Here we are in the 21st century. We know that the universe is an enormous place. We're just bursting with scientific knowledge. But how are we doing with the even-bigger ideas? Our human societies seem to be erasing them, or ignoring them - maybe we think we're too busy for them.

Here on the New Christian Bible Study site, we'll buck the trend. We want to explore the big ideas that give us a framework for living better lives. Here's a start on a list of big ideas from a New Christian perspective. For each idea, there is a footnote that lists some references in Swedenborg's theological works:

1. God exists. Just one God, who created and sustains the entire universe in all its dimensions, spiritual and physical. ¹

2. God's essence is love itself. It's the force that drives everything. ²

3. God's essence comes into being, that is, it exists, in and through creation. ³

4. There are levels, or degrees, of creation - ranging from spiritual ones that we can't detect with our physical senses or sensors, to the level of the physical universe where most of our awareness is when we're alive here. ⁴

5. The created universe emanates from God, and it's sustained by God, but in an important way it is separate from God. He wants it to be separate, so that freedom can exist. ⁵

6. God operates from love through wisdom - willing good things, and understanding how to bring them about. ⁶

7. The physical level of creation exists to provide human beings with an opportunity to choose in freedom, with rationality, whether or not to acknowledge and cooperate with God. ⁷

8. God provides all people everywhere, regardless of their religion, the freedom to choose to live a life of love to God and to the neighbor. ⁸

9. God loves everyone. He knows that true happiness only comes when we're unselfish; when we're truly motivated by a love of the Lord which is grounded out in a love of the neighbor. He seeks to lead everyone, but will not force us to follow against our will. ⁹

10. God doesn't judge us. He tells us what's good, and what's evil, and flows into our minds to lead us towards good. However, we're free to reject his leading, and instead opt to love ourselves most. Day by day, we create habits of generosity or of selfishness, and live out a life in accordance with those habits. Those habits become the real "us", our ruling love. ¹⁰

11. Our physical bodies die eventually, but the spiritual part of our minds keeps going. It's been operating on a spiritual plane already, but our awareness shifts - so that we become fully aware of spiritual reality. ¹¹

Фусноте:

479. Man after death is his own love or his own will. This has been proved to me by manifold experience. The entire heaven is distinguished into societies in accordance with differences of good of love; and every spirit who is taken up into heaven and becomes an angel is taken to the society where his love is; and when he comes there he is, as it were, at home, and in the house where he was born; this the angel perceives, and is associated with those there who are like himself. When he goes away to another place he feels constantly a kind of resistance, and a longing to return to his like, thus to his ruling love. Thus are associations brought about in heaven. It is the same in hell, where all are associated in accordance with loves that are the opposites of heavenly loves. It has been shown above (41-50, 200-212) that both heaven and hell are composed of societies, and that they are all distinguished in accordance with differences of love.

[2] That man after death is his own love might also be confirmed from the fact that whatever things do not make one with his ruling love are then separated and, as it were, taken away from him. From one who is good all discordant or inharmonious things are separated and, as it were, taken away, and he is thus let into his own love. It is the same with an evil spirit, with the difference that from the evil, truths are taken away, and from the good, falsities are taken away, and this goes on until each becomes his own love. This is effected when the man-spirit is brought into the third state, which will be described in following sections. When this has been done he turns his face constantly to his own love, and this he has continually before his eyes, in whatever direction he turns (see above, 123-124).

[3] All spirits, provided they are kept in their ruling love, can be led wherever one pleases, and are incapable of resistance, however they may know that this is being done, and however much they may think that they will resist. They have often been permitted to try whether they could do anything contrary to that love, but in vain. Their love is like a bond or a rope tied around them, by which they may be led and from which they cannot loose themselves. It is the same with men in the world who are also led by their love, or are led by others by means of their love; but this is more the case when they have become spirits, because they are not then permitted to make a display of any other love, or to counterfeit what is not their own.

[4] That the spirit of man is his ruling love is clearly exhibited in all fellowship in the other life, for so far as anyone is acting or speaking in accordance with the love of another, to the same extent is the other plainly present, with full, joyous, and lively countenance; but when one is speaking or acting contrary to another's love, to that extent the other's countenance begins to be changed, to be obscured and undiscernible, until at length he wholly disappears as if he had not been there. I have often wondered how this could be, for nothing of the kind can occur in the world; but I have been told that it is the same with the spirit in man, which, when it turns itself away from another, ceases to be within his view.

