recompense; to them it is sufficient recompense to be allowed to do good to others. The more they will and desire this, in so much the greater intelligence and happiness are they; for in the other life everyone is gifted with intelligence and happiness by the Lord, in accordance with the use he performs from the affection of the will. Such is the Spiritual Kingdom.

[2] They who are in the Lord’s celestial kingdom all belong to the province of the heart; and they who are in the spiritual kingdom all belong to the province of the lungs. The influx from the celestial kingdom into the spiritual kingdom is like that of the heart into the lungs; as also is the influx of all things of the heart into those of the lungs; for by means of the blood vessels the heart rules in the whole of the body and in all its parts; and the lungs in all its parts by the respiration. Hence there is everywhere in the body as it were an influx of the heart into the lungs; but according to the forms there; and according to the states. From this arises all the sensation as well as all the action that is proper to the body, as may be seen from the case of foetuses and newborn infants, which cannot have any bodily sensation, nor any voluntary action, until their lungs have been opened, and thus an influx established of the one into the other. The case is similar in the spiritual world, but with the difference that there are not there bodily and natural things, but celestial and spiritual ones, which are the good of love and the truth of faith. Hence the cardiac motions with those in the spiritual world are according to the states of love, and the respiratory motions are according to the states of faith; the influx of the one into the other causes in them spiritual sensation and spiritual action. These things will necessarily appear to man as paradoxical, from his having no other idea of the good of love and the truth of faith than that they are certain abstract things without the power of effecting anything, when yet the contrary is true, namely, that all perception and sensation, and all energy and action, even in man on earth, are from the good of love and the truth of faith.