[5] That a spirit is his own ruling love is also clear from the fact that every spirit seizes and appropriates all things that are in harmony with his love, and rejects and repudiates all that are not. Everyone's love is like a spongy or porous wood, which imbibes such fluids as promote its growth, and repels others. It is also like animals of every kind, which know their proper food and seek the things that agree with their nature, and avoid those that disagree; for every love wishes to be nourished on what belongs to it, an evil love by falsities and a good love by truths. I have sometimes been permitted to see certain simple good spirits desiring to instruct the evil in truths and goods; but when the instruction was offered them they fled far away, and when they came to their own they seized with great pleasure upon the falsities that were in agreement with their love. I have also seen good spirits talking together about truths, and the good who were present listened eagerly to the conversation, but the evil who were present paid no attention to it, as if they did not hear it. In the world of spirits ways are seen, some leading to heaven, some to hell, and each to some particular society. Good spirits go only in the ways that lead to heaven, and to the society there that is in the good of their love, and do not see the ways that lead elsewhere; while evil spirits go only in the ways that lead to hell, and to the society there that is in the evil of their love; they do not see the ways that lead elsewhere; or, if they see them, have no wish to enter them. In the spiritual world these ways are real appearances, which correspond to truths or falsities; and this is why ways have this signification in the Word. ¹ By these evidences from experience, the things previously said from reason have been confirmed, namely, that every man after death is his own love and his own will. It is said one's own will because everyone's will is his love.

Фусноте:

10422. 'They have suddenly departed from the way which I have commanded them' means that they have removed themselves from Divine Truth. This is clear from the meaning of 'departing from the way' as removing themselves from truth. 'Departing' means removing themselves, for those whose interest lies in external things separated from what is internal remove themselves; and 'the way' means truth, dealt with below. Divine Truth is what they remove themselves from because, as it says, it is the way which Jehovah has commanded them that they have departed from.

[2] The meaning of 'the way' as truth has its origin in things that appear in the spiritual world. There also ways and paths appear, and in the cities streets and lanes; and spirits do not take any except the ones leading to those whom love draws them into association with. This explains why spirits' characters as regards truth may be recognized from the way or road they go along; for all truth leads to its own love, that being called truth which lends support to what is loved. It also explains why in the everyday language people use 'the way to go' denotes that which is true; for human language derives this usage, as it does very many others, from the spiritual world.

[3] This then accounts for the meaning in the Word of 'way', 'path', 'pathway', 'track', 'street', and 'lane' as truths, and in the contrary sense falsities, as is evident from the following places: In Jeremiah,

Stand close to the ways ¹ and look; ask concerning the ways of old ² , Which way is the best? Jeremiah 6:16.

In the same prophet,

Make good your ways and your works; do not trust in lying words ³ . Jeremiah 7:3-5.

In the same prophet,

Do not learn the way of the nations ⁴ . Jeremiah 10:2.

In the same prophet,

I will give to each according to his ways, according to the fruit of his works. Jeremiah 17:10.

In the same prophet,

They have caused them to stumble in their ways, in the pathways of old ² , in order that they go away [into] by-paths and not the highway. Jeremiah 18:15.

In the same prophet,

I will give them one heart and one way. Jeremiah 32:39.

In David,

Make Your ways known to me, O Jehovah, teach me Your paths; lead me in Your truth. Psalms 25:4-5.

In the Book of Judges,

In the days of Jael the ways ceased ⁵ . And those going along the paths went along twisting ways. Judges 5:6.

In Isaiah,

Depart from the way, cause [yourselves] to turn aside from the path. Let your ears hear the word from behind you, This is the way; go in it. Isaiah 30:11, 21.

In the same prophet,

The paths have been devastated, the wayfarer has ceased. Isaiah 33:8.

In the same prophet,

There will also be a path there and a way, which will be called the way of holiness. The unclean one will not pass through it; but it will be for them. [The one] walking in the way and fools will not go astray. Isaiah 35:8.

[4] In the same prophet,

The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare the way of Jehovah; make level in the lonely place a path for our God. With whom did He deliberate, that He might teach Him the way of judgement, and show Him the way of intelligence? Isaiah 40:3, 14.

In the same prophet,

... to say to those who are in darkness, Reveal yourselves. They will feed along the ways. I will set all My mountains as a way; My paths will be raised up. Isaiah 49:9, 11.

In the same prophet,

The way of peace they have not known, and there is no judgement in their tracks. They have perverted their paths for themselves. He who treads that [way] will not know peace. Isaiah 59:8.

In the same prophet,

Prepare the way for the people. Level out, level out the path. Say to the daughter of Zion, Behold, your salvation comes. Isaiah 62:10-11.

In the same prophet,

I have made ⁶ a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters. I will place a way in the wilderness. Isaiah 43:16, 19.

In Moses,

Cursed is the one who causes the blind to go astray in the way. Deuteronomy 27:18.

In Matthew,

Go to the ends of the ways, and whomever you find, summon to the wedding. Matthew 22:9.

In John,

Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. John 14:6.

In these places, and in very many others, 'the way' means truth and in the contrary sense falsity.

Фусноте: